Among the trees, in the small recess open to the sky, it was twilight. The sky was red, and mist was rising from below. White flowers glowed, casting small pools of radiance through the arena.

The Spirit Beast extended its wings, stretching to over twenty-five feet wide. Almost a quarter of the arena was covered in its shadow.

Then, it flew, deceptively slow and entirely silent, directly towards Zuss. The hobgoblin sprinted to the side, aiming for one of the flower patches. Moving in this strange place was tricky. The footing wasn't consistent; you had to awkwardly step from branch to branch. Her prehensile feet made it easier not to slip and fall, and her small size gave her many options for supports. Even then, she was painfully slow.

The beast swooped low and reached out with talons almost larger than Zuss herself. Her senses were unable to make out the talons directly, but she still had a feel for them and was able to avoid an early end to the fight.

A long, dark shadow was cast behind Zuss as she neared the source of light. She darkened it, then converted the shadow into a rope dart with plenty of slack. On the other end was a hook. The owl-like monster lazily circled the arena and watched Zuss carefully.

The dart spun in a slow arc, then sped up as the Spirit Beast swooped in again. Just before it would have snatched Zuss in its talons, she threw the dart and then let herself drop into the forest below.

It made contact, causing the beast to chirp in pain, but that was only one part of her quickly made plan. The chains caught up in the bird's legs, then pulled Zuss upwards into the arena. At the same moment, the hook was thrown deeper down.

Zuss landed softly on a bed of flowers, disrupting the moths that fluttered about them. A half-second later, the chain went taut, and the Spirit Beast screeched.

It was only a moment before the chain slipped off, but it was enough to undo the beast's balance. It crashed into the branches, then began to thrash, trying to upright itself. As graceful as it was, it was still large and had much mass to contend with.

Zuss was on it in a flash. It was soft and warm, almost hot. She reached through a layer of feathers and stabbed it with a shadow knife.

With a quick roll and a flap of its wing, the Spirit Beast threw Zuss off of it. She broke through the layer of thick leaves and nearly fell all the way down. Instead, she caught herself and began climbing back up, towards the fight.

When she emerged, the owl had flown high. It hovered in the center of the arena, far outside of her reach.

Zuss's ears drooped. That wasn't fair.

Then, its heat signature changed. It grew hotter. The air around it simmered, and the owl grew hotter still. Then, the heat collapsed, focused to a single point. It glowed like the moon.

Zuss did not know what this attack was, but the context told her it was some sort of ranged attack. She dropped her weapons, allowing her shadow to stretch out again. She raced along it, trying to make herself a moving target, harder to hit.

The bird unleashed a solid bar of hot, blue heat. It was similar to Elyndris's beam, but more refined. It sliced through the arena, leaving a glowing line of burnt leaves in its wake.

Zuss was wide-eyed and in panic mode. She dashed to one side, only for the beam to follow her.

She needed to think through her next moves. Needed a moment to breathe. So, she dropped into the forest below and began climbing through the branches.

Her stamina was dropping quickly, and moving through the trees was hard work. Thankfully, her climbing skill gave her the easiest path to follow, so she did not need to think.

How was she to fight, safely, a flying beast? She really should have planned out her approach, but was caught up in the moment. Something to keep in mind for next time she fights something like this.

Just then, the canopy above her burst, and the owl slammed into her. Zuss was knocked off her course, and she landed face-first into a sharp branch. Luckily, nothing pierced her eyes. But the wood had scratched her face and tangled in the scarf she wore. The owl dropped, then gracefully turned in the air. It deftly flew around the branches and trees, despite its size. Its wings contorted and tilted, avoiding the obstacles.

Zuss was stuck. The scarf, which by now was a filthy, ragged thing, was caught and tangled, and it wrapped around her throat. She had no choice but to cut it. But with no light, she couldn't summon her shadow weapons. Instead, she used the blade of a thousand screams. The beast came nearer as Zuss hung there, hacking and slicing at the scarf.

The last thread snapped, and Zuss fell, just before the creature snatched her. Now she was in free fall.

