A blaring noise jolted me awake, sending Penguin tumbling off my chest with an indignant squawk.
"What—" I fumbled, reaching for my phone before realizing the sound wasn't coming from there.
A familiar window hovered in the air above my bed.
[EMERGENCY ALERT! Distorted Realm Detected! Partner requires immediate support.]
I checked my phone and let out a noise. 10:27 AM. I actually hadn't gone to bed until 7 AM.
The notification flashed again.
[EMERGENCY ALERT! Distorted Realm Detected! Partner requires immediate support.]
"Fine." I got up. "Can I at least wash my face and put on some clothes?"
Penguin chirped anxiously, quickly turning into a fire fox, ready for action.
"No," I said, rummaging for some clean clothes. "You're staying here."
Penguin's ears drooped. He morphed back into his penguin form and made a sad noise.
[EMERGENCY ALERT! Elemental Entity #77A3 is also needed.]
"What? Why?"
[Elemental Entity #77A3's abilities greatly increase projected survival rate by 59.2%.]
I stared at Penguin, who had waddled closer. "But—" Damn. 59.2% was a lot. "He's barely stable."
[Elemental Entity #77A3's bond is complete. He's now stable.]
"Yes, but—"
[EMERGENCY ALERT! Distorted Realm Detected! Partner requires immediate support.]
I groaned and looked down at Penguin.
"Fine. But you stay close to me, got it?"
Penguin chirped.
I washed my face and put on some clothes, while the notification kept hovering, flashing occasionally.
I grabbed my coat, glancing at my reflection. I looked like hell, with dark circles under my eyes and hair sticking up in every direction.
[EMERGENCY ALERT! Distorted Realm Detected! Partner requires immediate support.]
Fine!
Penguin morphed into a small sugar glider and climbed up my arm, holding onto the shoulder of my hoodie.
[Relocation in 3… 2… 1…]
As my feet hit stone, smoke flooded my vision and I started coughing.
Above me, Fire swirled so densely it was difficult to see anything.
[System Notification: "Elemental Mastery" can be used!]
"Turn into a wristwatch!" I told Penguin. "Quick!"
Penguin looked startled, but ran down my arm and obeyed.
I sighed. This was better for his safety, I hoped.
I covered my mouth with my sleeve and summoned Water as best as I could, trying to open a path while I searched for Llewellyn.
The System pinged.
[Warning: Environmental collapse in progress!]
Great. Fuck.
I wondered where I was.
No people were in sight, which meant that Llewellyn must have evacuated them already, so he must be here.
I turned in a slow circle.
Too much smoke and noise, how could I—
There!
"Llewellyn!"
Llewellyn was surrounded by a shield of Water, fighting raw Elements.
He turned just enough to spot me, then leapt up on a gust of wind and landed beside me, his Water shield stretching to cover us both.
"Get yourself a shield skill!" he said. "Now!"
Oh. Why hadn't I thought of it?!
And more importantly, why hadn't the System told me?!
I scrolled frantically through the shop. The System had dozens of shield options—Basic Shield, Enhanced Shield, Elemental Shield, Auto-Guard…
The prices varied wildly and I couldn't tell which would be most useful.
"Which one?" I asked.
Llewellyn was busy trying to hold the Elements back while I fumbled through digital window shopping. A massive wave of Fire slammed into his shield. The impact made the ground tremble.
"Just pick one!"
Elemental Shield it was then. I could find a better one later if I survived. I hit purchase just as another blast of fire came down from above.
The shield materialized just as flames struck where I stood. The force slammed me backward, but it seemed to hold. At least I hoped so—I was still sharing Llewellyn's shield too.
Penguin vibrated against my wrist, clearly agitated by the surrounding danger.
The Distorted Realm was drowned in fire and smoke and most of the buildings around us were half-melted.
"What happened here?" I asked, ducking under a stream of molten… something.
"Knot formed near a factory," Llewellyn replied without looking back. "I've evacuated the people on site, but the Elemental concentration is off the charts."
I activated Elemental Insight and looked at the area, trying to figure out how bad it was.
All that was left of the factory was deformed metal and half-melted machinery. Elemental Magic moved through everything, making my skin prickle.
Last time I'd been able to flag the Threads so that the raw charge of the Elements could be turned into monsters. After all, it was easier to fight actual targets instead of the raw Elemental manifestations, like storms of fire or ice.
But we weren't close enough to the Knot yet.
Fire raged around us, climbing the walls and scorching the asphalt.
We pushed forward avoiding a door that had caved in and peered inside the factory. Machinery had been fused with walls, conveyor belts looked like they had been pretzeled into Möbius strips. Pools of liquid metal seemed to be everywhere.
"Don't move," Llewellyn warned. "This place is unstable."
That was an understatement. The floor kept shaking under us like it was being hit by continuous earthquakes, and I nearly lost my footing.
I grabbed Llewellyn's arm to steady myself.
"We can't go in there." The factory interior looked like a death trap.
Llewellyn nodded. "If the Knot were inside, the building would have exploded already. We need to circle around."
We rounded the factory, moving along the perimeter, trying to keep our distance from the worst of the fire and melting metal.
Penguin trembled against my wrist. I tapped him gently, hoping the reminder that I hadn't forgotten him would help.
"There," Llewellyn said.
In front of us, suspended in mid-air, the Knot glowed gold, its shape almost like a human heart.
Amazing, if it wasn't so lethal.
[System Notification: "Elemental Insight" is active!]
The itch hit me like a punch. I was familiar with it now, but the compulsion was still unbearable.
I focused on it, feeling it go deeper and deeper. Something in me felt like it was going both in and out until, like last time, it clicked—deep and urgent in my chest.
My vision changed. Colors blazed brighter around me and I could suddenly see Threads spiraling inward and outward, stretching out and winding through space.
A Three-Element Knot.
Not easy, but still not as bad as Guildford.
"I can open the Threads," I yelled towards Llewellyn. "Are you ready?"
Llewellyn ducked as another ball of Fire fell toward him.
"Buy a sword first! Something!"
Fuck. He had a point.
I fumbled with the interface, scrolling past increasingly expensive weapons and hoping at the same time not to die.
Basic Sword, Iron Blade, Steel Sword, Crystal Sword, Moonlight Sword, Mithril Sword… Too many options.
I was still scrolling when Penguin suddenly transformed out of his wristwatch form, jumped toward the window, tapping on the interface, and purchased one.
No… What???
And besides, could he see my System window???
I stared in disbelief as Penguin landed on the ground excitedly, having just spent my Coins on... something. The interface window closed before I could see what he'd picked.
"What did you just—"
A notification popped up.
-
[System Notification: Congratulations! You have acquired 'Moonlight Sword'!
Type: Elemental Weapon
Rarity: Legendary
Requirement: At least one Legendary Level Attribute.
Note: Compatible with all Elements. Grants Water bonus directly proportional to the pull of the current Moon phase on tides.]
-
I gaped at the price. That was most of my Coins gone in one purchase.
"Penguin!"
Penguin chirped innocently, bouncing on his little feet.
The sword materialized in my hand, slim and not too heavy, its blade almost white.
Despite its delicate appearance, power hummed through the metal.
"You brought your little bomb into a Distorted Realm?!" Llewellyn yelled, deflecting a wave of Fire.
"I didn't exactly have a choice!"
I gripped my new sword—which actually felt perfect in my hand—and studied the Threads all around us.
"Three Elements," I called back. "Fire's dominant, but there's Water and Air too."
"I know that," Llewellyn said impatiently. "Can you flag them?"
Of course I could.
I locked onto the first Thread and reached out with my mind.
The itch in my chest spiked as I flagged it.