The Chronicles of a Scalebound Sage

WM [92] Horns

The snarls of the beasts grew louder, their guttural roars reverberating like a storm at their backs. Isin risked another glance over his shoulder, his stomach tightening as he saw the pack of grotesque, six-legged monstrosities. Their visage was nightmarish and their howls invoked a primal instinct to flee in terror. The fissures were their only chance, but even that wasn’t a guarantee of survival.

“Jump!” Isin yelled as they reached the first crevice. 

He leapt across, his boots skidding on the jagged edge as he landed. The others followed, some barely making the jump as loose rocks crumbled beneath their feet.

Behind them, the leading monsters barreled forward. Their sheer momentum sent several of them plunging into the dark void below, their howls of rage fading as they disappeared. Others skidded to a halt, their massive forms struggling to navigate the unstable terrain.

“Keep moving!” Isin barked. glancing at the soldiers who had followed him. “Watch your step and stay close!”

They looked to him now, fear and desperation etched into their faces. He scanned the chaotic landscape, the fissures carved through the valley like jagged wounds, deep and treacherous. @@novelbin@@

They ran along the fractured terrain, the monsters still pursuing. While the creatures were slowed by the narrow passages, they were relentless, their predatory hunger driving them forward. Isin’s mind raced as he searched for ways to thin their numbers.

“Hold here!” he shouted as they reached another gap, this one just wide enough to give them a temporary advantage. “Jump across! I’ll cover you!”

Isin unslung his combat rifle and knelt at the edge, firing controlled bursts at the closest creature. His rounds struck true, shredding through its grotesque, scaly hide. The beast stumbled, a guttural snarl escaping its maw before it collapsed into the fissure.

“Move! Cover those still jumping!” Isin ordered, reloading quickly. The remaining soldiers followed his lead, their gunfire hammering the next creature to approach. The teamwork bought precious seconds, but Isin knew it wouldn’t hold for long. The beasts were too many, and their determination was terrifying.

Another fissure came into view, narrower than the others but with walls steep enough to slow the creatures further. 

Isin pointed toward it. “This way! Use the terrain! Make them work for every inch!”

As they leapt from gap to gap, Isin employed every tactic he could think of to slow the pack: targeting the beasts in front to create pileups, leading them toward unstable edges, even using spent magazines as makeshift distractions. Yet the monsters kept coming, their numbers seemingly endless.

Finally, Isin spotted a fissure unlike the others; it was a vertical slice in the earth, its walls narrowing sharply as it descended. It was just wide enough for his team to climb down but too tight for the larger beasts to follow. Relief and dread warred within him. It was their only chance.

“Down there!” Isin yelled, pointing to the fissure. “Climb down! Go! I’ll cover you!”

One by one, his team scrambled toward the fissure, sliding down its steep walls with grunts of effort. Isin stayed behind, firing at the approaching monsters to buy them time. His rifle barked in his hands, each shot precise and deliberate. He aimed for their legs and jaws, anything to slow their advance.

“Move!” he roared, his voice hoarse.

The last soldier disappeared into the fissure, leaving only Isin at the edge. He turned to follow but was tackled mid-step. A monstrous weight slammed into him, driving him to the ground. Clawed limbs and snapping jaws pinned him, the creature’s rancid breath washing over his face as it tried to tear him apart.

Isin thrust his combat rifle between them, using it as a makeshift brace to keep the creature’s jaws from closing around his neck. The beast snarled and thrashed, its sheer strength threatening to overpower him. With a roar of effort, Isin twisted, using the rifle as leverage to throw the monster off. It tumbled to the side, but the rifle snapped in half under the strain.

The beast recovered quickly, its glowing, hate-filled eyes fixed on him. Isin reached for his sidearm, but before he could draw it, a shot rang out. The creature jerked violently, a black ichor spraying from its side. Another shot followed, then another. The beast collapsed in a heap.

“Get up!” A young woman with black hair rushed to his side, her smoking rifle clutched tightly in her hands. She grabbed his arm, helping him to his feet. “We need to go. Now!”

Isin nodded, his chest heaving as he stumbled toward the fissure. Together, they climbed down, the sounds of the pursuing monsters fading as the narrow walls enveloped them. For now, they were safe, but the danger was far from over.

