"Damn it! What sort of sick joke is this? Send us to a freaking desert and don't even have the pure heart to dress us in the proper attire. Why in hell were we given heavy coats in this scorching weather?" the sketchy guy complained loudly as he trudged behind everyone, dragging his coat across the sand.

  'It would be so much easier if we could process our own thoughts without you screaming out yours every chance you get,' Lucian rolled his eyes at him. But at the same time, he couldn't deny the truth in his words. The coats truly devious attire for a desert.

  Most of the other participants had already taken off theirs and carried them in the most comfortable way, Lucian included, tying his by his waist, just like the braided beauty. Underneath, he wore a wool tunic and crudely tanned, stitched leather pants... plus leather boots. He was used to rags, but these felt far more uncomfortable than the rough fabrics he knew.

  Speaking of uncomfortable, the braided beauty, while she wasn't blatantly staring at him, he caught her stealing glances every so often. She wasn't even trying to hide it, offering only the barest courtesy of subtlety. It was already starting to creep him out, but all he could do was just feign ignorance and focus on his trek.

  Setting aside the fact that he was almost sure she could end his life if he provoked her, how could he explain freaking out just because a girl paid him a little attention?"

  Shaking his head, he refocused on the path ahead of him.

  Sand, sand, sand, even more sand and then a black gate which seemed more illusionary and elusive with each passing minute.

  'Are we ever going to make it?' Lucian wondered with a lost expression.

  The trial so far had been surreal and completely unconventional, so much so that even those who expected it were still taken aback by its bizarre nature. How wouldn't they? Even abstract concepts were a blade hanging over their heads. There was a reason why no one was arguing about the sketchy guy's yapping and complaints which seemed to have no end. It was after all, the tether to their survival.

  Silence... was something they couldn't afford.

  The moment they went silent for more than a few seconds... they didn't have the guts to test out the extremes of the limit, but at their rough (but safe) estimate of ten seconds, the paralysis would kick in once more. They still weren't clear on the specific trigger to the paralysis and how silence, or noise perhaps, worked in relation to it. But they were clear on one thing; at the very least, one of them needed to speak out at all times.

  Four people had already died to this insidious force. Lucian had silently counted: twenty-six people left, including himself, traversing across the blazing desert. Meaning thirty people had been thrown into this trial. Thirty people were put in here to vie for the right to live again.

  Although they hadn't separated into groups, a hierarchy was subconsciously formed during the trek. There were the ones at the very top who seemed strong and had proved they were smart or resourceful enough to be useful. And this one was the minority, having characters like the old soldiers and the braided beauty. The majority wore what could currently be considered the followers, consisting of people who currently had proven to be of any worth. And Lucian unfortunately, or not, found himself in this group, along with the annoying man and others alike.

  They even already had a leader, one unproclaimed but a leader no less considering the influence and gravity of his words and decisions held. He was a man with average height, with slicked back hair and a somewhat well-kept appearance. He always wore smile that seemed too practiced, like he was used to making people agree, whether they wanted to or not. He moved and spoke like someone accustomed to power, the kind of man who likely held sway over others when he was still alive.

  Lucian had dubbed him the smooth talker.

  In honesty, Lucian didn't like him. He didn't know if this bias feeling came from his vibe, the fact that he reminded him of the big wigs in the dome that treated those on the outside like rats, or just plain jealousy over how effortlessly smooth he was, but he knew he would probably have a problem with him later on.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Lucian sighed as he stared on ahead, his tired gaze on the gates, feeling a little bit angry and a lot more thirsty. Ahead of him, was the smooth talker, old soldier and a few others who were trying to come with reason to the trial and how, if even possible they could survive together. A few of them were what you could consider the top rungs while the rest were trying to increase their worth or cozy up with those with power or influence. There were loners as well like him and the braided beauty, who kept mostly to themselves. The only difference being that people actually wanted to interact with her while they ignored Lucian mostly. There was also one other loner, the big one as Lucian referred to him. He was a tall and broad man, heavy scars marred his arm and face. His hair was a tangle of onyx locks and his gaze often seemed distant, lost in thoughts. Everyone seemed scared to approach him, Lucian included.

  Then there was 'hard worker,' who were working hard to ensure everyone survived. Basically, they were making as much noise as possible to ensure that silent would not dwell in their midst. Of course their ring leader was the sketchy guy.

  "You know, I used to manage a weapon production facility when I was still alive. The largest one in the city. So of course I know my way with a sword," the sketchy guy said with a smug grin.

