The hot, stifling night air was a vice around Nar's throat, and the jungle echoed with the increasing screeches of the pucks that chased them.

That's a lot of them! Nar thought, grimacing at the storm of furious wings heading their way. A lot!

"Are we close enough to the lake?" Mul asked.

"At least a day," Sej said, her tone strained. "For now, let's just focus on trying to lose them."

"Can we lose them?" Jaz asked. "They've found us all the way here!"

"We can… If we're lucky," the guide said. "Leave it to me, and just run for now! And be prepared for anything!"

Nar bit down the question of what that meant, and he was sure all the others did the same. There was no point in worrying about it now, when they were already drowning in trouble. All they could do now is do their best and hope...

Again, having to rely on hope, Nar thought, clenching his jaw.

The Brightnight continued to prove itself far, far more than he had ever expected. Especially given it was only their second delve for Crystal's sake! And if they survived the Hungry Jungle, they still had to properly delve from their camp by the lake's edge, then contend with the outskirts of the Gloom, which had its own issues, then move on to the Nest and finally they had to face the definitely not ominous sounding Dream and Giant's Canopy areas.

But such was the path to power. And hopefully, freedom, happiness and a future for him and his party as well…. Plus, he couldn't complain in terms of gains nor their already bountiful gathering and harvesting. If they survived, they would all be in a much better place both individually, and as a party, in terms of power and finances, than before.

"Oh! Haha! Yes!" Sej suddenly shouted from up ahead.

"What?" several voices asked.

"I found us a distraction!" Sej said. "Get ready for a fight! Things are about to get crazy!"

"Aren't they already?" Mul and Jaz asked in unison.

Their guide didn't deign to answer them. Instead, the flapping chasing at their heels grew steadily louder as the pucks gained on them, and when a sudden, piercing and much loader screech rose behind him, Nar glanced back. He already knew what he was going to find, but the reality was far, far worse.

"Crystal Almighty!" Tuk shouted. "There's hundreds of them!"

In the chaotic maze of darkness, branches and thorns, hundreds of flying, small figures, gave chase after them. They poured through every nook and cranny in a mass of wings and screeching that flowed as though the swarm was many rivers.

How in the Pile are we supposed to fight that? Nar asked himself, turning his eyes back to the path ahead of them.

"Hang on! We're almost there!" Sej said. "Down here! Big jump!"

Their guide took a sudden left, and jumped down onto a lower branch. Nar grit his teeth at the pain still coursing through his pathways and picked up the pace to gain enough momentum to make the jump with the extra weight he carried.

He pulled on his [Strength] and [Speed] as he kicked off the branch, and pain jolted up his legs, and for an agonizingly slow moment, he worried that he was not going to make it…

"Ugh!"

He landed with a grunt and forced his feet to chase after the others.

"Are you okay?" Jul shouted at him, as she took off beside him. "Want me to carry one of them?"

She was carrying Cen's small body over her left shoulder, keeping her other three hands free and ready.

"I'm fine! And no! You might need hands to fight!" Nar said.

But Crystal damn it! Does a little pathway abuse need to be this bad? He muttered to himself. Should've meditated instead of sleeping. Damn it!

It was too late for regrets now, though. The pucks hadn't hesitated at all at their change in direction, and the winged mass of blood suckers was still hot on their trail, and getting closer and closer by the second.

"Do we stop and fight?" Mul asked.

"No! Just keep going! We're almost there!" Sej said. "We're jumping down again!"

"Are we still heading South, though?" Calli asked.

"We need to make a little detour," Sej said. "But it will be worth it. We'll never make it unless we lose these things!"

Again Nar just about cleared the jump onto a lower branch.

Thank the Crystalk for fucking [Dark Vision]! He thought, as they all easily navigated in the dark. How do people without it even make it out here?

With that first time in the dark fog back in their first delve, this was the second time that [Dark Vision] was coming into their rescue. It was no wonder that it had been one of the first skills that the aethermancers had worked towards gaining, though he idly wondered if that had only been possible due to their elite training.

