Tower of God: The Flower of Earth (Slow Updates)

Chapter Thirty

Noe raced around, trying to avoid the many shades of blue haired figures.

The symbol of the Khun family bore deeper by the second into her heart from hidden under her shirt.

The honor of being part of the Khun family, of having survived the fights at age ten.

The horror of having killed the one person she cared most about in that fight.

The figures echoed a riddle around her.

"A leathery snake with a stinging bite, coiled up I wait until I must fight. What am I?"

"A whip." She knew that one well. Her brother used to give her riddles. She grabbed her whip and took a bunch out. They seemed to follow her every move as she ran.

The fights were a usual event of the Khun family as there was so much conflict.

But some hated them.

Such as Noe.

The voices of her half siblings that she actually had gotten along with were drowned out by the ones who hated her.

"I have a single eye but I cannot see. What am I?"

"A needle." She felt a needle whip by her, scraping her arm as blood flowed from the knife like cut. She looked around, trying to locate it as she held it. She needed to stop it.

She looked around and saw dozens of needles floating around her, as she shook. She terrified, but trying to hide her fear.

Two of them sped forward to impale her, as she used her whip to grab them and toss them aside, as she yelped and felt one impale itself in her leg. It ripped itself out and she collapsed, breathing heavily. The pain was making tears come to her eyes as she gritted her teeth.

She heard a faint twang as another two moved to attack her. She rolled out of the way as they buried the point into the ground.

She reached into her hidden arms inventory and grabbed a bandage, moving again before more needles could attack her. She quickly wrapped up her wounds, knowing she would need more help than that. She used her whip to destroy the needles in the ground, then attacked the remaining ones before they disappeared in a poof of dust.

"If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it?" The voices of the Khuns echoed. Noe knew the answer, but couldn't answer.

"If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it? If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it? If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it?!" They started echoing and repeating it, their voices becoming more thunderous hostile.

Noe covered her ears, shaking. "No. Please. No."

"If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it?! If I have it, I shouldn't share it, because if I share it, I won't have it. What is it?!"

"A secret! A secret..." Noe let tears fall. A door opened and the Khuns vanished in poofs of dust as the needles had.

Noe looked at the door weakly and made her way towards it. Her wounds hurt less than her heart.

Edric looked at the near empty room. He looked at the sign in front of him, perplexed.

"Of the king I am blue and of the peasant I am red. Of the frog I am cold and of the dog I am hot. What am I?"

"Gems? No... Tongue? No that doesn't make sense..." He tapped his chin, confused.

"Of the king... I am blue... Blue... Blue blood! Peasant is red, frogs are cold blooded and dogs are warm blooded." He looked at himself, and gingerly peeled off a dried scab, hissing in disgust. He let a drop fall onto the sign, hoping it was enough as the ground shook.

Something changed and another sign came out of a wall. He hurried over.

"What belongs to you, but others use it more than you do?" He thought hard.

"Your thoughts." Nothing happened. "But they are!" He sighed and shook his head, before thinking hard.

"Come on Edric... Think... Wait... My name. Others use it more than you do!"

The sign vanished. The ground and walls rumbled, as a bunch of things appeared. The final sign appeared and Edric looked at it.

"I have 88 keys, yet I cannot open a door. What am I?" He looked at the massive pile of thousands of keys.

"I'm screwed." He sighed and started thinking.

"Well, it cannot be a key cause it cannot open a door. And 88 of them... It's a piano." The piles of keys vanished to reveal a piano.

He sat on the stool under it, it creaking from his weight. "It's been a while since I have played, so let's see."

He gently rested his hands on the delicate keys, before taking a breath and letting muscle memory from his old piano lessons take place.

Harmonious music played, before he heard a click and saw a door open.

He got up and gently rubbed a hand on the special instrument before heading on through.

Jeonsa looked around the room.

Despite being alone, she read the riddle without speaking a word. "What is broken when it's not held?"

"A promise." She whispered ever so softly.

The room changed, to resemble a giant game board without pieces that was blank.

"Thirty men, but only two women, yet these two hold the most power. Dressed in black and white they could fight forever. Who are they?"

"Chess pieces." She muttered again, before massive game pieces larger than herself. Nearly as tall as a two story building. She saw the white rook had stairs to lead her up, like a tower, as she climbed.

The black had already moved one of the pawns.

She looked at hers. "Pawn 2a to 4a." The pawn slid forward two spaces.

The game went on.

Jeonsa easily was winning against the invisible opponent, before taking out the king of the enemy.

The queen moved.

She looked at what to do. Her rook was not concealed or protected. She moved it backwards a few spaces and when it was her turn, moved her remaining pawns to protect her and the queen piece.

The black pieces slowly surrounded them.

Jeonsa looked around, trying to see an opening for a way to get through and saw that the queen was in her row. She took a breath. "Rook to 5b."

The piece she was on moved, as she clung for her life.

The queen and any black pieces were taken out.

She slid out the tower, having had won, and walked to the final sign.

"Say my name and I disappear. What am I?"

"Silence."