Alex watched in both horror and fascination as Robert stepped up to fight. His mind worked in overdrive as he took in the surroundings and felt his skin crawl as more of the alien-like creatures emerged from the trees.

They wore minimal clothing, reminiscent of tribal cultures Alex had seen in videos from Earth. Their skin appeared thicker and sturdier than Robert's fleshy human exterior, almost like a dense hide. In addition to the angular features of the nose, they had ridges of protruding bone along their cheekbones, shoulders, and elongated fingers.

When close to twenty of them were present, they fanned out, forming a circle around their entire group. Both Robert and the one who answered his challenge stood with their arms raised in that frozen salute, bleeding onto their head and shoulders.

The enemy was the first to lower it, followed by Robert.

Alex looked from left to right as those circling them took slow, graceful steps back into the edge of the woods. They were still present, just no longer in the way, fading to faint silhouettes, present only to watch.

A very loud part of Alex's brain wanted to immediately dismiss both clones and activate a swift spell. The increased stats and speed would greatly increase his confidence, or at least make him feel more in charge of the situation. It was only when he scanned the challenged creatures that he felt his nerves calm, and he began to question himself.

Koru'qai - Level 21

Class: Jungle Stalker

Everything about the readout caused his brain to come stumbling to a halt. Despite how dangerous, agile, and confident the Koru'qai were, they were still only E Rank. The challenger's class further suggested that head-on combat wouldn't be its strong suit.

Most interesting was its state.

Non-hostile?

His nerves calmed further, and he recognized that even with the numbers against them, his own levels and those of Robert's party almost assured their victory. If it weren't for being worried about the other three, he was confident that a handful of spells could subdue or kill the entire group if they tried to attack him.

Looking to Aisha, he was tempted to ask her why he would even offer a one-on-one fight. He noted again that her normal shifting stance and stern face were replaced with fear. She stood stock-still as she watched the two fighters size each other up.

Watching them circle, Alex kept waiting for Robert to produce armor or a weapon, though it never came. The light clothing, substituted with the sparse leather strap or padding, would offer the warrior minimal protection against the small dagger-like claws.

His concern and confusion grew as Robert moved to the balls of his feet and started to hum loudly. He shifted from foot to foot with the rhythm of his own beat. And then, with little to no warning, the fight began.

Alex winced as the first exchange resulted in a slashed forearm and increased bleeding. There was a clear level difference between the two. Robert was double the Koru'qai's level and focused on physical stats. The Rank gap between the two of them made it clear Robert should win the fight, though the man's willingness to take the sharp slashes from the creature's claws confused Alex.

Two more exchanges followed, where it looked like Robert wasn't doing anything other than shifting his weight and taking a beating.

The Koru'qai moved with fast reflexes and in an irregular movement that seemed at total odds with Robert's calm, composed movement.

The more he watched, though, the more Alex was certain there was a certain tempo-based movement to the creature's fighting style as well. It shifted from left to right, then back before lunging. Its full body elongated as its legs sprang it forward from a crouch, claws reaching for Robert's neck.

For the first time, Alex saw his fellow human do something other than get his forearms or shoulders brutalized.

Robert stepped forward into the lunge, but rather than twist like Alex expected, he rolled his shoulder forward. The grunt that escaped from him interrupted the constant humming, but he turned his right arm toward his chest, leading with his elbow, and connected with the Koru'qai's temple as he moved past.

The lithe gray monster fell to the rocky floor in a heap. Its momentum carried it forward, sliding a few feet before stopping behind Robert. The entire fight was over in a matter of seconds, only a handful of exchanges into the duel.

"Kah'resh ven'qorr," Robert said, looking at the forest around him. "Come and take him away, I'm not going to kill him. We are not your enemy."

The forest was quiet, and lost as he was in the fight, Alex hadn't realized that the shadowy forms of the other Koru'qai were gone.

Aisha rushed forward and knelt next to Robert. She started to tear at her dirty pant leg, and only then did Alex realize what she was doing.

"Stop," he said. "Stop. Here." He removed another healing potion from his ring, noting that only left him with only five more potions. Using the second potion of the afternoon made him wince. "Drink most of it, then pour the last of it on your arms. The hell did you even do that for if you didn't have armor or weapons?"

Despite the sharp comment, he was impressed with the man's fighting ability. Alex wasn't sure if he'd win the fight on such even footing.

Robert accepted the potion, and Aisha watched Alex with a calculating look that made him want to close his hand tightly around his ring. "We don't have items other than the few we grabbed from the guards," she said.

"You don't?"

"Did you miss the whole 'we were slaves' thing?"

"Ah, yeah. Right. But if you knew you were coming back in here, why didn't you just take all of the guards' armor? It seemed to be made of quality material."

The trio shared a look, and Robert answered with a shake of his head. "We couldn't wear it where we're going."

"All right," Alex said slowly. "Why can't you wear it? Can you not wear any armor?" He looked over at Warrior for emphasis.