And poor Jasphaer, Nar thought, thinking of the still wobbly healer that Sej carried. Having to go through this blind… And how does one even get [Dark Vision] up here? Do they just spend a lot of time in the darkness, straining their eyes in the hope the System will eventually give it to them?

That couldn't be it… Right? Surely there was more stuff involved. But the thought, as ludicrous as it seemed to entertain it given his circumstances, served the purpose of distracting him from the agony running rampant within his body. It was though his very limbs sought to split from his torso, his flesh to slough off from his bones, and his bons ground to dust… Pathways burn was nothing to sneeze at.

And this time it feels even more painful than back then, he thought, trying not to let worry take him. After all, last time he had been at death's door, and the Master of Aura herself had needed to heal him. However, Leta didn't seem too concerned, though she was concerned, so hopefully, he wasn't in as much trouble this time around.

And it's not like I had a choice in either time… Nar thought, pursing his lips.

"Here we go!" Sej shouted. "Be careful! We're going to cross their nest and they're going to try and grab onto you! Don't let them!"

"What's they?" Tuk asked.

"Ja'ycires!" the guide told him. "Hungry blossoms!"

Hungry… Oh, not those things! Nar thought, as the auramancers collectively groaned into the channel.

"Uh, what's a hungry blossom?" Eum asked.

And then, the tygaris had his answer.

"Crystal!" Calli said. "They're on the branches! They're everywhere!"

The darkness was suddenly filled with warnings from Nar's [Instinct], and he pulled his head back to dodge under what appeared to be a vine of some kind.

"Are these plants?" Eum shouted. "Why is a plant trying to eat me?"

"Don't stop!" Sej shouted. "And try not to fight back! We want them focused on the pucks!"

Is that actually going to… But panicked, high pitched screeching suddenly filled the air, interrupting his thoughts. And just as immediately, it was cut short.

Oh?

The screeching from their pursuers changed tone as those abominable pucks finally realized the trap they had flown blindly into. The night was suddenly filled with dozens, then hundreds, then thousands of vines snapping in the dead, hot air.

A puck, just a few feet behind Mul and Gad, who ran at the back of the party, cried in horror as one such vine snapped shut around it. Nar looked back in time to see the predator turned prey be dragged towards a large, bulbous thing that was perched under one of the branches.

The ja'ycires had a "J" sort of shape, with a large, wide belly section that had to be at least 10-feet wide and deep… Which the aptly called hungry blossom opened to reveal a nightmare fuel of a mouth, filled with long and sharp filaments.

The screeching puck was flung into the darkness inside, and Nar caught the distant sound of a splash, filled with tortured and immediate screaming, then the plant closed its mouth, silencing the puck forever, who would now slowly digest alive in the plant's acid belly.

"Crystal fuck!" Tuk shouted, his tone horrified. "Did you see that?"

"And it does smell sweet," Jul muttered, ignoring the trugger as she sniffed the air.

"Why does it smell so sweet?" Eum asked.

"Their filaments smell and taste sweet!" Sej shouted from up ahead. "They all jointly sway, with their mouths open, in order for the sweet smell to spread and attract prey! Once close enough, well, you saw it. Straight into a belly full of acid."

"What a delightful place, eh?" Jaz asked the Tygaris.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Yeah... Don't get caught. Of all the ways to die in the Brightnight, this one ranks pretty low!" Sej said.

"Sej, there's…"

"I know!" Sej said, not needing Jul to finish. "Get ready everyone! Our distraction's about to fully kick in!"

"That wasn't it?" Leon asked.

"Of course not!" Sej shouted. "Get ready! We need to run around this gathering and make sure nothing is chasing us when we leave!"

And having said that, she leaped up into another branch, taking them deeper into the gathering of hungry blossoms, which, Nar noticed, stretched much farther than he anticipated.

"We're going back?" Tuk cried. "Whyyyyyy?"

"Shut up and jump!" Gad rumbled from behind him.

As they made it onto their next branch, sudden roaring filled the night.

