RAZE

It is an eerie night. The woods are unnerving in their silence and the waning moon makes shadows appear to be more than they are. The two guards standing on the edge of the forest look at each other. An unspoken conversation passes between them, their hands snapping out at the same time. Paper. Rock. The guard on the right pales at the sight as his eyes turn upward in a pleading gesture. A merciless gaze is returned. One of them had to enter, and it wasn’t going to be the winner.

With a dramatised sigh the guard who lost lay down his sword and shield and picked up the silver food tray that lay to their side. Inside rested thick, raw pieces of meat, still bloody from the carving. The amount was enough to feed a large family. Holding tightly to the food the guard trudges inward to the forest, pausing every couple of seconds to look back forlornly at the other guard. However he only sees the other man stand their stoically, staring straight ahead as if he can’t see his actions. With a few mumbled curses the guard finally gives up and speeds away, his movements holding no pretense of his presence with each sharp crack of debris.

It didn’t take long for him to pass through the gathering of thick trees and vegetation and reach his goal; a small cave opening. It took him much longer to enter, his nerves holding him back. Still, he had no choice but to enter. Steady, he told himself, steady. With caution in his steps he enters the dark cave. The rough stone makes it hard to keep his footing steady as he follows along the trail of flickering torch light. The cave system is said to be formed by the extinct Al’mardi, a curious race of stone-devouring ants. The tunnels are too numerous to count, going each and every way through the multitude of large caverns. The true depths of this place are unknown with the thinning oxygen limiting exploration. It did, however, serve for a very convenient prison.

With each step taking him further down the winding depths it doesn’t take him long to reach the last torch, the inky darkness his only welcoming beyond it. The guard knows it only takes a dozen more steps to reach the giant cavern specially built to hold a single prisoner, the only prisoner, inside. Fear grips him but his steps continue, the urge to get this over with winning over his deep-seated instinctual urges to run. His footing stumbles in his hurry and the last few steps become a fall as the tray, and the food on it, scatters across the ground in a loud clatter.

The guard’s breath catches as his hands grip against the cold ground, his body frozen in terror. Heavy, and contrarily soft, footsteps echo across the cavern as the guard hears him draw closer. Trepid fear keeps him frozen as the darkness gives way to a pair of golden iris’s. They slide over him for a moment, the guard feeling as if every part of him is laid bear, before falling to the scattered food on the ground. As he reaches down toward the silver tray the light of the torch flickers onto him, reflected in the guard’s eyes. Human in structure, his thick, cascading scales give away his more alien nature. A tail stretches out lazily behind his back, thin and long it trails behind him to a sharpened point. The same color as the misty darkness, his body appears to meld with it like an extended shadow.

The guard’s breath hitches in his throat as he watches him reach down and pick up the silver tray, his mouth widening to display a group of sharp teeth as they crunch down and tear through the tray. His eyes stare at the guard’s own as he munches, casually reaching down to pick up one of the large pieces of meat to eat as well. It is strange, to the guard. People feel emotion when they look at someone, whether its hate, love, indifference or a range bwtween them. But when you see someone, that emotion is always there. And yet, when the guard looked into his eyes, he saw nothing. As if he’s no different from the rocks that lay next to him. A part of the landscape.

The guard watches as he reaches down for another piece of meat when the sound of metal snaps taut. The light flickers brighter for a moment and reveals a hint of the darkened cavern beyond. Chains, each one the thickness of a tree, made of a cold, blue metal criss-cross across the roof of the cavern, creating its own tensity through its tangled mess. A number of chains trail downward, each one sharpened to a spike as they extend towards the being in front of him and pierce his scales and flesh. Dried blood surrounds the wound as fresher bleeding can be seen from where the sharp points rub against his body. The metal itself pulsates with its strange, deep blue glow, thin trails of ice flowing along parts of his wounds.

Then the light dims again and the view is hidden once more. He reaches for another, closer piece of meat and grabs it to continue eating. As if freed form his sentence the guard’s body finally moves as he stumbles backward, falling onto his butt. His eyes stay frozen in place while his mind turns the same pictures in his head over and over again. His muddled state causes him to miss many things. The pause in motion from the person in front of him as his eyes spark, like the kindle to a simmering flame, as curiosity fills them. The red tensile surface forming in front of his face. And the stone creature hidden behind him, its hunched form and spread wings doing nothing to hide the large extended teeth in its gaping maw. Its mouth widens and covers his body. A heavy crunch is heard as the guard breathes his last.

