The morning light broke through the mist, weaving between trees taller than towers. Dew clung to the blades of grass like fragile glass, glittering faintly in the cold air. The forest was quiet—too quiet for Lunareth.
Then came the sound.
A low rumble. A dozen pairs of crimson eyes shimmered within the fog.
"Formation!" Shadow barked.
Rena was first to draw. Her blade twirled once, catching the dawn like a streak of silver flame. Beside her, Lena's greatsword dug into the ground, her mana humming through the blade with a faint crackle.
"Forty-class beasts," Ryn called out from above, crouched on a fallen branch, her shortbow drawn. "Twelve… no—fourteen targets. Fast movement speed."
Sera stepped back, sigils blooming under her feet. "Barrier three! Reinforcement active!"
A pulse of blue light expanded from her hands, enveloping the group just as the first beast lunged. A fanged lizard, twice the size of a horse, crashed against the barrier.
Rena moved first—her sword danced in arcs, cutting through the beast's leg with precision. Lena followed with a roar, greatsword slamming down to finish it.
"Two down," Ryn's voice echoed from above, arrows whistling through the fog and piercing another beast's eye.
Shadow watched their movements, calm and analytical. Then a shadow flickered behind him—another beast lunging from blind spot. Without hesitation, his gauntlets shifted form.
"Shadowfang—Dagger Duality."
Twin black daggers materialized from his gauntlets. He turned and slashed, crossing both blades in one clean arc. A mana burst followed, tearing through the beast's skull.
He exhaled, scanning through the field.
"Six remaining. Push through!"
Rena spun midair, slicing through another, while Lena cleaved two more in one swing. The rest were pinned down by Ryn's arrows—precision strikes that drove them into a frenzy.
One last beast roared, charging through the smoke straight for Sera. Shadow's eyes flickered with faint blue glow—Perception Focus activating. Time slowed, the creature's heartbeat loud in his ears.
"Scythe form."
His gauntlet reformed mid-motion, a long obsidian scythe extending from his arm. One clean sweep—and silence followed.
The battlefield fell still.
Steam rose from the corpses, the smell of iron and mana thick in the air.
---
"That's the fifth ambush this week," Rena muttered, wiping blood from her cheek.
"They're getting closer every time," Lena said.
Shadow crouched beside one of the bodies, tracing its wounds. "They're drawn to mana," he murmured. "Ours, specifically."
Ryn dropped down from a tree. "So what's the plan now, boss? We can't fight packs forever."
He looked around—the forest stretched endlessly, the air heavy with untamed power. "We need a proper base. Somewhere safe, hidden, and mobile if necessary."
Then his gaze turned to the floating metallic Cube beside his pack—silent, inert. The relic hummed faintly, its color shifting between silver and black.
He reached out, pressing his hand against it. "You were made for more than storage, weren't you?"
The Cube vibrated faintly at his touch.
"Maybe if I strengthen the link…"
He closed his eyes, channeling his mana through his arm. Faint lines of energy connected from his chest to the Cube, threading like veins of light. The gauntlet on his arm pulsed in response.
"Synchronization sequence… initiate," he whispered.
The Cube twitched once, then again—before glowing softly.
A faint voice echoed. "Ma…ster…?"
Everyone froze.
Shadow blinked. "Did you just… talk?"
The Cube tilted slightly midair, almost like a nod. "Connection… restored. Hello!"
Sera's jaw dropped. "It talks."
Ryn squinted. "Wait, it's a kid?"
"Hi! I'm… um… not sure what my name is," the Cube said cheerfully. "But I'm ready to help!"
Shadow chuckled under his breath. "You're a lively one."
Over the next few days, Shadow worked closely with the Cube, learning its responses and energy flow. Each day, their bond grew stronger—the synchronization rate rising from 61% to 67%. The Cube's voice became clearer, its tone more expressive.
When the moment finally came, it hovered beside him proudly.
"Transformation protocol—Sanctum Mode!"
A blinding light filled the clearing. Trees bent under a wave of mana pressure as the Cube unfolded, expanding, reshaping into a structure of dark metal and smooth glass—an armored base embedded with faint sigil marks.
Their new home stood before them.
Ryn whistled. "That's… definitely not a tent."
Sera ran her hand along the wall, feeling warmth radiating from it. "It's alive."
Shadow nodded faintly. "Not just alive. A partner."
The Cube—now in the form of their base—hummed softly. "I'll keep you all safe, Master. Promise."
Shadow smiled slightly, gazing at the faint reflection of his team in the polished surface. "Then we'll call you…"
He paused, thinking.
"—Aetherion. You're the heart of our shadow."
The name pulsed across its surface like a heartbeat.
"Name accepted!" the childlike voice said proudly. "Aetherion—operational!"
And for the first time in a long while, the team felt something that had been missing since the garrison—
a sense of home.