Book 3, chapter 13

Zee crouched low atop the dune, watching with bated breath as a long lizard-like creature patted across the sand. The six-legged lizard was long and sleek with tan and white scales, blending with the sand.

Without her spatial ripple skill, it would have been near impossible to see in the faint starlight. The damned lizard was in the valley, only one dune separating it from her camp. Her hand brushed the hilt of her sword, nervously, as it glanced in her direction.

After fighting that scorpion the day before, she was uncertain if she could defeat this thing alone. Zee was all for a challenging fight, but the fight would surely draw unwanted attention.

On the other hand, If it turned toward the camp, she didn't have much choice. Her eyes tracked the Lazard as it slinked through the valley, away from her and the camp.

Zee let out a soft sigh of relief. It appeared she didn't need to fight it, as the lizard disappeared over the dune. The scaly beasty was probably attracted by the earlier sounds of fighting and the smells of blood.

After that close call, she remained on high alert for the rest of the night, which was stressful, to say the least. The oppressive darkness, chilling cold wind, and endless dune scape all worked together to put her on edge.

Her only consolation was that Dern was on the other side of the camp, atop another dune. With both of them on watch, hopefully, no enemy should be able to approach the dark camp unnoticed.

In fact, without a fire, or anything flashy, monsters would hopefully go for much more visible prey. Like the other groups heading toward the planar space.

She could see the fires of some other teams and occasionally hear the screech of a monster echoing across the dunes. That was ample enough proof to her that forgoing a fire what the right call.

The night passed without much incident, the sky lighting up In shades of yellow and red. Watching the sunrise from atop a dune was beautiful, the sunlight bouncing off the thick yellow smoke and clouds in odd ways.

Zee took the brightening of the sky as an opportunity to wake the others before the sun peaked over the horizon. She was determined to get a head start before the oppressive heat of midday.

They quickly packed up, stuffing their stuff into their spatial storages. Without the burden of heavy packs, they made good time, only slowing to take a break around noon.

It took a few extra minutes, but they set up a white and brown parasol that blended with the sand. It wasn't anything special, just four wooden stakes with a strip of fabric to give them blessed shade.

The temperature inside was only slightly colder than a furnace until Yukna placed a small metal disc in the center of the tent. Her aura fluctuated for a moment and several rings of intricate etchings lit up along its smooth surface.

After a few seconds, the object radiated cold air, making the temperature in the tent far more pleasant. Bastion, who looked to be dying of heat exhaustion got on his knees and bowed repeatedly.

"Praise to the cold god," Bastion said, bowing to Yukna. Allison shook her head. "Stop that. You look silly." Allison said. Bastion stopped his bowing. He sat next to the metal disc radiating cold, giving Allison a feigned look of the digest.

"Blasphemy… How dare you withhold proper respect when presented with something so great? It is a true marvel that could only be made by a god." Bastion said.

Yukna laughed. "You hear that Allie. He thinks I'm a god." Yukna said. Zee elbowed Allison playfully. "Looks like you have some competition," Zee said.

"Competition you say? Do you think Bastion is fireproof?" Allison mused.

Bastion quickly cleared his throat. "So, uh, Zee. How is Dern today? He must be hot out there on guard duty." Bastion asked, wisely changing the subject.

She shrugged. "He seems well enough, no complaints so far. Though he is still a little miffed that the princess turned him to molten slag." Zee said.

Allison shrugged helplessly. "That wasn't intentional. I was attacking that giant bug, and he got in the way." Allison said.

"You set me on fire too. Where Is my apology?" Bastion asked, reclining back on the cloth next to the cooling disk.

"I warned you to get out of the way," Allison said, defensively.

"Just give me more warning next time, ya? If I was any slower I would have been toast." Bastion said.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to hit you. The area of effect was just a lot bigger than I expected." Allison said, sheepishly running a hand through her silky white hair tied in a tight tail. Yukna sidled over and rested a hand on the princess's shoulder.

"We all make mistakes. At least you only caught Dern in the attack. He can be re summoned as much as we want." Yukna said.

Bastion laughed nervously running a hand through his sweat-soaked curly black hair. " Since you brought up Dern, I think we need to talk. I might be worried for no reason but earlier today we were talking and he said he was hungry," Bastion said, his voice trailing off.

