Kade stared at the fire and the fish grilling above. He decided to think about other matters so that he didn't get frustrated, such as if this animal was edible.

If things tasted how they looked, then the fish would be delicious. The issue was that it was colorful, which, on Earth, often meant poisonous or toxic in some way.

It would have benefitted them to study the fish's anatomy before throwing it over the fire, but his teammates were soldiers, not survivalists. So he tried not to blame them for being hasty. That being said, he had no intentions of being the first to take a bite.

Soon enough, the skin darkened and all six fish were pulled from the fire. Being soldiers, they were all deft with knives to a certain extent which helped to flay the skin back.

Kade bisected the fish and removed any bones, but didn't eat. Rather, he focused on the others. He had already warned that the fish might be toxic so he had no guilt in watching them devour the meat.

Truthfully, this was an issue that they could only solve through pain and discomfort. Transporting food back for testing just to see if it was edible wasn't practical, and as long as they ingested small quantities, it was unlikely that they would die. By normal standards, that is.

The others were ravenous, scarfing down their dinner in minutes. An hour passed before Kade decided to eat. In a perfect situation, it would be better to wait close to 24 hours, but he was too hungry. The moment the meat hit his tongue, he understood why the others ate so quickly. It was incredibly tasty!

The fish was just enough to settle his stomach. He disposed of the skin and bones before rejoining the group. It was decided that they would rest for the day. This way, they could formulate a plan, experiment, and possibly even train a bit.

Kade pulled his bag over and began distributing the random things he picked up throughout the day. He took a large teal flower for himself. It looked like a Gardenia crossed with a dahlia flower and had hints of a deep purple color when the light hit it just right.

"What's all this?" Paul asked as he gestured to the random junk everyone held.

"Stuff I picked up to study." Kade said without taking his eyes off the flower.

"What the hell for?" Paul asked before tossing the rock in his hand toward Kade's feet "I ain't no rock scientist, but I can tell that it's a rock. Plenty of 'em on Earth."

Kade shot him a sidelong glance while maintaining a stoic expression. The snarkiness didn't bother him, but the fact that his teammate was so complacent with ignorance did.

"Yeah, true." However, he didn't want to play chess with a pigeon, so he just agreed before returning his attention to the flower.

His concentration was broken momentarily when the others tossed theirs back, but he shrugged it off and returned to the flower. He stayed immersed in the petals until his concentration was broken once again, this time by Victor nudging him.

"Hey, show them your Altaris." He said expectantly.

"Haa." Kade sighed lightly before gently placing the flower down and raising his hand. moments later, a relatively thick mist covered his hand and spiraled around it.

His teammate's expressions changed a few times before Dallas spoke.

"How are you so good at it compared to us?"

"Practice." Kade flipped his hand and manipulated the altaris "Honestly, I thought you all could at least cover your hand too."

Dallas looked away in embarrassment "We learned a bit about it, but it was way too difficult. High-level warriors can coat their weapons, but for newbies like us, even releasing a little is praise-worthy.

Kade's brows furrowed. Was that true? Releasing altaris was difficult in the beginning, but it would become easier the more one practiced. Perhaps intelligence could play a factor in his ease, but some of the other mages had a less than 10 in intelligence and still managed to shroud their hand, though the mist wasn't as thick as his.

He closed his fist as the altaris returned to his body. "Maybe it has something to do with my class, but I think practice and understanding help too."

"Do you think you could teach us?" Chelsea spoke up, her eyes twinkling.

Kade glanced at her "Possibly. How do gunners use altaris, and how much do you know about releasing it?"

"Early on, we can use it to propel the bullet instead of gunpowder. It increases the velocity. And, I was taught to feel altaris in my body and try to push it out."

Kade couldn't help but facepalm once again. Either her teacher sucked, or she was a bad student. He raised his hand and stuck out his finger "It's like a river. The water flows in a channel, and if you redirect the channel, the water will follow."

his finger was quickly shrouded in altaris again "Using that concept, you can direct your altaris to any part of your body and it becomes simple to release it, even by force."

He demonstrated this by emitting altaris from each finger, one at a time, before shrouding his entire hand again. Finally, he absorbed it back and looked at Chelsea. He found that she was looking at him as if he was a freak.

"Uh, you make it sound so easy..."

"Is it not?" He raised a brow.

"No." She shook her head "It's hard enough to cultivate, and just circulating my altaris takes all of my concentration."

He was slightly confused. From his knowledge, such basic control of altaris was a requirement for champions, but none of his teammates could manage it and they had all been qualified. However, it might be his own ignorance. He couldn't know until he understood the dangers and their skill.

He brushed off his apprehension and gave a few more tips before deciding to practice his control of altaris. By this point, his progression had slowed quite a bit, but he knew that practicing would pay off in the long run.

He even volunteered to take the first night watch in order to practice longer. He wasn't able to devote as much focus, but circulating his altaris would serve his cultivation and his familiarity nonetheless.

He scanned the darkness, as a cacophony of sounds rang out, even to the point of drowning the crackling of the low fire. The chirps of insects and howls of larger creatures seemed endless. It was as if the planet came alive at night, and completely incomparable to his experience earlier in the day.

