I stumbled out of the portal and fell to my hands and knees, struggling to catch my balance.

I was blinded.

Light. White and brighter than anything I had yet felt in this world, filled my vision. I squeezed my eyes shut. Bloody hell, that’s bright. I waited a heartbeat or two to allow the dancing afterimages that I could still see to fade. Then I opened my eyes to careful slits.

Green. Trees. Rocks.

That was what I saw. My heart thudded louder. I had done it. I had escaped Erebus’s dungeon and largely unscathed too.

I opened my eyes wider. The light, while still harsh and painful, was no longer blinding. I was standing at the mouth of a cave set high on the slope of a mountainside.

Below me, was a verdant expanse of green, a forest of tall trees. Oaks, redwoods, sequoia, and many more trees for which I had no names filled the horizon. In the far distance, I could see more mountaintops, cradling the forest on all sides.

I am in a valley. The dire wolves’ home.

I had made it. I was safe. Or was I? Multiple messages from the Game were waiting for my attention. Turning my focus inwards, I scrolled through them.

You have completed the task: Escape the Dungeon and failed the task: Find your own way out. The Marks on your spirit signature have evolved.

You have escaped the dungeon by using the exit crafted by the Dark, yet in a manner wholly of your own making. The Dark is pleased by your pursuit of self and your refusal to bind yourself to any other Power—Shadow or Dark. Your Mark of Dark has deepened.

Shadow is disappointed by your refusal of the path offered by one of its Powers, yet it remains satisfied that your actions have not disturbed the balance further. You Mark of Shadow remains unchanged.

With the manner of your escape, you have scorned unity and pursuit of the greater good. Light is dissatisfied. Your Mark of Light has weakened.

The Wolf admires the strong. The Wolf acknowledges the leader, but at the same time the Wolf accepts no being as its master. You have refused to bow to any Power and held true to your lupine heritage. Wolf is pleased. Your Wolf Mark has deepened.

Congratulations, Michael! Your Wolf Mark has deepened sufficiently to evolve to a new state. You have acquired the Mark: Wolf-brethren. Most wolfkind will react favorably to this Mark and will welcome you into their packs as an honored guest, defending you as one of their own against outsiders, but still considering you as apart from their pack.

I paused the flow of messages as I considered their implications. My Wolf Mark had deepened. I wasn’t sure yet what this boded for me, but I was certain it was important. At the very least, it would ease my introduction to the dire wolf pack. With a thoughtful flick of the hand, I willed the messages to continue scrolling through my awareness.

You have entered sector 12,560. This area is part of the Forever Kingdom's wild borderlands. It is neutral territory unclaimed by any faction or Force. No additional restrictions apply to this region.

You have accomplished the feat: Novice Dungeoneer! Requirement: complete your first dungeon. You have been awarded an additional life!

You have entered into a non-aggression Pact with Erebus. For the duration of this Pact, neither you, nor Erebus may take hostile action against the other. Remaining Pact duration: 7 days.

I chewed over the messages, especially the last one. So I wasn’t safe. Not yet. And perhaps, I never would be.

Seven days, I thought. That’s how long I had before I could expect reprisals from Erebus. It was nice that I had gained another life, but I had no illusions that it would make any difference if the Master’s people found me.

I glanced behind me. The shimmering curtain was still there, glaringly visible in the surrounding darkness. I didn’t doubt Stayne was still on the other side of the portal, straining against the Pact that leashed his actions.

He will pursue me as soon as he can. I had to conclude my business in the valley quickly and be long gone before then. Shouldering the backpack into a more comfortable position, I stepped down the rocky slope in search of the dire wolves.

~~~

It was my intention to find Aira and Oursk again, and see what more I could learn of the ‘Wolf,’ as the Adjudicator so often referred to it—or him. I wasn’t quite sure what the Wolf was. It could be a being—another Power perhaps—or it could be metaphor for a path, a lupine way of life maybe.

I didn’t know which it was, but I knew I needed to find out. Some instinct was urging me onwards. It was important I sensed, and not just to my choice of Master Class. It could, I thought, determine my future on this world.

By now, I suspected I was different.

Apart even from other players. It was the only explanation I could come up for the attention Erebus, Loken, and Ishita had paid me. Why I was different remained a mystery, but I was sure that whatever it was about me that had prompted the Powers’ interest, it would not make my life easier.

I would have to play every angle I could to survive.

And that meant finding out about the Wolf and what it meant for me. I only hoped the dire wolves would be able to enlighten me.

I skipped down the slope, jumping lightly from boulder to boulder. While the cave was high up in the mountains, the descent to the bottom of the valley was gradual enough to be manageable without climbing gear. I had no real destination in mind yet. All I knew of the dire wolf pack was what Aira and Oursk had told me, that this valley was their home. I suspected that if I ventured far enough into the valley, the wolves would find me. And with my new wolf-brethren Mark, I had every hope the encounter would be peaceful.

I reached the bottom of the mountainside without incident. Standing on the edge of the forest, I studied the trees arching high over, and glanced left and right. The woods extended in both directions as far as the eye could see. From what I had observed from the cave mouth, I knew it filled the entire expanse of the valley too.

The forest was not silent either. Insects chirped, birds sang, strange hoots sounded, and eerie howls emanated from within. All in all, I much preferred the mountains at my back. Still there was no going back. I sighed. Onwards, Michael. I took a tentative step forward.

A branch crackled underfoot.

I froze and glanced at the ground askance. Twigs and fallen leaves littered the forest floor. Huh. Sneaking here isn’t going to be easy. Holding my pose, I stared into the forest depths. The longer I looked the more uneasy I grew. I got the distinct feeling that whoever I’d been in my past life, I had been no woodsman.

I sighed again. No time but like the present to learn. After all, I couldn’t very well follow the path of the wolf and be afraid of a forest, now, could I?

I’m not afraid, I thought stubbornly. Pulling the shadows around me, I stepped into the forest’s depths.

