The tremors started before they could leave the chamber.

  It didn’t take a genius to realize that this was Hassel’s response, so Leonard ordered the team to hurry, “They are coming to intercept us, but it will take some time to penetrate this deep. We must get as close to the surface as possible.”

  No one objected, and so they quickly left the broken leyline behind, with the earth mages hurrying to smooth out the new fractures Leonard’s actions had created. Stone shifted under their direction, forming a crude but navigable path. Oliver lingered close to Leonard, matching his pace so they could speak.

  “Sir,” he began hesitantly, “if they are already close enough to be felt from here, they’ll likely intercept us before we can get out. Should you not leave us behind?”

  “I will if it comes to it, but we have some time still,” he answered.

  As if on cue, the earth shuddered again. Dust and loose stones rained down from the ceiling, and the walls groaned under unseen pressure. The mages were quick to reinforce the cavern’s structure, but the tension in the air was palpable.

  “What should we expect?” Oliver asked.

  Leonard didn’t answer immediately. His gaze turned upward, where the tremors seemed strongest, and he looked through the layers. “Beast tamers with moleworms. Mages, use only stone; they can go through anything else.”

  The earth steadied, but only briefly. A minute later, another violent shake tore through the corridor, accompanied by a deep, resonant rumble. The team kept running, instincts honed by the long campaign kicking in. A faint scratching sound followed, growing louder until it echoed through the passage.

  The ceiling cracked.

  “Brace yourselves!” Leonard shouted, raising a hand. A golden barrier shimmered into place just as the earth above them caved in, and chunks of rock and soil slammed against the shield. The mages worked alongside him, stabilizing the collapsing tunnel with several stone arches.

  The dust settled, revealing a gaping hole in the ceiling. From the darkness above, something stirred.

  A large shape descended, revealing a segmented body glistening with slime and chitin. Then another, and another, until a dozen grotesque moleworms filled the space, twitching their eyeless heads as if sniffing the air. Mounted on their backs were men clad in dark, practical armor, bearing a grim determination.

  Leonard stepped forward, hand on his sword, prepared to strike them down. He eyed the newcomers and decided to attempt diplomacy before he engaged in a battle that could collapse the tunnel on their heads. “Riders,” he called out, rumbling with authority. “You’ve gone to great lengths to trap us here. I’ll give you one chance—turn back now and live.”

  The men said nothing. They drew blackened blades in unison, and their moleworms shifted restlessly beneath them.

  Leonard sighed, his expression hardening. “So be it.”

  The riders struck first, urging their mounts forward with a guttural command. The moleworms surged toward the group with shocking speed for creatures of their size, snapping their massive jaws. Leonard barked orders, and his team sprang into action.

  The earth mages raised stone barriers to block the initial charge. One worm slammed headlong into the obstruction, writhing as it tried to burrow through. Another leaped over the barrier entirely, its rider slashing downward at one of the revolutionaries.

  Oliver intercepted the attack, pushing his whole weight against the rider’s blade. The force of the impact sent him stumbling back, but he recovered quickly, dodging a second strike. The worm lunged, and he rolled aside, avoiding the creature’s jaws by an inch.

  Leonard mowed through the closest beast, emitting a golden flash as he cut it in twain. Not content with that, he sliced through the second worm’s chitin with a thoughtless slash, appearing before it so quickly that its rider dismounted mid-fall. To the man’s credit, he engaged Leonard immediately, not losing heart despite the demise of his mount.

  “You’re disciplined,” Leonard remarked, deflecting the blows with ease. “But discipline alone won’t save you.”

  He disarmed the rider with a single upward swing and struck him down.

  This would be easier if I didn’t have to hold back, but even I might have trouble protecting everyone from a collapse.

  The battle intensified, and the confined space magnified every noise. The revolutionaries fought with great valor, clashing against the riders’ relentless assault without losing an inch. The moleworms demonstrated why they were known as formidable foes by burrowing through the ground and avoiding lethal attacks, forcing the earth mages to expend their mana to stabilize the cavern.

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  One worm breached the line, lunging toward the group’s rear, where the less-experienced fighters held their position. Oliver saw it and reacted instinctively.

  “Get down!” he shouted, charging forward. He planted his feet and swung his sword with all his strength above Lucy’s head, biting into the worm’s side. The creature screeched, its momentum faltering, and Oliver pressed the attack.

  Leonard caught sight of his stand and allowed himself a brief moment of pride.

  The riders were well-coordinated, and their attacks forced the revolutionaries into a defensive position. Leonard would have liked to use the battle to give his men some valuable experience, but he knew the conditions were simply too unfavorable. They needed a broader area to fight, or he’d be forced to risk harming his people.

  “We’re cutting through!” he shouted once it became clear they were at risk of being corralled. “Push them aside and follow me!”

  The earth mages quickly followed his command, reshaping the cavern’s walls to funnel their enemies into narrower lanes. The moleworms struggled to maneuver in the suddenly confined space and reacted the only way they knew how: digging in the false walls. When these predictably fell upon them, they thrashed, dislodging their riders and breaking formation.

  With a surge of Light, Leonard dispatched a fallen enemy and turned his attention to the largest moleworm blocking the exit. The creature reared back, its rider raising his sword in challenge.

  Leonard met the charge head-on, flaring his aura. The sacred Dyeus carved through the worm’s armor without pause. The rider fell with it, not even having realized he was dead.

