Chapter 1482 – Bear in There

Sarah approached the boundary between the safe-zone and the native mana of the fifth with a deep sense of trepidation. From everything Anthony had said, she almost expected toxic, knife-faced fish to spring out of the ground beneath her paws the second she crossed the line.

[The Krath have been very active in this area,] the general in charge, a little ant named Antvantage told her. [Don’t extend far beyond the safe-zone if you can avoid it. Just in case, we have emergency rescue teams on standby in case you get in trouble. You’ll be as safe as we can make you.]

[Thank you,] Sarah said, her gratitude truly heartfelt. [I appreciate it. I’m a bit nervous, to tell you the truth.]

The ant, so much smaller, almost comically smaller than the gigantic bear beside her, reached up with an antenna and patted the bear on the side.

[It is dangerous, and the enemy is cunning. I won’t lie, you are taking on a great risk for the family, and we don’t take that lightly. Should something happen, we will do everything in our power to bring you home.]

The giant bear nodded her head, touched by those words. Being welcomed into the Colony as part of the family was still something she was adjusting to, but for the first time in either of her lives, she felt as if there was a place she belonged, and that meant more to her than she could ever say.

[Alright,] Sarah said, firming her resolve, [I’m going in.]

[I’ll be there with you,] Odin said, stepping up beside her. [Don’t worry.]

The two former humans strode forward, and as they passed through the visible border between the cleansed blue and the toxic greenish-yellow, they each became enveloped in a bubble of safety projected from the enchantments built into their armour.

The armour itself was surprisingly comfortable for Sarah. Not that it was actually pleasant to wear, but it was far less restrictive than she’d expected. Overlapping metal plating ran down her back and flanks, along with further steel strapped to cover her belly. There was even segmented armour that covered her legs. It was heavy, of course, but she found she was more than strong enough to bear the burden.

Stepping out into the fifth stratum for the first time, Sarah found it was even more unpleasant than Anthony had described. Thick ropes of slime and mucus connected the floor to the ceiling, some of them metres thick, and everything seemed to be covered in some variety of goop. With every step forward, the surface sizzled and hissed as her mana bubble burned away the corruption that coated everything.

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Before she could even acclimate to the terrible environment, the monsters were already upon her. Frothing, hissing, belching foam, mucus and clouds of toxic gas, they swarmed towards her.

Rather than recoil, Sarah stepped forward. Her heart thumped once.

She slashed out with one paw, her claws tearing a screaming gash through the air, jagged lines of red light streaking through the air and rendering the closest monsters apart.

Her heart thumped again.

Jaws open wide, Sarah lunged, teeth formed of red light extending from her own head to crunch down on the putrid, slime-dripping turtle in front of her.