Liv stares on as her adversary gets a look at her as well, its blazing, orange eyes boring into hers. It stands upright, a humanoid figure a full head and a half above Liv. Its long arms extend past its waist, going down to its knees, ending in wickedly sharp claws that could rend stone to pieces. It's covered in a strange, eggshell white carapace, ridges growing off the few fault lines on its joints. Its head is long, its forehead extending back with an almost translucent covering over the top, the same orange, bubbling liquid coursing through its head as its smaller compatriots; although, it seems to be missing the proboscis on its bottom. It, instead, has traded them for stronger legs, a bipedal model opposed to the its fatter spawn. Behind it extends a set of wings, translucent with veins running through them. Before she can react, it crouches down, barreling toward her at speeds she struggles to comprehend

  “Shit!” Liv shouts, just barely jumping out of the way. The overhead strike aimed toward her head instead slams into the floor, sending a small cloud of stone dust cascading into the air. The area struck by the demon begins to melt into a sludge as the orange liquid seeps out of its fingertips, the level of liquid visibly lowering within the demon's head.

  It stands tall again as Liv digs in her pocket, still backing up as she plucks one of the remaining stones from her pocket, grinding it in her hand as she throws her arm out.

  BOOM

  The fragments rocket out toward the demon's frame. Strange enough, it doesn't try to dodge; instead, it crosses its arms over its body, prepared to block the oncoming storm. The stones pop against its body like tiny bombs, creating small clouds of dust that fall to the floor like snow.

  Liv watches in horror as it lowers its arms, seemingly unaffected by the attack in every way. She barely has time to react before it sets upon her again, its claws aimed to disembowel her with a slash to the gut. She tries to backpedal, and she manages to dodge its claws; however, she doesn't account for the arc of acid that fires toward her midsection, burning through her tanktop and into her skin.

  Liv barely suppresses a growl of pain as she feels it melt her flesh, her punches doing little more than annoying it as it slashes toward her again. Once, twice, thrice it slashes, nearly killing her with each. It's fast, strong, and durable. The only category Liv seems to match it in is speed, ducking and dodging the attacks sent her way, though even that seems to be tipped in its favor. The one time she blocked, she felt the bones in her forearm creak with the pressure, sending her tumbling to the floor with nothing to show but a bruised arm and cracked bone.

  “I think you’re losing, Liv.” Her boss commentates unhelpfully, eliciting a growl from Liv as she narrowly sidesteps a bite from the demon, its head flying out to snap at her.

  “Ya don’t say?” She shouts, landing a quick uppercut to the demon’s jaw. This, at least, seems to disorient the Queen long enough for Liv to disengage, an orange glow emanating from the fault lines within her gauntlet. It didn't seem to have as much armor on its chin as the rest of its body, but that wasn't exactly a low benchmark considering the amount present on it. The inklings of a plan began to brew in her mind, her fingers slowly drumming against the palm of her hand. She might have a chance at it, but it would be far greater than just a risk.

  “Your sarcasm is noted, but unhelpful,” Her boss responds, “Perhaps you should try a new strategy before you die and, ultimately, ruin both our futures?”

  “If you ain’t got any ideas, then shut up.” She mutters angrily as the demon rushes back in, her brain fully committing. Better to die trying than to die running, she supposes.

  Liv steadies herself before barreling forward her self, carefully watching its movements. It seems to have some intelligence, or perhaps its instinct allows it conjure some strategy. Either way, it reaches its arms out, its needle-esque teeth filled mouth already open to bite her head off. It would've worked if Liv hadn't been so prepared, but she was, her legs crouching down as the arms sail overhead. With a breath, she pops back up with all her might, slamming both her charged fists right into its open jaw.

  BOOM

  The explosion rings out. Liv is sent crashing down, landing straight on her back with a heavy thud, the world fading for a moment before she snaps back into reality. The demon hadn't expected the human had any way to harm it, especially in such a manor as it sails into the air, its jaw hanging limply as orange blood leaks from its maw. Luckily for it, and unluckily for Liv, it was gifted with the ability to fly.

