Garoth swam around the crag with practiced ease. He took note of every rock and crevice, mentally mapping out a plan of attack. He knew that Vargul was fast and deadly underwater, but he had the advantage on land.

Garoth dodged and weaved, his mind racing with ideas. On repeated occasions, Vargul lunged at him with ferocity, but Garoth was ready. He used the sea stacks as cover, deftly avoiding most attacks, with Vargul's sharp fins scraping only rocks.

Vargul was repeatedly aiming at one of its hinder legs. He could feel the pressure building in it as he swam, but he pushed through the pain, focusing on his goal.

After a few minutes of hiding behind rocks and barely avoiding the quick and agile Vargul, Garoth broke the water's surface, ready to refill its lungs with air. The moon hung high in the sky, casting a pale glow over the sea. He looked at it intensely, calculating.

Garoth gritted his teeth, and flexed his mighty muscles, feeling the surge of adrenaline as he prepared to take on Vargul. This is it, he thought to himself.

Garoth flashed a toothy grin at Vargul, knowing he had a few tricks up his sleeve, and darted to the side, feigning vulnerability.

The Sea Terror sped up, swimming like a jet at him, and Garoth jumped high into the air.

Vargul took the bait and lunged at him. Garoth twisted and turned to avoid its sharp stinger, willingly taking all the blows on its leg and letting Vargul fly past him, directed at the coast.

Resisting a chuckle, he sped up toward the coast to meet a surprised Vargul that wasn't expecting his enemy to approach by its own will.

Garoth distracted Vargul for a few precious seconds. The Sea Terror launched another attack against his battered leg while Garoth focused on cornering it and blocking any escape routes toward the sea.

Suddenly, the tides literally turned in Garoth's favor. The sea that previously covered the coast began receding at a brutal speed, leaving them standing on rocky terrain.

The creature's swift and calculated movements turned erratic when Vargul realized he was stranded on the rocky shore. A mere moment of hesitation was enough. Garoth rushed ahead, lunging at Vargul's claws and slashing fiercely.

Confused, the Sea Terror instinctively tried to parry the attack, but it was in vain. Garoth's brute strength vastly outmatched the creature's defenses. In a single, powerful strike, he ripped apart Vargul's raised fin. Then, with a sharp bite, he severed the creature's wriggling tail from its body.

Garoth savored the metallic tang of blood on his tongue and let out a deep, rumbling laugh as he watched his enemy limp through the rocky beach. Writhing in agony, the creature's shrieks echoed across the rocky landscape, trying to squirm away.

A surge of adrenaline filled his body as Vargul tried to flee. You can't escape me that easily, he thought as he jumped.

The creature sprinted toward the Dragon's Talon, but Garoth caught up with it easily with a burst of energy and pinned it against the base of the now-exposed towering pillar. His razor-sharp claws ripping apart the creature's slimy organs. Letting out a final victorious roar, he unleashed a crushing blow that split Vargul in two.

Garoth stood over his defeated foe. The battle had been long and grueling, and the cost of the victory had been high.

His veins burned with potent poison and he knew purging it from his system would take days, but he had won. Soon his body would recover, and he would consume the creature's remains, raising his strength significantly.

As he let out a triumphant roar, the wind suddenly shifted, and he caught a whiff of a familiar scent.

Dread filled him as he recognized the smell of his most hated enemy on land coming from the top of the cliff. Garoth's eyes darted around, searching for the origin. In a moment, they had located a heat signal above the ridge. A small figure, a cub? The land-walker's cub. Where was he, then?

Garoth's eyes darted back and forth, searching for his enemy. The smell was undeniably coming from the same area. But he couldn't find him.

He let out a deep growl of frustration and stepped forward, only to feel his leg give out from under him. He snarled in disgust, hating his weakness.

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Suddenly, he felt his body battered and bruised, his wounds still oozing blood. He knew he couldn't keep fighting. Retreating was the only option. He had successfully defended his den and defeated Vargul. He couldn't risk it now.

Garoth's jaws clamped down on the fallen beast's neck with a fierce growl and with a powerful heave, he effortlessly lifted half of the creature's slimy and limp body off the ground and turned on its tail.

Soon, he would grow much stronger. Soon, he wouldn't need to run away.