Zee cocked her head to one side, trying to decide if he was joking or not. Her mind trailed back to their conversation the other night. On second thought, he might not be joking.

Zee tapped her lip thoughtfully. "He was giving me a lecture on how to eat a soul last night. Hmm. He has been hinting that your soul looks tasty over the last few weeks." Zee said, giving him her best serious expression.

Bastion got a worried look. "I can't tell if you are joking or not?" Bastion said. Zee shrugged helplessly as if to say who knows?

"It's hard to say if he is joking. I haven't actually seen him eat any souls since we met. You do look good, so I can see why he might want to eat you up." Zee mutter to herself.

"You can eat me up all you want. "Bastion said, bobbing his eyebrows suggestively.

Zee smiled. "I mean, I would love to. But Dern has already called dibs." Zee said, looking somewhat disappointed.

"What do you mean he has called dibs?" Bastion asked wide-eyed.

She shrugged. "You know. He clearly likes you so I am being a good friend by not interfering with his romantic interest." Zee said.

"What romantic interest?" Bastion asked, confusion writ across his handsome face.

"It's like the bro code. Or sister code?" Zee said. "Either way, he clearly likes you so I am respectively keeping my distance," Zee said, forcibly keeping herself from laughing.

Bastion's eyes widen. "But it sounds like he wants to eat my soul. That it's not the same thing as a romantic interest," Bastion said. Zee shrugged her shoulders helplessly. "That's not for me to decide. You will have to take it up with Dern if you have a problem with it." Zee said.

"Ohh, I definitely have a problem with it. I am going to give Dern a piece of my mind." Bastion said. He stood, heading out from under the protective tent flap back into the scorching heat of the midday sun.

The others all watched on, not saying a word until Bastion was well out of hearing range.

"How much of that was the truth?" Allison asked. Zee smirked. "Well, we were talking about how to eat a soul, though Bastion's name didn't come up even once," Zee said.

"So you were doing all of that to just mess with him?" Allison asked.

"I mean, sort of. He does look really adorable when he is worried." Zee said. Allison glanced from Yukna to Greg, who were both staring at Zee with mixed expressions.

"You do know that he likes you a lot right?" Allison asked, getting right to the point. Zee shook her head. "Nonsense. He is just joking when he says he likes me," Zee said, waving a hand dismissively.

Allison raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think he would follow you across the country, and then to another planet if he didn't really care for you?" Allison asked, giving her that, you are an idiot look.

Zee glanced around the tent, noting that Greg and Ilukna shared Allison's look. Zee's cheeks flushed, and she looked away. Okay, her statement that she didn't believe he liked her was definitely a lie.

Her cheeks burned as she broached the uncomfortable subject. "What do you expect me to do about it? It's not exactly the time or place to get romantically involved. How will it even work after I leave this place behind?" Zee asked, unable to meet any of their eyes.

Allison's expression softened. "I don't know. What I do know is that you two have been dancing around each other like a pair of lovestruck teenagers for months now." Allison said.

"We are teenagers, I am not even seventeen yet," Zee deflected.

"That's not the point. What I meant is, if you have feelings for the guy, at least let him know." Allison said.

"And what if I don't have feelings for him?" Zee asked, her heart skipping a beat.

Allison shrugged. "Then tell him, and get it over with," Allison said. Greg hesitantly nodded. "Bastion is an adult. If you reject him, he will get over it." Greg said, speaking for the first time since they stopped.

Zee inhaled sharply. "I will think about it," Zee said, leaving the tent with all due haste. She totally wasn't fleeing because of the uncomfortable conversation.

She strode from the cool interior of the tent into the stifling heat of the early afternoon. Shielding her eyes from the glaring sun, she scanned the area and spotted Bastion atop the dune. He was standing next to Dern, who was being their lookout, while they rested.

She scrambled up the dune, walking across the narrow peak, and paused next to them both. Not really knowing how to broach the insanely embarrassing subject, she decided to gesture down the dune.

"Time to go," Zee said. Yup, Zee totally wasn't a spineless lizard or anything. Bastion turned from Dern to her.

"You lied to me, "Bastion said.

"What? Your concerned expression was kind of funny. Adorable even." Zee said, a flush creeping across her cheeks.

