The treeline of Shifton Island swallowed them immediately, the dense canopy blocking out the light. The air grew thick and humid. The was noise filled with the erratic calls of unseen birds and the pervasive, buzzing hum of insects. The ground beneath their boots was uneven. They navigated the overgrown, fog choked path in silence for roughly fifteen minutes.
Then, the noise of the forest was violently interrupted. A heavy, aggressive rustling tore through the thick brush directly in front of them.
Doren stopped dead in his tracks. He threw his arm out, catching Anya firmly across the chest to halt her. Before Katarina could even step forward, the dense brush exploded.
A massive creature vaulted from the thicket, soaring through the damp air before landing heavily on the path directly in front of them. The ground shuddered under its weight.
It was a terrifying predator. The beast stood remarkably tall, balanced on two muscular, spring loaded hind legs designed for bone crushing kicks and incredible leaps. Thick, dark stripes ran down its copper brown fur. Its body blended into a thick reptilian tail covered in heavy scales and ended in a massive rattle, which began to shake, filling the clearing with a frantic, menacing hiss. It possessed a sharp, canine-like snout that pulled back into a vicious snarl, revealing two long fangs dripping with a lethal venom. A smaller, baby of the creature peeked its head out of the pouch. Its tiny black eyes locked onto the travelers.
The creature, known as a Kangra, lowered its head, unhinged its wide jaws, and let out a loud roar that violently shook the damp leaves of the canopy. The sound was a concussive blast of predatory aggression, and it sent a violent shock of recognition through the group. It sounded off with as much intensity as the monstrous Stonscur bear back in the Limkan Arena.
The memory of the arena hit Katarina. The darkness,.the bright lights of then arena, the terrifying blood rage of the Stonscur bear. The deafening roar instantly dragged her back to her sense.
Her steel dagger was drawn in a blur of motion. A tight, dangerous vortex of wind instantly whipped up around her boots, clearing the damp fog from around her legs as she dropped into a low, lethal stance.
Anya stumbled backward. There was a frightened gasp that escaped her throat as she stared at the venomous fangs and the rattling tail. Her hands scrambled to find grip on the trunk of a nearby tree.
"Don't move too quickly," Doren commanded, his voice a low, intensely focused whisper. He didn't dare pull Meko's blade out just yet, it was out of reach. He kept his eyes locked on the Kangra's venomous fangs. "Nobody make any sudden movement."
The Kangra's tail rattled louder, vibrating with frantic energy. Its powerful hind legs tensed, ready to pounce at them with one quick leap. It circled around them, sniffing the air. Doren slowly turned to make sure he was facing the creature at all times, Anya and Katarina behind him. Then it hopped twice towards them and lunged at them, jaws wide open. It's fangs at the ready. The massive Kangra moved with terrifying speed for how large it was.
With Meko's sword securely wrapped in linen and buried deep inside his pack, drawing a weapon in time was completely out of the question. Doren had less than a heartbeat to react. Instead of scrambling backward and risking a lethal bite to the neck, Doren aggressively stepped forward, planting his boots firmly into the damp soil. He threw his left arm out, shoving Anya backward out of the beast's immediate trajectory, while bringing his right hand up to face the lunging predator.
He didn't have time to consciously negotiate with the Powerhart or the spirits. The elements reacted to the sudden threat. Drawing on the overwhelming amount of moisture in the air of the jungle and the thick coastal fog, Doren forcefully pulled the moisture straight out of the air.
A sudden, pressurized torrent of water formed around his extended forearm, coiling into a beam, just as the Kangra's venomous fangs descended. The condensed water erupted outward like a geyser, slamming directly into the beast's exposed underbelly mid-lunge. The blast of water completely disrupted the Kangra's forward momentum, violently shoving the massive creature backward and sending its lethal jaws snapping shut on nothing but the empty air.
The beast growled upon impact with the ground, the baby screeching and coughing in its pouch. Its heavy, scaly tail thrashed wildly. The rattle shook with a furious, deafening hiss as the creature scrambled to dig its powerful hind legs back into the dirt and right itself.
"Kat, now!" Doren yelled. The residual water dripped rapidly from his outstretched fingertips as he held his ground, giving Katarina the perfect, staggered opening to strike before the beast could launch a second assault.
Katarina didn't hesitate. As the Kangra hit the dirt, she flipped her steel dagger into a reverse grip. Driving her focus downward, she forced a violently compressed burst of elemental wind out from the soles of her boots. The sudden, explosive draft launched her forward, sending her flying directly toward the downed beast's exposed throat.
