The crushing weight of the Void pressed down like a mountain. Aarya stood—expressionless, his body hardened by the merciless gravity and the memory of his mother’s words.
Sprite (mocking, yet curious):
“Boy… somehow you survived the first day. Barely. But survival is nothing. Today, your real training begins.”
Aarya didn’t flinch. His face was blank, cold—like a man already dead.
Sprite (smirking):
“10,000 pushups. 10,000 sit-ups. 10,000 squats. 1,000 miles of running. One hour in the cold chamber. A mountain of food and energy drink. All before the day ends. And we repeat this… for 10,000,000,000 days.”
Aarya just stared. His silence made the Void feel even heavier.
Aarya (flat tone):
“…What about my clothes?”
Sprite (snorts, then slyly grins):
“You won’t be wearing those. You’ll wear this.”
He reached into a shadow-portal and drew out a pitch-black outfit—top, bottom, and even underclothes.
Sprite:
“Made of Void-fabric. Its weight increases every pico-second, exponentially… by one metric ton each time. It will grind you. Break you. Or make you.”
Aarya (expressionless, inner thought):
Naked? Hmph. At least there’s underwear. Though… wearing that is pain in the ass.
Without a word, he slipped into the outfit. The moment the fabric touched him, he felt it—an invisible crushing weight, doubling, redoubling, faster than thought.
Sprite (watching carefully, in thought):
Yesterday, he could barely stand. Now… he moves. His face… expressionless. No fear. The Void is shaping him. Is it the boy, or the Void itself bending him?
The Workout Begins
Push-ups.
Aarya dropped to the ground. His arms trembled instantly, muscles tearing, bones cracking. He spat blood on the floor, yet forced his body down—up—down—up.
Aarya (inner thought, dizzy):
My bones are breaking… my blood is boiling… but… I won’t stop… I can’t stop.
His body gave up every second. The next second, it healed—stronger, tougher, more durable. His very cells were mutating with every rep, evolving under pressure.
Sit-ups.
Every pull of his torso felt like knives sawing his ribs. His vision blurred red. Still, he went on.
Squats.
His legs shook, veins bulging, his knees shattering—only to repair stronger with each fall.
The Run
The running crushed him the hardest. By the hundredth mile, his lungs burned like fire. By the 500th, he collapsed, coughing blood, his eyes unfocused.
Then—his mother’s voice again.
Mother’s Memory (echo):
“Fight… even till the last drop of blood. Don’t bow, don’t break… show the world your will.”
Aarya (inner voice, forcing himself up):
Mother… I’ll run. I’ll bleed. I’ll fight.
He stumbled, dizzy, half-blind—but he ran. Step after step. Mile after mile. His sheer willpower refused surrender.
When he finally crossed the 1000th mile, his body collapsed again. But his face? Still expressionless.
The Cold Chamber
Eight hours remained.
Sprite (from afar, astonished):
He completed it… faster than I expected. This boy…
It was time for the cold trial. Aarya began removing his outfit.
Sprite (sharply):
“Stop. Don’t take it off. Do the cold shower with it on.”
Aarya (expressionless, but a flicker of disbelief):
“…Who does a shower with clothes on?”
Sprite (flat, commanding):
“You do, boy.”
Aarya (inner thought):
Some kind of sick joke… but fine.
He entered the bath. The icy torrent crashed down on his heat-burned body. His cells screamed. The Void’s temperature plummeted, second by second—exponentially. Absolute zero gnawed at his bones. His body froze, shattered—then evolved again. Each second turned him into something beyond human.
Meal and Rest
After the trial, food and drink appeared. He didn’t react, didn’t question, didn’t smile. He ate without expression, mechanical, like a war machine refueling.
Sprite (approaching, shock hidden in his tone):
“Boy… you did better than I expected.”
Aarya stripped the outfit off.
Sprite (immediately, sharp command):
“Don’t. Never take it off. You’ll eat, sleep, fight, shower—all in this outfit. That is the Void’s rule.”
Aarya paused—expressionless—but obeyed.
Sprite (in thought, unsettled):
Strange. The Void silenced his mind. I can’t hear his thoughts anymore. Can’t read his soul. The boy is hidden… even from me.
Aarya lay down at last. Five hours of rest awaited him. His body was broken, healed, broken again. Yet his face—still a mask.
The second day in the Void ended.
And the Basic Training had only just begun.
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Comments
Roxana
I keep refreshing the page, hoping for the next chapter. Please don't disappoint me!
2025-09-24
0