Zane stepped out of the crumbling temple ruins, sunlight baking his skin as the desert's heat slammed into him like a furnace. Sand stretched endlessly in every direction, glimmering under the harsh rays.
Then—fwip!
An arrow sliced through the air, missing his head by an inch. It thudded into a nearby stone with a sharp thunk.
Zane blinked. "The hell—?"
His eyes snapped upward.
There, standing elegantly balanced on the branch of a lone, gnarled tree, was a robed figure.
She wore a hooded cloak of ash-grey stitched with crimson markings — faint but unmistakable. Her light green hair fluttered in the dry wind, and a bow gleamed on her back, strung tight. Her hood shadowed most of her face, but her smirk was visible — lazy and confident.
She jumped.
Not fell — jumped. Gracefully, landing in the sand without so much as a crunch.
Zane stared.
Then raised a finger at the tree. "Wait. Hold up. We're in a freaking desert. Where the hell did a tree come from?"
The girl tilted her head, still smirking. "Does it matter… when you're about to die?"
She took a step forward—
Zane's hand whipped up — the one with the Shadow Ring.
Shadows lashed out from under her like spikes, twisting unnaturally.
She froze.
Not voluntarily. She was stuck mid-step, breathing hard, trembling. Her eyes darted downward in horror as her shadow was no longer her own — bending, writhing like a thing possessed.
Zane exhaled coolly. "See, here's the thing. I'm so not in the mood for another mini-boss battle today."
But in his head?
> [System Warning: Mana Drain Detected]
Current Output: 57 mana/second
Shadow Ring Status: Active
Estimated Time Remaining: 21 seconds
His mana bar was hemorrhaging. His system was lighting up like a cursed disco ball.
In his head: Okay okay okay keep smiling pretend you're not seconds from collapsing.
The girl hissed, "What… what are you doing to me?"
"Shadow domination," Zane replied, trying to sound chill. "Pro tip: don't cast a shadow if you don't want it stolen."
> [System Alert: Mana Reserve Critical – 9 Seconds Remaining]
GOTTA MOVE.
He dropped his hand. The shadows released. The girl gasped and staggered, but before she could recover—
Zane snapped his fingers.
Black ropes of shadow burst from the sand and wrapped around her in a spiral, binding her arms and legs tightly. She hit the ground with a thud and a muffled curse, completely restrained.
Zane walked over with all the attitude of someone who hadn't just almost blacked out from mana loss.
"You know," he said, crouching next to her, "I was just going to let you go and walk off into the sunset like some tragic antihero."
He leaned in slightly. "But you mentioned they. The 'they' who want me dead. And I've got questions."
She struggled against the binds. "I won't talk."
"That's cute," Zane said, patting her head. "But you will, eventually. Or we can keep playing puppet games until you cry."
Link's voice echoed lazily in his mind. I vote for shadow puppet games.
"Not helping," Zane muttered.
Nyx sighed beside him, floating. "Are we really dragging her back into the creepy temple?"
"Yes," Zane said, hauling her by the shadow ropes like a shopping bag. "I've got a nice quiet interrogation spot picked out. Comes with ancient ruins, zero foot traffic, and great acoustics for dramatic threats."
"She's gonna hate you," Nyx said.
"She tried to kill me. I think we're past the friendship phase."
As he dragged the still-squirming anomaly agent back inside, Zane glanced over his shoulder with a smug smirk. "Welcome to Team Captured, greenie."