One, then two, then three, the sound of new, angry beasts drowned out the now panicking pucker swarm. The damned blood suckers had, by now, realized they had become the meal, and they were not happy about it. Not one bit.

Serves you right! Nar thought, with a feral grin spreading across his lips. You chased us!

"What now?" Mul shouted.

Shapes darted into the black and white chaos, adding to the frenzy of feeding ja'ycires, and Nar only had time to plant his feet on the ground and block the others.

"Ugh!"

"Ow!"

They came crashing against his [Strength] enhanced stand in surprise, and he managed to just hold all of them back. As for Jul, she had been a step ahead of him, and all she could do was leap forward to dodge out of the way from the beast that leapt past them.

The creature had the body of a snake with limbs, its scales gleaming with some kind of viscous sheen that promised a nasty poison. Its head was wide and elongated, and in its teeth, it held a trashing puck.

The beast quickly jumped away with its prize, leaving them stunned in its wake.

"Was that a snake… With arms and legs?" Tuk asked, stunned.

Just as Professor T'Nash had told them, there was just too much in the Brightnight for them to study or hope to memorize, and whatever that beast had been, it was clearly one of those things that had not made it onto their prep work.

"Don't stop!" Gad shouted, waking them up. "We're going to lose them!"

But it was too late! They had remained motionless for too long, and now vines snapped at them from every direction.

Mul's flames ignited in a bright flare of orange and yellow, and suddenly, there was light, and the already sweet and stifling hot air grew even hotter and more impossible to swallow.

The brawler raised his flaming fists in the air and the vines hesitated, some of them of even retreating.

"They're scared of fire!" Tuk shouted.

"They're plants! They fucking better be!" Mul grunted. "And don't just stand there! Run! Before I burn you all!"

"You can do it, Mul!" Gad said. "Control the rage! Control the flames! I believe you!"

"Easier said… Than done!"

They leaped forward once more, after the others who were disappearing into the distance.

"Why did you stop?" Nar asked Jul.

The rogue turned fear debuffer and fighter frowned at him.

"I wasn't going to leave you guys behind!" she shouted. "You'll get lost!"

Nar couldn't help smiling at her. She was right. They needed her senses.

"Thank you!"

"You're welcome! Now run! Or we're really going to lose them!" the quam said.

"Can you keep track of them?" Gad asked.

"Already am!" the quam said.

Around them, the hungry blossoms shriveled at their passage, shying away from the burning embrace of Mul's flames. One of them, however, was right above their path, and it didn't manage to move its vines far and quick enough.

"Oh, shit!" Mul shouted.

Nar glanced back.

Hungry flames latched onto the flailing vines, and they leaped hungrily towards their owner's main body and the big plant caught on fire.

"Uh… Is that bad?" Tuk asked.

The plant, lost to the growing blaze, began emitting a cloud of gas as acid and fire came into contact.

"Just keep running!" Gad urged them.

"Sej! A plant caught on fire. Gas is coming out," Gad said.

"Oh… That's no good," Sej said. Change of… Shit! Watch out!"

There was a loud boom that echoed from up ahead.

What happened now? Nar thought. Crystal! Why's this place so fucking crazy?

"They're fighting!" Jul said. "Hurry!"

"Just let me catch a fucking break!" Mul shouted.

"Watch the fire! The fire!" Tuk yelped, as the brawler's flames licked at his hand.

"Oh. Sorry."

"Up here!" Jul guided them.

She didn't really need to. Another loud boom echoed through the fight, shaking the branches, and something growled up ahead. Something big.

Here we go, Nar thought. He reached for his aura, ready to cycle despite the burn in his pathways.

They jumped up one more branch, and suddenly, Nar's [Instinct] was going off in a panicked and continuous screech.

What in the pile is that? He thought, his eyes going wide.

Long, thick arms made of vines and thorns slammed down on Leon's shield, and before Nar or any of the newcomers could even get their bearings, a mouth made of thorns parted and roared from directly above them, and more branches like limbs came slamming at them.

"Vine monster!" Tuk breathed.

Damn… Nar thought, as he gazed up at the yellow glowing agglomerate of eyes.