But the Kangra was terrifyingly resilient. Before Katarina could even close the distance to sink her blade into it, the beast retaliated. Its massive tail whipped through the air with blinding speed. The thick appendage lashed out, coiling tightly around Katarina's torso in the air.
With a brutal jerk, the beast violently slammed Katarina into the forest floor.
The heavy impact forced a sharp gasp from her lungs, driving the air completely out of her chest. Her arm pinned against her side, she struggled against the crushing grip of the reptilian scales.
Using the momentum of the slam, the Kangra instantly shot back up to its feet. Its spring loaded hind legs dug deep into the shifted soil as it towered over them once more. It kept its tail wrapped around Katarina, lifting her slightly off the ground to hold her captive against its muscular tail.
The rattle at the tip of its tail shook with a furious intensity that drowned out the buzzing insects of the forest. The baby inside the creature's abdominal pouch screeched aggressively, while the primary head snapped its jaws wide open. Pale, lethal venom dripped freely from its fangs.
Anya screamed, paralyzed by the sheer terror of the predator holding her friend hostage. Doren's hands clenched into tight fists at his sides, the lingering droplets of water sliding off his knuckles. Katarina was trapped, completely immobilized by the beast's tail, and the Kangra was violently preparing for a second, fatal strike.
The baby screeched again, its tiny jaws snapping wildly at Katarina's boots as the massive tail swung her from side to side. Desperate, Doren took a single, heavy step forward.
The Kangra reacted instantly. The thick muscles of its tail constricted tighter. Katarina let out a howl as her breath was crushed from her lungs, her armor groaning under the immense pressure. Doren froze. He couldn't physically reach her in time, and getting Meko's sword out of his pack on his back was completely impossible. If he hesitated for even another second, the beast was going to snap her in half.
Doren gritted his teeth, his eyes locking onto the squirming, desperate form of his friend. He drew in a sharp, ragged breath, preparing to blindly force his will onto the dormant elements in him.
Before he could even raise his hand, a shadow passed, and not one from the trees..
The dark shadows cast by the dense canopy over the forest floor suddenly shifted, stretching and twisting in complete defiance of the morning light. A pool of inky, suffocating blackness erupted directly beneath the towering Kangra.
Without a single sound, Urduun lunged out of the shadows. Using his dark element to physically bridge the gap through the void, the assassin materialized out of the ground right behind the beast. The heavy cowl of his hood had moved, revealing cold eyes. In his right hand, a jagged steel shortsword gleamed ominously in the light.
With a brutal, sweeping arc, Urduun drove the blade straight through the thick, scaly appendage holding Katarina. The dark steel bit into the scales deep, cleanly severing the Kangra's tail just inches above where it coiled around her waist.
The beast let out a deafening shriek of agony. Dark, thick blood sprayed across the damp leaves as the creature stumbled forward, completely losing its balance. The severed section of the massive tail plummeted to the forest floor with a heavy, wet thud, immediately uncoiling and dropping Katarina roughly into the dirt.
The Kangra crashed heavily onto its stomach, the sheer weight of its massive frame driving it hard into the damp earth. A sickening, muffled crunch echoed beneath it as the baby in the abdominal pouch was instantly crushed by the impact.
Urduun didn't give the creature a chance to recover. He jumped and landed gracefully on the beast's broad back. the assassin casually twirled the jagged shortsword in his hand, flipping it into a downward grip. Without a second thought, he plunged the dark steel straight down into the Kangra's neck, driving the blade deep. With a flick of his wrist, the steel turned, severing its spine.
The beast's massive jaws snapped open one final time, its glowing eyes rolling back as a violent shudder ripped through its frame. Then, it went completely still, its tongue hanging between its fangs.
Urduun yanked his blade free, flicking a spray of blood onto the forest floor before wiping the steel clean on the beast's thick hide. He sheathed the sword and hopped down into the damp leaves, his dark cloak settling around him. He then reached into his chest pocket and placed a stone with a rune in it. Doren recognized it as a tracking rune.
Katarina lay in the dirt a few feet away, clutching her bruised ribs and gasping for the breath that had been squeezed from her lungs. Anya rushed over to her, dropping to her knees and frantically checking her friend for puncture wounds.
