《Dark One — The Rewrite [Progression Fantasy]》


 1. Too Slow

    Book 1: Origin


    Every few centuries the kingdom of Vorthe goes through great changes. An ancient darkness that resides a few thousand miles away from the capital city of Farryn comes alive. Wails could be heard in all directions, like the cries of damned souls trying to claw their way out of hell. Every city, every town, and settlement for thousands of miles will know no peace during these times.


    Those who are weak-willed: the children and even some adults find their nightmares come alive to haunt them. Many lose their will to live, and their lives. Whole villages and settlements...wiped out by some unseen fiend.


    ¡°Or at least that¡¯s what the folktales say,¡± the blind Rihal stopped his story, rising from his spot to walk away from the mob of children yapping at him to continue or tell them another.


    ¡°Do you think we can hit him this time around, Jerome?¡± Doti asked, his bushy brows creasing together.


    Jerome and his three friends sat huddled at the back of the crowd of kids speaking in whispers. Did he think they could hit him? Not a chance in the world. But that wouldn¡¯t stop him from trying. ¡°We¡¯d never know until we try,¡± he said.


    They all looked toward the blind man as he walked away in his worn-out hooded gray cloak, tapping his walking stick on the dirt track from side to side. Anyone seeing the blind man for the first time would think him harmless, but Jerome knew better. They all did. The little smacks they got from that walking stick anytime they sparred were a testament to Rihal¡¯s sharp senses.


    ¡°Which will make this our thirty-fourth trial,¡± Dreamer chimed in. He¡¯d been keeping a record of their failed attempts to land a hit on the blind man.


    ¡°Why is it so hard to hit one blind old man?¡± Whistle grumbled, his round head looking like it would suddenly fall off as it was being supported by a bony frame. Well, they all had bony frames.


    Jerome glared at him. The dirty mop of black hair on Whistle¡¯s round head made him look like a scarecrow. All he needed was the hat to go with it. ¡°He¡¯s not old, and he used to be an expert sacred artist!¡± he snapped. ¡°Stop complaining and follow the plan.¡±


    Yes, it was hard, he knew this. But complaining about it wasn¡¯t going to change anything. He expected such complaints from Doti instead.


    Jerome silently led them through narrow streets and dark alleys. As they closed in on the blind storyteller, he directed them to surround him. He made sure they moved in his blind spot, and as silently as possible. The lull that the slums always witness on hot afternoons like this made it very difficult though. Slummers usually take long breaks during this time to preserve their strength, which in turn reduced activities around the slums and made it harder to be stealthy.


    They had gone farther away from their orphanage now that they couldn¡¯t hear the voices of the children anymore. When they were a few hundred steps away, they attacked.


    Jerome and Whistle came in hot from the blind man¡¯s front and rear, while Doti and Dreamer dove in from his sides as they aimed to take his stick from him and grab his left leg respectively.


    They would have succeeded, but in the split second, before they latched onto him, the blind Rihal said two words.


    ¡°Too slow.¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal had always been fond of the games the orphans played and often looked forward to them. They gang up on him to try and take him down to prove themselves as men.


    If only that was all it took to be a man, he thought to himself and chuckled inwardly.


    Just before one of the urchins could grab his walking stick, he said, ¡°Too slow.¡± He flicked his wrist and smacked the boy in the head with the walking stick, sending him flying. And then danced around the rest of them.


    He¡¯d never truly learned their names so he just called them whatever came to mind. Not that it mattered because none of them have real names. Except for one ¡ª Jerome. His mission, and the reason why he visits the slums every day. This boy was a reminder of what it¡¯s like to have a real name in this world where words have power, and names even more so. Jerome¡¯s attack and reaction speed were getting better and better every time they sparred ¡ª if you could call it a spar. It was always more like a one-sided beating.


    Rihal watched the little brat stop himself right before he barreled into button head ¡ª Rihal¡¯s current name for Whistle ¡ª flipped into the air, and spun around while he threw some makeshift knives at him. Rihal reached into himself and cycled his essence. Then he blasted out a tiny amount of it like a pulse to knock off the knives mid-air, and at the same time knock out the tricky bastards who were trying to use him to sharpen their skills. They all passed out from the pulse of essence except for Jerome.


    ¡°Will you teach me to do that?¡± Jerome asked as he landed behind Whistle who was sprawled unconscious on the ground.


    ¡°Naturally, you¡¯d learn,¡± Rihal said. ¡°When do you turn twelve?¡±


    ¡°In a tenday,¡± Jerome said.


    Rihal saw the boy¡¯s sunken eyes light up with expectation and eagerness. In a tenday, he¡¯d join the ranks of people who could wield essence in the world. ¡°Huh. That soon? You¡¯re growing up fast.¡±


    Time did fly by quickly. Too quickly in fact. The little baby he had brought to the orphanage was all grown up.


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    ¡°Is it true?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Is what true?¡±


    ¡°Your story.¡±


    Rihal stared at the child for a while before answering, ¡°Every story has a grain of truth in it.¡±


    Jerome nodded to this answer, his face solemn. It made sense. Myths weren¡¯t spun out of thin air. There was always a foundation of truth to them, no matter how far-fetched. Mix in a storyteller¡¯s vibrant imagination and you have an epic that would be passed down from generation to generation.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t pass out this time like your friends. You¡¯ve come a long way.¡±


    ¡°Well, of course. I have a name.¡±


    ¡°Not really the reason,¡± Rihal responded as he walked off. Those your age who have names still pass out. But you¡¯ve got something more, he thought.


    ~~~


    Jerome tilted his head with his brows creased in curiosity as he watched the blind man walk away but he didn¡¯t bother asking what he meant.


    Essence! he thought to himself as he clenched his fists. ¡°Just ten more days.¡± Ten more days and he¡¯d join the ranks of sacred artists in the world.


    ¡°Hrgmm,¡± one of his friends snored.


    ¡°Are you kidding me,¡± he said, sighing. How the hell was he going to get them all back to the orphanage? No way he was going to carry any of them. ¡°Hey, Whisper, get up! Doti! Dreamer! Get up!¡± he kicked them in the ass as he called their names.


    ¡°Did we get him this time?¡± Doti asked lazily as he struggled to stand up, his malnourished frame was barely able to keep him up.


    ¡°No, but we almost did,¡± Jerome said, trying to sound encouraging.


    Whistle snorted, ¡°We¡¯ll never do it. It¡¯s impossible.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say it¡¯s impossible,¡± Jerome replied.


    ¡°Yea, Whistle. We can get him,¡± Dreamer said, standing up.


    ¡°I hate when he does that. It makes me grojy,¡± Whistle said.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± the rest of them chorused, bobbing their heads up and down in agreement ¡ª except for Jerome.


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s not ¡®grojy¡¯, Whistle. It¡¯s groggy. Come on, let¡¯s go home.¡±


    ¡°Hmm-hmm,¡± Whistle hummed. ¡°Still makes me feel not comfortable.¡±


    ¡°You think we¡¯ll be able to do that when we become sacred artists?¡± Dreamer asked.


    ¡°Of course, we will,¡± Jerome quickly said. Among his three friends, Dreamer was the one with the most positive outlook on life. He was an optimist at heart. Should he tell the kid that not many people would become capable of wielding essence as an extension of themselves? It may just fly over his head. Or it may discourage him. Jerome shut his mouth, deciding to wait till they had gone through the initiation to become sacred artists.


    They all shuffled along, dragging themselves back to the orphanage they called home. They hadn¡¯t spent a lot of time trying to take down the blind man but they were dead tired. The lack of proper, consistent diets had taken a toll on them since childhood. Their caretakers did everything to keep them fed but there were a lot of mouths to feed in the orphanage.


    ¡°What¡¯d you think Ms. Tara will cook this eve?¡± Dreamer asked, his eyes looking into the distance.


    ¡°Oh, oh! I know, I know!¡± Doti exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of his feet. ¡°Potato soup!¡±


    The other two boys turned to Jerome to find out if Doti was right. To which Jerome just shrugged.


    ¡°What do you mean by¡ª?¡± Whisper asked, shrugging to mimic Jerome.


    ¡°It means I don¡¯t know what Ms. Tara¡¯s going to cook,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Well, maybe if you all had waited this morning to help out in the backyard, you may have found out.¡±


    They argued and laughed as they neared the orphanage, taking shortcuts and avoiding people they had wronged the morning before they came out to play. As they got close to the orphanage, the boys absentmindedly increased their walking speed. Soon, they turned a corner and faced the building in the distance.


    The orphanage was a decrepit structure; the mud walls were a bleached white, stripped of any vibrancy they may have once possessed, and marked by stains that would never come off. It was the only structure made out of stone and mud that they knew of in the slums ¡ª a neglected structure situated in the heart of the slums in the capital city of Farryn, and devoid of any official name. Despite its squalid conditions, it was home to twenty-five children who had been abandoned by society.


    The ever-present stench of pee and shit graced the dirt track of the slums. Knee-high stains of piss could be seen on the wooden walls of every building they passed by, the stench coming from them, almost suffocating. Though, the kids had gotten used to it now. The stench was simply there, at the back of their minds, like an annoying gnat.


    In front of the structure were some children Jerome and his friends called siblings, all dressed in rags and skinny with protruding bones. They were playing a game he had taught them to keep them busy. Children were a curious lot, and their caretakers didn¡¯t have all the time in the world to look after all twenty-five of them. Even when they were being looked after, Ash and some of the nameless kids would still find ways to slip away.


    Jerome smiled and then he chuckled. He was guilty of that too. This life came as a surprise to him. Waking up to a new world and to new sensations, to a new way of doing things. It was not the kind of life he lived before, not what he would have asked for if given the opportunity to choose, but it was the one he got. And he loved it. Jerome chuckled again. Reincarnation¡­? Transmigration¡­? Now how does one explain that?


    ¡°Ah, I see Jerome is excited for the meal. Yet he won¡¯t tell us what Ms. Tara¡¯s making,¡± Dreamer said.


    ¡°C¡¯mon, Jerome. Tell us.¡±


    ¡°Yes, please. Tell us.¡±


    They looked eagerly at him, their faces unable to hide their curiosity.


    ¡°Do you really wanna know?¡± he asked his friends and they bobbed their heads in response. Jerome couldn¡¯t for the life of him figure out how he got to be friends with such innocent kids.


    He had been in this world for almost twelve years now, and he¡¯d been acutely self-aware throughout all of it. He remembered when he was born, his mother¡¯s fleeting presence and receding vitality after she named him and died soon after. This had left an indelible mark on Jerome¡¯s soul.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you if you promise to help me wash the dishes before bed tonight,¡± Jerome said and they grumbled their assent, eager to know what it was they were going to be eating tonight. Doti¡¯s stomach even growled as if it was ready for a treat.


    ¡°It¡¯s not potato soup,¡± Jerome said and his friends sighed in disappointment. If it wasn¡¯t potato soup, it was going to be lizards or bugs. They hated bugs. Rats were better. They had a little more flesh but they fought back ¡ª viciously ¡ª and could bite you. Which could cause sickness. And there was no health care for the children of the orphanage. They made do with whatever they had.


    ¡°Do we have any leftover rats?¡± Doti asked.


    ¡°No. We¡¯re eating bugs.¡±


    They all grumbled at Jerome¡¯s words to which he chuckled.

 2. Slum Rats

    The interior of the orphanage was bare, save for a few donated blankets that were laid haphazardly on the floor, offering meager warmth to the children who slept there at night. The air was damp and musty, with a pervasive odor of decay and neglect, hanging in the air.


    The children trooped in one after the other, following their seniors to find out how their adventure went. A sure sign that they were hungry and needed food. None of them had eaten throughout the day.


    Jerome listened for movement inside the dilapidated building. Ms. Tara and Moss must have left to find them something to eat. Old Wen¡¯s snores were the only sound that greeted him upon entry. Jerome sighed. He hoped their caretakers could get them something to eat tonight. They hadn¡¯t gone out to find anything when they left to attack the blind man this morning. If only they were allowed to leave the slums. It could increase their chances of finding food. But there were always guards waiting for them when they tried to leave. He wondered what the city would look like.


    ¡°...Jerome?¡± one of the kids called to him. ¡°I¡¯m hungwie.¡± the others that came in with him also began to sob.


    Jerome came out of his musings. Looking down, he saw the child pulling on the hem of his tattered robe, crying. It pained him to see such a little child hungry for food. He held him close and caressed his hair to soothe him and assure him that he would eat tonight. Ash pulled another to her and Doti and Dreamer got the remaining.


    The children¡¯s unhealthy frame stood unsteadily as they shook from their sobs. They had no names. Ms. Tara had once said that they as caretakers were responsible for naming the kids. They gave nicknames that expressed character, or the circumstance in which the children were brought to the orphanage. Giving a real name backed by meaning to a natural entity evoked a price: the namer lost vitality and essence.


    Doti was named Doti because of his proclivity to play in the gutter when he was younger. However, that was because Moss, the second caretaker, didn¡¯t do a good job of keeping him close by whenever he was in charge of watching the kids. Dreamer always had a distant look on his face. Whisper spoke as silently as he possibly could ¡ª but this was because of hunger. And Ash? Ash was dropped outside the orphanage covered in ash. Her origins were the most mysterious among all the kids. The other kids hadn¡¯t been given nicknames yet.


    But he had a name. A real name. His mother had named him before her death. Kaia. Her name sounded far away in his mind. Her features, blurring every waking moment. And even now he could only vaguely remember her face.


    ¡°She poured her soul into naming you,¡± the blind Rihal would always say whenever they were alone.


    Jerome never got tired of listening to the story of how his mother named him. Even though he¡¯d heard it many times before, he still found it touching. However, Rihal never provided any additional details beyond those words, no matter how often Jerome asked him to elaborate.


    The last of the children entered the orphanage and shut the door. It was still midday and the heat of the sun was scorching hot. The interior of the orphanage was cool, however, and provided the much-needed temperature to help the children relax. This was how their daily routine went.


    They spread out, taking different spots on the floor in the small hall they used as a dorm. Tiny holes in the roof and walls let in small amounts of sunlight and air so they weren¡¯t plunged into total darkness, or suffocated from the lack of ventilation. Everyone lay on the floor to get ready for their midday nap. They had to conserve energy since they hadn¡¯t eaten all day.


    ¡°Should we go try our luck later?¡± Jerome asked in a whisper. ¡°Maybe when the sun has moved west a little?¡± that should be in a few hours. Oh, what he¡¯d give to be able to tell time accurately. The kingdom of Vorthe was still archaic in that regard. According to Rihal they still used sundials. He shook his head when he remembered the look of incredulity when he asked the blind Rihal what the time was.


    His friends all understood that he was talking about scavenging for food. Maybe that would be in the slums ¡ª even if the chances of that were pretty slim these days ¡ª or maybe it¡¯s to chance leaving the slums to go into the other parts of the city. The chances of that¡­well, they¡¯d never had the chance to leave the slums, so zero.


    They were all too tired and hungry to talk about it so they just hummed their assent and lay their heads on the floor, falling asleep almost immediately.


    ~~~


    ¡°So these be the lil¡¯ rats who be sniffing ¡®round the border o¡¯ the slums, eh?¡± an officer of the guard said as he walked toward them, his heavy steps evident in the thumping sounds of his boots.


    Jerome looked up from the boots, his gaze lifting as he checked out the brown leather amour. The crest on the chest area showed the symbol of the Royal Family ¡ª a golden sun with an open eye in its center. He raised his head some more to see a face framed in bushy beards and short hair, cut almost to the scalp. Black eyes watched him like a hawk. Just him. As if he knew that he was the leader of the group. He crawled forward on his knees with his hands tied behind him and made muffled sounds to indicate that he wanted to talk.


    The officer sneered at him and gestured to the other guard beside him to remove Jerome¡¯s gag. ¡°What have ye got to say?¡±


    ¡°We just wanted food, is all. Please we have hungry siblings waiting for us at the orphanage!¡±


    The guard bellowed in laughter, his powerful voice assaulting their young ears. ¡°Well, for a slum rat, ye speak ver¡¯ fluently.¡±


    ¡°A blind soldier taught me¡ª¡±


    ¡°Shut it, rat. I don¡¯t care! Food ain¡¯t for free.¡± He squatted down and jabbed his index finger at Jerome¡¯s forehead which hurt like hell. ¡°And ye have no money¡­¡± his voice trailed off and he seemed to grow distant, far away, somehow, like his mind was elsewhere.


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    Jerome tried to rub his forehead with a shoulder since his hands were tied behind his back. Talk about impossible. It felt like a rock was used to jab at his forehead, instead of a finger. But now he didn¡¯t know what to make of the situation. The other guard just stood there as if this was a normal occurrence.


    He and his friends had had to trek for over three miles when they left to go scavenge for food. The slums stretched on for miles in front of them with no end in sight. They began to notice the scarcity of people on the dirt track after a while and that was when they were jumped by the guard. Now kneeling in front of the guard with his heart beating a mile away, he wondered if they were ever going to be able to leave the slums. Was the whole of the city a slum? Even now, the sight was still the same ¡ª rows and rows of shacks clustered around.


    ¡°Is he okay?¡± Jerome asked, but the second guard didn¡¯t look his way. He was as tall as the bearded guard, though younger and more handsome. And he was the one who had caught them. He took the time to study their armor and noticed slight differences between them. The one who appeared to outrank the other had on a leather belt with small suns denoting his rank: three suns to be precise. The other guard had just one sun on his belt. So Captain Beard is two ranks above Stoic, he thought, giving them names.


    Soon enough the officer came to. ¡°Well, rat. Yer ain¡¯t s¡¯posed to be here. There be rules of engagement and slummers ain¡¯t s¡¯posed to come this side o¡¯ the city,¡± he said and pulled out a whip from his back.


    Jerome¡¯s heart almost burst out of his ribcage. A whip? He had never been whipped before. Not in this life or his previous one. He scrambled backward pushing his friends back with him but still stood in front of them to protect them from the child abuser.


    ¡°Please don¡¯t,¡± he begged, voice tight with tension. ¡°We just want something to eat, is all. And we were going to work for it if we could.¡±


    His friends were panicking already, their eyes bulging as the towering guard unfurled the whip. The officer raised his other hand and they all lost control of their bodies.


    The whip descended. Jerome steeled himself as numbing pain stung his skin. He felt nothing but pain¡­ pain that seemed to last an eternity. However, it couldn¡¯t compare to the pain he felt throughout his previous life.


    He had lived a grueling sixty years on earth. From the moment he was born, he was afflicted with a rare blood cancer that ravaged his body, leaving him fatigued and in constant pain. Polycythemia Vera was a cancerous blood disease that had no cure; compared to that this was child¡¯s play.


    The whip descended again, causing him to flinch in pain. If such a disease couldn¡¯t break me, this never will, he thought in anger.


    Thoughts of his previous life flitted through his mind. Jerome remembered his previous name ¡ª Isaac. His existence was a living nightmare. He had spent his days in and out of hospitals, enduring endless tests, treatments, and phlebotomy, all in a futile attempt to ease his suffering. Suffering, he so wished he could forget because of how weak he was back then.


    And now his weakness was shoved in his face once again. This frail small body of his was no good to him for running away from an altercation, talk more defense. He needed strength. Strength to protect himself and those he cared for.


    What use was being an adult in a child¡¯s body? Of what use was all the knowledge he possessed to solve his problems if he didn¡¯t have access to resources? He had nothing. Jerome ground his teeth as he took the whip, refusing to cry.


    His friends sobbed around him, unable to hold back tears.


    When the officer was done, he squatted down beside Jerome again. ¡°I admire yer courage,¡± he said, his voice laced with respect. Jerome thought he heard wrong. ¡°Ye stood up to speak for yerself. And ye also tried to protect yer friends. But next time, don¡¯t come this way if ye be not expected.¡± He turned to the other guard. ¡°Since the rats wanna eat, give ¡®em work to do. The gutter be a good place to start.¡±


    ~~~


    Dreamer tried not to look back at the guard following them to the gutter, but he couldn¡¯t help himself. He felt the guard¡¯s eyes on him, watching his every move. Every time he looked back he was caught by a piercing stare. He felt that any moment now, the guard would bring out a whip and start lashing. He stumbled.


    ¡°Faces forward!¡± the guard snapped.


    He quickly turned away, and so did two other heads ¡ª Doti and Whisper. He looked at them, seeing the same fear he felt in their dark eyes. Jerome on the other hand did not look back at the guard. His face was set in a scowl and he marched on like an avenger. He wished he had Jerome¡¯s courage. He wished he could display his anger as Jerome did. If he did, would he look braver? He wished he could have taken the whip as Jerome did ¡ª quietly, without making a sound. Dreamer sighed to himself. What meat could he eat to get such courage? He¡¯d probably choke on it. Jerome was a lot stronger than him ¡ª than any of them. He could bear pain and hunger better than them.


    But Jerome had also gotten them in trouble. He shouldn¡¯t have suggested leaving the slums. The guards always found them, and so far, they¡¯d been pitied. They didn¡¯t succeed in playing the pity game this time around. All because of that¡­of that¡­hairy bastard! No, he should be angry at Jerome too for taking them there.


    Dreamer balled up his fists, making up his mind to give Jerome a piece of his mind when they got home. For now, he would silently bear the stinging pain in his back.


    ~~~


    They got to the sewer drain a few yards away from the orphanage. The drainage system was a long gutter that was exposed to the air. It stretched from one end of the slum to the other. Just one wide gutter that started from one end of the slum to another. Anyone could throw anything into it, so it had clogged up, and thickened with dirt, and shit.


    ¡°They couldn¡¯t even be bordered to make more than one drain,¡± Jerome muttered in annoyance. The stench coming out of it would make a normal person gag, but he had lived around foul smells all his life.


    ¡°Say something, rat?¡± the guard asked, glaring at him.


    Jerome harrumphed.


    ¡°Seems like you want more whipping, don¡¯t you? Get to work¡­now!¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t work on empty stomachs!¡± Jerome shot back, and the guard raised a hand as if to smack him in the face. Jerome flinched, putting his hands in front of his face to block the incoming strike but the pain never came. He opened his eyes to see three large pieces of bread in the guard''s hands. He wondered where he had pulled them out from, not seeing any pack with the guard. But the thought quickly escaped his mind, replaced by the thought of filling his tummy with food at long last.


    Jerome restrained himself. He glanced at his friends and could see the hunger in their eyes. Their eyes never left the bread for a second, their mouths almost drooling. He cleared his throat, gaining their attention. With a slight shake of his head, they understood what he was trying to say. They had siblings waiting to be fed at home. They couldn¡¯t eat while their younger ones were sitting at home, hungry, and waiting for them to bring food home.


    ¡°Have these,¡± the guard said, throwing them the bread, ¡°and get to work.¡±


    The moment they caught the bread, they bolted.

 3. A Food Debacle

    Tara was returning from outside the city walls from where she went to pick wild mushrooms. She was lucky enough to get some potatoes as well. She hoped Jerome would be able to find some food for the children before she got home to cook. She had spent too much time in the fields outside the city. Tara sighed. She had no other choice. To get them food, she had to work. Moss had also gone to look for something to do to earn them some food.


    If only she could earn some cuts. These farmers who were in charge of the fields, were a bunch of greedy thieves, the lot of them. They would rather pay with food instead of putting money in their workers¡¯ hands ¡ª well those who weren¡¯t truly employed but were looking for a quick cut. A few copper cuts would go a long way. She could buy a few things inside the city. Well, perhaps a select few things. Most goods in Farryn cost more than a few cuts. That was because the city catered mostly to sacred artists.


    Tara sighed. It would take a lot of risks to earn a crystal coin, even a low-grade crystal coin. The fields just outside the city walls were the safest place for someone like her to work, she couldn¡¯t go monster-hunting, and she didn¡¯t have the strength or the stomach for it. And neither did Moss. Old Wen did it in his prime, and it helped to pay for a lot of things that had helped them survive till now.


    The City of Farryn had a lot of land around it used for farming and rearing herbivorous magical beasts. That was where she was useful, not in the wild. Tara sighed again, bemoaning her own weakness.


    Oh, what it¡¯ll taste like to eat a magical beast, she thought as she rushed to get into the city before a line started to form. She thought about the cattle she had seen just outside the walls. Only nobles were rich enough to buy them or rear them.


    Just one bite and she was sure her core would grow more powerful. She could use more essence as it were. The slum was isolated from the rest of Farryn ¡ª not just physically but also with ambient essence. Not enough essence flows in the slum, making the sacred artists who live there to grow and progress slowly. Too slowly, in fact. Not that there was anything she could do about it. Their fate was decided by the ruling family.


    Tara had grown up in the orphanage herself, inheriting nothing from her parents except for her name. She never knew who her parents were, only that they gave her a name for which she was grateful. Which meant they didn¡¯t want her, or they died ¡ª she would never know. Old Wen had been the only source of comfort and protection she¡¯d had all these years. Before Moss came along, she had been lonely. She was never taken in as a disciple by any of the nobles after her initiation as a sacred artist during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur and that was when she met Moss. Old Wen had taken in the poor orphan and they had lived together in the orphanage ever since then.


    Many orphans had come and gone after her ¡ª a large majority of whom had died from health issues. Only the strong survive in the slums. Diseases ate away at the children, slowly ending them one by one. It¡¯s been seventy years now and she had grown numb to the deaths. She couldn¡¯t remember how many children had died in her hands, unable to help them. At one point she stopped counting.


    Old Wen had told her not to invest her emotions into the children because not many of them survive. She hadn¡¯t listened at the time. Now after so many deaths, she had simply grown numb.


    ¡°You there! What are ya doin¡¯ loitering around?¡± A guard took a step toward her. ¡°Get your ass outta here!¡±


    Tara ran, her weak legs carrying her bony frame as fast as she could. She had almost forgotten that there were many rules on this side of the city. But the essence in the air felt so rich, she had unconsciously started to rotate her core to absorb it.


    She crossed the formation that separated the slums from the rest of the city and breathed a sigh of relief. The smell of mold, piss, and shit assaulted her senses as she crossed into the slums. Cobbled streets gave way to dirt tracks and stone walls became wooden shacks.


    ¡°Oi, Tara,¡± someone called out.


    ¡°Cowhide?¡± she looked over at the skinny man, ogling her as he walked over to her. Although she was over seventy years old, sacred artists aged slowly and thus lived very long lives. She looked no more than a woman in her mid-twenties, with black hair and a pretty, albeit skinny face and body. Her only assets that stood out were her large and perky bosom.


    Tara quickly adjusted the sack of mushrooms and potatoes in her hands, making it cover her chest. Cowhide may not be a threat to her, but that didn¡¯t mean she was comfortable with him ogling her as he did.


    ¡°Yer boys are in trouble. They went ¡®n stole from the guard.¡±


    Tara bolted. What crazy adventures have they gone on now? Jerome might be smart and acted like an adult, but he was too adventurous! He took too many risks without thinking of the consequences!


    She ran as fast as her legs could carry her. Although she was weak for a Sprout, she was still faster than a normal mortal. Thus it took her less than fifty breaths to get within thirty yards of the orphanage.


    Someone barreled through Cowhide¡¯s shack, hurling wood and broken mud tiles everywhere. Tara¡¯s eyes widened as she saw Jerome push out of the wreckage. She thought about what Cowhide would demand for this but put the thought aside. The shack was already falling apart anyway. Jerome just gave it a little nudge is all.


    ¡°Stop right there!¡± an officer of the guard roared at Jerome. He was holding a whip in hand ready to use it.


    No, no. Not on her watch. Tara raced up to the officer. Up close, his belt had the image of only one sun ¡ª the lowest rank in the city guard. This should be easy. The guards loved it when someone kissed their asses. Nothing new to her. But she won¡¯t be doing any favors. That was where she drew the line. But Tara wondered for how long. How long before she could no longer protect her chastity? Old Wen would not be there to protect her always. The man was fading as it were, slowly, but she could see the signs, no matter how much he tried to hide it. He was almost 250 years old after all. And Sprouts didn¡¯t live past 300 years of age.


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    Tara jumped in front of the guard to stop him from using his whip on her boys. He almost bumped into her before stopping. ¡°Please officer, forgive them. They are just children.¡±


    ¡°Are they yours?!¡±


    ¡°Yes, officer. Do please forgive them,¡± she pleaded again.


    ¡°Your little rascals think they can get away with stealing from the guard?!¡±


    Tara turned back to Jerome. ¡°Jerome, give back what you stole.¡±


    ¡°We didn¡¯t steal it,¡± Jerome answered, glaring at the guard. ¡°It¡¯s payment for work we would be doing.¡±


    ¡°Work you haven¡¯t done yet!¡± the guard barked at him in anger.


    ¡°I said my siblings are hungry! We just wanted to make sure they get something to eat!¡± Jerome shouted back.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe that! And you¡¯d be taking more strokes as a consequence for stealing from the guard!¡±


    More strokes? Does that mean they¡¯ve been flogged before? Tara held in her anger. It was best not to show anger towards the one she was trying to appease.


    ¡°Please, officer. I have some mushrooms from the fields¡­ and some potatoes. You can have them. I can even prepare some for you¡ª¡±


    The guard¡¯s expression changed to shock, and then he looked around as if someone was stalking him, stepping away from her. Tara didn¡¯t know what must have caused him to change his behavior so fast, but he was no longer as imposing as he was a moment ago. In fact, he looked afraid.


    ¡°Make sure you go back to do the work we gave you, if not, my superior will track you down,¡± the officer said. Doti and Dreamer took a step back at the mention of a superior, ¡°and whip you till your skin falls off!¡±


    By the Light, what had they done to my boys? Tara thought as the guard stalked off. She turned to Jerome after the guard vanished from view.


    ¡°Well?¡± she glared at him waiting for an explanation. Jerome scowled in the direction the guard went, mumbling some nonsense about pigheaded guards.


    ¡°Why did you take food from the guard without doing the work, Jerome?¡± she put a little more bite into her words.


    Jerome looked at her, calming down. Tara wondered if she had ever scared the child or not. Maybe not. He was too strong-headed to be scared by a few words.


    ¡°The kids were hungry,¡± he said, scowling. As if he wasn¡¯t a ¡®kid¡¯ himself. Tara felt like smacking him in the head for putting them all in danger like that!


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you to stop calling them that!¡± she snapped. ¡°You are all children not ¡®kids¡¯!¡±


    ¡°Always reaching above your station,¡± a new voice reached her from the side. One she didn¡¯t mind hearing right now. ¡°You¡¯ll get yourself and your friends in trouble one day, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Got myself out of trouble now, didn¡¯t I?¡± Jerome said, still convinced he had everything under control. Tara wanted to lash out in anger at him.


    ¡°Do you seriously think you could have outrun a sacred artist without intervention?¡± Rihal asked, tapping his stick on the dirt floor as he walked toward them.


    Now that she thought about it, the four boys were ahead of the guard as they raced toward the Orphanage. Which was weird to see. It would take a Blank at least three full breaths to put down four unruly boys who couldn¡¯t wield essence. A guard who was a Sprout would take even less time. And this one had probably been chasing them from the gutters a few ten yards away. Rihal must have done something to slow down the guard, if not they wouldn¡¯t be having this conversation.


    Jerome pointed in the direction the guard left. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see that?¡±


    Tara finally snapped.


    Thwack! She smacked him across the cheek.


    ¡°Heh,¡± Rihal said. ¡°I bet ¡®you¡¯ didn¡¯t see that coming.¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal watched the children scamper inside and told their caretaker, Tara, to meet him after she was done preparing some food for them. Sometimes he forgot this was the slums and the children he comes to tell stories hadn¡¯t eaten since they woke up. He was also not allowed to give to them too freely all the time, but he could work around that rule.


    The Sprout came out after a long while, all spruced up in her nicest robe. Rihal sighed. Tara wanted something he wasn¡¯t ready to give. He had not the slightest spark of interest for her. She was nice and lovely-looking, top-heavy but she was tall and it definitely suited her, a little skinnier than normal but nothing that couldn¡¯t be fixed with more essence. But his heart still mourned another.


    ¡°Take this,¡± he held out a bag of cuts to her.


    She took it and paused. The jangle of coins inside was all she needed to know he was giving her money. To her it might be more money than she had ever seen or held, money she would think he had been saving up for a while now. But to him it was not worth his salt; just a few copper cuts to help feed the children and stop them from taking rash actions like they did today.


    ¡°Rihal, this is too much. I can¡¯t take it.¡±


    Rihal held up a hand to stop her from refusing. ¡°It¡¯s not going to be a problem for me. Just make sure to keep them off the streets for a while.¡± He turned around wanting to leave but looked back and said, ¡°Also make sure they do the work they¡¯ve been given. If anything they should honor their own words.¡±


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll make sure of it.¡±


    Rihal sensed she wanted to say more but he was already walking away. His walking stick clacking on the old wood of the many makeshift homes in the slums was all that could be heard. The dirt tracks here were narrow because houses were built too closely to each other. So he could move around while tapping on their wooden walls.


    The sun had set and many in the slums had gone to rest for the night. The rest of the city was livelier at night than the slums. One couldn¡¯t blame these poor folks. One had to have enough to eat before thinking of pleasure.


    ¡°Who the hell damage ma darn shack?!¡± someone walked out of the debris of broken wood and mud tiles in front of him. ¡°You! I know ya! You da blind soldier who teach ¡®em bois to fight? Ain¡¯t ya the one who set ¡®em up to dis, eh?... eh?¡±


    Rihal tilted his head at the Drudge pointing at him and spewing spittle everywhere. The man was intentionally blocking his way to prevent him from passing. A drudge ¡ª the lowest Realm a sacred artist could be ¡ª trying to block his way? The man didn¡¯t know the meaning of danger. With a slight pulse of essence from his core. The man fell down on his face and passed out.


    Heh? Maybe that was too much. But he shrugged off the thought. Serves him right, though.


    Rihal crossed over him and walked away. He had to go prepare for Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.

 4. Keeping One’s Word

    Jerome woke up to a delicious smell the next day. Whatever Ms. Tara did to get spices to season her food this morning, may the heavens bless her for it. He hoped she hadn¡¯t sold herself or anything of the sort. He quickly rushed out back to see what was cooking. This day wasn¡¯t a special day. No one was celebrating a nameday.


    The people of Vorthe celebrated the day they got their names every year. Although at twenty years old, they celebrate their majority. And every twenty years after that, they celebrate their nameday.


    ¡°Who¡¯s an adult today, Ms. Tara?¡± Jerome asked from behind his caretaker. She¡¯d probably smack him on the head for teasing her like that¡­


    ¡°No one¡¯s an adult, Jerome,¡± Ms. Tara turned around and smiled at him.  She was practically jumping where she stood. ¡°Rihal gave us some money to get you all some proper food. Be sure to thank him when next you see him, yes?¡±


    ¡­Or maybe not. Gosh, she¡¯s smitten. She had probably been love bug bitten, or caught in Cupid¡¯s crossfire. And now, she had her head in her panties. You go, girl!


    ¡°Riiiight,¡± Jerome dragged the word out before turning to look at the food. The cooking area was one of the most archaic he¡¯d ever seen. Granted he had never seen ¡ª well, never been near any other cooking area before or cooking utensils even. A life of affliction would do that to you.


    ¡°What, you don¡¯t believe me? Well, you don¡¯t have to. All that matters is there¡¯s food for us all to eat.¡±


    Oh, Ms. Tara, Jerome thought. So innocent¡­ and so cute. ¡°You should adjust the wood so they¡¯d stop smoking,¡± he said, kneeling down to adjust the twigs Ms. Tara used as fuel.


    Four large stones stood closely together to hold up a large pot above the firepit. And the abominable smoke poured off the flames and mixed with the smell of the food. Jerome couldn¡¯t have that. After a few adjustments, the smoke reduced and the fire grew hotter. He used another stick to clean out the ash, depositing it on one side.


    ¡°How¡¯d you do that?¡± Ms. Tara asked, smiling.


    ¡°Fire burns in the air. Too little air and more smoke would be produced.¡± The fire was still smoking, but not nearly as much as it was before.


    ¡°Look at you teaching a fire attribute sacred artists about fire.¡± She held his face and hugged him fondly.


    Jerome could never hate this woman. She was the one he knew and thought of as a mother even though he yearned to learn about his birth mother. All he could remember of his mother were the sweet nothings she whispered as she cradled him when he was born. Her voice was a soothing balm to his confused and disorientated mind.


    Following his previous life¡¯s painful demise, he found himself awakening in a woman¡¯s arms. She was a stunning woman. Her delicate features exuded a sense of serenity that Jerome had never known before. As the hazy memories of his past life slowly receded, the woman¡¯s voice became clearer until he finally, heard her words. But it was all temporary, for Kaia had died moments later.


    Jerome sighed with a mixture of happiness and sadness as Ms. Tara held him close. He wished he had this in his past life. But if wishes grew on trees, the world would have been a better place ¡ª or probably worse, for people would abuse it.


    ¡°You remember that work you promised the guard you¡¯d do for them, Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara said.


    Jerome became alert. He sensed something coming and knew he wasn¡¯t going to like it. ¡°I promised them nothing.¡±


    Ms. Tara gave him a light knock on the head. It still hurt. After all, she was a sacred artist. And sacred artists were physically stronger than humans, even the weakest of them.


    ¡°After breaking your fast this morning, you, Dreamer, Doti, and Whisper will head down to the gutter and clean it up,¡± she said while still hugging him. ¡°Have I made myself clear?¡±


    Talk about tough love. Jerome sighed. ¡°Yes, Ms. Tara.¡±


    ¡°They follow you, Jerome,¡± she said in a calm and soothing voice, like the voice of a loving mother uttering sage wisdom to her child. ¡°They see you and want to do what you do. They want to be like you, even if they don¡¯t admit it. So be a good role model for them, hmm?¡±


    She raked the dirty mop of hair on his head with her fingers, smoothing it out as best as she could. ¡°Now go wake them up. The food is almost ready.¡±


    Jerome left to go wake up his siblings with thoughts about his birth mother still occupying his mind. He wished he could return to that time when he stayed in her arms ¡ª no matter how short the time was. It was comforting¡­safe. A haven where he had no worries, and someone to take care of him.


    He exhaled sharply, mentally beating himself awake. Going to Lalaland was okay, but remaining there was unhealthy. He had work to do this morning. Cleaning the gutter or making sure his friends were doing their part, he had no idea which to consider more work. When all was said and done, he was the leader of their little group. It fell on him to make sure the work was done. But he had an advantage. His unique situation of being an adult in a child¡¯s body gave him an advantage over everyone his age. Not just in intellect, but also in reflexes.


    He knew he was not as strong as an adult, but he was smoother with his reflexes than regular kids his age. He never wasted his movements, which gave him a sort of grace for someone his age. And he knew this. The adults knew this too, even though they barely ever talked about it. He was constantly astonishing them at the orphanage, including Rihal, who visited occasionally to entertain the children with stories. His exceptional intellect and remarkable capacity to acquire knowledge at a rapid pace made him stand out among his peers and occasionally gave people a sense of unease.


    Well, most of the things Rihal had taught him were things he knew from his previous world. Slight changes existed in the way some things were done. Words like ¡®breakfast¡¯, ¡®lunch¡¯, and ¡®dinner¡¯ weren¡¯t a thing here. People ate whenever they were hungry. But they knew what a fast was. And that you break it the next day.


    Time wasn¡¯t calculated the same way as on Earth. There were no words for seconds, minutes, or hours; instead, they used breaths. On Earth, a day was fractioned into 24 hours. In Vorthe, and possibly everywhere on the planet, a day is fractioned into day and night. And both are further fractioned into quarters. Possible through the use of a sundial.


    Sundials. He could just imagine Rihal¡¯s face if ¡ª no when ¡ª he shows him a clock. What a waste of brain power. Jerome thought Vorthe could do better. There were all these myths and legends told about the Royal Family and yet they struggled with measuring time. Perhaps they didn¡¯t know it could be measured, or they didn¡¯t need to.


    Jerome kept his musings to himself, however. He wasn¡¯t foolish enough to confront anyone about things they might find esoteric. Maybe he might even be burnt at the stakes for defying some god of time, who knew? Best to keep his wisdom close to his beating heart for now. Before it stopped beating due to his blunder.


    ~~~


    Breakfast was superb. Though Jerome called it breakfast to himself, it was just a meal to everyone else ¡ª the only morning meal they had ever had, and maybe the only one they¡¯d ever have in a long while.


    ¡°Ms. Tara, can I have some more?¡± Whisper asked, and everybody else asked for seconds.


    Jerome held his plate out to her as well, but he thought of it as him wanting to look more like a child and not rouse others¡¯ suspicion of him. In reality, Ms. Tara outdid herself with today¡¯s cooking such that his mouth couldn¡¯t let go of his fingers. The potato soup was just too delicious!


    The soup was thick and smooth. The cooked potatoes were soft and melted in his mouth. The mushrooms were steamed and then thrown into the mixture in the pot ¡ª Jerome never expected them to taste so good. They had a meaty texture that wasn¡¯t so soft to the point of dissolving quickly, but that was one of the joys he found eating them. He could chew on them for longer, enjoying the taste in his mouth. He could taste the spices and slices of bacon scattered within his portion of the food. Spices had never been used to cook their soup before. It was a well-rounded meal.


    But no sooner did he start eating than his plate emptied. Now he was left with a tongue-cleaned plate and fingers that were losing the taste he wanted so badly to preserve.


    Jerome frowned as he held out his plate to Ms. Tara. This felt embarrassing for him ¡ª asking for seconds like a kid, but he could do nothing about it. No, he could do something ¡ª not ask for seconds. And watch everyone else eating that delicious potato soup while his throat gulped in air. No, thank you!


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    After their meal, he almost had to drag his friends to the gutter they were supposed to clean. Ms. Tara had given them ¡®the look¡¯, and the boys had fallen in line.


    ¡°So we push the dirt till it leaves the ¡®thing¡¯ at the end?¡± Doti asked with a grumble.


    ¡°No, Doti. We pull the dirt out and leave it to dry. The guards would check in later to burn all of it. Rihal said that¡¯s how it¡¯s done,¡± Jerome responded.


    ¡°What, the blind man?¡± Doti snorted. ¡°How would he know where anything goes?¡±


    ¡°That blind man, Doti,¡± Jerome gave him a pointed look, ¡°taught us everything we know about Farryn. He taught us to read and write, and count.¡±


    ¡°He taught you, Jerome,¡± Dreamer interjected with a frown. ¡°You taught us.¡±


    What has gotten into him lately?


    ¡°True, but same difference. And that ¡®thing¡¯,¡± Jerome pointed to the pipe at the far end of the gutter, ¡°is called a drain pipe.¡±


    ¡°What do we use to pull the dirt out of the gutter?¡± Whisper asked, bringing everyone back to the task at hand.


    Jerome coughed. He refused to look at his friends as he knew they had all fucked up. Well, he fucked up.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Doti called.


    ¡°The guards were mad at us for ¡®stealing¡¯ from them so they didn¡¯t accept my request for tools.¡±


    ¡°Urgh,¡± everyone grunted in dissatisfaction.


    ¡°Only a few more days. A few more days and we won¡¯t have to shovel shit out of gutters with our bare hands,¡± Dreamer grumbled. ¡°And I won¡¯t be listening to you next time, Jerome. You got us into this mess¡­and I¡¯m not a ¡®kid¡¯. I¡¯m a boy.¡±


    Jerome was stunned speechless by those words. Everyone was. But he was kind of proud of him. So this was why he was acting strange lately. Dreamer wasn¡¯t one to complain or speak when he was put in a tight spot. He and Whisper were goodie-two-shoes. Jerome felt they needed to break out of their shell and be more like him. He almost chuckled but restrained himself. If Ms. Tara could hear his thoughts now, she¡¯d go into a fit. Was he really that bad of an influence?


    ¡°You never think about how the rest of us feel or what we think. You just go on and do things, make decisions on your own without consulting us¡­¡±


    Looking at him, Jerome figured it must have taken a lot of courage to stand up for himself like this. The kid was angry and trembling. He must have had enough. Everyone else stood in uncomfortable silence as he spoke his mind. Doti looked at Dreamer as if he had grown an extra head. Whisper looked over at Jerome, afraid he would talk back. There were no puns coming from him now since he could be the next person to be lectured, who knew? Dreamer was the one in charge right now.


    ¡°From now on I¡¯ll do what I think is best for all of us¡­when I think you¡¯re going to get us in trouble.¡±


    Jerome wanted to smile but forced his facial muscles to remain at rest. It would destroy the air of seriousness and Dreamer would feel he wasn¡¯t taking him seriously. Dreamer finished his speech of self-discovery and the silence stretched on for a while.


    ¡°Sorry about that, Dreamer,¡± Jerome said after a while. ¡°It was never my intention to keep you all in the dark.¡±


    Now Dreamer stared at him as if he had grown an extra limb. The kid was lost for words. Jerome saw him deflate as he breathed out loudly.


    ¡°And I¡¯ll try not to call anyone a ¡®kid¡¯ again.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome,¡± Whisper said, lightening the mood. ¡°A kid is a baby goat. Are you a baby goat?¡±


    Jerome scrunched his nose at the insult but ignored it. It seemed Whistle was beginning to find his backbone too. Maybe it was the food. Hmm. ¡°Let¡¯s get to work, then.¡±


    He bent down and started dragging solid dirt out of the gutter with his bare hands. Better to be a good influence for once. His friends joined him moments later, and they began talking about Mehn Agrh¡¯ur. This was what he loved about them. They never nurtured their anger inside them for too long.


    ¡°What would you like to wield when you become a sacred artist, Jerome? I¡¯d like to wield fire. Lots of fire. I¡¯ll make it bigger than Ms. Tara¡¯s,¡± Dreamer asked after a while.


    ¡°I think I¡¯d like to wield everything, Dreamer,¡± Jerome replied with sweet dripping off his body.


    The sun was already high in the sky now and they had taken short breaks twice already. Jerome wanted them to rake out at least a third of the whole waste in the gutter before sundown. But it seemed that wouldn¡¯t be possible. The gutter was chock-full of dirt, some of which didn¡¯t want to come off.


    ¡°The way Rihal said it, humans are capable of absorbing essence ¡ª the energy that permeates the world ¡ª when they reach puberty. However, some individuals possess greater aptitude than others and are able to absorb essence at a much faster rate, allowing them to grow exponentially more powerful. That¡¯s why we train a lot ¡ª to keep our bodies and blood free of as many impurities as possible.


    ¡°The essence that humans can absorb in this world endows them with exceptional abilities to manipulate their surroundings. They can harness the power of the elements for daily purposes or for engaging in combat with one another. Now, the elements. That¡¯s the real power. Well, and the forces,¡± Jerome looked up from his work to see if they were still working. ¡°You can work and listen at the same time, can¡¯t you?¡±


    They quickly went back to work.


    ¡°Rihal once told me that mankind craves power,¡± Jerome continued. ¡°But how one wields that power determines their Path in life. A Path is a fundamental aspect of a sacred artist¡¯s existence. As one progresses on their martial journey, they reach a crossroads where they must choose a Path...or multiple Paths.


    ¡°Some sacred artists can handle more than one Path, of course, depending on how much they comprehend the Path they walk. To fully comprehend the different elements and forces, one must delve into their essence.


    ¡°Earth, water, fire, wind, metal that lies within the earth, and wood that sprouts from it ¡ª these are the foundations of creation.¡± Well, according to Rihal and whoever taught him. ¡°With a strong foundation and understanding of these elements, one can grasp up to four of them in an early Realm, and eventually attain mastery over all.¡± He stopped to catch his breath for a moment.


    ¡°It¡¯s better to work on one to perfection, though, to give you mastery over a particular element. As for the Forces in the world, Rihal said he was only familiar with Lightning and Sword Force. Lightning is perhaps the most dangerous force to comprehend in this world. It¡¯s energy released when there is too much energy in the clouds, or between a cloud and the ground. You know, like when you gotta pee after drinking too much water.¡±


    His friends laughed heartily at the joke, soothing the tension some more and making the atmosphere jovial.


    ¡°One has to absorb a lightning bolt into his or her body to comprehend the Force of Lightning.¡±


    ¡°You mean, be struck by this lightning,¡± Doti said. Ever the critic. ¡°That sounds dangerous.¡±


    ¡°No, it sounds cool,¡± Whisper argued. ¡°Imagine being able to shoot lightning out of your fingers.¡±


    ¡°Yes, when you are dead,¡± Doti shot back. ¡°I can imagine that the energy in this lightning can kill a person.¡±


    Everyone turned to Jerome for confirmation.


