The Leveling of Humanity Chapter 11: The Trials of Stone & Thought

Chapter 11: The Trials of Stone & Thought

The corridor stretched ahead of them, its walls narrowing just enough to force the three of them into a single-file line. The flickering torches cast uneven light, their flames dancing wildly with each step. Shadows stretched unnaturally across the rough stone, making it difficult to tell if something was shifting just out of sight or if it was simply their minds playing tricks on them.

At the end of the passage, the hall opened into a circular chamber. Unlike the rough-cut stonework of the previous rooms, this one was carefully constructed. The walls bore intricate carvings, deep etchings of symbols and patterns, their meaning long lost to time. The air carried a weight to it, thick with something Chase couldn’t quite name. Unlike the goblin-infested chamber before, this place felt... deliberate.

Matthew was the first to break the silence. “So, what do you think? More goblins?”

Chase didn’t answer right away. His attention was drawn to the far end of the chamber, where a massive stone door loomed. It had no visible handle or keyhole, just an imposing slab of rock covered in more of the same unfamiliar symbols. In the center of the room, directly in front of the sealed door, stood a raised pedestal. Resting atop it were five stone tablets, each inscribed with different variations of the symbols surrounding them.

Chase exhaled slowly. “No. This is different.”

Gary took a step forward, tilting his head. “What kind of different?”

Chase motioned toward the tablets. “There’s no enemies here. No threats, no obvious traps. This isn’t a battle—it’s a puzzle.”

Gary let out a relieved chuckle. “Finally. I’d rather solve a riddle than dodge a damn goblin blade.”

Matthew didn’t look convinced. “Unless it’s one of those puzzles where messing up gets you killed.”

Chase didn’t deny it. It was a possibility. Every part of this dungeon had been designed with a purpose. He doubted failure would come without consequences.

Stepping closer to the pedestal, he examined the tablets more carefully. Each one was covered in a series of ancient markings, some more faded than others. Looking up, his eyes traced the same symbols along the walls. That’s when it clicked—the puzzle wasn’t just the tablets. The whole room was part of it.

“These aren’t random,” he muttered. “The wall carvings match the tablets, but… some sections are incomplete.” His fingers hovered over a few places where the engravings had been deliberately chipped away, leaving gaps in the sequences. “I think we’re supposed to place the right tablets in the missing spots.”

Gary peered at the walls, squinting at the faded symbols. “Makes sense. But how do we know which ones fit?”

Matthew crossed his arms. “More importantly, what happens if we get it wrong?”

No one had an answer to that.

Chase took a step back, trying to take in the full picture. If this was meant to be solved, there had to be a pattern. His fingers traced the edge of one of the tablets, feeling the grooves. It felt different from the others—smoother, less worn. His eyes narrowed.

“Something’s off,” he muttered.

Gary looked at him. “What do you mean?”

Chase picked up the tablet he had been examining, running his fingers over the carvings again. “This one… it’s too clean. The symbols on the wall are old, worn down by time, but this? It looks like it was made recently.” He glanced back at the other tablets. “Some of these are newer than they should be.”

Matthew’s expression darkened. “So someone messed with the puzzle?”

“Or left a trap,” Chase said grimly.

A heavy silence settled over them.

“If we pick the wrong ones…” Gary hesitated. “The whole room could turn on us.”

Matthew let out a deep breath. “Fantastic. And here I thought this was a break from dying.”

Ignoring him, Chase moved methodically, comparing the symbols on the wall to the tablets. He wasn’t guessing. He was looking for real matches. He turned to Gary. “Help me compare the wear on each of these. The ones that look the oldest are the real ones.”

Gary nodded, quickly catching on. The two of them worked together, running their hands over the stone, feeling for erosion, comparing depth and texture. After several tense minutes, they had it. Three of the five tablets had the same rough, timeworn texture as the walls. The other two? Too smooth, too precise.

“These two are fake,” Chase declared, setting them aside.

Matthew gave him an approving nod. “Glad we didn’t just slap one onto the wall and hope for the best.”

With the correct tablets chosen, Chase approached the wall. The missing slots were carefully carved recesses, just large enough to fit the tablets perfectly. If they were right, the sequence would be restored.

He took a breath. “First one.”

Carefully, he fit the tablet into its slot.

The moment it connected, a low hum resonated through the chamber. A faint glow traced along the wall, spreading like veins of energy.

“That’s a good sign, right?” Matthew asked.

Chase didn’t answer. He grabbed the second tablet, aligning it with another gap. Another hum. Another soft glow.

Then came the last one.

Chase set the final stone in place.

For a brief moment, nothing happened. Then the entire wall lit up. The carvings pulsed once, energy flowing along their paths, connecting with the ancient stone door.

A deep, grinding noise filled the chamber as the door shifted. Dust rained down from above as the ancient mechanism groaned to life, pulling the massive stone slab apart, revealing the chamber beyond.

At the same moment, a new structure rose from the center of the room. A stone pedestal, smaller than the first, but carrying something else—three rings, carved from dark metal, their surfaces glowing faintly with unreadable runes.

Matthew’s eyes widened. “That looks important.”

Gary shot Chase a wary look. “Trap?”

Chase hesitated. He didn’t know why, but… something about these rings felt different. They weren’t ominous. They weren’t cursed. They felt intentional.

He reached forward, brushing his fingers against one of the rings. As soon as he did, a notification flashed before them.

Trial Complete. Rewards Granted.

You have received: Rings of Synchrony.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. “Synchrony? What does that mean?”

Chase wasn’t sure yet. But whatever it was, it was going to help them moving forward.

