System Fall

The Arena of Combat I remembered from my former existence was a traditional mixed martial arts enclosure, its perimeter made up of towering cage walls, was not the same place I’d found myself.  There was a hum, an energy to it. Like an unspeakable rush in being there, a lone warrior, watched by an ocean of unseen spectators, thirsty for blood. There was an aura about the whole place.

Maintaining focus amidst the pressure and chaos was near impossible. The atmosphere, imbued with some kind of aura, made it near impossible to remain calm and figure out actual threats from illusion.

As I prepared myself to step into the arena, I shelved all my prior assumptions about the impending fight. Why had the name changed? Was it a consequence of my past actions? It seemed plausible, but without any concrete evidence to suggest I was being watched directly by the [Admin], I could only speculate about why things were changed.

Just as specific items and skills would unlock based on my performance, maybe the tutorial stages and future missions were designed to morph and adapt in response to my actions. There was likely a deeper meaning behind the new name, The Hurt Locker, but it was currently beyond my ability to understand it. As I stepped inside, my eyes locked onto the massive monster, the Obsidian Minotaur awaiting me in the ring, scrutinizing my every move like a predator sizing up its prey. There was no turning back now.

Pushing away all other thoughts to focus only on the fight in front of me, I pushed open the massive metal doors to the cage and walked in. They swung shut behind me.

Without hesitation, I kept moving.

I felt an eerie pressure envelop me. The air grew dense, pressing down on my body, muffling my senses as if cotton had been stuffed into my ears. I looked towards where the opponent for the Intermediate Tutorial was supposed to be, but there was nothing—no trace, no sign, as if it had never existed.

Turning back, I was met with an ominous sight. The metallic door had transformed into an inky black wall. It was as if the world beyond the arena had vanished into this void.

Then I felt something brush against my forearm. I reached out to touch the wall, and a shudder ran through me.

"What's this?" I muttered.

Suddenly, the entire dungeon shifted, the illusion of the straight path towards the Minotaur shattered. The metal cage walls that flanked me flickered and revealed an endless expanse of space, bathed in stark white light. It was a vast interior, far larger than what the exterior suggested. It was as if I had been thrown into a labyrinth, a series of twisted and endless paths.

I realized then, the battle against the Minotaur wasn't going to be a straightforward duel, but a grueling journey through a deceptive maze, fighting against illusions and reality itself. The true challenge had just begun.

"What in the world is this?" I murmured.

 

Frustration seeped in as I tried to open the handle-less doors behind me. They didn’t budge at all, resisting my efforts to pry them open with my blade. They remained stubbornly unmoving. An exasperated sigh escaped my lips. "Guess I've got no choice but to go forward, huh?"

I found myself surrounded by the four walls of a colossal arena, equivalent in size to a massive warehouse. In the middle was the heart of the action, an imposing octagonal cage. The pathway was illuminated by glaring, artificial lights. Yet, despite their brightness, I felt enveloped in a fog of uncertainty. My right hand stretched out, my fingers tracing the cold, metallic boundary of the cage wall as I advanced.

As I moved down a path between the cages, my hand touched nothing but air. My left hand, however, still found the familiar firmness of the cage wall. A realization dawned upon me: I was at an L-shaped turn in the path. "Well, isn't this a surprise?" I muttered, turning ninety degrees. As I did so, a small pedestal at the end of this newfound corridor caught my eye. Upon it sat a pair of well-worn leather boxing gloves.

When I decided to retrace my steps, the gloves had mysteriously disappeared. A chuckle slipped from my lips. "Should've been able to see those gloves, if this place followed the laws of physics," I murmured to myself. It made sense that anything obscured by a transparent barrier should stay visible, but the gloves were only in sight when my line of sight was free from any obstruction.

The silence in the arena was deafening. "Sure is quiet," I said, looking around the empty space. The echo of my words was absent, making the silence even more noticeable. I felt like a rat in a maze, with the cheese— or rather, the minotaur— nowhere to be found. As I reached the pedestal, I picked up the gloves, scrutinizing them. They were unremarkable, devoid of any unique features. My path branched off to the left and right, delving deeper into the enigmatic labyrinth.

An idea flickered into existence. 'The door,' I thought. 'It could've been a clue.' I couldn't see anything concealed behind the cage walls. The unnerving silence, coupled with the minotaur's conspicuous absence, made me question my next move. I stared at the path ahead, racking my brains for an idea.

"Where the heck are you?" I yelled, my voice echoing through the silence. No reply came, save for my own echo bouncing off the walls. The gloves in my hand felt oddly heavy, and after a moment's hesitation, I threw them to my left. They collided with an invisible wall before bouncing back.

Taken aback, I moved towards the area where the gloves had hit, curiosity piqued. As if on cue, a cage door creaked open, and the Obsidian Minotaur erupted out of it and loomed over me, its glowing red eyes reflecting the sinister gleam on its muscular frame. My heart pounded in my chest, a grim smile tugged at my lips, "So, there you are."

I barely managed to evade the sharp edge of the Minotaur's monstrous glaive. With a rapid backstep, I maintained a hair's breadth between myself and the ensuing chaos as the creature's weapon thrashed against the cage wall, splintering metal flying. Quick on my feet, I retaliated, directing a swift slash at its lower legs while ducking and diving to avoid the onslaught of its burly fists and the glaive's vicious arc. My Cursed Valkyrie sword clashed against the beast's stone-like body, doing little more than causing a spark show. Recognizing the futility of my efforts, I muttered, "This isn't working."

I took a calculated risk, retreating swiftly across the arena, aiming to put significant distance between the Minotaur and myself. As I sprinted, I reached into my arsenal, pulling out an Azure Gleam knife and hurling it towards the beast. The knife bit into the monster's thick pectoral muscle, but it barely left a scratch on its rocky hide.

"He’s faster than I thought,” I breathed, my eyes widening as the Minotaur quickly closed the gap, its movements becoming erratic, a whirlwind of punches, swinging glaive, and desperate attempts to corner me.

Experience had taught me one thing: the best defense is not being there at all. Reminding myself of this, I maintained my distance, at times using the cage walls as a buffer to dodge a deadly blow. "Better some bruises than getting squashed," I muttered to myself, as I skilfully navigated the sparks filled air from the beast's glaive meeting the metallic cage.

As the frustration gnawed at me, I looked down at my sword. A sense of realization dawned. "What am I doing?" I chastised myself under my breath. My sword grew more potent as I took damage. "Why forget the obvious?"

Catching a brief respite, my eyes spotted a vase with two roses to my left. The Minotaur paused, seeming to track my gaze. Taking advantage of the beast's momentary distraction, I prepared to launch another attack. However, the thunderous footfalls filled my ears as the Minotaur closed the distance again. "It was just gathering momentum, huh?" I muttered, steeling myself for its charge.

With a swift stroke, I slashed at the beast, its dark blood splattering against the cage wall. I braced myself, awaiting the creature's charge. "Just a little longer," I murmured, leaping aside at the last possible moment as the Minotaur's glaive cleaved the air I'd just occupied.

But despite my best-laid plans, not everything went according to plan.