    ¡°Hmm. It can be very hot. So, yes. It can kill. But back to the topic. Either you absorb lightning or you have a fortunate encounter,¡± Jerome continued, refusing to give them the chance to continue arguing. ¡°If one is not careful, it could mean death. Or worse, the destruction of one¡¯s foundation. But that¡¯s never stopped sacred artists from trying. Sword Force is more common among artists in the Spirit Realm¡ª¡±


    ¡°Jerome, you haven¡¯t told us about the different Realms,¡± Dreamer interrupted. He had once thought the Realms were different aspects a sacred artist could choose from or it chose the sacred artist, instead of being different stages of advancement.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t?¡± Jerome asked, and Dreamer shook his head.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know much either. I know Ms. Tara, Moss, and Old Wen are Sprouts and Rihal is a Spirit Realm artist. Other than that, I know nothing else. I¡¯ve asked Ms. Tara to tell me some others but she refused. She grumbled something about seeing her as weak and said we¡¯d learn after Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.¡±


    ¡°What? But Ms. Tara is strong!¡± Dreamer said, refusing to believe Jerome¡¯s words.


    Jerome shrugged. Ms. Tara could be strong to them. But to sacred artists like the Guards or Rihal¡­


    ¡°So,¡± Whisper urged him to continue but Jerome was tired. Who knew talking could be so exhausting? Especially when doing menial jobs.


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for a bit and I¡¯ll continue.¡±


    They sat down on the ground with their arms covered in mud, and unable to swat away the flies that were disturbing them. Or the mosquitoes biting them.


    ¡°Sword Force entails comprehending the edge of the blade to form Sword Aura inside oneself. The deeper one¡¯s comprehension is, the more profound one¡¯s Sword Aura is, which will lead to better use of Sword Force. Just so you know Sword Force and Sword Aura are two different things. They can be used interchangeably but they are different.¡±


    His friends looked at him in confusion, forcing him to stop and study them. ¡°You didn¡¯t understand a word I said there, did you?¡±


    They shook their heads innocently, but still urged him to continue. Jerome sighed.


    ¡°Heh. How do I put this? The forces are another type of energy, like essence but different¡­more. Sword force is one of the forces. It¡¯s sharp and cuts through anything. Sword Aura is what the body of a sacred artist¡­scratch that. Aura is like a presence.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by¡­ ¡®presence¡¯?¡± Dreamer asked.


    Jerome let his back hit the dirt in exasperation. ¡°It¡¯s what you feel¡­kind of. The force is the cause while the Aura is a result of the force. ¡®A result¡¯, Dreamer, not ¡®the result¡¯. Like when there¡¯s a fire and you feel the heat coming from the fire. The heat is a product of the fire. You feel the heat, but the heat is not the fire. It¡¯s the same with sword force and sword aura. Sword aura is a product of sword force.¡±


    ¡°Ooh,¡± Dreamer said.


    ¡°That makes more sense,¡± Doti said. Whisper nodded quietly, not voicing his thoughts.


    ¡°There are also Forces like Light and Darkness, but Rihal didn¡¯t know much about them,¡± Jerome concluded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand even half of what you said, Jerome,¡± Doti said jokingly. ¡°It¡¯ll take a lot of time to wrap my head around all of it. But I think I understand the last one¡­Sword Force, yes. I¡¯ll learn how to wield Sword Force and use it to cut off that guard¡¯s hands.¡± He waved his fist in the air, twisting his wrist as if he held a sword in his hand.


    ¡°Are you sure you wouldn¡¯t cut yourself first? Better drop that sword down before your fingers fly off on their own,¡± Jerome said and Whisper and Dreamer burst out laughing. Doti chased him all around, cursing and flicking mud at him every chance he got.

 5. A Lesson On Pressure, And Messing With Your Betters

    ¡°Jerome did what now?¡± Tara asked incredulously.


    ¡°He hasn¡¯t done anything yet. Well, he is about to begin¡­I think,¡± Dreamer spoke apprehensively.


    A strange smell filled the air, one she had never smelled before even though it seemed somewhat familiar. ¡°What is that?¡±


    Dreamer couldn¡¯t look up to meet her eyes. ¡°Err¡­soap?¡±


    Soap? What for? Was that the same soap he had said he needed a pot for a while ago? Tara dashed into the orphanage, heading toward the backyard. She had refused to let him waste firewood for one of his silly adventures. That strange smell was more concentrated now and it did smell like soap, but there was something off about it. She was going to tan his hide if he wasted her firewood.


    ¡°Jerome! What are you doing?!¡±


    She came out from the back door to see Jerome turning a thick mixture inside one of her pots. His thin arms were strained and he was sweating profusely, smiling sheepishly at her. He knew he was in trouble, but his eyes still held some sort of confidence. The other children around him, not so much.


    Tara took off her left slipper and held it in her hand threateningly. ¡°Get away from the fire, right now!¡± The others did as she said, except for him.


    ¡°But it¡¯s almost ready, Ms. Ta¡ª¡±


    Thwack!


    ~~~


    The soap actually came out well but it needed time to harden. After being smacked by Ms. Tara, Jerome sat there refusing to move until she gave up. Yes. Victory for once, or was it twice? Anyway, he hid the shit-eating grin on his face. No need to enrage ¡®mother walrus¡¯ further.


    Jerome watched her like a hawk as she watched him pour the thick molten soap into broken clay pots he had picked in the slums. ¡°We wait for it to harden. There is a whole process to cure the soap by leaving it out to dry for at least three tendays. But that would be for later.¡±


    ¡°Ehn?! Are you saying you would be wasting more of my firewood? Where did you even get oil?¡± Ms. Tara asked, and Jerome couldn¡¯t hold back the grin anymore.


    Ms. Tara raised her slipper as if to smack the grin off his face but she was smiling as well. Sure, she could see the usefulness of his handwork. Heh. How interesting. After she had let out her anger on him, she was smiling at his handwork. No soap for Ms. Tara until she apologizes! But he needed the best timing to drop that line. Yes. Payback¡¯s a bitch. And revenge is a dish best served¡­was it hot, or cold? Pah!


    ¡°The guards,¡± he said, holding up a small pot of oil.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Jerome could almost see the gears turning in her head. ¡°The guards who gave us the gutter job. The bread wasn¡¯t enough so I asked them to pay us for the work and they did¡­reluctantly,¡± he gave her a knowing smile.


    ¡°Jerome, you have one of those evil smiles on your face right now,¡± Doti said, smiling deviously himself.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Ash said. ¡°One of those evil ¡®alchemiss¡¯ smile you tell us kids made up stories ¡®bout.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s ¡®alchemist¡¯, Ash, not ¡®alchemiss¡¯,¡± Ms. Tara corrected. ¡°And you¡¯re not kids! Light, you¡¯ve all been listening too much to Jerome¡­ And you,¡± she pointed her slipper at Jerome, ¡°step away from my kitchen.¡±


    Doti snorted. Whisper and the others held back a laugh.


    ¡°No soap for Ms. Tara until she apologizes!¡± Jerome hugged his soap protectively, and Ms. Tara stuttered not expecting him to say that. There it is. Mic drop. If I do say so myself.


    The other kids nearly laughed their bellies out at Ms. Tara¡¯s expression. Jerome would have paid good money to see it a million times.


    ~~~


    Moss was the second caretaker at the orphanage. His curly shoulder-length hair would have made him slightly handsome if not for the permanent scowl he wore on his face. Jerome didn¡¯t fancy Moss at all as the Sprout was too petty. Nonetheless, he was one of their caretakers. Thankfully, Old Wen always went with them for the bath. He was a burly man with a deep, threatening voice. But the graying hairs on his head were increasing in number. Jerome knew the man didn¡¯t have much time left.


    With help from Moss and Old Wen, he and the rest of the kids were able to wash near the well in the slums. They normally washed once a tenday at the well a few yards away from the orphanage ¡ª insufficient, but water was scarce in the slums. There were no guards to keep order, so chaos usually bloomed whenever they went to fetch water for drinking or to wash. It was still early evening and the sun had not yet set. This wasn¡¯t also the time they usually came to bathe. Thanks to the soap they were going to bathe twice this tenday. Cool.


    ¡°Say, Old Wen. How does the well make water?¡± One of the kids asked. Like many of the kids he had no name, so a pronoun was all they used to call them. The kid was looking into the deep hole in the ground that was ¡®the well¡¯, trying to see something that wasn¡¯t there maybe.


    ¡°Stay away from the well, you.¡± Old Wen said. His voice was deep and throaty, a fitting voice for a man his age and size ¡ª good for scaring away riffraff. He lifted the kid up and away from the well and set him down gently by the rest of the kids. ¡°The water comes from the ground.¡±


    The kids stared, waiting for him to continue but receiving nothing.


    ¡°You¡¯ve explained this to us once, Jerome, right?¡± Whisper whispered into his ear. ¡°Do you mind explaining it again?¡± His words were low enough but the kids could still hear him. Jerome nodded.


    The big old Sprout never said more than a dozen words ¡®Talking was for the young¡¯, Old Wen would always say. He only talked for long when he wanted to tell a tale about the might of the king of Vorthe.


    ¡°So you all know there¡¯s water present underground, correct?¡± Jerome began.


    ¡°Yes, Jerome,¡± the kids chorused.


    ¡°Water present underground is what we call ¡®groundwater.¡¯ It comes from rain or melted snow that seeps into the ground and gets stored in the spaces between rocks and soil. Well, since it doesn¡¯t snow in Farryn we¡¯ll not consider that.


    ¡°The upper surface of the groundwater is known as the ¡®water table¡¯. Think of it as an invisible level below the ground we walk on. The depth of the well is lower than the water table,¡± he gestured toward the hole in the ground. The sacred artist who dug it should have at least put a wall around it to prevent children from falling into it. Jerome had to describe, using his hands to demonstrate.


    ¡°By digging the well deep below the water table, a space is created in the groundwater, which causes pressure that pushes the water into that space, which is the bottom of the well. Understood?¡±


    The look on the kids¡¯ faces told him all he needed to know. They didn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°When you throw around words like ¡®pressure¡¯ and ¡®water table¡¯, how would they understand?¡± Moss, who had been fetching water from the well snorted.


    Jerome sighed and got up, walking toward the Sprout.


    ¡°What?¡± Moss asked as Jerome took the ¡®fetcher¡¯ from him ¡ª an open bucket made out of hide with a long rope attached to its handle.


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    ¡°Come everyone,¡± Jerome called out and they all gathered around the clay jars of water.


    ¡°Hey, those jars are fragile,¡± Moss said trying to shove the kids back but doing so might end some of them inside the hole in the ground.


    ¡°This,¡± Jerome held up the leather bucket, ¡°is the well, and that,¡± he pointed next to a jar, ¡°is the groundwater.¡±


    He skimmed his hand over the surface and one of the kids screamed, ¡°Water table!¡± Their excitement was now palpable.


    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re getting it now!¡± he dunked the ¡®well¡¯ into the full jar of water ¡ª with the bottom facing down ¡ª causing it to displace precious water. Jerome didn¡¯t care. The kids had to know what pressure meant.


    ¡°Now the force I¡¯m applying is the pressure on the groundwater that causes it to push upward,¡± some of the water spilled into the bucket ¡ª most onto the ground, ¡°into the well.¡±


    Moss cursed. The kids applauded, drowning out Moss¡¯s complaints.


    Old Wen shrugged at the bristling Moss. ¡°Ye gotta give it to the boy. He knows how to get his point across.¡±


    ¡°Why does Tara get to be the only one to smack him?¡±


    Old Wen¡¯s face suddenly changed and he stared daggers at Moss. ¡°Ye said what now?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡± the younger Sprout hid his tail between his legs. Coward.


    Jerome observed their conversation. Old Wen didn¡¯t really fancy Moss. He was just additional baggage that came home with Ms. Tara after Mehn Agrh¡¯ur during their time ¡ª at least that was how Old Wen put it whenever he was having a bad day, which was almost every day. Jerome sighed and slung the fetcher into the well ready to fill the jar up again. He might have to wait for the well to fill up to a certain extent as this particular place where the well was dug was lacking sufficient groundwater, or maybe the well wasn¡¯t deep enough.


    The kids walked back to their previous position and Moss came over and took the fetcher from him. ¡°Go sit with the kids and listen to Old Wen tell a story,¡± he said.


    ¡°Sorry about the water,¡± Jerome said as he walked back.


    ¡°Oh, you gonna pay me with that soap of yours. Nothing¡¯s for free,¡± he snickered at Jerome. It was expected.


    ¡°You¡¯re devious, ain¡¯t ya?¡± Jerome replied.


    ¡°Say what you will, I¡¯m getting my soap. Those innocent eyes of yours don¡¯t work on me.¡±


    Jerome stuck his tongue out at him, acting like the kid he was known as. His ¡®innocent eyes¡¯ not working on Moss was the reason Old Wen refused to let him touch Jerome. Jerome knew this, but Moss did not. Way to get away with every Moss-related incident. he chuckled to himself, grinning from ear to ear.


    ¡°So let me tell ye a tale of the northern mountain range,¡± Old Wen¡¯s voice sounded ahead of him, filled with awe and wonder.


    ¡°Shweet!¡± Ash yipped and clapped excitedly.


    ¡°The vast mountain range to the north beckoned to me once when I was in the guard.¡±


    ¡°But you said you were a sailor once,¡± One of the kids said.


    ¡°You said you were a scribe too. Which one is it?¡±


    Oh, boy. These kids would one day frustrate the old man to death.


    ~~~


    After a good night¡¯s bath, the kids returned home to the smell of another wonderful meal still cooking. The gulps coming from their throats were loud enough to wake a sleeping sloth. Jerome went to his stash of soaps to drop the remainder of the one that was used today. He needed to find a way to cure them ¡ª a place even. Where no one could disturb the airing. The ground was the only place he could think of. But that was off-limits. He couldn¡¯t take up precious sleeping space, except Ms. Tara permitted him.


    He rubbed his fingers together enjoying how clean he felt. He had never felt this clean in forever. His robes had also been washed. With the help of essence, Old Wen and Moss had dried the rags they wore as clothes so they wouldn¡¯t walk naked back to the orphanage. The children¡¯s messy hair had also been washed and combed ¡ª with essence. Jerome wondered how they did it. They pulled every strand and straightened them without breaking them. Essence was a lot more complicated than he thought. Probably because he couldn¡¯t sense it. He got to the location of his stash ¡ª a hole in the wall on his side of the hall where he slept ¡ª and found nothing.


    ¡°Huh?¡± he searched around other holes in the wall. Nothing. Which could only mean one thing. ¡°Ms. Tara!¡±


    ¡°Jerome, I¡¯m out back!¡± came her answer. Jerome stomped to the back of the yard, fuming.


    ¡°Ms. Tara, my soap. They¡¯re all gone,¡± he said, scrunching his face to show he was hurt. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have anything to do with that, would you?¡±


    ¡±I sold them. All of them.¡± That was a smack to the face. Ms. Tara stood with her arms akimbo, and a smirk on her lips, daring him to challenge her.


    ¡°But they¡¯re my soap, you don¡¯t have the right to¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, they¡¯re not. You used my firewood¡­ and rendered my pot useless,¡± she said in his face with a tight smile. She was close now. Too close for comfort. And scary as hell.


    Someone chuckled behind Jerome, ¡°That¡¯d teach you not to mess with your betters.¡±


    Moss. Of course, it was him. The Sprout was taking pleasure in his misfortune. Ms. Tara glared at him and he scampered off with his tail between his legs like the scaredy cat he was.


    Jerome gathered his confidence once again. ¡°You said you sold them, Ms. Tara. Then we split the profit.¡± And I would come up with ways to make sure I get 100% profits next time. Hehehe.


    Ms. Tara groaned like she had had enough of him. Grabbing hold of his ear, she twisted it, making sure he felt the pain. ¡°Children don¡¯t need money so we as adults don¡¯t give it to them. Until you become a sacred artist or reach your majority, no cuts or crystal coins for you.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Jerome fumed and tried to get his ear away from her. ¡°That¡¯s a stupid cultural rule!¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not stupid. It keeps boys like you, from wasting money on stupid and dangerous things.¡± She held him close after that and caressed his ear, blowing on it so the heat and pain faded away.


    Jerome sighed. He could never stay angry at this woman. She was just too caring.


    ¡°On the flip side,¡± she pulled a pouch from her waist and shook it. ¡°We have spare cuts now.¡±


    ¡°Can we see?¡± the other kids chorused, having been attracted by their verbal spat.


    Ms. Tara pulled out three of the cuts. They were uneven and rough on the surface with a reddish hue.


    ¡°These are copper cuts,¡± she said handing it to them to get a feel of them.


    ¡°Why call them cuts, why not coins?¡± Jerome asked before he was given a cut to observe. Everyone else looked at him with a questioning gaze.


    ¡°How do you know they ought to be called coins?¡± Ms. Tara asked him with a smile.


    ¡°Seems proper,¡± he said with a shrug.


    ¡°Well,¡± she said. ¡°They aren¡¯t cut properly like crystal coins. Hence the term¡­ ¡®cuts¡¯. Get it?¡± she chuckled at her own words.


    Was that supposed to be a joke? Jerome smiled. ¡°Crystal coins?¡± he asked accepting one of the copper cuts and observing it. It felt warm to the touch now, after going through many hands. ¡°You mentioned crystal coins.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Crystal coins ¡ª didn¡¯t know you caught that ¡ª they are mostly used by wealthier people. And they have more value than cuts, even silver and gold cuts.¡±


    Jerome soaked in the interesting piece of knowledge. ¡°These crystal coins, Ms. Tara, what are they made of?¡±


    ¡°Ooh!¡± she clapped her hands, excitedly. ¡°A moment, please.¡± She quickly served the food before sitting them down on the floor to explain. The fire provided enough warmth to expel the darkness so the kids were comfortable outside to eat.


    Jerome smiled inwardly. Did she long to teach them something that she became so excited at the opportunity to do so?


    ¡°Now, settle down everyone. You can eat and listen at the same time.¡±


    They all sat down on the floor to enjoy the meal. Which was good. Really good. The past few days had been a blessing. A few strokes of a whip didn¡¯t compare, even if his back still hurt in places.


    ¡°Crystal coins are cut from essence crystal stones or crystal stones for short, which are mined from the earth. There are three grades of crystal stones: high-grade, mid-grade, and low-grade.¡±


    ¡°Just like how we grade nobles, Ms. Tara?¡± someone asked.


    Moss chuckled by the side.


    ¡°Yes, more or less,¡± Ms. Tara said, wincing. She looked back to give him a pointed look but he just rolled his eyes at her.


    ¡°They¡¯re children; they¡¯ll learn,¡± Old Wen said in that deep rumbling bass. Moss shrugged, still smiling wickedly and the older Sprout smacked him upside his head. Serves him right.


    ¡°Heh. I¡¯ll explain later,¡± Ms. Tara said to the child who asked. ¡°So anyway, low-grade crystal stones are attributed with mostly earth and water essence. Maybe because earth and water are the most abundant elements in existence. Mid-grade crystals are also attributed, again, mostly with earth and water essence. It¡¯s rare to find fire essence attribute crystal mines. They are rare and are mostly created around or in active volcanoes.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s a volcano, Ms. Tara?¡± Ash asked.


    Good girl, Jerome thought with a smile. Questions are the lifeline of discovery. She¡¯d do well to ask when she didn¡¯t understand things.


    ¡°Volcanoes are mountains that spit hot melted rocks called magma,¡± Ms. Tara said with a beautiful smile.


    ¡°Rocks can melt?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°How is that possible?¡± another asked. More voices rose as everyone started talking at the same time.


    Ms. Tara coughed loudly to silence everyone. Then she looked at Jerome with pleading eyes. Ah-ha! Caught in the children¡¯s trap. That would teach her not to mess with her betters!

 6. Slum Bangers

    ¡°Wait your turn, Whisper,¡± Dreamer complained, trying to elbow his mate away from the warmth of the fire.


    ¡°How long¡¯s it gonna take, Ms. Tara?¡± Doti asked from beside Whisper. Every one of them was cold to the bone.


    The children had gathered around her to have their robes smartened. Today was a significant day and Tara was happy for them. The day when those who had come of age for the Initiation would dress in their best clothes and journey to the City Square.


    Tara remembered what it was like for her as well. She was so optimistic and sure that she¡¯d become a disciple of a noble. What a shame. No one had chosen her and that was how she met Moss. She had prevented him and Old Wen, and even Rihal from telling the children about the selection by the nobles in Vorthe. It would do the boys no good to raise their hopes only to have them dashed if no one chooses them.


    ¡°Just be patient you all, it won¡¯t take much time,¡± Tara said as she heated up a flat piece of metal with fire coming from her hands.


    They all held their hands out to reach for the little warmth coming from her fire. Well, most of them. Jerome sat beside her, smiling as he watched his friends. He wasn¡¯t shivering like the rest of them. Almost like he could resist the cold without external heat.


    ¡°Why are you smiling, Jerome, aren¡¯t you cold?¡± she asked. This phenomenon wasn¡¯t strange anymore. She knew how sturdy Jerome was compared to the rest of the children in the orphanage, and she wished that like Jerome, they had had the opportunity to be given names ¡ª real names ¡ª backed with power. Not the nicknames they came up with to give them an identity. Tara abhorred calling them numbers. Why would someone call children numbers, that¡¯s not an identity, it¡¯s slavery ¡ª slavery of the mind.


    Jerome¡¯s smile brightened but he quickly pursed his lips to restrain himself. Was he excited about Mehn Agrh¡¯ur?


    ¡°You¡¯re hiding something, ain¡¯t you?¡± Doti said. Then he pointed to Jerome accusingly and looked at her, ¡°Ms. Tara he¡¯s hiding something.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not hiding anything,¡± Jerome said, opening his hands wide for them to see but failing to keep the smile off his face. This just made him all the more suspicious.


    ¡°Tsu!¡± Whisper sneezed.


    Tara glanced at him and quickly said, ¡°Ok, Dreamer, let him get some warmth. We don¡¯t want Whisper getting ill, do we?¡± She quickly held Whisper¡¯s hands, warming them up by blowing hot air on them.


    Life at the orphanage was a struggle for the children. But with lots of friends ¡ª siblings really ¡ª though they were dirt poor and lacked resources that most children needed, they lived happily, nonetheless.


    Tara had seen what a little cold could do to these children ¡ª dirt. Having nothing to heal them but her flames to warm them up. Thanks to Jerome who came up with a way to make them soap to keep them clean, many of the children would have died from diseases before they turned 12. She still found it hard to believe he did that with wood ash and oil, he had made soap ¡ª and made one of her pots unusable in the process. Even now she felt like smacking him on the head, but the soap had more than made up for it. Did Rihal teach him how to make it? She knew they had been spending a lot of time together. They had a sort of master-disciple relationship. Just as she had with Old Wen many years ago.


    Jerome had explained that soap could keep them clean enough to not fall sick easily. However that worked, she had no idea. And he refused to explain beyond that. The boy was as stubborn as a mule. Perhaps he was still angry at her for selling his soap ¡ª soap that put food in his belly and had kept him off the streets for a sixday. He had made more and she went ahead and sold them too ¡ª unrepentantly so. Well most of them. The soap was too good to sell everything.


    The four boys had been up before dawn, preparing for the journey to the City Square where they would sense the essence of the world for the first time.  Tara looked them over once again as pride surged through her. Her boys were adolescents now. Though, they were all twelve years old, they didn¡¯t look like it due to the lack of proper nutrition all these years. But that would soon change, she hoped.


    Tara quickly finished smartening their robes, helping them look presentable.


    ¡°Well, how do we look?¡± they asked Moss who walked out of one of the rooms in the orphanage, looking like he¡¯d been run over by a mob.


    ¡°Well¡­¡± he dragged out the word not wanting to discourage the children but having nothing good to say about their robes.


    Tara didn¡¯t blame him. The boys wore rough, cheap robes that hung loosely on them. The gray color of the robes made them look like prisoners heading to the guillotine.


    Jerome snorted. ¡°Well, what?... say it.¡±


    ¡°Splendid,¡± Tara said, applauding, as she gave Moss a scary glare. ¡°The boys have been preparing for Mehn Agrh¡¯ur for four moons, Moss. The least you could do is encourage them.¡±


    ¡°You look¡­good?¡± Moss said, bobbing his head up and down. His compliment also sounded more like a question than a statement.


    ¡°Right,¡± Jerome murmured to himself, clearly not convinced. He was not loud enough but she heard him.


    ¡°How did you get the robes, by the way?¡± Moss asked.


    ¡°We worked for it,¡± Doti said proudly, grinning from ear to ear.


    ¡°Yeah, by cleaning shit,¡± Moss said with a smirk.


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    ¡°We cleaned the drainpipe carrying sewage out of Farryn, Moss!¡± Jerome barked at him. ¡°Our job was to clear the gutter, not to also clean out the drain pipe that was clogged. The guards asked us to unclog it and I, genius that I am,¡± he puffed up his skinny chest, ¡°asked them for more pay. Hrmph! What productive thing did you do this last tenday, Moss ¡ª besides using the soap that I made?¡±


    Tara had to hold back Moss to stop him from hitting Jerome. She heard him spit out a series of curses that shouldn¡¯t be said in front of children.


    ¡°Jerome, apologize,¡± she said but the child in question huffed and looked away in anger. Tara sighed. ¡°That was too much, Jerome. You shouldn¡¯t have said it. And you too,¡± she turned to Moss. ¡°They have been working very, very hard to make today worth it. And you just spit on their hard work like it was nothing.¡±


    Moss stormed out of the Orphanage in anger at that. Tara looked at Jerome, not knowing what to say to him. The boy was too intelligent for his own good. They all stood for a while in uncomfortable silence before Jerome walked up to a wall.


    Tara watched him carefully retrieve the sandals he had woven from the scraps of cloth and leather he collected in the slums from inside a hole in the wall. She had seen him stashing leather straps and the likes for a few moons now but didn¡¯t know what they were for. So this was what he had been up to. She smiled. She was going to miss him, but that would be for the best.


    The sandals were a hodgepodge of colors and sizes, with uneven stitching and frayed edges, but they were the best he could make with the limited resources he had.


    ¡°Here,¡± he handed his friends a pair, each smiling brilliantly.


    Despite their imperfections, Tara could sense their elation. It was a first-time experience for them as they had never owned shoes before, and the joy of having something to cover their feet was written all over their faces.


    ¡°How...when did you make these?¡± Doti asked, amazed.


    ¡°I''ve been at it for a while now,¡± Jerome responded with a grin and added, ¡°¡­secretly.¡±


    The others mumbled their thanks as they excitedly put on their new sandals.


    ¡°Before you go, I want to wish you well. May the Sovereign¡¯s light bring you good fortunes and shine a light on those that wish you misfortune so you would know to avoid them,¡± Tara prayed. Vortheans weren¡¯t religious but the Sovereign was the closest thing to a god she knew. And if there was a god, she prayed he ¡ª or she ¡ª was watching over her boys during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.


    ~~~


    Leaving the slums to see the other parts of the city was a dream come true for Jerome. He chatted with his friends as they hurried along to leave the slums for the first time in their lives. He was quite excited to see what was on the other side of the dirt-ridden, flea-contaminated part of the city he had always known. And from the looks of it, his friends were eager too. They pointed at places where they brought mischief to bear, shouting greetings at the homeless and elderly in the slums while those they greeted hurled curses at them.


    As soon as they stepped out of the slums, a breathtaking panorama of the city was unveiled before them, arresting their attention with every passing moment. The bustling activity, grandeur, and beauty of the cityscape left them in awe.


    Jerome gaped, unable to stop himself. It was as if he had entered a different realm altogether, one he had only heard of in tales. The Victorian Architecture he was seeing for the first time was quite unbelievable to him. The people of Farryn took things a step further making them into gigantic edifices. Imposing structures that loomed over them, casting shadows on the streets. The colorful facades of the buildings shone brilliantly in the early morning sun, their intricate designs and patterns mesmerizing him.


    Jerome wondered if all these buildings could be homes. They were more like manor houses but fit more tightly together, with little to no space between them. And they were tall. Some reaching as high as fifteen stories. By the standards of Earth, these were tiny edifices. But Vorthe as he knew it, was still in their developing stages. The highest he assumed their structures would be was five stories.


    They all couldn¡¯t help but gape at the shops lining the streets, offering an array of merchandise, from dazzling garments to gleaming weaponry. The story buildings all had a store in front of it. The streets were wide, and carriages glided smoothly along the well-laid-out paths, the rhythmic clops of horses¡¯ hooves resounding in the air. It was a dazzling spectacle that left them spellbound, the sheer grandeur of it all nearly overwhelming their senses.


    ¡°Why couldn¡¯t we see the rest of the city in the slums?¡± Dreamer asked after they all calmed down a bit. The structures around them were too imposing to not be seen from the slums ¡ª some of which were at least 150 feet tall.


    ¡°That¡¯s because there¡¯s a visual formation around the slums preventing those within from seeing what¡¯s outside of it. It¡¯s a brilliant idea if you ask me.¡± Jerome chipped in.


    His friends didn¡¯t know what to say because they couldn¡¯t wrap their tiny brains around it, so they just looked at him in silence.


    Dreamer finally asked again, ¡°What¡¯s a¡­visual formation?¡±


    ¡°Think of it as a...an illusion, created to prevent us from seeing what¡¯s outside the slums.¡± And to make them go around in circles if they aren¡¯t expected outside the slums.


    Their Jaws nearly touched the floor.


    ¡°Someone can do that!¡± Whisper said in a low voice. ¡°Maybe it ain¡¯t just someone, but a lot of someones!¡±


    Jerome chuckled at the play with words. Doti and Dreamer bobbed their heads up and down in amazement. Jerome was equally amazed, not at the achievement of creating an illusion around the slums, but at the pure and innocent nature of his friends, who could not fathom the idea of being offended by the fact that they were kept from seeing the rest of the city.


    Ah, Jerome sighed to himself. How nice it¡¯ll be to be a child again. I sometimes forget that I¡¯m a child and my friends are children. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry up so we can get to the City Square on time,¡± he said.


    Reluctantly, they tore their gazes away from the grandeur of the cityscape and begrudgingly made their way through the bustling throng of people, determined to reach their destination at the square.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it was quite easy to reach this part of the city today? Why was it impossible before?¡± Doti asked.


    ¡°Yes. I thought it would take us more time but it seems it wasn¡¯t just a visual formation preventing us from reaching this part of the city,¡± Jerome said as they walked. He couldn¡¯t be sure if it was something as simple as making them walk around in circles that prevented them from crossing the formation. If that was all, he would have sensed it. Or would he? He didn¡¯t know what people in this world were capable of, or what sacred artists were capable of for that matter.


    ¡°Hmm. That smells nice,¡± Doti said. The smell hit Jerome too and his stomach growled. All of their stomachs growled.


    ¡°Smells better than potato soup,¡± Dreamer said rubbing his stomach. ¡°Maybe we should¡ª¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s not get distracted. This is not the slums, remember?¡± Jerome cut him off. He increased his pace, walking ahead and the rest caught up with him a moment later. It was probably going to be a long trek to the City Square. They had to hurry.

 7. The City Square

    As Jerome and his friends arrived at the City Square, the sun was already high in the sky, casting a warm glow across the open space. The Square was massive, with the buildings surrounding it towering high above them.


    In contrast to the bleakness of the slums, the Square was a feast for the senses. Fruit trees lined the edges of the Square, bursting with vibrant colors and sweet scents. The ground beneath their feet was tiled with intricately designed jade-like stones, gleaming in the sunlight, and adding to the picturesque atmosphere of the Square.


    The children couldn¡¯t help but feel in awe of the grandeur of it all. Despite being the first ones to arrive, they could sense the excitement building within them, knowing that they were about to embark on an incredible journey toward their dreams.


    ¡°I call dibs on the biggest tree over there!¡± Dreamer screamed and ran forward. The fruits on the trees looked so delicious, he just had to get one.


    Jerome tried to stop him but he was already a dozen paces away. And not just him, the rest of his friends had also taken off. You¡¯ve got to be kidding me! he panicked. If they were caught picking the fruits from the trees, a good whipping may end up being the least of their worries.


    They could get away with mischief in the slums since it was nigh a lawless place, but the pretty side of the city was different. Platforms of various sizes were strategically placed around the square, which Jerome surmised were for disseminating information to the city¡¯s populace. He quickly jumped on one of those platforms and tackled Whisper to the ground.


    ¡°Stop!¡± he screamed.


    The rest of his friends looked back, wondering what happened.


    ¡°We may be punished for touching the trees!¡± Jerome shouted loudly.


    They backed up away from the trees. Jerome released Whisper who fell to the floor heaving. He looked up admiring the backdrop of towering peaks ahead of him. Farryn, located at the heart of Vorthe, was built at the base of a vast mountain range that spanned hundreds of thousands of miles, giving the city a magnificent backdrop of towering peaks.


    ¡°We should settle down and meditate,¡± Jerome said, ¡°We don¡¯t know who¡¯s watching over this place.¡± They looked around but found no one.


    ¡°No one¡¯s watching, Jerome,¡± Whisper said, eyeing the succulent fruits on the tree ahead of him.


    ¡°You may not see them, Whisper,¡± Jerome replied. He held his hand to his mouth, lowered his voice, and said, ¡°doesn¡¯t mean they¡¯re not there. They may be watching us even now. Are you willing to take that bet?¡± Whisper hesitated and looked around again.


    ¡°Just one bite and I¡¯ll be satisfied,¡± Doti said and his stomach rumbled loudly.


    Jerome sighed at that. None of them had eaten this morning. They were all feeling hungry and the fruits on the trees were very tempting ¡ª even to him. Jerome was used to bearing the pain of hunger, though. They all were. But as kids, their self-restraint when they see food was weaker than his ¡ª because he was an adult in a child¡¯s body. He had mastered his body with his more developed mind.


    They had been eating fine for the last few days now, but old habits were hard to break. They were used to eating when they saw food because they didn¡¯t know when they¡¯d get another.


    ¡°And what happens when a guard comes at us for plucking fruits from the tree, or even just climbing it?¡± Jerome asked. He felt the need to remind them again that this was not the slums where they could just run away. Here they could be punished severely.


    ¡°We can¡¯t just run away then, you know? And where would we even run to?¡± He gestured around at the open field. ¡°They¡¯d catch us before we get even five steps away. We could lose our hands for it, you know?¡±


    Every one of them shivered in fear at the reminder.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Jerome said, concerned. ¡°After today, you won¡¯t feel hungry like you do again.¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡± Doti grumbled.


    ¡°Me too,¡± Dreamer said.


    ¡°Jerome, what you said to Moss today¡­¡± Whisper said, not knowing how to continue.


    ¡°He deserved it,¡± Jerome said. ¡°He¡¯s too petty. He thinks because he¡¯s a sacred artist and we aren¡¯t yet, he can do as he pleases or say whatever he likes to us.¡± Maybe that was how sacred artists acted toward non-sacred artists in general. It made sense. Ms. Tara and Old Wen were just exceptions.


    Doti chuckled. ¡°Serves him right. I never liked him. He¡¯s always been bad to me.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. I wouldn¡¯t say Moss is a bad man. He just takes pleasure in ¡®lording¡¯ over weaker people.¡±


    ¡°Because he¡¯s a sacred artist? What¡¯s it gonna be like, Jerome? Becoming a sacred artist?¡± Dreamer said with a distant look on his face. Everyone became expectant and filled with hope all of a sudden.


    And just like that, he had taken their attention away from food. Jerome sighed in relief and gave himself a thumbs up internally. He thought Dreamer had gotten bolder during the past few days. Maybe it was the fact that they ate more. First, he had spoken his mind against him and now he was starting discussions. Jerome was proud of him.


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    ¡°First, you won¡¯t be as hungry as you used to, so you won¡¯t need to eat every time,¡± he answered.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be able to fight the blind man whenever he comes next time too,¡± Whisper added with a chuckle. ¡°How do we even use essence?¡±


    Jerome smiled. Good and consistent food was the oil that kept a child inspired it seemed ¡ª and maybe bold too. ¡°You have to sense it ¡ª first with your imagination and then with your feelings. Don¡¯t look outside your body, look inwards and you¡¯ll find it resonates with something within you.¡±


    ¡°Resonates?¡± Doti asked, the word sounding strange to him.


    ¡°You¡¯ll feel it,¡± Jerome clarified. ¡°According to Rihal, some people even say they could taste it and smell it ¡ª not everybody, just some people. But Rihal said he never experienced it like that himself.¡±


    ¡°Taste it?¡± Dreamer asked. ¡°And what did they say it tasted like?¡±


    ¡°Some said iron and rust. Some said it smelled like a nice fragrance. Some said it smelled like the forest or a particular type of flower. One even said it smelled like his neighbor¡¯s bakery.¡±


    The kids burst into laughter at that.


    ¡°Some said it smelled like rain.¡±


    ¡°Rain?¡± Whistle said. ¡°How does one smell the rain?¡±


    Jerome shrugged but continued. ¡°Some said it ¡®felt¡¯ ¡ª as in instead of smelling it, they felt it. And it felt like emotions¡­or maybe mirrored their emotions. Rihal didn¡¯t explain that part,¡± Jerome said and fell into silence as he thought about it. His friends were also engaged in their thoughts so they didn¡¯t disturb him.


    Some of the things Rihal had said were investigated from what people felt during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur were disturbing. Some felt resigned ¡ª as though they wouldn¡¯t become sacred artists and had resigned themselves to it. He didn¡¯t understand how essence could feel like resignation but he had nothing to compare it to since he had never sensed essence himself. He was also not about to discourage his friends with information like that. Rihal also said the survey was taken over many years and from thousands of participants. However, less than a tenth of the participants were in the category of those who smelled, tasted, and felt essence.


    ¡°We should meditate to prepare ourselves,¡± Jerome said after a while. ¡°Remember, look inward when the time comes.¡±


    They still gaped at the fruit trees but they knew Jerome was right. He had saved them a lot of times from making wrong decisions. And he was the leader of their gang. They all listened to him because he was able to get things done and get results. They grumbled as they settled on the ground a few dozen steps away from the southeast entrance, crossing their legs and closing their eyes. As they breathed deeply, the sounds of the city faded away, replaced by the soft rustling of the trees and the distant hum of voices.


    For Doti, Dreamer, and Whistle, time passed sluggishly, their bodies feeling restless and impatient. But Jerome was the picture of tranquility, his posture steady and his mind clear as a cloudless sky. After the time it took to boil a cup of water, other adolescents began to trickle in until the square was brimming with kids from all walks of life.


    The wealthy youths occupied small, exquisitely carved thrones, tended to by their retinue of serfs who offered them fruits filled with world essence, displayed on golden platters. Some of them luxuriated under parasols made of expensive materials, while others were gently fanned by elaborately decorated hand fans.


    These privileged kids looked down upon the rest of the attendees with disdain. Meanwhile, there were those from middle and lower-class families who were less ostentatious in their attire, so one could easily spot them amidst the throngs by the quality of their clothes and the non-existent attendants around them.


    Jerome was keenly aware of the danger that lurked in being too conspicuous in the midst of the crowd of adolescents from different backgrounds. ¡°I wonder why these scions of noble clans can¡¯t have a private initiation for themselves.¡±


    ¡°Huh. What do you mean, Jerome?¡± Whisper asked.


    ¡°Is it too expensive?¡± Dreamer asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Jerome replied. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a rule.¡±


    ¡°A rule?¡± Doti asked. ¡°You mean like a law?¡±


    Jerome shook his head to discard that line of thought. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Rules won¡¯t stop the powerful in Vorthe. There must be other reasons but I don¡¯t know enough about the kingdom to draw a conclusion,¡± he muttered absently.


    His friends continued to listen, not bothering to interrupt his musings.


    ¡°It¡¯s best to leave it be,¡± Jerome said. ¡°No need to ponder over the answers to such questions. No matter how many guesses we make, we will never get it.¡±


    ¡°Not our pot of tea, correct?¡± Dreamer said with a smile.


    The rest of them chuckled.


    ¡°But we need to be careful,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I can see that these golden-necked pricks don¡¯t like the fact that they are having an initiation amongst those of the lowest wrung of society. Someone might get hurt or killed if we¡¯re not careful. And I know for sure who it¡¯s NOT going to be. So, best to avoid trouble as much as possible. Let¡¯s move away from here.¡±


    They quickly moved toward the edge of the City Square, away from the center. More kids were trooping in and the place that was once so big and empty was now full to the brim with children. Some were even starting to eye them with malice. Jerome hurried his friends along.


    ¡°The last thing we need is to attract the attention of these rich kids,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Go left. Toward the edge of that building.¡±


    The building was at the very edge of the South entrance of the Square. They huddled together when they got there and this helped them to not stand out in the crowd.


    ¡°I like their robes,¡± Dotti said with a smile, and the rest of them nodded in acknowledgment, but they looked down at their own robes and couldn¡¯t help but sigh in discouragement.


    As time trickled by, the bustling City Square was overtaken by an eerie atmosphere, like an unseen presence spread out slowly through the crowd. Suddenly, countless black glass-like cubes, resembling some sort of dark magic, materialized all around, hanging effortlessly a few feet above the ground.


    The noise rose again as gasps sounded all around them. The crowd began to get excited. Slowly, the cubes began to rotate, spinning gracefully in the air like an ominous dance. The cacophony of voices in the square died down to a murmur, and a thunderous voice boomed across the Square.


    ¡°For ages untold, our forefathers have bestowed upon us the sacred knowledge of sensing the essence, passed down from generation to generation.¡± The power of the voice echoed through the very souls of those gathered there.


    ¡°And with each passing era, it has been the great men and women who have risen to wield this power, shaping the very fate of our kingdom. Now, as the hour of destiny approaches, it falls upon you to cast off the shackles of mortality and rise up to claim your rightful place as champions of Vorthe!


    ¡°Let Mhen Agrh''ur begin!¡±


    The moment they were all waiting for had finally come!

 8. The Day Of The Shedding

    Hear ye,


    For according to ancient lore, when the first practitioners of the sacred arts laid hands upon the essence of the world, they wrought great upheaval upon the universe. They waged a fearsome war against the powerful beings that held dominion over coveted lands¡­


    And vanquished races that once struck mortal terror into the hearts of mankind. They were as gods amongst men, their powers unmatched and their might unfathomable.


    These paragons of the sacred arts bequeathed upon their progeny the knowledge of how to sense the essence of the world, to draw it in and mold it to strengthen their earthen vessels of flesh.


    Through the passage of time, their descendants shed their mortal forms and ascended to the ranks of beings that stood at the apex of the universe''s hierarchy. They imparted the secrets of their fathers to their children and their children''s children in a continuous cycle that persists to this day.


    When a child reaches the age of maturity, they undergo the arduous ritual of ¡®sensing the essence¡¯. This sacred rite may span an entire day, or even three, as the young initiate absorbs the very essence of existence and relinquishes their mortal trappings.


    The ancient humans christened this solemn occasion as Mhen Agrh''ur ¡ª the Day of the Shedding!


    ~~~


    Jerome closed his eyes and slipped into a meditative state, his consciousness sinking into himself as his breath evened out, slowing the frenzied pace of his thoughts. His mind, a canvas, awaiting the touch of the brush. He recalled the wise words of the blind Rihal, urging him to search within himself for the elusive essence he sought.


    ¡°Let your heart be tranquil as a lake at dawn. Don¡¯t reach for it, let it reach for you. Do not look beyond yourself, but within. The essence you seek cannot be found by searching outside you, but by searching inside you.¡±


    Jerome calmed himself down. His thoughts fled and were replaced with a comforting nothingness. Nothing could shake him. Nothing could appease or move him. Feelings and emotions diffused to nothing. He wanted nothing. Even the search for essence became a non-existent urge in his mind.


    Then he felt it. Like a gentle breeze. A shift in himself as emotions and need came back, it was a peculiar yet comfortable transition. Like a spark in the dark.


    Jerome held on to that feeling, to the vision of that spark in his mind¡¯s eye until it was the only thing on his mind. Then there was a trickle, like formless energy seeping into his body. And then another, and another. As time went on that trickle became a drizzle, and then a downpour.


    Jerome¡¯s whole body was flooded with essence, which seeped into his bones and muscles cleansing him from the inside out. Purifying his body thoroughly. Soon it was like a dam was broken and world essence gushed into his body without pause.


    The only thing on Jerome¡¯s mind was the essence. Like the brushstrokes of a painter, it righted his very nature, changed it into something new, something capable of more. He felt like his body now truly belonged to him, like all the while he¡¯d been living in this world, he was living in someone else¡¯s skin. Like he¡¯d only now fit into his own skin. He felt elated, invincible.


    Jerome felt the beginnings of the saturation of essence in his body. He felt it gather behind his eyes, ears, in his nostrils, and throat. He felt these parts of his body burn and his eyes water as he shed tears involuntarily. He knew those weren¡¯t tears, but blood mixed with impurities.


    After the pain subsided, he felt lightheaded and a lot better. Then he felt the essence gushing into every part of his body move to his center, just beneath his navel.


    Now the real work in cycling begins. As the threads of essence gushed into his center, he willed them to compress and found out it was a lot harder in reality ¡ª next to impossible even, but he continued nevertheless. He persevered, compressing the threads as they gushed in. Trying to make the essence take the shape of a sphere yet failing again and again.


    Time went on as Jerome fell into a deep meditative state. His newly created core was filled with essence as it spun round and round in the shape of a mini cyclone. He could visualize it in his mind¡¯s eye as a cyclone because he sensed its movement.


    As more essence gushed in, the cyclone became denser and purer. Giving off a white glow ¡ª a glow that he attributed to it with his mind. Jerome knew that this color wasn¡¯t real but it helped to visualize the workings of his newly created core. And although it was giving off a dense and powerful radiance, it felt weak. Fleeting. Like it would fade away at any moment. Jerome concentrated on spinning his core faster and faster which in turn created a suction that pulled in more essence and he compressed it with great effort and focus.


    At long last, the ambient essence seemed to drizzle to a stop. Still in that deep meditative state, Jerome kept cycling and compressing his core. He cycled continuously until he could sense that the cyclone no longer felt weak or fleeting. He could sense its vigor and life like it was another organ in his body.


    He spent a long time just cycling and observing the nature of his newly created core. His core was pure. That was the only conclusion he could come to as he observed it. It was pure energy compressed into the shape of a spinning cyclone. This was when logic rushed back to the forefront of his mind and mysticism almost went on the back burner.


    What made this possible for humans in this world? The tiny little core of energy below his navel did not feel like a mirage. That position was one his mind produced for him. He couldn¡¯t tell if it was the original position of said energy or not. It just felt right in that position ¡ª below his navel.


    But this was energy in his hands! He wanted to unravel it, to find out what made it so! Why could humans do such a thing in this world? Did they use tools to discover essence at its inception? If not, how did they discover it, through meditation? That sounded like a load of bull to him, yet he had just absorbed essence into his body and had a tiny cyclone of essence spinning inside him. And how did he make that happen?¡­yeah, right.


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    Jerome opened his eyes and the first thing that assaulted his senses was the putrid smell. He looked down at himself and gasped in surprise. He was covered from his head to toes with smelly black mud-like impurities mixed with blood and the surface had dried up during his long meditation. He wondered if this was normal. If he had known this would happen, he would have prepared some water from the well in the slums. Was he now going to go back home looking and smelling like months-old piss?


    As he stood up, his body made cracking sounds and he felt tender everywhere. Most of the dried-up impurities fell off of him but he¡¯d still have to wash up to be completely clean.


    Jerome looked around and found that he was the only one of the children who came for Mhen Agrh¡¯ur who was left in the city square. Everywhere he looked, adults stared back at him. Most of them glowering at him with unrestrained hostility. Seriously? Whatever happened to everyone else?


    Beside him was someone he least expected though. Rihal who usually visited the orphanage to tell the kids stories and kick their asses was sitting cross-legged half a step behind him to his right. The same Rihal who had brought him to the orphanage as a child. Jerome knew his interest in him was personal, but to what degree?


