The climb up the mountain took two hours in complete darkness. They moved in pairs, using hand signals and staying low to avoid detection from the wraith patrols below. The smaller cave entrances were exactly where Anna had spotted them, but getting inside proved more complicated than expected."This one's blocked," Cabin whispered, peering into a cave opening that had been sealed with metal bars. "Looks like prison bars, but installed from the inside.""Same here," Zoe reported from another entrance. "Whatever's happening down there, they don't want people getting out.""Or getting in," Liam added grimly.They tried six different cave entrances before finding one that wasn't sealed. The opening was narrow and partially hidden behind fallen rocks, which probably explained why it had been overlooked by whoever was running this operation."I'll go first," Miko said, squeezing through the gap. The cave beyond was pitch black and smelled of unwashed bodies and something else that made his

The wake-up call came before dawn. Harsh lights flooded the dormitory while wraith guards moved through the sleeping areas, prodding anyone who didn't respond fast enough with electric prods that left painful burns.Miko jerked awake to find a wraith standing over him, its black eyes reflecting the artificial light. For a moment, his instincts screamed at him to fight, but he forced himself to act like the other slaves. Head down, no eye contact, mechanical compliance."Work detail seven, report to assembly area," the wraith growled in a voice like grinding stone.Around him, fifty exhausted people struggled to their feet. Some had been here so long they moved like robots, their humanity worn away by months or years of captivity. Others, newer arrivals, still showed signs of the shock and fear that came with losing everything.Aria was among the newer arrivals, assigned to the same work detail purely by coincidence. She caught his eye for just a moment, and he saw the same controlled

The next day, instead of the usual chaotic wake-up call, the lights came on slowly and the wraith guards moved with deliberate precision through the dormitory. They weren't just rousing slaves for another work day. They were looking for something specific."Inspection," one of the awakened wraiths announced, its voice carrying the authority of genuine intelligence. "All workers will remain in position for individual review."Miko felt his stomach drop. This wasn't part of the normal routine. Something had triggered their suspicion.The guards moved through the sleeping area methodically, examining each slave with careful attention. They checked the control collars, looked at faces, even seemed to be evaluating posture and behavior patterns."This is bad," Aria whispered beside him. "They're looking for something.""Or someone."Two rows over, Miko spotted the slave who'd been asking too many questions about their background. The man was fidgeting nervously, glancing around like he was

The battle was going badly.What had started as a coordinated assault was turning into a desperate fight for survival. The awakened wraiths moved like a professional army, coordinating attacks and defensive positions with military precision that caught the team completely off guard."How are there so many of them?" Cabin shouted, his earth barriers crumbling under sustained assault from multiple directions.Miko counted at least forty awakened wraiths visible in the portal chamber alone, with more streaming in from other parts of the complex. The intelligence and coordination they displayed was far beyond anything he'd expected from Abyssal creatures.Across the cavern, he could see his other teammates struggling just as badly. Only Samson, Liam, Akiya, and Garcia seemed to be putting up decent fights against their opponents. Everyone else was being pushed back or barely holding defensive positions.Anna was doing her best to coordinate slave evacuations while under constant pressure

What happened next wasn't a fight. It was an execution.The cat masked man moved with the ultimate of the ultimate precision that made the awakened wraiths' enhanced speed look clumsy. Where Miko's element marriage was raw power wrapped in hungry darkness, this stranger fought with clinical efficiency that operated beyond normal reality.The karkub died first. They were fast, multi-limbed predators with burning intelligence, but they moved like statues compared to the masked fighter. Each strike was perfectly placed, each movement calculated for maximum effect with minimum effort."Impossible," the first awakened wraith breathed, backing away as karkub fell around it like wheat before a scythe. "No human moves like that.""Who said I was human?" the masked man replied conversationally.His voice was calm, like he was discussing the weather rather than eliminating creatures that had been overwhelming trained students seconds before. Whatever power he possessed operated by rules that di