The scaled being in front of the creature ignores the gruesome scene as he stares at the air in front of him. He watches as tiny specks of strange black mist gathers together in the air until it forms into a solid, red box. His instincts scream two things at the sight. Danger. And opportunity.

Shard Detected

Analysing . . .

Active Planet Identified

Lesser Sentient Species Confirmed

Classification: Low Grade Nine Planet

Designation: Non-Reforming Hostile Dumping Zone

Reshaping Matter . . .

Ark Integrated

Planet Remoulded

Resolving Anomalies . . .

Planet Data Registered

Good Luck.

A heavy growl echoes around Raze as the very earth starts to move, its groans of protest vibrating through the ground. His claws dig into one of the chains torn through his legs, however its structure refuses to bend or break under his pressure. Raze’s face twists into cold anger before smoothing back out into impassivity. The stone beast in front of him finishes its meal, its eyes turning to stare at him. The box in front of Raze dissolves as a new one takes its place.

Stone Gargoyle

[ Monster ]

It bares its teeth at him as it slowly rumbles forward. He pulls at the chain one more time but fails to damage it. The stone gargoyle sees the chains holding him, its eyes glinting as it suddenly speeds up and launches itself toward him. Raze head snaps toward him, his right arm moving at extreme speeds as it reaches forward and grabs the gargoyle’s head before it can reach him. A hint of fear escapes the creature as it attempts to escape his grip, but is unable to budge him in the slightest. Raze coldly watches it as his grip tightens, the gargoyle’s head crumbling in his hands as its very life is ripped from it. The headless body collapses to the floor, silent. Raze pulls the chain one last time before giving up with a snort.

He reaches down and pulls off one of the gargoyle’s hands, mindlessly munching on it as he stares into one of the further tunnels, the sounds of different beasts echoing out around him. As he consumes his meal his originally lusterless scales start to regain their shine, a weak feeling of strength returning to him. In the midst of eating new boxes form in front of him.

Analysing Specimen . . .

ERROR

HIGHER RACE DETECTED

TRANSFERRING ANOMALY

A sense of pressure builds onto Ryze, a strange force gathering itself onto him, as he reads the boxes in front of him. He sneers at it and bares his teeth as he reaches over and crunches down on the box, tearing it into pieces. The pressure disappears. It reforms, weaker then before, as it attempts to press down on him again. One of his hands reach over this time and tears it again. It reforms again, and he tears it again. The process repeats many times as the pressure grows weaker with each attempt until finally it sputters out and the box forms no more. A heavy silence fills the cavern. Then a new box takes its place.

Ark Plate Name Raze [ 0 ] Age 26 Race Krateran [ Variant ] Essence 687 Gender Male Titles Devourer of Stars Focus n/a Bloodline ERROR Memory Cubes n/a Devourer of Stars Type Title A race from a long forgotten era. The cosmos is your home. The stars your meal.

Raze’s eyes trail over the information before growing disinterested again. His eyes trail away from the boxes and their shape dissolves naturally. The earth had long since stopped screaming, but the screams of new beasts farther in only echo stronger. With a snort Raze rips off a stone leg and starts mindlessly chewing on it as he walks back into the darkness. The scarping of metal chains can be heard behind him as his body disappears. To await what comes next.

Prey, most likely.

SERA

The father trees. A collection of sprawling forestation densely intertwined, so tall and wide that you feel you could reach the clouds atop them. Its natural outward spread at the top of its structure, like a never-ending canopy, made it the perfect place to build. And with its location somewhat centered between the different countries it became the neutral zone required for their newest pet project; the elite academy.

“All-mother,” Sera heard softly by her ear. Turning around she sees one of her far-kin, her mind trying to match her appearance to a name. Large top-set ears peek out from the girl’s head like an elongated shaped triangle, half covered by the thick fur that grows around it. The fur grows further along her body, thinning in some areas and thickening in others with most of it covered by her clothes. Seeing the smooth brown colour of her fur triggers a vague recollection.

“Mary,” Sera says, nodding politely. She reaches up to smooth her own fur down, her nose crinkling slightly at catching the itch that had been nagging her all morning. “How may I help?” Sera voices, her tone dripping with a sarcastic hint.

Mary hesitates for a moment before pushing the words out. “Gray wished to know if you would have lunch with him.”

Sera regards her for a moment, letting her stare cause enough discomfort to make Mary fidget, before answering. “No.”