"You think I am adorable?" Bastion probed, dubiously.

"Maybe just a little," Zee said, suddenly nervous. Why was this so hard? Dern, who was standing beside them sensed her unease and desire for him to leave.

"I should go help disassemble the tent," Dern said, before jogging away without further comment.

Zee shifted awkwardly atop the dune, the sun boring down on her back.

"So, nice day we are having," Zee said, nervously. Bastion cocked his head, picking up on her awkward body language.

"What's going on? You look nervous." Bastion asked concern writ across his face. Zee inhaled sharply.

"Wow, um. I didn't think this would be so hard. So I am just going to come right out and say it. As weird as this sounds, I like you." Zee said, her words as graceful as a drunken lizard.

Bastion raised an eyebrow and looked taken aback by her lack of subtlety.

"You do?" He asked hopefully. "Yes. You are kind of okay." She said.

"Are you flirting with me?" Bastion asked, with a toothy grin.

"And what if I was?" Zee asked, looking away, shifting uncomfortably.

"I would have no problem with that. You can hit on me as much as you want." Bastion said.

"So, you want to spar?" Zee asked.

He laughed. "That's not exactly what I meant. I would not wish to endure that sort of punishment." Bastion said.

"Endure? You make sparring with me sound like a bad thing? I thought you wanted to go on a date with me?" Zee hesitantly.

"You know, most people don't beat each other up on a date," Bastion said.

"Most people don't have a soul-sucking monster that lives in their head either," Zee said.

Bastion nodded hesitantly, scratching the back of his head. "About that. How much of what you do does Dern see?" Bastion asked.

She shrugged. "Everything. If I am not forcibly keeping him out, he can even read my mind." Zee said.

A worried look crossed Bastion's face, making her heart skip a beat.

"It sounds like you two are a package deal?" Bastion asked, hesitance entering his tone.

"Yup. Dern may be an ass, but he has saved my life on numerous occasions. I wouldn't get rid of him, even if I could." Zee said, glancing down towards Dern, who was half sliding, half running down the dune.

"That definitely makes the situation more complicated," Bastion said, his expression complicated.

"Have you changed your mind?" Zee asked, a pit settling in her stomach.

Bastion looked over, meeting her eyes. "I will admit, I hadn't realized the extent that you and Dern are connected. I really like you, but having Dern in your head makes things complicated." Bastion said with a grimace.

She clasped her sweaty hands behind her back her heart racing wildly.

"I see,"Zee said.

It was as she feared. He was clearly just flirting with her for fun, and not because of real interest.

She fell into silence, both of them uncertain of what to say. Her mind whirled. She felt like such an idiot. So much for hoping for something she didn't deserve.

Her eyes tracked something high in the sky, circling far overhead. "What do you think that is?" Zee asked, in a desperate attempt to change the conversation away from his rejection.

He shielded his eyes, looking upward. "It looks like a flying lizard to me?" Bastion said.

Zee forced out a laugh, her cheeks burning in embarrassment and self-pity. She wished she had simply left it alone. But his rejection was probably for the best.

"Lizards can't fly, that is just a myth," Zee said with feigned amusement. He shook his head looking at her with mock seriousness.

"I have seen it, a flying lizard back home, in Armenia," Bastion said.

"You are a horrible liar," Zee said.

"I may be a thief and a criminal, but I am no liar," Bastion said.

"Isn't that what a thief and a criminal might say?" Zee asked.

"I don't know, I am usually too busy robbing criminals to ask," Bastion said.

"You know, being proud of being a criminal does not look good for you," Zee said.

"I only rob criminals and assholes. Oh and politicians, but most of them are worse than good hardworking criminals." Bastion said offhandedly.

"So, a righteous criminal? Robbing from the rich, and giving to the poor?" Zee asked.

Bastion snorted. "I wouldn't go that far. I am all for a good bit of charity work, but a guy has got to eat." Bastion said.

Not wanting to drag on the uncomfortable conversation, she gestured down the dune. "Looks like the others are done packing the tent, shall we get going?" Zee asked. Bastion nodded. Embarrassed, she walked beside him in silence down the steep dune. Her mind whirling uncertainly. What to do now?

That hadn't gone as well as she hoped. In fact, she wished she hadn't talked to him about it. At least he let her down with some dignity. On the bright side, even after an awkward subject, he was still just as easy to talk to.

