The city was alive with noise.
Cars moved through the streets, people walked along the sidewalks, and the late afternoon sun painted the buildings in warm orange light.
Among the crowd, five figures moved together through the busy streets.
Gared walked in front.
The others followed close behind him.
They had been searching for almost an hour.
But Roger was nowhere to be found.
Austin sighed loudly.
"This is pointless."
Daniel glanced around the street.
"He said he'd see me soon. That has to mean something."
Ryan shoved his hands into his pockets as they walked.
"Yeah… but it doesn't tell us where to look."
Usher quietly sipped the coffee he had bought a few minutes earlier.
His eyes moved across the street, watching the people passing by.
"Maybe he's still somewhere in the city."
Austin shook his head.
"That guy barely understands this world. You really think he's walking around buying food or something?"
Daniel scratched the back of his head.
"…Good point."
They continued walking.
Street after street.
Block after block.
Still nothing.
Then suddenly—
Gared slowed down.
The others noticed immediately.
Ryan looked at him.
"What is it?"
Gared didn't answer right away.
Instead, he looked down at his wrist.
The mark of Zendara faintly glowed beneath his sleeve.
"I don't know," Gared said quietly.
"But something feels strange."
Austin raised an eyebrow.
"Strange how?"
Gared looked toward the end of the street.
Beyond the buildings, the land slowly darkened.
Trees could be seen rising in the distance.
The forest outside the city.
Gared stared at it for a moment.
Then he spoke.
"Let's go there."
Ryan frowned.
"The forest?"
Gared nodded slowly.
"I have a feeling."
Daniel looked at the others.
"Well… we've got nothing better."
Austin cracked his knuckles.
"Fine by me. At least something interesting might happen out there."
Usher finished his coffee and tossed the empty cup into a nearby bin.
"Then let's go."
The five of them left the crowded streets behind.
Step by step, the sounds of the city faded.
Cars disappeared.
Voices vanished.
Soon, only the wind remained.
And ahead of them, the forest waited.
Dark.
Silent.
Watching.
None of them realized it yet, but their search for Roger was about to become something far more dangerous.
The forest greeted them with cold air.
Tall trees surrounded the narrow path, their branches blocking most of the fading sunlight.
The deeper they walked, the quieter the world became.
No birds.
No insects.
Only the soft sound of their footsteps on the dry leaves.
Ryan looked around uneasily.
"Okay… this place is definitely creepy."
Austin pushed a branch aside as they moved forward.
"It's just a forest."
Usher stopped walking.
Something about the silence bothered him.
"Do you hear that?"
Daniel frowned.
"Hear what?"
Usher looked around slowly.
"That's the problem."
"There's nothing to hear."
Gared suddenly slowed down.
The mark on his wrist began to glow faintly beneath his sleeve.
He stopped walking.
The others noticed immediately.
"What is it?" Ryan asked.
Gared stared ahead between the trees.
"I think…"
His voice lowered.
"…we're not alone."
Then the air changed.
A strange vibration moved through the forest.
Like the world itself had taken a breath.
Austin turned quickly.
"Did you feel that?"
Before anyone could answer, the space between two trees twisted.
The air cracked.
Like glass breaking.
A dark tear opened in the middle of the forest.
A gate.
Black energy leaked from the opening like smoke.
The temperature dropped instantly.
Daniel took a step back.
"What… is that?"
The gate pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Then something moved inside.
A pair of glowing eyes appeared in the darkness.
Low.
Hungry.
Watching them.
Ryan swallowed slowly.
"Guys…"
"Tell me I'm not the only one seeing that."
The creature stepped out.
Its body was twisted and unnatural.
Long claws.
Black skin that looked like stone.
And eyes that burned with cold light.
Then another one emerged.
And another.
And another.
The creatures spread through the trees, surrounding them.
Austin cracked his knuckles.
"Well…"
He smiled slightly.
"…this just got interesting."
Gared stepped forward.
His eyes hardened.
"Everyone…"
He raised his arm.
The mark of Zendara ignited.
"Get ready."
The creatures began to move.
Slowly at first.
Then faster.
Their claws scraped against the ground as they circled the five of them between the trees.
Low growls echoed through the forest.
Ryan swallowed.
"Okay… I think they're definitely hostile."
Austin stepped forward.
"Good."
He cracked his knuckles.
"I was getting bored anyway."
Gared raised his arm.
The mark on his wrist ignited with bright green light.
"Zendara!"
The shard appeared above his wrist once more, spinning as waves of energy spread through the air.
Then he shouted,
"Zendara… Unite!"
Four beams of light shot outward.
They struck Usher, Austin, Ryan, and Daniel.
Energy spiraled around their bodies.
Their clothes dissolved into glowing particles.
In a flash of light, the Guardians of Sentera appeared once more.
Austin stepped forward first.
Flames ignited around his hands.
"Alright, ugly things…"
He grinned.
"Let's dance."
One of the creatures lunged forward.
Austin fired a burst of flames that struck it in the chest, throwing it backward into a tree.
Another creature rushed from the side.
"Left!" Gared shouted.
Usher reacted instantly.
A wave of water blasted forward, smashing the creature into the ground.
"Ryan, the ground!" Gared ordered.
Ryan slammed his hand against the soil.
Roots burst from the earth, grabbing two creatures and pulling them down.
Daniel soared above the battlefield.
Wind spiraled around him as he launched sharp currents of air toward the monsters below.
For a moment, the team fought perfectly together.
But suddenly everything stopped.
The smaller creatures froze.
