Speed Is King

Reopening the crack and yelling at the supreme being was foolishness, Elliot knew. But his character was such that any other act was intolerable for him.

And although Elliot laid there on that beach which was devoid of life except for his contracted beasts, he did not regret his actions.

Only rage, pure and unfiltered, coursed through his veins.

He had no idea how long he laid there in his semi conscious state, but when he finally regained consciousness a long, long time later, the season had changed.

Because of Ganruk's devastating attack, all of his progress in creating his soul power structure had been destroyed, and his strength had regressed by a massive amount.

And as such, the three day dateline which Ganruk had given him was no longer applicable since "Heaven" no longer wanted him.

His strength was still very much within the limits of his "plane".

Elliot did not really remember what season it was when he fainted, nor did he really care.

All he knew was that it was autumn, and there was no sign of Jessica or Purity. Even Aleyria and Magius did not appear.

In fact, nobody did.

Which was quite a worrying thing for Elliot.

What was happening?

At that moment, a refreshingly clear voice sounded from everywhere.

"Good evening, Sir Elliot."

At the sound of that strange voice, all at once, understanding dawned on Elliot.

"My name is Jane. I will be your guide and your game referee for the next few time periods until you pass this game or die."

A violent surge of anger exploded in Elliot's heart at that moment.

"Another game?" He laughed coldly.

The God of Fate seems to really love playing games with him.

"Once I find out who the hell is pulling the strings, I will make sure I play games with you until you are driven insane and commit suicide." Elliot vowed in his heart.

After he allowed himself that emotional outburst, he proceeded to strip himself of every unproductive thoughts and emotions.

"Let us begin the game." Elliot said emotionlessly even as he tabulated the work he needed to do to regain his full strength and bring his contracted beasts back to full health.

"Very good. The first game is called Break Through.

Under Heaven's Division of Power, you are a Summoner. However, you are pathetically weak, and miserably focused on life forms of the Beast category. You have exactly six months to breakthrough from a Grade Ten Summoner into a Grade Nine Summoner.

Please be informed that a Grade Ten Summoner can summon all types of Beasts at will, and a Grade Nine Summoner can summon all types of Spirit Beasts at will.

Please be informed that failure to breakthrough will result in your instant death and the deaths of the souls which are currently held in Soul Stasis.

Please be informed that the souls of all life forms in this Plane of Life is currently held in Soul Stasis.

Please be informed that souls held in Soul Stasis are completely safe and would be unharmed until the moment of their release or death.

Please be informed that you will be given a Grade Nine Treasure upon success in breaking through.

No further information will be given, and no questions will be entertained.

That is all.

Good luck!"

"Break Through? Good. That's exactly what I intend to do anyway." Elliot said calmly and immediately released his energy into his beasts.

Although the soul power structure he had painstakingly built was destroyed, the knowledge and understanding that he had gained were still intact.

Additionally, the contracts he had with his beasts which were all upgraded did not regress as well.

Streams of life giving energy streamed gently but urgentlu from his body into his beasts.

Winter was the first to recover.

Crackk!!!!

As soon as she did, a powerful beam of blue energy broke through whatever barrier Ganruk had placed around the Life Plane which contained all of the multiverses of Elliot's universe, and landed lightly upon her.

"Hello. I am Jane, the Guide and Game Referee of Break Through. Please leave the Game Area immediately." Came Jane's clear voice which contained a compelling power of sorts, pushing against the blue energy.

However, a gruff voice sounded and instantly dispelled Jane's power.

"Break Through? Ganruk is out trying his luck among the lower planes again? Hmph! Go and tell your retarded master that he is messing with Hor-Palor's Chosen Sovereign. He better come and look for me to apologize before I-"

"Before you what? You think the name Hor-Palor will make me tremble in fear?" Came Ganruk's voice. "This game is sanctioned by Grand Zar Barruk Himself! You better scram if you don't want the full might of the Fifth Heaven to fall upon you!"

"Grand Zar Barruk? Hmph, fine. But you think that my Chosen Sovereign is some trashy commodity which Grand Zar Palor is willing to leave to you? I am under Her direct orders to retrieve the Snow Sovereign! Let her go right now before the full might of the Seventh Heaven falls upon you!" Hor-Palor said.

"Grand Zar Palor herself wants a Snow Sovereign within the Game? Fine. Take the Snow Sovereign and go!" Ganruk shouted impatiently.

"Little Snow Sovereign. Come with me. The Grand Zar of Seventh Heaven has her eyes on you. Come, come. I will bring you to her." Came the gruff voice from the yellow energy.

"My Master is in danger. My place is with him." Winter said in a soft but firm voice.

"No. Your place is with the Grand Zar of Seventh Heaven. Go there, get strong, and await my arrival." Elliot ordered Winter.

Winter looked deeply into Elliot's eyes, pleading for him to rescind his order, but Elliot merely looked back at her calmly.

There was no way he would allow Winter to stay in light of such a wondrous escape opportunity.

Winter could only reluctantly agree. As she did so, the beam of yellow energy covered her, and caused her to disappear from sight.

"Good man." The gruff voice sounded softly. "In return for what you just did, let me give you a farewell gift." A tiny beam of yellow energy shot out from the pillar a split second before it disappeared and sank into Elliot's body.