Sofia Halaby was impatient, to say the least. She had been waiting all damn day for the meeting, and even after being let into the room, she was still made to sit and wait. Just because someone like Egnatia Lucan was fine with the wait didn’t mean everyone else wanted to waste their entire day.

  But what could she say about it? She was the weakest in the room.

  Egnatia Lucan, the Demon Killer, leader of the Magna Regum Hero Company, 4 Shard Hero. The princess of Magna Regum, as some rudely called her, had arrived in full armor. Her purple scar was clearly visible, as were the muscles in her jaw as she shifted. Maybe she was more impatient than Sofia had thought. People often mentioned the scar like it was some detriment to her appearance, but Egnatia was, perhaps, one of the two most beautiful women Sofia had ever seen.

  The other three in the room weren’t as familiar to her. They were known, of course. Nobody with that many shards could remain anonymous.

  Voolyn Eskitorra, 4 Shard Hero, the Trueborn Giant. And a giant he was. Just like Egnatia, he had yet to fuse. If he found a massive mob, he could become the single biggest hero. Physically, of course. He sat, looking angry, and drank a beer, which Sofia couldn’t even begin to guess where he had found that. He was incredibly handsome with a square jaw and just the right amount of scruff. Somehow, he had made it to four shards without any visible scars on his face.

  Zevvrin Kerekes, another 4 Shard Hero, the Lizardman. He had fused with the Scaltari King and looked far more lizard than human. He was a dangerous assassin that was difficult to look at. Sofia wasn’t sure how he blended in, but she could at least appreciate that he had fused, and had been able to fuse with something so powerful.

  She had nearly died during her fusion, and hadn’t been back in a tower since. Before she was summoned, she had been planning her next expedition, hoping to join the rank of all the other 4 Shard Heroes at the table.

  With only eight 4 Shard Heroes in the world currently, it seemed weird to have basically half in one room together. How often were people of this much power sitting and waiting for others?

  The odd one in the room was Kikuno Itou. A 5 Shard Hero who rarely talked. Nobody knew what she had fused with, but the four spider legs that stuck out of her back suggested it was something disgusting. She had been silent since they all sat down. At least they had provided her with a stool so she could sit without her horrifying legs sticking out of her back getting in the way. Whatever she had fused with hadn’t changed any other part of her appearance. She was really beautiful. Sofia tried not to stare, but it was difficult to pull her eyes away.

  It was a powerful room, and Sofia was undoubtedly the weakest. That wouldn’t always be a problem. It was said that Voolyn had stalled. He had gone into the towers and been unable to get a shard. Nobody knew what Zevvrin’s deal was, but he hadn’t advanced in a long time either. Kikuno had taken a more passive approach, apparently trying to train other attributes with scholarly work outside the towers.

  And Egnatia was . . . well, she was one of the most influential people in Verdantallis. There’s no doubt she can get another shard. She simply hasn’t tried yet.

  “Do you think they’ll be here soon?” Sofia asked.

  All four heroes turned to look at her. There was some form of disgust on the faces of Egnatia and Voolyn. It was impossible to tell with Zevvrin since he just looked like a lizard. Kikuno’s expression didn’t change at all.

  “I still don’t understand why they invited you here,” Egnatia said.

  Sofia shrugged. “Potential, I guess. Something you all used to have.”

  “Rat girl thinks she’s funny,” Voolyn said, his voice deep like thunder. “The Three Heads clearly didn’t know what they had to look at when they invited you.”

  Sofia smiled. She had indeed fused with a claverstan in the Subterranean Dungeon. It was a powerful rat down on the ninth floor. Fusing inside the Forge of Divine Light was risky, and it had paid off, though her rat face and all the gray hair were a little unfortunate. It might not be pretty, but power is power. Zevvrin was willing to turn fully into a lizard, so clearly she wasn’t the only crazy one.

  “Leave her alone,” Kikuno said. “We don’t need to be friends.”

  Egnatia grunted and crossed her arms.

  The 5 Shard Hero easily pacified the others. Sofia was a little jealous.

  Silence took over the room once again. Kikuno nodded to Sofia, then turned her attention back to the door. Sofia fidgeted impatiently for about another half hour until the door finally opened.

  Olena, Isaak, and Nastya.

  The Three Heads.

  “How are we going to kill this goblin?” Isaak asked before he even sat.

  “Althowin has, for whatever reason, decided she is going to protect him,” Egnatia said. “She’s taken the entire fucking Nimble Hog Hero Company under her wing.”

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  “The what?” Nastya asked.

  “Some joke of a company out of Atrevaar.” Egnatia gestured helplessly. “I don’t know. It’s who the goblin joined.”

  “Nobody in this room can challenge the 7 Shard Hero,” Olena said. She leaned forward. Her eyes blazed like blue fire. “But together, she has no hope. The goblin can continue playing as a hero. It doesn’t matter to us. Right now, he’s giving us an excuse to get rid of Althowin. With her gone, we can claim all of Brukiya and finally have a market in Vraxridge. She’s been stopping our expansion for too long.”

  Sofia swallowed her protests. Challenge the 7 Shard Hero? Is that why she was there? Not a fucking chance. Even if they all fought Althowin, even if they somehow killed her, they would all be dead.

