Wind howled around the jagged peaks of Mount Chack, sharp and cold enough to bite through Reika's layered, mismatched robes. Below stretched the rugged eastern territories, the Goblin Fells a dark smudge in the distance, Yamashiro village an insignificant speck she'd already forgotten. Her focus was here, high above the clouds, following the faint, pulsating energy signature only her Ruinseeker senses could detect. It had taken weeks of deciphering corrupted data fragments scavenged from old ruins, cross-referencing them with local legends extracted (with difficulty) from the terrified survivors of Yamashiro after her 'rescue'. Saving them hadn't been altruism; it had been a transaction for information. Information leading her here.
To the nest of the Solarynth.
She finally found it – a massive caldera near the volcano's dormant peak, sheltered from the worst of the winds. And there it was. Even Reika, who'd faced down raid bosses designed by sadists, felt a jolt of awe mixed with predatory excitement. The Solarynth was magnificent, terrifying. Easily the size of a small house, covered in iridescent feathers that shifted from bronze to fiery orange, with six powerful limbs ending in obsidian claws and a sharp, intelligent beak capable of shearing steel. Its eyes, burning like twin suns, snapped towards Reika the instant she broke cover. A piercing shriek echoed off the caldera walls, promising agonizing death.
"Showtime," Reika grinned, her amber eyes alight with challenge. This wasn't about survival; it was about acquisition.
The Solarynth lunged, faster than anything its size should move. Reika didn't meet it head-on. She moved, her body responding with the practiced reflexes of a thousand boss fights. //cast_phase_dodge(vector=left, distance=5m). Reality stuttered for a microsecond as she slid sideways, the Solarynth's claws gouging deep trenches where she'd been standing.
Okay, high physical speed, charge attack has wide hitbox. She didn't pause. //cast_animate_stone(target=boulder_cluster_A, form=shield_wall). Rocks erupted from the ground, forming a crude barrier. The Solarynth smashed through it, but it bought Reika a precious second. //cast_decay_bolt(target=Solarynth_L_wing_joint). A bolt of sickly green energy slammed into the creature's shoulder, causing it to hiss in pain and falter slightly.
This wasn't the clean, ordered magic of the Tenkaru Academy she'd fled. This was Ruinseeking – pulling on unstable energies, animating inanimate matter, finding the structural weaknesses in reality itself. Dangerous, forbidden, and far more fun.
The fight was a blur of motion and calculation. Reika treated it like a speedrun. Dodge, analyze attack pattern, exploit opening, cast, reposition. The Solarynth blasted plumes of fire; Reika used animated earthworks as cover. It swiped with its claws; she phase-dodged or countered with corrosive energy bursts. It was powerful, intelligent, far beyond any standard classification the Mage Council used. But it was still, fundamentally, a system. And Reika broke systems.
She needed to get close. The forbidden Soul Bond ritual required physical contact, an imprint of her mana directly onto the target's core life force while simultaneously overwhelming its will. Extremely dangerous. One mistake, and her mind could shatter, or the creature could gain control.
She saw her opening. After a particularly draining fire breath attack, the Solarynth paused, drawing breath. //cast_shadow_tendrils(target=Solarynth_legs, effect=bind_temporary). Writhing tendrils of pure darkness erupted from the ground, snaring the creature's powerful legs. It roared, struggling, tearing at them, but they held for vital seconds.
Reika dashed forward, ignoring the intense heat radiating from the creature. //imbue_hand(spell=SoulBond_Initiation_Matrix). Her right hand began to glow with an intricate, shifting pattern of violet and black energy, draining her internal mana pool at an alarming rate. She needed to touch its chest, the nexus of its energy. She dodged a snap of its beak, slid under a thrashing wing, and slammed her glowing hand flat against the Solarynth's fiery feathered chest.
An agonizing mental shriek ripped through Reika's mind, a psychic assault of pure, primal fury. It felt like her brain was being torn apart by the creature's raw will fighting the invasive magic. Black spots danced in her vision. The world tilted. Reika cried out, staggering, almost losing contact. Blood poured freely from her nose, and a sharp pain lanced through her temples. She gritted her teeth, tasting copper, pouring every last scrap of her focus, her mana, her intent into the Bond matrix. It felt like wrestling a star barehanded, the feedback threatening to incinerate her consciousness. Her mana pool plummeted towards empty. Obey! she screamed pushing past the pain, past the mental violation.
For a heart-stopping moment that stretched into an eternity, the psychic battle raged. Reika felt her consciousness fraying, darkness encroaching. Just as she thought she would break, that her mind would shatter under the strain, the violent resistance ceased abruptly. The mental shriek cut off, leaving a ringing silence. The burning suns in the Solarynth's eyes dimmed, replaced by a blank, waiting obedience. The shadow tendrils dissolved. The giant creature lowered its head, nudging her shoulder gently, like a colossal, terrifying dog seeking approval.
Reika collapsed backwards onto the caldera floor, gasping, trembling violently. Her vision swam. The mana drain ceased, leaving her utterly exhausted, mentally scarred, but undeniably triumphant. The bond was forged. Permanent. Irrevocable. Until her death, this magnificent creature was hers.
She pushed herself up onto shaky legs, wiping the blood from her face with a weak but triumphant grin. She reached out tentatively and stroked the hot feathers on its neck. The Solarynth remained still, docile. "There now," Reika murmured, her voice hoarse, giddy with success and relief. "It wasn't easy to find you. Three month." She laughed, a slightly manic sound in the high-altitude quiet, colored by exhaustion. "Totally worth it. See? This world has so much more potential than some boring OP hero following a script."
She looked out over the vast landscape visible from the caldera's edge. "Still... I want to see it with my own eyes. The start. On the old seat. She patted the Solarynth's neck again. "Think you can handle a long flight? Two days, maybe? Non-stop?"
The creature let out a low, questioning trill. Reika used healer magic onto herself.
"Let's go west," Reika decided, her eyes gleaming with mischievous curiosity despite her fatigue. "To Oakhaven Village. Let's see just how powerful this 'hero' Aelric really is when he shows up. It'll be fun, right... Lady Kagari?" She tilted her head, considering the name. "Yeah, Kagari. Fiery, bright. Suits you. Would you agree if I call you Kagari?"
The newly named Solarynth nudged her hand gently.
"Good girl," Reika grinned fiercely, pushing through her exhaustion. "Let's fly. Oakhaven awaits."