The group of fighters in the Queen’s chamber had begun leaving, tearing through the dense tunnels as fast as they could exit. Nolan remembered the way out like he’d been exploring them for years, knowing each turn and leading them easily. Leo figured it was due to his profession, similar to when he’d summoned the map-like skill. Damn useful. He was glad the man was doing okay.

Leo could feel the unsettled nature of Cain’s aura. It flared periodically, making people turn to look at him as it filled them with unease. Whatever relationship he’d had with Matilda was affecting him more than anything he believed Cain could ever feel. It reminded him of himself, losing control like this.

“Take deep breaths, man,” Leo said quietly, running next to the man.

Cain growled and snarled at him, eyes widening in rage. “I know what it’s like,” Leo continued. “Losing someone you care about and not being able to control the rage. It’s all consuming. But you need to keep it together. You’re stronger than this.”

Leo wasn’t sure what made him want to help Cain out after all they had been through, but once he’d started he didn’t want to stop.

He gingerly placed a hand on Cain’s shoulder. “I’m sorry she’s gone.”

Cain turned away as they ran, but Leo could feel the emotion spilling down his face. His aura started to settle, and they continued their march out.

While they were inside the maze-like structure of the Queen’s castle, Cain suddenly stopped.

Leo stopped a moment later, noticing him. “What’s—”

A pressure rolled over him like nothing he’d ever felt before. All the group stopped as they felt it, hands trembling under the sudden shock of it. It was like death itself had just made itself known. The pure hatred and bloodlust contained within the aura put Cain’s to shame as the alpha predator.

“W-what is that?” Ashley managed to stammer out.

“Nothing good,” Leo said, completely unphased by the aura, even if it was oppressive.

A notification appeared before them.

Quest Received

A creature, long locked away beneath the city, has been released.
The power of this creature is like nothing you have ever faced.
He may have let you live if he’d been given the Territory Orb. But now that it has been stolen from him, he will stop at nothing to hunt down the one responsible.

Hand over the orb, and hope it is enough to sate his rage.

Run, fight, hide, or obey.

The choice is yours

Objective: Hand over the orb and submit or defeat Serrix

Reward: Dependant on completion

Confusion instantly spread among the group as the aura receded back to where it came from.

“This shit never ends!” Bjorn shouted, frustration evident. “Wasn’t this shit meant to end when the Queen died? Now there’s some other kind of monstrosity to fight? Fuckin’ bullshit!”

“It says that it doesn’t have the orb, so maybe it’ll go after the insect people first,” Gordon said, hopeful.

“You know as well as I do that life isn’t that easy,” Nolan said to Gordon.

“Jasper took the key, right?” Ashley asked, continuing. “He probably unlocked something with it. Whatever this ‘Serrix’ is.” She shuddered. “That aura was terrifying. Like Leo’s when he’s angry but way more sinister.”

Damn, am I really that bad? His heart hurt a little from her words.

“Whatever it is, we need to get out and to our people, fast,” Cecelia said, already running.

“Left!” Nolan shouted, following after her.

Leo watched them all leave, wracking his brain at what was happening. It was all so confusing and he wanted answers. He also wasn’t confident in killing whatever had given off that aura. Cain walked next to him, they were the last two to start running.

“Leo, come on!” Ashley called.

Leo started to move, but Cain stopped him, speaking quietly. “She has the orb.”

He stopped, turning. “Ashley does?” he asked, completely bewildered.

“No, idiot.” Cain ran off.

Cece took the orb? Really? There’s no way she would do that…

But the look on her face when Leo had almost been voted in was fresh in his mind. It was desperate.

“This is going to end badly,” Leo said. Worry started worming its way into his mind.

He still had a notification waiting for him too, a new skill to elementally infuse. But was this really the right time?

Danger was looming, a fight might—would be coming.

There was no time to even hesitate.

Skills available for Elemental Infusion

Second Wind (Uncommon)

Spiral Break (Uncommon)

Concussive Clap (Uncommon)

Barrage (Rare)

Two more options had been added. And it instantly set off his decision paralysis.

He disregarded Spiral Break for now, and also Concussive Clap. Not because they wouldn’t be useful, but the likelihood of him picking those over Barrage was very low. Second Wind was on the list because he wanted to enhance his healing capabilities.

When he thought about his Essences, and what they were tied to, Leo didn’t really feel like any would be all that sustaining. He could see it now; an Earth version that granted him damage resistance for a short duration, an Ice one that might restore some mana too, and maybe a Wind one that might add a bit more stamina or increase regeneration for a bit.

