The closer Kyle moved toward the center of the ruined city, the denser the buildings became.  What once reminded him of jagged teeth now resembled the forest after a storm, buildings strewn about the dunes like fallen trees.  Each structure was larger, the smallest of them three or four stories taller than those around the outskirts.  And with taller buildings came better treasures.  At least, that was what Kyle told himself as he ran like a madman across the side of a building, an army of fish in hot pursuit.

C.H.A.D.D. warned him that circumstances would get more dangerous, and the drone wasn’t wrong.  Well over 100 of the fish were pursuing him, resulting in an endless barrage of rust-colored cannonballs slamming into the buildings, the dunes, and occasionally Kyle himself.

“How many D Grades have you spotted?”  Kyle shouted, a note of panic in his voice.

[AT LEAST THREE, DR. MAYHEW.  I SUSPECT THERE IS A FOURTH LURKING BELOW.]

“Why is that?”

Before the drone could respond, Storm Shelter sprang to life, five of the fish slamming into it with resounding thuds.  The barrier dissipated a moment later as Parasitic Resonance hungrily drained their mana and reaped their lives.  Kyle kept moving, barely evading magnetic blades of swirling obsidian.  The attacks rose into the sky with a whisper before running out of power, leaving a gentle rain of razor-sharp glass.

[THERE ARE INCONSISTENCIES IN THE MOVEMENTS OF THE GLASS.  IT ISN’T CERTAIN, BUT I BELIEVE THE PRESENCE OF A FOURTH, MORE POWERFUL CREATURE WOULD EXPLAIN THE PHENOMENON.]

Kyle nodded to himself as he evaded another fish erupting from the black sand.  He sidestepped as he swung his baton down, stunning the creature and allowing Parasitic Resonance to do its work.  A moment later, he was back on the move, taking a moment to look at his handiwork.

Before he even set foot in the new region, Kyle had allowed Ignition to build up to equilibrium.  The clarity and power provided by it allowed him to cut a swathe through the simple creatures, who had yet to adapt to his presence.  As evidenced by his sparring sessions with Jax, fighting multiple D Grades was a challenge, even more so if they had support. 

If Tillienne, Jax, and Trex were coordinating an E Grade force this size, Kyle would have been dead a dozen times over; Ignition or not.  Despite D Grade power, the fish were little more than beasts driven by instinct.  The awakened insects Kyle faced on Earth were far more intelligent by comparison, which magnified the danger they posed. 

The D Grade fish seemed content to let Kyle fight through their schools, only contributing occasional supportive fire from long range.  Kyle had no idea what type of hunting these beasts usually did, but based on the lack of any other living organisms their style was unquestionably effective.  Hell, they’d taken him by surprise the first time around.

Unlike the fish, however, Kyle adapted.  He understood their strengths, their weaknesses, and their patterns.  Between the state of clarity provided by equilibrium and the advanced warnings provided by C.H.A.D.D. and Auric Perception, Kyle was confident, even against overwhelming odds. 

The densely-packed buildings worked in his advantage as he leapt from structure to structure, avoiding the need to step into the sand entirely.  The school thinned more as he weaved back and forth in the small area, and soon the D Grades were the only fish remaining. 

Predictably, two of them charged directly towards him while the third sent waves of sharpened sand.  He got clear of the ranged attack first as the tendrils of Parasitic Resonance invaded the bodies of the grouper-like D Grades, then he pushed with all the Willpower he could muster.  The creatures tried to put up resistance, but it was futile.  They crashed into the dunes, dead.

The one that stayed back began gathering mana, forming a technique that Kyle and C.H.A.D.D. both recognized.  He burst towards it as quickly as Ignition would allow, tendrils of Parasitic Resonance reaching towards the immobile fish.  Kyle felt the sand around him begin to float as the magnetic storm started, his footing giving way below him. 

Parasitic Resonance connected, and he felt the stirring power inside the beast.  Kyle grabbed onto a revealed piece of metal piping, gripping with all his Strength as his Willpower surged against the fish.  The fish’s skill put up fierce resistance, but Kyle overwhelmed it with sheer force of will. The magnetic storm faded before it could whip up into the hurricane he’d endured in his first encounter, followed shortly by the death of the monster.

Still, Kyle didn’t drop his guard.  The magnetic field was persistent, and he was suspended in the air by the pipe he was gripping.  Where’s the fourth?  Kyle trusted C.H.A.D.D.’s judgment, but so far, the final D Grade hadn’t revealed itself.  He was just about to ask his drone if anything appeared on its sensors when he felt the ambient mana in the air begin to shudder. 

Everything around him froze for a moment before accelerating directly down.  The buildings were revealed floor by floor as the attractive force drew everything to a central point far below.  Identify activated on instinct, and Kyle frowned when it revealed nothing.  He could see the flow of mana from the epicenter, but the cloud of volcanic sand obscured what lie beneath. 

Kyle released his grip on the pipe, allowing gravity to guide his descent while the world around him shook.  He was pelted by a rain of dark glass and debris, once again thankful for the protection provided by his Enhanced Carapace as he shrugged off the worst of the damage.

