Drake’s nerves were at an all time high. She stood before a young woman whose eyes spoke of ill intent. She scanned first the black haired girl, then the white haired boy, looking them up and down as she skimmed through their details.

Hmm, both Adept. Both with classes, a Firestorm cyclone, and a Lightning hand, whatever those are… Average attributes around 3.5, didn’t Cortez say that only students on the verge of being Adept came to this dungeon, I wonder why their down here?

Another young man with blond hair slid down the stairs behind the pair, and Drake scanned him. Interested in what his skills could be; the young man riding a literal knee high wave down the steps rather than walking, Drake read slowly.

Now that is a class name, Master of Waves, same average attribute level…

Another two Cultivators stepped down the stairs and Drake looked them over.

Nice armor, and what is a partnered class?

From what Drake could tell from her scan, the fraternal twins at the back of the group had a class that linked them together, making her wonder if one would be weakened if the other was injured or died.

Wow Drake, keep those grim thoughts to yourself…

“Woah, I can’t scan her, can you,”whispered the boy in white named Victor. Drake watched the girl she now knew to be Amber shake her head, and couldn’t help but smirk.

Hmm, it seems that Cortez isn’t the only one who cannot scan me…

A familiar sound came from behind her and Drake didn’t even have to look to know that her team had entered the room. Explosions emanated all around her as Life Orbs bursted on impact. The whistle of arrows told her Cortez was hard at work, and her minion’s continual demand to push on in her mind let her know that her group was more than likely okay while she determined the threat level of the group in front of her.

“My name is Drake, I hope we aren’t intruding, there were no signs of anyone else being down this far so we assumed that we had the place to ourselves,” stated Drake simply, hoping to open up dialogue between her and the others.

“We are here completing an assignment quest given to us by our master,” started Amber. Drake watched the girl’s eyes narrow and she followed her line of sight to take in Cortez firing arrows on the far side of the room.

“Is that Simpleton Sapling over there,” mumbled Amber, and Drake didn’t like the tone used in the boy’s direction.

Drake started to feel as if she did on her first day of high school. Being alone in a cafeteria full of hundreds of students had once left her anxiety at an all time high. The glares of strangers hinting at negative opinions aimed at new and unknown entities wasn’t a situation Drake took kindly to,.

Just breathe Drake, you don’t know them and they don’t know you…

It only took a few more moments for her group to finish off the rest of the goblins in the room, and Drake was soon flanked by the others.

Why are you scowling at them like that, asked Aurora through their bond.

We’ll see, I may be wrong but I don’t think this is going to play out well.

Drake glanced at Cortez and noticed his half hidden position behind Vanish’s floating cathedra.

It seems bullies are the same in every realm…

“We are also on a mission from our master, but if you give us a moment to move on, we will head down the stairs to the next level, from what I’ve been told there are plenty of goblins throughout this instance, and we can be out of your way after Cortez here gathers what he needs from this room,” said Drake, gesturing toward the stealth assassin.

“Oh, he is with you, it is kind of you to help out this weakling Ascended, if it isn’t too much of a bother, we would also love it if we could join you,” asked Amber with a slight bow.

Weakling, who is she talking about Cortez, asked Aurora mentally.

You guessed it, this bitch is probably a snobby brat, I’m trying not to jump to conclusions, but she’s one upturned nose away from making me want to slap her…

It wasn’t even a full breath later that Amber glanced at Cortez, lifting her chin to look down her nose at the boy. Drake scoffed and Aurora chuckled.

Wow the timing on that was uncanny, but I like Cortez, what do you want to do here?

We might have to be diplomatic, we are going to go to Reliquary in the near or distant future, we don’t want to make unnecessary enemies if we can avoid it.

“Well, as long as Cortez is comfortable with you coming along, we don’t mind, he has exclusively obtained our time through a favor I owed him,” said Drake, lying in a way that would give Cortez an opportunity to turn down the other group leader’s request; however as Amber looked at Cortez with a sneer and the boy began to stutter, Drake knew he was far too beaten down by his peers already to show strength in that moment and straighten his back enough to decline.

“I don’t mind, it is okay…”

“I see, well let me talk with the rest of my team, and we will move on as soon as we are done,” said Drake, pulling Aurora aside, beckoning Vanish and Cortez to follow.

They distanced themselves, and Drake took the briefest moment to look at the other group as they discussed something softly, also deciding to whisper as she spoke.

“Are you sure you’re okay with them joining us Cortez, if you aren’t this is your last chance to speak up buddy,” said Drake.

“They don’t come off as the nicest people I’ve ever met,” said Vanish, and Aurora nodded; both trying to comfort the young man. Yet Cortez shook his head surprising Drake with his answer.

