I felt the power wash over me as a brand new accomplishment flashed in my vision. I stood, closing my fist. A wave of collected energy rushed out of me with a woosh, shaking the door to the small building and the loose boards overhead.

Silver.

In less than a year on Eros, I'd already climbed halfway through the ranks. From everything I'd heard, it was an unprecedented pace. But I also had every reason to believe it would only get more difficult from here.

I also knew it wasn't time to celebrate. Not yet. On the one hand, advancing to a new rank was more like unlocking a ceiling of new potential. There seemed to be some immediate benefits, but the largest were in the ability to gain fifty more levels and unlock all those incremental improvements along the way.

On the other hand, I still had no way of knowing if I'd be able to get myself and my allies out of this tournament alive.

I put the questions from my mind and read the accomplishment I just earned, suspecting I knew what I'd see.

[Epic Accomplishment] Advance to Silver without the use of an ascension token. [Reward - Epic Ascension Trophy] "Short time no talk, Seraphel! So, I don't quite know how to tell you this without upsetting you… but you may have had a bit of an audience when you advanced just now. I think you felt it though, right? "Either way, I think you're causing catastrophic levels of panic for the game managers who strongly believe you should just die already. I thought I could cheer you up though by mentioning the number of people who have ever done what you just did is very, very small. And I can definitely tell you none of them sat down and did it in a couple of minutes. Sure, you're cheating a bit by borrowing some leftovers from your god self, but it's still exciting, right? Congratulations on Silver, Seraphel!"

Epic trophy… Fuck. Yes.

Even the potential looming death of myself and everyone I'd come to care about here couldn't put a damper on that. It was one more nudge to push harder for survival. Because if I died, I could never hang my trophy. And that would maybe be the greatest tragedy of all.

I was joking, of course. Mostly joking.

But in more serious matters, the text had also confirmed something I strongly suspected. When I sensed that invisible gathering of mana, it was some kind of viewing portal. So they had been spying on me in secret, just like I suspected.

It was hardly a surprise, but it was comforting to know I hadn't pushed away my allies and gone to such lengths to keep secrets for nothing.

I moved on to checking the rest of my notifications with a little more excitement. Last time I advanced, I'd earned five boons, which came with titles that admittedly seemed to be purely cosmetic, but were still fun anyway. If we survived this thing, I wouldn't mind eventually having some nice decorative plaques made to hang beside my trophies… one for each title.

I re-read my Iron Boons, even though I had them all memorized by now. So far, I'd earned resistance to dark mana, ability to get obedience and bonds from pets more easily, a mana pool that more easily expanded, increased pain tolerance, and sharpened intuition.

In all honesty, most of the benefits had been subtle rather than immediately impactful. But maybe if some of them bumped up in rarity from reaching Silver, that would start to change.

[Silver Boon (Rare). Title Earned: Warden of Shadows, (new) Dark Weaver - repeated exposure to dark mana] Your ability to resist the mind-altering effects of dark mana is moderately increased.

[Silver Boon (Rare). Title Earned: Keeper of Pets, (new) Beastbinder - You've repeatedly earned the trust and respect of multiple inanimate objects and magical constructs] Summoned pets, small animals, humanoids with lesser intelligence, and inanimate objects you choose to treat as living creatures will obey you more easily and bond with you more quickly.

[Silver Boon (Epic) Title Earned: Manaforged, (new) Aetherforged - Your continued mastery of mana manipulation and the dramatic expansion of your mana stores demonstrates extreme expertise] Your mana pool remains flexible and may expand and recover more quickly, but you will now also provide a mild boost to mana regeneration for nearby allies passively at all times.

[Silver Boon (Rare) Title Earned: Red Tide - Your slaughter of over a hundred living creatures in a short period of time has left an echo on your person] Any creature of a lower rank and level than you will feel a subtle sense of dread when you become angry.

[Silver Boon (Rare) Title Earned: Bloodthirsty - You have shed far more blood than the average, still-living creature and survived] When your own blood or the blood of others touches your skin, you will gain a mild regenerative effect that heals small wounds over time.

I read through the list a few times. I'd gained upgrades on three previous boons, earned two new boons, and had two Iron boons that had remained unchanged in my pain tolerance and intuition levels.

All in all, it wasn't bad. The extra boost to my allies mana regeneration was especially nice, but I wasn't sure how I felt when it came to the two new boons. Both felt a little grisly, but I knew I shouldn't complain. And edge was an edge, and I'd use anything I was given.