His body tensed. The darkness combined with the creature's fracas created an eerie atmosphere that grated on his nerves. He felt as if he was a child again, watching a scary movie at midnight.

Now he understood that this new world wasn't as lifeless as the daytime had led him to believe. This was a completely unknown land and the dangers extend beyond the toxicity of food. He couldn't allow the beauty and seeming serenity to lull him into complacency.

Unfortunately, his efficiency in cultivation dropped due to his nerves as he was increasing his concentration on keeping watch. At this point, he was just counting the minutes until they changed shifts. The sooner he could get to sleep, the sooner the night would end.

By the time his shift was over, his nerves were completely shot. He shook Julian awake roughly.

"Ugh, w-what," Julian sat up groggily "The hell. Don't be so rough."

"Whatever man, my bad." Kade said as his eyes stayed locked onto the dark perimeter "Your turn on watch." He was over this shit.

"Damn, fine..." Julian grumbled as he stood up.

Kade wasted no time in laying down, draping his sleeping bag over himself. Unfortunately, even as tired as he was he struggled to fall asleep.

...

Kade was roused from his sleep, jerking himself into a sitting position with his knife in hand.

"Woah there." Victor said as he recoiled "Calm down, it's all good man."

Kade glanced around nervously for a moment before the tension left his body and grogginess overcame him.

"Nightmares?"

Kade tilted his head as he rubbed his eyes "Something like that."

After clearing the gunk from his eyes, he eyed his teammates. His gaze landed on Julian who looked a bit tense, and he felt relieved. As they say, misery loves company. He was happy to know that he wasn't the only one freaked out by the nightlife on this planet.

The team gathered in the center and spent a few minutes silently, allowing themselves some time to wake up fully. Dallas was the one to break the silence.

"I guess we will see if we can find something to hunt today."

"I don't remember seein' many critters yesterday. Hell, I was surprised that Chelsea found fish." Paul replied

"Julian, you went scouting yesterday. Did you spot any animals?"

Julian's bloodshot eyes darted to Dallas "One or two, but there are a lot out there. I can promise you that..." His voice was slightly hoarse.

"Oookay. Well, we will go hunting then."

No one rushed. The days would be long and pacing themselves was for the best. It wasn't until the sun rose and it became warmer that they finally moved. They would be returning, so they stashed their extra gear to reduce weight before heading out.

Kade made sure to start a map and made markings as they traveled. Occasionally he would swap notebooks and jot down a few lines before returning to cartography. It was difficult to spread his awareness amongst multiple things, but he felt it necessary.

Thankfully, the others only had to focus on the surroundings and he was able to follow their lead when needed. When they stopped, he did as well.

"Two o'Clock," Julian whispered

Kade squinted and managed to spot a large silhouette between the trees. Because of the change in lighting caused by the tree canopy he couldn't make out what it was, only a general shape.

"Vic will approach from the front. Paul and I will flank it. Julian and Chelsea, you two prepare for an opportune moment to attack." Dallas turned to Kade "You said you have a freezing spell, so try to restrict it so we can get a clean barrage in."

Kade nodded. Everyone moved as stealthily as possible and managed to surround the creature. Kade was now within twenty meters of the creature and finally got a good look at what they were targetting. It was unlike anything he had ever seen before.

It had a similar body shape to a large deer, but more muscular. Its head was closer to that of a bear, and instead of hooves, there were three large and hairy talons at the end of each leg. The final eyecatcher was the tail. It was long, thin, and split into two halfway down. The tips flared out almost like hairy fins.

He couldn't decide if it was freaky or badass.

Focusing on the mission, he channeled his altaris and manipulated it, causing a light blue trace to appear. A sphere of ice formed above his palm, which he maintained while staring at the creature. He waited, both to give his teammates time to prepare and to find the most opportune moment.

The creature snapped its head up and looked ahead. 'Now!' Kade fired his spell while it was distracted. The spell flew fast, and at a distance of twenty meters, it took less than a second to strike the creature.

The sound of an ice cube being shattered rang out as the sphere struck the shoulder of the creature and exploded. Ice coated the front part of the creature and more began to form, thickening the layer.

The creature panicked and tried to move but the struck leg was frozen, causing it to stumble. Dallas and Paul appeared from the flora with blades in hand and swung at the creature. One blade landed on the creature's back, causing a laceration. The other struck the ice, carving out a sizeable chunk and causing a crack to form.

Kade frowned. 'Damnit, Paul!' He thought as he immediately began preparing another freeze in anticipation.

A gunshot rang out, followed by a guttural roar from the creature. Its struggles became frenzied, its body bucking like an angry bull. It only took a moment for it to shatter the ice that was binding its right leg and regain its mobility.

Dallas, intent on continuing his assault, swung again. However, his balance faltered as his right leg was pulled out from under him by the tail of the creature. As it controlled Dallas with its tail, it attempted to maul Paul, who barely managed to fend it off before Victor entered the fray to save him.

