While sleeping Ryan had one of the worst nightmares he has ever had in his life. It was chaotic seeing all his loved ones back from Earth, sucked into a war with demons, angels, humans, demi-humans, and monsters. 

With all this going on it seemed like he was being chased by a shadowy being that was cornering him; no matter how hard he tried to escape it was on him like flies to shit. The shadow being had a humanoid look but it was hard to comprehend it fully while he was being chased. 

Ryan could swear he heard a woman’s voice taunting, teasing, and flirting with him as he kept running. Or it might have been toying instead of flirting. It's hard to tell sometimes because he feels they are similar in nature. The only thing he can remember her saying to him was, "Mmm!!! Uhh!!! Mmmm!!! You might be... fated to be the one? F-Finally... we can have our... fun...." She said it in such a seductive whispery voice as she closed in on him. 

When hearing that Ryan was filled with dread. He desperately wanted to fight this fated outcome. He didn’t want to go to this fantasy world that he had been sucked into.

With that Ryan came to a dead end with nowhere to run, trapped by this shadow entity as it waited to close in on him. Just before it pounced, Ryan tried to shield himself from the incoming danger. 

"No! Stay away!" Ryan yelled at the shadow but it didn't listen as it got closer to him.

Ryan begins to panic more and more not knowing what to do. 

'This can't be happening! I need to do something, but what!' Ryan thought to himself.

Looking upon this shadow entity one last time Ryan noticed it forming two long pointed ears, glowing golden eyes, a devious smile, and platinum silver hair. And before he knew it, it reached out to grab him with surreal speed and then it was all over. As everything went black.

***

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Ryan screamed as he rolled off the bed and hit the floor. Ryan was shaking and panting like crazy. It felt like he just ran a marathon through hell. His body felt so weak that he didn't know if he could get up or not.

All Ryan could think of was, 'What the fuck just happened?' 

He never had night terrors before in his life until now. 

‘The stress is getting to me.’ He concluded while wiping some sweat away from his brow.

‘Why did this happen to me?’ Ryan thinks to himself wishing he could be back home.

He looked up to see Hiro staring at him with a curious expression on his haggard face.

‘I guess he heard me scream in terror?’ Ryan assumed still trying to calm himself. 

"Shit man! Why do you have to freak out like that?" Hiro questioned him.

Ryan rubs his eyes and starts to catch his breath.

"I don't really know," Ryan said as he sat up, "I was sleeping and I started having this nightmare. I don't know what it means but it was terrifying! I thought a demon or something was chasing me."

"Well, your annoying screeching woke me up and there was a weird glow coming from your orb," Hiro said with a shit-eating grin. As if to mock Ryan for some reason.

'This cursed orb! First, it attacks me, and now it's giving me nightmares!' Ryan thinks to himself as he gets up from the cold stone floor. He checked himself out to make sure he didn't have any cuts or bruises. "What time is it?"

"How would I know?" Hiro says with a yawn as he lays back in his bed, "I'll be lucky if I can get back to sleep."

With that, Hiro goes back to bed and Ryan begins to stretch and look around. 

Ryan doesn't really like this place, it feels like he’s stuck in a fantasy medieval dungeon. With the uneven stone walls and the creepy runes on the floor. 

The room was the size of a studio apartment, 20 feet by 30 feet and there were no windows, and the only way out was this one door in the middle of the 30-foot wall, which leads to who knows where. 

Ryan just hopes those trials they were talking about have nothing to do with torture chamber crap.

While Ryan was lost in his thoughts he started to hear footsteps in the distance again. 

"Looks like we are going to get a visit from our 'lovely' elven friends," Ryan said sarcastically to himself.

As the footsteps got louder, Hiro finally noticed visitors would be coming soon. He had a devious grin written on his face as he got out of his bed. He positioned himself next to the door and he looked like he was preparing to tackle whoever was about to come through that door. Ryan couldn't believe that Hiro would try to do something so stupid again. 

"Hiro!" Ryan yelled at him trying to get his attention, "I told you I'll break your kneecaps... so stand down!" Ryan warned him as he started walking over to Hiro as quickly as possible. Ryan clenches his fists in the process and mentally prepares himself to do what he needs to do if Hiro doesn't cooperate. 

