Chapter 582: Imminent Incursion Impending

Six months.

Six months... come and gone.

On the seventh anniversary of the previous incursion, everyone made a grim final celebration, accepting that preparations were ending. Many spent time with their loved ones, knowing that the exact beginning was uncertain, but expecting to wake up soon with monster hordes pouring out of the Frontier.

The day after the planned date was an oddity, an unexpected gift that might be unwanted. A few commented about having extra time to train, yet everyone was too tense anticipating the beginning to take any extreme actions.

Two days after, tensions began to rise. The stress and uncertainty worked itself out in a dozen little interactions, everyone just wanting it to be over with. Apparently many relationships were tested, though Kai and his wives didn't argue, just went about their business more grouchily than usual.

Days three and four, reactions began to split. Tension increased for some, while others seemed to relax, joking about how the incursion was late. More than a few of Kai's students independently mocked him for lecturing them about possibly having less than a full month, and he took it in stride even though his own tension was building.

Five days in, Kai recognized that he wasn't training effectively and went to go talk to Gunjin. They met at the center of the Frontier, where various elites were contemplating the central pit. Kai strained his senses, but didn't feel anything in particular.

"Before you ask," Gunjin said without turning around, "no, we don't have any idea when it will start. I know we caution people not to anticipate an early incursion, but statistically speaking, it's late just as often as early. That's what averages mean."

"So this is within expectations?" Kai asked as he walked up beside him.

"Entirely. The record, at least in our histories, is five months late."

"Was that incursion particularly notable?"

"Nigh-apocalyptic." Gunjin shook his head. "Everyone theorizes that monsters build up in the extra time, but we don't actually have good data to prove that. It's also possible that there's a natural ebb and flow to the cycles. Because the last incursion was so far above normal, it wouldn't be surprising if this one was irregular too."

"But no guarantee." Kai sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Last time I had a... strong premonition about the starting time. Which I don't think was my imagination, given my abilities. I'm not sure if it will happen again."

"Your guess is as good as mine. But if I were in your shoes, I'd act. Don't take any major risks, but keep training as if you have years."

"Yeah, maybe you're right. If that's our policy... any risks we take should be taken early, right?"

Gunjin turned away from the pit to look at him. "Oh?"

"I was thinking that I'd like to spar with some elites." Kai rolled his shoulders as he thought about it. "Our strength won't increase too much in the time we have left, but I figure we can sharpen one another. Isn't it worth a try?"

That received a grunt in response, which was apparently an affirmative. By the end of the day, Kai was back in the Frontier wasteland, facing no fewer than five elites. He recognized Sheiri Kagskan with a smile and Yuinafal of Spring with disguised trepidation. There was also Fornil Andalion, present in case of injuries, and a Krysali woman he didn't know.

The odd one out was Talndim Bundrin, who was a step weaker than the others. When Kai glanced at him, he didn't stare, but the man laughed anyway.

"The way I see it," Talndim said, "this is just an extension of phase training. That's where we're starting, right? Or there's no point to any of this."

"Fine," Kai said, cracking his knuckles. "Last time, I tried to take on all the phases at once and I wasn't ready. I've had a lot more practice since then."

They began slowly, almost ritualistically. All of them were dealing with a large amount of power, after all, and if their defensive phases faltered, a blow could be potentially lethal. Kai clashed at least once with each, confirming they were both phased, then things began to intensify.

Sheiri, Yuinafal, and the Krysali woman blurred, and if Kai hadn't been so experienced with fast opponents, he might have lost instantly, just as the Windlord killed all his opponents. Instead, it was if the rest of the world came to a halt while the rest of them continued fighting at normal speeds.

Once they were all phased, Kai was still faster by a fair margin, so he should have had the fight in hand. Yet Sheiri could use her liquid metal whip with great creativity and the Krysali launched numerous crystal shards, which seriously taxed his attention. That gave Yuinafal time to close: he was skilled but definitely weaker than Kai, and if he had been able to focus on Yuinafal for just a short time, he could have ended it, but he never got that chance.

