MLTNL P3- "Agility"

"Agility" is the third Part of "Miracula Luxia: The Northern Lights". It was released on 09.03.2020.
== Plot ==
Jared may have passed two of the seven challenges, but the worst is yet to come.
The third challenge will make the young hero think that the previous ones are just a pleasant experience. Compared to this one.
It is up to him whether he will get to the other side safely, or plunge into the dark depths below.
== Story ==
As Jared and the spirit enter the next room, Jared gets a strange feeling. A feeling of... regret. Weird.
"I know what you're thinking."- The spirit says- "You wish you did more to save the people around you. That is good, but you must move on and live in the present, not the past."
Jared shakes his head.
"My body may be in the present, but my heart will always remember the past. I cannot move on from it."
"If you say so, then that is how it should be. Anyway, it is time for your next challenge. Now we, the spirits shall test your agility. See how acrobatic you really are. Though it won't be a very long challenge, I promise."
"Is this a necessary trait for a hero?"
"Absolutely. Now go and good luck!"
With that, the spirit vanished and a bright light illuminated Jared.
He finds himself in a long room, surrounded by lava. In the distance ahead, invisible machinery reveals the course he has to pass.
"Skipping stones, huh?"- Jared mutters- "I think that I won't have any trouble passing this part."
With a few swift moves, Jared manages to pass the first three skipping stones without losing balance. The rest of them were just child's play for him.
And a *hip*! And a *hop*! And a victory! Jared manages to pass the skipping stones without any sort of trouble whatsoever.
The spirit laughs in a playful manner.
"Very well, Jared. I see that you passed the skipping stones. But the fun is just getting started! Look ahead."
Jared looks in the direction where the ghost is pointing and sees another huge part for him to pass. This time, some of the skipping stones have monsters on them- goblins, rats and the occassional bat.
"You're not scared, are you?"- The spirit asks him.
Jared shakes his head.
"Scared? Of some minor vermin on dangerous ground? Oh, you have to be kidding me. This is going to be fun!"
The spirit smiles.
"That's the spirit! Now go and show them who is the boss of this challenge."
Jared nods and carefully approaches the second set of skipping stones. Instead of trying to kill the monsters with his sword from there, he pulls out his bow and shoots the closest ones in the head, leaving the farthest for last.
A few more *hips* and *hops* manage to lead him towards the middle of the skipping stones where a couple of bats are waiting to swoop at him and push him in the lava behind him.
Fortunately, Jared is no slacker when it comes to fighting. He pulls out his sword and swings it at the charging, nimble creatures, easily slaying all of them.
Having dealt with this minor distraction, Jared proceeds to go futher ahead on the skipping stones, eventually reaching the last enemy in his way- a huge Orc.
The creature laughs as the boy stares at it and prepares a bunch of stones to throw at him.
Jared notices that there is a "3x2" pattern on the skipping stones here and wonders why they're placed like that. 
However, he's left no more time to wonder further as the Orc throws the first stone at him, narrowly missing the shot.
Jared continues to quickly step from stone to stone while the Orc throws stones at him, annoyed that the boy is resisting.
"Dark guy doesn't pay me 'nough for this... "- It quietly mutters and pulls out a bomb shell from a nearby chest.
Jared realizes that the blast of the shell will easily throw him out of any stone, no matter on which one he is. His agility won't help him in this situation.
He prepares his sword like a baseball bat, waiting for the Orc to make the first move.
The two of them watch each other warily, suspicious of what the other is going to do next. Finally, the huge humanoid decides to take its chances and throws the bomb shell at the boy.
Fortunately, our hero already knows what to do. With pinpoint precision, he manages to time the throwing of the shell and swings it back from whence it came with his sword, just like a baseball player hitting a ball with his bat.
The Orc panicks as the shell quickly travels back towards it. It tries to flee, but it is too late to do so as the shell quickly explodes behind it, sending it flying into the lava.
Jared approaches the end of the second end of the skipping stones and hears the Orc's dying screams as its body dissolves into nothingness, inevitably sinking deeper into the lava thanks to its huge weight.
The boy shakes his head as the last part of the now-dead ogre sinks into the red liquid. Another being has perished, and it is all thanks to him.
Once again, the spirit appears before him.
