I returned to the encampment and resumed my training with the other avatars again. Bearing the brightest smile I could muster, I greeted my friends. They welcomed me with open arms. No one suspected any change in my emotions. Even the ever-observing Vorac could not read through my cheery mask. I hid from them so well, I almost convinced myself.

We had ten days to prepare for the final game. I was given a new set of lessons. Tepi, who was more knowledgeable in the wild than the other godlings, tried to teach me about the beast. The animal lived in the thickest jungle of the Jewel Mountain.

The summer...