The Riftborn Hunter

The cavern pulsed with a low, guttural hum as Kade's dagger sliced through the air, a whisper of steel aimed for Aiden's throat.

Aiden's golden irises flared.

Time didn't slow—it fractured.

Golden threads of futures snapped into place.

One—he ducks too late, blade in his windpipe. Dead.

Another—he twists right, Kade's fist shatters his jaw. Down.

The third—he moves now.

Aiden dropped, sliding under the strike like a shadow over stone. The dagger grazed his scalp, shearing off a few strands, embedding into the cavern wall with a sharp crack. Dust burst outward, gritty and choking, coating his tongue with stale earth.

Kade ripped the blade free, pivoting with a grin—feral, all teeth, no warmth. "Fast little bastard, aren't you?"

Aiden rolled to his feet, exhaling sharply. "Faster than your aim, apparently." His side burned where the spear had torn him earlier, blood soaking his jacket, sticking to his skin like a second, sodden layer. His ribs ached with every breath, a dull throb he shoved down. Pain was a distraction. He couldn't afford it.

Kade twirled the dagger, casual but coiled. "Think you're special, huh? Garran's pet project—some F-Rank nobody who doesn't deserve to breathe my air."

Aiden's jaw tightened. So that's it. Not just jealousy—Kade saw him as a threat to his spot in Black Summit's pecking order. A shiny new toy stealing his shine.

"Lucky me," Aiden muttered, "getting all this attention from a C-Rank babysitter."

From the tunnel ahead, a muffled shout cut through the chaos—Jenna's voice, sharp and strained. "Aiden! Behind you!"

She was too far—her gunfire popped like a frantic heartbeat, beasts snarling as they blocked her path. The cavern walls trembled, loose pebbles rattling under the din.

Aiden didn't turn. Couldn't.

Kade lunged.

Aiden saw it—the twitch in Kade's shoulder, the shift of his weight—before the move fully formed.

Surge Sight snapped on.

Lightning surged through his veins, electric clarity flooding his vision. Every detail sharpened: the sweat glistening on Kade's brow, the faint scar curling under his jaw, the precise arc of the dagger swinging for his chest.

Aiden twisted—just enough.

The blade slashed past, tearing his sleeve, kissing skin with a shallow sting.

He countered, driving his electrified knife toward Kade's ribs. "Let's see if you bleed like the rest of us."

Kade was fast—too fast.

The C-Rank twisted, snatching Aiden's wrist mid-strike with a grip like iron. Pain lanced up Aiden's arm, white-hot, his knife clattering to the stone floor with a dull clink.

"Nice try," Kade sneered, yanking Aiden forward. "Garran's wasted his bets on you." His free fist rocketed toward Aiden's face.

Aiden's foresight flared.

He ducked, the punch grazing his ear, and slammed his knee into Kade's gut.

Kade grunted, his hold loosening for a heartbeat.

"Guess he didn't bet on your stomach holding up," Aiden quipped, voice tight.

Aiden wrenched free, stumbling back. His breath rasped, ribs screaming, arm throbbing. Kade had him beat in raw power—C-Rank strength dwarfed his D-Rank frame.

But Aiden didn't need to match him blow for blow.

He had something else.

Kade straightened, cracking his neck with a low chuckle. "Keep talking, Kain. Makes it sweeter when I carve that smirk off your face."

His dagger shimmered—not Rift energy, but a Core Trait. Reinforcement. The blade's edge gleamed sharper, its steel now unnaturally dense, glinting like it could slice through bone as easily as air.

Aiden's pulse spiked.

He reached inward, past the golden threads, past the lightning.

To the shadow.

Shadowbound.

The air rippled beside him—a cold, jagged tear in reality.

A phantom clawed its way into existence, smaller than the Rift-born ones, its form unstable. Its body was a fractured silhouette, edges fraying like smoke caught in a storm. Claws gleamed like shattered glass, glinting with a faint, sickly light—too sharp, too wrong. Its torso twisted, half-formed, as if stitched from shadows that refused to align, a hollow void where a face should be.

Kade froze, eyes narrowing. "What the hell is that?"

Aiden smirked faintly, despite the ache. "Your new dance partner. Hope you're light on your feet."

He didn't know—not fully.

But he felt it—a fragile thread of control, trembling in his grasp.

He pushed.

The phantom lunged.

Not fast, not graceful—just a jagged blur of claws and shadow, slashing toward Kade with a sound like breaking ice.

Kade reacted, his reinforced dagger flashing.

The blade met the phantom—and sliced through.

Steel carved into its fractured form, splitting shadow like wet cloth. But the creature didn't stop.

Its glass-like claws raked Kade's arm, tearing through fabric and flesh, blood spraying in a hot arc across the stone.

Kade cursed, staggering back, clutching the wound. "You little shit—Garran's gonna hear about this, and I'll make sure you're buried before he can save you!"

The phantom flickered, its form warping violently.

Aiden's skull throbbed—sharp, electric pain stabbing behind his eyes.

It wasn't holding. Too weak.

Kade smirked through the blood, his grin twisting. "That's your big move?"

He flexed his arm, ignoring the dripping crimson, and charged again.

Aiden dove for his knife, fingers closing around the hilt as Kade's blade descended.

He rolled—barely.

The reinforced dagger slammed into the stone, sparks flying, leaving a gouge deep enough to bury a fist.

The phantom shuddered once more—and collapsed, dissolving into wisps of shadow that sank into the floor.

But Aiden felt it.

A shift.

A spark deep in his core.

The System flared.

[SHADOWBOUND: PARTIAL STABILIZATION DETECTED.]

[MANA +0.5 | PERCEPTION +0.8]

[RANK ADVANCEMENT: D → D+]

Aiden's breath hitched.

The fight wasn't over—but his body was catching up.

The golden threads in his vision burned brighter, sharper, his senses stretching further.

He could hear Jenna's gunfire now, closer, cutting through the beasts' roars—each shot a crack of defiance against the cavern's oppressive drone.

Kade didn't care.

He lunged again, dagger gleaming, his snarl feral. "I'll gut you before Garran even knows you're gone!"

Aiden sprang up, Surge Sight humming through his limbs.

The cavern shook—a beast's roar, too close—but it didn't matter.

Kade's blade arced toward his chest, faster than before.

Aiden twisted, the dagger grazing his shoulder, blood welling hot and slick.

He didn't flinch.

His knife flashed—golden lightning crackling along its edge—and drove toward Kade's thigh. "Try keeping up without a leg."

Kade caught it.

His free hand snapped out, grabbing Aiden's wrist again, twisting hard.

Aiden's arm bent wrong—pain roared up his spine.

Kade's grin widened. "Got you, pet."

Aiden's vision blurred, golden threads flickering.

He was pinned.

Outmatched.

Jenna's voice broke through, sharp and desperate. "Aiden, move!"

A gunshot rang out—close now, the bullet ricocheting off the cavern wall with a shrill whine.

Kade flinched, just for a second.

Aiden yanked his arm free, ignoring the snap of pain, and drove his knee into Kade's side.

Kade stumbled, cursing, the dagger slipping from his grip.

Aiden lunged for it—but Kade was faster.

The C-Rank tackled him, slamming him into the stone floor.

Air exploded from Aiden's lungs, his knife skittering away across the uneven ground.

Kade straddled him, fist raised, blood dripping from his arm onto Aiden's chest.

"Time's up, wonder boy. Garran's not here to save his little experiment."

A roar thundered through the cavern—louder, closer.

The beasts were here.

Jenna burst from the tunnel, pistol raised, eyes wide with fury. "Kade, get off him!"

Kade didn't move.

His fist descended.