As more golden motes emerged, coalescing into a gold-emerald hue that shrouded the cloud-piercing tree, Aureus had to be dismissed. The Earthheart landed on the ground, the compelling nearly growing too powerful to allow me to recall him into the World. Only when he was safely stored did I look back, craning my neck to watch the titan of a tree as it began emitting a power that couldn’t be sensed before. But now that I could sense it, uncertainty gripped my heart.

  I should have realized it earlier. I should– I know that tree. It’s so familiar. But how do I know it? Why is it so familiar?

  The Elemental Phoenix whispered deliriously through the bond, likely not even realizing he clung to the inner World’s stability as he did so.

  Hundreds of beasts flew around the tree, the motes, and the invisible structure surrounding them, yet none ever touched any of it. Even as the golden motes floated outward, the beasts pulled away, only filling the empty space once the motes faded out of existence.

  The ambient ether near the tree was thicker and purer than anything I was used to. It felt as though the ether itself had been refined beyond natural limits, augmented to an extent I hadn’t known was possible. My senses and mind were overstimulated by the sheer density of ether hanging in the air. It wasn’t something an Expert should have been exposed to for long, yet I still marched toward the tree, eyes fixed on the massive structure. Until a snarl snapped me back to reality.

  An Unblemished beast burst through a densely grown hedge. Liquefied ether coursed through its veins and poured from its hide. Vines jutted from its skin, coiling tightly around brown, mottled flesh. Beautiful flowers with colorful petals bloomed along its body, yet they did little to soften the terror of the vine-covered wolf. As ridiculous as it might have looked at a glance, the beast was anything but harmless.

  It was faster than I was, and territorial. The first territorial beast I’d encountered in this place. That realization did nothing to ease my growing unease.

  The wolf pounced, its paws carrying it forward with agility that far surpassed what its rank suggested.

  Predator saved my life. The trait warned me of impending death a split second before everything went downhill, and I triggered Soulfusion with Nox. Claws raked across my chest, cutting through armor and shirt before they could dig into my flesh. A thick exoskeleton formed just in time. It was carved through with ease, but the momentum of the strike was drained.

  Scythe arms erupted from my lower back, slicing across the wolf’s face and leaving a deep gash. The beast retaliated instantly. Paralyze triggered at full power, yet the wolf shrugged it off. Its maw snapped shut around one of Nox’s elongated scythes and tore it apart.

  A pained hiss echoed through my mind as I canceled Soulfusion. Manifested body parts were only near-perfect replicas of the real thing, but losing them still hurt. Nox could feel the loss of the severed scythe-arm despite retaining both originals, phantom pain tearing through his mind.

  Sweat streamed down my chest as the wolf’s claws blurred toward me again. This time, I was ready. Not to fight, but to flee before it was too late.

  Ether erupted from my body and dispersed in all directions as Mirage triggered. A dazzling explosion of light swallowed the area, followed by a pained yelp and hurried movement. The beast’s claws swept dangerously close to my face, but I leaped aside and triggered Mirage again. The light faded, nature’s colors returning, but I was gone. At least, that was what others were supposed to see – nothing.

  More beasts emerged at the edge of my awareness as I crept through the undergrowth, cursing my recklessness even as a small skirmish erupted nearby. Invisibility helped. Concealing my ether at the same time helped even more. But my tracks remained, and so did my scent.

  Thankfully, the wolf was distracted. Golden motes drifted past me toward the battlefield as I dragged myself closer to the cloud-piercing tree.

  Just looking at it now, I felt a power that hadn’t been there before. The tree was an enigma. Volix had been terrifying in his prime, but this was something else entirely. The cloud-piercing tree radiated a transcendent calm that wrapped around me, drawing me closer even as another sensation bloomed within.

  A sense of…addiction.

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  My World pulsed greedily, drumming in my chest like a second heart.

  It wanted me to step closer.

  To take it.

  To make it mine.

