James sat with his legs crossed on the outer wall of the city. Miles from his position, a towering Forsaken was storming through the forest. The small souls of the many monsters between here and there were scattering in all directions.

By his side, Luna was pacing nervously as her hands flexed into fists and back out, the bones popping with tension. Mumbles under her breath filled the air as James closed his eyes once again.

It's time for the fight. The elders will be joining us any second now and we'll head out. It's hard to say how they are going to help, but they are nascent soul cultivators with vast control of earth Qi. It'll be interesting.

The soft sound of steps on the stone made him open his eyes. By the opposite side of Luna, Elder Bo was joining them. The man had his arms crossed as he watched the giant draw closer.

"May I join you?" he asked.

James nodded and closed his eyes again.

"Meditation before battle is good," Bo said.

Luna growled.

Chuckling, Bo sat and crossed his legs. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly.

James controlled his own breathing as he listened to the sound of the other elders arriving. The vultures were flying high overhead, the flapping of their wings disturbing the air.

Seconds turned to minutes as James readied himself. The giant had crossed several more miles before his eyes opened and he stood. Bo joined him, both of their souls relaxed.

"I'll take point," James said. "I'll siphon as much of its soul as I can while Luna helps. Its attacks are slow compared to us. We'll need to bind its feet and bleed it out as quickly as we can."

"I'll handle the feet," Bo offered.

Tim and Jing didn't respond as Luna stopped pacing.

"I'll need space," she said. "Once I transform, I will do my best to focus solely on the giant."

With one final nod, James jumped down from the wall. He released the hold on his soul fully, blanketing the area in power as the air seemed to shift around him. With his first step, the world blurred as he ran towards the giant.

Luna ran beside him in her wolf form, her body slowly growing larger as she shifted into her Soul Form. Flames of energy started rolling off her as they arrived at the monster. With one last glance at him, she finished bursting with power and raced past him.

James eyed the giant black monster, its flesh saggy and mouth gaping, as its slitted eyes found him. A hand larger than anything he had seen before reached for his small body.

Jumping back, he summoned his sword. The hand crashed into the ground near his feet, crushing the earth and creating a crater several feet deep. Slashing out, he carved into the flesh of the monster, bringing a well of blood to the surface of one finger.

This is going to be a long battle…

Calming himself, he watched as Luna latched onto the leg of the giant and used her legs and claws to tear flesh as the monster siphoned her soul, and she siphoned it in return. Their balance was near perfect, neither of them gaining ground.

Lifting his hand, James latched onto the giant, pulling with everything he had. A thick stream of flames was pulled into his soul, building its strength, but hardly denting the soul of the giant.

Before he could charge into the fray, the ground rumbled and shifted. Stone rose to the surface, wrapping around the feet of the giant as it tried to take another step. Within a second, the stone crawled up to its knees, cutting off its movements as Bo stepped up to James.

"I don't know how long I can hold it."

James rolled his shoulders. "Then I will simply need to kill it quickly."

Before Bo could respond, James raced towards the monster and jumped. His leap took him dozens of feet into the air, reaching the chest of the monster as a clawed hand passed under him.

Luna released her hold on the monster, dropping to the ground as the hand swept through the space she occupied. The wound she left behind continued to bleed its soul as slight signs of blood trickled form the claw marks. Her Soul Rend was doing its job.

James stabbed into the monster, sticking himself to its chest and sliding down. His blade carved through flesh as if parting paper. Snapping his fingers, he cast Soul Strike, and felt the giant's soul pulse, but only a small amount of its soul exploded.

Dammit. We still aren't doing enough damage.

The monster roared, making James's weapon flicker out before disappearing. Luna was launched from her Soul Form, landing dozens of feet into the forest after crashing through several trees.

The air rippled with energy as the giant ripped its legs out of the stone bindings. Raising a foot, it stomped down, sending a shockwave through the ground that threw James into the air and Bo alongside him.

A counter shockwave canceled out the attack as Jing made himself known. A second later, a giant spike of stone connected with the stomach of the monster, but failed to break the skin.

We still aren't strong enough. James landed deftly and resummoned his sword. The link between him and the monster was flickering and he redoubled his efforts. The flames continued to flow into him as Luna battled to keep it focused on her.

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Her flaming form collided with the leg of the giant, knocking it off balance but failing to bring it down. A hand swept through the air a second later, connecting with her flank and throwing her back into the forest.

"Luna!" he screamed.

He could feel her soul pulling on her reserves as she healed rapidly. Another stone spear slammed into the giant, pushing it back as it raised its foot to stomp.

James watched the giant sway before energy started building around its body. With a sharp breath, he dug his feet into the ground and leapt. Landing on the giant's shoulder, he stabbed into its neck just as the energy was released.

A blast of Soul Energy launched James away, breaking the link and shredding his flesh. Blood seeped from dozens of wounds as his Regeneration quickly started sealing them. His reserves dropped steadily as his consciousness flickered in and out. Connecting with the ground, he blacked out.

Amber walked through the busy streets, her cloak pulled over her head as she hid her presence. Her new storage ring was filled with supplies and she only had a few more stops to make before the main event started.

Stepping into a small demi-human store that was unmarked in a destroyed building, she found her target.

"You know what I need," Amber said.

The man behind the counter nodded and pulled out a sack.

Handing over a her own sack, Amber nodded. Opening hers, she counted the items before shifting a few of them. "Good quality. You didn't disappoint."

The man didn't say anything as he checked his own sack and nodded.

"Did you think I'd screw you over?" she smirked.

