I was lying on my couch, watching TV and sipping coffee, when my phone rang. My boss.

  Fuck. I totally forgot I actually have a day job. Did it really only take two weeks for me to start thinking of my daytime life as secondary? Sure, as terrifying as the Astral is, you just can’t beat a literal magical world. But I don’t know how to feel about that. My life was boring, yeah, but I wasn’t ready to completely let go. Not yet.

  Still, I couldn’t think about work right now, possibly not for a long time, if ever. With that decision made, I took a breath and answered.

  “Good morning, Mr. Baker.”

  The voice that responded was strained, barely holding back frustration. Hey, good for him. I guess the HR meetings worked.

  “Alex, this is extremely unprofessional. You can’t just take a two week vacation without any notice.”

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Baker. Like I already mentioned, I had a personal emergency.”

  “You’re coming back tomorrow. I’ve already scheduled a meeting with Human Resources to discuss your behavior.”

  “That wouldn’t be possible. Can’t come back just yet.”

  “It’s not up for discussion. Either you return, or you’ll be terminated.”

  “That’s fine. I’ll swing by the office when I can to get my things and sign whatever documents I need.”

  Silence. Honestly, I wished I was a fly on the wall just to see his expression. I mean, I was villainizing the guy, he wasn’t really a bad boss, just too old school.

  “You want to get fired?” he finally asked, voice tinged with disbelief.

  “Of course not, but I have a lot going on. It might be for the best.”

  “Let’s not be hasty. You can have a few more days, we don’t have time to find a replacement right now.”

  That actually made me feel a little bad, but it had to be done.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Baker. I learned a lot under your management, but it’s just bad timing.”

  He started to protest, but I cut him off. “I’m actually pretty busy. I’ll swing by the office in about a week. Have a good day.”

  I hung up and sighed. That was my first experience getting fired.

  One more anchor to my normal life just vanished and I didn’t really have a lot of those to begin with, I could manage financially for a few months, and since I’d been working at the company since college, I’d probably get a good severance.

  I wanted to spend the rest of the day meditating. I was on the cusp of attuning my energy, maybe not perfectly, but the Void was a potent weapon, and the sooner I mastered it, the safer I would feel. But I was honestly too drained. Physically, I was fine, but spending a week without proper sleep, except for the odd nap, didn’t seem too healthy.

  And I had a feeling the elves had something crazy planned. That thought actually made me excited. I missed those guys. They were the only people I could really talk to about all this, except for Velarion, but that twitchy god was one bad word away from flattening my human ass.

  So, with that in mind, I kept watching TV until the afternoon, then took a nap until it was time to go back.

  _______________________________________

  “I’m still not sure you should go. Remember what I said about trust.”

  Velarion had a concerned look on his face, or at least I imagined he did. It was hard to get a read on him.

  “It’ll be fine! Those guys are trustworthy. Why would they have saved my life back then if they were planning to harm me?”

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  The stag snorted. “Don’t be naive. They could have been waiting for you to get some levels first, to make it worth it.”

  I didn’t have a great argument against that, but I had a gut feeling it wasn’t the case. “They must know I have a guardian since I recently advanced, right? They wouldn’t dare anger you. And Thal was actually pretty serious about the Ascendant title.”

  Velarion looked at me, questioning.

  “Thal’gar. He’s the healer,he’s also some kind of system priest .”

  He scoffed. “One of those fanatics. Great.”

  “I thought you liked the System.”

  His expression was unreadable. “The System isn’t something to like. It just is. Those zealots think the System bestows blessings, that it’s sentient and divine.”

  He was in one of his sharing moods. Awesome!

  “So what actually is the System? Did someone create it? Or is it like a super sophisticated artificial intelligence?”

  My guardian paused for a moment before responding in his usual lecturer voice. “No one actually knows. There are stories of a time before the System, about the start of the Corruption, the Unanchoring, and the emergence of the Shadow Beasts.”

  He started walking around my bedroom, pausing in front of my little library filled with fantasy books. He scoffed.

  “This is what you like reading? Really?”

  Before I could defend my nerdy hobby, he continued. “Anyway, the most prevalent theory is that the System was created to limit the Shadow Surge.”

  He flicked his horns, opening a portal. “There will be more time for history lessons later. For now, I’ll keep watch over you until I’m sure they’re not up to something.” Then he nudged me forward.

  I walked into a vast sandy expanse, the sun warm against my face. A gentle breeze carried the sound of waves and the salty scent of the ocean. Heavenly.

