"Garrick, my dear friend! Pour me another one," the Lone Traveler called out, pushing his empty mug along the counter.

One of the few bartenders—a tiny wisp of yellow fire—flew closer, a bottle full of sickly green liquid trailing behind it. The creature regarded the Traveler with three glowing, pupil-less eyes and let out a long sigh.

"You're drinking a lot today, Tarak," Garrick grumbled, filling the empty mug. "Just remember what Tom told you. Puke on our floor again, and you are out. This time, the ban will be longer."

The Traveler waved him off and snatched his drink. "No need to threaten me. I learned my lesson the last time."

The bartender snorted. "Maybe I would believe that if I was born yesterday… Really, you're lucky we like you."

"What can I say? Not many can resist my charm."

"Charm… Right…” Garrick shot him a dry look. "I'm trusting you with the bottle, Tarak. Don't make me regret it. I broke up enough fights this week, and my patience is dwindling."

The Lone Traveler offered the bartender a mock salute. "Aye, aye, Captain! I will be good, I promise. Go now. Leave me and sweet companion alone."

Garrick just sighed again and floated away to take care of other clients. Tarak chuckled and finished the rest of his mug in a single go. The almost full bottle landed in his hand next, and he took another swing. The green liquid flowed down his throat, somehow burning and cooling his insides at the same time.

"That's the stuff," he muttered, a smile playing on his lips. He turned in his seat, scanning the massive main hall of Netherum in search of some familiar faces. He found a few, but before he could decide who to annoy today, a low buzzing filled his ears.

"Now? Really?" He frowned, summoning his personalized transmitter into his hand and accepting the call. "It better be important, Peria."

"It is," the member of Trinity stated instantly. "Are you alone?"

"No, give me a moment." Tarak sighed and stood up, but not without taking the bottle with him.

He weaved through the crowded hall, avoiding creatures of all kinds and the tables in his way. Some tried to stop him, but he just gave them a nod and sped up, leaving them all in the dust as he entered Netherum's main corridor. From there, he took a few turns and slipped into his private booth.

"All right, I'm alone," he said, dropping onto one of the couches. "What do you need? Be quick, please."

"Forget everything you were doing, Six," Peria hissed. "This is almost as important as the reappearance of Nikra's shard."

Shit. The Lone Traveler tensed, putting his bottle on the table before him. He knew Peria; she wouldn't say something like that if she didn't mean it.

"I'm listening."

"Good… Geron finally made a move."

And just like that, thanks to those few words, the alcohol in Tarak's body evaporated. His eyes narrowed as he gripped the transmitter harder.

"Elaborate."

"I just finished a call with my contact on Ger. Three of their five Divine Monuments collapsed on their own about two hours ago. The other two are damaged but still standing. The barrier around the entire planet has also weakened, and not by a small margin. I don't think I need to tell you what this means."

"Faction wars." Tarak pinched his nose. "No way the others won't jump at the chance to finally strike back at Ger. Fucking great… And it had been so quiet lately…"

"Peace never lasts. We both know that."

"No, no, it doesn't." He grumbled. "What about Geron? Any ideas what did he do? For three monuments to collapse, it had to be something major."

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Peria hummed. "Now, this is where things get interesting."

As if they weren't already.

"I have been tracking Geron's signature ever since I received the news," the woman continued. "I had to make some adjustments—it's been a while since I had to track the old goat—but I managed to catch a stream of Essence that left Ger not that long ago. Want to take a guess where it went?"

Oh, you have to be kidding me. How did that bastard know? Tarak closed his eyes and pushed his annoyance away. Now was not the time to let his emotions take over.

He took a deep breath and answered, "Earth."

For a moment, Peria remained silent. "Hmm, I could only track his Essence to somewhere in the Milky Way Galaxy, but yes… Earth sounds like the obvious answer. Either he knows something we don't, or he miscalculated."

