They’d been walking for hours.

  Hours of dry wind and cracked stone. Hours of nothing but dust and heat and the pulsing beacon of the Crystal Dragon bones hanging in the sky like a divine middle finger.

  And they were making excellent time.

  Or they would have been, if not for Brimma.

  Alistair trudged forward, glancing down for the tenth time that hour at the tiny gnome plodding steadily ahead, staff tapping the stone in sharp, even beats.

  Their pace-setter, by virtue of having the smallest legs in the known world.

  Buddy padded beside him, restless. The massive hellhound looked like a barely-leashed stormcloud, smoke curling from his nostrils, claws scraping faint sparks off the ground.

  Alistair leaned down and whispered, “I know, I know. I want to run too.”

  Buddy snorted, a small puff of ash drifting upward.

  Kael trudged behind them, eyes flicking nervously to Buddy every few seconds. His bow was unstrung, for now, but the way his hand hovered near it told Alistair just how relaxed he wasn’t.

  Thessaly walked quietly on the opposite side, golden-green eyes calm and watchful.

  Every so often, Brimma would glance back and snap: “If you children are done grumbling, we’ll keep moving.”

  Alistair sighed. “We’re going to reach the bones by next month at this rate.”

  Brimma didn’t turn. “Better alive next month than dead today.”

  Kael muttered, “I second the slow plan.”

  Buddy growled softly.

  Alistair smirked. “You’re outvoted, Buddy.”

  The hellhound’s tail flicked irritably.

  An hour later, Alistair’s patience was fraying, not as much as Buddy’s.

  The beast was practically vibrating with pent-up energy, claws clicking louder now, ears flicking at every distant sound. The tension in the air was thick enough to chew.

  And then Buddy padded a little too close to Brimma.

  Alistair watched with grim amusement as the enormous hellhound stalked up beside the gnome, who barely reached the height of his front leg, and snapped his jaws in the air with a loud CLACK, as if testing how many bites it would take to swallow her whole.

  Brimma didn’t flinch.

  She just glanced up, deadpan. “Try it, mutt. You’ll be coughing roots for a week.”

  Buddy huffed, clearly disappointed, and stalked back to Alistair’s side.

  Alistair grinned. “She’s not on the menu, Buddy.”

  Kael called from the back, voice high. “Keep reminding him! Frequently!”

  Every so often, Brimma would halt, plant her staff, and summon a [Spire Bloom], a spiraling bloom of thorny stone bursting from the ground.

  [Spire Bloom – Activated]

  Standing near the bloom restores Stamina and grants minor resistance to ranged attacks.

  The party would crowd around, resting against the stone flower’s aura as their SP ticked slowly upward.

  Alistair leaned against one after a particularly long jog, panting lightly.

  “This is the dumbest long-distance run I’ve ever signed up for.”

  Buddy sprawled at his feet, panting like a furnace.

  Kael wiped sweat from his brow. “Remind me again why we’re doing this?”

  “The bones,” Thessaly said simply.

  “The bones,” Alistair echoed. “The kind of loot you build kingdoms on.”

  Kael groaned. “Or die on.”

  Alistair grinned. “It’s all about the marketing.”

  The wasteland stretched on, endless, cracked, shimmering with heat.

  They passed other champions, some moving in small packs, some alone.

  Eyes met across the distance. Hands hovered near weapons. But no one engaged.

  Everyone had the same idea: save your strength for the prize.

  Alistair kept Buddy close, one hand resting casually on the hellhound’s neck. Even from this distance, the beast’s presence made other groups veer wide.

  “See?” Alistair murmured. “You’re good for morale.”

  Buddy huffed, pleased.

  Then the silence shattered.

  A chorus of howls ripped through the air, high, wild, too many voices at once.

  Buddy’s ears flattened instantly. His growl turned sharp and dangerous.

  The entire party froze mid-step.

  Alistair’s hand went to his sword. “That’s new.”

  Thessaly dropped into a ready stance. “Wolves?”

  Kael shook his head, pale. “Not just wolves.”

  Brimma’s grip tightened on her staff. “Be ready.”

  Alistair smiled grimly, heart already racing.

  “Well,” he said softly. “Guess the first act’s about to start.”

  The howls came closer, fast.

  Shapes blurred in the distance, kicking up dust as they sprinted toward the group.

  Not wolves.

  Not beasts.

  Lycans.

  [Enemy Identified – Lycans – Primal Champions]

  ? Pack signature detected.

  ? High aggression.

  ? Racial Enmity Active.

  [Instinctive hostility triggered]

  Alistair blinked as the pop-up flashed and vanished.

  His lips peeled back in a hiss before he could stop it, low, sharp, guttural.

  The vampire instinct roared up fast, old and cold in his blood.

  Kill or be killed.

  “Damn it,” he muttered.

  Brimma glanced over. “What?”

  He flicked his blades loose, fangs already sharp. “Lycans.”

