Chapter 53

  Swarms of the Sky

  Vivid citrine crystal fell with the force of a falling star. The chunk of yellow Shard was bigger than a three story building and reached a velocity that could only be terminal for the people below it. Wolf closed his eyes and braced himself, as Hyato placed a hand on Michael's shoulder. The two quarter Feral youths were still in pained shock as they clutched their ears.

  "Keep still!" Sebastian yelled, loud enough for Wolf and Hyato to nod. Sebastian lifted his hands upwards in a desperate stance. Noise and pain still wracked the party.

  The shadow cast by the fallen crystal enveloped them all as it came crashing down! An ear splitting chaos of crinkling crystal caused a cacophony to strike the party. The sound was terrifying and disorienting, but nothing more.

  Wolf and Hyato looked up to see the shattered remains of crystal sliding down an invisible dome of force, settling into a circle around the party. "A meteor shield!" Hyato said in realization.

  Sebastian coughed. "Yep." He said, straining to speak. He stood with arms out, shaking with fatigue. His eyes looked bloodshot, his lips parched and cracking. "Everyone... Okay?" He asked.

  "Yes." Wolf said. "You saved us, take a rest." With a gentle prodding he had Sebastian lower the barrier.

  Michael shook his head, clearing the ringing from his ears. "What happened?" He asked.

  "Check out... The explosion." Sebastian coughed. "I'll rest... Just a few minutes." Wolf helped him out of the shadow of the Shard and lay the man down.

  "You alright Michael?" Hyato asked.

  "I'm good." Michael said, helping the recovering Yan to stand. "How about everyone else."

  "I'm good." Wolf said.

  "Me too. We should move though." Hyato said.

  Yan shook her head, still clutching one ear. "I'll stay back with Sebastian. I still need a minute."

  "You'll be okay?" Michael asked.

  "Yeah," Yan smiled, though it looked a bit pained. "I'll be fine." She moved to Sebastian's side and started doing first aid meditation.

  Michael turned to the others, expression dark. "That explosion sounded like metal. Let's go back to the gates." Wolf and Hyato nodded, ready to fight.

  The three swordsmen headed towards the gate, walking with an equal amount of determination and caution. After having walked back from the edge of the area, they were already close.

  Hyato pointed out the purple Shard as it came into view, the one closest to the exit of the tunnel. They began to cross the open area between themselves and that central shard.

  Michael's right ear twitched, "I hear something." He strained to listen, "Stomping... No running." He narrowed his eyes and looked ahead. They all heard it now, "Someone's coming."

  The heavy footfalls echoed through the tunnel, then a tall figure in full armor appeared. The purple armored knight held a long solid metal quarterstaff in one hand and scanned the area. It only took a second for Velicio to spot them.

  The next second Velicio was rushing towards them, building speed and energy for a direct attack. "Here comes trouble!" Wolf said, stepping in front and crossed his swords in front of him.

  Wolf and Velicio clashed. The latter pushed Wolf back with the force of speed and power built from their charge. Wolf started to slip, but Michael braced his back. Together they stopped Velicio's charge. "Ha!" Wolf said.

  Hyato jumped from behind Wolf and drew his sword in a swift slash. Velicio stpped back to block, bringing that metal staff between them. Hyato's attack was intercepted, Michael's was not.

  A blast of dark wind struck the armored foe hard enough to send small chunks of crystals flying from the ground around. Velicio had to take a small leap back to regain poise.

  "We aren't going to lose this time, Velicio!" Wolf said, calling amber flames to life around his swords. "You're going down."

  Velicio spun the staff and tucked it under one arm. "You are outmatched. My skill and power are more refined in all aspects." As usual the voice of their armored enemy was muffled by the full helmet.

  "We'll see about that." Wolf said. He swung a sword forth to unleash a wave of flame, pulling the other back to ready a wave of lightning.

  Velicio blocked the flames with a spinning staff motion, creating surge trails that remained as a temporary shield. Wolf brought his other sword forth with a crack of lightning, while Hyato slipped back to flank Velicio as well.

