The Grand Weave

Even with Áine's healing, Sereza stayed unconscious. It wasn't hard to take a look into her body through Áine's memory, so I knew the state of her mana channels.

All the damage she evaded while transformed had seriously stressed her body. And there were fragments of spatially-aspected mana left inside her chest that had to be absorbed before Áine could heal her properly.

The section of the Underground we were in was truly abandoned.

Not even rats or other scavengers littered the ruins.

Throughout the next hour, I kept tabs through Sturmrorex and found myself near a small tunnel exit.

"We have found Teddy, Igas, and Celenae. No, Isaac," he relayed.

I sighed and checked the state of my soulspace. The wounds were still raw, and Zharia's skillwisp was dim. I could summon her, but it wouldn't be a pleasant experience for either of us.

"Master. They want to know if you're okay."

A headache was starting to form, but I shook it off after Galarion did his thing.

"Yes. Tell them not to worry about us. I found a tunnel out. No idea where it goes. I'll contact you if I find something."

Sturmrorex pouted. It wasn't fair to be brusque with him, so I sent over the equivalent of a mental head pat and closed the link.

The tunnel stretched on for a while–no light and raw stone. I adjusted Sereza in my arms and began my journey through. Even with me controlling my movement, each step I took echoed between the walls.

It was stifling, and my mind wandered through what happened. The mana from the boy wasn't that strong, not alone. But the ritual circle that had absorbed the woman's blood served as a catalyst to boost his skills.

He felt at the upper end of tier one at most.

A tier one's skill shouldn't have been strong enough to overwhelm Magnus' transformation and break my bones.

My passive reinforced my body, and more than a few segments of my bones were hardened crystal. Yet they shattered just as easily.

I clicked my fangs and stopped.

There was little use in running myself ragged trying to figure out things that made no sense.

Lezka chose. He left because he wanted to. For once, I wasn't being called to play hero. The boy didn't need rescuing. Not from me, not this time.

A step; his mother came to mind, teary-eyed and hollow.

Galarion swiped the pain from another headache while Áine sent a jolt of mana coursing through my chest that warmed my heart.

For a time, I embraced the smell of flowers and the taste of honeysuckle.

"Thanks, guys," I whispered.

I pushed through the tunnels and reached a solid wall. My familiars scouted, taking up high while I slowly kicked random spots with my foot.

"Here," Áine said.

She slapped the rough stone and backed away as I tapped it with my foot.

There was something there. Carefully, I laid Sereza down and pressed my hand against the spot. Magnus' skill managed to tear a sliver of mana from deep inside the stone.

It tasted earthy and elusive. The mana itself was dark gray-brown that tried to blend with the other mana types inside my core.

An illusion?

I stabbed my claw into the earth, but I barely scratched the wall. Still, more of the mana came free and I tried again.

Is was the equivalent of digging with a fork.

Screw this.

"Stay back," I warned.

Galarion and Áine moved further back and took up position just before Sereza. I smiled before shifting my focus to the small scratch I had managed to dig.

If it wanted to be stubborn, then I had just the thing.

I flooded my spear with mana and activated the poison at the tip. It dripped down and sizzled, wafting acrid smoke into the air.

Perfect.

On three, I stabbed forward and slowly twisted the spear like a drill. As I pulled back, I shoved my claw inside the much wider hole and ripped a chunk of mana free.

The wall glowed with blurry gray dots before fading back into the stone.

I repeated the process until I could comfortably fit my entire hand into the hole. As I devoured the mana from the hidden enchantment, the wall blazed with runic lines before it shook and cracked.

The crack widened down the middle, and the tunnel rumbled as the wall slowly slid apart.

By the time I had Sereza in my arms, the walls had disappeared, revealing another tunnel behind it.

"Boring!" Galarion complained.

"Yeah, it is. But probably for the better. Don't want to get into any fights right now."

Galarion rushed back into my skull while Áine hid inside my hood. We continued forward, moving down a winding tunnel that stretched for miles.

By the end, I was ready to scream, till I rounded another bend, and I was met with iron bars.

I searched for an opening and found none. The bars extended into the floor and ceiling, with thicker rods lining the edges of the walls.

Fuck this.

Mana rushed through my channels and I funneled it into my free hand. Crimson slashes tore into the metal. It cleanly sliced through before continuing into the ceiling above.

Blood splashed and rubble rained down, leaving me with a bitter taste in my mouth.'

I spat. It took a tap to send it crashing onto the floor. I stepped past the gaping hole and stared at the faint light coming from the end of the tunnel.

Sereza was still asleep. So I walked, not jogged, even though I was thoroughly ready to get the fuck out of the Underground.

As I neared, the tunnel widened and noise started to reach my ears. When I approached the end, I heard numerous voices, some yelling, some shouting, and even a few screams.

I pushed past a second bend in the tunnel and was hit with a wall of noise.

It exploded, and a crowd screamed in delight while others boo'ed.

Two people tore into each other one with a sword, the other with knuckle dusters made of flames.

The swordsman was a rail-thin elf dressed in light leather with a curved blade. While the brawler was covered head to toe. Surprisingly, he wore a robe that dragged against the sand.

I couldn't see the brawler's face, but he twisted, diving underneath the blade before uppercutting the swordsman's wrist.

Bone snapped, and the sword went flying. However, the elf didn't go down, and snapped a kick into the brawler's chest.

The brawler caught the attack in the crook of his arm and raised his flaming fist.

Crunch!

Fist met thin leather helmet and the elf's face sunk into the sand.

