The gorge swallowed daylight whole.
Serena stepped onto the first switchback and felt the temperature plummet; the walls funneled a wet wind that smelled of rust and old bones. Red sandstone dripped with condensation, each drop tapping the scree like a metronome counting down the twenty-seven days she still carried behind her eyes.
Umbren moved ahead, paws silent on the narrow ledge. His shadow stretched across the cliff face, breaking apart whenever mist drifted between them. They had descended for less than an hour when the trail widened into a natural amphitheater. A rusted mining cart lay on its side, axles snapped, its wooden ribs blackened by fire. Serena crouched, fingers brushing a boot print still soft in the mud.
< Vein-Eaters' patrol route detected >
She followed the prints.
The gorge bent sharply inward, opening onto a bowl-shaped hollow. Canvas tents sagged against the walls; a makeshift palisade of wagon wheels and broken spears ringed the camp. Inside, a dozen figures moved like smoke—bandits wrapped in mismatched armor, all wearing the same crimson sash knotted at the left hip.
Serena studied them from a ledge thirty feet above, eyes narrowed. Their leader was easy to spot: a tall woman with twin short-swords crossed behind her back, the blades etched with pale runes that drank the light. Around her neck hung a shard of black iron—jagged, familiar. Serena's scroll pulsed once in system storage, responding to its twin.
< Artifact fragment detected – may catalyse Night-Sewn Path mastery >
She exhaled through her teeth. "Umbren."
The wolf's ears flattened. —Numbers?—
"Twelve. One leader, two archers, the rest fodder." Serena's grip shifted on the scythe. "We start noisy."
---
She dropped.
Wind hissed along the scythe's edge as she fell. The nearest sentry looked up too late—Crescent Arc carved a silent crescent across his throat. Blood painted the red rock an even deeper shade.
Alarms erupted. Voices rose in a chaotic chorus. Serena spun into motion, scythe singing.
Moonfall Sweep.
Her body dipped low, leg sweeping the gravel. A crescent of wind and darkness tore outward, scattering three bandits like broken dolls. One crashed into a tent pole; canvas ripped free, flapping like a dying bird.
The leader—her name was Corvin, Serena would learn later—drew both blades in a single fluid motion. Runes flared, casting pale fire across her face. She lunged.
Steel rang against blackened steel. Serena parried high, felt the impact vibrate up her arms. Corvin's second blade dipped low, aiming for the kidney. Serena twisted, letting the edge slice fabric instead of flesh. She answered with Ghost Moon Rend—blink-step, reappear behind the leader, scythe arcing wide.
Corvin was faster than expected. She spun, blades crossing to catch the blow. Sparks sprayed. For a heartbeat they stood locked, breath mingling in the cold air, eyes locked across the quivering weapons.
Then Umbren struck.
The wolf erupted from the mist like a living shadow, jaws closing around the archer nocking an arrow. Bone cracked; the bowstring snapped. Another bandit raised a spear. Umbren's tail slashed sideways, ripping the man's legs from under him.
Serena disengaged with a sharp twist, scythe carving a shallow groove along Corvin's ribs. Blood hissed against the runic blades, turning the pale fire crimson.
< Combat trial 2/3 complete >
Corvin spat a curse and retreated three steps, blades weaving a defensive lattice. Serena advanced, eyes violet and cold.
--
The fight lasted less than three minutes.
When the last body fell, Serena stood knee-deep in crimson mud, chest heaving. She wiped the scythe on a fallen cloak and moved among the corpses, stripping cores and purses with practiced efficiency. From Corvin's belt she lifted the black-iron shard. It pulsed once, warm against her palm, then settled like a heartbeat.
< Artifact fragment acquired – resonance 17 % >
She tucked it into system storage, then knelt beside the leader's body. One hand pressed to the cooling forehead, she drew the residual mana into her meridians—not essence, but a whetstone. The bottleneck to Core Bloom 5 shivered, then cracked wider.
< Core Bloom 4 → 5 imminent >
Umbren padded to her side, tongue lolling, blood streaking midnight fur. Mist drifted between them, carrying the copper scent of victory and the promise of deeper shadows ahead.
Serena straightened, scythe balanced across her shoulder.
< 26 days remain >