To his surprise, Jake returned to the underground Dragon Vein without a hitch. His eyes opened to a tranquil scene and a fair amount of quiet. The Warriors who had arrived and caused a ruckus were sitting off to the side, mumbling to one another quietly as they played a game with rocks. Xul and Tul were tending to their spears while Yae was playing with the essence by the water. Her hands glowed a faint green and she seemed to be channeling mana into the essence. Without a keen eye for it, however, Jake couldn’t see what she was doing.

However, all of that stopped as soon as Jake stood up. Eyes suddenly snapped to him and the Warriors ditched their game. Jake felt uncomfortable with the weight of the attention and quickly turned away from all of the heavy stares. He walked over to the large cavern and took a knee at the edge of the rock. He dipped his fingers into the essence and closed his eyes. He could feel the strength of the current. It was slow, lazy. Easy to manipulate as he coiled some of the essence around his fingers.

His plan might work.

Quick to try it, he picked up a rock and placed it on top of the water. Using mana, he controlled the water beneath the stone and used a steady amount of pressure to keep it afloat. Once he had achieved the required balance, he pushed on the rock and caused it to drift in a slow circle. Using the water as the force to move the rock, he was able to move the stone in a circle, then a figure-eight, side to side, forwards and backward, and he even was able to cause the rock to sink a few inches beneath the surface. He lifted it back up and then cut the flow entirely. The rock sunk into the black of the depths as Jake looked out towards the Maedra.

There were five groups of the beasts in sight. Two groups were far to the left, well out of the way. None of them were Maudraga. One group was in the dead center of the pool, their heads down and stuffed into the pool of essence as they fed off its power. A fourth group was raised up and away from the essence pool by about half the distance to the ceiling. This would be his problem group as they were entirely made up of the caster type. Six in total were on that platform.

The final group was all regular Maedra. They sat on a large peninsula jutting out from the wall just before the pool curved out of view. The two out of the way wouldn’t cause an issue. The raised Six Maudraga would likely spell disaster if not handled properly. The group in the distance was a necessity to be handled if Jake wanted a break. If left undisturbed, the Maedra in the middle were also likely to not cause trouble. However, he would deal with them anyway. He knew that the Maedra would eventually evolve into the Maudraga once their mana crystals grew enough. Due to just stumbling in, he wasn’t sure how far along that process they were. If the change occurred as Jake was passing by, he would be in range of their spells and would have little time to react.

Along with the Maedra, there was also the obstacle of the Vein itself. Passing over the pool would get him very, very close to the Vein. If what Chul had warned him about was true then the density of the mana near the Vein might be poisonous. Even here, at a slightly further distance than where he and Chul had been, Jake could feel the strength of the mana in the air. Though, there was also more essence on this end. Which one was contributing to the problem the most, he wasn’t quite sure.

But, he had traveled this far beneath the surface and had passed by the Vein once. Albeit he was unconscious and near death when he had gone by, still. He’d survived one pass. He just had to make another.

“Yae, Tul, Xul,” Jake called out and the three hurried over. The Warriors came, too, but Jake would deal with them shortly. “We’re going to cross.”

“C-Cross?” Yae was visibly both confused and worried. Tul’s eyebrows furrowed, and Xul looked lost.

“Yes. Cross. I have to get to the other side.” Jake pointed towards the distant curve of the pool, as well as at the Maedra lingering there. “My friend is waiting there.”

“Can’t. Dangerous.” Xul shrugged as he stated what he figured was obvious. “Also, can’t swim.” The sharp, yellow nail of the underground dweller stuck outwards and pointed straight at Jake. Jake sighed and nodded.

“No, I can’t, but I’m still going to cross.”

“We go with.” Zara loudly exclaimed as Jake expected he would. Zara stepped forward and slammed the butt of his spear into the floor. Jake shrugged.

“Sure. You can fight the Maedra.” The boy smirked. “If you’re going to come with us, I’m going to make use of you.”

“No. You fight. We watch.” Zara grinned and his crew all laughed. Jake shook his head and walked towards the edge of the pool. There was no sense in arguing with them. He placed his hands down and fed a large amount of mana into the ground.

“Safe…?” Yae knelt beside him and whispered into his ear. She was uneasy but her eye at least showed a bit of trust. Jake nodded, confident in at least his mana. If he failed here he would do everything in his power to push them to safety. There was also the fact that Zara had survived a swim in the essence when Jake had pushed him into it. That meant it wouldn’t kill them if they fell in.

“Safe.” Jake ignited the mana and cut a chunk of the ground from the rest of the floor. A faint blue glow traced out the large square and dust kicked up as the floor shifted from the spell. Jake stood up and looked at the others. Xul and Tul were already standing on the new platform. From their expressions, they looked as if they had already accepted their fate.

