Two days later, we spotted it — another island rising out of the morning mist, its cliffs sharp and jagged like a dragon's spine.
But this place… it didn't feel welcoming.
Storm clouds circled its peak, thick and heavy. Strange lightning flickered within them, but there was no thunder. The ocean itself grew darker, thicker, almost reluctant to let us pass.
Riku grunted, arms crossed at the bow. "This place stinks of trouble."
"That's why we're going," I said, a grin pulling at my mouth.
The Log Pose pointed straight at it — unwavering, almost pulsing with urgency.
Fate was dragging us there.
We made landfall on a narrow beach strewn with black stones. They clicked underfoot like loose bones as we climbed toward the dense jungle.
The trees here weren't normal. They twisted unnaturally, bending at impossible angles, branches curling like claws. The air was thick, heavy with the scent of damp earth and something metallic — blood or rust, I couldn't tell.
We hadn't gone fifty paces inland before the island showed its teeth.
Boom.
The ground beneath us exploded — literally. A chunk of earth flew upward, revealing a pit lined with spikes.
We barely dodged.
"Traps," Riku muttered, scanning the woods warily. His swords were already in hand.
"Not just traps," I said. "This place is designed to kill."
No sooner had the words left my mouth than the trees around us moved.
Roots lashed out like whips, snapping toward us with blinding speed.
We fought back-to-back — Riku slicing through vines with precision, me blasting away roots with arcs of golden lightning.
It wasn't enough. More came. Always more.
"This is insane!" Riku shouted as he hacked apart a writhing branch.
"We have to move!" I barked.
We sprinted through the jungle, dodging roots that snapped like serpents and leaping over pits that yawned open beneath our feet. The deeper we went, the stranger things became — gravity twisted, pulling sideways or upward. Time seemed to stutter, the sun freezing mid-sky for minutes before jumping forward in bursts.
This wasn't just an island. It was a living maze.
A prison.
Hours passed — or maybe days. It was impossible to tell. Exhaustion gnawed at our bones.
Finally, we stumbled into a clearing at the island's heart.
There, standing atop a stone dais wrapped in vines, was a massive structure — a temple carved from the same black stone that littered the beaches. Strange symbols pulsed faintly on its surface, glowing in colors I had no name for.
In front of it stood a man.
No — not just a man.
A pirate.
He was tall and wiry, with wild crimson hair and a jagged scar cutting across his jaw. His coat was dark, tattered, and he wore a necklace of broken Log Poses around his neck like trophies. A massive, barbed glaive rested against his shoulder.
And his eyes — cold, sharp, hungry — locked onto us with the eagerness of a wolf spotting fresh prey.
"New challengers," he said, voice smooth as silk. "Good. It's been boring."
Riku tensed beside me. "Who the hell is this guy?"
The man grinned.
"I am Vargan," he declared, spreading his arms wide. "Captain of the Blood Serpents. King of this cursed rock. And the next owner of that shiny little relic you're carrying."
His eyes dropped to the golden lion amulet tucked against my chest.
He knew about the Beast Relics.
Before I could reply, he moved.
Fast.
The ground cracked where he'd stood. One moment he was twenty feet away — the next he was in front of me, swinging his glaive in a brutal arc.
Riku intercepted him, twin swords clashing against the curved blade in a spray of sparks.
I jumped back, charging lightning in my palms.
"Stay sharp!" I shouted. "He's strong!"
Strong was an understatement.
Vargan fought like a demon, his glaive dancing and twisting with wild, unpredictable strikes. Every swing left deep scars in the earth. Every clash of blades echoed like thunder.
Riku matched him, barely — blocking, weaving, countering. His two-sword style moved like water around a rock — flowing but never breaking.
Meanwhile, I circled wide, searching for an opening. Vargan's aura felt...wrong. Twisted. Like he had been living on this cursed island too long, feeding off its madness.
He parried a blow from Riku, snarled, and unleashed a shockwave from his glaive that sent Riku flying.
I rushed in.
Half-shifting, hooves slamming the ground, lightning crackling across my body. I struck with a roaring uppercut, aiming for his exposed ribs.
He twisted, absorbing the blow along his glaive shaft — but his feet skidded back several meters, gouging the earth.
First blood to me.
The battle turned savage.
Three fighters clashing in a storm of steel and lightning, curses and roars echoing through the jungle.
Riku rejoined, slicing at Vargan's flanks while I hammered him with electrified blows.
It became clear — he was powerful, but alone. He couldn't keep up with both of us.
We fought smarter, tighter. Riku would bait attacks, slip away, and I'd hammer him when his guard broke. Every minute wore him down further.
Finally, Riku feinted a low strike — and I seized the moment.
Golden lightning wrapped around my fist. I drove it into Vargan's chest with a roar.
He gasped, the wind knocked from his lungs — and crumpled to his knees.
We stood over him, panting.
Vargan looked up, bloody grin on his face.
"You're strong," he rasped. "Stronger than the rats that came before."
He spat blood onto the black stones.
"And that's why..." he continued, coughing, "...I want to follow you."
I blinked. "What?"
Riku frowned. "You serious?"
Vargan chuckled hoarsely. "This island's rotting. I'm done rotting with it. You two... you're going somewhere. I can see it."
He knelt, lowering his glaive in a show of submission.
"Let me come with you," he said. "I swear loyalty — by my blade and my blood."
Riku looked at me.
I thought for a moment.
We needed strong allies. And something told me Vargan would rather die than break his word once given.
I extended a hand.
"Welcome to the crew," I said.
Vargan clasped it, grinning wider.
As we left the cursed island behind, sailing into the rising sun, I felt a new weight at my side.
Not fear.
Not doubt.
Purpose.
We were building something.
Something the world wasn't ready for.
And our legend… was only just beginning.