B.F.HUUPS
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Chapter 20
🕑 Added 2025-07-12 02:01:42 +0000 UTCAaron made his way to the trial dial and selected Yendal the Empty-Handed as he had planned.
He knew the shadow was going to be stronger than the last he had fought, but he hadn’t expected the tiny arena to be replaced by a huge colosseum. As he looked across at the calm, unmoving shadow, select floor tiles flipped over, exposing a flaming descent beneath the arena before flipping back around.
Okay, that’s new.
Both he and Yendal stood on little podiums above the arena proper at either end, which didn’t seem affected by the shifting tiles. And it seemed the shadow wasn’t in a rush, as it just stood there, waiting.
I guess I’m going first.
Taking one piece of meat, he ate it ravenously and felt its power enter his veins. The remaining portions were safely stored in his pouch, and he jumped down from the podium.
Even if he didn’t have the formidable Stat bonuses, Aaron could have easily navigated this arena. Not all tiles were timed the same, with some flipping over after less than a second. But Aaron was so light on his feet at this point, and so aware of his body and where he put his weight, that he picked up on even the slightest of changes, and was capable of bouncing away to another tile the instant the tile he stood on began to shift. And the tabi shoes didn’t hurt either. They made jumping on every surface seem as if he were on solid ground, thanks to Foxstep. Meaning that even if he was a little slow to react, and the tile he was standing on began to turn, he could easily jump to the next, and his footing wouldn’t be compromised.
In seconds, he cleared the massive arena and stood before Yendal, though he was constantly moving due to the shifting tiles.
The shadow gave the slightest nod of approval he had ever seen, and then floated down toward him. However, it was a weird kind of floating. It was controlled, like the shadow wasn’t falling, but also not overly slow. There was an otherworldly gracefulness to it, and Aaron immediately understood that this was the shadow best suited to him. This was the shadow that would help him secure the foundations he had started to put in place.
What was even more amazing was that when the shadow touched down, the tiles didn’t shift. Some of them were always in motion, randomly shifting between a hole down to the fiery abyss below and solid ground. But Aaron had quickly learned that they also reacted to him, and no tile remained in place for more than a few seconds when he stood on it. And if not for the tabi shoes, it’d have been no easy task to overcome.
He also knew that whilst they looked like shadows, the shadows obeyed the same laws of physics as he did, even if said laws may or may not have changed thanks to the Integration.
However, looking at Yendal, that didn’t appear to be true. Aaron was certain it had nothing to do with the trial itself. Yendal’s shadow just had such a high level of control over its body and weight that it could avoid activating the tiles. Aaron would ponder on this, but for now, there was a battle to fight.
Focusing on the shadow, he rushed forward. He had expected it to be fast, but the reality was beyond what even he could have imagined. It wasn’t just fast, it was fluid, and in constant motion, the moment the engagement began. Often, he didn’t even need to dodge as Aaron’s strikes shot toward it, positioning itself so that his attack combinations missed on their own. It was as if the shadow could see the future and knew exactly where to be. More infuriatingly, it made it look effortless.
This went on for a few minutes until the shadow finally decided to attack back, using its pinky finger to redirect several of Aaron’s full-strength blows before countering with a flick that sent him flying.
Aaron was fully aware that all of these shadows were well and truly his superiors, but they were meant to be weakened down to a grade that was beatable. How the hell was this beatable? Sure, he was at a low level, but stage two was also supposed to be low level, and the rewards for stage two of the endurance trial hadn’t been all that great. He was fairly certain that the people who usually qualified for this trial would get through the first few trial stages without a care, and if that was so, then they weren’t really made to challenge them that hard, were they?
That assumption seemed completely off when staring the shadow of Yendal down.
But he was certain he was right. He learned enough about the trials since arriving. This should be beatable for someone below what could qualify for this place. But none of that changed the fact that even with his Stat boost from the bird meat, he wasn’t even coming close to landing a strike. And it wasn’t just speed. Aaron dipped into his energy, despite wanting to avoid it, and pushed everything into speeding himself up. But it was useless. In fact, he actually thought he was moving faster than the shadow for brief stints of their fight, yet he wasn’t coming close to hitting it. This was something else—supreme control of its movements.
This damn shadow was doing exactly what he had done to the mage. At no point in that battle had he been quicker than the mage. He had just gotten so good at predicting its movements before it made them that he could keep himself alive, and eventually, land his own strikes. Now, the same trick was being played back against him.
