As Veylan and Riven went deeper into the cave they found a mineshaft. It could be a potential place for resting and thinking of a plan. Even if they somehow manage to get rid of Talen, there is still a major problem: The badges. It would be impossible for Veylan to get Lorken′s badge; he could also try to get other badges, the flaw in this could be that there are maybe none left over to get a badge from. And about Riven? There is only a chance if his target still has his badge but also isn’t too strong. With other words: they are fucked up.

  Quickly Veylan′s condition got much better but Riven, he needs to rest. A lot.

  As Riven fell asleep Veylan stayed awake, he didn’t feel like resting and he also wanted to explore the mineshaft. His only light were some torches and the headlight of the mole drills. Somewhere dark in mineshaft, Veylan found a door. “This looks odd. Why is there a normal door in a mineshaft?"

  Behind the door was a forest, it wasn’t the forest of the exam. This forest looked peaceful and calm; the forest for the exam looked foggy, scary; just as if something is off. There he got ideas.

  He took a big stone and put it in the door frame so that the door couldn’t close fully; wandered for little through the forest.

  There wasn’t any danger at all. His plan was simple: bring Riven to the forest and get the badges on his own. If he took Riven with him, he would just hold him back.

  But there was still one problem: the door. What if someone else finds it? Or even worse, Talen finds it? On the other hand, if Veylan tries to hide the door somehow from the cave’s side by placing rocks in front of it, Riven can’t get out on his own. “Riven; I have a plan…”

  Riven had problems agreeing to the plan because of his ego but ultimately, he agreed. Veylan′s responsibility just tripled, now he must also get the badges for Riven plus if he doesn’t make it or dies; Riven does too.

  “Sigh…the first step is…what am I thinking, I have no real plan at all. I only know if I don’t get rid of Talen it’s going to be impossible for me to get the other badges while also avoiding Talen…

  But there was still something he didn’t know; he didn’t know that Talen had already drilled through the stone wall. Talen still was setting up stuff. He knew that Veylan doesn’t come to the old way because he still thinks it covered up.

  For Veylan the cave is just an absolute labyrinth, so even if he wanted, he wouldn’t know where he goes; by pure accident he found the entrance.

  At first, he thought it’s another entrance but quickly he recognized little details. “Did the moles drill through? Sounds logic…” There was one thing he didn’t know, the mole drills are highly intelligent animals. As they saw Veylan they began to scream; very loud.

  This was the exact situation Talen set up; he forced the moles with his aura to scream every time they would see a human.

  Veylan had no idea at all but moved on quickly. Soon after he left the cave Lorken′s and his way crossed. “You seem okay but where is your friend? Did Talen kill him?” His face dead serios. As he told him that Riven is somewhere safe, he had a pleasured expression as a stone fell from his heart. “So, what′s your plan now? It’s going to impossible for you to get your targets badge if Talen tries to hunt you down all the time.” He said with a treasured smile. “Let me ask you something. Why did you defend us?” Lorken turned around going towards the cave saying: “I just know how to let something mature…giggle…”

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  Suddenly Talen stepped out of the dark cave. “I already expected you to be here; I know you like to age wine, but I need his badge. You have a very low chance of succeeding against me. He simply could hand over his badge, and everything would be fine…” Lorken looked serios, he knew “Sadly he is right…” But there was a solution Lorken thought of. “I have an idea: I have six badges in my inventory; one is mine and the other five are some randoms. If I give you the five you don’t need to get anything else. What do you think?” It may sound kind from Lorken but thinking of his true nature Veylan got an unsettling feeling “What does he want from me?”

  Lorken handed the five badges over, they meant nothing for him. He simply could kill a few other participants and would be up everything again. Talen just walked away; he could basically chill the rest of the time. To that point it was already night; Veylan only has little more than two days left to get the badges.

  Lorken still had his back to Veylan, he saw it as his chance. He sprinted towards him trying to tackle him down. Lorken just dodged it like it was nothing, he seemed so light on his feet it’s almost as flying. “I am your target, am I? You wouldn’t attack me otherwise…don’t worry, I am not going to attack you; but if you want my badge. You need to earn it…” Lorken walked past Veylan with a light devious smile, vanishing in the forest. Instead of trying to attack him over and over again like a braindead zombie until he had no energy. He sat down at a tree thinking… “There are surely people that hate him but…is there one that could beat him…Talen seems almost as an ally, this other teenager, what was his name again…Draven or so; he wouldn’t help me at all…and everyone else…dumb question…” If there wasn’t anyone to help him there was only one other way: to be creative.

  His resources, when it comes to weapons or other items, are very limited the forest gives the participants many opportunities for food and water, but when it comes to useful items it doesn’t look that well; at least now.

  Riven on the other hand has the Merrik eyes and a tendril arm, in combination or even alone could make some pretty interesting traps. But the thing is: Riven. He isn’t an option. “I don’t need to kill or even injure Lorken; if I just manage to get his badge that’s totally fine.” Thinking about an escape is a thing for later.

  But there before even thinking about a plan there is another question to answer: “Should I spend time trying to find items or not? They could help but if I don’t find anything or they don’t use anything, I just waste my time. While walking around in the forest he found an outpost, maybe only two or three floors.

  On the second floor there was another injured participant. “Heh…did you see me going in…takes an deep breath…you want my badges don’t you…what a dumb question…” Veylan looked at his injury, his injury was deadly but not hard to treat: “I have an question for you: do maybe took some special items from the block? Or did you find any here?”

  The injured participant took a little iron ball out of his pocket “I don’t know what this is, but my target had it; he rolled it on the ground and an identical figure of himself ran the direction he threw it. It was quite a good distraction if you ask me…so com on…you want to rob it right; take it…”

  Veylan went to the participant and bandaged his wound: “The ball sounds good; I help you and I take it…” Just ten minutes later he came out with the mysterious iron ball. In this world there is way too much unexplored. The Alecti association officially estimates that they only have found 00.1 percent of all items that exist; for that little amount they need over three hundred years.

  In this wild forest there are many thin tendrils, Veylan got creative and built a long rope around the iron ball. Even if the ball is wide away, he could always pull it back; beside it takes I little while.

  He would need to think very wisely about his next move; once he exposes his irone ball Lorken knows he has it even if he gets it back it would decrease its use significantly.

  But Veylan, he was already planning ahead. He knew that Lorken had much experience, he knew that Lorken knew there was something like the iron ball. But this doesn’t mean it can’t be useful. Not much later he had a plan; finding Lorken wasn’t hard at all, he chills the whole time at the big pond, the teenagers’ corpses still in the water and again he was summing around. Veylan knew that Lorken knew that he was there, tense. That’s the best way to describe the situation. Suddenly but planned Veylan started his plan.