Chapter 6: Ashes Beneath the Sky

The desert stretched wide under a sky torn with fire and shadow. Meteors streaked across the heavens, burning tails dragging scars through the darkness. Raen and Lira stood just beyond the ruined spiral library's entrance, breathless. Sand billowed from distant impacts, carried by the dry wind that bit at their faces.

Raen wiped sweat from his brow. "That... was close."

Lira glanced at the sky. "This is just the start. Meteors mean the next phase of the Trials is here. We stay still, we die. Simple as that."

Raen exhaled, eyes narrowing. No time to rest.

He raised his hand, thoughts flickering. The Sol System Menu appeared before him in glowing script:

---

[Sol System Menu]

- Name: Raen Solmere

- Age: 14

- Gender: Male

- Sol Status: 80%

- Conduit Progression: Locked

- Transmutation Potential: Unstable

- Physical Integrity: Moderate (Injury detected)

- Mental Stability: Fluctuating

- Environmental Adaptation: Low

- Potential Abilities:

-Not Available

"Warning: Rapid Sol increase may cause anomalies."

---

"It's not like I asked for this," Raen muttered, dismissing the menu. His shoulder throbbed from earlier injuries. Moderate integrity... yeah, I feel that.

Lira tossed him a flask. "Drink. You'll need to keep moving."

Raen took a swig, grimacing at the metallic taste. "Thanks... So, why are the books written on an alien language? What's with that?"

Lira adjusted her scarf. "Books in the Trials aren't normal. Some are cursed, some just... mess with you. That diary you read? Probably left on purpose to lure people like you—curious types. The shelves? They reject you if you're not 'aligned' or whatever Ancient Trial nonsense."

Raen frowned. "Aligned with what?"

"Beats me. The gods? The Veins? Pick your poison." Lira shrugged. "Best not to poke too hard. People who dig too deep usually vanish."

Raen hesitated, then asked, "Have you ever... read one?"

"Yeah. Once." Her gaze darkened. "Didn't end well for someone I knew."

Silence stretched between them. Raen glanced back at the library ruins. How many answers are buried in places I can't reach? But lingering wasn't an option. The ground shuddered with another distant crash.

"Let's go," Lira said. "Next meteor hits close, we're dust."

They set off, feet sinking into shifting sands. The desert seemed alive—winds howled like distant voices, and heat waves twisted the horizon.

Raen winced as pain flared in his side. Lira noticed. "Hold still." She knelt, pulling out rough bandages. "You'll slow us down if you bleed out."

"Appreciate the optimism," Raen muttered but didn't resist.

As she wrapped his ribs, he asked, "Why are you even helping me?"

Lira paused. "Guess I don't like seeing kids die."

"I'm fourteen."

"Exactly. Kid." She smirked, finishing the wrap. "There. Not pretty, but you'll live. Maybe."

They continued in silence for a while. Meteors rained in the distance, setting the sands ablaze.

Eventually, Raen spoke. "You mentioned stories about these Trials... You think the gods are watching?"

Lira glanced up. "If they are, they've got a twisted sense of fun."

Raen thought of Veywick—of ash, screaming, and the Black Sun Syndicate. His fists clenched. If gods are watching... then they saw everything.

Ahead, the ground split into a massive crater, radiating heat. Red light glowed from its depths, illuminating jagged rocks. Mirage-like shapes flickered at the edges. Raen squinted. Figures? No... illusions.

Lira sighed. "Great. Either we jump in and fry, or we go around."

"Canyon detour," Raen suggested. "Better than boiling."

"Lead the way, genius."

They veered right, moving along craggy outcrops toward a shadowed ravine.

....

Crimson rocks loomed, the night sky painted with falling stars. On a rocky ledge overlooking the burning desert, a small group rested. They sat around a flickering fire, its light barely pushing back the darkness.

Eryn stretched, joints cracking. "Three hours to the temple, tops. If we push."

Beside him, a stocky boy muttered, "We should wait. Meteors are still falling—"

"That's the point," Eryn cut in, smirking. "Less people alive when we get there." He unsheathed a curved blade, examining the reflection of falling meteors. "We don't win by playing nice."

From the shadows, another figure spoke. "And what if someone stronger's ahead?"

"Then we kill them first." Eryn stood, gaze fixed on the horizon. No room for mercy. Not here. His hand rested on the hilt. "Rest's over. Move."

Grumbling, the group rose. The fire sputtered out as they vanished into the night, footsteps swallowed by the howling wind.

....

The canyon stretched before them, a scar carved into the desert's surface. Jagged rocks jutted like the spines of buried beasts, and the narrow path forced Raen and Lira to walk single file.

The air shifted—cooler, but thick with tension. Ancient carvings lined the walls, etched symbols catching the faint glow of falling meteors. Spirals. Eyes. A sun split by a single jagged line.

Raen paused, fingers grazing one of the symbols. It's familiar... why?

His Sol stirred—warm, then burning. His vision blurred. Flames swallowed his sight, and a voice—low and endless—echoed in his mind: "Ash gives way to sky. Blood remembers. Sol claims."

"Raen!" Lira yanked him back. The vision shattered. He stumbled, breath ragged. "Don't touch the walls," she said sharply. "Those symbols aren't just art. They pull you in."

He rubbed his eyes. "Noted." But those words... what do they mean?

They pressed on, weaving through narrow passages and stepping over weathered bones half-buried in sand. Each turn seemed to stretch time. Raen's mind drifted to his system—maybe there was something useful? He summoned the menu again.