“Sera, you know this-” Mary starts.

“No.” Sera says, her tone much colder this time. She turns and walks away before Mary can respond. Mary bites her lip as she sees her leave, a glint of frustration welling up before dissipating just as quickly. It had been so long since an All-mother, and it just had to be…her. With a shake of her head Mary turns to head back and inform Gray, knowing his reaction. It will be unpleasant. But it cannot be seen that the Ferrari race holds the same opinion as the All-mother.

Sera brooded silently as she headed along one of the many walkways that stretch between the trees. The place was built in an innovative way. With each trees branches spread like a tightly woven spider web there was little need to artificially manufacture pathways. Instead the branches were smoothed out and manipulated over time to create flat, natural walkways. The buildings themselves drew on some of the more twisted tree branches that grew upward, creating a mix of natural and artificial architecture. It was a testament of what the races could do when they worked together. And an example of why they never will.

Time was running out and Sera knew it. Her choices had given her time but now lead to a dead end with no solution in sight. Her own people had turned against her, she who held the tenet of their worship. Sera could not see a way forward and it caused her heart to be pained at the thought. Is this prejudice, this cruelty, truly so deeply rooted? The thought saddened her. It held her focus until she found herself at the end of her walk and standing in front of a wide building. One of the general classrooms. Built for indoctrination disguised as learning. Well…maybe that isn’t true, but it sure feels like it. With a silent sigh she enters to see the entire classroom immediately turning to face her.

She saw her own far-kin, their expression a mix of disappointment and disgust. The Ferrakin, their mix of black and white wings twitching in contempt at her sight. And the humans, their mask of arrogance hiding away the spark of possessiveness in their eyes. She took it all in and suppressed the anger cindering inside her as she moved to take her seat in the back away from the rest. Closing her eyes she did her best to ignore the unkind whispers merging around her.

“Sera,” A voice called out not long later, its rough tone all too familiar to her. She knew he would come as he always does. With her body tensing she turns to answer.

“Gray.” A human. With blonde hair and blue eyes he could be considered a charmer, if she didn’t want to tear his throat out and revel in his death. Calm thoughts, she tells herself. “This is not your classroom.”

“Does that matter?” Gray says, his smile widening as he reaches down and grabs hold of my arm in a painful grip. The classroom simply watches with no change in their expression. He taps his head with a condescending smirk. “Don’t forget your place, All-mother. You are in no position to negotiate. Next time I invite you to lunch, you will arrive. Yes?” Sera regards him coldly, her mouth tightening but refusing to move. “Yes?” he says as his grip tightens further.

Sera’s eyes darken and her hand reaches over to grip the one holding her arm, Gray’s face twisting in pain as she forces it away from herself. “Gray,” she says with a sickly sweet voice. “A bargaining chip is no longer useful if you use it for stupid, inane,” her grip tightens with each emphasis, “pointless things. You and I both know you will not pull the trigger over this.” Gray’s expression twists at her words, anger attempting to cloud his reason. The two stare at each other for a long while before he finally relents, and Sera with him, as the teacher enters the room.

“You two again. Gray get out,” the teacher sighs as he heads to the front. He makes a shooing gesture to Gray.

“You will be mine soon enough anyway,” Gray mutters, dusting down his clothes. With a huff he turns to leave the classroom. Sera’s eyes follow him. Which is why she caught it first. The tear is tiny at first, making her think she had mistaken it. But with each passing second it widens further, like a wound in the world itself slowly being cut open. Inside is a pure darkness, so deep that it feels like her very being is being sucked inside of it. The huge tear reveals itself in front of her as as a creature forms around it, built of the same darkness as the tear itself.

Sera’s eyes widen as she watches the thing made of that inky blackness elongate itself into a spear and pierce itself through the teacher’s heart. The teacher groans in pain as his eyes glaze over, and before anyone can even scream the shadowy thing whips itself around and his head lops off. It is then that the first box forms in front of her head, as the classroom turns into a mess of chaotic screams and movement.

Shard Detected

Analysing . . .

Active Planet Identified

Lesser Sentient Species Confirmed

Classification: Low Grade Nine Planet

Designation: Non-Reforming Hostile Dumping Zone

Reshaping Matter . . .

Ark Integrated

Planet Remoulded

Resolving Anomalies . . .

Planet Data Registered

Good Luck.

Sera closes her eyes and opened them again. Judging from what she witnessed, and some of the others looking confused in front of them, this is…real. Her hand reaches up and tries to touch it, only for it to pass through like air. Then more boxes form, and the gigantic trees beneath her feet start to shake wildly.

