I couldn’t stop myself as my head fell to the rock, but Drayek sped over and caught me before I could crack my head open.

“Of course I have the antidote!” Drayek cried. “Do you think I wouldn’t bring any when we were about to fight a Rockcrawler?”

Drayek gently laid me flat on the ground and retrieved his Hunter’s satchel. He sifted through the bits of food and our waterskins, then triumphantly pulled out a glass vial that glinted underneath the moonlight.

“Besides, Hunters are always required to carry the antidote for Rockcrawler venom.”

After popping open the cork of the vial, he rushed to my side once again and lifted my head, then proceeded to pour the bitter liquid into my mouth.

My eyes watered from the metallic, salty taste, but I allowed the warm antidote to trickle down my throat and to my gut. The pain slowly subsided, and the burning sensation of the venom began to cool off.

“The venom is no longer in your blood, Master. There is no longer a threat to your heart,” Codex said.

I wiggled my fingers freely, then my toes, and then I was able to turn my head and look at Drayek.

“Thank you,” I breathed.

Drayek released me, allowing me to sit up on my own. He then rolled back onto his knees and studied me. He’d been doing a lot of that lately.

“You did the same thing to the Nagari on that first hunt,” he said. “You nearly tore that thing into two then, and I wondered how you did it. I thought it might have had to do with your Soul Strength, but we were… preoccupied at the time, so I couldn’t ask you.”

He narrowed his eyes. “But now you just cut a Rockcrawler–even though small, still massive and with scales hard as steel–clean in half! How, Rayden?”

I felt my face grow warm. If Drayek, of all people, was impressed by something a Tier 1 could do, then it was definitely worth talking about.

“You know how I can see essence?”

He nodded.

“Well…” I trailed off and glanced around the Rockcrawler’s body and saw the swarm of essence streams surrounding it. I quickly drew in every bit of it before I continued talking.

“Rayden!” Drayek snapped.

“Sorry. Uh…” I closed my eyes, still slightly distracted by the essence entering my Soul and giving my body a pleasant sensation of warmth. “I can see essence and direct it where I want, including my armor. I think that’s why I was able to strengthen it to–I don’t know–a higher-Tiered strength than normal? I’m not sure how it works.”

“I do, Master. For every dozen streams of essence you direct into armor or into a weapon, it increases the combined strength of your body and equipment by two percent.”

I furrowed my brows and rubbed my temples. My head hurt enough without Codex interjecting whenever it wanted to.

Drayek chewed on his tongue, then let slip a hint of a smile.

“What? What is it?”

He threw his head back and started laughing.

I tried a hesitant chuckle. “Seriously, what?”

Drayek wiped at the wetness under his eyes as his laughing died down. “I would just like to see the faces of the Priests when they find out what you can do–an UnMarked! Well, if they find out.”

The thought of letting the Priests, the Elders, and the rest of Edrona know of my new capabilities–capabilities I had without the blessing of the goddess–was so appealing that my wary smile turned into a burgeoning grin. But my situation was also unheard of–not just unique. Who knew what they’d want to do with me? I was already an outsider. Did I really need another reason for everyone to hate me?

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

***

I went on these “solo hunts” with Drayek three more times within the next week, all in between his regularly scheduled hunts and all during the cover of night. We didn’t want anyone to discover we’d been heading out on unsanctioned excursions. We especially didn’t want any heat on Drayek, who would get into trouble for bringing an UnMarked on not one, but four more dangerous hunts–and with only two in the party, no less. He had already received enough disapproval for his decisions on that first hunt he’d brought me on–the hunt where a few Hunters had died.

These expeditions Drayek took me on, in his words, all served one purpose: to further train me and enhance my talents.

And I did get better.

Not only did I advance past levels three, four, and five within Tier 1 due to the massive amounts of essence I had access to on our hunts, but I also grew more confident with my Tier 1 shortsword. I could take on fully grown Rockcrawlers without so much as a scratch.

