Their fifth day in Zaban was drawing to a close when Samuel began to catch hints of reflected light to the west, a sign of Lake Kaia coming closer. By his best estimate, they were about an hour away from their goal, and he decided to call a halt to their travel in favor of a full night’s rest and time to plan. Tobi agreed readily, gathering loose firewood to begin cooking their meal.

Samuel sat beside the pile of wood and lit it with a flick of his finger, then relaxed into a quiet sense of meditation, thinking about what lay before them. Tobi was more reserved as well, and they sat across from each other without speaking. They ate their simple meal, grilled meat, cheese, and bread, in silence, each caught up in their own thoughts.

Samuel had finally shared his horrifying dream with his apprentice, letting him know what he suspected lay ahead. The fact of his fear, combined with the new and unexpected nature of the threat they would face, had shocked Tobi more than he let on. He knew, by stories told by his old father, that the hidden corners of the world were teeming with dangerous and ancient threats the likes of which he could not imagine, but this was his first true campaign into the unknown.

Samuel for his part fought back ever-increasing waves of panic and uncertainty. He knew that he had some talent in the art of spellcraft, even that he could be approaching mastery. He knew that his skills with the sword had been sharpened considerably, and though he could never be called a master, he was certainly adept. His hesitation lay in the burden of leadership. He was responsible for the life of his apprentice and wasn’t sure that he had the right to direct him into such a dangerous fate.

He briefly entertained the idea of telling Tobi to stay back while he advanced. It could ensure that he not only survived but in the case of Samuel’s failure and downfall, he could return to Stormbreak Harbor and tell anyone he could of the threat. But as he had the idea, he knew it could never be. For one, Tobi would flatly refuse, and demand to be at his side for the upcoming fight. For another, Samuel admitted to himself that he did need the youth.

A quiet sound of metal on stone distracted Samuel from his thoughts, and he glanced up to see Tobi, who had just set his plate down, rising to his feet. The warrior paced around the campsite, keeping watch and dealing with the tension of the moment in his own way. Samuel watched him in silence for some time, feeling another surge of misgiving. Tobi was capable, but he was young and sheltered. His father had kept him close his whole life, and he knew nothing about the world outside his home.

Letting out a long quiet sigh, Samuel stretched himself out on the soft sand, laying on his back and staring up at the dark sky. The stars had just begun to show themselves. They were beautiful to behold, but they were strangers to him. They were not the celestial bodies he was accustomed to seeing from Milagre. They were unknown guardians, there to guide and inspire people in this strange land. To them, he was an interloper.

Unbidden, the memory of his journey with Shigeru and Grimr came to mind. He had been untested then, just as Tobi was now, and had jumped at the chance to help the ancient Grimr. He had joined more for a chance to escape his own stifling boredom and anger rather than because he was dedicated to the cause. But he’d been confronted with his own deficiencies then, and it had been driven home that the world was more dangerous, more powerful than he’d thought.

Tobi had not yet had this experience, and Samuel mentally kicked himself for not foreseeing this problem. There was no way now to prepare him for what came closer. He had no inkling of the sheer power of those ancient, hidden threats. Ahya was a great and wonderful place teeming with the exciting, and it was also a place of legend, of hidden power.

Tobi kept glancing around at Samuel as he patrolled the edge of their camp, wondering what was keeping his mentor so silent. He seemed at peace, perfectly calm, prepared for whatever they faced in the morning. Samuel was laying there on the sand, his eyes closed, breathing evenly. He could have been taking a nap as far as he could tell.

“You mentioned that this beast, sorry, this mana was immune to magic,” Tobi commented, coming back to sit across from Samuel. “Does that mean we fight it with weapons then?”

“It absorbed all the arcane magic I threw at it in my dream,” Samuel corrected him. “That could have been merely part of the dream, or it could be one of its traits. Either way, there are more magicks than arcane.”

