//------------------------------//
// Blood 
// Story: Azure Flame 
// by Silver Page 
//------------------------------//

	As the flames that had engulfed Azure Flame faded, he found himself in a locker room, not unlike the ones he’d have found in a gym. Rows of cheap metal lockers lined the walls while a number of benches in the middle separated the two sides. At the end was a corridor draped in shadows with only a small glimmer of light beyond it. However, for all the apparent normalcy of the area, two things stood out. One was a thick, coppery scent that assailed his nostrils, while the other a booming, rhythmic beat, like the pumping of a heart, which echoed all around him.
“Heed me, Azure Flame. This is your final test. Complete it and you will be granted what you seek. Fail, and you will be returned to the Mortal Coil.” The mechanical voiced boomed from the ceiling. “If you wish to begin, step through the passage way and enter the light.”
“I’m ready,” Azure said, more for himself than the omnipresent voice. With a deep, calming breath, Azure trotted down the tiled walk, following the only path available to him. 
Stepping through the door of light, the Unicorn found himself assaulted with a burst of mind numbing noise, and his ears pinned themselves to his skull in shock. Looking around in surprise, Azure saw that he had been transported to the edge of a massive arena, like the one he’d seen in Roam, but far larger and more intact. The stands were filled with every kind of being known in the world, from Ponies, to Griffons, and even a handful of Elephants and Naga here and there. They were cheering and chanting, their voices becoming a wordless cacophony.
However, Azure Flame couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at the being who stood opposite him in the arena pit: himself. Or rather, himself if he’d gone goth in his youth and decided that, yes, spiked collars were fashionable and dying his mane with streaks of black and red was totally cool. Of course, as absurd as his doppelganger looked, there was a dangerous glint in his eyes, and his horn seemed unnaturally sharp.
“Your final challenge is to be the first to draw blood!” The familiar voice roared out, cutting through the audience. “There is no time limit, and no restrictions. This is not a duel with rules and regulations. This is a fight where anything goes! Are you ready?!”
“Yes!” Azure shouted out, in sync with his double.
“Then begin!”
Azure Flame leapt forward, a spell sparking into existence around his horn. A bolt of magical energy smashed into the ground in front of Nega-Flame, causing a cloud of dust to obscure his opponent’s vision. A primal roar from the dark Unicorn was followed by a gust of magically conjured wind, dispersing the dust. But Azure had been waiting for that, unleashing a torrent of lasers upon his foe.
Nega-Flame countered the surprise attack with a barrier however, before conjuring a sword formed of purple light and magic, lunging at Azure Flame. 
“So, what are you, exactly? Some sort of representation of my inner angst?” Azure sneered, countering with a magi-blade of his own. He winced as the jarring shook his horn, but he held on, countering blow after blow with the ease of a fencer.
“DIE~!” Nega-Flame howled, ignoring the taunting, stabbing his energy sword into the dirt in front of Azure Flame. Jerking back in surprise saved the alabaster Unicorn from pain, as the sword shattered and detonated in a wash of flames, the heat licking his muzzle.
“DIE! DIE! DIE!” The dark Unicorn cackled, throwing a punch at Azure Flame which was countered with a swing of his sword.

This continued for nearly an hour, each Unicorn attacking and being countered, neither able to land any hits. It was only a matter of time though before one of the combatants succumbed to their exhaustion, as both were starting to pant and sweat heavily.
‘Damn it,’ Azure swore to himself, warily watching his alternate self doing the same. It stood to reason that his double would be able to do everything he could, which made the whole battle an exercise in trying to outwit himself. Nothing had worked so far, though, Nega-Flame just as adept at thinking on its hooves.
‘What can I do? I can’t do this forever, and I doubt I have more than a few more minutes of mana left,’ he mused. ‘And my body is starting to feel like lead, so I can’t move as fast as I used to be able to. Blast! If only I could get close enough to wound him and draw… blood…’
Azure Flame suddenly facehoofed violently, as realization struck him.
“You clever bastard,” He grumbled, before raising his left forehoof and bringing it down hard onto his horn. He winced as two layers of pain hit him, one from the wound, the other from his stained horn. The audience of the arena quickly fell silent as he showed them all his bloody leg.
“I have drawn first blood! That makes me the winner!” Axure shouted into the silence, before roars of approval shook the land.
“Not bad, me,” Nega-Flame sneered, before imploding into black and purple flames.
Azure didn’t have a chance to react to that, as his world vanished into golden flames once more.
“An interesting choice, young Unicorn. I never specified whose blood had to be spilled, just that you spilled it first. You have passed the final Trial of Salt, the Trial of Blood. Blood is life, but it is also death. It carries knowledge of the past while ensuring the future.” The machine-like monotone boomed out, Azure blinking in surprise as his wound and exhaustion vanished.
“You have done well to make it this far. As promised, you shall now receive your reward.”
The flames dissipated quickly, fading to reveal a stark white room with hundreds upon thousands of doors, almost like the waiting space in a doctor’s office, albeit a very large one. Of course, that just made the sheer madness of what lay in front of Azure Flame all the more disconcerting. 
A gigantic metal spider squatted in front of him behind a heavy looking wooden desk, glistening silver composing the entire body. However, the legs ended in four fingered hands like those of a Minotaur, while a Mintauran-esque torso poked up from where a normal spider would have their head. Four long, spindly arms emerged from the torso, but with five fingers instead. Every limb was reaching out and fiddling with something around it; from hourglasses to what looked like steam-boilers from a train, to detailed paintings of places to finely bound books and tomes. These objects appeared and disappeared by some unknown method, and Azure could only catch momentary glimpses of the objects before they vanished and were replaced by something else. 
But as alien and unsettling as the metallic spider was, the worst of all was its head. It was flat and ovaloid, devoid of any comparable features to any being the Unicorn could think of. And instead of any features like eyes or a mouth, dozens of clock-work gears made up its face, slowly ticking away in an echoing chime that filled the entire space. 
“Welcome to the Center of the Spiral.” The mechanical voice, which Azure Flame had become accustomed to, spoke out. The hidden prince winced at the sound, for it was louder than ever, this close to the source. How it spoke without a mouth was a mystery, and one he felt he’d likely never know.
“I’m here to get the answers for my questions,” Azure Flame announced, and the gear-filled head turned slowly to stared down at him.
“Yes, you are.” It waved a hand dismissively, and one of the myriad of doors popped open. “Step through and find your answers. The being who has them waits for you. And he has waited a very long time, so do not keep him waiting any longer.”
Swallowing a sudden lump of nervousness, Azure trotted up to the open door, and found himself staring at a green and brown dragon lying in the center of the room beyond. This was the being who would answer his questions? He shook his head, even as a pale green eye opened up on the dragon and stared at him. He’d come this far. Stepping through, the door slammed shut behind him.