  The sand beneath my feet was pristine white, stretching far in every direction. Across the turquoise sea, numerous islands dotted the horizon, their palm trees swaying lazily in the wind. Everything looked almost paradisical, if not for the unmistakable signs of unanchoring.

  Jagged rips marred the sky, some static, others expanding, releasing shards that evaporated midair before ever touching the ground. Impossible colors and shifting shapes slipped through, painting the sky with an eerie pinkish hue. Despite the surreal backdrop, I found myself enjoying the view. It had been a long time since I'd been to a beach, only once, with my parents. Normally, I pushed away memories of my childhood, but my recent brush with meditation had left me more introspective. I let the memories wash over me, for once allowing myself to enjoy them. A small smile crept onto my face as I kept walking along the shore.

  Then, a voice called from afar.

  I spotted the group in the distance, walking toward me. Ilin’dar waved enthusiastically, shouting something I couldn’t quite make out. Her excitement made me smile. Behind them, another figure walked at a measured pace, taller than the rest of the elves. There was something about their movement graceful, but carrying an unmistakable aura of danger. Instinctively, I slowed my pace.

  Soon, we were close enough to shout. The scout broke off from the group and barreled toward me, wrapping me in a bear hug before effortlessly spinning me around. I laughed at her enthusiasm.

  She set me down and squeezed my arm. “Damn, you’ve been busy!”

  I puffed my chest proudly. “Hell yeah! You can call me a master slayer now.”

  She laughed and gave me a light shove. “Don’t get a big head.”

  The others arrived. Joro’gar was the first to greet me, slapping my back with enough force to nearly knock me over. Sylvan’dar gave me a warm hug, while Bel’vorgar grabbed my arm tightly, his bright smile reaching his eyes. Thal’gar, ever enthusiastic, shook my hand with both of his.

  “I missed you guys! What the heck took you so long?” I asked.

  Bel answered, “Had to sell a few things and take care of some stuff. Took longer than I thought.”

  I glanced at the elf accompanying them. She wore simple but elegant clothes, dark leather pants, sturdy boots, and a well fitted jacket. Her hands were adorned with multiple rings, and her long platinum hair swayed in the breeze. Scars crisscrossed her face, yet despite them, she was strikingly beautiful. She studied me with a severe gaze, and I nearly looked away.

  Luckily, Ilin broke the tension, barely containing her excitement. “This is Vael’dargar! Can you believe it? She agreed to train us before the tournament!”

  The scout looked at me expectantly, but I hesitated, unsure how to respond. Vael’dargar sighed and smacked Ilin on the back of Llin’s head.

  “How is he supposed to know who I am?” she said.

  Ilin rubbed the back of her head, blushing.

  Vael’dargar turned her sharp gaze back to me. “So, you’re the human ascendant they’ve been talking about.”

  I cleared my throat. “Yes, ma’am?”

  She scoffed. “And I’m supposed to get you ready for a tournament in a week. I’ve fought wars that were easier than that.”

  Does every master or whatever really have to be an asshole? I get that it’s on brand, but still.

  Vael’dargar’s voice dropped, but her tone remained commanding. “Now, gather up. I’ve already gone over my expectations, but I’ll go through them one more time.”

  We formed a line in front of her as she continued. “We don’t have time for miracles, so we’ll be focusing on combat skills and strategy, not energy related abilities. You can work on those by yourselves.”

  Sylvan’dar opened her mouth to protest, but Vael’dargar cut her off. “I know how you feel about that, mage. You think it’s a waste of time.”

  She looked over the group. “Most beings focus on leveling up and getting stronger.” Her piercing gaze locked onto Sylvan. “Why does it matter if you can’t wield a sword, when you can just punch anything into oblivion, right?”

  Not waiting for an answer, she pressed on. “Wrong! Fighting proficiency is what separates the great from the average.”

  She pointed at Joro’gar. “Come here.”

  He obeyed immediately.

  “Now, try to hit me with that sword.”

  He hesitated, and she smirked. “Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you too much.”

  Bracing himself, he swung at her, only for her to fling a fistful of sand into his eyes. He flinched, rubbing at them as she stepped back. She immediately pounced slapping his sword away and knocking him down.

  “First lesson,” she said coolly. “Fighting honorably is the best way to get yourself killed.”

  Bel tensed at that but remained silent.

  “And here’s another,” she continued. “It’s generally a bad idea to fight an armed opponent with your bare hands. Believe me, it rarely works out.”

  She retrieved a small bottle from her storage ring and tossed it to Joro’gar.

  “Now,” she said, her gaze sweeping over us. “Each of you will go up against me, so I can see what we’re working with.”