It was a slim chance that Luke would've been able to take Relian unaware, one that, it turned out, was damn near zero. As soon as he approached, Luke lost an arm, and would have lost more if not for The Deep Dweller slamming a shadowed tentacle down on The Fallen Shepherd's head so hard his neck snapped. It healed again in an instant, but that was enough for him to get in close. This time, Luke didn't spare a thought for healing or defense. Sheer and utter destruction was the only path out of this, and he took it.

  "Imbecile!" Relian shouted, lashing out with Threads of Mana and some skill from his other class that created immense pressure in Luke's skull.

  With a head about to burst, Luke kept his charge going, every ounce of focus and willpower dedicated to extending and multiplying the many threads of mana reaching out in front of him. All of them were focused on a single point, and they all came together as one, striking with Needle of Life. Together, those threads he'd used so much for healing became a weapon wielded by his mind as he thrust forward, into, and through The Fallen Shepherd's throat.

  Alone, that was far from enough, and the damage would soon be healed, but rather than withdraw or plunge the threads into Relian's mana channels, Luke made them double back and act as hooks. He stopped and pulled, forcing Relian toward him with a scream. Answering that scream with one of his own, Luke brought his head forward and crashed his forehead into Relian's face with a crunch. Pain bloomed in his face, but at that point, he had zero more fucks to give.

  "DIE!" Luke shouted, pushing the threads of mana, still embedded in The Fallen Shepherd's neck, outward and to the sides, ripping the soft tissue of the throat and neck apart.

  Relian's scream cut off into a gurgle, and Luke strained, pushing for all he was worth. Still not enough to outpace the healing, he used his new skill, Weaver's Rupture, and shattered several threads embedded in his neck. Blood gushed in an outward explosion of gore as force pulsed out of the threads. Again and again, he sent threads in and made them burst, tearing his opponent apart in a far more gruesome way than Relian's method.

  A head thudded to the grass. Relian's head. It came off. Just like that.

  Panting and chest heaving, Luke stood over it, his entire front covered in blood. Dumbstruck at what he'd just accomplished, it took him a few seconds to gather himself enough to kneel in front of Relian's body.

  Eight threads of mana snaked their way into the flesh of Tim's body. Using Weaver's Rupture again, Luke sent pulse after pulse of force into the corruption that was Relian infesting the young doctor's body, destroying every little trace of it. Still not satisfied, Luke kept up the attack until nothing of Tim remained, and his new skill, Weaver’s Perception, couldn’t pick up even a trace of his opponent. Mission complete, he stood and swayed on his feet, looking down on his handiwork.

  This time, The Fallen Shepherd would not possess someone new. This time, he was dead. Luke had killed him. He’d won, and he’d killed The Fallen Shepherd.

  "Fucker," Luke muttered.

  A gentle drizzle fell from the sky. Luke tilted his head up and closed his eyes, letting the small drops of water touch his face. He breathed in deep and turned toward where The Deep Dweller had been, right next to his and Relian's fight.

  "Hey, Hannah."

  "Hey, Luke," she said, her voice tired. “You’re in your underwear.”

  “…Yeah.”

  Martin: “A little help?”

  Luke: “In a second. Don’t worry, you’ll all be fine. There’s just something I have to do first.”

  Unsure if the others could see him or not, Luke pointed to the rip in the air in the distance. The void being was still there.

  “What’s that?” Hannah asked as the DIA Integrated rushed over, Tor carrying his wife. More monsters remained, some of them huge, but with The Fallen Shepherd no longer controlling them, they were all drifting away in random directions, no longer interested in fighting.

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  “I’m not sure,” Luke said, ignoring the horrified looks of the arriving Integrated. Sure, he was in his underwear, covered in blood, but it wasn’t that bad.

  “Are they dead?” someone asked.

  Oh, right. The people in pieces.

  Curtis came limping up, holding something. "This yours?"

  "Hmm?"

  Checking what Curtis was holding, Luke couldn't help but smile. In his exhausted state, it was kind of funny that he'd forgotten about missing a limb. Perhaps the DIA Integrated were looking at him after all.

  "Thanks," Luke said, grabbing it with a thread.

