“Good," Larok said. He wasn't even winded. Never was. "You're all improving. Garcia, your footwork is solid now. Liam, those twin blades are finally working together. Blaze, nice job not telegraphing that last strike."He looked at Miko. "And you. You're starting to fight like someone who knows what they're doing.""High praise," Miko said dryly."From me? Yes." Larok grinned. "Water break. Then we work on something new."They gathered around the well in the courtyard. Drinking. Cooling down. The morning sun was warm but not hot. Perfect weather for torture, as Blaze liked to say."What's the new thing?" Akiya asked. Her voice was almost normal now. The throat damage had healed."You'll see." Larok disappeared into one of the buildings. Came back carrying a wooden box. Set it down and opened it.Inside were stones. Smooth. Black. They seemed to drink the light."What are those?" Garcia asked."Abyssal fragments. Small pieces of corruption given physical form." Larok picked one up. "Ha

Day twenty-eight.Larok woke them earlier than usual. Still dark outside. No stars visible."Final test today," he announced. "Pass, and we descend tomorrow. Fail, and we train another week."Nobody wanted another week.They gathered in the training grounds. Cold. Tired. But ready."Here's how this works," Larok said. "You fight me. All of you. Together. No holding back. Use everything I've taught you. Magic, weapons, tactics. Everything.""Just fight you?" Liam asked. "That's the test?""That's the test. You land three solid hits on me, you pass. Simple." Larok rolled his shoulders. "But I'm not holding back either. So don't expect easy."He took his stance. Axe-hammer in hand. Lightning already crackling around him."Begin."They moved as one.Three weeks of training together showed. Garcia called the strategy. Miko and Liam flanked left and right. Blaze straight down the middle. Akiya from behind. Anna stayed back, ready to heal.Larok met them head-on.His axe-hammer swept in a wi

The cave was quiet except for the sound of breathing. Miko sat with his back against the stone wall, staff across his lap. Garcia was beside him, eyes scanning the darkness outside. Their watch shift had another hour before Liam and Blaze took over. Then the whispers started. Not the normal Abyss whispers. These were different. Closer. More focused. Garcia tensed. "Something's coming." Miko stood slowly. The ash around his hands began to swirl without him calling it. His body recognized danger before his mind did. Three shapes emerged from the darkness. The Trinide. They walked with that same confident stride. That same mocking smile. But something was different tonight. More purposeful. Less patient. "Wake the others," Miko said quietly. Garcia moved fast. Within seconds, everyone was up. Weapons ready. Larok came to stand at the cave entrance, axe-hammer in hand. The woman stopped about twenty feet from the cave. Her companions flanked her. All three staring with those bl

Miko woke to the sound of his team fighting. Not winning. Just fighting. Desperately. Trying everything to break the hand around his throat. Garcia's blade hit again. And again. Each strike precise. Perfect technique. Useless. Blaze's spear thrust for joints. For vulnerable points that should exist. Found nothing. Liam was using wind to try to pry the fingers loose. The air howled. The fingers didn't budge. Akiya's fire washed over the arm. Temperature hot enough to melt steel. The skin didn't even redden. Anna was crying. Pouring healing magic into Miko. Trying to keep him alive while being strangled. It was working. Barely. Just enough to keep him conscious. The thing wearing his father smiled at their efforts. "Impressive. Your determination. Your loyalty. Your teamwork." The multi-layered voice was almost gentle. "It won't matter. But impressive nonetheless." "Let him go!" Garcia screamed. She was hitting the arm with her sword's pommel now. Her blade had notched from repe

Miko was losing.Every hit he landed meant nothing. Every strike the thing countered broke something inside him. Ribs. Bones. Spirit.The ash around him was fading. Running out. He'd pushed too hard. Burned through the power too fast.The thing wearing his father's face grabbed him by the throat. Lifted him off the ground. Squeezed.But as Miko's vision started to blur, he saw something.His father's hand. The one choking him. It was shaking. Not from effort. From strain. The fingers trembled even as they crushed his windpipe.And the skin. It was wrong. Cracked. Like old leather stretched too thin. Black veins visible beneath the surface. Spreading. Growing.Miko's eyes tracked up the arm. More cracks. More black veins. The corruption wasn't just controlling his father's body.It was destroying it."You see it now, don't you?" The multi-layered voice had an edge to it. Stress. "This vessel. It's failing. Worn out from years of service. But it has just enough left. Enough to end you.