I can imagine what he knows that you don't. Tarak grimaced, nervously tapping his fingers on the table. "Any chances the other factions can follow the same trail?"

"No," Peria said firmly. "I only got that far because I know how his power feels. An outsider has no chance. I would sooner jump into the Eternal Volcano than believe otherwise."

At least some good news… I need to get going. Leo is still alive but with Geron out there… He shook his head and stood up, Essence already swirling around his body. "Thanks for the info. I will check it out. Bye!"

"Tarak! Don't yo—"

Whatever Peria wanted to say was cut off as the Lone Traveler disconnected the call and hid his transmitter. His Essence then spiked, and with a flash, he disappeared from his private booth.

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"What in the seven hells happened here?" Tarak muttered as he looked into the massive crater. At this point, he had been searching for at least an hour, and this was the first unnatural site he had found. As it was, nothing on this planet should have enough power to cause so much damage.

Unless…

He jumped high, only to drop into the middle of the crater. His Essence spread over his skin, and he closed his eyes, letting his sixth sense speak to him.

Oh.

His eyebrows shot up as a fascinating image appeared in his mind's eye. Geron was here, no doubt about that—the obvious traces of powerful light affinity lingering in the air only proved that—but there was so much more he could feel here.

"Shadows…" he mumbled, tracing a tiny trial of smoky darkness with his finger. "A lot of them… Nowhere near as strong as Geron's light, but still powerful for this stage of the Outbreak. And this… this power… sister. So that's how it is…"

Tarak trailed off as his eyes opened. He turned and walked toward a place where another explosion had most likely occurred. Well, that or someone had a very rough landing.

"It ends here." He stopped in the exact spot where the affinity signatures faded. "Looks like you lost again, brother. You should have known better than to challenge Nikra's legacy through some puppet or projection." He chuckled. "I wish I could have seen your face."

He shook his head and teleported out of the crater. Then, with a wave of his wand, his Essence spread over the area, consuming every remaining trace of Geron's power. It wouldn't do for anyone to find it, be it now or in the future.

"Now, Leo, let's see how you are doing. Geron might have failed here, but I still have no idea what happened in the first place."

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The golden barrier of a safe zone glinted in the distance, illuminating the area near it. However, from his distant perch, Tarak had eyes only for the three beings inside. They were talking, but going by the fact that the only female was waving her arms around, it wasn't exactly a calm conversation.

I'm getting more and more confused. The Lone Traveler scratched his head. A Void-Angel hybrid? A shadow wyvern-cat? And a full Voidling, Akirian, or whatever the fuck you became? What kind of circus is this? I leave you for a few weeks, and this happens? How!?

In times like these, Tarak cursed his inability to use the System. If he were a normal user, he could have just used Identify, and bam, he would know what Leo had become in a second. Yet, here he was, confused, annoyed, and quite frankly astonished.

Those three had to be some of the most unique creatures one could meet at the beginning of an Outbreak.

I need more information.

Right away, he fished out his transmitter and called a person he probably should have contacted a long time ago. Evidently, he underestimated the amount of trouble an inheritor of Nikra's shard could get into in a few weeks.

"Tarak! My dear friend! To what do I owe the pleasure?" A way-too-cheerful voice exploded out of the device.

"Naz'Tor," he greeted back. "Unfortunately, it's another business call this time. I require some particular information and hope you might be able to help me."

"Of course, of course. Anything for you, my friend, you know that."

Tarak rolled his eyes fondly. "Do you remember that planet I pointed out to you the last time we spoke?"

"The new Earth, you mean? You were right, as always. It's a future goldmine!" Naz'Tor laughed. "I have already met quite a few interesting creatures here. The area you have specifically suggested is very promising."

"Wonderful." He smiled, knowing that his previous plan most likely worked. "Then you wouldn't mind telling me what happened in London since you settled? Also, Leo Hale. If you have anything about him that you can share, I will be eternally grateful."