Urduun ignored them, his cold eyes sweeping over the trio. The arrogant, condescending smirk from the ferry slowly crept back onto his scarred face.
"You three don't have the runes to traverse this forest," Urduun stated, his voice cutting through the ringing silence of the clearing. He casually shoved his hands back into his pockets. "And I can't in good conscience let you die out here."
His dark, scrutinizing attention drifted away from the girls and locked directly onto Doren. He glanced at the damp earth where Doren's pressurized attack had hit, and then back up to Doren's face.
"Just gonna let a lady get swept off her feet, eh, tidal wave?" Urduun drawled, tilting his head.
Doren tensed, but as Urduun's words fully registered, a cold wave of relief washed over him. Tidal wave. Urduun had only seen the blast of water. The assassin was entirely unknowledgeable about the volatile elemental magic that truly rested inside Doren's chest. To the killer standing in front of him, Doren was nothing more than an average water elementalist who had frozen up in the heat of battle. It was a humiliating assumption, but it was the absolute perfect cover.
Doren let his hands fall fully to his sides, unclenching his fists. He swallowed, deliberately playing into the role of the inexperienced traveler. "I... I didn't have a clear shot," Doren muttered, playing into the facade. "I didn't want to hit her."
Urduun let out a dry scoff, clearly unimpressed by the excuse. He turned his back on them, looking up the steep, thin trail that wound deeper into Shifton Island.
"Right," Urduun muttered. He gestured lazily over his shoulder with one leather-clad hand. "Well, wipe the dirt off and keep up, you three. I assume you want to find Fennix before something else out here decides you look like breakfast."
Doren didn't waste another second. As soon as Urduun turned his back, Doren dropped his heavy pack into the damp ferns and quickly tore the linen wrappings away. He drew Meko's sword, gripping the worn leather hilt tightly. He needed something tangible in his hands, a defense that wouldn't force him to gamble with his elements.
Katarina pushed herself up from the dirt. She gave Doren a piercing glance as she vigorously wiped the thick, wet mud from her armor. She didn't say a word before falling into step beside him. Anya quickly hurried to the middle of the formation, keeping close.
They followed Urduun's cloaked figure deeper into the dense jungle. The trek was brutal, the terrain steep and unforgiving. Before long, a tremor began to vibrate through the soles of their boots. It was a heavy, deliberate pounding. Urduun stopped dead. He immediately threw his arm out, blocking Doren and Katarina from taking another step forward. He pressed a gloved finger to his lips, his eyes fixed on the thick wall of brush directly ahead.
Ten feet in front of them, the jungle canopy was obliterated. A beast easily the size of a two-story tavern smashed through the ancient trees, walking heavily on four massive, pillar-like legs. Its thick hide was dry, deeply cracked, and leathery.Its colossal head thrashed wildly from side to side, flanked by two impossibly large ears that flared out like massive leather sails.
In the center of its face protruded a massive, muscular appendage that moved like a lethal whip. The thick trunk swung blindly through the air, catching the trunks of trees and crushing them into splinters. Two massive, curved tusks hung heavily from its jaw, stained dark with grime and age.
Then, completely defying the logic of its own massive, crushing weight, the creature suddenly vaulted forward into the air. It hung suspended for a terrifying heartbeat before crashing back down, all of its mass driving directly into the earth. The moment its massive, flat feet slammed into the soil, concussive bursts of fire erupted from beneath its soles.
The blistering heat instantly vaporized the thick coastal mist around its legs, a sharp hiss of steam filling the air as the localized flames scorched the damp ferns and wet soil into black ash. The beast let out a deep, booming bellow that shook the leaves from the branches above. It was completely ignorant of the four tiny humans hiding in the brush as it continued its thunderous rampage through the jungle of Shifton Island.
Doren's knuckles cracked as he gripped the worn leather hilt of Meko's sword. His forearm trembled, his muscles locking tight as he prepared for the colossal beast to turn its rampage toward them.
Urduun didn't reach for his weapons. He stood there in the brush, watching the colossal creature tear through the ancient trees with a strange, unnerving calm. Without taking his eyes off the beast, the assassin slowly shook his hooded head and pushed his arm back slightly against Doren's chest, forcing him to stay.
"No," Urduun murmured over the explosive footfalls. He sounded casually observant and completely unfazed by the destruction happening in front of them. "The Emberphant probably lost her young in the shift. You'd be mad too if your kin was suddenly suspended two hundred and fifty feet in the air."
