B2 Chapter 45: Wait, the Tower Still Has These?

Both of us hurtled down the tunnel as fast as possible. When it comes to things like threatening to release a cloud of poison gas, you can never tell if the System is joking or not. Usually it isn’t.

The tunnel led us to a small chamber that appeared to be a part of an underground temple. There were six stone doors in front of us. Each door had a different word in English carved into it. From left to right, the words were Patience, Victory, Contrition, Strength, Insight, and Connection.

[Welcome to the starting zone of this challenge room. As you can see, there are six doors for you to choose from. Behind each of them is a room that represents the word on their respective door. Each room provides its own unique challenge and prize for completing them. Note: Two people cannot enter the same room and each person is limited to only three choices. Choose wisely.]

“Wait, that’s it?” I asked. “There’s no race to choose before this place gets flooded with fire or something.”

[You may take as much time in the starting zone as you require. But as I understand it, you already have a ticking clock hanging over your heads.]

Right, we had maybe twenty fours left, and we still had to travel back to the sea king’s lair, get the key, and then find wherever the door was hidden on an island that was several times larger than the one we were currently on.

Sebastian paced around the room. He kept looking at the doors for Victory and Strength. “Well, how do we decide who goes first?” he asked.

“You go,” I said. “This was your idea. You said you wanted to get stronger, so here’s your chance.”

He thanked me. It sounded genuine too, so I kept my emotions in check because truthfully, I thought this was a dangerous waste of time. So the sooner he got what he came here for the sooner we could move on.

He was about to walk towards strength and then stopped. “Which do you think I should choose?”

I shrugged. I honestly hadn’t the faintest clue what was behind these doors or what prizes await. I just wanted him to hurry up, so I said, “I’ll let you make all three of your picks first. You can have Strength, Victory, and whatever else you want. I don’t need to do this challenge room. I’m just here to make sure we get through all of this in one piece.”

He nodded and placed his hand on the Strength door. The stone door slowly slid upwards with a grinding sound. Past the door was a narrow stone corridor that led into darkness.

He stood at the threshold, uncertain.

“Have you done one of these before?” I asked.

“No.”

“Well, I have. The key thing is to remain mentally flexible. Stay open to different ideas and be wary of any obvious answers. The System likes puzzles, but it always leaves a solution. Pay close attention to its words as well. Sometimes what it doesn’t say is just as important as what it says.”

He gave a stiff nod and walked into the darkness.

It was odd that after he disappeared; the door remained open and that my Night’s Eye couldn’t pierce the darkness. Curious, I went up to it and put my hand out. An invisible barrier formed at the threshold, as I suspected. The System was hiding the room from me so that I couldn’t offer any advice. It was going the extra step to ensure these rooms were only tackled alone.

There wasn’t much else to do now but wait. Speculating about the doors was pointless and Sebastian hadn’t made his third choice yet. Strength and Victory were the obvious choices. I doubted he’d pick Patience or Contrition. No, if I had to guess, his final choice was between Insight and Connection.

After ten minutes, Sebastian returned glowering and covered in dirt.

“That bad, huh?” I asked.

“You pick the next one.”

“What happened?”

“I’m not allowed to say, but the Victory door is all yours if you want it.”

Well, that sounded ominous. Victory did sound enticing, but I wonder if that means it's more difficult. Sebastian had come back seemingly without a prize, so it was possible to survive and still lose. The real question was on whether or not he was giving me this door because he was scared.

There was no use in further deliberating. I put my hand on the Victory door and stepped inside.

[Warning!]

[Speech restrictions are now applied for the duration of this challenge. You may not share any information with the other player regarding knowledge or opinions gained from experience beyond the doors.]

At least now I know why he wasn’t very chatty when he returned. I’d just taken for him for a sore loser.

[You have chosen the Victory room. Perhaps you are looking to gain a particular victory, or perhaps it is the trait you most wish to embody. Please step forth into the room. There will be a cup there with water. You must drink from this cup to receive further instructions.]

