Darian runs through the dark woods, paying no mind to the branches that cut across his skin. He needs to focus. He won’t allow simple cuts to distract him. His eyes dart from side to side, passing over each shadow with a cautious glance. In this forest, anything could be a threat. His ears stay alert for any rustling in the bushes or twigs breaking behind him as he doesn’t know if they followed him into the forest. The image of his mother’s body being pummeled intrudes into his mind. Her lifeless form receiving strike after strike brings a feeling of nausea to his stomach.

A sudden chill surrounds his body and brings his mind back to the forest. “I lost focus again. I need to stay focused. If I can’t, I might not leave the forest.” Staying focused on the forest is the most dangerous way to avoid meeting a cruel fate in the Ell Woods. It’s dangerous simply because it’s the only method that doesn’t involve leaving the forest. Most lose focus and become lost or devoured, leading the method to be disfavored among those who enter the woods.

The chill gradually fades as his attention lies entirely on the forest. He gets a sense of nostalgia as his eyes dance around the surrounding trees. A feeling that he has been here before, despite being sure he’s been running in a straight line for the last hour. Panic fills his heart as the thought of simply running directly back to his pursuers on accident occurs to him. He wouldn’t stand a chance. They could toss him around like a doll or cut him to pieces, and he would be unable to resist them.

“Father was incredibly strong. Stronger than anyone I had ever seen. But… That man was a monster. Mother cut his arm off, and he just smiled. Father fought hard, but even the cuts Father gave the man just healed and…” Darian remembers the smell of his father’s flesh burning. He remembers the sight of what was left. The skin melted together to form a hideous visage that only resembled his father. Darian abruptly stops and pukes onto the ground.

Tears stream down his face. “Mom, Dad, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry… It’s all my fault. Because of me… Because of me, they came here. Because of me…” Darian wipes his eyes before looking back up. Before him stands his reflection, though there is nothing to project the reflection. He looks at his despicable form with hatred as his form glares back at him. He stares at the boy wearing shredded clothes covered in cuts and blood.

The boy points accusingly. “It’s your fault they died. If you were stronger, they would have lived. If you were more cautious, they wouldn’t have suffered. If you didn’t exist, they would be happy. It’s your fault!”

“That’s not fair! How could I have stopped him? What did I do wrong? How could anyone beat that monster?”

The boy looks at himself. His skin covered in cracks. His eyes black and soulless. His face contorted in a vicious smile. “Become a monster yourself.”

Darian feels a familiar energy surrounding him, its wrathful presence overwhelming. He doesn't know when it surrounded him, he only knows he finds comfort in its rage. The feelings of disgust, despair, and loneliness, replaced with hatred and anger. Even if his wrath bears down only on himself, at least he has a target. He screams out into the woods before lunging at himself. The two disturbed boys collide with each other.

Darian slowly opens his eyes to the sunlight piercing the trees. He hears birds chirping happily with no regard to how terrible he feels. He looks at his resting spot. He’s sitting against a large tree and is surrounded by dead grass. He wills himself to his feet despite his drained legs making their displeasure known. "What happened? Where am I?" He takes in the unfamiliar location. "This looks like the Ell Woods, but I don't remember getting here. Did I fall asleep? For how long?"

He walks down a natural path as he thinks to himself. "The last thing I remember is fighting a reflection of myself. That was probably the forest. Why didn't I realize what was happening? I'm definitely lost now."

Darian becomes shaky as he walks down the path and places his hand against a tree to steady himself. He notices his hand is covered in blood. He follows the trail up his arms and across his torso to his other arm. His energy vision focuses on himself, and he sees he’s coated in dried blood. "Where did all this blood come from?”

Upon further examination of his body, he notices his feet are bare and only scraps of his clothes remain affixed to his body, through sheer luck it seems. Something particularly strange catches his eye. “Am I taller? Seriously, how long was I asleep?” Nothing is making sense to him.

He continues down the path as if it’s the only path worth taking. A fog surrounds his mind, and he finds it hard to focus. After an hour of walking, he comes to a large clearing. His eyes widen as he takes in the sight. In the middle of the clearing is a large, ornate, stone structure. As he looks over the structure, his mind clears. Most of it seems to be buried beneath the surface but, some of it is clearly visible. Four large pillars surround a center round entrance penetrating the ground. The four pillars connect to the center entrance by a string of blue light. In front of each pillar are nine foot tall, metal statues of bipedal creatures he doesn't recognize. He looks cautiously at the statues. The creatures have slim faces with lines that flow from below the center of their eyes to small horns that sprout downward from both sides of their chins. They hold large spears that are even taller than they are. He unconsciously approaches the structure. As he closes in, it becomes apparent his initial assumption was wrong. “That’s not just light, it’s condensed energy.”