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“no, its fine, you three will be Reliquary students soon, and making bonds with strong students is one of the fastest ways to grow at the academy, I wouldn’t want my opinion of them to disrupt your chances of having a better opportunity—“

“Seriously, I’d rather have a million potentially weak friends if they are honest, kind, and loyal, than be stuck with a single mean person in my life, trust and believe, so just let us know if they make you uncomfortable and we will drop them like a bag of rotten fruit kid, okay,” prompted Drake, cutting in in an effort to show support. Cortez had been nothing but friendly since they ran into him, and Drake could tell by her slight interaction with Amber that she didn’t like the girl’s energy.

Drake watched him look over at the other Cultivators, his gaze dropping to the floor as he contemplated for a moment longer, finally looking up to look Drake in the eyes, showing a surety that Drake was until that moment doubtful he could muster up.

“Thanks, but honestly, I’ll be fine, you three are going for a full clear, and believe me with them by your side, your odds are that much higher,” said Cortez. Drake smirked, nodding at Cortez.

“I hear you buddy, but me and my siblings would have cleared this out no matter what happened, with or without them, so just let us know, okay?”

“Okay, sounds good,” said Cortez with a smile.

Your way too nice kid, I hope this ends well for us all…

“Hurry up and grab the stuff you need from in here, they look ready to go,” said Drake, and Cortez responded with a nod, quickly stepping away to collect more goblin weaponry.

Mmm, lets see how this goes I guess…

…

“Why are we teaming up with them Amber, we could finish this place by ourselves,” asked Brice.

“You didn’t see what we walked into Brice,” said Victor.

“That girl by herself could probably fight two, maybe three of us and give us a good fight, we’d win, but it wouldn’t be easy,” said Victor explaining himself at his friend’s strange look. Brice looked at Amber, and she nodded in agreement.

“I know we could get far by ourselves, and probably come close to the boss of this instance even, but with that girl we can definitely get a full clear achievement, I don’t know if you can tell but that giant skeleton over there is bonded to her,” said Amber, pointing at Drake’s minion.

“Yeah but she’s already bringing along two unranked and that useless simpleton, will we even get the achievement,” asked Alexander and Miracle at the same time.

“We might even get a better achievement, the more Cultivators we have with us, the less restrictions the boss will have within the dungeon, it might play out in our favor that she brought the simpleton along,” said Amber. Brice and Victor nodded and the twins smiled as they shrugged.

“Looks like we will be the first new adepts in Reliquary to defeat a boss in our first season cycle in the academy for more than a few millennia,” said Amber excitedly.

“Sounds like a plan,” said Brice, and Victor crossed his arms smiling.

“Agreed.”

…

Drake hated herself as the new group headed down throughout the instance for multiple reasons.

hmm… she sighed internally, not wanting the thoughts she was having to be real.

This, is absolutely, fucking, amazing!

The combined groups were absolutely unstoppable together. As Drake lead from the front with her new minion, the others wiped out everything without pause or hurdle of any kind.

The biggest issue Drake faced was the new pace being set. The group’s teamwork was fluid and surprisingly practiced.

They were moving as if they had trained together for years. The smiles on everyone’s faces was a reward unlike any other that Drake had ever felt before.

The combinations of all their abilities was so powerful that the group found themselves ten floors down, with absolutely no enemies on the floors left alive above them.

This is absolutely crazy…!

Drake couldn’t tamp down her excitement no matter how hard she tried. The ease in which they conquered each room was nothing less than glorious, and Drake was becoming more and more excited to attend Reliquary with how talented Amber and her team was.

Aurora’s usage of the mapping rune had shown them where all of the enemies were, and only sped up the process that much more.

As they approached the eleventh floor a sound like that of drumming touched their ears, and aurora informed them that in the next cavern was potentially a couple thousand goblins; all armored, and holding weapons that seemed far more quality than the tools wielded by the monsters the floors they experienced previously had been.

“Anything else we should know,” asked Drake.

“They seem larger, and some of them are resonating with a strange energy,” answered Aurora.

“Their most likely magic users,” said Victor, and Brice nodded in agreement.

“Okay, Brice, Amber, you’re with me up front, Victor, your with the twins and the skeletons on magical goblin killing duty, Cortez, Vanish, stop anything that threatens the party in anyway, got it?”

She got nods all around and smirked.

“Okay, lets do it…”

…

Amber tried not to react at how easily Drake had taken control of her party. The girl’s leadership was so natural that the members of her team fell in line without a single word of agitation. She could see the confidence of her team rise as they were directed by Drake, and felt envious, as all of her Godling companions were all rather strong willed and had taken quite a while to yield to taking commands from her originally.

Ignore it Amber, just move forward and the reward in the end will far outweigh your petty feelings.

Drake raised three fingers, dropping them one by one, and darted off the moment her last finger came down .

Brice and amber rushed out beside Drake and she felt her eyes go wide and her heart skip a beat at the number of organized ranks of what was hobgoblins, rather than the smaller less deadly monster they’d originally assumed they’d be encountering.