The Warriors, however, hesitated.

“Well? We’re leaving.” Jake said bluntly, extending a hand and creating a small wall of wind at the edge of the platform. His feet began to glow a bright blue as he dumped Dragon’s Blood into the floor, feeding it into the slab as he pushed the large section of rock away from the rest. The large pool of essence immediately flowed in to fill the fresh gap, signaling that they truly were leaving. Zara’s brain clicked into action first and the lead Warrior swiftly rushed onto the floating platform. The others followed a brief moment later, just in time before the essence slapped into the vacant square with a loud splash.

The platform was shaky at first as Jake nearly lost control. The weight of the platform, the shaking from the movement of its riders, and the uncertainty of the current beneath had thrown his mana out of whack. He reacted quickly, adjusting the mana buffer beneath the rock to keep them from flipping. Once he had the required mana set to keep them afloat, Jake sat down and established a constant connection with himself. Any more and they would be pushed upwards out of the essence. Any less and they’d drop beneath the surface.

Yae clapped her hands in earnest, giddy as she stared down toward the water. Tul and Xul both looked over the edge of the platform, surprised at the outcome. The Warriors, on the other hand, looked outright terrified. Zara scowled and quickly lowered into a seat just a few steps away from Jake, wary of the boy as the platform began to float out into the pool. Jake concentrated purely on the spell, using his hands and his body as the steering as he pushed on the floating platform. His mana didn’t quiver or shake but it certainly was being burnt through very quickly because of all the variables. He drew on the thick mana in the air and slowed the pace of the platform. He needed to find the equilibrium. The balance between the amount needed to float and push and how much he was using.

His second plan was also just about ready. As they drifted further and further out into the pool, Jake found the amount of available mana to him naturally increasing. He pushed his fingers into the floor and pulled the essence up through the rock, drawing it directly into his body to replenish what he was burning through. He felt good and confident, and the flow was stable. He pushed them out further and further, closer and closer towards the center space where the Maedra island was, and then slowly pushed them to his right. The platform stopped moving forward and began to slide sideways across the pool. He rotated the platform slowly, arcing them neatly around the center island.

Then, without a warning, he cracked the platform in half. A bright line of mana shot up through the center of the slab, splitting his group from the Warriors. Zara’s eyes widened at the sight, but just as he rose to his feet, Jake yanked down on the platform. The large warrior lost his footing as the floating rock dropped beneath the surface of the essence. Zara fell flat on his face on top of the liquid with a rough smack. The other warriors didn’t even get that far- they just fell straight down. Jake disconnected his mana from the second platform, causing it to fall to the bottom of the pool. Instead, he began to control the water itself.

He created a strong wave and pushed the five warriors away as they tried swimming toward his platform. The essence was easy to control now that he’d worked out the kinks in his connection with it. He created a strong current at their feet, pushing the Warriors safely out of reach. The Warriors flailed and struggled to stay afloat, dropping their weapons in exchange for the chance to breathe. Even Zara was forced to focus on slapping at the surface.

However, while Jake wanted to drown them, he pushed them backward and toward the exit of the cavern where they had come. The Warriors instinctively turned towards it once they’d realized they wouldn’t be able to get to Jake and he helped them at least part of the way. After a certain distance, Jake’s control over the essence weakened and it was taking up too much energy for him to justify further aid. Out of the five, only one didn’t make it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Zara.

“Funny.” Tul chuckled as he sat down. Xul shook his spear victoriously in the air and let out some kind of battle chant as he cheered. Only Yae seemed unsettled by the scene but Jake wasn’t about to explain himself. He wasn’t a fan of the way Zara had looked at him and he wasn’t going to deal with the idiot breathing down his neck the entire time. Jake had other problems to deal with, problems that were threatening to them.

The Warriors shouted something in their own tongues, their voices echoing faintly into the cavern but Jake didn’t bother listening. The small victory of separating himself from the troublemakers had been achieved but the battle wasn’t over. He put his focus on pushing the remaining rock platform along and rotated it around so he could face forward again. The next problem was already upon them and the Maedra looked hungry.

Seeing the four tasty treats just a short distance away brought exciting looks to the grotesque flesh bags. Those on the center island were now fully aware of the other presence in the pool. They gathered like rats to the one side of their platform as Jake began to drift nearby. They hissed, gurgled, and rumbled. Jake expected one of them to lunge or jump to try and cross the distance but instead, he got an even worse result.

They all jumped into the essence.