Preparing Specimen . . .

Memory Cube Randomised . . .

Gained [ Two Plus Two Equals Five ]

Ark Plate Name Sera All-mother [ 0 ] Age 22 Race Eltera Essence 13 Gender Female Titles n/a Focus n/a Bloodline One-Tailed Fox Memory Cubes Ignite [ Bloodline ]

Two Plus Two Equals Five [ Trait ] One-Tailed Fox Familiarity 0 / 100 Rank Basic The thinned bloodline of a One-Tailed Fox. Fosters a distant connection with Spatial and Aura. Ignite Ability Bloodline Familiarity 0 / 100 Rank Basic Ignite your bloodline. Boosts your power massively by burning your blood. Two Plus Two Equals Five Ability Trait Familiarity 0 / 100 Rank Basic A certain probability to trick the law of equivalent exchange.

“Sera,” A voice whips her out of her revelry at the information, the wild thoughts and questions building inside of her dissipating. Gray was back beside her. As he gripped her shirt, she could see the primal fear holding him. Around her the classroom was already a mess. The monster formed from that tear had ripped through many students after the teacher died. Some students had fought bravely, others cowardly and even some had thrown those close to them as sacrifices to live. Everyone likes to believe they will be the hero, but it is only when you face danger do you know the type of person you truly are. “Sera!” Gray says louder, panic filling his voice. “Protect me.” Sera simply regards him coldly, watching him squirm in his fear and cowardice.

His face twists further as he pulls her towards him and shouts in her face. “You piece of shit, don’t think I won’t do it. You think I’m going to care about rules now that everything is going to hell. If you want him to live, you will do what I say.” A manic look flickers across his eyes as he grips her. “Protect me. I don’t care if you fucking die but you better save me from this insane shit.” Sera’s eyes harden as her hand reaches down and peels his own off her.

“Very well, Prince Gray,” Sera says, her mocking tone only twisting his expression further. Before he can retort she turns on her heels and faces the classroom again. “Then what I suggest is we leave,” she says, ignoring the chaos around her. “If you didn’t notice, that thing is only protecting whatever the hell has formed over there. Right now, we don’t know what its purpose is. But I can safely assume we’re equipped to deal with neither of those things. So we leave, and go from there.” Sera heads toward the exit of the classroom expecting, and knowing, that he will follow.

Hearing her words, Gray finds the chance to calm himself down. He should’ve thought of that. If he was thinking. He turns to look at the others in the classroom, many in various states of struggling to survive. Disgust flickers across his face as he fixes his uniform and follows her. The shivering of his hands betrays the fear he’s desperately trying to cover up.

MELODY

Melody eyes the box that holds itself in front of her with curiosity, much the same way she regards the forest in front of her.

Ark Plate Name Melody Songstorm [ 0 ] Age 26 Race Aesyn Essence 33 Gender Female Titles n/a Focus n/a Bloodline n/a Memory Cubes Extremely Weak Water Affinity [ Racial ]

Internal Perception [ Trait ] Extremely Weak Water Affinity Ability Trait Familiarity 0 / 100 Rank Basic A weak affinity with elemental water. Internal Perception Ability Trait Familiarity 0 / 100 Rank Basic A small chance to predict danger or fortune before encountering it.

With the boxes came a sudden shift in the world around her, the ground shaking back and forth like a beast thrashing itself in anger. Melody has always had a stronger sense of things around her, visible or not. When the boxes formed she could feel something sink into her. It did not feel dangerous. More like the feeling of gaining something you’ve always been missing. Like finally being able to breathe enough air, or having vision no longer muddied. It’s a feeling of relief.

“Hmmm…” Melody mutters to herself, tapping her fingers together in thought. It has been a long journey to reach this point. The message earlier clearly pointed toward danger. Melody could feel her urge to go back to her Sisters and help them. They, unlike her, lack the talent for magic. She worries for their safety. But…looking in front of her at the winding forest, its depths yet unknown to her, she knows she cannot. Her people have been gone too long. When she heard the Krateran race had been hunted to near extinction it had stunned everyone. Those they once called the closest of kin, near gone. Guilt was a crushing thing and it weighed heavily on all their hearts.