It was absurd that people this much weaker could be giving him trouble... and Kai wondered if that was how the great powers of Rosemount and Cloudspire felt when facing the elites. No doubt these were the strategies they used, when they absolutely had to fight such an opponent.

But there was a weak link: Talndim could only manage a power phase, not a speed phase. He wasn't entirely frozen, his eyes trying to track the fighting and his limbs shifting as if through water, but he was unquestionably vulnerable. Obviously Kai didn't intend to actually kill him, but he broke off to target him next and take down one opponent.

Just before he arrived, the ground exploded. A crystalline trap had been placed there and erupted with terrible force - Kai would have been skewered if he hadn't used Thunderbird's Wings to burst straight up.

But he'd barely done that when Yuinafal attacked from above - no, he'd already been there, anticipating the dodge. Kai blocked his overhead smash and darted back down, just as Sheiri moved in from her own position, whip lashing again. They all descended on him just in front of Talndim - almost still as a statue - aiming for finishing blows.

Kai wouldn't let them. Before their combined assault arrived, Kai unleashed a Tyrant's Claw, which smashed into the Krysali's armor and drove her back. That opened him to the next attacks, but he grabbed Sheiri's whip out of the air. Even though it began to spike into his hands, he ignored the pain and headbutted Yuinafal before he could attack.

Three elites fell back... and Talndim's fist hit Kai's back.

He smashed across the wasteland, pain wracking his body after taking such a solid phased blow. That would have been a serious problem for him a few years ago, but he could survive a lot more now, and had the presence of mind to look back to figure out what had happened.

Talndim was slowing down, his grin frozen in time. For just a brief moment, a splinter of a phase, he had attained the same speed. Focused on the others, Kai hadn't realized the new threat in time.

If the battle had continued, Kai was eager to see how it might go. But as he pulled himself up, he saw that the others had dropped their phases, and Fornil was beginning to treat minor wounds. Shame. As much as he wanted to continue, however, he had to admit that it wasn't worth the risk of someone actually dying.

"I'm impressed," Kai said to the group. "I see how you could take on stronger opponents."

"They don't usually have a very sophisticated grasp of power," Talndim said, massaging his knuckles. "It's just 'weaker' and 'stronger' and so we can take advantage of that."

"The risk is still high." Sheiri recoiled her liquid metal whip, repairing damage as she did so. "A stronger opponent who can break through our phase advantage and get a hit could easily kill us. We could use practice against an equivalent opponent."

"Happy to be your great power or patriarch." Kai gave them an ironic salute. "I could use the practice fighting fully phased."

"Actually, you're frustratingly good at it." Yuinafal placed his palms together and bowed, yet it didn't seem entirely respectful. "What you need more practice with is fighting opponents who are weaker, but still capable of harming you. Disregarding smaller threats is what gets a lot of powers killed."

Kai wanted to continue that conversation, but Fornil had finished treating the others and come to Kai. When he reached out with gathered energy, however, Kai stopped him. "Save your strength," he said. "I'll heal."

Fornil raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps, but are you healing as fast as you expect?"

"Huh. Guess not." Kai rubbed the injury on his side, which felt like a bruise and a broken rib. It had been a long time since such injuries had really impeded him. "Let me guess: phased injuries require phased healing?"

"That would cure them quickly, but it isn't so simple." Fornil examined his injury, then seemed to accept his conclusion. "If unphased defenses are struck by a phased attack, you simply die. But when you survive such a wound, in the wake of it... your body is straining to hold itself together, to prevent the remnants of energy from doing more damage."

Behemoth's Heart was certainly pounding, and Kai gave a hat tip to Talndim for the solid blow. He would have to keep in mind that he wouldn't regenerate as quickly from such injuries... but it was regenerating. More importantly, this was giving Behemoth's Heart a workout in a way that he hadn't felt in a long time, and he hoped that it would grow stronger through the process.

So Kai grinned and turned to the elites. "Well? We're just getting started, right?"