  Not to be outdone, Velicio slammed the ground with the end of the quarterstaff and launched above Wolf's attack, evading Hyato's quick draw in the process. The sky, however, belonged to Michael.

  Dark Wind struck Velicio from below, sending the purple knight even higher. Before Velicio recovered another blast of Dark Winds struck, alongside amber lightning.

  Hyato dropped into a low stance, red energy curling around his sheathed sword as he readied another quick draw. "Yeeees!" Wolf said, preparing to assist Hyato with his own sword technique. The swordsmen watched Velicio fall towards them.

  The staff wielding knight was having none of it. Velicio slammed the air with a surge slap, rocketing a burst of air from the end of the staff. Propelled into a nearby Shard, they were still fighting near the clustered center of the region, Velicio slammed the other end of the spear into the sturdy crystal and caught themself.

  With a grunt, Hyato was forced to let the stored energy drain away. His forearms and shoulders felt tense and sore from cancelling the technique. "Crap. Too strong."

  "Don't lose focus." Michael said. "We are stronger now. We can win."

  "How?" Wolf snorted. "We are outmatched."

  “Hyato, you are the most skilled of us.” Michael said. Hyato nodded, and Wolf sighed and nodded as well. “You keep trying to do a finisher, you should make the opening instead.” Velicio began to descend the Shard, sliding along it. Michael spoke fast, “I’m the least skilled, let me handle the finishing blow. It won’t be expected. Hyato, Wolf, Me.”

  Velicio dropped to the ground and started closing the distance. Hyato and Wolf nodded at the plan, then dodged as Velicio struck the air and sent a shockwave of force! The three scattered from Velicio’s assault, and Wolf was pursued.

  Another clash forced the Phanokai champion to parry and defend as Velicio’s staff techniques were unleashed in rapid succession. Michael sidestepped around a crystal boulder, looking to reposition, when Velicio lunged at him out of nowhere. Michael was struck in the chest by a heavy impact, thrown back by the sudden thrust. Velicio closed a dozen yards in an instant!

  Wolf rushed in to deliver another heavy elemental slash, but Velicio managed to sidestep and leap out of the way. It was all the more impressive in full plate armor. “Fall and crawl!” Velicio said, slapping the air to unleash a concussive blast at Wolf. The attack made him stumble.

  As Velicio moved to punish the staggered Wolf, Hyato appeared in the blink of an eye. He transitioned from his Flash Blade into a series of swift short slashes, forcing Velicio to go on the defensive. The two traded blows as Michael and Wolf recovered.

  Michael stood up and collected himself, finding a position to attack from. A fist sized Aero crystal hung in the air in his way, so he patted the side and let out some Earth Mana. The crystal shot to the side and embedded into a boulder. “Thrust, huh...”

  The battle between Hyato and Velicio looked like a stalemate, but Hyato was slipping. Velicio had more strength, stamina, and skill. Hyato would not last much longer. Michael looked around and spotted another Aero crystal nearby, and dashed over to it.

  “You need help?” Yan asked, making Michael flinch with her sudden appearance.

  “Geez.” Michael said, “I just need to distract Velicio long enough for Hyato to make an opening.” Michael lined up behind the Aero Crystal, trying to figure out how the elemental rock would launch.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Aero Crystals are repelled by Earth Mana.” Michael said. “You can launch them if you do it right.”

  “Okay.” Yan said, pushing Michael aside. “I’ll launch the crystal, you go help.” Michael paused, then nodded. He moved into position.

  Yan steadied her breathing, taking a moment to calm. She hadn’t been in the fight yet, but the hectic atmosphere was heavy. This required focus. Eyes aglow with an emerald gleam, Yan focused on the knight before her. Velicio was clad in armor of purple and black, bulky full plate that prioritized function over all else. It appeared to be made with skill and care, unadorned by glamour or personal connection. To Yan’s eyes, it looked like a temporary suit of armor despite having never seen Velicio garbed any other way. The enemy was skilled, but focused on creating openings in Hyato’s defense.

