"Stop!" Sej called, an eternity later. "Stop!"

They collapsed against one another, in a jungle that had grown mercifully silent around them.

"Did we do it?" Leon asked, gulping air like a mad man.

"For now," their guide said, scanning their surroundings. "The harrar won't chase us into something else's territory. But that just means we are in something else's territory."

"I hate this place," Jaz muttered.

He was laying down against the branch, his chest rising up and down at a prodigious rate, heart beating so loudly that Nar picked up on it without even needing much [Hearing].

"Do we stop to heal?" Gad asked.

"Not yet," Sej said. "Come on. Let's put some more distance between us and the ma'bat."

"I thought you said the bugs wouldn't chase us?" Leon asked.

Sej shook her head.

"It's not them I'm worried about. It's the puck."

"The puck?" several voices asked in unison.

"Those things are almost like sapients," Sej said. "They're sadistic, vengeful little shits. Once they start a hunt, they finish it. And in this cramped place, there are few things that can face up to the maneuverability and numbers in a puck swarm."

She scanned the deadly silent faces around her.

"If they catch us, it won't be easy to escape," she said, wincing.

"We keep moving then," Gad said, in the silence that followed the guide's words.

"Yes," Calli agreed. "Come on everyone. We can do this."

"We have to do this!" Leon said.

Tired and hurt, they resumed their journey, though at a much more sedate pace.

"From now on, let's keep conversation to the party chat," Sej told them. "Just in case."

"Any idea how far we are from the lake?" Calli asked.

"At this pace? Maybe a day or two," the guide said. "Which is actually not that bad. That big guy managed to get us far."

"I feel sorry for him," Jaz muttered. "He'll respawn though, right?"

"He will. But it will be a brand-new beast, all memories wiped from its soul," Calli explained in a low whisper. "Might not even be the same species of beast."

"Damn…"

Nar sighed in the silence that followed Jaz's curse. His heart, even ravaged as it was by his aura, went out for the big beast. Whether or not it had just been heading back to his southern home, it had continued to carry them faithfully through the aerial assault. It could've probably shaken them off in order to fly faster, but…

Or could he? He wondered.

Nar shook his head. He had no idea what sort of rules the dungeon guardian imposed upon the creatures, and as far as he knew, once the beasts accepted their sweet offerings, they were bound to carry the delvers to their destination.

This place is insane, Nar thought, scanning the branches around him. That forest dungeon had nothing on this… Nothing!

And according to the faculty, whatever was yet to come would be harder and worse still than the Brightnight.

The Endless Labyrinth… He didn't even know what to think of it yet, but Creation continued to expand before his ever awed and shocked eyes.

Looking around himself, however, Nar noticed something that brought him back to more immediate concerns.

"Is it me or is it getting darker?" he asked.

"It is," Sej said. "We'll have to stop somewhere for the night. As crazy as that was, those were only the day beasts."

"Let me guess. The night ones are worse?" Jaz said. "Fucking great."

Despite the seriousness of it, Nar couldn't help smiling. Sometimes, Jaz sounded just as grumpy as Mul did.

Though one follows a rage path, and the other a jokester's… Nar considered. Two different ways of reacting to one's past, maybe?

Soon, the hours dragged by as they continued their jumping and walking through that maze, and it was only when the red was almost gone from the skies above them that Sej finally relented.

She guided them to a somewhat sheltered alcove in-between branches, and at last, they were able to offload their precious cargo.

"I'll try to feed potions to Era," Calli said. "Leta, you'll focus on Jasphaer first, right?"

"Yes," the cooline said. "We need a second healer for all these people. With the [Touch of Rot] on, I won't get much done on my own."

Nar sat heavily against one of the walls of branches, and Eum dropped at his side.

"You okay?" he mouthed.

Nar nodded and pointed back at the tygaris, grimacing.

Eum grinned and showed him his hand. The shape of his sword was still burned into it in a raised, red and angry welt.