That's the problem with this forest. The tree canopy was so high above the ground. It took both Zuss and Anath an age to get to the fun part. Though Anath went from tree to tree, Zuss had to crawl along the branches.

What to do… what to do. If she didn't think of something, she would die. Those terms were almost calming, in a way. Act or die. That was only two choices.

She rolled, seeing the bird flap to a halt. Then, Zuss hurled another knife. The knife of the traveler. It soared up and arched. Then, it struck a tail feather.

Zuss was immediately teleported to just above the Spirit Beast's wide tail feathers. She grasped them, then climbed with all of her might. Crawling up the back of the beast, even as it danced in the air.

The beast spun, trying to dislodge Zuss, who had begun stabbing it with the knife of the traveler as she climbed. The other dagger was dropped, lying somewhere below. Zuss would find it after she survived this challenge.

Finally, Zuss had reached the base of the wings. There, she activated her new ability, Thousand Cuts, and began to stab. Each hit in the same place tinked off of some invisible force. After six hits, the quick jabs condensed into a single powerful blow. The bird screeched out in pain, and the joint shattered. The beast did not bleed, but it did break.

Zuss and the Spirit Beast twirled through the air, spiraling down to the earth. She held on tight, hoping for the fluffy down to be enough to soften the fall.

The crash was silent, as far as crashes went, and the bird did indeed soften the landing. Zuss rolled off and moved to finish it off, if it wasn't dead already.

But the bird stood and shook itself. One wing lay limply at its side.

It pecked at Zuss, who leapt back. Then the two simple watched each other, waiting for someone to make a mistake.

The birb bowed slightly, then began to charge its laser attack again. But, rather than running, Zuss waited. Heat gathered into one point, so hot Zuss could feel it from where she was. The light was almost blinding this close, but it also cast a wide, dark shadow behind her. She ran forward and darkened her shadow. It was as dark as it could be, pure black. She grabbed it and shaped it into something else. Then she climbed up a tree, almost as swiftly as she could run, and leapt at the bird.

She heard herself screaming as she slammed the shadow bucket over the bird's head.

Instantly, the light cut out, and the owl scrambled backwards. It tried to throw off the construct, but it was too late. The beam of power unleashed. The metal-like bucket began to glow instantly, and all the energy was trapped in that space.

The owl screeched, even as the bucket melted away, leaving the last of the attack to harmlessly scorch the earth. But Zuss smelled burned feathers, and the Spirit Beast was weak.

As the heat subsided, Zuss could see the glowing owl-skull with her heat vision. The beast took two steps forward, then fell.

[You have completed a spirit beast trial and earned the Mark of the Moon. Dexterity increased by 4, will increased by 2. New trait: Lure [Moontouched]. Regenisis available.]

Zuss collapsed to the ground, heaving for air. She was equal parts exhausted and elated. What a fight! The thrill of the fall and riding the bird still gave her goosebumps.

Once she calmed down and caught her breath, she noticed a glow. The forest floor was illuminated by a pale white light. It took her an embarrassingly long time to find the source of the light.

Her own forehead. A crescent-shaped scale had grown and was shedding light.

What a terrible perk! Zuss was stealthy. She was silent and sneaky. She didn't want to be marked for all to see. The light could be dimmed, she found, but not removed entirely.

Worse, she had no mask. No cover over her face. Nothing to shield her from the world or to hide that light. The scarf was no longer in tatters somewhere above her.

Though her maneuver at the end gave her an idea. She shaped the shadow behind her into a mask. One held in place by a form-fitted band around the back of her head. Out of respect for her foe, she modeled it after the owl.

With her dexterity at twenty, she felt more nimble than ever. Light and graceful, she jumped from log to stone to log again. Just then, she received a message.

Daggy two-arm: <Zuss, we've got a sniff of the slayer. Let's go.>

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

She suddenly felt stupid and embarrassed. She had run out here on a whim. A childish rebellion against her brothers. They didn't even thank her or compliment her on the giant's kill. Then they didn't bother to come find her either.

All she had was a message or two asking where she went. She didn't reply. If they cared, then they would come get her.

But Zuss realized now how stupid that was. She was always just far enough away not to be seen. They likely assumed she was nearby, watching and waiting for an opportunity. Why would they think something was wrong?