Fully aware that I was being watched by that invisible source of mana, I opened the door and headed through the courtyard. It was quiet at this hour, as most were either resting up, eating, or helping the crafters.

A few guinea pigs and grommets scurried around the courtyard. The Coil grommets had gone from useful allies to almost completely pointless once they discovered the guinea pigs and the mysterious "big pigs." All attempts to dig the tunnel I'd asked for had been abandoned by them.

To make matters worse, the Thrask Gromville wasn't doing much better. Instead of digging the tunnel I asked for, they were busy erecting mud statues of "famous" grommets, guinea pigs, and members of the mongrel army. Grimbo insisted this was a great honor and would bring more benefit than the tunnel. When asked why they couldn't just use the dirt from digging the tunnel I needed for statues, he had explained that dirt dug from the joy of freely digging is more honorable and makes better statues. According to him, grommets could smell the difference.

When they weren't building statues, they were following Timbo like some kind of cult leader as he whacked my allies with his stick or chased them around, insisting they stand still for healing.

Basically, the grommets had been helpful, but now they were little more than furry balls of chaos.

And with the tunnel unfinished, I'd had to adjust the plan drastically.

I headed for the front gate where Portus stood. He had a cutting board set up and a pot beside him so he could work on today's soup while he performed his guard duty.

Before I could reach him, some grommets from the Coil Gromville approached me. I tried to pretend I didn't see them, but they were faster than they looked, and they managed to cut me off, forcing me to stop.

"We are having battle friends," one said. This grommet has dyed his hair white and smeared the color down over one eye. His guinea pig was similarly colored. "We offer them to you. For battle," he added, giving the fat little guinea pig a shake.

"Thanks," I said, waving off the other grommets and their offered guinea pigs. "I don't want to bring them into battle and get them hurt, though."

The grommets lowered their pigs, shuffling to keep up as I headed for the gate. "Would you wanting… a big pig?" the white-haired grommet asked with a mysterious note to his voice.

I slowed. "What is a big pig, exactly?"

"We are finding them. Deep under the ground. We can… show." The Coil grommet leaned in slightly. I was pretty sure this one's name was Hambo. I was also pretty sure he was sort of like second-in-command for the Coil grommets behind Scarbo.

"Maybe later," I said. "I've got some things I need to do."

"We will ask the big pigs if they will come to meet. Hm? Are you liking this plan?"

"Sure," I said, trying to increase my pace because I noticed Timbo was doing the old grommet waddle and trying to catch up with me. I didn't have time for whatever it was he wanted. Based on past interactions, he probably just had a new shiny rock to show me or a particularly fresh root they wanted me to taste. That, or he was going to try to hit me with his stick again.

"I'll catch up with you grommets later," I said, waving and breaking into a jog.

Portus saw me coming and smiled wide. "Brynn! Good news. I've found Cat's Whiskers. They'll add a wonderful spicy and aromatic note to tonight's soup. I think you'll—"

"Better make it lunch soup, Portus," I said, not slowing as he winched open the gate for me. "I think shit is going to hit the fan before night time."

He scratched his bald head. "What is a fan?"

"Just plan on a big lunch," I said, patting his shoulder and ducking under the still-rising gate to head outside.

I knew I didn't have long, but I also was getting better at finding challenge areas and had a rough idea of how they were positioned now. If I found one in the next hour, I figured I'd have time to complete it before we ran out of time. I did feel bad sometimes for not bringing Lyria, but then I thought about some of the horrors I'd already faced. Chances were, I couldn't have kept her alive through all of that, even if she was coming into her own lately and growing strong.

I would need to dedicate some time to finding a way to help her power level after this was all over. But first, I needed to make sure we survived.

Only two main groups of nobles remained: Vitus and his few followers and Kalcus with his somewhat larger group of surviving nobles. Based on what I already learned and my conversations with Vay'nar, though, I doubted we'd make it that far. No… I had a feeling the people in charge were already itching to bring this whole thing to the ground soon, especially if they knew I just reached Silver. Thankfully, I had a plan for that.

I was experimenting with my new Silver Boons as I walked, wasting a little mana spraying Acidbloom from my Alchemist's Kit on the ground and then meditating in that uncomfortable way I knew would eventually increase my maximum mana capacity. It always felt like a painful stretching deep within me. And it was subtle, but I thought—

A branch cracked.

I didn't slow my pace or give any sign I'd heard. I just kept walking slowly. Better to let them think they were about to catch me by surprise.