"You can talk a little bit, but very quietly", Sej told them all, some humor coloring her mental tone as similar motioned conversations were attempted across the party.

"Don't worry about it. It will be gone soon," the tygaris whispered before Nar could apologize. "But damn. Your aura's no joke, uh?"

"You're only realizing that now?" Leon asked, sitting on Nar's other side. "Oh, shit! Do we need to stay away so you can heal?"

Nar shook his head with a sluggish movement.

"Can't heal my pathways," he said. "Aura is leaking from me though, so you might still want to get away."

"Ah, too lazy," Leon said.

"Pain is good for the soul!" Eum said.

"Then my soul must be in great shape," Nar muttered.

The other two had to stifle their laughter.

"I'm glad you're in good spirits, but please be quiet," Leta reminded them.

All three of them mumbled their apologies.

"How is he?" Nar was unable to not ask.

"Not too bad, thank Genahu," Leta said.

In her left hand, she held her customary bundle of long, sharp needles, and with her right, she carefully pierced one of them, glowing with her gray aura, into Jasphaer's chest.

"If it weren't for the [Touch of Rot], he would've healed by now," she explained. "But this red air absolutely craps on HP and healing. It's even worse than I expected it to be…"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"But you can heal him, right?" Jaz asked.

The archer was standing watch by the open gap of their shelter, and Gad stood beside him, ready to give her life to be an immovable obstacle to anything trying to get in. Sej leaned against the branch on her other side, completing the trio of delvers on watch.

Their guide stared out into the now pitch-black jungle through lidded, yellow eyes. Unlike the Jungle Top's near deafening nights, the Hungry Jungle was eerily and absolutely silent. Gone was the hubbub of insects, birds and other creatures crying into the night. Gone was what now felt like the soothing singsong of the endless rain… They were now in a reality of silent, but deadly and all-consuming hunger, and there not even the slightest whisper of life to be heard.

"I can, it will just take time. After that, we'll work on Tuk and Mul, who are the easiest to fix," Leta said, her brow deepening as she focused. "Still, this goes against everything I grew up with and learned. Focusing on the least injured first… Combat healing really is a different beast altogether."

There was a sudden grunt, and Nar looked up in time to see Calli stumble.

"Calli?" Leon asked.

His sister dropped down to one knee besides Era.

"Shit… You got the debuff!" Leon said, leaping to his feet.

"I'm fine!" she muttered. "One of those birds managed to scratch me. That's all."

"I thought you were immune?" Jaz asked, confusion and worry waring to dominate his tone as Leon took her arm gently and checked it with his glowing gaze.

As Nar had come to learn, the aethermancers all had passive skills of some kind or another that allowed them to see in the dark. Eum and Medis had beast related passive skills that turned the night into almost day for them, allowing them to see everything to the same exact level of detail and capacity as during daylight. As for Calli and Leon, their skill was a bit more complex, and it seemed to involve light aether in some way, while Mach and Era had worked to the bone in order to earn the more standard [Dark Vision] passive skill.

"Me and Eum are, Calli's not quite there yet," Leon whispered, as he examined a line of wet red that ran down the length of the back of Calli's bicep.

"Breathing it is fine, but it looks like direct access to my blood stream is too much," Calli said, as she retrieved her arm from her brother's hands. "I'll be fine. Don't worry. I'll take potions to close it up before it gains any counters."

"Do that," Leon said, sighing. "At least we can expect that skill to finally upgrade at least…"

She nodded, and offered a bright smile to the rest of them. "Honestly, relax everyone. I'm fine."

Nar hid a grimace. They were already at capacity as they were, so if Calli were to fall ill as well… He tried not to think of that. Plus, he now had his damaged pathways and riotous sword to content with.

He sighed inwardly.

This isn't good, he thought, making a slight face at another stab of pain that raked across his pathways, the left arm this time.

"Why don't you sleep, Nar?" Eum asked him. "See if your pathways recover a bit."