The vine monster was one of the things that had been especially highlighted in their report for the Hungry Jungle section. A nasty mix of flesh and plant, the vine monster was just like the pucks, a beast on the verge of having enough intelligence to become a monster, hence the name.

Nar couldn't see in his black and white sight, but he could imagine the red and yellow tentacle-like branches being covered in dozens of colors. The beast was known to strangle its prey in its thorny, thick vines, and slowly absorb their blood through the hidden, inner roots that actually made up the core of its lashing vines.

"Another great way to die!" Mul muttered.

"Mul!" Calli shouted. "Set that thing on fire! It's blocking us!"

"With pleasure!" the brawler said.

"As for everyone else, watch out for those branches! And for the hungry blossoms!" Calli warned. "And well... For anything! Tuk watch our backs!"

"Will do!" the ring tosser shouted.

Like Mul, Tuk's hands were also free and ready for a fight, and his rings shone brightly in his fingers before he sent them zipping around the party in bright, golden lines.

They sliced through vines, branches and even through a few of the panicked, lost pucks that had made it thus far, and wherever he cut through, the vines and branches jolted back at the touch of Tuk's hot, golden aura aspected to light.

But they were soon surrounded.

More pucks arrived, crying, but they were now more intent on looking for an escape than to hunt the party. The hungry blossoms snapped up anything that came close enough to them, and Nar even watched a group of them fighting to bring in one of the snakelike beasts, who trashed in the unyielding grip of their vines.

Speaking of which, the scaly beasts were still in the fight as well, jumping in and out of the maze of branches to snatch up pucks or try to close their fangs around one of the delvers.

"I'll cover you!" Jul shouted at Nar. "Don't use your aura! You hear me!"

"Ok!"

Despite saying that, however, he didn't let go of his hold over his core just yet, and it seemed that his blade remained quiet for the moment. He scanned the fight around him, his eyes darting after every sound, every whisper from his [Instinct], as he stood watch over the pile of passed out delvers at his feet.

At his side, Jul reached out and pulled Jasphaer out of the path of a leaping snake beast.

"Tha-thank you!" the healer muttered.

"Just stay with the wounded!" Jul shouted.

"Are you alright?" Nar asked.

The healer shook his head, as if in an attempt to get his mind in order. "Yeah… Yeah. It's just the [Touch of Rot]. I don't…"

The vine monster roared.

"Bahahaha!" Mul shouted above the chaos. "Take that!"

Nar looked over as brilliant flames leapt up one of the creature's branches. However, their celebration was cut short as the branch was seemingly cut off and dropped by the beast itself.

"It can do that?" Leta asked, looking up in surprise as she covered the injured with her own body.

"Keep going!" Calli ordered. "Those carrying people, get over there by the center with Nar!"

However, Calli had just uttered the words when Nar's [Awareness] zeroed in on Jul's strangled cry.

"Jul!" he shouted, his body snapping around so fast he almost blanked out from the pain.

A trio of vines had Jul in a stranglehold, and they seemed to be competing as to who was going to get her into their blossom of flesh and bone-melting acid. Meanwhile, a snake beast looked down at Jul as though she were a convenient, tasty morsel, its forked tongue tasting the air in anticipation of the flavor of the girl's flesh.

Without a moment's hesitation, Nar pushed blazing aura into his sword…

He swallowed the screeching pain that tore through his pathways, and he pushed his body to swing his blade.

[Aura Blade]... 50 points!

The blade, predictably, tried to drink in his aura, but this time he had been expecting it, and he had kept a much tighter control over the aura he cycled into the sword. However, about 30% of the aura he had painstakingly cycled for the skill was diverted by his sword, once again seeming to disappear into the blade's core.

Fortunately, that weak [Aura Blade] was enough to slice through some of the vines, and Jul, suddenly freer as his [Lingering Aura] punished the damned plants, quickly hacked away at the others with her duo of wakizashi.