He stands in front of the entrance. Most of it is buried, but enough is accessible that he could enter if he desired. The entrance is made up of seemingly conjured stone that he couldn’t even guess the age of. It has no signs of even being created; the stone is smooth. “How was this made? It has no bricks. It’s as if it formed naturally.”

In the center of the entrance are two large, metal doors. They are completely black aside from a symbol on both doors. The symbols are completely identical and glow the same blue as the lights that connect the pillars to the top of the entrance. “What could the symbols mean? It’s not like anything I have seen. Not that it really matters. Now that I’ve got a better look at it, the doors are partially buried. I couldn’t get in anyway. That said, the symbols are made of pure energy. I wonder what they feel like.”

Darian reaches his hand out and gently touches the symbol on the left door. “Warm and tingly? It feels as if it doesn’t like being touched.” The symbol gradually grows brighter in response to Darian’s touch. He pulls his hand away as the symbol continues to flare. The symbol soon grows too bright to look at, and Darian shields his eyes. Then the light suddenly dims. He looks at the symbol suspiciously. He reaches out to touch the symbol again, but a sound like metal grinding against metal draws his attention. He’s reminded of being back at the forge. He looks over at the sound and sees one of the statues staring at him.

Through his energy vision, he sees energy swarming around the statues and pushing its way into each of them at a blinding pace. The statues suck up energy greedily. Darian gets an uneasy feeling. He steps away from the door and raises his hands. “Sorry about that. I didn’t know I couldn’t touch it.” He looks at the statues, who have now begun to break away from their bases. One by one, they break free and begin walking towards Darian. “No good?”

The forward statue to Darian’s right readies his spear and hurls it directly at Darian. He barely has time to even notice it flying at him before it’s right in front of him. He dives to the side as the spear buries itself four feet into the dirt behind him. A cloud of dirt erupts from the impact. Darian quickly recovers from the dive and looks at the rest of them. He quickly notices the one who threw the spear has vanished. No, vanished isn’t right. It’s behind him, holding its spear.

Darian turns to face the statue as it easily pulls its spear from the dirt. It immediately swings its spear at Darian without looking at its target. Darian ducks beneath the swing. The wind following the spear rushes past Darian’s head, indicating the sheer force behind it. Darian then dodges backwards as a follow-up thrust impales the spot he was standing. He slides across the dirt, barely able to keep his balance. He checks the other statues using his energy vision and is surprised to see none of them are showing signs of attacking. “That’s good. I don’t even know how I can deal with this one.”

Just as he was counting his blessings, all three of the previously uninvolved statues ready their spears and throw them into the air. Darian quickly calculates where they will land and determines they will all miss. Each spear lands around him. One directly behind him, one to his left, and one to his right. The main statue stands in front of him. “I don’t understand. I’m sure they could have hit me, but they were all off mark. Wait, the spears!”

The main statue plants his spear in the dirt and stares down at Darian. Darian looks around frantically for a way to get out, but can think of nothing. He looks back at the statue but sees it’s no longer in front of him. He immediately notices the statue is holding the spear behind him. He turns to face the statue, but it appears to his right as he turns. Again, he attempts to face him, but it appears behind him. He turns around as it appears in its original space, already swinging its spear. The spear drags through the dirt, slowing it down, but allowing it to attack immediately upon teleportation. Darian only has time to raise his arms in defense before it strikes him. The spear slams into his arms and throws him through the air.

Darian collides head first with the metal doors at the entrance before collapsing in a heap on the ground. He looks towards the statue that sent him flying, but his vision is blurry and obscured by blood. He places his hand against the door as he tries to stand. As he touches it, he feels something different. The symbol is slowly absorbing the energy surrounding his arm. He looks back towards the statue as it readies its spear. He quickly places both hands against the symbols and pushes his energy into them. The door immediately vanishes in a cloud of dust, and he tumbles into the structure. The door then reappears, and he hears a loud thunk as the spear strikes the door.

After a quick examination of the door to ensure the statues can’t get in, Darian turns to his only remaining option; further into the structure.