Isin and the woman slid down the smooth, obsidian walls of the fissure, their boots scraping against the glassy surface in a futile attempt to slow their descent. The darkness seemed endless as they plunged deeper, the faint glow of the surface above shrinking until it vanished completely. Just when it felt like they might fall forever, the fissure widened abruptly, spitting them out into a sprawling cavern below.

They hit the ground heavily, the impact driving the air from Isin’s lungs. He rolled to the side, groaning as he tried to orient himself. Around him, the other survivors landed in a series of dull thuds and grunts, one after the other.

The cavern was illuminated by glowing crystals embedded in the jagged walls, their light casting an otherworldly blue-green hue across the expanse. The air was damp, carrying the faint tang of minerals and the distant sound of dripping water. Isin pushed himself upright, leaning heavily against the cold wall as his breath steadied.

“Everyone okay?” he asked, his voice hoarse.

The survivors quickly gathered around him, checking each other for injuries. Miraculously, no one seemed seriously hurt. Isin let out a long sigh of relief and slumped back against the wall, his muscles screaming in protest.

“Thanks,” he said, glancing at the woman who had saved him earlier.

“Don’t thank me yet,” she replied, her tone firm but not unkind. “You still have to get us out of here alive.” She extended a hand toward him. “Eliska, by the way. Been here six years, on Josef’s squad for the last one. You’re new, right?”

“Isin,” he replied, clasping her hand and letting her pull him to his feet. “Yeah, I am. First deployment.”

Eliska gave him a quick once-over, her dark eyes sharp. She looked to be about his age, and her no-nonsense demeanor reminded him of veterans he’d met in training. Around them, the rest of the group, seven in total, milled about, their faces pale with exhaustion and fear. Most were in their late teens or early twenties, and the sheer youth of the group hit Isin like a blow to the chest. Out of nearly thirty people, only seven had decided to follow him. Seven.

“What now?” one of the men asked, his voice breaking the tense silence. He was short, with bright red hair and a nervous energy that made him shift from foot to foot. “We’re not climbing back up that,” he added, pointing to the narrow hole high above, its edges gleaming like polished stone.

Isin followed the man’s gaze, his heart sinking. The walls were smooth, and the fissure’s narrowness would make it nearly impossible to ascend without specialized equipment. His eyes darted to the cavern’s two exits: one leading deeper into the dark unknown, the other back the way they’d come. Neither path offered any clue as to what lay ahead.

The others looked at him, their expressions expectant. It took Isin a moment to realize why. They thought he was in charge. His stomach twisted. He didn’t feel like a leader. Someone more experienced should be giving orders, not him. But no one else spoke. No one else stepped forward.

Isin took a steadying breath. “Uh…we’ll rest first,” he said, his voice uneven. “Take shifts for watch. Then we’ll scout both passageways and mark our path. Probably no comms down here, but keep trying. If we can reach the Extraction Site, maybe they’ll send a rescue.”

“Alright,” Eliska said, her tone more confident than his. She clapped her hands, drawing everyone’s attention. “You heard him—set up camp. I’m on first watch. Who’s with me?”

The group snapped into action, moving with the mechanical precision born of training and adrenaline. Eliska checked her rifle, her practiced movements steadying Isin’s fraying nerves. She gave him a brief nod.

“We’ll make it out, Isin,” she said, her voice low but firm. “We’ll stick to the plan, and we’ll make it.”

Isin nodded, grateful for her steadiness. As she moved to take her position, he glanced around the glowing cavern, his mind racing. Then things seemed to wobble as the past and present blurred together for a brief moment. 

***

Bjorn’s eyes snapped open, his dream ending abruptly as a triumphant shout from Tanisha filled the air. She was jumping up and down, her exhilaration contagious. Before he could fully process what was happening, she nearly tackled him in a hug, wrapping her arms around him with enough force to knock the sleepiness right out of him. Then, to his utter shock, she picked him up, despite his considerable weight, and spun them both around, her laughter echoing in the room. The hydra hissed in confused protest, his many heads weaving uneasily as Tanisha finally set him down on his paws.

“I did it!” she exclaimed, her grin wide enough to rival the sun. “I finally connected that damn link from my core to my head and back again!”

Bjorn blinked, still shaking off the surprise, as Fuyumi appeared in her usual silent and composed manner.

“Congratulations,” Fuyumi said with a slight smile. “That means you’ve opened your Mind Gate.”