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

  Thessaly frowned. “Not werewolves?”

  “No.” Alistair spat in the dust. “Worse.”

  Kael’s voice came thin and high. “Define worse.”

  “They don’t need the full moon,” Alistair said, stalking forward. “They turn whenever they want. Stronger, faster, nastier.”

  He rolled his shoulders, eyes narrowing. “And unlike werewolves, they think like a pack. They use tactics. They hunt together.”

  Brimma’s mouth tightened. “Perfect.”

  Kael cursed. “Gods. I thought we hated werewolves already.”

  Alistair gave a cold grin. “We do. But Lycans and vampires?” He bared his teeth. “Old blood feud. The moment they smell me, they’ll go straight for the throat.”

  Buddy rumbled deep in his chest, smoke trailing from his nostrils.

  “Smart dog,” Alistair said. “He knows.”

  Kael muttered, “Why is it always monsters with you?”

  Alistair flashed a grin. “I am a monster.”

  Kael groaned. “You know what I mean!”

  Thessaly’s voice stayed calm. “We fight them like any other pack. Thin them first. Don’t let them swarm.”

  Brimma raised her staff. “Agreed.”

  Alistair’s smile sharpened, fire coiling through his veins.

  “Good,” he said softly. “Because I’m very much in the mood for wolf stew.”

  Thessaly’s voice snapped through the air. “They’re coming fast!”

  Alistair forced the instinct down, teeth bared. “I know.”

  Buddy tensed, smoke hissing from his maw. One molten eye flicked to Alistair, waiting.

  Seven… no, eight shapes now, lean, massive forms rippling with muscle, fur matted with blood and dust. Their eyes burned amber. Long claws gleamed. They sprinted on all fours, then surged upright, howling again as they closed.

  Brimma slammed her staff into the ground. “Form up!”

  Alistair spat, voice low. “Buddy, PROTECT!”

  [Verbal Command – Compliance Successful]

  The hellhound’s growl erupted into a full-throated roar. Flames licked along his jaws. His muscles coiled, then he surged forward like a black comet.

  “Kael, get distance!” Brimma snapped.

  Kael backpedaled fast, already nocking an arrow. “I hate this! I hate this! Why is it always dogs?!”

  Alistair pivoted into stance, sword in one hand, dagger in the other. Firekindled instinct flared through his veins.

  [Firebite – Activated]

  Mana Cost: 2/sec.

  The edges of his blades shimmered faintly, embers running like veins through steel.

  Thessaly moved in front of Alistair without a word, body low, bark-like patterns spreading thicker across her arms.

  The Lycans hit like a wave.

  The first leapt for Buddy, met mid-air by a [Blazefang] strike. Fire and flesh exploded as Buddy clamped down on its throat, shaking hard.

  Another wolf tried to flank low. Buddy twisted, claws tearing a gouge through its ribs.

  [Buddy – HP: 417 / 438]

  Buddy’s only answer was another roar.

  Another lunged for Thessaly. She met it head-on.

  [Rootbind Grasp – Activated]

  Thick roots shot from the cracked earth, wrapping the beast’s legs and yanking it down mid-leap. It snarled, snapping wildly as she slammed her knee into its chest, driving it back.

  [Thornspike Shell Passive Active]

  +6 Defense

  Melee attackers take minor piercing damage.

  The trapped Lycan clawed at her legs, each rake answered with sprays of its own blood. Thessaly grunted and braced, bark-thick arms absorbing the worst of it.

  Brimma’s staff slammed down with a metallic crack.

  [Spire Bloom – Activated]

  A thick, thorned bloom burst from the ground beside Alistair and Thessaly, releasing a pulse of green light.

  Stamina ticked upward in his vision.

  Cool, steady.

  He shifted stance as two more Lycans broke from the flanks.

  “Time to dance,” Alistair muttered.

  The first lunged low, he sidestepped and drove his dagger into its shoulder, the blade searing through muscle.

  [Critical Hit]

  +5 Fire Damage

  [Warmth x1] applied.

  The Lycan howled and twisted, claws raking empty air.

  Another came barreling toward Thessaly’s flank, Kael’s arrow caught it clean through the shoulder.

  [Target: Lycan Warrior – HP: 362 / 450]

  Bleeding Applied.

  The beast staggered but kept coming until Buddy barreled into it from the side, sending it tumbling in a spray of dust and blood.

  [Buddy – HP: 401 / 438]

  Alistair caught the faint shimmer of shadow, Brimma now surrounded by a swirl of black mist.

  [Veil of Dread – Activated]

  ? Nearby enemies suffer -5% accuracy.

  ? If feared, critical strike chance reduced.

  One of the Lycans paused mid-sprint, snarl faltering as its eyes darted nervously.

  Alistair seized the opening, ducking low and driving his sword in a sharp upward arc.

  [Warmth x2] applied.