~~~

A hostile entity has detected you! You are no longer hidden.

I bit off a groan at the Game message. The hostile entity in question was a level one squirrel scolding me from the tree above. I glanced upwards in a parting scowl before moving on.

Treading softly in the forest was even harder than I suspected. I didn’t let it dissuade me though and kept at it. But even at what I thought of as my high skill level—rank four—I kept dropping out of stealth almost as soon as I cloaked myself.

It has to be the light, I thought squinting suspiciously upwards at the sunlight filtering down between the trees. But it was more than that, I knew. It was the environment itself. The forest isn’t as conducive to sneaking as dank, dark tunnels, I thought morosely.

The animals moving unseen through the foliage weren’t helping either. I knew they were there. With simple mindsight, I was able to see the dozens of tiny minds scurrying through the nearby underbrush, flitting through the trees overhead, and even digging in the earth beneath.

I had even charmed a few. Not that it helped train my telepathy any. Most of the surrounding animals’ levels were far below my own, netting me nearly no experience. And leaving my mindsight continually open drained my psi even faster than my single-cast abilities. Simple mindsight, I realized, was not an ability I could use for scouting, at least not for extended forays.

As full of life as this bloody forest is, at least I won’t go hungry, I though grouchily and stomped deeper into the underbrush. The leaves rustled overhead. I paid them no mind. Probably another damned squirrel.

A heavy weight landed across my shoulders. Alarm flashed through me, before instinct kicked in and I fell forward into a somersault. Claws raked at me through my leather armor as my maneuver flung the attacker off. Not a squirrel then, I thought inanely.

I bounced back to my feet. Drawing both my blades, I spun around. A shape flashed through the air—a four-footed creature of some kind.

I ducked.

The beast sailed over. I was about to whip around, when another blur of motion caught my attention.

Another attacker.

I crossed my blades in guard position a second before the creature’s jaw snapped for my throat. Stymied, the beast dropped to floor and darted forward to nip at my legs.

I kicked the creature in the mouth and thrust my shortsword, spider’s bite, downwards. I still couldn’t quite tell what the damn thing was. It’s skin—scales really—were mottled shades of brown and green. Perfect camouflage for the forest. The beast, whatever it was, seemed a weird combination of serpent and cat.

Webbed triggered! An unknown assailant has failed a physical resistance check! You have immobilized your target for 1 second.

As my enchanted sword made contact with my foe’s skull, magical webs spun out of the blade to wreathe the creature.

I didn’t waste the opportunity.

Leaping forward, I straddled the beast and plunged my second blade deep into the snake-cat’s throat. The life drained out of its eyes.

You have killed an unknown assailant.

I sensed movement on my flank—my original attacker rejoining the fray. The creature was sprinting towards me. Releasing the blade that was still buried in the dead beast, I flung up my left arm. The creature ignored my upraised hand entirely and leapt through the air to bridge the distance between us.

I drew psi from my mind and sent it rippling down my hand and directly into the beast as it crashed into me. In an instant, paralyzing energy flooded the creature’s muscles, locking it in place.

An unknown assailant has failed a physical resistance check! You have stunned your target for 1 second.

The beast bowled me over and I fell backwards onto the soft earth. The next instant, the breath was knocked out of me as the creature landed atop me. I had been expecting the collision though, and managed to keep hold of spider’s bite.

Before the dazed creature could recover, I slapped my left hand to its side again, freezing it with stunning slap once more. Then I stabbed into the scaled beast.

Once. Twice.

The beast’s paralysis faded and it mewed pitifully as it felt the bite of my sword. Weakly it tried to clamp its jaws around my throat. I fended off the feeble attack with my left hand and slashed at it again with the sword in my right. I kept at it, stabbing repeatedly. With each fresh attack, I tore gaping holes through the creature. Finally, the Game notice I had been waiting for arrived.

You have killed an unknown assailant.

With a sigh, I abandoned my frenzied attack and let my head rest on the soft grass. Chest heaving, I stared up into the silently watching trees. It was over. There were more messages awaiting my attention, and I perused them while I waited for waited for my adrenaline to subside.

You have reached level 24!

Your shortswords has increased to level 39. Your two-weapon fighting has increased to level 34. Your light armor has increased to level 24. Your chi has increased to level 21.

Long seconds later, I felt recovered enough to move again. I shoved the corpse off me. The damn thing was heavy, but eventually I freed my trapped legs, and rested my back against a nearby tree trunk.

Looking down, I took stock of myself. I hadn’t sustained any significant injures, nothing more than a few scratches. Despite the suddenness of the ambush, I had weathered the attack surprisingly well.

Still, I was covered in blood and gore, and I was sure I stank too. I wiped the blood off my face, grimacing in distaste as my hand came back wet and dripping. Cleaning off was going to be a chore.

“Bloody hell,” I muttered. “I hate this forest already.”