Jake immediately pushed his rock platform away from the island, propelling himself away as fast as he possibly could. At the same time, he reached out into the essence to try and find the Maedra. They were there, beneath the surface, and they were swimming quickly towards them.

Jake dumped mana into the essence and utilized Water magic to control the current beneath the surface. He isolated the area the Maedra were in, creating an artificial flow of water that pulled the Maedra together. He forced them into the center of the space by rotating the water, creating a swirling bubble beneath the surface to keep them from getting closer. He sped up the rotation once the Maedra were contained but found that the strength of the current began to affect the surrounding area. His platform was being pulled in.

Using one hand to control the bubble the Maedra were stuck in, Jake used the other to push their platform away. He kept the bubble steady until the platform was safely out of the way and the inward pull was too weak to drag them in again. Then, he went to work. He increased the rotation speed of the bubble and created a box on the outside of the bubble. Slowly, he decreased the size of the bubble and the box. As the bubble shrank, Jake found it easier to increase the speed of the spinning, which in turn increased the pressure on the Maedra. The lack of space and the intense rotational force squeezing on them caused their bodies to contort grossly within Jake’s grasp.

Maintaining both spells was draining too much mana, though, and Jake inevitably cut the connection with the bubble. He solidified the box and closed it down on the trapped rats. The Maedra stuck inside pushed and sliced at their container. They gurgled beneath the surface of the pool and struggled to break free. The Maedra trapped within soon found themselves unable to even move as the box squeezed down on them from all sides. Jake made sure to reduce the object slowly, making the Maedra endure its strength until the very last moment. Though he couldn’t see it, the resistance intensified in the last few moments. Jake could practically feel the crushing of their bodies through his mana.

On the surface, around where Jake had trapped the Maedra, the green essence changed color slightly. Maedra blood leaked out into the pool as the box shrank and shrank until it was nothing more than a brick-sized cube- just large enough to contain a few chunks of meat and the Maedra’s stones of mana. Satisfied, Jake cut the spell and the residual block of meat dropped into the black.

Jake had no time to rest and turned his attention next to the Maudraga. They were eagerly watching from above, waiting their turn. The platform was still a good distance away so Jake had time to collect himself to face the next threat. Whether they didn’t want to cast spells because they were waiting to see the outcome or they were waiting for Jake to get closer, Jake wasn’t sure but the Maudraga had not attacked just yet. Jake himself wanted to get closer, as doing so would ensure his accuracy with his spells. Though, the attention was already on him. If they were in his range, then he certainly was already in theirs.

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Jake rolled up onto a knee and maintained the mana connection with the rock platform through his dropped leg, keeping it afloat and continuing their steady drift to the right. He erected two small spikes out of the floor and used them as pillars to create fire balls on top. Xul moved out of the way, making sure to get clear as Jake fired the balls towards the Maudraga. From where they were, the spells didn’t reach at first. The amount of mana inside the first few volleys wasn’t enough to reach the raised platform and they fizzled out, harmless.

A quick adjustment changed that and the spells began to hit home. Jake targeted the stone floor and the fire balls exploded around the feet of the Maudraga. The creatures howled into the cavern, their arms raising as they fired off their responses. Unlike Chul, Jake couldn’t erect a barrier. Instead, he met fire with fire. He created two more spikes from the floor and conjured up Wind Balls at their peaks, slinging them up to meet the Maudraga spells. The air filled with explosions, the resulting collisions ripping through the silence and disrupting the peace of the cavern. Maedra in the area all turned their attention towards the racket, their bodies tilting to observe the fireworks.

The platform the Maudraga were standing on was thick but the actual connection to the wall wasn’t. After years of jutting outwards, the stone holding the platform up had been worn down by focused erosion. Jake targeted that weakness, his spells blasting apart the rock and whittling away at the stone. The Maudraga, focused entirely on trying to eliminate the unfriendly caster, paid no attention as the floor beneath them began to shake and crack.

After a few more shots, one of the fire balls broke through the rock. The support cracked and the platform trembled. A handful more impacts and the platform fell apart. The Maudraga spells ceased and the creatures tumbled into the essence below. Several were crushed by the falling debris, others were pelted as Jake rained down wind and fire balls onto their heads. He covered the top of the essence with the spells, killing off any of the Maudraga that tried to float or escape the falling rock.

Silence returned to the cavern shortly after and Jake pushed the platform quickly across the pool of essence towards the distant small peninsula. The Maedra standing on it were hungry for a fight. Rather than get it, they were met instead by a barrage of spells once Jake found himself comfortably in range. The Maedra were cut into by the fire and wind combination, their bodies shredded by the pair. Their flesh was either burned and melted or blown off by powerful balls of wind. There were fewer enemies than Jake had fought in the tunnel and the peninsula was cleared before any of the Maedra could get into the pool. Smooth sailing.