Chase turned the ring over in his palm, feeling the cool, unfamiliar metal against his skin. The weight was light, but something about it felt significant, as if it held more than just physical substance. The runic etchings pulsed softly, a faint glow traveling along the carved lines like something alive within the metal.

Gary reached out to pick one up, hesitating for just a moment before sliding it onto his index finger. His brows furrowed as he turned his hand, studying it like he expected something to happen immediately.

Matthew gave Chase a questioning glance. “It said Rings of Synchrony, right? What do you think that means?”

Chase wasn’t sure. He shifted his grip on his own ring, still rolling it between his fingers. The name implied something to do with connection, balance… maybe even working together. But how?

Gary let out a huff and shook his hand as if trying to shake something loose. “Well, it’s not electrocuting me. That’s a plus.”

Matthew chuckled, slipping his onto his pinky. “That’s your standard for good loot? ‘Didn’t explode immediately’?”

“At this point? Yeah, pretty much.”

Chase tuned them out, focusing on the feeling of the ring. He didn’t have any active abilities listed in his status that mentioned it, but there was something tingling at the edge of his awareness. A strange pull, like a thread connecting him to something nearby.

His gaze lifted to the others.

Gary and Matthew both paused at the same time.

The three of them exchanged a look.

“…Did you guys feel that?” Gary asked, rubbing his temple. “Like… a pressure shift or something?”

Matthew frowned. “It was subtle, but yeah. Felt like… I don’t know, like the air around us just clicked into place?”

Chase narrowed his eyes, focusing inward. He pushed against that strange awareness, like testing the tension in a rope. A moment later, he felt it—a reaction. A faint presence at the edge of his mind, like another person standing just inside his peripheral vision.

And then he heard Matthew’s voice.

NOT OUT LOUD.

It was inside his own thoughts.

WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?

Chase jerked back, his breath hitching. “Whoa.”

Matthew’s eyes widened. “Wait. You heard that? In your head?”

Gary took a slow step forward, eyes darting between them. “Okay, now I’m officially freaked out. What the hell is happening?”

Chase didn’t have an immediate answer, but he was already experimenting. He focused on Matthew, pushing that awareness toward him like flexing an unused muscle. The moment he did—

Matthew flinched.

DUDE. YOU JUST DID IT BACK.

Gary threw up his hands. “Okay, explain! What’s happening?”

“It’s… some kind of mental link,” Chase said slowly, trying to put words to what he was experiencing. “I can hear Matthew’s thoughts when I focus on him. And when I push back, he hears me.”

Matthew gave him a wary look. “You’re saying this ring lets us read each other’s minds?”

“Not exactly.” Chase shook his head. “I can’t hear everything—only what gets… directed. It’s like a thread connecting us. If I focus on you, it opens a link. But I think you have to be aware of it to actually ‘send’ a thought back.”

Gary groaned. “So now I have two voices in my head? Great.”

Matthew crossed his arms, testing it out for himself. His expression twisted in concentration, then Chase felt something nudging against his awareness again.

OKAY, IF THIS IS HOW IT WORKS, WE CAN ONLY ‘TALK’ LIKE THIS IF WE’RE CONSCIOUSLY TRYING TO. IT’S NOT JUST AN OPEN FLOODGATE.

Chase nodded. “Right. That makes sense. Otherwise, it’d be like constant background noise.”

Gary scowled, pressing his fingers to his temples. “So wait, does that mean if one of us learns how to do this well enough, we can just blast our thoughts into each other’s heads whenever we want?”

Matthew’s grin turned downright wicked.

OH, I LIKE THAT IDEA.

Gary glared at him. “No. Nope. I will rip this ring off my finger and throw it into a pit of lava.”

Chase rolled his eyes. “We’re not using this to mess with each other.”

SPEAK FOR YOURSELF, Matthew shot back, smirking.

Chase ignored him.

Instead, he focused on something more important.

This wasn’t just mind-reading.

If these rings really allowed instant communication through thought, they had just gained an immense tactical advantage.

GUYS. THINK ABOUT WHAT THIS MEANS IN A FIGHT.

Matthew and Gary immediately turned to him.

NO MORE SHOUTING WARNINGS. NO MORE GIVING AWAY OUR POSITION. WE CAN COORDINATE ATTACKS WITHOUT MAKING A SOUND.

Matthew’s amusement faded as the reality of it sank in. DAMN. THAT’S ACTUALLY HUGE.

Gary seemed to be considering it now too, his irritation from before shifting into something closer to cautious excitement.

SO… IF WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO USE THIS PROPERLY, WE COULD FIGHT LIKE A SYNCHRONIZED UNIT.

Chase nodded. EXACTLY.

The dungeon had given them a tool.

Not just some random treasure, but something designed to help them in the trials ahead. That meant whatever came next was going to demand that level of coordination.

Whatever lay beyond that newly opened passage, it wasn’t something they could handle alone.

Matthew flexed his fingers, staring at the ring on his hand.

WELL. GUESS WE BETTER START GETTING USED TO IT.

Gary took a deep breath, shaking off his nerves. YEAH. BUT LET’S AGREE ON ONE RULE RIGHT NOW—NO USING THIS TO FREAK EACH OTHER OUT WHEN WE’RE TRYING TO SLEEP.

Matthew clapped him on the back. NO PROMISES.

Chase smirked, but his mind was already shifting gears.

This wasn’t just a useful ability—it was a game changer.

And if this dungeon was designed with a deliberate purpose, then the next challenge was going to test just how well they could use it.

He turned toward the open doorway.

“Let’s find out what’s next.”