When it came down to the last two fighters, my earlier suspicion was correct. Indira was ranked first. To her credit, she did not react when the other woman, who I learned was called Hana, was picked to fight next.

  Hana scowled when her name was called and folded her arms. She clearly didn’t approve of any of this. Though her eyes remained fixed on the cage, waiting to assess what her threat was going to be. And while she was doing that, I was doing the same to her. If Vhar considered her stronger than me, then I had to learn as much as I could about her fighting ability.

  The portal opened up in the cage, and a giant mass of white fur dropped down. The creature awkwardly rolled onto its belly and I saw that it was ape-like in appearance.

  “What is that?” Hugo asked.

  Damian shot him an exasperated look. “Why are you asking? We’ll find out in a minute.”

  “It looks like a Yeti,” I said.

  Ashley stopped dancing for a second and took one of her headphones off. “Looks like a troll to me,” she said before returning to her music.

  The large creature sat up, but didn’t bother getting to its feet. Its fists were twice the size of my head, and it was covered in muscles that bulged under toughened skin.

  My guess was that it was a strength type that would try to crush Hana or rip her apart. She didn’t seem concerned though. As she approached the cage, the only thing I could feel from her was anger.

  *Beast identified* [Savage Frost Ogre (Rare)] Level: 230 – This creature is a special treat. Very few have seen it fight and live. Frost Ogre’s live in arctic wastelands where hailstorms the size of cars rain down on their homes, and snowstorms so vicious that they would cut men to pieces. Ice was once their enemy, but through selective breeding, they have channeled it into a weapon. Savage Frost Ogres are those driven into exile from their clans. Alone in the white wilderness, they go mad and oscillate between dumb confusion and unbridled rage.

  “Wait, did it say something about ice powers?” asked Hugo. “Has anyone fought one of these things before?”

  No one had, or if they did, they weren’t admitting it.

  Hana’s tile docked with the cage, but the ogre paid her no mind. Instead, it just stared down at the floor, looking bewildered.

  Hana walked into the cage and raised her hand. The ogre remained blissfully unaware as she conjured a fireball and launched it at the creature. It hit their chest, jolting it back. The ogre whined, looking down at the slight burn on its chest.

  “Woah, she cast fireball!” Hugo said. “Though it doesn’t look like it did much.”

  “The description did say that these creatures were tough,” I muttered.

  “Maybe she’ll kill the ogre from a lack of creativity?” suggested Indira. She shook her head. “Seriously, a fireball? It’s like a child playing DnD for the first time.”

  “She’s only warming up,” I replied. “Besides, you’ll get a chance to wow us with your skills soon enough.”

  She rolled her eyes. “God, I hate puns. They’re the last refuge for idiots devoid of comedy.”

  I leaned into it further. “Indira please! Save that fiery passion for your own fight.”

  She pursed her lips and returned to watching the fight.

  The ogre touched the burn wound on their chest, and a layer of ice grew over it. Looking closer, I could see that the wound hadn’t been healed. The ice was just numbing the pain. It also might have an armor-like effect, but that was hard to tell until it was put to the test.

  Hana shot another fireball, but the ogre saw this one coming. It opened its mouth and roared. A maelstrom of wind and ice followed, blowing the fireball back towards her. Hana waved her hand, and the flames were snuffed out before it hit her.

  The ogre wasn’t done though. The blizzard continued, hitting Hana hard. She bent her knees to brace herself against the wind, but that did nothing for the ice. Tiny icicles flew at her like daggers and left shallow cuts all over her face and body. The cuts were getting worse too. She needed to do something fast before one of them caught her throat or one of her eyes.

  Hana threw up both of her hands and unleashed a stream of fire. It melted the icicles and started pushing against the wind. The blizzard and fire fought against one another, but the fire was winning.

  The ogre noticed it too. It got to its feet as its roar was dying down. The fire stream moved almost like water as it flowed towards the creature, who could only shield itself with its arm. Once the fire reached it, the ogre let out a pained cry. There was so much fire that it was hard to tell how much of an effect it was having on the beast. But then the ogre took a step forward, and then another.

  Hana redoubled her efforts and intensified the flames, but the ogre continued pressing forward. Water was falling at its feet, which puzzled me for a moment until I realized what that was. The ogre was blunting the fire’s effect with its ice powers. Every time Hana’s flames melted through one layer of ice around its forearms, another layer was conjured in its place.

