The Trial for Life

The beasts beneath them moved with thunderous speed, their fiery bodies streaking across the burning plains like living comets. The air roared past Roy's ears, heat waves distorting his vision as he clung tightly to the massive fire-beast's back.

For three hours, they raced across this untamed, endless world, a land that felt primordial and eternal, untouched by the passage of time.

Roy's eyes darted across the scenery, drinking in the sheer scale of what lay before him.

Mountains towered like ancient titans, their peaks wrapped in infernos, constantly spewing rivers of molten rock down their sides. Lava lakes bubbled and churned, home to colossal creatures basking in the heat, their eyes glowing like miniature suns.

And in the distance—

A battle unfolded.

Two gargantuan beasts clashed in a terrifying spectacle. One was a fire serpent, its body stretching for miles, coiled around a monstrous lava hound with six heads, each spewing flames hot enough to turn stone into vapor.

Every blow they exchanged sent shockwaves through the terrain, cracks forming in the ground as mountains trembled in their wake.

Roy swallowed hard.

"This place… It's not just a world."

Above them, massive winged creatures soared through the flaming sky, their wingspans large enough to block out the horizon. Some resembled phoenixes, their bodies composed of molten embers, while others were winged beasts of pure plasma, their cries like thunderclaps.

They weren't simply animals.

They were living embodiments of fire and destruction.

A world where only the strongest could survive.

Roy's heart pounded with excitement.

"This… this is mine?" he whispered, barely believing it.

Ignis Fang, riding beside him atop his own flame beast, gave a knowing smirk.

"Yes," he said. "But do not mistake ownership for control. This world will not bow to you simply because you wear the ring. If you wish to rule, you must prove yourself—not as its owner, but as its conqueror."

Roy clenched his fists.

He would.

But first—

They had a mission.

The Prison of the Hive Mind

The fortress loomed before them, massive and unyielding, its black volcanic walls pulsing with ancient runes. The chains that wrapped around it were not there for protection.

They were there to contain something.

Roy's gaze swept across the structure. There was no danger.

The world around them burned with life, but the fortress itself remained still, silent, and undisturbed.

Ignis Fang strode forward.

"You were expecting something more?" he asked, a smirk playing on his lips.

Roy hesitated. "I guess… I thought it would be more—"

Alive.

Ignis Fang nodded knowingly. "The Hive Mind is not dead—only dormant. It is sealed. Powerless. There is no risk here."

That was all the reassurance Roy needed.

Inside, the chamber holding the Hive Mind was vast and empty, save for one thing—

A massive black sphere floating silently at the center.

It was unnaturally smooth, absorbing all light, as if it was a void in reality itself.

Mimi trembled.

"Pi Pi… is this the body?"

Ignis Fang nodded. "Yes. It is the last remnant of its kind. It has no mind, no will. Just a husk. Yours to claim."

Mimi hesitated for only a moment. Then, she floated toward it.

Roy watched closely, his fingers clenching.

As Mimi reached out—

The moment she touched the sphere—

Everything changed.

The Hive Mind Awakens

A sudden tremor.

The fortress quaked, dust raining down from the ceiling.

The sphere pulsed.

Then—

A shockwave blasted outward, a massive pulse of energy that threw Roy back.

He hit the ground hard, his body skidding across the stone.

His chest seized—his lungs burning as if the very air had turned to fire.

The fortress screamed.

The chains rattled violently, the once-silent runes glowing with desperate urgency as something inside the sphere awoke.

Mimi's voice rang in his head.

"User! It's… waking up! It's not empty!"

Roy's breath caught.

Ignis Fang's eyes narrowed sharply.

"This is… impossible," he murmured. "The Hive Mind should have been long dead. The energy inside should have been scattered…"

But it wasn't.

It was here.

And now—

It wanted to live.

A Battle for Control

A new pulse of energy erupted from the sphere.

Black tendrils of psychic force lashed out, striking at Mimi, wrapping around her like living chains.

She screamed.

"User! I—I can't move!"

Roy's eyes widened.

"Mimi!"

He launched forward, his fire igniting instantly, but—

He wasn't fast enough.

Mimi was yanked inside the sphere.

A suffocating silence followed.

Then—

The room darkened.

The black sphere grew.

From its surface, a form emerged—

A creature of shifting darkness, thousands of eyes flickering in and out of existence, limbs twisting and warping as it took shape.

It wasn't complete.

But it was alive.

And it was angry.

The Hive Mind Speaks

A deep, thousand-voiced whisper flooded the room.

"You… dare… disturb me…?"

The temperature plummeted.

Roy's blood ran cold.

This thing wasn't just defending itself—it was trying to take control of Mimi instead.

Ignis Fang's face darkened.

"This isn't a mindless husk," he muttered. "It was waiting. Hiding. And now—"

His body burst into flames.

"Now it wants to kill us all."

Desperate War

Roy didn't hesitate.

His fire roared, clashing against the Hive Mind's dark energy.

But the creature was fast—its tendrils lashed out, striking at him from all angles.

Roy dodged, barely, his movements fueled by pure instinct.

Ignis Fang moved beside him, his presence like a sun, his fire cutting through the dark tendrils with ruthless precision.

But even he frowned.

"It's resisting. Growing stronger. The longer this goes on, the harder it will be to stop it."

Roy gritted his teeth.

Then—

Mimi's voice screamed in his mind.

"User! It's trying to take over! I—I don't think I can hold on!"

No.

Roy's chest twisted in rage.

She was fighting alone inside.

While he was out here barely keeping up.

Not again.

Not again!

His flames exploded outward, his entire body igniting in a white-hot blaze.

Ignis Fang's expression darkened.

"This isn't good," he muttered. "If it regains control before she claims it, we're all dead."

Roy's blood turned to ice.

"Mimi!" he shouted. "Hold on!"

But the sphere wasn't just fighting internally—

It was defending itself externally.

A wave of psychic force lashed out, aiming straight for Roy and Ignis Fang.

Ignis Fang reacted instantly, raising his arm.

"ENOUGH."

With a single wave, a wall of flame erupted, colliding with the attack.

Roy's eyes widened.

Ignis Fang wasn't holding back anymore.

He had promised safety.

Now, he was enforcing it.

"Roy!" Ignis Fang barked. "We need to keep its defenses occupied! The more we weaken it from the outside, the easier it will be for Mimi to take control!"

Roy clenched his fists.

"Got it!"

His flames ignited, roaring to life.

And then—

The battle began.

A Battle on Two Fronts

Roy charged first.

His fists burned hotter than ever as he launched himself at the sphere, striking it with everything he had.

The Hive Mind responded instantly, retaliating with psychic force, trying to crush them under its will.

Ignis Fang countered with fire, his flames carving through the darkness like a sword against the void.

Inside, Mimi fought for control, her own consciousness clashing against the Hive Mind's vast will.

She was outnumbered. Outmatched.

But—

She had one thing the Hive Mind didn't.

She wasn't alone.

Roy's attacks forced the Hive Mind to divert power outward.

Ignis Fang's flames kept it contained.

And inside—

Mimi pushed forward, seizing control bit by bit.

The battle raged, the prison shaking apart as fire, force, and willpower collided in a desperate struggle.

Then—

A final roar of defiance erupted from the Hive Mind.

And then—

It fell silent.

The crimson glow faded.

The sphere shrank.

And then—

From its core, a single glowing light emerged.

It pulsed once.

Twice.

Then, a familiar voice spoke.

"Pi Pi…"