There was almost a guilt to the thought but Dan was glad to finally not have to protect someone else. He would cover for Fa Lian or Shade if they needed it but that was not especially likely. Dan felt slightly humbled as he was left with very little to do. This was apparently by design, so that Dan’s more limited pool of mana, large but hard to replenish right now, could stay full.

What that meant was that Dan essentially felt as though he had an escort. It was not the most unpleasant feeling in the world but doing nearly nothing while the other two gave it their all was disconcerting and a little uncomfortable.

Shade brought Raze down and the sword quivered in the air. The strike landed in a dozen places at once, as did the next and the one after. After the third strike, Shade sheathed the weapon and walked forward. Though the sword in his hand had not hit a single enemy, fifty or more skeletons dropped in a moment. Dan realised he had only seen Shade fight single enemies, while his powers, it seemed, were suited for groups.

He was suited for war.

Fa Lian tore through the ranks in person, up close and physical. With each swing of the staff, a cascade of rocketing bone flew away from her, shrapnel tearing the rest apart. Each impact expelled a burst of heat, her every hit was the collision of a meteor. Her rise in power was happening before Dan's eyes and yet he still could hardly believe she was the same girl who had escaped to the labyrinth with him.

He watched her at the front of their triangle. When Dan and Shade had first punched through the sea of bone, it had been steady but slow. With Fa Lian ahead of them, both he and Shade needed to sprint to keep up. Even if Dan wanted to get involved, at this point all he would be doing was whistling into a hurricane.

She was suited to lead.

Dan found himself with time to wonder. What was he suited for? Spying would be a cynical, if correct, answer. He was more capable than anyone he had met when it came to scouting, though at the same time Calliope’s ability gave her similar capabilities while also increasing her strength massively. By contrast, Dan’s mana did next to nothing to make him stronger by itself.

It was in contact with others that Dan truly shone. His youth of being viewed as lesser or different had stopped him from finding that out for too long. It had been Hyun Soon and Xiaomei, who didn’t care or notice that Dan was more scared of them than the haunted forest they met in. Their extended hands of friendship allowed Dan himself to reach out to Fa Lian. Dan had cultivated a friendship with Shade. He had met and bonded with the mysterious Kumiho. She had guided him in times of trouble and soothed his nightmares. A series of connections that all led to Dan being here, able to influence the powerful and stand amongst them.

His thoughtfulness could only last so long, however, and eventually the three of them reached the base of the bone tower. It was huge on a scale Dan had never seen before. He had heard of mountains, and Allusia was inside of a valley but the sense of the scale before Dan made it almost hard to breathe, his head spun a little.

“We climb, then?” He asked, almost wishing there were another answer. Instead of saying “no, we can just ride this handy cart to the top” like Dan sarcastically wished, Shade and Fa Lian got ready to jump and start their ascent. Dan didn’t have time to say wait before they both leapt from the ground. He groaned and flared the last vestiges of Calliope’s mana within himself.

As they collided with the tower, the bones came to life. This is what Dan expected and the reason he had wanted them to wait. At least, Dan thought, this was a confirmation that the others in the chamber had not touched the tower. Though, the old man had been using a flying podium, so maybe they were up there and just hadn’t touched down yet.

From this close, Dan could not see the threads of mana. He assumed that the tower itself was more of a shell than anything else, the threads that came from it probably came from a tightly bundled core at the centre. The reaction from the tower was nothing more aggressive than an automatic defence response in an insect. Dan did not want to meet the insect as dangerous as the tower which was trying grasp and tear at his flesh.

Dan’s protection was his mana armour, as thick and powerful as it had ever been. The skeletons were no threat to him with the mingled power of Hyun Soon, Xiaomei and Fa Lian working together to shield him. The new looking black armour was not only harder than the previous versions but it carried the power of Fa Lian’s mana to destroy other mana. Each punch he threw sent out a burst of dispelling energy that made the bones he was climbing inert.

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Only for a moment though as the tower, unlike the bones on the ground, reforged the connection to the dead material. The process was quick, Dan could feel the energy moving around within the huge mass, sending power back to the cut off portions. An idea began to form in Dan’s mind but the climb continued.

The going was difficult but a rhythm was found. Dan or Fa Lian could send a wave of energy through the offending bones and give themselves a moment or two of peace. They could then scale the sheer side of the cliff. At one point, she tried to carve a spot to stand on top of the bones but the mass from above simply fell to fill the space. Shade was having the hardest time, though he was strong enough to fight off the clutching hands.

Dan could not help but think that his teacher, Park Man-Shik, would have appreciated this level of interference while exerting oneself. He would call this perfect training, so Dan told himself the same. “When we get through this,” Dan shouted, “just think how much stronger we’ll be!”