Hunter was right. She did hide herself away. Keeping the others at a distance.

She decided to head back and started to head in that direction.

What would she say when they found her? She found a spirit beast and decided to fight it real quick? That was what happened, somewhat. But it would ignore the fact that she didn't inform them.

What if she had died? She would have disappeared. Never to be seen again, with no possible way of getting closure or even knowing what happened.

That was frightening. The thought of just… disappearing one day. Some people considered Zuss their friend. Anath and Hunter. Zuss didn't know why. She was a killer. Ruthless and merciless. Not exactly friend material. Still, they would have had hope.

An apology was right out. If she couldn't bring herself to smile or laugh or even to pet a cute animal in front of her brothers, a show of weakness was unacceptable.

Some time passed, and Zuss realized she didn't know where she was. That was okay, because she could just climb a tree and spot the inn from a distance.

Doing so, she saw nothing but trees for as far as her considerable sight would go.

Where was she? Did she go the right way? Of course she did… right? It was dark when she set off again, so maybe her direction was off.

Zuss found a branch to settle into, then pulled her knees to her chest. What should she do? Her breath quickened, and she could feel herself shake. Somehow, the vast forest ahead of her seemed to close in on her.

She opened the chat menu and brought up the private messages to Daggat. Then she hesitated.

If she asked for help… what would he do? Scoff and say, "You got yourself lost, idiot." Or would he simply say nothing and judge her silently? Would he even come find her? He could, but maybe he would choose to cut her off and get a new party member.

Like that Glibby girl. She was sneaky. Not very smart, but sneaky. Or Ketil or Pote. Daggat seemed to like Pote for some reason. Hrodebert could give them passage anywhere in the forest. Maybe someone she hadn't even met. Some other friend of theirs that they didn't bother to introduce to Zuss.

She typed a message, then deleted it. Then, I formed a new one and deleted that one. Six or seven more attempts got her nowhere; she was paralyzed.

Then, a message.

ZBFF: <Hey, you okay?>

Anath. Zuss saw her as something to grasp onto. A lifeline.

Shadow: <I'm… lost.>

ZBFF: <Daggat said you weren't replying. Did he do something stupid?>

Shadow: <Yes. No. Maybe. I did.>

ZBFF: <Umm… should I kick his but or no?>

Shadow: <I killed a giant and he got mad, so I got mad and now I'm lost. I don't know what to do.>

Zuss couldn't say exactly why she was letting herself open up like this. The system messaging was so impersonal, it was like she wasn't really speaking to a person. It was easier to communicate when the other person couldn't look at you with judging eyes.

ZBFF: <Just ask Daggat to come get you. He's got that party tracker.>

Shadow: <I know… but. I don't know.>

ZBFF: <What?>

Shadow: <What if I ask and he won't bother?>

ZBFF: <What?! Daggat would come and get you immediately. He loves you.>

Shadow: <Orc shit. Don't misplace a smile for affection. He only loves toying with people.>

ZBFF: <It's true! Did you know they almost fought? Klaw and Daggat, I mean.>

Shadow: <Yes, all the time.>

ZBFF: <No, I mean… they almost got into a real fight. When you were sick. Only one of them could stay behind. You should have seen them scream at each other.>

Shadow: <They just wanted to be where the food was.>

ZBFF: <Nuh uh. They fought over who could watch over you. They said neither wanted to leave you behind again.>

That cut through Zuss like a spear. She should have felt relief or joy. But it only led to more loathing. Her opinion on her brothers was wrong. If Anath was right, she didn't have the balls to lie to Zuss, then they did care about her. Even after she made that mistake, poisoning herself.

Shadow: <Really?>

ZBFF: <Yep! And even if he didn't… well, I would come find you. Then we can kick his but together. But he will.>

ZBFF: <Cause he loves you.>

ZBFF: <He even said so.>

ZBFF: <Klaw too.>

ZBFF: <Oh, me too!>

Zuss laughed, feeling the tension fade away. Anath was a ridiculous creature. But, like Birdy and the larva and other small, naive creatures, she was cute. Zuss's love for cute things was her deepest secret, and possibly her greatest weakness. For now, she had the others fooled into believing that her attachment to Birdy was only because the cat taught her to hunt.

