Blake hurried down the isthmus between water-filled gravel pits to reach the Lupus scenario. The portal sat outside the small town of Snowflake in an industrial area where workers used heavy machinery to load gravel onto trucks.

On his way through their private property, he was once again spotted by a machine operator. Blake glanced over his shoulder as he sped along the land bridge to see the man’s reaction. The worker stumbled from the backhoe and began to waddle towards him, two-way radio in hand.

Good luck catching up to me.

He was obese, with baggy clothes and a long beard that swayed back and forth as he walked.

Blake was not worried.

By the time the employee came close enough to make out his features, he would be long gone. Just as he was last time and the time before.

Where do they think I go? How long do they search for me before they give up?

Blake shrugged off the idle thoughts and slowed down as he neared the portal. The entrance was not located on the thin strip of land between pits, but underwater. Like the Stoltar scenario in Phoenix, he was forced to dive into the water to travel to the Lupus planet.

If it were not hidden so well, dozens of people would have gone missing by now as they chased him down. Luckily, no one wanted to jump in a gravel pit to search for him.

The first time he was seen, he had fretted that a squadron of cop cars would be waiting for his return. However, that never happened. And, each time he had been spotted since then, the area was clear on his exit.

I wonder if they’re doing something illegal and don’t want the cops involved.

Blake inhaled deeply before he sprung forward. He broke through the surface and plunged into the water until the world disappeared around him. When a familiar prompt appeared before him, he increased the difficulty twice and was presented with his objective.

Shit.

Survive until dawn.

Why do I get the hard missions every time I attempt a scenario two levels above me? Does the Architect do it on purpose, or am I just cursed?

So far, he had only been presented with simple elimination objectives within the Snowflake portal. Once he killed thirty to forty Lupus, the scenario was completed, he would receive his reward, and would then be allowed to leave. This time, however, there would be an almost unlimited number of Lupus pitted against him.

At least Montgomery isn’t here to give our position away this time.

Suddenly, he was spat from the void and into a dim forest. After he ensured the area was clear, he observed his surroundings. The Lupus’ star had just set, and its last rays faintly illuminated the thick forest around him.

It must be Autumn here.

The trees had already lost most of their leaves, which now blanketed the ground. Piles up to a foot thick surrounded him, which would impede travel. Blake took a single step forward and winced when they crunched loudly beneath his boots.

How the hell am I supposed to stay hidden in this?

He could only maintain Dampen Sound for so long before he ran out of aetheric energy. The day-night cycles were also much longer on the Lupus planet. If he were to hazard a guess by the stars above, it would be at least another thirteen hours before dawn.

Blake used his psionic ability, Mind Sense, to search the nearby woods, and found no sentient creatures in the area. However, just because there was nothing nearby now, did not mean a patrol could not arrive at any moment.

I should probably use Mind Sense every ten minutes or so.

Blake would have loved to send out a psionic ping every thirty seconds, but the rapid use of spells would quickly drain his psionic energy, which took hours to regenerate. His father’s hearty breakfast and Oliver’s alchemical potions provided a boost to his attributes, but their addition would not be enough for him to recklessly spend his energy.

That attribute increase from breakfast lasted four hours, and after a few alterations, Oliver’s potions now lasted two. Normally, his meal’s boost lasted the entire dungeon, and he only needed to refresh his potions once. This scenario, however, would last at least thirteen hours.

Luckily, I brought plenty of Oliver’s potions.

So far, his brother had been able to produce a large quantity of potions that could enhance all three Physical Attribute enhancement potions as well as his Magic Stamina. Unfortunately, Oliver had yet to get to Magic Power or Magic Resistance.

Blake had brought along five vials of each, or twenty total, which filled the entirety of his Spatial Storage. The general skill had already been upgraded twice, which allowed him to store almost five pounds of mass.

Soon, he would be able to upgrade it again, which would increase the limit to nine pounds. Since each vial of nano-enhanced liquid only weighed a few ounces, that would be enough to hold an entire day’s worth of boosts for all six attributes.

Okay, how should I play this? Should I try hiding, or should I run?

Blake observed the tall, barren trees, and judged they could support his weight. If he climbed to the peak, in the dark of night, he may evade their notice.

I can always run or fight if I’m seen.

Since no monsters were near, he trudged through the heavy leaves without Dampen Sound active until he reached the base of a towering tree. With his prodigious strength, he easily scaled the trunk until it began to bend under his weight.

Maybe I can just stay up here for the rest of the night.

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He was over fifty feet up, and could not see the forest floor. With any luck, the Lupus would not be able to see him either. As far as he knew, their eyes were no better than a wolf’s. If he remained still, he should remain unnoticed.

Hopefully I’m too high for my scent to be an issue.

Twenty minutes later, his third Mind Sense returned a hit. A pack of five Lupus were almost a hundred feet away on the ground below, headed his way.

Just a coincidence.

Blake remained calm and kept his assumption of obscurity, right up until his tree shook violently from an impact. He strained his eyes, but could still not see anything below. Unfortunately, a quick ping of Mind Sense showed the pack as they circled around the base of his tree.

How the hell did they see me? One of them must have Infravision.

If one did have the chi ability, his body heat would blaze brightly in the dark, and could be seen for hundreds of feet. He would need to eliminate it quickly, as its vision gave it an advantage in the dark.

Fine. Let’s do this.