The rock platform tapped against the solid ground and Jake quickly had the other three cross onto it. He went last, letting the platform fall away once he was off it. The moment his feet touched down, he was made unpleasantly aware of the danger in the air.

Indeed, standing so close to the Vein was difficult. Jake’s head throbbed and he found it hard to breathe. The mana in the air was so thick his body felt weighed down by the pressure. It wasn’t poisonous like he had thought but he certainly felt weak. Xul, Tul, and Yae seemed unaffected by it, though. They were standing there, staring at him and his discomfort.

“Can’t stay long,” he grumbled, hurrying forward and around the edge of the peninsula. The Vein was about two hundred meters off to his left and there was a part of him that wanted to get closer. But he wasn’t here to explore. Just being this close was enough and Jake was eager to get on with it.

The group moved quickly around the bend in the rock and a familiar space came into view. The familiar stalactites, the corner Chul had hunkered down in, and the remnants of Chul’s magic on the distant floor. However while Jake was happy to see the place he and Chul had been, there was a problem. The Maedra were back. There were at least twenty to thirty of them, scattered along the edge of the essence. The Maudrake wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

Neither was Chul.

The place Chul had been lying in was just off to the right, a bit out of sight and around the corner of the wall. Yet, there was no shadow or any trace of the Arachkin’s body near the edge of the pool. It wasn’t a good sign. The presence of the Maedra alone was unsettling enough.

Jake felt his chest tighten and unease spread through his core. He rushed to the edge of the essence and quickly cut a platform out of the floor. His companions, not wanting to get left behind, climbed onto the platform as well. Jake quickly pushed them out into the essence and shoved them across it towards the cavern floor. He created several spikes in the floor at the front of the platform and filled the air with fire and wind balls. The Maedra across the essence were caught off guard by the barrage and had little time to react as the sky fell on them.

A few dove into the essence. Jake found them when they closed in on his platform and he crushed them beneath the surface. A few jumped back and out of sight but were obliterated when Jake’s platform closed in. He cleared the space of enemies as fast as possible before they reached the end of the pool. The platform sailed swiftly to the edge of the rock and practically slammed against it. He didn’t wait for the others to jump off before he disembarked.

Jake rushed over to where Chul had been, his feet slamming into the floor as he ran.

“CHUL!!” He shouted, his voice cracking as he yelled. “CHUL!” The name echoed into the empty cave. Maedra howled in the distance, but that was the only response he got.

Jake ran around the cluster of rocks blocking his view and stared at the place Chul had been slammed into. The last place he had seen his companion.

Chul was nowhere in sight.

Crack.

Jake fell to his knees, his arms limp at his sides. His mind swirled and his right hand began to throb. His chest cramped up. His throat closed. Tears flowed down his cheeks. A fog clouded his mind. His vision blurred. His head felt light.

Where is Chul? You were right here.

Chul. Where did you go? Why aren’t you here? Am I too late? Was I too slow?

Was that all a waste? Chul, are you okay? Are you alive? Where is the Maudrake? Chul.

Why couldn’t you run? Did you leave me? Was it all a lie? Chul.

What do I do now? You were supposed to watch me. She said you were my Guardian. Chul.

Chul.

“Chul…” Jake whispered.

As he stared at the empty place in the rock, a brief object glistened in the dim light. Jake didn’t catch it at first when he had run up but as he focused on the spot, he saw something in the pile of rocks. The boy staggered to his feet and stumbled into the crater. In the center, just at the base of the impact point where the brunt of Chul’s mass had hit the wall, a dark purple gem lay on the ground. It was the same color as Chul’s mana but clouded and dense. A solid object that radiated the familiar feeling of power. Jake dropped to his knees beside it. His hands cradled the gem, lifting it into the light.

A Mana Crystal. The same kind of crystal the Maedra had inside of them, the crystal that acted as their hearts. But, this wasn’t a Maedra’s. In its center, a small purple ball floated in the black cloud. It was covered in runes. Their patterns were the same that Chul used for his spells. Same writing, same color. Same… everything.

It was Chul’s mana crystal.

“N-No…” Jake’s lips trembled as his hands gripped the crystal. He pulled it into his chest and he felt his body shake. The tears wouldn’t stop, nor would the pain in his chest.

“You… You were supposed to watch me.” Jake sobbed. “You were supposed to be my Guardian.”

“You were my first real friend.” The words didn’t come out and Jake could only let out a pained whine as he tried to pull the crystal as close to his chest as he possibly could. He held it so tightly the sharp edges dug into his skin.

