Alanna groaned internally as the damages on her body faded into a dull ache then vanished completely within a few moments of her spell taking hold. She was grateful, and not for the first time, for the healing spells. They had been quite the boon on this little excursion to the otherworlds. She was also grateful that the spell was intuitive with regards to when and what to heal. She had tried it without taking damage but nothing happened. Yet when she needed it in her first true combat of this life it answered her call. Since that first time she came to rely on it for serious issues. Fortunately for her she was not a masochist and preferred to avoid any and all damage. So, learning how to fight better was a priority rather then purely relying on her ability to heal herself.
The smilodon felt her mana reserves tic down once again as the upkeep for the growth spell took its due. She picked her body up slowly letting the last bit of pain and fatigue fall away along with the regeneration that mended her. She dismissed the large pitcher plant and walked over to where she dropped her pack and picked it up gently with her large teeth and carried it over to where her spear had dropped with the dispersion of the mist spearman. It took some work bust she finally lifted the spear and straps with her large maw. She did not know what the next challenge would be but she thought it would be better to face it in this stronger form if there were several combatants.
Their was also a large concern about using her mana to freely. She had already used at least a third of her reserves based on the energy she fed the growth plant to create the greater version of it and the healing her body required. She knew she had at least 4 more trials and was unsure as to what they would be. Thus far they had been similar to what she was told but not exact. The numbers and creatures were more intense than what she was told. She was afraid that this place had increased its danger based on who she had been in the past. Yet she could be wrong and just be far weaker than she thought. Either scenario bothered her. She knew she was no where near the best warrior to have ever set foot here. Yet she also knew a few had been actual humans passing through the ancient trials. She feared what it would mean if normal humans were more powerful than she given the awakening of herself to her ancient blood and the blessing of the land.
She knew several were far better with weapons and warfare than she and perhaps that is why this mist prevents the magical energies from regenerating from those who are not pure warriors. They have spells to shore up their weaknesses yet cannot rely on them for everything. When she considered that the fallen mist warriors infused their essence into their comrades upon death to make them stronger, it seemed rather obvious that this was a challenge meant for the martial paths. She had to figure out if she could use her iron bark skin in cat form if she practiced more, but thus far it had not held. She hoped that if she gained another form it would work better. However, it slowed her and she had trained extensively without it. It sure was helpful when she knew little about fighting, but she was not sure about its usefulness now. She definitely needed more training.
The gate and its curtain wall disappeared into the mists as the large cat padded through it. Alanna could see the gate ahead but there was only one spectral being in front of the next closed gate. It was far larger than the other spectral warriors she faced and on its head there was a diadem which stood out as it was made from a thin copper colored metal and had the engravings of two wrens facing one another holding a small wreath at the center. The being sat upon a throne of carved wood and looked down upon a massive sliding puzzle with a confused expression upon his face.
Alanna approached warily but the man never moved from the throne and paid the newcomer no heed. She took a look at the puzzle which was laid out in a 3x3 grid and 8 unique marble slabs inset into a well carved wooden frame. Alanna could see that this picture had the face and body of a man that was drinking out of a large goblet. She dropped her bag and spear and moved cautiously around to flank the man who did not bother moving or even looking at her. She assumed that she would have to solve the rather simple puzzle which would trigger something else likely that this ancient king would attack her given that everything else was a combat test. So, she decided that she would just kill the creature first. It never even considered her presence and just stared at the puzzle in confusion.
With silent steps Alanna moved into position then pounced upon the spectral king and bit down upon his unprotected head. Alanna felt the body support her somewhat and her teeth and claws tore into the being much like it had with the other beings. However, the damage did not seem to bother the man and after a few moments anything she did was immediately undone. She felt disappointment and confusion as the being never even paid attention to her. He stared at the puzzle as though it were the most confounding thing ever seen.
This made things more confusing for the druidess as the puzzle was so basic she could already see how to shift the tiles to complete it. She wondered if there was a limited amount of movements or something else that prevented this ancient king from completing it. Still her claws did not seem to work on the being. She looked to her pack where the spear was sitting wondering if she should switch to her natural form or try to complete this trial in her wild shape. She could switch between the forms but if she did it more than once in a twelve hour period she felt something inside her become fatigued. It felt like a muscle that became overworked except it was in the center of her head and caused migraines when overused. So, she had taken to just shifting once a day and assuming that was her limit. She came to this conclusion as no one else really knew about her personal version of shifting as every one of the many shapeshifting species she spoke with had strange variations to it and the rules about how and when they could shift were different. So, she felt the best way to approach her shifting was with a once day rule. When she found a safe place to stay for a while or was back home again she would revisit the idea of training it up or perhaps she would find some additional books and unlock upgrades to the skill from her mysterious benefactor that updated the fog screens.
That was something else that bothered the druidess as she had killed the scorpion formorians but had not seen any sort of experience notifications through that. Not as thought she thought it did much. "It was probably still in alpha testing." She thought with amusement as she inspected the still bored and confused monarch and looked back at the spear. She did not like this choice at all. She had no idea what the next trial would be but she could force herself to deal with the consequences of having to shift again. So, she grumbled about stupid quests even as her form shifted to her natural state complete with a hole in her leggings where the spear would have hit on her hip had she been in this form. "Awwww come on, really?" Alanna groaned before walking over and picking up her spear.
