Aiden emerged from the river to find hell breaking loose on shore. Mira and Kline were on the ground, and both had black ooze coming off their fur and arms. He wasn’t a doctor, but that wasn’t natural, and it made him freak out.

“Mira!” Aiden grabbed a container from Mira’s palette of tools, filled it with water, and splashed it on them. The black ooze on both of them boiled for a moment before dripping off their skin, and both groaned.

“Mira! Kline…” Aiden dropped to the ground, checking in on them.

Meanwhile, the beasts continued to ram into the barrier, making visible cracks.

“Shit…” He got up with shaky legs and picked up the enchanted axe and faced the barrier. Only then could he understand what they were saying. They weren’t refined enough to speak the language, as they never had a need, but he could understand them loud and clear, and what he heard was bone-chilling.

Nothing.

He heard nothing.

Simple, primal rage. A desire to kill after Kline’s challenge. Only that, nothing more.

There would be no reasoning with these creatures. The only thing these creatures, specifically, would understand was raw force.

Aiden laughed internally, reminding himself that he had only ever worked with domesticated animals. Zoo animals, pets, trained performers… he didn’t work with wild animals. He had seen them on Safaris and trips through the Amazon. He had gone bird watching in the Ozarks and saw the buffalos in Yellowstone—but he hadn’t talked to any of the wild animals. He hadn’t connected to them, had a conversation, or petted them. Just like everyone else, he just watched them pass.

Domesticated creatures were socialized. They were trained and adapted to working and communicating with humans.

Elionis had contracts with humans. Halten was chained to humans. Aiden’s pets, which he had barely gotten to see since coming to Dranami, had lived most of their lives with him.

Things were different here.

And even if they weren’t—

—he didn’t have a choice but to fight them.

He was in their world, living by their rules.

Aiden lifted up the axe like a baseball bat. “You’re lucky I don’t know how to swing this thing!” he roared at the attacking beasts. “‘Cause if I did, I’d fuck you up!”

The beasts snarled and snorted and rushed forward, crashing harder.

Mira and Kline got up weakly. The cat stumbled to its feet, and Mira grabbed her head with both hands as the creature beat the barrier.

They were weak, but they were still in the fight. Aiden just needed to hold the beasts off until they recovered.

The barrier webbed with cracks, creating light blue lines up the darker blue barrier.

Three… two… one…

Howls suddenly erupted from the forest, and three-tailed lurvines—the same species of Skia, the demigod Aiden had made a deal with, but vastly larger—came to meet Kline’s challenge. They rushed off the mountain with their arctic fur, charging like united moose as they jumped into the fray.

The glarhans turned and rushed at them, creating a 1980s-style gang fight where two sides rushed at each other with baseball bats and the intention of giving each other brain damage.

Aiden lowered his axe in a daze as two sets of creatures that had never met each other or communicated started ripping each other to shreds without the slightest need to hunt—

—and felt dazed by their mismatch.

The lurvine breathed blue fire that didn’t affect the forest floor, but it bounced off the glarhan’s skin. It only hurt when it hit their eyes, and that only made the blinded beast shoot into a frenzy. It was uncomfortable and terrible to watch.

“Ignore them,” Mira said. She unclipped her backpack and pulled out a container with cores. She walked up to the ward and looked inside with a frown.

With a deep breath, she blew out gray ash.

“We overestimated this thing.” She grabbed a massive handful of cores, tens of millions of hawks in value, and threw them inside. Then she grabbed another handful and a third, she packed in about two hundred cores before it wouldn’t take anymore and sighed as she shut it.

The battle outside raged on, but she looked unconcerned as she went to the river and drank.

Kline walked over to her, and she brought him water with her cupped hands, and he lapped it up.

The battle raged on.

These people are crazy… Aiden thought, contrasting their calm demeanors and the wolves and glarhans ripping each other apart. They’re actually crazy.

But they were alive.

A few minutes later, Mira and Kline went to the barrier’s edge and watched the battle. “Just a little longer,” Mira said.

Kline nodded and watched on.

Ten minutes later, when all the beasts were injured, Mira picked up Kline and melted through the barrier. Once they exited, all the beasts turned to them—

—and the real slaughter followed.

It was all Kline, and for the first time, Aiden could see what was happening. Or, rather, he couldn’t. Kline disappeared, and beasts just started dying without rhyme or reason, sometimes twenty feet from one another. He was moving so fast he would’ve sworn he could teleport.

“Elle,” Aiden said as he watched. The little pixie was still on his shoulder, looking at her nails.

“Yeah?”

“What’s happening? Actually… don’t answer that question.” He felt a deep pang of anxiety just by asking.

“Don’t you worry, your sweet little cheeks,” Elle said, pitching his cheek. “I know you’re worried about her, but there’s no need. I can’t tell you nothin’ ‘bout those sweet little lovelies unless they tell you themselves. So don’t worry. Even if Mr. Stolen Spoon tortures you for an explanation, all you’ll ever know was that they went woooooooooooosh! And boom and then God rained down his judgment with a bright laser, turning the land to a pillar of salt. Oh, god, I can’t wait to see his face. It’ll be priceless, Aiden, priceless!”

