Six roaches disappeared into the cave mouth before the trio closed in. No sounds of struggle. Good. If his crew couldn’t handle a few bugs, this place would be their grave.

  The flickering chimera shed its malformed flesh. Limbs squelched as they hit the ground. Collapse was imminent. But they should be far enough away to avoid the aftereffects.

  Should.

  With luck, its collapse would eliminate dozens of abominations.

  Unfortunately, the remaining abominations didn’t wait to find out. Avoiding the chimera, they poured from the trees and rushed toward Kai with frightening focus.

  It wasn’t just fear. They’d transformed from hungry to starving. Bulging eyes and drooling mouths marked the shift. What was their problem?

  Dirt gave way to stone as they ran toward the cave. A trail of corpses lay behind them. Ahead, the path cleared. Mostly. Cutting through a few straggling abominations, they advanced without slowing.

  Dakas was dead, but the fight continued.

  Behind them, the ravenous horde pursued. Tension tightened Kai’s gut. If the others didn’t leave now, the horde would trap them - the cave becoming their tomb.

  He ached to find Renzo, but killing his avatar wasn’t worth leaving his crew vulnerable. Without them, his chances of reaching Renzo’s real body were slim. Though it wouldn’t surprise him if the man he grew up with was another avatar. A smart puppeteer would never expose themselves, and the slimy bastard was anything but stupid.

  This delay changed nothing.

  He’d destroy any avatars he found, seize leadership of the Serpent Mob, then hunt Renzo’s avatars down until he eradicated him. A manhunt was easier with more manpower.

  With his teleportation, the duplication avatar couldn’t avoid him for long. He’d deal with Renzo after preparing his crew.

  Breaking off from the chase, some abominations devoured the nearby corpses. Waste not, want not.

  The trio neared the cave, then spun to face their pursuers.

  “Hold here while I get the others,” Kai said.

  Levi’s blood orb rose above their heads, raining bloody spears on the charging abominations. Kai thrust his sword into an oncoming ape’s eye. Its mouth gaped in soundless agony before it crumpled. As blood fed his suit, he turned and vanished, emerging beside the cave mouth.

  Levi and Silas held their position with blood and fire.

  A flaming wall burst into existence on the forest path, blocking the rushing horde. Splintering away, smaller groups moved through the trees to bypass the firewall. Bloody spears peppered them from above before they cleared the treeline.

  Kai shouted into the cave. “Dakas is dead!”

  Alira and Rusk stood at the corridor entrance. Roach chunks littered the ground nearby. An invisible net hung across the cave’s opening, roach chunks tangled within it. Rusk’s fingers twitched, and the net collapsed, threads returning to their master. The duo stepped out of the cave, Shadow close behind.

  “Lilith?” Kai asked.

  “Playing with bones,” Rusk replied. “She’ll be out soon.”

  Kai shook his head. Lilith’s delay had better be worth it.

  “And Merek?”

  “Waiting in the corridor with the horses,” Alira said. Scanning, she assessed the battlefield. “Better to clear the danger before he comes out, right?”

  “This isn’t a clear-the-danger kinda situation,” Kai said. “It’s a clear-a-path-and-get-the-hell-out kinda thing.”

  “You said Dakas was dead?”

  “He is. But there’s a horde of abominations itching to eat us behind that flame wall.”

  Her jaw tightened. The bad news crushed any relief she might’ve felt at Dakas’s demise. Rusk grinned, eager as ever to jump into bloody chaos.

  Kai looked down at Shadow. “Need your help, boy.”

  He could’ve sworn the wolf rolled its eyes at him.

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  “If you’re gonna be like that,” Kai’s gaze shifted to the corridor, “I’ll ask Butcher instead.”

  Huffing, Shadow padded beside Kai.

  A flawless bluff.

  He commanded the wolf to get ready for combat.

  His shoulders bulged, his snout lengthened, his body expanded. Spikes of dark bone burst through his hide. Embracing his true nature, Shadow became a pure predator. Fully grown, the wolf’s head reached Kai’s chest.

  Pride flickered through him as he patted Shadow’s head. A worthy pet was one that scared enemies ashless.

  Among the trees, the unstable wraith stilled. Reality flickered around it. Nearby abominations tried to distance themselves but couldn’t break through the unstable reality. Trapped.

  The rest of the horde, ravenous and reckless, threw themselves against the flame wall. It wavered.

  They had moments before the corrupted bastards broke through.

  Kai fell in beside Levi and Silas; the others followed. “I’m going after Renzo,” he said. “Can you manage without me?”

  Levi scoffed, chin rising. “This sea of filth is no match for me.”

  It’d be easier to hunt Renzo with Levi by his side, but he abandoned the thought. The horde would wear the others down until they ran out of essence. But as long as there was blood, Levi could keep fighting. And there’d be rivers of the stuff flowing before this was over.

  “Good,” Kai said. “Clear a path and protect the others until I get back.”

