"What do you mean, 'trial'?" Juliana asked.
"I hope it's obvious. To advance and find the source of all this, we will have to go through one of those doors. And each one represents a different challenge. It's common in fantasy to make the hero go through a trial of some sort."
The others took a moment to let that sink in.
"We should try to get some rest here, before we attempt whichever trial we pick." I added.
Silence nodded, and Katie immediately plopped, falling to her knees on the floor. The bag she carried thudded with her. I sat next to her, and the others joined us, so that we sat in a circle. We passed meat around, and ate quietly.
Katie glanced nervously at the doors from time to time.
"Worried?" I asked her.
She glanced at me, "In fantasy, what happens if the hero fails?"
Thomas and Juliana seemed to want to know as well, leaning forward attentively. I scanned my memory for stories involving a trial.
"It doesn't happen. Or if it does, the hero gets a chance to try again."
"Could they... die ... though?"
Oh. Of course that's what she'd be worried about. "In most cases, that was certainly possible. To become the hero of their story, they had to prove they had what it takes, at the risk of their own life. But they didn't usually have a person as inhumanly able as Silence by their side." I turned to Silence, "No offense."
She shrugged, which I took as "no hard feelings".
Katie yawned. Silence yawned shortly after.
"Maybe we all get a good night's sleep before the trial." I said before clenching my jaw against my own yawn.
Katie yawned again as she nodded in agreement.
Silence took the corner closest to the left door, the other ladies next to her. Thomas and I laid down on the other side of the room, by the arrow door.
I lay on my back, staring up at the ceiling and torchlit wall. The torches were dimming, either in response to our fading consciousness, or some other factor. The fact that I hadn't immediately fallen asleep gave me some comfort. We weren't under the effect of a sleep spell, or similar. Justys only knows what could happen if we got hit with that.
I instead meditated, imagining the energy in my body fade away.
I was the second to wake up this time, with only Silence to greet me. The others lay in various positions. Katie had somehow ended up in the middle of the room. Silence was practicing her sword swings, focusing on horizontal strikes and stabs due to the ceiling being just a little too low.
I watched her confident motions as the others took turns waking up.
When Katie woke up, she having slept in the longest, we distributed another meal of ambush hamster. We had about three meals' worth left.
"Which door do we choose?" Katie finally asked.
"They seem to be labeled 'power', 'intellect', and 'speed'. Speed would most likely be a fend-for-yourself sprint. Power is most likely a fight. Intellect is probably a puzzle or riddle." I pointed at each one as I named it.
"The puzzle is probably the safest." Katie thought aloud.
"But a fight might well be quicker. If we can't turn back, an' the puzzle is too hard, we could end up starvin' to death." Thomas argued.
"We have to do one, though. Maybe we vote?" I suggested.
With varying levels of enthusiasm, the others agreed.
Silence voted for power.
Katie voted for intellect.
Juliana voted for intellect.
Thomas voted for power.
They all stared me down, waiting for my vote. I looked Katie and Juliana in the eyes. "I mean no disrespect to you or your opinions, but I'm going to vote for power."
Katie huffed, but Juliana nodded. "Don't get yourself killed trying to prove yourself." Juliana said.
Silence led the way, with Thomas right behind her. She pushed the door open, and walked through, but the sword she carried didn't seem to want to pass, as if being held by a barrier. She looked around before unbuckling it from her belt. The Barrier didn't seem to be done, though. After Silence had passed through, Thomas was stopped entirely. I tried to get in, but found myself pushing against a wall sturdy as brick and mortar.
"Duel zones," I muttered.
"What?" Katie asked.
"These seem to be like the duel zones of a world I visited. Some things are restricted entry. Only two people may enter. Or in this case... one. In the other world, it was used to isolate you and an opponent to have an uninterrupted duel. This probably is how the trials have been balanced."
"Can she leave if she wants to?" Juliana asked.
In response to the question, Silence walked out, unhindered. I stuck my hand through the doorway as an experiment as she tried to go back in. The barrier stopped her. As I had expected. I took my arm back before she could glare at me.
"If it's fend-for-yourself anyway, there's less harm in considering the speed path as well. I'll probably use that one."
"Do we know if they meet up on the other side?" Juliana asked.
"I would guess so. I'll holler when I get to the other side. I said, making my way to the other side of the room. Silence went into the trial marked with the fist. I pushed my way through the door marked with an arrow. Torches sprung to life two at a time down a corridor twice the width of the previous corridors. Pits in the floor made the path distinct and treacherous. Holes riddled the walls. I took a step forward only to lunge back as a stream of arrows shot past me. No turning back. Not after I started, anyway. I rolled my shoulders as I analyzed the path. It varied in width, some parts wide enough to run comfortably, others as wide as my foot. There was even a couple parts I would have to leap across. In all, add a cargo net and remove the arrows and death falls, and you had yourself an enticing obstacle course.