  As gravity begins to exert its control over the demons body, its wings begin to beat, its eyes shooting down to Liv's sprawled form, her eyes wide as saucers. The demon had never needed to feel any particular emotion toward anyone, especially since injury was something it had never experience in its life: a life it cant quite to recall. Right now? It was angered, a gargled, primal screech escaping its mouth.

  Liv barely manages to roll away as the demon flings itself to the earth arms first, the shock wave aiding in her escape as she tumbles away. She manages to get her footing in time, panting as she shoots her eyes to the demon, a massive crater formed where it landed. The fight was taking more energy than her starved body could give. The arm the creature struck still aches, and the burn marks still send sparks of pain through her whenever she lands on them.

  The demon looked worse at first glance, its jaw hanging limp, small cracks webbing from where it landed on the floor just a few seconds ago. It hadn't been starved while going through a gauntlet of enemies, giving it a wider swathe of energy to pull from. Liv had to find a weakness, but everything aside from her most recent explosion hadn't harmed it in the slightest. Her eyes laser in as she sees demon's legs twitch ever so slightly, wings beating as it sends itself flying forward in an instant, its left arm primed as it prepares to swipe her arm off.

  Liv prepares to dodge to the side as it approaches at top speed. She just needed to understand its weakness-.

  “I understand its weakness, I believe.” Her boss’s voice rings out, distracting Liv for a fraction of a second. A fraction enough as the claws rake into her shoulder, her attempt at a dodge sloppily turning to an attempt to mitigate as much of the damage as possible as she scurries back, her hand coming to grip her bloodied shoulder.

  “Ghk!” She sucks in a breath through her teeth, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. She’s taken injuries before. Falling stones, mining accidents, the occasional slip leaving bruises, and the few injuries demons have managed to give her on her sparse journeys to the surface. This? This was different. Not only did the slash itself hurt, blood leaking from her arm like a river, but her blood felt like it was boiling, turning to a weapon against her as it sears anything it touches. She takes in another sharp intake of breath as the demon leaps at her again, speaking as she does. “If ya know, spit it out!”

  “Well,” Her boss starts, “I have been observing your fight for a bit now. I can easily tell by some of your first attacks that piercing attacks would be ineffective given how your stones fared. I thought perhaps the Lava would work, but it seems to be immune to the orange ooze it expluses, unlike the others we’ve encountered. Blunt attacks seem to work, however-,”

  “CLIFFNOTES.” Liv shouts as the claws graze the side of her ribs, Liv countering with two quick punches to its head, seeming to only daze the demon for a split second.

  “Hit it with something large, or have it crash back down enough to crack its carapace to hit with an explosion.” It says slowly, the wind taken from its sails.

  Liv grunts as she nods, landing a final ineffectual jab before jumping back as the Queen misses another overhead, five divots in the floor where its claws bury into the earth. She looks back, the corner of the platform behind her, just a yard of space left, hardly enough to dodge another attack.

  She pants, sweat beading down her face as the heat from the magma washes over her back, a searing heat that singes the hairs on the back of her head, even from this distance. The demon removes their sharp fingers from the ground, a wicked yet droopy smile full of teeth on its face as it readies itself to charge. Liv swears, looking around for anything to help. The left? Nothing. Right? Nothing. Nothing on the floor either. Something with an explosion, perhaps? Risky, too risky for something that probably wouldn’t work. Finally, she looks up, her eyes widening as she catches sight of them. That could work.

  “SKR-E-E!”

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  The Queen bounds forward with another gargled, its claws extended, prepared to rip her to pieces. Liv doesn’t give it time as she swings her arms out, jumping as she swings her arms together, her gauntleted hands connecting in a thunderous clap.

  BOOM

  Liv is sent flying toward the spiraling ceiling, cutting through the wind like a bullet as the demon misses, tumbling into the magma. After a moment, it bursts out, completely unharmed and engulfed as it screeches in anger, barreling toward her with its claws extended, promising death if it catches her.

  Liv just barely manages to grab onto one of the towering stalactites on the ceiling, slamming her fingers into the stone, creating purchase where there was none before. The movement creates a wave of blistering pain, not just from the exertion, but from her shoulder. It was only getting worse. She was on a clock, one that was rapidly running out.