    Cane on his shoulder, and back straight like he was standing at attention, the blind man was definitely there to protect him. Well, he¡¯d remember to thank him later but for now, he needed to clean up.


    Jerome glanced at Rihal once again and only now noticed that he could feel an oppressiveness coming from him. It was stifling and suffocating. An aura that could cripple him, he surmised. But it wasn¡¯t directly targeted at him and seemed to just be oozing off the blind man. It pushed against his senses to let him know that Rihal was a lot more powerful than he let on.


    ¡°Why are you here, Rihal?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Come with me,¡± Rihal said as he stood up and walked towards the north entrance.


    Jerome followed silently as he observed those around him. He found that his sight had improved dramatically. Not only could he see more clearly, but his peripheral vision was sharper like he had the eyes of an eagle and could not only see farther but also wider.


    ¡°Wow!¡± he exclaimed excitedly.


    ¡°What?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°My vision!¡± Jerome responded.


    Rihal nodded slowly and said, ¡°Keep your questions in your heart for now.¡±


    He had a lot of questions now. Like, how on God¡¯s green earth was this possible?! He could see like an eagle. What else could he do? Jerome focused on listening to the sounds and voices around and was pleasantly surprised as the voices of the people fifty steps away from him assaulted his ears. He wasn¡¯t overwhelmed by these voices though, as his mind was able to keep up with them and sort through them. He found out he could even focus on specific conversations in the crowd by tuning out the rest of the voices around him.


    ¡°...sat down for nine days doing Light knows what. He¡¯s just trying to show off is all!¡±


    Jerome immediately knew he was the one being talked about, but he kept his expression calm and indifferent. His heart thundered in his chest as he thought to himself. Nine days, really? It doesn¡¯t even feel like a day has gone by!


    They quickly left the city square and walked northward towards the closest mountain to the city. The tapping of Rihal¡¯s stick on the cobbled-stone floor was a constant reminder to the people on their way to move aside. Either the people were considerate or scared of the blind man. Jerome felt it was the latter, for the blind man in front of him was not as simple as he seemed on the surface.


    The beauty of the city quickly lost much of its novelty to Jerome. So he lumbered along, watching the people and their reactions to himself and Rihal. Everyone steered clear of them. The well-dressed ones in the crowd made sure to cover their noses with handkerchiefs made of embroidered silk. Some of their fragrant perfume drifted his way but he couldn¡¯t enjoy their scent, not with the foul smell emanating from him. Some just held their noses in their hands to prevent from inhaling his horrid stench.


    Jerome snorted. Nobles were the same everywhere. A bunch of self-glorifying cunts that knew not how stale they looked ¡ª like 20-day-old loaves of bread. Jerome didn¡¯t mind, though. He had a vision of what he wanted his life to look like, and he sure wasn¡¯t going to make it look like that. But now that he was on his way to becoming powerful, he wondered what ¡®power¡¯ would turn him into. Would he become like the very nobles he was scoffing at? He scoffed again, choosing not to think of such things for now.


    The houses grew smaller as they moved northward. They were still Victorian, but the stories climbed down as they went. Jerome felt it was done intentionally. One wouldn¡¯t realize it until one thought of it. The houses that lined the streets now felt like homes. They still had shops at the front and many businesses were open, even though the sun had almost completely set.


    Jerome got bored quickly but found something else to occupy his mind. Colors were more vivid to his eyes now. The colors of the sun-kissed clouds in the sky were astonishing to behold. Like his eyes could see it through the lenses of a digital camera. It was incredible.


    He also found out it was almost impossible for him to trip. Even though he was looking up at the sky, his legs knew where to step as if he¡¯d been here, and walked passed this road a million times with a blindfold. It was nothing short of mind-blowing. So this was what it meant to be a sacred artist. Jerome chuckled quietly to himself. When they got to where it was Rihal was taking him, he would make sure to ask all his questions ¡ª and celebrate however he liked. Where were his friends anyway?


    They got to the bottom of a very long flight of stairs leading upwards into the mountain with two guards standing on each side in front of the stairs. Jerome observed the guards as they bowed to Rihal. He could tell at a glance that these two were more powerful than he was ¡ª though their auras were weaker than Rihal¡¯s. The knowledge of this was instinctual ¡ª deep down inside him like an awareness of sorts. And why did they bow to the blind man?


    Rihal turned slightly to his left to look at a man sitting cross-legged and meditating a few steps away from the left guard. He walked up to him, and Jerome noticed the man was wearing an emblem on the breast of his emerald green robes. The same as the ones on the armor of the guards standing in front of the stairway ¡ª a golden sun with a single eye at its center. The emblem of the Royal Family.


    You¡¯ve got to be kidding me, he thought. He now had a clue where they were going but waited patiently for Rihal to explain.


    Jerome studied the man in the meditative stance. His aura was restrained, like a sheathed sword, but Jerome¡¯s instincts told him he was most likely as powerful as Rihal was. Especially based on their exchange. Rihal threw four coin-like crystals at the man, who caught them without even opening his eyes. Jerome noted that the coins were giving off an aura that reminded him of the earth like they contained earth essence. They shone like little golden brown suns as they spun through the air.


    So, that¡¯s what the crystal coin looks like, he thought. Would these ones qualify as low-grade or mid-grade? Ms. Tara said that high-grade stone crystals were either pure in nature or fire attributed and the fire-attributed ones were extremely rare.


    Rihal¡¯s crystal coins, however, were earth-attributed. Which meant low-grade or mid-grade.


    That¡¯s a study for later, Jerome thought. He had time. He could learn about the currency any time now. And now that he was a sacred artist, nothing could hold him back from attaining heights unknown. He had been bedridden almost throughout his previous life, and being able to have a taste of what power meant now, he wanted more.


    After the man caught the money, Jerome felt pure powerful essence pierce the ground from the man. A scripted formation of golden lights lit up the ground around him with tiny scripts barely visible, and then a slab of stone jutted out beside the lowest step of the stairway, between the man and the guard.


    The stone was pristine and smoothly cut, flat and as thick as two adult fists. The top was wide enough to contain four people. Rihal got on the stone slab and Jerome joined him. He activated the stone and a formation lit up on the surface.

 9. Disciple Jerome

    Rihal stole a glance at Jerome as the slab began moving upwards. He saw that Jerome was looking down at the stone slab with interest and that raised his impression of the child a notch. He smiled lightly to himself. He expected Jerome to gawk at the new sensation of moving on an elevator. Anyone his age would, but Jerome was unique in his own way, or at least he thought of him as unique.


    ¡°That earth crystal coin,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I can call it that, right?¡±


    ¡°So you know about crystal coins?¡± Rihal asked. He never taught Jerome anything about Vorthe¡¯s currency. He wasn¡¯t supposed to.


    ¡°Yes, I do. Ms. Tara taught us about them,¡± Jerome said. ¡°What grade would those ones be, low-grade or mid-grade?¡±


    Rihal smiled at him. ¡°Mid-grade. Mid for short. The low-grade ones would have barely any essence in them. We call those lows.¡± How much more did he know about crystal coins? He¡¯d like to pick the brat¡¯s brain for once¡­ see what unholy thoughts were going through it. Jerome had a knack for throwing people off guard.


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± he said.


    ¡°So, how much do you know about crystal coins?¡± Rihal asked and breathed in the fresh air from the mountains. The atmosphere of the Royal Estate was always different from that of the city. Cleaner. With very little pollution.


    ¡°I know there are three grades of them. Low, mid, and high-grade coins.¡±


    Interesting, Rihal thought as he watched the brat. Most children would have their eyes light up when they talked about the shiny, colorful coins that sparkled like jewels to their newborn sacred arts ¡®sight¡¯. To this one, it¡¯s just another means of exchange.


    ¡°Lows and mids are attributed and mostly have earth and water elements because they are the most abundant in the world. Highs,¡± Jerome looked up at him with a glint in his eyes. ¡°I can call them highs, right?¡±


    Rihal nodded.


    ¡°Highs are cut from the purest of stone crystals. No attribute, just pure essence stones. If you ask me, I think it is unique to the others.¡±


    Rihal watched his eyes light up as he spoke of high-grade coins. The little urchin actually thought of it as unique and he was very right to think so. Pure essence was unique, more so than attributed essence.


    ¡°But how are they formed¡­these crystal stones?¡±


    ¡°They form from Mother Nature,¡± Rihal replied. ¡°From the earth comes earth-attribute essence and from the wind, wind-attribute essence. The earth-attribute crystals form in the earth, water-attribute crystals form in the seas and rivers¡­ and so on.¡±


    ¡°But how? What¡¯s the process of their formation?¡± Jerome asked.


    Rihal exhaled. He had no answers to such questions. He knew very little of their nature. ¡°You¡¯d have to consult a library for the answers you seek.¡±


    They both settled into silence as the elevator moved slowly. Was there nothing more to talk about? He was expecting Jerome to have lots of questions for him.


    ¡°First time on an elevator, right?¡± Rihal asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence. He could tell the little brat was impressed but was keeping his emotions in check. Quite impressive for a little Blank.


    He smiled. And his smile quickly grew into a grin. He wondered how he would look with his blindfold covering the top half of his face and a grin splitting the lower half. Probably best to tone it down. His bushy beard would make him look like a creep too.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jerome muttered and nodded slowly. ¡°It¡¯s an interesting concept¡­ and the name.¡±


    Rihal laughed heartily, more to berate himself because he saw that it wasn¡¯t going to be easy to get the little urchin to show that look of wonder he¡¯d been longing to see on him. ¡°And here I was, thinking I could surprise you with this. Heh, I guess it¡¯ll take a whole lot more than this to see those eyes of yours nearly pop out of their sockets.¡±


    Truly he was expecting an enthusiastic Jerome. But, oh well. Nothing he could do about that.


    ¡°Strange,¡± Jerome said, giving him a look.


    ¡°What is?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°This is the first time I¡¯ve heard you laugh. And now I don¡¯t know whether I prefer this new Rihal or not.¡±


    Ruthless brat! Rihal thought and groaned, dampening the mood as he looked away. He only laughed and spoke more around people he cared for. And where they were going was home to him. A place where he could relax and be himself, so his emotional walls were already coming down.


    Rihal preferred a boring life of solitude. But he wasn¡¯t exactly introverted. He still liked to mingle with people. But it was with family that he showed emotions. He saw Jerome as family too, even though the newborn Blank only saw him as his master. Rihal couldn¡¯t fault him. If things had happened differently he would have probably been Jerome¡¯s father.


    Jerome gave him a wry grin. Like he knew an inside secret about him ¡ª if that were even possible. Rihal wasn¡¯t a man who was used to being called out so bluntly. The little rascal probably knew that. That fucking sharp mind of his!


    ¡°But why that name though?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°An ¡®e-le-va-tor¡¯.¡± He mouthed every syllable of the word slowly.


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s actually called a ¡®stone of lifting¡¯.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a mouthful,¡± Jerome replied with a slight smile.


    ¡°Right?... It was named by the artificer who designed it. But many of us younger folk choose to call it an ¡®elevator¡¯ ¡ª it¡¯s simpler, and it just rolls off your tongue. Those old-timers always want their inventions to sound¡­ mystical. Like they did more than their names suggested.¡±


    They both had a short laugh about it.


    ¡°Old people do old people stuff,¡± Jerome said chuckling lightly.


    ¡°That¡¯s a good one. I¡¯d be sure to use it next time.¡± He was quite glad he could discuss a lighter topic with Jerome, something to help them grow closer. He had only ever taught the boy about essence and sparring. And he had to admit, he liked this.


    ¡°What about my friends?¡± Jerome asked.


    Rihal sighed in his heart. The little brat just had to go and spoil the mood again. ¡°They attracted the attention of some good families and were adopted as disciples,¡± he said.


    They were almost halfway up the mountain now. He couldn¡¯t wait to get out of the filthy cloak he was wearing. He looked over at Jerome, wrinkling his nose at the smell coming from him. The child needed a bath as well.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Jerome mused. ¡°Adopted as disciples. Never knew that was an option.¡±


    Rihal never bothered to tell him his caretaker Ms. Tara had asked him not to tell them. He would have found out soon anyway. Probably give her an earful now that he knows.


    The boy started muttering quietly to himself. ¡°With resources from good families, they should make great progress in their developm¡ªwait ¡®good¡¯ families?¡± his voice grew louder. ¡°What do you mean by good families? Do you mean like, high-class families or...?¡±


    Rihal could read him like a book. The defiance in his eyes and the stubbornness in his voice. He didn¡¯t want his friends to end up in places where they wouldn¡¯t get the resources and training they needed to become stronger. How very innocent.


    ¡°I meant good families, as in good families,¡± Rihal said, not bothering to elaborate. This was part of being a sacred artist. You had to be strong for yourself and not worry about others. Except you were capable of being responsible for them. And Jerome wasn¡¯t even responsible for himself yet.


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    Rihal observed as the brat¡¯s face fell. He tried to say something else, but Rihal beat him to it. ¡°Is this what you want to know right now?¡± he said, his tone suggesting that Jerome might not get a lot of chances to ask questions.


    The little rascal snapped his mouth shut for a moment. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with spending nine days in Mhen Agrh¡¯ur?¡±


    Wise. Put yourself first before others, Rihal thought.


    ¡°I believe the question you want to ask is how did you enter deep meditation for nine days?¡± he said. ¡°My answer¡­¡± he hunched down to bring himself to Jerome¡¯s eye level, looking him straight in the eyes as he continued. ¡°It¡¯s not possible for a twelve-year-old to enter a deep meditative state. But here¡¯s one right in front of me. You, my friend¡­ have made history!¡±


    He straightened and looked upwards towards the peak of the mountain they were ascending as he finished his words folding his arms over his chest. Home sweet home. Soon, a fog would begin to envelop this very mountain. Turning it into a picturesque scene as the sun set in the west. Rihal smiled. Truly no place like home.


    ¡°There¡¯s always a first time for everything,¡± the child said. ¡°What can you tell me about the changes I¡¯ve gone through?¡±


    Rihal scoffed. The boy had no idea, the relevance of what he had done. If not for the Royal family, hundreds of nobles would be fighting over themselves to capture him, even to get a piece of him. They wouldn¡¯t care for his life or death, only for the essence of his just forming core. They would dissect him just to see what made it possible for him to achieve Blank straight from Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.


    Well, let¡¯s fix that, he thought. ¡°Correction. The changes you¡¯re going through. Those changes aren¡¯t over yet.¡± Rihal smiled at him.


    Jerome looked at him stupified, the mild shock evident in his raised brows. ¡°You mean there¡¯s more?¡±


    ¡°When an adolescent starts to sense and absorb essence during Mhen Agrh¡¯ur, they take in a few strands of essence throughout the whole three days,¡± Rihal said, ¡°Those strands of essence will be cultured, multiplied, and cultivated for a period of say, two seasons and a few tendays before it becomes what you have today.¡±


    The brat¡¯s jaw finally dropped, his eyes nearly popping out. It was a good look on him. Rihal would have loved it if it came sooner though.


    He continued like he didn¡¯t notice. ¡°The Essence-Forming Realm, the Realm that succeeds the Essence-Gathering Realm. We call those in your Realm, Blanks.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± the boy exclaimed.


    Rihal just chuckled and said, ¡°You¡¯re a blank slate, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯re just starting out in life and no attributed essence has colored your core yet. As you are now, you can only absorb pure essence.¡±


    ¡°Well if you put it that way it does make sense,¡± the little brat grumbled, ¡°but it¡¯s still insulting. Why should anyone choose to be called Blank? It¡¯s insulting¡­ and degrading. And what¡¯s that about only being able to absorb pure essence? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing, Jerome. But know that society doesn¡¯t care about your feelings. And you¡¯re not going to be babied where you¡¯re going.¡±


    The stone slab came to a halt and they both alighted and started walking forward. Jerome was too smart for his own good but he¡¯d learn. He¡¯d make sure the little essence in his core dries up consistently.


    That¡¯ll teach you to be humble, he thought.


    ¡°So you mean I jumped over a complete Realm to the next Realm? Shweet,¡± the little shit had the audacity to grin wickedly!


    Rihal glanced his way, giving him a sweet, innocent smile. It¡¯s settled then, he thought. The first order of business will be to teach you humility. He went on to say, ¡°At least you¡¯re called Blanks. You know what those in the Essence-Gathering Realm are called?¡±


    The curiosity and suspicion in the little rascal¡¯s eyes was comical.


    ¡°They are called Drudges.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s even worse,¡± Jerome said, shaking his head. ¡°What¡¯s after Blank?¡±


    Now ¡®little rascal¡¯ feels too innocent for a brat like you, Rihal thought. Maybe little wolf¡­


    ¡°Sprout,¡± he said aloud, answering Jerome¡¯s question. ¡°Those in the Core Formation Realm are termed Sprout. That¡¯s when new seedlings ¡®sprout¡¯ out of the fertile soil that is your core. A core that completes its formation, becoming solid and real.¡±


    ¡°Becoming solid and real?¡±


    ¡°More material and physical, so to speak. A Blank¡¯s core cannot be physically extracted. Think about a scenario like this. If you die¡ª¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not dying, Rihal!¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s an example. Okay, if a Blank dies, his core disappears. But a Sprout and anyone in a higher Realm would have their core remain intact for extraction.¡±


    ¡°Why would anyone want to extract someone else¡¯s core? That¡¯s like grave robbing,¡± Jerome said and Rihal shook his head with a wry smile. How innocent children were. No matter how mature the little brat acted, he was clearly still a child who didn¡¯t know how cruel the world could be.


    ¡°On second thought, a powerful sacred artist¡¯s core could do wonders for a lesser sacred artist, right?¡± The brat looked up at him with a wicked grin plastered on his face. ¡°If you dropped dead, Rihal, know that I¡¯ll put your core to good use.¡±


    Heh, ¡®little wolf¡¯ sounds like a compliment. Perhaps something more¡­ ¡®little devil¡¯. Now how¡¯s that for a name?


    ¡°You could not get a hold of my corpse even if I died right here and right now, Jerome. So, stop daydreaming.¡±


    The little devil snorted. ¡°I¡¯ll let you know that I¡¯m Jerome, ¡®The Terror of The Slums!¡¯¡±¡¯ he puffed his little chest out.


    ¡°You¡¯re a terror quite alright¡­ the terror of shit.¡±


    ¡°Wha¡ª¡±


    ¡°I did see you shoveling shit out of the gutter.¡± Rihal shut him up before he could speak. He watched as Jerome turned a bright shade of tomato under all that impurities coating his skin. Satisfaction flowed through him at that.


    He stopped for a while and took in the sight before him. A good distance away was a majestic Palace that put every other edifice in the city to shame. Its immaculate white walls exuded an air of opulence that elevated the beauty of the adjacent courtyard and lush greenery that screamed, Royalty, like nothing else.


    ~~~


    ¡°This is¡­¡± Jerome started to say but was short of words. The magnificence of the Palace was overwhelming.


    ¡°This is where the most powerful family in all of Vorthe resides ¡ª the Royal family,¡± Rihal said, his voice carrying pride in it.


    ¡°You mean to say that the king of Vorthe is in there?¡± Jerome asked, his heart pounding rapidly. How the hell did I attract the attention of such powerful people? he thought. He had heard stories about how powerful the Royal family was ¡ª many of which were exaggerations, he knew. Old Wen never ran out of stories. Apparently, the king had the power to seed the clouds with rain with a thought. He just chalked it all up to myths and legends anyway.


    ¡°Oh no, this is just one of the Royal Palaces. There are several of them. It¡¯s an Estate out here.¡± Rihal said with a smile as he stood with his arms akimbo. ¡°And we call the king the ¡®Sovereign¡¯ of Vorthe,¡± he added as he walked forward.


    He¡¯d heard that before. Something about the Sovereign¡¯s light¡­ Ms. Tara¡¯s prayers.


    ¡°Is it true the king ¡ª the Sovereign¡­can seed the clouds with rain with a thought?¡± Jerome asked as he caught up with Rihal. If nothing, he had to clear up this misconception. How could a man seed the clouds with just a thought? There should be quite a lot involved, shouldn¡¯t there? Jerome wasn¡¯t convinced. Such a man would be a god amongst men.


    Jerome noticed that the constant tapping of Rihal¡¯s stick was nonexistent now. Strange, he thought as he scrutinized the blind Rihal. You¡¯re not so blind after all, are you? He felt cheated. How many times did he have to fight Rihal? 34?¡­35? How many times did Dreamer call it? he thought. Now he had more questions than he did before.


    Jerome noticed something else, however. I didn¡¯t sense his essence as I did the blue-robed man¡¯s. Rihal must have used essence to power the elevator that brought them here. At least he thought that was the way things should work. But he never sensed Rihal powering the formation of the elevator. The formation had lit up on its own and the elevator had moved. More layers of the mysterious blind Rihal to peel back then.


    ¡°Why did you bring me here, Rihal?¡± Jerome asked, clearly confused. ¡°I¡¯m an orphan from the slums. I have no value to Royalty.¡± He could only hope he was here to be taken in by the Royal family as a disciple. That would make for a really good story for his friends, he thought with a smile.


    Rihal chuckled as he walked forward with long strides, forcing Jerome to keep up. ¡°To answer your first question, yes, all the rumors you hear about the Sovereign are most likely true. Have you ever seen snow in the slums?¡±


    Jerome shook his head. Everybody knew it never snowed in Farryn. ¡°Are you saying, he¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rihal interrupted, ¡°but that¡¯s where you get it wrong. The more accurate ¡®rumor¡¯ would be that supposedly, a Sovereign of the past made the climate around Farryn suitable for agriculture all year round.


    ¡°That... my disciple,¡± Rihal stopped to face him at the entrance of the Palace, ¡°is an even greater accomplishment,¡± he finished and walked in.


    ¡°Wait, did you just call me ¡®disciple¡¯?¡± Jerome asked, elated.

 10. Low-Hanging Fruits

    Jerome sat in an expansive tub resembling a miniature pool, generously filled with water. Having been meticulously cleaned by the Palace maids only moments ago, he luxuriated in the comfort of the steaming warmth enveloping his body. It was a novel experience for him, as he¡¯d not had the privilege of indulging in a bath, let alone one with pleasantly heated water since he found himself in this world. They had always bathed by pouring water over their heads in the slums. This was a welcome upgrade.


    In-door plumbing, he chuckled. Rihal had talked about it like it was some discovery that could revolutionize the kingdom. ¡°Perhaps,¡± he had muttered. It was a convenience as far as he was concerned. One he never had in the slums. The slums. It quickly dawned on him that he had been gone for nine days and he hadn¡¯t even thought to contact his caretakers.


    He stood up from the tub and got out. He needed to find a way to contact his caretakers at the orphanage. ¡°Rihal?¡± he called out but no one answered. His voice bounced off the sky-blue walls of the washroom, echoing back to him. He walked toward a set of folded garments that were left for him. His reflection caught his attention on a small shard of polished metal on the little stone platform where the maids had left the clothes.


    He examined his body and found out his flesh had filled out. He no longer looked like skin and bones. Jerome smiled as he wiped himself clean with a small piece of cloth on the platform.


    The first piece of clothing was an undergarment. Jerome chuckled when he saw the archaic design. But when in Rome¡­ A collarless black tunic that felt like innerwear was next. The fabric was lightweight, soft, and breathable as he put it on. The breeches followed, sewn with leather along the outer thighs and covering the groin. A belt came attached to the breeches, with a buckle on the left side to hold it firm to the waist. That was new.


    Jerome smiled at the crude appearance of the iron buckle. This gave away knowledge about metallurgy in Vorthe ¡ª or the lack thereof. A corrosive-resistant alloy like brass would have been a better material. But do their smiths have knowledge of smelting copper and zinc together? Do they know of the ratios involved in smelting both to get brass? Jerome chuckled. This was seemingly added to the stack of things he planned to achieve in the future. No need to rush. He had time.


    The last piece of clothing was a long dark mahogany brown robe. It had an Asian-styled silhouette but was sewn with leather of the same color as the robe to cover the chest, shoulders, and half the back ¡ª almost making it look like armor. A black leather collar also stuck out as he wore it. Most likely to help protect his neck.


    It had buckles to hold the dark brown leather in place and to make it tight-fitting. It was also fitted with leather bracers at the portion where the sleeves should be, which also had to be buckled. Finally, he put on the large belt designed with pouches to hold accessories.


    The robe fit like a second skin and the knee-high boots were just the right size, held together by four buckles on each side. Jerome understood that the leather sewn to the textile would make protecting oneself easier in battle. It didn¡¯t make it any less odd to him though.


    He noticed his hair was longer, reaching past his shoulders to his back. He reached his right hand to hold up a few strands in front of his face and found that his hair was jet black and shiny.


    ¡°Shweet,¡± he said, mimicking Ash¡¯s words. Jerome chuckled as he remembered her. How were they coping at the orphanage right now? He thought as he wrung the water out of his hair. His hair was a lot healthier now, a stark contrast to the dull scratchy mop of tangled strands that once crowned his head.


    He had taught Ms. Tara how to make the soap. They could make a profitable business out of it. He just hoped she would be careful selling it. That was probably some merchant¡¯s means of livelihood and if anyone else started selling it, it could lead to a trade dispute that could get dangerous. It would be best to avoid such. To the strong goes the spoils after all. Maybe he should talk to Rihal about it. See if he could get them protection.


    He left the washroom and met one of the young maids at the door. She looked to be in her late teens and was a beauty. The maid exuded a strong presence which Jerome knew meant she was more powerful than he was ¡ª just like the guards he met before.


    From what Rihal explained, Sprouts were in the Core Formation, which came after the essence Forming Realm, which is Blank. The guards at the entrance of the stairs that led up the mountain also exuded the same weight of presence as the maid ¡ª which was incredible. If The Royal Family had such powerful sacred artists as maids and guards, how powerful would their soldiers be? And that meant the maid in front of him was Sprout as were the guards he met at the entrance of the stairs. Except he was missing something, that must be it.


    ¡°Please come with me, young disciple.¡± She said and began guiding him through the corridors of the Palace.


    Jerome followed her silently. They made their way through the palace, walking through long, winding corridors that seemed to stretch on endlessly. The interior of the palace was a sight to behold, every bit as stunning as the grand exterior that had first caught his eye. It was clear that the architect had poured their heart and soul into every detail of its design.


    Tall, majestic columns lined the walls of the corridors, each one glistening with glowing crystals that shone like precious jewels. The walls themselves were a marvel, inlaid with intricate designs that caught the light in just the right way, filling the corridors with a warm, golden glow that seemed to envelop them.


    Even walking felt very comfortable. He couldn¡¯t help but marvel at the floor beneath his feet. Every step he took was cushioned by a plush, luxurious red rug that seemed to cradle the soles of his boots like soft pillows. With each stride he took, he felt as though he was walking on clouds.


    Exactly how much is all this worth? he mused, trying not to look around and seem like a country bumpkin. It was clear that no expense had been spared in creating this breathtaking masterpiece of architecture and design.


    They came into a large hall with a huge rectangular table filled with delicacies. That was when hunger hit him like a running bull. Jerome almost lost his composure. He did his best to stop himself from gulping the saliva that seemed not to stop being produced in his mouth as he walked up to the table. There was a well-dressed, middle-aged man who seemed to be in his early thirties at the head of the table and he would hear him gulp if he did. The hall was too quiet after all.


    Jerome bowed low and gulped before speaking, trusting the sound of his footfalls to cover the gulping sound. ¡°Light embraces you, my Lord,¡± he greeted in the way people of his status did when they came before nobility.


    The man smiled at him, his demeanor, very much like royalty. ¡°And may Light illuminate your path to success, youngling. Have a seat,¡± he said with a slight hand gesture.


    ¡°For someone who¡¯s from the slums, you seem very well-educated.¡±


    Jerome tried not to take offense at that. The royal was just stating a fact and he couldn¡¯t sense any malice in his voice or expression ¡ª not that it was proper to look someone of status and power in the eyes for more than a breath. Such traditions. He sighed.


    ¡°Thank you for your praise, my Lord. I¡¯ve had a tutor since I was younger,¡± he said, not knowing what to call Rihal. Was he a tutor? Master?


    ¡°Well, why don¡¯t we leave the discussions for later and enjoy the food in front of us.¡±


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    ~~~


    ¡°Are you enjoying the meal, Jerome?¡± his host asked.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he said, nodding vigorously as he stuffed his face. Every bite of the feast before him was a marvel of incredible flavors that danced across his taste buds. It was easily the most delicious meal he had ever experienced. No offense to Ms. Tara¡¯s cooking. The cooks here were geniuses compared to her.


    The roasted birds were succulent and perfectly seasoned, their tender meat practically melting in his mouth. The beef was just as delectable, each mouthful bursting with a rich, savory flavor that left him wanting more.


    ¡°Do have some more. Don¡¯t be shy, there¡¯s a lot for you to eat,¡± his host said and kept heaping food on the plates in front of him, moving cutlery around with almost blinding speed.


    Jerome made sure to sample each and every delicacy on the table, from the crisp, golden potatoes to the fresh, crunchy vegetables. Every dish was a masterpiece in its own right, each one expertly crafted and bursting with flavor.


    By the time he finished his meal, Jerome felt as though he had experienced a culinary journey unlike any other, and he couldn¡¯t wait to taste what other delights the Royals had to offer. Once the meal was finished, his host guided him to a grand study with walls lined with bookshelves filled with ancient tomes and scrolls.


    ¡°My name is Kilian Vorthe, a relative of the current Sovereign of Vorthe, and welcome to the Vorthe household.¡±


    Jerome bowed deeply before sitting down. ¡°If I may, kind sir. How may I address you?¡±


    Kilian smiled, ¡°Call me Lord Kilian.¡±


    ¡°As you command, Lord Kilian,¡± he said with another bow.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be overly formal with me,¡± Lord Kilian Vorthe waved him off. He reached down below his desk for something Jerome couldn¡¯t make out as he said, ¡°As a disciple of Vorthe, there are expectations that are placed on you. Your duties would include representing the Royal family in various teenage gatherings.


    ¡°You¡¯ll also make sure to train constantly so as not to lag behind your mates. Strength is one of the ways the Royal family keeps the other clans and families in line. You¡¯d do well not to forget that.¡±


    Jerome nodded, ¡°Yes, Lord Kilian.¡± he was glad for the lack of formalities too.


    Lord Kilian continued. ¡°You¡¯d also be undertaking missions in the Essence-Forming Realm. As Blank, you are the future of the kingdom of Vorthe. Establishing yourself early on is the best advice I can give you. But make sure to keep a straight head on your shoulders, and don¡¯t let power make your ego outgrow your ability. This is not to mean you should let others step all over you ¡ª remember, you represent the Royal family.¡±


    Jerome nodded enthusiastically. It was clear that the Royal family took their leadership role seriously. And by the looks of it, they had the strength for the position. Lord Kilian ¡ª like Rihal ¡ª exuded a very strong presence that he could feel pushing against him, Although it was muted compared to Rihal¡¯s.


    ¡°Gratitude, for the insights and encouragement, Lord Kilian,¡± Jerome said with a slight bow. ¡°But I do have some questions and requests ¡ª if I¡¯m permitted.¡± Jerome watched the Royal smile lightly.


    ¡°Go on.¡±


    ¡°I would like to know if I would be permitted to go see my family in the slums, and how often I can take such leave. I would also like to send letters frequently as well. Can I send letters to my friends who have been taken in by other families?¡± Jerome kept the informal contractions out of his words so he could sound proper. It was exhausting ¡ª kind of.


    ¡°The Path of a sacred artist is a Path to power, Jerome. Many fall behind and are forgotten. You may find later on that you¡¯re leaving people behind. And you may not be able to do anything about it. Friends, and family¡­ the more powerful you grow, the greater the chasm between you. What then?¡±


    Jerome had no answer. Would he be able to leave people behind? The people he had grown up with and fought to feed. He had grown attached to the orphanage and its inhabitants and wasn¡¯t willing to just forget them. But what Lord Kilian was asking was if he was willing to let them go. And the answer was no.


    ¡°Then I will find a way to make them powerful, to make them free of the elements and all that would enslave them. Even if I have to say goodbye to them, I¡¯ll make sure they are free.¡±


    An uncomfortable silence stretched between them for ten breaths. Jerome tried not to bend under the scrutiny of the Lord. He was not one to bow his head or kiss others¡¯ asses. He did his own thing for himself because he knew what he wanted. He never wanted to be weak again. To succumb to the elements and to nature.


    Lord Kilian took a deep breath and exhaled loudly, making him appear human for the first time since they met. Jerome almost thought he saw it wrong.


    ¡°The letters to the orphanage are approved, as is sending them relief materials. But you cannot relate anything about your training in those letters. You are, however, not permitted to send letters to other Houses. Leaving the estate will be pending for now. You¡¯ll need express permission and a robe that properly shows your status as a disciple.


    ¡°Right now you are an apprentice disciple. You have little freedom and are expected to study and train. Which would be all that will occupy your days. Am I understood?¡±


    Jerome sighed, ¡°Yes, Lord Kilian. If I may, what other ranks of discipleship are there?¡±


    ¡°There is the novice rank, which by the way, you have skipped completely.¡±


    Jerome tried to hide his smirk but failed woefully causing Kilian to smile in return.


    ¡°Next is the apprentice rank, which is where we placed you. Next is initiate, adept, warrior, master, and grandmaster. You need not concern yourself with the higher ranks right now. You will receive in-depth instructions about your daily routine when you leave. Any questions?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Lord Kilian. Why were the sacred art Realms not named after these?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a good question. Albeit an ignorant one. The sacred Realms have been in existence long before Vorthe. Other kingdoms have different names for their discipleship rankings, but the sacred Realms have been in existence for longer.¡±


    Jerome nodded in thought. It made sense. Since the sacred Realms have existed for longer, they held cultural significance. Leaders would be averse to opinionated individuals asking for changes to be made to them. It would be an insult to their ancestors. ¡°It seems there¡¯s a relationship between both for a disciple.¡±


    ¡°At the beginning, yes. Take you for example. You were supposed to come in as Drudge.¡±


    Jerome winced at that.


    ¡°That would have made you a novice disciple. But you are here as Blank and went up in rank. But your advancement in Realms slows down the higher you go. Your advancement as a disciple, however, is dependent on your results as a person.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Lord Kilian, for the explanation,¡± Jerome said with a bow.


    ¡°Hmm. You may leave. A maid awaits you to lead you to your bedchamber,¡± Kilian stated.


    Jerome stood up and bowed deeply before leaving. As he walked down the ornate hallways, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of excitement and anticipation for what lay ahead. Training and studying were low-hanging fruits he was going to take advantage of. What he really wanted was greater challengers ¡ª to meet and defeat others in his Realm.


    That would be fantastic! he thought with a smirk.  Heh. but I guess, for now, low-hanging fruits it is.


    ~~~


    ¡°What¡¯s your assessment of him?¡± Rihal said as he appeared behind Kilian Vorthe. He felt much better now, having cleaned up.


    ¡°He¡¯s an interesting fellow. I can see that there¡¯s a longing for power in his eyes. And he¡¯s a lot more intelligent than you estimated. He¡¯s the true definition of a precocious child,¡± Kilian said, with excitement of his own.


    ¡°Hmm. You think he¡¯d be able to contain it?¡± Rihal asked once again, concern hidden in his voice. Jerome¡¯s life was about to get a lot more complicated and they both knew it.


    ¡°There¡¯s no telling until he¡¯s ready. It all depends on his willpower...and his luck.¡± Kilian responded.


    ¡°The Elders¡¯ words still echo in my ears, Kilian. But I want to challenge it. I want to give him a better chance.¡±


    ¡°And we will. I¡¯ve been doing a lot of research lately. I should be able to find good enough resources to help him with control.¡± Kilian caressed his chin deep in thought. ¡°But I guess if he could jump straight to Blank, he may very well surprise us once again,¡± he said with undisguised anticipation. Rihal also couldn¡¯t wait to see what the little devil was capable of.


    There was complete silence in the study for a few more breaths of time.


    ¡°Take him to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep after the new moon,¡± Kilian said at last. ¡°We should be able to estimate his aptitude and willpower better in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡± He stood up and walked out of the study but Rihal had already disappeared from the study.

 11. Settling In

    Jerome looked around the sparse room that was given to him. He had walked back down two stories to the ground floor of the palace and then to the north wing towards the back. The room was small and utilitarian.


    To his right was a simple bed with a wooden frame fit for a single adult, and just about a foot high off the ground. There was a straw mat underneath a thick layer of off-white cotton spread which had seen better days. Another cotton spread was folded neatly and kept at the head of the bed ¡ª a blanket then, or a pillow. Well, he wasn¡¯t here for comfort but to learn and grow stronger.


    Two drawers were built into the side of the wooden frame of the bed and contained more sets of uniforms and a cloth bag to hold soiled clothes. A note by the side said he was to put his soiled uniforms inside the bag and leave it outside his door for the maid.


    To the right of the bed was a chair and a reading table. He sat down on the wooden chair and picked up some leaflets with instructions on them. One of them had the rough sketch of a map ¡ª the map of the ground floor of the Palace. There was a crude oil lamp by the side, meant to support reading at night.


    A knock on the door pulled his attention and he saw Rihal walk in.


    ¡°How are you settling in?¡± his master asked.


    Jerome smiled at him. He was looking a lot better now without the dirty cloak he saw him in all the time. Rihal wore a tight armor-like black sleeveless leather vest and leather pants. His bulging muscles were a surprise to Jerome. He never thought the blind man could be so muscular. He was also looking younger. His hair was cut short, close to his scalp. And his facial hair looked neat but wasn¡¯t cut close to his face.


    ¡°Are you going to keep staring, or are gonna answer?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m doing fine. Thank you,¡± he said still staring. ¡°Why me though?¡±


    Rihal sat by the edge of the table and folded those bulging muscles across his chest. ¡°You aren¡¯t special if that¡¯s what you¡¯re thinking. Vorthe does this sometimes.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re Royalty then. Should I call you Lord?¡± Jerome teased.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rihal nodded, ¡°Yes, you should call me Lord.¡±


    Case in point. But Jerome wasn¡¯t one to bow to circumstances. And Rihal¡¯s head would just grow a size bigger from being called Lord. He needed someone to put a restraint on that ego. Well, Jerome to duty!


    ¡°It says here that novices wear gray robes with no crests. Apprentices,¡± he thumbed his chest with a smirk, ¡°wear brown robes, also with no crests. An initiate would wear a red robe and an adept would wear a green robe. So the man you threw crystal coins at was an adept?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome. What¡¯s your point?¡±


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t he too old for that? He looks to me like a master.¡±


    ¡°Ranks aren¡¯t given by age, Jerome. Didn¡¯t Kilian discuss this with you?¡±


    ¡°Well, yes. But shouldn¡¯t he have attained some impressive feats already? He looks to be almost fifty.¡±


    Rihal laughed. ¡°You still see with the eyes of a mortal. That man is almost 300 years old. And yes, he has attained some impressive feats since becoming a disciple.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped. 300 years old! That was¡­he had no words. It was an impressive amount of years to live, and still look fifty. It was one thing to know that sacred artists live long lives, and another to stand before a 300-year-old man. Incredible! Which brought up the question: How old was Rihal?


    Jerome looked up at his master with newfound respect. Was Rihal an adept like the man? Did the Royals go through the same training and wear the same uniforms?


    ¡°Just concentrate on your studies and training for now, Jerome. A few hundred years is nothing to a sacred artist,¡± Rihal said as he stood up. ¡°Make sure you read the rest of the instructions. Your training starts tomorrow at dawn. You can visit the library in the evenings. Hold out your right hand, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome did as he was told and Rihal tied a leather string woven into a bracelet to his wrist. Am I being tagged now? he thought.


    ¡°This bracelet is your identity on these grounds. It contains a crystal,¡± he tapped a bulge on the leather where the dial of a modern watch would be, ¡°that contains your information. There are special scripted artifacts that are used to read the information on the crystal. Make sure to wear it always.¡± He turned around to leave.


    ¡°And oh,¡± he turned back, ¡°watch out for those that are higher in rank than you are and make sure to bow when you pass them by. This is not the slums, Jerome. Here, our motto is respect, order, and discipline. Make it a slogan. And try not to find yourself on the receiving end of the Overseer¡¯s whip.¡±


    That startled him. ¡°Why is there an Overseer? Does Vorthe have slaves? Are disciples treated as slaves?¡± Jerome¡¯s mouth was already throwing questions before his brain could filter his words.


    ¡°We¡¯re not barbarians, Jerome,¡± Rihal snapped at him with a strong glare. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯d compare us with a bunch of uncivilized animals.¡±


    Jerome quickly raised his hands signaling peace. ¡°I meant no disrespect, Rihal.¡±


    Rihal sighed. ¡°You are too smart for your own good, you know? Sometimes I forget you know very little about society. The Overseer is there to keep unruly disciples in their place. Make sure to visit the library.¡±


    Well, that was new. He had never seen Rihal angry before. This was probably because they were now in new territory. The slum was a lawless place, didn¡¯t mean the rest of Farryn was. What did he call it again: respect, order, and discipline? Right.


    He looked at his hand with the string on it. It wasn¡¯t tight, but it wasn¡¯t loose either. The crystal bulge in the dial position was flat at the bottom and rounded at the top. It was half the width of his wrist. He would have loved to study this crystal that could hold information like a storage device but he¡¯d have to open the leather covering to do so. It was better not to antagonize Rihal again.


    On the one hand, Vorthe seemed to be technologically lacking. On the other, they seemed to be ahead of their time. The devil was in the details, however. Jerome just had to look around to understand how and why Vorthe was the way it was. And he was pretty damn sure essence had a lot to do with technology in this society. Especially now that he could sense it.


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    Essence was everywhere. He breathed it in and walked on it. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but marvel at his new reality. Was this possible back on Earth? Hell, no. Mankind never made any discoveries about energy that could be absorbed by the human body to make it stronger. All of it now felt surreal, like he was in a dream. But he knew he was very much awake. Jerome sighed and stood up to go find the library. There was much he had to learn about Vorthe still.


    He suddenly realized that his room was completely dark. There was no light streaming in from the window. However, he could still see clearly. The colors around him were muted. But the contrast of his skin against the darkness was greatly enhanced compared to how it looked before he became a sacred artist. Jerome smiled in wonder. He truly had evolved. He truly wasn¡¯t a mere mortal anymore. It was a lot to take in.


    ~~~


    ¡°A new apprentice?¡± A young man at the counter said, looking at him with pause. ¡°Never knew you as a novice.¡±


    Jerome nodded. He had found the library quite easily with the map drawn on one of the instruction leaflets. This young librarian behind the counter seemed to be in the same Realm as him as he couldn¡¯t sense the weight of his presence pushing against him. His robe was also the same mahogany brown color as his but without the leather parts.


    ¡°I¡¯m new here,¡± Jerome said, opting out of telling him he was also new as a sacred artist. Wouldn¡¯t want everyone thinking he was a greenhorn.


    ¡°Hold your bracelet over the crystal,¡± the librarian said uninterestingly. He must be bored to death with his job here.


    Jerome did as he was told, with the dial facing downwards, a few inches away from the crystal. He felt a spark of essence from the bracelet at that moment. It was quick and weak. Odd. The crystal ¡ª a small round glass-like gem that bulged out making a rounded top also glowed at the same moment with a prismatic light of various colors.


    Jerome stopped himself from gaping. Now, that¡¯s something you don¡¯t see every day, he thought with suppressed astonishment.


    The librarian glanced into the crystal and glanced back at him, his face showing more interest in Jerome. Jerome felt a brow rise in curiosity. What could have caused such a sudden interest?


    ¡°You are named?¡± the librarian asked. There was a bit of wonder in his voice.


    Ah. He could see the reason now. There probably weren¡¯t many named disciples around.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m named. Do I get a card or¡­?¡± he asked, uncertain about what it was he was to do. He didn¡¯t know how libraries operated in Vorthe. The librarian quickly snapped out of it and tapped on the crystal a few times before facing Jerome again.


    ¡°There is a section of the library meant for apprentices. Follow me,¡± the librarian said and left the counter with Jerome in tow.


    ¡°Are you ¡ª never mind,¡± Jerome wanted to ask if he was allowed to leave the counter. He could have just given him directions. Weren¡¯t there other librarians that helped with showing people around?


    Jerome followed him to a wing of the library where there were no other disciples. Which was fine by him. But he noticed that there were no lines of bookshelves around him either. Only a few chairs and tables, arranged here and there.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t there be bookshelves here?¡± he asked absently.


    ¡°The books will be brought to you by an attendant. There are recommendations already inscribed within your bracelet.¡±


    Odd. ¡°Can I get something on the history of the sacred arts?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± the librarian answered as he walked away.


    Jerome sat there for a while waiting for the books to come. It was odd that the library worked with a strange system like this. Did they assume that the books would be damaged or worse, stolen? Perhaps, they did, but that wasn¡¯t reason enough to take the choice of what to read away from the reader. He caught sight of the object that provided lighting in this wing of the library ¡ª a very interesting technology.


    Jerome got up to investigate the object. It was a sphere and it looked like it was cut in half with the flat side of it stuck on the wall. But a closer look told him it was fixed into the stone wall. The sphere gave off both warmth and light but he couldn¡¯t sense any essence from it.


    Jerome touched it and was surprised to learn it felt like stone. A glowing crystal, like the ones in the corridors on the upper levels of the palace. This one didn¡¯t have the same shine that the ones upstairs had though. It was smooth and round like a large pearl. Jerome tapped it lightly with his knuckles and confirmed that it was in fact, as hard as a rock.


    Someone coughed, startling him.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t touch that. They are expensive,¡± the attendant said, scowling at him. The man was putting on the bright red robe of an initiate so Jerome bowed lightly to him.


    ¡°Apologies,¡± he said, but the attendant had already walked off.


    Great. Now he had offended someone he just met. The attendant dropped some tomes on a table and walked away without saying another word. Jerome shrugged to himself and sat down to read. He¡¯d apologize later.


    ~~~


    Essence has been in existence since time immemorial. There was never a time before essence came to be, and no recorded origin of the energy that permeates the world. Its concept is like the heavens and the planes. Before mankind learned to use essence, other beings that were revered as gods were masters of the world.


    Great wars were fought and many lives were lost in the bid for power. Soon, mankind discovered essence ¡ª the very power that made the gods what they were. They spent years, learning to absorb it, experimenting with various breathing exercises and meditation, and millennia more learning to wield it ¡ª strengthening their bodies and biding their time until they could match the false gods in power.


    In time, they waged war against the gods to free their people and seize back their lands.


    Vorthe came into power with one such war over 70,000 years ago and has been in power ever since. Vorthe, the first Transcendent in these lands unified the land and its people. The four Great Clans that also inhabited the North, East, West, and South were also annexed ¡ª Itakar, Fei, Baelor, and Alvric.


    House Itakar, House of the Frozen Earth. Their clan inhabited the cold North of Vorthe where magical beasts abound. They had fought many battles against these ferocious beasts and built walls to defend their land, but the ¡®beast tide¡¯ still remains to this day. When Vorthe came to power, he extended his aura over all his land, suppressing the beast tide in the North¡­


    ¡°You should get some rest. Tomorrow will be hectic,¡± Rihal said from beside Jerome.


    ¡°Where did you come from?¡± Jerome closed the tome he was reading.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been here for a while.¡±


    Jerome sat back in his chair thinking how to pose his question without being offensive. He could never know when he¡¯d say the stupidest thing ¡ª or insult tradition. But hey, it¡¯s just about books.


    ¡°Ask what you will,¡± Rihal said with a smile. ¡°I won¡¯t bite.¡±


    ¡°There are no bookshelves in the library. Why is that?¡±


    ¡°This wing of the library was just renovated. One will be installed soon.¡±


    Jerome looked at his surroundings with new eyes. The stone walls did look new now and so did the tiled floor. Or maybe clean was a better description.


    ¡°One?¡± he asked with a raised eyebrow. He noticed the floor tiles weren¡¯t glazed.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Only one bookshelf would be installed?¡± Now that he thought about it all the clay jars and pots they used to fetch water in the slum weren¡¯t glazed. And they were purchased in the market in Farryn. Did Vorthe not know about glazing? Another thing to plan for then.


    Rihal didn¡¯t answer him. Just glared at him as if to say, ¡®Stop it¡¯.


