PreCursive

  The entire dock-like ptform I was on shook the instant my hand touched the sapphire. Great rumbling sounds filled the air as long-dormant s, bound up into massive coils creaked and groaned as they came to life, buried beh the stone of the dock. It was so loud that it momentarily drowned out the stant crashing of thunder born from Tatsugan’s still flickering tail, somewhere far above us. I nearly stumbled from the shaking in the small trol hub that I had stayed behind in, to facilitate the l of the barge that my friends and panions were scurrying around on. I could just barely see them through the howling gales of wind and rain, visible through the viewing slit on the wall in front of me.

  They almost stumbled on the deck their andeered barge, too. The great mass of s holding the vessel suspended over the cliff face lurched in pce, one er of them falling suddenly. The barge listed to one side on suddenly sed s, sending my panions scrambling to hold onto anything they could in order to not fall into the ing innd sea far below them.

  My heart lurched in my chest, but I have worried. Gradually, the rest of the s holding the barge suspended began to s, and the orientation of the ship corrected itself, seemingly on purpose. I suppose the meism of this entment included something like that, for which I was very gd.

  Through the viewport, I watched as the barge holding my friends began to slowly desd out of sight beyond the rim of the ptform. The st thing I saw before it pletely disappeared was Bel at the helm, turning around to look at me.

  Across the distand despite the peril we were in, the pirate Captain still had the temerity to wink in my dire.

  And then she was gone.

  I huffed a slight ugh and shook my head. The barge might be l the way we had hoped it would, but we weren’t out of danger just yet. The thundering of Tatsugan’s rattle had more than one purpose, after all.

  It was meant to call every st damn mohat still resided on the isnd of Goryuen to his side.

  And they were ing.

  I could feel and hear it.

  Just barely audible over the thunder and the creaking of s as the barge crept ever downward, I could hear another sound, slowly growing louder. Roars and screeches sounded out in the distance as the Oni and the Wyrmkin that called this spit of nd home rushed inward from the jungles, pins, and mountains. I began to feel a rumble ioh my feet as innumerable gia and cwed paws raced to the aid of their master.

  I had deliberately kept the door to this miniature bunker open, after my panions had left. At the time, I had thought it would be better to have a clear eye on the mountain path stretg upwards, so I could know if any monsters were ing.

  That was a mistake.

  From one moment to the , a veritable horde appeared on the horizon through the door. tless Oni and Wyrmkin of all shapes, sizes, colors, and maturities swept dowh I and my panions had only moments ago carefully forded. Not a one of them dispyed the caution we had, and as a result, I could see a number of different monsters go tumbling over the side of the path as the horde charged down towards me. And I had no doubt they were ing for me.

  All of their beady little eyes were trained on me.

  My own nearly bulged out of their sockets as I torted my body, careful to keep my hand on the sapphire, and hooked one foot around the edge of the door. Full force, I smmed the heavy stone door closed in the doorway, cutting off my view of chargis. Seds after, I was surprised to see bars that had been i into the wall fall down to block the door from opening again.

  I bli the ued windfall, as moments ter, the horde arrived.

  They smmed into the door, rattling both the frame and the buself from the force of it. Even through the thick stone of the door and the walls, I could still hear the roars and the screams of the beasts as they svered for the blood in my veins aher in my soul. Wyrmkin swarmed around the front of the buo cw at me through the small viewing port while Oni pouheir massive fists against the walls, cutting off my view of the caldera and the looming form of Mt. Gorenzan. I had to lean back from those reag cws in order to avoid losing an eye.

  I’d nearly experiehat once before, thank you. I had no desire for it to happen again.

  Thankfully, although I could see the bars holding the door closed flex from the force of the blows, they held.

  For now.

  God damnit, couldn’t this meism go any faster?! I had no idea how long this was going to take! Just how far down did the barge have to go?!

  I tensed as I saw cracks start to form in the bars holding the door closed. Thankfully, the door itself was fine, but those stone rods weren’t going to hold for much longer. And the moment they shattered, I was fucked.

  I had to do something. With my full strength, with both Vis Maledicta Exactoris and Might of the Wyrdwood active, I think I could probably hold the door closed myself. But I had to keep a hand on the trol gem. My friends were ting on me.

  And I refused to fail them.

  Uedly, my c stirred from where it had been quietly fog alongside me. It put forth an idea, and I only took a moment to sider the possibility.

  I mean…it could work.

  Maybe.

  Worth a shot.

  I held out a hand and called for my Skill.

  Maion of Agony.

  From my outstretched palm floated a ball of ghostly blue fme, that sprouted wings and limbs of crimsohorn. It fpped those tiny wings for a moment, as my c smoothly transferred itself into the simucrum born of celestial and terrestrial power. It looked at me, and somehow I got the impression I was meeting the eyes of the Sprite.

  It me, and floated downwards to nd on top of the sapphire I had my hand upon, careful not to burn me as it did so. Just as carefully, it y both of its hands down on the gem as well.

  Slowly, watg and listening for the s of the ptform through the viewport, I lifted my hand from sapphire and held my breath.

  Nothing.

  The s kept up their steady dest, and the barge was still l.

  My Sprite ted as a person able to keep the process going.

  I exged a victorious smile with my Spire (at least I think it was smiling), but it didn’t st long.

  Behind me, I heard a sharp, distinct crag noise over the sound of banging and screeg. I shot a quice over my shoulder to see my fears realized. One of the bars had snapped, and the other looked like it was bug iime. I didn’t waste another sed thinking.