"No, it's just that armor." There was a pause, like he wanted to say more, but he looked around at the woods before saying, "We should keep moving. I can explain more to you when we're in the tunnels."

Alex grunted. "Sure."

Aisha raised an eyebrow at him, but neither of them said anything more.

"Do we separate from their group?" Mage asked.

No, but we do need to keep an eye on them. Something still feels off about all of this. Why do they think that they need us for whatever their goals are?

"Exactly," Warrior chimed in. "They're definitely not just here to help us."

While it was true, Alex knew that went both ways. He watched as Luis moved to Robert's side. They spoke in quiet voices about the fight for a moment before Robert ushered them to move once more.

"They won't come to help him until we're gone. We should keep moving," he said.

"Lead the way," Alex said with a shake of his head, aware of Aisha's eyes on him.

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The group continued to travel for the next several hours, and Alex struggled with the issue he felt with the group. They were separate in all things, strangers, and all focused on their individual goals. They moved quietly, allowing him to talk through the link with the clones about the issue.

He found that the more he thought through the situation, the more questions he had.

Instead of stewing on it, once his thoughts were organized, he focused on his mana shaping exercises, focusing on thinning his mana and forming the shapes for the new ritual runes that Maelis had shared with him.

When the gap in Alex's stats made it clear he was struggling to keep up, Robert suggested they stop to make camp and rest.

"How far are we from the tunnels? I can keep pushing," Alex said, gripping the collar of his shirt and lifting it to wipe the sweat from his brow.

"Still an hour or more to go," Robert said.

"Let's keep going for now, then."

Robert looked conflicted, but continued to lead the group through the forest without further comment. In the final hour of traveling, the scenery changed drastically. The trees grew larger, with more roots above ground than made sense to Alex. Some of them grew as thick as the tree's trunk, creating natural arches in the forest.

The group was pointedly guided away from those arches, and only after the second one did Alex notice a faint trace of mana within. He looked closer as they passed, fascinated to find that there was a spider's web built in the opening.

It reminded him of the Mana Spinners. The largest difference was that what he observed in the Sewer Rift was more akin to a natural spider web with traces of mana, whereas the spinner's webbing was made of mana so dense and controlled that it became a physical substance.

They crossed a river ford a short time later than marked another stark change in the natural biome . The trees grew sparser until they emerged from the forest altogether. They looked out over a vast area of rocky terrain and plateaus that reminded him of scenery he'd seen from the Grand Canyon. Despite the constant darkness they were in, the moon overhead provided light, and the temperature was stable, allowing for the rest of the journey to go easily.

If it weren't for the unsettling howls that seemed to come from within the canyons below, it would have been a beautiful sight to see.

"We'll camp above today. The only thing to be wary about out here are the Sui'ci and they won't start showing up until the second moon rises. That river we crossed is the primary water source for miles, so we should create a bit of space from it, but this will be better than trying to camp below."

"What's a Sui'ci?" Alex asked.

"Big flying bird, looks like a tridactyl mixed with an eagle. They hunt in packs, and their wings make almost no noise. At least two people should be on watch at all times."

Alex was nodding along. "Show me where we're going to set up camp. I can help."

They moved to a natural bridge that connected the main body of land they were on to the first of the plateaus. "We'll stay here. The natural break will create a defensible position from anything that might venture from the forest."

Crossing with Robert and Aisha, Luis circled back to get wood for a small fire while they found a natural position to camp.

"I'll stay on first. Rob, you should get some sleep." She glanced at his arms again, clearly thinking of the wounds that had been there and the newest scars that had been added to the fighter's collection.

"I'll stay on for now, too," Alex said. "We can do two per shift, one from each group."

Aisha and Robert both agreed, and it wasn't until Alex saw them both lying on the rocky ground that he realized once again that they had nothing. Sighing, he interrupted them.

"Wait. Just relax for a second."

Aisha looked annoyed, but he was starting to think that was her default state.

Closing his eyes, Alex let his thoughts run through the risks and sighed again.

"That's your second sigh in as many minutes," Robert pointed out from where he sat on the ground.

When Alex opened his eyes, he saw the small smile on the other man's face and felt like he saw the group for what they were for the first time. They were simply older, harder, and more combat-oriented Sams. They'd been forced into a life they didn't want, and were here trying to help others rather than look after their own safety when they had the chance to get out for good.

Robert was a bit older than the group, Alex included, but there was a flash as he could see the man in a business suit walking through the city. Now he found himself freed from seven years as a slave and was diving back into it to release others.

Probably not the personality type to try to kill me in my sleep for a spatial item… right?

"Well, that's if anything they've told us so far is the truth," The skeptical part of his mind, which was Mage, said.

"Yeah, I am struggling a bit here. I have resources that can help us— help you. I have magic that can help, too. But I don't know any of you. If I'm honest, I don't trust any of you. You seem competent and strong, but also extremely unprepared. What is stopping me from revealing some of my cards now, and you trying to kill me in my sleep for what I have?"

