CHAPTER 23: TEST

"Rafiz..." Kairi called again in a shaking voice.

"What else?" Rafiz was bored of hearing his name.

"I'm hungry."

His stomach rumbled and could not stand it anymore. Rafiz rolled his eyes but he still took out an apple from his bag and fed it to Kairi.

"Please be patient. We don't know how long we will be here. We need to save some food."

"I know! Thank you, Rafiz!" Kairi nodded and took a bite of the apple.

"Hey, don't eat my hand too!" Rafiz was angry when Kairi accidentally bit his finger.

"How big is this boy's mouth?" He thought.

Then, he shook his head. While Kairi was eating, he looked around again. He still felt the unpleasant feeling like someone was watching them too.

"This forest is weird. When can we get out of here?"

They resumed their journey. Not long after, they arrived in a swamp. Because the area was dark, they could not guess the depth of the swamp.

"How to cross? Maybe we should turn back to the two roads." Kairi shuddered to see the dark swamp.

"It's impossible to turn back." Rafiz shook his head.

"Huh? Why? We can't cross. You want us to swim? Who knows what's waiting in the swamp." Kairi was spooked.

He was sure there was something in it, waiting to devour them.

"I don't mean that. The way back has changed. Look for yourself."

Kairi turned around and still did not understand Rafiz's meaning. He focused his sight and began to notice something was wrong. That something was moving. His mouth widened slowly while looking at it with horror.

"If you have seen it, turning back is no longer an option. I've noticed it for a long time since we came here. Not only does the tree move, but if you look closely, the shadow of the tree behind us also adds to the appearance of another tree. It's impossible to find a way back," explained Rafiz.

"So, you mean, these are all traps...? You think the Bright Star is testing us?"

"You seem to guess it too." Rafiz grin.

"When Agi told us to choose earlier, I also felt like he wanted to test us on purpose." Kairi felt complicated.

He trusts Agi and their friends so easily. But, telling him about the test, well, maybe they were unable to do it. Must be the upper echelon order.

"I've heard that one of the Bright Star users, Perseus, can control illusions. We may be in the illusion now." Rafiz nodded.

"So, what should we do? How to complete the test? And how do we know how many tests there are." Kairi was beginning to get anxious.

"Why are you asking? The first test is crossing the swamp." Rafiz laughs.

Kairi's eyes twitch at the answer. He looked at Rafiz who walked to a tree and placed his palm on the trunk. They were startled when the tree rotted and turned to dust.

"Seems like jumping from branch to branch is impossible," Kairi told him.

"Wait. Did you hear it?" Rafiz asked when he heard something from the swamp.

A broken twig was heard. The twig fell into the swamp. A moment later some strange beast appeared from inside the swamp, scrambled to bite the twig.

Kairi shivered while Rafiz stared at them. Soon, all the strange beasts dived back into the swamp. They look like giant tortoises except for the sharp spiny shells. Their colour was very dark.

"Is that an illusion too?!" It seems so real.

"It's real. But this is the first time I've seen it. So, I have no information about it." Rafiz answered while shrugging.

"But, Kairi, I've got an idea of ​​how we can cross over there," Rafiz told the good news he found.

Kairi swallowed.

"Why do I think I don't like your idea?"

As he guessed. Rafiz suggests they use the beast shells to cross.

"But, Rafiz, their bodies are thorny. Our feet will be injured before we can step on them." He was in a dilemma.

"You forgot I have to teach you that technique. What's the point if we don't use it now?" Rafiz smirk.

Kairi sighs. "Let's do it."

He looked at the swamp. His stomach does not feel good. Rafiz collects some broken twigs. It did not turn to dust like before. Kairi helps out too.

"Ready?" Rafiz asked Kairi.

Kairi replied with a nod.

Simultaneously, they tossed the twigs one by one and then farther away. They also hold half to make sure their journey doesn't stop with them sinking into the swamp. The tortoise-like beast reappeared and grabbed the twigs. Kairi and Rafiz took their chances and jumped on the animals.

