Shawn POV:
What just happened left me speechless. Truly, I can't even find the words to describe the mix of shock and frustration bubbling inside of me. The twins, who once seemed inseparable, as if their very souls were intertwined, have now split apart. And as if fate wanted to mock me, I ended up stuck with the worst one. I don't know how much more of her I can take.
Rebecca, the twin I'm stuck with, infuriates me beyond words. At first, I tried to be gentle. I tried to be patient, even understanding. I thought perhaps there were things in her past, traumas I couldn't grasp, that justified her behaviour. But no. Nothing excuses the way she acts. She's beyond reason, beyond empathy. I can't even begin to understand how the trials of this tutorial, as gruelling as they have been, twisted her into the person standing next to me now.
In the beginning, she was wary of all of us, suspicious of our every move. Honestly, I didn't blame her at the time. I was probably even worse. It took me a long time to trust Hudson, and even now, I can't say I fully do. But there's a difference. Despite all my doubts, I've grown to respect Hudson in some strange way. He's reliable, even if he's not the easiest person to deal with. But Rebecca? You couldn't pay me enough to respect her anymore. She's grown more spiteful as the tutorial progressed, and I just don't understand it.
We saved her. We pulled her out of a nightmare, and yet she doesn't even have the basic human decency to say thank you. Instead, she acts as if we're just as bad as those who would harm her. And don't even get me started on how she treats Hudson. He may not be perfect, but the way she provokes him is uncalled for. Of course, Hudson doesn't help the situation, he eggs her on, almost as if he's looking for a fight. I wish he could just be the bigger person, but that's not who he is, and I guess that's rubbed off on me now, too.
We've been wandering through this forsaken margrave for nearly two hours. The once-beautiful landscape now feels oppressive, the vibrant greens and shimmering waters somehow more suffocating than serene. My shoes are soaked through with the filth of the ground, each step more agonising than the last. My legs ache, my feet drag, and yet the worst part isn't the discomfort, it's the silence. It's the unspoken tension between us, so thick it's practically tangible.
I've spent the entire time walking on eggshells, doing everything in my power to keep the peace. Rebecca wanted to lead, so I let her. She wanted me to shut up, so I did. Not because I wanted to keep her happy, but because I didn't want to stir up any more trouble. But now, I've had enough. Enough of the silence. Enough of pretending. Enough of her.
I finally broke the silence, not because I cared what she thought, but because I needed to hear something, anything that wasn't the sound of our feet squelching through the mud. "If we find the beast, what do you want to do?" I asked, knowing full well I wouldn't like the answer.
Rebecca, in true form, responded with the arrogance I've come to expect from her. "Obviously, I'm going to kill it," she said, her voice dripping with pride. "Just imagine having the power to end the gods themselves. I'll rule better than any of them ever could. Of course, I'll spare my patron out of respect, but I'll show them what it means to be a true queen."
Her words hit me like a blow to the chest, my mind reeling from the gravity of her madness. "You're mad," I said, hoping, foolishly that my words would get through to her. "You're absolutely mad."
She turned her bow on me, her eyes blazing with fury. "You wouldn't understand," she hissed. "I don't want to just survive. I want to thrive. I want to be better than any man could ever be. And for now, you're useful. Don't push your luck."
Her words stunned me. I had known for a while that Rebecca was ambitious, but this? This was something else entirely. Her desire to rise above the gods wasn't just reckless, it was dangerous. The creature we sought wasn't just another beast to be slain. If we found it, if she gained the power she sought, the consequences would be catastrophic.
I couldn't stay silent any longer. "Rebecca, I've had enough of your delusions. What makes you think you'll be any better than the gods who have ruled for aeons? They are gods for a reason! What makes you think you'll be a better ruler than them?"
She didn't hesitate. "Because I know," she snarled. "They've always been immortal. They were born with that power. They can't possibly understand what it means to be mortal, to suffer, to strive for something greater. They sit in their thrones, blind to the world's misery. I can be better than them because I've lived through the suffering they ignore."
Her naivety was staggering. "Do you really think you'll be any different once you have that power?" I shot back. "Look at Heracles. He attained godhood, but his most famous deeds were from when he was still a demigod. Once he became a god, he did nothing of significance. There are minor gods like Morpheus, Iris and Aeolus who are more important in the realm of the gods than Heracles ever was, despite being weaker. You'll be no different."
Her response was swift and violent. An arrow whizzed past my head, grazing my ear. I froze, staring at her in disbelief.
"Shawn," she said coldly, "don't you dare compare me to a man of such little calibre. If you dare to, the next arrow won't miss."
I stood there, stunned into silence, as she glared at me, her blue eyes ablaze with fury. We continued walking, the silence between us even more unbearable than before. My mind raced, trying to process what had just happened. I had known Rebecca was dangerous, but this was something else. She was on a path I couldn't follow, a path that could lead to the destruction of everything we had worked for.
We trudged through the swamp for another hour, the oppressive silence weighing down on us like a physical force. My feet felt like lead, each step harder than the last. Just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, I saw it, the creature we had been searching for.
It was more beautiful than I could have imagined. It waded through the water with a grace that seemed otherworldly, its scales catching the light and refracting it in a stunning array of colours. It moved with a quiet elegance, as if it belonged to the very sea itself. I could feel the love it had for the ocean, and I could sense that the ocean loved it in return.