Tanisha froze mid-celebration, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Fuyumi. “Wait a second… you never said this would open another Gate!”

“I didn’t,” Fuyumi replied slyly, “That’s why I’m telling you now. Congratulations.”

Before Tanisha could respond, Aurelius called from the fabricator which had a full buffet. His hands full of food and leaving crumbs trailing in his wake.

“I had my breakthrough too,” Aurelius announced between bites, his voice muffled by the sheer volume of food he was devouring. “You missed it while you were meditating, but let me tell you, it was a spectacle. You’re looking at the newest Rooted Realm cultivator.”

Tanisha’s jaw dropped. “Wait—you jumped twenty levels after your breakthrough?”

“Is that how you see magical power, in levels of some kind?” Fuyumi interjected, her curiosity piqued as she studied Tanisha.

“Yeah,” Tanisha replied, nodding. “It’s part of my system. But I can’t see your levels, Fuyumi. I think it means you’re too strong for me to read properly.”

“Interesting,” Fuyumi said thoughtfully. “We’ll discuss that later. For now, you need to eat and regain your strength.”

“Right,” Tanisha said with a laugh, her hand resting on her stomach. “I’m starving—but first…” She turned to Bjorn and whispered. “Bjorn, now that I’ve opened another Gate, does this mean you can continue my evolution?”

Bjorn let out a rumbling breath, opening the follower ascension menu. He scanned the options carefully before nodding and selecting the approval of her next stage of evolution.

Follower Ascension Panel

Name: Aki’al Hashemi

Title: Sonr Orma Eilífra

Divinity: Demi True Immortal

Divine Realm: Venom

Followers: 1

Follower List:

Name: Tanisha Valkyrja Scalebound

Species: Cernunnos

Level: 44

Status: Alive

Special Status: Soul Bound (Partial)

Evolution Status: Pending

Follower Evolution(s) Status

Name: Tanisha Valkyrja Scalebound

Species: Cernunnos (Greater Wendigo < Normal Cernunnos) - Dagda (Greater Cernunnos)

Evolution Prerequisite 5 / 10

Current Approved:

Mana Gate Open, Blood Gate Open, Maya Meridians and Veins, Pledge of Soul

Approve Current Evolution Status Prerequisite Met:

Mind Gate Open

[Yes/No]

Status Not Met for Evolution: Cernunnos - Dagda

Complete Communing (2/5), Bone Gate Open, Spirit Gate Open, Aetheric Tool Bound, Level 100

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The room grew still as they waited for the transformation to begin. This time, it didn’t take long.

Tanisha flinched as a cracking sound filled the air. She reached up instinctively, her expression shifting to alarm as pieces of her antlers began to fall away, clattering to the floor.

“W-what’s happening?” she stammered, staring at the broken fragments in her hands.

Bjorn growled softly, nudging her in reassurance, as the remaining stems of her antlers thickened and began to reshape. The broken ends smoothed and curved, sweeping backward in a sleek, horn-like formation. When the transformation finished, her new horns bore an uncanny resemblance to those of Joha.

Tanisha ran her fingers over the smooth, curved surface, her face a mixture of wonder and confusion.

“Well,” Failsafe’s voice resonated in Bjorn’s head, tinged with an amused certainty, “that settles my theory. She’s subconsciously modeling herself after Joha and Helina. Makes sense, considering how she sees them as family.”

Bjorn rumbled in acknowledgment, but his thoughts were tinged with curiosity. “Huh. You’d think she’d pick up more hydra-like traits.”

Failsafe chuckled softly. “She has your eyes.” There was a brief pause before he added with dry humor, “And fangs. Lots of fangs.”

Bjorn’s heads turned toward Tanisha. Sure enough, her canines had elongated dramatically, eight gleaming, fang-like teeth now replacing her already sharp wendigo canines. Yet even these new features seemed secondary to the striking presence of her horns.

“Fuyumi!” Tanisha's voice trembled with apprehension.

Tanisha’s breath caught as she gazed at her reflection. The horns were undeniably similar to Joha’s, especially the bottom two of his four horns, but also uniquely her own. They swept back with a commanding elegance, their tips splitting like a branching tree. She touched them again, her fingertips tracing the ridges with a bittersweet expression.

“I… I miss my antlers,” she admitted, her fingers lingering on the polished surface of her horns. “I think I can get used to them.”