  “Move!” Leonard commanded, rallying his team around him as he pushed toward the opening.

  When they saw their formation break, the riders hesitated. Some turned to regroup, while others decided to fight to the bitter end. Leonard didn’t give them the chance to recover.

  With a final burst of coordinated effort, the revolutionaries broke through the blockade and emerged into the more stable tunnel beyond.

  Leonard took the moment of quiet as the gift it was and turned to his tagalong. The shadow elemental beside him flickered and shifted like smoke caught in an unfelt breeze, waiting for acknowledgment.

  “Does your mistress have the time for this, or should we be rushing to her aid?”

  The shadow swirled upward, forming a vaguely humanoid shape. “Mistress holds her ground. She dances with ships of fire and steel, but distress is not her companion yet.” It whispered.

  Leonard inclined his head. “Good.” His gaze swept over the group and lingered on the mounted enemies gathering behind them. He shifted his grip on his sword. “Then we have time to finish this.”

  Oliver said before he could take a step forward. “Let me take the lead, sir.”

  Leonard arched an eyebrow. “That’s half a dozen Experts atop moleworms with plenty of fight left in them.” It wasn’t a rebuke, but it was very close to it.

  Oliver nodded, setting his jaw in the same stubborn look he had sported when begging him to become his apprentice. “I can do this. Please. Let me prove it.”

  Leonard studied him for a long moment. He could sense a powerful resolve in his heart, a burning desire to prove his worth. After a brief pause, he sighed. “Very well. But if you’re too slow or falter, I’ll end it myself. We can’t afford to linger here.”

  “I understand.” Oliver’s answer was firm.

  Stepping forward, he took point. With a steady breath, he cast an enhancing spell over himself and his comrades, and golden light bloomed faintly across their forms.

  The effect was immediate. Strength surged through their limbs, their vision sharpened, and the oppressive darkness of the tunnel seemed to retreat. Behind him, the others straightened, emboldened by the light.

  Leonard watched from the side, arms crossed over his chest, a faint smile tugging at his lips. Not bad. He’s gotten strong enough that he can mimic my style.

  There was a reason he hadn’t cast [Halo of the Righteous] here, but that restriction didn’t apply to Oliver. His enhancement spells didn’t run the risk of collapsing the tunnel.

  The largest moleworm lunged first, twisting its massive bulk with startling speed as its rider drove it forward. Oliver didn’t flinch. He quickly led the charging beast away from the group and pivoted, swinging in a wide arc. The strike connected with the worm’s armored hide, and a bright light exploded outward on impact.

  The creature reared back, emitting a high-pitched screech that echoed through the cavern. The rider struggled to regain control, but Oliver pressed the attack. He slashed again, targeting the vulnerable joints between the beast’s chitinous plates.

  A second moleworm moved to flank him, but Oliver didn’t let himself be trapped. “Now!” he shouted.

  The earth mages responded instantly, raising stone barriers to block the second worm’s approach. His little girlfriend cast a binding spell, causing tendrils of wind to wrap around the creature’s numerous legs and slow its movements.

  The revolutionaries moved in sync, following Oliver’s directions with a precision that could only be achieved through a Command Ability. The moleworms, previously overwhelming in their size and ferocity, found themselves boxed in. Stone walls rose around them, and the tunnels they had used to burrow were sealed shut by the earth mages’ deft terrain manipulation.

  Oliver’s blade flashed again and again as he drove back the lead worm, almost taking the rider’s head several times. The man parried his strike, but the force of the attack sent him sliding back in his saddle.

  Leonard nodded approvingly from the sidelines. “Good instincts,” he murmured to himself. He probably would have killed the beast first, but he could see the benefit in keeping it busy protecting its rider.

  The battle was intense yet brief. With their mobility restricted and their numbers dwindling, the moleworms and their riders found themselves at a clear disadvantage. Oliver’s light-enhanced strikes cut through chitin and steel alike, drawing more attention to himself and thus allowing the others to run up the score.

  Mmh, I suppose I have been a bad example. I should take some time to explain why it’s a bad idea to play bait when you cannot reform your body from atoms…

  “Keep the pressure on!” Oliver barked. “Don’t let them regroup!”

  One of the riders attempted to flee, urging his worm toward a weakened section of the stone barrier. Oliver saw the movement and acted swiftly. He leaped onto the creature’s back and channeled his mana into a powerful downward strike. The blade sank deep into its back, sending a shockwave of light through its body.

  The worm exploded from within, its rider thrown violently to the ground. Oliver jumped away, twisting in the air. As soon as he touched down, he pointed to the fleeing enemy. “Seal it off!”

  The earth mages responded instantly, closing the gap with a stone wall. The rider skidded to a halt, trapped.

  By the time the dust settled, only two enemies remained alive, and that quickly changed once the stone walls erupted in a hail of bullets. The moleworms, either dead or dying, lay scattered across the cavern floor.

  Oliver dismounted the last worm’s corpse, breathing heavily and wiping sweat from his brow. His enhancing spell faded, leaving the tunnel dim once more.

  Leonard stepped forward, calmly approving. “Well done. You handled that with all the skill of a great knight.”

  Oliver straightened, a faint smile breaking through his fatigue. “Thank you, sir. I had a good teacher.”

  Leonard’s apprentice was obviously still tense from the fight because it took him several seconds to realize the meaning of his words.

  When he turned to face him, his expression was one of desperate hope and longing. Leonard nodded, smiling warmly.