I sidled up next to Drayek as we marched toward his next assignment for me. He and his Hunters had seen a group of four Nagari straggling along the mountain face near the Edronan border and thought I might be ready to try my hand at taking them on.

“When are you going to let me buy a spear?” Though I whispered, my voice still resounded loudly in the stillness of night. “I mean, I’m really loving this sword you gave me….”

I rested a palm on the hilt of the sword at my hip. I did like the sword, but no matter how skilled I might become with the blade, there was something powerful and satisfying about thrusting the head of a spear into a monster.

“But you also promised that if I showed improvement, you’d take me to Blacksmith Gerald and allow me to commission another weapon. Haven’t I proved myself yet?”

Drayek rubbed his fingers along his forehead. “You are showing much improvement, of course. But… Well, I know I promised you we’d get a spear, but we can’t have everyone else questioning why you even need a weapon as an UnMarked.”

I pursed my lips. “What’s the point of all of this training, then, if no one finds out? If I never get a chance to fight or serve Edrona as a warrior at all?”

“I’m working on it,” was all Drayek said in reply.

We climbed up the mountain in silence, following a path not far from where I had killed that first Rockcrawler. We heaved ourselves up onto a ledge, and I joined Drayek in searching for any stray Nagari.

“They must be around here somewhere,” Drayek said so softly I almost didn’t catch it.

I opened my mouth to ask something, but the sight of something strange ahead caused me to forget my words. I dared to lean over the rock shelf just enough to stare at the slowly growing dark blob I could see approaching from the west.

“Drayek, what’s that?”

Drayek frowned at my worried expression and turned his head to follow where I stared.

Drayek muttered a curse, standing now and leaning dangerously far over the shelf. “No, no–it can’t be.”

“What?”

I couldn’t see as well as Drayek. His being a Tier 3 had improved his eyesight over further distances. I could definitely see better than before I had advanced to Tier 1, but still not as well or as far as Drayek.

“It’s an army,” Drayek said. “An army of Nagari. A massive army.”

My heart plummeted. “Are they headed toward Edrona?”

Drayek glanced up at the top of the mountain. “Let’s find out. I need a better view.”

I followed Drayek up the rock face. I pulled myself up and over onto a relatively flat part of the mountain’s peak right after Drayek had. We walked a little further west toward the army, careful of our footing. It was a long way down….

Once closer and higher, even I could see the blob better; I could see well enough to make out shapes that looked very Nagari-like. There were thousands of them–maybe even 10,000. A number that Edrona couldn’t possibly fight against. The numbers were 5 to 1. And sure enough, the Nagari marched in the direction Edrona stood.

“How far out do you think they are from the city?” I asked.

Drayek squinted his eyes and thought for a moment. “Maybe a week out?”

I swallowed. Not good.

“But wait!” I exclaimed. “They don’t know where Edrona is.” Hope dripped from my voice.

After the war against the Nagari, the Edronans had to relocate. And then the mages had placed illusory spells over the city, making it impossible for anyone except those who lived within the borders to know Edrona’s location.

Though the Edronans had won the great war against the Nagari, the losses had been heavy, so they had taken the necessary precautions and relocated their entire people. Those with illusory skills continued to help hide Edrona from anyone who lived outside of the city limits. Only Edronans (and me, of course) could find its whereabouts.

My eyes widened further as I continued to stare at the oncoming army. No, they couldn’t possibly see where Edrona stood.

“Maybe they’re headed somewhere else,” I said.

“Where, Rayden?” Drayek snapped.

I flinched, and he dropped his eyes to his feet.

“I’m sorry,” he said, “but what other place could they possibly be heading in that direction? It’s not like this planet is plentiful in cities and people. Look around you.” He gestured in a circle. “This world is a wasteland. Edrona can be the only place they’re headed.”

I chewed on my bottom lip.

“The question is,” Drayek said, “is how they found out where Edrona is…?”