  "A weapon's production facility? Really?" Asked a guy doubtfully.

  The sketchy guy's grin increased as he continued, "Of course. I oversaw production of different items like swords, armor, tools, you name it." He puffed up his chest as he added, "Big responsibilities. I was one of the few that kept things running when the whole of Elsewhere is going to shit."

  There was a pause as he let that sink in with a smug expression. But unfortunately, no one quite believed his tale, deeming it to be quite the tall one. Lucian could only shake his head at the bragging. It didn't take long before some people decided to call him out.

  "That so?" Someone snorted, disbelief thick in their voice. "And now big was this operation? You making weapons for armies, or just sharpening kitchen knives?"

  Another voice adds mockingly, "Surely, a grand facility, like the days of old, right?"

  The sketchy guy's grin faltered at their words. But he quickly pulled it back with a snort, "Hmph, for your information, We were extremely versatile, a sort of Jack of all trades in the weapon production industry. We had no competition and supplied every one in the city."

  "Oh ho, then I was one of the Ministers of my city." One of the participants claimed mockingly.

  "Yeah sure, and I've been to the floating city before." Another added with a sneer, inciting laughs from those listening.

  "You guys are sick. Fine then, I used to be a spartan." One of the tall brawny participants added with a loud laugh.

  "I'll do you one better, I am the secret bastard son of a herald." One other commented sarcastically, the laughter became contagious at that point. Even Lucian let loose a small chuckle.

  But, it was at that point, without warning, the ground began to tremble. Everyone froze as the air grew thick with tension. A silence tore through their laughter and they temporarily forgot the silence paralysis. Though, someone remembered on time.

  With a dry chuckle, "Um, what is happ..." the sketchy guy's words were cut short when the ground beneath him cracked open. In an instant, he was thrown in the air and sent to the side by a powerful force.

  Life drained from everyone's faces as a terrifying entity pulled itself from the clutches of the earth.

  Large, unnaturally long limbs... was the only thing they could take note of before its body spun and launched itself towards some of the participants with unreasonable speed, reaching for them in an instant.

  In particular, it was aiming after the group that were lamenting before their conversation took a more sarcastic turn. Because they were frozen, they couldn't react fast enough... and unfortunately, the horror was swift enough to use it to its advantage.

  It reached a woman in seconds, didn't even glance at her—then a fan of blades flashed and in the next moment, the woman was ripped into pieces, not even granting the option of registering her death, before continuing onward to its goal. It was then that someone finally reacted and someone yelled.

  "Run!"

  Unfortunately, it was too late, at least for the guy who joked about having been to the floating city before. He was its goal.

  Before he could even move a muscle, it quickly grabbed on to him and lifted him with its lanky but powerful arms, locking his in place. Its power was undeniable from how futile the guy's struggles were. Of course the horror didn't care about their internal struggles and carried on with its task.

  It drew him closer to its mouth, inciting fear into the hearts of its captive and all the others watching. They could already envision his headless body on the floor. They were in for quite a shock though, an extremely gruesome one.

  The moment the guy had given up all hope, accepting fate, his lips came in contact with the creature's, devolving into a deep intimate kiss.

  Everyone was shocked by actions of the horrible monster. Even the guy being kissed had his eyes wide open while it happened. It couldn't have ripped through someone, a woman even, just to rush towards someone else and force them into a kiss, right?

  'No, It couldn't have. It was far too targeted and I don't believe it is love deprived. What is it...' Lucian couldn't finish his thoughts before a far more disturbing and gory scene played out before him between the fear stricken Romeo and revolt inducing Juliet.

  The guy's eyes widened, becoming bloodshot, as the horror held him. His body squirmed and struggled and seemingly like it understood his agony, it pulled back from the grotesque kiss. But even as it pulled back the guy, there seemed to be a delay in the deep tongue play as the two mouths remained unseparated for a moment. But only for a moment as it forcefully ripped him off from the kiss and threw him to the ground.

  Blood flew in the air and Romeo was convulsing on the floor, blood foaming out of his mouth, choking and suffocating him.

  Lucian's breath hitched, fear clutching his heart as he caught a glimpse of something the creature held in its unnaturally long teeth before it inserted it in its mouth. He couldn't be sure from just his sight but he put two and two together and quickly deduced that the lump of flesh in between its teeth was none other than...

  '... his tongue. This thing... feeds on tongues.' A wave of pure, unadulterated revulsion washed over Lucian, so intense it almost buckled his knees.

  By the time Lucian came to this conclusion, the grotesque horror had set its sight on a new target.