---

[Sol System Menu]

- Name: Raen Solmere

- Age: 14

- Gender: Male

- Sol Status: 20%

- Conduit Progression: Locked

- Transmutation Potential: Unstable

- Physical Integrity: Moderate (Injury detected)

- Mental Stability: Fluctuating

- Environmental Adaptation: Low

- Available Abilities to Learn:

- "Pulse Shard": ???

- "Warning: Rapid Sol increase may cause anomalies."

---

Raen scanned the option. Pulse Shard? Why is it unknown?

Lira glanced back. "What's got you staring at nothing again?"

"My system menu. It says 'Not Available'."

"Yeah. That's normal."

Raen analyzed but dismissed the menu.

The canyon twisted sharply, revealing a fork. Left path dipped into darkness; right climbed toward faint light. Lira sighed. "Dark pit or climb that probably leads to falling rocks?"

Raen squinted at the darkness. If I were running this Trial... the harder path's the right one. "Left."

"Of course you pick the creepy route." Lira rolled her eyes but followed.

The air grew colder. Water dripped from unseen cracks. Their footsteps echoed—two heartbeats against stone.

Soon, faint shapes emerged: ancient statues worn by time. Faceless figures reaching upward, hands stretched as if pleading.

Raen stopped at one statue. At its base, faint words remained: "To seek Sol's truth is to face the shadow within."

He shivered. Shadow within...

Lira glanced at the inscription. "These Trials really love their cryptic nonsense."

Deeper still, they found an underground basin where water pooled, reflecting faint light from above. Lira knelt, splashing her face. "First water I've seen in hours."

Raen drank cautiously. The cool liquid soothed his dry throat. "Feels like this place... wants us to keep going. Like it's guiding us."

"Or leading us to a trap," Lira muttered. She pulled out dried rations, handing him a piece. "Eat. You'll think clearer."

They sat on a ledge, munching quietly. Raen finally asked, "Why'd you join the Trials?"

Lira paused mid-bite. "Guess I'm looking for something."

"That's vague."

"Good." She grinned but it didn't reach her eyes. "What about you?"

Raen hesitated. Veywick. Mom. Dad... He swallowed. "Forced."

Lira didn't press. "Fair enough." She stood. "Rest's over. Let's keep moving before this place decides to cave in."

They rose and followed the cavern deeper. The darkness seemed to breathe—alive with unseen things.

Raen's heart pounded, but with every step, resolve hardened. Whatever's ahead... I'll face it.

---

Raen wiped sweat from his brow as he and Lira pressed onward, the burning horizon casting their shadows long over the dunes. Each step dragged, his legs heavy, lungs raw with each breath. The desert stretched endlessly, the wind clawing at their clothes and swirling sand into their faces.

"Hold up," Lira said, panting. "We need a breather. Keep pushing like this, you'll pass out."

Raen nodded, grateful but wary. They ducked beneath a jagged rock outcrop, seeking the meager shade. His muscles ached. Blood still dried along the cuts from earlier, and his head throbbed with dull pulses.

---

An hour later, they crested another dune and stopped dead. Before them lay a circular stone platform, partially swallowed by sand. Runes glimmered faintly around the edges, and at its center stood a fractured obelisk. The air here felt lighter, the oppressive heat ebbing away.

Lira exhaled. "Checkpoint. We're halfway."

Raen stepped onto the platform, his Sol System Menu flickering open:

---

Checkpoint Reached.

Progress to Temple: 50% Complete.

Restoration Options:

- Partial Healing (Y/N)

- Temporary Environmental Adaptation Boost (Y/N)

Warning: Only one option may be selected.

---

"Take the healing," Lira said, glancing around. "You're barely holding together."

He selected Partial Healing. Warmth seeped through his body, knitting torn muscles and clearing the fog from his mind.

"Better," he muttered, rolling his shoulder. The lingering aches dulled but didn't vanish.

They sat for a moment longer. The runes hummed softly underfoot.

---

Elsewhere, Eryn and his group stood atop a rocky ridge. The temple loomed in the distance, its jagged silhouette piercing the hazy horizon.

"There it is." Eryn grinned, adjusting the blade at his side. "First ones there get the prize."

One teammate glanced back. "We should watch for traps—others are heading that way too."

Eryn's grin widened. "Good. Let them come. More chances to thin the herd."

---

A lone figure in dark wrappings knelt atop a distant dune, eyes locked on the temple. Blood dripped from their blade, staining the sand.

"Almost there," they whispered. Fingers tightened on the hilt. "Hope they put up a fight."

---

Near a canyon's edge, another competitor crouched, holding a cracked compass. The temple's outline glinted in the glass. Notes scribbled on a worn parchment showed converging paths.

"Groups closing in." A smirk. "Perfect. Let them clash... I'll pick the bones clean."

---

Back at the checkpoint, Raen stood, stretching. "We should move. Others are probably close."

"Yeah." Lira adjusted her scarf, scanning the horizon. "Stay sharp."

Unseen above them, nestled in a rocky overhang, a figure crouched. Grey eyes gleamed beneath a hood. Their gaze followed Raen and Lira's retreating forms as they descended toward the distant temple.

It's almost time. Fingers hovered over a hidden weapon.

As Raen and Lira trudged onward, the temple's massive shadow stretched toward them—an ominous maw waiting to swallow those who dared approach.