Part Three
For the briefest of moments, no one moved.
The enormous Marshhorn stood scarcely thirty yards away, its broad chest heaving with ragged breaths while steam escaped from flared nostrils despite the warmth of the afternoon. Thick muscles shifted beneath its emerald-scaled hide as it instinctively placed itself between the hunters and the three frightened juveniles huddled behind it. The two remaining adults mirrored the movement immediately, spreading outward until the young were completely surrounded by a living wall of crystal antlers and scarred bodies.
Their glowing amber eyes never left the forest behind them.
Not once.
Adrian lowered his blade ever so slightly.
"They're terrified."
Theron had already reached the same conclusion.
"They're protecting the calves."
One of the Ashroot hunters quietly drew an arrow.
"They're still dangerous."
"They are."
Adrian answered calmly.
"But they're not our enemy."
The hunter hesitated.
"Then why are they here?"
Before anyone could answer...
The lead Marshhorn suddenly released a deafening bellow that echoed throughout the forest.
Not a challenge.
A warning.
The juveniles immediately pressed themselves closer together beneath the protection of the adults, their frightened cries far softer than the thunderous calls of their parents.
Then...
The forest behind them exploded.
A towering pine crashed sideways with enough force to shake the ground beneath everyone's feet. Birds erupted into the sky by the hundreds while smaller woodland creatures fled in every direction, disappearing into burrows and beneath tangled roots with frantic desperation.
Another tree fell.
Then another.
Something enormous was moving through the forest.
Fast.
Very fast.
Theron's hand tightened around Frostrender.
"There."
Adrian followed his gaze.
Between the falling trees...
He caught only fragments.
Black chitin.
Long hooked limbs.
Glowing crimson eyes.
Then it vanished behind another line of ancient pines before appearing again much closer than before.
The Ashroot hunters exchanged uneasy glances.
One whispered only a single word.
"Burrower..."
Garrick hadn't exaggerated.
The dungeon was already changing the surrounding wilderness.
Adrian took one step forward.
"Everyone."
Every head turned toward him.
He didn't shout.
He didn't panic.
His voice remained calm.
"The Marshhorns aren't attacking."
"They're trying to escape."
One of the Wardens nodded immediately.
"I agree."
Adrian continued without hesitation.
"We protect the calves."
Several hunters blinked.
"What?"
Theron looked toward Adrian with growing interest.
"If those adults think we're another threat..."
Adrian explained quickly.
"...they'll fight us."
"If we protect the young..."
"They'll keep running."
Understanding spread almost instantly across the veterans' faces.
It was simple.
Elegant.
Exactly the kind of solution experienced leaders recognised immediately.
Theron smiled.
"Good thinking."
Adrian pointed toward the Wardens.
"Move left."
He turned toward the hunters.
"Guide the calves toward the clearing."
Finally...
He looked at Theron.
"I'll stop whatever's chasing them."
The enormous elf grinned.
"I was hoping you'd volunteer."
The earth suddenly burst apart.
Not exploded.
Opened.
A gigantic claw erupted from beneath the forest floor only a dozen yards in front of the fleeing Marshhorns, showering dirt, shattered roots and broken stone into the air. The juveniles cried out in panic while one of the adults immediately lowered its crystal antlers, preparing to defend its family despite the obvious terror burning within its eyes.
The monster emerged slowly.
First one claw.
Then another.
Its body resembled an enormous centipede covered in thick black armour plated with jagged crimson crystals that pulsed faintly with unstable mana. Dozens of hooked legs dug effortlessly through the earth while two massive mandibles clicked together with a metallic screech that sent chills racing down Adrian's spine.
It was nearly forty feet long.
Its crimson eyes fixed immediately upon the smallest Marshhorn.
Prey.
Nothing more.
Mira's voice came as little more than a whisper.
"...It's huge."
Theron calmly lifted Frostrender from his shoulder.
"It is."
The Burrower lunged.
Not toward Adrian.
Toward the frightened juvenile.
Adrian reacted instinctively.
"Wind Step!"
Mana surged beneath his feet.
A violent burst of compressed air launched him forward with explosive speed, the forest blurring around him as he crossed the distance in a heartbeat. His Energy Blade flashed into existence, its brilliant azure light cutting a sharp arc through the afternoon shadows.
Steel met crystal.
The impact echoed like thunder.
The Burrower's massive mandible was knocked aside mere inches from the young Marshhorn's neck as sparks and fragments of crimson crystal scattered across the forest floor.