  Target: Bleeding. Burning.

  The Lycan stumbled back, bleeding heavily.

  [Target: Lycan Pack Hunter – Dead]

  Alistair exhaled sharply.

  “One down,” he hissed. “Seven to go.”

  Buddy tore through another pair, one pinned beneath massive claws, the other driven back by scorching jaws.

  [Blazefang Activated]

  Target Burning.

  Smoke and blood thickened the air.

  But the pack wasn’t slowing.

  The Alpha now stalked forward cold, calculating. Its burning eyes locked on Alistair with almost human hatred.

  Alistair licked his lips, fangs gleaming.

  “They’re testing us,” he rasped. “Holding back the real push.”

  Beside him, Thessaly braced again, roots already coiling beneath her feet.

  “They’ll commit soon,” she said. “Be ready.”

  Buddy snarled again, flames roaring higher.

  Kael shouted from his perch. “I’m trying to thin them out!”

  Another arrow flew, another Lycan staggered.

  Brimma’s voice rang out, sharp. “Hold the line! Let them come!”

  Alistair’s grin sharpened.

  “Oh,” he whispered. “I’m counting on it.”

  Alistair wiped blood from his chin with the back of his arm. His fangs ached to bite, but instinct told him, not yet. The Alpha was playing this smart.

  “Brimma,” he called low. “He’s using the others first.”

  Brimma’s mouth twisted in a grim smile. “Of course he is.”

  Then the rest of the pack charged.

  Seven Lycans hit the line in a roaring wall of teeth and claws.

  “Hold!” Thessaly barked.

  Buddy met the wall of fur and claws head-on, jaws blazing, flames roaring outward.

  [Blazefang Activated]

  One Lycan caught the blast full in the face, shrieking, fur igniting.

  Buddy lunged, claws tearing into another that tried to flank him.

  The hellhound fought like a demon, claws scoring deep gouges, jaws snapping with brutal precision.

  [Buddy – HP: 351 / 438]

  Thessaly blocked a second Lycan’s lunge, her bark-armored arms locking its claws mid-air. Roots burst upward beneath its feet.

  [Rootbind Grasp – Activated]

  The beast shrieked and thrashed as thorned roots bound its legs tight. Her [Thornspike Shell] scored bleeding cuts across its limbs with every movement.

  “Left flank!” she called.

  Alistair moved fast.

  His sword flashed low, catching a lunging Lycan across the ribs.

  [Critical Hit]

  Warmth x2

  Bleeding.

  Burning.

  The beast stumbled, but another surged in.

  Alistair hissed and twisted aside, driving his dagger into its flank. Blood sprayed hot.

  “Kael, now!” he shouted.

  From the ridge, Kael loosed another arrow.

  It drove through a Lycan’s throat, the beast collapsed mid-snarling lunge.

  [Target: Lycan Pack Hunter – Dead]

  “That’s two!” Kael called, breath ragged. “I can’t keep this up forever!”

  “Neither can they,” Alistair shot back.

  Buddy slammed another Lycan to the ground, jaws clamping hard.

  Brimma swept her staff high.

  [Veil of Dread – Activated]

  Shadow washed over the field, two of the attacking Lycans faltered, eyes flickering with unease.

  Buddy tore through his pinned foe, flame bursting from his maw.

  [Target: Lycan Pack Hunter – Dead]

  Three down. Four left.

  But the pack was still relentless.

  One Lycan crashed into Thessaly’s side, claws raking across her ribs. She grunted, roots lashing in response.

  [Vineheart Bond – Ready]

  Another lunged at Alistair, faster than he expected. He ducked low, blade flashing up into its gut.

  [Warmth x3]

  Bleeding.

  The beast staggered back, right into Kael’s next arrow.

  [Target: Lycan Pack Hunter – Dead]

  Four down. Three to go.

  Buddy fought like a living flame, battering another Lycan back with a sweep of his claws.

  But Alistair felt it, the Alpha still watching. Still waiting.

  “You see it?” he called to Thessaly.

  She ducked under a claw swipe and drove her bark-armored fist into a Lycan’s jaw. “Yes.”

  Brimma shouted from the side. “The bastard is patient. Don’t get sloppy!”

  Kael’s next arrow clipped another Lycan’s shoulder, but the beast kept coming.

  Alistair exhaled slow. His blades were warm in his hands, fire singing through them.

  “They want us tired first,” he muttered. “He’ll come when we’re spent.”

  Buddy roared again, [Blazefang] flashing.

  Another Lycan fell beneath his claws and fire.

  [Target: Lycan Pack Hunter – Dead]

  Five down. Two left.

  And the Alpha… still watching. Still waiting.

  Alistair bared his fangs in a sharp grin.

  “Fine,” he whispered. “Let’s see how many friends you’ll burn before you join them.”

  Get early access to chapters, bonus content, and more. Now’s the perfect time to jump in!

  Patreon