Aiden’s lips cracked into a sardonic grin when he thought about how mind-bending it was that he wouldn’t be able to explain what happened to Brexton. No matter how he presented it, it would sound like a joke.

Ten minutes later, Mira picked up Kline and returned to the barrier. The battlefield was mostly still, but it was still loud, filled with the dying screams of beasts missing limbs or crying out for aid. It was hard to watch.

Mira walked up to him with a solemn expression. “So…” she coughed. “Kline and I are monsters and tortured these animals.” She looked at the enchanted axe in Aiden’s hands. “Will you do the humane thing and put ‘em all down.”

Suddenly, everything clicked, and he turned to Mira. “Wait… is this why Kline challenged the forest.”

Mira panned her gaze on over two hundred dead or dying beasts and nodded. “Yeah.”

“Aiden smiled ruefully. “Thanks.”

“Thank me later if you mean it.”

“I mean it.” He walked to the barrier’s edge. “Will you let me out?”

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She nodded and pressed his back, allowing him to melt through the barrier as if it were some strange permeable goo before walking into the wasteland of dying animals.

He examined the scene and walked up to a dying beast that he doubted he could save with the river’s water even if he wanted to.

“Sorry.” He activated the enchantments with his mana under the blood-red sunset and lifted the axe. His mana was two to three times more powerful than in the morning and his veins burned, feeling good. “You would’ve done the same.”

He swung the axe.

The action left him winded—which wasn’t a good sign. He then turned and saw at least sixty or seventy that were still crying out in pain.

He found another that had no hope of saving and killed it.

Then another.

A third, fourth, and fifth.

By the tenth, he stopped caring about how hurt they were and started killing the closest one in sight. By the twentieth he didn’t even say anything to them.

It was only around the fiftieth that he started looking for glarhans in healing condition. He didn’t find many, but he walked up to the first and said:

Let me ride you, and I’ll spare your life.

It snorted.

He killed it.

The same happened to the next ten. Soon, there was none left, and he turned to the lurvines, who had strangely reverted into the size of Skia, small foxes with wounds. Perhaps it was because of Skia, or perhaps it was their regal, arctic fur that screamed of purity despite their wounds, like seeing fresh blood streaks on freshly fallen snow. Or maybe it was simply that their three tails were captivating, but for whatever reason, he didn’t even look at them until last.

He knelt beside the largest one, who was wheezing on the ground.

Let me ride you for a week, and I’ll spare your life and heal you.

The beast narrowed his eyes and looked away. Kill me.

A week. And you can live… hell, I’ll spare your family if they don’t hurt me.

No.

Why?

Why? Unbelievable. You expect me to kneel to you? An unevolved who lets others fight for him? You’re despicable.

Aiden gripped his axe and stood and looked up at the twilight sky. He was tired. So, so tired. Ever since he came to this hell hole, everyone had spoken like that to him. Everen. Brexton. Family members. Even Elionis and Skia and Halten. Kill this murder that. Gain power, get strong. It’s The Path—the celebrated way.

And so he went along with it. He made deals with Brexton and went through harsh training and started playing the game. He learned military-grade beast taming and risked his life to get here. No, he was killing beasts he’d rather talk to because he had some stupid-ass skill from some stupid-ass god, and it wasn’t good enough.

Would it ever be good enough?

Or would he just have to keep doing this over and over and over and over and over again?

No. He had to try something else—and he was pissed off to make it happen.

Aiden looked down at the lurvine with the most intense glare he could give. You know, I’m getting really, really tired of people calling me weak.

Aiden released Dominion. Souls mixed with his soul force, blanketing the lurvine, who immediately panicked, hackles raising with thick fur that jutted out like a cat. Yet, a moment later, it breathed normally and snorted in underwhelmed annoyance.

What the hell was that?

That’s called Dominion, Aiden said dryly. It allows me to steal part of the souls of things I kill and then blanket them on prideful assholes like you to make them kneel with fear. Well… it’s new, and I’m pretty weak, so it didn’t do much. But everything you felt right there… I got all of those souls in the last hour. And if you don’t shut the fuck up and listen to me, I’m going to kill your entire pack and make you drown in their intimate suffering.

The lurvine growled and snapped. Aiden snorted and turned to the rest of the pack. Then I’ll get started.

Don’t touch my family! I’ll kill you!

No… you won’t. You know that itty bitty… He turned to the Barrier. “Hey, Mira! What evolution’s Kline at?”

She looked up. “First.”

“First… thank you!” He waved and then turned his eyes back to the lurvine, eyes growing darker. First evolution cat…” He laughed. Wow… your entire pack was wiped out from a first evolution, domesticated house cat. I was gonna say that he’d protect me if you tried to hurt me, but it turns out, I can probably kill you myself.

