Path of Dragons

It was difficult to gauge when the sun had truly risen. Even though the pitch black of night had faded, the effect was not nearly as plain as Elijah would have normally anticipated. It was just further evidence – as if he needed any – that the world of magic didn’t necessarily follow the thread of his expectations.

Thankfully, Dat had a keen sense of such things, which meant that when he said it was time to go in, Elijah trusted the man’s judgement. So it happened that the pair headed back into the forest. Under the scrutiny of One with Nature, Dat’s Ghost Cloak was never infallible. Within the forest, its effectiveness clearly changed, though. The shadows seemed to augment the ability, making Dat all but undetectable, even when Elijah narrowed his focus.

Still, One with Nature provided enough feedback that Elijah could follow his companion’s path, which went on for more than an hour until, at last, something changed. Elijah slowed his steps as an eerie glow came into his field of vision. The source was still obscured by the tortured trees, but that didn’t seem to bother Dat, who kept going without skipping a step.

The glow steadily grew stronger as they progressed closer to the origin, but it was much further away than Elijah had expected. So, it took almost fifteen more minutes before, at last, they reached their destination.

A single candle stood upon a pedestal, casting everything within a twenty-foot radius in pale, flickering light. Dat stepped inside, and he immediately appeared. Elijah followed, and panic gripped his heart as Guise of the Unseen was ripped from him. In the immediate aftermath, he felt more exposed than he had in his entire life. It was like he’d been stripped naked and made to parade in front of everyone he’d ever met.

That sensation faded after only a few moments, but the echoes lingered, leaving him almost as uncomfortable than the pervasive chill of the shadow-twisted forest.

“That was…unpleasant,” Elijah whispered, his voice hoarse as he let Shape of Venom dissipate. “You didn’t mention that.”

“Sorry, bro,” Dat said.

“This is it, then? You think it’ll keep the shadows at bay?” Elijah asked, pointing to the candle. The object in question was about as big around as a baseball bat and approximately a foot long. The wax comprising it was also pitch black, giving the item an odd look that still somehow seemed appropriate. Perhaps it was the setting, which was a stone pedestal carved with sculptures of writhing creatures.

“I know it will, bro. You felt it cancel your stealth, right?” he asked. It was a rhetorical question, made unnecessary by Elijah’s previous reaction. “Besides, Hex of Scrying made it pretty clear. The ghosts tell me that it’ll only last a few hours, though. After that, we need to find another.”

“And if we don’t?”

“Bad things, bro. Really bad things. Those creatures are deadly,” Dat said. “They’re called shadow slayers. I don’t know much else about them, but…they don’t feel right, bro. They’re like people, but…but wrong. Like they’ve got one foot in each of two worlds. It’s not natural.”

“Nothing in this place is,” Elijah agreed. “Okay, so here’s what we should do. Now that we have an idea of how to get through this, we need to find more of these candles so we can find a path to the goal. Which we still don’t know what it is.”

The challenge was to illuminate the shadows, whatever that meant. And Elijah suspected that it would take some time to figure it out.

There was only one problem, and it was one they hadn’t anticipated.

“Uh…I can’t use Guise of the Unseen while in the light,” Elijah pointed out. “And those things…”

Indeed, there were a half dozen shadow slayers flitting around just outside the ring of illumination. The moment Elijah stepped out of the light, he would be attacked. And given what he’d felt the last time through, he wasn’t sure he’d survive a fight against one, let alone all six. There was also no guarantee that they wouldn’t call more.

“Leave it to me, bro,” Dat said.

“What are you going to do?”

“You’re not the only one who got some levels. I have two new abilities that I think will help here,” he said. “One is called Ghost Step, and it lets me move really fast. Like, Usain Bolt fast.”

“I can jog faster than that, Dat. So can you.”

His face fell. “I know that. I’m just…it was just a good…never mind. My point is that I can outrun them.”

“Are you going to leave the forest, because –”

“No. That’s where my other new ability comes in. Reaper’s Escape. It lets me use Ghost Cloak even if something’s staring right at me,” he said.

So long as his abilities worked as advertised, Dat’s plan made sense. He’d go first, leaving the safety of candle’s light and using Ghost Step. Then, once he’d led them away, he would utilize Reaper’s Escape. By that point, Elijah would have already left the circle and cloaked himself in Guise of the Unseen.

“Okay. But one issue,” Elijah said. Then, he gestured toward the forest. “Those things are sapient, right?”

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“Maybe? I don’t know.”

“Can’t they hear us?”

“Uh…maybe?” Dat admitted.

“What if they don’t follow you?” Elijah asked.

Dat didn’t have an answer for that eventuality, which wasn’t unexpected. In the end, though, his plan was the best they could conjure. If it didn’t work out like Dat hoped, then Elijah would simply shift into the form of the lamellar ape, then throw himself towards the forest’s edge with as much speed as he could muster. 𝔯ἁΝổ𝖇ĘṦ

And given his inflated Strength, he could move incredibly quickly, so long as he didn’t have to turn. In addition, he hoped that his guardian shape would allow him to endure the shadow slayers’ attacks.

If that failed, he would chance a transformation into the Shape of the sky, though his every instinct told him that there was something waiting for him to do just that. All the other challenges had featured some limiting factor that kept him out of the sky, so he felt that it was a good assumption that the shadows hid something that would make flying a very bad idea.