Doren slowly lowered the blade, staring in awe as the colossal Emberphant continued its blind, destructive charge.
The tragic realization of Urduun's words settled heavily over the group. The violent, magical elevation of Shifton Island hadn't just displaced the ocean and dramatically changed the elevation of half the island, it had completely altered the ecosystem. The sheer, vertical cliffs that now separated the upper jungle from the lower coastline had trapped animals on different elevations, separating packs, herds, and mothers from their calves. The terrifying beast wasn't hunting them, it was desperately searching for its lost child.
They stayed perfectly still in the dense brush, holding their breath. The explosions of the Emberphant's fiery footsteps slowly began to fade deeper into the jungle. The air left behind was thick with the stench of scorched earth and freshly fallen burnt leaves. Small, lingering fires crackled in the massive, charred footprints the beast had left stamped into the ground, the surrounding ferns and shrubbery turned to ash.
Anya finally let out a shaky exhale, her hands gripping the straps of her pack like lifelines. Katarina kept her eyes locked on the path of destruction as they passed out. Urduun stepped out from behind the brush, casually stepping over a smoldering log.
"Like I said," Urduun drawled, glancing back at Doren, "you need a guide." He turned his back to them, gesturing lazily toward the winding path. "Keep your sword out if it makes you feel better, tidal wave," Urduun called back softly, his dark cloak blending effortlessly into the shadows of the jungle. "But around here, stealth keeps you alive a hell of a lot longer than steel does. Come on. Fennix's territory is still a ways up the mountain."
Doren gripped Meko's sword tighter, finding a grim comfort in the weight of the steel. He didn't put it away.
The oppressive, suffocating canopy of the jungle finally began to thin out. The overgrown path completely gave way, opening into a massive, sweeping meadow of tall, pale grass that rippled in the wind. Directly ahead of them, the sheer, jagged face of a mountain rose up like a dark stone wall, its peak shrouded in fog. The air out here was noticeably cooler.
Sensing a momentary reprieve from the claustrophobic danger of the trees, Doren lengthened his stride. Leaving Katarina and Anya to watch their backs, he pushed forward until he was walking at the exact same pace as Urduun.
"You said something about runes," Doren prompted, keeping his voice level as his boots crunched through the pale grass. "Do they really help ward off the creatures here?"
Urduun didn't break his stride. He kept his eyes locked on the rocky base of the mountain. A knowing smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Yes sir. Repelation ward for the creatures here," Urduun answered smoothly. He reached up with a gloved hand and pulled back the lapel of his leather tunic. Stitched directly into the inner lining with a metallic thread was a complex, angular sigil. It didn't pulse with raw energy, but it carried a distinct, low frequency hum. It was a specific vibration to repel creatures away.
"The wildlife on Shifton operates purely on territorial instinct and elemental sensing," Urduun explained, letting the heavy leather fall back into place. "Kangras, Emberphants, even Antgsys. They don't hunt us because the runes broadcast a signal that tells their brains we are toxic, walking death traps. It fundamentally repels them. Messes with their internal tracking. Without these, the entire assassin's guild would have been digested by these beasts decades ago."
Urduun shot a sideways glance at Doren, his eyes flickering down to the drawn blade in Doren's hand. "That piece of steel you're carrying will stop a set of jaws if you're fast enough," Urduun added dryly, his tone dripping with his usual arrogance. "But out here, it's just a dinner bell. If I hadn't stepped in back there, your little water trick wouldn't have saved your friend from becoming Kangra food. That baby was practically gnawing at her."
Doren locked his jaw, swallowing the urge to snap back. The revelation about the runes was vital information. It meant the assassins weren't just surviving the island through sheer combat skill. They were utilizing a specialized, highly guarded form of protective magic. Who knows what else they had in Secrecy.
"So how does Fennix survive out here?" Doren asked, pressing the advantage while the assassin was actually in a talking mood. "If he's a hermit living out in the brush, away from the guild... does he have the wards, too?"
Urduun let out a genuine laugh, the sound carrying out over the rippling grass of the meadow. "Fennix?" Urduun shook his head, thoroughly entertained. "Fennix doesn't need repelation wards, tidal wave. The creatures on this island don't avoid the old man because of a stitched piece of thread." Urduun paused, looking up toward the fog choked peak of the singular mountain on this side of the island For the first time since they had met him, a flash of unironic respect crossed the killer's hardened features.
"They avoid him because they know better."