The first light of dawn had yet to crest over Vorthryn's jagged skyline, but Karian's office was already awake. The scent of parchment and iron filled the air—plans and weapons in equal measure. Braziers hissed softly in the corners, casting flickering shadows against the map-laden wall.
Ajax and Reva stood at attention across from Karian's desk. Neither wore their cloaks—just their scout armor and the expressions of people used to early summons.
Karian gestured toward a map pinned with red sigils across a desert region known as the Blackened Spine.
"A Valern outpost deep in the sands went dark four days ago. Final transmission reported light delays in supply movement, no hostilities."
Reva crossed her arms. "Do we suspect Cairn?"
"That's our working theory," Karian replied. "Could be a strike team. Could be a resource cutoff to bait us into overreacting."
He leaned over the desk, gaze hard. "Your assignment isn't to engage. It's reconnaissance only. Move in quiet, assess the situation, and return. If the outpost has been compromised, you observe and withdraw. We don't risk lives over territory—yet."
Reva nodded. "Understood."
Karian rolled the map closed. "You leave in an hour. Travel light, move fast. A single sandcrawler will take you within a league of the ridge. From there, it's on foot."
Then he paused and looked at Ajax.
"Anything you need?"
Ajax shifted slightly, then spoke.
"I have a request."
Karian arched an eyebrow.
"I've been mentoring a new recruit," Ajax continued. "His name's Elyr. Just joined. He's young, quiet—but gifted. I've had him in drills the last week and a half. Receptive. Sharp eyes. Never complains."
Karian gave him a flat look. "I don't know the name."
"You wouldn't. He's not the type to talk unless asked. But he's disciplined. I want him to come with us."
Reva added, "He's not reckless. I've seen him observe Ajax's footwork like he was memorizing a spellbook."
Karian's expression didn't soften.
"This isn't a training patrol."
Ajax didn't back down. "I know. But it's not a battle mission either. If this is just scouting, it's the best kind of first field experience for him. He'll stay behind us. Watch. Learn. That's it."
Karian looked him over—measuring something beyond the words.
"And if things go south?"
"I'll keep him safe."
Another breath passed.
"Fine," Karian said. "He goes. But he's yours to command. His mistakes are your responsibility."
Ajax nodded. "They already were."
Karian stepped back behind his desk.
"Then you have one hour. Prepare him."
___
The desert stretched endlessly before them, an ocean of gold and rust. Winds carved slow spirals through the dunes, and the sun's heat had begun to seep through even the protective weave of their combat cloaks. It had been two full days of travel—measured, cautious, and quiet.
Elyr, despite his age, kept pace without complaint. His bow hung across his back, and a small satchel bounced lightly at his side. He didn't talk much, which Ajax appreciated. Instead, he watched. Absorbed. Listened. His eyes were always scanning, his attention rarely wandered.
Ajax watched him out of the corner of his eye. The boy's stance was better now. Feet closer together. Breath controlled. A week and a half of guidance, and already there was a change.
Reva noticed too. She didn't say it aloud, but he caught the occasional glance she sent Elyr's way—assessing, measuring. Reva didn't give trust easily, but it was clear Elyr had earned at least the beginnings of it.
They made camp that night beneath the overhang of a redstone ridge. Ajax summoned a flickering blade to cut kindling from the drybrush nearby—an act so routine now it barely took effort. Elyr watched with quiet fascination as the blade shimmered, faintly translucent and edged with pure green mana.
"Will I ever be able to make something like that?" Elyr asked as they settled around the fire.
Ajax glanced at him. "Not the same way. But your bow can become something more. Just give it time. Your magic will find its path."
Elyr nodded solemnly and fell asleep quickly afterward, curled in his blanket near the fire.
The next morning, they reached the outpost.
Or what remained of it.
It sat nestled against the base of a jagged mountainside, tucked into stone like a tooth in a broken jaw. The gate stood half-open, swaying faintly in the wind. No guards. No sentries. No sounds of life.
Ajax raised a hand, signaling for stillness.
"Quiet," Reva murmured.
There goal was to report their findings, but from what they could see, nothing had happened here.
They approached slowly, weapons drawn—not raised, but ready. Ajax stepped through the gate first, boots crunching lightly on sand-covered stone.
What he saw made him pause.
The entire compound was intact.
Untouched.
The barracks were sealed, the supply crates stacked, training weapons still hanging in racks. The water cistern was full. The mageforged lamps were charged.
It looked like a place paused mid-breath.
Reva slipped in behind him. "Where is everyone?"
Elyr crept forward a few steps, turning a corner around the barracks, his brow furrowed. "It's like they just… vanished."
Then he stopped.
"What are those?"
Ajax followed his gaze.
Burrows.
Dozens of them.
Torn into the earth like wounds—some wide enough for a full-grown man to fall into, others narrow and sharp. They perforated the yard, curling beneath stone and foundation. One even split through the center of the drill circle.
Reva knelt beside the nearest one and ran her fingers along the edges.
"Not dug," she said. "Tunneled. Ripped from below."