It was an awkward thing to say, but immediately seeing Aisha and Robert's reactions made him think that it was the right thing to say.

They both smiled at him. Aisha even laughed and seemed to genuinely relax a bit.

Robert answered for them again, leaning back on the rock he had been preparing to lay next to. "Well, your friends are a pretty big deterrent. The fact that you all seem to know magic and are high enough level that Luis can't scan you is also a factor."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "It seems like you've given this some thought."

"Of course. But none of us would ever try to attack you in your sleep." Robert shrugged.

Aisha gave him another smile before adjusting the band on her head. "If we wanted to take what you had, we would challenge you for it. But what's the point? We want to work with you for your strength, not for your items."

There were a few subtle messages for him to unpack there. "Okay. Well, maybe as I start setting up camp, you can tell me more about the Rift. At least knowing where we're going and what we're stepping into would be helpful for me. Getting to know you guys at a surface level would also be pretty helpful," Alex said.

"I can tell you about this world, now that we're out of the forest. But, if you want to get to know one another, you should probably start with your names."

Alex froze in his search around the perimeter. Racking his brain, he realized he hadn't shared his name. Not just his, but he hadn't even given a name for the clones.

"Shit, sorry about that. There was a lot running through my mind earlier. My name's Alex. I'm originally from Jersey. I only came down to the Philly Safe Zone to try and help the HA with the disappearing people. It seems like Kinley and his group are the ones responsible."

"Anthony," Luis said as he re-approached the group.

"Huh?"

"He means that Anthony is from New Jersey, too," Robert said.

Aisha looked at him in confusion. "Safe Zone? Tell me more about that. We've heard snippets from some of the freshies, but not much detail."

Luis sent a kick at her side, though she swayed out of its way and kept staring at Alex.

The exchange reminded him of his own group, wondering if it was the term she used that caused Luis to try to nudge her. "You don't know about the… Oh, man. There's a lot to catch you guys up on."

The next several hours passed as much of the tension bled from the group. Rather than jumping into rest and sleeping rotations, they stayed up and shared information. Alex started off, giving them all updates on the world and how much had changed.

They didn't share anything about their kits or strengths, but it seemed to relax the group to talk about their old, mundane lives while Alex focused on setting up the wards and withdrawing two tents and some other amenities.

"I was a corporate manager for a logistics firm in Philly," Robert said. He watched Alex with interest as he spoke. "I worked for a big company, made big money, but generally hated my job. I thought I hated my life at the time…" his story trailed off, and the group was quiet.

Alex broke the tension as he put the final cornerstone into place. "Was everyone from Philadelphia? Other than Anthony?"

Rob nodded. "We were all locals at the time. Danae had only recently moved to the city, and Anthony was there for when he was taken."

Silence fell over the group again, and Robert smiled as Luis answered in his one-word style.

"Mechanic," he said while throwing a few shadowy jabs at the air.

"Luis was a mechanic in West Philly and an amateur boxer."

"Did you guys know each other?" Alex asked as he pulled out several of the foldable camping chairs, setting one next to each of the trio.

"No. I don't think anyone knew each other before being taken."

"Please, sit." Alex tapped the chair and watched with a small smile. It only grew as he saw them marvel at the comfort of the chair as if it were a luxurious couch. "What about you?" he asked Aisha.

"I was a junior high teacher."

Watching her clean a dagger while she said that created a juxtaposition in Alex's mind that seemed hard to settle.

As they continued to talk, Luis' head lolled to the side, and he quickly drifted to sleep. Aisha nudged him, and they moved to one of the tents together. Both clones followed suit, leaving Alex and Robert alone around the embers of the fire.

They sat in comfortable silence for a time. Alex wanted to ask more questions, and he knew Robert was aware of his desire for information.

Rather than continuing to push the man, he settled into his own chair and removed his notebook and a pen. He started to take notes on an idea that had occurred to him during the ambush on Angela's team.

With both clones 'asleep' in the tent, he could recall the lines of consciousness to his main body and use the parallel lines of thought to run through iterations for a design.

Robert spoke up after a time, standing near the edge of the camp. "This is an interesting kind of magic. What is it called?"

Looking up, he found the man pressing against the translucent barrier he'd made around them. "They're called wards."

"I'm surprised you can do something like this."

"What do you mean?"

"We saw your lightning magic and assumed your class and skills would be geared toward offensive magic. It's strange to see you create something defensive and semi-permanent. That seems like a contrasting setup of skills."

Alex nodded. "I think I might like wards the most out of all the magic I can do. There's something comforting about being able to protect myself or friends."

"That… I can agree with." Robert looked at him for a long moment before he made up his mind about something. "I think we should get to know each other better."

"Okay?" Alex said in confusion. His pen worked on creating a zoomed-in version of his idea, the interconnected lines and miniature tubing reminiscent of the pipework in the sewers. His pen came to a stop at Robert's next words.

The older man looked down at him seriously, wiping the dirt from his hands on his thin pants. "I challenge you to a duel."

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