Suddenly, the floating rocks beneath us jolted forward, speeding straight toward the crimson serpent’s open mouth. The pull came out of nowhere, one second we were drifting slowly, and the next, the air around us felt like a raging current dragging everything in.
"What the hell!" I shouted, trying to balance myself.
The force grew stronger, pulling at our bodies. My rock scraped against invisible resistance, the edges cracking, breaking pieces off into the red void. I tried pushing back with Essence, but the suction only got worse.
Up ahead, the serpent’s massive form moved in slow circles around the crimson sun. Its scales shimmered between red metal and burning flesh, twisting endlessly.
A voice echoed through the void.
"The greater the sacrifice... the closer you are to survival."
Every sound seemed to die after that.
The words crawled into my mind and stayed there.
The word Sacrifice on the stele echoed in my head, and as soon as that voice spoke, a bad feeling settled deep in my chest.
I glanced around. The others were struggling too—each of us standing on our floating rocks as they shot forward, pulled by an invisible force toward the serpent’s open maw. We were all lined up side by side, dragged at the same speed, unable to stop.
I looked toward Vaelix. Our eyes met for an instant, and then his body began to glow with a faint yellow light. A ball of energy burst out of his chest, spinning rapidly as glowing words appeared above it—[Skill: Piercing Claws].
The sphere streaked through the void like a meteor and vanished into the serpent’s mouth.
The moment it disappeared, Vaelix’s rock slowed slightly. The pull around him weakened, and his platform began to lag behind ours.
That was when it clicked. The voice had been literal. The bigger the sacrifice, the better the chance to survive.
I clenched my fists. The idea of giving up something valuable made my stomach twist. If we all kept offering pieces of ourselves, how long could we keep going before nothing was left?
My mind raced through my own abilities. Every skill, every piece of comprehension I had earned—it all mattered. I couldn’t decide what to lose. I didn’t want to.
But hesitation was dangerous here. The pull toward the serpent was growing stronger by the second, the edges of the rock starting to grind under my feet. I needed to act before it was too late.
Essence. That was something I had more of than anyone else. If this world wanted a price, I’d pay it in the one thing I could spare.
I took a deep breath and made the decision. "Thirty percent," I whispered to myself.
The moment I willed it, pain tore through my veins. My Essence surged uncontrollably, pulled from every corner of my body. My chest burned as a sphere of violet light formed in front of me. The word Essence appeared above it, glowing faintly.
Then it shot forward and vanished into the serpent’s endless throat.
Instantly, the pull around me weakened. My rock slowed a little, just like Vaelix’s had. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to breathe again.
Across from me, Primus had already done the same. A faint golden shimmer left his chest, another skill sacrificed. His platform steadied, moving slower now.
North and Steve were both struggling. The pull was strong enough to make their knees buckle, and they exchanged a quick look before acting.
North’s eyes glowed faint green as a small sphere drifted away from her, carrying one of her bow techniques.
Steve gritted his teeth, muttered something under his breath, and let go of one of his sword skills. Both of their rocks slowed slightly afterward.
But even then, none of us were safe. The serpent’s maw was still wide open, swallowing the light around it. The pull never stopped, just weakened.
We were still being dragged toward it, the endless void trembling around us, and the thought lingered in my mind.
How much would we have to give up before this ended?
And so began the second round of sacrifice.
The serpent’s pull was stronger now, dragging us faster again as if mocking our earlier resistance. My body trembled from the pressure, my footing barely steady on the floating rock. I didn’t even hesitate this time.
Essence was still what I had most of, so I chose it again. I gritted my teeth and focused, sacrificing some more Essence.
It flew forward and disappeared into the serpent’s glowing maw.
The pull weakened again. My rock slowed more this time, giving me a few moments to breathe.
The others followed soon after. Vaelix didn’t even hesitate now. Another sphere of yellow light burst from his chest, a different skill, this one a movement skill, but clearly precious. His rock slowed further, dropping behind ours.
Primus clenched his fists and let go of something too. The golden light that left him felt heavier than before, like it carried part of his strength. North’s hands trembled as a second green sphere left her chest, another technique gone.
Steve stood silent for a moment longer. I saw the conflict in his eyes, he hated letting go of what he’d worked for. But then he exhaled sharply and muttered, "Fine. Take it."
A faint yellow light rose from him and vanished like all the rest. His rock steadied, slowing a fraction.
I looked around at the others. No one said anything. No one needed to. We all understood it now.
The pull started to grow stronger again, the serpent’s open maw glowing brighter like it was hungering for more.
Steve was the first to break the silence. He clenched his fists, his eyes locked on the serpent as if he was about to fight it. But instead, he whispered, "Then take this."
A soft pink glow rose from his chest. The light gathered into a small sphere that floated in front of him. The word Memories shimmered faintly across it before it shot forward into the serpent’s maw.
And the change was instant.
Steve’s rock slowed so drastically that he almost drifted behind all of us. The pull on him weakened far more than it ever had with a skill or Essence.
For a few seconds, no one said a word. We all just stared, realizing what it meant.
Memories carried more weight.
Vaelix was the next to act. He closed his eyes, his face tightening as another pink sphere rose from him, smaller but glowing just as brightly. The same word appeared, Memories. His rock slowed as well, the difference clear.
Primus followed next, groaning softly as his own light formed. North hesitated, her hands trembling, but even she gave up her share, her pink sphere leaving with a faint shimmer that flickered like tears in the air.
I stood there watching them, the serpent’s maw growing larger and larger in the distance, the pull getting stronger by the second.
I didn’t want to lose any memories. They were all mine. But compared to everything else, my childhood felt so far away, quiet days, nameless faces, things that didn’t matter anymore.
So I chose them.