  Was there a dying Monarch in the tree? I couldn’t rule out the possibility, but even if it was true, it wasn’t as if my World could absorb another Runic Heart or take on another World Aspect. Even if my World was malleable, it couldn’t endure the strain of two World Aspects.

  You only consumed part of a Runic Heart. But that does not matter. No Monarch died in this place. This is something different entirely.

  Volix said, his voice hoarse and pained, as though the memories pierced through his mind and came to the surface.

  My mind drifted to the Elemental Phoenix. The thought of feeding Volix enough soul energy to push him to the Guardian Rank came to mind, but I discarded it after a moment. Breaking through now would trigger a metamorphosis on a scale I wasn’t sure I could survive – not while fighting with my life on the line, and not without the necessary preparations. I wasn’t ready. Yet advancing Volix felt like the right thing to do, and that was dangerous.

  The beasts closer to the tree were stronger. Guardian beasts emerged behind towering hedges, and it was only a matter of time before I located the first Overlord as well. Or maybe it was better to say the Overlords found me…

  Yeah, no. I am done for. I chuckled mirthlessly, dispersing Mirage after dozens of beasts locked onto my invisible form.

  I had been found out, and more Guardians and Overlords than I’d seen in my entire life surrounded me, raw power rolling off their bodies. Just being in their presence made me want to disappear.

  The beasts snarled in unison, and a select few gathered ether in their maws. Their presence was already difficult to endure, but the power they exuded as they prepared to attack was truly terrifying. My body tensed, and my mind went blank.

  It was almost like I’d given up on survival.

  But had I really? Was everything in vain? Thousands of hours of work, struggle, and pain–and now I would just… die?

  No. I can survive. I WILL survive!! I roared in defiance.

  Incoming.

  Volix hissed at the same instant. Volca’s mark burned in my chest and up to my neck a moment later as the phoenix’s soulshare erupted.

  It swelled to twice its size right before the Elemental Phoenix burst forth. Brilliant flames poured out of me, wreathing my limbs and the rest of my body in seconds. Savagely burning wings grew from my shoulder blades, and my pupils dilated. It felt like daggers of molten lava dug into my eyeballs from all sides as they transformed as well, revealing all that Volix could normally see.

  As my sight cleared and the pain faded, I caught a glimpse of the terrors unfolding behind the Overlords. No matter how terrifying the beasts before me were, whatever rested behind them was worse. So much worse. And it unleashed a tsunami of gold-emerald energy upon me.

  All out. Now!

  Volix commanding voice reverberated, but I was one step ahead. My ether reserves channeled into the Elemental Phoenix and the Major Fire Aspect.

  Reversing the Blazing Gates’ circulation system to feed Volix was a little tricky but I was glad it worked out as intended. Then, one step further, I funneled the ether of a dozen Gates into the phoenix. Weakness threatened to consume me instantaneously, but my feet dug deep into the ground beneath me and held firm.

  Carrying more ether than I could control, I let it out. It poured from me and intertwined with the phoenix fire as Volix took control. His power erupted, reaching the very peak of the Unblemished Rank. At this moment, we wielded a lot of power, yet we both knew it wasn’t enough. Not by a long stretch.

  Fuck that tsunami. Fuck that tree. Fuck everything!!

  I screamed inwardly, insanity and despair intermingling as I forced every last bit of unclaimed soul energy into Volix.

  “You better make sure I survive this shit!” I roared through the azure flames, even as they grew hot enough to consume me as well.

  Power ruptured through my body in an instant. Volix screeched aloud, the strength at his disposal reaching new heights. He only regained a fraction of his former power, but the Elemental Phoenix was old–older than the Guardians and Overlords towering before us. He knew what to do… or so I hoped.

  I prayed for our survival, teeth gritted as I braced myself for the worst pain imaginable.

  A fraction of a second later, Volix’s new power rocketed through the swollen soulshare. It impacted, empowering mind and soul.

  As the phoenix rose from the ashes, I burned. Yet as my body burned, I couldn’t feel anything.

  I stared ahead and watched the glistening tsunami of energy descend upon me and the beasts.

  Then…life swallowed me whole.