"Yeah, do that," Leon said, eyeing the maze of brambles. "We're going to need you in fighting shape again. And soon."

Nar gave them both a nod and closed his eyes.

He hadn't realized just how wrecked he was after crashing down on the jungle, healing a gruesome wound that had nearly resulted in the loss of his leg, fighting his way to safety and nearly shredding his pathways thanks to his sword's sudden craze.

Crystal… This place is not…

He passed out before he even finished the thought.

**********

"… about now?"

"Still nothing?"

Nar woke up to the sound of light, hushed conversation.

Ow, ow, ow! He thought, grimacing. Don't abuse [Aura Blade] because you can't heal your own pathways… Got it.

Eyes opened, Nar was once again welcomed to the small nook in between branches and thorns that they had taken refuge in.

And that was not a nightmare either, he thought, eyeing the darkness beyond the masked Sej, Jaz and Gad, who still stood watch over their nearly wiped party.

Blinking, Nar turned his head towards the back of their little resting place, wincing at the stain the movement resulted on his nerves and muscles.

He caught sight of Jasphaer, propped up against one of the sides. The healer's chest was rising and falling in a slow, easy rhythm as a light glow of aura emanated from his body, and the sight filled Nar with a wave of relief.

He's awake! Thank the Crystal! Nar thought, just about managing to stop a bout of hysterical laughter from escaping him.

Still, despite the slow, measured breathing, Nar couldn't help but notice that the healer's face was scrunched up in a grimace of pain behind his mask.

Looks like this stuff really is hard to deal with, he thought. Once again, all the broken bones, ripped flesh, and blood he had spilled in that arena at Tys' hands was proving to have been all worth it. Very, very worth it.

"Nar! You're awake!"

Nar's eyebrows rose slowly on his face, and he turned his neck again to face his left side. Mul gave him a concerned look over, while Tuk's eyes and excited wave betrayed the smile behind his mask.

"Oh, you're up too?" Nar asked, his relief only growing.

Behind the duo, he spotted Leon and Calli sitting beside Era, though the aethermancer healer should no signs of having woken up, and Leta was chatting with…

Jul? He thought.

The rogue seemed to have woken up at last, and she and Leta were having a halting conversation with Jul mumbling half-formed sentences.

"How are you feeling?" Tuk asked.

Nar blinked again, and, at last, the last vestiges of his wits fully woke up. He pulled himself up to a seated position, gritting his teeth against the angry protests that rang across his body.

"Easy, man," Mul said. "They said you burned yourself up pretty badly."

"Yeah," Tuk said, looking down. "Thanks for looking out for us. You know. While we were out and useless, and all that."

Nar snorted.

"It's fine, and you know it," Nar said. "What were you going to do? Fall better?"

"Maybe?" Tuk asked, his tone half serious and half betraying his grin.

Nar shook his head, and stretched his hands high above his head.

"Bad?" Mul asked.

"Not great…" Nar muttered, his arms trembling. "Not sure how much aura I'll be able to cycle until things get a little better."

"You should meditate, then," the brawler said, sneaking a glance towards the exit. "We're not exactly safe here, and I don't know how much longer we can afford it."

"Hmm," Nar nodded. He was intent on doing just that.

He glanced towards Jul, but Leta seemed to have a firm handle over the situation, so he left it to her. Besides, it was paramount for his and their survival that he get his pathways in order as soon as possible. As Mul had said, anything could find them at any moment, and once it did, the noise was sure to draw more beasts and start another chaotic brawl across branches.

And there's my sword too, Nar thought, with an internal sigh. Crystal, I doubted the master could've predicted this whole mess…

"Oh, before you meditate!" Tuk said.

He scooched forward to Nar's side.

"Yes?" Nar asked.

"I heard that you had problems with your sword," Tuk said. "What happened? Is it what your master told you about?"

"Oh… That," Nar said, nodding, and he quickly explained what had transpired.