At least now she could focus on the tournament. All she had to do was pretend as if none of this happened. Should be easy enough, as she most certainly didn't want to talk about it.

Wanting to conserve energy, she dismissed Dern upon reaching the camp. His tall form vanished into a flash of silver and blue, rushing towards her. He enter her chest, making her feel whole as he came back to her.

Allison gave Zee a questioning glance as they caught up with the rest of the group. Zee slowed, letting Bastion get ahead, walking at the lead with Greg.

Yukna slowed, trailing towards the back, giving them some privacy.

"Soo, how did it go?" Allison asked, curiously.

"You were wrong. He isn't interested in me. Thanks for that awkward conversation by the way." Zee mumbled.

Allison raised an eyebrow. "He rejected you? Why." Allison asked, visibly confused.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because I have a soul-sucking monster that lives in my head." Zee said.

Allison inhaled sharply, before letting it out in a deep sigh. "Sorry, I hadn't considered that. Are you alright?" Allison asked.

Zee wiped the sweat from her eyes. "I will be fine. It's not like I really expected he liked me anyways." Zee muttered, her shoulders slumping.

"I can talk to him if you like?" Allison asked.

Zee shook her head. "No. This is for the best outcome for the team. We don't need an extra complication." Zee said, straightening her back, and putting on a stoic façade.

"I should go scout the trail. We don't want to run into a trap." Zee said.

Without waiting for a response, she disappeared into a puff of blue mist. She went ahead to scout, heading toward the mountains looming in the distance.

Zee scouted well ahead of the team for hours. It was less for scouting reasons, and more because she didn't really want to talk with anyone.

She glided across the sand, her peak F-ranked body carrying her forwards with surprising speed. Hours of no people, or monsters in sight, the only company Dern and the gusting wind.

The long silence and tedium were broken by a curious sight tracking through the sky. A massive bird, perhaps the same one from earlier flew down from the mountains.

It hovered overhead for a bit, before suddenly diving down. She watched it, as it dove with incredible speed towards the dunes ahead of her.

The bird plummeted toward the ground, growing larger, and larger before disappearing from sight. It reappeared several seconds later, a screaming humanoid form clutched between its massive talons.

The bird didn't make it far before a massive hammer made of sand smashed into its right wing. It squawked loudly, falling nearly a hundred feet back to the sand only one dune away.

Zee glanced back to the others well behind her, then back towards the bird flailing on the sand. She then glanced towards what she presumed was Malden's group distance. Neither group arrive in time.

No time to wait, she needed to help, or the guy that got bird nabbed would be done for.

Zee flashed forwards, using all three steps of her wayward walk skill to close the gap two hundred-meter gap. It wasn't the safest thing to use all three steps, but Zee didn't have the time to waste.

The victim of the giant bird screamed loudly as the bird flapped its wings, squawking loudly as it tried to get airborne once more. The bird was a few feet off the ground when Zee suddenly appeared behind it. Her sword, undulating with the blue motes of spirit echo drew a brutal arc across its back.

Surprisingly the dense yellow and blue plumage softened her attack. Instead of severing its spine, her sword only drew a thin arc of blood across its back.

The giant bird, twice as tall as she was dropped its screaming prey and whirled.

It pecked at her with surprising speed, its vicious beak tearing into her.

Blood dripped from the bird's viciously curved beak, her left shoulder stinging in pain.

She grimaced, but she didn't have time to worry about her own safety. She threw a small humanoid toward its face, moving to protect the injured Allevark bleeding on the sand.

Dern grew as he left her palm. Midair, the bird screeched, flapping its thirty-foot wings at the air its aura flaring. Her eyes widen as it batted Dern from the air with a huge gust of wind. Now the size of a normal human, Dern was sent sprawling head over heels into the sand.

The giant yellow and blue hawk-like bird, turned back, lunging at her, its razor beak aimed at her chest. Zee leaped to one side, cutting a brutal ark across its beak and face.

Blood showered the sand, both hers and the bird's. The bird let out an enraged squawk as the blue flames of spirit echo began decaying its face and beak.

Zee stagger back, settling into a wide stance as blood trickled down her face from the vicious gash on her scalp.