  With an exhalation of breath, Yan expelled a blast of Earth from her hand. The Vibe struck the Aero Crystal in front of her, setting it off with a small explosion of wind that struck Yan across the face. Her cheek stung, but the crystal launched. The mass of solidified elements shot through the air faster than an arrow, striking Velicio in the back.

  Velicio stumbled and whipped around to strike the aggressor, only to find empty air for dozens of yards. Before the gambit was realized, Hyato struck.

  Seven slashes of red energy connected from Hyato’s sword to Velicio’s platemail. The purple knight rolled out of the way to bring up a defense, only for a storm of burning amber lightning to come crashing down all around. Velicio let out a guttural howl of rage and exploded a surge from every facet of armor they wore.

  Michael intervened.

  The Oronbyr clad in Dark Aura, Michael tapped the tip into the ground. "Dark. Blade!" Michael roared. The ground shook with force and launched the enraged armored foe skyward. Michael didn't let up, thrusting his left arm forth to let the sheer force of his sword crack the very air, "Dark Wind!"

  Heavy black lines swirled through the air in a blooming vortex, slamming into Velicio with more than twice the impact of previous iterations of the same attack. Velicio was caught up in the maelstrom and slammed against one of the towering Shards. Cracking sounds echoed through the space, followed by the grunt of a winded warrior.

  Michael jogged over to Wolf and Hyato. "Did we win?"

  "Don't let your guard down." Hyato said. "This is Velicio."

  Twenty feet above, encased in cracked crystal, the armored form of Velicio struggled. That nigh unbreakable armor was covered in cascading cracks. Chunks of metal fell to the ground. Velicio's armor was broken.

  A loud thump reverberated from above. Then another. Flakes of crystal dust were knocked loose from the Shard, along with small bits of metal. With the third thump, a cracking sound sung with an ominous tone from the platemail that was dug into the blue crystal. A brief moment of tense silence hung in the air for a moment, before it happened.

  Velicio kicked one leg free from the armor, breaking the greaves and sending fragments of metal flying overhead. "Oh no..." Wolf said, as metal and crystal chunks scattered about to the resounding sound of Velicio’s armor breaking.

  Despite having no room to move, a fist emerged from the cracked shell of plate armor, then Velicio hopped free of the full plate carcass lodged in the Shard. A warrior in black canvas armor, woven together by purple chain, dropped before them. Velicio removed the restrictive cowl with a flourish and scowl, letting a long brown ponytail and feminine face feel air.

  "Fine." Velicio said, annoyance ringing in her strong voice, "I'll get serious." Velicio retrieved her fallen staff and slipped into an aggressive stance, weapon held above her and poised to thrust or strike.

  "Whatever." Wolf said, crossing his swords. "We'll beat you this time, Velicio."

  Wolf moved to attack, but Velicio struck first. With a whip cracking speed, Velicio slapped the end of her staff down towards Wolf's head. He caught the attack with less than an inch to spare, blocking with both swords. Wolf swore.

  Two waves of force were launched at Velicio, one from Hyato and the other from Michael. Forced to dodge back, Velicio avoided the attacks as Wolf made a swift retreat. "Ruuun!" The Champion said, sprinting away at full speed.

  "Too slow!" Velicio said, lunging to close the distance between herself and Wolf. Instead she struck short as a wall of stone popped up in front of her. The wall crumbled, revealing Michael as he swung to attack.

  Velicio struck Michael, but he dodged with the blow and skipped back. Before she caught up Hyato intervened with his own dangerous attack.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  After Wolf interrupted Velicio's counter she let out a frustrated growl and slammed her staff on the ground. "Enough of these games!" She didn't react to Wolf's taunt, allowing the three to gain some distance from her.

  Michael frowned. "New plan?"

  "Yeah. Any ideas?" Wolf asked.

  "Nope." Michael said. "Hyato?"

  "We need Sebastian." Hyato said, panting and clutching his side.

