Tobin's figure cut through the team’s contemplation, his pace urgent. "Cal, Elena, we've got trouble," he barked, his voice slicing the stillness. The cervidians lifted their heads, antlers casting long shadows on the cavern floor.

"What’s up Tobin, we are still hours from our rotation," Cal said.

"We’ve got wolves—dozens of stage-twos," Tobin replied. "They're swarming the eastern ridge. We think it’s a scouting party."

Elena's hand resting on the bow slung across her shoulder. "I’m assuming you’re asking us to help? The team that just arrived yesterday? Whose members are grieving their lost family?”

“That’s right, my team and you all are next up. That means it’s our job to help first.

“Hopefully this means our rotation will be quiet, bro,” Joe added while getting up.

As the group was led toward the ongoing battle, to Cal, the underbrush whispered secret warnings beneath his feet.

Jaxon strode alongside Tobin, his gray eyes reflecting disdain.

"Jaxon, listen," Tobin began, his voice low, "the camp's uneasy. Everyone knows about your stash—the cervids’ wealth."

"Is that so?" Jaxon snorted, brushing off Tobin's words as one might a bothersome fly.

"Hand it over. It'll save the morale - I don’t want to see chaos here," Tobin pressed, his eyes locking onto Jaxon’s.

"Morale can wait," Jaxon shot back with a smirk. "The cervidian’s belongings stay with us."

Ahead through the cavern exit, the roar of an impending clash grew louder, the scent of blood mingling in the air. The caldera quaked at the cries of wolves, a symphony of howls and metal.

"The cervidians were 7 members strong, and they’re dead now! You have 2 members not even on the ladder. You’ll break the camp apart." Tobin's plea cut through the cacophony, his red hair a blur as he spun to face the imposing cervidian.

Jaxon's sneer spread beneath gray eyes. "Not a chance," he snapped, muscles tensing under his skin like coiled springs.

Beside him, Jabor's gaze flickered, a silent war waging within. His lips parted, but no words came. Elena's hand hovered over her bow, eyes darting from Tobin to Jaxon, weighing loyalties against unseen threats.

Tobin's jaw tightened, but he nodded curtly, moving ahead to lead the charge, leaving Jaxon in his wake.

They burst into the clearing, an arena of chaos and bloodshed. Shadows danced as wolves leaped and snarled, their fur slick with malice.

"We’ll take these three groups!" Cal barked, dropping low, spear poised. This was more than a couple dozen wolves. The stage-ones felt endless, directed by the larger stage-twos.

Elena nocked an arrow, violet eyes narrowed in focus. She let fly, the shaft whispering death as it found its mark in a stage-one beast.

The cervidians braced. Side by side, they charged, hooves churning earth, colliding with charging wolves.

"Keep together!" Tobin roared, his blade a silver arc in the dim light. He fought with reckless abandon, each swing a promise of glory or ruin.

Cal pivoted, lunging and retreating, a dance with death. Around him, the battle raged, a tapestry of desperate courage.

The air crackled with the scent of ozone from Elena’s arrows. Cal's spear hummed as it pierced through a second-stage hide as he drew upon the Primal.

Elena and Jaxon were surprised by the sudden power of Cal’s blows, and distraction left them wounded on more than one occasion.

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Elena's arrows themselves flashed through the swarm of stage-one wolves, piercing through vitals with ease.

The cervidians were the wall holding back the tide of beasts from Cal and Elena with their giant maces. To their left was the previous defense rotation party, exhausted, but surviving. To their right was Tobin’s party. His party consisted of a woman and two men fitted in leather armor and longswords, and two more archers holding the rear. Interestingly, Tobin was in the backline. What he was doing, other than directing the battle, Cal was uncertain.

"Left flank!" Tobin's shout cut through the clamor. He was everywhere. His sword pointed at the advancing wolves, seemingly stunning them momentarily.

"Cal, behind you!" Elena called. A stage two beast loomed, larger, its muscles coiled with malevolent intent. Cal spun, his spear finding the soft underbelly of the threat, the creature's momentum propelling it onto his waiting point. It collapsed with a guttural whine already exhausted by a beating from Jabor, dark blood pooling on the forest floor.

"More coming through!" Jaxon's warning resonated, his posture rigid as he braced for impact. But Cal was already moving.