The force drove Adrian backwards several feet.
His boots carved deep trenches through the earth before he regained his footing.
"...Strong."
The monster turned.
Its crimson eyes finally settled upon him.
The Mandibles clicked together again.
This time...
The sound almost resembled laughter.
Theron laughed instead.
A deep, booming laugh that echoed through the trees.
"There he is!"
He planted Frostrender into the earth with enough force to crack the stone beneath his feet before pointing the enormous blade directly toward the Burrower.
"I was wondering how long it'd take before you found the biggest thing in the forest."
Adrian couldn't help smiling.
"I think it found me."
"It usually works that way."
The Burrower shrieked.
Mana erupted through the crimson crystals embedded along its armoured body.
The surrounding earth began trembling violently.
One of the hunters shouted.
"It's going underground!"
Adrian's mind raced.
Underground...
Crystal armour...
Fast...
He immediately looked toward the terrain surrounding them.
Soft earth.
Dense roots.
Narrow approach.
He already had an idea.
He glanced toward Theron.
"I need ten seconds."
Theron didn't ask why.
He simply smiled.
"You've got them."
With one powerful swing, Frostrender crashed into the Burrower's armoured head, forcing the gigantic creature backward as the surrounding forest shook from the impact.
The beast hissed furiously.
Its attention shifted entirely toward the towering elf.
Exactly as Adrian had hoped.
He lowered his stance.
Blue mana gathered around both hands.
Not enough for an Inferno Sphere.
Not yet.
Not here.
He needed something else first.
Around him, the ground answered his call.
Tiny stones.
Loose soil.
Tree roots.
Everything.
His earth magic spread silently beneath the forest floor.
Not to attack.
To prepare.
The Burrower thought it had chosen its battlefield.
Adrian intended to prove otherwise.
The forest seemed to hold its breath.
Leaves trembled gently overhead as mana flowed silently through the ground beneath Adrian's boots. Unlike the explosive torrents of magic he had unleashed against Valdrik months before, this spell spread patiently, almost invisibly, weaving itself through loose soil and tangled roots hidden beneath the surface. Every vibration travelling through the earth returned to him like ripples across still water, allowing him to feel the Burrower's enormous weight shifting from one hooked leg to the next.
It was fast.
Far faster than something of its size had any right to be.
But speed meant very little if Adrian already knew where it intended to move.
The Burrower screeched again before throwing itself toward Theron, its enormous crystal-covered body surging across the forest floor with terrifying momentum. Dozens of hooked legs dug into the earth, sending dirt and shattered roots flying in every direction as the monster lunged with enough force to flatten a wagon.
Theron didn't retreat.
He stepped forward.
Frostrender met one of the creature's massive mandibles with a deafening crash that echoed through the forest like thunder striking stone. The impact alone sent a visible shockwave racing through nearby trees, leaves cascading from the branches overhead as the giant elf planted his feet and held his ground.
The Burrower was driven sideways.
Only slightly.
But enough.
Theron laughed.
"You're heavier than you look!"
The monster answered with another furious shriek.
"So am I!"
Adrian smiled despite himself.
Bear truly lived up to his nickname.
There was no panic.
No hesitation.
Theron simply occupied the monster exactly as requested, trusting Adrian without asking what his plan actually was.
That trust...
Meant everything.
The Burrower suddenly twisted its body, abandoning its struggle with Theron as the crimson crystals along its armoured shell flared brightly. The earth beneath it exploded outward before the creature plunged headfirst into the ground, disappearing beneath the forest floor in a shower of broken roots and stone.
One of the Ashroot hunters cursed.
"It went under!"
The surrounding forest immediately fell silent.
No movement.
No sound.
Only the faint vibration travelling beneath Adrian's feet.
He closed his eyes.
For less than a heartbeat.
There.
Moving left.
Curving behind Theron.
Trying to flank them.
Adrian smiled.
"Found you."
His hands slammed against the earth.
"Stone Grasp!"
Mana surged downward.
Not as an attack.
As a command.
The loose soil surrounding the Burrower's tunnel instantly hardened, while thick roots hidden beneath the forest floor twisted together like living chains. Great slabs of stone rose from below, collapsing inward around the creature's path before it could escape.
A muffled screech echoed beneath the ground.
The forest shook violently.
Cracks spread across the earth.
Then...
The Burrower erupted back onto the surface far earlier than it had intended, bursting through the forest floor with chunks of rock still clinging to its armoured shell.