Kade's eyes darted over the battle as he quickly analyzed his options. The creature had entered a standstill with the three melee fighters. It seemed to be rather tough as its wounds didn't seem to slow it down at all. However, as chaotic as the situation was, his teammates were holding on with Chelseas' timely support.

If he and Julian could coordinate properly, there was a chance to turn the battle in their favor. He took his eyes away from the battle and looked for Julian, finding him skulking closer as an assassin should. He was waiting for the right moment too.

Kade closed the distance, his eyes darting between the creature and the assassin as he thumbed the ice ball in his hand. He didn't have infinite altaris, so he had to make every cast count. Otherwise, he would be raining ice continuously.

The moment came. Julian had approached unnoticed, and the creature reared up as it swiped both front limbs at Victor. Julian burst forward, aiming his dagger at the creature's underbelly. As the blade buried itself, the creature twisted in pain and stood higher, trying to lift itself off the blade.

Julian pulled back before thrusting again. Before the attack hit, the creature swung its talons at his face. Unfortunately, he was committed, and withdrawing his thrust would only result in a loss. Thankfully, an iceball struck the creature at the opportune moment, drastically decreasing the speed of the talons.

Julian finished his attack before lowering his body and darting away as the deer bear stumbled. Both of its front limbs were coated in a layer of ice, reducing its flexibility drastically and locking its front legs in place. It bounced on its hind legs in panic.

Dallas, Paul, and Victor didn't waste the opportunity. They immediately charged in and attacked relentlessly. Even Chelsea fired off a barrage of bullets, landing a few shots on its head and neck.

Kade wasn't idle. He had already prepared another ice ball. If the creature fell down, the ice on its legs would probably shatter so he would refreeze it. However, the moment came sooner than he expected. Surprisingly, the creature managed to break free from the ice with sheer force.

That was the good thing about being prepared, he simply fired out his spell and immediately refroze the beast. Alas, anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

The creature immediately counteracted the spell in its rage. Its strength and energy seemed to have spiked as if it had entered a second phase. His freeze spell could only momentarily hinder it now.

"Tsk." Kade clicked his tongue as he dashed forward while preparing another spell. When he was close enough he shouted. "Close your eyes!" Then a moment later, a bright light flashed from his hand.

Still charging, he opened his eyes and focused on the joint of the creature. Trusting his spell, he entered its attack range and struck out with his knife. The tip dug into the soft flesh and he realized just how difficult it was to damage this creature. It took all of his strength just to get the blade in a little.

He finally understood why physical champions were deemed qualified even without releasing their altaris. It was because they had focused on fortifying their muscles for increased strength by nourishing them with altaris!

Regardless, it was still early and he had methods for supplementing his strength. It was Victor that gave him the chance by ramming his shoulder into the creature and disrupting its balance. At that moment, Kade released the knife and spun his body before kicking the butt of the knife.

"Awroooooaaar"

It roared out before toppling over, landing on its side for the first time in the battle. Kade smirked. He had targetted the joint in its hind leg, and as long as the knife stayed lodged inside it would greatly hinder the creature's mobility.

It was a good attack that allowed him to be useful without expending much altaris, but this shouldn't have been his job. Regardless, it worked. He backpedaled and roused his altaris again, ready to start a spell at any moment.

Consecutive gunshots rang out as Chelsea emptied her clip. Now that the creature was immobile for a moment, she was able to keep a tight pattern, inflicting significant damage. Even so, the creature displayed unnatural tenacity by fighting against the pain and bloodloss to scramble into an unsteady stance.

It was far more damaged than before, but it only became more frenzied and dangerous like any other wounded animal when backed into a corner. Even with limited mobility, it managed to cause quite a bit of damage to the team.

Blood filled the air as it fought against the six. By the time it had reached the end of its rope, Victor was kneeling in pain. It had repeatedly broken his defense and tore him up pretty good. Dallas and Paul both had some grotesque wounds too, but they were better off.

Kade panted, having nearly depleted his altaris. He had enough for one more spell. Chelsea had slowed her support quite a bit, likely in a bid to conserve ammo. Julian was in the best shape, as he rarely attacked and always did so from a blind spot. Even so, he had a wound or two.

"Light the fuckin' thing up!" Paul shouted at Kade

"I'm nearly out of altaris. I only have enough for one more spell!" Kade replied.

"The use it on a damn fireball and roast this thing!"

"Tsk." He clicked his tongue. The creature was already on its last leg and would likely bleed out in less than two minutes. Wasting the last of his altaris would only lower their reward and increase the danger.

"What are you waiting for?! Do it!" He screamed.

Kade didn't act. He wouldn't do something stupid at the behest of an ignorant teammate. Though, if Dallas ordered it, then he would respect his leadership, but he didn't.

Ignoring Paul's tirade, he kept his eyes locked on the creature and watched its eyes dull as its consciousness faded. Still, he waited, as did the others. They weren't sure if it was the creature's ruse, but time would tell. And after waiting over five minutes without seeing its chest rise, they were confident enough.

"It's finally dead. Thank fuck..." Dallas said in relief while letting his shoulders droop.

Everyone took a break, except Kade who assisted Victor with his wounds. They were too exhausted to do anything else, but it didn't matter. That had won.