  Levi sneered at Rusk, then faced Kai. “The oaf and boy can protect themselves; I’ll protect the charming ladies.”

  Kai’s glare pierced him. “I command you to protect all of my crew. If any of them die, I’ll starve you until you join them.”

  A frown twisted the vampire’s features. His muscles tensed. Veins popped out on his forehead and neck. But his resistance proved futile against a command etched into his soul.

  He gave a sharp nod, then averted his gaze. The pompous bastard’s Curse was bothersome, but manageable with a little soul enslavement. Kai shuddered to think how he’d control the vampire without the soul bond.

  Couldn’t Death God have given him a less troublesome bloodsucker?

  Ice daggers materialised behind Alira. “Is it smart to chase Renzo alone?”

  Kai would rather bring everyone along, but it wasn’t feasible. “It’s not my first choice, but I’ll use less essence and teleport faster without passengers.” He glanced at the giant wolf beside him. “And I’m not alone; I’m bringing Shadow.”

  “If you need me, you only have to ask.”

  He met Alira’s eyes with a smile. “Thanks, but the others need you here. Taking any of you would make it harder for the others to hold out until I get back. And…this is something I need to do.”

  She inclined her head. “We’ll survive; make sure you do the same. I’d hate to lose my business partner before we’ve even made a shard.”

  “Lucky for you, I don’t plan on dying.”

  Pulling threads between his fingers, Rusk grinned. “This’ll be fun.”

  Blood spears impaled several roaches who’d circled around the flame wall. Holding their ground was easy enough while the barrier remained.

  Clacking sounds came from the cave. Skeletons of diverse shapes and sizes filed out onto the stone. Lilith followed behind.

  The wait had been worth it. Two dozen skeletons joined their forces.

  She stepped toward him, flanked by skeletons. “What’s the plan?”

  He smothered his rising envy as he repeated his instructions from earlier. “Once the path is clear, you and Merek should ride ahead, since your combat skills are...lacking.”

  Lilith’s expression showed no offence as she tapped her chin, studying the others. “I’m confident of our chances. But remember: Renzo's hard to kill. Be careful.”

  “Same goes for you guys.”

  The flame wall flickered.

  “That’s my cue,” Kai said.

  Several things happened at once.

  Reality bent around the unstable chimera. A soundless implosion shook the ground. Where the wraith stood, space folded inward like crumpled paper. Its attackers vanished from existence. The chimera’s body bent, broke, and compressed into nothing.

  Reality snapped back. A shockwave shook the nearby trees. Faltering again, the flame wall collapsed. Whatever happened didn’t extend far beyond the forest.

  Kai would’ve been relieved if abominations weren’t closing in.

  Roaches advanced, covering the ground. Horned Apes rushed forward, focused on him. Roach Men remained behind the others, glaring.

  He didn’t love being the centre of attention, but his Curse slapped a huge target on his back. The bulging eyes and ravenous hunger made sense now. They didn’t have a pile of corpses to distract them, so Kai dominated their attention.

  He could put that to use.

  “Shadow, hide,” he said.

  The wolf sank into the ground, merging with Kai’s shadow. A slight weight tugged at his heels.

  Skeletons charged the abominations on two legs, four legs, and other leg combinations. The bones resembled animals, humans, and creatures he couldn’t identify. But they all shared one thing: reckless and suicidal aggression.

  Immortal skeletons had no need for self-preservation.

  Ice daggers stabbed roaches in their eyes. Blood spears fell on the horde. Invisible threads split abominations in half.

  His crew mowed through the enemy.

  A gap widened in the abominations’ ranks. Kai saw through. Without wasting a moment, he tore through space, blinking into existence behind the stream of abominations. They hadn’t noticed him.

  That gave him options.

  He prepared to teleport away, leaving an echo to distract the abominations. But first, his senses spread, searching for the dark creature with the shaking head. He’d sensed the creature near the path before and didn’t wanna leave it lurking near his crew. Many red eyes watched him from deeper in the forest. All steady.

  The dark creatures hadn’t joined the abominations and made no move to attack. But that guaranteed little, and he’d rather be safe than sorry. Eliminating the one with the shaking head would serve as a warning or provoke them. But it was better than leaving them as an unknown quantity.

  If they got aggressive, he’d lead them away from his crew and give Renzo a taste of his own medicine. The dark horde would overwhelm the bastard, but Kai would lose his opportunity to squeeze answers out of him.

  It’d be best if they could communicate and come to an arrangement — a new ally was more beneficial than a new enemy. Though he held little hope for that.

  The dark things didn’t look particularly talkative.

  Where’s the shaking one?

  His spatial senses warned him too late. Something rose from the ground, and a dark hand gripped his shoulder. In an instant, the sky filled his vision while he fell backward. Before he could tear through space, the dark hand covered his eyes.

  A sea of black drowned him. His senses died. He heard nothing, saw nothing, felt nothing.

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