Another minute passed and then I heard leaves rustle, but this time it was closer.

I used a trick I had learned recently where I pulled mana in close and shaped it ahead of time. Everything I did was invisible to the naked eye, but in my mind, I could feel an Elemental Spike of Acidbloom ready to snap into reality, a semi-circle of Mana Shields in the direction of the sounds, and a wave of readiness to Devour Mana at any point on my body for healing.

And then I turned to face whoever was following.

Hector stepped into view, his body already bloody and humming with magic. Remaline came out a moment later, and then Nixara—the woman with tattoos who could summon spectral weapons from them. A fourth man emerged, too. Jortun, a warrior I'd never personally seen in action. Nixara and Jortun were Woods. Hector and Remaline were Irons.

I watched them approach and fan out. Deep down, I knew there was no talking them out of what they were going to do, but I had to try.

"This isn't a good idea," I said slowly. "I'll tell you this once. I held back when we sparred in the Aspirant's Guild. A lot. I won't hold back if any of you come at me, and I can't promise the protections will work for you."

"We're hoping they don't work" Hector said. "Because I'd hate to have to kill you twice."

I felt anger swell inside me. Anger at how stupid they were being for coming after the one person in this whole place who was trying to get them out alive. And as I felt my anger grow, I sensed a kind of aura leeching from my body into the air. All four of them inched back a step, faces suddenly going a shade whiter.

It was my new Red Tide Boon. My anger was making them afraid because they were all lower rank. On a whim, I reached out and used a small bit of mana to infect Nixara and Jortun with even more dread, using the benefit of my Wooden Ascension Trophy.

The two Woods had looked uneasy, and now they looked like they were seriously considering running for their lives.

"Run now. I won't come after you," I urged.

For a heartbeat, I thought it might actually work. But Hector seemed to snap out of it first. "Fuck him!" he shouted. "He's doing something to our minds. I can feel it."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

His words were enough to shake the others back to reality, even though Nixara and Jortun looked less enthusiastic about attacking me than before.

Hector inched forward, two-handed sword held at the ready.

Remaline was drawing her bow as white magic gathered on the arrow, swirling and growing larger the longer she held.

Nixara spread her arms and two white scythes peeled off her forearms and began growing and spiraling through the air.

"Last chance," I said. "Because if you attack me, I'm going to have to kill you. All I can promise is that I'll do my best to make it quick."

"Enough talk," Hector said, lips peeling back as he rushed in, sword raised.

I closed off part of my mind as he came for me, seeming to slow down.

They are giving you no choice. You warned them. And now they are going to pay for their stupidity…

For a split second, I couldn't be sure if the thoughts had been my own, or—

Several things happened all at once.

Remaline released her arrow just as I summoned a small Reflective Mana Shield directly in front of her.

Hector and his overhead strike passed through me as I activated my Abyss Walker Boots, phasing out of reality for two seconds.

Nixara's scythes whooshed harmlessly through my body a moment later, moving on to cut a tree in two.

My Elemental Spike formed in one hand as a Forge Echo appeared behind Jortun.

Time seemed to move normally again, but the fight was already almost over. Remaline's magically enhanced arrow bounced off my Reflective Mana Shield, exploding point blank as the shaft rebounded and punched straight into her forehead. Her legs went limp and her body folded backward like a puppet whose strings had been suddenly cut.

My Forge Echo stabbed Jortun in the back, striking a killing blow on the first try. The big man fell to his knees, eyes wide in confusion and surprise for a second before the life left them and he fell to land face-first with a thump.

Without looking, I could feel Hector behind me by the mana he was gathering. Instead of turning and giving him a warning, I fired a jet of Acidbloom from my back, anchoring all three points of Elemental Chain to his head in hopes that it would be a quick and painless end for him.

I heard a sizzle and a heavy body hitting the ground from behind a moment later.

NIxara's eyes went wide and she took a step back. The huge axe she'd been summoning flickered and she lowered her hands.

"Run if you want," I said. "I won't chase you."

Her mouth moved silently, and I was just starting to feel sympathy for her when an explosion of hostile magic came from behind me. From below me.

I remembered that feeling, and I'd spent a great deal of time thinking about what I'd do if I ever fought him again.

On instinct, I summoned a Reflective Mana Shield and put it on top of my shadow. Then I reached out and started blanketing the whole area with as many shields as I could, but quickly realized there was no hope. The sun was casting tens of thousands of shadows in the forest, some of which were on tree branches. I couldn't possibly—

I felt another flare behind me and whirled.