But before I could fully take in the sight, Rebecca charged at it, her bow drawn and an arrow ready. The beast, sensing the danger, let out a mournful sound,a low, pleading moo that tugged at something deep inside me. For the first time since we started this journey, I felt genuine sorrow for something that wasn't human.
The beast knew its fate. Hudson had told me that the Ophiotaurus only had value in death, and it seemed the creature was all too aware of that fact. It didn't fight back. It ran. And in that moment, I tried to stop Rebecca. I yelled at her to wait, to think. But it was too late. She fired her arrow, and in the blink of an eye, the Ophiotaurus was gone, vanishing into the depths once again.
As I stood there, staring at the empty water where the beast had been, a sinking feeling settled in my chest. I knew then that this was just the beginning. Rebecca's thirst for power wouldn't end with the Ophiotaurus. And if we didn't stop her, there would be no end to the destruction she would leave in her wake.
Hudson's POV:
Perplexed. That was the word that kept surfacing. I didn't understand why Anna was here. Alone. With me. Her sister is always at her side, until now.
She hadn't stumbled into this. She'd chosen it.
We walked without speaking for a while, the rhythm of our footsteps quietly in sync. I kept glancing at her, but she never seemed to notice.
Then, lightly:
"So, Hudson," she said, as though she'd only just thought of it, "do you dislike me?"
It wasn't said with an edge. If anything, it sounded curious, as though she were asking whether the tea had too much sugar.
I blinked. "No," I said. Then, after a beat: "Why?"
She shrugged. "Just a feeling. You tend to go quiet around me." A faint smile. "I figured I'd ask before I invented a whole narrative."
I gave a vague nod, noncommittal. "You don't strike me as someone who needs to invent much."
"Oh, I do," she said cheerfully. "Otherwise life's too boring."
That got a small exhale of breath from me, half amusement, half wariness. "And your sister? Does she know that?"
Anna's expression didn't shift. "She knows me better than anyone." She tilted her head slightly. "But I suppose that's not what you were asking."
I didn't answer.
She let the silence hang. Then, gently: "If you're worried about her and Shawn, you don't have to be. She listens to me."
I made a small sound. Noncommittal again. "And do you not think this will end badly?"
She considered it. "He's harmless relax"
The phrasing caught me off guard. Not yes, not no. Not even vague approval. Just... a sidestep, wrapped in something that sounded like wisdom.
She kept walking, hands folded behind her back, as though we were on a garden stroll and not tracking a creature that could tear us apart.
"I wanted to talk to you," she added, as if remembering. "You're not easy to get a read on."
"That a problem?" I asked.
"No." She looked over, faint amusement in her eyes. "Just makes things more interesting."
I didn't know what that meant. Still don't.
A breeze passed. Anna glanced up, scanning the treeline, then back at me.
"Do you know what you want to do?" she asked. "After all this?"
I frowned. "All this?"
She gestured vaguely. "The tutorial. The gods. The rest of it."
I hesitated. "Why are you asking?"
Her voice stayed light. "Because it's easier to work with someone if you know what they're aiming for."
I watched her carefully. Her tone was even, her expression open. It could've been sincerity. It could've been anything.
"I'm figuring it out," I said finally.
She smiled, small and warm. "Same."
The conversation drifted from there, back to the Ophiotaurus, to logistics, to guesses and strategies and trivial things. She didn't press further, and I didn't offer.
Still, a part of me stayed alert, the way you might in a room that feels just a little too quiet.
As if in answer to my unspoken plea, a ripple broke the surface of a nearby pond. There, standing in the shallow water, was the Ophiotaurus, a magnificent creature, every bit as majestic as the myths had described. I approached cautiously, knowing that any sudden movements would only serve to agitate it.
I knew the myths. The Ophiotaurus was said to possess incredible power, but myths are only half-truths. They're based in fact but are far from concrete reality. With my sword drawn and Anna close behind me, I stepped toward the beast. But then, something in its eyes caught my attention,fear.
I realised my mistake immediately and sheathed my blade, holding my hands open to show I meant no harm. But the fear didn't leave its eyes. It wasn't just reacting to the sword. Perhaps it recognized something in me, something darker, something I had only recently begun to understand about myself.
Approaching the Ophiotaurus was a gamble, one wrong move and we could be caught in an endless spiral of conflict. But it wasn't just the creature that concerned me; it was Anna. While I calculated a way forward, her hand lightly touched my shoulder, halting me. In that moment, it wasn't just about calming the beast. She wanted to show me she was in control, not just of the situation, but of me. I let her think she had that power, but my thoughts were already turning, looking for the cracks in her armour. She moved gracefully, like this was the most natural thing in the world. Within seconds, the beast had calmed, resting its great head against her palm.
I had to give her credit,she was full of surprises.
Beep!
The Ophiotaurus has been found!
Contribution:
Anna Harris (50%)Hudson Mitchell (30%)Shawn Addams (20%)Rebecca Harris (10%)
Rewards have been allocated.
Two losses in the span of 6 hours, how fun. Before I could check my status we were teleported immediately to the waiting area.