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel tired, Rihal. I think I can still go for a bit.¡±


    Rihal shook his head. ¡°Go to sleep, Jerome. You¡¯d be glad you did. Trust me. Your body is still adjusting to everything new and you need to let it. It needs a lot of rest ¡ª at least for today. You would have enough time to read all you want.¡±


    Jerome sighed and stood up. ¡°Very well. Guess it¡¯s bedtime then. But first, I need writing materials.¡±

 12. Training

    Dear Ms. Tara,


    How are you doing? And how are the children? I hope Moss is keeping his hands to himself and not hitting anyone. What about Old Wen? Does he still sleep all morning? Please make sure to take good care of them.


    Good news abounds as I write to you, Ms. Tara. Well, I guess you must have heard from Doti, Dreamer, and Whisper already. So sorry I¡¯m writing to you this late. We all were taken in as disciples of various families in the city. And I was taken in by the Royal family. Isn¡¯t that amazing?


    We get little stipends every two tendays. I¡¯ll make sure to send you some resources as soon as I can so you can advance your core. Oh, and I¡¯m Blank now. Jumped straight from being a mortal to Blank! From what I hear it has never been done before. Guess I¡¯m one of a kind, heh?


    Please give my love to all the children. And let them know I¡¯m thinking of them always.


    Your boy,


    Jerome.


    Jerome read his letter again before nodding. It was simple and short, expressing the thoughts of an excited child.


    This should do, he thought. He blew out his oil lamp and climbed into bed.


    ~~~


    Jerome woke up before the crack of dawn. His body had fallen asleep without much effort, which was weird. It was never that easy as a mortal to fall asleep when you still had so much energy in you. He chucked it up to being more in control of his own body. Or maybe he was very tired and just didn¡¯t know it.


    He picked up a piece of paper used to wrap a twig. The twig was from an oak tree in the courtyard of the palace. Jerome washed the twig in a wooden bowl of water set on his table and began chewing on it. Oak had antibacterial properties and a fibrous texture. It was the closest to a toothbrush he could get but that was fine.


    Jerome washed his face and got ready for training. He checked the small compartment in his belt to assure himself he had the letter he had written the night before with him. He left to go locate the training hall he¡¯d be training in from now on.


    ~~~


    ¡°The first order of business is for you to clean this place from top to bottom. Make sure you don¡¯t miss a spot,¡± Rihal said as he threw Jerome a piece of cloth. There was a large bucket of water beside him, waiting for Jerome.


    Jerome scowled. ¡°Where are the other apprentices? Thought I¡¯ll be training with others today.¡± He took his time to look around him. They were in an underground training hall inside Kilian¡¯s Palace. The training hall was huge ¡ª easily 5,000 square feet, maybe more. with a few weapons hanging on racks by the south wall. The soil on the ground had hardened from lack of use.


    He took off his belt, robe, and tunic. And after folding them, he placed them carefully on one of the racks, grabbed the bucket of water, and went about his duty.


    ¡°One-on-one training is more beneficial to your growth.¡±


    Jerome spent less time than expected cleaning the training hall and weapons racks all around the walls of the hall. He discovered his ability to jump very high, higher than ten feet without effort. This boosted his morale and he kept going faster and faster until the work was done.


    ¡°Now, you run two hundred laps around the hall with this,¡± Rihal said, pointing at a bag at his feet.


    Jerome smiled, ready for the challenge. It was already so satisfying to be strong. But he wanted to know how strong he was. What were his limits? If he had none, fine. If he did, he was going to break them.


    The bag was heavy, maybe filled with stones. The dirt floor of the training hall looked smaller now that he had cleaned the whole place from top to bottom ¡ª and he wasn¡¯t even breathing hard.


    Jerome took off running, maintaining a steady speed. He breezed past Rihal after his first revolution in less than twenty breaths. He felt elated as he breezed through the hall. He felt the urge to increase his speed but tamped it down. The bag he was carrying might not be heavy now, but he¡¯d start to feel the burn soon.


    After 150 laps, he started to feel the burn in his thighs but he kept at it. 200 laps in and his thighs were stinging him. Jerome laughed. He was no stranger to pain. He kept at it, refusing to slow down. 210 laps, 220, 240,...,300, 350 laps. Jerome collapsed on the dirt floor, breathing hard. He was tired but excited. No athlete from his previous world could go that fast for that long.


    ¡°Get up. Your training isn¡¯t over,¡± Rihal called out.


    ¡°Give me a moment to catch my breath, please,¡± he said, still breathing hard.


    Rihal yanked him up and took the bag from his back. ¡°That was supposed to be a warm-up. 200 laps should be 200 laps when I say 200 laps.¡± He dragged Jerome towards a weapons rack. ¡°Now, pick a weapon. Something that suits you.¡±


    Jerome scowled up at him but did as he was told. He took a deep breath to steady his breathing and bring it under control. It happened like magic. His body responded to him quicker than he thought. The burning in his lungs ceased and the tension in his thighs relaxed.


    ¡°Wow. That was amazing,¡± he couldn¡¯t help but say.


    ¡°You¡¯re a sacred artist. Your body heals itself really fast,¡± Rihal said with a chuckle. ¡°If the wounds aren¡¯t too deep. Now pick a weapon.¡±


    Jerome browsed the rack for the right weapon. There was a long sword with blunt edges, a katana ¡ª which he was surprised to see.


    ¡°What¡¯s this one called?¡± he asked, pointing at the katana.


    ¡°That¡¯s from the eastern continent. It¡¯s called a katana,¡± Rihal said with a frown. ¡°Is that your choice?¡±


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    Jerome shook his head, wondering why there were so many similarities with his previous world. Was this another universe but similar to his own? He never truly leaned into fiction in his previous world. And scientists did have theories about a multiverse. But they were all just that ¡ª theories.


    He skimmed his hand over the handle of a spear and it felt right. Hefting it in his hands, Jerome found it the perfect fit. Only the blade was too short. He thrusted at the air once and then two times, liking the feel and flow and the weapon. It had a good reach and would keep opponents at bay.


    ¡°This one,¡± he said. ¡°But I¡¯d like it better if the blade was longer¡­and maybe broader.¡± The thin, short spike that made it a spear couldn¡¯t be called a blade by his consideration.


    ¡°Very well. I¡¯ll teach you some basic forms now and you must practice them consistently,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Watch and mimic my moves.¡±


    He walked out to the center of the training hall, holding a bo staff and Jerome joined him.


    ~~~


    The little devil was a natural. Well, it didn¡¯t take sacred artists long to learn new skills but he was weirdly familiar with the forms. It only took one trial for him to master them and flow from one to another with perfect execution.


    This must be because of his uniqueness, Rihal thought as he watched Jerome go through the forms again and again.


    There was a lot about Jerome that was a mystery to him and only time would reveal them. All he knew was that the boy had a very dark future ahead of him. The only way to prevent that was to help him keep his sanity. Rihal¡¯s mind drifted to Kilian¡¯s search for something that could be effective enough to help Jerome. They had to try one way or another. Not just for Jerome¡¯s sake but for all of their sakes.


    After a while, he gestured for him to stop. ¡°Now I¡¯m going to attack you but I want you to go through the forms just as you have been. The attacks would increase in momentum and minute changes would be made. You have to notice these changes and act accordingly. After getting used to them, try to control the battle at your discretion.¡±


    Jerome nodded, signaling that he understood.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Rihal asked. ¡°First form!¡± He lunged at Jerome and his staff was parried away.


    ¡°Second¡­third,¡± he announced as he attacked and Jerome flowed with him until they completed all the forms. Rihal watched the concentration on the boy¡¯s face. But more than that, Jerome was smiling happily.


    Rihal increased the speed of his attacks and Jerome¡¯s face tightened in focus. He didn¡¯t slow down one bit. Instead, he sped up. And there was a little more force to his parry.


    ¡°I¡¯m speeding up again,¡± Rihal announced after a while.


    Now the little devil was finding it hard to keep up. Which meant he was at the limit of his speed. Rihal kept pressuring him. Blow after blow was parried but with a lot more effort. The boy was practically huffing now, and sweating. But he kept his breathing even, exhaling before their weapons struck each other. That was great and all, but if he was to survive Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, he would need to do better than he was doing now.


    ¡°Ok, Jerome. I¡¯ll be using slight variations of my attacks,¡± he said without stopping. ¡°Here goes.¡±


    ~~~


    How the hell did I ever come to believe this guy was blind? Blind my foot! Jerome though. The ability to fight like this cannot be replicated by a blind man. Rihal was moving with blinding speed. His bo staff was almost a blur to Jerome¡¯s eyes and he was having trouble following it.


    ¡°Ok, Jerome. I¡¯ll be using slight variations of my attacks,¡± Rihal said without stopping. ¡°Here goes.¡±


    Rihal¡¯s staff increased in speed and the attack sequence he¡¯d been using changed. Jerome was finding it hard to keep up before but now, he was taking hits from everywhere. He fell into the first form again, repeating it from the beginning and trying to follow Rihal¡¯s moves. The man was fast, far faster than he was before.


    He tried to parry a lunge from the staff but the force pushed him sideways. Rihal pushed his spear out of the way and extended his left leg to kick him. Jerome went with the flow, crouching down, thereby breaking the flow of his forms. He rotated on his knees and freed his spear, raising it to parry Rihal¡¯s staff again. Then he fell back into the forms but went for the knees and feet.


    Rihal had to backpedal to keep his feet safe. Jerome knew he wasn¡¯t safe yet so instead of continuing to press the offense, he stopped.


    ¡°Very good,¡± Rihal said, not even breathing hard. ¡°Know when you are outmatched and when to retreat.¡±


    ¡°Can we stop?¡± he asked, breathing heavily. ¡°I need to catch my breath.¡±


    Rihal grinned wickedly. ¡°Where is all that enthusiasm you had just a day ago? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re chickening out because of a little more speed.¡±


    Jerome snorted. If that was all it took to give up, he wouldn¡¯t be here at all.


    ¡°Sit down and take a break. I need to tell you about an upcoming event.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s eyes lit up at that. ¡°I hope it¡¯s something interesting?¡±


    He sat down directly on the dirt floor and took a deep breath to calm himself. The essence in the air poured into him and he instinctively cycled to release the tension in his muscles. That was new. He never knew he could just do that. He hadn¡¯t tried to meditate since he exited deep meditation after Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s interesting. It¡¯s an adventure.¡± Rihal paused for a moment, studying him. ¡°It¡¯s good you¡¯re capable of doing that reflexively.¡±


    So he knew. Or more like he sensed it. Good to know that more powerful sacred artists have more powerful senses. Which meant his senses should grow stronger the more powerful he becomes.


    ¡°Many young sacred artists have to prepare their minds and body to absorb essence ¡ª especially those who aren¡¯t ¡®named¡¯, but even some ¡®named¡¯ find it hard to do. It can be annoying when you must get yourself into the right frame of mind before you can even cycle.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°It felt natural to me.¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a unique situation and very few can do it on command in the early Realms. I guess you¡¯re one of the lucky ones,¡± Rihal said with a shrug. ¡°Anyways. You¡¯d be going for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep after the new moon. It¡¯s a gathering of Blanks just like you in the northern mountain range.¡±


    ¡°Ooh. Will there be magical beasts? And why is called Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡±


    Jerome had heard tales from Old Wen about the mountain range in the North. Tales of scary magical beasts that could gulp you down in less than a breath. The kids used to shiver excitedly when he exaggerated the mythical creatures to impossible proportions.


    ¡°Lots of magical beasts. Which means you¡¯d be fighting to survive: which is the main purpose of Pilgrims¡¯ Keep ¡ª survival. You¡¯d receive a book about the various magical beasts you¡¯re likely to come across when you get to the library tonight. Make sure to study it carefully. And as I said before, this is a fight for survival. Our training will take a slightly different approach from tomorrow so make sure to rest well tonight.¡±


    Jerome nodded enthusiastically. He now had the chance to meet other sacred artists in his Realm. And to compare his strength with them. A thought came to him at that moment. ¡°Rihal, since I only just became Blank, doesn¡¯t that mean I¡¯ll be entering this¡­Pilgrims¡¯ Keep too early? Others must have had at least a year to grow stronger, right?¡±


    Rihal gave him an approving smile. ¡°That¡¯s quick thinking, Jerome. Other Blanks will be more powerful than you are, but will that stop you from going?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he said shaking his head. ¡°I¡¯d love to see what they¡¯re like, and maybe test my strength against theirs. There will be a chance to fight against each other, right? Like a competition of sorts?¡±


    ¡°Well, not exactly. But you¡¯d definitely fight with others. It always happens and you can¡¯t avoid it. Just as you wish to test your strength against them, they as well wish to test their strengths against others too. We¡¯ll be training with this in mind. So know that I¡¯ll be going hard on you from tomorrow.¡±


    Rihal hit the butt of his bo staff on the dirt floor. ¡°Now get up and let¡¯s continue your training.¡±

 13. Unfilial Disciple

    Three new bookshelves lined the wall of the previously empty library wing. Their presence seemed to breathe new life into the room, making it seem more like a library, and creating an enticing haven for knowledge seekers.


    Jerome took some time to admire the different thicknesses of the spines of the books as his fingertips traced the embossed titles. The scent of aged paper, ink, and the faintest hint of leather binding brought with them a sense of nostalgia.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been asked to make some books available to you for immediate reading,¡± the attendant from the day before intruded on his thoughts.


    Jerome looked over at him as he pulled out a book from the last shelf to his right. He bowed as he received the book. ¡°¡®The Culling¡¯, a fitting name,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    Jerome coughed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about the day before, initiate¡ª¡± he tried to explain further but the attendant stopped him with a raised hand.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what type of scam you pulled or how you pulled it but it would not work on me. Blanks are never as young as you are,¡± the initiate growled at him.


    A sudden tightness in his muscles made Jerome hunch over. He huffed and struggled to center himself all to no avail. He had to hold up himself with the support of a book shelf.


    ¡°I warn you, apprentice. Reach beyond your station and I will make sure you regret it,¡± the attendant said as the pressure he felt dissipated.


    Jerome watched, dumbfounded as the red-robed initiate picked out another book from the shelf and dropped it on a table before walking away. He took a deep breath and cycled to calm his nerves first, wondering why the use of force.


    ¡°Is he threatened by me?¡± he muttered to himself, finding it hard to wrap his head around what just happened. How could a Sprout feel threatened by a Blank? It did not make sense at all.


    After a while, he sat down and picked up the book dropped by the attendant. It was a small leather-bound book. Old and yellowed with time.


    His mind drifted to his demeanor toward the attendant as he wondered when he had disrespected him. But nothing came up so he shook the thought away. He wondered if he should talk to Rihal about it, but if it was found out he had disrespected a senior apprentice without even knowing it, would he be punished? Jerome didn¡¯t want to find out.


    He hadn¡¯t disrespected the man ¡ª of this, he was sure. Instead, it felt like the man had had some bad experiences with bullies or something. Jerome decided to focus on the books and read as much as he could before it got too late.


    ~~~


    In the bygone era, the mountain range to the north was home to a diverse variety of magical beasts. A place that was impassable by humans in times past. Many powerful beasts called the place home. They fed, they bred, and they multiplied. Many of them were invasive species that spilled into the new city and the frozen north.


    The ¡®beast tide¡¯ was a terror in those days. Its arrival ushered in a grave crisis for the newly established kingdom of Vorthe. Many moved south and many more died. Thus, the Sovereign, seeing the toll it took on his soldiers assembled a team of advanced sacred artists.


    Their quest was daunting, their journey treacherous. They flew northward to undertake ¡®The Culling¡¯, putting down a significant number of the invasive species. The Culling lasted for what seemed an eternity. And the land bore witness, for it was the largest record of culling in the land till this day. And as a result, many of the magical beasts have nearly gone extinct.


    Such are the likes of the magical beasts which were culled. The Storm-Winged Eagle, known for its ability to harness the power of storms. It has a wingspan of 300 feet and heralds massive typhoons in its wake. The Storm-Winged Eagle has a foundation as powerful as a Spirit Realm artist in its prime. Only as a sacred beast can it grow more powerful beyond the Spirit Realm.


    The Mountain Bear; a colossus of a beast. Standing at a height taller than ten full-grown men standing atop each other. Also known as the ¡®Hungry Titan¡¯, the Mountain Bear would eat anything that moves. It thrives on anger, as the more angry it gets, the more powerful it becomes. The Mountain Bear has a foundation as powerful as a Core Formation artist in its prime. Only as a sacred beast can it become more powerful.


    ~~~


    Jerome read about many more magical beasts like the Ice-Saber Cat, Silver-Moon Wolves, and many more. Many of these beasts were named according to the nature of the element at their command. And from the looks of it, they were extremely powerful. The book goes on to differentiate between the strength of magical beasts and sacred artists.


    ¡°Why am I not surprised you¡¯re still here,¡± Rihal said from beside him.


    Jerome looked up from his book, smiling at his master. ¡°What is a sacred beast?¡± he asked. Even though the book mentioned the term a lot, it never stated what it was.


    ¡°It¡¯s a bonded magical beast. Sacred artists can bond with sacred beasts and they become sort of protectors to the one who holds the bond,¡± Rihal explained.


    ¡°That¡¯s cool,¡± Jerome replied as he thought about having a giant beast to ride. Maybe a dragon. But didn¡¯t that kind of make the sacred beast a slave to a master? Jerome quickly stopped himself from talking about slaves lest Rihal be offended again.


    ¡°Cool?¡± Rihal raised an eyebrow clearly not understanding the use of the term.


    ¡°It¡¯s wonderful,¡± Jerome clarified. ¡°The book also stated that magical beasts are a lot stronger than sacred artists and are a lot faster.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s your point, Jerome?¡± Rihal sighed.


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    ¡°A lot of the sacred artists that went with the Sovereign to cull the tide must have suffered some dangerous fate, right?¡±


    ¡°Are you expecting me to admit that?¡± Rihal asked with a knowing smile.


    ¡°Posterity only remembers what is recorded, Rihal. If no one died during The Culling. How come it wasn¡¯t recorded? If anyone did die, why wasn¡¯t it recorded? I believe people did die and their deaths were taken out of the records so as to keep this ¡®Pilgrims¡¯ Keep¡¯ alive for as long as possible. Or to give it the illusion of safety.¡±


    Rihal chuckled, keeping his gaze on Jerome for a long moment. Since he didn¡¯t say anything, Jerome continued.


    ¡°Plausible deniability, Rihal. When information is withheld from the people, or a person in a position of power distances themselves from said information or actions in a way that leaves room for doubt or allows them to disclaim any knowledge or involvement if things go sideways. That¡¯s what I see in this retelling of history.¡±


    ¡°So, you¡¯re a scribe now. Or a scholar since you think you can just think up new words,¡± Rihal chuckled again. ¡°But yes. You are correct. In fact, I didn¡¯t figure all this out until I became Sprout. Funny how you saw through all that by just reading a single book.¡±


    Jerome shrugged. So they had scholars. What do these scholars do?... Besides thinking up big words, that is. ¡°I¡¯m smarter than most people think.¡± Jerome contemplated asking about these scholars but decided against it.


    If he couldn¡¯t catch that little from this much, then he had wasted sixty years in his previous life doing nothing. And he did waste years in his previous life, even though he couldn¡¯t call it wasted years now.


    ¡°I wanna send a letter to Ms. Tara, Rihal,¡± he changed the topic bringing out the letter to show his master. ¡°It¡¯s been too long and I want them to know that I¡¯m doing ok.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take you to the Falconer,¡± Rihal said standing up to go. He stared at the wall of books for a while before asking, ¡°How do you like your new bookshelves?¡±


    ¡°This was done for me?¡±


    Rihal raised an eyebrow as if to say, ¡®Really?¡¯


    ¡°Point taken. It¡¯s nice. Though, I don¡¯t see the reason for the effort though. I¡¯d actually like to sit down among people of my status in a normal library.¡±


    ¡°And have you seen any other apprentice since you got here?¡±


    They got to the counter and Jerome raised an eyebrow at Rihal while gesturing to the librarian who was dozing off at the counter.


    ¡°Point taken,¡± Rihal said. ¡°But that¡¯s a librarian. I¡¯m talking about anyone who is in training like you.¡±


    ¡°Well, I haven¡¯t had time to leave the palace now, have I?¡±


    ¡°And you don¡¯t have the time to do anything other than training and studying.¡±


    They climbed through a back stairway to the fifth floor of the castle to get to the mew. It was probably one used by the staff of the palace for easy access to the Lord¡¯s chambers. The mew was large and smelled of earth and trees ¡ª a reminder of the great outdoors. Up to seven falcons stood on perches inside the mew.


    They were bigger and fiercer than any falcon Jerome had ever seen. Jerome had only a word to describe the sight he beheld before him ¡ª magnificent. Their plumages were a mosaic of earthy tones, a blend of chestnut, russet, and ivory, intermingling harmoniously. The luminous orbs of piercing gold they had for eyes exuded an intelligence that defied normalcy.


    The birds became agitated the moment they sensed Jerome peeping into the mew. Some of them perched on higher branches screeched at him as if telling him to get the hell out. Jerome was smiling from ear to ear as he couldn¡¯t help himself. The mew was built like a part of the forest. Even though they were on the fifth floor of the castle, it felt like he was in the wild. A tree had been built from the ground so the falcons could use its branches as perches. However Vorthe achieved that, he had no idea.


    Jerome had to wait outside the mews for Rihal to help send the letter as according to him, these birds were sacred beasts ¡ª tamed magical beasts. They were remarkably intelligent and fiercely loyal to the falconer.


    ¡°Uhm¡­Rihal, can I get a feather for a quill?¡±


    One of the falcons screeched aggressively. It raised its wings as if ready to take flight as its eyes bore into Jerome¡¯s skull. He wondered if they could understand him.


    ¡°¡®A feather for a quill? Really?¡¯ Be careful, Jerome,¡± Rihal said with a glint in his eyes. ¡°Sometimes, we release them to soar the air. And these falcons can hold a grudge.¡±


    ¡°What are you trying to say, Rihal?¡± Jerome asked. He clearly knew what Rihal trying was saying.


    ¡°If they catch you outside, they will maul you to death,¡± Rihal said and the falconer chortled as he got Jerome¡¯s letter, bound in a tiny leather wrap.


    Jerome snorted. ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡±


    ¡°Not possible? After you asked for a feather? Oh, they will hunt you to the ends of the world.¡±


    ¡°Stop exaggerating, Rihal¡ª¡± One of the falcons shot toward him like a blur. Jerome barely had time to dodge the talons that were aimed at his eyes. ¡°Are you fucking kidding me!¡±


    The falconer laughed uproariously. ¡°Oh, that never gets old! Hahaha!¡±


    Jerome scowled at the man. He sensed the man was more powerful than him as he could feel the weight of his presence at the edge of his senses. Then he turned his scowl at Rihal.


    ¡°What did he do?¡± he asked. ¡°He did something, didn¡¯t he?¡±


    Rihal shrugged, smirking at him. Could he even consider this man his master? No master would sit and watch as his disciple almost get his eyes plucked out by a bird of prey.


    ¡°Some master you are, Rihal,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°And some disciple you are, Jerome. When was the last time you even called me master?¡±


    ¡°This is about protecting your disciple from birds of prey,¡± Jerome snorted. ¡°If it had plucked out my eyes, I wouldn¡¯t be able to train effectively.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll adapt,¡± Rihal said with a shrug.


    The falconer had stopped what he was doing at this moment and was just engrossed in their verbal spat, looking from one person to the other.


    ¡°No, I won¡¯t. You¡¯ll have to get me new eyes,¡± Jerome said.


    Rihal smiled innocently saying, ¡°Go meet the one who took out your eyes to get you new ones. Oh, wait. It¡¯s a falcon and it just might rip out your ¡®pee pee¡¯ next.¡±


    The falconer burst out laughing again as he held his jiggly stomach saying, ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a good one, Lord Rihal.¡±


    ¡°Here that?¡± Rihal said, pointing to the falconer. ¡°¡®Lord Rihal.¡¯ That¡¯s what I¡¯m called you unfilial disciple.¡±


    ¡°Really? I thought that was a joke,¡± Jerome snorted but was fortunate enough to see the look on Rihal¡¯s face. Even with the blindfold, he could tell he hit a nerve. He would have paid his weight in gold to see it again. He made sure not to let the edges of his lips quirk upward. The falconer also did his best not to laugh.


    Then he hit again. ¡°Calling you Lord is worse than calling you master. Your head would explode, Rihal. Seriously, I¡¯m doing you a favor.¡±


    ¡°Why¡­you¡­ You just don¡¯t know how to filter your words, do you?¡± Rihal glared at him. ¡°You better get ready for training tomorrow, because I won¡¯t go easy on you. In fact, you¡¯ve just proven you¡¯re more than ready to begin the next phase of training that should come after tomorrow¡¯s training.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Jerome¡¯s jaw nearly fell. Was it because of what he said?


    Rihal made an exaggerated show of thinking it through, caressing his beard. ¡°Hmm. That settles it. We skip a level tomorrow.¡±

 14. Who Would Pay Me To Become An Adult?

    Jerome found himself speechless as he stood before an immense, monstrous creation put together from metal, earth, and wood. Its form resembled that of a colossal crab, evoking a sense of awe and terror and it was more than twice his height.


    The creature loomed on eight sturdy legs that were even longer than he was tall and had a lot of girth like an ancient tree. Three of him could fit side by side inside each of its legs if it was a container. Its body was another fearsome part of it. It looked like a tank. Jerome expected the muzzle of a gun to be pointed in his face from the crab¡¯s turret. It exuded an aura of menace as if poised to rampage its way through the entire land of Farryn.


    Jerome looked at Rihal to see if he was kidding, then back at the contraption, and then back at Rihal again. Seriously? Could he really pull this off? He just might end up shitting his pants if he tried.


    ¡°And I¡¯m supposed to pull this, Rihal?¡±


    Rihal raised an eyebrow at him. Jerome was sure this was payback from embarrassing him the night before. Was Rihal expecting him to apologize? Not a chance. He was going to show this master of his who he was. He was never one to back down from a challenge. This was supposed to be punishment but he¡¯d take it as a challenge.


    Jerome let out a huge breath, releasing the tension in his body with it. He examined the straps he was supposed to wear at the shoulder to use in pulling the crab. After a few tests to see if it wouldn¡¯t snap, he nodded, satisfied.


    ¡°Very well,¡± he said, taking off his robe to get ready for training.


    ~~~


    ¡°The mountain range to the north used to be home to a great number of magical beasts, like the Black-Fanged Jaguar and the Silver Moon Wolves, many of which had awakened their bloodline powers,¡± Jerome explained as he pulled with all his strength. His damned master just sat atop the crab-shaped contraption as if he had not a care in the world.


    Every step he took was met with resistance as the crab-shaped contraption was designed to pull in the opposite direction. The machine weighed more than a ton. Jerome was almost regretting his decision to take the challenge head-on now. Almost.


    ¡°Hmm. These days though, awakened magical beasts are hard to find but it don¡¯t mean they don¡¯t exist,¡± Rihal responded.


    ¡°Aye,¡± Jerome said, taking another step and pulling the contraption with strong leather straps he wore at his shoulders.


    ¡°And many of them are weak, weak enough that even you could kill them.¡±


    ¡°Aye,¡± he repeated, letting the insult slide.


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯re gonna say?... ¡®Aye¡¯?¡± Rihal complained playfully.


    ¡°Perhaps we should trade places. That¡¯s good enough for a discussion, right?¡± Jerome snapped. He just wanted to train in peace, not be hounded with questions by his mentor.


    ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk, emotions, Jerome. A rational mind means a rational man, which is the foundation of success as a sacred artist,¡± Rihal responded, almost playfully.


    ¡°I get your point,¡± Jerome responded back.


    ¡°Ah,¡± Rihal sighed. ¡°You¡¯re at your limit I get it, but you¡¯re gonna be at the bottom of the rung where you¡¯re going.¡±


    ¡°I thought masters are supposed to be quiet and mysterious and... reserved?¡± Jerome said, taking another arduous step forward as his muscles strained with the effort.


    ¡°Did you just call me loud and excessive?¡± Rihal asked, his voice was so cold you¡¯d think it could freeze the sun.


    ¡°I did not,¡± Jerome defended. He didn¡¯t like where this conversation was going.


    ¡°But you implied it,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°Rihal, can we just...stop,¡± Jerome said with a sigh. This back and forth with Rihal would be counterproductive to his goals and he knew that Rihal knew this. Was getting back at him so important? Talk about petty!


    ¡°No stopping. What¡¯s the distance from one tower to another in the mountains?¡± Rihal demanded.


    By the Light, now he¡¯s offended. ¡°I meant the talking,¡± Jerome muttered.


    ¡°Answer the question,¡± Rihal snapped at him. It took all his discipline to not snap back. Jerome bottled his anger and frustration and answered just as coldly.


    ¡°About 100 miles,¡± he said, preparing to take another step. The leather straps were biting into his skin uncomfortably but he was not about to complain about that.


    ¡°And how many towers are there?¡±


    The ground literally cracked as he took another step. ¡°70 towers.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Jerome felt the muscles in his legs burn. A good burn. One that distracted him from his crazy master.


    ¡°What magical beasts should you be wary of?¡± Rihal asked again.


    ¡°The ones whose bloodline powers have awakened,¡± Jerome replied.


    ¡°Name the potential ones.¡±


    ¡°Black-Fanged Jaguar, Silver Moon Wolves, Ice-Saber Cat, Sunfire Wolf¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that all?¡± Rihal questioned, his voice dripping with venom. Jerome could see he wouldn¡¯t be let off so easily this time around


    ¡°Hrmph,¡± he grunted as he took another step, but the contraption didn¡¯t so much as creak or groan. It was as stable as a mountain. Jerome ignored Rihal¡¯s tone; he was here to train and get stronger, not get into arguments.


    ¡°Fire-striped Tiger, Storm-Winged...Eagle,¡± he said.


    ¡°Good,¡± Rihal said nodding his head, ¡°Though, you¡¯re gonna see the Storm-Winged Eagle coming from a mile away, so, it doesn¡¯t count if you can avoid it.¡±


    Now, that¡¯s low¡­and hateful! Jerome screamed in his head. He could imagine the shit-eating grin on Rihal¡¯s face as he watched his only disciple toil in misery, and Rihal still subtracted one of the magical beasts from his list, probably just for the fun of it.


    ¡°The deeper you go into the mountains, the more powerful the magic beasts you come across,¡± Rihal continued, ¡°It is said that certain treasures could be found deep in the mountains.¡±


    ¡°Treasures, what kind of treasures?¡± Jerome asked, his interest piqued. If there were treasures to be found, this would all be worth it.


    ¡°Ah! Got your attention now, didn¡¯t I?¡± Rihal exclaimed. ¡°You¡¯re gonna have to find out for yourself. The Royal family has been collaborating with the Great Clans and Houses for millennia, sending their disciples and descendants to explore the area.¡±


    Rihal stood and pushed off the contraption, adding more weight to it. Jerome glared at him as he landed in front of him. Jerome wondered how a human who weighed so little compared to the huge contraption he was pulling could add more weight to it, to the point it was significant enough to impair him.


    ¡°I¡¯d say there¡¯s barely anything left these days.¡± Rihal didn¡¯t bother looking his way, acting unconcerned about his disciple.


    Jerome took another step before Rihal brought the day¡¯s training to a stop. He relaxed his body, and the contraption pulled him forcefully backward, slamming him into its metal parts.


    ¡°Should have warned you about that,¡± Rihal said, ¡°We resume tomorrow at dawn.¡±  He walked off as he announced.


    ¡°Are there other things I should know about Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± Jerome called out.


    ¡°Other things like what? I have told you about all you need to know.¡±


    ¡°All I ¡®need¡¯ to know? That just sounds like there¡¯s more I don¡¯t know about,¡± Jerome said, relaxing for the first time since he started that morning. ¡°For instance, what is at the end of it all? Is there a prize or something?¡±


    Rihal chuckled, then chuckled some more. Then he just began to laugh uncontrollably.


    ¡°And what do you find so funny?¡± Jerome folded his hands defensively.


    He wondered what he said that this ¡®cow-headed¡¯ master of his was laughing at. Was there some sort of tradition attached to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep as well? Jerome paused to think for a bit. Who was he kidding? This was something that had been going on for hundreds, maybe thousands of years. Jerome remembered the ¡®agoge¡¯ in ancient Sparta and it dawned on him for the first time since he had heard about this adventure.


    Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was a rite of passage into adulthood. Just as Mehn Agrh¡¯ur was a rite of passage into the world of the sacred arts. Shit.


    Shit! he thought, scrunching his nose as he chastised himself silently. Who would pay me to become an adult?


    The ¡®agoge¡¯ ¡ª a crucial part of Spartan society that shaped young boys into fierce warriors. Young boys as young as seven years of age left the warmth of their mothers and the safety of their homes to join the Spartan military. They were trained and beaten into warriors for years, usually until the age of twenty, before they became full-fledged Spartan warriors. Compared to this, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep should be child¡¯s play. How could he have forgotten about that?


    Rihal slowly came down from his laughing fit. ¡°By the Light, Jerome,¡± he began to say but Jerome raised his hand to interrupt him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say it, Rihal. Just¡­don¡¯t,¡± he said with a tight voice.


    The slow smile that split Rihal¡¯s face was all he needed to know that his dickhead of a master knew the truth had dawned on him. Rihal walked to the exit with a skip in his steps, took his stick resting on the wall, and deepened the already obvious mark on the ground. He looked back and began laughing uproariously again before he climbed the stairs leading upwards out of the underground training hall.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± Jerome grumbled in embarrassment, covering his face with his arms. There was no way he just committed self-sabotage. Leave it to me to shoot myself in the leg, he thought with a sigh. He felt like the ground should open up to swallow him whole and hide him from the rest of the world. Rihal would never let this drop.


    Jerome mentally measured the distance between him and the line on the ground. It was at least 30 paces away. Close, but enormously difficult to reach with the ¡®crab¡¯.


    ~~~


    House Baelor House of the Running Bull.


    They were the descendants of giants who lived in the far reaches of the redwood forest, West of Vorthe. The forest is a part of their heritage and the Baelors have taken care of it for generations. The forest is not without its own mysteries. For many explore its depth and very few come back.


    Before the establishment of Vorthe as a Sovereign polity, The Baelors had fought many invaders from across their border to keep their lands and their forests intact. The Farvaq, the Shaxi, and many more from foreign kingdoms. All came to take their lands and lay waste to their forests. They bore down on Baelor with a plethora of sacred beasts, wielding foreign artifacts, the likes never seen in Vorthe.


    Through the help of the Sovereign, they were able to secure their position in the West of Vorthe¡­


    Ah, crap. Jerome closed the book he was reading with annoyance. Whoever the author is or was. Their bias toward Vorthe could not be clearer. He couldn¡¯t read a few paragraphs about the Great Clans without mention of the Sovereign.


    Jerome stood up on weak legs, ready to leave the library. Rihal had worked him to the bone today. It was straight to bed, and he wasn¡¯t looking forward to sleep. His body would protest the hardness of his bed but there was nothing he could do about it.

 15. Wake-Up Call

    ¡°Is this it for you?¡± Rihal asked and Jerome looked up to glare at him. ¡°Tsk, tsk. I had high hopes for you Jerome but it seems,¡± he held up the letter from Ms. Tara, ¡°you¡¯re not interested in hearing from ¡®Ms. Tara¡¯.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s bulging muscles were screaming at him to give up under the strain of the crab¡¯s weight. He ignored the ache in his body and took another step. The hardened dirt floor gave under his foot, scattering dust everywhere.


    ¡°Playing the bad guy doesn¡¯t suit you, Rihal!¡± he said, his voice strained as much as his muscles were. One of Rihal¡¯s eyebrows shot up in surprise. Jerome chuckled. Two can play this game.


    ¡°It¡¯s been ten days, Jerome. That¡¯s twice as much the time it took me and many others to completely move the crab to the line,¡± Rihal taunted.


    Ouch. So they were comparing dicks now. But Jerome wasn¡¯t one to back down. ¡°Low blow, Rihal. I bet you were at least fifteen when you attempted to move this monster.¡±


    He turned back to glare at the line on the ground behind him. He had moved past it himself, he only had to get the crab there. It was just a foot away, maybe not even as much as that! If he could just¡­ Ah, crap!


    He took another step but the crab pulled him back a few inches, ¡°Are you kidding me?!¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°And what if I was? Are you going to complain about how unfair it is for you?¡±


    Jerome dug his feet in the ground, his posture one to maintain his balance. He looked up at Rihal to convey his determination without words. He wanted this cock-headed master of his to see that he was neither going to be cowed nor provoked by some anger-driven motivation. He wasn¡¯t a child.


    Heh. But I am, ain¡¯t I? he thought. He went back to pulling the crab before saying, ¡°This carrot and stick method you¡¯re employing is as old as time, Rihal. It would not¡­¡± he prepared himself for another step, this time making sure to stay low so the crab doesn¡¯t pull him backward, ¡°work on me,¡± he finished.


    With another step, he dragged the crab¡¯s foremost leg across the line. Jerome quickly got rid of the leather handles he was wearing like a backpack. He slumped down on the ground, heaving to catch his breath.


    Rihal walked up to him, letter in hand, and extended as if to give it to him. Jerome stretched his hand to take it but his master pocketed the piece of paper.


    ¡°Damn you, Rihal!¡±


    ¡°Along with you,¡± his master quipped. ¡°You¡¯ll receive your letter after tomorrow¡¯s training. Go wash up.¡±


    Jerome wanted to get up and wrestle the letter from him but Rihal was just too fast. He shot out of the underground training hall and was gone before Jerome could reach him. His fading laughter was all Jerome heard as he looked toward the exit.


    He promised payback someday. No one had ever embarrassed him like this. Expecting a prize after Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was due to his ignorance but using this to taunt him? Someday, he¡¯ll get his chance to pay back this childlike master of his!


    ~~~


    Pulling the crab was one of the most difficult things Jerome had had to do ¡ª as well as training with Rihal. But it was one thing to train with Rihal and another thing to fight him. The most difficult thing in his opinion was fighting Rihal.


    Bam!


    Pain shot up Jerome¡¯s gut as he was hurled into the air. Not waiting for him to regain his wits, Rihal appeared mid-air above him and bludgeoned him with the butt of his staff.


    Boom!


    Jerome hit the ground creating a small crater around him.


    ¡°What was your mistake?¡± Rihal asked, going down on one knee.


    ¡°Urgh, rgh, uhrg.¡±


    ¡°Those aren¡¯t words,¡± Rihal chuckled playfully.


    ¡°I...urhg...I...closed...m...eye..s,¡± Jerome tried to say, his voice a little less intelligible.


    ¡°Wrong, you hesitated. And when you hesitate my dear disciple, you die.¡±


    I don''t feel like your dear disciple right about now, Jerome thought to himself. He felt like this master of his was having fun at his expense!


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you 100 breaths to heal,¡± Rihal said with a loud sigh, ¡°In the meantime...do you know how the term Pilgrims¡¯ Keep came to be?¡±


    Jerome nodded his head and winced in pain. But Rihal went ahead to explain things he had already read about in the library.


    ¡°The term Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was coined from the long trek from one end of the mountains to another, and the towers were there to help receive these pilgrims and shelter them after the long trek. After ¡®The Culling¡¯, Vorthe went ahead to build the keeps around the mountain. They serve as watchtowers to help keep the kingdom informed about the ¡®beast tide¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Question,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Why is Vorthe called a kingdom? From what I¡¯ve¡ª¡± he coughed uncontrollably, ¡°from what I¡¯ve read so far, it sounds like it should be an empire.¡±


    Rihal¡¯s blindfolded face showed so many emotions at that moment ¡ª in a short amount of time, Jerome didn¡¯t know what to make of it all. But it was clear that there was a troubling history there. That much he deduced.


    Rihal cleared his throat and ignored his question. ¡°Nowadays, the mountain range is relatively safe, with only a few powerful magical beasts left, which means that even Blanks can participate in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡± He sat down beside Jerome as he healed.


    ¡°Despite this,¡± Rihal continued ¡°Pilgrims¡¯ Keep is still perilous, and many lose their lives every time it¡¯s held. However, since ancient times, opportunities have always come with risks. Sacred artists are willing to take these dangers head-on in pursuit of greater power; refusing to pass up a chance to become stronger in a world full of uncertainty.¡±


    Jerome had read a lot about this to know the people who participated in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep were either crazy or had a death wish. Why would someone participate in something that would cause them harm and even death? Were they not afraid of dying?


    ¡°According to the records ¡ª records you would not find in a library,¡± Rihal looked pointedly at him. Jerome knew what ¡®a look to zip his lips¡¯ meant ¡ª a vow of silence between men.


    ¡°A few hundred Blanks take the ¡®pilgrimage¡¯ every year and about five people go missing during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. About ten die that we know of, and their deaths aren¡¯t mild in the least. They die some of the most gruesome deaths with body parts missing, having been chewed off by powerful magical beasts. Some are just gulped down like water and no one hears from them anymore. Some of the Blanks return jaded ¡ª a shell of their previous self and unable to function in society for a while.


    ¡°But you must understand that many of these Blanks go for the pilgrimage with this unspoken urge to prove themselves, to show that they are impervious to the dangers Pilgrims¡¯ Keep presents. For Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, Jerome¡­ is a ceremonial ritual to reach your majority as a sacred artist.¡±


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Jerome scowled at him and snorted. ¡°I¡¯ve already reached that conclusion, ¡®dear master¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Oh, really?¡­ I never knew.¡± Rihal looked at him with mock surprise.


    ¡°Why wait for me to reach that conclusion by making a blunder?¡±


    ¡°In life, you learn by failing,¡± Rihal quipped. ¡°Anyway, Blanks are young and motivated, exuberant, and in their prime. They want to prove themselves as men. Just like you and your friends wanted to prove yourselves, men, by taking me down when you were in the slum ¡ª not that it did much for you.¡± Rihal chuckled. ¡°Good times, yes?¡±


    Jerome glared at him.


    ¡°Hey, now. I¡¯m still your master, you know?¡±


    Jerome looked away. Even he had been that way when he heard of Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. To be sincere, he still was. He was just more aware of what it meant to be young and exuberant. And perhaps it was wrong to assume that everyone else was thinking like a child with tunnel vision, seeing only the end goal in front of them.


    It would be wrong to think they weren¡¯t afraid of death as they prepared for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. There surely would be those who would be blinded by the prospects of treasures and proving themselves, but it was best not to assume everyone was like that.


    ~~~


    Rihal observed Jerome. Seeing that he had healed well enough, he decided to continue the training. Must make sure he doesn¡¯t heal completely, he thought. Healing while fighting was part of training too. The little devil would have to learn to adapt. He was already coming around nicely for a Blank as young as he was. Granted, Rihal had never seen a Blank as young as Jerome.


    He was still getting used to seeing a twelve-year-old Blank. Most Blanks he¡¯d seen were teenagers and his mind had gotten used to equating teenagers at the ages of fifteen to eighteen as Blanks. Even though a few Blanks were thirteen in their first year ¡ª those that were nobles or royalty, that is.


    Rich parents wouldn¡¯t let their children out of the safety of their homes though, since they were still too young to distinguish danger from safety. Blanks didn¡¯t have evolved senses like Sprouts so they could literally walk into danger without knowing it. He was worried for Jerome because of this. Pilgrims¡¯ Keep could reach levels of danger that even some Sprouts couldn¡¯t handle.


    But he was sure the little devil could best ninety folds of the Blanks that would come for the pilgrimage. It was the remaining tenfold he was worried about. But there was still a little more time and Jerome was enthusiastic.


    ¡°Okay, times up,¡± he said and they both got up from the floor ¡ª Rihal with the agility of a panther and Jerome? His bones popped and cracked as he struggled to stand up.


    Rihal could ¡®see¡¯ the strain on Jerome¡¯s muscles as he wobbled to his feet. He knew it¡¯d hurt really bad to be in the little devil¡¯s position right now but he didn¡¯t care. He kept his poker face, refusing to console his disciple.


    This was what it meant to rise to the challenge and Jerome needed all the push he could get. He was still far behind what the top Blanks in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep would be capable of doing. He had to push him some more¡­


    No. Jerome has to change his way of thinking, Rihal thought. He is thinking too much about pain and not about surviving.


    Rihal thought back to their previous fight, replaying it in his mind¡¯s eye. The way he tenses when he was sure my staff would hit him was because he knew it was going to hurt. The pain is all that occupies his mind right now.


    I have to find a way to make him realize that the life of a sacred artist is a life of pain ¡ª that it is second nature to us. And that he has to push through it until it becomes second nature to him.


    Because pain was a part of life. Jerome just hadn¡¯t dealt with enough of it to shrug it off like it was nothing. Rihal made up his mind not to let up the pressure he¡¯d been putting on him since they began. The little devil needed to learn pain. And grow from there.


    ¡°How the hell do you even see through that?¡± Jerome asked as he gestured at the dark blindfold over his eyes. ¡°I used to think you were blind, you know?¡±


    Rihal looked down at him and chuckled but said nothing. At least you¡¯re not complaining, he thought.


    He was impressed. He had expected Jerome to complain that he wasn¡¯t given enough time to heal. Or to bitch about being hit like a log. On second thought, he should give the little devil some credit. For someone who hadn¡¯t fought with sacred artists before, he was taking his training really well.


    Rihal attacked. Jerome raised his spear to block the staff coming at him with the force of a Mountain Bear¡¯s paw just before it struck.


    Bam!


    His disciple went down on one knee and rolled out of the way to get rid of the weight. Rihal was on him the next moment with an upward strike. The boy abandoned defense. He evaded and struck, aiming for Riha¡¯s chin with the butt of his spear.


    Rihal smiled smugly. The little devil didn¡¯t know how slowly he was moving to his perception. He hadn¡¯t fought a Blank in ages and he felt like he could run up to the kitchens to grab a bite and be back to still meet Jerome, swinging his spear to hit him in the chin. That was how slow Jerome was to him ¡ª as if he could literally slow down time.


    Rihal spun his staff and knocked the spear out of his disciple¡¯s hands. The spinning staff continued on its trajectory and smacked Jerome on his right shoulder.


    ~~~


    Heavy! Jerome thought as Rihal attacked him unexpectedly. His reaction speed was improving by the hour and he could feel it himself. A few hours ago, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to react on time ¡ª not that he was capable of telling what time it was since there was no clock, but he felt he was right with such predictions.


    He went down on one knee and rolled away. Rihal was on him the next moment, striking upwards in a low arc. Jerome abandoned defense. He evaded and struck Rihal in the chin ¡ª or he tried. The son of a bitch spun his staff so fast he couldn¡¯t follow it with his eyes. Jerome¡¯s staff was knocked off his hands and Rihal smacked him in the right shoulder.


    His arm went numb in an instant. ¡°Time! Time!¡± He screamed, ¡°urhg!¡± Rihal whacked him in the stomach. Again.


    ¡°Magical beasts won¡¯t give you time,¡± Rihal stated. ¡°They wanna eat you, not spar.¡±


    ¡°Urhg...ooff...ooff,¡± Jerome hacked continuously, ¡°Can you at least be gentle?¡±


    ¡°Magical beasts¡ª¡±


    ¡°...won¡¯t be gentle...got it,¡± Jerome said as he crawled away in pain. This man would kill him if given the chance.


    ¡°What was your mistake?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°I dropped my weapon?¡±


    ¡°Wrong, you gave up ¡ª too easily I might add.¡±


    ¡°What was I to do?¡± Jerome asked, frustrated. He couldn¡¯t as well have continued without a weapon. That would be like facing death with a pair of kitten paws. Someone as fast and as strong as Rihal could cause him permanent damage.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s the difference between you and the rest of the Blanks you come across, Jerome. You think like a fighter in a controlled setting for one-on-one fights,¡± Rihal pointed out. ¡°They¡¯ll be thinking like ¡®survivors¡¯.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s gaze lingered on Rihal as it dawned on him for the second time in a tenday just how dangerous a time he was living in. Even knowing he wasn¡¯t on Earth, he was still thinking like a sheltered human from an advanced civilization. One where there was as little danger as possible and there were cops to stand between civilians and any little scuffle as a buffer.