To my vast annoyance, I also saw Nixara gathering another attack from the corner of my eye. She'd been about to run, and now that Rake was here…

Rake threw a trio of daggers at me so fast they all seemed to come in one wave.

I used a Reflective Mana Shield to fire them back his way, but he seemed to be ready for it, jumping to the side even as he threw the projectiles.

Had he watched the fight? Shit.

At the same moment, dozens and maybe even hundreds of viewing portals came rushing in from every possible direction. It had been days since I'd seen any but the grommet viewing portal, and now they were coming in droves. The only explanation I could produce was that the people in charge wanted them to see what was about to happen.

Most likely, they thought they were about to show me dying.

Tough luck, assholes. You're about to wish you'd kept those portals away from me.

My Forge Echo was rushing to catch up with him, but it was almost impossible. Rake dipped in and out of shadows like magical doorways, appearing in any direction he wished. Without my Mana Sense giving me a tug in the direction he was headed, I would've been screwed, Silver or not.

"No evil speech?" I shouted as I dove behind a tree. Another of his enchanted daggers hit the bark, exploding and sending squirming shadows in every direction. One passed by my face and I saw it was like a chainsaw with little black spikes spinning along its edge, ready to shred flesh and draw blood if it made contact.

Nixara's giant magic axe flipped past me, end-over-end. Even if she was only Wood, her magic would still hurt, so the extra person to track was an annoyance. I reached out and tried to use my trophy's boon to intimidate her again, but didn't have time to stop and see if it was working.

And I knew I'd promised to cause as little pain as possible, but I needed Nixara out of the fight and couldn't risk exposing myself to do it. So I summoned my Silver Scream Bow, nocked an Acidbloom arrow, popped out from behind cover, arrow aimed.

I took a split second to aim, then loosed.

Thwack.

The arrow hit her in the temple, jolting her head to the side so hard I could hear her neck snap. Her body went limp, crumpling to the ground.

Good. Dead before the pain of the acid could even register, I hoped.

I tried not to think about the acid burning away at her body. But I did know one thing. Dead or not, her body was now a ticking time bomb that would explode with acid in two minutes when Silver Scream detonated.

If I needed to, I'd use that fact.

"I remember those fucking arrows," Rake said, his voice moving mid sentence as he darted between shadows.

I peeked out from behind the tree and fired a Hungry Dark arrow at him. With a motion that was almost casual, he knocked it away with his dagger, spraying globs of dark magic off to the side as the arrow exploded. "You know… I think when I'm done with you, I'm going to go find that red-head you travel with. She's pretty."

The color red tinged the edges of my vision as I waited with my back to the tree. If my anger would trigger Red Tide and make Rake afraid, he should definitely be feeling it now. But I worried it only worked on people with the mental capacity to feel fear.

I produced my third and final Silver Scream arrow, and this one was full of Rage Blood potion. I gripped it, then slammed it into my thigh.

There was a bite of pain, and then I felt the cool rush of the potion passing through my body. I started flexing my arms and legs.

I was pretty sure I could defeat Rake in a number of ways, now. I could do it without dark mana. Hell, I could probably just summon Dark Pebble and he'd kick Rake's ass by himself. But there was something inside me that didn't want it to be quick or easy for him. Some part of me needed it to be by my hands. To really finish it once and for all.

I wanted him to pay for hunting me this long. I wanted him to have at least a moment for the full regret to settle in on him—the realization that he had been thinking of himself as the hunter, only to find with his dying breaths that he had become the prey.

My muscles expanded, the fibers tearing apart as blood sprouted from my pores and I used Devour Mana to heal the damage. To my satisfaction, my brand new Blood Thirster Boon meant I was using less mana than usual to heal the damage. Far less. The blood itself was already healing me passively.

I had noticed during the fight with Rake in Beastden that he only seemed to be able to turn blood he'd drawn with one of his spells into those leeches. Otherwise, I knew covering myself in bloody sweat would've been a catastrophic mistake against him.

If I was wrong… well, then I'd just have to use dark mana and end things more quickly.

I reached into my Silver Scream Quiver and summoned a new arrow with a bit of mana, then carefully filled it with Acidbloom.

I could feel Rake pacing like a waiting lion on the other side of the tree. He thought he had me where he wanted me. He thought he was toying with his food.

I gripped the arrow in one hand and formed a fist in the other as I stepped into view. No attempts to hide. No attempts to protect myself as I began walking straight for him.