  "Yeah, he's better at plans." Michael said. Velicio had taken a few moments to regain her poise, then let out a roar of challenge. "Alright, back me up." Michael said. He stepped over to meet Velicio’s challenge, drawing his sword. The two warriors met each others’ gaze. “Huh, you have purple eyes.” Michael noted.

  “Yours are purple too.” Velicio said, brandishing her staff.

  “I prefer to think of them as violet.” Michael said.

  They clashed, striking sword against staff without another word spoken!

  “Come on... wake up wake up wake up!” Yan muttered, glancing at Sebastian. “We need one of your plans, man.” She peered from their hiding spot out at the battle the boys were having against Velicio. It didn’t seem to be going well. “She’s way too strong.”

  Yan had moved Sebastian to a hiding place, keeping near to where the battle had moved, but also safe and out of sight. Chewing on one thumb, Yan peered out at the battle. There wasn’t a good chance to join, there was no point in helping if it didn’t turn the tide. She had to think!

  The nervous ninja scanned the battlefield, looking for something she could use to help Michael. There must be something, more Aero Crystals? Perhaps if Michael had a really strong Combat Crystal weapon, but would it be better than the Oronbyr? Yan brought energy to her eyes to help her search.

  “What?” Yan muttered, spotting something unusual. This wasn’t something to help in the fight, this was bad. Vero was over there, hiding and watching the fight. In a near catatonic state behind him was the enthralled host of the revenant, Vy. Why weren’t they showing themselves?

  Vero was watching Michael and Velicio fight. Yan couldn't tell what he was thinking with that mask he wore. Was this their plan? Michael and the others were in danger. "I have to do something..." Yan muttered.

  Sebastian coughed, sitting up a little. "What's going on?" He asked. The playboy tactician still seemed worse for the wear. That meteor shield really took it out of him.

  "Velicio is here, fighting Michael and the others. I see Vero too, hiding and watching." Yan said. She decided to omit Velicio's revealed gender. Sebastian didn't need any distractions.

  Sebastian lay back down and rubbed his chin. Yan gave the battle a worried glance. Michael was bleeding more, he'd taken some heavy blows. "I think Vero is planning something. I'm going to intervene."

  "Wait." Sebastian wheezed. He closed his eyes for a long several seconds. "I've got it..." He said, voice hoarse. "...plan."

  "What was that?" Yan asked, crouching down close to listen. Sebastian told her his plan. Yan went from listening with rapt attention, to smiling. Yan chuckled, "Got it. Rest up, I'll take care of it."

  Yan went back to peering at the battle. First things first, she needed to tell one of the boys what to do.

  Michael was trading blows with Velicio, forcing her to defend as much as she attacked. He kept her in a melee while Wolf and Hyato would launch the occasional ranged attack to disrupt her. Right now it was an endurance battle. Michael had stamina to spare, but how much could Velicio keep going? She did not seem to be slowing.

  Was Vero watching and not helping because he thought Velicio would outlast? The way things were going it was a true stalemate, but if one side slipped up it could spell trouble.

  Yan moved from her hiding spot and scavenged a pebble from the ground and shot it out while Wolf was covering the area in fire. She hit her mark, Hyato's bunched up coat that he wore around his shoulders. The red swordsman looked over to see Yan beckoning.

  Without too much haste, Hyato maneuvered over to Yan while still using his ranged Slash Surges to pester Velicio. He stopped a few feet away. "What's the plan?"

  "Just lead the fight this way." Yan said, pointing behind her. "I'll take care of the rest." Hyato nodded, so Yan slipped away.

  Hyato shuffled a little closer to the battle, changing his stance. "How to draw them this way..." He said.

  If he called them over, it might be too obvious. Michael still had all of Velicio's attention, Hyato needed to take that away. The others would follow.

  To attract attention Hyato needed to become a bigger threat. He sheathed his sword and, with a flourish, shook his coat from his shoulders and wore it like normal. He'd been told about how his future self wore the coat, and tied it closed at the waist.

  Hyato crouched with his sword drawn at his side. It would be hard to use any of his draw attacks while wearing the coat. He built up a furious charge of red energy, then let loose. "Velicio!" Hyato roared.