Ajax stepped back, scanning the pattern. The holes weren't random. They formed a spiraling path, centered beneath the main building.
"Something came through here," he said. "And it wasn't human."
"Cairn can conjure beasts," Reva offered. "Could be that."
"Then why no mana residue?"
She didn't answer.
The wind shifted.
And Ajax's Spiral flared.
He turned—too late.
A sudden shriek split the silence. The ground beneath them exploded, and something massive burst from the sand, sending rocks and shards into the air.
The titan sized lizard landed hard, its thorn-covered hide cracking stone beneath its weight. It uncoiled like a serpent, thirty feet of raw, twisted muscle and hardened scale. Its eyes gleamed molten red. Bark-like ridges armored its body, and thorns protruded from its back and shoulders like spears. Its head bore a crown of curved bone, and its tail—long and segmented—arched high, tipped with wicked, barbed spines.
Reva shoved Elyr backward. "It's a Scorngul! Get down!"
The tail snapped forward and launched a spike with a sound like a ballista. It slammed into the courtyard wall, embedding deep.
Ajax conjured his blades in an instant and stepped between the beast and the others. "It's hostile. Spread out!"
Reva backed Ajax up while Elyr ran towards an archer tower.
The Scorngul roared—a low, gurgling snarl that vibrated in their chests. Then it lunged.
Ajax met it head-on.
Mana surged through his Spiral, and in a flicker of green light, a scythe formed in his hands—sharper than before, edges vibrating faintly with condensed force. He slid low, blade dragging across the creatures torso in an attempt to find a weak spot.
The strike landed—but barely. It skidded along the creature's bark-armored hide, leaving only a shallow gash. The Scorngul turned sharply, tail whipping, and Ajax had to immediately conjure a great shield in the scythes place to avoid being impaled.
"Reva, flank it!" he shouted as he blocked the oncoming tail whip.
Reva was already moving. Her boots struck stone with rapid precision, Pulse Gate surging. She danced along the outer edge of the fight, drawing the Scorngul's attention with a flash of steel from her shortblades. Her strikes were measured—quick taps aimed at testing for weak points, not risking deep engagements.
The creature reared back on its hind legs and roared again.
That was when Elyr, now perched in an crows nest, raised his bow.
His hands shook—but he held steady. He drew back the string, aimed for the eye, and released.
The arrow flew straight. Perfectly accurate.
And bounced off a bony mass on the Scornguls crown.
"Damn," Elyr muttered, not with fear—but with frustration. He reached for another arrow, eyes focused.
Ajax slid behind the creature's right side, searching for an opening. "Its hide's too thick!" he shouted.
"Try the joints," Reva called. "Or it's eyes."
The Scorngul surged toward her with a speed that defied its size. She ducked under a tail swipe and slashed across its rear leg. Her blade bit deeper this time—barely, but it made the monster stumble.
Ajax saw his chance.
He sprinted forward and leapt, driving two blades into the exposed muscle behind the creatures skull. Then he twisted the blades shape to become serrated. The creature bucked and screeched, twisting wildly. Ajax held on, blades buried deep, until the momentum threw him off. He landed hard and rolled.
The beast turned on him now, eyes glowing.
"Boom." Ajax gave a sly smile.
And he detonated the swords that were still buried inside the creatures neck.
The Scorngul gave a final, thunderous cry.
Then collapsed.
Stone crumbled beneath its weight.
Silence fell over the ruined yard.
Ajax released his conjured weapons and fell back, landing in a seated sprawl, panting.
"That," he gasped, "was harder than expected."
Reva wiped blood from her cheek. "You okay?"
"Bruised, maybe cracked a rib when I took that tail swipe," he said. "But I'm breathing."
Elyr who had left the tower crept forward, eyes wide and said. "You two were… that was…"
"Incredible?" Ajax offered.
"Terrifying," Elyr muttered. "But yeah. Incredible too."
Reva chuckled and nudged him lightly. "Welcome to the field, kid."
They turned back toward the corpse.
It was ugly and broken now—horns cracked, hide torn in long strips. But it was still massive. Still monstrous.
"I'll make a report," Ajax said. "Document it. Take a scale for analysis."
He approached slowly and knelt beside the beast's side. His hand hovered above one of the exposed bones, still radiating faint heat.
Then his Spiral pulsed—hard.
He froze.
And then, from behind the ruined barracks, the ground began to shift.
A low tremor rippled through the stone. Dust rose. The very earth groaned.
Ajax's eyes widened.
"Move!" he screamed.
The ground erupted.
A second creature burst forth like a nightmare uncoiled. Taller. Thicker. Covered in crystalline shards that glowed with stored, red energy. Its roar shattered nearby windows, and the sheer force of its emergence sent them all flying.
Elyr hit the ground hard and rolled toward the gate, dazed.
Reva landed beside a collapsed stairwell, coughing.
Ajax hit the courtyard floor, his limbs numb, his Spiral burning with sudden overload.
The creature didn't wait.
It charged.
And the real battle began.