  The stalactite is gargantuan, bigger than herself by several times, as wide as three cars at its thickest; still, she had dug through thicker before, and she figures it can't be that different. With a silent prayer to whoever will listen, she pulls one of her hands from the stone, priming it before throwing it forward.

  WHAM

  She slams her hand into the stalactite, causing cracks to visibly web out from the base, stone flakes falling like snow to the floor. She pulls her fist back, preparing to repeat the punch.

  WHAM

  She slams her hand into it again, causing more cracks to splinter from the impact. A large, fist sized crater forms in the stone, the cracks deeper in there than they are around the area of impact. She cold already feel it loosening, her grip loosening just a bit due to the cracks she created herself. The Queen approaches faster and faster, three quarters the way to her. No time to waste, then. With a ragged breath, sweat pouring down her face, she pulls her fist back, throwing it back toward the stone.

  WHAM

  The stone keeping the stalactite connected to the ceiling shatters as her third hit connects, initiating its fall. Liv lets out a small mental cheer, scurrying to get herself onto the stalactite's butt, her eyes locking onto the demon once more. It wasn't directly under her, flying at an angle in an attempt to avoid the falling stalactite. Liv steels herself, priming her fist once more, giving a quick glance to the orange glow in the fault lines of her gauntlets. One shot it was. She lines up her line of sight. Ten yards turns to nine, turns to eight, then to seven. Once the demon gets within five yards of her, she decides its close enough, her fist slamming into the stalactite with all the force she can muster.

  BOOM

  The stalactite goes flying forward at blistering speeds, Liv still holding onto it as it barrels toward the demon. It’s certainly fast, but not fast enough to dodge bus sized stalactite barreling toward it. The stalactite buries its way into the demon's stomach, sending them both careening toward the platform below. Liv looked into its eyes, watching as it tried to pull itself off the sharp end. If given respite, it might actually manage to free itself.

  "No ya don't, bastard." is all Liv says, one of her hands slamming into her chest three times in succession. A growl of pain manages to crawl from her mouth, a chill cascading through her body as she pulls her fist back once more.

  BOOM

  She slams her hand into the stalactite once more, the explosion ripping from her gauntlets. The energy is enough to send her skyward once more, her back slamming into the ceiling once more, white sparks of pain shooting through her body, a gasp tearing its way from her throat. She can swear she feel something break, a sharp pain ripping into her back. The demon fares far worse, the law of inertia driving the tip of the stalactite further into its stomach, its fate sealed. The stalactite crashes to the platform, pulverized to dust as Liv begins to fall. She looks to the floor, her mind beginning to slip away as she sails down. Shit, she can't muster the strength to move a muscle. Slowly, she closes her eyes, her mind slipping from her, her boss yelling in her mind. Was this it? She hoped not, but she couldn't do anything anymore, her mind drifting into the abyss.

  Liv groans as she comes to, blood leaking from the sides of her mouth, her back battered and bruised. Every small movement is agonizing, pain shooting through her as she tries to prop herself up. Even that small action proved too much, her body flopping back onto the floor. God, everything hurt right now; still, she seemed to be on the platform, and she was alive.

  With all the effort she can muster, she looks for the demon, hoping it was down for the count. It’s body is just a few steps from her, its carapace crushed by the sheer weight of the stone. Orange blood leaks from the wound, the demon either dead or dying, twitching with the final vestiges of its life. Satisfied with the result, Liv allows herself a smile, her arms weakly crossing over herself. A shiver runs through her body. Despite it being so hot, she felt cold. Too cold.

  “Reckon we did it, boss.” She mutters softly, smiling weakly, her teeth stained red with blood.

  “An impressive showing, Liv.” Her boss admits, causing her smile to grow. Relief begins to flood her system as her wounds begin to knit together, her boss continuing to speak, “I’ll speak with you more tomorrow. Good luck, Liv.”

  “Yeah, see ya tomorrow.” She says, waiting till she can stand. Once she can, she pushes herself up, stretching her aching arms. Her boss’s voice had vanished completely. Just to sate her own curiosity, she kneels down, giving the ground three quick jabs. No orange glow springs up, Liv nodding slowly as she confirms. She stands back up, her eyes scanning the platform.