Do they not know the difference between goblins and hobgoblins!

Amber glanced over to see Brice’s features go pail, but as they both looked at the smiling Drake Amber wondered if Brice felt his fears melt away as she had in the moment that she took in Drake’s confident visage.

Drake looked toward Brice, pointing upward, and the boy nodded back at her, knowing what she wanted. Amber prepared for what was to come, gritting her teeth in an attempt to clamp down her apprehension and focus.

“Push,” yelled Drake, and Brice summoned a wave of water underneath the trio’s feet, pushing them upward into the air, giving Amber a view of the entire room.

The cavern was filled with modest huts and patrolling hobgoblins. Their more diminutive brethren trickled in here and there, and Amber watched as the thousands of opponents all seemed to turn in the moment that Drake roared.

Power swelled and Amber’s heart stirred at the sensation rolling off of Drake. She looked down at the faces of the nearest monster’s, and couldn’t help but smile at the fear that flickered across their faces as she summoned a ring of fire around herself, Drake and Brice.

The wave crashed down over top the group, freezing them instantly and Drake was already mid air, slamming her weapon down, obliterating the solid block of ice, turning the near dozen monsters into nothing but broken chunks of melting water and body parts.

Drake turned and Charged, and Amber begun to spin her fire halo, crating a tornado of flames around them. She looked over her shoulder to see the rest of their group beginning to cut into the ranks of monsters, the shocked creatures, unable to react quickly enough to stop their assault.

Beams of black mana shot through the air, stopping goblins and hobgoblins alike from attacking. The monsters frozen amidst retaliation; their upraised weapons serving no purpose as the twins cut them down, and Cortez fired a series of deadly headshots. Drake’s giant skeleton slammed into an entire group itself, and Victor teleported beside the minion, spreading lightning through both it and its summoned soldiers spears. The white light arcing out between their foes violently.

A Life Orb exploded in front of Amber and she felt energy fill her core.

Her flames grew even more hot as the life force fueled her fires, and a group of monsters perished as they turned to run, instantly being cremated, becoming nothing more than piles of dust.

The slaughter continued and hundreds of goblins and hobgoblins were slain in what felt like mere blinks.

The overwhelming numbers that Amber had once feared, became nothing more than fodder to be trampled as Drake roared. The sound of a wild beast caused many of the goblins to run, and still Amber knew the girl she now followed was capable of more, her twin magical weapons still unmoving at her back.

“PUSH!”

Every time Amber heard the word, her soul felt as if it was set ablaze. She felt fire run through her veins and power fill her core. Her heart beat increased, and everything around her became a blur of motion and death.

Before Amber knew it their entire group was surrounded on all sides by goblins and hobgoblins.

Her power surged and Amber pushed the diameter of her flame halo, expanding the ring farther than she ever had before, feeling her power grow to new heights as they all fought for thier lives.

The flame ring shot upward, roiling like the sun, appearing to be like that of a celestial body during an eclipse before it slammed down, encompassing their entire group, incinerating dozens of goblins and hobgoblins all at once .

Her Flame Halo surrounded them all, spinning violently. The only monsters that were able to approach the group were those that managed to leap above the fire.

Victor teleported faster than Amber had ever seen him move before, dropping goblins from the air above into the path of all the skeletal minions he fought beside.

Amber was shocked to see a single arrow pierce upward into the sky, bursting into what seemed to be hundreds of copies of itself, raining down as if every arrow was perfectly aimed at vital points of every monster in the surrounding area.

Even the simpleton is growing…, how?

Brice and the twins didn’t allow any of the charging hobgoblins to make it more than a few steps before they were frozen and sliced in half. Vanish’s martial artist minion supported the effort by pushing the frozen bodies into the flaming halo surrounding them with powerful kicks, creating space by turning the monsters remains into a growing ring of ash.

The energy that surged into the group from Vanish’s healers Life Orbs, kept them all on their feet, but Amber knew that the level of skill being displayed by everyone involved was being drastically effected by an unknown factor.

This has got to be because of her…

Amber couldn’t help but follow the movements of Drake and her own giant guardian of a skeletal demon. The only member of the Cultivators gathered that wasn’t within the fire storm she summoned was Drake and her minion. The wild girl carving a path through the monsters, reaping souls with every subtle movement she made.

The elegance of her forms took Amber’s breath away. A spin kick turned an enemy to ash as the force of the blow knocked the hobgoblin into Amber’s flames. Drake danced through her enemies and Amber could feel the flow of combat leaning in favor of her and the rest of the Cultivators even though they were outnumbered by at least three hundred to one.

We are actually going to survive this…

“Drake, quit playing with your food, Lilith is going to grill us if we take too long down here,” yelled Aurora, and Drake chuckled.

Drakes magical weapons finally rose into the air, disconnecting from her mantle and transforming into weapons of deadly proportions.

“Got it, play time is over!”