The artificial sun shone its dazzling light upon the Aurora Isles as it did every day. Tobin, a Spiral Warden, strolled through on his daily patrol, keeping beasts at bay. A courageous group of wolvers emerged from a beaten, overgrown path to Tobin’s right. Led by an Alpha, the wolvers scrambled across the sun-scorched earth, charging at Tobin. Drawing his old, rusted Leviathan and an Aegis that was so decrepit that it offered nearly as much protection as a wooden board, Tobin prepared to fend off the attack.

One wolver drew close and was promptly bashed in the jaw by Tobin’s Aegis. A second lost its tail to his Leviathan. The striking blues of the sky and deep greens of the turf illustrated a much more peaceful scene than the one at hand. The Alpha wolver stared directly into Tobin’s eyes from a position just outside of his reach. One of its eyes had a crimson gash down the center and the other was a piercing green. Tobin was transfixed by its murderous gaze and failed to acknowledge that the other wolvers had backed away from him.

The Alpha cocked its head to one side, its eyes still locked on to Tobin’s. It looked towards the sky and howled the most bloodcurdling moan Tobin had ever heard, then began to stroll back towards the path from which the wolvers had come. One by one, the other wolvers followed until Tobin was left alone in the clearing. He mulled over what he had just experienced and decided he was too shaken up to continue his patrol. He turned north, in the direction of the elevator.

Why had the Alpha wolver called off the wolvers’ attack? Were the wolvers planning to come after him later? Were they watching him? A quick glance around said “no”, but did nothing to calm Tobin’s worries. So caught up in his own thoughts was Tobin that he didn’t hear the muffled voice coming from his com unit:

“Due to unforeseen issues concerning the communications equipment in Haven, we will be disabling all coms for the time being. Thank you for your patience.”

Tobin continued on his paranoia-filled trek until he saw the elevator in the distance. All Tobin could think of as he hurried towards the elevator was how he was going to explain to his superiors that he’d been spooked by an Alpha wolver. When he arrived at the elevator, a realization hit him like a direct hit from a lumber’s trunk arm. The landing pad was gone.

Tobin’s hand automatically went to activate his com unit so he could report the issue to base.

“Hello? Got an issue here with the elevator in Sector 5 of the Aurora Isles… the landing pad isn’t here. Yeah… if someone could get that fixed and have an elevator sent down to me, it’d be much appreciated.”

Nothing.

“Hello? I need help here with the elevator... “

Nothing.

“Anyone? Is anyone there?”

Again, nothing.

Tobin was trapped in the Isles… with the wolvers. What was he going to do? Did the wolvers know he was stuck? Were they coming for him?

Tobin searched the area for wolvers. He checked every bush, investigated every tree, and left no stone unturned… literally.

Were the wolvers hiding somewhere? Were they lying in wait, preparing to pounce on him any second?

Had the wolvers broken the elevator? No, that’s silly. But possible? Maybe. The wolvers were planning to attack Tobin; they wouldn’t want him to be able to escape.

What if the wolvers had attacked Haven? That would explain why no one was answering the coms. Maybe everyone else was gone… Maybe Tobin was the only one left.

Tobin began to patrol the area again, hunting for the wolvers. He couldn’t stand the thought of being watched. Where were the wolvers? Why had they not shown themselves?

‘They must be devising an ingenious plan,’ Tobin thought. ‘Yes, they’re going to come at night. I need to prepare.’

Tobin raced around the area, setting up traps and gathering materials. ‘When the wolvers come, they’ll be in for a surprise.’

The silent moon rose above the horizon, slowly stealing the sky from the sun. Still, Tobin waited. Hours passed, night came, and Tobin did not sleep. How could he? The wolvers would strike when he wasn’t watching.

Morning came, and the wolvers had not shown themselves. Tobin knew they were hiding nearby. They had to be. They were just waiting for the perfect moment to attack.

A day passed, and another. The wolvers were nowhere to be found. Tobin could not fathom why they had not come. Where were they? What were they doing? Why were they not here yet? Tobin was extremely fatigued. Now was the time for the wolvers to strike. Why had they not done so?

On the fifth day, Tobin saw a chromalisk, who told him to keep fighting his exhaustion. The wolvers were going to come the second he gave up.

On the seventh day, Tobin realized he had three legs.

On the ninth day, Tobin saw wolvers with wings flying above his encampment.

Were they scouting him out, trying to figure out how good his defenses were? When would they attack? Tobin had to keep from falling asleep or else the wolvers would win.

But it was so, so hard… Tobin was so tired… He could barely sit up anymore. He felt himself drifting off into a deep… deep… sleep… No! Tobin couldn’t give up! He struggled to keep his eyes open. He used his Leviathan to help him stand up and began to search for the wolvers once again.

Tobin walked around the clearing. Were the wolvers there? Would Tobin finally find them? ...Were they expecting him?

Out of the corner of his eye, Tobin spotted a one-eyed wolver with a gash in its bad eye. Then he collapsed and fainted from exhaustion.

Was the wolver really there?