As their feet almost hit the needle on the animal's shell, a thin white round plate of pressure appeared. Kairi and Rafiz call it a collision wave because it uses the energy released by the two objects causing a collision between pressure.

Everything releases energy and the energy released from the animals collide with the energy released from Kairi and Rafiz's bodies. Due to that, the plate pressure appears.

Now, they both jump on top of the beasts and finally arrive on the other side. There was a road lane leading somewhere. Kairi feels so relieved. His heart was beating fast because he thought they would not be able to get there safely.

"Fortunately there is this technique." He smiled at Rafiz.

"Let's go."

As they followed the road, their movements were observed by several people through a large displayed image in a spacious room. The room had a big round table with 33 chairs around it. Each chair also has a different colour and various shapes of star patterns engraved on top of each chair. The display was presented in a 2-D image by one of the people in the room.

"Heh! I didn't know they could use such a technique." Agi said in awe. His chair showed the Sagittarius star pattern.

"They are great!" Praised Aries.

"Looks like they won't have a problem completing the test. Madam Perseus, are there more tests?" Asked Virgo towards a very beautiful white-haired lady.

Her long silk dress covered her legs and glowed with a rainbow colour. The colour would change according to her emotions. Around her neck, wrist and ankle wore a bracelet with navy blue pearls.

Her lip was a soft pink. Virgo and almost all Bright Star members would be fascinated by the beauty of their general's wife.

She was a perfect fit for him because both were outstanding people. Not only that, Perseus was gentle and did not use force like her husband. However, if Perseus gets angry, her aura was terrifying.

"Yes, I still have two more tests for them." Perseus give a soft smile.

Virgo nodded and looked at the image in front of him. He hopes they pass all the tests.

Back to Kairi and Rafiz, they were in a place with nice wooden houses.

"I don't see anyone," Kairi stated.

"Could be a place for us to rest," Rafiz joked while he was wary of their surroundings.

It was impossible to be given relief after the test. Kairi also thinks the same but the bright fruits on a tree nearby catch his attention. His stomach rumbled again, indicating his hunger. While Rafiz was thinking, Kairi picked one of them and wanted to bite it.

"Huh? Kairi, don't eat it!" Rafiz instantly grabbed Kairi's hand that was holding the fruit.

He didn't know what would happen if Kairi ate it. The fruit fell to their feet.

"What...?" Kairi was stunned. He did not realize he picked it up.

"You..." Rafiz notices Kairi's confusion.

"Kairi, what do you remember?"

Kairi shook his head. "Only feeling hungry and then I don't know."

"He controlled? Why didn't I notice? Is this a test of will?" Rafiz feels like it was because Kairi's will was weakened due to his hunger.

"Let me see with my second eye," Kairi told him.

He feels weird about this place. He ignores his grumbling stomach and opens his Knight Seeyer's eyes. He gasped after seeing the real situation of the place. His expression looked horrified.

"Kairi, what do you see?" Rafiz places one hand on Kairi's shoulder.

Kairi looked at him.

"There's nothing around. Just that..." He turns toward the fruit.

Rafiz suddenly kicks it away. "Don't say it."

Kairi gives him an evil smile. "It's the black worm as big as your fist, Rafiz."

Rafiz turned his body around and walked away quickly. Kairi already caught a glimpse of horror on his face. Kairi chuckled. He knows that Rafiz hates worms. Especially a big one.

When Rafiz walked away, Kairi had to pick one of the worms and throw it at Rafiz. Rafiz felt something behind and turned around. The worm smacks into his face. Rafiz's eyes widened first before he turned pale.

"Kairi! Imma gonna kill you!" He screamed while Kairi had a long run away from the place.

Their friends who saw it through the display image laughed so loud that their stomachs hurt. To think such a formal Deorc Star would be afraid of worms. No one would know it if they had not seen it.