  “Magna Regum gets Izylia,” Egnatia said.

  “Yes,” Olena said. “Everything we agreed to before.”

  “Did you find anything on Zezog?” Voolyn asked.

  “Still searching. We may have a lead,” Isaak said.

  “Will he be a threat?” Zevvrin asked, his voice like a snake’s hiss.

  Isaak looked at the other Heads. “It’s possible. It’s a risk that needs to be considered.”

  That was more than a risk, as far as Sofia was concerned. One 7 Shard Hero was enough of a death sentence, and that was an alchemist. A 7 Shard Hero berserker? Absolute death. Berserkers were always scary. She couldn’t even begin to imagine what Zezog could do, especially if he was angry.

  “Zezog is real?” Sofia asked.

  Everyone looked at her like she was an absolute moron.

  “Look, people don’t disappear for eighty years. He should be the most famous person in the world, other than Althowin, obviously. People would know if they saw him.” Sofia opened her index and checked the list of Shard Heroes. “I know he’s there, but so is a blank spot. Who’s the third? How do we know the wish wasn’t just to always be listed but he’s actually dead now?”

  “That would be a terrible wish,” Zevvrin said.

  “I never said it was good!”

  “Sofia Halaby, obviously,” Olena said.

  “That’s me.”

  “The Rat,” Isaak said with more than a hint of contempt.

  “I’ve been called worse.”

  “Let the real heroes talk,” Egnatia said.

  All three Heads seemed to agree as they shifted their attention more toward Egnatia and Voolyn. Across the table, Kikuno smiled.

  What did it mean?

  ***

  Nikoletta gasped, flailing as she sat up. Luminous light flowed from her hands, burning the sheets. The room didn’t look familiar, and her clothes . . . Somebody had undressed her. Where was her armor? Her mace?

  “You’re awake? My goodness, I thought you were never going to wake.”

  Nikoletta stared at the stranger who rushed to her bedside. The woman touched her shoulder, moving a bandage.

  Nikoletta lashed out with a backhand. Blood sprayed as the woman’s head tumbled to the ground. Her body swayed for a moment before dropping to the floor.

  Armor. Mace. Nikoletta threw the burning sheets aside. Her bare feet splashed in the pool of blood.

  “Where’s my mace?” Her voice was barely a growl. The noise tore at her throat.

  She leaned on the doorframe and opened her index. Recognition was slow, but after a moment, she grinned.

  Summon Cathkabel

  Her vision left her body, warping her through the planes until she could barely make out the halls of Elysium. There was a figure, a tall, lean cathkabel, waiting for her, like it had been expecting her arrival.

  “Nikoletta Olah,” he said. “I have been asked to be your summon. Draw your own blood, offer it to me, and I will join you in Verdantallis.”

  Nikoletta, while outside her own body, grabbed her forearm and dragged her nails across the skin, tearing flesh from wrist to elbow.

  “Yes,” the cathkabel said. “More.”

  She dug her fingers into the scratches, ripping into muscles as she lifted her arm into the air. Blood rushed down her bicep, over her chest, and down her waist and legs. It pooled at her feet.

  Luminous light flashed. Nikoletta felt the pulse in her heart as she snapped back into her own body. She had smeared the blood across her own face, and matted her hair. Who had let her hair grow out?

  A cathkabel calmly stepped out of the portal just in front of her. It wore a metal helmet, framed around its massive silver eyes, and a skin tight silver suit with a bandolier over its chest with a quilted skirt over its waist.

  The cathkabel bent down and ran its fingers along Nikoletta’s leg, gathering the blood. It brought its fingers to its mouth and licked with a wide, silver tongue. Massive feathered wings burst from the cathkabel’s back. He gathered more blood on both of his hands, running his fingers across Nikoletta’s forearm, even digging into her flesh. Once his hands were covered in crimson blood. He stepped back and clapped. Instead of spraying blood, light flashed. When it faded, the cathkabel held a black scythe. He offered his free hand.

  “I am the Death Priest Zazenk. I look forward to serving you, Mistress.”

  Nikoletta clenched her jaw as her forearm knit itself back together. She was so much stronger, healing was almost an unconscious effort. She reached her blood-covered hand out and took Zazenk’s. “You serve me?”

  “Faithfully, Mistress.” Zazenk dropped to one knee, splashing in the blood. “Together, we can fight the Abyss.”

  Multiple people appeared in the hall and stopped as they spotted Zazenk and Nikoletta. They looked past at the dead woman inside.

  “Miss Veriss left a message, should you wake,” a man said.

  Veph. She was in Void Nexus.

  Nikoletta looked back at the corpse. “What’s the message?”

  “She traveled to the Subterranean to get another shard. You should prepare yourself for war.”

  Nikoletta found herself grinning.

  Zazenk, still on one knee, licked the blood from her hand.

  “War?”

  “She wants you to become a Shard Hero,” the man said. He looked at the corpse again. “We will manage that. Your belongings are over here. There is a pack of supplies ready for you.”

  “Rise, Zazenk. We’re leaving.”

  The cathkabel stood, but continued holding her hand. “I follow where you lead.”

  Shard Hero!

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