A Bloom and Bloom had just clashed, and he was right at the center of it.
'A shield.' He glanced around himself. A greenish shield had appeared around him in a bubble.
Just as he was about to wonder about his other squad members, the shockwave reached him.
It roared from the center of impact and slammed into him like a bomb. It was like an explosion.
The trees around him were uprooted, earth shattered, branches flung. Malakai was sent flying inside the shield, bouncing off its sides like a ping pong ball.
Hundreds of meters turned into a thousand, and it just kept climbing, until Malakai lost track of how far he had moved.
Then, with a big crash, he slammed into a large tree, caving it in deeply.
'S-shit.' Malakai cursed.
He shook his head rapidly, trying hard to steady his spinning head. Nyx had just blocked an attack from a Bloom. They had still ambushed them, even this close to the stronghold.
Malakai found his mind racing before he could even realize. As he tried to make sense of the event, a realization suddenly slammed against his mind.
'It doesn't matter.' Trying to make sense of the events didn't matter. What mattered was getting the hell out of this damn situation.
'They'll come for me.' It was very unlikely the Bloom was the only challenge.
Malakai forced his eyes open. And as he took in the sheer devastation sprawled in front of him, his gaze couldn't help but shudder.
The forest was in ruins. It looked like a site used to test the military's most dangerous weapons.
The once imposing forms of the forest trees had turned into a wreckage of broken wood and jagged splinters jutting from the ground. There were no trees standing. Not a single one.
And as Malakai took in the sheer scale of the destruction, he couldn't help but gulp. They were so close to the stronghold before, but now…
Kilometers. He was kilometers away. Which meant the destruction could only be on that scale.
Just one clash. One clash between two beings had caused devastation on this scale.
A realization slammed into him. Every notion he had of being strong vanished in an instant.
He wasn't strong. Not even a bit.
His gaze landed on the flickering shield around him. It had taken the brunt of the force.
That shield, not any skill or strength of his, was what saved him. If not for Nyx, he wouldn't have even survived the aftermath of their clash.
Malakai's thoughts began to spiral.
What if it had been a clash between Zeniths? Could any shield even protect him from that?
He was weak. Meaningless in the grand scheme of things. He was…
Malakai shook his head and clenched his fists.
'Later.' His thoughts firmed. There would be time to chide himself later. First, he had to survive this.
He rose to his feet, fighting the nagging pain that wracked his body. He quickly assessed himself.
'Just a few bruises.' He was thankful. It could've been far worse.
Without wasting time, he channeled vita around his body, hastening the healing process as he checked his gear.
His hands were still gripping his two staffs. His main weapons were intact.
However, the thrashing within the shield had damaged parts of his utility belt.
The canister holding the vita mines had cracked, some of them now lying beside him.
Malakai gulped, a chill running down his spine. If even one of those mines had gone off, his body would've been reduced to nothing but ash.
He shook his head and checked the damage. The side had cracked, but when he tested it, Malakai was glad to see it still worked.
He picked up the fallen bombs, placing them back through the crack in the canister, then forced the crack shut.
'That'll have to do.'
The other components were fine. And just as the shield flared once more and vanished, Malakai narrowed his eyes and scanned his surroundings.
The first thing he felt was the quake.
'They're fighting.' Malakai realized. The shield had blocked the tremors until now. But with it gone, he could feel everything.
The bloodlust in the air. The pressure. The clash had blasted him kilometers away, and still, still, he felt the shockwaves from their battle.
'I'm too open.' Malakai suddenly felt too exposed. He glanced around, nothing but shattered wood and debris. No cover. No concealment.
'I have to find the others.'
He moved before the thought could fully form.
A clash between Blooms was something synergy ranked evolvers could endure, but not without injuries.
But for a node formation evolver…
'Renlo.' Malakai clenched his fists. If Nyx hadn't protected Renlo too, there was no way he would've survived.
Malakai's gaze sharpened. He had to find him.
The terrain was uneven. Broken splinters jutted from the earth in all directions. One wrong step and someone could lose a leg.
Still, Malakai's movements were swift and fast. His eyes stayed forward, his vita field spread around him. With his newly formed node, the 22 meter range had grown to 26.
He evaded every obstacle, only stepping on solid ground as he blitzed through the ruin.
'I need a higher vantage point.'
Malakai's gaze landed on a large, broken half of a tree, its jagged edge reaching up into the air. His vision was too obscured. He needed height.
He blasted forward, scaling the splintered tree in seconds.
As he reached the top and swept his gaze across the ruined forest, his eyes constricted.
Up ahead, scaling broken trees and vaulting toward his direction at high speed, was a large number of figures, all donned in black cloaks and masks, cold gazes locked on him.
Malakai ignored the many behind and focused on the one leading the group.
Even from this distance, he could feel the weight of the man's aura.
There was no mistaking it.
A Synergy stage evolver.