by Lucas Flint
“It’s locked,” Guide replied. “Even if it wasn’t, the Guardians would not allow you to go any further. They would tear you to shreds and send you back to your home piece by piece as a warning to others, even if you keep wearing that necklace.”
Beams looked around suddenly. “But I don’t see the Guardians anywhere.”
“Doesn’t mean they aren’t here, watching your every move,” said Guide. “But in any case, it doesn’t matter what the Guardians will do. I know you are an honorable man and would never try to skip the challenge like some coward. You will do your best to complete it … whether you can do it or not.”
Beams bit his lower lip. “Then let’s get on with it. Tell me what this challenge is and what I need to do to complete it.”
“Very well,” said Guide. He pointed at the obelisk. “Do you see that black obelisk in the middle of the room, on top of that wooden platform?”
“Yeah, I see it,” said Beams. “What of it?”
The Guide lowered his hand. “It was originally carved by Arius himself shortly after the death of the Dread God. He carved the obelisk—which he called the Skyward Stone—as a monument to the Dread God’s defeat. He then later put it down here as part of the Gauntlet due to its … unique properties.”
“Unique properties,” Beams repeated. “What do you mean by that?”
“The Skyward Stone is not merely an obelisk or monument,” said Guide. “It thinks, or as much as a stone can think, anyway. Arius enchanted it with his power and set it up to defend the God Slayer from those who are unworthy of wielding that weapon.”
“A thinking stone,” Beams repeated. He glanced at the obelisk again. “Huh. It doesn’t look like much to me.”
“Appearances can be deceiving,” said Guide. “The lives of others are not at stake in this challenge, but that doesn’t mean it will be any easier. Of the three challenges, this is the most intellectually challenging. Those who manage to make it past the first challenge nearly always fail here. Indeed, I would estimate that only about one percent of all challengers in the history of the Gauntlet have ever made it past this challenge. Will you join their ranks? Or will you fail and suffer the same fate which has befallen all of the other challengers who have failed this challenge?”
“I’d be able to answer your question if you’d actually tell me what this challenge is all about,” Beams replied. “Right now, all I’m hearing from you is a bunch of ominous warnings about how hard it is going to be.”
Guide flashed a smile. “Straight to the point, just like Arius. Very well. In this second challenge of the Gauntlet, you must solve a puzzle the Skyward Stone gives you. Solve the puzzle correctly and you will complete the second challenge and be allowed to move on. Fail to solve it—”
“And I’ll die a horrible death,” Beams interrupted. “Right?”
But Guide shook his head. “No. Actually, you will have three attempts to get the puzzle right. Fail all three attempts and you will fail the challenge and die. But if you solve even one of the attempts correctly, then you will be allowed to move forward to the next challenge.”
Beams frowned. “How does that make the second challenge harder than the first? The first challenge only gave me one chance to succeed. Three attempts isn’t a whole lot, of course, but it’s a lot more than I expected.”
Guide smiled again. “That isn’t the hardest part. The hard part is what happens when you fail an attempt. Yes, you can learn from your mistakes and try to do better each time, but that isn’t the only consequence for failure.”
Beams folded his arms in front of his chest. “Mind telling me what the other consequences are?”
“You can find out on your own,” said Guide. “Trust me, you will find out yourself soon enough because I don’t expect you to solve the puzzle in one try. Good luck.”
The lights suddenly flickered on and off. When the lights came back on, Guide was gone, leaving Beams standing by himself in the big, empty chamber.
What a cheap move, Beams thought, glancing around the chamber just to make sure Guide was gone. Turn off the lights and then leave when you least expect it. That guy must watch a ton of old horror movies or something.
Shaking his head, Beams walked up to the Skyward Stone. He climbed on top of the platform, which was stable and solid underneath his feet, and then peered closely at the Stone.
The Skyward Stone was about a head taller than him. It was superbly crafted, with perfectly straight edges and a pointed tip that reminded Beams of a drill. It reminded him of the Washington Monument, which he had only ever seen in pictures, but there was also something distinctly unearthly about it.
