My eyes widened as I stared at the horde of humanoid creatures surrounding the ship. Hundreds of them charged forward like a wave, their grotesque forms crashing into the vessel, clawing and climbing up its sides.

Nely instantly ducked beside me, her hands pressed against the ship’s floor as a green aura of her Neba spread out like veins through the wood.

“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice rising in confusion.

“I’m trying to move this thing faster, you probably don’t know but, this ship is not normal, it’s made fully from Neba. I know this because my ability works in a same way.” she replied without looking up. Her voice was calm, but her expression was intense.

Faster? What was she planning? I gritted my teeth, glancing toward the twins on the opposite side of the ship. To my surprise, they looked completely unbothered, almost bored.

“Hey, Dune!” Ezra called out, his voice steady despite the chaos. “We’ll handle the left side. You and Nely take care of the right!”

They’re so confident. Why? Are Zetens really this powerful?

Nely stood up, her green *Neba* retracting from the ship. “Well, Dune… keep up,” she said as she gripped a weapon she had just conjured, a massive scythe.

I couldn’t help but grin despite myself. “These guys are crazy,” I muttered under my breath. Then louder: “Alright, let’s do this!”

We charged.

Nely was faster, far faster than me. Before I even reached the first wave of creatures, she had already cut through three of them, her scythe slicing the air like a storm of death. I paused for a second, stunned.

“Woah…” I muttered as I watched her tear through the enemies, the blood of the creatures splashing around her in crimson waves.

I forced myself to focus, charging at a creature in front of me. I enhanced my spear with my green *Neba*, slicing through its torso. One down.

But Nely… she was unstoppable. She dashed into the crowd of creatures like an arrow, moving too fast for me to track properly. Every swing of her scythe ended multiple lives, her attacks fluid and merciless.

“She’s insane,” I thought, my breathing quickening as I watched her carve through the horde like a reaper.

On the left side of the ship, the twins were just as awe-inspiring. I glanced over to see Ezra leap into the air, landing a kick that shattered a creature’s head like glass.

Before I could blink, the two of them had switched places in a flash, Liam appearing where Ezra had stood just seconds earlier.

“They didn’t even say anything…” I marveled. Their teamwork was flawless. They swapped positions every time one was in danger, moving as though they shared the same mind.

The twins didn’t even use weapons. Instead, they relied entirely on their legs, their kicks enhanced with Neba strong enough to crack stone. Their fighting style was unlike anything I’d seen before, beautiful and deadly.

“Years of training,” I muttered to myself. “That’s the only way they could pull this off.”

The sight of my companions, so strong, so confident, lit a fire inside me. I wasn’t going to let them outshine me completely. I gritted my teeth and lunged forward, my spear slicing through another creature. Then another.

I was starting to find my rhythm when suddenly a creature jumped at me from behind. I twisted my body just in time to dodge, but its claws shattered my spear into splinters.

“Damn it!” I cursed, leaping backward and using *Nebastep* to propel myself high into the air.

But the creatures weren’t stopping. They followed me up, jumping unnaturally high with horrifying speed.

“What—?” I barely had time to react.

“Hey, Dune!” Nely’s voice rang out from below.

Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

I turned just in time to see her toss something toward me, a glowing circle she had created out of her Neba. I caught it midair, then it suddenly turned into a sword, the weight solid and reassuring in my hand.

“Thanks, Nely!” I shouted, gripping the blade tightly.

“Keep up, Dune!” she yelled back, already resuming her massacre below.

With the long sword in my hands, I felt a surge of determination. The blade sliced through the air with ease as I brought it down on the creatures pursuing me. One after another, they fell to my strikes, their bodies collapsing into lifeless heaps. “I have no idea how do i know how to fight, was i fighter before getting here?”

The fight was relentless, the wave of enemies never-ending. My body burned with effort as I slashed and dodged, jumping between creatures with *Nebastep* to stay ahead of their attacks.

I glanced at the timer hovering in my vision: [45:55].

“Damn it,” I growled. “You’ve got to be kidding me… it’s only been fifteen minutes?”

The battle had just begun, and already I was drenched in sweat, my muscles screaming for rest. But looking at the others, Nely and the twins, fighting with ease and confidence, I couldn’t afford to falter.

“Come on, Dune,” I muttered to myself. “You’ve got to survive this.”

I tightened my grip on Nely’s sword and charged back into the fray.

The creatures kept coming, relentless and unyielding. They circled me, leaving no room to dodge, their grotesque faces contorted in hunger. My heart pounded. Nely glanced in my direction, gritting her teeth as she saw me surrounded.

“Damn it,” she hissed under her breath, unable to help. She was in the same situation, fighting off her own relentless attackers. Her gaze darted to the twins, they were busy too, battling fiercely on the opposite side of the ship.

I had no choice. As the creatures closed in, I knew I had to push past my limits. Desperation fueled me as I enhanced both my arms and legs with *Nebastep*, channeling the energy for one powerful directional boost.

