"LET'S DO THIS."

We charge into the fray. There is a sea of rotten faces. Decaying creatures— former people, killed to spread this disease that is permeating Utana. They have been sent down to this world by Idu to bring it to its knees: to lead it to destruction.

But we shall not let it happen. The Keepers of the Grove have repelled an otherworlder invader once— we shall do it again.

I crash into the center of the Zombie horde like a comet falling from the sky. The ground breaks open to form a large crater— a divot in the city, ripping apart streets from the impact alone. There is a ripple in the ocean of Zombies. A shockwave knocks them back as a small tremor shakes the earth where I land.

I look up with a smile, and their broken heads turn to face me.

“Greetings,” I say and take a wide stance. “Now goodbye.”

And I leap back into the air as the earth erupts beneath my feet. The outpouring of dirt and rubble forms tendrils that streak out into the hordes of Zombies, sweeping them back. They shriek in response. Not out of terror, but out of anger. A mindless battle cry that rallies their numbers.

However, I do not bother cutting them down. My job here is to evacuate the survivors of Warmthkeep. And that is what I am doing. I continue digging up the ground, expending Qi to manipulate the earth as a figure emerges from behind the Zombies. At first, they do not notice him.

They are too preoccupied with me to notice the flashing of light. They cannot sense his aura, but those at the rear of the horde can feel his blade sinking into their back. The Bladewielder charges forward with no fear. Kalmat, leader of the Keepers of the Grove, rips through the lines of Zombies.

Every moment that passes, another dozen Zombies fall. I look up, eyes glinting as I watch his Aspect flicker in the distance. As he draws closer and closer to where I am at. And with each Zombie he kills, they begin to take notice of him. It is a compounding effect. At first, they barely notice the man. But eventually, the flow of Zombies begin to reverse.

They turn their fury to Kalmat as he yells out a challenge to them.

“You have plagued my world long enough! You all perish now!” he says as he thrusts his blade forward. “Sword of Esh!”

A glowing aura forms over his blade, merging with his Aspect. It creates a giant blade that he heaves up into the sky before crashing it back down. A blast of golden-black energy shoots out. Like three blades cutting into the swarm of undead.

That finally draws the last of them away from me. All the Zombies that came close to where I am digging have already been killed by the stone tendrils I created with Qi. Finally, I turn all my attention to digging up the earth until I get to the bunker.

The dirt opens up into a gaping hole. A small cave system lies at the bottom— no, not a cave system. It is entirely artificial, built with purpose beneath the city. There is garbage and trash and running water. I narrow my eyes, not recognizing what this is. But I do not care to analyze this construction. Instead, I yell down into the darkness even amidst the roar of battle up above.

“Survivors of Warmthkeep, gather around!” I call out as my voices echo down the tunnels.

My eyes glimmer as I invoke the School of Divination once again. I spot movement. I see the scared survivors of the destroyed city huddling back as far as they can away from me. I shake my head and leap into the water. It reaches up to my ankles, and I spread my arms wide. I tug at my Aura in my core, pulling it out as a pair of glowing wings unfurl in the shadows and light up the dark.

The dirty and muddy faces of a hundred children and dozens of women and elderly people are illuminated by my Aspect. They flinch at my sight. They cover their eyes and cower before me. I see the fear in their eyes. Even though I am not a Zombie, they are afraid. Something they do not understand have swept over their city and brought it to ruin. So of course they will not trust a strange woman descending from the ceiling.

I proffer my hand out to them as they shrink back.

“I am not your enemy. My name is Tian, and I am a member of the Keepers of the Grove,” I say as reassuringly as I can. “I am one of the ones who brought the end of Galgom’s reign. I am an ally, and I am here to save you.”

“How can we trust you? a scared voice replies. I glance to the left as an elderly man steps forward, raising a large rock over his head. “Those things… they took the bodies of our friends— of our families! How do we know you’re not one of them?”

I bite my lower lip. I think of a retort. Of something to say that can convince them. Then my eyes flicker. I hear the approaching footfalls and shakes her head.

“How?” I raise a hand and catch the falling Zombie. It thrashes in my hand as the elderly man backs up and drops the rock in fear. I glance up at the undead creature, snarling and trying to bite me. I raise a palm and land a quick blow to its chest. It convulses and drops motionless on the ground. “You don’t,” I say simply. “You will just have to trust me.”

For a moment, no one reacts. No one responds. I hear a whimper from further down the tunnel. I see the women backing up. Then a little boy runs forward. His sister quickly follows after. Dozens of children rush to my side, against the adults’ will. They begin crying— bawling their eyes’ out as they huddle around me.

“Please save us, Tian!”

“I want to go!”

“I don’t like it here!”

They cry and beg for me to set them free from this place. The adults hesitate for a moment, before following after them. The first group of survivors of Warmthkeep gather around me as I nod reassuringly.

“I will save you all,” I promise to them. “And I will ensure every last one of those Zombies are wiped off this world.”

With that, I carry the first dozen of the children and fly off back to Beihal, Seiled, and the others.