The forest trembled with the Kpataki Guardian's roar. Its massive paws dug trenches in the earth, uprooting saplings and scattering leaves like sparks in a storm.
Malik spun his yo-yo, golden threads humming around him. "Okay… four against one? I like those odds!"
Naomi's eyes narrowed. "Focus, Malik. Don't make me do all the work."
Aubrey Murray-Parks stepped forward, her twin Twilight Blades catching faint moonlight. She twirled them in a circular motion, slicing the air in arcs that shimmered like threads. "We're not here to stand around, people. Move—or get out of the way."
Isaiah Walker flexed his gauntlets, the silver-thread lines along the knuckles glowing faintly. He crouched low, voice calm but commanding: "We coordinate. Watch each other's backs."
[First Alliance Formed – Observation Stage Complete]
The Guardian lunged again, targeting Malik first. He jumped onto a fallen log, swinging the yo-yo to wrap around its foreleg. Sparks of energy flared as the cord tugged, but the beast shook him off.
Naomi dashed to intercept, planting both feet and driving her makeshift blade into the beast's shoulder. The metal shivered against golden thread sinews, but she pulled free before the claws could snap her like a twig.
"Malik! Timing!" she shouted.
He caught her signal, spinning the yo-yo in a horizontal sweep, connecting the threads around the beast's other front leg. Kesi, the shadowed panther from a previous vision, leapt from the underbrush and sank claws into the beast's flank, merging shadow threads into the attack.
Aubrey and Isaiah moved in perfect synchronization—Aubrey flanking from the left, leaving streaks of cutting shadows, Isaiah forming a temporary barrier with his gauntlets to block the Guardian's massive tail swing.
[Threadwork Codex – Skill Update]Malik Drayton – Thread Snap II unlockedNaomi Drayton – Weave Slash I unlockedAubrey Murray-Parks – Shadow Bind I unlockedIsaiah Walker – Iron Thread Barrier I unlocked
The four of them worked as one. Each attack seemed minor, almost playful individually, but together they began to overwhelm the Guardian. Sparks, smoke, and the shimmer of spirit-thread lit the forest in chaotic bursts.
Finally, the beast froze, lowering its massive head. Its golden eyes swept over each of them, analyzing, weighing their threads. Then… it bowed slightly, a gesture that radiated acknowledgment rather than aggression.
Malik's jaw dropped. "Did… did we just make a friend?"
Naomi exhaled, muscles trembling with relief. "It's… more like a test. A Loom Guardian doesn't bow unless it recognizes potential."
From the treeline, shadows shifted. A figure in the distance observed the battle with keen interest, a silver-thread sigil glowing faintly across their mask. Malik didn't see them clearly, but the Cutter had returned—no longer alone.
The voice came through the wind, low and deliberate."Do not think your tricks can escape the Loom's reach. The Spindle Court will find you… and when they do, no thread will save you."
Aubrey's eyes narrowed. "Looks like we just got a bigger problem."
Isaiah's gauntlets hummed as he readied another barrier. "Let them come. We're ready."
Malik twirled his yo-yo, grin returning despite the tension. "Oh, they will come. And we'll make sure they regret it."
The four of them exchanged a look, unspoken agreement passing through their eyes. Whatever this war was, they were now threads woven together—and nothing, not even the Spindle Court, would tear them apart without a fight.