On The Right Track

*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*

The massive amount of Risen beings went into that crazy frenzy of their final moments again. Meanwhile, the Spiritual Guardians were almost out of energy; their Summoners were pushed back and exuded a dense medicinal aura. They had burned through all their pills and resources to survive for nearly two hours, being on the brink of death.

Darian felt everything around him as Niara moved. But this time, they went straight for the main target.

Ceug and his Spiritual Guardian were the most powerful and troublesome. It was certainly them who were carrying the abyssal heart. They needed to deal with them first.

'The problem is how...' Darian forced his mind to the limit.

They had to find a way to take down those traitors and all the Risen in that nest to destroy everything once and for all.

Darian's uncertain plans initially involved luring the enemies to figure out why they were being pursued. He had only gotten the first part. Now, all he could think about was that the key to victory was understanding that reason.

Then, a tired voice sounded in his mind:

'What if it was the abyssal heart that sensed you?'

'Hm? Why do you think that?' Darian had already considered this possibility before, but hadn't found concrete signs to support it.

'That other black power of yours... When I merged with it earlier, I clearly felt something distant but, at the same time, close to me. It was like your power and that thing came from the same source... Maybe it's the abyssal heart.'

Niara commented on what she felt. She wasn't one to think much, but her senses were sharp.

Darian was surprised by the information and focused on feeling the black karma everywhere. Seconds later, he shook his head. He could clearly feel the first and second lines, but didn't sense anything beyond what he already knew.

'Well, that transformation of yours was unexpected and abnormal.' He spoke calmly. 'My power is strange too. Maybe merging with your bloodline created new capabilities I don't have. I trust what you say... Let's head in that direction.'

She nodded. If this turned out to be true, each of them would have unique abilities. But the most important thing was that she felt she could keep fighting without being a burden.

Darian sighed and added: 'I discovered this Blessing of mine only in the test when I came to your universe. I don't know much about this power... I didn't tell you before because I had more questions than certainties.'

'It's okay. I have my secrets too. But I feel like we're on the right track.'

She murmured, feeling renewed. Darian nodded. After her transformation, the connection between them through the contract was much stronger than before. It was as if her Summoner power had leveled up. Maybe new, unknown abilities would come from it.

'I absorb the black karma from anyone who has a lot... I've never tested it on someone with only pure white karma, but I don't want to test it either. That kind of person probably doesn't harm anyone without reason.'

He explained, thinking about Rhea, who had no dark aura. She had given him a valuable hint for the test, something she probably couldn't have done. Moreover, she gave off a vibe that made it clear she would never do anything out of greed or malice.

'The Risen are almost always much more nourishing than regular people. I can even feel the black karma within their bodies; that's their source of power. The abyssal heart is the greatest power of a Risen Lord... Which should be the scariest monster among the enemies. There's a connection there.'

He came to this conclusion, and then a tense thought hit his mind. 'Is there any more detailed description about the power of a Risen Lord? Has anyone survived and talked about it?'

'Yes. The survivors from the last galaxy they dominated came to the one we're in now. According to them, in the middle of the battlefield, the Risen Lord used their abyssal heart to capture thousands of souls at once and then...'

Niara stopped in the middle of her explanation, her eyes wide. 'Then a power that seemed like black energy, capable of destroying everything, was used by him...'

'Shit... That confirms everything.' Darian murmured dryly.

That abyssal heart should function similarly to his devouring power. People said it absorbed souls, but maybe it was just the karma, just like he did. After all, the people in this universe weren't powerful enough to see and feel everything clearly.

'It's possible that Ceug found us after using the heart for some reason early on. Then, he felt the connection to the black power in me, just like you felt earlier. That's why he sent that elf to attack us, suspecting we were sent by another Risen Lord.'

The pieces started falling into place as he remembered the question that feline woman had asked Niara before the confrontation. They had already suspected that both of them were under orders from another one of those entities.

Risen Lords had a power similar to Darian's... That meant everyone could feel him as soon as he got close. If he hadn't known this before, he might have gotten himself into big trouble. But now, he was in an even bigger one.

'Ceug isn't a Risen Lord. He probably can't use that perfectly. We can... Yeah!' 

He finally had a bold idea. 

'Let's take a little detour and set up some fun surprises.' 

He spoke casually, and Niara nodded, a slight smile on her lips. 

Darian was too focused to notice, but that smile was completely different from any he'd ever seen on her. 

*** 

"NOW!" 

Ceug roared and took a step back. At the same instant, his partner lunged forward, spreading his icy wings. Suddenly, a solid wall of ice rose up ahead, blocking the devastating strike. 

*BANG!* 

A deafening crash echoed across the battlefield. 

Right after, a blazing sphere of fire plummeted from the sky, shining intensely. At the same time, a five-meter-long lightning spear tore through the air, striking the enemy dead-on. 

The massive Risen took a fatal hit. Checkmate. 

Its body collapsed to the ground, completely lifeless. 

"Quick! We have to help the others!" Ceug ordered, and the two behind him moved in sync. 

Until... 

He stopped abruptly, his feet digging into the ground as his eyes widened. 

Without hesitation, he pulled something from his spatial ring. It was a small black box, covered in inscriptions that completely concealed its contents from external senses. 

Ceug fixed his gaze on the box. 

Seconds later, his body trembled, and a cold sweat ran down his spine.