The quest timer hit zero at dawn.
Alex had spent most of the night feeding his fire and jumping at every sound. His cave had remained secure, but the forest outside was alive with things hunting and dying.
[QUEST COMPLETE: SURVIVE 24 HOURS]
[REWARDS GRANTED]
[+BASIC SURVIVAL KNOWLEDGE]
[+MINOR HEALING APPLIED]
[HP: 35/45]
Knowledge flooded Alex's mind. Which plants were safe to eat. How to read animal tracks. How to find north. Basic wilderness survival that the previous body's owner had never learned.
His health jumped up seven points. The claw marks on his chest stopped throbbing.
Not bad. I survived twenty-four hours in a death forest. Small victory, but it matters.
The egg pulsed against his chest, warmer than usual.
Alex looked down. The golden patterns were glowing brighter, pulsing faster. Almost like an accelerating heartbeat.
A crack appeared on the shell. Thin, hairline, but visible.
Then another. And another.
Oh no. Is it hatching? Now? It's not supposed to hatch yet!
[ALERT: PHOENIX EGG ENTERING PREMATURE HATCH]
[BOND STRENGTH THRESHOLD REACHED: 15%]
[ESSENCE REQUIREMENT BYPASSED BY EMERGENCY PROTOCOL]
[HATCHING IN PROGRESS]
"Wait, what? Emergency protocol? What emergency?"
A howl echoed through the forest. Close. Too close.
Then another howl, from a different direction.
Oh. That emergency.
The venomwolf. It had returned. And it had brought friends.
Golden light exploded from the egg as more cracks spider-webbed across its surface. The shell began to glow so brightly Alex had to squint.
Outside the cave, he could hear them now. Paw steps. Multiple sets. Circling his position.
They tracked me here. Probably smell the phoenix egg hatching.
Alex grabbed his branch and positioned himself at the cave entrance, the egg cradled in one arm.
The first wolf appeared through the waterfall's mist. Larger than the one he'd killed yesterday, with more bone protrusions jutting from its spine.
[VENOMWOLF ALPHA - LEVEL 4]
Level four. And where there's an alpha, there's a pack.
Two more wolves emerged, flanking the alpha. Smaller, younger, but still deadly.
[VENOMWOLF - LEVEL 2] x2
Three against one. With Alex holding an egg about to explode with light.
Terrible odds.
The egg cracked open.
A tiny head emerged. A bird, barely larger than Alex's fist. Its feathers were downy, colored in shades of orange and red that flickered like flames. Black eyes, far too intelligent for something just hatched, fixed on Alex's face.
Then it looked at the wolves and chirped.
The sound was absurdly small. A tiny peep of defiance from a creature that could fit in Alex's palm.
Despite everything, Alex almost laughed. We're both going to die, but at least you've got spirit.
The wolves didn't find it funny. The alpha snarled and advanced, the two younger wolves spreading out to flank.
Can't fight all three at once. Need to even the odds.
Alex backed deeper into the cave, forcing the wolves to come through the narrow entrance. They couldn't flank him here. They'd have to come one at a time.
Chokepoint control. Please let it work in real life.
The alpha entered first, too large to move quickly through the confined space. Alex swung his branch at its face. The wood connected with a satisfying crack. The wolf yelped but didn't retreat.
The fire bird, Alex's fire bird now, launched from his arms.
Despite its size, it moved like a dart. It shot straight at the alpha's face and released a gout of flame from its tiny beak. The fire was weak, barely larger than a lighter's flame, but concentrated directly into the wolf's eyes.
The alpha howled and thrashed backward, crashing into the wolves behind it. All three went down in a tangle of limbs.
The bird can fight. Holy shit, it can actually fight.
The small fire bird wheeled in the air and returned to Alex's shoulder, chirping proudly. Through the bond, stronger now, clearer, Alex could feel its emotions. Determination. Protectiveness. And surprising intelligence.
You're not just some mindless summon. You're actually smart.
The wolves recovered quickly. The alpha was more cautious now, one eye swollen shut. The younger wolves tried to push past their leader.
One lunged. Alex's branch caught it across the snout. It yelped and backed off.
The other wolf tried to circle. But the cave's confines worked against it. There was no room to maneuver.
The fire bird launched again, this time targeting the circling wolf. Another burst of flame. The wolf's ear caught fire. It howled and rolled, trying to extinguish the flames.
We're doing this. We're actually holding them off.
But Alex's arms were getting tired. The branch was cracking from repeated impacts. And the wolves weren't retreating. They were being patient, waiting for him to make a mistake.
I need to end this. But how?
The alpha charged, accepting the blow from Alex's branch to get close. Its jaws snapped at Alex's leg. He jerked back, barely avoiding the venomous fangs.
The fire bird dove at the alpha's face again. The wolf had learned, though. It twisted its head, and its jaws snapped shut around the bird's wing.
No!
Alex felt the bird's pain through their bond. Sharp, overwhelming. The fire bird shrieked and released a burst of flames directly down the wolf's throat.