Then they slowly stepped aside.
Gared's eyes narrowed.
"…Something's wrong."
The gate behind them expanded.
Dark energy poured from it like smoke.
The forest trembled.
And then—
something stepped out.
It was much larger than the others.
Nearly three meters tall.
Its body looked like black armor fused with living flesh.
Long blades extended from its arms.
And its eyes burned with cold purple light.
Ryan whispered,
"…That thing attacked Roger."
The creature moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
It struck Austin and sent him crashing through a tree.
Daniel attacked from above, but the creature swatted him aside like an insect.
Usher launched a torrent of water—
but it cut straight through it.
Ryan's vines wrapped around its legs.
They snapped instantly.
Gared stepped forward.
Energy gathered in his hand.
He fired a blast of green power—
but the creature barely moved.
It slowly looked at him.
Then raised its arm to strike.
Suddenly—
a flash of steel cut through the air.
The creature staggered back.
A familiar voice echoed through the forest.
"You're wasting your strength."
The five of them turned.
Standing between the trees was Roger.
His sword gleamed faintly in the fading light.
He looked at the Guardians calmly.
"You cannot defeat it separately."
His eyes moved toward Gared.
"Lead them."
Gared understood immediately.
He stepped forward.
"Daniel… Usher. Freeze the smaller ones."
Daniel grinned.
"Finally."
He shot into the air as wind spiraled around his body. Hovering above the battlefield, he spread his arms and unleashed a powerful blast of freezing wind.
A violent gust rushed across the clearing, slowing the creatures and locking their movements.
At the same moment, Usher stepped forward.
Water gathered around his arms like a swirling river.
Then he thrust both hands forward.
A massive cannon of water erupted from his palms, crashing into the creatures.
The freezing wind and water collided, instantly trapping several monsters in thick layers of ice.
"Ryan!" Gared shouted.
"Break them!"
Ryan knelt and placed his hand against the ground.
"Alright… let's try this."
The earth trembled beneath them.
Chunks of rock tore themselves from the soil and floated into the air around him.
Ryan lifted his hand.
The stones shot forward like meteors.
Crash.
The frozen monsters shattered instantly.
Their bodies broke apart like glass before dissolving into dark smoke.
For a moment, the smaller creatures were gone.
But the large creature still stood.
Its massive form towered over Roger as they exchanged blows.
Steel clashed against black armor.
Gared stepped forward.
He raised his hand and fixed his eyes on Austin.
"Fire."
Austin looked at him in surprise.
"Me?"
Before anyone could say anything, Gared shouted,
"Everyone!"
The five Guardians raised their hands together.
Energy gathered between them.
Green.
Red.
Blue.
Silver.
Emerald.
Their powers collided and fused into a single blazing sphere of energy.
"Release!"
The beam exploded forward.
A massive wave of combined power tore across the clearing and slammed into the giant creature.
Boom.
The monster was thrown backward through several trees before crashing violently into the forest floor.
Dust and shattered wood filled the air.
For a moment, everything was silent.
Then the creature slowly stood.
It wiped dark energy from its armor-like skin.
A twisted smile spread across its face.
"…Impressive."
Its glowing eyes studied them.
"Not bad at all."
"But this…"
Dark energy began gathering around its body.
"…is only the beginning."
A gate of black energy opened behind it.
Before anyone could move, the creature stepped backward into the darkness.
And vanished.
The gate closed.
The forest fell silent again.
Roger lowered his sword and looked at the Guardians.
"Well done."
Daniel landed beside him, folding his arms.
"Where were you?"
"We've been looking everywhere for you."
Roger nodded slightly.
"My apologies."
"I was searching for something."
Gared stepped closer.
"Those creatures…"
"What are they?"
"And that giant one?"
Roger's expression grew serious.
"That creature…"
"…is called Zerath."
Ryan blinked.
"Wait—what?"
Roger continued.
"And the smaller ones…"
He looked toward the place where the gate had opened.
"They are known as Abyss Crawlers."
"Shadow beasts born from corrupted worlds."
"They are nothing more than soldiers."
Ryan rubbed the back of his neck.
"Well… they were terrifying enough."
Roger looked at them calmly.
"You have not seen true terror yet."
Gared finally sighed.
"Alright."
"Let's return to the city."
He looked at Roger.
"And don't disappear again."
"We need answers."
Roger bowed his head slightly.
"Do not worry."
"I am here to serve you, Guardians."
"I was sent by the Sages."
For a moment, none of them spoke.
The forest was quiet again.
Too quiet.
Broken trees lay scattered across the ground where the battle had taken place.
Ryan looked around nervously.
"…Did that really just happen?"
Austin kicked a broken branch aside.
"Yeah. And next time, I'm burning that thing before it even gets close."
Daniel stretched his arms as the wind slowly calmed around him.
"Well… at least now we know one thing."
Usher glanced at him.
"And what is that?"
Daniel shrugged.
"We're definitely not normal students anymore."
Gared said nothing.
He looked down at the mark on his wrist.
The shard of Zendara glowed faintly beneath his sleeve.
For a brief moment, it pulsed.
As if responding to something far away.
Roger noticed it.
His expression darkened slightly.
"Gared…"
But he stopped himself.
"…It is nothing."
Gared looked up.
"Nothing?"
Roger turned toward the dark forest behind them.
"We should return to the city."
"The night will not be safe."
The five Guardians exchanged looks.
Then they began walking back toward the city.
None of them noticed that, high above the trees, two glowing eyes were watching them from the darkness.
The hunt had only just begun.