Sounds simple enough. I moved through the hallway into what looked like an underground courtyard. It even had one of those big stone fountains at the end of it. Though there was no water in it. In front of the fountain was a small table with a gold chalice filled with water. There was even a little card on the table that read ‘drink me.’

“Using the comic sans font? Really?”

The System didn’t respond and so I checked out the rest of the room, but there was little else there. Just the empty fountain, the table and the chalice with water. If there was a trap or a trick coming, then I couldn’t see what it was.

I sniffed the water. It seemed fine, so I grabbed the chalice and downed the whole thing.

As soon as I did, Samara, the Red Queen, appeared in front of me. She was wearing what looked like leather armor, but was probably something far tougher. A knife was sheathed on each hip and part of her face was lightly smudged with dirt. She looked like she’d just come from a battle.

“Why did you ask me to drink water? Was that really needed to summon you?” I asked her.

“No, I wanted to see if you could follow a basic instruction first. You’ve been unreasonably rebellious as of late, and I worry that it’s only going to get worse. But you did it, so we should move on. We don’t have a lot of time.”

“Yeah, I know the door quest is getting close.”

Her face darkened. “I’m not talking about that stupid Tower quest. Things have been set in motion. Things I’m not allowed to talk about. The System only granted me the ability to come here in this basic form to offer guidance, so here it is. Drink from the fountain and you will instantly and permanently gain over a hundred levels.”

As she said this, the fountain began spewing out red blood. It continued until it filled the fountain to the brim and then stopped.

Samara must have considered this an enticing offer, but I didn’t just hesitate at the sight of it. I took several steps back in fear. I could still remember what Anders’s blood tasted like when I bit into him. Still taste it on my tongue. The euphoria as I felt my power rapidly increase.

Thus far, it had been easy to avoid the temptation. Whenever I killed a person, there were always other people around to create a kind of social pressure in my mind. A form of shame that compelled me to avoid drinking blood in front of them. In the other times there was simply too much danger and too many other problems to focus on. But the idea of drinking more blood had never fully left my mind. It lurked in the back somewhere. Ready to make its presence known when the right opportunity presented itself.

Now, it whispered promises of power to me. It made logical appeals about the utility I’d gain. All the people I could protect and the options that would open up to me if I was stronger. It made compelling arguments. I reminded myself of what I saw on Rahklesh-9. Of what happens when a Blood Reaver loses themselves to the blood lust and of what they turn into. I’d stared into the eyes of someone that had accepted a similar bargain and I knew that no amount of power was worth that.

“We don’t have time for this,” she said. “War is coming. You have to drink it if you want to protect your friends and keep climbing the Tower.”

Had I not spoken with Yakeshi, this would’ve been the offer of my dreams. A chance to guarantee victory. A hundred levels was a gigantic boost. But I knew what it would cost me and the price that I’d have to pay for this power was simply too steep.

“No, I refuse,” I said.

Her jaw tightened. “Don’t be foolish! You won’t survive what’s coming without this.”

“I’ve met a Scarlet Beast,” I said slowly. “A powerful but uncontrollable mad dog. The blood lust had driven him so mad that I doubt he’d even remember his own name.”

“That doesn’t have to be you,” she implored, taking a step forward. “The addiction can be controlled. It can be beaten. Look at me? Do I look like a Scarlet Beast to you?”

In that respect, she was right. A god with blood powers who had managed to avoid the madness that Yakeshi had assured me was common for our kind. But I couldn’t trust her. Not after she’d encouraged me to drink the blood and not tell me of the risks.

“I think you withheld information and pushed me down a path that could’ve robbed me of my sanity. All for what? To eventually steal more territory for your little kingdom?”

She clenched her fists. “Careful boy. I was conquering planets before you were even born. I’ve made Champions and Kings kneel and weep for such disrespect. I allow you the freedom to speak your mind to better understand and assist you. That does not make us equals.”

I was fairly confident that she couldn’t harm me while I was in the Tower. Trying to pull rank on me wasn’t going to work.

I turned away and started walking back towards the starting zone.

“If you do this, there’s no going back!” she shouted after me.

I kept walking and didn’t look back.