The distance between where I started and where I need to be isn’t that far, but it feels like it takes forever to cross. That’s probably because I know that every second I delay is another second closer to another of my companions being killed.

  Tamer! Shrieks’ voice practically echoes in my mind, for all that it’s faint from the distance between me and the village.

  What? I demand, knowing that I must respond, yet not wanting to be distracted from planning for my actions on arrival at the den.

  They have some new type of weapon! Bright shining orbs that explode on contact with the ground and rip straight through all but the strongest types of armour. The invaders have already managed to get through the gate. We need you here!

  I curse loudly, frustration and fear ripping at my insides like a wild beast.

  I can’t come now! The den is under attack! My team is already fighting Tree-whisperer and I’m going to join them. She turned the vine-stranglers against us and Kalanthia can’t fight them all by herself, I explain, my frustration no doubt evident to the lead Warrior. Shrieks is silent for a long moment.

  Then we will do what we can, and if the worst comes to the worst, we will hold on as long as possible and hope you can come in time to reinforce us, he says finally and I sense his attention pulling away from our connection. I swallow dryly, new fear rising inside me and making me feel sick. How the hell did samurans manage to create grenades without gunpowder?

  But I know that Shrieks’ response was the only one possible. I can’t turn around and run back to the village, leaving the den and my companions vulnerable. It doesn’t make sense from either a logical point of view or an emotional one. All I can do is try to end the battle with Tree-whisperer as quickly as possible.

  Actually, maybe there’s something I can do.

  Noir, where are you? I demand, reaching out to the alcaoris. He sends me a picture of the clearing, the battleground I’ve just left not far ahead of him. I look back briefly and spot his shape against the sky. It won’t take him very long to reach me, but there’s something else I’d rather he do. The village is under attack. Can you go and help them where possible? He sends me a sense of agreement and I see the shape change the angle of its flight. Thanks. Just, beware. Apparently they have a sort of weapon that they can throw and that explodes on contact, I warn him. He sends an acknowledgement and I turn back to face the slope ahead.

  Now I have something more to worry about, but perhaps Noir will be able to provide air cover which will make a difference. I hope that Ptera is helping out too since she was following the main force, but I don’t want to distract Shrieks right now.

  Turning my attention to the battle ahead of me, I make a decision.

  Aingeal, I need you to deal with the trees, I tell the fire elemental, pressing my intentions into the Bond between us. Ultimately, as long as the trees are dead, it doesn’t matter if it was at my hand or not. Aingeal seems eager to comply, so I send it on ahead of me – it’s capable of moving far faster than I am. Perhaps its presence will help turn the tables for Kalanthia – reaching out to Sirocco informs me that little has changed since I saw through her eyes.

  Running through where the vine-strangler forest used to be, the battle soon comes into view. Since, at the moment, no one seems aware of my presence, I make a split-second decision to keep that the case for as long as I can. Activating Fade, I don’t slow down, trusting the battle to mask any small visible or audible traces of my presence as I mount the slope towards the den.

  As Sirocco indicated, little has changed. Three more Warriors are on the ground, injured or dead. But my companions have started to pay their own price – Persephone is furiously protecting Hades who has stumbled to the ground after an unlucky attack from one of the Warriors bypassed his armour to pierce his side. Fortunately, his armour seems to have deflected it from piercing his chest and heart, but the wound is bleeding hard and is clearly painful.

  I pause next to him for a moment, pouring mana into him and half-healing the wound to the point where he can continue fighting. He grunts in gratitude and pushes himself to his feet. Persephone sends me a wave of gratitude through the Bond, but then they both re-engage with the fight and I move on.

  There are several other more minor injuries among my companions, but given how much more desperate the other battles are, I don’t spend time or mana on them – I’ll have to hope that together my fighters can compensate for each other and keep everyone alive.

  Dusty is struggling; I can see that her fatigue is growing and the other Water-Shaper is beginning to overwhelm her. Dusty’s control over water has weakened to the point that the other Shaper’s attacks are starting to get through. Despite that, she’s not my next target. The fact is that Lathani is also beginning to slow down, and that’s even more dangerous in her case. The Earth-Shaper won’t hesitate to perforate her gut and brain with spikes while the Water-Shaper may hesitate in going for the kill on Dusty.

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  Kalanthia seems to be holding her own, despite the best efforts of the two Pathwalkers, and her position has only improved since Aingeal arrived and grabbed the attention of the trees. They’re not on fire yet, but the little fire elemental has disappeared and the trees have frozen in place. I suspect that fire will be what comes next.

  So for now, I help Lathani. I could intervene with magic, and I will if necessary, but there’s another move I can make which will be as good if not better. Pulling my spear from my Inventory, I charge forwards.

