No time to celebrate.
That’s it! You solved the puzzle as easily as that! To you, it was a cinch. Somehow, your memory was able to remember the entire pattern on the first try. You were proud of yourself and so were the others. They all cheered you on as everyone, one by one, started applauding- their breaths finally giving a powerful exhale as the last teammate had the chance to finally make it to safety.
Out of the entire mission, this felt like one of your biggest accomplishments. Of course, there were several other tasks which pushed your physical limitations, a few that put the pressure on you alone to consider which of your members you could trust- who would work the best in any given situation. Now, this one tested the farthest reaches of your mental abilities. Like a true leader, you’ve had the chance to truly get to know these teammates and some you’ve even felt like there were genuine connections made between them.
Still, the little voice in the back of your mind couldn’t stop droning; you had to finish your mission no matter what, it was the only way for you to proceed. At least that’s what you believed. After this last little puzzle, you couldn’t help but think about all of this as you led everyone through a long slender hallway. Duke took the flank, being sure to watch the entire pack as you took the lead, scoping out what was ahead.
The formation was almost flawless, the way you all seemed to move like a single being only reinforced the idea that this journey had brought you all together. You could feel your palms sweating as you rounded the final bend and soon everyone gasped as they saw a large room at the end of the hallway.
This one was far more decorative than any of the other rooms you had seen prior. It was just as decorative as that one door, you and the other divided members of the platoon had seen earlier. It was as if that door was a room and something about this space in particular made the tension thick enough that you could cut it with a knife.
You held out your arm, signaling everyone to stay back as you scoped out the immaculate room just past the threshold. The others watched curiously as your head craned around, checking every nook and cranny from a distance.
Your eyes opened wide in shock as you finally noticed the statue at the far end of the room. The figure’s shape was very similar to yours, but the features were just barely off- to the unknowing eye, someone would outright assume that was you. Now, it was easier for you to identify the person in the statue; it was the male sphynx that came to you in your dream.
Once again, your mind started to race as you slowly entered the room and gestured for the others to slowly file in after you. You couldn’t stop thinking about how close you had come to your final destination and it was clear the others were feeling the same thing.
Written by Drifting Dragon on 01 February 2022