  The ogre was getting close now. Sweat was pouring off Hana as she threw everything she had at the monster. But it wasn’t enough.

  Once the ogre got within striking distance, it slapped the side of her head. Hana smacked into the wall next to her, and her head bounced off the glass before she fell. Blood was dripping down her face, and she wasn’t moving. I thought for sure she must be unconscious, but as the ogre reached down to grab her, Hana threw up her hand and blasted it with a blinding flame burst.

  All of us outside of the cage were forced to look away, but when we looked back, everything had changed. A whirling tornado of fire swirled around the pair, growing larger until it engulfed the entire cage. We couldn’t see anything, and the flames crackled so loudly that nothing could be heard within either.

  After a minute had passed, the fire receded, shrinking back towards Hana until she’d reabsorbed all of it. The ogre’s burnt corpse lay smoking at her feet. Black and unrecognizable, there could be no doubt that it was dead. Still, Hana watched it for any sign of life until the notification message appeared.

  *DING!* You have slain [Savage Frost Ogre (Rare)] Level 230 – Experience Points and Currency Acquired.

  “Well, I guess we know why she’s second,” said Hugo.

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  It might not have been a sophisticated way of fighting, but nobody could deny Hana’s raw power.

  As she returned to her tile, Indira turned to Nate with a knowing smile. “What do you think? Thirty seconds?”

  He smirked back, looking bashful. “I know better now. Under ten.”

  Indira nodded in agreement and purposefully avoided looking at the others. She knew we’d all heard her promise to win her fight in under ten seconds. It was something nobody had managed so far, but I knew that some of us had been purposefully holding back, which had extended our fights. Appearing weaker than we truly are was a good strategy to cause opponents to underestimate you, and for you, in turn, to surprise them with previously unforeseen powers. There was another strategy one could take though. Appear so strong and powerful that nobody dares try to fight you.

  A riskier way to go, I thought to myself. Let’s see if she can pull it off.

  As Indira floated towards the cage, I asked Damian who held the record so far for the quickest fight.

  He pointed at Ashley, who was still dancing with our backs to us.

  She’s not even going to watch the number one ranked fight?

  It didn’t make any sense to me. Maybe she was overconfident after her last fight? Was that confidence earned, or had Vhar just gone too easy in picking the monster she had to fight?

  A portal opened in the cage, and the next monster appeared. Until now, the spider Daisy fought had been the biggest enemy in the cage. Indira’s monster changed that. What dropped down through the portal was a bulbous and pale skin-colored sack. It took up half of the cage and there was something inside of it that was trying to get out.

  A black oil-like substance squirted out of tiny holes within the sack. It splattered the walls, which began smoking as the substance started to corrode the glass.

  Vhar made a gesture and the splattered walls stopped smoking, though the substance remained on them.

  *Beast identified* [Child of the Sunken Temple (Rare)] Level 245 – Description Redacted. There’s no sense in making this one too easy.

  I guess the first ranked fighter isn’t entitled to a description. It was hard to know if that was a bad thing or a neutral one. Some monster descriptions contained clues or weaknesses to help beat them, while others felt like a resume someone had written to audition them for the Tower.

  When Indira finally docked with the cage, she dropped her bag on the tile, and strolled on through.

  It was petty, but I started counting the seconds. I didn’t want her to die. She hadn’t given me a reason to dislike her that much, but I was hoping that the fight might be challenging and humble her a little.

  The flesh sack rocked vigorously from side to side and parts of it bulged, as whatever was trapped inside desperately fought to get out.

  Indira smiled and snapped her fingers. An air ripple followed by a shockwave surged forward. The flesh sack and whatever was inside exploded into meaty chunks. Then the glass walls of the cage shattered into tiny pieces.

  *DING!* You have slain [Child of the Sunken Temple (Rare)] Level 245 – Experience Points and Currency Acquired.

  As she walked back to her tile, she said, “I think that was about seven seconds.”

  Nobody responded. Even Nate couldn’t find the words to congratulate her. We were all stunned. The shockwave she’d created had moved so fast. How does someone dodge something like that? Not to mention how strong it had been. To instantly kill a level 245 and destroy the windows? My blood spikes couldn’t even scratch those walls.