No, not unearthly, Beams thought, inhuman. It’s thinking. Somehow, I can tell that.
But Beams did not see where this ‘puzzle’ Guide had mentioned was. Indeed, for a second he was almost convinced that the Skyward Stone didn’t have a puzzle at all until, without warning, a portion of the Stone slid away. A small stone box slid out of the Stone on a metal tray, which Beams picked up and turned over in his hands.
The box reminded Beams of a Rubix cube. The surface could be shifted and changed, kind of like a puzzle, only there wasn’t much room to move the pieces around. He shook the box a couple of times and heard something bouncing around inside.
Must be the key to the exit, Beams thought, peering around the Skyward Stone briefly to get a good look at the exit. Guide did say it was locked. Now I understand the purpose of this challenge. If I can open this box—which must be what the puzzle is—then I will get the key, which I can then use to advance to the final challenge. Seems pretty simple to me, much simpler than trying to stop a ship from being sucked into a whirlpool by a kraken.
Smiling at himself for figuring that out, Beams began shifting the different pieces on the surface of the box into place. He guessed that the pieces on the box were meant to form some kind of picture or image. It was his job to move them around until he found it, though what he would do after that, he had no idea. He had even less idea about what the correct picture was supposed to look like.
I’ll figure it out, Beams thought as his fingers moved deftly across the box’s surface. There aren’t too many pieces, so it should be easy to do.
Indeed, a final snap told Beams that he had found it. The image on the box looked like some kind of dragon, although the wings seemed a little too short for a beast of its size. The image looked somewhat off to Beams, but the pieces were locked in such a way that he couldn’t do it again, so he placed the box back on the metal tray.
The metal tray retracted back into the Stone. Beams waited patiently for its response, but the longer time passed, the more he wondered if something was wrong.
Hope I didn’t break it, Beams thought nervously, but how could I break it if I hadn’t even touched—
Without warning, the Skyward Stone glowed red ominously and, in the next instant, Beams felt the necklace constrict around his neck. He gasped in pain and fell to his knees, tugging desperately at the necklace, doing everything in his power to remove it, but it seemed to fuse to his skin and become part of his body. Breathing was becoming harder and harder and he could feel consciousness already starting to slip between his fingers.
Then, without warning, the Skyward Stone stopped glowing red and the necklace returned to its original size. At the same time, the metal tray popped back out with the box, but the pieces on it were scrambled again as if Beams hadn’t just solved the picture on it at all.
What the hell? Beams thought, breathing in and out rapidly. He rose to his feet but did not pick up the box again. Why did my necklace nearly kill me? Have I gone crazy?
No, Beams realized, he wasn’t crazy at all. The necklace had indeed constricted around his neck, nearly killing him, and he now understood what Guide meant when he mentioned the ‘other’ consequences earlier.
This isn’t just a simple puzzle, Beams thought, feeling the necklace on his neck, this is a matter of life and death. If I fail to solve the puzzl
e two more times, the necklace will choke me to death.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Bolt tried to remain standing, but he found it difficult. With the intensity of the light increasing, it was all Bolt could do to stand his ground and not fall over and lose consciousness. The Midnight Menace seemed to be having even more trouble than Bolt. He was kneeling on the ground, his arm over his head, leaning on his sword for support, but it was clear that he was about to lose consciousness as well.
On the other side of the barrier, the Avatar and the Darzens were watching Bolt and the Midnight Menace with a mixture of amusement and impatience. The Avatar, in particular, looked impatient, as if he was wondering what was taking Bolt and the Midnight Menace so long to fall over and lose consciousness.
Not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me fall, Bolt thought through the haze that was his mind at the moment. Not … going to.
That was easier said than done, however. Consciousness was becoming harder and harder to maintain. Bolt could probably hold on for a few more minutes at best, but after that, he would definitely lose consciousness.