Rake flashed a half smile. "Seen your little blood potion, Helmet. Were you hoping for a more frightened reaction? I can pretend, if you like." He plastered on a comically over-exaggerated look of fear, gripping his face while holding his daggers, knees bending to the side as he screamed. "No, please! Don't kill me!"

And then his features were dark again with such a suddenness that it was almost unnerving. "I've been waiting too long for this, so you'll have to forgive me if I finish a little faster than usual."

Ignoring him, I strode directly forward.

Shadowy arms sprouted from Rake's back, each gripping dark daggers of their own as he came closer.

He smiled, flipping one dagger to a reverse grip just as I came within range. And he moved so fast I almost didn't react in time.

I flooded my Mana Bender's Raiment with mana and a suit of enchanted armor exploded from the single scale I had hidden beneath my shirt. My body was covered in glowing armor that leaked blue like steam. Plates of interlocking metal that looked like voidsteel covered me from head to toe, and Rake's daggers skidded off the material with a screech, followed a moment later by his shadow arms jabbing me all over and failing to find a gap in the armor.

I couldn't keep feeding the raiment mana like this while maintaining my Rage Blood Potion for long, but I didn't need long.

I stabbed the Acidbloom arrow in Rake's chest, then placed my left hand on his shoulder, as if trying to get better leverage. The moment my left hand touched, I used a skill I had secretly equipped earlier. I'd replaced Awaken Mana with Touch of Sapphire, the primary damage spell from the Sword Corestone I'd equipped several days ago. In truth, I'd chosen it over my Shield Corestone because I thought I was going to be fighting in another challenge dungeon today and wanted more offensive firepower for speed. But this worked just fine.

Touch of Sapphire would begin converting his blood into mana. From testing, I knew letting it fester for about a minute would turn a pretty considerable amount of his blood into mana and also provide a powerful refresher for myself when I claimed it, causing him damage as well.

Rake laughed, plucking the Silver Scream Arrow from his chest and tossing it aside. Bits of acid bubbled on his skin, but he either didn't notice or pretended not to. "Same old tricks, Helmet? I'm almost disappointed."

I reached into his body and used his own mana to create a barrier of anti-healing around the wound. I doubted he had a way to heal it, but I'd happily waste some of his mana if I could.

The Mana Bender's Raiment faded as I stopped feeding it mana. I was already down to a quarter of my total mana pool and needed to be careful. To my right, I saw the Forge Echo of my Elemental Spike circling him, looking for an opening.

But then his eyebrows twitched and he looked down, then back up at me again. "What did you do to me?"

"Nothing," I said, immediately launching into a Rage Blood enhanced punch that would've taken his head off if it connected. But he whirled back at the last second, using one of his shadow arms to knock away my punch and slicing a deep gash in my forearm.

I healed the damage almost instantly, but not before he could summon a few shadowy leeches from the wound that instantly tried to jump up and bite at me.

I used a finger-sized thread of Elementally Chained Acidbloom to burn them into puddles before they could do any damage while still pushing forward, pressing the attack.

I summoned another Elemental Spike from Acidbloom. Part of me itched to unleash the dark mana. I knew I could turn the weapon into something far more terrible than a simple dagger. I could make it a sword and form acid armor that started at my hands and would probably cover most of my body. I could feed the mana into my Forge Echo and create a full-bodied elemental knight that might be able to handle Rake all on its own.

But I didn't want to give in to the Burned Man again. I didn't want to need him.

Our fight became a blur. To Rake's credit, he was fast and strong enough that even my Rage Blood enhanced combat skills were only enough to keep things at a relative standstill. But my mana was draining faster and faster, and I knew I needed to end this soon.

My Forge Echo attacked him from behind, mostly keeping the shadow arms busy.

I parried, dodged, and used Mana Shields as a last resort to keep his attacks from connecting.

His daggers clashed with my Elemental Spike, spraying bits of acid away from impact that sizzled on his leather armor, sending up foul-smelling smoke. My arms throbbed from the repeated impacts, and every time I was about to land a hit, he dropped into the ground as if someone had opened a trap door.

Twice, he'd evaded me with the trick, but the third time, I was ready.

The moment he dropped from view, I gripped my dagger, ready to throw. I felt where he was coming and hurled it toward him, watching as it spun end over end.

He raised his dagger, knocking it away with ease. Then he held both daggers wide and low, stalking toward me as the shadowy arms twitched above his back like spider's legs.

My eyes flicked to the side because I thought I heard the distant sounds of fighting. And they were coming from the direction of the outpost.