  The attack Hyato launched sliced up the ground as it surged towards Velicio. Unable to dodge in time, Velicio spun her staff to create a barrier in front of her. Most of the attack was mitigated, but some cuts opened up on her exposed face.

  "Not so tough without your armor," Hyato taunted, "You might as well give up now."

  In response, Velicio slammed her staff to do another pole jump, soaring through the air towards Hyato. Before she struck with another thunderclap of her spear, Hyato hopped back out of the way. "Feisty!" Hyato said, adopting a Wolfish grin.

  Velicio’s face grew red and she let out an incoherent growl as she rushed in to attack again. Wolf moved to intercept, but Hyato deflected Wolf’s attack and took a staff strike to the shoulder. Hyato hissed, but continued to imitate Wolf’s cocky attitude, “You have to do better than that.”

  Hyato drew back, and Velicio’s rage grew. The red swordsman beckoned Michael and Wolf with as sly a motion as he could as he moved the direction Yan had given him. They were nearing a chasm, was that part of the plan?

  Wolf and Michael began to move that direction as well, but Velicio seemed tireless in her determination to catch them. She lunged in for another attack. Hyato jumped to avoid it, but with a surge her trajectory changed and she landed a direct shot in the stomach. Hyato grunted, but recovered enough to land.

  Glowing red energy buzzed around Hyato’s chest, “Nice trick, surge shield. I think I’ll take it.” He said, grinning. Velicio snorted and lunged again, but this time Hyato dodged earlier. He ran past Michael, “Use Dark Blade.”

  Hyato ran a few yards and stopped, looking back. Velicio stopped as well, not pursuing with blind rage like before. “Your strategy is too obvious.” She said with derision. “You can’t seriously expect me to keep chasing you towards a cliff.”

  “Who knows, maybe I don’t have a plan at all?” Hyato said, still grinning.

  Black lines coated the ground beneath Velicio, and the wave of uplifting force shot out of the ground. The knight, once able to move at speed in full armor, slipped out of the range of the attack in the blink of an eye. Velicio shook her head, clicking her tongue. “No.” She swung her staff in a wide arc, loosing a heavy surge from the end of it.

  Michael and Wolf dodged the attack, joining Hyato near the edge of the chasm, “Any more bright ideas?”

  Hyato shrugged, dropping the grin and returning to his usual stoicism, “I don’t know the plan.”

  “The plan.” Velicio said, stepping a bit closer, “Is that I knock you to the ground, and you don’t get up.” A pebble struck Velicio in the side of the head, bouncing off and clattering to the ground. No emotion showing on her face, Velicio turned to look.

  Yan stepped out from a small crag near the chasm, arms full of pebbles. “Don’t worry. Our plan rocks.”

  “Really?” Velicio asked.

  “Yup.” Yan said, and jumped into the air. Her arms shot out as Yan threw the pebbles out. Velicio lifted her staff to protect her head, but the small stones missed. Instead, they were thrown into the chasm, causing a small symphony of tiny clattering noises to echo through the yawning gap for a few moments.

  Landing next to her compatriots, Yan grinned. “Hey guys.” She said, then added in a whisper, “Follow me.”

  “You won’t escape that easily!” Velicio said, dashing towards the four of them.

  “Hold your breath!” Yan threw something onto the ground, and a thick cloud of black smoke shot up in all directions, obscuring them. Michael and Hyato felt grips on their arms as they were pulled along, and went with. Michael managed to get hold of Wolf.

  Velicio’s tantrum dissolved into coughing as she swept her staff around to clear the smoke. When that didn’t work she moved back out of the concealing cloud. “I’ll find you...” She said, looking around the nearby area for her fleeing foes.

  Something sounded from the chasm, did they attempt to deceive her by climbing down? No matter. Velicio peered over the edge, ready to strike or move back in case of an ambush.

  Zori were scaling the walls of the chasm, spiked limbs with a crystalline sheen to them. The first few that noticed Velicio leapt to clear the final leg of the climb. “Tsk!” Velicio hopped back out of the way.