I need to destroy the barrier, Bolt thought, but the Avatar said that the barrier is impenetrable. I already found out that both my lightning powers and super strength can’t even dent it. Only a miracle can save us now.
Bolt put a hand on the barrier. His knees shaking, he looked the Avatar in the eyes, defiantly challenging him, but the Avatar did not seem to care. He simply stood there, arms folded in front of his chest, looking at Bolt with a smirk that told Bolt that he was going to lose.
Then, quite without warning, the light generating the barrier exploded. Bolt had just enough time to see a shocked look appear across the Avatar’s face—and catch a brief glimpse of a shadow tendril made visible by the explosion—before the whole area was plunged into darkness again. As soon as the darkness settled, Bolt heard someone draw their sword and, channeling his electricity through his hand, saw the Avatar rushing toward him and bringing his sword down on his head.
But the Midnight Menace’s blade appeared out of nowhere and caught the Avatar’s sword at the last second before it could cleave Bolt’s head in two. The Midnight Menace shoved the Avatar back and the two of them began exchanging blows, their swords clashing against each other in the shadows. Bolt was amazed at how fast they moved and how expertly they blocked each other’s blows. They seemed to be equally good swordsmen to Bolt, who decided not to get into the middle of their fight lest he accidentally get cut by one of their blades.
But the Midnight Menace and the Avatar were not the only two fighters in the area. All around Bolt, he heard the Darzen soldiers shouting and roaring, as well as what sounded like blades slashing through their bodies. He heard suits of Darzen armor fall to the ground, followed by burning energy blasts that tore apart their energy forms as they leaked out of their armor. Bolt turned this way and that, trying to decide where he should go and what he should do, but the darkness made it hard to tell what was going on and all he could tell for sure was that someone was fighting the Darzens, though who, he couldn’t say.
A hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. Bolt whirled around and, grabbing the person by the neck, slammed them down onto the ground. He raised his fist to finish the job before the person underneath him said, “Bolt, wait! It’s me, Galaxy.”
Bolt paused. Lying on the ground underneath him, a look of terror and shock on her face, was Captain Helena Galaxy. She was clutching the arm holding her neck and seemed to be struggling to breathe under his tight grip. Her dark hair was splayed out underneath her like a pool of water and it disappeared into the darkness around them, making her pale face stand out all the more.
“Galaxy?” said Bolt in shock. He let go of her neck and stood up. “What are you doing here? I thought you and the other guys were stuck in the Endless Forest.”
Captain Galaxy sat up, rubbing her neck and breathing hard. “We were until we went back to the Spirit and explained the problem to her. She sent us here herself, using one of the many portals in the Endless Forest. It took us a while to track you down, however, because my tracker’s signal is spotty in this place.”
“Tracker?” said Bolt. He began patting his back. “Are you telling me that you planted a tracker on me without my knowledge?”
“Chief Aster did,” said Captain Galaxy. She rose to her feet and dusted herself off. “Thought it would be an easy way to keep track of you in case you disappeared or rushed off by yourself. Sorry for not telling you that sooner. I was under orders to keep it a secret.”
Bolt scowled. “You sound just like a G-Man agent, you know that?”
Captain Galaxy smiled apologetically. “Maybe you can bring that up with Chief Aster next time you see him. For now, we need to go.”
“Go?” said Bolt. He winced at a particularly painful yell from the shadows behind him. “What’s going on here? What’s attacking the Darzens?”
“Honestly, I have no idea,” said Captain Galaxy with a shrug. “When Chief Aster, Hypno, and I got here, we saw you and the Midnight Menace were captured in that weird light barrier. We were planning to rescue you, but then the light exploded all on its own and I decided to take advantage of this moment to get you out of here.”
Bolt’s eyes widened. “You mean something else in this place decided to pick this moment to attack and slaughter the Darzens? And we don’t even know what it is?”
Captain Galaxy winced at the sound of tearing metal, which was particularly close. “Yeah. The Shadowlands are home to all kinds of weird, strange creatures. It’s entirely possible that something has been stalking the Darzens for a while and chose this moment to attack. Or maybe it was just passing by and saw an opportunity to get a whole bunch of prey in one go. In any case, we should probably get out of here.”