  We expected her tile to start moving, but instead ours did. All of us were being brought to the cage.

  Vhar reformed the glass walls, presumably for the next Climbers who made it to this floor. Although something told me that Vhar wouldn’t be there to greet them.

  Once we were all docked around the cage, nobody moved or spoke. We were all thinking the same thing. That the final test for this floor was some kind of battle royale in the cage. Most of the Climbers were now watching Indira, waiting to see what she would do.

  Huh, she was right. Showing so much strength had made her the most important Climber in the room.

  I, on the other hand, was exchanging looks with Damian and Hugo. Indira’s power might’ve been impressive, but I still had a few ideas to try that might counter them.

  Vhar floated down through the ceiling of the cage and landed gently in the center. I’d been so focused on the others that I’d almost forgotten that he was here. Once he’d landed, he took a look at our apprehensive faces and chuckled. “No, you’re not all going to fight each other. This is just a little congratulatory talk before you move on.” He waved his hand and part of the cage floor descended into a set of stairs. “There, you see. That leads to the next floor.”

  We reluctantly stepped on through. I was about to say something, but Billy beat me to it. “What exactly was the point of all this? All of our opponents felt far too easy.”

  All of us were still unnerved by the boy, yet he was thinking the same thing that I was.

  Vhar didn’t miss a beat though. “That is merely because you represent some of the strongest Climbers in the Tower.”

  Billy honed in on one particular word of that sentence. “Some? So there are others.”

  Vhar grimaced. “They would’ve been… less compliant with this arrangement. But anyway, you have done yourselves proud and…”

  I started tuning him out as he droned on about how strong we were. It felt like something for the cameras and I couldn’t stop thinking about this floor. This performative display showcasing us to the other Climbers and to who knows how many aliens in the galaxy. Why make a special point of it now? They were always watching anyway, albeit in a delayed and slightly edited version, but still. I guess showing us to the other Climbers might make things tougher for us, but even that was doubtful. If I had to guess, more than half of us had held back on our powers to not give the others an advantage. So it wasn’t to make things harder for us, it didn’t benefit us or the Climbers watching. The alien’s get the same show they got before. Only this time it was more pronounced, under more controlled conditions.

  I groaned. “Oh my god.” A part of me didn’t want to believe it, but it was the only thing that made sense.

  Everyone turned to me.

  “What?” Hugo asked.

  Vhar’s face twitched. “Yes, what was so important that you had to interrupt me?”

  “I figured it out,” I said. “This whole floor was an ad. You were using us to advertise those monsters because you’re selling them.”

  Vhar shook his head at the very concept. “Don’t be absurd. I have the Tower. I don’t need anything else.”

  “Yes, but the other gods were providing resources to the Tower. Ever since you gained control, they’ve cut off your supply. So you’re using the monsters you have to get something.”

  “That’s a very serious accusation,” he said, stepping closer to intimidate me.

  He was a S+ Class alien, just short of the power of a god. And even without that, his presence towering over me did have some of the intended effect. Still, I was going to let a little thing like mortal peril cause me to show him respect. Not after what he did.

  “If we’re done with this, I’d like to move on,” I said. “Unless you’re paying us in something other than exposure?”

  To my surprise, Wayne, the big muscular biker, chuckled at my remark. The others held their composure, but they were all impatient and eager to get this over with. Even Ashley, who had put away her headphones and was now staring at the floor, looking anxious.

  “You will move on soon enough,” said Vhar.

  He turned his back on me, and I felt the strangest feeling. I wanted to move closer to Vhar. Suddenly, I felt the urge to hear more of what he had to say.

  After getting closer, my hand moved. In the blink of an eye, I drew the curse knife and stabbed Vhar in the back. Blinding pain then hit my entire body. I found myself on the floor with no idea of how I’d gotten there. Moving felt impossible. I couldn’t focus on much except the pain and that I didn’t want more of it. It was just animal instinct for self-preservation that caused me to open my least swollen eye.

  Vhar stared at me with a bemused look. It then became one of disappointment as he shook his head and pulled out the cursed knife. The magic of the knife had no effect on him. He calmly snapped the blade in two before tossing it aside.

  Damian and Hugo rush to my aid. I felt myself being forced to drink a health potion and then I passed out.