The Trial of Power

A few days later, the time had come for Terrence to take the Trial.

He and the other Heroes of Arum, along with King Randolph, stood in front of a small domed building in the heart of the palace garden. As Terrence stared at the door, which had a golden cross sigil, he felt a faint power resting behind it.

“So this leads to the Sacred Dungeon?” He asked his grandfather.

King Randolph nodded. “Beyond that door, you shall enter a holy sanctum that’s divorced from our mortal plane. There, you will be confronted by its arbiters, the Holy Knights.”

Terrence frowned as a curious thought suddenly occurred to him.

“So all the royal heirs have done this, right? They place their Sacred Treasures in those Dungeons to prepare for the next wielder. Yet, I had Bjartbrandr before going through all this…”

“Before the Sacred Dungeons were created, the Sacred Treasures were passed down directly.” Lorica explained. “Your father probably handed it down when you were a child.”

“But why would he do that? He didn’t want anything to do with royalty anymore. Bjartbrandr, do you know anything?”

Bjartbrandr closed her eyes. “Hm…it’s hazy, but I can remember having slumbered in your heart since you were a baby. If your father rejected me…I could have just moved into you.”

King Randolph shook his head. “That aside, are you ready to enter?

Terrence nodded and stepped up to the door, then opened it carefully. He was taken aback by the bright light that shot out, but he closed his eyes and stepped inside.

When the door closed behind him, Aquare spoke in a concerned manner.

“Will he be alright?”

Bjartbrandr clasped her hands. “He’s my master, of course he will.”

Lorica put a hand on her hip. “As long as he’s careful, he should be fine.”

Hearthstone grinned and raised a fist. “He may be wet behind the ears, but I believe in him!”

Off to the side, Mea crossed her arms and looked away.

__________________________________________

When Terrence opened his eyes, he found himself in a different place.

He stood in a grand hallway with pure white walls. On one side, shimmering golden statues of Luxord were lined up. When Terrence looked down, he saw how the floor was like a mirror, reflecting his image beneath his feet.

Suddenly, there was someone else in the reflection, causing him to look back up in surprise.

In front of him was a Holy Knight, a divine soldier who served the Five Deities. They were clad in white and gold plated armor, including a helmet that obscured their face, and a flowing gold cape.

“We have been waiting for you, Prince Terrence III.”

Behind them, four knights without capes stood at attention, silent as they observed the aspiring Hero of Light. He gave them all a wary glance before focusing on their leader.

“I’m ready to take the Trial of Power.” He said boldly.

The Holy Knight nodded. “We shall commence shortly. But first, I must tell you what the Trial will entail. At the end of this hall, there will be an altar where the Sacred Treasure is normally put to rest. My brethren will try to halt your advance. Should you manage to make it to the end, I will face you myself. If you manage to defeat me, then your worth as a Hero of Arum will be proven.”

They then chuckled a bit before continuing.

“Of course, given the difference in power between mortals and divine beings, we won’t use our full strength on you. That doesn’t mean it will be easy, but even one such as you should stand a fair chance. However, should you lose…your right to wield Bjartbrandr shall be revoked, and she shall be laid to rest once again.”

The sudden revelation threw Terrence for a loop, and it took him a couple of seconds to form a proper response.

“So if I fail…she’ll be taken away?”

The Holy Knight nodded. “As per tradition. Frankly, you were a fool to accept this challenge, without even knowing the risks. So I must tell you, Prince of Humans, do not disappoint us.

With that, they turned around with their cape whipping behind them. As they walked down the hall, they raised a hand to the other knights. They all stepped forward and drew their weapons, taking formation as they prepared to fight.

Terrence drew the iron broadsword he had picked out for this battle, then took his usual stance as he stared down his opponents.

One of them held a silver sword and shield, while another held a silver spear. Those two were the vanguard to protect the others behind them. As for the two in the rear, they each held a bow and had a golden arrow aimed at Terrence.

Terrence frowned as he considered his options. On his own, fighting them all would be too difficult. But if the goal was to reach the end, he probably didn’t need to beat them…

He had to get past them, for the sake of his Sacred Treasure.

After another moment of thinking, he made the first move. He began to sprint forward, heading directly towards the front line.

The sword user was the first to meet him, coming up with a diagonal slash downward. They were so fast, Terrence barely registered it. But in the split second he had, he was able to cast Reinforcement and quickly jump away.

He turned in midair and landed on the wall, then vaulted off to get behind the group of Holy Knights, swinging his sword to deflect a couple of arrows from the archers.

However, just as he landed, the swordsman and spearman rushed to either side and jabbed at him. He just barely dodged with a roll, and hastily got on his feet and broke into a run. Feeling his mana waning, he quickly deactivated his magic and tried to reach the other end of the hall with just his normal speed.

He was only a quarter of the way there. He could see an open door at the end, but it was still so far ahead…

He looked backed to see the Holy Knights close behind him. The swordsman sped up, bursting the air behind them, and got in front of Terrence in an instant. Before he could react, they bashed him in the chest with their shield, causing him to cough out in pain and fall backwards.