Eyeing her, the man put the sack behind the counter.

Adding her new items to her storage ring, she turned to leave. Leaning against a broken pillar was a lizardman.

"We're going to miss you," he said softly.

"No, you won't," she said with a snort. "You'll miss the goods I bring you."

"We've been business partners for years. Are you sure this is the path you want to take?"

Nodding, Amber pulled the hood down further over her face. "My future is with that man."

Reaching into his pocket, the man produced a golden card. "Take it. If you reach another city, you will need it."

For the first time that morning, she smiled. "Maybe your heart isn't as frozen as I thought." Grabbing the card, she added it to her ring.

"It would have thawed further if you kept working here."

Chuckling darkly, Amber left the shop. The streets were packed as she merged with the demi-humans. They didn't give her a single glance as she followed the stream of people towards the market.

Before she arrived, she split off and headed down another alleyway. Small groups of thugs rested against the walls, but when she showed a slip of her face, they quickly backed up. Despite their fears, she kept her claws summoned. The razor sharp nails extended from her finger tips as she arrived at her next stop.

Stepping inside one of the few well-maintained structures of the slums, she found the woman of the hour. An old matron was sitting at a table with an orb of crystal. Her fingers glided over its surface slowly as her foggy eyes found Amber.

"Ah…" The matron whispered. "The time has come."

"Yes, Matron," Amber said while kneeling. "The man I'm meant to follow is currently battling the giant."

"I know, child. Come sit."

Getting back to her feet, Amber took a seat at the table. A young child hurried over with two cups of tea before shrinking back into the shadows.

Sampling the brew, Amber hummed.

"You should take a box of the tea," the matron offered.

"I will," Amber said, not wanting to disrespect the elder by refusing.

The child hurried over again and handed over an ornate box of tea leaves. Amber quickly added it to her ring before turning her attention to the orb.

"You don't have much time," the matron stated.

"I'm retrieving them after this. My hideout is prepared."

"Are you ready for the true battle?"

Frowning, Amber set the tea down. "I would be more ready if my leader could have granted me his gift."

"James Matson…The demon of the story. Will he claim a piece of hell and give you a home? Or will he claim your soul?"

"He'll protect me," Amber stated with confidence. "My future lies with James. Everything I am, is his."

"It makes me wonder who the man truly is to convince the Queen of the Night to leave the city."

Smirking, Amber shook her head. "I don't go by that title anymore. I have passed the torch onto another."

"I never thought I would see the day The Queen stepped down. How many are you going to kill before the day is done?"

"Not enough." Picking up her tea, she blew on the hot drink. "Not enough to stop the rage that James will unleash."

Stopping her fingers on the orb, the matron sighed. "I wish you well, My Queen."

"Thank you, Matron. But it his enemies that will need luck, not me." Finishing her tea, she set down the cup and stood. It was time to retrieve her allies. The true battle was about to begin.

James woke seconds after landing. Climbing back to his feet, he watched as Luna latched onto the giant's throat and ripped her claws through the monster's flesh, bleeding its soul into her body. Anger radiated from her soul, filling her with a rage and hunger he had never felt before.

Cracking his neck, he summoned his sword yet again and started walking towards the giant. The monster was swinging its arms into the forest, ripping up trees and stone as the elders danced around the area. Bo was weaving a complex form of Qi that was pulling the stone and debris from the air, building a great spear.

Tim was behind the spear, pushing Qi into it, preparing to launch the attack while Jing wrapped it in Qi to guide its path. Luna must have taken notice as she released the giant and leapt away. Her claws tore through its flesh one last time before she landed a hundred feet away.

James smirked as he jumped up onto the spear of stone and trees. Bo was about to yell at him when he braced and Tim launched the attack.

The giant tried to knock the spear out of the air, only for James to send three Soul Strikes into its body, exploding skin and tissue while absorbing a large chunk of soul. His attacks knocked the monster off balance and the spear landed.

James jumped at the last moment, soaring up to the giant's neck. Slashing his sword through its throat, he came close to the gaping mouth of the monster. The overpower scent of rot and death pervaded his senses as he ripped his sword out and watched blood gush down the creature's chest.

An inhuman howl blasted him from the air as the monster's soul started to burn. Landing dozens of feet away, James eyed the giant with worry as it started to speed up. Swinging its arm, it latched onto the elders and started pulling their souls from their bodies.

Rushing forward, James slashed his sword through the links, knocking the elders back as he saved them. Luna ripped as hard as she could, pulling the giant's focus back to her.

James pulled as well, but before he could rush in, the monster carved a claw through the ground, and ripped the world. He was forced to abort his attack as the claws passed within inches of his body. Dirt and stone coated him a second later.

Luna howled, piercing the air with energy as she rushed in, countering the giant by ripping chunks of flesh from its side. James watched as its soul was sucked into her body.

Wiping the dirt from his face, he took a slow breath. The giant was slowly fading. Its body bled from numerous wounds. Spears of stone were sticking out of its chest and stomach. His sword had carved many cuts that bled profusely as its soul flowed into him.

It wasn't enough.

The giant continued to burn its own soul as it started to glow. Eyes widening, James shouted, "get back! Luna, let go!"

The wolf kicked off the giant's side and raced towards him. Grabbing his shoulder, her teeth punched into his body as she raced away. The elders did their best to retreat, but none of them were ready for the world to pulse.

The air grew heavy and thick. Luna slowed to a crawl as all sound ceased to exist. James tried to yell at her, but he could hardly feel her soul just before everything exploded.

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