The lurvine’s nose scrunched in, his eyes narrowed, and he moved his legs even though his body was giving up. That creature is a warrior—don’t you dare compare yourself to him.

I will be, too once I thread your entire packs’ cores and hit the river. I’ll have a pure second evolution core by the end of the month.

The lurvine snarled at him.

But… That could be you, couldn’t it?

The lurvine calmed down.

I mean… we have hundreds of cores and access to the river. If we gave ‘em to you, couldn’t you max your purity and evolve?

The lurvine’s bloodshot eyes glanced at the bear and then back at Aiden.

A week and a non-aggression pact, Aiden said. I’ll let your family live and give you cores and river water. Do the right thing.

2.

Elana watched as Aiden moved from wolf to wolf, nudging its family members as Aiden walked to each with Diktyo water and spoke to them. Even once he healed them, they didn’t attack.

“Told you…” Kori’s lips curved into a smile as he took another shot of his amber poison.

“Are you ever gonna put that down?” Elana sneered.

“Of course not,” Kori said. “Hapsel’s really outdone himself and I can tell…” He took a shot and exhaled with red cheeks. “That he’s really trying to kill me. How could I deny such dedication.”

Elana scoffed and turned back to the screen, where Mira had exited the barrier and started staring down the wolves as Aiden translated the things they were saying.

“Just admit it… he’s useful,” Kori said, lounging on the couch. “Well, not now… but… soon.”

“Why’re you so confident?”

He smiled as he stared at the ceiling. “‘Cause while you’ve been obsessin' over your star pupil, I’ve been watchin’ Aiden.”

“Why?”

“‘Cause they were gonna cross paths… ‘ventually.”

“And?”

“That’s it.”

“No. What was he like?”

“Huh… let me see. Socially pathetic… Talent wise, he’s a natural at beast taming but mediocre to inept at almost everything else, especially talking to—”

“But?”

“I think that he loves animals from the bottom of his heart, and that’s never gonna change… but not nearly as innocent as he looks. These last three months… they’ve fucked ‘em up.”

Elana frowned. “Speak.”

“What do you want me to say? He’s had enough. Kid’s been drugged and kidnapped and introduced to all sorts of shady shit…” Kori laughed and raised his bottle of poison and then let it drop, ‘drunk’ to the point he could barely focus. “And he’s done with it.”

“Reasons, Kori. Why do you think that?”

“Why… Okay. Well… that kid can’t make small talk to save his life. Keeps to himself. Never gets into fights… but. One night, I watched the kid rock back a glass and hit the dice table. He won a bag and went straight to a contract lawyer to read his binding. And judging’ by the way the lawyer team’s been workin’, looks like they’ve found something. My guess… and this is only a guess, but… I’m known for good ones…”

Elana scoffed.

“My guess… is that sneaky Claustra kid negotiated a contract with a kill switch… and Aiden found it.”

Elana narrowed her eyes. “I’m listening.”

“What? That’s all. I don’t know what’s goin’ on with that. The Claustra’s deal in secrets. They’re iron-clad.”

“Oh? Aren’t you gonna guess? You’re known for good ones.”

“Now she wants guesses…” he mumbled, turning to her with bleary eyes. “Here’s what I think. I think he’s gotta kill switch, and he doesn’t know what to do with it. But I think… that’s he a wee bit vindictive. Annnnnnnnd he’s gonna wait… and play dumb… and…” He cleared his throat drunkenly. “The minute he gets the chance to leave… he’ll keep stayin’… and waitin’… and bidin’ him time till the ideal moment to fuck them all over… and he’ll do it. He’ll snatch up his pets and hit the jungle, you best believe.”

Kori laughed and fell onto the couch with a bounce. “And now…” he chuckled, followed by breaking into giggles. “I think… he found his way out. Oh… I can’t wait until he gets right the fuck out of there… and returns. It’s gonna be a shit show.”

Elana frowned. “What about Mira? He dangerous?”

“Huh? Everyone’s dangerous. It’s a matter of the type. And that kid… he’ll be spillin’ her secrets. Doubt he got that core and all that trainin’ for nothi’. But otherwise… Nah… she’s alright. Aiden’s… what we aaaaaaall wish we could… go back to.”

“Go to sleep.”

He did and Elana huffed and rolled her eyes. She silently commented on how ridiculous it was that a god would leave himself so defenseless after so many millennia, then felt a deep emotion from it. She helped him out of his boots, laid him flat, and gave him a blanket. Then, she grabbed the bottle and thought about chucking it, but instead put it on the table and went to bed, thinking about Mira and Aiden and the whole damn forest.

3.

Aiden walked up to the barrier with seven lurvines, all healed and regular size again, looking at Mira’s half-illuminated face beside the cooking fire.

“Good work,” she said.

“It’s not over yet,” Aiden said with a nervous, chuckling smile. “If you don’t give ‘em all the glarhan cores, I’ll kinda sorta die.”