“But what about the Midnight Menace?” said Bolt, listening to the sound of swords clashing somewhere in the shadows. “He’s fighting the Avatar right now and he needs my help if he’s going to win.”
“He can take care of himself,” said Captain Galaxy. “Right now, Chief Aster and Hypno are waiting nearby for us to return.”
“No,” said Bolt, shaking his head. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “The Starborn are inside that building, and if we let the Darzens scare us away, we’ll never get their help and never defeat the Dread God. You, Aster, and Hypno can stay out of it if you want. Me, I’m going to help the Midnight Menace teach the Avatar a lesson.”
Before Captain Galaxy could argue with him, Bolt turned and ran off in the direction of the sword fight. He also heard the creature, whatever it was, that was tearing apart the Darzens, but he paid those sounds no attention as he rushed to aid the Midnight Menace. Whatever this creature was, Bolt was just glad that it wasn’t paying attention to him or the Midnight Menace right now, because he had a feeling that they wouldn’t be able to beat it in a fight.
The pitch black darkness was impossible to see through, so Bolt raised his hand and charged electricity through it again, this time upping the energy in order to increase the brightness. This allowed him to see the Avatar and the Midnight Menace trading blows not too far away, their swords clanging together as they fought in an epic clash of life and death. Once again, Bolt was amazed at their skill and almost jealous of how smoothly they wielded their blades because Bolt was no good with weapons even after spending hours training with weapons in the Training Room back on Hero Island.
Then again, who needs swords when you’ve got fists that can turn boulders into sand? Bolt thought with a smile.
But then the Avatar dodged one of the Midnight Menace’s slashes and moved in and slashed at the Midnight Menace’s hands. With a yell, the Midnight Menace dropped his sword and clutched his wrist, leaving an opening for the Avatar, who stabbed his sword into the Midnight Menace’s exposed stomach. The Avatar’s sword pierced the Midnight Menace’s stomach, making the Midnight Menace gag and clutch his now-bleeding wound.
“No!” Bolt shouted. “
Midnight Menace!”
Bolt flew into the air. The Avatar looked up just in time to get punched in the face by Bolt, sending him staggering backward. The Avatar also pulled his sword out of the Midnight Menace’s gut and the Midnight Menace fell onto his knees, clutching his bleeding wound with both hands, his breathing harsh and unsteady
“Menace, are you okay?” said Bolt, kneeling next to him. “Can you breathe? Are you going to be okay?”
“I’ll be … I’ll be fine,” said the Midnight Menace, though his voice was startlingly weak. “I’ve taken worse hits before and survived … ugh …”
Bolt wasn’t convinced that the Midnight Menace was okay, but then he remembered the Avatar and looked up to see the Avatar rushing toward him. Bolt got to his feet and ran toward the Avatar, his fists blazing with energy. The Avatar swung his sword at Bolt, but Bolt ducked the blade and punched the Avatar in the chest with both of his fists, sending the Avatar staggering backward again.
Not wanting to give the Avatar a chance to respond, Bolt threw another punch, but the Avatar blocked his punch with the flat of his blade and pushed Bolt backward. Knocked off balance, Bolt nearly fell onto his behind but regained his balance just in time to avoid another swing of the Avatar’s sword.
“Hey, Avatar, I thought you wanted to catch me, not kill me,” said Bolt as he held up his glowing fists.
The Avatar growled. “I am supposed to bring you to the Dread Priest in one piece. He didn’t say anything about bringing you back unharmed.”
Without warning, a portal opened behind the Avatar and he stepped inside backward. Shocked, Bolt rushed to catch him, but the portal closed at the last second and Bolt instead ended up running into nothing.
Coming to a halt, Bolt looked around the area, saying, “Hey! Where did you go? Decide to run away like a little girl? You’re no different from all of the other villains I’ve faced, you cowardly little—”