    Right. He realized he had treated life in the slum as a game. The euphoria he felt at being able to physically do the things he wasn¡¯t able to do before his reincarnation had blinded him to the dangers around him. Even though he knew those dangers and was well aware of them, he treated them as though he was seeing them through the lens of a screen ¡ª like in a game.


    Jerome stood up and picked up his spear with renewed determination. His eyes shone with a new light in them. He gripped the spear like it was a lifeline, tightening his grip on it until his palm hurt and his knuckles turned white.


    This was a wake-up call. And he had been shocked aware into the realization that this was not Earth, nor was it a game. He could truly get hurt. Fortunately, this realization came during training and not in battle. He didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d be able to deal with such a dangerous awakening at a time like that.


    But with this realization came an insurmountable wall in front of him. Now, he ¡®had¡¯ to become powerful. There was no other choice! He had to! Not just for the sake of being so. Not because he used to be weak and wanted to feel strong. But because power was everything in this world.


    He thought he understood power before but back then, he was looking at the world through a lens. Now he could imagine the horrors one would have to go through if one had no power. Now he was ¡®accepting¡¯ of the horrors one would have to go through ¡ª especially at the hands of others ¡ª if one had no power!


    ~~~


    Rihal felt the change in his disciple at that moment. His eyes were different as he stood up. The little devil picked up his spear on the ready. His stance was that of a true disciple now. His aura, that of a warrior.


    Now you¡¯re ready, Jerome, Rihal thought with a slight smile.


    Jerome attacked.

 16. The Art Of Eight Limbs

    Rihal swept the floor where Jerome was standing moments ago with a sweeping kick. He swiftly rose on one hand to continue with another kick. Then he followed with a smack with his bo staff. His disciple took it all in stride, not even grunting from the pain when his kick landed on his crossed forearms.


    Jerome was learning and adapting fast. At this rate, he would be ready for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He was no longer rushing to control the flow of battle. He now understood the difference between their strengths and was flowing with the battle¡­like a river flows with its currents.


    Rihal performed some quick thrusts with his staff and Jerome was just a tad bit slow. Out of the fifteen attacks, he was only able to properly block six of them. The pain didn¡¯t take away from his concentration. He didn¡¯t stop the flow of his rhythm as he danced around the training ground. He wasn¡¯t looking for a chance to rest or to be let off easily.


    This was progress.


    Rihal was proud of him. He had come a long way. And in time he could hold his own against those who would seek to use him to undermine the Royal Family during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Rihal decided to see how far Jerome could read into the fight. He quickened his next set of attacks forcing Jerome to increase his speed to keep up with the barrage of attacks. The boy¡¯s limbs were shaking already, yet he didn¡¯t notice this as he was deep in concentration.


    Rihal forced him back, making sure to keep his attacks close. Jerome had gotten pretty good at using his spear as a shield, rotating it to knock off as many attacks as his weak limbs could allow. He had to make sure the little devil didn¡¯t start depending on the technique too much.


    He feigned a strike to Jerome¡¯s midsection. Jerome saw this and moved to spin his spear. Rihal¡¯s bo staff changed direction, stopping the spear mid-swing and swinging it out of Jerome¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Now you¡¯ve lost your weapon!¡± His staff came down with a downward spin in Jerome¡¯s direction.


    Jerome impressed him once again. Instead of retreating, he stepped into his space, contending with Rihal for the staff in his hand. Rihal was forced to kick away the staff which was a little too long for a close-up battle. That was impressive thinking on his disciple¡¯s part. But it wasn¡¯t enough.


    The little devil knew he couldn¡¯t win, so he went on the defense ¡ª at least that was what Rihal thought. Until his disciple attacked and defended himself with his elbows and knees in a strange combination of attacks he had never seen before.


    ~~~


    Rihal¡¯s momentum was difficult to break. Well, downright impossible, really. So Jerome decided not to even try. He had taken up something Rihal had taught him some days ago: rehearsing the fight in his mind before and after every fight.


    Jerome had been taking time to rehearse possible fights from many possible angles ¡ª all of which led to his defeats. He even dreamed up different scenarios. All with a Rihal whose momentum was impossible to break. The best way to fight Rihal was to flow with the fight. He would be the wind¡­or the river to the mountain.


    That was until Rihal knocked his spear out of his hand. His first instinct was to flip out of the way as Rihal¡¯s staff spun toward him. Jerome fought the urge to flee. And inserted himself slightly in the path of the staff. He leaned away and elbowed the staff but Rihal was too fast. The staff came to an abrupt stop, missing his elbow by a few inches. He had to think fast. Rihal was very good at spinning his staff and attacking with it at the same time ¡ª all with one hand!


    A punch landed on his nose, pushing his head to the side. Jerome tasted blood. Vertigo threatened to take him but he pushed through it. He licked his lips, brought up his arm, elbows out, and hit Rihal¡¯s fist while hitting the staff in Rihal¡¯s other hand out of the way. Rihal had to throw the staff away. It wasn¡¯t useful in a close-up fight.


    Rihal rained down on him with punches but to Jerome¡¯s credit, he was ready for them. Up close, Rihal was even faster than before. But with his elbows and knees working in tandem, he was able to pull off some very novice Muay Thai moves. Something he never had the opportunity to do in his previous life¡­or during previous fights with Rihal for that matter.


    Jerome saw the change in Rihal. The man was surprised for a split second. Just a split-second loss in concentration. But it was enough for him to execute the Muay Thai Flying Knee Strike. He took a step with his left leg toward Rihal and sprung into the air, raising his right leg, knee forward for the strike. He also raised his left hand to protect his battered face from more blows and pushed his hips out.


    But Jerome saw his master¡¯s face before he covered his. Rihal was slack-jawed in shock, his brows raised behind his blindfold. That must have been ¡®shock¡¯ he saw on his master¡¯s face, right? It could not have been anything but a shock!


    Rihal came to himself at the last moment, shoving Jerome¡¯s knee that was headed for his sternum. Jerome brought his elbow down on Rihal¡¯s head. He was already smiling gleefully.


    Now I got him. Oh, I got him!


    Rihal tilted his head to the side and caught him by the elbow, holding him up as one would hold up a chicken that was up for sale. Jerome tried to punch him in the face with his other hand but his master straightened his arm, holding him at bay.


    ¡°What kind of form is that?¡±


    Jerome deflated.


    Well, at least he tried. He took his master by surprise. How many disciples could hold their heads up high and claim they surprised their master in a fight?!


    ~~~


    ¡°I call it Muay Thai ¡ª ¡®The Art of Eight Limbs¡¯,¡± Jerome said as he sat down on the hardened dirt floor trying to catch his breath.


    ¡°Muay¡­ Thai?¡± Rihal asked with a tilt of his head. ¡°Which one of the words is art and which one is eight and also¡­ ¡®limbs¡¯? Really, Jerome?¡±


    Jerome waved him off. ¡°Those words do not directly mean ¡®The Art of Eight limbs¡¯. I use it to express the fact that Muay Thai makes use of eight points of contact. Punches, elbows, knees, and kicks ¡ª all with two sets of limbs.¡±


    ¡°So you just coined the word all by yourself,¡± Rihal said, his voice filled with sarcasm.


    Jerome shrugged as if it was no big deal. He couldn¡¯t as well say, ¡®Hey, it¡¯s from my former life¡¯. That was not a path he wanted to go down with Rihal. And he felt he still needed to keep his former life a secret. How would others react to information like that? For a civilization as traditional yet surprisingly technological as Vorthe, he was pretty sure they would turn him into research. If they were religious they might burn him at the stake. Maybe.


    ¡°Go bathe,¡± Rihal said. ¡°And when was the last time you had a meal?¡±


    Jerome looked up at his master, startled. He hadn¡¯t felt hungry in a while. Actually, he hadn¡¯t eaten after his meal with Kilian the day he was brought to the palace, which was eleven days ago.


    Rihal gave him a knowing smile. ¡°As Blank, you don¡¯t need to eat as frequently as you did as a mere mortal¡­or a Drudge. But that doesn¡¯t mean you don¡¯t need to eat. Your body is still young. Make sure you don¡¯t starve it of much-needed sustenance. Something you can do is have a timeframe for fasting ¡ª perhaps a tenday.¡±


    ¡°But isn¡¯t it incredible?¡± Jerome said, voice dripping with wonder, ¡°To not need sustenance for that long?¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°You sound like you want to see how long you can go. It¡¯s been what? A tenday and one? That¡¯s pushing the extremes for most Blank,¡± he said with a pointed look at Jerome.


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Feels like ages ago.¡± Jerome picked himself off the floor and dusted the sand off his behind. He really wasn¡¯t feeling hungry but he would do as Rihal said. But he was in no hurry to use the public bathing hall, though. The smell was ¡®urgh¡¯. It wasn¡¯t as bad as the slums, but it was nasty.


    ¡°Can I use the washroom inside the palace? You know, the one I used when you brought me here?¡±


    Rihal was already walking toward the stairs leading out of the underground training hall but he stopped and gave Jerome a look. ¡°No. That¡¯s for the maids. The only reason you used it the first time was because you were stinking. It¡¯s like that for most new disciples.¡±


    ¡°The public washrooms are disgusting¡ª¡±


    ¡°That from someone who¡¯s lived in the slum his whole life. You sure get comfortable fast, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°In the slum, we never had to bath in algae-infested waters,¡± Jerome muttered. The bathing pools in the public baths were already turning green. The walls of the pools were coated with slimy green algae, it was disgusting to look at.


    ¡°Algae?¡± Rihal asked. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°Huh. Never knew you could hear all the way from there. Algae is¡­¡± Rihal should have been too far away to hear him. Now, how the hell does he explain this? Or how the hell does he tell Rihal he just came up with the name ¡®algae¡¯?


    ¡°Algae is the green slimy plant growing out of the walls and grounds of the bathrooms. They¡¯re irritating to look at and they could be harmful.¡±


    Rihal snorted. ¡°You and your names. Those ¡®plants¡¯ aren¡¯t harmful to you. Ask the maids to give you something to clean up the bathing hall. For some reason, you male disciples tend to be a dirty bunch.¡± Rihal scrunched his face in irritation. ¡°A good thing their baths are outside the palace instead of inside.¡±


    Jerome fell back into the sand, tired as hell. ¡°Why must I be the one to clean up the bathroom?¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°Be thankful they haven¡¯t come to harass you into cleaning it.¡±


    ¡°They wouldn¡¯t dare!¡±


    ¡°And what did I tell you about your discipleship, Jerome,¡± Rihal said, giving him a pointed look.


    Jerome looked away, frowning. ¡°Respect, order, and discipline.¡±


    Rihal nodded curtly. ¡°Get to it then,¡± he said before walking up the stairs and out of the underground training hall.


    For a palace as big and beautiful as this, Lord Kilian really didn¡¯t take good care of its residents, Jerome thought with a frown. But just like Rihal said, it was a good thing the bathing hall was outside the palace, if not it¡¯d make the whole place stink. Jerome called up the little strength he could and stood up. It was better to do the chore now than wait for someone to force him to do it.


    He dragged himself to the maids¡¯ quarters on the same floor as his bedchamber. After requesting and receiving the cleaning tools, he dragged himself to the public bathing hall.


    ¡°Tsk. Finally decided to be useful, I see,¡± someone said as he walked into the bathing hall with cleaning tools he got from the maids.


    Jerome looked up to see the library attendant from before. He bowed. ¡°Greetings, senior. I only heard today that I have to do the cleaning.¡±


    The man sneered at him. ¡°So you need to be told before you do a chore, eh? How dumb can you be? Tsk. Why am I even wasting my time talking to a slum rat.¡±


    That last part got Jerome¡¯s blood boiling. He hated that label. Why must they all despise those from the slums like they were less than human? It was infuriating. Jerome bit his tongue to stop himself from saying something he would regret.


    He wanted to walk away but society had standards. The senior must be the first to walk away from any discussion. Either that or he dismissed the junior. It was a sign of disrespect to walk away from one¡¯s seniors.


    It seemed the library attendant was bent on seeing him be disrespectful. He used his skinny body that held little to no muscle to block the entrance of the bathing hall, standing there in nothing but his undergarment, glaring at Jerome. His provocation didn¡¯t work and it seemed he was thinking of something else to try.


    Jerome had to talk. He couldn¡¯t keep quiet as this occurrence was completely strange to him. He had his assumptions but he had to know what really made this man mad at him.


    ¡°But what exactly did I do to earn your animosity, senior?¡± he asked. ¡°I don¡¯t think I have ever disrespected you at all so why are you always hostile toward me.¡±


    ¡°This is exactly why!¡± the senior screamed, pointing accusingly at him. ¡°You think you are better than everyone else, strutting around all high and mighty! Why?! Is it because you became Blank straight from Mehn Agrh¡¯ur?!


    ¡°I would find out whatever scam you pulled to make it possible, whatever veil you put over Lord Rihal¡¯s eyes, and I¡¯ll bring it to light. I have met others like you and all of you are the same! You are always up to no good!¡±


    Jerome just stood there nonplussed. For some reason, it felt like this person was looking for someone to vent his anger on. And Jerome happened to be the perfect scapegoat. He wished he hadn¡¯t opened his mouth to talk now. If someone came here and misunderstood what was going on¡­


    ¡°Soon, rat. I will reveal your true colors to the royals. And then you will be out on the streets again!¡± the attendant said, but his eyes went wide like saucers almost immediately. The man sputtered to a stop as if he were a fowl that was doused by cold water.


    Someone placed their hand on Jerome¡¯s shoulder and he turned around to see Rihal glaring at the library attendant.


    He turned back to give the library attendant a smirk. Well, you should have continued, he thought.


    ¡°Disciple Jerome, you may go on with your duty,¡± Rihal said, all formal and cold, still glaring at the attendant. ¡°Disciple¡­¡± he tilted his head at the attendant. ¡°State your name, disciple.¡±


    ¡°I-I am¡­I am nu-number¡­numbered fifteen, my Lord. Library attendant fifteen, my Lord,¡± the initiate attendant stuttered in fear with his head down.


    ¡°Disciple fifteen, you will report yourself to the overseer for proper disciplinary action,¡± Rihal said and the attendant scuttled away.


    ¡°Are you okay, Jerome?¡± Rihal asked from the doorway after the library attendant had left.


    ¡°Heh. That was¡­unexpected,¡± he answered. ¡°I still don¡¯t know why he was harassing me like that, though.¡±


    ¡°Some people are just¡­different,¡± Rihal answered. ¡°You¡¯d think becoming a sacred artist would make them more confident in themselves. But no. They take pleasure in putting other people down.¡± Rihal gave him a side glance. ¡°You should know, Jerome. You¡¯ve lived with one such person all your life.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s eyes lit up in recognition. ¡°Moss,¡± he said. ¡°Which reminds me, Rihal. I need to talk to you about protection for the orphanage.¡±


    ¡°Hmm? What for?¡± Rihal asked, puzzled.


    ¡°Ms. Tara started making soap and selling it in the market. I don¡¯t want her to become the target of some jealous soap maker.¡±


    Rihal searched his face for a while. ¡°And where did Tara learn to make soap?¡± Jerome looked away guiltily but Rihal just chuckled. ¡°I¡¯d see what I can do.¡±


    ¡°No, Rihal. Please keep an eye on them so they don¡¯t get picked on.¡± Jerome had never personally requested anything from Rihal. And even now he wasn¡¯t requesting for himself.


    Rihal nodded solemnly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep an eye on them for you,¡± he promised. ¡°But you better grow strong, Jerome. Strong enough to protect yourself and those you care about. Even from creeps like fifteen and Moss.¡± he thumbed the air in the direction fifteen went. ¡°Their mannerism is actually considered a sickness to us born of the blood of Vorthe. Though, we have their kind among us.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Jerome muttered and then looked at Rihal. ¡°What do you mean their mannerism is a sickness?¡± That in itself sounded a little too prideful.


    ¡°Pettiness, Jerome. It¡¯s a sickness. And there are many more like them in the world. Vorthe wields the force of light and with it, we can illuminate the dark corners of our hearts, the secret obsessions and dark urges ¡ª even the ones we don¡¯t know we have or want to admit to ourselves.


    ¡°We can ¡®objectively see¡¯ ourselves for what we are and adjust to become better versions of ourselves. Besides having the Sovereign, that¡¯s how we¡¯ve been able to reign over this kingdom for so long, Jerome. It is what sets us apart from others.¡±


    ¡°The force of light can do that?¡± Jerome asked in a daze.


    ¡°Yes, Jerome.¡± Rihal smiled at him. ¡°It¡¯s like having a special mirror you can look into to see yourself for what you truly are. With no deception or hidden secrets. And it can be very unpleasant.¡±


    ¡°I bet,¡± Jerome said. He didn¡¯t know if he would want to see himself through such means. But what was this about the force of light? ¡°I bet there are other things the force of light can help one do, right?¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°When you become Sprout, you¡¯ll learn about everything the different elements and forces can help one achieve.¡±


    ¡°Oh. okay.¡± He had hoped he could learn it now. But he guessed being Sprout was tied to learning it.


    ¡°Just don¡¯t let power get to your head,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°I say that because fifteen was right about one thing.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Jerome tilted his head at Rihal. What did that mean?


    ¡°You do walk around like you own the world,¡± Rihal said. His voice was light now and filled with laughter.


    ¡°Heh,¡± Jerome replied with a mischievous grin and a twinkle in his eyes. ¡°Maybe I was a king in my previous life.¡±

 17. Preparations And A Smack Of One’s Ego

    My dear Jerome,


    I was so glad to get your letter after so long. I thought maybe something bad must have happened. Or worse ¡ª that you had decided to forget about us. I¡¯ve been speaking with Doti, Dreamer, and Whisper. All three of them have been taken in by some of the best families out there, and by the looks of it so have you. I can¡¯t almost believe you became a disciple of the Royal family, Jerome. It feels like a dream and I fear I would wake up to find you here in the orphanage.


    The other children miss you so much. Old Wen is becoming frustrated daily because you are not around to help explain things to them.


    Jerome snickered at that. Old Wen could care less if they asked for explanations. The kids would probably nag him to death for it but he wouldn¡¯t care. Which meant they¡¯d take their questions elsewhere.


    Moss would get frustrated, but he¡¯d push them to Ms. Tara. And Ms. Tara wouldn¡¯t have the heart to tell them away. Which meant, she was the one frustrated by his absence. Well, he missed her too. He missed them all. Jerome got back to reading the letter again.


    After hearing about your adoption, Ash has become inspired. She now does all the activities you do with the boys to get stronger. The other children that are going to be having their initiation after her are also joining in. It''s a joy seeing them all come together to do something. But it is different, Jerome. I wish Ash was good at being a leader like you.


    Anyways, thank you for the instructions on how to make the soap. I have been making and selling a lot more than before. The children don¡¯t starve anymore and have better robes to wear. Even Moss is not as bitter toward you for all the times he wasn¡¯t able to smack you in the face ¡ª or in the butt.


    Thank you so much, Jerome. I cry tears of joy as I write you this letter. Know that your efforts were not in vain to help give us a fighting chance against hunger and diseases.


    The soap has reached more customers as I said. We make as much as forty copper cuts every tenday. If I can get to sell our soap to inn owners, I¡¯m sure we can make a lot more than that. My customers are suggesting that I shape it better, however. I am not a Shaper, Jerome. What do I do? Old Wen has no idea what to do and Rihal has stopped coming over. He is the only other person I can ask.


    With love,


    Ms. Tara.


    Jerome breathed a sigh. But what the hell did she mean by Shaping? Was that a skill of sorts? He quickly took his quill out of the inkwell and started writing on a new sheet of paper.


    Dear Ms. Tara,


    How are you and everyone? I hope you are all doing well. Your letter reached the Royal Estate a while ago but Rihal refused to let me have it until I completed a special training.


    I don¡¯t get what you mean by Shaping. I know it¡¯s quite easy to cut the soap into shapes when it hardens though. And as I said before I left for Mehn Agrh¡¯ur, the floor would be a better area to let the soap dry out.


    After preparing the mixture and it starts to thicken, you take it off the fire and into a room where there is much air but little to no sunlight. Pour the mixture on the cleaned floor and leave it to harden. This should take at least a day, depending on how much water you use in the mixture.


    I advise you get a knife for this particular purpose. Said knife would only be used for cutting the soap into bars to avoid the risk of poisoning. After that, you stack them up to cure, leaving a good amount of space between the bars of soap so air can flow in between them to cure them faster. Leave them to cure for at least three tendays. This way, they would remain hard during and after use.


    Please do not dry them in the sun. That would be a recipe for disaster. That said, I hope competitors aren¡¯t sabotaging your business. I¡¯ve spoken with Rihal and he assures me that he would look out for you.


    I¡¯ll be going for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep and will be there for a year at most. It¡¯s one of the most exciting adventures I¡¯ve ever had the privilege of going for. I wish I had the boys with me. That would have been the best. But I know very soon, I¡¯ll be able to see them and we can share our stories with one another.


    I promise to come back stronger, Ms. Tara. I¡¯ve seen some very scary and powerful people ¡ª Rihal included. And I can say, I have a long way to go to achieve that level of power. One of these days, I¡¯ll pay the orphanage a visit and bring lots of goodies with me. Till then, extend my greeting and love to everyone. And stay safe.


    Sincerely,


    Jerome.


    Was teleportation a thing in this world? If he had that kind of power, he¡¯d be sneaking out of Kilian¡¯s Palace every opportunity he got, but no such luck. Jerome sat at his desk as he read and reread Ms. Tara¡¯s letter. He was very happy for the orphanage. Things were gradually becoming better for the kids and it was all because of him. He felt pride swell up in his heart and a bright smile split his face.


    This was his doing. For once, he did something for others. Something substantial that could change the direction of a group of people ¡ª his family. And thanks to Rihal, they had protection too. He couldn¡¯t wait to see them. Maybe after Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, he¡¯d ask Rihal ¡ª or Lord Kilian, yes Lord Kilian would be the proper person to ask ¡ª for a break so he could visit the slums.


    He felt like it had been ages since he left the slums but only forty days had passed since he came to the palace. Jerome chuckled and stood up. Tomorrow, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep began. He was so excited to finally leave this chunk of stone they called a palace behind and explore the wilds. Maybe he¡¯d get to fight and kill one of those powerful magical beasts. Now, how would that feel?


    He took the back stairs up to the fifth floor to get to the falconer, taking care not to annoy those stupid birds this time around.


    ~~~


    ¡°A few of the Blanks participating in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep will come from Great families in Vorthe,¡± Rihal said while Jerome picked up a box containing his new leather armor from outside his door. The day had finally come to head to the mountains with Rihal so he could participate in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    ¡°Many of these Blanks would be stronger and faster than you,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°They¡¯ve been Blanks for longer than you¡¯ve been. Your training won¡¯t make much of a difference if you were to go up against those who¡¯d been Blanks for at least seven years. They¡¯ve had time to hone themselves. You¡¯ve not¡­


    ¡°Don¡¯t embarrass me,¡± Rihal stated flatly. As his disciple, it would make Rihal look bad if he caved to someone just because they were stronger. Jerome scoffed at that.


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    ¡°And don¡¯t even think about running away if you sense any of them, because if you can sense them, they can sense you. Even if they¡¯re hostile to others, they¡¯d thread carefully with you,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°You think so little of me, Rihal,¡± Jerome said, scrutinizing his master¡¯s leather armor. He had never met another Blank ¡ª except for the librarian ¡ª and this new experience gave him the jitters. It also kept him awake all night but he wasn¡¯t going to tell Rihal that. He wondered what they¡¯d be like ¡ª the other Blanks, that is.


    ¡°Well, I trained you,¡± Rihal quipped back.


    Rihal wore tight black leather armor, exposing his thick muscular arms that were covered in tattoos. His cloak was held in one hand ¡ª a more decent cloak ¡ª and his stick in the other. Jerome observed the tatts on his master¡¯s arms once again.


    This wasn¡¯t his first time seeing them but he wasn¡¯t able to scrutinize them carefully back then. The tatts were strange. They looked more like figures ¡ª maybe letters ¡ª instead of tattoos. Like there was a strange significance to them.


    He thought back to what he knew of ancient warriors and their scars and how they wore them proudly like a badge of honor. They didn¡¯t look like scars, nor did they look fancy. If he were to assume anything, it¡¯d be that they were functional.


    The way the strange symbols crawled out from underneath his leather vest and wrapped around his upper arm before trailing down made it seem as if they represented something.


    ¡°The Royal family¡¯s crest can protect you, but only from some Blanks,¡± Rihal continued, folding his arms across his chest as he rested by the door, ¡°Others would still try to pick a fight with you. You¡¯ve got to be smarter than them. Pilgrims¡¯ Keep doesn¡¯t just test your strength and will, it also tests your adaptability and wisdom.


    ¡°Do you like them?¡± Rihal asked all of a sudden.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome looked up at the blindfolded face of his master.


    ¡°You keep staring at my ¡®Ajanai¡¯. Do you like them?¡±


    That sounded ancient. Like it¡¯s from the old tongue.


    ¡°And what does¡­¡®Ajanai¡¯ mean?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°I¡¯ve read some words in the old tongue ¡ª words scribbled down by apprentices as side notes in the books so they could remember the words to use to batter with elderly eccentrics who still lived in the past; those who didn¡¯t know some of the new vocabulary floating around the current times.¡±


    ¡°You read a book with words in the old tongue?¡± Rihal asked incredulously. ¡°In the library?¡±


    Jerome shook his head absently. ¡°The words I read were far from adequate to be called a proper lexicon. They were only units of measurement that correlated to the ounce, pound, and ton Vorthe uses now.¡±


    ¡°And what words did you read?¡±


    ¡°A dervanis is a unit of measurement in weight. And so is a vanis which is smaller, and a luvanis which is bigger. Basically, 1000 vanis equals 1 dervanis and 1000 devanis equals 1 luvanis. Each corresponds to the ounce, pound, and ton respectively.¡±


    Which he found to be ludicrous because 16 ounces should equal a pound, right? That was how it was in his old world, and 2000 pounds equal a ton ¡ª one of the few dissimilarities he had noticed. It felt wrong as well, like the whole world had made a blunder.


    Jerome shuddered at that thought. They may very well have a reason for it. It wasn¡¯t his place to question how they went about creating units of measurement.


    Rihal stayed silent for almost five breaths before he answered. He walked up to his table and sat on it before speaking. ¡°¡®Ajanai¡¯ is from the ancient tongue ¡ª the Aramanai. There is no word for it in the common tongue. But these¡­¡± he pointed to the strange shapes tattooed on his upper arm, ¡°are characters from a dead language. They function like scripts on a formation.¡±


    ¡°Is the dead language the Aramanai?¡± Jerome asked, wanting clarification. The way Rihal said it, he would have missed it. But thinking about it again, it sounded like the dead language Rihal was talking about isn¡¯t Aramanai.


    Rihal didn¡¯t answer him after that. Jerome waited for him to continue but Rihal just kept looking at him, processing whatever information he had in that thick skull of his.


    ¡°Is that all?¡± Jerome gestured with his arms apart. ¡°You were just getting to the good parts. Is the dead language the Aramanai, or some other language?¡± he asked again.


    Rihal cleared his throat. ¡°No, it¡¯s not. But that¡¯s all you get for now ¡ª and don¡¯t meddle. As your master, I forbid you from finding out about this. You¡¯ll learn about it in time. Don¡¯t go to the library to ask for codices on the ¡®Ajanai¡¯. You¡¯ll get yourself in trouble ¡ª I mean it.¡±


    Jerome deflated. Then he perked up again. ¡°Codices?!¡± he said in excitement. If they had ancient manuscripts¡­


    Jerome felt Rihal¡¯s aura hit him for the first time in forever. His knees went weak and a terror he had never known filled him before he could contemplate what was happening. He fell to the floor shivering like a leaf.


    ¡°You don¡¯t listen, do you? This is as much as you can be told right now. What part of that was so difficult to understand?¡± Rihal said tightly before the aura dissipated. ¡°That¡¯s a warning Jerome. There are some things you can¡¯t go asking around for. The punishment would be far worse than what you experienced just now.¡±


    Jerome gulped in a breath as the heaviness in the air dissipated. He felt like he had been inside an iceberg and had broken out for the first time after a long while. Rihal picked him up and laid him on his bed to give him time to calm down. Embarrassing. But he couldn¡¯t lift a finger as it were. The shivering didn¡¯t stop. The cold didn¡¯t go away.


    So this was the power of a Spirit Realm expert.


    ~~~


    Jerome admired his new leather armor with a lot less fervor as he had when he rose to prepare for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Rihal was a killjoy. He just came in and sucked the life out of his mood. He thought it best to not give the man a piece of his mind, lest he did something even more egregious.


    The armor was made from hard-boiled leather to protect him. It was a fitting armor. The leather cuirass was inlaid with soft foam-like textile padding. Jerome observed that the padding wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand the impact of a spear tip that was made from purer steel.


    The weapons from the training hall were fair on average. Their metals were filled with impurities and the frequency with which he had had to clean and oil their blades was a testament to how impure the metals were. Pure steel would still rust, but not as quickly as the blades in Kilian¡¯s training hall. And just as the weapons weren¡¯t perfect, so was the padding in his armor.


    But beggars couldn¡¯t be choosers. Still, Jerome wondered how they made foam in this world. Did they even know it was called foam? Scratch that. It was unintelligent of him to expect them to call foam, ¡®foam¡¯. They had called elevators, ¡®elevators¡¯ though and they measured weight the same as he knew from Earth.


    However, did they even get petroleum to extract polyols? Plants would be a more viable source, but Vorthe lacked the technological efficacy to do such a thing. He may just be assuming, however. He remembered the crystal used in identifying him. That was far beyond anything he had assumed Vorthe was capable of making. And it had much to do with essence.


    Essence. It always came back to that. Essence made the impossible possible for sacred artists, so why wouldn¡¯t they have figured out how to extract oils, add catalysts and blowing agents in the mix, and voila. Foam!


    Yeah, right. Well, Vorthe had been in existence for thousands of years, so plenty of time to research ¡ª if they even had researchers. Rihal had said they had scholars. Maybe these meant researchers ¡ª or tutors really. Tutors sounded more like the right thing in his mind.


    As he thought about how they came up with something like foam, he could only surmise that they must have observed frothy liquids like the bubbling water of the oceans, and the foam formed during fermentation. Soap making was also a good way to observe the formation of foam. What with the agitation of the mixtures during the soap-making process.


    But somehow, Jerome wasn¡¯t convinced. Societies grew and developed with whatever nature gifted them and Vorthe ¡ª this world in fact ¡ª had essence which must have turned their eyes away from consistently trying to find a way to get a particular product through the process of reproducibility. There were no industries in Vorthe after all, or he hadn¡¯t heard about one so far.


    The armor carried the Vorthe family¡¯s crest on the breastplate ¡ª a golden sun with a single eye at its center and had sleeves and a skirt. The sleeves were tough yet flexible. Very good quality leather, probably the best he had seen so far. The leather breeches were of the same quality and so were the knee-high boots. Jerome strapped on his vambraces last.


    A special spear had been made for him. One that could contract to shorten its length. And a special holder was also made for it so he could strap it on his back. Finally, he was ready.


    Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, here I come, he thought as he stepped out to await Rihal.

 18. Pilgrims’ Keep (1)

    Rihal came to get him and they departed just before first light. They had a long way ahead of them, so there was no more dallying about. Rihal also didn¡¯t stop to affirm how he felt or even address it, even though Jerome was fuming within. He had been told already that no one would cater to how he felt so he just sucked it up and kept silent. Didn¡¯t mean he wasn¡¯t mad at his cockheaded master.


    They walked through many grand palaces, gardens, and ancient trees with fruits that gave off a powerful aroma. Jerome could see the heritage of the Royal family and he knew without a doubt that this was just the tip of the iceberg.


    Rihal had said it was an estate here. All the houses ¡ª well, manors he was seeing looked extravagant. He looked back and wondered when the palaces gave way to manor houses. Maybe they had entered another section.


    ¡°These herb gardens contain powerful herbs used in alchemy to refine pills that help sacred artists in a number of things like overcoming bottlenecks, healing, and supplementing essence. Of course, the herb gardens are protected by powerful formations so stealing herbs is an impossibility, same for the fruit trees,¡± Rihal explained.


    ¡°What are the fruits in the trees called?¡± Jerome asked, forgetting his earlier anger towards Rihal.


    ¡°Plums. They contain a very high amount of vital energy. That¡¯s all I know about them,¡± Rihal responded coldly.


    Jerome looked at him, askance. Then he just openly glared at him. Wasn¡¯t he the one who should be angry here? The man wore his usual apathetic look acting like he didn¡¯t care about a thing in the world. You ain¡¯t fooling me though, he thought.


    Rihal didn¡¯t have a tell. And since he couldn¡¯t see his eyes there was no way to assume what he was thinking of feeling. But Jerome had been with him long enough to develop some sixth sense when it had to do with Rihal.


    He didn¡¯t know him like the back of his hand, but he could glimpse things from the way he responded in a conversation.


    ¡°One thing I can tell you though is that it¡¯s better to advance without pills and also heal without them,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°Pills carry a lot of impurities in them ¡ª same as the natural herbs and fruits. They¡¯ll help you in the short term, but they¡¯ll cause damage to your foundation in the long term.¡±


    Jerome nodded before saying, ¡°But if an alchemist can refine pills with little to no impurities, what then?¡±


    ¡°Never been done before.¡±


    That was interesting. It would be one of the biggest achievements of humanity if alchemists could refine medicinal pills without impurities. They would need to do lots of tests. On sacred artists at that.


    As it were, no one would risk damage to their foundation so even if such a breakthrough was discovered, alchemists would have to rely on capturing sacred artists to test their pills and potions. Or test it on themselves. And woe unto those who end up making poisons instead of cures.


    Jerome was never fond of doctors on Earth. They must have done their best to keep him alive, but every new research and experiment turned him into their guinea pig. And he secretly loathed them for all the pain they caused him.


    At this time, they had gone farther north, past the palaces, and all around them were trees and bushes but no clear path. Jerome decided to address the elephant in the room.


    ¡°You know, you didn¡¯t have to go to such extremes just to prove a point.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve found out that with you, Jerome, extremes are very effective,¡± Rihal answered. His stick vanished from his hand, and he took off the band covering his eyes, which also vanished.


    Jerome was shocked. ¡°How¡¯d you do that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Storage ring,¡± Rihal said, holding up his left hand to show a black ring on his index finger. ¡°Try to keep up,¡± he said. But Jerome was looking into his eyes.


    Rihal¡¯s eyes had an intense, unnatural green color that contained an unusual pattern. They resembled emerald gems etched with a mysterious rune, emitting an eerie aura that left Jerome feeling as though he was being observed from every direction.


    Rihal shot upwards jumping from tree to tree in a flash. Jerome quickly came back to his senses and shot after him. He didn¡¯t bother asking. He knew Rihal wouldn¡¯t give two farts about what he thought. And the man was angry with him, which meant short, quip answers, just as he had been doing since they left. But he was confused, nonetheless. This was the same guy who brought him to the orphanage twelve years ago.


    What¡¯s going on? Jerome thought. Bringing me to the orphanage, coming from time to time to tell stories and beat us up. That couldn¡¯t have been a coincidence, right? Jerome was flabbergasted. There¡¯s definitely something fishy going on.


    Someone who clearly had astounding abilities like Rihal shouldn¡¯t be playing nanny. He made up his mind to keep his eyes and ears peeled.


    ¡°Nice eyes,¡± he said after putting his thoughts together.


    Rihal scoffed. ¡°There¡¯s nothing nice about them.¡±


    Since he didn¡¯t say more Jerome didn¡¯t bother asking. ¡°Can we agree not to do that¡­¡± he didn¡¯t know what to call it, ¡°thing again?¡±


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°What thing?¡±


    ¡°The thing where you release your aura and blast it at me like you do essence when you fought me and the boys in the slums.¡±


    Rihal chuckled but said nothing. So, no promises then. Shweet.


    ~~~


    After traveling through the forest for about a quarter of the day, the duo stumbled upon a small clearing and decided to take a break before resuming their journey. As the sun began to rise from the east, its orange rays illuminated the sky, reflecting off the base of the clouds in the sky, and turning them into shades of pink and purple.


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest here for a while,¡± Rihal said.


    Turning towards Jerome, Rihal couldn¡¯t help but be impressed by the boy¡¯s stamina. Despite the long journey, he was still full of energy, a positive sign for what lay ahead. Nevertheless, Rihal knew that he needed to conserve his energy as much as possible, as there would likely be no time for rest once they reached their destination. They had spent too much time waiting for Jerome to recover after the incident in his room. If only the kid was not so hot-headed and curious.


    Jerome found a spot near the edge of the clearing and sat down, cross-legged as he prepared to cycle. He slowed his breath and cleared his mind but remained vigilant of his surroundings. The spear, tucked away in the special holder at his back, was at the ready in case of any unexpected threats.


    Rihal sat on a rock, silently observing Jerome cycle. As he watched, memories of Kaia ¡ª Jerome¡¯s mother ¡ª flooded back, reminding him of the uncanny resemblance between the mother and son. From the way Jerome tied his hair to the little gestures he made, it was as if Kaia was right in front of him. She was also very inquisitive and was as stubborn as a mule.


    As a member of the Royal family, Rihal knew that falling in love with a commoner was strictly prohibited. Matters of the heart were alien to him, but he couldn¡¯t resist Kaia¡¯s charm and they fell deeply in love. However, their love was doomed from the start. Them being young and na¨ªve.


    Rihal¡¯s heart ached as he remembered his dead lover who was taken away from him because of their forbidden love. He worried for Jerome. Jerome never truly knew the love his mother had for him. He worried about what he was destined to become. He worried he¡¯d never be able to help him. He hoped Jerome would be different from the others that came before him. He was tasked by the Royal family to train Jerome, but the boy had grown on him.


    Rihal sighed. Hope was no foundation for the future one wanted. He already had Kilian researching ways to help Jerome keep his sanity but it had never been done before. Maybe they¡¯d be the first to figure it out. Just maybe.


    ¡°Are you okay, Rihal?¡± Jerome asked, looking at him with concern. Was his worry that easy to detect?


    Rihal quickly schooled his features and reined in his emotions. ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± he said. ¡°We should continue our journey since we¡¯ve rested well enough.¡±


    Rihal pushed the disturbing thoughts away to the deepest recesses of his mind. Jerome thought the rest of Farryn was like the slums he grew up in so he had to be firm; to be the hand of judgment and wrath¡­and at this time, the hand of caution. He took a deep breath and got up from the boulder signaling their departure. Jerome rose to his feet as well.


    ¡°That ¡®thing¡¯ where I make you weak in the knees and nearly suffocate you with my presence,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s called an ¡®aura attack¡¯. It¡¯s used as a warning to subordinates or disciples to prevent them from doing foolish things.¡±


    Rihal turned to look at Jerome and put some bite in his words. ¡°There are three warnings served during a particular phase of one¡¯s training, Jerome. Two more and you would lose your position as an apprentice. Do you understand that?¡±


    The little devil nodded, visibly shaken and Rihal nodded back, satisfied. They continued their journey in silence until they arrived at another clearing with a tower at its center. The sun was almost at its peak in the sky when they arrived.


    ~~~


    A massive tower loomed over the forest ¡ª a fortress, appearing out of place amidst the surrounding foliage. The structure was at least 60 feet high and dark gray in color. It looked like it was made from a single rock which in itself was an architectural miracle to his eyes.


    Jerome marveled at it. He could see no interlocked stones. No evidence of construction was left behind by the masons who built this magnificent structure. Was this done with essence as well? How did they do it? It would have taken a massive amount of essence to build it!


    Jerome looked over at Rihal as he contemplated whether to ask or not. But the clenching of his master¡¯s jaw told him it probably wasn¡¯t time for that. Jerome kept his peace.


    As they approached the entrance, a young man in his mid-twenties emerged to greet them. The young man bowed lightly to Rihal as they drew nearer.


    ¡°Welcome, Lord Rihal,¡± he greeted with his right hand in a fist over the left side of his chest. That must be a customary greeting to those of noble status. Jerome filed it away in his memory.


    Like Jerome, the guard donned a dark armor of hard-boiled leather which also displayed the crest of the Royal family. After briefly observing Jerome, he averted his gaze, indicating a lack of esteem for him.


    Jerome gave a slight bow to the young man and Rihal nodded in acknowledgment and was led inside with Jerome following behind. The interior of the tower was rather spacious and spartan, with rough walls and floor. The ground floor which they stepped into was filled with Blanks of different ages.


    As they walked in, all eyes turned to the newcomers, especially the Blanks who eyed Jerome, sizing him up as though they were looking for weaknesses to exploit.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes scanned the crowd of Blanks in the room, checking to see if there were familiar faces but found none. That¡¯s disappointing, he thought to himself. But he understood that his friends were not Blanks so they couldn¡¯t be here.


    ¡°Are we late or something?¡± He quietly asked Rihal but received only silence. Jerome fought the urge to look up at the man. One shouldn¡¯t show uncertainty in times like these, so he just stood side by side with Rihal with a stern look on his face. And of course, they were late. After having spent more time getting himself together, others must have gotten here before them.


    Rihal left his side and ascended a flight of stairs adjacent to the entrance. Jerome also walked up to the wall by his left to rest against it, closing his eyes and folding his arms as his vambraces clinked as they hit each other against his chest. Not long after he felt eyes on him, and someone walked up to him.


    Jerome opened his eyes to scrutinize the stranger. He was a head taller than Jerome, good-looking with red-brown hair styled in a half-cut ¡ª a very rare hair color in Farryn since everyone he¡¯d ever seen had black hair. The lower portion of his hair, from his temples down, was shaved low, and the rest of his hair was fashioned into a top knot. On his breastplate was the carving of something shaped like a person transforming into dust ¡ª his family crest, and it was intricately designed. He looked to be sixteen and arrogant. A bully.


    Upon careful observation of the teenager¡¯s family crest, one family popped up in Jerome¡¯s head.


    Alvric, House of the Wind Spirit.

 19. Pilgrims’ Keep (2)

    ¡°You must be Jerome,¡± the kid with the mohawk hairstyle said.


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re famous, you know? Heard you meditated for nine days at Mhen Agrh¡¯ur.¡±


    Jerome said nothing, still waiting to see what was about to happen. Was this how it happened in movies with the bad guys? The bully was getting irritated as he never expected that he would not get a reaction out of Jerome.


    ¡°What did you do, sleep off or something?¡± he said. The crowd of Blanks burst out laughing.


    ¡°And what does this have to do with you?¡± Jerome asked and the entire hall went silent for a moment.


    ¡°Did he just talk back to Hedon Alvric?¡± someone whispered.


    ¡°This brat¡¯s got guts, but he¡¯s stupid if he thinks he can depend on the Royal family against the heir of the Alvric clan.¡±


    The murmurs in the hall didn¡¯t escape Jerome¡¯s ears. He was right to think this guy, a bully. Hedon Alvric, the heir of a Great Clan? What was he doing here bullying a kid? Jerome scoffed at himself. The boy was no more than a teenager. He was nothing but a rich, spoiled brat.


    The kid across from him had his face split by a broad grin. He looked like he welcomed the direction of their conversation. Jerome had a lot to be wary about. But he was also here to represent the Royal Family. He looked around to see if there were any other Blanks spotting the sun crest with an eye at its center, but no, he was the only one. Somehow it felt like this was done intentionally.


    Every other House came with multiple disciples except his House. He would have words with Rihal after all of this was over. Something didn¡¯t sit right with him about it all. Now that he thought about it, Rihal had deflected when he asked about other apprentices besides the librarian.


    ~~~


    Hedon Alvric gazed at Jerome, sporting a broad grin on his face. While he wouldn¡¯t say he anticipated this outcome, it was undeniably a welcome development. This was his chance to prove that the Royal family was just a bunch of weaklings and to establish himself in the hearts of the young generation. They had sent just one disciple to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep this year. What a joke! He was going to chew the cur up and spit out his bones. All was right in war.


    ¡°Everyone knows you broke through to the Essence-Forming Realm after nine days in Mhen Agrh¡¯ur,¡± Hedon said. ¡°That being the case, your foundation must not be solid. I¡¯m here to offer you a chance to seek protection under me during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡±


    He tried to look serious but couldn¡¯t keep the grin off his face. But there was no need to try so hard. Not for one so tiny as this. The boy looked like one of those made-up dolls they sold in the marketplace. Clean and cute with long, black, and shiny hair held by a string below his neck and reaching down to his back. His face also looked like a girl¡¯s. Hedon chuckled to himself. He was going to have a lot of fun with this ¡®girl¡¯.


    ¡°What a farce,¡± the little boy responded, then shut his eyes not paying attention anymore.


    What did he just say? Hedon became enraged. He never expected that the little brat in front of him wouldn¡¯t pay him any mind. Or that he would dare to close his eyes in front of him as if he was no threat at all.


    ¡°You dare to snub me!¡± Hedon thundered. ¡°I won¡¯t embarrass you today because of the Royal family. Hand over that spear of yours and I¡¯ll look away just this once.¡± He pointed at the butt of the contracted spear jutting out from behind Jerome¡¯s right shoulder.


    Hedon made sure to put a lot of bite in his words. He stood imposingly and cocked his head to the side with his chin up to give off an air of superiority. He knew he was in charge here. He was going to show this little brat not to disrespect his betters. The brainless brat opened his eyes to look at him once more. Then he did the unthinkable: he lifted his left brow as if to say, ¡®Or what?¡¯ and looked like he was giving him a condescending look.


    Hedon nearly went mad with rage. His facial muscles ticked as he stood there boiling over. He felt insulted. No one except his father had ever looked at him that way ¡ª not even the older Alvrics in their estate. This little cunt in front of him was clearly looking down on him! Did he think he would get away with this just because he was a disciple of the Royal Family? He reached out with quick reflexes to grab Jerome¡¯s neck, but his hand was smacked away just as quickly.


    The little cunt looked him dead in the eyes with no emotion. This one was no pushover. Hedon swore to himself to wipe that defiance out of him this day. This was good. It was a good way to start the day.


    ~~~


    Jerome watched as the teenager reached out to grab his neck and slapped the hand away. He threw a punch next but the teenager might as well have been moving in slow motion. Jerome dodged to his right as he punched him in the ribs in one fluid move. Staggering backward, Hedon instantly lost his cool. His face twisted in rage as he launched himself forward, attacking with both fists. He was fast. Not as fast as Rihal but faster than Jerome.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    They both exchanged several blows in a few breaths of time and Hedon had the upper hand. He kept cornering Jerome and launching his fists into his sides and face. Jerome kept defending, dodging when he could and blocking blows when he couldn¡¯t dodge. He struck some blows himself but didn¡¯t manage to get the kid to back off.


    He wasn¡¯t perturbed anyway. The kid was still not able to take the spear away from him. Hedon would have to work to get it and Jerome would be damned if he gave up his only weapon. The Alvric teenager wanted him to be dependent on him when they left the tower. And that was never going to happen. Even if it meant he fought dirty. He wasn¡¯t going to be anybody¡¯s dog.


    Jerome punched him in the face ¡ª a lucky shot. Hedon staggered backward but quickly shot toward him again. He had underestimated his opponent and embarrassed himself in the process. Now he wanted to do everything in his power to regain his stand without seeming like he was bullying the weak. But he wasn¡¯t thinking straight, Jerome knew. He also knew that the Alvric heir knew now that he had more fight in him than the average dog.


    Jerome was on the back foot for the better part of the fight but never lost his cool. The only other person he¡¯d ever fought against was Rihal whose momentum was impossible to break. Compared to Rihal, the teenager in front of him was a child. He soon found a rhythm in the way Hedon attacked and could barely keep up. He parried blow after blow, dodged, and punched out with grace that should surpass a twelve-year-old kid.


    Hedon made a feint with his right hand and clipped him in the jaw with his left. He laughed, enjoying the thrill of catching his opponent off guard. But Jerome was observing and learning. Hedon broke his own rhythm once in a while with his feints. He moved like the wind but still favored his right leg. Jerome staggered three steps backward and Hedon rushed him, but Jerome used his momentum to do a backward flip and kicked Hedon¡¯s arm away, and then in the face with his other leg. He spun around while still in a handstand, legs spread wide as he went for Hedon¡¯s leg.