  My approach made less obvious by Fade, the Pathwalker has no warning before I slam into her, my spear piercing her back. I miss any important organs, but I don’t care since the blade is poisoned with a powerful mana inhibitor. It becomes irrelevant a moment later as Lathani is finally able to catch up with the Pathwalker and truly become the cat in the cat and mouse situation. The Pathwalker is dead before she realises it as Lathani bites her head off.

  Rest for a moment, I tell the nunda, seeing how she almost stumbles after her attack. If you can use your magic to help, do so. If not, just join the fight when you can.

  Yes, Markus, she agrees with relief, practically sinking to the ground and panting, though still keeping a wary eye out on the continuing battle.

  One Pathwalker down, three to go. The same strategy isn’t going to work again – my Fade has broken entirely and the other Water-Shaper has noticed me. Already, she’s distracted from her fight with Dusty as she turns her attention to me, forming a ball of water with a look of concentration. I know from the fights I had at the festival with other Water-Shapers that her next move will be to throw it and then try to impede my movement or breathing with it.

  But she’s made a mistake. Dusty might be tired, and her magic might be almost gone, but that doesn’t mean she’s out. She’s also attacking in my territory.

  The earth around here knows me well, far better than the Earth-Shaper Lathani and I just killed. Sending a pulse through it, the earth willingly creates a sharp spike underneath the Water-Shaper. She manages to avoid being impaled by it at the last moment, though a deep gash through the flesh on her leg pours blood. But the distraction has interrupted her attempts to form and throw a ball of water, and given her an opening for Dusty.

  My companion lunges for the other Pathwalker, a metal knife glinting in her hand. It pierces the enemy Pathwalker’s scales easily – a stab wound in her back. She pulls it out and then stabs it forwards again and again, the enemy Pathwalker arching and crying out in pain and then crumpling to the ground. I’m surprised – has Dusty managed to get over her aversion to killing her ‘sisters’?

  I have no time to check. Looking between the two remaining battles, I’m torn between who to go and help.

  My remaining companions are holding against the Warriors, but even if none of them have received significant wounds – apart from Hades earlier – they’re all clearly tired and injured in places that their armour doesn’t cover. And in some cases, where their armour does cover – several of the Warriors are wielding very familiar weapons. A muscle ticks in my jaw as I clench my teeth at the realisation that this village is using our gifts against us. I can only be glad that even the lead village of the red tribe only received ten of our reinforced metal spears.

  On the other side of the area, Kalanthia is doing well enough against the other two Pathwalkers and I estimate that she will win it soon. I suspect that the other Earth-Shaper had been battling with Kalanthia over control of the earth as now the adult nunda is using it to much more of an effect than before.

  Still, her opponents are not to be discounted – although the bulk of the vine-stranglers are frozen, there are a group that are still protecting Tree-whisperer, using their branches to shield her and their spearing roots to attack Kalanthia. The Pathwalker is held securely above even Kalanthia’s head and their roots are managing to overcome her attempts to topple them.

  Still, Kalanthia’s claws dig into the tree trunks better than any axe – three are already on the ground in pieces as a testament to that. Even as I watch, a pit opens beneath the tree Tree-whisperer is currently sheltering in and its roots aren’t strong enough to hold it. The tree drops down half its length into the ground. Kalanthia bites at the Pathwalker now within range, but the tree shoots its roots into Kalanthia’s mouth, aiming to pierce the roof of it and from there, her brain.

  The nunda bites the roots into pieces before they can grow too big, but while she does that, Tree-whisperer leaps into another tree, lifted by its branches into its crown. Safe once more.

  Meanwhile, the Air-Shaper swoops in with a dart gun, peppering Kalanthia with darts before she flees as Kalanthia whirls around and swipes at her. The Pathwalker has been forced to lift herself off the ground to avoid the traps Kalanthia has sought to hobble her with, which means it’s now a question of endurance. Will the Pathwalker’s mana last long enough to see Kalanthia be subdued under whatever poison the darts contain, or not? From the Air-Shaper’s increasingly desperate expression, I think not.

  My observations take only a moment, just long enough for me to be confident that Kalanthia doesn’t require my help immediately and that my companions are more in need. Lathani and Dusty are still out of the fight, though Lathani looks more recovered and might come to join it soon enough.

  Reaching into the earth, I pour in enough mana to make it abruptly buck underneath the feet of the biggest group of Warriors to make them stumble. My companions don’t hesitate to take advantage of the openings. Catch throws himself forward to stab a Warrior straight in the chest as he stumbles, and then yanks his spear out to slash through the neck of another one.

  Meanwhile, Storm and Ninja are working together to take down another Warrior while Bastet targets a third. Sirocco soars in to add to the confusion, releasing several Fire-Blades which do more to distract than injure, but allow Fenrir to knock several of the Warriors to the ground with his bulk. There, they’re prime targets for the kiinas to trample.

  Not wanting to get caught in the melee, I pull my bow from my Inventory and start shooting arrows at those Warriors still standing.

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