"We have a winner!" boomed a man's voice that drowned out the crowd.

I looked around and took in my surroundings. Stone coliseum, sand pit, pikes with skeleton's heads, and a blood-thirsty crowd with an announcer; it had to be the Pit.

Nobody saw me in the hidden alcove above the tallest seat.

"Like a wildfire that doesn't know how to stop, Flamefist does it yet again! Split Edge's life rests in the balance. Will Flamefist continue his trend and spare his life, or is this the end?!"

Flamefist towered over his downed opponent, the elf showing no signs of getting up.

The crowd held their breath, and a small section near the western corner started to chant.

"Break the chain! Break the chain!"

I stared at the brawler, but he stood like a statue. Even their face was covered in an intricate mask that glowed with bright orange lines that obscured his facial featurres.

Flame fist reached down and the crowd inhaled. His hand slowly brushed along the elf's head and... gently tapped the man's neck.

The crowd lost it, while the brawler clapped his hands together and bowed.

"And Split Edge lives to fight another day!" boomed the announcer.

I snorted. The Pit was supposedly the cesspool of the Underground. I expected something bloodier.

With the crowd still distracted I hopped out of the alcove and dashed for the nearest stairwell. Some people stood nerby, but nobody batted an eye as I rushed past with a woman in my arms.

I made it into an alleyway before stopping and crouched behind a stack of rotting crates. Five minutes went by and nobody came rushing in.

"Sturmrorex," I whispered.

"Master!" he shouted back.

"I'm out of the tunnels. I just left the colosseum. Did you find Isaac?"

"Yes! One moment!"

I appreciated the enthusiasm but his shouting spawned another headache.

Galarion devoured it without stirring.

"He says to wait. He's coming to you."

"Thanks, Sturmrorex. I'll see you soon."

I collapsed onto a nearby crate and tested its weight. It creaked but held. As I lowered my arm, it brushed along something fuzzy and I recoiled only to find a moldy piece of fruit rotting nearby.

Áine tapped my hand and healed the gross germs while I contemplated summoning the beanbag.

At least it's almost over. I'm sleeping in tomorrow, no matter what the others want.

I flicked a nearby pebble and watched it roll across the ground and it smacked into another crate without much fanfare.

Hurry up Isaac, this is taking too long.

Snap!

I shot to my feet and brandished my spear but my jaw dropped at what I saw.

"Unhand her, you fiend! I won't let you do such vile things!" screamed an idiot.

The idiot brandished a rusty sword and swungsword swung it around with every word. His face was covered by a white rag but his features were soft, and young.

"What? Nothing to say in the name of justice?!"

You got to be fucking kidding me...

He slashed forward, forcing my spear back. A skill activated and his feet blurred. "Time to pay for your crimes you-"

I spun my spear and willed it to wrap around his arm. He looked shocked, but he snapped a kick and grazed my chin, forcing me to retreat.

When he slashed again, mana rushed along its edge and I ducked under a glowing grey crescent that carved chunks out of the wall behind me.

A piece dusted Sereza's cheeak.

I smacked his leg with the butt of my spear, but he reposted and rushed into my guard.

The rag lifted just enough to reveal the pearly-white grin underneath.

I slashed downward, aiming my claws for his face. My second hand wrapped around his neck and slammed him into a wall.

"Fool!" he shouted.

Mana rushed into his feet and blurred while his body jerked out of my hand.

"No."

He gasped as I dug in my claws and siphoned the mana away. His leg gave out, and he staggered from the unexpected lack of momentum.

I held him up and leaned forward.

"Why the fuck did you attack me?"

He reached for my hands, but I grabbed his wrist and bent it at the wrong angle. A scream left his throat as I squeezed harder.

"I won’t let you hurt her, you scum!" he screamed. "Vile filth think you can take advantage of-"

His head cracked the wall behind him as I raised him up with both hands around his neck. He gasped for air but I shook my head as anger settled in.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You attacked me because you're stupid?"

He gargled something unintelligible, but I didn't care. I didn't actually want to hear his answer.

I lifted him higher and gripped his jaw. Before he could react, I smashed it into the wall and released it. He didn't move as I crouched and tilted his chin up.

He was still breathing and the mask had slipped further, revealing a handsome face.

"Idiot," I growled.

I reached for his face when mana flashed behind me. Instantly, I spun around, but Isaac held up both hands.

"Don't attack! It's me," he said.

I canceled the mana building in my mouth and stood up.

"Finally," I said. "Let's go."

Isaac ignored me and crouched to poke the man's cheek.

"Wanna explain?"

"Nope."

He glared. "Cyrus. What were you going to do to the noble brat?"

"Noble? In the Underground?"

"We're literally in the Underground."

I shrugged. "He appeared out of nowhere and tried to attack me in the name of justice."

"I..." Isaac shook his head and grabbed the man. "Whatever, we can't leave him here."

"Why?"

"Because he's just a young idiot. Unconscious and alone, he'll be eaten alive."

"And?"

Isaac stood up and pressed his face to mine. "I get it. You're angry right now. But I'm not letting you hate yourself later. Grab Sereza, I'll take the idiot and we can leave him with a guard once we're topside."

I sighed and massaged my temples. He was right; I was being grouchy. The dumbass did only attack me to save Sereza.

"Why is someone like him in the Pit?"

"No idea. His head is probably filled with stupidity and the dream of being some sort of vigilante hero."

He lifted the man into a fireman's carry and secured him with a tendril. I grabbed Sereza and held her much more gently.

Isaac nodded and led the way.

Fucking finally.