    Hedon quickly withdrew giving Jerome the chance to get up, but he came in hot again. He made a feint for the third time, but Jerome caught his arm and used it to swing on top of him. Jerome used that momentum ¡ª and with his legs clamped onto Hedon¡¯s temples ¡ª to launch him, head-first into the wall.


    ~~~


    The impact was loud. The wall cracked and Hedon saw stars. He couldn¡¯t believe he would be bested by a baby Blank who wasn¡¯t even a season old. He could not have this. He could not leave a fight in such a state. He tried getting up but his head was whirling around like he had drunk his father¡¯s favorite ale all night without pause.


    His father.


    Nolan Alvric would have his head if he heard his son lost to a mere disciple, a baby Blank at that. A child who wasn¡¯t even thirteen summers old. Just as his eyes cleared and he wanted to attack again, a guard appeared in front of him and placed a hand on his shoulder, restricting his core. He gave the brat a death glare that promised everlasting torture. Hedon was going to drag out that torture so he would know his place¡­ and so no one else gets any ideas.


    ¡°No fighting in the Keep. You¡¯ll both be punished for breaking the rules,¡± The head guard said as he hovered in the air.


    ~~~


    ¡°He¡¯ll come after you during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Do not show him weakness,¡± Rihal told Jerome as he unsealed his core.


    His core was sealed for a fourth of the day as punishment for breaking the rules of the keep. Of course, Jerome knew those weren¡¯t really rules. The guards just used that as an excuse to get on top of the situation, and for that he was grateful. But why wouldn¡¯t they? They were guards of the Royal Family after all.


    They sat inside a tiny room on the first floor of the Keep. It was neat and almost bare. Probably the room of a low-level guard. Jerome¡¯s mind went back to the flying head guard. That was the most awesome thing he had ever seen. The man was hovering in the air without wings or strings. That was some Superman shit and he couldn¡¯t wait to try it. Wait, could¡­ he turned to Rihal with an inquisitive look.


    ¡°Can you do that, Rihal?¡± he asked curiously.


    He felt Rihal raise an eyebrow at him behind his blindfold. Huh? Now that he thought about it the blindfold was on the moment they came into the clearing where they met the guard that greeted them. When did he put it on?


    ¡°Do what?¡± his master asked and Jerome smiled mischievously.


    ¡°Fly.¡±


    Rihal snorted and threw him a small pouch. ¡°What is this?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Look inside,¡± Rihal said, smiling.


    Now it was his turn to raise an eyebrow. Jerome opened the pouch and took a peek, gasping in surprise at what he saw.


    ¡°How is this possible?!¡± he exclaimed with his eyes like saucers peering into the pouch. ¡°How does it work?!¡±


    ~~~


    You are in for a surprise, Rihal thought. Maybe he¡¯ll get to see those eyes of his disciple¡¯s nearly pop out in shock this time around. Rihal smiled. Then he threw the pouch at Jerome.


    Rihal was elated. The look on Jerome¡¯s face was golden. He only got to have fun once in a while and this ¡ª he observed Jerome once again ¡ª was definitely going to be fun when he used it against the little devil. He brought out a memory crystal and captured the scene, all the while schooling his expression so as to appear nonchalant.


    ¡°Probably the same way my storage ring works,¡± he said, holding up his left hand and looking at the black ring on his index finger. He had never concerned himself with the job of artificers. Without them, carrying things around would be nearly impossible. Perhaps they would find new ways to do so but that was not his job. They produced wonders like the storage rings and bags and that was all that mattered.


    ¡°It¡¯s called a storage bag. Make good use of the resources inside it,¡± he said.


    The boy kept his gaze on the inside of the pouch as though searching for something he lost. He dipped his hand into the bag and it was swallowed up, as if by a black hole in the air.


    ¡°It¡¯s so big on the inside,¡± he muttered, ¡°like space was compressed or¡­folded to fit inside it. How does gravity affect this?¡±


    Space? Compressed? Folded? Gravity? Did he hit his head or something? Rihal knew Jerome was stranger than most but it seemed he was getting stranger as he grew up. What was in those books he was given to read anyway? He knew Jerome had spent most of his evenings in the library pouring over the texts. Those books had been carefully selected so as not to give him too much information. He had thought they would be too much for the little child but apparently, Jerome was a scribe in the body of an urchin. The little devil. Tch!


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Rihal coughed loud enough to pull Jerome out of his reverie. ¡°You should get going.¡±


    He nodded absently and took out a map of the mountain range as he walked out of the tower. The map was a very detailed one. Made by one of the best Cartographers in Farryn. It would help the boy better than any weapon he could wield. Rihal watched him go, hopeful that he could triumph above whatever challenge the mountains brought him.

 20. Rage

    Jerome left the tower with the other blanks as they all raced into the jungle before them. Many of them split into groups and went different ways, while some stuck with him. One, in particular, Hedon was waiting for the right opportunity to attack him.


    Jerome could feel his murderous gaze from behind him. He¡¯d dealt with kids long enough to know that they could hold a grudge. This kid however was stronger than him. He wasn¡¯t too sure he could get away unscathed if he exchanged blows with Hedon again.


    What a pain! he thought with a sigh and changed direction. To his left, he could smell a body of water up ahead and went towards it ¡ª which was weird as he didn¡¯t know when his sense of smell grew stronger. Now he could smell water? And by the looks of it, he was still a ways away from it. If a fight was inevitable he might as well set the stage. He increased his pace, hopping from tree to tree with intermittent acrobatics in between as he pushed himself further toward the body of water.


    A few breaths later he landed at the shore of a lake. The lake was large, and the sloppy shore was filled with grasses. He quickly found a high enough tree close by to climb and wait for Hedon. There was no way back from this. Even if he didn¡¯t want to fight, he would be forced to. He had embarrassed the kid and now there were going to be consequences. It was best to suck it up and accept that the bad blood between them would only grow.


    He sat on the tree branch and cycled. Consciously sucking in the essence in the air with every breath he took to fill his core and strengthen his limbs. He needed all the help he could get, no matter how small. Shortly after, the teenager arrived with a crowd of people. Jerome opened his eyes and looked around at the audience the Alvric had gathered. This was a public humiliation. Jerome clenched his fist as anger rose in him.


    It was on. Oh, it was on. He wasn¡¯t going to let some petty kid publicly disgrace him. And all for what? His petty ego?


    ¡°Get down here and fight me!¡± Hedon thundered. ¡°I¡¯ll teach you¡ª¡±


    ¡°Why should I get down? I¡¯m not the one spoiling for a fight, am I?¡± Jerome countered.


    Hedon gnashed his teeth in anger. He quickly pulled a long sword out of a storage bag of his own and ran towards Jerome. Jerome pulled his spear from his back and extended it as Hedon launched himself upwards at him. He jumped off the tree and met Hedon halfway with a vertical slash of his spear, while Hedon performed a horizontal sweep with his sword.


    The two weapons clashed with a loud metallic bang that shook both sacred artists and they were both pushed away from each other. As they landed on their feet, they rushed in again, swiping and stabbing and parrying each other¡¯s blows. It was like a dance with no clear winner.


    Jerome knew he didn¡¯t have the advantage in strength, speed, or agility so he attacked low. The knees, feet, ankle, every little opening he got, he used his spear which had better reach to poke at his opponent. Like an annoying gnat, but he never drew blood. He spun his spear to parry attack after attack and slashed downwards at his opponent who used the vambrace on his left arm to block the attack and stabbed at him.


    Jerome spun sideways away from the sword that soon came at him in a wide arc. He quickly spun his spear to knock off the attack and in the same fluid motion, he used the butt of his spear to slash at the ground, kicking up dirt into Hedon¡¯s eyes.


    Hedon reacted fast. He shot backward and launched himself at Jerome to slash diagonally. Jerome spun his spear to parry the attack but this time, the attack carried too much weight. Jerome¡¯s spear was knocked away and Hedon¡¯s blade slashed at his left bicep cutting into the leather and drawing blood.


    There was so much blood pouring out of his arm but oddly enough, he didn¡¯t feel pain. What he felt was anger, rage that was threatening to consume him. His body worked hard to heal his injuries, but he just stood there and stared daggers at Hedon.


    Hedon stood opposite him pointing his blade at Jerome. His expression was one of glee. He had regained his arrogant demeanor.


    ¡°Pick up your spear. We¡¯re not done yet,¡± he spoke loudly, sounding heroic and charismatic. The other Blanks who were watching the fight from a distance were all excited. Some of them implored Hedon to teach Jerome a lesson.


    Jerome¡¯s face was red with rage. All hesitation and morals were gone from his heart now. Deep down in his heart, the urge to tear this teenage boy apart reared its head, the urge to drink his blood and feast on his flesh. To rip out his heart and bite into it like a beast. He felt like sinking his teeth into the teenager¡¯s neck just to hear him scream in pain and fear.


    Jerome tried to calm down as best as he could. He wondered where such urges were coming from. He was never someone who enjoyed the suffering of others. But for some reason, he liked those urges. Goosebumps rose to his skin. He shivered, shut his eyes, and took in deep breaths, but the anger wouldn¡¯t go away. He pushed for clarity in his mind, but it was like his emotions had come alive and was fighting him for control.


    Jerome looked at his left arm covered in bright red liquid. His blood had stopped flowing at this moment. He wiped off the blood on his hand with the skirt of his armor and walked up to his spear. He knew Hedon wouldn¡¯t attack until he was ready. The teenager wanted to make Jerome lose face while looking heroic and fair to establish his dominance amongst the younger generation. Apparently, he saw Jerome as an equal now¡ªbut not a threat. Anyone who saw their first fight would know Jerome wasn¡¯t a pushover.


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    So, he took his time to wrestle his emotions under control, picking up his spear to face his opponent. The moment Jerome moved, he went blind with rage.


    ~~~


    Rihal was a few miles away in one of the towers built around the mountain range, watching the events play out in the mountains through specially crafted artifacts. Some of the Blanks who came for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep came with guardians to make sure things didn¡¯t go too awry. They moved from tower to tower, out of sight, and away from the view of the participating Blanks so as not to give them the idea they were being watched.


    All the guardians were usually Spirit Realm experts, so flying high in the sky was the normal way to move. Rihal thought back to Jerome¡¯s question and smiled. Was the kid comparing him to the head guard? Was it because he hadn¡¯t seen him fly? Rihal chuckled and faced the magical screen on the wall in front of him. Another of Vorthe¡¯s magical wonders he usually took for granted. That is until Jerome came into his life and started asking strange questions.


    The screen covered the entire wall ¡ª made it disappear really, and left a scene of a lakeshore in its place. The lake was a few miles east of his current tower. A nice place to relax and take a cool bath ¡ª if there were no predators around.


    He wasn¡¯t the only one in this tower. There were many other Spirit Realm experts here like himself and not all of them brought Blanks to participate in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Some were here for the bets. To them these kids were entertainment. It didn¡¯t matter who lived and who died as long as they got entertained.


    ¡°Do you think he can win against the Alvric, Rihal?¡± someone asked Rihal from the room full of Spirit Realm artists.


    ¡°My opinions don¡¯t matter, Dunn. I¡¯ll let my coin do the talking for me,¡± he said, shaking a pouch that materialized in his hand. There was no jingle of coins sounding from the pouch but they both didn¡¯t need such evidence since the pouch was a storage bag.


    ¡°My kind of man,¡± Dunn laughed.


    Rihal smiled. Dunn was one of the only experts in his Realm that could call him by name due to the close ties the Royal Family had with his Clan. He was from one of the Great Houses ¡ª House Itakar. A powerful House that defended the Kingdom in the North of Vorthe.


    House Itakar had sworn loyalty to Vorthe millennia ago and had even sealed it with a marriage between their adopted daughter who was a princess from the Protectorate of Pathuma, Vorthe¡¯s next-door neighbor to the northwest.


    Members of House Itakar were ice wielders. Since they hailed from the frozen north of the Western Continent, it was a given. Dunn was also an ice wielder. But his attitude and bearing were in direct contrast to the attribute of essence he wielded; he was hot-headed but wielded the cold.


    ¡°If the odds are good I¡¯m willing to place a thousand mids on him,¡± Rihal said with a smile. Was he sure Jerome could win? No. And a thousand mid-grade crystal coins were a little too much ¡ª and very tempting to a sacred artist who was just here to entertain himself.


    Dunn smiled, a little dazed. ¡°I¡¯ll give you three-to-one,¡± he said. A thousand mids was no small amount. It was enough to help him avoid spending saved funds to buy a special artifact or two for his lady friends and Rihal knew this.


    ¡°Not so sure about the Alvric?¡± Rihal chuckled.


    Dunn thought it through again. ¡°Five-to-one. I¡¯m not going higher than that.¡±


    ¡°Agreed. Five-to-one,¡± Rihal replied and turned to the person behind him. ¡°Did you hear that, Head Guard?¡±


    ¡°Loud and clear, Lord Rihal,¡± the head guard said with a nod.


    Dunn chuckled. ¡°You sure are crazy, Rihal. Aren¡¯t you putting too much on the line for the runt?¡±


    ¡°When I take your 5,000 mids, I hope you don¡¯t complain, Dunn.¡±


    ¡°Ah! Funny enough, I felt like I was taking candy from a baby. You just made it easier to spend your money lavishly with a free conscience. One doesn¡¯t look a gift horse in the mouth.¡±


    They both chuckled and turned their attention to a specific spot where a group of Blanks had congregated in a semi-circle around a lake, observing two Blanks fight it out ¡ª Jerome and Hedon. They were all paying attention to the fight as they watched Jerome get better and better at tackling and countering Hedon¡¯s moves.


    These were all expert sacred artists, and they could discern a potentially powerful warrior when they saw one. Jerome had been growing throughout the fight, demonstrating an impressive ability to anticipate and counter Hedon¡¯s move.


    Hedon, on the other hand, relied solely on his superior strength and speed to fight. He showcased his strength, regaining some of his lost reputation. He fought well but he didn¡¯t win, and neither did he lose.


    Everything changed when Jerome bled. Rihal could sense that something bad was about to happen. He didn¡¯t know where it came from and the feeling was fleeting. He looked around him and saw that everyone was concentrating on the fight, withholding their opinion, so he didn¡¯t think much of it.


    ¡°Ready to lose a thousand mids, Rihal,¡± Dunn said, his face glued to the projection of the scene on the wall in front of them. Rihal didn¡¯t answer him. He suddenly felt at a loss as he didn¡¯t know what to do about that feeling that came and went like it was never there.


    Jerome attacked.


    Chairs scraped the floor, some tumbling over as many of the experts stood up in astonishment. Rihal stood up too. What they were seeing was beyond their comprehension. Many of the experts stole glances at Rihal but saw that he was just as bewildered as they were, which made them all the more confused.


    What¡¯s happening, Rihal thought to himself, he¡¯s never moved like that before. No, no, no, no. He shouldn¡¯t be able to move like that! He shook his head in frustration.

 21. Eating One’s Own Losses

    Farryn. Estate of House Kreus. The House of Passion.


    Jerome was wrong. Or at least, half wrong. It has been three tendays and Doti still felt hungry ¡ª in fact, he was hungrier than he used to be. Why did he lie to them about that? When he laid his eyes on Jerome, he was going to give him a piece of his mind, just as Dreamer did. He ate three times every day now. But hunger was always nearby ¡ª like a tutor with a whip in hand, waiting for him to make an error.


    ¡°Why you do that?¡± someone asked him and he looked up from where he was cleaning his teeth.


    ¡°This?¡± he pointed to his chewing stick with his other hand and the boy, Five, nodded. Five was as skinny as he was, malnourished from years of not eating. Doti figured he must have lived in a place like the slum but he had never seen him in the parts of the slum he came from.


    ¡°It keeps my teeth clean. One of my brothers taught me. Do you want one?¡± Five shook his head.


    ¡°Mouth for eating. Not¡ª¡± Five said, pointing to his chewing stick to explain the last part of his sentence.


    Doti wondered how someone at twelve summers of age wouldn¡¯t know how to speak properly. He was grateful to Jerome for teaching him and his brothers how to read and speak ¡®fluently¡¯. Ehn, that was the word. He had to make sure to relearn some of the things ¡ª well most of the things ¡ª he usually scorned Jerome for when he was trying to teach them.


    Doti wouldn¡¯t admit it to anyone, but he was a tad bit jealous of Jerome¡­still is. The boy went and became Blank when everybody else was still Drudge. As if that wasn¡¯t enough, he was then taken in by the Royal Family. Did that mean he had to bow his head whenever he was around? Doti scowled. But then laughed at himself.


    He will in fact bow to Jerome just to embarrass him. As much as his brother hated standing out, he had a way of standing out more than anyone in any group of people. Yes. New mission for when he meets Jerome. The boys would team up and embarrass him with bows. Doti thought of the look on Jerome¡¯s face and couldn¡¯t help but become giddy again.


    His stomach rumbled in hunger, and he grumbled to himself, his mood broken. Wasn¡¯t it hell to now have all the food you want but can¡¯t seem to be satisfied? Thank the heavens for House Kreus, the House of Passion, to which he was a disciple now, he would have died of hunger.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go eat,¡± he said to Five. ¡°The chewing stick is good, you know? Have you seen your reflection? Specif¡ªspecifically, the reflection of your teeth?¡± He still had problems pronouncing certain long words it seemed. But he¡¯d get it next time. He¡¯d show Jerome he wasn¡¯t the only one who could be ¡®book smart¡¯ like Jerome always said.


    Five looked at him as though he was speaking a foreign language. Doti opened his mouth to show Five his teeth.


    ¡°Look¡­clean and white¡­see?¡± Apparently, only using a few words like these was what the novices here understood. All of them were unlearned and ignorant to boot ¡ª more Jerome words.


    Doti was riding on a phoenix¡¯s wings with this as he was the most educated among the novices. Thirty Drudges were taken in as novices and he was the only educated one. Lord Tega Kreus, lauded him with praise for being educated and knowing how to read, write and count. He had also promised him a woman of his own when he became Sprout. It was the best life he could ever ask for.


    Five nodded in understanding and showed his own teeth asking, ¡°Clean?¡±


    Doti shook his head oh so slowly but seriously. He didn¡¯t like being the bearer of bad news but the kid ¡ª since when did he start thinking in the words Jerome used ¡ª the boy needed to be told. Did he not get toothaches like Jerome called it?


    Jerome had always made sure all of them at the orphanage cleaned their teeth. And Moss had confirmed that he had had those aches when he was a child but when he became a sacred artist, the aches disappeared. Doti wasn¡¯t going to risk it though. He might be a sacred artist, but they had been told that as Drudges, they were still in the process of ¡®becoming¡¯ sacred artists. That process would take a long time to complete.


    They walked toward the freeze house in the west wing of the Passion Estate as they headed for the mess hall. The morning was still cool and the sun wasn¡¯t up yet. The lady who worked in the Gelidarium ¡ª the freeze room ¡ª always opened her doors around this time.


    Doti had always loved looking at her face ¡ª and body ¡ª whenever he passed by. She was very lovely to look at. And very curvy too. Ms. Tara was nowhere near as beautiful. He turned his thoughts away from Ms. Tara as if she could hear them. If she could, she¡¯d go into a fit of rage right now. The door opened.


    ¡°Ooh, our young scribe is awake and going to the mess hall,¡± the lady smiled lovingly at him. ¡°How was your night, Doti?¡±


    Doti turned the shade of a tomato as he ogled her. She was still in her night robe and her skin and curves were visible underneath. The garment was also transparent and he could see the skin between her legs and¡­


    Doti looked away before his body betrayed him. His gray novice robes were not good enough to hide the evidence if he became aroused ¡ª which was happening right at the moment. He coughed, ¡°Miss, please go back inside and cover up.¡±


    ¡°Ooh. Don¡¯t you like what you see?¡± she teased, smiling coyly at him. Like most of the people here, she didn¡¯t have a name. Just a number.


    ¡°Ms. Twenty-One. Five is looking at you,¡± Doti said, trying to cover his friend¡¯s eyes while still stealing glances at her. Five wasn¡¯t having it. He smacked his hand away and continued ogling the lady.


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    Twenty-one giggled lightly and sashayed back into the freeze house. ¡°Make sure to come see me later today, Doti.¡± She winked at him before closing the door.


    Doti¡¯s heart raced a mile away. He felt like he was walking on clouds for the rest of the walk to the mess hall. Five was trying to tell him something about not covering his eyes next time but he wasn¡¯t listening. He was in Dreamland, unable to wipe off the stupid grin on his face.


    When they got to the mess hall, they got in line and picked up wooden trays. It was time to sate his hungry belly.


    ~~~


    The Northern Mountain Range, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep


    Hedon had never seen a Blank move like the one in front of him now. His eyes couldn¡¯t keep up, and neither could his body. It was like the cur was a whole different person from before. He started defending right from the start and was doing a pretty lame job of it. He was starting to lose blood fast, his injuries piling up, and his body¡¯s healing capabilities couldn¡¯t keep up. He almost started regretting picking a fight with this little brat.


    What kind of stamina does this brat have? He¡¯s nothing but a monster! Hedon thought to himself as he kept trying and failing to defend himself.


    Jerome on the other hand was slipping into oblivion. Although his body was moving and he felt stronger than he ever had, it was like something had woken up inside him, like a beast that wanted only carnage and destruction. He was finding it hard to keep a clear head.


    At some point, he had dropped his spear and was fighting bare-handed. Hedon shot back twenty paces away from him looking bloody and disheveled. He was trying to catch his breath and make sure his body healed so he could regain some strength, but Jerome obviously didn¡¯t get the memo.


    Jerome arrived in front of Hedon just as fast and punched him in the gut sending him flying more than fifty paces backward. Before Hedon landed, Jerome was there to punch him in the face in the direction he came from. Hedon¡¯s jaw broke, and a few teeth were sent flying out of his mouth as he spun through the air.


    Hedon couldn¡¯t think straight. He didn¡¯t know what was going on or what went wrong. The only thing he knew was that he was taking blows mid-air without touching the ground. Jerome¡¯s punches were so heavy that almost every bone in his body got broken before he landed on the floor in a crumpled heap unable to move a muscle.


    Is it over? he thought to himself, or did he ask it out loud? He couldn¡¯t tell. He tried to speak but his voice sounded choked. His jaw hurt badly. Every part of his body hurt like hell. He shed silent tears at the injustice.


    ~~~


    Jerome was filled with confusion and regret as he looked back on the violent outburst that had led him to beat up Hedon. He couldn¡¯t quite comprehend how he had let his emotions get the best of him. He distinctly remembered picking up his spear, but never using it, and he couldn¡¯t recall how he had managed to restrain himself.


    Hedon choked continuously like his throat was crushed.


    ¡°He needs air,¡± Someone said as the Blanks gathered around him. Two of the Blanks were wearing the same family crest as Hedon and were stealing glances at Jerome with a mixture of fear and awe.


    ¡°Just let him sit up and breathe¡­just breathe, young master Hedon.¡±


    Aware that he needed to distance himself from the situation before things spiraled out of control, Jerome took a deep breath, picked up his spear, and dove into the cool waters of the lake. Hopefully, Hedon learns his lesson and doesn¡¯t come after him any longer. His injuries shouldn¡¯t be too hard to heal. When fighting with Rihal, Jerome healed most of his injuries in roughly a hundred breaths.


    But what exactly had gotten into him? He wasn¡¯t one to lose himself to anger like that, so where did that come from?


    The sensation of the water embracing him was calming, and he swam to the bottom of the lake, where he found a good spot and sat down, closing his eyes. For a long time, he remained there, lost in thought, finding solace in the serenity of the underwater world.


    The muffling of sound from the surface by the water was also a welcome distraction. The creatures that inhabited the lake seemed to avoid him like a plague as if they could sense his inner demon. Jerome welcomed their absence, grateful for the chance to be alone with his thoughts.


    Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he resurfaced, finding that the sun had set, and the shore was deserted. Jerome was in awe of his ability to hold his breath for over a fourth of the day. That was more or less three hours by his calculations. The kind of lung capacity it would take to hold his breath for that long would be called supernatural on Earth, but here it was a normal thing.


    He set about building a fire to provide light and warmth. He dried his armor a ways away from the fire so as to prevent too much heat from drying it too quickly. That would leave a shrunken, shapeless mass which would be less than convenient to wear.


    There wasn¡¯t much he could do about the tear in the armor. A nearly nine-inch cut split the upper sleeve of the left arm. He¡¯d just have to wear it like that, maybe find a piece of cloth to wrap around it later.


    He sharpened the blade of his spear, lost in thought, and was filled with a deep sense of regret for the way he had acted towards Hedon. He should have at least tried to settle things amicably first.


    Jerome waited up for a long time before sleep took him. With his armor still wet, he put it on. He couldn¡¯t as well, sleep out in the open without protection. He stored his spear and whetstone, got dressed, and settled down to rest for the night. Though it was uncomfortable to sleep with wet, soaking leather on, it was better than being unprotected. The events of the day weighed heavily on his mind as the night lulled him to sleep.


    ~~~


    Somewhere millions of lightyears away from Jerome¡¯s world, on an asteroid deep in space and floating through the void, sat a young man, cross-legged and meditating. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, but his demeanor was that of an ancient being. He wore a white loose robe that made him look like he was born amongst the stars themselves. This was the Sovereign of the Kingdom of Vorthe and the Patriarch of the Royal family, Yun Vorthe.


    Interesting, Yun Vorthe thought as his consciousness was stirred out of his deep meditation. It has only been thirteen years and it has started to awaken. He looked in the direction of his home world and his eyes glowed with a golden light.


    The seed of darkness I planted inside that woman thirteen years ago should not have sprouted yet. There are still nine more years left before the darkness awakens in the woman¡¯s offspring. And yet he could sense the beast, rear its head. Was this a sign?


    The Dark One is rising, he thought. It is time to head back home and prepare my house and kingdom for the inevitable.

 22. We Will Be Taking Your Spear

    ¡°Stop where you are!¡±


    Jerome stopped and looked up at the boys who had just chased away his first meal in ten days. Rihal had told him to ensure he ate every ten days, whether he was hungry or not. Was it a crime now to do as he was told to do?


    The boys who spotted him jumped down from the tree they were on. There were four of them, all wearing cheap leather cuirasses with unknown crests. The leather cuirasses were their only protection in these wildlands. How unfair. They were quite underdressed for the adventure. He wondered how long they¡¯d be able to last on their own.


    Heh. I know the feeling of being inadequately dressed, boys, he thought. But he also knew the look on their faces.


    Greed.


    They wanted his stuff. His nice shiny-looking spear and complete leather armor.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who beat up Young Lord Alvric, eh?¡± one of them said. ¡°You sure have guts.¡±


    Jerome grinned wickedly, putting them off-guard.


    ¡°Why are you showing us your teeth? We don¡¯t want to see teeth. Drop that spear Young Lord Alvric wanted and run along,¡± the leader of the group said again with a shooing gesture.


    Jerome took the spear in hand and extended it to full length. The spear was a foot taller than him from the ground up.


    ¡°You mean this spear?¡± he asked. ¡°You¡¯d have to work for it to take it.¡±


    ¡°Tch! We won¡¯t be merciful with you like Young Lord Alvric was. He let you pick up your spear to continue the fight but we won¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°And there are four of us. Do you think you can beat all four of us?¡± another said.


    ¡°Better do as the boss says now or you will live to regret it,¡± a third said.


    The ¡®boss¡¯ laughed out loud. A maniacal laugh. It looked to Jerome like he wanted to sound like a psycho. Maybe for effect. Ehn, he thought, unconcerned but nodded slightly to himself.


    ¡°He wouldn¡¯t be living to regret it, Two. He would be dead. Young Lord Alvric wants that spear and we are going to sell it to him,¡± the boss said with a cruel grin. ¡°Together with his corpse.¡±


    Guess he was ¡®One¡¯ then, if the one beside him was ¡®Two¡¯. That was the one who spoke second. Then the one who spoke third should be ¡®Three¡¯ and the last should be ¡®Four¡¯ who was yet to speak ¡ª or was not supposed to. The ¡®pecking order¡¯ was very well established.


    These were the common thugs who would grow up to become gangsters and start robbing merchants on the backroads. What¡¯s a good ole underdog trope without the bad guys that would ultimately become fodder? They were necessary for every story back on Earth. Jerome grinned to himself.


    The boys started surrounding him but he paid them no mind. He could see the clubs they held behind their backs even though they tried their best to hide it from him. Such weapons were not to be underestimated. But these kids had no strategy. They should have attacked him from above when they were in the tree. They had a better chance of beating him up if they had gone with an ambush.


    Heh. Guess I get to play the underdog for a bit, Jerome thought. He smiled and popped the joints in his neck ¡ª for effect. He could almost hear the main theme from the 1966 Sergio Leone film, ¡®Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo¡¯ ¡ª ¡®the good, the bad, the ugly,¡¯ playing as background music in his head, and feel the cool wind on his skin as the bad guys surrounded him. But instead of revolvers, his assailants were carrying clubs. Heh. Works all the same.


    Before they finished surrounding him, Jerome attacked. His spear blurred toward the leader with a spin. Jerome bludgeoned him in the abdomen with the butt of his spear before he could position his club to block. He sailed into the very tree they came down from, hitting it with a grunt.


    The others attacked at once. Jerome had to give them props for acting quickly. But they were still a tad bit slow. His spear blurred around him, acting as a shield and knocking off their clubs.


    He kicked Two into One and hit Four between the legs in his ¡®homemaker¡¯. The boy went down with a loud ¡®Ooomph!¡¯. Three tried to tackle him but he pushed off the floor, jumping over him in one swift move. Jerome did a split mid-air and brought his spear down on Three¡¯s back, knocking him into One and Two.


    ¡°Is that all you got?¡± he asked after touching ground. ¡°I thought you were going to ¡®make me regret¡¯, no?¡±


    The three boys that were pushed into each other got up clumsily. One looked at Four and shouted at him. ¡°Stand up, you lazy bag of bones! All you know how to do is eat but you never grow any meat on you!¡±


    Three quickly went over to help Four up who was still cradling his ¡®homemaker¡¯. One turned to Jerome next and glared at him. ¡°You better watch your back throughout Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. We will be back and by then, hope we have mercy on you!¡±


    He turned around to leave and the rest turned to follow. Jerome however, had other plans for them. The fun had just begun. Why did they want to leave so soon? He pushed off the ground, sailing through the air, and rebounded off the tree in their path before landing in front of them.


    ¡°Wait now. You can¡¯t just come and go as you please. You don¡¯t enter a dragon¡¯s den and expect to walk out unscathed. So¡­¡± he looked between all four of them. ¡°Who do I start with?¡±


    ¡°What do you want to do?¡± the leader asked apprehensively. He took a step back away from Jerome and his friends did the same. They turned to run the other way but Jerome came down on them like a beast.


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    ~~~


    Farryn. The Orphanage.


    ¡°It is a good thing we bought a few more knives, Tara,¡± Moss said as he and Old Wen dragged their knives across the ground, cutting the soap that had been left out to harden. ¡°Are we going to wait for it to cure like the last batch?¡±


    Tara tilted her head at him with a smile. ¡°What¡¯s the rush for, Moss? You know this way the soap can last longer when used. Weren¡¯t you surprised when it didn¡¯t fall apart the first time you bathed with it?¡±


    ¡°Heh. It was fascinating. I never knew that was even possible,¡± he replied. ¡°Still unfortunate that we have to wait more than a full moon cycle for it to cure though.¡±


    Old Wen cleared his throat as he raised his head from his crouching position. Moss flinched when he saw the look on his face and quickly shut his mouth, going back to work. Tara stifled a giggle at that as she watched the both of them.


    ¡°Soap is a luxury only the rich and noble can afford,¡± Old Wen said, continuing with his work. ¡°Be thankful that you have the privilege to use it. Also,¡± he looked up to survey the roof, ¡°I think we need to start saving up to buy some roofing sheets. Won¡¯t do to continue as we are until the rains come.¡±


    ¡°True, Old Wen,¡± Tara responded, gazing upward herself. ¡°Thank you for bringing that up.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be coming with you to the market for that. I know someone.¡±


    Moss raised his eyes at that, confused. He looked at Tara but she also had no idea who the person was. Old Wen was a shut-in and they had never seen him go out. Ever.


    They had come a long way since they started selling the soap. Tara¡¯s gaze shifted to Moss¡¯ face. His brows were drawn in concentration as he continued cutting the hardened soap on the floor, drawing straight lines across the flat blocky soap to separate them into bars.


    Moss was no longer as bitter as he used to be. He even sometimes played with the children now. Even Old Wen was training with them when he was not training on his own.


    Tara shifted her gaze next to the elderly man. Old Wen didn¡¯t have a lot of time. He needed to advance to the Spirit Realm. If not, death would come too quickly. But now he was training. Tara felt she now understood why she had never seen him train. He had lost hope of ever advancing to the Spirit Realm. But he had also stayed as Sprout for too long. She hoped he would be able to advance when he was ready. How he would do it, she had no idea. She had never asked, because she also had never planned for it.


    Tara sighed. They had been living from hand to mouth from day to day. None of them had ever had to consider advancing when they were always so hungry and had hungry children to feed. But now¡­she looked down at the soap on the ground ¡ª the source of their new and improved livelihood.


    This was the second batch they would cure properly. The first had almost sold out in the market and some bars were still left at home to be sold. This new batch would make no less profit than the first. So maybe they could afford to spend a little on themselves, right?


    ¡°Do you think we can get ourselves some crystal stones?¡± she asked.


    Moss stopped and looked at her with his brows raised. Old Wen too. But there was something else in their eyes. Tara shivered lightly. Not from cold or fear but from the look they gave her.


    ¡°I do believe we can afford to spend a little on ourselves as we are,¡± she said again, voice tight. She held the purse from their sales but the decision to buy anything was taken by all three of them.


    Something she hadn¡¯t felt in a long time threatened to overwhelm her emotions. The same thing she could see in both their eyes.


    Hope.


    ~~~


    The Northern Mountain Range, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep


    Was it possible that all these Blanks were somehow communicating with each other? That should be the reason why there were so many of them across from him right now. And how the hell did they track him down? It had to be ¡®the four dumb donkeys¡¯, or ¡®the four Cro Magnon boys¡¯ as Jerome had dubbed them. Those sons of bitches ratted him out.


    If I ever lay my eyes on them, he thought.


    Jerome stood a few paces away from a group of Blanks, thirty strong. He had to do a headcount to get that number correct. They all stood opposite him grinning from ear to ear as if it was Christmas and Santa had arrived. But this place was a hell of a lot bushier than the last place he fought, with lots of trees. He could jump into the trees and disappear in a twinkle. With his smaller frame, he had the advantage here. They just didn¡¯t know it yet.


    ¡°What do you all want?¡± he asked.


    Someone came out of the group, crossing the bushes that separated him from them. He looked older than everyone around.


    ¡°It¡¯s very rare for a manhunt to happen during an adventure like Pilgrims¡¯ Keep,¡± the young man said. ¡°You, my friend, have made us all very happy.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t too old from what Jerome could see, but he was definitely older than a teenager. He must have been Blank for a long time, which would make him stronger than every other person present. Better to stay away from someone like that. Light only knows how strong he would be.


    ¡°I¡¯m not your friend,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Heh. Never mind,¡± the Blank waved him off. ¡°We will be taking your spear. You either leave it with us, or we take it from you¡­and give you the beating of your life.¡±


    The Blank folded his arms in front of him with a smug look on his face as if delivering his ultimatum made him seem powerful.


    ¡°Did Alvric send you as well?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Oh, he did. As long as we bring him your spear or your corpse, he will pay us handsomely.¡±


    ¡®Or¡¯ my corpse? Jerome thought and smirked. ¡°You think he would pay you all?¡± he asked out loud so all of them could hear. ¡°Or he will pay whoever brings him my spear. Did you even bother to find out? Or do you think he would pay all three tens of you?¡±


    Realization dawned on them all after he spoke. He could almost see the gears turning in their heads. Some of them started sneaking away from each other. Perhaps, afraid they might be put down and stopped from fighting for his spear. Others decided to attack him head-on. Eleven boys shot out from the group toward him, all of them aiming to strike him down with their weapons.


    He turned to the older Bank. ¡°You know you should be ashamed of yourself. They say wisdom comes with age, but it seemed it left the building when you were born.¡± He jumped into a tree behind him.


    The Blank narrowed his eyes at the insult, still focused on him. ¡°I would enjoy torturing you when I get hold of you.¡±


    Interesting. He was surprisingly level-headed. Jerome knew he couldn¡¯t win against all of them. Heck, he was sure only half a dozen of them could take him down. Except he could enter into that state he was in when he beat up Hedon to a pulp, he would be the one to be beaten to a pulp. And he had no way of doing it again.


    Even if he knew how to, he wouldn¡¯t. Losing his mind to rage was an experience he wasn¡¯t willing to go through again so he did what any sensible person in his shoes would do.


    He bolted.

 23. Run Rabbit, Run

    The trees were the right method to escape these fools. Jerome was glad he was in a part of the forest with a high density of trees. All thirty of the Blanks had pursued him, jumping after him from tree branch to tree branch. But he had an advantage in these dense trees, and tangled vegetation was more suitable for someone his size. He was smaller than the rest of them which made him a lot more nimble than they were.


    Only one person was cause for concern to Jerome but so far he was taking everything in stride ¡ª the oldest Blank among them. He hung back, following at a sedate pace. Jerome wondered what he might be planning. Whatever it was, he didn¡¯t want to be here to find out.


    His pursuers did all they could to corner him but he only danced around them, making them frustrated as they toiled with no result to show for their actions.


    ¡°You are all wasting your time, you know. You¡¯d still have to keep others from getting the spear if you can successfully get it from me,¡± he said when he saw they had stopped to catch their breath.


    Jerome found he wasn¡¯t breathing as hard as they were. He had come for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep through such means so maybe that was why he wasn¡¯t frazzled as they were. The older Blank he was weary of landed on a branch in front of the other Blanks with a smile on his face. He also wasn¡¯t winded as the other Blanks.


    ¡°Senior!¡± someone spoke out. ¡°Senior, if you join us, we could catch him quicker and get the spear from him without much effort. Help us, Senior.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll help you,¡± the older Blank said, never taking his eyes off Jerome. ¡°You just have to give me all the credit for taking the spear when we get it.¡±


    Someone wanted to argue with him but he cut them off with a glare. ¡°Do you think you can catch him on your own?¡± the person looked away in shame. ¡°Or do you think I will do the brunt of the job and we all get an equal share? You best think again.¡±


    ¡°But Senior,¡± someone else said when ¡®fisheyes¡¯ ¡ª Jerome¡¯s new name for the older Blank ¡ª was done talking. ¡°Are we sure Young Lord Alvric would pay us all? I mean, I heard what the royal disciple said and it makes sense that he would only pay one person.¡±


    A strong wind blew the trees, shaking the branches. Jerome cursed in his heart. He had been planning to sneak away as they got engrossed in their discussion. Thankfully, none of them had even thought to pincer him.


    Fisheyes, as Jerome had taken to calling the leader of this new gang, gave the others a hard stare. ¡°Don¡¯t act like fools! This is why I said you have to give me all the credit for taking the spear! This way, Young Lord Alvric would not be able to use the excuse of, ¡®I was only talking about one person¡¯. And I can get our reward and share it with everyone who puts in some work. Note what I said, ¡®Those who put in some work¡¯. If you put in nothing, you get nothing.¡±


    Heh. That¡¯s how they start, Jerome thought. This one must be a good actor ¡ª act the benevolent and disciplined leader, and give your followers leftovers when the reward comes. Very unoriginal if I must say.


    ¡°Unless you don¡¯t trust me,¡± Fisheyes continued, his voice carrying a tone that said he was going to be emotionally uninvolved in this pursuit. ¡°Then you can continue to chase him around without any result. Light knows your effort is entertaining.¡±


    Everyone around him grumbled their assent. They looked to where the target of their chase should have been standing but saw only greenery.


    ¡°Damnit, spread out!¡±


    Jerome had experienced Rihal ¡®sense¡¯ him cycling during training. He had also sensed it when people stared at him ever since he became a sacred artist, or at least he could sense some people staring at him, not all people. There was no reason to think it wasn¡¯t the same for other Blanks, so because of this, he made sure not to stare at any of the Blanks when they found out he had skedaddled.


    He had crept away from his previous position and hid in the overgrown trees just above them when they were having their not-so-clich¨¦d conversation. Well, he had no idea if a conversation could be clich¨¦d or not, but that didn¡¯t matter. He waited for all of them to disperse before coming out.


    Jerome chuckled when he saw they had all really left. In the movies, it used to happen that someone who was just smart enough would stay behind, hiding somewhere, and when the main character came out of hiding, they would have a conversation along the lines of, ¡®I knew you hadn¡¯t gone too far¡¯.


    Hehehe. Guess I¡¯m lucky then, he chuckled to himself. Jerome took his time going southeast, a little ways away from the setting sun. He knew they would instinctively think he went the other way towards the setting sun. Humans were psychologically wired to seek safety when in danger. So heading toward the light would come so easily to someone in danger.


    It was a behavior driven by a combination of instinct and practicality. And it might just help him confuse all the bozos chasing him for his spear.


    ~~~


    Jerome lay on a branch high in a tree stuffing his face with honey he had ¡®retrieved¡¯ from a bee hive. There were two Blanks arguing about him a few feet below. And he listened intently to their discussion to find out what they might be planning.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to continue with this search, brother. It has been a whole day already and the sun has already risen.¡±


    The other tried to rile his brother up so he wouldn¡¯t give up. ¡°Seriously? Don¡¯t tell me you would give up now. Is this the extent of your backbone? Young Lord Alvric is willing to pay us with some crystal stones, you can¡¯t just give up on that!¡±


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    ¡°And how do you know he would pay us? Are you sure we will even get a share?¡±


    ¡°What do you suggest we do then, give up? I¡¯m not giving up, not if there is a chance to get something out of it. Listen,¡± he pulled his brother closer as if he wasn¡¯t near him enough. ¡°Even if that Senior has designs to leave everyone out of the loop and run away with our reward, we can still make sure we get it. We will monitor him when we get the spear. We won¡¯t let him out of our sight until we receive our share.¡±


    ¡°Others would have the same plan, you know,¡± his brother said.


    ¡°That is not the problem. The problem is when someone or some people get too greedy to give up other people¡¯s share.¡±


    Well, these ones have a good head on their shoulders. Too bad they were using it to chase him around. He was beginning to regret what he wanted to do to them. But it had to be done.


    Jerome dropped from the tree, heading straight for them. They didn¡¯t know what hit them when he did. He hand-chopped them both in the back of the head so hard, they were knocked out from the blow.


    ¡°Sorry fellas,¡± he said. ¡°I have to protect myself too.¡±


    There was no way to make sure they didn¡¯t continue chasing him so he took their robes, leaving them naked in the forest. They didn¡¯t have storage bags on them so their clothes were all he was able to take. He left their weapons with them so they wouldn¡¯t be unharmed. When they woke up, the first thing they would try to do was find cover for their nakedness. All thoughts of chasing some random stranger would be nonexistent.


    Jerome made his way North this time around. It was still morning and the sun was making its way towards its apex position in the sky. All was well and birds were singing in the trees. He hadn¡¯t come across any powerful magical beast since he left the tower eleven days ago. Maybe because he was still on the outskirts of the mountain range.


    Going farther north was a bit scary right now but he still did. He wanted to see some of the magical beasts. He wanted to fight them, to test his strength against them. Though he knew it would be very dangerous, he couldn¡¯t help but anticipate the rush of such a fight.


    He had only gone a few miles north when an arrow came whooshing at him. Jerome had the presence of mind to get down on the ground. The arrow embedded itself in the tree beside him. He rolled out of the way as more arrows found purchase in his position. Jerome scrambled into the nearby bushes to obscure himself from the archer.


    ¡°You can run, rabbit. You can run but you cannot hide,¡± a voice reached him from up in the trees.


    He heard the slight movement from tree branch to tree branch. He heard the shuffling of the leaves on the tree. The archer was closing in on him.


    ¡°All that talk about sharing, that senior was spitting would not work for me, you know. You see, I¡¯m a hunter. And if there is one thing hunters know how to do,¡± he heard the archer grunt as he leaped into another tree.


    Shit. he knew what was coming. He¡¯d never be able to get away from this one.


    ¡°It¡¯s tracking down game,¡± the archer said. ¡°And you, rabbit¡­ are game.¡±


    Jerome crept along the forest floor while the archer was moving, making sure not to disturb the bushes around him. He calmed his beating heart as best as he could. It wouldn¡¯t do to start fidgeting now. He needed all of his faculties as well and fear would cripple his thought process.


    He picked up little rocks as he moved along the forest floor. He was going around in a circle while the archer was heading in another direction facing the bushes he ran into. He was smart. Though he was talking, that was just to give Jerome a false sense of direction. He came toward the tree his arrow was embedded in while he was talking but moved away from it after he kept quiet.


    Jerome waited. The archer waited. The two stalked each other. Jerome had an approximate location for the archer as he was sure the archer did for him. It was now a matter of patience.


    This time around there was no theme song and no popping of knuckles and necks for effect. No action, either. Just silence. Uncomfortable, choking silence. Even the birds in the trees had stopped singing. The air also seemed to still and the temperature of his surroundings rose. Jerome realized the sun was already high in the sky. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly through his mouth, straining his ears to listen for the archer. For anything. But he heard nothing.


    Damn, you¡¯re good, he thought. He had to give it to the kid. He was good. Really good.


    So far, he had only met with mediocre people. And it had only taken a few brain cells to get rid of them. He figured it wasn¡¯t every day you met someone who was a genius at their craft in a place like this. This one was taking all his concentration just to locate. And this went on until late in the night.


    The silence seemed to stretch on forever. Jerome had kept his eyes and ears peeled for movement. He wasn¡¯t sure if the archer had hunkered down at this moment. Which would make things more dangerous if the archer was still moving around. He was getting ready to find a suitable place to perch himself. And he wanted it to be up in the trees. Somewhere he could watch out for predators and venomous creatures.


    The crickets began to chirp and frogs began to croak. The sounds were almost deafening. He used the noise to disguise the sound of his movements until he found himself in a tree. Just as he was settling in, an arrow pierced through the undergrowth a few yards to his right. A rat¡¯s squeaks were heard and it suffered for the most part of twenty breaths before it died.


    Jerome regretted not seeing the direction the arrow came from. The archer also must have thought he had finally nailed him down only for the squeaks of a rat to fill the air. He definitely would move from his position. But no matter how Jerome listened and searched with his eyes, he heard and saw nothing.


    Morning came and the sun rose once again. The uncomfortable silence was back again. The birds refused to sing and just went out to hunt for food. Soon enough though, the silence was disturbed by other Blanks passing through. He thought he saw movement somewhere in the trees. The leaves shook, as though the branches were being disturbed, even though there was no wind.


    This could be a trap. Anything that could cause so many leaves to shake at once without the presence of the wind must be heavy. As in heavy enough to be a man. The Blanks got into proximity and Jerome used that opportunity to leap into another tree. He made sure to make a short jump, one he could quickly recover from.


    An arrow came at him but missed, from another direction nonetheless. He turned mid-air, moving from branch to branch. The archer had revealed his position by firing that arrow and he was going to make sure he caught up to him.


    And catch up to him, Jerome did. The archer fired off three more arrows successively. But missed as they were up in the trees and there were too many branches hindering his arrows. Jerome used the environment to his advantage. Just as the archer was about to pull another arrow from his quiver, he launched a piece of rock at him. He had to say that he didn¡¯t pull back on his strength. He gave it everything he had.


    The rock hit the archer straight in the head, launching him off the tree. His eyes rolled into his head mid-air and he hit the ground unconscious. Jerome was about to go check on him when his other pursuers jumped into the tree, surrounding him.


    Fuck!

 24. Rage (2)

    There was no getting out of this without a fight so Jerome didn¡¯t bother talking. He attacked. Fast and hard. He didn¡¯t look at their faces. He only saw them all as targets to be eliminated. Everywhere he passed through, Blanks went down groaning in pain.


    But there were too many of them. He shot down from the tree, only to see the archer who had been chasing him, being constricted by a large green-scaled python. Jerome said a prayer for him in his heart and went into a roll the moment he hit the floor.