It wasn't trapped.
But...
It had lost control.
Exactly as Adrian intended.
Theron's grin widened.
"Oh..."
"That was clever."
The gigantic elf didn't waste the opportunity.
Frostrender swept through the air in one immense horizontal arc, the blade crashing into the creature's exposed side with enough force to lift the forty-foot monster completely off the ground. Crystal armour splintered beneath the impact, fragments scattering across the clearing like shattered emerald glass as the Burrower crashed through three enormous pine trees before finally coming to rest in a cloud of dust.
The veteran hunters simply stared.
One quietly muttered,
"...I've never seen anyone force one back to the surface."
Another slowly lowered his bow.
"He predicted where it'd tunnel."
"No..."
The older hunter beside him shook his head.
"He controlled where it'd tunnel."
The Burrower wasn't finished.
With another furious screech it surged forward once more, this time ignoring Theron entirely.
Its crimson eyes locked onto Adrian.
It had identified the greater threat.
Theron noticed immediately.
"It learns fast."
"So do I."
Adrian answered.
Blue mana gathered above his open palm.
Not much.
Just enough.
A small Inferno Sphere slowly formed, no larger than an apple, its swirling blue flames dancing quietly instead of roaring.
Mira blinked.
"That's..."
"...smaller."
Ruby wasn't present to explain.
So Theron did.
"He's controlling it."
Adrian smiled faintly.
"Less mana."
"More precision."
The Burrower lunged.
This time Adrian moved first.
"Wind Step!"
The burst of compressed air launched him sideways as the monster's enormous jaws snapped shut where he'd been standing only an instant before. While still moving, Adrian flicked the miniature Inferno Sphere toward the creature's exposed face.
The tiny fireball struck one glowing crimson crystal.
It didn't explode.
Not immediately.
Instead...
The blue flames clung stubbornly to the crystal like molten tar.
The Burrower hesitated.
Confused.
Adrian smiled.
"Now."
His fingers snapped.
The Inferno Sphere detonated.
A concentrated explosion of blue fire burst directly across the creature's sensory organs, momentarily blinding it as shards of overheated crystal burst outward in every direction.
The Burrower screamed.
Not in pain.
Disorientation.
It staggered wildly, smashing through another ancient tree before blindly thrashing at empty air.
Theron didn't need another invitation.
"Beautiful!"
Frostrender descended like a falling mountain.
The enormous blade struck squarely across the Burrower's neck with a crack that echoed throughout the valley. Already weakened crystal armour shattered completely beneath the impact, exposing softer flesh beneath.
Adrian was already moving.
Energy Blade in hand.
Wind gathering beneath his feet.
He crossed the remaining distance in a blur.
One clean strike.
No flourish.
No wasted movement.
The glowing blue blade sliced cleanly through the exposed section beneath the monster's head before Adrian landed lightly behind it, dismissing the Energy Blade with a quiet flicker of fading mana.
Silence.
The Burrower remained standing.
One second.
Two.
Then...
Its massive body slowly collapsed against the forest floor with a thunderous crash that sent frightened birds into the sky once more.
The clearing became still.
No one spoke.
Even the Marshhorn family remained where they stood, watching the fallen predator from a cautious distance.
Finally...
The lead adult stepped forward.
It looked first at Adrian.
Then at Theron.
Its enormous crystal antlers lowered.
Not to attack.
A bow.
Just once.
Then it turned, gently nudging the frightened juveniles back toward the deeper forest. The remaining adults followed close behind until, within moments, the entire herd disappeared among the ancient trees without another sound.
Mira's mouth slowly fell open.
"...Did..."
She looked toward her father.
"...did it just thank us?"
Theron watched the place where the Marshhorns had vanished before smiling quietly.
"I believe..."
He rested Frostrender across one shoulder.
"...it did."
Then he looked toward Adrian.
For several long seconds he said nothing.
Finally...
A slow smile spread beneath his beard.
"You know..."
Adrian raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"I was sent here to judge your strength."
Adrian blinked.
Theron chuckled.
"I think..."
He looked around at the stunned hunters, the broken forest, and the defeated monster lying between them.
"...I've been judging the wrong thing."
The veteran hunters exchanged silent glances.
None of them had witnessed the strongest mage.
Nor the strongest swordsman.
They had witnessed something rarer.
A leader who saw the battlefield differently.
And that...
Was far more difficult to teach.