Noah let out a sigh of relief when he discovered that the grassy field was being restrained by the blue-lifeforce of Lyn's [Parasitic Flora Control] ability. The three mastiffs didn't notice anything out of the ordinary as they followed the pair into the shimmering meadow. The three dogs showed signs of injuries from their pursuit. The black mastiff favoured its front paw while the brown mastiff bled from multiple scratches. The worst was the grey mastiff, which had blackcap mushrooms growing from its ribs and muzzle. Its limp was gone as the parasitic fungi seemed to have a numbing effect on pain as it spread.

"Do you have it under control? You do? Good. When I tell you to, release control. Got it?" Noah asked the boy as he nodded in understanding.

Noah had retreated a few meters into the shimmering field with Lyn holding onto his neck. The bow was only held loosely in his hand as he strained to maintain control of the grass. Lyn was shaking at the concentration required as his face turned pale. The dogs continued to stalk them patiently. They were no longer as confident as they had been.

Noah's aching knee was beginning to hinder him with the boy's added weight on his back. After mostly recovering his withered stamina, his reserves could last almost indefinitely when combined with the grade two rations in his [Zero-Space Dimension Ring]. Noah was inspired by the actions of the Shepherd of Dust during his vision brought on by the [Prophecy]. He activated his [Earth Manipulation+2] ability to raise dust from the field, causing the grass's lifeforce to flare as it struggled against Lyn's control.

A cloud of dust rose to obscure them from sight as the dogs snorted in displeasure. It didn't have the same corrosive effect as the person in the vision, but it would have to do. Noah reached up, gripping hold of Lyn's arm around his neck then began a stumbling jog toward the centre of the meadow. The dogs noticed their escape as they ignored the dirt stinging their eyes to chase after the pair.

"Now!" Noah commanded the boy as he directed purple-lifeforce into the ground at his feet.

Noah stopped running as a pillar of earth erupted upward, causing the unprepared Lyn to drop his bow as he released control of the grass. The pair balanced unsteadily atop the pillar as the meadow was engulfed in flames. Howls filled with pain could be heard from the dogs hidden by the dust. A shadow slammed into the pillar of earth, knocking Noah into a crouched position as he kept hold of the boy on his back.

The shadow began climbing above the fire until it escaped the cloud of dust. It was revealed to be the grey mastiff. Its scarred form had changed to become similar in appearance to what you would expect a werewolf to look like. Its skin had been burned off over the majority of its body. Green-lifeforce flowed through its exposed muscles as it struggled to climb. It was unable to feel any pain because of the parasitic blackcap mushrooms that were now burning.

"Use your ability to stop it before the fire burns away the mushrooms! The pillar can't handle its weight!" Noah shouted at the boy.

The pillar of earth tettered unnervingly as clumps of dirt fell from it. Blue-lifeforce flared as the [Parasitic Flora Control] ability activated to cause the blackcap mushrooms to spread rapidly while ignoring the flames. The fungi-covered werewolf began to tremble as it lost control of its arms, plunging silently back into the fire. Never to be seen again intact.

A short time later, after the dust settled, the grass meadow had returned to its normal state of otherworldly beauty. Yellow-lifeforce shimmered under the aurora of the night sky, revealing the three charred forms belonging to the hunting dogs. The mastiffs had no signs of breathing or movement, indicating that the dogs were dead. The pair released their pent up tension as they relaxed.

Suddenly, Noah jolted as he was alerted to danger. He instinctively deflected an arrow with his arm that had been aimed at his heart, spraying blood as it glanced against the bone of his forearm.

"Lyn, you and your friend are dead men for killing my dog!" Dogfighter Darren stood poised to shoot another arrow at the edge of the field.

Noah glanced down to see the charcoal remains of Lyn's bow at the base of the pillar. The pillar was starting to crumble, causing the meadow to once again erupt in flames.

"Noah, are you okay? You're bleeding," Lyn asked with concern as he ignored the Dogfighter's provocations.

"It's only a scratch," Noah said, his voice sounding slurred.

"Your neck, the arrow sliced it," Lyn said.

"Haha, how do you like that poison? I got that little beauty from Granny Yaga's garden!" Dogfighter Darren shouted in delight.

Noah felt unsteady. He couldn't speak as he clutched his neck. The pillar of earth collapsed in response to his abilities deactivating. Lyn clung desperately to Noah's shoulders as the pair rode the landslide down. Burying the nearby grass below, creating an island of safety amid the sea of flames. The grass had entangled the nearby dog's charred corpses to begin absorbing their origin crystals. Noah couldn't imagine what the result might be.

The pair sat unmoving atop the rubble as Dogfighter Darren continued to mock them. He couldn't see them through the burning field of grass and would throw stones whenever the fire stopped. It seemed to keep him entertained until he got bored after realizing that the two weren't reacting to his torture. He slung his bow onto his shoulder then began climbing a nearby tree which leaves shimmered white in the calm night breeze.

Lyn held his hands pressed tightly to the bleeding wound on Noah's neck as his eyes glazed over. Noah's vision had blurred from whatever toxin coated the arrow. As he lost awareness of his surroundings, a uniquely-shaped shadow passed overhead. He mustered the energy to look upwards in time to see a strange, metallic object flying silently through the night sky. Anyone without the grade two enhancement to their eye-sight would be unable to see it, such as Dogfighter Darren. Lyn was too worried to notice as he shook the unresponsive Noah's shoulders.

"Airshark," Noah whispered to himself as an Amber butterfly fluttered lazily in front of his vision to gently land out-of-sight on his brow. Noah's heart stopped beating.