The snake beast eyeing her from above prepared to leap, but before Nar could fire off another [Aura Blade], an arrow, trailing motes of red, blue and yellow, pierced into the creatures' chest and exploded in a loud fanfare.

With a grunt of pain and surprise, the snake beast leapt away into the darkness, probably in search of much easier prey.

Jul dropped free and Nar, pulling on every point of [Speed] he had, dashed forward, his hand outstretched to grab her before she fell into the voracious depths of the Hungry Jungle.

"Jul!" he called.

But the quam was already reaching for his hand… And they clasped onto each other's hands, though Jul grunted as she still hit the branch they stood on. Hard.

"Are you okay?" Nar asked, pulling her up.

"I-I'm okay!" she said, with only the faintest of quivers in her voice. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" Nar said.

It was an obvious lie.

His pathways, already damaged and hurting, were now searing, and if not for Tys' training and the adrenaline flooding him, he would've passed out already. Besides, he could feel the blade begin to stir once more… That little taste of aura had only made it hungrier and…

He stored the blade before it could go on rampage once again, and leaned down with his other hand to drag Jul up onto their branch.

"I-I'll protect you!" Jul said, as she collapsed at his side. "D-don't worry! But… Thank-thank you!"

However, she seemed less certain than before, and her eyes darted, shifting to and away from his face and to random encounters and spots on the chaotic battle unfolding around them. Plus, her breathing was coming up quicker and more ragged, rather than beginning to stabilize.

"Jul, what's going on?" Nar asked, laying a gentle hand over her hair, and he did his best to ignore the metallic taste coating his tongue.

"I-I… It's nothing…"

"Jul?" he insisted. "Tell me."

"It's their fear!" she relented. "The pucks! It's so much… Fear!"

Nar didn't wait to hear another word. He lifted her to her feet and dragged her towards the sheltered center of the party, where they all fought to protect the wounded.

"Stay here," he told her. "I'll watch over us!"

"No, Nar! Wait!"

But Nar was already on the move, bright blade back in his hands and slashing through vine, snake, puck and branch alike. Anything that dared come at the exposed and unconscious party members felt the wrath of his blade, but the more he fought, the worse he burned himself…

Warnings from both his Masters of Aura and Blades echoed through his mind, but he pushed them aside. It was their lives he was fighting for now! He had no time for caution!

Besides, he fought his blade as much as he fought the foes assailing.

Now's not the time, damn it! He grunted at his weapon, as it syphoned off nearly half of one of his [Sword Aura] skills, greatly reducing its effectiveness.

Between having to keep his aura usage to a minimum, and the sword insisting in devouring as much as it could from the energy cycling through it, it was a wonder he managed to achieve anything, but nothing touched the injured, passed out people, no matter how much suffering he endured.

There was a sudden shriek behind him, and he turned in time to see Calli, her leg wrapped up by a thorny branch, be yanked upwards.

But Mul was already there.

With a roar of rage, the brawler punched upwards towards the vine, and a jet of flames leaped up from his fist!

The vine monster cried in pain as several of its branches caught on fire, and Calli came tumbling down into the open arms of Mul. At the last moment, his flames died, and she fell safely onto his hold.

"M-Mul!" she shouted. "You… What was that?"

"I have no fucking clue!" he said, lowering her to the ground.

"And your control… You!"

"The way is open again!" Sej suddenly shouted, in between shooting at a quick darting snake beast. "Pick them up and let's get the fuck out of here!"

And having said so, she stored her gun and grabbed onto Sarke.

"Go! Go! Go!" Leon called, holding his shield up and scanning their surroundings, guarding them as they quickly loaded up the injured once again.

"Are you okay?" Nar asked Jul.

"I… Yeah," Jul said. "It's better this time… More… Real."

He didn't waste any time in trying to get any proper answers from her.

Screaming internally at the pain, he grabbed onto Raf, though Jul was quicker than him and pulled Kur up onto her other shoulder.

"Come on!" he shouted at her.

Together, they ran for their lives, darting under the now open curtain of agonizing branches that had been blocking their path, and the jungle around them grew steadily quiet as they left behind the insane battle they had caused.

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