He could make out what could best be described as a blender of swirling onyx blades at the epicenter of the magnetic force.  They hissed as they crossed one another, and Kyle marveled at the scale of the power he detected from the newly-formed pit.  He suspected it to be between 30 and 40 levels higher than the other D Grades, with at minimum one upgraded skill, if not its second offered at D Grade. 

The blades of volcanic glass were dangerously close now, and Kyle banked on the efficacy of Parasitic Resonance.  The tendrils extended deep into the sea of sand, exploring for the body he detected underneath.  They found their prey, and Kyle didn’t hold back as he drank the creature’s mana hungrily.  The energy giving form to the blades was disrupted, and Kyle fell headfirst into the darkness.

Auric Perception had a strong feel for the fish’s energy, even though his eyes were closed in the roiling sands.  The fish was swimming away, even as Parasitic Resonance ravaged its body.  Kyle gasped in shock as he landed hard on the ground, the sensation of cool stone against his skin nearly as jarring as the impact.  His eyes opened as he saw the swirling mass of sand enveloping the retreating form of the fish, finally out of range of Parasitic Resonance.

Kyle didn’t hesitate.  The last thing he wanted was for the beast to attract another school, particularly if they were of similar size and power to its own.  He marveled at the smooth, almost marble-like stone underfoot as he exploded after the creature, waves of volcanic sand collapsing back onto the ground in its wake. 

For all its speed, it couldn’t keep up with Kyle when Ignition was fully active.  Kyle drew in power liberally as he exploded forward, and soon he was back in range.  The beast turned back as it felt the connection reestablish, dull eyes meeting his own as their light faded.  The sand cascaded in without the creature magnetizing it, serving as its grave.

Kyle climbed back to the top of the dunes, now strangely peaceful without the interference of the local wildlife.  He drew in a calming breath as he looked out into the crimson skyline, broken by the jutting forms of the buildings.  They stood in defiance of the ruin that befell the planet, which brought a smile to his lips.

“Well, C.H.A.D.D., what do you think?  Is it time to get to work?”

[AS A POINT OF FACT, DR. MAYHEW, YOU’VE BEEN FORCING ME TO WORK FOR QUITE A WHILE NOW.  I BELIEVE I DESERVE A VACATION, PER CENTRAL HEALTH POLICY, OF COURSE.]

“You’d get bored in 15 minutes.” Kyle chuckled.

[YOU UNDERESTIMATE ME.]

“Is that so?” Kyle asked, eyebrow raised.  “I could always go back and drop you off at the entrance before exploring all these ancient buildings, if that’s what you prefer.”

C.H.A.D.D. was silent a moment before responding; a hint of resignation somehow coming through its words.  [WE’D BEST GET SEARCHING, DR. MAYHEW.]

Climbing through the shattered windows of the first building, Kyle immediately felt a difference.  Somewhere above him, he could feel faint pulses of mana.  C.H.A.D.D. seemed to sense the same, and the duo ascended flight after flight, ignoring the lower floors altogether.  Starting at the fourth floor, Kyle found six desks requiring mana to open.  His smile broadened as he opened the first.

Inside, he saw three journals, two tablets, and six strange orbs that gave off an unfamiliar energy.  Identify revealed a strange attunement with the heat coming off the red giant star that served as the planet’s sun.  Storing them away, Kyle continued to sift through each of the desk drawers.  When it was all said and done, he’d uncovered nearly as many trinkets on this floor alone as he had in the entire outer area. 

The fifth floor was an even more extravagant executive suite.  The desks contained more documents and trinkets, though the real prize was folded neatly in a closet.  A set of exquisite enchanted robes sat, unperturbed by the passage of time.  Kyle used Identify on them, and could make out pieces of the inscriptions, some relating to drawing in mana, others with amplifying its output.  Clearly a mage, then.

“C.H.A.D.D., what do you think?”

[THE MATERIAL APPEARS TO BE A WOVEN METAL OF SOME TYPE, AND THE INSCRIPTIONS ARE HIGH-QUALITY.  MY UNDERSTANDING OF THE CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE IS LIMITED, BUT I WOULD ANTICIPATE THIS TO BE NO LESS VALUABLE THAN YOUR ARMOR, DR. MAYHEW.]

Kyle had to agree, which made him excited.  Most of the items he found were difficult to value; Kyle had no idea what the evaluators would look for in a journal or tablet, after all.  The orbs and small weapons were interesting, but qualitatively fairly boring.  To find an item at the robe’s level was proof that he’d started to locate the good stuff.  If there were more like it within the dozens of other buildings, Kyle was confident Phase Three would be a success.

He placed the robe almost reverently into his bag, then climbed the final set of stairs to the top floor.  Kyle was met by a locked door, which required a significant amount of mana to power open.  He expected resplendence, a beautiful desk, opulent furniture.  Instead, he was met with a familiar sight.  He was standing in the heart of a laboratory.