  Having healed himself and restored the arm, Luke made a final sweep of the grass and everyone nearby, searching for any hint of The Fallen Shepherd, but there was none. He was finally dead. That done, Luke set off walking toward the rift in the air and the presence beyond, looking up, right into those two huge, glowing eyes.

  To his surprise, Hannah and Curtis followed.

  "We're not going to fight that thing, are we?" Hannah asked.

  "No. There is no fighting that," Luke said, holding the calm that had settled over him in a firm grip. This was not the time to start showing weakness.

  The three of them left the other Integrated behind and closed the distance to the rift. Inspect didn't work on the void being beyond, and a sense of curious mirth emanated from it when Luke made the attempt.

  As he felt along the edge of the opening in the air, reaching out to it with Threads of Mana and Weaver's Perception, he closed off his senses to everything else around him. Even as he worked, he felt a strong need to ask, "Was that you or The Deep Dweller?"

  It took her a moment to work out a reply.

  "Me. Well, sort of. I've been through a lot these last couple of months, but I showed that thing what happens when you mess with me. It is its own thing, but I'm in control and can use its power. Gave me a lot of experience."

  "I don't get it," Curtis said. "Is it dead or isn't it?"

  Another long silence.

  "It's difficult to explain. It's dead, but I've taken something of it inside my meta-heart. Don't worry, though. It can't do a Relian and possess me."

  "Sounds shaky."

  "It's not, though," Hannah said, her voice gentle but firm. "You think The Deep Dweller wouldn't have killed you all when I arrived? You think it would have held back when Luke finished off The Fallen Shepherd?"

  It was Curtis's turn to fall silent for a while, and when he spoke it was with a sort of grudging respect in his voice. "Well, OK. Good for you, I think."

  "How did you get back?" Luke asked, still prodding the opening, doing his best to ignore the amused void being. "I felt you coming."

  "That is a weird one. I'm not sure, but it combined my shadows with my profession somehow."

  "What's your profession?" Curtis asked.

  "Traveler."

  "Oh," Curtis said, satisfied with that response.

  "Something similar happened to me before, I think," Luke said, readying himself to make an attempt to manipulate the threads keeping the opening, well, open. "My Seeker profession is gone. It kind of combined with my class skills in a weird way. Gained two levels from it. Now it all feels weird and jumbled."

  "I'm still a Traveler," Hannah said. "And I've learned a lot about using it, too. That part of me, the one touching The Deep Dweller, is shying away from whatever this is."

  "Weirdos," Curtis said.

  "The void," Luke said, gathering himself to get started. "Well, here I go."

  Prodding the opening was one thing, but when he reached out in an attempt to manipulate the edge and get the thing closed, it was like the void reached back, expanding in front of him like an endless sea of nothing threatening to swallow him whole. A yank on the thread pulled him closer, teetering on the edge.

  Hannah gasped. "Luke!"

  Luke gasped and dropped the thread, but that single step was enough for the void to push in and wrap itself around him. All was darkness, a vast nothingness. No threads, no weave, no system. Having all his new senses stripped made Luke shudder and reach out in all directions, searching for something, anything. It was quiet. Too quiet. Other than Luke, it was just those two eyes, regarding him with a peculiar interest, like the being was looking at a struggling bug.

  Something in his inventory twitched, for lack of a better word, calling his attention. The egg. It moved. A small crack formed along its surface, then grew larger as whatever was inside attempted to get out. Luke felt it. The thing inside wanted to touch the void.

  That made the void being take notice. The eyes grew and, for the first time, they changed shape, narrowing, as if suspicious. Was that it? Luke couldn't quite tell.

  The egg cracked and dissolved. Feeling something living pop out of there and into the physical realm was a strange experience indeed, almost like a metaphysical burp. In that utter darkness, Luke couldn't see it, couldn't touch it, couldn't even move.

  The void being approached, its eyes wide and burning with interest. A mewl sounded from right in front of Luke. As if encouraging it, the enormous void being pushed that new little creature toward Luke, bringing them together. After that, the void withdrew, and Luke found himself returned to the practice field near the school, standing on the grass with Curtis and Hannah.

  "Huh," Curtis said. "You made that look easy."

  The opening in the air was gone without a trace.

  Hannah pointed to the ground in front of them. "Luke. What's that?"