  A few yards off the center, just left of the Queen's body, a glowing Strata has sprung back into existence, the same color and size as the one from the cold, dark room she had entered.

  “Reckon that’s it.” Liv comments to herself, walking over to the Strata. Confidently, she reaches her hand out, pushing it through the Strata. It begins to suck her in, Liv not resisting in the slightest as she’s dragged through, falling into darkness, the wind whipping through her matted hair. She sighs as she closes her eyes, allowing it to pass over her aching body. A bit of relaxation might do her some good after all that-.

  VWOMP

  Liv falls onto the floor, falling for what felt like seconds, a far cry from the long fall she had before. Unlike before, she feels her stomach twist, clutching her gut to keep the vomit from escaping her mouth. Eventually, she manages to quell the nausea enough to sit up, her eyes darting around.

  What she finds is the same cold stone room she was in before she entered the Strata, the flickering Strata collapsing in on itself behind her. The cold metal of the platform sticks to her arms, nipping at the bare flesh with teeth it doesn't have.

  Just as the Strata is about to close, the spikes begin to thrum as if someone was striking it like a drum, each of the three letting out a shrill screech. Liv cries in pain, covering her ears in a vain attempt to ward off the sounds assaulting her, her body curling up defensively, the dim lights flickering violently. The Strata flickers for a moment before expanding once more, returning to its usual size and proportions, the horrid, shrill sound finally turning off.

  Liv growls as she sits up once more, her eyes trained on the nearest spike. Her eyebrows furrow as she fights the growing urge to break it. Just as her will is about to falter, she hears footsteps descending down the steps, the greasy man coming into her view, seeming shocked at the sight of her.

  “Ah, you’re back. Good job!” He smiles, his hands clasped at his chest. He walks over, giving her a once over, “You’re in better condition than most! No large injuries, and no festering. Impressive! A quick time, too. Not even a full day! I should have expected that since you didn’t bring any rations-.”

  He suddenly stops, upper lip wrinkling as he inhales sharply, his smile replaced by frown. Realizing his reaction, he gives an apologetic bow, clearly flustered by his reaction. “My apologies! Even after all these years, I can’t get used to the smell of evaporating demon blood.”

  Liv frowns, looking down at herself. She didn’t really have time to assess herself, but she can see how she could smell bad. Her tanktop is stained with blood, both hers and demonic, though the demonic blood is quickly sizzling away to nothing. Her pants are covered in dust, far less blood in it than in the tanktop. She pulls the tanktop up just enough to take a whiff, her own nose wrinkling a bit. When she was young, she had smelled rotting meat in supermarkets. This was worse, far worse.

  “Blegh. Ya ain’t gotta apologize. This is nasty.” She says while stepping down, her hands in her pockets, trying to breathe through her mouth instead of her nose. That only ended with her getting a taste of the fumes, the nausea returning to her body.

  The man nods quickly, relieved that Liv doesn’t seem mad at him. He extends his arm toward the stairs in a sweeping gesture as he speaks, “Well, you can shower and eat once you finish your mental assessment. Once that is done, you can stay here for a few days as your grade is assessed. With all luck, you’ll land yourself a group in the Hellfire Initiative.”

  Liv pauses. Mental assessment? What the hell did the mental assessment entail? Was that reading and stuff? She gulps, her voice a bit lower than before, “E-Erm… Ya reckon I can wait till tomorrow? I ain’t in tip top shape.”

  The greasy man gives a sympathetic frown as he shakes his head, “Unfortunately, the mental assessment must be done directly after the physical one. It’s to see how well Synth wielders can think after a stressful battle. Frustrating, I know. Unfortunately, I cannot do anything about it. No, I cannot sneak in food or drink for you as that is also not allowed. Yes, im aware it's unfair. No, I cannot change the system myself.” He prattles the last parts off, almost as if he’s heard them a million times.

  Liv sighs, rubbing the back of her head as she looks between him and her gauntlet. She’s not very academically inclined, spending her days digging instead of indulging in the literary arts. After contemplating, she shrugs. She did have a bit of knowledge, and it’s not like she had a choice after coming this far. She, reluctantly, follows the greasy man up the stairs, steeling herself for the test to come.