: A "ticking clock" or high stakes that keep the plot moving.
Here is a short story exploring that concept through the eyes of a character facing a high-stakes decision. The Relic of Elara Crucial
Silas stood before the Great Gate, his water skin nearly empty. Behind him lay weeks of travel through sandstorms and silence. Ahead was the chamber that held the Relic. This was the crucial first stage of his mission: the moment where the world he knew ended and the trial began. : A "ticking clock" or high stakes that keep the plot moving