The howl of the Maedra echoed into the cavern. A howl so loud and fierce. Jake’s eyes opened wide as his mind blanked.

“Jake! Unsafe!” Yae shouted from the base of the rocks.

“UNSAFE! UNSAFE! UNSAFE!” Xul began to chant, even as he held out his spear in front of himself towards the distant noise of the Maedra.

The howls were incessant and they thundered down into the cavern from the direction of the large tunnel. Jake turned towards the three at the base of the rocks and then looked toward the tunnel. He clutched the mana crystal to his chest and stood up. His knees shook and he felt weak. He didn’t know what to do anymore. His mind swirled. He felt lost. Everything up until now he had done to prepare himself for adventures. Adventures he would have with Chul.

But Chul wasn’t here anymore.

So what’s the point…?

“Jake!” Yae shouted.

Shut up. Jake looked down at the other three, the three tumors which had latched onto him in the tunnel. The three worthless monsters that lived down here, that lived with the Maedra. They were pathetic, scared-looking things. And as the Maedra howled again, Jake could see the terror in their eyes. They were weak to the Maedra. The Maedra would devour them, strip their flesh from their little bones, and feast on their hearts.

If they couldn’t stand up for themselves, then why should he help them?

All Jake wanted to do was get to Chul. If it weren’t for them, he wouldn’t have been slowed down. He wouldn’t have had to fight the Maedra before- he probably could have found a way around them. He wouldn’t have had to waste time on the warriors, could have made a smaller platform. He could have been here sooner!

He might have been able to help Chul!

….

“On these grand adventures, you will meet people who will become your friends until death…” Chul’s words radiated in his mind, and Jake found himself staring at the fearful face of Yae. She looked towards the tunnel’s entrance and then up at Jake again. The pale features of her face had never seemed to clear to him before.

“Become strong in your youth so that you may grow old together… Rather than live short lives and have your flames snuffed out…” Behind Yae, Tul stood next to Xul but he wasn’t shouting like Xul. His eyes were unsure and his body was shaking but he gripped his spear as tightly as he could. Unlike Xul, who was ready to run, Tul teetered on the idea of fighting. He was just unsure of what he could do.

Jake looked down towards the purple crystal and watched the small ball in its center radiate with strength. Jake gripped it tight. He clenched his jaw. He closed his eyes and gathered mana into himself, coiling it through every fiber of his body. From head to toe, he bristled with the power of Dragon’s Blood and gathered every little bit that he could. He began to cultivate it, twirled it, and centralized it all into his core. He pushed his mana into tails and made them as thick and long as he possibly could. He was going to need it.

He walked down from the top of the rocks and placed himself in front of Tul, Xul, and Yae.

“Hold him for me.” Jake placed Chul’s mana crystal into Yae’s trembling hands and then turned towards the tunnel. “I’ll be back.”

Resolute, he marched towards the large opening. Towards the screaming Maedra. He steadied his breathing, opened and closed his hands, and felt sweat drip down his back. His stomach twisted with fear and his heart raced in his chest.

He stopped a short distance from the tunnel and stared up into its massive, black maw. He couldn’t see further than a hundred meters into its depths but he could feel them beyond it. Their heavy, frantic steps. Their wails and screeches. The dragging of sharp limbs and the faint glow of readied spells. Jake steadied himself and cleared his mind.

Mana poured into the floor around his feet and he erected dozens of pillars around him, all of them pointing towards the massive tunnel. He stretched his hands forward, coiled his tails around his body, and filled the air with activation circles. Fire and Wind balls appeared at every tip of every spike, at the front of his hands, at the tips of his tails. He shot three fire balls into the dark, using them to illuminate the tunnel.

They whizzed past hundreds of Maedra before fizzling out.

Jake swallowed a lump in his throat and quashed the last feeling of fear in his stomach. There was no running from this. Just like before, there was no backpedaling allowed. He looked over his shoulder and saw them standing there- the people he needed to protect. Here, he would make his stand against those that had taken from him.

He wouldn’t let them take anything else.

His open hands curled into fists as he took in another long breath. When he exhaled, he opened them once more and spread his fingers. The balls of flame at his fingertips split. Instead of just two at his hands, there were now six.

When the first Maedra appeared out of the black veil, he unleashed everything he had up into the tunnel.

Maedra and Maudraga howled and screamed.

Explosions rattled and the floor quaked.

Rocks fell from the ceiling, dust clouds kicked into the air.

The faces of the Maedra flashed in the dark.

Jake’s throat went dry as his cheeks glistened.

The Ravine thundered as a young heart clouded over.