It watched her with large, intelligent brown eyes. The bird crouched low, its head bobbing up and down.

Heart racing in rhythm with the ever-burning flame, Zee readied herself.

Despite that, she only narrowly avoided its lightning quick attack. With a flap of its wings, the bird lunged, its claws lashing out.

Zee immediately fell back, blocking the curved dagger-like claws with her sword. The force of the blow sent jolts of pain through her injured shoulder, pushing her back.

Sensing weakness, the bird flapped its wings, charging forwards. Despite being injured, it was incredibly agile, its talons lashing forwards. Every attack was quick and precise, threatening to skewer her with razor-sharp claws.

Desperate to change the fight in her favor, she infused her aura with a spark of compression.

The bird visibly slowed from the heavy pressure around her. It gave her precious moments to dodge and stay ahead of those razor claws.

After the first few exchanges, it was clear that she had underestimated the bird. It moved far easier across the sand than she did, seemingly unaffected by it.

Without her infused aura to slow it down, she might have gotten caught already. She was inwardly kicking herself, anxious trying to stall until wayward walk came off cooldown.

She weaved and dodged, moving away from the downed allevark. The bird followed with relentless fury, its attacks unrelenting.

All the while, the blue flames of spirit echo ate away at its flesh, the wounds not enough to kill it. The monster attacked with palpable aggression, the ferocity, nearly overwhelming her.

Zee frantically retreated, desperate not to stumble in the soft sand. Any mistake here would cost her life. It lashed out, with its curved beak, uninjured wing, and scythe-like talons.

Her sword flashed, the sounds of metal on bone echoing across the sand as she repeatedly deflected its attacks.

After only thirty seconds she was covered in long bleeding cuts, her chest heaving.

The giant bird faired no better, covered in wounds of its own, each burning from the decaying effects of spirit echo.

The slid apart and she crouched low, watching it's head bob as it studied her. The bird let out a low squawk, its eyes burning with vengeance.

Zee couldn't speak bird, but this one was definitely pissed at her. She couldn't exactly blame the bird, given she had attacked it from nowhere.

"If you want me little birdy, come and get me."Zee taunted, raising her bloody sword in her uninjured off-hand. The bird might not have understood her words but it definitely understood her challenging tone.

It squawked angrily and moved to attack.

Just then, Dern finally got off his ass from where he had been thrown. Like a cart striking a pedestrian, he slammed into the bird bodily from behind, throwing the bird off balance.

The bird may have been massive, but Dern was around eight feet tall, and made of metal alloy.

Winning a fight against a superior opponent was all about seizing the moment, and capitalizing on a key opening. Zee was well aware of this fact, having been pitted against stronger foes more than she could count.

Just because the opponent was stronger, did not mean an experienced opponent couldn't achieve victory.

Heart racing, Zee took the opening that Dern provided. Her injured shoulder screamed in pain as she thrust three feet of steel into its chest.

Unlike the first time, she compressed spirit echo to a razor-sharp point. All the force of her attack was focused on a single point, passing between the thick yellow plumage. The bird shrieked as spirit echo ravaged its vitals, its wail loud enough to make her ears ring.

Zee released the hilt of her sword, scrambling to get distance, and avoid its death throes. She wasn't fast enough to avoid getting hit in the side by its massive wing. Bone cracked as she was thrown ass over teakettle, flying over two dozen feet away.

Head spinning, Zee tried to get back to her feet but was forced to her knees from the blinding pain in her ribs. Through bleary eyes she looked up, blinking back tears.

She was just in time to see Dern clinging to the bird's back, forcing it chest first on the sand with his massive weight. Dern ruthlessly stabbed it repeatedly with his massive glaive. The bird squawked and screeched, but Dern was relentless, blood and feathers flying everywhere.

It one final overhead blow, Dern brought his glaive down, severing the bird's spine. It fell still, its blood showering the sand around it.

Zee sat back on her butt, though she wasn't relieved. The danger was gone for the moment, but she had other problems. Her mind spun as she reached for her side. Why was it so hard to breathe? Her breath came in ragged gasps, her blood rushing through her body.

The sand looked so soft, this was a good spot to take a break. She fell on her back, looking up at the yellow smoke filling the clear blue sky. Blood leaked from her many wounds, dripping into the sand.