Forged in blood
Relentless Training
Eris ducked, twisted, and barely blocked before her body slammed into the ground—again.
The world spun as she gasped for air, limbs screaming in protest. Above her, Orin loomed like an executioner, expression unreadable.
"You're still hesitating," he said coldly. "That hesitation will kill you."
Eris coughed, pushing herself up. Nearby, Ash staggered to his feet, bloody but standing.
Their training had long since stopped being a lesson. It was survival.
Orin didn't just teach them how to fight—he taught them how to think in combat.
✔ Control the battlefield.
✔ Exploit weaknesses.
✔ Force the enemy into mistakes.
"Again," Orin ordered.
Ash flashed forward, time distortions leaving ghostly afterimages as he faked a frontal attack. Eris moved in sync—a feint, then a real strike.
This time, Orin didn't counter immediately. He let them set up their play.
A trap.
The moment Eris overextended—Orin shifted.
Faster than she could react.
A knee slammed into her ribs, knocking the wind from her lungs.
Damn it. Too slow.
Ash tried to intervene, but Orin flicked a hand—a precise, brutal parry—and Ash crashed into the training hall wall.
"Better," Orin muttered. "Still pathetic though."
Eris spat blood and glared.
She was getting tired of losing.
Her fingers flexed against the dirt, mind spinning. She could do better. She could—create.
This time, when Orin moved, she moved too—but not alone.
A dagger formed in her grip, sculpted from air, shimmering with unstable energy. She hurled it forward—a distraction—then shaped the ground beneath Orin's feet, shifting the stone just enough to throw off his balance.
Orin's foot slipped.
Not much. A fraction of a second.
But enough.
Eris twisted, her next strike coming faster, sharper, relentless.
For the first time, Orin had to block.
Her attack hit—but before she could celebrate, she was on the ground again, wrist twisted at a painful angle.
Orin exhaled. "At least you're thinking now."
"Let's continue," he said.
And he was on them again.
---
Recovery & The Dungeon Selection
The training hall stank of sweat, blood, and exhaustion.
Eris's ribs throbbed with every breath. Ash pressed a healing potion to his lips, swallowing the bitter liquid with a grimace. Their bodies ached, limbs heavy, but Orin wasn't done with them.
Not yet.
"Your technique is improving," he admitted, tossing another potion toward Eris. She barely caught it before downing the whole thing. Cold relief spread through her veins.
Ash rolled his shoulders, posture steady despite the bruises forming beneath his skin. "So? What's next?"
Orin turned, retrieving a gleaming crystal inscribed with shifting runes.
It pulsed with raw energy.
Eris's stomach tightened.
A dungeon crystal.
A 1,500-coin dungeon.
Orin smirked. "Your final lesson for today. It shouldn't take that much time."
Ash caught it effortlessly. "What's the objective?"
Orin smirked. "Survival."
The air warped as the crystal shattered, dragging them into the abyss.
---
Dungeon Entry – The Predator's Den
They landed in darkness.
The air reeked of rot and blood. Shadows twisted along the crumbling ruins, deep claw marks gouging the stone. Bones littered the ground.
Then—the chittering began.
Eris tightened her grip on her dagger. They weren't alone.
"Formation," Ash muttered.
Eris exhaled sharply, shifting into position beside him. They already knew what to do.
Orin stood behind them, arms crossed. He didn't draw his weapon.
"This is your fight," he said. "Show me what you've learned."
Then the monsters came.
---
The Battle Begins – Executing the lessons
The first wave charged.
Gore Ravagers.
Massive, four-legged beasts with bloated, split-open maws filled with jagged teeth. Their flesh was raw, sinew stretched tight over bone.
They didn't just charge—they hunted.
But Eris and Ash were ready.
Ash moved first—a blur of motion. His time distortions left afterimages, confusing the lead Ravager.
Eris crafted.
A whip of energy snapped into existence, wrapping around the Ravager's forelimb, yanking it off balance.
Ash twisted mid-air, his blade flashing—another Ravager lost a limb before it could react.
They fell into rhythm.
✔ Control the battlefield.
✔ Force the enemy into mistakes.
✔ Exploit every weakness.
Then, from the shadows—the real danger appeared.
Silent Stalkers.
Humanoid figures with distorted limbs and hollow eyes, their bodies flickering like mirages.
