The Plane

one big riddle? Cold thought back to the challenges she had already overcome, and tried to find a clue which could hint to a word, but to no avail. She even tried to speak commands out loud, but nothing.

Eventually, the next challenge announced itself. Cold could feel tears of disappointment and frustration dwelling up inside her, but she fought them back, and instead looked out for an incoming threat.

“You can feel it too, can't you?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you feel anything else?” Cold asked, slowly pivoting around on the spot.

“Nothing.”

The seconds crept by, until...

Below them, the ground lit up in a pattern of squares, each one the same size, as far as her eyes could reach. They were just large enough for Cold to comfortably stand inside one.

“I think this one is about speed.”

“Yeah.” Cold kept her eyes on the ground, her whole body tense in anticipation. She didn't have to wait for long. Every second cell took on a pale red color, just like the ground during their first challenge. The cell Cold was currently in was not affected, so she just stood still, knowing that moving accidentally would be just as fatal as not moving in time. Then the red lit up,  but only for a moment, before fading entirely. Cold judged that the pale state had lasted for almost five seconds, which seemed like plenty of time to react, but she knew that the challenge would increase in difficulty as it went along.

Now the squares lit up in blocks of nine, and Cold had to sidestep to the cell on her left. The next strike came with a more complex pattern, but the cell right in front of her was free, so Cold didn't bother to study it. Then, every three cells in a block of four lit, and Cold could already sense that the pace was quickening. With quivering limbs, she gave up on recognizing the patterns entirely, and instead just dodged to whichever free cell she spotted first.

Eight or nine cycles in, Cold began wondering whether the deciding factor for this challenge might not be speed or quick processing, but simply endurance. The pace was still accelerating, but slowly, and Cold judged herself to be capable of surviving for at least another minute, provided that she didn't make a single misstep. But even though her whole body was shivering, she hadn't yet given way into panic. Every step she did was with sufficient precision, and not once did she move without spotting a free cell first, which was always at most two cells into the most favorable direction. The game still wasn't hard, as long as she gave it her undivided attention and didn't make mistakes.

Then the challenge chose to break this unspoken rule. Cold cast about in any direction for the safespot which would be within a two cell radius, and remembered too late that she didn't actually have a guarantee for