  “Insects, as if a few Zori will stop me.” Velicio slammed her staff down on the small body of the long limbed monster to crush it into the ground. It bounced down and hopped to its feet, no signs of the impact showed.

  The first Zori leapt to drive it's claws at Velicio, which was easy enough to dodge. The second and third became more challenging as Velicio batted them aside. Her attacks connected, but the enemy seemed unharmed. She continued to dodge and counter, but more and more Zori appeared. With no others in sight, they rushed at Velicio.

  The purple garbed knight swatted one back into the chasm, but it recovered in the air and stuck into the other side. They were beginning to swarm. “Vero...” Velicio said, “Vero! Help me!”

  Yan led the boys through a path she had scouted beforehand. Behind a few small crags and crystal growths to keep out of sight as they fled. She looked distracted as she ran, but continued to lead the others with silent hand motions.

  After a few long seconds that felt like minutes, Yan exhaled in relief. “Vero just joined Velicio in fighting Zori.” She said, “We have a few minutes.”

  “Keeping watch with a double?” Hyato asked. Yan nodded, slowing to a walk.

  “Since when do you have smoke bombs?” Michael asked.

  “Well,” Yan said with a smirk, “I am a Ninja.” She showed the others up a small hill. “We can see them from here.”

  Atop the mossy stone there were several crystal boulders. Between a green and red crystal was another Yan, watching the ensuing chaos. “We really didn’t go very far.” Michael noted, looking over. Velicio and Vero were fighting the Zori leapers. With Vero’s sorcery in the mix, they were sure to find a way to kill them, and soon. “We need to figure out a plan.”

  “Right you are.” Sebastian said, stepping up to join the others.

  “Welcome back to the waking world.” Wolf said.

  “How did you find us?” Yan asked, frowning.

  “Eyes in the sky.” Sebastian pointed above him at a fireball poised near a Shard, “Elesense, remember?”

  “Right.” Yan nodded, exhaling again.

  Sebastian patted her shoulder. “So, what happened?”

  Michael started to explain, “After the explosion, Velicio came running. As soon as we were spotted she rushed in to attack, not pausing for a moment.”

  “She?” Sebastian walked over to look out at the enemies in combat with Zori, “Velicio is a woman?”

  “And our enemy.” Yan reminded, “She tried to kill us.”

  “True, true.” Sebastian said, “Still. Maybe we could... show her the light?”

  “Yeah right.” Yan said, “Although... She is kind of cute. Is it worth trying to convince her?”

  “You guys have got to be kidding.” Wolf said, nursing a bleeding wound. He was covered in welts and bruises from staff hits.

  Michael gathered Yan, Wolf, and Hyato and began doing meditative healing to close their wounds. Yan assisted. “Point made.” Yan said.

  “She attacked without mercy, without pause.” Sebastian said, turning away from watching the fight. “I can only surmise that they knew we would be here. Which means they meant to ambush us, this was a trap.”

  “Great...” Wolf complained. “Should we leave?”

  “We still need to stop them,” Michael pointed out. “But, if you think we should leave I will. Is your Horizon Seeker charged?”

  Sebastian opened his pack to check on the model Sky Skiff. “It’s been charging fast, due to the large amount of mana... but it still needs a few days. We cannot escape this way.”

  “I don’t think we should leave anyways,” Yan said, looking back towards Vero and Velicio. “We need to stop them, and to find out what they are trying, right?”

  “Their plan might be to purify the Revenant in the Wellspring.” Michael said, “Should we keep looking for it on our own and try to ambush them there?”

  “I don’t think so.” Sebastian said, “We run the risk of being ambushed ourselves. We should stop them now, if at all.”

  Michael completed the healing session, having closed everyone’s wounds. Wolf stretched and grunted, limbering up, “Got a plan?” Wolf asked.

  “Michael,” Sebastian said, “You are confident in your anti-sorcerer technique?” Michael nodded. “Then we may have to split our focus. If Velicio was sent in ahead, it's because her abilities in battle are greater than Vero’s own.” He frowned in thought, closing his eyes.

