The team arrived in a new arena. Boltuk was actually feeling rather hopeful. During the trials, he was actually turning towards Realmfleet. He wasn\u2019t sure they could convince the King, but they convinced a few Manticores at least. Arsha saw this. \u201cYou know, you COULD help us,\u201d she offered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Disobeying the King like that is a capital offense punishable by a most dishonorable death,\u201d answered Boltuk. \u201cMy paws are tied.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I\u2019m sorry to hear that. You\u2019re a good sort, I can tell.\u201d Boltuk gave a sad smile before he took his place in the center of the arena. The crowd then gathered in the stands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese outsiders have passed one of the Trials of Intelligence by showing that proofs can be abused!\u201d he called. \u201cThat is four trials under their belt. Only two more remain! How well can these outsiders find a pattern?! \u2026Lady Andotal! Come forth!\u201d A female Manticore strode out and waved as the crowd cheered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAn interesting pun, Mr. Bloodwing,\u201d she chuckled. \u201cI am the fourth and you tell me to come forth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026An unintentional pun, I assure you,\u201d groaned Boltuk. He then turned back to the crowd. \u201cLady Andotal will write five numbers and the challenger must find a pattern within a minute! If they write out five more numbers that fall within the pattern, they win. If they fail to write the correct answer or they fail to come up with any answer within a minute\u2019s time, well, I think we all can guess what that means!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll right, Delselii, Patrica, Foresna, it\u2019s the four of us. Who\u2019s the best at finding a pattern?\u201d Arsha asked her team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet me try my hand at it,\u201d offered Patrica. \u201cI\u2019ve been able to find patterns in the past.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen good luck.\u201d Patrica then entered the ring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI, Patrica Looden, will accept the challenge!\u201d she called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cVery well!\u201d replied Boltuk. \u201cThe instant Andotal finishes her last number, your time begins!\u201d Andotal then used her tail to write five numbers in the sand. The numbers were 610, 987, 1,597, 2,584, and 4,181. \u201cBEGIN!\u201d called Boltuk. Patrica was a little surprised that the numbers were so large. Ten seconds passed and there was still no answer from her. Arsha gulped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2026was NOT expecting that,\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is bad! There ISN\u2019T a pattern!\u201d groaned Bashoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cActually, there is,\u201d replied Orthena. \u201cIt all depends on if she remembers her math classes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Oh, I see it now!\u201d realized Delselii.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou do?\u201d asked Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHalf a minute remains!\u201d called Boltuk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWait, really?!\u201d protested Patrica. \u201cI think you just added\u2026added\u2026added\u2026just a minute!\u201d She then started tracing out the first two numbers in another part of the sand. After that, she included an addition sign. She then saw that 610 and 987 equaled 1,597. She then added 987 to 1,597 and got 2,584. She then snapped her fingers. \u201cA Loquntho sequence!\u201d she cheered. \u201cI know what the remaining five are!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen write them,\u201d declared Boltuk. \u201cThe clock has stopped for now.\u201d Patrica then added new numbers to the original sequence. They were 6,765, 10,946, 17,711, 28,657, and 46,368. Lady Andotal then looked at the answer and how Patrica got her answer. She raised her eyeridges in approval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI never thought my ancestor\u2019s number sequence would survive into your time,\u201d she mused. She then turned to Boltuk. \u201cShe\u2019s got the correct numbers!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd that makes five trials for the outsiders!\u201d called Boltuk to the crowd. \u201cThe last trial will be prepared in an hour as it involves our King and Queen. Rest and prepare, for you need to have a flexible mind to face them.\u201d The crowd departed and Boltuk gave one last look at Arsha and her team. \u201c\u2026I beg you, don\u2019t take the last trial. If you fail it, we\u2019re all slaves to Oyed and the Sphinxes will forever be in our thrall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s because of the plight of the Sphinxes that we\u2019re not turning back now,\u201d replied Arsha. \u201cI believe my team has demonstrated that they\u2019re more than capable of passing anything you throw at us. I could only feel pride as they passed their trials and found the entrance to your kingdom. I won\u2019t spit on their efforts now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026No outsider has ever passed the Trial of the King and Queen. I urge you to reconsider.\u201d Boltuk left and Arsha sighed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou have to admit, it IS a change from when we first met him,\u201d remarked Lardeth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cStill, I really hope he sees sense,\u201d sighed Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the problem, here,\u201d replied Falnii. \u201cIn accordance with his own culture, he DOES see sense and we don\u2019t. Different cultures have different definitions of seeing sense. You\u2019ve seen it yourself. I\u2019m willing to bet your own parents have their own culture clashes, despite being on the same general page on certain things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd it\u2019s not just different species,\u201d remarked Malnar. \u201cOver-realm and Mid-realm Humans have different cultures. Even then, those pockets of humans have even further divisions. Rich and poor, smart and ignorant, which Divine One is the better one to worship, but it\u2019s NOT inherently evil. It looks to me like the Manticores WANT to be more diverse, but they need a change from the top. Hopefully, we can bring that change. You saw it in Boltuk\u2019s eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Well then, looks like we have a trial to pass!\u201d declared Arsha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAtta girl!\u201d cheered Malnar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere is he?!\u201d grunted one of the Manticore Revenants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s almost the end of the day and I don\u2019t see 35 people before me,\u201d replied Oyed. \u201cYour father isn\u2019t attempting to renege on the deal and get away with it, is he?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s well within his standard M.O.\u201d The door then opened to let Lord Toonsar into the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAh, there you are,\u201d purred Oyed. \u201cHow kind of you to join us. \u2026Where are the people you promised?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I regret to inform you,\u201d replied the elderly Manticore, \u201cthat I couldn\u2019t get enough in time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThen your soul is forfeit. Farewell.\u201d Oyed drew a circle in the air and\u2026Toonsar smirked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTa!\u201d The circle then surrounded Toonsar and both it AND he exploded in white light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWh-what?!\u201d spluttered Oyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat shouldn\u2019t have happened?\u201d asked the Revenant Manticore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo! It\u2026a Maho-particle avatar! Someone tricked me!\u201d Oyed was frothing at the mouth. The Manticore sniffed the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt smells like\u2026like\u2026like something Velkor wove! The King\u2019s behind this!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYour people\u2019s loyalty is no longer certain! Get a team for me that will get me past the trials! Make sure they know a path to get me there before Arsha or there\u2019ll be the Depths to pay!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBefore Arsha, my Lord?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cArsha surrounds herself with people who are not only strong, but clever as well! They may very well pass the trials!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI understand, My Lord.\u201d The Manticore headed off and Oyed looked out the window.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The team arrived in a new arena. Boltuk was actually feeling rather hopeful. During the trials, he was actually turning towards Realmfleet. He wasn\u2019t sure they could convince the King, but they convinced a few Manticores at least. Arsha saw this. \u201cYou know, you COULD help us,\u201d she offered. \u201c\u2026Disobeying the King like that is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1687,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,237],"tags":[482],"class_list":["post-4083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-three-realms","category-the-three-realms-book-4-trials-of-light-and-dark","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4083"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4083\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4084,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4083\/revisions\/4084"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}