"Damn…" Mul breathed, rubbing his chin. "Fantastic timing, too."

"Yeah," Nar said, sighing.

"Did you do anything to trigger it, do you know? Or is it just all of this hunger aspect around us?" Tuk asked. "Back then, when you told us about what your master said, I was worried that the same was going to happen to me, but so far, nothing has…"

Unfortunately for Tuk, while the System marked his ring tosser class as common, it was anything but. Adding to the fact that the Master of Thrown Weapons had found himself having to research the class, in order to even be able to guide Tuk, the Scimitar did not have a new set of rings for the trugger to replace the one he had missed, and to replace that Hunger affinity from his weapons. The crafters aboard the ship were busy making a new set for him though, and Tuk had been promised that it would be ready and waiting for him upon his return from the Brightnight.

"Really? Nothing at all?" Nar asked, stunned.

"I mean, I know my ring's affinity is minor, but… I expected something, you know?" the trugger asked him, then he stifled a [Touch of Rot] cough. "Not-Not that I'm complaining though!"

"Maybe yours is just not high enough," Mul ventured. "His sword's hunger affinity was upgraded twice."

"Right…" Tuk said, frowning in thought. "Well, if nothing happens, then that's good, I guess."

"Exactly what I told you," Mul said, his suppressor triggering. "Now stop bothering him and…"

"QUIET!" Sej hissed in their minds.

Their little nook went dead silent.

"What is it?" Gad asked.

"I hear something…" Sej said. "Hold on."

Nar closed his eyes and pulled on his [Hearing], and winced at the sudden pain that flared within his skull and inside his ears.

Crystal… I really wrecked myself, didn't it?

He scaled down his [Hearing] until his pain reduced down to a more manageable level, but he couldn't hear anything that way. However, he kept at it, both searching for and hoping not to find the one sound that would spell their doom.

Please don't find us, he pleaded. His pathways were still ravaged! If he had to fight in that state…

Flap… Flap… Flutter.

His stomach dropped.

"Nobody moves. Nobody breathes," Sej said. "We've got a trio of pucks headed our way."

"Holy fuck," Mul whispered. "Still?"

"I told you, they are persistent," the guide muttered.

Nar's heartbeat sped up more and more as the sound of their wings and beast-like mutterings continued to approach their hiding spot.

The pucks drew closer.

And closer.

Closer…

"Get ready to run," Sej said, her tone strangely calm. "They're going to find us."

"Now?" Calli asked. "Won't they hear us?"

"They've already smelled us!" Sej said. "Quick! Pick them up!"

They jumped to action just as shrill cries echoed from nearby.

"Nar, leave the back to me now!" Tuk said.

"Thank you," Nar told him.

He grit his teeth as he once more bent down to pick people up, but this time he took Raf and Kur. He hated having to leave Tuk to cover their backs, but in his current state, he saw no other choice, and he might as well allow Gad and Leon fight unimpeded.

And if I have to fight, I will. Pathways be damned!

He scanned the others as they quickly loaded up the injured.

"Nar!" Jul said, grabbing onto his arm and squeezing it hard. "I'll cover you!"

"Are you sure?" he asked her.

She nodded with grim determination.

"I'm fine now. Don't worry!"

He sighed, but it was likely a conversation for another time. If they survived the night.

"Alright. Thank you," he told her. "But when we can, we're talking about what happened back there."

"We will!"

"Let's go!" Sej shouted. "Come on!"

Outside, there was now a lot more than just three pucks screaming in the darkness, and the maze that had once been red and black, was now a grotesque and even more disorientating chaos of thorns and brambles, up looking like down, and left and right looking everything else.

"Crystal Above All!" Tuk whispered. "How many are there?"

"You don't want to find out!" Sej said, heading for the exit. "Now, let's go!"

Exchanging one last nod with each other, Nar and Jul leaped after the others, into the quickly awakening Hungry Jungle.

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