Dan’s attention was all encompassing. He had managed his mana carefully around the two majaal. His control had first been tempered by the labyrinth itself, the rock causing Dan to spread his mana less haphazardly. It comfortably filled the craggy battleground which Dan had chosen as the staging ground for the defeat of Bloom and Void.

Second challenge for his perceptive mana had been refined by the discovery of shells. A layer of energy coursed over the bodies of strong opponents, deadening his mana and blinding him. By using that sudden severance of his connection, Dan was still able to sense his enemy’s movements.

Now the only obstacle left was keeping the space filled with a flow of mana that wasn’t being destroyed. It was simple enough, with Dan’s current level of skill he could essentially paint an outline of these two, no matter how they moved around the space.

Dan had chosen a vantage point to start from and once the two separated, Dan’s assault could begin. He decided to speed up the creation of a division by forcing one. In Bloom’s left ear he produced the noise of a muffled inhale of breath. In Void’s right ear, he taunted the huge majaal. The effect was as foreseeable as it was childish. By throwing his voice along his mana, Dan had effectively tapped them both on the shoulder.

In his harsh, reptilian voice Dan heard Bloom say “he’s this way,” just as Void also claimed to know where Dan was. In reality, Dan was in neither of those directions, sitting safely a few metres above their heads. While the two began arguing, Dan continued cycling his mana.

The labyrinthite around himself was disruptive to his inner mana as well as his outer. It took longer for the energy to move around his body, the sluggish feeling similar to waiting for blood to return to a numb limb. They were giving him time to prepare by arguing and eventually by deciding to just split up to cover more ground. It was perfect.

With the time they had given to him, Dan simply had to choose his moment and his target. He decided the Void was likely the bigger problem and that the sneak attack should be aimed at him. With a stealth that can only be borne of knowing where the target is looking, Dan jumped closer to Void along the hidden gaps above.

The technique was everything Dan had learned, all aimed in the direction of doing damage. The armour around his fist grew thicker, bands of mana wrapping more and more densely around. In amongst those threads were Fa Lian’s withering mana. Dan couldn’t use it on his own hands, he had tried, but it could exist within the gauntlets he formed. This ability had worked against Ryong Aang, though that was definitely a different circumstance. While that had been a dream, Dan was sure the effect would be similar.

Being methodical could only work for so long. Dan jumped from above and landed behind Void. His feet his the ground quietly but the blue majaal was swinging his arm almost before Dan’s landed. Dan slipped the punch by less than an inch, his own form important. His feet were planted. His fist was heavy. He pulsed all the bestial force he could through his mana channels and threw the heaviest hook he could manage.

Void got his arms up to block but all that meant was more bones in the way to break. Dan could feel the crushing of them as his fist followed through to ribs. Both forearms had softened the blow but there had been no chance it could be enough. Without room to go flying, Void instead bounced off a wall fifteen feet away, smashing into the floor heavily afterwards.

The majaal could barely even groan with the destruction wrought upon his ribs and lungs but Dan had no sympathy. He had intended to debilitate, not kill, and that had certainly been the effect. Before Bloom could arrive and find him, Dan once again leapt into the air and found a spot to hide. It wasn’t long before the green majaal appeared, slinking around a corner cautiously. Of course, Dan had known where he was the whole time. No amount of sneaking could keep you hidden if Dan wanted to find you.

When Dan attempted to attack Bloom in the same way he had the larger majaal, the strike did not land so cleanly. The green skinned man was furiously shouting at Dan as he narrowly dodged the dense fist of mana thrown his way. The effect was literally heavy, slowing his movement and keeping his techniques for itself, so Dan needed to drop the powerful blow and fight Bloom the old fashioned way.

By releasing the congealed mana around Dan’s fist, it was free to flow elsewhere. It appeared, in Dan’s sense, to be like releasing a dam of water so that it could flow into a parched valley. Much like taking a deep breath after being underwater, Dan revelled in the weightlessness of letting it go.

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He could work on the punch another time. Dan had more than enough at his disposal to defeat Bloom.

The following fight took about seven seconds. Without Void to harass Dan and help him keep distance, Dan was able to avoid all the dangerous spittle aimed his way and close the distance easily. Up close, Bloom was spindly and gaunt. Even without the heavy attack of his combined abilities, Dan was faster, stronger and sturdier than the majaal he faced. A solid combination of quick punches to the stomach opened up Bloom’s block and Dan’s neck punch, an uppercut, caught the majaal’s chin, sending him into unconsciousness.