They watched. Studied. Adapted.
A predator's intelligence.
Eris's stomach tightened.
They were being tested, too.
---
The Shift – When Plans Fail
The first Stalker blinked out of existence.
Then reappeared behind Ash.
Eris moved instantly.
A barrier of shifting glass flared between them—just in time. The Stalker crashed into it, snarling.
Ash didn't hesitate. He blurred, twisting to avoid the kill strike—then countered.
His sword severed its head.
Then—
The other Stalkers changed.
Their flickering grew erratic, their hollow eyes flaring with a sickly red glow.
They had learned.
Instead of blinking one by one, they vanished all at once.
The air turned still.
Eris's grip tightened around her dagger. Where—?
A whisper of movement.
Then—four Stalkers struck simultaneously.
Ash barely parried, time distortions faltering under their relentless speed.
Eris created a dagger of searing light, slashing at the closest one—it dodged.
Too fast.
A second Stalker reappeared at her flank. A clawed hand raked across her arm—pain flared.
She twisted away, reshaping her dagger into a spear, sweeping low.
It phased through the ground.
Eris cursed. They weren't just fast. They could phase in and out of reality.
Ash gritted his teeth. " Let's play big!"
Eris didn't hesitate.
The ground trembled as she created.
A ring of glowing chains erupted from the earth, latching onto the Stalkers before they could vanish.
Ash moved.
Warping between them in a blur.
His sword gleamed as it carved through their throats.
One—two—three—four.
The Stalkers shrieked, forms flickering uncontrollably.
Then, one by one—they collapsed.
Their bodies dissolved into shadows.
Silence.
Eris exhaled sharply, sweat dripping from her brow.
"Better," Orin murmured. "But you're not done yet."
Then—
A deafening roar shook the dungeon.
Something ancient was stirring.
The true predator.
---
The Dungeon Tyrant Awakens
The shadows trembled.
A deep, guttural growl rumbled through the cavern.
Then, it stepped forward.
A hulking, twisted mass of muscle and bone, its flesh stitched together like a grotesque patchwork. Its head was a skull—cracked, jagged, with glowing embers in its hollow sockets.
Its clawed fingers twitched.
It was hungry.
A Dungeon Tyrant.
Eris swallowed. This was the final fight, she knew.
The Tyrant moved.
Not a lunge. Not a charge.
A sudden, unnatural flicker of motion.
Ash barely dodged. One of the Tyrant's clawed hands grazed his shoulder, tearing fabric—and flesh.
Blood sprayed.
Eris didn't wait—she created.
The ground beneath the Tyrant's feet liquefied, swallowing its movements for half a second.
Enough time.
Ash warped forward. His blade slashed into its skull.
The Tyrant shrieked.
Eris followed, shaping a spear of raw force.
She lunged—driving it straight into the Tyrant's eye.
It screamed.
They pressed the attack.
Together.
Then—it adapted.
The Tyrant's ruined flesh stretched.
New limbs erupted from its back—six massive, jagged appendages of bone and muscle.
Its burning eyes locked onto them.
It was evolving.
Eris's breath hitched. It's stronger now.
Ash vanished just in time. A limb crashed into the spot he had just been. The force shattered the stone.
Eris rolled, shaping a jagged barrier of obsidian. One of the Tyrant's claws punched straight through it.
Not enough.
They needed more power.
Ash's voice rang in her ears. "Big play!"
Eris clenched her fists. Then let's create something bigger.
She shaped.
The air rippled as a dozen floating spears formed around her, humming with unstable energy.
Then, she unleashed them all at once.
The spears pierced into the Tyrant's back.
It howled, thrashing violently.
That was Ash's opening.
He appeared above the monster in a fractured moment of time.
His blade, glowing with raw power, drove straight through its skull.
A sickening crack.
The Tyrant staggered.
Its body convulsed.
Then—
It collapsed.
---
Victory & Aftermath
The silence was deafening.
Eris inhaled sharply, her chest burning. Ash staggered back, panting.
Orin finally moved, stepping forward. He gazed down at the corpse, then at them.
"Not terrible for a mid level dungeon but you guys need to do better next time. Of course I get that you were still mentally stressed from your trainings prior but you must get used to this rhythm.," he said.
Eris's knees nearly gave out. Ash gave a slow smile.
They were making progress.