In any case, it didn’t appear that they had much of a choice. So, once Elijah said he was ready, Dat enacted his plan. When he used Ghost Step, the effect was obvious. His body turned ephemeral, and when he moved, a series of afterimages followed. More importantly, even the smallest twitch seemed to happen at triple speed. And when he took off at a dead sprint, he was gone in an instant.

Predictably, the shadow slayers followed in a swirl of shadow that made them briefly visible to the naked eye. Then, they were gone, racing after Dat as quickly as they could move. Once he felt certain that they’d vacated the area, Elijah, who’d already shifted back into the Shape of Venom, stepped out of the circle of light.

And he was immediately attacked.

The shadow slayer had remained hidden even from One with Nature – a first, since he’d taken Connection as a specialization – and it had planned its ambush well. However, as keyed up as he was, Elijah was ready for it. He darted to the side, dodging a descending dagger of unadulterated darkness. Then, he leaped at the creature, baring his fangs as he sailed through the air.

He hit the shadow-wreathed ka’alaki, then clamped down on the thing’s shoulder. Envenom activated, sending a dose of venom to course through the shadow slayer’s clammy flesh. But as Elijah tried to leap free, the shadows surrounding the creature wrapped around him like dark tentacles of somehow-solid mist.

Then, they squeezed.

Elijah tried to slither away, but every second came with further constriction. He felt his bones creak under the pressure, but squirm as he might, there was no escape. Not so long as he confined himself to conventional movements.

He used Flicker Step.

Until that moment, Elijah had never used the ability on anything but a humanoid enemy. However, he’d long suspected that sentience wasn’t really necessary for it to activate properly. Just life and the right mindset. So, firming his perception of the skill, he targeted one of the nearby trees.

And the ability activated, sending him through the shadows and depositing him on the other side of the twisted tree. Slightly surprised that it had worked, he dashed up the trunk, climbing it as quickly as he could manage as the shadow slayer went wild. Its shadowy tendrils whipped out in obvious fury as it flitted back and forth.

But it couldn’t find him.

What’s more, every passing moment let Envenom work its terrible magic. At first, the effect was barely noticeable, but after a few moments, the creature visibly slowed. What’s more, it seemed incapable of melting into the shadows. So, Elijah shifted into his human form and, perched on a branch, cast Swarm. Then, he used Storm’s Fury. Instead of channeling it through his staff – which was his preferred method of aiming – he let the lightning lance down from the sky. Hopefully, that would keep the creature from pinpointing his location.

An onslaught of tiny gnats with wings of darkness descended upon the shadow slayer, delivering their afflictions with implacable reliability. And then, at last, the creature stumbled. It fell, convulsing on the turf. Elijah cast Storm’s Fury again, then shifted into the Shape of Venom.

The shadow slayer died a few moments later, and just in time. Even as Elijah left combat and used Guise of the Unseen, a wave of darkness announced the return of the other shadow slayers. However, Elijah’s attention remained locked on the body of the creature he’d managed to kill.

It hadn’t been incredibly durable, though the combination of its powers meant that it would be a deadly foe. On top of that, the fact that the thing had been alone was probably the only reason Elijah had managed to survive.

The body itself, which had been exposed by the dissipating shadows, was disgusting. Pale gray, with unfeeling eyes of shadow, it was thinner than most ka’alaki Elijah had seen. What’s more, it was visibly wet, as if it was in the throes of a powerful fever. Finally, black claws extended nearly six inches from its fingers, making it look less like the sapient ka’alaki and more like the monster it seemed to be.

It was also naked, eschewing the clothing that every other ka’alaki – or their ta’alaki counterparts – wore.

Fortunately, the rest of the shadow slayers had no clue he was there. So, still hidden by Guise of the Unseen, he descended from his perch and headed off in the direction of his search. He and Dat had decided that splitting up was the best course of action – largely so they could cover more ground, but also because, once they’d been separated, there was little chance of finding one another. They could have picked a landmark to facilitate a meeting, but Dat had no way of detecting Elijah. So, it would have done no good.

With that in mind, Elijah set out to the west, while Dat was assigned to the east. After about an hour of searching, Elijah found another candle. Another hour, and there was a third. Over and over, at regular intervals, he discovered more and more candles until, at last, he saw their destination.

It was an enormous building that could only be described as a palace, though one that had fallen into gross disrepair. The parapets were crumbling, while the walls had long since succumbed to erosion and the forest’s creeping vines. Elijah was no expert in architecture, but it reminded him of the Duomo di Milano, though without that cathedral’s symmetry. It was just as jagged, designed with a more is better mentality, but far more chaotic. Spires rose from all the wrong places, the layout was mismatched and off-balance, and with far too many statues. Yet, there was an anarchic beauty to it as well, an impression that was only supported by the vortex of shadows swirling just above it. In the center of that cyclone of darkness was a level of blackness that defied description. Until that moment, Elijah had assumed that he understood what an absence of light was. However, the sight before him put that the lie to that assumption.

He knew he was looking into the Umbra.

And it left him feeling small, chilled to the bone, and afraid in a way he could not quite explain.

It took Elijah a few minutes to pull his attention from the portal to another plane, and another few moments before he jerked his gaze from the palace beneath. Only then did he realize that the place was crawling with hundreds of shadow slayers. They didn’t bother cloaking themselves in shadow. Instead, they clung, naked and completely motionless, from the palace’s every edge.

That made one thing absolutely clear. Trying to get into that palace – which was obviously the goal – would be a fool’s errand.

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