    He picked up the archer¡¯s quiver of arrows and bow in the same motion, quickly stuffing them into his storage bag. Someone tried to tackle him to the ground but he moved with quicker reflexes, giving him an uppercut upside the jaw. The Blank was launched face-first into a tree.


    Jerome bolted but even as he ran, he still had to block attacks from various weapons. A sword came at him from the right and he instinctively rotated his spear to knock off the sword. But just as with Hedon the last time they fought, the sword was too heavy to push away.


    Jerome was launched backward and his legs gouged into the earth as he tried to balance himself. This time around though, he held onto his spear. He centered himself quickly on both legs as Fisheyes came into his view.


    The young man was beginning to annoy him and he could feel his anger stirring again. Jerome kept his hold on it. Making sure to tamp down on it. Though he could feel his control slipping. He had been cooped up in this part of the forest for a whole day, nervous to hell and back. And watching out for an archer that he could not find. He was a nervous wreck already and this fellow was just asking to get it.


    ¡°I told you to give up that spear of yours or receive a beating of your life but you decided you wanted to suffer,¡± Fisheyes said.


    ¡°And I¡¯ll give you a chance to walk away now,¡± Jerome said, barely containing what he knew was about to happen.


    Fisheyes chuckled. ¡°You don¡¯t think you can take all of us, do you?¡±


    Jerome looked around. There were quite a number of them. He didn¡¯t bother counting but he was sure their numbers had doubled. There was no negotiating with these people. And he didn¡¯t feel he was going to be morally compromised if he ended up killing one or two of them. They were here to kill him too. There was no reason to hold back his rage until he couldn¡¯t anymore.


    Very well, he thought. You asked for this, Fisheyes.


    ~~~


    There it was again. That feeling. Like something bad was about to happen.


    Rihal looked around the new chamber he was in but whatever he was feeling, it seemed no one else was feeling it. He had felt it first when Jerome went all ¡®Noir¡¯ on Hedon. And now he was feeling the same thing again¡­ now when Jerome was being cornered by at least three-score Blanks.


    He watched as Jerome gripped his spear hard until his knuckles turned white. The Blank that was leading the gang against him just sneered. He wasn¡¯t underestimating Jerome which told of his capacity to think and strategize. Other Blanks would¡¯ve let their egos plan for them.


    Jerome attacked. He gave them no time to react, going for the ones he perceived as weak. Their leader stood shocked as the Blank in front of him zoomed to the side.


    If Rihal wasn¡¯t a Spirit Realm artist, he probably would only see a blur moving on the screen.


    ¡°Your boy is one nasty fellow, Lord Rihal,¡± someone said beside him. ¡°Do you care to share what you¡¯re giving him?¡±


    Rihal raised an eyebrow at the guard who asked with a pointed look. ¡°And what might it be you think I give my disciple?¡±


    ¡°Come on, Rihal. Look at him. It¡¯s clear as day he¡¯s on something,¡± Dunn Itakar said.


    ¡°He¡¯s not on anything, Dunn,¡± he¡¯s just unleashing his inner potential, Rihal thought that last part to himself. If what was to come for Jerome wasn¡¯t a kind of potential, he didn¡¯t know what was.


    ¡°Rihal, the Royal Blanks have their own version of Pilgrims¡¯ Keep up in the Frozen North, along with Blanks from House Itakar.¡±


    ¡°You should know, Dunn. You¡¯re an Itakar,¡± he quipped.


    ¡°Don¡¯t change the subject, Rihal,¡± Dunn shot back. ¡°Even the Royal Blanks don¡¯t move like that, and they are strong. I admit they are stronger than our Blanks.¡±


    ¡°Oh, you admit,¡± Rihal gave him a sly grin.


    ¡°Don¡¯t grin with that blindfold over your eyes, Rihal. It¡¯s¡­ eerie.¡±


    ¡°I have 5000 reasons to smile, Dunn. What¡¯s it to you?¡± Rihal said, poking the Itakar were it hurt for losing 5000 mids to him. It was a lot of money.


    Dunn scrunched his face in anger. ¡°I¡¯ll raise you another 5000.¡±


    Rihal smiled. ¡°Desperate much? What¡¯s the stake?¡±


    ¡°If he can win¡ª¡±


    ¡°You must be joking. No, if he can get away from them, I win.¡±


    ¡°Deal.¡±


    The Head Guard whistled. ¡°You trust his skills that much, Lord Rihal?¡±


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    Rihal only shrugged.


    The room was suddenly drowned in a roar of excitement as the fight between Jerome and his assailant reached its climax. Jerome had taken down many of the Blanks that had surrounded him and he was fighting like a wild animal. He held onto his spear this time around and fought with it.


    The fight scene on the screen shifted with the Blanks as they moved, trying to hem Jerome in and direct the flow of the battle. Some of them had run away at this point not bothering to fight anymore.


    The leader of the gang barked orders around. Somewhere they had dug a pit to trap him in. The experts in the room saw through what they were trying to do immediately.


    ¡°Well, at least he took down many of them,¡± Dunn said. ¡°And I won in the end, so everybody¡¯s happy.¡±


    Rihal snorted. ¡°You¡¯ve not won yet, Dunn.¡±


    ¡°What¡ª¡±


    ¡°Lord Rihal never stipulated a time frame for his disciple¡¯s escape. And for that, we must wait and see what happens next,¡± the Head Guard declared.


    ¡°What¡­Rihal, you¡ª!¡± Dunn, stuttered as he boiled with rage in his seat. But since he couldn¡¯t refute the Head Guard¡¯s declaration, he just sat there in silence.


    Rihal wasn¡¯t that much into gambling and considered it a habit that was too worldly for him. He, however, didn¡¯t like to lose money. Not stipulating a time frame for Jerome¡¯s escape was to buy himself more time. He wondered if his disciple would be able to escape the claws of the older Blank. But he knew the chances were slim.


    The fight ended almost as quickly as it started. Jerome was locked up inside the pit and his spear was taken away from him.


    ¡°You should go see Tekkel Alvric, Rihal,¡± Dunn said, bristling. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He ain¡¯t as greedy as me.¡±


    The Itakar was mad that he was probably going to lose another 5,000 mids very soon. But honor moved him to give solid advice, even though he would rather see Jerome delivered to the Alvrics.


    Rihal only smiled. Now he waited for whatever decisions the gang of Blanks was going to make.


    ¡°What¡¯s the rush?¡± he asked, ¡°Let¡¯s just wait and see what happens.¡±


    He couldn¡¯t interfere. The only thing he could do was wait till it was time to hand over his disciple to Alvric. He¡¯d be there to collect him. But he knew Alvric wouldn¡¯t let go easily. That¡¯s if Jerome didn¡¯t escape first.


    ~~~


    Jerome woke up in an unknown area of the forest. It was dark and the air was damp. He smelled earth all around him. The earth¡¯s essence was also strong. Was this a pit? He looked up and the sight he saw confirmed his thoughts. He tried to move but his whole body burned. He was in pain and almost unable to move. He held his tongue, stopping himself from groaning.


    Voices reached him from above. This must be a camp of sorts. What had happened for him to find himself in a pit covered with tree trunks? He suddenly remembered what had happened during the day. His fight with the archer, then the pincer attack from the rest of his assailants.


    Everything went blank when he gave in to his rage. And even now he could still feel it ¡ª the rage. It burned through him but was a bit controllable.


    Jerome was very uncomfortable with the fact that he lost control of himself and didn¡¯t even remember what he did. That was a stupid thing to do on his part. He should never have taken his hold off his rage like that. He promised himself never to do that again.


    He sat in a meditative posture to cycle, absorbing the meager ambient essence in the air, and using it to replenish his strength. Unfortunately, Blanks couldn¡¯t absorb attributed essence and the essence he sensed was most powerful in the pit was earth-attributed. Only when he turned Sprout could he start absorbing attributed essence.


    After more than half an hour by his estimation, he stood up, ready to escape his imprisonment. His wounds were mostly healed. He still felt pain but it was bearable.


    The camp had gone quiet by now. It seemed everyone was sleeping. This was the perfect time to escape. He reached for his spear at his back only to find nothing. The special holder for the spear was also gone. He touched his belt. His storage bag was gone as well.


    Rage threatened to consume him. Jerome clenched his jaw tight and his hands into fists. He slowly crawled to the top of the pit using pieces of roots here and there on the walls of the pit. They must have dug this in a hurry and didn¡¯t look to cut all the roots out.


    The Blanks had used large tree trunks to block the mouth of the pit. He pushed the trunk of one of the trees but it didn¡¯t budge ¡ª as if there was something heavy on it. It wouldn¡¯t have been difficult for them to find large, heavy rocks to weigh down the tree trunks.


    Frustrated, he started digging at the edge of the pit. It took a while but he was able to get a hole big enough to crawl through.


    A silent camp greeted him when he crept out. Everyone was out cold. Jerome didn¡¯t care about them though. He only wanted to find his things and there was only one person that would have it with him.


    His armor was ruined, covered in dried blood that was most definitely his. But he had no change of armor. He¡¯d just have to keep this one on until he was ready to leave the forest. Then again, maybe he could also steal armor from these bozos. But another thought surfaced ¡ª he was literally smaller than everyone of them.


    A large tent stood to one side, overlooking the pit. He was sure he would find all his personal effects in there. He opened the flap from the outside, grateful that it wasn¡¯t a modern tent with a zipper. A zipper would have alerted the person sleeping inside, and he wasn¡¯t sure he¡¯d even be able to get it open.


    Sure enough, Fisheyes was sprawled on some layers of blankets, sound asleep and snoring like a chainsaw. Jerome looked around for his things. The spear was beside Fisheyes as was the special holder. His storage bag, however, was nowhere to be seen. Jerome strapped the holder to his back. The spear was in its contracted state so he left it as it was.


    He straddled Fisheyes and stabbed the spear into his shoulder as he stuffed his mouth with a fistful of cloth. Fisheyes screamed into the cloth which muffled the sound. His eyes bulged when he saw Jerome on top of him, pinning him down. The spear had also pierced through the armor he wore, his flesh and bones, and into the ground beneath him. His body convulsed in pain underneath Jerome.


    ¡°Where is my storage bag,¡± Jerome whispered ominously to him.


    Fisheyes huffed, breathing hard as he tried to suppress the pain he was feeling. His eyes betrayed him in an instant as he looked down. Jerome got up and kneed him between his thighs, causing him to groan in pain. He searched Fisheyes¡¯ armor until he found what he was looking for.


    ¡°You have been a pain in my ass, you know?¡± Jerome sat on him again, pulling his spear and stabbing him in the other shoulder. Fisheyes¡¯ screams were muffled again. ¡°I did warn you though, but you didn¡¯t listen.¡±


    Jerome drew his fist back and knocked his lights out with an elbow to his temple.


    Soon after, he was walking away from the camp hoping this would be the last he saw of any of them. He had taken all their weapons as they slept. And dumped them into the huge bonfire they had made to keep themselves warm. That had taken a lot of effort on his part. But there weren¡¯t many of them left, so it was doable.


    Ironically, none of them had storage bags. Fisheyes on the other hand¡­ Well, hopefully, he¡¯d learn his lesson when he woke up to his own nakedness, strapped to a tree on the edges of his camp. His own blankets had been more useful as resources than any other thing in his tent.


    Jerome decided to find a place to recuperate completely. He needed to be at full strength to tackle whatever else he would face in the mountain range. His rage was not diminishing. In fact, confronting Fisheyes had made it flare up and now he was having a harder time getting it under control.


    ~~~


    ¡°It looks like I won,¡± Rihal turned to face Dunn with a wide grin on his face, ¡°...again.¡±

 25. Dreams And Nightmares

    ¡°Three, Three, wake up, Three, it''s time to go for Mhen Agrh¡¯ur!¡±


    Three woke up groggily. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ He rubbed his eyes with frail, skinny arms, ¡®Who¡¯s Three? My name is...what¡¯s my name? Why can¡¯t I remember my name?¡¯


    Three stood up and steadied himself. The day breezed past his eyes as he found himself sitting in a bustling square with many other kids his age. Every one of them, cycling to sense the essence.


    ¡®I¡¯ve been here before...with friends.¡¯


    He found himself next in front of a beautiful palace. He was welcomed in, bathed, fed, and taught self-defense. Now he¡¯s talking to a man wearing a beautiful and expensive robe with the image of a golden sun with an eye at its center designed on it.


    ¡®Vorthe!¡¯ he remembered, ¡®Rihal brought me to Kilian¡¯s Palace. My name is Jerome. I remember now!¡¯


    Jerome was confused. Was he trapped in some kind of illusion? But it felt real, like a memory from long ago. But whose memory? And why was he trapped in it?


    Three grows up into a fine young sacred artist in the Spirit Realm. He¡¯s beginning to have anger issues getting into fights and destroying properties around the city. Jerome tried to stop Three from destroying things around Farryn. To see if it was all a memory like he sensed. All was to no avail.


    Three was a nuisance to society. Always angry. And always spoiling for a fight. But soon, something deep in the mountains started calling to him. He followed the feeling and wandered deeper into the mountains than any other person had. He felt it in his bones that whatever was calling to him would make him more powerful...


    Jerome woke up, sweating and panting heavily. He gazed up at the sky which was beginning to brighten with the first blush of dawn. His heart raced, pounding in his chest like a wild animal trying to break free. He sat down for a long while trying to collect his scattered thoughts, confusion etched deeply into his face.


    What the heck was that? he thought. Have I lived more than one life without knowing about it? His ¡®dream¡¯ clearly showed that he had a life in Vorthe before. He grew up in the same orphanage, went to the same square, and was also taken in by a Vorthe.


    No, these are not my memories. But whose memories are they? Whose life did I re-live? Who is Three?


    Jerome didn¡¯t have an answer. But he turned his gaze North. Deep in the mountains, something had called to Three. He had felt it too ¡ª a longing for power. The mountains in the distance seemed normal to his enhanced sight.


    Though, far away and blurred by the morning fog, he felt nothing different from looking at them. And though curious, Jerome recognized he was not ready to go that deep. Three was a Spirit Realm artist when he felt that longing to go deep into the mountains. He was still Blank and would end up in the belly of a magical beast as fodder.


    He got up to put out the dying flames of his campfire and set out.


    ~~~


    Farryn. Estate of House Hroth. The House of Textile.


    Dreamer had never had a life quite like what he had now. Who knew being a sacred artist could be this fun? This was the definition of the dream life, just as his name implied. His training with his brothers and the blind Rihal had been preparation for a life as a sacred artist. He had never bothered with asking why they trained, never knew the significance until now.


    ¡°Next form!¡± his instructor shouted.


    Thirty Drudges ¡ª more or less ¡ª who were accepted as novice disciples into House Hroth, the House of Textile, mimicked the instructor¡¯s form. Every form was quite difficult to maintain for more than a few breaths as Dreamer had run many laps this morning before the training began. They had all run ¡ª some more than most as a lot of novices were not good at taking orders.


    Compared to many of the novices though, Dreamer was doing excellently. He could see how Jerome¡¯s exercise routine ¡ª even with how strange they were ¡ª had helped him maintain some muscles in his belly and limbs. He had a very good balance and he used it to his advantage. Dreamer promised himself to thank Jerome when next he saw him.


    ¡°Dreamer!¡±


    ¡°Sir!¡±


    ¡°You are distracted! Run ten laps for me!¡±


    Shit. Dreamer picked himself up and started running around the training ground. The Hroth Estate was huge. Able to accommodate at least a thousand soldiers. They were the leading house in textile production and made some of the silk and cotton textiles, and also the best leather armor in Vorthe. All the Great Clans bought their armor from them.


    Dreamer made sure to breathe slowly so as to fill his lungs with enough air to help him preserve his strength. He had been a Drudge for a little less than four tendays, yet he could see a whole lot of improvement in his endurance. Maybe it was the frequent meals he ate. Yes. Maybe that was it. But he was more hungry than ever before now.


    ¡°Stop, Novice Dreamer!¡± the instructor commanded. ¡°You¡¯ve run more than ten laps already.¡±


    Really? He wasn¡¯t counting. And he wasn¡¯t even tired.


    ¡°Pair up for unarmed combat!¡±


    The group of novices paired up as quickly as possible. Dreamer paired up with a girl a few yards away from him. He saw her visibly relax as he stood in front of her and thanked him with her eyes. Many of the novices here thought they were all in competition. What with the instructor always pitting them against each other? He nodded lightly to her and readied himself. What was her name again? He couldn¡¯t remember. She was probably numbered and not named.


    Dreamer sighed, thankful that he wasn¡¯t given a number in the orphanage. Now that he was around so many people without names he felt lucky. He wouldn¡¯t have loved it if he was known by a number instead of a name. It would have been annoying.


    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ¡°Set!¡± the instructor announced, and everyone took a defensive stance.


    ¡°Fight!¡±


    The girl lunged forward with a quick punch and Dreamer slapped her hand to the side, punching with his other hand. The girl, knowing his intention, blocked his punch with the elbow of the arm that was slapped aside. Dreamer took the chance to grab her hand and twist. Her lighter, flexible frame gave her an advantage as she twisted, righting her arm. Dreamer brought his knee up, hitting her in the brow.


    The girl staggered back, losing her balance. He reached out and caught her before she hit the ground.


    ¡°Good. Very good,¡± the instructor said from behind him. ¡°Now reset and go again!¡±


    ¡°Yes Sir!¡±


    ~~~


    The Northern Mountain Range. Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    Hummm!


    Jerome ran through the forest following an elusive hum of a signature. He had been tracking this mysterious wave of energy for a few days now. It was like a beacon that called out to him from time to time.


    The overgrown forest was thick enough to block out the sun and slow him down. He had to make sure to carefully make his way through even though his body was bursting with adrenaline. He was forcing himself to calm down as it were because his emotions were on the verge of going out of control.


    The rage had grown and now that he felt murderous impulses. He wanted carnage for some reason and all attempts to calm himself had failed. Now he just wanted to take his mind off of it. And that was when he started hearing the hum from afar.


    He quickly swerved left as something dived at him from his right. Jerome scrutinized the creature that glided out of the bushes. In front of him was a Three-Horned Python. A mud-colored constrictor, fairly large, with three tiny horns on its head, but not enough to be a threat.


    Jerome drew his spear as the python dove for him once again. It tried to wrap its body around him with quick reflexes, but Jerome slashed at it. It swerved that part of its body to the side still coming at him. The spear rotated with blinding speed, taking a chunk of scales and skin off the python. Blood poured out of its wound and it folded in on itself, baring its tiny rows of sharp fangs.


    It hissed.


    Jerome shrugged. ¡°You started it,¡± he said and attacked. Fast and hard. He had to resume his search quickly before someone else took his find.


    The Three-Horned Python was a tough opponent to deal with, however. Now it was attacking and backing up to get away. Prey that fought back was not worth it. Jerome stabbed at its eye as he dodged a swipe from its tail. It increased its speed as well, attacking like a whip.


    Jerome vaulted up into the trees and as expected, the Three-Horned Python scurried away into the foliage. His spear tore through the air with enormous force and speed, piercing through its skull and into the ground. He jumped down from the tree and walked up to the Three-Horned Python, pulling out his spear and squatting down to inspect it.


    The python was really large; large enough to swallow someone twice his size but it had a tiny head. He wasn¡¯t fooled by its head though. Snakes had the ability to unhinge their jaws from their heads and stretch their mouths wide enough as they swallow prey that was a lot bigger than the size of their head.


    The flexibility of their muscles and skin was a gift of nature. And those sharp rows of fangs? This bad boy must have been a descendant of the prehistoric Titanoboa; an extinct snake that lived during the Paleocene Epoch, around 60 million years ago on Earth.


    But that was Earth¡¯s history. This python just had a really good resemblance to the pictures he had seen while he was Isaac. Then again, it could be the Titanoboa¡¯s descendant. Who knew?


    ¡°Fortunately, you haven¡¯t tapped into your bloodline powers yet,¡± he muttered and packed the body into his storage bag. The hide could be useful.


    ¡°Hrm,¡± a moan came from a nearby bush and it sounded human. Jerome quickly readied his spear to defend himself. He could sense someone there now.


    ¡°Come out,¡± he said. A twig snapped, and someone rushed out¡­and ran the other way¡­crying?


    ¡°Huh?¡± he stood there confused. Why¡¯d she run away?


    He could understand that the Blanks were now afraid of him because of the fight with Hedon ¡ª and the ensuing manhunt that followed and failed. Everyone he had challenged since he arrived two seasons ago had been defeated in combat.


    Interesting that I¡¯ve been here for two seasons: that¡¯s roughly six months, he thought, almost proudly. But why run away? At least he got a chuckle out of that. He had been feeling only murderous rage for a while now. That girl had made him smile a little. Props to her for that.


    Jerome looked around to judge his location so he could continue searching for the energy signature. The rays of the sun peeked through in places, giving the green of the surrounding forest a beautiful golden sheen. He climbed a tree and sat down to meditate, taking deep breaths to calm his mind. He could no longer maintain his grip on his murderous impulses. He took multiple deep breaths before he felt his impulses start to abate.


    Hummm!


    His eyes snapped open. He quickly launched himself off the tree and sped off northeast, foregoing patience and wariness. He could care less if anything bothered to get in his way. He¡¯d just have to get rid of it as he did the python.


    Was this confidence or recklessness? Jerome knew it was the latter but his sanity was more important to him. He knew he was strong-headed and hot-blooded but he wasn¡¯t a psychopath. And that was what he could become if he didn¡¯t find that energy signature, he was sure.


    The humming sound felt right to him. Like it would calm his mind. He didn¡¯t know how he knew it, he just knew it. And he felt if he didn¡¯t get to the source of the humming, he would lose it forever.


    There! The humming was getting louder. Almost there! Jerome landed on a branch that gave way and he crashed into the den of a Giant Wild Boar. He quickly got up and scurried away. However, a magical beast was hot on his tail now. The Giant Wild Boar was incensed, testosterone going wild, it chased after him, determined to destroy the pest who had disturbed its rest.


    Jerome looked back only to see a seven-foot-tall mountain of a beast, barreling through the forest after him. Now he was irritated. The boar might be big, but he didn¡¯t feel pressured by it. It was, however, closing in on him. Jerome took to the trees, giving himself the advantage of height. The Giant Wild Boar continued its chase, not slowing down in the least. It barreled through a huge tree, disintegrating its trunk, yet it didn¡¯t stop, or slow down.


    ¡°Piss off!¡± Jerome screamed, but his voice hadn¡¯t broken yet, making him sound like a child.


    Jerome concentrated on the humming sound. He was close, he knew it. But I can¡¯t stop to concentrate, damn it! He pulled a branch from a tree he dived past and released it. The tension in its spring-like body forced it to whip backward into the boar.


    Thwack!


    The Giant Wild Boar stumbled as the branch hit it in the face. Jerome pushed off another tree and shot backward in the direction of the boar. He came in hot. Before the Giant Wild Boar steadied itself, a spear was buried inside its neck.

 26. The Mind-Calming Stone

    Farryn. The Estate of House Ullysius. The House of Masonry and Construction.


    The Estate of House Ullysius was close to the bustling City Square in Farryn. A large estate that was made of strong bricks and built to rival that of the Great Clans ¡ª at least that was what his seniors said. Whisper wouldn¡¯t know since he had never been to any other noble house. This house though, House Ullysius, the house that took him in as a disciple was all he could have ever asked for.


    House Ullysius¡¯ kilns were the best things Whisper had ever experienced in his life. Warm throughout the day and night, he had gotten used to the warmth that always seeped into the hut he shared with his fellow novices. Never in his life had he had such comfort and warmth.


    Nights were always cold in the orphanage and dawn even more so. There were never enough blankets to use for covers so he was usually awakened by the cold.


    He sat in meditation as he thought of the various kilns around the estates firing bricks all day long.


    The kilns were a marvel to his eyes; buildings heated to uncomfortable temperatures to bake dirt instead of bread. He had no idea how dirt would harden when heated. Jerome would be able to explain how it worked, he knew. He knew a lot of things and it was times like these that Whisper missed him. The structures were meticulously positioned around the estate to not only bake bricks and clay objects but also to provide warmth for everyone living in the estate.


    Whisper smiled, taking a deep breath and sucking in a strand of essence. He rotated his core as fast as he could to quickly absorb the strand of essence to make it his own. He had noticed that every time essence entered his body, it passed through different pathways before it got to his core. If his core wasn¡¯t rotating, he lost the chance to make the strand of essence his. Which meant one opportunity lost to becoming Blank.


    He had to catch up. According to Ms. Tara¡¯s letters, Jerome was already Blank. Somehow, he wasn¡¯t surprised. It was just like him to be ahead of everyone else. Jerome was going to do great things as a sacred artist. He could tell with everything in him. He just had to keep up is all. He didn¡¯t want to be the most powerful sacred artist out there, just powerful enough to keep up. And stand with Jerome. And his friends. And Ms. Tara and Old Wen. Moss too.


    ¡°Whisper,¡± one of his rank mates called to him.


    Whisper sighed and stopped his meditation. It was fortunate that he was able to get a little time to meditate and cycle. He seemed to have the misfortune of being with a bunch of lazy Drudges who thought nothing of cycling and advancing their core.


    ¡°What is it, Thirteen?¡±


    ¡°You hear someone come from Big House?¡±


    Thirteen was reclined on a bundle of hay that was resting on the wall of the hut. He sucked on the piece of bone that had dried out already. The boy meant someone came from one of the Great Houses. This piqued Whisper¡¯s interest.


    ¡°Which of the Houses?¡±


    ¡°Er, I no know. Just¡­wear armor,¡± he said, gesturing with his hands for a moment before he continued sucking on the bone.


    Whisper thought about it a little. From what he knew, they were not set to transport any order of bricks or tiles in another moon cycle. It must be business that didn¡¯t concern him so there was no need to concern himself with it. He got ready to center himself so he could continue cycling. He needed all of his concentration if he was going to advance really fast.


    Someone hit the door of the hut, walking in like they owned the place, and distracting him. Whisper almost snapped in irritation. He took a deep breath as Thirteen got up to confront the person, who happened to be a senior disciple. An apprentice by the looks of it. His brown robes also held some leather stitched to them. Whisper couldn¡¯t wait for the day he received his own brown robes.


    ¡°Senior!¡± they greeted in shock and bowed slightly.


    The senior in question grunted in reply and looked around the hut with a scowl. Then his gaze settled on the novices occupying it.


    ¡°Which one of you is Whisper?¡±


    ¡°I am, senior,¡± Whisper said. ¡°How may I help you?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been summoned by the Foreman. You¡¯re to follow me immediately,¡± he said and walked out of the hut.


    Whisper almost ran after him. His mind raced through what could be the reason why he was being summoned. He had always been dutiful and excellent at doing whatever task was given to him. He had never broken clay goods during unloading or loading. Why was he being called then? He had no answer. He could think of nothing that pointed toward a specific problem or task.


    He thought to ask the senior in front of him but the young man was acting like someone had eaten his meal this morning. He decided to keep shut and wait until they got to the foreman. When they did get to the foreman, he just started walking toward the inner parts of the estate. Whisper could do nothing but follow.


    He summoned up the courage to ask. ¡°Forgiveness senior. Might I ask what is going on?¡±


    The foreman looked at him with a weird look before speaking. ¡°Do you know House Alvric?¡±


    ¡°I do, senior. They are one of the four Great Houses.¡±


    ¡°Well, for some reason, they seem to have taken interest in you.¡±


    Whisper was elated. Was this a sign? It must be a sign. But he schooled his features, acting worried.


    ¡°Do not worry your little head,¡± the foreman said. ¡°You¡¯re brilliant and can already read and count. Maybe they heard about that and wanted to take you in as a disciple.¡±


    ¡°But there are many others that can read and write. Why me?¡± Whisper asked. Thankfully, the foreman was easier to approach.


    ¡°Many people who can read and write are already grown up and have their own opinions and priorities. Nobles tend to look for fresh blood to raise. Such younglings¡¯ allegiance would only be to them in the long run.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense,¡± he muttered in thought.


    They kept on walking in silence for a while.


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°Apologies, senior. I do have a question,¡± Whisper said.


    ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, senior. When we say, ¡®Great Clan¡¯ and ¡®Great House¡¯, what¡¯s the difference?¡±


    The foreman chuckled. ¡°They mean what they say. ¡®The Great Clan¡¯ or any clan for that matter, is a clan of many houses or families. The Great House is the house or family that is the ruling house of that clan. All other houses or families in that clan are called Branch Houses.¡±


    ¡°Oooh,¡± Whisper nodded his head in realization. He never knew that was how things worked.


    ~~~


    The Northern Mountain Range. Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    The humming was very loud now. Every other sound receded into the background of his mind as Jerome stood on a dust-colored boulder looking into a small hole by its side.


    It''s coming from inside there. He could sense no danger so he got down and reached his hand into the hole. A stone?


    The humming stopped. His mind cleared as the murderous impulses receded. He had never felt so clear-headed in a long while. His muscles ached now.


    Sleep, he thought, sweet sleep.


    Suddenly, the hairs on his skin rose, alerting him to the presence of another. Jerome sighed, raking his tousled hair with stiff fingers.


    You have got to be kidding me, he thought. This presence was different. It could sense him too. A predator, and a powerful one at that. He stored away his find getting ready to do battle. This might be the most dangerous magical beast he faced today. His senses screamed at him again alerting him to a change in the creature. It seems this creature can sense my intentions, he thought with a wistful smile. It was somewhere around. But where?


    The wind seemed to calm and even the chirping of birds came to a halt. The tension in the air could seemingly be sliced with a knife. One breath...two breaths...three breaths. Jerome dashed out running left and the creature chased after him.


    Fast! he thought. And it can climb too, are you kidding me?! Jerome spared a glance at the creature and his heart nearly dropped to his stomach. Black slanted pupils with a yellow deadly glint stared back at him. An Ice-Saber?


    He quickly put on a burst of speed as he pushed himself more. This cat was not to be messed with.


    The Ice-Saber was hot on his tail. It stretched its paws as it jumped off a tree branch to claw at Jerome¡¯s head. Jerome quickly dropped to the floor of the forest. The Ice-Saber Cat was emitting a chilling aura already. It had already begun tapping into the power of its bloodline.


    The cat rebounded off another tree to face Jerome, but he had taken off in another direction already. I¡¯ve got to come up with a plan, he thought.


    He looked around searching for something, anything. He felt frustrated and his emotions were in turmoil again. Something tore into the back of his neck, drawing blood. The Ice-Saber opened its massive jaws to crush Jerome¡¯s skull. It quickly sensed an incoming threat as Jerome stabbed toward it with his spear.


    The Ice-Saber dodged but didn¡¯t let go of its prey. Jerome felt pain shoot up his spine as sharp claws dug into his skin and they fell sideways. Blood sprayed everywhere staining the grasses and trees.


    Jerome saw red. He let go of the control of his emotions and went mad with rage. With a strength that should surpass him, he reached behind him and crushed the Saber¡¯s paw.


    The saber roared in pain. Something about its prey had changed, and now it felt like the prey. A fist came at its jaw and crushed it. The saber lashed out but the human didn¡¯t even dodge. Its other paw drew blood from Jerome¡¯s chest, ruining his leather armor.


    Prey that had no care for its life was deadly prey. The Saber backed up, trying to bolt, but Jerome stabbed at it again and again. With a damaged paw, it needed to heal before it could use its legs and a wounded beast was a dead beast in these lands. Jerome rushed forward and smacked the already broken jaw of the Saber. It collapsed to the floor, breathing hard. He stabbed it through the heart as it whined like a cub. Its legs twitched continuously for a while before it stilled.


    Jerome got down on one knee, holding his spear and breathing hard. His body shook and his legs felt like they had turned to jelly. He reached into himself to cycle, sending essence to his injuries to heal him. He had to get out of the open. He needed rest, a good kind of rest.


    But wait, he thought. How did I defeat an Ice-Saber Cat? One that has already begun to tap into its bloodline powers.


    ~~~


    ¡°The rat thinks he can become a Warrior.¡±


    ¡°Do you think the Royal Family gives a damn about you?¡± someone else said.


    Another tried to sneak behind him. He moved with blinding speed and caught the one in front of him in the throat. He threw him into the boy behind him and in the same fluid motion, hit the first who spoke in the chest.


    ¡°Two, stop!¡±


    ¡®Huh? Was that my name?¡¯ he stopped and faced the newcomer. ¡®No, that¡¯s not my name. My name is¡­¡¯ he tilted his head in confusion. The newcomer was tall and regal, like a king¡­ He had on the breastplate of his armor, a crest of a golden sun with an eye at its center. ¡®Vorthe! My name is Jerome!¡¯


    The newcomer unleashed a lash in his hand Two didn¡¯t see before. ¡°You dare lay a hand on members of the Royal family?!¡± he lashed out with the whip.


    Two watched as the whip drew closer, unable to do anything but stare. He wanted to move, to run¡­but his legs responded as if they weren¡¯t his. His hands refused to come up to block the incoming whip. The whip smacked him just below his left eye, causing pain to flare in him, and an anger like no other was borne in him. Murderous rage was kindled in him and he forced himself ¡ª his body ¡ª to respond to him. After the third strike, Two caught the whip and yanked it out of the hand of the Overseer.


    Jerome watched all this happen through the eyes of his incarnation. Amazed at what he saw. The Overseer was probably a Sage. From his midnight black robes that identified him as a master. And Two was a Spirit Realm artist. His emerald green robes identified him as an Adept. How was he able to resist the aura attack of a Sage?


    Two attacked ¡ª the master not the Royals. He was fast and hit hard. The Overseer didn¡¯t become flustered, only putting some space between Two and the Royals to protect them. That was when Jerome heard himself growl. Like an animal. Something that shouldn¡¯t be possible with the vocal cavity of a human. The growl carried something with it ¡ª a force of will. An intent that made him shiver down to his bones.


    Thoughts of carnage and hunger filled his mind as his heart pounded louder and louder within his ribs, drowning every other sound around him. The fight between Two and the Overseer, forgotten, Jerome was inundated with terror. Terror that he was going to become¡­


    He woke up in a panic, breathing hard. What the fuck was that?

 27. He Didn’t Even Draw His Weapon

    These mountains had been wiped clean by generations of Blanks before him so there wasn¡¯t much treasure lying around anymore. Apart from the opportunity to kill a few magic beasts and test our strengths against each other, the mountain range has nothing else to offer, Jerome thought.


    He came here full of vigor, ready to take on any challenge. But the reality was proving to make things more tasking than he had expected. The forest before him and the mountains ahead seemed like any other he had read about now. Very normal and very not magical. They would probably provide vast mineral resources ¡ª perhaps fossil fuel. Many magical beasts had died here, right?


    Jerome had gone deeper into the mountains, away from the outskirts. He didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d be facing from here on out. And there were no demarcations to state the outer, middle, or inner regions of the mountain range. You only knew you were in a particular place when you get attacked ¡ª supposedly.


    He rummaged through his storage bag for his map, hoping to make sense of where he was. It still awed  him, the magical miracle the bag was. Never on Earth had something like this come close to fruition. Not in his time and scientists theorized that it would still be a while, maybe centuries before anything of the sort could be created.


    The inside of the storage bag looked like any other normal bag. He sensed no essence powering anything in it. But the space contained in it should have been impossible; it was feather-light compared to its content.


    Not just space was used to create the bag. They must have had a good understanding of gravity to be able to affect the weight of the object in the bag. And the mass of an object in space was what determined the strength of gravity it exerts on other objects, right? Since it¡¯ll technically bend space around itself. But there was no object inside the bag that was a part of the bag that would exert any gravitational force on the objects he put inside.


    This type of technology was beyond him, he admitted. He could as well call it magic. Many things in Vorthe were beyond his level of understanding. Maybe it took advancing as a sacred artist to understand such things. That should be the answer.


    The days had been quiet and he loved every moment of peace. But his peace ended all too soon. As he came face-to-face with another Blank. A girl who looked to be at least two years older than him. She had on her breastplate, the carved figure of a winged serpentine creature with sharp rows of fangs. Her armor took on an eastern design with patterns and designs that curved around the armor, resembling the serpentine crest on her breastplate.


    House Fei. House of the Dragon Fang, Jerome thought. He read once that they were sword artists who migrated from the Eastern continent, thousands of years ago, in search of greener pastures. Jerome called bullshit on that. Every family had its secrets.


    If there was one thing he had come to learn, it was that Vorthe was a lot more complicated than it seemed on the surface. Greener pastures couldn¡¯t be the reason a powerful clan left their homeland. They were probably running away from someone more powerful. Or to something that could give them more power.


    The girl¡¯s beautiful peach blossom eyes were unrelenting as she took a stance showing her readiness to fight him. Jerome stood sluggishly with the wind blowing his hair into his face. He hadn¡¯t been grooming himself since his dreams began. Every part of his armor was badly damaged now ¡ª worse than it was after the manhunt ¡ª and he looked like a madman.


    He¡¯d had those dreams every night for two whole seasons. Each dream was a different life lived, many of which were full-blown nightmares, making every waking moment a time of horror and misery.


    The girl drew her sword so fast it was hard for his eyes to follow. The sword cut through the air and missed him by a few hairs width as he sidestepped. He danced from side to side as he dodged her slashes and stabs.


    She pressed on, showing her skill with the sword. Jerome had to evade her completely as her weapon danced in strange patterns. He had never seen anyone wield a sword like that before ¡ª not even Rihal. Well, Rihal had only ever used the bo staff in his presence. Her movements were¡­mesmerizing to say the least.


    ¡°You cannot best me, child. Kneel and I will spare you,¡± she said with an air of confidence belying her youth.


    Really? Is that all you can come up with? Jerome shook his head with mock pity. ¡°You¡¯d need to learn more scary words to make me cower before you,¡± he said. His voice sounded raspy and his throat hurt. He needed water.


    She attacked again, coming in hard and fast. Jerome decided to take things seriously since it seemed she was putting her all into their fight. Best not to disappoint.


    Her sword spun toward him and he watched, observing her wrist as he dodged from side to side. He punched her in the shoulder pushing her back but she used the force to twist in the air and slashed at him again. Jerome easily dodged, trying to stay out of reach of her sword, but unable to get close to her lest he be impaled on it.


    She flipped forward in the air but her momentum carried her backward. Her sword came diagonally at him as she was still in motion in the air. Jerome dodged, taking a step closer to her. He swiftly tapped her on the shoulder right before she landed ¡ª just to let her know that he could win the fight at any time. This got her riled up and she rushed him.


    He tried to smack the sword out of her hand but with a flick of her wrist, the blade changed direction and spun in that beautiful pattern he was beginning to get comfortable seeing. He shivered lightly at the realization and shook the cobwebs off his eyes. Somewhere at the back of his mind, he ¡®wanted¡¯ to see that beautiful technique again ¡ª even though logic dictated that that would be his end.


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    The sword, he realized, looking at the shiny blade with newfound respect. The Fei girl must have seen the look of wonder on his face. She gave him an arrogant smirk and twirled the blade around as their fight came to a pause.


    ¡°My sword is a special artifact that¡¯ll take your mind and turn it to pulp,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s see how long you can hold out against its power.¡±


    Now that she said it, he could feel a slight tug on his mind by her sword. Like it was calling to him to relax. It wasn¡¯t something one could easily sense on their own. He may never even have sensed it if she hadn¡¯t mentioned it. Nevertheless, knowing he was slowly being pulled wasn¡¯t enough to stop the pull on his mind.


    ¡°Now, that¡¯s just not fair,¡± Jerome muttered in complaint.


    The Fei girl scoffed. ¡°Blame your masters for not preparing you better.¡± She went from zero to almost 40 in a split second, zooming across the space between them. Jerome had to take several steps back to dodge her fierce attacks.


    She struck low with her kicks, going for his feet and ankles, but focused her sword on his upper body, wanting to wear him out as soon as possible. Jerome caught on quickly and played along. She had caught him by surprise when she zoomed across the space between them ¡ª which he had thought would take at least a full breath ¡ª and she did it without giving any hint with her body that she¡¯d move to attack.


    She was a dangerous one, this one.


    Jerome danced around the clearing with her, always barely missing being impaled or sliced in two. Soon enough her breathing became uneven. He could see her eyes shift from intense focus to mildly dazed at his speed.


    She suddenly stopped to catch her breath, increasing the space between them. Jerome saw this and halted in his path. He rushed back towards her but didn¡¯t have the same momentum as her, since he had to stop and run the other way..


    She had to back away from him this time around, her face expressing her surprise. Jerome wondered if she was expecting him to be tired after just a few dozen breaths of sparring with her.


    The jokes on you, he thought with a chuckle.


    She spun her sword again in that mesmerizing pattern, like a shield of sorts. And a distraction ¡ª one that was getting really annoying. But he wasn¡¯t going to let it stop him. He took a bet and risked getting his hand cut off, aiming to snatch the sword by the blade.


    She redirected her blade toward that hand with more force than he expected, leaning into the strike. Jerome quickly withdrew his hand as he moved aside, dodging the blade entirely. He extended the index and middle finger of his other hand as if to poke at her eyes. She took the bait and closed her eyes for a split second.


    That was enough time to disarm her and pin her to the floor.


    Jerome won. Naturally. In a way, this was easier than fighting Hedon. That fight had cost him his sanity and he had been fighting to stay sane ever since. This was his punishment. Maybe. His curse to bear.


    The mind-calming stone, as he had taken to calling the stone he found, could not be depended on. He had to find his own strength to control his own emotions.


    He got up in silence and walked away. The young lady he just defeated sat up in the sand breathing heavily.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t even draw his weapon,¡± she muttered to herself, feeling truly defeated.


    ~~~


    Jerome didn¡¯t feel like a victor. He felt like he had aged centuries. The burden of keeping his emotions at bay was draining him mentally and he didn¡¯t want to depend too much on the stone. What mattered most was his will, he thought. As long as his will was strong enough, he¡¯d overcome his situation. But it seemed his will was not always enough to hold his emotions at bay forever. He needed somewhere to rest and meditate, somewhere he wouldn¡¯t be disturbed.


    He quickly took out his map to search. It was a good thing Rihal included the map among the things he was given. He would have been walking around blind and would have been eaten by some powerful beast by now. The only suitable place near him though was a cave inhabited by a creature more powerful than himself. One he wasn¡¯t ready to fight yet, a Sunfire Wolf.


    Jerome steeled himself in determination. If this was maybe a season ago he¡¯d never have thought of going near such a place, but now he knew he was a lot stronger than the average Blank. Fighting and defeating the Ice-Saber had also helped see magical beasts for what they were. Although they were intelligent, it didn¡¯t mean they were as smart as humans. Human beings could come up with many tools and strategies but the magical beast only had their strength and abilities.


    The Sunfire Wolf was a magical beast that had already tapped into its bloodline powers and could use a small fraction of them. With a breath, it could roast a Blank like him into barbecue. Jerome started planning. It was faster and stronger than all the magical beasts he¡¯d killed so far. And on top of that, it could breathe fire. It should take the coordinated attack of at least four Blanks to kill the creature, but there was only him.


    He took out a bow and a quiver filled with arrows that he took off the archer who attacked him a while back. A while back? How long have I been here? Jerome thought to himself. Should be eight ¡ª maybe nine months now¡­two and a half seasons. He sighed. It couldn¡¯t be helped. Vorthe was still advancing. Whoever came up with this archaic way of telling time did a really swell job. All they needed was more time ¡ª maybe a few decades.


    Jerome had been practicing ever since then, whenever he had the chance and had improved a great deal. A sacred artist¡¯s body was quite capable of so many things a normal human wasn¡¯t. It had been less than a year since he picked up the bow, but he was sure he could thread the needle as he was. That was something only achievable by a sacred artist in such a short time, he was sure.


    With practiced ease, he strung the bow and nocked an arrow. Too thin, he thought.


    The arrow would snap before it could penetrate the Sunfire Wolf¡¯s hide. And that would be a bad way to start because the Sunfire Wolf would go into survival mode. It would be able to track him¡­and hunt him down. Jerome shivered. The Sunfire Wolf would sense him if he got too close, so he found a tree about a thousand paces away from the mouth of its cave. The tree was tall enough that he could see almost everything around him but also close enough to other trees that he could run away if things got out of hand.


    He got down from the tree to begin his search for wood strong enough to carve out good, strong arrows. After filling his storage bag, he went back to the tree and started carving arrows with a small knife he brought with him. He worked throughout the evening into the night carving arrows as big as spears out of the wood in his storage bag. When he was done, he had over two hundred arrows. He let the night lull him to sleep high up in the tree.

 28. Sunfire Wolf

    Heaven.


    That was the only description he had for what he felt. His entire being pulsed with a pervasive vitality that made him feel alive as he drank. Yet the air resounded with agonizing groans of suffering, and the stench of death hung in the air around him.


    But how could he discern the scent of death? A malevolent tang that curled the hairs in his nostrils. How did he know that was the stench of death? Jerome raised his head from the delicious liquid he was drinking.


    ¡®What is this?¡¯ He looked around but saw only carnage.


    Jerome would¡¯ve retched if he could. A haze of vertigo hit him, and the foul smell of putrefying corpses assaulted his senses. He took deep breaths to steady his fractured mind then he looked at himself.


    Jerome¡¯s mind tumbled into chaos. He was drinking from the neck of a woman as she twitched incessantly. Her cervical vertebrae were crushed. This was an out-of-body experience. Another nightmare like the ones he¡¯d been having since Pilgrims¡¯ Keep began. Only this time he was himself. His memories were intact from the beginning of the nightmare.


    ¡°Stop!¡± He screamed, but no sound came out of his mouth. He tried grabbing himself, but his hands went right through his body. Jerome looked around for something, anything that he could use to stop himself. Everywhere around him people were moaning in pain. Many had lost their limbs and many more, their lives.


    ¡°Cease your carnage,¡± a voice reached him from afar, evoking an innate sense of dread in him. Jerome felt an instinctual fear of death come upon him.


    This was his natural predator, not just any enemy. If it were an enemy, he could stand and fight. This felt worse than that. This was more like an apex predator. One whose purpose and natural inclination was to kill him, he felt deep in his bones like a chilling intuition.


    Instincts as old as time urged him to flee, to abandon the wreckage he had sown in the cityscape in mere instants. He looked up and saw a golden light in the distance drawing near. Jerome fled, leaving behind the city in less than a few breaths. But the light reached him in no time.


    ¡°Your days of wanton destruction are over, child,¡± the voice said.


    Jerome tried to speed up, to hasten his pace, but the light touched him, its radiance encompassed him, paralyzing him. He turned to look into the face of the one he dreads the most but the face he saw was his own.


    ¡®How is this possible?¡¯


    ¡°Farewell, child.¡± A sword of light comes down on him.


    With a jerk, Jerome woke up sweating and panting. His breathing was ragged and frantic. He felt like he had been in a world of nightmarish creatures that weren¡¯t supposed to be real, yet their existence couldn¡¯t be truer. He stared into the void, grappling with the impossible reality of the truths he just experienced.


    Impossible! How the hell is that possible? He thought, taking in deep breaths to calm himself to no avail. The storm of panic that raged through him refused to be quelled.


    What the hell is going on? Is this world even real? Am I real? The world around him felt like a mirage, an existence that could dissolve at any moment before his very eyes.


    He touched himself all over, seeking proof of his realness. This is absurd, he thought to himself. There must be some reason behind these nightmares. Am I going crazy? Is this the beginning of a crazed and mentally ill Jerome?


    He tried thinking about the dream, to dissect the remnants of what he could remember but for some reason, that terror seized him in its clutches again and his mind nearly collapsed in on itself. The boundaries of his mind seemed to buckle and strain, threatening to shatter under the weight of the terror that held him captive.


    Jerome held on to a branch of the tree as he hyperventilated, his heart nearly exploding in his chest. Its rough texture grounded him in reality as he gasped for breath. He reached for the mind-calming stone in his storage bag, his grip tightening over it.


    The cool surface of the stone against his clammy skin was a balm, a lifeline to sanity amidst the chaos. It took him a long while even with the mind-calming stone to finally calm down. His breath steadied like a distant storm relenting and his heart¡¯s frantic rhythm subsided.


    His knuckles were pale against the bark of the tree branch, his body a canvas of tremors. Time stretched in the aftermath of his turmoil, a stretch of minutes or hours he couldn¡¯t quantify, not without the proper tools that Vorthe didn¡¯t have. The world around him slowly regained its contours, the edges of reality sharpening as if to affirm its existence.


