Noah handed out 100-calorie nutrition bars to everyone. They were small, brown rectangles that tasted like cardboard mixed with artificial chocolate. I chewed mine slowly, knowing it might be one of the better meals we’d have for a while.

Celeste nibbled at hers delicately, looking embarrassed at the special treatment Noah had arranged for her. "We should take inventory of our combat capabilities as well," she suggested, clearly trying to change the subject.

I chewed thoughtfully on my cardboard-flavored nutrition bar as I surveyed our ragtag collection of hunters. "Good idea," I agreed, swallowing the last tasteless crumb. "Juan, your Aspect lets you charge and throw objects as explosives, right?"

Juan nodded lazily, his fingers dancing through a mesmerizing shuffle with his deck of cards. The cards flowed like water between his hands, a nervous habit that betrayed his boredom. "Kinetic Ace. I can turn pretty much anything into a projectile bomb. The smaller the object, the quicker it charges. These cards?" He flashed one between his fingers. "They charge in seconds."

"Raphael?"

He glared at me with open hostility, arms crossed over his chest. "Kinetic Overcharge," he grunted, the words dragged reluctantly from his throat. "I absorb kinetic energy from movement and impacts, then release it in explosive bursts. The more I move, the more power I store up. Simple enough even for you to understand."

"Jaime?"

"STAR CHAIN!" he thundered with such sudden volume that several of us flinched. He rose to his feet in one fluid motion, striking a bodybuilder pose that strained his uniform to its limits. "Each consecutive hit I land becomes EXPONENTIALLY stronger than the last! A true test of warrior spirit, technique, and PASSION!"

Celeste pressed her fingertips to her temple. "Inside voice, please," she said with a pained expression.

Jaime dropped immediately to a theatrical whisper, bowing deeply. "Apologies, Ice Princess! My enthusiasm for combat knows no volume control! The fire in my soul burns too bright!"

I fought back an eye roll and turned toward Monica. "And you can communicate with plants. Can you control them too, like you did back in the Arboretum?"

Monica’s delicate fingers stroked the strange plant-creature in her lap, its copper leaves pulsing with gentle light at her touch. "Yes, but..." Her eyes drifted around the strange forest surrounding us. "It’s different here. These plants aren’t mechanical hybrids. They’re pure botanical life forms, but they’re... older somehow. More aware. More willful. I can ask them for help, but I can’t simply take control like I could before. They have to... agree."

"Celeste?"

She straightened her posture, the picture of aristocratic poise even sitting on the ground in our strange, glowing clearing. "Glacial Serenade," she replied with polished formality. "Advanced cryokinesis with high-precision control capabilities. I can create complex ice constructs, freeze ambient moisture in the air, and temporarily seal other Aspects by flash-freezing their energy pathways."

"And Noah?"

"Kinetic Weave," Noah stated with military terseness, her amber eyes never ceasing their vigilant scan of our surroundings. "I can channel kinetic energy into any non-metallic fabric I touch, altering its molecular properties to harden or sharpen it as needed for combat situations."

I nodded, taking mental inventory of our collective firepower before turning to the empty space beside me. "And I have Thermal Incision. I can create focused heat along a cutting plane."

As we talked, the light began to change. The perpetual twilight darkened ever so slightly, and the twin moons rose higher in the sky, their silver-blue light streaming through the canopy of trees. The luminescent fruit pulsed more vigorously now, as if responding to the night.

"We should establish a watch rotation," Noah suggested, already scanning the perimeter. "Two-hour shifts, two people per shift."

"I’ll take first watch with Raphael," I volunteered. He was volatile, but at least he wouldn’t fall asleep on the job.

Noah nodded. "Then Lady Celeste and I will take second watch."

"Juan and I shall stand vigilant for the third!" Jaime declared.

"Monica, you rest," I told her. "We’ll need you at full strength to communicate with the plants tomorrow."

She nodded gratefully, curling up beside Copernicus. The others settled in as well, finding relatively comfortable spots on the glittering sand. Noah arranged a small pad for Celeste to lie on, fussing over her like a mother hen until Celeste gently shooed her away.

Raphael and I took up positions on opposite sides of our makeshift camp, our backs to the group. The twin moons cast everything in an eerie silver-blue light, making the forest look like something from a fever dream. Beautiful and deadly.

The minutes stretched into an hour. The only sounds were the soft breathing of our sleeping teammates and the occasional rustle of silver leaves overhead.

"You think we’re getting out of here?" Raphael asked suddenly, his voice unusually quiet.

I glanced at him. His amber eyes practically glowed in the moonlight.

"Yeah," I said with more confidence than I felt. "We’re getting out."

He snorted. "Bullshit. But I appreciate the lie."

We lapsed into silence again. I kept scanning the treeline, looking for any movement. The glittering sand sparkled under the moonlight, almost hypnotic in its beauty.

A soft groan came from behind me. I turned to see Juan shifting in his sleep, his face contorted in what looked like discomfort.

"The lazy bastard better not be having a nightmare," Raphael muttered.

Juan’s eyes suddenly flew open, wide with panic. He scrambled backward, away from where he’d been lying.

"Movement," he hissed. "In the sand. Under us."

Everyone was awake instantly, weapons ready. I grabbed my bat and stood, trying to spot whatever had spooked Juan.

The glittering sand around us rippled slightly, like the surface of water disturbed by a gentle breeze. Then it stilled again.

"I felt it," Juan insisted. "Something’s under there."

"Everyone up," I ordered. "Back to back. Now."

The team formed a tight circle, weapons pointed outward. The twin moons blazed overhead, bathing everything in that silver-blue light. The forest had gone completely silent. Even the pulsing of the luminescent fruit seemed to have paused.

The sand rippled again, more violently this time. A depression formed about ten feet from our position. Then another. And another.

The depressions formed a circle around us. Whatever was down there, it had us surrounded.

I tightened my grip on my bat and waited for the sand to explode.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com