Well, two could play at that game, he thought. However, it was already painfully obvious that he would have to push himself to a level far beyond what he had against the mage. The mage wasn’t a melee combatant, and as such, it was quite frankly, pathetic at hand-to-hand combat. Yendal, on the other hand, was a master. He couldn’t just predict this shadow like he had the last; he had to counter and adjust for the shadow predicting him as well. He had to be more than one step ahead. He had to be several steps ahead to beat this foe. Aaron would have to essentially be able to see the future, or at least predict it to some degree.
This was going to be fun, and a grin curled across his face. This was getting back to what he enjoyed. Sure, passing trials like the Trial of Endurance was enjoyable because it was progress, but delving into his mind and fighting off invasive domination spells wasn’t what Aaron was coming to enjoy about the Integration. No, what he enjoyed was just plain old brawling. He had always liked MMA and kickboxing, even if he had never intended to go pro, but this was on an entirely different level. This was combining the hard work and reward of martial arts with the thrill of death that he got from the extreme activities he had been such a fan of before the Integration. It was the best of both worlds.
As the fight continued, the shadow did not go easy on the beating that it leveled upon Aaron. Not only that, but while he could move fast enough to avoid falling victim to the shifting tiles, he found it a lot harder after eating a super-powered flick.
And worse still, every attack made by the shadow was absolutely humiliating. Flicks, pokes, and backhands beat him around the colosseum, slamming him against walls and sending him flying before he finally fell victim to a shifting tile and dropped into the flames below.
And to top it all off, dying refreshed all of his statuses, including the effect of his rare bird meat. Well, it had done its job, so it wasn’t all bad, he figured. Still, he hadn’t got anywhere near ten minutes of it.
Aaron quickly drained through his five servings of bird meat, getting smashed around the arena, and found himself waiting for the cooldown to elapse for more ingredients; however, that reminded him about the focus stone, which he hadn't used in some time.
Yendal was a far superior challenge than he had faced before. The only way he could beat such a powerful foe was to reach their movements, but his eyes alone weren’t going to do that. He needed something extra.
Crossing his legs and sitting down, Aaron meditated on his Trait and how it was connected to the System. He felt like there was still a missing piece, and he really didn’t understand what it was supposed to do, besides some vague explanation about fate.
Even though he didn’t know how, he instinctively knew that Fate Bender had been critical to him getting as far as he had. And he thought that if he could just understand how it worked a little better, it might just hold the key to bridging the gap between him and Yendal’s shadow.
As he meditated with the stone in his hand, his thoughts were taken to the many battles he had fought. But it wasn’t a clear replay of the events. Images shifted and mutated in a dream-like fashion. It was confusing, and Aaron lost track of time as he attempted to make sense of the strange replays of his memories.
Some of the scenes were played several times, with only the most minor details altered—a step taken differently, a position slightly changed. It was so subtle that the details would be easily missed without supreme focus. But Aaron saw them, and gradually he began to understand their meaning.
It was like a dance, one that he was leading. He pushed his opponents into the streams of his fate, subtly willing them to submit to him. When this worked, their destinies were slightly altered, as if a frame or two in their existence was moved to suit Aaron better. It was less than a second, but when his focus and will to exert his Fate Bender trait were correctly applied, that split second shift in reality was enough to force his enemies into situations that favored him.
He saw it more clearly than ever against the mage. The slightest difference in its movement caused it to come face to face with Aaron, and fail to cast one of its blinking teleportation spells, resulting in Aaron landing a blow.
This was it, he realized. It wasn’t seeing the future, but seeing the different paths it could take. It was more than that, of course, the Trait offered him insight, and with insight, he could redirect fate to his desired outcome.
Fate was in constant flux, and every decision altered the path it would take. But imagine you could see those paths? Would you simply follow fate as it directed you? Or would you use that knowledge to attempt to alter fate?
This was the true power of his trait, Aaron realized. Treating his fate as the ability to glimpse seconds into the future was failing to see the forest through the trees. The true ability he had gained was to see how his actions altered fate.
Everytime he went against one of fate’s preordained paths, new threads were woven into existence, forever altering fate. It was the butterfly effect in action, and Aaron could watch several seconds ahead as it worked its magic.
It would take practice to utilize his trait to its fullest. He hadn’t been gifted some ability that would grant him immediate power. No, but perhaps that was for the best. Predicting fate was still a powerful card to have down his sleeve, and this way he was forced to grow into his powers. There was no easy route for Aaron, and there was no chance he would fall victim to his own success and grow lazy.
He could see fate, and if he learned to master this ability, he could make fate travel along the threads he wished it to.
Aaron’s eyes sprang open with newfound determination. He doubted simply understanding his Trait would be enough to bridge the gap between him and the shadow alone, but he knew it was the key to getting there.
With a route to his victory in sight, Aaron was ready to grind out his latest challenge with fate on his side.
I’ll wipe that smirk off your face. Just you wait.
