The water struck the incoming monsters in the distance, splashing hard across their scorched hides. Steam hissed into the air as the blazing aura surrounding the Lava Hounds dimmed. If only slightly, from the dampening effects of the water magic. Their molten skin, once glowing bright with lava-like veins, now flickered and sizzled as droplets clung to them.
But the moment of reprieve was short-lived.
The hounds burst forward.
From every direction, they charged, howling and growling with a thunderous ferocity that split the air. Their growls sounded like deep, cracking stones and their snarls rang with the sharp echo of flame. Their bodies cut through the mist, claws digging into the earth, jaws agape, snapping with an intensity that promised death.
"This is bad! Very bad! Very bad!" someone shouted as the pack closed in fast.
"Back to formation! Take your positions and finish these things, now!" Oriana commanded.
The two defenders, who had moments ago been standing between Orion and Elias, hesitated for only a heartbeat more before abandoning the stand-off entirely. With grim determination, they shot off in opposite directions, shields raised. If one of those two arrogant fools ended up dead, so be it, as long as it wasn't them.
One of the Lava Hounds leapt forward, a massive beast with glowing cracks down its side, and slammed into the frontmost defender's shield with brutal force. The impact rang like thunder, the metal groaning under the weight, but the shield held. Barely.
Around them, the squad snapped into motion.
The long-range attackers and support casters gathered quickly at the center, forming a solid core of magic and healing. Meanwhile, melee fighters surged to the outer ring, blades drawn, spells readied, clashing head-on with the incoming tide of monsters.
Orion and Elias, despite their feud, weren't entirely beyond reason. The moment the monsters closed in, they split off, tearing through opposite flanks of the battlefield. Their grudges could wait, this wasn't a fight they could afford to ignore.
The battle erupted in full.
Tave moved swiftly, forming hand seals with practiced ease. His aura flared around him as he dove into the chaos, slipping between staggered monsters still reeling from earlier hits. With a sharp cry, he brought his blade down in a clean arc toward one hound's neck, the edge slicing deep into the vulnerable crack along its molten collar.
But the moment he landed, another beast lunged at him from the side. Fangs wide, eyes glowing red.
Then, a blur. Steel met flesh.
A second blade slammed into the hound's flank, knocking it aside with a spray of molten blood. Oriana landed beside him, sword still humming from the strike. Her usually serene eyes were now sharp, focused, burning with fierce clarity.
A battlefield wasn't just a test of strength, it was where character was revealed. And Oriana's? It was shining through like fire in the dark.
What a perfect character. Fierce when she needs to be, calm when it matters most.
And right now, they needed that fire.
Tave had already gone over the Rift strategy with Lily before this expedition began. The key point they debated was a crucial one: should Lily focus her energy on water-based debuffs against enemies, or on buffs for the team?
For Tave, the answer had always been clear, her power was best used to weaken the fire damage output of the monsters in this Rift. Almost every creature they would face here had fire affinity. Mitigating that damage was far more effective than simply reinforcing the team's stats.
That's why Tave had filled nearly half of his storage with bags of water in preparation.
In an environment like this, where natural water elements were scarce and elemental fields leaned heavily toward fire, elemental casters like Lily were at a massive disadvantage. Unless they had a physical water source to manipulate. And so, he had planned ahead. This wasn't just smart, it was essential.
Still, wasn't this the kind of strategy that should be common knowledge by now?
The truth was... not really.
Techniques that involved the manipulation of natural elemental resources, like importing water into fire-heavy environments, were rarely used. Most teams didn't even think to apply for them. That kind of foresight required not just magical understanding, but deep knowledge of the world's elemental mechanics.
And Tave? He knew Gaia Forces like the back of his hand. After all, he was the one who created all of this. He had designed its balance, its system, its possibilities. He didn't guess the optimal outcome. He knew it.
No one could argue with him here.
This was the most effective way to handle a Rift like this.
Fortunately, the battle wasn't unfolding as chaotically as he'd feared. The team, despite their clashing egos and unresolved tensions, was composed of Gaia Guardians, and not just average ones. Prodigies. Nearly all of them bore Sigils: Lily, Tave, Oriana, Orion… and surely others too.
And then there were the Relics.
Both Orion and Oriana wielded Relics, not mere enchanted gear, but powerful artifacts bound with powerful spirits. It wasn't surprising, considering they were the children of Viscount Sean, the lord of Deadbay City. Their heritage alone hinted at their exceptional potential.
For a Rift at this level, they were actually overqualified.
But that didn't mean they were safe.
Power wasn't everything. In the world of Gaia, strategy, coordination, timing, and execution mattered just as much. If they failed to work together with discipline and efficiency, then death was still very much on the table. And with one of their members already dead before the fight even began…
They couldn't afford another loss.
Until the moment everyone had been dreading… The one they fought so hard to prevent, finally happened.
A scream tore through the chaos.
One of the magic casters, a young woman stationed near the rear line, was struck from behind. A Lava Hound had slipped past the front, too fast, too silent. Its molten claws clamped down around her throat, dragging her back with terrifying force.
Before anyone could react, two more hounds lunged in from the flanks, drawn by the scent of blood and fear.
Panic surged.
Several melee fighters looked ready to break formation, desperation in their eyes, but they hesitated. Leaving their posts would only expose more of the team to danger. And worse, it might be too late already.
Then… Elias.
He surged forward like a blade of water, cutting through the chaos with startling speed. His movements were clean, efficient, no wasted motion. His sword, glowing with water-infused magic, slashed through the air, striking the monsters mid-lunge.
With a series of swift, brutal cuts, he knocked them away, his magic detonating in sharp bursts of force that sent the Lava Hounds sprawling, limbs sizzling where the water struck home.
Lily rushed in a heartbeat later, dropping to her knees beside the fallen caster.
But it was too late. The dread in Lily's eyes said it all before she even spoke. The woman's body was still, her face twisted in frozen panic.
Another teammate… gone.
Two have fallen now.
And they hadn't even made it ten minutes into this Rift Expedition.
The battle raged on.
Though the number of Lava Hounds had thinned significantly, several lay dead or smoldering on the ground. Their victory was far from assured. The remaining monsters fought with a desperate, feral intensity, and the damage they'd already inflicted ran deep.
Blood stained the earth. Shields were dented. Magic reserves were thinning. And their morale was shaken.
More than half the squad bore wounds, some worse than others. And worse yet, they were still in the first wave of monsters. This was only the beginning.
Scattered throughout the Rift, countless more creatures lurked in the shadows, drawn by sound, movement, and the scent of blood. The deeper they went, the stronger the threats would become. And beyond them… waited the Rift's boss monster.
The worst was yet to come.
And now, they faced the bitter truth: they had to end this wave fast, before fatigue crept. Because if they didn't finish this while they still had strength…
There wouldn't be anyone left to finish it at all.