Chapter 12: You're Missing the Signs

After those ominous words, I blinked and was transported once more in a new location. However, the voice hadn't lied. I wasn't alone anymore. Next to me Alna and Mateo appeared as if snapped back into existence. They too looked a bit confused.

"Alna, Mateo!" I didn't even realize I had run over to Alna and hugged her. 

"MIZUKI! You're okay!" Alna held me tightly and I felt her warmth envelope me. 

"I'm glad you're okay too...I knew you'd be fine but still." I responded pulling away from her grasp a bit but still holding her. I looked into her eyes. I never noticed how green they were, like small emeralds...

"It felt like I haven't seen you in ages." Alna smiled while staring back at me. Our faces were alarmingly close to one another. Part of me wanted to...

"COUGH! COUGH! I'm glad you love birds are reunited but we still are in a rather precarious situation. Let's save the lovey dovey stuff for later please." Mateo's words caused us to push away from one another quickly. Our faces beet red. I was now aware, I did have some feelings growing for this woman...but as Mateo...politely said, now wasn't the time. We had more pressing matters. 

"Where were you guys transported to when we entered the forest?" I regained my thoughts and looked at both of my allies.

"I was in a place that mirrored the forest my dad and me were in when I was younger. It wasn't exactly the same place and it went on forever like a nightmare. The device Mateo gave me kept showing both of your icons but I never seemed to get closer." Alna showed her monitor.

"I was in a cave. It was also like Alna, similar but not the same...and I bet it was the same for you Mizuki, a place you knew but foreign nonetheless. My device though didn't show either one of you so I figured I was just out of reach." Mateo took Alna's monitor and then asked for mine. With all three in his hand, he made them vanish but then after a few moments, suddenly crafted three more.

"Here, these should work differently than the last ones. They should have a longer range and be unfazed by whatever magic is being used here." I took one of the monitors and Alna followed suit. 

"Thanks...though I feel these won't help right now." Alna suddenly got very tense and when I looked at what she was focused on, I understood why. In front of us was several odd creatures I've never seen yet in this world.

"What the hell are those things." I summoned my sword, Mateo his club.

"Armored Hollows..." Alna said. Her eyes with some concern in them. 

"What is an Armored Hollow?" Mateo and me said in an almost comedic unison. 

"They are suits of armor but you'll soon realize, aren't being worn by anything. I only know that because I've seen them before..."

"They are just suits of armor then?" I studied one of them closer by squinting. She had to be right. They wore what looked like traditional knight armor straight from a history museum but where the joints would show skin or some body appendages, there was nothing but a strange almost unearthly blue hue. I had seen these type of beings before in anime, one on particular came to mind, Single Leveler...the main character had to fight an army of these armored threats but when he ripped them apart using his twin swords, they fell apart and revealed they were just held together by magic. 

"There are so many of them." Mateo scanned around and he wasn't wrong. I doubt they would let me count them all but there was several in front of us and then several more behind them. I turned around and saw more appearing out of thin air. They were surrounding us.

"Guys, these things aren't fast but they are strong and quite capable. Do not let them overwhelm you in numbers. Aim for their heads. If they lose their helmets their entire form collapses. Hacking away at their "limbs" does nothing and they can just re attach them if given the chance." Alna then sprinted forward and went after the group directly behind us. I had to give her credit, she didn't wait to be attacked, she was the one who always hit first. 

"Let's follow her!" I said to Mateo and went on the offense as well.

"I'd rather not but I'd like to leave this place alive!" Mateo sighed and ran forward.

The first Armored Hollow I faced put up its arms in defense. I didn't see it had any weapons but I didn't care. I swung my katana in a horizontal motions and sliced where the nape of the neck would be. The sword swung true and despite it seemingly hitting air, the helmet flew off and the armor collapsed like it was never attached to anything originally. The other Armored Hollows came at me with their arms raised but I blocked their simple clawing attacks and repeated my initial strike. Each one went down and before I knew it, I had felled at least six of them. 

Mateo was struggling a bit with his few. While his club-like weapon was strong, it had no slicing power and was just brunt force. He had to really slam his weight and force into these monsters to knock their helmets off. Still, it worked despite how it lacked any form of grace. 

Alna...she was a beauty on the battlefield. I didn't count her kills but all the now lifeless armors around her showed she was already well beyond what Mateo and I had accomplished. 

Our victories though were short lived. Every one of these adversaries we killed, another handful appeared. I had now defeated probably 20, Mateo maybe 10 and Alna 40 plus. 

"Damn it, there's no end to them!" Mateo said as he jumped away from his new group. His breathing was getting heavier. 

"He's right...I'm getting tired. We can't keep this up forever." I blocked a random attack and felt the impact nearly push me back. Before, the few times these things had swung at me, their attacks were strong but nothing too overpowering. But now given exhaustion setting in, their attack had weight. I had to wonder how long it would be before a single attack could cause me to fall. 

As we continued fighting the never ending wave of these abominations, I began to think. Like the first "test" there had to be some kind of trick or form of deception occurring. It didn't take a genius to know these creatures were not the real threat. Mateo was keeping pace with our kills despite his lack of fighting prowess and even I was reaching Alna's numbers. These things were meant to exhaust us and keep us from solving the real dilemma here, how to escape. 

"Mizuki...you...okay?" Alna said as she ran over to me. I had to presume since I stopped fighting she was worried I may have gotten hurt or was tired.

"I'm okay Alna. I'm just thinking. There has to be a way to end this test." I looked around but all I saw was more Armored Hollows and trees. 

"Mateo...anything you see that seems out of the ordinary?" I screamed over to our ally who had just bashed in the helmet of one of the hollows. He began to look all around then pointed at something in the distance. 

"What is that?" I tried to follow his finger and then I too saw what he noticed. A bit away, there was a single little light. Though it was hard to see as the minute the enemies were dispatched, more would come blocking it. So that was their game...

"Mateo, Alna, we need to reach that light! Stop fighting the ones coming from other directions, beat the ones that way and less press towards the light!" I ran forward and slashed at a few more Armored Hollows. I won't deny it was unsettling these things didn't make noise even when they were "beheaded". 

"Lead the way Hero!" Mateo said, disengaging from his group and running over to me. Alna joined suit and we pushed towards the light. 

One after another, I lost count how many I had to kill that continued to pop up and block our path. Yet, we eventually reached the light which turned out to be...a window. Yes, a window, not attached to a building or house but a window hanging in the middle of the air in a forest. This place made no sense...

"Do we open it?" Alna went over to the window and tried to. Despite her best efforts, the window didn't budge. She then had to turn quickly as another assailant tried to attack her. I did the same with a random Hollow that appeared before me.

"Try smashing it!" I said, slashing at more enemies. 

"Let me." Mateo took his weapon and swung at the window. It shattered leaving just an opening where the glass was. Now it was a window frame hanging from nothing. 

"Well...what now?" Mateo poked his head through but all it did was lead from one side to another. I was half expecting some magical movie window that he'd be entering into another area. 

"Put your whole body through?" I said observing now a good dozen more Armored Hollows appearing. This time however, they weren't weaponless. They had swords and shields...if we had to engage with an endless supply of these threats, we would be dead soon.

"Screw it, I'll go first." Mateo climbed through the window and then...vanished. 

"Mizuki!" Alna followed Mateo through the window and she too vanished leaving me and a good group of enemies by ourselves. I had no reason to not follow them, I climbed into the window frame and I too vanished...

"Test 2 has reached its conclusion....the final test begins now."