‘Shit! He's not looking at me. I'm going to have to show him what happens when you mess with the wrong guy.’ Ryan thought as he closed in on Hiro.

Finally, Ryan reached Hiro, and he put his hand on his shoulder, so Hiro had to turn around towards Ryan. 

Hiro was looking at Ryan with that arrogant smirk like he wasn't doing anything wrong as his arms crossed showing his defiance towards him. 

"Don't!— And you wonder why your friends and family abandon you," Ryan says to him with a frown. Hiro loses his smirk after the insult and was about to argue back when suddenly they hear a loud click from the door unlocking.

As the door opens, standing in front of them are two Elven women dressed in their traditional warrior outfits which consisted of wearing black leather armor that covered them from head to toe. On top of their heads, they wore a circlet with an orb on it. One woman was tall and lean with pale skin, light blue eyes, and silver hair. Her circlet had a thorny vine style to it. 

The other was shorter and rounder, with a darker complexion, dark green eyes, and her brown curly hair pulled back into a bun. She also wore a circlet on her head except hers had a flower petal aesthetic.

The taller one spoke first, "Summoned ones, you are here to face your first trial. Please follow me, or stay here and face punishment. The choice is yours." She said with a straight face. 

Without waiting for a response she turns around and walks down the hallway. Ryan and Hiro hesitate for a second before following them.

As they walked behind her through the dark hallway Ryan noticed that her backside was rather cute. 

‘Get your mind out of the gutter, Ryan.’ 

Ryan shakes his head trying to refocus. He needed to get some answers. And he was going to try and play nice until he could get a better grasp of his situation.

"Who did you say summoned us?" Ryan asked, trying to play dumb.

Both of the elves stop and turn around to face Ryan. The taller one moved her face so close to him that he could smell her sweet perfume which made his heart race a little.

"You were summoned by the High Priestess Yoona of the Nils Moon." She says with a straight face. Showing very little emotion.

"Lady Yoona?" Ryan questioned.

"Yes, Lady Yoona. You've met her before." She said with a hint of annoyance.

And that instant it clicked for Ryan. "So, she was the one in the summoning room?" He asked her. 

"Yes, she is the High Priestess of the Nils Moon. She's been studying you two and trying to decide if you should be allowed into our tribe as the Chosen Ones." She said as she backed away from him.

Ryan looked back at the taller Elf, whose face was not showing any emotion. "Deciding? Does this have to do with us being human?" Ryan asks her.

"Not exactly." She answers.

"Then what does it have to do with us?" Ryan asked trying to keep her talking.

"Well, why don't you ask our High Priestess yourself? Come now." She said and started walking again.

'Well, I guess I'll hear this High Priestess out.' Ryan thought to himself.

"By the way, I didn't catch your name," He asked the taller Elf.

"I'm Sehranya," She said with a straight face.

"Sehranya? That's a striking name... I'm Ryan by the way." He says with a slight grin. Hoping to get on Sehranya's good side. 

But the only response Ryan gets back from her is a slight raising of her eyebrow for a second.

"Are you done talking?" She asks.

"I was also hoping to get the name of your comrade, too. If you don't mind?" Ryan said to Sehranya, while just pointing with his thumb at the smaller dark elf who was behind them.

While gesturing towards the other Dark Elf, Ryan finally became aware that Hiro was in a headlock. 

'God dammit Hiro! I don't pay attention to you for a few seconds and you go and try to get us both killed!' Ryan thought as his panic started to sink in. He didn't want to get punished like the last time when Hiro tried to attack them.

"Her name is Sigrid, best stay out of her way," Sehranya said in a threatening tone towards Hiro.

"F-Fine, I'm sorry! Aw! I won't go after your dagger. I-I promise! ARG! Why are you trying to tear my head off!" He says with a pain-stricken look on his face, Sigrid finally lets go of Hiro's neck after satisfyingly delivering a bit of punishment for his incompetence. Hiro was rubbing his neck and seemed to be more relaxed now.

"You're lucky you're a summoned, otherwise Sigrid would have ripped your head clean off. Without a second thought." Sehranya said.

Hiro stares at her with a bit of a glare but shrinks down quickly when the elf looks at him again. While all Ryan could do was shake his head in disbelief.