Useful, but not all that life-changing.

With that, Leo chose Barrage, hoping it would be upgraded to Epic.

The options appeared instantly.

Glacial Barrage (Rare)

Do not let them move.

You unleash a rapid succession of freezing strikes, each blow slowing your target further as frost spreads through their body.
The longer the barrage continues, the heavier and more difficult to evade your strikes become. Frozen targets and defenses grow brittle under sustained assault.

After ten hits in the chain, stamina costs and physical strain will increase exponentially, as will the strength of your strikes.
Scales with Strength and Intelligence

Cooldown: 30 seconds

Infernal Barrage (Rare)

Do not let them recover.

You unleash a rapid succession of flame-infused strikes, each blow building heat and destructive force within your target.
The longer the barrage continues, the hotter and more unstable your strikes become, overwhelming defenses through relentless pressure.

After ten hits in the chain, stamina costs and physical strain will increase exponentially, as will the strength of your strikes.

Scales with Strength and Endurance

Cooldown: 30 seconds

Titan Barrage (Rare)

Do not let them stand.

You unleash a rapid succession of crushing strikes, each blow carrying increasing force and weight.
The longer the barrage continues, the harder your strikes become to withstand, destabilising defenses, armour, and guarded opponents through relentless impact.

After ten hits in the chain, stamina costs and physical strain will increase exponentially, as will the strength of your strikes.

Scales with Strength and Toughness

Cooldown: 30 Seconds

This was a mistake.

Not just because the rarity of the skill didn’t increase, effectively robbing him of a potential rare skill upgrade from one of his uncommon skills, but also because the decision was insanely hard to make.

Each one had its advantages, each one had their downsides. How was he meant to decide on something so permanent when so much was happening?

Leo started rubbing his head as they ran further, drawing the attention of Gordon who was jogging next to him.

“What’s up, man? You okay? Ya look pressed,” he asked.

Leo looked at him, frowning. He released it when he realised what he was doing. “Just got a sort of skill upgrade to do and can’t really decide.”

“Huh, I can’t Identify you,” Gordon said curiously. “What level even are you?”

“Seventy-five,” he said absent-mindedly.

“Damn, still ahead of me. I’ll catch up soon though!” He was so cheerful, it was a bit distracting.

“Oh, sorry, you said you have a skill?” His face morphed into confusion. “Do you get skills every five levels?!” He almost shouted the last bit in shock, gaining a little attention from everyone.

“No, no. Nothing like that,” Leo answered truthfully. “Just a kind of… bonus? I can infuse a skill with an element. Basically the only way I can do it. So far it’s been like every twenty five levels.”

“Lay 'em on me, I love hearing about skills,” Gordon said, smiling.

“We are kindred spirits, you and I,” Leo said, laughing briefly.

He started explaining all the options he had listed, simplifying their descriptions as reading them all out would get repetitive.

“I think—”

“Go with the Ice one!” Ashley suddenly said.

Gordon stumbled as he was cut off, turning to look at Ashley. She grinned.

“Why?” Leo asked.

“Unlimited Slushie Punch,” she answered, without a hint of a joke.

“Absolutely not.”

“You’re right,” she said, nodding seriously. “What was I thinking…”

“Infinite Slushie Barrage.”

Gordon snorted loudly beside him, and Leo couldn’t help but join him.

“Okay, real suggestions please,” Leo begged after a moment. Time was still running out, they would definitely be out of these tunnels soon.

“I think the Earth one sounds best, no?” Gordon suggested.

“I was sort of thinking the same, but my Toughness is… well…” Leo rubbed the back of his head.

“Mhm.” Gordon nodded. “I heard from Bjorn. He said—”

“For someone so seemingly versed in all this shit, he sure makes some stupid choices,” Bjorn filled in.

Leo turned, smiling brightly at the man. He gave a little wave.

“Right,” Gordon continued. “But even if it’s low now, it’s not going to be low forever, right?”

Leo felt himself sweat, not making eye contact.

“Answer him, kid!” Bjorn called, laughing.

“No comment.”

Laughter filled the tunnels more and more as they made their way outside. It was a nice break from all the fighting and death. A nice distraction before whatever hell was out there showed itself.

Leo considered both parties' opinions, definitely more Gordon’s than Ashley’s reasoning. And in the end he agreed.

Barrage (Rare)

Upgraded to:

Titan Barrage (Rare)

“Thanks, guys, appreciate the help,” Leo said.

“Did you pick the Ice one?” Ashley asked hopefully.

“Nope, Earth one,” Leo said proudly.

