3 trials at once why not?

"Thee w're hath killed but didn't kicketh the bucket well done. Thy aptitude sayeth thee can visage the next trial in the 3 in 1"

Thales was pierced once more and once more after that in total he had 4 needles.

"This world's psychedelics are stronger than a babies ignorance could handle"

"Seriously I have no memories but how could one be born into a world where illusions can invade your mind to this degree."

"trial 2 3 and 4 commences if't be true thee liveth thee shalt visage 2 m're betimes aft'r yond if't be true thee insist thee can liveth then, thee shall kicketh the bucket following yond but if't be true thee doth cozen the reap'r once m're, haply thee shall ascend and death shall loseth meaning f'r thee i desire f'r yond outcome anon, thales miray of house miray."

"That's too bad seems the knowledge was pointless thus far"

"Oh a cage what is this? I am sealed in a hypercube chain but quantum entangled to another cube of 4 vectors."

"Usually I am in 3 numbers, or more accurately 3 directions you can move in a certain sized space, this is a box of an extra one"

"Maybe not so useless after all"

"Very well I am a prisoner? I have no clue how my treasured senses can aid me here"

"At least my memories returned"

"Hey there magic man, you were sucked into this trap too? Hehe"

"An old man, my cube mate yapped nonsense."

"Oh my memories but I'm a criminal of adult build"

"What is the objective?"

"To win hehe, how about a game of chess my boy"

"You should beat me and if so you shall be released. If you lose you will rot here in my place such is what the voice in my head told me"

"Very well"

"There is a catch we are also the pieces we play no?

Just kidding regular chess but with thrills, chills and maybe kills."

"Get to the point." Thales the prisoner said bluntly.

"You won't be confined to your trap you shall be pursued by the ngwahs I sucked in here with me" Your goal is to kill me, before I kill you, it seems the ngwahs are a misdirection and instead you shall face 3 trials are you capable?"

"Regardless here's Pawn to e5"

The old man made his move.

Thales was dropped into an unknown sector of the prison.

"You must make your moves blind, try not to die to die to mere ngwahs bwhahaaha" The old man cackled while tapping his side of the board."

"I can't waste time; I hate this bastard making me play two chess matches after he said it was normal"

"Ooga booga juicy meat" the ngwahs chanted.

"I'll do this then."

Thales calmly responded to the move with his pawn to e4 on the black side.

As he journeyed away from his chasers

Thales had moved around the new environment multiple times, swerving and curving around his hunters.

Using noise to distract too such as cracking the window, with Thales the prisoners bigger frame the game had progressed by 3 moves too.

The Old fox had played Nf3 while Thales played Nc6.

Thales had made his strategy apparent the current premise in mind was to memorize the layout to slowly lead the Ngwahs to this.

The Old fox played, Bb5.

"It is an elevator that has a password change every 90 seconds and ordinarily can only be opened by retina scan while wearing an unknown substance implanted in unknown ways."

"However in this mind space it seems it is a bit looser."

"Only the pass word trick is required and luckily I could easily decode it, calculate the possibilities and make my move simultaneously since I could also retain my cognitive abilities."

"I was observing intently if anything most of my processing went into taking in my surroundings but I suppose in parallel this doesn't mean much it is an equal split with no cognitive load yet because I am wise, I am wary such is the nature of the one who chases the mystery."

"This body had become most useful to me and it's time for this defense with this"

A Myriad of things happened; Thales played his knight to Nf6 this was the Berlin defense, at the same time he stared down the predators and neatly turned them into prey they entered the elevator, but they were recognized as intruders since they did not input the password and they existed here unlike Thales.

"Ha-ha such is the natural result of fools easy to trick and consumed by their own folly you mindless dogs."

The Old Codger said something.

"You missed a spot Dear boy"

"Missed a spot what did he mean?"

Suddenly Thales was attacked his flesh was torn out by a great maw from a rogue Ngwah seems they had a tactic of their own, divide and conquer.

"Arrgh" Thales screamed out.

The old man made his move.

"O-O" It was castling of the king

"Well that was worth it, fool yourself before you fool your enemy" Thales used himself as a sacrificial piece to lure the Ngwah in he was about to leave but was suddenly locked in with this rogue ngwah separated by a barrier with the other ones."

"Still hungry" the ngwah chanted

"Still angry" The ngwah growled behind Thales.

The Old man laughed "Nice try but I am the king, I took charge and now face my trial by flooding"

Before Thales could hack the system, somehow externally the old man forced "Heavy water" to start filling up Thales had a few seconds at best to act and think, escaping through his prior method was not an option and he was now bleeding which wasn't ideal but he could solve that issue if he could escape.

Thales thought his thoughts fizzled, grew, clashed and surged with electricity at wondrous speeds.

"Such a blessing has been bestowed onto you by my all knowing god, exceed rank Divine Holder of the epithet <> "

"This prison is my playground if not for me being confined by my own devices"

The old man said with hate by being cursed by his own genius.

"Rambling I don't have time for it" Thales said with contempt.

And he really didn't however while he was rambling Thales managed to construct a makeshift breathing apparatus thanks to his wisdom he survived.

The elevator had filled up with the heavy substance.

Simultaneously the moves Nxe4 had been played by Thales and the old man played Re1, Thales only had 30 seconds of breathing time until he was defeated, in 20 seconds of this time, Thales played Nde6 and the man played Nxe5. Understandable for the old man but Thales was submerged and yet.

The Board managed to be littered with precise moves back and fourth.

Thales realized the fox's strategy not in chess but in this trial he simply didn't realise how Thales was accustomed to such conditions.

"ON FIRE TOO?"

Thales stole the Ngwahs air through mouth to mouth and then used its panic to cause momentum to break down the barrier.

Motivated by the fire, he crushed the Ngwah into its brethren and they toppled like dominos causing the elevator to crash while on fire.

Thales using his breathing apparatus avoided needing to breathe the oxygen less air. The old fox had no idea he would do that

He had no need to relieve himself from the fear of drowning and simply used the weight to fall.

Thales now sat atop wounded but alive on a mountain of broken bodies.

"You presented me a trial in your eyes, what you really presented me was my former home."

The bodies burned. Thales the prisoner freed now saw the fire flicker and crash.

"Fire, yes for some it could destroy for others it could create an aspect of light it guided me, it is wisdom. I can use it to better food, it changes shape, and it perfects shape."

The piece in the old man's hand heated up it became Thales.

 "Is chess not the abstract war game of change, fire is change fire stems from the bloodline of light face the legion of light until you burn to ashes and then never awake again, you can never know all that is your sin?" "Sit atop my infernal judgement as you ponder your pieces counting down the moment you no longer feel greed."

This was the game the old man had his pawn captured, Thales last pawn promoted to queen the king was his. "Thy god, why didn't you let me eat forever"

The old man was left with nothing. Not even his material.

Thales fire consumed that too.

Thales himself had been enlightened.

"With that we are done here, I realized the continuous trials is your mere foresight myself who guides me"

"We are done" the real Thales in his 5yr old vessel uttered.

"That is so, see you very soon" the homunculi said.

Thales was alive he burned with passion but no longer had fire entwined with his material.

He sat in the empty room now.

"Illusions sure are strong, delusions try to be stronger than ideas but a mere fraud isn't enough to pull the wall over the truths eyes, a mere scam cannot deal with an eternal idea."

"That was interesting I learned a lot, but now my friend I must know the truth of you"

"Beato..."