Spence slowly regained his feet and stared wide-eyed at the staff in his quivering hands. Thank you, God. The shaft had closed together, leaving no trace of the hidden compartment. The tip no longer glowed, and he didn’t feel any electricity or vibrations. He realized the butt of the staff striking the stone stair must have activated it. He peered at the giant monster, which was obviously dead with thin tendrils of black smoke drifting up from its charred body. His body was weak and his legs shaky, but he suddenly felt vastly different. He had never experienced a similar feeling in his entire life. Despite unlocking the staff’s power by his clumsiness, he felt confident. He felt in control. He felt…powerful.

“Holy shit!” Trey said weakly from the stairs below. He was still prone but propped up on his elbows with his head turned to stare at Spence.

Spence retreated up the last couple of steps and stood at the platform's edge. He leaned on his staff and watched the others below. With his staff, dagger, and black robe, Spence was now a mage. He wanted to run around the dais in victory laps on his newly functioning legs. Morgan stood and slowly walked toward the stairs. She appeared a little paler but unharmed. Spence hoped she hadn’t seen how he had activated the staff. Caleb also stirred on the left side of the dais. He cautiously climbed to his feet and staggered toward the others, rubbing gingerly at his ribs. Trey rose to his knees and then finally stood.

“Like my baton?” Spence tried unsuccessfully not to sound smug. “I think I won the contest.” Spence savored Trey’s expression and lack of a comeback. This moment was the highlight of his life. He had his legs back, possessed a powerful staff, and had just saved his life and those of three others. He wished the moment could last forever and hoped the dream never ended now.

“You saved my life,” Morgan said from the first stair. “You saved all our lives.”

“Ah, don’t mention it. You were good with your bow too. You did Katniss proud,” Spence said, his chest unconsciously puffed out and shoulders drawn back.

“Thank you, Spence. Morgan’s right. I owe you,” Caleb said. He sheathed his sword when he reached the base of the stairs.

“Thanks, Caleb. You were the first one to attack, though. We’d all be dead if you hadn’t begun the battle,” Spence replied. “Are you hurt? That tail whacked you pretty good.”

“Surprisingly, not bad. My ribs feel bruised, but this mail shirt is much tougher than it looks. I don’t think anything is broken, at least. Trey, what happened to you? You’d have been wolfosaurus food if Morgan hadn’t shot it.”

Trey walked over to the beast and wrenched his ax free. He then paused and stared at the dead monster. Suddenly, he kicked it in the leg, paused, and then kicked it several more times. Then he began yelling obscenities and raining blows with his ax from the monster’s leg to its head. It was soon a bloody mess. After several minutes, he finally stopped, panting. He gave it one last kick, wiped the ax head clean on the grass, and slung it over his shoulder with the leather strap. He joined the others, now all gathered at the top of the stairs, and sat down heavily beside Spence. He didn’t meet anyone’s eyes or speak.

Spence had watched Trey’s tantrum in stunned silence. He wasn’t sure if Trey was upset at having frozen in the battle or just at their situation and being out of his element. Spence heard sobbing from his right and turned to see Morgan sitting with her knees pulled to her chest and head buried in her folded arms. He was shocked that the confident Morgan was crying in front of them. He glanced back to the left and observed Caleb sitting on the other side of Trey, staring blankly at the wolfosaurus.

The gravity of their situation suddenly crashed down on Spence. His excitement over being bipedal again in a strange fantasy world and euphoria over his role in slaying the monster subsided. They were four teenage kids stuck in some type of nightmare. It couldn’t be real. But if it were real…. He couldn’t even force his mind to comprehend the possibility. Exhaustion overwhelmed him, and his limbs were leaden. He sat down on the cold stone between Trey and Morgan.

Morgan’s soft sobs were the only sounds disturbing the eerie, suffocating silence of the arena. Spence wasn’t sure how long they sat there, but eventually, the silence overwhelmed him. He had too many thoughts swirling around in his mind to focus on any for long. Wherever they were, and whether it was a dream or not, they had to do something. They couldn’t sit here and mope and cry forever.

“Well, we did work together to kill that monster,” Spence said.

“Yeah, and it looks like we scored some pretty cool bling,” Trey said. “This breastplate and ax are sweet. They’re light as plastic, but neither has a scratch.”

“Mine too,” Caleb said.

Morgan finally raised her head and wiped her eyes with her tunic. “Once I got used to it, my bow was pretty awesome too. It feels like a twenty-pound draw weight but hits like a sixty-five or seventy.”

“It sounds like we all have magic weapons,” Spence said, a little disappointed at not being the only one. But from what he could tell, his was by far the most powerful, and he had undoubtedly gained the most.

“Which makes even less sense. Monsters and magic? Where are we? What is this place? And what do we do now?” Morgan asked, her voice shaky.

Spence looked at the others and received two blank stares and a shrug. He then nervously scanned the dark opening, hoping and praying no more creatures emerged. Nothing stirred in the darkness. Then he heard a noise from behind them, in the center of the platform. It sounded like stone grating against stone. He and the others stood and turned to locate the source. The statue in the middle moved—or at least its head swiveled to face them. Spence stared in disbelief as the face transitioned from stone to flesh. The now black eyes stared at them. The mouth moved.

“Welcome to Nibiru, humans,” a voice boomed from the statue. “I am Enki, one of the gods of this world. You have defeated a great monstrosity and threat to our peoples. You have proved yourself worthy of the quest with your bravery and skill.”

“Where is Nibiru?” Trey blurted out.

The statue ignored Trey’s interruption and continued, “Four races inhabit Nibiru—Nephilim, elves, dwarves, and Draconians. They each live separate from one another, kept apart by evil creatures. You must journey to each race and liberate them from these monsters. If you complete this quest, we will allow you to return to your world.”

“That’s bullshit! We don’t care about your races or monsters or quest. Return us now,” Trey demanded.

“Gather the remainder of the items on the pedestals; you will need them all. Then travel east across the Barrens to the Nephilim town of Argos. Seek out the one named Titus. He will aid you in your journey. Good luck, questers.” The head of the statue rotated forward and once again reverted to stone. The oppressive silence returned, lasting over a minute before anyone spoke.