For the first story; Kira described a battle in detail from twenty years ago. Nyx said it was true. She was wrong.
For second story; an advisor spoke of a personal tragedy, losing his mate to illness. Nyx again said it was true. She was wrong again.
By the fifth story, Nyx had gotten only one correct out of five.
"This is pointless." She was frustrated. "I'm terrible at this."
"You're not terrible. You're just human." Raziel stood up and walked towards her. "You hear emotion and assume it's true. That's your weakness. Sylthis will exploit it."
"So what do I do?"
"Stop believing everything." Kira replied. "Assume every word is a lie until proven otherwise. Think logically and look for inconsistencies."
They continued the exercise. This time, Nyx treated each story like a puzzle, and looked for contradictions, timeline issues, details that didn't fit.
She got six out of ten correct.
"Better." Raziel acknowledged. "But still not good enough."
"Then what else can I do?"
"Accept that you might fail this part of the trial." Raziel crouched beside her chair. "And mentally prepare yourself for what happens when you can't."
"What does happen?"
"Sylthis will mix truth and lies until you can't tell the difference, and eventually, you'll stop trusting everything, including yourself."
"That's the goal? Make me doubt everything?"
"That's how they break you. They make you doubt your judgment so strongly that you'll accept whatever reality they offer. The only defense is having something so deep in you that no lie can break."
They continued training until late afternoon. By the end, Nyx could correctly identify lies better then her starting point. When the other advisors left, leaving just Nyx, Raziel, and Kira, Kira looked at Nyx with respect.
"You're not ready. You're going to struggle badly." Kira said.
"I know."
"But you're tougher and more adaptable than you look. Don't try to get everything right. Just try to hold onto who you are beneath all the confusion. That's all you can do." Then she left.
Alone with Raziel, Nyx stood up and walked to the window. The sun was setting making everything look beautiful.
"I should prepare. Get my things, say goodbye to…" She stopped. "I don't actually have anyone to say goodbye to. Just you."
"Is that enough?" Razeil said as he stood near her.
"Yes." She smiled.
They stood like that until the sun fully set and it was dark.
"It's time. The escort is waiting." Razeil said.
"How much time will it take to reach there?"
"Two hours." Nyx held her hand. "Ready?"
She just nodded in response.
Twenty elite lion warriors with Kira as second-in-command, and Raziel himself were escorting Nyx.
They rode in silence through the golden plains of the lion territory. Then the landscape began to change. The grass grew darker, and the air more humid. By the second hour, they were entering the serpent territory.
The trees were too dark, water was murky and still. Even the air had the scent of exotic poisonous flowers. Everything there was beautiful but deadly.
When they reached the border dozens of serpent guards were waiting for them, and in the center was Sylthis Coldscale himself.
"The human has arrived on time. How punctual." Sylthis purred.
"We had an agreement." Raziel said. "She will complete your trial with no interference from other territories."
"Of course. My territory, my rules." They walked and stopped in front of Nyx. "The rules are simple, little human. You'll enter my domain alone, with no weapons beyond what you can make yourself, no outside help, and no communication with anyone beyond my borders, until you've passed or failed." Sylthis smiled.
"What is the trail?" Nyx asked unable to wait.
"You'll know that soon." Sylthis moved closer. "But I'll give you one hint, because I'm feeling generous. The trial has already begun."
"What?"
"The moment you set foot in my territory, the game started. Every conversation, observation, and assumption you will make, is part of the test. "So tell me, Nyx Keller…" Sylthis leaned closer and whispered in her ear. "How do you know I'm real? How do you know this isn't already a hallucination? How do you know you're even awake?"
Nyx just stood there frozen.
"Well?" Sylthis straightened. "Any answer or are you already doubting?"
"You're real." Nyx replied.
"Prove it."
"I can't prove a negative. You can't prove reality to someone who's determined to doubt it."
"Ahh, but that's the problem, isn't it?" Sylthis's smile widened. "In my domain, you're the one who'll doubt, not me."
Raziel stepped forward, unable to stay silent any longer.
"Enough with the games. She's agreed to your trial. Stop toying with her and begin."
"But Lion King, the trial has begun. Haven't you been listening?" Sylthis looked at Raziel. "Or perhaps you're not as perceptive as you think. Perhaps…"
"Enough." Nyx cut him off. "I'm ready. Let's start. Whatever mind games you have planned, let's get them over with."
"Oh, little human. This isn't something that gets 'over with.' This is something that changes you permanently. By the time you leave my territory, if you leave, you won't be the same person who entered."
"Then let's see if I break."
Sylthis gestured toward the dark swamp behind them.
"Come. Your trial awaits. And Lion King?" They looked at Raziel. "You can wait at the border. I'll return her or what's left of her when I'm done."
Raziel's hands clenched into fists.
"If you break her…"
"You'll do what? Attack me? Start a war? Violate centuries of trial tradition?" Sylthis mocked him. "You won't. Because doing so would prove you don't trust her to survive on her own."
It was a trap and they all knew it. If Raziel interfered, it implied Nyx was too weak to handle the trial. If he didn't, he had to watch her walk into danger he couldn't protect her from.
"It's okay." Nyx said, touching Raziel's arm. "Let me go. I need to do this myself."
"I know. But…"
"Remember what you told me. When I come back, we'll have a lot to talk about."
"Yes."
"Just wait for me then, and try not to start a war while I'm gone." She smiled.
"No promises."
Nyx turned away before she could change her mind.
"I'm ready."
Sylthis smiled and they started walking toward the swamp.
"Come along, little human. Let's see what makes you break."
Nyx followed. Behind her, she heard Raziel's voice.
"Come back to me."
She didn't turn around, just kept walking forward because that was the only option she had.
The swamp was worse than Nyx had imagined.
The path was full of murky water and hanging moss. And there were mirrors everywhere.
"Welcome to my labyrinth." Sylthis said. "Here, reality changes. What you see might be real, reflection, or an illusion. Telling the difference is part of the trial."
"How do I navigate if I can't trust what I see?"
"Carefully." Sylthis stopped walking and turned to face her. "But first, a question. How do you know I'm Sylthis?"
"What?"
"How do you know I'm the real Serpent King and not an illusion? A shapeshifter?"
Nyx stared at their scales, their eyes, their smile. They looked real. But…
"I don't." She admitted. "Not with surity."
"Good. That's the correct answer." Sylthis gestured to the labyrinth around them. "There's a palace at the center. Reach it by dawn, and you pass the first test. Fail, and…" They smiled. "Well... let's not spoil the surprise."
"First test? How many are there?"
"As many as it takes to break you or prove you unbreakable. Tick tock, little human. Dawn comes whether you're ready or not."
Then they vanished, leaving Nyx alone in the mirror labyrinth.