Shit.

White-hot pain exploded in my ribs and I looked down, seeing his dagger sticking out of me.

I yanked it free, and nearly healed the damage but an idea came to me.

I watched the black slugs of enchanted blood slide from me and turn, their mouths opening with hungry rows of razor-sharp teeth. I waited for one to jump at me as I melted the rest with Acidbloom. I caught the slug, gripping it between my fingers, and then extended my free hand.

Rake tilted his head, obviously confused.

I fed a thread of mana through the creature, finding traces of the magic Rake had used to create it inside.

And then I used Elemental Chain to project the magic out of my open palm toward Rake. I watched the dark gassy cloud expand from my hand and drift toward Rake, expanding slowly as it came closer.

At the same time, I plunged my senses into him and commanded the mana I'd created in his body with Touch of Sapphire to come to me.

It exploded from his skin, drawing toward me like flecks of blue iron toward a magnet. And they all collided with the black cloud expanding from my hand.

One by one, the flecks fell to the ground, sprouted several legs, and stood upright.

Little mana bugs.

The mana I'd made from his blood interacted with his magic in a new and unique way. And now, I knew Rake was fucked.

I could feel the little blue bugs and their urgency to please me.

Kill him, I thought to the bugs, and I watched as hundreds of them turned and began rushing the assassin.

While they charged, I took the shadow slug in my fingers, dumped out the contents of my Alchemist's Kit, and dropped the slug inside for safe keeping. All around, I could see shocked faces in the portals, especially the face of King Theon, who was sitting in a throne room, shouting until he was red in the face, and spraying spittle over some poor man who was nodding profusely.

Rake tried to fight against the blue things, slashing them out of the air as they jumped. Unlike the shadow things he created, these mana bugs spit and slashed instead of biting, and their spit seemed to ignite any fresh blood and turn it into more bugs. It was like Rake's version of the spell, but on steroids.

He backed away, bleeding from several spots as he pulled out a deep red potion and uncorked it.

And then I reached into his body and walled off all of his wounds, preventing them from being easily healed.

Rake chugged the potion, but he kept bleeding. More and more of the things kept appearing. Sensing what he was about to do, I slid a Mana Shield under his feet just as I felt his mana spike. He tried to step into his shadow, but couldn't get through my shield.

His boots slipped on the slick surface and he fell back on his ass, trying to scoot away. And for the first time, I saw the wide-eyed look of knowing on his face. He knew he'd lost, and it was the last thing he knew, because the bugs swarmed him.

He died silently, and to my own shock, no stasis field ever triggered. His body lay there twitching and bleeding on the Mana Shield as the blue bugs tore into him. Until I was certain there was no world where Rake would ever come back and cause problems for me or the people I cared about.

A few notifications pinged for my attention, but I ignored them, giving Rake's ruined body one last look before I turned and ran toward the outpost.

I could feel mana flashing in the distance, meaning there was a fight.

I tried to meditate, desperately trying to recover some of my almost depleted mana pool and knowing I wouldn't have time to get much back. Especially not as my Rage Blood Potion was still ripping me apart and draining mana. But the benefit of my new Boon was letting me at least recover mana slightly, even through the damage.

With Hector and his detractors dead, the attack on our outpost could've only come from two groups. I was reasonably sure from the morning recaps that only two groups of nobles still remained out there. In other words, if there was an attack, it was either Vitus's group or Kalcus' group.

Thankfully, I could work with either scenario. In fact, this was far better for us than the alternative. If they hadn't come soon, we were going to attack, but them coming to us actually worked better.

Suddenly, all the portals surrounding me flickered and vanished. They didn't fly away. They just… disappeared. Even the ever-present sense of being watched by something invisible went away, too. It was as if a forest had gone completely silent after days of noise, and I slowed my pace, looking around.

Shit. I didn't know what that meant, but I had a strong suspicion.

I broke into a run again toward the outpost. Just as I reached the top of a small hill, I felt the ground shake and skidded to a stop, eyes searching the horizon. From where I stood, I could see a few miles in any direction before a blue haze took everything. Near the edge of my vision, I saw a massive, dark shape rise up from the trees, arc through the air, and disappear back out of view before I could try to inspect it. The ground shook again, and I stood frozen, eyes wide.

I'd never seen a creature so fucking big. And from what Vay'nar had told me, I wasn't sure I needed to inspect it to know what it was.

The beast. They'd already unleashed the fucking beast on us.

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