Closing her eyes Melody feels for that faint connection. She can sense their bond, as fragile as it is. He is not far now. She cannot abandon him. No matter what comes. With a determined nod Melody gathers herself. A flicker of footsteps passes over her ears. Her eyes with their normally emerald tinge glow softly as they transition to a deep blue. A form of energy compresses in the air as it forms a small, thin stretch of water in front of her. This water thins dangerously to a whisper thin point. Two more form and without so much as a pause all three streak outward and enter into the thickets around her. Three yelps are heard in return as the bodies of a few wolves become visible as they collapse to the ground. Dead.

A loud howl is heard, anger mixed with grief, as another five wolves exit the bushes around her and stands in front of her. They would be intimidating if not for the disparity in size as melody towers over them. The Aesyn have always been a tall race. Not because of their large size, but because of their elongated limbs that extend them upward, giving them the appearance of a nobility lacking in other races. Melody looks down at the wolves as another five needles of water form in front of her. The two groups study each other as they prepare to attack.

The wolves pounce forward, coming forward in unison as they call try and claw at Melody. She steps back calmly and lets her needles of water shoot out. The wolves don’t have a chance to dodge as their hearts are pierced instantly with the needles then traveling through their organs and exiting out of the side of their head before dissipating. Like the three wolves before these ones too simply collapse dead on the ground. “Eight wolves,” Melody murmurs as she crouches down and studies them. Bloody wounds she didn’t inflict can be seen on their coat. “New predators. Recent too, by the smell of the blood.” Her eyes gaze forward, into the dark depths of the forest. The trees are so thick and numerous very little light is able to make it inside.

With steady steps Melody enters the forest, a few more needles of water congealing around her in suspended animation. She could feel the drain on her strength as she created them, her steps growing heavier and her breath lighter with the strain. As she walks further into the forest she continues to study the boxes while watching her surroundings. It was while she studied them that she felt it. A sinking feeling echoing out of her chest, almost screaming at her to move. Without hesitation she jumps sideways just as a thin root pierces the air where she was a moment ago. Rolling across the ground Melody picks herself up and whips around to face the new enemy.

Carnivorous Tree

[ Monster ]

“Well shit.” Melody says as she watches a number of roots slowly trail themselves out of the ground and upward into the air, all facing her direction. The two seem frozen in place as neither the strange tree nor Melody moves. Then suddenly Melody dashes to the side just as the roots pierce toward her direction, her own hands moving to manipulate her needles of water as they race through and pierce the roots, breaking their connection to the tree. Many roots fall and more take their place as she continues to dash. Every movement of hers takes her closer and closer to the tree in this deathly dance. As she nears the tree she fails to completely avoid one of the roots and it passes over her skin, piercing through a thin film of some unknown material. A sliver of fear enters Melody’s eyes but she forces herself onward anyway, quickly reaching the front of the tree.

Her hand whips up and rests on its trunk. She ignores the roots reaching toward her as she closes her eyes and forms as much compressed water as she can inside the tree. With a quick motion she releases the water and it goes off like a small bomb, exploding outward as the trunk is completely obliterated. Melody jumps backward and gathers what water remains, shooting it outward like a ring of thin blades as they pierce everything around her. A number of trees in all directions find their trunk pierced through, along with the roots that were heading toward her. While doing this she senses a formless energy escape from the tree she killed and enter her body.

Without looking back she whips around and runs, quickly reaching the exit of the forest and escaping back onto the grassy plain that lay before it. Her eyes dart around to make sure nothing is close before she finally lets out the breath she had been holding. Leaning over she clutches her body heavily as she takes deep, gasping breaths. Her breath still feels shallow as she lets herself collapse onto the ground. She had no energy left to do much of anything let alone make any water to continue fighting. Of all the strange things, she did not expect a tree to be what attacked her.

Melody looks back at the forest with some frustration. It won’t be so simple to get through that forest. This will take longer then she considered. Her eyes pick up some motion inside of the forest, but nothing seems to be leaving. After a tense few seconds she turns and looks at her arm. A cut can be seen going along it, opening up a small stretch of film that can now be seen sticking to her body. “That was close,” Melody whispers as she carefully joins the two seams back up, watching as it knits itself back together. With a sigh of relief she lets her arm go and no longer worries about it. “This material isn’t so easy to cut. Those roots must be sharper then steel.”

Shaking her head Melody lets it go and picks herself up with what little strength remains. She walks back to a small inlet she had found earlier, hidden away from anything that could find her. With a sigh of relief Melody barely sets up her warning alarm, a small film of water across the entrance, before collapsing into a restless sleep.