----------------------------------------

Syn couldn't believe what she had seen from her hiding spot. She watched, surprised, as Garoth limped into the night, leaving most of Vargul's remains behind. Her mind raced at what this meant, a smile forming on her open-jawed face.

The beast had growled in her direction before departing. Was this a trap? She shook her head. Why would Garoth want to trap her? It was a beast. Had it noticed her presence, it would have ripped her to shreds.

She remained hidden beneath the rock, waiting until she was confident the beast wouldn't return. And then she waited some more.

The Garoth had been lucky the tides receded at that exact moment. Had he planned this? Unlikely. Despite this, not only he seemed heavily wounded, but there was a slim chance she and her Dad could still benefit from the fight between the two titans.

Despite the risk, Syn couldn't pass up this golden opportunity. Her common sense told her that what she was about to try was insane, but she jumped into action regardless when the first bird moved toward the creature's remains.

After almost an hour of careful steps on the slippery rocks and using her card's magic to soften certain jumps, Syn finally reached the crag base. There, she felt the energy around her as she dashed toward the beast's remains.

Stopping a few inches from the defeated creature's huge tail, she extended her hand and... touched it.

A humming sound filled the air, and magical symbols materialized, glowing in bright blue and fiery red. Suddenly, the symbols came together to form a hexagonal pattern that hovered around Syn and released a burst of energy.

The air crackled with electricity as sparks of magic danced, reaching the creature's remains. The beast's bones and flesh vibrated and slightly lifted off the ground, and a blue screen appeared before Syn.

> Attempt to consolidate ambient mana into:

>

> 1. Mana Stone

> 2. Materials

> 3. Nutrients

> 4. Card (Unavailable)

Syn dropped to her knees, her heart sinking. Her fists hit the still-wet sandy floor, and her hopes vanished.

Monsters with magical power high enough to generate cards were rare. Still, a creature able to battle Garoth on equal footing, no, to almost defeat him, should've had enough magical power to consolidate into a colored card.

She had hoped that, at the very least, the particles remaining would've formed the lowest colored card, a Green one, although after seeing the battle, she had felt that even a Blue one wouldn't have been impossible.

She cursed under her breath. For some reason, the array was not allowing her to consolidate it into a card.

She exhaled, trying to calm down. Maybe Garoth had taken the piece that held its magical core. That'd make sense.

She'd have to continue with her plan. There was nothing to regret, she had done the best she could, and she'd welcome her unexpected, although slightly less relevant, stroke of luck.

The stone would have to suffice. She concentrated for a second and mentally commanded the magical array for the first option.

> 1. Mana Stone

The array hummed and intensified, collecting magical particles from the remains. It then released all stored energy in a burst of light before fading away.

She gazed upon the beast's remains. Not a trace of magic was left on them. Next to her, a mana stone now rested on the floor, making the air thick and dense.

Upon picking up the rock, Syn realized the rain had stopped, the clouds were clearing, and the sun was beginning to show. It was time for her to return home before meeting Nyk.

Wait, sunrise? Peering upward, she anxiously scanned the cliff's edge, searching for her best friend's figure.

I bet he's still sleeping, she thought, calming down.

Her eyebrows frowned, realizing how dangerous this situation could've been had it happened later in the morning instead of during the early hours of the vigil.

She wasn't entirely sure how Nyk would've reacted to the battle. There was a good chance he wouldn't have been able to remain quiet and also a good chance he would've tried to join.

The boy was a loose cannon.

A smile formed on her lips. Despite the card's disappointment and Garoth's victory, this had been an incredible night.

The beast had not fully consumed the challenger, so he wouldn't raise his power too much, and the addition of the Mana Stone to their wares would speed up their saving toward buying a colored card. And the materials! Sure, they no longer had any magic left on them after using the array, but they'd still be valuable.

She pulled her knife and began harvesting the beast's remains. I need to get this done quickly but carefully. Most beasts were known to be poisonous, and she wanted to finish before Nyk arrived. Surely this would leave him befuddled!

Not only had she managed to see Garoth after all this time, she had seen it fight to the death with another beast!

Once done, she'd fill her bag and pockets and climb back to the cliff's edge to wait for his arrival. Then she'd show him the battered landscape and tease him, just a bit, before telling him what had happened.

Syn grinned playfully. This time she'd be the one telling the story. And a true one, for a change.

She couldn't wait to see the look on his face.