“Boo. Dirty Boy Punchfest it is then,” she said casually, jogging ahead.

Leo smiled, then stared after her in complete shock. “What the hell did you just say!?”

Her maniacal laughter was all that she replied with.

Within a few minutes after Leo’s skill selection, the group made it outside into the fresh air once more, taking in the scene before them.

It had already been a slaughter before they’d left, some burnt, some broken, all dead. Antling’s that was.

Things had gotten even worse. There were corpses everywhere. A few humans were included in that, people who he didn’t know personally, and some he couldn’t make out, but could picture those he did know of’s faces when they thanked him in camp, or said hi to in the morning.

He bit his lip as his storm surged. He forced it down.

Not yet. Hold it together man. Break down after this ends.

“You guys are okay!” Lena shouted as the crowd started to gather at the lower gate.

There were no shouts of greeting or any kind of smiles really. Leo’s group just made their way down with as much haste as they could muster.

“Gather up, everyone!” Cecelia commanded. But she came to a realisation as she did so.

There were a lot of people who were completely still. They were terrified, so much so that they were barely blinking or coherent at all.

Leo saw this too, and instantly forced his aura to cover them all. Like he’d just filled the square with oxygen, they all took deep breaths. Like they were being freed from whatever hold was on their souls.

“What was that?” Leo asked, panting a little as the after effects of using his aura right now made themselves known. His Storm was knocking at his own gates.

“That Serrix creature’s aura must have stricken them with more fear than they could handle,” Cecelia suggested. “That does not bode well if we have to fight him. Can you keep your aura going to make sure it doesn’t happen?” she asked Leo.

“Not likely,” Leo said, voice strained. “Something’s… happening inside me, and it’s getting harder to control.”

She frowned at that, and Ashley, who was definitely not eavesdropping, approached him. “What’s wrong? You seemed fine so far.” She placed a hand on him, closing her eyes.

“You don’t have any health issues,” she said. “Is this your…”

“Yeah,” Leo said quickly, not elaborating.

“Shit.”

“Mhm.”

“Can you last a fight against whatever is coming?” Cecelia asked.

“I hope so. I managed against the Queen, but it was rough. Ellie, and a skill I have, is keeping it somewhat contained.” He inwardly thanked his little companion, who was resting in his soul-space, but also helping him keep control of his mind thanks to their bond.

Cecelia went to find a place to speak to everyone, but Leo’s eyes were drawn to Cain.

He approached, finding the man on the ground, his ear pressed to it.

“Something coming?” he asked.

“Shut up,” Cain replied sharply.

Leo just joined him, pressing his ear against the ground.

Thump Thump Thump

What is that? Leo tried to focus on the sound, and realised it was getting closer.

Cain and him shot up at the same time. “Oh fuck. Everyone! Get back!”

The ground erupted into fragments below them as a whole section of the massive gateway was just collapsed and buried. Dust flew everywhere. Shards of rubble battered across everyone.

Leo rolled to his feet, having jumped out the way a moment ago. He stared into the dust cloud, watching it clear as a silhouette started to form.

A loud exhale pushed some of the dust around.

“Sunlight. After so long. Feels good,” a voice said, the one within the dust cloud.

Leo’s Nerveflash was absolutely screaming at him. It told him that whatever was in that cloud was the most dangerous thing he’d ever seen. It eclipsed every single deadly doorway in the bank and the eldritch guardian inside.

The pressure it gave off was almost similar to how he felt when interacting with Iskarion, only much, much less. He had a suspicion on what that meant, but needed to get a visual to confirm it.

The creature in the cloud swiped his arm outward, and the dust cloud completely vanished.

Shocked gasps and startled onlookers began reacting upon seeing the monstrosity before them.

Half human, half antling.

Tall enough that even Bjorn looked small in comparison, its body was wrapped in layered black-brown chitin that looked less like armour and more like flesh reforged into something superior. Dense muscle shifted beneath the plating with every slow movement it made. Almost like it was stretching.

Two extra arms rested calmly beneath the upper pair, relaxed at its sides instead of raised for battle.

It didn’t need to posture.

Sharp protrusions curved from its shoulders and forearms, not wild or jagged like the ants they had fought before. Everything about it looked crafted for efficiency and violence.

Leo’s eyes locked onto its face.

Human.

Mostly.

Mandibles flexed slightly beside its jaw as cold amber eyes swept across the courtyard. Intelligent eyes. Like it was judging all that it saw.

The Queen had felt monstrous, but not insurmountable.

This thing felt above monsters.

Lord Serrix - Level ???

It smiled, wide and malevolent.

That’s not good.