  Whirling winds and a shrill cackling sounded from the battle below. Vero had cast a spell that picked up dozens of crystals, shredding the Zori to bits. Their brief moment of respite, it seemed, was coming to an end.

  “Come out, come out!” Vero called, twirling in place to throw his voice in all directions. “I know you’re there. Let’s have... a little chat.”

  Sebastian shook his head, “Don’t fall for it.”

  Vero continued to speak, “I bet you’re wondering, right about now, how we got here so fast. No? Perhaps instead, you’d like to know why we are here. Or maybe...” His voice darkened a touch, “What happened to the gate guards.”

  Michael and Wolf clenched their teeth, the latter almost growling. Hyato placed a hand on Wolf’s shoulder to stop him from running off.

  “So very confident, they were,” Vero said, “So certain in the power of their defense. Some power. All that stored energy was nothing, compared to the power of a Sorcerer.”

  “And yes,” Vero continued in his rant, now walking about to look around, “I may have gone a little overboard. I suppose I could have left something to send back to their families. Or at least enough to identify them. But wouldn’t you know it, they refused to abandon their posts.”

  “They didn’t struggle much, in the end.” Vero said. “Whatever lies beyond death, they are meeting it now.”

  Red heat built up in Michael’s face, his eyes glinting with fury. The rage he felt was shared by the others, rage, and sorrow. For a heartbeat, his skin turned ashen. Then Michael let out a sigh, and staggered back. He felt woozy, head spinning as he stored away the rage. That would have to wait.

  Michael turned to the others. “Let me deal with Vero.” He said. They too had lost their looks of rage, now assessing Michael with concern. Michael shook his head, “I’ll be calm.”

  After a moment, and a shared glance between the rest of the party, Sebastian nodded. “Sneak closer, get into position, and find your chance. Leave the others to us.” Everyone else nodded in agreement.

  With a careful breath, Michael called upon the training he had done long ago with Yan. Stealth. He focused on hiding himself, and began to make his way from their vantage point in total silence.

  Hyato watched as he went, then looked at Sebastian. “You have a plan for Velicio and the Revenant?”

  “Teamwork.” Sebastian said, “It’s a simple concept, but we work well together. The fight against the Skuzori shows that well enough, so we will leverage our force against theirs. Michael is enough of a threat to keep Vero away from us, I should think.”

  “Leave it to me!” Wolf said, fully limbered and ready for a fight. “I can overwhelm them with my awesome power!”

  “As long as you don’t mix us up in your attacks.” Sebastian said, “We should have a very real chance of victory.”

  “Should we... go for the kill?” Hyato asked.

  “Hard to say. We will cross that chasm when we come to it, I suppose.” Sebastian said. “Everyone ready?” Wolf drew his swords and stood at the ready. Hyato fixed his coat, bunching it up around his shoulders again so he could move about with ease. Sebastian nodded and made a mental note, running one finger along the palm of his other hand.

  Yan grimaced, “Guys. There’s a problem.”

  “What happened?” Hyato looked down at Vero and Velicio. The Sorcerer was still looking around, having stopped his macabre ranting. The Knight in brigandine seemed to be taking a moment to rest on her feet. Even the Revenant girl, Vy, was hanging about. They hadn’t noticed them, or Michael.

  “Not them.” Yan said, “We have more company...” Yan pointed towards the tunnel at the heart of the Shards of the Sky. From this hilly vantage you could see the base of the Purple Shard that marked the exit, if you got close enough. The party moved over to see what Yan was talking about.

  There, entering the Hidden Kingdom, were three familiar figures. A short woman with robes and a tail, a lean man with leather archer’s armor, and the large form of a man wearing full plate mail with a dark ebony sheen. Rex, and the other bounty hunting students of the Myrrhmidon Academy of War; Fara the healer, and Evan the Sniper. They moved as a unit, coiled with tension and ready for battle. After the barest hint of a moment Evan signaled the others, pointing towards their hiding spot with absolute confidence.