Bug was the narrator this time, his high-pitched chitter echoing off the endless stone.
"Nyxar wanted to see if the big furry hammer could smash bones as well as it scares me. Answer? Yes. Always yes."
Days Without Days
Time had no meaning in the endless underground. There was no sunrise, only the steady drip of water and the flick of violet runes when Nyxar summoned his Steel Bear for sparring practice.
Bug kept count.
"Skeleton number twenty-three? Crunch. Number twenty-four? Folded like old parchment. I'm running out of adjectives."
The Steel Bear dominated every test. Skeletons became gravel. Old bound creatures—lesser shades and buzzing pests—were tossed aside like children's toys.
Nyxar watched each match with quiet satisfaction, carving strips of raw meat from a nameless carcass and chewing without hurry.
"Strong. Heavy. Good."
Bug hovered nervously. Strong enough to eat me, he thought, wisely keeping that observation private.
"New Thing Found"
After an unmeasured stretch of cave-time, Bug zipped into Nyxar's line of sight, wings frantic.
"New thing found!"
Nyxar finished the last bite of meat and wiped a streak of blood from his glove.
"Where."
Bug darted ahead without another word. Nyxar rose, cloak whispering over stone, and followed.
The Abandoned Mine
They arrived at a cavern carved long ago by miners—wooden supports half-rotted, rails buried under dust. The air carried a faint green scent, impossibly out of place.
Nyxar's eyes, well accustomed to blackness, caught movement: a tall, slender figure fused with shadow, perfectly still.
He crouched and summoned the Grimarca Noctem with a thought. Pages rippled open like a quiet storm.
One skeleton stepped forward.
It didn't even make a sound before the figure moved.
A flash—two strokes of blinding speed—and the skeleton fell neatly into five precise pieces, each cut smoother than glass.
Bug squeaked. "Fast!"
The book glowed: One skeleton destroyed.
Nyxar's voice was mild. "Hmm. Fast and deadly. We need a good place to end it."
Bug the Scout
Bug zipped in small anxious circles. "Passage… passage… yes! Follow me!"
Nyxar called three more skeletons but left them crouched in waiting. He followed Bug through a tight corridor that looped behind the creature's position. The scent of moss grew stronger—a strange, fresh note in the eternal rock.
The Ambush
Nyxar lifted a hand. The Grimarca's runes blazed.
Three skeletons lunged from the corridor's far end, bones clacking like a dozen castanets.
The tall creature reacted instantly. Its elongated limbs blurred, sword-like pincers cleaving the attackers into perfect halves.
"Efficient," Nyxar murmured.
Bug muttered, "I hate efficient."
Before the final bone even clattered, Nyxar summoned the Steel Bear. Shadows thickened, mana draining like water from a cracked jar.
The cavern trembled as the massive beast appeared, fur glinting silver.
With a single, ground-shaking stride, the bear barreled forward.
The mantis barely turned before a paw the size of a boulder flattened it against the cavern wall with a wet, echoing KRUNK.
Silence, then the faint hiss of green sap on stone.
Inked Victory
The Grimarca hovered, pages scrawling fresh runes:
Three skeletons destroyed.
New Creature Gained: Prain Mantis.
Bug zipped closer to read aloud, his voice wobbling.
"Another new creature! And it's… planty?"
Nyxar watched the fading green smear where the creature had been.
"Fast," he said. "Sharp. Good addition."
Bug tilted his head, wings flicking. "You're building a very pointy family."
Nyxar glanced at him with that unreadable half-smile.
"Variety matters."
Bug gave an exaggerated shiver. "Next time, maybe find something that bakes bread instead of cuts skeletons into origami?"
Nyxar only raised the book. The Steel Bear rumbled once, satisfied, before melting back into ink and shadow.
Somewhere in the darkness, Bug sighed.
"Another day, another monster that could turn me into soup. At least he feeds me crumbs of meat. Probably."
The cave fell silent again, but the Grimarca's new glyph glowed faint green, as if even the ink now smelled faintly of leaves and blood.