Chapter 147: Chapter 147: pass your trials
Amelia swallowed. "Fine. Let’s make a deal. If you can bond with your divine beasts in less than a day, you can spend the remaining hours doing whatever you want."
The moment the words left her mouth, all three brothers looked at her with the same dark, hungry agreement. The challenge had been accepted. She could already see the long list of things they planned to do to her written in their eyes. Desire and pure lust burned so openly that she had to fight the urge to step back. A quiet gulp caught in her throat.
"Whatever we want?" Reid repeated.
"You’re looking very pleased with yourselves," she muttered.
"Can you blame us?"
They continued, as the three divine beasts followed close behind their respective companions.
They had crossed nearly half a vast of meadow, when Amelia spotted Amy and Caleb approaching from the opposite direction, the enormous brown bear ambling along beside them.
Caleb stopped on his feet. His eyes moved from the black panther to the snow leopard, then to the massive Bengal tiger walking beside Enzo.
Amy, meanwhile, stared at the three beasts with her mouth slightly open.
"You’ve got to be kidding me," she breathed.
Caleb’s gaze snapped to her. "What happened? Where did those creatures come from?"
"The same place the bear came from," Amelia replied. "You’ve met one divine beast. Now you’ve met three more."
Dean carefully lowered Amelia onto the grass before taking a seat with his brothers.
"All right. It’s time."
They all settled into a loose circle, with Amelia sitting opposite them and the four divine beasts standing quietly behind her.
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and took a slow breath, gathering her thoughts.
"I know you still have a lot of questions, and I promise I’ll answer what I can. But we don’t have much time, so I need you to listen carefully."
Her gaze moved to Amy, who was still stealing curious glances at the brown bear beside her.
"It looks like your bear has already taken a liking to you."
Amy glanced over her shoulder. The bear lowered its enormous head toward her, and she hesitated before reaching up to rub the fur between its ears.
"Yeah," she admitted, a small smile appearing on her face. "He’s actually pretty sweet."
"Then you can choose to bond with him and make him your divine beast companion. Or, if you’d rather, you can look for another one. The choice is yours."
Amy’s fingers slowed against the bear’s fur. "And if I choose him, what do I have to do?"
"You have to prove you’re worthy of the bond."
Caleb leaned forward, his earlier shock giving way to suspicion. "And how exactly does someone prove that?"
"By entering a dimension and completing a trial."
The group fell quiet.
Amelia looked around the circle to make sure she had everyone’s attention before continuing.
"The trials are different for everyone. They aren’t designed to test how strong you are or how well you can fight. They go after your weaknesses, your flaws, and the things you try hardest to hide from other people. Sometimes, they force you to face things you don’t even want to admit to yourself."
Amy’s smile faded a little. She looked down at the grass.
"What happens if we fail?"
"You can try again. Failing once doesn’t mean you’ve lost your chance." Amelia paused, remembering how much she’d struggled with her own trial. "It took me a while to pass mine, so don’t expect it to be easy. But don’t give up just because the first attempt goes badly."
"There’s something I still don’t understand. How did you bring us here in the first place?" Caleb interrupted.
Amelia’s fingers stilled in her lap.
"It took a lot of energy," she explained. "And even then, I needed permission to enter. I can’t just come here whenever I feel like it."
Caleb’s eyes narrowed. "That doesn’t answer my question."
"It’s the answer you’re getting."
He leaned back with a frustrated exhale, rubbing a hand over his face. "You can’t expect me to accept all of this without asking questions. We were on a mission in enemy territory less than an hour ago. We went over a waterfall, ended up in a place none of us knew existed, and now you’re telling us we can bond with divine beasts. Forgive me for wanting a proper explanation."
For a moment, Amelia’s expression softened. She understood why he was frustrated. If their positions were reversed, she might have wanted answers, too.
But some things were safer left unsaid.
"I understand," she told him. "But I can’t explain everything. I recited an anthem in the form of a prayer, and then we were able to get here. That’s all I can tell you."
Caleb stared at her, plainly dissatisfied.
"And our people? They’ll be searching for us. How long are we supposed to stay here? You said the trials are different for everyone. What if they take more than a day?"
Reid let out an exaggerated sigh and rubbed his temples. "Do you ever stop talking?"
"No i don’t"
"An hour in the Forbidden Forest is roughly a full day here. Time flows differently in this territory. So we have more time than you think, and Amelia is trying to explain what we need to do. Let her finish." Enzo replied.
Caleb looked ready to keep interrogating, but amelia pulled on his arm
"The longer you do this, the longer we stay here, is that what you want?"
Whatever he saw in her expression made him close his mouth and settle back into the grass.
Amelia gave them a grateful smile.
"Thank you. Now, it’s time."
She rose to her feet and signalled the four divine beasts.
They responded immediately.
The black panther moved first, followed by the snow leopard, the Bengal tiger, and finally the enormous brown bear. They walked forward until they stood in a line behind Amelia.
The brothers watched in silence, while Amy slowly rose beside Caleb.
The creatures closed their eyes.
At first, nothing happened. Then a soft glow began to spread beneath their fur, growing brighter with every passing second. The light gathered around their bodies, spilling over the grass in shimmering waves. Their eyes opened, glowing a brilliant, unnatural white.
The glow grew so bright that everyone instinctively shielded their eyes. Amelia turned her face away, raising her arm against the sudden brilliance as the air around them seemed to vibrate.
When it finally faded, the four divine beasts were gone.
In their place, four shimmering portals hovered above the grass, each radiating a different color. Their surfaces rippled like liquid light, revealing nothing of what lay beyond them.
Amelia walked toward them. "Go in, pass your trial, and come back out. Simple."
Reid straightened and looked at her.
"Your definition of simple has always worried me."