The cervidians bounded, their powerful limbs driving back the encroaching tide. Their coordination was unparalleled, a symphony of savage beauty and raw power.

"Push them back!" Elena's voice rose, an arrow notching as she spoke. It flew true, piercing the eye of a lunging wolf, dropping it mid-leap.

"Regroup!" Tobin's command rallied the fighters. As one, they tightened their formation, a bulwark against the snarling chaos.

And then, as if on cue, the onslaught waned. Wounded wolves dragged their brethren away, their growls fading into the dense thicket. The previous rotation defense team, chests heaving, seized the momentary peace, retreating toward the cavern to nurse their wounds and gather their strength.

Only Cal's team and Tobin's remained, standing vigilant amidst the littered corpses and scarlet-stained earth. Cal's gaze swept the clearing, blue eyes alert for any sign of renewed aggression. Beside him, Tobin spat a curse, his blade slick as he scanned the horizon.

"Stay sharp," Tobin whispered, the words barely audible over the pounding of Cal’s heart. "It's not over yet."

Cal nodded.

The clearing bristled with tension and the remnants of the wolf pack moved back in for another round. The stage-two beasts, this time, taking a more aggressive stance and a more active role.

Joe, muscles taut from the fray placed his mace down while stretching, preparing for the next onslaught.

He crouched beside a fallen second-stage beast, its fur matted with dark blood. “This’ll be perfect for you, Cal!”

"Gotcha," Joe muttered. The dagger gleamed in his hand, as he started to extract the core.

Behind him, a shadow stirred, unnoticed. It was not a reflection, nor a trick of the light. It pulsed with an unseen energy, silent as it crept closer to the unsuspecting cervidian.

Tobin watched, face impassive. A ripple of motion, and something unsheathed itself from the depths of the shadow—a dagger much like Joe’s.

Cal noticed it too late. He could tell that the shadow was an extension of Tobin’s will, a dao-bound ability.

"Joe!" Elena's cry shattered the quiet, but she was too late as well.

The knife plunged, retracted, and stabbed again. Joe gasped, his breath hitching in a moment of disbelief. His body tensed as he knocked his fast backwards into the shadow dispersing it. Then slumped over the carcass of the wolf as the core rolled from his fingers.

"Fuck..." Cal's jaw clenched, his words swallowed by the sudden surge of adrenaline and fear that flooded the space.

Tobin stepped back, his expression unreadable. The energy surrounding him vanished as subtly as it had appeared, leaving only the chaos of betrayal in its wake.

Blood seeped into the ground, dark and damning. Cal's hands balled into fists, knuckles whitening as he took in Joe's crumpled form.

"Fucking traitor!" Elena's voice was a wounded animal's howl, torn from her throat.

Jaxon and Jabor howled. Their wide eyes mirrored the horror of the scene before them.

They had fought alongside Tobin, trusted him.

"What the fuck! Tobin, you bastard! " Cal exclaimed, stepping toward Tobin, the air between them charged with the crackle of impending violence. Between them were three longswords, drawn in challenge.

Tobin’s red hair seemed to flame in the waning light, his confident grin now a grim line. "It was necessary," he said, voice steady but hollow. “As is what’s to come.”

"Nece—?" Elena choked on the word, disbelief etched into her features.

"AHHHH!" Jaxon roared. "I’ll KILL you!."

"Joe! Fuck Joe, wake up! BRO, we need you!" spat Jabor as he neared Joe, eyes never leaving Tobin's.

Joe lay still, too still.

"Jaxon, he's… he’s in bad shape," Jabor murmured, his own voice a mix of shock and sorrow.

The unity shattered like glass under an iron boot.

"Fuck, Tobin? For crystals?" Cal’s accusation hung heavy in the air.

Tobin did not reply, the silence spoke volumes. He drew the energy to himself once more.

"Watch the shadows!" Elena stepped forward and drew her bow on Tobin’s team.

Her words hung in the air, a momentary pause in the chaos. But the seed of betrayal had been sown, threatening to tear the nascent team apart.

Purple electricity cackled as it surrounded Elena. Cal could see her skin breaking with the power, burns and blood starting to appear.

“If you have secrets, now’s not the time to hide them.”