Vir followed his gaze and saw it as well. Not with his eyes—the monster was invisible—but through Prana Vision. Its prana signature was so strong it lit up like a beacon, even from this distance. A singularity of the blackest Ash prana hurtling to the city. It possessed neither form nor body, but Vir recognized it immediately.
“Prana Swarm…” Vir whispered, scarcely believing what he was seeing.
The bestiary had said that anything that ever came into contact with a Prana Swarm died. That it consumed anything and everything containing prana. That it was invincible. Balar 3,500 to 10,000. Threat level Cataclysmic.
This was a being that was only supposed to exist within the depths of the Ashen Realm, where the prana was dense enough to support it. It was a creature of legend, and from the existential dread that coursed through his body… he knew. He felt it in his veins.
I’ve died to this monster before…
“Listen closely, Ekavir. You were never supposed to enter this realm. This human realm. It was only by a twist of Fate that you were forced here. You must return to the Demon Realm,” Janak said, growing increasingly desperate as the Prana Swarm approached. “Only there will you fulfill your destiny. Seek the Pagan Order.”
“The Pagan—”
“Run, Ekavir! You cannot die here!”
Vir had a hundred more questions for Janak, but his survival instincts took over.
With heavy steps, Vir left the dazzling light of Valaka Amara behind him. An outpost of the gods that floated on its own island, deep under Daha. Vir knew he’d never see it again.
The activation of the city had flooded the entire cavern with Ash prana, and Vir used it to his advantage. He Leaped across the bridge, Ash prana rushing into his legs almost before he’d even thought to activate the ability.
Activating the ability continuously, he sped away faster than he ever had before. The bulk of the prana concentration lay with the city—the Prana Swarm would prioritize that before getting to him.
But the instant his boots left the bridge and touched the cavern, the city lights began winking out. And with it went its prana.
Vir’s eyes bulged. Was it a self-defense mechanism? Or was the city shutting down now that he’d left?
The Prana Swarm paused over the city, leeching its residual prana and draining the previously prana-filled cavern in an instant. The Prana Swam assimilated the prana, growing its incorporeal body as if snacking on food.
The worst part? Its meal barely even slowed it down before it pursued Vir through the tunnel, leaving the physical buildings untouched.
How does it know where I am? Can it see the prana inside me?
When he looked back, all he saw was nothingness in the Swarm’s wake. Anything with a shred of prana in it was gone, devoured by the beast. All the prana in the air had been consumed, leaving Vir effectively blind to the areas it had been.
Luckily, it seemed either unable or uninterested in consuming ground prana, allowing Vir to use his abilities.
Vir accelerated, jointly leveraging Dance and Leap to send him flying through the tunnel at a speed he hadn’t thought possible. He put so much force into his legs that his muscles strained, and if he were on dirt, it’d have crumbled underfoot. Luckily, the ancient road held firm under the pressure.
Unluckily, the prana thrown off by the city diminished steadily as he whirled through the tunnel, slowing his Leaps, and preventing him from using Dance as often.
The Prana Swarm was catching up.
Dread coursed through Vir’s veins, and he felt like suffocating. Images of being eaten alive ravaged his mind, replaying endlessly.
Realizing what was happening, he wrestled his thoughts under control. Panicking was the surest way to die.
Options. What are my options?
Vir arrived at the four-way intersection he’d crossed earlier. The one with the animal tracks.
Right… that might work? Vir thought, turning left to follow the footprints of some massive animal. Maybe the animal will distract it.
It was a poor plan. The amount of prana that emanated from the city was incomparable to what any beast could emit.
Think! What else can you do?
Vir racked his head for ideas, running as fast as he could. With the reduced prana in the tunnel, he ran more than he invoked Talents. If this was him before his training, he’d have keeled over by now. As it stood, his highly trained stamina held, though he couldn’t keep up the exertion indefinitely.
Grawwwwwr!
Before he could craft another plan, a great roar erupted from up ahead. It would ordinarily have been enough for Vir to turn tail and run away, but as it was, the greater threat behind him forced him to press on.
Vir scarcely saw the animal’s prana signature before he tumbled through the air, barely managing to send prana to his chest to Toughen his body just in time. He smashed against a wall, leveraging Light Step to dull the impact before crashing down to the tunnel.
The Talent helped, but pain still wracked his body.
The beast that had thrown him disappeared from his senses, appearing only a pace away.
Vir immediately activated Dance of the Shadow Demon, sinking into the shadow realm where time stood still.
Breathing a little easier, he took stock of his situation. The pain vanished while he was in here, but his mind remembered the pain he’d felt just before diving in. His shoulder throbbed and his left arm moved stiffly. Without his Talents, he was sure he’d have broken something. As it was, the pain wracked him, but his fear muted it. He’d live. But unless he came up with a plan in the next ten seconds, he wouldn’t live very long.
While the shadow realm protected him from this animal, the Prana Swarm was only seconds behind. It would be upon him moments after he exited the shadows. The longer he stayed under, the better. Vir snaked his arm out from the exit farthest from the animal and the Prana Swarm. Then he watched as events unfolded in slow motion.
From afar, the creature that gored him resembled an Ash’va, but was at least three times their size. It stood over ten paces high, with a horn two paces long on its bull snout.
Its body overflowed with Earth prana. The creature roared, angry over having lost its prey. Earth prana surged through its hooves, and it disappeared again, reappearing several paces away.
It’s using Talents! Vir had seen that prana signature dozens of times when fighting Riyan. It was using Blink.
Animals that can use Talents…
Vir wondered what kind of madhouse he’d stepped into. It was almost as if he’d entered the Ashen Realm by coming down here.
Entered… the Ashen Realm? A sudden thought struck him. What if there’s an Ash Gate down here? It’d explain the elevated Ash prana density, and how the Prana Swarm could follow him here.
Which meant if he led the Prana Swam to a sufficiently prana barren region, it shouldn’t be able to survive. At least, assuming the bestiary was telling the truth.
It was an incredibly risky plan, but it was all he had for now. The issue was the timing.