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The king did not seem to care when the transformed druidess turned into a beautiful woman and started cursing and complaining then picked up a rather deadly looking bone spear handled spear. It just started down at the conundrum this test that had been created this time. Usually it would just appear at the fourth gate and kill the warrior that challenged the trials of the mists, or it would be killed only to respawn in mist after they passed. It was not a bad life for a forgotten ruler. He could not remember who he was previously but the unlimited drink, food, and companions was lovely when he wasn't being forced to skewer the mortals that wandered in. Still the rewards for winning his battles was a night with the mistress and that was dangerous yet still fun and usually worth while. He had only been killed by her a few hundred times over the however long he had been here. Still this test was odd. Would he get to drink more if he solved it? He was unable to move the marble tiles though. He had tried several times to no avail. He glanced briefly at the cursing woman how was now aiming that spear at him and he wanted to roll his eyes. Like that would work on him. The heroes were getting worse over the past few centuries. Had they all forgotten the old ways? He sighed as the melancholy of the good old days when he was whoever he was and did whatever the things he did. He couldn't remember but he was positive it was great. Then he felt the spear enter his forehead and it actually hurt a little although it was very little. Perhaps like that of a biting gnat.
Alanna thrust her spear forward into the king with a perfectly balanced powerful strike. She felt the slight resistance she was used to feeling with these creatures and as she retracted she noticed the eyes of the creature staring at her in annoyance. Still, it had not moved from the throne and after glaring at her as she stood there awkwardly and looked at him, he finally looked away and back down at the puzzle.
The druidess was at a loss as to what to do and bit her lip and looked at the king then the puzzle and back again. "Maybe I should have tried to speak to him first?" Alanna thought to herself. She was only saying this out of hindsight. Given what she knew about the tests thus far, speaking was never a consideration. So, she would not naturally consider it. Yet now she was thinking that may have been the best choice. "Oh well to late now." She thought. "I don't think i could reconcile with anyone that tried to bite my head off then stab me." She decided the best thing to do would be to solve the puzzle so she reached out to the first piece she should move and slid it into the open spot. This caused a long groan to come from the king whose eyes rolled back into his head and a brief bout of pain flashed across his face. As suddenly as it started, it had stopped. The king's expression changed from one of pain to one of pure outrage. He stared hatefully at the druidess and grasped the side of his throne and attempted to rise. Yet it was like something constrained him. He roared in anger at this fact yet while Alanna watched he was making progress in standing.
Alanna looked at the puzzle then at the boss and had a spark of realization travel through her. This was a timed puzzle and she just started it. She quickly looked over it once again and started sliding the pieces around so that the portrait would match all the while the king strained against invisible bonds and rose inch by inch until he was nearly standing. Alanna managed to slide the last piece into place, to form the picture of the very same king drinking from his cups, before the physical version could stand. A scream of pure agony came from the man as he disappeared into mist along with the sliding puzzle.
The portcullis opened the way toward the next gate as Alanna stared at the spot where the king and puzzle had been. "That scream was haunting." Alanna thought. "It held some real pain unlike anything I have ever heard." She considered the memories of her past life but they were dull. She had heard the pained screams of the dying before and had even screamed in pain of her own previous deaths but this had been something more. It was soul rending in its intensity. She shivered at the intensity and moved over to her pack and shouldered it. She fought the chill that tried to take hold of her and walked through the fourth trial gate toward the fifth.
As the gate and wall turned to mist she saw the exact same king and throne with a new sliding puzzle at its feet. The challenge appeared as soon as she stepped through the gate which startled Alanna and she slowed a bit as she looked at the similarly startled king. The king looked down at the puzzle then up at the druidess and rage immediately flashed across his face. "NOOOOO!" The man screamed in denial and immediately started to rise. "Shit!" Alanna said as she sprinted toward the puzzle. Her eyes darted over the 4x4 puzzle which she could see was a picture of the same king but this time there was a feast spread around him. It was a bit more complicated given the amount of tiles but the complication was the time limit and not the picture matching.
Alanna moved the marble as fast she could while trying not to pay attention to the fact that the king had already started to stand. His back was angled forward at 45 degrees and his backside had been lifted from the seat. He was still slowly moving to straighten his posture and he was growling in effort and anger. She moved piece after piece and was nearly complete when the man stood fully and took a single step forward. "Shit shit shit," Alanna said as she tried to pick up the pace only to move the wrong piece in her haste. "ARGH!" She cried as she moved the piece back before trying to get to the one she needed yet she was too late.
A large sword swung down causing Alanna to jump back as it slammed into the marble slab. To Alanna's relief the slab was unscathed but to her rising horror the 3 meter tall man was moving fast toward her with his sword raising again. It swung its sword in a horizontal slash that had so much power behind it that Alanna did not even consider blocking or deflecting it. She ducked under the blow and tried to step back away from the puzzle when a foot the size of two of her own hit her in the chest and knocked her nearly three meters away causing her to bounce and roll over her pack. Alanna groaned as she felt the straining in her muscles as she experienced a near identical impact from the first one in this trial. Luckily the man was not quite as fast as the terror bird but he was still coming fast and Alanna had not been able to injure him before. "Shit." Was all she could thing to say as she braced herself and tried to come up with a plan.