“True,” Tobi agreed. A month in Samuel’s company had hammered this point home. “So I’ll use my father’s magic, and you’ll…”

His voice trailed off, as he wasn’t sure what all Samuel had in his arsenal. He was sure to have many spells to choose from, he assured himself. The inability to harm the beast with arcane magic was definitely a setback, but it was hardly a task his mentor couldn’t overcome. Samuel was the Champion of Arcana, after all.

“I’m not sure,” Samuel said. “I’ve very little experience with the natural magicks. I have a good idea how some of Grimr’s spells are done, and I have the ability to turn energy the way I want. It may be enough. Only time will tell.”

“Well, that crystalline blade of yours is sure to do the trick,” Tobi said, nodding to himself. “From what I’ve seen of it, it’s a magnificent weapon.”

“That is,” Samuel interjected. “If it does not rely on solely mana. If it does, it is useless against that thing.”

Tobi frowned. He’d brought up the ideas as a way to encourage himself and his mentor, but Samuel’s replies weren’t helping his confidence. Was this beast truly unkillable? The way Samuel spoke, it certainly seemed so. But if his mentor truly believed that, then their fate was bleak indeed.

“Worst comes to worst,” Samuel said after a long silence, “Chaotic mana will either devour itself or fade, given enough time. If we cannot defeat it, we can try to move any nearby people away until it dies.”

“But you said that it fed on your mana,” Tobi pointed out. “If it can feed on other kinds of energy, then wouldn’t the center of the lakes be a bad thing?”

Samuel opened his eyes and sat up, turning to face Tobi. That thought hadn’t occurred to him. If the mass of chaotic energy was indeed able to feed on natural energy, then it would make sense for it to be centered there, between the lakes. The location was rumored to be an endless fountain of natural energy, fed by the lakes. It was the reason that Zaban was so overrun with nature. If the chaotic entity was left to its own devices, it would only continue to feed until it had absorbed all that energy. He leaped to his feet.

“Samuel?” Tobi asked, jumping at the sudden movement. “What’s wrong?”

“We’re going now,” Samuel said, the tone of his voice somewhere between fear and determination. “You’ll need your weapon.”

He pulled Tobi’s long spear out of his storage space and tossed it to the apprentice, who caught it with a look of concern on his face. Samuel uttered the words to summon his own weapon and caught the dark blue scabbard in his left hand. He glanced down at the camping equipment on the ground, then cast it from his mind. There was no time.

“We cannot let it grow anymore!” He said loudly, already running. “We have to take it down somehow, and we have to do it now!”

Tobi said something in reply, but Samuel was already so far away that he couldn’t hear it. Then he heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps as Tobi caught up to him, his face set in worried lines. He didn’t ask any more questions, however, as Samuel put on an extra burst of speed. Tobi kept pace easily, even after Samuel had reinforced his legs with mana and begun running even faster.

The trees whipped past them almost too fast to be seen properly, so fast were they moving. They weaved between the ancient trunks without faltering as the sun completely disappeared below the horizon. The only light now came from the moons, and it cast a pale, flickering shadow onto the trees and sand, giving the land around them an ethereal, ghost-like quality.

Samuel didn’t know exactly what he was expecting to be waiting for them at the center of the lakes, but he was certain it would not be good. For a brief moment, he remembered his chase down Arcana’s mountain with Shigeru and Grimr, pelting down at a breakneck pace towards the great black wolf that had been Neratas. Despite the unfamiliar terrain around them, the sensation felt almost identical.

The creature sensed Samuel approaching very quickly, due to the exorbitant amount of mana he was using to propel himself along. Even before the trees thinned, Samuel could feel the presence come to life, moving to intercept him. It was definitely only one presence, but it was massive, and the sheer hunger it radiated toward him nearly caused him to turn and run right there.

Then they broke free of the trees, and they saw it. It had no clearly defined shape, but sat on the ground before them, like a cloud that had come down from the skies. It was a bright green-blue in color, a reflection of the energy it had devoured. Despite the lack of eyes, it was clearly focused on the mage charging it and lumbered forward like a wave. Samuel, his mind nearly fogged over with fear, drew the ancient blade from its sheath. The runes on the blade flared to life with a ferocity he’d never experienced, and he lunged at the beast.