In the morning, after preparing their luggage for the journey to Shadow Town, they walk out of Greymoor Hollow and head north.
From the road, the mountain peaks of the Sakar range rise like jagged spears, their snow-tipped crowns piercing the clouds.
A few hours later, they step beneath the shadows of those peaks, finding a narrow dirt path winding deeper into the range.
The man at the information store had told them this path leads directly to Shadow Town, a trek of only several hours that would bring them there before sunset.
By noon, they have covered half the distance when the unmistakable growl of tigers echoes through the trees.
Not one, but several.
They fall into a circle formation, Nora at the centre, ready to heal and provide support.
Jamie mutters, sword raised, "I thought tigers hunt alone," his eyes darting through the underbrush.
Beside him, Lily's hand shines with blue light, the air around her chilling as her water-element power stirs.
She, like Nora, is a Tier Three extraordinary, but of the way of Water.
The twins, James and Jamie, both stand ready, knights of Tier Three whose blades gleam with disciplined focus.
At their head, Adam raises his golden sword, the chest plate over his heart glowing faintly with light—the mark of a Tier Four extraordinary of the Way of Light.
Lily narrows her eyes as the growls close in. "They're not ordinary tigers. Extraordinary beasts—smarter, stronger. They've chosen to hunt together."
And then the beasts emerge, stepping from the trees, circling on every side.
But none of them crawl on four legs.
They stand upright on their hind limbs, towering, man-shaped tigers with burning eyes and rippling muscle, claws glinting like steel under the noon sun.
But they are dwarfed, reaching only the waist of an ordinary man.
Adam whispers, "Tiger minions."
Jamie blinks, repeating the unfamiliar name. "Tiger minions?"
Adam nods grimly. "Yes. The danger isn't them—it's their master. Minions always serve a stronger tiger. That means we're being hunted by a powerful, extraordinary tiger. Stay sharp. The hidden magic tiger could strike at any time."
The minions roar as one and leap.
Lily thrusts her palms forward, condensing her ice mana into jagged Ice Blades.
Three tigers soar at her—roaring midair, their voices crack with sonic force, shattering her blades into frozen shards.
But their own momentum breaks; they crash awkwardly to the ground instead of raking her throat.
James braces, knight's energy flaring as metallic fists and boots form over his body.
Four tigers close on him, and he meets them with hammering punches and steel-shod kicks, driving one back with a crunching blow to the jaw.
Jamie draws his sword in a smooth arc, wind spiralling along its edge.
With a swing, he releases a slicing gale, the gust exploding outward and shoving the leaping tiger back into a tree.
Adam steps forward, his chestplate glowing, sword burning with radiant light.
One tiger launches straight for him, claws spread wide.
Adam's blade flares and carves downward in a blazing strike.
The beast splits in a burst of blood and light, falling lifeless at his feet.
The battle rages, claws and spells clashing in a frenzy of shadow and light.
Lily breathes frost into the air, Ice Snakes slithering from her palms, coiling around a tiger's legs.
The beast roars and shatters them with sheer force, then swipes its Shadow Claw—its own darkness rising in tandem to double the strike.
Her Ice Shield blooms just in time, cracking under the twin blows but holding long enough for James to slam forward.
Iron Gauntlets crush into the tiger's ribs, the sound of breaking bones echoing as the beast topples sideways.
But before he can finish, shadows creep from beneath his feet.
Three minions roar in unison, their darkness stretching, latching onto his shadow.
James freezes mid-step, muscles locking as frost-like numbness seizes his body.
Another tiger charges, claws outstretched to rip him open.
Jamie roars, spinning his blade, and a Wind Blade screams across the air, slicing into the charging minion's flank.
The tiger tumbles, blood spraying, giving James just enough time to grit his teeth.
Metal bursts from the ground—Iron Stomp erupting spikes beneath the tiger's paws.
It shrieks as steel pierces through its legs.
Jamie spins again, forming a Wind Wall around James, breaking the shadow's grip long enough for him to stagger free.
On Lily's side, three tigers circle, their roars hammering her ears.
She stumbles, clutching her head, when shadows snake across the ground and bind her feet.
They freeze her in place, claws raised to slash her throat.
But Adam moves first—his Light Lions roar into being, radiant beasts of gold leaping to maul the tiger minions.
The clash of fangs and claws shakes the ground as the light-lions rip through shadow-claws.
Adam raises his sword, blade gleaming, and cuts down two tigers in a single arc of holy light.
Still, shadows dart again.
Three minions focus on Jamie this time, their Shadow Freeze spreading beneath him.
He snarls, but his movements grind to a halt as his shadow locks.
The tigers lunge.
Jamie summons with his last breath, a Wind Eagle screaming into existence above his head.
The eagle dives, colliding with the first tiger, tearing it apart in a storm of feathers and wind before exploding with the beast in a crushing blast.
The other two are blown back, giving him time to shake free.