As he winced, he saw the spearman coming from above, aiming to drive their spear down on him. He rolled aside just in time, and the spear point was driven completely into the floor, creating a sizable crack around it.

As Terrence scrambled onto his feet, the swordsman came at him with a horizontal slash. He used Reinforcement once again to increase the speed and power of his own uppercut, and barely deflected the attack.

He quickly turned and fled towards the exit, jumping onto the nearest wall in order to launch himself towards the other, then jumped off that one, then the next. As he went through the air, he deactivated Reinforcement, then activated it again every time he needed to make a jump. By doing short bursts like this, he could conserve his mana and stamina.

Before long, he was in the final quarter. Just a little more, and he would be home free…

He wobbled as he landed on the floor, then took a deep breath as he prepared to sprint forward. If he put the rest of his energy into this, he would reach the end for sure.

However, just as he was about to activate his magic and run…there were two soft ‘shinks’. He gasped and fell to his knees as he felt two similarly sharp things sink into his back. He shakily reached behind and grabbed one, which turned out to be a blood-covered arrow.

The Prince looked back to see another arrow shaft sticking out just below his right shoulder. All four Holy Knights were now close behind, and they quickly surrounded him. The swordsman pointed their blade at his face and spoke in a commanding tone.

“You have lost. Yield now, and accept your failure.”

Terrence grit his teeth and lowered his head, and his body began to shake with weakness. The pain in his back was sharp, but it hardly compared to the shame in his heart. A part of him did feel like this was futile, and he shouldn’t have come here in the first place. Maybe he should give up, and accept being unworthy of the role he had been given…

Unworthy of…Bjartbrandr.

Then he thought of her gentle smile, and how surely if she was here, she’d be giving him comfort and encouragement.

“Just keep going, Mai and I believe in you. We all do.”

He imagined Mai kneeling down to hug him. Instead of the Holy Knights, he thought of the other Heroes of Arum standing around him. As well as Cress and his friends, Lucius, and the Royal Knight Lieutenants.

“You’re supposed to be one of us, aren’t you?” The image of Mea said in a challenging tone.

Terrence stopped shivering, realizing she was right. No matter what, he was a Hero of Arum…and he was going to prove it. For the sake of Bjartbrandr, Mai, and all those who believed in him.

“You can do it, Lord Terrence.” Lucius’s image said in encouragement.

Everyone faded away as Terrence focused on reality. At that moment, the sword-wielding Holy Knight spoke again.

“Do you yield?”

After a silent moment of consideration…the Prince used Reinforcement and pounced up, surprising the swordsman with a tackle to take them down. The others were momentarily in shock, which gave him a chance to get up and start sprinting for the exit.

He didn’t stop or look back, not even when more arrows zipped past him. In no time at all, the exit was right in front of him. He could see a room that was like a church, and at the end there was the altar dedicated to the God of Light.

Then there was the sound of flesh being torn, as something pierced through Terrence’s back, right by his spine. He coughed out blood, his eyes widening in shock. As he tripped and fell sideways, he saw a bloodied spear sticking out of his front.

Through his hazy vision, he saw the spear’s wielder walking up to him. As he looked at that helmeted face, his heart sank at the thought that despite all of his efforts…he failed.

“...You have passed.” Holy Knight said with a little air.

Terrence blinked, then looked beyond the small pool of blood to see that his upper body had made it through the door, and his legs were halfway through.

“I…made it?” He coughed.

The Holy Knight crouched down and carefully pulled out the arrow and the spear, then quickly waved his hand and cast a spell.

“Amendeion, Enerva.”

In a matter of seconds, Terrence’s wounds were healed and his fatigue was alleviated by two different magic circles, one blue and one green. He even felt his mana being restored, which was a first.

After a moment, he staggered onto his feet, and the Holy Knight went to regroup with their comrades. One by one, they turned and disappeared in showers of sparkles.

“You may proceed, Prince Terrence.” The spearman said before fading away.

For a minute, Terrence just stood there, giving his thanks to the Five Deities for the luck he had. However, he knew this wasn’t the end. One more fight was ahead of him…

After taking a deep breath, he began walking down the aisle and towards the altar. He could see candles placed on either side of it, with a small golden statue of Luxord in the middle.

Standing behind the altar was the Holy Knight Terrence had first met, this time with a longsword hanging at their side. They walked around to greet him in a warmer tone.

“You’ve done well to reach this room, Prince Terrence.”

He nodded firmly and raised his sword. “Thank you, but I still have one last thing to do.”

“Yes, your last opponent is me. Let’s not waste time.”

With a snap of the Holy Knight’s fingers, all the furnishings disappeared from the room in a flash of light. They then drew their silver longsword and took a stance, with it held in both hands to the side while they had one foot forward.

Terrence got into the usual basic stance, grimacing a little. There was more than several feet between them, but he could still feel the knight’s divine power, a presence that threatened to make his legs buckle right there. He knew if he wanted to win, he’d need to give it his all.

They stared each other down for one, intensely silent moment…then Terrence boosted himself with magic and shot forward, closing the distance in a second for a stab at the Holy Knight’s chest.