"I know that you feel bad about the Orc, but remember this- sometimes, you need to do what is not morally right, even if you are a hero. Even heroes have to do things they don't like."
The spirit looks ahead and nods.
"See what happens over there?"
Jared stares ahead and sees a bunch of undead creatures, waiting for him to approach.
"Are those... undead?"
The spirit nods.
"Indeed they are. The vengeful spirits of fallen heroes who failed the challenge and fell into the lava, armed with bows and other ranged weapons, ready to shoot down anything that has signs of life. They may look weak, but I assure you- they are not."
Jared stares at them and notices that they aren't like other undead. For example, they have no skin like the other undead. They are just... bones. Nothing more than that.
Nothing to be afraid of. That is for sure.
Jared looks at the ropes above him and realizes that he has to pass the last part very quickly before the undead shoot him down.
"This challenge will truly test your agility, so you better be ready for it."
Jared nods.
"I've never backed down from a challenge before. Not now. Not never. I won't let those bags of bones scare me."
"Very well. Then proceed ahead. Your reward awaits you in the end."- The spirit says and vanishes, leaving Jared to complete the last part of the challenge.
Jared quickly grabs the first rope and holds onto it. With a bit of difficulty, he starts to swing from rope to rope like a monkey, evading the undead archers's attempts to shoot him down at the same time.
After a few missed shots, the undead archers become agitated. When that happens, their attack speed significantly increases, making it much harder for Jared to evade the arrows that are being shot at him.
Our hero evades the arrows from the left and from the right, stuck in the middle and unable to move forward. His arms start to get weaker and he feels the rope slowly slipping from his hand.
Fear starts to replace his courage. It is more than clear that, should he stay like this for a few moments, either he will fall down in the lava or the rest of the incoming arrows will do the work for him.
But Jared doesn't give in. He knows that everyone depends on him and that this is no time to be weak. Not here, not now!
He continues to go ahead, grabbing rope after rope. Nimbly evading the arrows coming at him.
He notices a button on the ground ahead, but he is unable to reach it, due to all of the arrows coming at him.
After thinking quickly for a few moments, he finally get an idea. He voluntarily gets near an arrow. Just as the undead archers get hopeful that he will finally die, the boy surprises them by kicking the incoming arrow right at the button below. 
With a swift *click* sound, the arrow hits the button and lava appears behind the undead archers. They try to flee, but the lava quickly renders them unable to do so and attack Jared.
The skeletons don't die by the impact and watch with loathing as Jared manages to reach the end of the challenge.
Jared sighs and relief and looks back at the challenges he had to pass to come here. The room feels even longer, now that he reached the far end of it.
"Well, that's another job well done!"- Jared says to himself and watches as an insubstantial figure forms in front of him and begins to slowly take shape.
The spirit appears once again and a smile appears on his face.
"Congratulations, Jared."- He says- "I am truly amazed by how you evaded those creatures. That was a very good show of your agility. And I think that the rest of the spirits will also agree to that."
Jared hears a round of applause in the distance.
"Thank you. It was challenging, but I didn't give up."
"And that is what we were looking forward to. As for the reward... "
He touches Jared's forehead.
"Now you have the ability to turn back time. For the next challenge... you will truly need this new ability."
"It also comes with our gratitude, if it means anything to you."
Jared smiles.
"Of course it does! Your gratitude means everything to me, spirit. And I am grateful that I have it."
The spirit smiles back.
"Kindness is something that never left your body, Jared. Even in your later years, you are still a role model for an honest and kind person."
"But no more talk. Join me in the next room, where I will tell you about your forth challenge. With each completed challenge you get closer to becoming a true hero and we promised that we will make you one."
"Now come. There are still four challenges to be completed and this one will be even more interesting than the last one."
Jared and the spirit entered the fourth room as the rest of the spirits cheered for the young hero.
== Trivia ==
* The idea for the "Skipping Stones" comes from the famous TV challenge show that is known as "Takeshi's Castle", where the contestants have to pass a long line of skipping stones to reach the next challenge. Of course, most of those contestants fail that challenge, but some of them actually pass it, with some doing so almost flawlessly.
* The skeleton archers are a reference to the popular videogame "Minecraft", where the skeleton archers try to shoot the player character down, should they get close enough to them.