For the first time, Dan heard Shade laugh. It was a deep, hearty series of booms, somehow very befitting the scenario. “Exactly that, Guan Ah Dan.” Dan could have sworn that he saw Shade wipe a tear from his eye but he could just have easily been removing some debris. “We have a prince, the Lady of Guan… let’s just claim it all.”

As if in response to Shade’s hubris, a clarion of power echoed around the chamber. Dan nearly fell from the tower as he used both of his hands to cover his ears. For whatever reason, the sound did not effect Fa Lian or Shade the same way, and it was Shade’s watchful eye and quick thinking that stopped Dan from plummeting. Shade himself dropped from the tower, appearing next to Dan a moment later and putting an arm around his back to hold him up.

The sound got louder and louder. Sounding like a thousand carrion crows all screaming a dirge at once, the sound came from everywhere at once. Dan was sure he was already deaf but the intensity continued to rise. Somewhere below, close to the base of the tower but not within sight, a battle was starting to rage. Dan had felt the precursors to this when he had approached, the waves of energy that had coated the labyrinth and shaped it.

The soul relics were clashing.

With thunder in his head, Ah Dan forced himself to grip the tower. His mana armour had dissipated and it took effort to force it back together. Even when he did, the armour only went as far as his elbows before stopping. It will do, Dan thought grimly as he weathered the sudden tempest of force buffeting him. He was vaguely aware of Shade asking him something but Dan just shook his head. They weren’t far from the top now, Dan just had to hope he could rest when he got there.

Over the next few minutes, Dan was able to better understand the feeling he was experiencing. It wasn’t noise exactly, so much as a vibration through mana. The weapons were so powerful that when they clashed, a wave rippled through all other mana in the area. This meant that the tower was also stunned by the chaos below and the rest of their climb was without hassle in that regard.

When, finally, panting and exhausted, Dan clambered over the ridge at the top of the tower, he groaned. It was wide enough that this plateau had simply hidden another hill. There was a large part of Dan that desired to weep in frustration but that side had been beaten into submission by Park Man-Shik, at first, and eventually himself.

“We made it. Kind of.” Fa Lian was definitely not out of breath. She looked down at Dan as he still dealt with the agony in his head, a migraine brought on by the magic below. “Can you continue?”

Dan was going to say yes. Then he thought that he should say no. Instead he simply looked into her eyes and let her decide. She saw something in his own eyes that told her what she needed to know and she reached out her hand. Pulling him to his feet, Fa Lian kept her grasp on his wrist even after he stood. She did not turn away, piercing him with vibrant green eyes that were now flecked with red and gold.

“We are going to save my brother. You promised, remember?” Dan was shocked at the unhidden vulnerability of the question. Of course he remembered but he was surprised that Fa Lian did. He was doubly surprised that she would call on that promise, harken back to it to give herself strength. Dan nodded firmly.

“Give me a moment, I need to try something.” Dan had already cut off all the ambient mana he could. He was not perceiving the world through anything other than his eyes and ears, or so he thought. It was not so simple as cutting a connection, the mana in the air and clinging to bones was his. As the waves of energy from the souls relics hit that mana, Dan himself was getting lashed by the magical rebound. He need to go one step further.

With a force of will and a strong mental image, Dan began to recall all the mana he could. There were particles of energy all over the cavern and the furthest ones had been carried by combat, putting them further than Dan could reach. He didn’t focus on what he couldn’t do, but instead focused on what he could. It was similar to taking a deep breath but doing so with his mana channels instead of his lungs. There was no true comparison other than in the effect. As Dan “inhaled”, the mana in the cavern was drawn to him.

Seeing that it was working, Dan threw himself into the technique. Even as the bells of combat rang out, a gong of epic proportions which tore Dan’s concentration to shreds constantly, he persisted. He could feel his own mana re-entering his body, a sorely missed resource. As though it had a mind of its own, the mana seemed to delight in finding its original home. Dan was delighted with it. Each sucking breath brought more and more mana back, filling Dan’s mana channels.

When he was done, all Dan could hear of the battle below was a dull ringing which told him that it was still ongoing. The process had taken only a few minutes but Dan had recovered massively. With a pat on both Fa Lian and Shade’s shoulders, Dan smiled and healed them. Fa Lian seemed surprised, while Shade expressed gratitude, but Dan only smirked.

He felt good. He knew that he hadn’t, due to the aches he felt, but Dan may as well have healed himself. He bounced from one foot to the other, the layer of bone beneath them still inert from the clash of soul relics below. His muscles stopped screaming, however, and the parched channels of his mana now felt quenched. Fa Lian, himself and Shade were as ready as they would ever be.

He felt ready to save the world.