They swiftly sidestepped the strike, and countering with an upwards diagonal. He managed to turn in time to intercept it with a slam downwards, and for a few seconds he struggled against their might.

They broke the lock in a burst of strength, sending him stumbling back. The knight then stepped up to slash horizontally across his chest, which he managed to dodge by falling over.

As Terrence hit the floor, the Holy Knight used the momentum of their swing to do a spinning jump, leading into a downward stab. He narrowly avoided it with a roll, and their blade was driven halfway into the floor.

Seeing an opening to attack, Terrence quickly got up and rushed at Holy Knight. With a fierce yell, he lunged and stabbed at a chink in their armor, just under their armpit, ready to end the fight there.

However, they let go of their sword and stepped back. The Prince skidded to a stop and turned around, making a wide slash. It was stopped midway by the back of the knight’s armored hand, and they swiftly stepped in to punch him in the gut, with enough force to knock him back several feet.

Terrence coughed out as his back hit the floor, and he scrambled onto his knees while gasping for air. He was at his limit now, with only a little magic and stamina left…Only a few seconds worth of power.

“Yield now, and save yourself from more pain.” The Holy Knight urged, holding up a hand.

Terrence grit his teeth as he looked down, knowing he wasn’t going to give up. Still, what could he do to overcome this challenge?

He blinked as an idea came to mind, and he spared a discreet glance at the knight’s sword embedded in the floor. Maybe that was the key…

With a plan now formed, Terrence shakily stood on his feet and gave the Holy Knight a defiant gaze, to which they nodded at.

“If nothing else, you have a Hero’s valor.” They admitted. “Still, your resistance is futile.”

“Even so, I’ll keep trying!” He declared.

He Reinforced himself and tossed his sword straight at them, then darted towards the knight’s blade. While the knight took the split second to knock aside the projectile, he reached their weapon and pried it out with some effort.

With the momentum of the slightly heavier weapon carrying him, Terrence made a pivot and swung with the last of his strength. The Holy Knight quickly turned and brought one hand to catch the blade, and for a few seconds sparks flew as metal parts grinded against each other.

Then with a metallic tearing noise, the blade managed to cut through the gauntlet, and blood splattered as two of the Holy Knight’s fingers were chopped off.

With all of his energy expended, Terrence dropped the sword and collapsed. He panted heavily, and beads of sweat dripped from his forehead. Through half-closed eyes, he shakily watched the Holy Knight stare at their blood-covered hand, without so much as a scream of pain.

“...You have exceeded expectations.” They said in a cool manner. “Though, you still have a long way to go.”

They knelt down to gather their fallen fingers, then held them to their proper places while chanting a spell.

“Amendeion.”

A green magic circle surrounded them, and their fingers were reattached. Once they were done, they went to Terrence and cast the spell on him, along with another.

“Enerva.”

A blue magic circle revitalized Terrence’s mana, and his eyes widened as he realized it was the Holy Knight’s filling his own reserves. Now in top condition, he slowly stood up and bowed to them.

“Thank you, divine one.” He said politely.

They inclined their head. “Think nothing of it. As for the Trial, though I was not defeated, you exhibited great drive and tenacity. More than anything else, that is what makes a Hero.”

They picked up their longsword and sheathed it, then turned and walked away. As they faded into golden sparkles, they said one last thing.

“Go now, Hero of Light, and join the Heroes of Arum to vanquish Maladeus. May Bjartbrandr serve you well.”

_________________________________________

When Terrence came back to the mortal world, Bjartbrandr and Mai were the first to greet him.

“You did it, I already know.” Bjartbrandr said with a smile of barely contained joy.

Mai looked concerned. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

Terrence smiled softly and took their hands. “I’m alright, thank you. I really did it…I’m truly worthy of you now, Bjartbrandr.”

He was forced to step away from them when everyone else came to congratulate him.

“Looks like all of our training paid off.” Lorica said with a proud smirk. “But don’t start getting cocky.”

Hearthstone laughed aloud. “You’re one to talk! Well, congrats my friend, you’re a real Hero of Arum now!”

“Symphonia and I will sing a grand ballad of victory.” Aquare said with mirth. “Would dinner be a perfect time for it?”

Terrence chuckled awkwardly. “You don’t have to go all out for me…”

He looked around as he realized his grandfather and Mea weren’t there, and decided to ask.

“Where did Grandfather and Mea go?”

“Mea said she was going to double check her supplies.” Lorica stated. “King Randolph went to take a nap. Said he was sorry, but you know how older people get sometimes.”

Terrence knew that made sense…but he still couldn’t help the slight sense of foreboding he felt. He managed to shake it off and focus on what was coming next.

“So we’ll be leaving tomorrow, right?” He asked.

Lorica nodded. “Mhm, so enjoy the time you have left here. We’ll be gone for a while, after all.”

Terrence shared a look with Mai, who looked really downcast with her ears and tail drooping. He already knew what she was feeling…the fear of being seperated. Tomorrow, she’d be without him for two months, the longest they’ve ever been apart…

That was why, for this last day together, he’d do whatever he could to keep her happy, and assure her that everything would be fine.