But more minions circle, their numbers pressing, their coordination unnatural.
Nora steps forward at last, hands glowing with green light.
Vines burst from the soil, whipping outward, snaring tiger limbs, holding them thrashing.
Bamboo Arrows rain down from her gestures, piercing through snarling maws and eyes.
Her Vine Shield blooms around Lily, blocking a Shadow Claw that would have gutted her.
"Fight!" she shouts, her voice trembling but fierce.
They rally together—Adam's Light Arrows piercing tiger skulls, James hammering iron fists into bone, Lily's Ice Swords carving cold trails, Jamie sweeping the battlefield with a storm of cutting wind.
Nora's vines bind, heal, and strike in rhythm, her power steadying the faltering team.
One by one, the tiger minions fall.
The tide turns, their enemies staggering, bloodied, broken.
Victory edges within reach.
Then the air chills.
From behind Nora, a shadow thickens—silent, unseen.
From it, a claw of pure darkness uncoils, stretching high before swinging down to cleave her apart.
Her eyes widen, too late to move.
But Adam moves.
Light flares under his feet, his form vanishing, and in the blink of an eye, he stands between Nora and the strike.
The shadow claw rips across his chest, blood spraying as his armour splits, flesh tearing deep.
He staggers, sword nearly slipping from his hand.
"Adam!" Nora screams, catching him as he collapses into her arms.
She pours healing light into him, green aura flooding the wound—but it sizzles, resists, as black shadow clings to the gash, choking her spells.
Tears fill her eyes, desperation cracking her voice.
"Hold on—please, just hold on."
Lily, Jamie, and James form a shield around Nora and Adam, their faces grim, weapons trembling with exhaustion.
The shadows thicken, twisting unnaturally, until a colossal figure materialises.
A tiger, ten feet tall, its fur grey as storm clouds, black stripes jagged like scars, and its eyes dull, glowing grey.
It circles them with slow, predatory steps, minions snapping and growling in its wake, the ground trembling under its weight.
Jamie's sword arm shakes as he whispers, "That's no ordinary beast… It's a Tier Four magic tiger. Without Adam, we can't win."
James clenches his fists, Iron Gauntlets gleaming faintly despite the blood dripping down his arms.
"We have to do it," he says, voice firm, burning with determination.
Lily breathes frost, pale but resolute.
"I'll take care of the minions. You two hold the tiger back. Nora, heal Adam as fast as you can."
Adam pushes against Nora's arms, trying to stand, chest wound still dark with traces of shadow.
"I will help," he gasps, staggering upright.
But his legs buckle, forcing him down again.
James grips his shoulder, steady but gentle.
"Yes, you will help," he says. "But first you heal."
The tiger roars, a sound that shreds the air, and the battlefield erupts once more.
Lily charges first, ice bursting from her palms—blades, snakes, shields, everything she can conjure.
Her spells freeze the minions, shatter them, pierce them, slaughtering them in relentless waves.
But each spell rips mana from her core, each strike heavier than the last.
When the last minion falls, Lily collapses, blood spilling from her lips as her eyes flutter shut.
Jamie and James face the towering tiger alone, its shadow claws sweeping with force strong enough to crush stone.
Jamie summons Wind Walls, blades slashing its hide, while James slams metal spikes into its paws.
But the beast is relentless, its roars shaking their bones, its strikes tearing through their defences.
Both are bleeding, staggering, their lives hanging by threads.
Then light flares again.
Adam rises, healed by Nora's desperate work, his chest bound with faint traces of green and gold.
He steps forward, sword glowing with radiant energy.
Nora follows, vines and arrows surging to his side.
The four fight as one—wind and ice binding the beast, iron crushing its blows, light piercing its shadows, and vines seizing its legs.
The tiger bellows, blood spraying from deep wounds, and at last it falters.
With a final snarl, it leaps back into the shadows, retreating, vanishing into the void it crawled from.
The battlefield falls silent but for ragged breaths.
James lifts Lily onto his back, her limp form weighing heavily.
"Let's go," he says. "Before it returns."
They stumble away, Nora casting healing spells with each step, sealing bleeding wounds, easing broken bones.
Fear clings to them—the forest alive with whispers of shadow beasts, and the danger of extraordinary foes lurking unseen.
Minutes later, Lily stirs, groaning weakly, and slips from James's back to walk on her own.
Nora tends to the surface wounds, hiding scars beneath layers of healing glow, until from the outside they appear uninjured.
They press forward toward Shadow Town, unease gnawing as the air thickens with shadow element.
The plants are darker, twisted, dripping with corruption.
Magic beasts stalk the edges of the trees, their eyes faintly glowing with shadow light.
At last, they reach the gorge.
A black canopy stretches across the sky, blotting out the sun.
The gorge itself glows faint grey, an unnatural light radiating from within its depths.
The air is heavy, suffocating, as if the land itself has been swallowed by shadow.