When the dust settled, Dan looked at the scene before him.

These two individuals had caught him in their territory and Dan had nearly paid the ultimate price. His friends may have died if the majaal had gotten through him. The thought of it filled Dan with an anger he thought did not exist within himself. Seeing both of them laid out, Dan saw how easy it would be to keep them out of his way - permanently.

When Dan left the room, heading back to where he had been separated from Calliope and Shade, both majaal were firmly tied up with Dan’s own mana threads. There was a quiet lull for a short while as Dan waited for something terrible to happen, some unseen danger to leap from the shadows and take his victory. That didn’t happen, however.

Instead, he was able to revel in his accomplishment.

For exactly sixteen seconds after he had defeated Void and Bloom, Dan felt like the king of the world. His whooping was cut short by what could only be described as a shift in gravity. The world itself had become less, and something else had become more. All of Dan’s mana seemed to freeze. He severed the connection just in time as a wave of force collided with him. As though a hurricane ran through him, Dan was physically pushed back by the swell of mana that coursed through the labyrinth.

Something awful had happened.

A new monster had appeared.

Then, as though to consciously choke the life from him, another wave of energy met the first. They smashed together like two colliding mountains. If Dan had not closed himself off from his perception, he would have either been blinded, deafened or killed by the sensation. As it was, he got away with an instantly formed headache and a slight nosebleed.

Dan had no idea what had caused the two gargantuan displays of power but he knew one thing for sure. He was directly in the middle of the two. As were his friends. Dan reapplied his mana threads, binding Bloom and Void. The blast of energy had caused his magic to dissipate but it had also served to knock these two further into a tongue lolling unconsciousness.

Feeling confident, at least, that these two would not cause further harm for a while, Dan began sprinting back the way he had come. It wasn’t too difficult but for the first time, Dan had to traverse the labyrinth as others did. His mana had been completely fried and so, his trail back was lost. It was one humbling experience after another. If Dan could find his friends, they could regroup and find a way to get out of this mess.

Dan had to double back twice in his attempt to return to the place he had been separated from Shade and Calliope. Without his mana to help, two different crossroad rooms had gotten the better of him. Luckily for Dan, he was on the highest of alerts and he was quick to notice that he had begun travelling in the right direction. He knew, however, that he was still a ways away. If he had battled the majaal brothers any earlier, the fight may have taken longer.

Dan kicked himself for his perfectionism and silently bemoaned the distance he was now forced to cover. Every step carried with it the weight of the growing worry gnawing at Dan’s mind. What had he missed? There was some explanation for these immense powers and Dan was sure that it was right in his face if he knew where to look. Whether the four majaal troublemakers had been sent to Allusia for the express purpose of causing trouble or not, their presence had clearly taken Dan’s attention away from something important.

Finally, Dan did arrive at the crossroads where he had been left to fight Bloom and Void.

That was when the third power emerged. The ambient energy of the labyrinth had not yet recovered from the previous two surges of power. There was a heaviness in the air that Dan could feel on his skin, a static electricity leaping over his skin and along his mana channels. Whatever was happening was literally world shaking. The labyrinth began to tremble. The walls began to creak and Dan tried to think quickly.

He had no way out of the labyrinth quickly. That meant in the event of a collapse, he was probably dead. If he found one of the strange special rooms of the labyrinth, would he be safe? One like the colosseum, a wide and open space, may be the safest place he could find.

This way.

Dan felt a presence touch his own. It was like someone taking his mana and focing a sensation into it. Like something speaking directly into his mind. Dan had sensed this energy before but not like this. Before, it had simply been a strand of probing mana, weakly searching for something.

Now, it was a colossal power rivalling two others.

Kumiho fluffed up noticeably in the back of Dan’s mind. She, too, had been affected by the battling powerhouses. Dan hadn’t had time to worry about his vulpine passenger but now she brought herself forward and made herself known.

“Do as it says.” Came her honeyed voice in Dan’s mind. Unlike the other words, these were actually said and Dan could feel them in his ear as Kumiho spoke. The previous words had been forced into Dan’s thoughts, an intent made known. Dan was suspicious but was not surrounded by a plethora of options. Kumiho had not led Dan wrong yet. He did not believe he understood her motives, her goals or what she expected to gain from assisting him but Dan had no other choice but to believe in her advice.

Please. Help me.

The choice became as simple as breathing. Dan could feel the fear being called out within these words from somewhere deeper in the labyrinth. Kumiho had told him to do as the words said and now they were asking for his help.

So he would.