The alpha released the bird and staggered back, gagging, smoke pouring from its mouth.
The fire bird fell, one wing bent at a wrong angle, but still chirping defiance. It landed on the cave floor near Alex's feet.
Rage flooded through Alex. Not his rage. The bird's. Transmitted through their bond, mixing with his own fear and desperation.
You hurt my bird.
The thought was primal. He'd known this creature for all of five minutes. But the bond was real, deeper than he'd imagined.
Alex dropped the branch and grabbed a burning stick from his fire instead. The wolves' eyes tracked the flames warily.
Fire. They're afraid of fire.
He thrust the burning stick at the nearest wolf. It backed up. He pressed forward, jabbing and swinging. The confined space worked in his favor now. The wolves couldn't easily dodge.
The fire bird, despite its injured wing, hopped forward and released another weak burst of flames. Combined with Alex's torch, it was enough.
The younger wolves broke first, fleeing through the cave entrance. The alpha held for another moment, then followed, unwilling to face fire alone.
Alex stood at the cave entrance, breathing hard, torch held high. The wolves circled outside but didn't attack again.
After several tense minutes, they melted back into the forest.
Alex collapsed. His hands were shaking. The torch fell from his grip.
The fire bird hopped over to him, dragging its injured wing. It climbed onto his lap and looked up at him with those intelligent black eyes.
We survived. Somehow, we survived.
Through the bond, Alex could feel the bird's pain. The wing wasn't broken, but it was badly strained.
"I'm sorry," Alex whispered. "You just hatched and you're already hurt because of me."
The bird chirped softly and nuzzled against his hand. No blame. Just trust.
It trusts me. Completely. Even though I almost got it killed.
[BOND STRENGTH INCREASED: 35%]
[NEW COMPANION: FIRE BIRD - JUVENILE]
[SPECIES: PHOENIX (AWAKENED BLOODLINE)]
[ABILITIES: EMBER (BASIC FIRE PROJECTILE)]
[HP: 8/15]
Alex examined the status screen. The bird was hurt. Almost half its health gone.
"You need a name," Alex said. "Can't just keep calling you 'bird.'"
The creature tilted its head, curious through the bond.
"How about Ember? Since you're all about fire."
The bird chirped enthusiastically and hopped in a circle, or tried to, before its injured wing made it stumble. But the emotion through the bond was clear: approval.
[COMPANION NAMED: EMBER]
[BOND STRENGTH INCREASED: 38%]
"Okay, Ember. Let's see if I can figure out how to heal you."
He navigated through menus until he found what he was looking for:
[BOND HEALING: AVAILABLE]
[COST: SHARE HOST'S HEALTH WITH BONDED CREATURE]
So I can heal her, but it'll hurt me. Fair enough.
Alex selected the option. Warmth flowed from his chest into Ember. His health dropped from thirty-five to twenty-eight. Ember's rose from eight to fifteen. Full health.
[EMBER - HP: 15/15]
[STATUS: WING STRAIN HEALED]
The bird stretched its wing experimentally, then chirped happily. It could fly again.
Worth it. We're a team. We take care of each other.
Ember launched into the air, circling the cave once, then landed on Alex's shoulder. Through their bond, he felt her gratitude and determination.
She's ready to fight again. Eager, even.
"Let's not fight anything else today if we can avoid it," Alex said. "We got lucky. Very lucky."
But even as he said it, Alex knew luck wasn't a survival strategy. The wolves had been driven off, not defeated. They might come back.
I need to get stronger. We both do. Which means we need more essence.
Alex spent the rest of the day resting and planning. He used his new survival knowledge to gather edible plants. He reinforced his fire. He crafted a better weapon, a sharp rock lashed to a stick with plant fibers. Crude spear, but an improvement.
Ember stayed close, sometimes perched on his shoulder, sometimes hopping around exploring. She was curious about everything, fearless despite having nearly died that morning.
She's got the personality of a phoenix. Brave to the point of stupidity. I'm going to have to keep her from getting herself killed.
As if she'd heard his thoughts, Ember chirped indignantly and pecked his ear. Not hard, just enough to make a point.
Okay, okay. I'll trust you to handle yourself.
Through the bond, he felt her satisfaction.
That night, Alex stared into his fire and made a decision.
The alpha wolf is out there. It killed the previous owner of this body. It's probably still hunting me. I can't just hide in this cave forever.
Tomorrow, I hunt it. Before it hunts me.
It was crazy. Suicidal, even. The alpha was level four. He was level one.
But Alex had something the previous body's owner hadn't: gaming instincts. Pattern recognition. Strategic thinking.
Kiting. Positioning. Terrain advantage. I can't match it in a straight fight, but I don't have to.
I just have to be smarter.
Ember sensed his determination through the bond. She chirped and launched a small burst of flame at the cave wall. A display of readiness.
Tomorrow, Alex thought. Tomorrow we stop running.
Tomorrow, they became predators.