Shadow: <Ok… thanks. I'll ask him.>

Zuss took a deep breath and then opened her chat with Daggat.

Shadow: <Hey… so, I'm lost. Can you come get me?>

Zuss

True Name: Zuss Soul: Monster

Genseed: gremlin [ 3 Str, 4 Dex, 3 Con, 2 Int, 3 Wil, 3 Cha; Regenerating Teeth, Rot Resistance; Tiny Size] Genbloom: hobgoblin [ +1 Str, +3 Dex, +2 Con, +1 Int, +1 Wil; Nimble Fingers; Small Size]

Mark of the Moon: +4 Dex, +2 Wil; Lure [Moontouched]

Base Size: Small [Largest Size: Hobgoblin]

Monster Level: 15

Attributes (0/6) (base growth, +5; Devotion, +1): Strength: 10 (Base 8, Class/Genesis +1, Growth +1) Dexterity: 20 (Base 9, Class/Genesis +3, Growth +4, Mark +4) Constitution: 10 (Base 8, Class/Genesis +2) Intelligence: 8 (Base 7, Class/Genesis +1) Will: 12 (Base 8, Class/Genesis +1, Growth +1, Mark +2) Charm: 9 (Base 8, Class/Genesis +0, Devotion +1)

Feats: System Knowledge - Discover the system. Reward: System Aptitude skill. Devotion [layered feats] - Offer a prayers to Sahrzuel, Ithrenial, Mythraziel, Vaelion, and Zenthaviel. Reward: Experience gain, +2 skill points, +1 random ability, +1 growth point, +1 biotrait. Mighty Alacrity - Raise Dexterity base to 15. Reward: Improved Balance Biotrait. Shadow Born - Remain in complete darkness for a full week. Reward: Shadow Core. Recursion - Be affected by a recursive effect. Reward: Infinite Limiter. Giant Slayer - Slay a monster six or more size categories higher than yourself. Monster Tamer - Evolve a non-sapient monster by feeding it.

Skills(0/3) (Mortal Level +0; Devotion +2, skill potion +1): System Aptitude: 1 [Source: System Knowledge] Deep Shadows: 1 (Natural Skill: Stealth) SP SPENT = 1 Path Finding [Type: Climbing]: 1 (Natural Skill: Climb) SP SPENT = 1 Critical Hit A Thousand Cuts [Source: Giant Slayer] Tame [Source: Monster Tamer] Infinite Limiter

Notable Natural Skills: Stealth: Journeyman Climb: Apprentice Rope-weapon: Apprentice Daggers: Apprentice Flow Arts: Apprentice Toss Juggling: Apprentice

Biotraits (0/15) (Monster Level, +14; Devotion, +1):

Inherited biotraits: Regenerating Teeth [Source: Gremlin] Enhanced Night Vision [Mutations: Dark Vision, Magnified Vision, Heat Vision; Apex reached; Source: Gremlin] BP SPENT = 4 Disease Resistance [Mutations: Rot Resistance; Source: Gremlin] Nimble Hands (below) Lure [Graft: Moontouched]

Standard Biotraits: [Synergy]Improved Body Control [Mutations: Autonomous Reflex] BP SPENT = 1 --Improved Balance [Source: Mighty Alacrity] --Improved Nerve Conduction BP SPENT = 1 --Improved flexibility BP SPENT = 1 [Synergy]Nimble Hands and Feet [Mutations: Mighty Grip] BP SPENT = 1 --Nimble hands [Source: Hobgoblin] --Prehensile Feet BP SPENT = 1 Cold Resistant Skin BP SPENT = 1 Enhanced Visual Acuity BP SPENT = 1

Core Biotraits: Shadow Core [Source: Shadow Born] Shadow Smith [Mutations: Partial Shade, Swift Shade] BP SPENT = 3 Shadow Step [Mutations: Shadow Surf] BP SPENT = 1

Other: Skill potions used: 1/5

Notable Gear: Blade of a Thousand Screams Knife of the Traveler

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