I spun rapidly, faster than I thought possible, my borrowed sword slicing through every creature around me in a whirlwind of desperation and precision. The force of the spin left me dizzy, nearly dropping me to my knees.

“Ah, that was crazy… and way too close,” I muttered, catching my breath. “There are so many ways I can use this ability…” I whispered, a grin tugging at my lips despite the chaos.

“Well done, Dune!” “That was insane!” the twins called out from the other side, their voices loud enough to cut through the chaos.

I glanced at Nely, who gave me a small smile between her swings. “Ah, these bastards,” I muttered with a chuckle. “They’re treating me like I’m their student or something.”

My energy was draining rapidly, my *Neba* reserve was almost below 50% . As I prepared for another attack, a creature lunged toward me. I dodged, but its clumsy movement sent it crashing into one of the ship’s lamps.

The lamp fell, and the fire quickly spread across the wood. The creature stumbled back, avoiding the flames.

“Huh?” I stared at the scene, an idea forming in my mind. “You aren’t even scared of my sword but… you bastards are afraid of fire?” A grin spread across my face.

[35:43]

My body was screaming for a break, and I wasn’t the only one. Nely, the twins, now we were all wearing down. I needed a plan, something that could give us even a few precious minutes to recover.

“Nely!” I shouted over the din.

“What?” she called back, her voice strained but steady.

“Can you hold them off for a few seconds?”

“I’ll try!” she responded without hesitation.

I darted below deck, frantically searching through the storage. My eyes landed on a crate marked with a symbol for explosives.

“Perfect,” I muttered, dragging the crate open. “Alright, think, Dune. If I use these, how can I explode them without sinking the ship?”

If the ship is fully made out of Neba. Then if i detonate the explosives and then immediately channel my Neba through the ship, I might be able to repair the damage before it sinks.

“It’s risky… but I have to try,” I decided, hoisting the explosives back up to the deck.

When I emerged, the others looked at me like I was crazy.

“Everyone,” I called out, setting the explosives down. “I need you to slowly draw the creatures toward the center of the ship. I’m going to blow them to pieces.”

“What?!” Liam and Ezra shouted in unison.

“Is he insane?” Liam asked, glancing at his brother.

Ezra smirked. “I don’t know, but I like it. Let’s do it!”

Nely didn’t say a word. She just nodded and kept fighting.

I ran around the ship, placing the explosives strategically, focusing most of them near the ship’s center and others at edge of the ship. My hands moved quickly as I worked, the chaos of battle raging around me.

“Move toward the cabin, now!” I yelled once the setup was complete.

Liam and Ezra fought their way back to the cabin door, their movements precise and coordinated. Nely arrived moments later, standing guard with her scythe.

I stood in front of them, sword in hand. My heart raced as the creatures closed in, hundreds of them crawling up the ship.

I threw Nely’s sword, embedding it into one of the barrels of explosives. “Nely,” I called. “When the creatures are close, turn your sword back into Neba.”

She nodded. “Understood.”

The horde surged forward, drawn to us like moths to a flame.

“Go inside!” I shouted, and the others ducked into the cabin. “Nely, now!”

With a sharp hand movement, Nely dissolved her sword back to Neba. The moment it happened, the moment Neba came into contact with explosives, the barrel exploded, setting off a chain reaction. One after another, the barrels detonated, engulfing the ship in a fiery inferno.

The explosion was deafening. The ship shook violently as the fire spread, consuming the creatures in a hellish blaze. Hundreds of them fell, their shrieks filling the night air as the flames tore through them.

The cabin was partially destroyed, the force of the blast knocking us all to the ground.

I pushed myself up quickly, ignoring the dizziness, and knelt on the deck. Placing my hands on the wood, I channeled my Neba as fast as I could, the energy draining me almost instantly.

The ship groaned as its wooden frame began to heal, the flames receding as new planks grew to replace the destroyed ones.

“You’re crazy, Dune,” Ezra said with a grin as he knelt beside me, adding his own Neba to the process.

The ship slowly began to rebuild itself, its structure stabilizing as the cabin walls slowly grew back into place.

“Don’t put out the fire,” I said, my voice strained. “Let it burn around the edges. The creatures won’t come near easily. This should give us a few minutes to breathe.”

Nely knelt beside me, channeling her own Neba through ship. looking stunned. “You really pulled it off…”

I shook my head. “Not yet. you need to rest and recover your *Neba*. We’ll need you back in the fight soon.”

Ezra nudged me with his shoulder. “What’s that supposed to mean? You think I can’t handle it?”

“Shut up.”

Liam interrupted, his voice steady. “Me and Ezra will handle the monsters. Together, we’re ten times stronger than we are alone. Nely should stay with you and help heal the ship.”

I sighed, nodding in understanding. “Alright. We’re counting on you, crazy bastards.”

Ezra grinned as he stood. “Same to you two!”

Nely channeled her Neba again. her expression focused. “Here we go, Dune.”

“Yeah let’s try to keep this ship afloat,” I replied, my hands already glowing with green Neba.