The wind slammed down and sent Thaedric jetting forward, but then gentle wind caught him and raised him gently. He saw what was holding him and he held a gasp.

A combination of spider and bird. The creature had a spider body of black and gold, but from its back were two burnt golden wings. Nine eyes locked on Thaedric and long fangs shook. "So another one was here all right! The winds whispered it to me!"

"Aviarachner the Windwalker!" The sand Ancient said. "How dare you show your face after what you did the last time? You snatched up my contractor! You killed him."

Aviarachner turned her eyes. "Sandskar, the Duneshredder. You are shameless. You are always holding to the Rashakas that passed through the portal. And now, you question me about that sickly old man? He’s not worth it."

"But this one is still strong in body. He might be able to survive the contract." Aviarachner said.

Sandskar bellowed a laugh that had no humor. "You joke a lot. That one is mine!"

Thaedric was hanging helplessly between them. He wanted nothing more than to be far away from them, but the wind that was holding him was gentle but firm.

"Make him yours," she said.

"Oh...I will," Sandskar said.

Thaedric heard the warning from the mana in the air, the mana space shuddered as power flowed. Sand spears the size of towers rose from the ground and made their way to Aviarachner.

She laughed, spread her wings, and leaped into the air with a shockwave that should have flattened Thaedric, if not for the protective shield of air that sprang up around him.

The spears turned and followed her into the air, up until she stopped face down, then suddenly beat her wings once. Mana flared around her and a shockwave of air and force slammed into the spears and they crumbled.

She didn’t stop. Aviarachner beat her wings more and blades made of air, each the size of airplane wings, rained down. Sandskar covered himself with a round shield of sand that shrugged off most of the attack, but some managed to cut inside and failed to penetrate Sandskar’s body.

He growled, his sand shifting around him with restlessness. The metal in his body glowed, and heat followed. "Do you think I stand under the sun for nothing?" He smiled.

Then he raised his right hand and all the sand around and on him lit up with yellow light that began to pool into his right hand until he was holding a bright yellow ball of energy that sent waves of heat flowing, making the air shimmer.

Then he threw it, blasting it off in a rolling whoosh.

Thaedric grimaced as the surroundings lit up and heat burned all the oxygen in the air. It was like standing beside a hot furnace. He was protected by the shield but still, he felt the intense heat.

’Aviarachner is finished,’ Thaedric thought. There was so much power in that attack that he was sure the spider-bird would burn, but instead, she crossed her wings in front of her and the yellow ball of sunlight slammed into them like a punch to the gut. Instead of chewing into her wings and burning her, it only sent her spinning in the air.

Aviarachner laughed. "You want to burn me with sunlight? Me? I walk the sky! The sun is my friend. The winds my ally!" She then let out a piercing shrill sound, like an eagle but a thousand times louder.

It was answered by several others, and then in the sky, smaller versions of Aviarachner came flying out. They sliced the air with their wings as they came flying towards their mother, who pointed down at Sandskar. "Get that ugly thing! And bring me the boy!"

Everything was happening so fast. It was as if Thaedric was watching a movie. But this was no movie. He felt the heat, the air blades that cut neatly. And he was being held now by winds.

The small Aviarachners came down and Sandskar let out a wordless shout that made the sands beneath shift as if they were sea waves, and then dogstones burst out.

Fangs opened to meet the small Aviarachners. The two forces collided in a snap and crunch of bones and shrill cries.

That left their parents to battle it out. Aviarachner was still in the air, afraid of touching the sands. "You arrogant sand ape!" She gestured and the winds holding Thaedric started bringing him up into the air, but Sandskar wasn’t having any of that because hands formed from sand and cradled the air shield.

Thaedric wished they would leave him out of this. He took a deep breath. "Wait! Wait! Don’t I have a say in this?" Because they might just end up killing him if they continued. "I have to choose who I also make a contract with, right?"

The two Ancients looked at him, surprised. Maybe they were surprised that Thaedric was even still there. Or alive. He scowled and jabbed his finger forward. "Drop me right now."

The two looked at each other. It was difficult to see, but Thaedric saw Aviarachner shrug seconds before the air around him burst without sound and dropped him from the sky.

"Fucking bastard!" Thaedric shouted as he began to fall, limbs flapping helplessly in the air. Sandskar made a platform of sand that floated up and caught him. "That’s it! I’m certainly not choosing you!" He pointed a wounded finger at Aviarachner.

But something was happening that distracted the two Ancients. The mana in the air was behaving weirdly, as if thousands of fish were swimming and splashing in it.

The mana started to vibrate and then it began to move sluggishly. They could not see it, but they could feel it. And it was moving towards only one place. Towards Thaedric.

Thousands of eyes throughout the Ancient world focused on the movement. At first, they thought it was a Great Power Ancient that was doing some spell or technique, but their awareness sharpened and they suddenly became interested.

Thaedric stopped scoffing at them and instead, he felt that feeling when you know something bad is about to happen and you have no way to stop it.

A drop of blood gathered around his finger. He must have gotten the wound when he fell. It was what was setting the mana off. And then the blood fell and the world froze.

Everything froze. The whole world held its breath. Then everything returned to normal and the world that was holding its breath erupted.

Mana shook for thousands of miles. And far and wide—Ancients answered. They turned their gaze to him and moved.

Today would be for hunting.