Raegar appeared on the other side of the Gate only to come across a mirror image of the capital, but it looked destroyed. He glanced around only to notice a black sky hung overhead and a blue moon lit up the debris-covered streets, causing him to think. 'What's going on here?'
He could sense monsters lurking in the darkness and wasn't worried; they were only Tier Three. This only caught his attention while stepping into the city; the creatures lunged out of the shadows, only to be cut up as he attacked. His daggers slashed through flesh and bones with ease.
Blood soaked the ground around Raegar as he skidded to a halt, chest heaving. A glance at the sprawled corpses revealed not human foes, but plant-like beasts, their twisted vines and thorny hides still twitching in death. Wasting no time, he knelt and pried the glowing Aether cores from them, the faint hum of raw energy thrumming against his palms.
''Never got a chance to explore these things,'' he muttered, putting away his loot. ''Now's a perfect opportunity as the girls defend the palace.''
Raegar tightened his grip on his daggers, their edges still slick with green blood of the plant-beasts he'd slaughtered thanks to his speed. The summons had failed him, but his resolve hadn't. This place, its overgrown streets choked with vines and thorns, was his to purge alone.
He pressed forward, boots crunching against the remains of what was once a bustling market square. The skeletal remains of stalls loomed like ghosts under the tangled canopy of roots that draped from crumbling rooftops. A low, guttural rustle echoed from an alley to his right.
Moments later, Raegar froze, eyes narrowing. The sound came again, sharper, closer, like a whip of branches snapping through the air. From the shadows, a mass of vines and thorns lunged, its form a mockery of a beast, with limbs tipped with needle-like spines. Its mouth, a jagged split of bark, oozed a viscous green sap that hissed as it splattered the ground.
'Oh fuck!'
Raegar sidestepped, the creature's spines grazing his cloak as he brought one of his blades down in a brutal arc. The steel bit deep, severing a writhing limb that sprayed sap across his gauntlets. The beast shrieked, a sound like splintering wood, and lashed out with another tendril.
He ducked, rolling across the slick stones, and sprang up behind it. His blade flashed again, carving through the creature's core. It collapsed in a squirming heap, its limbs twitching before falling still. He didn't pause to catch his breath. Two more shapes slithered from the ruins ahead, their glowing eyes like fireflies in the shadows.
'Looks like a plant Gate,' he mused, spinning his daggers. 'Never heard of one.'
Moments later, even more plant-beasts, drawn to the chaos like moths to a flame they wanted to attack him. He charged, blades singing through the air. The first beast met his steel with a whip-like vine, but Raegar twisted, letting the blow glance off his shoulder, leaving a stinging sensation behind.
He drove his sword into its center, twisting the blade to shred its fibrous innards. The second lunged, its spines aimed for his throat, but he dropped low, slashing upward to cut its head in two. Sap sprayed, burning where it touched his skin, but he gritted his teeth and pressed on, kicking the corpse aside.
The city seemed alive with the things now. Every shadow birthed another rustling horror, every corner hid a snapping jaw, causing him to mutter in frustration. ''I'll save my fire Aether for something stronger; it will create a firestorm in this place.''
He fought on, his daggers a blur, his muscles burning with the effort. Each fallen beast gave him another Aether core to add to his growing collection, a reward for the slaughter. He didn't know what this place was, but he'd clear it, one monster at a time, until the streets ran green.
Following that, Raegar pressed deeper into the heart of the city, his boots slick with sap and green blood. The streets grew narrower, the air thicker, as if the city itself were suffocating under the grip of a curse. The rustling had grown louder, more deliberate, vibrating through the ground like a pulse.
He paused at the edge of an old plaza, where a massive fountain lay choked with vines, flowers, and all kinds of greenery, stone cracked and oozing green. Then he saw it. Rising from the center of the plaza, towering over the ruins, was a monstrosity that dwarfed the monsters he'd killed.
It looked like a gnarled tree, its trunk thick and knotted, veins of sap. Branches twisted upward like clawed hands, each tipped with thorns the length of swords. Its roots, thick as pythons, writhed across the street, tearing stone apart.
A gaping mouth split its trunk, lined with jagged bark-teeth that dripped with venom. Its eyes, glowing dark green orbs, locked onto him, radiating pure hatred. He tightened his grip on his daggers, the daggers suddenly feeling insufficient. The air grew heavy, charged thanks to the beast.
Seconds later, the smaller plant-creatures skittered back into the shadows. The girls still wouldn't answer, thanks to the Gate blocking the Aether transporting them inside. He was alone, and this thing was no mere beast. It was one of the bosses, a living siege engine of pure wrath.
The tree-monster roared, a sound like a forest collapsing, and a root lashed out, faster than its bulk suggested. Raegar dove to the side, the root smashing the ground where he'd stood, sending shards of stone flying. He rolled to his feet, blade flashing as he hacked at the nearest root.
The steel bit deep, but the wound oozed sap that burned his hands, forcing him to pull back. The creature's branches whipped downward, thorns slicing through the air. He ducked under one, feeling the wind of its passage, and parried another with his blade, the impact jarring his arms.
Moments later, Raegar darted closer, aiming for the trunk, but the roots surged again, forcing him to leap back. The monster's maw snapped shut inches from his face, the venom dripping from its teeth sizzling on the stone below. He cursed, circling the beast, searching for a weak point.
The glowing orbs pulsed, tracking his every move, and the ground trembled as more roots erupted, caging him in a writhing prison. Gritting his teeth, he lunged, feinting left before diving right, his blade aimed at a pulsing knot of sap-veins near the base. The steel sank in, and the creature shrieked, its branches flailing wildly.
Sap sprayed, burning his cheek, but he twisted the blade deeper, feeling the knot rupture. The monster staggered, its roots thrashing, and Raegar seized the moment, hacking at another vein. Each blow drew a louder wail, but the beast wasn't done. A massive branch swung down, catching him in the side.
Pain exploded as he was hurled across the plaza, crashing into the fountain's remains. His vision blurred, but he forced himself to his feet, blood trickling from his temple. The tree-monster loomed closer, its maw widening. Raegar spat blood and raised his blade, defiance burning hotter than the pain.
This thing might be the king of this cursed place, but he'd carve its heart out or die trying. Gritting his teeth, he lunged, feinting left before diving right, his blade aimed at a pulsing knot of sap-veins near the base. The steel sank in, and the creature shrieked, its branches flailing wildly.
Sap sprayed, burning his cheek, but he twisted the blade deeper, feeling the knot rupture. The monster staggered, its roots thrashing, and Raegar seized the moment, hacking at another vein. Each slice drew a louder wail, but the beast wasn't done. A massive branch swung down, catching him in the side.
Pain exploded as he was hurled across the plaza, crashing into the fountain's remains. His vision blurred, but he forced himself to his feet, blood trickling from his temple. The tree-monster loomed closer. He spat blood and raised his blade, defiance burning hotter than the pain.
This thing might be one of the bosses of this cursed place, but he'd carve its heart out or die trying. Raegar staggered, pain radiating from his ribs where the tree-monster's branch had struck. The beast loomed closer, its emerald eyes blazing with hunger, roots coiling like serpents ready to crush him.
His blade trembled in his grip, slick with sap and his own blood. The city's oppressive air seemed to tighten around him, mocking his faltering strength. But he wasn't done. Not yet. He reached deep within, to the core of his being, where the Aether hummed, a raw, untamed force that boosted his power.
Now was that moment. With a guttural roar, Raegar activated his special ability. ''Fusion Overdrive!'' he bellowed, his voice echoing through the shattered plaza.
This shocked the Tree King, who tried to back away, but it was too late.