  Instead, I activated both of my physical enha Skills and lunged for the door. I mao y both of my enrged, scaly palms crawling with ghostly red thorns upoone just in time.

  The sed and st bar snapped, and suddenly I was holding back the force of dozens, or perhaps even hundreds, of monsters as they crushed themselves against the door.

  The pressure was immense. Monstrous ireme.

  It was like the mountains themselves were looming the whole of their a weight against the stone as I fought to keep my footing. I’d activated Might of the Wyrdwood at ten pert, and that just wasn’t enough. Desperate for more footing, I deliberately ruined my boots by digging my talooes through the leather and digging them into the stoh me.

  It wasn’t enough. I could feel myself b trenches in the floor as I ushed back.

  I jacked Might of the Wyrdwood up to fifteen pert.

  Still, I struggled.

  Twenty.

  I grit my teeth uhe strain of holding the Skill at that level, much less at the same time I was transformed.

  I ushed ba inch, enough for a crack to opeween the door and the frame. Instantly, cws from the Wyrmkin oher side of the door, scrambling frantically for the existehey felt oher side.

  Fine.

  Life or death, then.

  I ratcheted Might of the Wyrdwood up as far as I’d ever dared to.

  Thirty pert.

  I eripherally aware of the crimson vines crawling ay body thiing, to the point something curious started to happen. They almost began to shape itself into something else, thiing oain areas of my body. It was hazy, though, and besides.

  I was far too busy screaming from the sheer exertion I was being pced under. My muscles had streo such a degree that I felt my very bones begin to creak and groan inside my body. With just my surviving middle ring within my mind, all I could focus on was bearing with the pain as my evolved strength Skill nearly sundered my body.

  But it was enough. I shoved forward, and the door moved easily to slide bato the frame. The scrabbling cws from the Wyrmkin were instantly snipped by the edge of the door, and I heard their owners screech bloody murder oher side of it.

  I allowed myself a brief moment of satisfa before I got back to fog.

  I knew, I khat if my tration slipped for a moment, the Skill would waver and die. If it did, I was dead. The door would burst open, the Oni and the Wymrkin would tear me apart for my Aether, and then my friends would be stranded on a half-desded barge.

  I had to focus. Focus through the pain, and noise, and the drain.

  I could do this.

  I could do this!

  “I do this,” I whispered to myself fiercely, setting my shoulders as firmly as possible. I leaned my head down, as I felt my body scream in protest.

  And tried to meditate, through the agony.

  In.

  And out.

  In.

  And out.

  In.

  And.

  Out.

  I don’t know how long I stood in that position, leaning against the door and holding back the proverbial tide. I was lost to the passage of time in my tration.

  But, eventually, I became aware of a heat floating somewhere to the right of my cheek. That broke me from my meditation, and I exhaustedly raised my head to find my Sprite h there.

  It ointing frantically over its shoulder, uo verbalize its frustrations. I looked behind me briefly to see what it was gesturing towards to find that the sapphire gemstone as rge as a baseball had gone dark. I could feel no more Aether running through it. I didn’t know what that meant, for a moment, and when I realized what it did, my eyes widened and I nearly lost my grip. Both on the door and on my Skill.

  The dest was over. The barge had to have reached the innd sea.

  But…

  Now what?

  It occurred to me that I had never formuted an escape pn once I’d aplished my goal. I erhaps, now doomed unless I could fight my way through the horde oher side of this door. If I was at full Mana, I might have been able to do that. But my stunt the ht with The Stilnt Bde, bined my keeping my Sprite active for who knows how long, meant I was dangerously low.

  Shit.

  However, my Sprite came through for me once more. It gestured excitedly up at the ceiling, and I followed its fire and thorn fingers up to find...

  What looked like an escape hatch.

  I bliiredly at the sight. I hadn’t even noticed that thing until now.

  Huh.

  I…guess the a Kawamarans had realized they would need a quick egress.

  The Sprite zipped up to it to try and move the stone lever that kept it locked shut, but it wasn’t strong enough. I moved my tired body as quickly as it was able and shifted to where I was keeping the door shut with my back, and when I did, I lifted one hand to point at the same lever the Sprite was struggling against.

  And cast Thrapple.

  The length of thorny vine shot from my hand and ed around the ha my will. O was secure, I yanked on the lever. A grinding sound echoed out above me and a lock must have e loose, because my Sprite was suddenly pushing the small regur door open with ease. In moments, I heard it thud open on top of the bunker’s roof.

  But I never let go of my vi was still tied to the other side of the lever, trapped uhe little escape hatch.

  I took a deep breath.

  Alright.

  Let’s do this.

  In an instant, I did multiple things. Almost as if I was in slow motion, I leaped forward from the door with all of my strength, until I was standing underh the open hatch. Behind me, I could hear the door sm open, and monsters began to pile through the now-open stone frame. At the same time, I leapt upward, while at the same time, I urged my grappling Skill to retract as quickly as it could. In a fra of a sed, I found myself sailing up and out of the hatch, but not before I felt a cw scrape through my pants and against the armored scales of my transformed self.

  I nded on the roof of the bunker, and with my Sprite’s help, I frantically closed the hatch behind me and locked it again with the lever that was oside of it.

  After that, I barely took a moment to sider the horde of mohat had overtaken the docks down here.

  Some of the surrounding Oni were nearly as tall as this building and were starting to look my way.

  I didn’t stick around long enough for them to make a grab at me.

  Instead, using the strength from Might of the Wyrdwood, still at thirty pert, I leaped forward, snapping my wings open as I did so. In moments, I had soared along the roof of the cavern.

  Out into the storm.

  That turned out to be a mistake.