Chapter 29: Deep Shit
"Alright, listen up!" the lead soldier yelled. "From here on out, the test has begun! You will all find your way down this cliff and into that forest." He pointed at the black expanse below.
"Just like you’ve been briefed, the test is going to last from now through tomorrow. You only have..." He brought out a small pocket watch to check the time. "—Approximately thirty-four hours to get in as many kills as you possibly can. By 6 p.m. sharp tomorrow, the test will come to an end, and any kills after that will not be recorded."
"Good luck." He nodded at them, then immediately turned and jumped down the cliff, drawing gasps of exclamation from the recruits. It seemed to be a signal, as the other soldiers followed suit in quick order, disappearing from view one by one.
Some of the recruits ran over to the edge of the cliff in excitement, trying to catch a glimpse of the soldiers that disappeared below, but they were nowhere to be seen.
"So, it begins." Cedric swung his warhammer over his shoulder, ready to get moving, but he was beaten to it by Jet at the forefront. He was the first to step away from the others, along with Kathelyn. They had both gotten more and more distant as the days progressed. Aside from the casual hello here and there, they had kept to themselves.
"Well, at least now we’ll get to see what they’ve been up to so far," Zephyr mused, stepping into stride with Cedric.
Now, everyone was moving. There was a path down the side of the cliff that led to the forest below, so everyone headed in that direction.
Despite the emphasis on "every man for himself" that had been hammered repeatedly, most of the recruits had started to team up amongst themselves, already laying out ground rules for how they would split the kills.
There were still lone wolves though— like Zephyr and Cedric— but a lot of the recruits decided to team up, including Anna and Helga.
As they all descended, they noticed the temperature starting to drop. They’d learned about the preferred habitat of Skarnids and knew they liked cold environments, so the drop in temperature didn’t surprise them too much.
What actually took them by surprise was the cause of the reduced visibility as they descended. It seemed to be the trees here. They were totally different from those found in the outer areas of the rift. Firstly, these had fully flourishing leaves and branches that were pitch black in color and absorbed nearly all light that came into contact with their surface. They were the main cause of the darker environment here. One could barely see more than ten steps ahead in every direction. It felt like walking into a curtain of shadows.