Blake unhooked the spear from his belt, released the trunk, and pushed off with his feet. The wind rushed past his ears as he plunged to the ground below. When he was halfway to the ground, he finally made out the outlines of the monsters below. One Lupus tracked his movement and steadily backed away, while the others remained steady.

That one.

It was ten feet away, out of his reach, but Blake was not worried. He began to cast Gale in the opposite direction of his target. A second later, the spell completed and a blast of wind rocketed out of his left hand and propelled him toward the lone Lupus.

Blake barely had time to aim his spear before it slammed into the surprised monster. The tip pierced through its ribs as he flew past, and the weapon was ripped from his hands. He continued to tumble along the ground until he slammed into a tree.

Get up! Use your spells!

He shook off his dazed head and bruised body to quickly rise to his feet and activated Alacrity. After a split second, he located the dead creature and rushed forward to retrieve his spear.

Unfortunately, by the time he had both hands on the trapped weapon, the other Lupus had already reacted, and he was forced to dive to the side to avoid the closest.

He held onto his spear as he dodged, and used it as a club to beat the monster as it soared past. The creature glowed with the telltale sign of chi, and his swing did very little to damage it. However, after the impact, the corpse of the first Lupus was dislodged, and his spear was free.

Finally!

He sprang to his feet and readied to defend himself when he was suddenly tackled from behind. Pain engulfed his shoulder as its sharp canines penetrated his leather armor.

Where the hell did it come from!? It must have used a Spatial Step!

Blake quickly dropped his spear and reached for the Lupus’s jaw as he twisted to extract himself from its grip. Only after extreme effort was he able to rip the sharp teeth out of his shoulder, along with half his flesh.

He immediately activated Focused Regeneration and searched the unlit ground for his spear as the Lupus’ howled. His left arm hung useless, and he was at a severe disadvantage against the four remaining monsters.

I need to get out of here!

There!

He snatched the weapon and whirled to sprint away when his movement slowed to a crawl.

“Stupid aether users!” Blake cursed as he faced his opponents. When he noticed they were clumped together, he triggered a Directed Mind Blast, and was relieved when his movement returned to normal speed.

Blake took off at a sprint through the dark woods until he found a large branch twenty feet off the ground. He used a Guided Spatial Step to appear atop the large offshoot, with his spear already snapped to his belt, and his arms wrapped around the wood.

Such a good upgrade.

If he had not evolved the ability the way he had, his momentum would not have been instantly arrested, and he would have fallen from the tree. He would have also been unable to secure himself with the spear in hand.

Blake’s Alacrity expired, and a moment later, the Lupus sprinted by, their noses to the air. He froze and held his breath in an effort to hide himself from their sensitive ears.

Shit! I can’t hide my scent.

When his trail suddenly disappeared, they began to spread out directly below him. He watched as they circled around in an effort to lock on to his position. When they did not immediately find it, they called loudly for reinforcements.

I can’t stay here.

A minute and a half later, his Guided Spatial Step was once again ready, and the Lupus below showed no sign of leaving. Blake searched the dark for a branch large enough to hold his weight, and was relieved when he found one just fifteen feet away. However, with their acute hearing, he was concerned any movement would alert them.

I need to use Dampen Sound.

Unfortunately, aether spells needed to be channeled, and it was not possible to use two at the same time. In his past life, Rajesh had complained many times about his inability to use two spells at once.

Although… Rajesh didn’t have a ninety-four percent affinity like I do.

Aether was by far Blake’s highest propensity. He had only ever come across a few people with an affinity over ninety, and none of them were aether users.

Well, it doesn’t hurt to try. The worst thing that can happen is nothing.

Blake channeled Dampen Sound, focused on the far branch, and activated Guided Spatial Step.

Nothing happened.

He growled in frustration but refused to give up. Blake concentrated on his intent as he again tried to trigger the second aether spell. Once again, it failed to activate. However, through his focus, he was able to discern a single point of resistance. With that point firmly in mind, he once again tried to use both abilities simultaneously, and yet again failed.

He glanced down at the Lupus.

I have time.

Normally, continuous failures would discourage him. However, each time he did not succeed, he sensed that he came closer and closer to success. Finally, after what must have been the hundredth attempt, what felt like a blockage was destroyed and the spell was completed.

Yes!

Blake was so surprised by his success, that he almost fell from the branch he now clung to. Luckily, his Dampen Sound remained active and prevented the noise from his sudden movements from escaping. To conserve his aether, which was now at seventy-four percent, he deactivated Dampen Sound while he waited for his teleportation spell to recover.

A minute and a half later, he reactivated Dampen Sound, and attempted to use a Guided Spatial Step simultaneously. To his relief, there was only a slight resistance, and he found himself another nineteen feet away.

After Blake used his Mind Sense ability to search for the now hidden Lupus, he found that reinforcements had arrived. To his relief, none of them headed his way.

For the next fifteen minutes, he traveled through the trees and put as much distance as he could between himself and the Lupus still searching for him. Each time he moved, he used his Mind Sense to locate the packs to ensure he remained undetected.

When he felt he had reached a safe distance, he halted his flight and remained stationary high in the canopy while he waited for his shoulder to heal.

Blake estimated that a normal human would take around three weeks to recover from the bite. With his Physical Stamina attribute currently at thirty-two point five thanks to his temporary increases, it would heal at almost two hundred times that rate.

If his math was correct, he would need to remain hidden for two and a half hours before he regained use of his left arm. As Blake settled in to wait, he cast Mind Sense and then sighed in relief when the ping failed to return an enemy.

Hopefully I can just stay hidden up here the rest of the night.