Leo froze as the creature emerged from behind the rocks, every muscle in his body prepared for a deadly confrontation. But what stepped into view wasn't the nightmare beast he'd expected. Instead, a Lumina-evolved cat prowled towards him, its massive body rippling with enhanced muscle beneath a coat of grey fur.
The creature resembled an ancient saber-tooth tiger. Standing slightly above Leo's waist in height, its eyes held an intelligence that normal animals lacked.
"An evolved predator," Leo whispered to himself, recalling information from his research days. Unlike beasts with their corrupted Lumina cores, evolved animals merely possessed enhanced Lumina cells. They used the same tier system, though none had ever reached beyond Hunter-tier in recorded history, their natural biology prevented the extreme mutations seen in true beasts.
The difference offered little comfort as the creature circled him, tail lashing behind it. It was still a deadly predator, likely a Fodder-tier hunter based on its size and appearance.
Leo assessed his options quickly. His shadow abilities remained primarily defensive or utility-focused, not ideal for direct combat. Energy siphoning might work, but he would need direct contact, and overloading his system with life energy could be as dangerous as the animal itself.
The slope behind him led to the rushing river he'd heard earlier. An idea formed in his mind.
Leo positioned himself carefully at the edge of the slope, making sure he had stable footing. He waved his arms and clicked his tongue, attempting to provoke the creature into charging.
The evolved cat merely tilted its head, regarding him with something that looked disturbingly like amusement in its eyes.
"Right," Leo muttered. "This is not your average house cat."
With reluctance, he reached into his backpack and took out one of the ration bars. The creature's pupils dilated immediately, its nostrils flaring as it detected the concentrated nutrients. Leo broke off a small piece, holding it in front of him while keeping his body balanced at the slope's edge.
The creature's muscles tensed, tail growing still. Leo braced himself, timing his movements carefully.
When the creature pounced, it became a blur of motion, covering the distance between them in a heartbeat. At the last possible second, Leo jumped to the side, letting momentum carry the predator past him and over the edge. The creature yowled in surprise as it tumbled down the slope, splashing into the rushing water below.
Leo watched it struggle against the current before being swept downstream, its eyes fixed on him with unmistakable hatred until it disappeared around a bend.
He popped the piece of ration bar into his mouth, savoring the nutritions. "Sorry about that," he said to no one in particular. "Survival of the fittest and all that." He joked away the fear, as if that would help him calm down.
Carefully resealing the remainder of the bar to prevent its scent from attracting more unwanted attention, Leo checked his H-phone. The display showed 9:31 AM, only twenty minutes had passed since Kaori's speech concluded and the teleportation occurred.
"Not even half an hour in and already almost cat food," he muttered. "This is going to be a long day."
According to the map, the nearest was the forest area, which offered better cover than his current exposed position. The green coding suggested lower danger levels, though Leo was well aware that forests typically harbored the highest concentration of beasts in the wild.
His self-taught risk assessment training kicked in, thinking carefully about his options. Stay in the open, rocky terrain with high visibility but no cover, or enter a potentially beast-populated forest with plenty of hiding places for both predators and prey. The forest won by a narrow margin.
Leo began picking his way down the slope, following a natural path that would lead him toward the tree line visible in the distance. As he descended, he practiced extending his shadow awareness, searching for energy signatures that might indicate threats.
Although he had only trained three skills, Leo had learnt to do quite a few things with the shadow, a few things he hadn't shown others. One such thing was his ability to sense the shadows. It was a sort of sixth sense that allowed him to use the shadows around him as sensors and surveillance.
An hour later, Leo crossed into the forest. Massive trees covered the sun above. The natural darkness suited his abilities perfectly, shadows pooling around his feet like old friends.
He'd been walking for around thirty minutes, guided by his map, when a sound subtly different from the noises of the forest caught his attention, the faint rustling of leaves that didn't match the wind pattern.
Pure instinct made him leap backward. Three arrows thudded into the ground exactly where he'd been standing an instant before.
Leo dropped into a defensive crouch, summoning shadows around his fists. His eyes darted upward toward the source of the attack.
Perched on a branch nearly fifteen feet above was a woman aiming another arrow directly at his chest. She appeared to be in her late twenties, with dark hair pulled back in a braid and face smeared with camouflage paint. Despite the dirt and foliage covering her clothing, Leo could see she wore standard Resistance recruit gear.
More telling was the equipment hanging from her utility belt, purely conventional weapons and survival tools. Definitely not the gear meant for an awakened. This meant she was likely non-awakened and had no powers, one of the many recruits who relied on skill rather than Lumina cells.
"Don't move," she called down, her voice authoritative, seeming to think she was the most advantageous in this situation, which, if she played her cards right, she was.
The arrow remained pointing at Leo with impressive stability. "Identify yourself or the next one goes through your throat."
Leo slowly raised his hands, keeping shadows swirling subtly around his fingertips, a warning rather than an immediate threat. "Leo Voss. New recruit… Same as you, I'd guess, since we're both in this ridiculous test."
The woman's eyes narrowed. "The journalist who disappeared three months ago? The one with the shadow powers everyone's been whispering about?"
"My reputation precedes me," Leo replied, gradually calming down but maintaining his defensive shadow aura. "I'm not thrilled to be famous for almost dying, but... it is what it is."
For several tense seconds, they remained locked in standoff. Then, surprisingly, the woman lowered her bow slightly.
"Prove it," she challenged. "Show me these shadow powers they talk about."
Leo considered for a moment, then decided a demonstration might be the quickest path to getting out of this situation.
He extended his hand, palm upward, and concentrated. The surrounding shadows gathered into a swirling sphere above his palm, condensing into an or of shadow before dissolving back into darkness on the ground.
The woman whistled softly. "Well, I'll be damned. You're real." She slung her bow across her back in a smooth motion and began descending the tree with efficiency. "They said you were impressive. Didn't mention you'd be jumpy enough to dodge surprise arrows, though."
Leo allowed his shadow defense to dissipate as she dropped the final few feet to stand before him. Up close, he could see intelligence in her eyes that matched her evident skill.
"You always greet potential allies by trying to kill them?" he asked, glancing at the arrows embedded in the ground.
"If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead," she replied matter-of-factly. "Those were warning shots. Had to make sure you weren't one of those shape-shifting beasts. They've been all over this section."
Leo's eyebrows rose. "Shape-shifters? That wasn't in the briefing and this place is labeled green on the map."
"Then someone in the Resistance has a twisted sense of humor. Welcome to the Resistance," she said with a grim smile, extending her hand. "I'm Aria Perez, former GPA tactical specialist. And I think we might both have better chances of reaching the center if we worked together."