    With the mind-calming stone as his anchor, he found his way back to solid ground. And as the echoes of his panic faded, replaced by the steady rhythm of his breath, he began to reclaim the sense of self that had momentarily eluded him.


    ~~~


    The Sunfire Wolf came out at first light to quench its thirst at the mouth of a stream within its territory. Its golden coat gleamed in the soft morning light as it stood at the entrance of its cave. The Sunfire Wolf was huge; tall enough on both fore and hind legs as Jerome, maybe more so.


    It had enough food to eat for months, rendering its pursuit of prey unnecessary. Yet, as its paws touched the earth, an instinctual warning tingled in its senses, urging it back toward the shelter of its cavern.


    An arrow as long as a spear and as thick as an adult man¡¯s wrist pierced through its right foreleg and stuck deep into the ground, pinning it in place. The wolf howled and turned its head sideways as it tried to remove the arrow with its fangs, exposing its neck in the process.


    A second arrow as big as the first one came at it, prompting the wolf to dodge with a desperate, powerful lunge but still failed to escape unscathed. The arrowhead still took a chunk of fur, flesh, and blood from it, bursting an artery in the process.


    Fury surged within the creature, a fire that mirrored its namesake. Responding instinctively, it quickly spewed fire out of its mouth to cover the entrance to the cave and burn off the arrow pinning it down.


    Its wounds are healing too quickly, Jerome thought as he watched its wounds defy his preplanned rhythm, healing with supernatural speed. He had to finish it off or else he¡¯d become the prey. With practiced precision, he fired off another arrow that went through the wolf¡¯s left eye just as it freed itself.


    The arrow stuck so deep into its head that agony erupted within its mind and the wolf howled and thrashed about trying to get it out. But it was unyielding; another arrow found its mark, puncturing lung and heart, and securing the creature¡¯s bulk to the earth once again.


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    Jerome wanted to fire off another arrow just to be on the safe side, but the taut bowstring snapped under relentless pressure. He¡¯d pulled the string to the extremes of its tensile strength every single time, which put great pressure on it. He descended from his vantage point on the tree, rushing towards the cave.


    You better be dead, he thought, hoping in his heart.


    The fire at the entrance had died down a lot. I was lucky enough to be able to shoot through the fire, Jerome thought with a smile. Sacred artists have it good.


    A normal human wouldn¡¯t be able to learn to shoot arrows accurately in just a few days. As a sacred artist though, that was a piece of cake. He went into the cave and saw the dying Sunfire Wolf on its last breath, spasming and convulsing in the throes of death, muscles contracting futilely as its vitality faded away until it died.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± he grunted, my brain feels like it¡¯s about to explode, he complained to himself. But he got to work cleaning away the blood and skinning the wolf, yet he was mentally exhausted. He set up traps around the entrance to the cave and roasted some wolf meat to eat.


    If he was a normal human, Jerome would be hard-pressed to eat wolf meat. Carnivores occupy a higher position in the food chain, preying on other animals.


    For a normal human, eating this meat would have led to the accumulation of various toxins in their bodies including heavy metals like mercury among many other things. But thankfully, sacred artists were immune to most diseases that pose a risk to mere mortals.


    He wondered where the line would be drawn. What diseases would sacred artists find difficult to heal naturally? He had never found any so far and none of the books in the library talked about diseases.


    Jerome stored the rest in his storage bag which can preserve perishable goods for many days before they start getting spoilt. A portion of the wolf''s meat sizzled over an open flame, sustaining him as he savored the taste of victory mingled with roasted sustenance.


    With the clean-up completed, he sat down to meditate. His mind was a chaotic mess. He brought out the mind-calming stone and immediately his state of mind began to improve.


    Much better. His anger and agitation disappeared, and he entered into a meditative state, allowing the tranquility in the air to guide him back to equilibrium.


    ~~~


    Every Spirit Realm expert in the towers around the mountains was on the edge of their seats, held spellbound since Jerome first beat up Hedon. This time around they watched him do the unthinkable ¡ª slay a Sunfire Wolf.


    ¡°That lad possesses the heart of a beast, Lord Rihal,¡± the head guard who stopped the fight between Jerome and Hedon in the Keep said next to Rihal. ¡°I believe he¡¯ll do great if he got a good head on his shoulders, and a good master to guide him.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Rihal hummed in response. He could hear the Spirit Realm experts in the room whispering one to another. The undercurrent of their speculation filled his ears. They also believed great things lay before his disciple. He could also sense the discontent from one not-so-subtle sacred artist.


    ¡°If you¡¯ve got something to say, Tekkel Alvric¡­say it,¡± he announced. The whispers died down and every other expert turned to a handsomely dressed sacred artist sitting at the back of the room with a scowl on his face.


    Tekkel Alvric clenched his jaw as he looked away. He¡¯d been scowling at Rihal for a while now, the intent in his gaze apparent for all to see. ¡°No comment, Lord Rihal,¡± he said tightly with barely restrained ill-intent as he got up from his seat. ¡°I¡¯ll be taking my leave since the show is over.¡±


    ¡°Thought so,¡± Rihal muttered before concentrating on the projection in front of him. The wolf¡¯s body alone would fetch a hefty sum in the marketplace. Alchemists would want its core and Artifact Refiners would fight to get its bones and hide. But he was sure it would never leave the Royal Estate.


    No one knew if there were any treasures in the Sunfire Wolf¡¯s cave. No one had ever gone near its cave. So, they could only wait for Jerome to seek shelter at any of the towers around the mountains. Sprouts and Spirit Realm artists have been forbidden from going into the mountains. It remained a ceremonial ground for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep and anyone who did so would bring the wrath of the kingdom upon themselves.


    Pilgrims¡¯ Keep had no end time. The participants could stay in the mountains for as long as they wanted, as long as they could really. So, all of them had left which reduced the number of Spirit Realm experts left in the Keeps. Rihal wondered what Tekkel Alvric was still doing here though, since his charge was taken away on the very first day Pilgrims¡¯ Keep began. Though, he didn¡¯t need to wonder. He knew he was here to gauge the strength of the Blank who ousted his ward.


    Rihal chuckled. The outcome of this Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was not one he expected. Rihal was the most elated among all the experts gathered. When Jerome was planning to take on the Sunfire Wolf, he wanted to rush in there and drag him away from the mountains. He was on edge throughout the whole ordeal and only calmed down when he confirmed the death of the Sunfire Wolf.


    Kilian would be pleasantly surprised at the turn of events, he chuckled as he thought to himself. This brat was going to shake the world, and everyone here now knows it. What they don¡¯t know is he¡¯d be doing terrible things to humanity. Rihal¡¯s mood soured as the thought occurred to him.


    He sighed. What a twist in fate.


    ~~~


    Farryn. The Slums.


    ¡°What are you called, guard?¡±


    The guard stood up from his stool and whipped around at Tekkel Alvric¡¯s voice, but quickly took a step back.


    ¡°Milord!¡± he said, bowing as he took out the hookah mouthpiece from his mouth. He looked around in confusion, not expecting a noble to be here in the slum. ¡°I¡¯m guard 21. But what brings you to these parts, milord? The slum¡¯s a lowly place for one esteemed as you.¡±


    Tekkel could see him glancing at the orphanage from time to time. He just had to distract the guard enough for Hedon to do what he came for. But his being here alone was already suspicious. He didn¡¯t need to wear his clan¡¯s crest. All the guards in Farryn recognized him already.


    Vorthe would find out soon enough that a noble went into the slums just as Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was winding down, so he¡¯d have to use his pouch to silence the mouths of all the guards here, but no matter what he did, they¡¯d find out.


    The Royals weren¡¯t fools. Their intelligence network was a mystery to everyone, including the four Great Clans, which had always been a source of frustration.


    But this was the slums, where no one had a vested interest, except maybe for the royals ¡ª something that was also a source of frustration.


    ¡°Tch. What a waste of land,¡± he said, looking around. This place was prime real estate but they refused to develop it. Not his problem though.


    The guard coughed uncomfortably. ¡°The royals do what the royals think is best for the royals. Who are we to complain?¡± He said that like it was a slogan.


    ¡°True,¡± Tekkel said, nodding slightly, ¡°As long as we don¡¯t disturb their interest, whatever that is, we have nothing to worry about.¡± Just that they would come sniffing around soon after to find out for themselves what the Alvrics were doing in the slum. He kept that to himself though.


    The moon in the sky was bright and the atmosphere was cool. If not for the overpowering smell of piss in the air, he might have been able to relax. How did people live here?


    He sighed, getting into character once again. ¡°Just walking around to clear my head. Have you heard news from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± he gestured for the guard to pass him the hookah pipe and took a swig of the concoction.


    Better. The taste of apple and citrus hit his buds and he was momentarily distracted from the stench of his surroundings. He wouldn¡¯t normally smoke in a shitty environment like this but he had a mission.


    ¡°No, Senior. I haven¡¯t. Been busy working.¡± The guard offered him his stool and he sat down to enjoy the hookah.


    ¡°Ehn. This year¡¯s Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was an interesting one. Many new faces would become famous among the young ones,¡± he said with a smile.


    ¡°Ooh!¡± the guard exclaimed, already pining for the gist he knew was to come.


    ¡°One of them is in fact, from the slum. Perhaps that¡¯s why my legs unknowingly led me here.¡± Tekkel looked around once more, feigning unease.


    ¡°You don¡¯t gotta worry, milord,¡± 21 said, noticing the look on his face. ¡°Slummers ain¡¯t ever stayin¡¯ up late into the night.¡±


    He nodded, took out a pouch from his space ring, and shook it. The sound of coins rang out and the guard¡¯s eyes lit up, eyeing the pouch. ¡°I¡¯d rather it remains a secret that I visited the slums.¡±


    ¡°Have no fears, milord. No one would hear from this one that you were here.¡±


    He threw the pouch at the willing guard and went on to regale him with a tale of Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.

 29. Space Stone And Living Steel

    Jerome meditated for 21 days straight. The longest he had ever gone. It was also the most peaceful he had ever felt in a long while making him a little wistful for having to leave. But he had to; he couldn¡¯t remain in meditation forever.


    When he opened his eyes, there was a shine in them that wasn¡¯t there before. His core had advanced by leaps and bounds. It was denser and had started to take the shape of a sphere. Although it was still a cyclone, it spun faster, and its glow was much more pronounced.


    He felt better after the meditation. His mind was calmer, and his body was filled with energy. He took his time to look outside the cave as he wondered why no magic beast had come to claim this territory after the death of the Sunfire Wolf, but he couldn''t think of an answer.


    The makeshift traps he set up were still in place, so he went back into the cave to take a look at the lair of a magic beast that was equally as powerful as or maybe even more powerful than a Spirit Realm expert.


    The cave was filled with burnt carcasses. Piled up on one side of the cave walls. This was what the Sunfire wolf lived on. On the other side was a red glowing chunk of rock.


    This rock was as tall as Jerome. It was spherical and so wide that it¡¯d take at least three people of Jerome¡¯s height hugging the rock to complete a full circumference around it. Its surface was smooth and reflective as if polished to a shine. But it didn¡¯t seem artificial. Instead, it felt to the touch like it must have burnt up at a hot enough temperature to achieve that polished surface.


    Warm, he thought. It was giving off soothing energy ¡ª essence that felt like fire. Sunfire stone! Or at least it contains one. The Sunfire stone would be at the very center of the rock, transmitting its energy into the shell that he could touch and feel the heat from.


    ¡°Ahahah!¡± he laughed, elated. He nodded his head surmising that he was correct with that assumption. They didn¡¯t call the Sunfire Wolf that name for nothing. It must have been because of the Sunfire Stone it was absorbing energy from. There was only one conclusion he came to.


    The Sunfire stone was a meteorite. A very large meteorite. One that would have caused a large enough crater when it first landed here. The Sunfire wolf must have been the first to find it and start absorbing its essence by just being in close proximity and cycling.


    ¡°Now, how do I get to move you out of here without drawing attention to myself?¡± He didn¡¯t bother trying to absorb it. Blanks couldn¡¯t absorb attributed essence, which was a bummer. They had to depend on the pure essence in the air or get high-grade stone crystals. Jerome remembered he had read of it being sold somewhere in the city of Farryn. But it was beyond him right now as he would need a lot of crystal coins to buy something worth sustaining him.


    Can it fit inside my storage bag? The storage bag was choked full of arrows right now.


    He quickly emptied his storage bag and experimented to see if the tiny pouch could fit in something as big as the rock in front of him.


    This feels stupid, he thought, embarrassed. Common sense told him that the mouth of the pouch was too tiny to take in something as big as this rock. But he tried anyway.


    ¡°You never know what could happen,¡± he muttered to himself and placed the open pouch on the rock.


    Right then the mouth of the pouch grew wider until the whole pouch was like a flat piece of brown hide plastered on the rock. It grew wider and wider still until it covered the whole rock and then it shrunk back to its normal size.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped. The scene in front of him was like something straight out of a Harry Potter movie. He quickly picked up the pouch to test its weight and laughed happily, caressing it as he put all his other stuff into the storage bag.


    It¡¯s as light as a feather, he thought with a smile. There were fifteen arrows left by the time the pouch was full. Jerome tied them up and carried them on his back since they couldn¡¯t fit into his quiver.


    ¡°Would be a waste to leave precious weapons behind,¡± he muttered. He paused checking himself for the map. Once he found it he made to leave the cave. As he was departing, a glint of metal caught his eye. He looked over at the pile of burnt carcasses, walked over, and dug through.


    What he saw made him curious and sympathetic. A dead boy, burnt to the bone. On his forearms was a set of identical gauntlets that looked to still be in pristine condition. Jerome sighed. The kid had probably come here to participate in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep but lost his life to the Sunfire wolf.


    ¡°Sorry about this,¡± he muttered before breaking off the skeletal arms to examine the gauntlets for a way to remove them. His phalanges were exposed at the end of the gauntlet and it covered the whole of the radius. But nothing he did separated the gauntlets from the arms. He was about to give up when he mistakenly cut his finger with a sharp-edged bone.


    Drops of blood fell on the right gauntlet as he raised his finger to eye level. The gauntlet melted away from the skeletal arm and wrapped around his right forearm like living liquid metal, underneath his own vambrace. He raised his eyebrows in surprise after which he chuckled and repeated the process on the left-arm gauntlet.


    One of the books in Kilian¡¯s library discussed this phenomenon, he remembered. It was called ¡®bonding¡¯. Basically, you use a few drops of blood to bond with an artifact. How many drops depended on the strength of the artifact. The more powerful the artifact the more blood that is needed to bind it to oneself.


    The gauntlets felt like they were alive. They were glued to his skin and moved with his arms. Like with the dead boy, his fingers were exposed as though he was wearing a fingerless glove. With a thought, they could take any form he wanted, but they would always remain connected to him. They couldn¡¯t function independently from him. Jerome morphed them into vambraces, hiding them beneath the one he wore.


    ¡°Shweet,¡± he said with a smile.


    He extended both like a whip, lashing around the cave. The whips tore out great gashes from the cave walls. This made Jerome pleasantly surprised. The metal they were made from must be really high-grade, Jerome thought then looked at the dead corpse deciding to bury him properly. He went ahead to dig a hole inside the wolf¡¯s den to lay the dead boy to rest.


    Jerome decided to study the gauntlets well before leaving the cave. He had put the dead boy to rest. He had a lot of food and water, so he didn¡¯t need to go out. He sat down cross-legged and started studying the gauntlets.


    ~~~


    Time passed by quickly. Thirty days later, Jerome exited the cave, refreshed and stronger than he was before. He had gained a lot from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep and now it was time to leave. Sniffing the air as he came out of the cave, he sensed he was the only human in at least a mile around. He took in great gulps of air, just to be sure. Interesting, he thought. Everyone else had left Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    The Sunfire Wolf¡¯s meat he¡¯d been eating throughout these thirty days was a great source of strength. His body was sturdier than ever, and his senses had received a boost. The air itself was bringing him information. He could now sense the essence in the air better than he did before. It was chaotic in some places and calm in others ¡ª like patches of storm clouds in the stratosphere.


    ¡°It¡¯s probably documented that eating a magic beast, especially one in a more advanced Realm will do a sacred artist good,¡± he said to no one in particular as he flexed his shoulders.


    He walked towards the tower closest to him as the sun climbed up in the sky. He was in no hurry, so it was like taking a stroll.


    He thought back to how he killed the Sunfire Wolf and couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. He reached into his storage bag and held the mind-calming stone for assurance.


    The mountains were a beautiful sight to behold if you weren¡¯t struggling for survival every day. Everywhere he looked was green and beautiful. It never snowed in Farryn. The inhabitants of the city usually tell their kids tales about snow. Even in the slums. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but think how beautiful the mountains in the distance would look if they were snowcapped.


    He soon reached the tower and was welcomed with rousing applause from the guards as they patted him on the shoulder to show that they acknowledged him. Jerome smiled at the guards and bowed lightly to them.


    ¡°Had fun, didn¡¯t you?¡± Rihal said as he walked up to him smiling.


    Jerome smiled at him and responded, ¡°At least say ¡®good job¡¯!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that,¡± Rihal said and all the guards burst out laughing.


    ~~~


    ¡°You¡¯re the most famous Blank in Farryn right now, you know?¡± Rihal said as they made their way back to the Royal Estate.


    ¡°Hmm? What¡¯d you mean?¡± Jerome asked.


    Rihal chuckled as he vaulted over a boulder, speeding through the forest.


    ¡°There are artifacts used to surveil Blanks during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Every Great family has one, tier two families as well.¡±


    ¡°Interesting naming system. We just say high-class, mid-class, and low-class in the slums¡­wait, are you saying everything that happened during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± Jerome asked as he caught up with Rihal. The books in the library never said anything about them being watched during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He was so caught up in dealing with his emotions that he never stopped to think of such a possibility. And of course, they¡¯d be watched. The scions from the Great Clans like Hedon and the other girl he fought couldn¡¯t be left alone unsupervised in a place as dangerous as Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    Some rite of passage this is then, he thought to himself. If the Blanks are being monitored it takes away from the weight of the rite in the mind ¡ª well, once you get to find out about it.


    Rihal chuckled, ¡°You¡¯ve gained quite a few rivals I believe¡­and enemies.¡±


    Jerome frowned and looked away.


    ¡°What happened back there?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­I just¡­¡± Jerome sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know what came over me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not complaining,¡± Rihal chuckled. ¡°He needed to be taught a lesson, and you¡¯ve proven yourself. The Sunfire Wolf absorbs its fire from the Sunfire stone. By the time it finishes absorbing the stone, it would¡¯ve become an existence equal to a Sage with extremely high intellect.¡±


    They both vaulted over a deer. The oblivious creature looked up from its drink and scurried away.


    ¡°It would also gain the ability to speak. That kind of power would¡¯ve become a threat to Vorthe. It was good you nipped it in the bud.¡±


    Jerome thought about it for a moment. ¡°Since the Blanks are being monitored, shouldn¡¯t Vorthe also monitor the surrounding magical beast?... You know, just so they don¡¯t grow too, powerful. This should make it easier to nip them in the bud like you say.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t interfere with the grounds on which Pilgrims¡¯ Keep is held, Jerome. Every clan knows that besides being a training ground for their younglings, these grounds are rich in ore and minerals.¡±


    ¡°Ah! I see. And here comes the politics of a kingdom. Truly Rihal, I¡¯m surprised we haven¡¯t talked about that.¡±


    ¡°I steer clear of politics as best as I can,¡± Rihal answered with a chuckle.


    ¡°But, Rihal. The Sunfire Wolf is reason enough for the Royal Family to call for an expedition for another culling, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Rihal just shrugged mid-air and kept quiet.


    Jerome coughed uncomfortably after a while. ¡°Rihal, the Sunfire stone¡­¡± he started to say.


    ¡°Everything you obtained is yours to do with as you please, Jerome. No one will take anything away from you,¡± Rihal said.


    Jerome let out a breath of relief he didn¡¯t know he was holding in. If the Royal Family wanted to take away his Sunfire stone, there was nothing he could do about it. Except maybe gnash his teeth and complain. He might not even be able to complain. One more reason why he needed to become more powerful.


    ¡°Did you find any other treasures in the cave?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°A pair of gauntlets like liquid metal,¡± Jerome responded, taking care to observe Rihal¡¯s reaction.


    The man¡¯s brows rose. ¡°That¡¯s a good find,¡± he said, quickly reigning in his surprise. ¡°Did you bond with it?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Jerome said, smiling coyly. Even if he hadn¡¯t he wouldn¡¯t mention it. Although he wouldn¡¯t have been able to get the gauntlets out of the skeletal arms they were connected to.


    Rihal nodded and said nothing more.


    ¡°Do you know what it¡¯s made of?¡± Jerome asked. He guessed his mentor was waiting for him to ask before telling him more about it. And he was also curious about it.


    ¡°An artificer bought the metal at an auction in Giza, a city two hundred thousand miles east of Farryn,¡± Rihal started. ¡°He succeeded in refining it into a pair of gauntlets after a hundred years and sold it at an auction in Farryn twenty years ago.¡±


    ¡°A hundred years!¡± Jerome exclaimed. That was quite shocking. Did it really take that much time to refine artifacts? He thought to himself.


    ¡°The metal is called Visha Stirh¡¯aun in the old tongue,¡± Rihal continued, ¡°It means living steel¡­or flowing steel. It¡¯s a rare metal not because it¡¯s rare to find but because it¡¯s extremely difficult to mine. The flowing steel is capable of devouring the blood of any being in merely a few breaths. Those who mine it usually make sure not to touch it¡­ or let it touch them,¡± Rihal emphasized.


    Jerome shivered as he remembered his nightmare from a few days ago; the blood, the monster that he was, the golden light, the¡ª


    ¡°Jerome?¡±


    He woke up with a start.


    ¡°Let it...touch them?¡± Jerome asked, quickly recovering.


    ¡°It ain¡¯t called living steel for nothing,¡± Rihal said.


    It was evening already when they got to the edge of the Royal Estate. They were met by a smiling Kilian who was waiting for them. Jerome bowed low as he came to stand in front of Kilian, noting the jovial atmosphere around him.


    ¡°You may rise,¡± said Kilian Vorthe, still smiling. ¡°You¡¯ve made the Royal family proud, Jerome. You can rest for a few days before commencing your training.¡±


    ¡°If your Lordship wouldn¡¯t mind, I would like to visit my old home in the slums,¡± Jerome said hopefully. He believed he had earned it. And it was in his rights to ask for it.


    ¡°That can be arranged,¡± Kilian said. And Jerome bowed gratefully.


    ¡°Our Royal Alchemist and Artificer would like to meet with you,¡± Kilian said. A maid behind him came forward to lead Jerome away.


    After he left, Rihal asked Kilian, ¡°So, what¡¯s your assessment of him now?¡± his voice was smug and full of pride. The kid had earned a name for himself in the hearts of everyone who had seen him take down the Sunfire Wolf.


    Kilian¡¯s expression turned serious. ¡°The Sovereign is coming home,¡± he said.

 30. Ajanai

    The Mining City of Tormar, East Central Vorthe, 400 years ago.


    ¡°When is it expected to arrive?¡±


    ¡°A fourth of a fourth¡¯s time, Governor,¡± the scout said.


    ¡°Blasted! Close the gates and sound the bells. Guards on the walls! Berma! Where¡¯s Berma?!¡± the Governor roared. They were under siege, not by an army, but by a single foe. A monster of terrifying power.


    ¡°This is a mining city, damn it!¡± Governor Duran Vorthe roared.


    ¡°You called, Governor!¡± Berma arrived bowing deeply with a fist to his chest.


    ¡°Quickly, take this to Farryn. You need only crush it when you¡¯re about a thousand paces away from the city.¡±


    Berma looked at the object the Governor pushed into his hand. It was a round black tablet made of unknown material. He quickly placed it in his storage ring and ran off.


    The city bells rang at that moment. Duran could hear the inhabitants of Tormar from miles away close-up shop, many scurrying into their homes.


    ¡°Ah,¡± he sighed, the communications rune grafted into the skin of his upper arm glowed as he quickly sent a message to his personal guard. Duran quickly reached his wardrobe and opened a secret compartment. A golden glint reflected on the walls of the wardrobe to reveal a suit of armor in pristine condition. He had never worn this armor in his life. He had never had a reason to, but now¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s reached the north wall, governor,¡± a soft voice reached him from behind the dark red blinds of his floor-to-ceiling window.


    ¡°Get my son out of here,¡± Duran said as he donned his heavy breastplate.


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°You are duty-bound to do as I bid, Milena,¡± he said a little forcefully. Milena was his guard, sworn to protect him and do his bidding. She wouldn¡¯t go against his words, not if she valued her reputation.


    ¡°...Yes, governor. May the heavens grant your soul safe passage to Valhalla¡¯s gate, and may the stars be there to guide you yonder.¡±


    There was that Diviner faith. Again. ¡°We Vorthes do not care for gods and their petty reign,¡± Duran spat. His forefathers had fought against gods. They were petty and arrogant, uncaring except for their own end.


    Milena vanished with no trace of ever being there.


    ¡°Godspeed, Milena,¡± Duran muttered. It wasn¡¯t his choice to be hard on her. But his son was all that mattered to him now. The Dark One was here and there was no stopping him.


    A battle raged on the outskirts of the city. The ground quaked as parts of the city wall came crumbling down. In no time, the enemy broke through the city¡¯s defenses, and darkness deeper than the night spread out, paralyzing everyone around.


    ¡°Cease!¡± Duran roared as he shot forward in flight. He saw the carnage wrought by the monster and his anger was kindled.


    Clad in golden armor, and brandishing a golden sword, he slashed at the fiend, creating a giant sword wave of golden light that pushed through the darkness in the direction of the monster.


    The monster growled. With a swipe of its clawed hand, it commanded the darkness and destroyed the sword wave causing a shockwave to spread throughout the city. Houses crumbled in the distance and many of the inhabitants of the city died in droves. Many burst into blood and pulp as the shockwave spread throughout the city.


    Duran scanned the city with his perception, taking note of the damage and he cursed under his breath. The monster extended the darkness towards Duran like the gnarled hand of a crone.


    ¡°Do not get too close,¡± deputy governor Gardis Vorthe spoke as he slashed with his sword, destroying the tendrils of darkness reaching for Duran. ¡°It is powerful beyond its Realm.¡±


    They both hovered mid-air out of range of the monster as the darkness encroached upon them. Golden scripts of ancient origins hovered around them like a second layer of protection as they circled around the creature to attack from its blind spots. They danced around brandishing their swords covered in golden light.


    Governor Duran tried to wield the essence in the air to his advantage but to no avail.


    ¡°Stop, Duran,¡± Gardis cautioned. ¡°The essence in the air has already been corrupted by its dark essence.¡±


    Duran cursed. He wasn¡¯t as experienced in wielding essence as Gardis. In fact, Gardis was the real muscle here, he was only an experienced miner who had gathered journeymen to work for him. If he had known such a thing would have happened, he would have requested Farryn to mobilize more advanced sacred artists.


    They both moved at lightning speeds, creating sonic booms in the air as they danced around the monster. With the swipe of a clawed hand, the creature destroyed three buildings, gathering the debris in the air with the darkness and knocking Duran out of the sky.


    ¡°Blasted!¡± he roared as he was knocked into a few more buildings. A wall of darkness appeared in front of Duran and he quickly halted mid-air. Blazing light wrapped around him to prevent the darkness from infecting him.


    ¡°Careful,¡± Gardis said.


    The creature had broken their rhythm, going for the weaker of the two Sages. It shot towards Duran at high speeds, aiming to take him down. Gardis raced after it, severing tendrils of darkness and pushing back mental attacks. ¡°Hold on, Duran!¡±


    Duran Vorthe was not a warrior, at least not in the same capacity as Gardis. Duran continued destroying tendrils of darkness that were crippling his ability to sense or ¡®see¡¯ his foe.


    Unbeknownst to him, the fiend had gotten behind him. The monster attacked but Gardis¡¯ sword pierced through the darkness. The darkness collapsed in on itself as the golden light from the sword pushed it back. Gardis stabbed through its jaw. The monster screamed and went wild. It brandished the darkness like myriads of blades piercing through them both.


    ~~~


    Duten Vorthe struggled at the hands of his father¡¯s bodyguard as she dragged him away from the destruction in Tormar. Milena was a Spirit Realm expert and was far stronger than he was. A few of the members of his House fled but the rest of the city was immediately covered by darkness so deep, it swallowed even light around it.


    ¡®What could be so evil as to destroy a whole city?¡¯ He thought in tears. His city was gone, and his father died protecting it. This was a great humiliation of their House. What would others say? How would he be viewed in the eyes of the other Royals? The boy who ran away from a monster?


    ~~~


    The Royal Estate in Farryn, Central Capital of Vorthe. Present Day.


    I could just snap him in two right now and be done with it, Elder Duten Vorthe thought to himself in anger. The brat in front of him was so small, with thin limbs and a beautiful face. One could mistake him for a girl. Who would ever know that such an innocent-looking child would grow up to become an abomination?


    Even now he could see the seed of darkness swirling at the center of the child¡¯s core ¡ª tiny and unprovoking. That is until the mountains call to him. At least then they could get rid of the insect before his madness takes over completely. There was enough to deal with in Vorthe as it were. The Royal Family didn¡¯t have the luxury to add a mentally ill disciple to it. And this mental illness wasn¡¯t one they could put aside.


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    Duten held back his tongue to stop himself from saying something he would regret. The child is never to know or suspect what he is, or what he was to become. The laws set by the ¡®Curia Regis¡¯ about the Dark One and his awakening were without parallels. Anyone who breaks them would face the wrath of the Sovereign. For they could bring down all that Vorthe had worked to establish throughout history.


    ¡°Rise,¡± Duten commanded in a deep voice. He looked the kid in the eyes for a few breaths more before leading him into a room with a large round table where he stood and asked Jerome for the Core of the Sunfire Wolf.


    Elder Duten Vorthe was the Head Alchemist of the Royal family and a grandmaster of the Alchemic Path. He was a tall broad-chested man with a clean-shaven handsome face that made him look to be in his mid-thirties. But he always looked like he was spoiling for a fight.


    Duten had heard that the fated Dark One had killed a Sunfire Wolf and quickly requested to meet with him. Every Elder of the royal family in addition to a few other vital members of the family was in the know as to Jerome¡¯s true identity. They didn¡¯t like it, but they could do nothing about it.


    ~~~


    Jerome was confused and a bit upset. He¡¯d never met this Elder before, so why was he angry at him? Did he lose a child in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep? Jerome thought. And what¡¯s with his eyes?


    The Elder¡¯s eyes were like Rihal¡¯s, except for the color, a deep unnatural purple with archaic runes etched into them. The ¡®Ajanai¡¯. Jerome had come to know that it wasn¡¯t just runes but ¡®Runework¡¯: a network of ancient runes of power that give the wielder abilities. Rihal had declared him ready to learn this when he returned to the keep. But the Elder¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t give him the same feeling Rihal¡¯s did.


    Is it something one develops at a certain Realm? Jerome thought to himself. The Elder¡¯s pupils returned to their normal black color, and he walked in as if nothing had happened out of the ordinary, which left Jerome even more confused. Rihal¡¯s eyes never went back to normal, he thought.


    Throughout their journey to the Keep and back. It wasn¡¯t until they were at the edge of the Royal Estate that Rihal put on the band to cover his eyes and took out his walking stick.


    Which means something¡¯s wrong with Rihal¡¯s eyes, Jerome concluded. He went in after the Elder and followed him to a large circular table.


    ¡°Hand over the core,¡± Elder Duten ordered and Jerome was taken aback.


    ¡°Elder I was told that my spoils during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep are mine to do with as I pleased so...¡± Jerome tried to explain without sounding disrespectful or angry. Is this Elder trying to steal from me? he thought. How shameful!


    Elder Duten didn¡¯t listen to him. He held his hand out and Jerome¡¯s pouch floated to his outstretched hand. Then he took out the Sunfire Wolf¡¯s core, examined it, and put it in his storage ring. All the while Jerome tried to reign in his anger. He never knew sacred artists could do that. But being able to do so, didn¡¯t mean it was right. Especially someone as esteemed as an Elder.


    So an Elder could just walk up to people and levitate their stuff out of their belts? Jerome shook as he clenched his fists and teeth. And Vorthe talked about respect when they weren¡¯t reciprocating it. He nearly hissed to show his displeasure but held himself back. There were some deeds one couldn¡¯t undo after they were done. No amount of pleas would pacify an Elder if they were insulted by a mere disciple.


    Elder Duten waved his hand and two pouches dropped in front of Jerome. ¡°You may leave,¡± he commanded.


    Jerome picked up both pouches and put them away. ¡°Thank you for your generosity, Elder,¡± he said and walked out while burning with rage. Not only couldn¡¯t he complain about the injustice, but he had to also thank the motherfucker for being ¡®generous¡¯?


    Jerome examined both pouches the moment he was out of the Elders chambers. One of the pouches was his with everything intact in it. The other was filled with high-grade crystal coins. So many that he had never seen before.


    He knew what they were because of the aura they emitted. They were pure in essence. The only other comparison he could make was the mid-grade crystal stone he saw and sensed when Rihal threw it to the disciple at the entrance of the estate. That was a year ago, after Mehn Agrh¡¯ur.


    When Jerome got to the Artificer, Grandmaster Fesir Vorthe, the same process was repeated. He ¡®unwillingly¡¯ handed over his storage bag for inspection. When he got back to his room in Kilian¡¯s Palace he was fuming with rage. He quickly took out the mind-calming stone and started to meditate.


    This was his first encounter with such important figures in the Royal family and it was regrettable.


    Jerome meditated until his anger ebbed. Then he brought out the pouches filled with coins to have a better look. Surprisingly, they were both storage bags and were filled to the brim with high-grade crystal coins.


    Pulling a few of the highs out, Jerome laid them in front of him on his bed to examine them. The sparkling sky-blue, gem-like coins were aesthetically pleasing and cut with more precision, that he would have sworn they were processed on a production line.


    At the center of each coin was a faintly glowing rune on each side of the coin, carved with a golden substance that looked like liquid light. It was mesmerizing to look at. Their flat edges also had the runes scribbled around them.


    Jerome could tell that the different runes weren¡¯t isolated on the surface of the coin ¡ª even though his eyes told him they were ¡ª but were connected together for a specific purpose. Together they formed an Ajanai. He wouldn¡¯t have known this if Rihal hadn¡¯t educated him about the Ajanai.


    ¡°So this is a high-grade coin,¡± he muttered to himself.


    ¡°And you¡¯d be wise to keep it to yourself.¡± Rihal¡¯s voice reached him from behind his door on the outside of his room.


    Jerome looked up from the coin. ¡°The door isn¡¯t locked,¡± he said.


    Rihal walked in and closed the door. ¡°I¡¯ve never known a single disciple that earned highs after their first adventure. You keep surprising me, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome grinned but quickly turned serious. ¡°Rihal, you said the Ajanai wasn¡¯t just runes but runework.¡± He changed the topic of discourse.


    ¡°A network of runes that give its wielder abilities, yes.¡± Rihal nodded.


    ¡°Well, is it safe to say that it¡¯s used on other objects like the coin?¡± He held up a glittering coin to show Rihal the rune.


    Rihal threw him a mid as he sat on the table. ¡°Yes, it is. The Ajanai are used for a lot of things. Many of which I¡¯m not authorized to discuss with you.¡± he gave Jerome a look but Jerome just shrugged, inspecting the mid as he did the high. ¡°For our currency, it¡¯s both a trademark and for preserving the essence in the coin.


    ¡°Crystal stones are mined and minted into coins, but they can¡¯t remain so for long in the open air. They¡¯ll dissipate with time, their essence becoming a part of the ambient essence of the ether. The Ajanai is used to keep that from happening.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s pretty neat. So crystal stones can¡¯t preserve their essence themselves?¡±


    ¡°No. It¡¯s their nature to sublime. Keep the highs a secret and out of sight though. Money can be tempting, even for the strong-willed.¡± He stood up to go. ¡°When will you be going to the orphanage?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow. Gotta prepare some gifts for the children and the caretakers first.¡± Jerome grinned.


    ¡°Get a maid to assist you then,¡± Rihal said before walking to the door.


    ¡°Wait, how many lows equal a mid, and how many mids equal a high.¡±


    Rihal turned back to answer. ¡°Didn¡¯t tell you that before, did I?¡±


    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t,¡± Jerome said, almost accusatorily.


    Rihal just shrugged. ¡°A hundred lows make one mid and a hundred mids make one high.¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°How may I be of help to you, young disciple?¡± The maid asked.


    ¡°Call me Jerome. What¡¯s your name?¡± Jerome asked.


    She looked surprised by the question but answered, nonetheless. ¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡±


    He expected that, and he would have loved to call her something, only, he didn¡¯t know what toll it¡¯d take on him. ¡°What are you called then?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The maids in the Palace are numbered. I¡¯m number seventeen,¡± she said.


    How sad, Jerome thought. He also observed that she didn¡¯t make eye contact when speaking. ¡°Very well. I need everything on this list as soon as possible,¡± he said, handing her a sheet of paper with a list of items. ¡°And if it¡¯s possible to get more storage bags, do it.¡±


    ¡°Pardon, disciple Jerome, but storage bags have to be requested personally. Please forgive my curtness,¡± seventeen said, bowing slightly.


    ¡°No worries,¡± Jerome replied and waved her off. Disciple Jerome, huh? It didn¡¯t matter that her foundation was more advanced than his own, she still addressed him with respect, even going as far as bowing lightly. That was an uncomfortable conversation to have so he didn¡¯t bother asking her why she addressed him the way she did.


    Jerome had felt the weight of her presence the moment she came into his room. She was Sprout. And a powerful one too, he felt. All the more reason why he was impressed with her level of respect and discipline.


    After seventeen left, Jerome went in search of Kilian. He walked towards the stairs leading to the upper floors while listening to the flurry of activities around him. It had been a year since he left, and he missed his friends and siblings. He wondered if Doti, Dreamer, and Whistle would have visited the orphanage. This would be a good time to find out how they were doing as well.


    Ash would be twelve this year, he thought. The baby girl who was found at the doors of the orphanage covered in ash, who used to cry herself to sleep because of hunger would shed her mortality this year. He smiled to himself as he recalled their faces, including the ones that had no names at all. These kids were family to him.


    It seems the Palace is a lot more active today than usual. Is there a guest coming in? he mused. People were moving things here and there. Some people were re-coating a wall that had lost its color, and there were a few more walls like that around the Palace. Jerome avoided the throng of people moving through the corridors as he headed toward Kilian¡¯s study. He shut out the cacophony of voices only to hear something that surprised him.


    ¡°...but he¡¯s only thirteen!¡±

 31. Flight

    Jerome paused for a bit.


    Rihal? What¡¯s got him all worked up, he thought. He was still a few hundred paces and two floors away from Kilian¡¯s study, but his hearing had improved greatly ever since Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Not only that, his sense of smell and sight had also improved. Jerome honed in with his ears, wanting to hear more.


    ¡°The Elders say it¡¯s dangerous to have him around since he had an episode during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.  Please close the do¡ª¡± and Kilian¡¯s voice was cut off just like that.


    Damn! Now he was curious. What are they discussing about me? Episode? What episode? They must mean the uncontrollable rage I felt almost throughout Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. How did they know about that? Could they monitor my emotions during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep? He remembered Rihal saying there were artifacts that monitored everything that happened during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    Do they have artifacts that could monitor emotions too? He quickly shook his head. That¡¯ll be absurd, Jerome racked his brain for an answer but found none. His mind flashed to Three, the kid he dreamt about during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, and all the other kids. They all had one thing in common as they grew older, rage which seemed to never go away. He began climbing the stairs that led to Kilian¡¯s floor without even thinking to do so. His steps, fluid and graceful like he was gliding on air.


    Do I have the same issues as those kids? But I was able to keep my rage in check¡­well, partly because of the mind-calming stone. Majorly, that is. If we¡¯re having the same symptoms, did they dream the same dreams?


    ¡°...Jerome?¡±


    When he came out of his musings, he was standing in front of Rihal. ¡°...Yes. I have a request,¡± he said, quickly regaining his composure. Rihal said nothing, implying that he should go ahead and make his request.


    ¡°I need storage bags to carry my gifts for the children of the Orphanage to the slums,¡± he continued.


    ¡°How many?¡± Kilian asked from inside his study. Jerome could sense that whatever the both of them were discussing or arguing about ¡ª which definitely involved him ¡ª was very important and could change things for him. He could almost taste the tension in the air.


    ¡°As...many as I can get,¡± he answered.


    ¡°Very well,¡± Kilian said and quickly scribbled a note on a piece of paper. ¡°Take this note to the south end of this floor. You¡¯d meet a guard there who would help meet your request.¡± He passed the note to Jerome.


    ¡°Why is the Palace so active today?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°The Sovereign is coming home,¡± Rihal said.


    Jerome looked from one man to the other. Neither of them revealed anything with their expressions. But he also felt like they were hiding something from him. Perhaps something he¡¯s not meant to know about. But it just made him want to know more.


    Why were they talking about him? What did they know about him that he didn¡¯t know? An ¡®episode¡¯? What the hell did that mean?


    ¡°Huh! Never knew he wasn¡¯t in Farryn,¡± he muttered as he left.


    ~~~


    ¡°He may act mature but he¡¯s still just a kid. I say we wait until the Patriarch gets home before making a decision.¡±


    Kilian sighed. If it were left to him, he¡¯d make sure Jerome got as much normalcy in life as possible. But some of these Elders were holding onto past grudges, none of which have anything to do with Jerome. The Elders had discussed Jerome¡¯s removal from the Royal Estate and even though Kilian had tried his best to defend Jerome during the meeting, there wasn¡¯t much he could do to change their decision.


    ¡°According to my research, Jerome isn¡¯t supposed to start showing any negative signs until he becomes a Spirit Realm artist. Pilgrims¡¯ Keep has brought out a side of him that shouldn¡¯t have awakened, in a manner of speaking,¡± Kilian said with a sigh. ¡°In the absence of the Patriarch, the First Elder makes all the decisions. It¡¯ll make no difference how much we try to delay or argue, they¡¯ve taken the decision they think is best for the Royal family¡ª¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s a stupid decision,¡± Rihal countered. His voice, tight with tension. He had been watching over Jerome for thirteen summers and he felt responsible for him.


    Rihal couldn¡¯t quite decide if he saw the child as his own or not, even though he knew Jerome wasn¡¯t. All that mattered was that he was Kaia¡¯s son ¡ª at least that¡¯s what he told himself. He couldn¡¯t let Jerome be treated like he had no life or choice of his own. He had let down his mother, and now he was letting down her son too.


    Kilian watched Rihal fume quietly in anger and sighed. He couldn¡¯t blame the man for being angry. Jerome¡¯s mother was the love of his life. Any sane person would feel responsible for the offspring of their dead lover. He wished he could do more but his hands were tied. He couldn¡¯t go against the Elders¡¯ ruling.


    ¡°We should prepare a place for him,¡± Kilian said, trying to compensate for not being able to sway the Elders. ¡°Preferably somewhere close to the orphanage. What do you think?¡±


    Rihal nodded silently, still not liking the decision.


    ¡°You should talk to him though. If he has any complaints, just let me know,¡± Kilian said.


    ¡°He won¡¯t.¡± Rihal disappeared on the spot.


    ~~~


    Rihal had been watching over Jerome since he was born, and he had taken a liking to the brat ever since. It didn¡¯t matter to him that Jerome was the fated Dark One, he was still a child nonetheless, and a good one at that. He had his bad moments and he was far from perfect, but that just made him want to protect the little devil even more.


    And he had hopes for Jerome that maybe¡­just maybe he would be different than all those who came before him.


    At this period of Jerome¡¯s life, they had to help him as much as possible to achieve clarity of mind, but this was probably his own bias. He didn¡¯t go through what those Elders who lost family members to the previous Dark One went through.


    Rihal sighed and was about to knock on Jerome¡¯s door when his communications rune glowed on the back of his palm. He quickly activated it only to hear Kilian telling him to abort. He disappeared on the spot, reappeared outside Kilian¡¯s study, and walked in.


    ¡°What happened?¡± he asked, his voice filled with urgency and hope. There was no reason for the Elders to change their minds except the Sovereign changed it for them.


    ¡°It sure is nice to have the ability to jump chunks of space, isn¡¯t it?¡± Kilian grinned sheepishly at him.


    ¡°Get to the point,¡± Rihal said impatiently.


    ¡°The Sovereign sent a message,¡± Kilian said.


    ¡°And?¡± Rihal tried to hurry him.


    ¡°The Sovereign said he can stay here, as long as we find out how he was able to reign in the beast?¡±


    A catch. Of course, there¡¯ll be a catch. This had never happened before. No fated Dark One had demonstrated the kind of skill and mental fortitude Jerome had. But wait¡­


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    ¡°Reign in the beast, what do you mean?¡± Rihal asked, clearly confused. He couldn¡¯t be blamed for his ignorance as not many among the Royals knew the details of what it meant to be the Dark One. Most of the younger generation didn¡¯t even know there was a Dark One.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know much about it either,¡± Kilian said. ¡°Apparently, none of the others before him were able to rein in their rage ¡ª the rage being the beast, or so the Elders say.¡±


    ¡°The rage is a¡­ beast? What the hell does that mean?¡± Rihal muttered, frustrated. But soon, it dawned on him what he just heard. ¡°You mean to say his predecessors were never able to quell their rage, but he did?¡±


    Kilian hummed his answer and smiled. Rihal laughed. ¡°The kid never stops to amaze,¡± he brightened.


    ¡°Kid?¡± Kilian asked with a raised eyebrow. He understood that Rihal was talking about Jerome but why use the term ¡®kid¡¯? A baby goat. Did he think less of Jerome?


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind me.¡± Rihal chuckled. ¡°Jerome has a way of getting on one¡¯s tongue with his strange use of words sometimes.¡±


    Kilian waved it off. ¡°So what do you think about how he did it,¡± Kilian asked as he popped a fruit into his mouth.


    ¡°No idea, but now I¡¯m curious to find out,¡± Rihal said as he reached his hand into the fruit basket on the table. He had thought Jerome was weird but now he was downright mysterious. ¡°He only revealed Adama¡¯s gauntlets and the Sunfire stone to me.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no rush. The Sovereign never specified haste.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. Let¡¯s give him this period to go enjoy familial company. I¡¯ll find out when he gets back.¡±


    ~~~


    Weird, Jerome thought. He had sensed someone at his door a few moments ago and went to check, hoping it was Rihal, but they were gone like they were never there.


    Jerome had finished his preparations. All he needed now was to head to the slums. The maid, Seventeen, was very efficient as well. She was able to gather everything on his list in very little time and very neatly arranged them to fit inside the storage bags he got from Rihal. All that was left to do now was wait for tomorrow but in the meantime, he practiced wielding Suzie.


    The next morning came quickly. The maid, Seventeen came to help him with any last-minute preparation before he left and they got talking about her.


    ¡°I know very little about my home kingdom. I was only five years old when we arrived in Vorthe, because of the war,¡± Seventeen said.


    ¡°Pathuma, you say.¡±


    ¡°Yes, disciple Jerome,¡± she answered. ¡°From what little I know of it, it was a war-torn kingdom at the north-western edges of Vorthe. It snowed almost all year round and food hardly grew there. Sailors crossing the sea to find new lands usually land on our shores. And they never came to make requests.¡±


    ¡°They came to seize land and resources,¡± Jerome finished for her. ¡°It must have been a great ordeal.¡± His gaze shifted once more to her with a new kind of respect.


    But he couldn¡¯t quite understand why a land that was cold all year round would attract settlers of any kind ¡ª even if they were there to take it for themselves.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t born there.¡± She shrugged. ¡°I was born on the way to Vorthe. My parents live and work in the Royal Estate too so I see them whenever I¡¯m off duty.¡±


    ¡°On the way to Vorthe? That must have been tough on them. I can¡¯t imagine.¡±


    Seventeen looked at him with curiosity. As if she never expected him to show any concern. Jerome smiled at her. ¡°I admired your parent¡¯s strength.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, disciple Jerome,¡± she said with a slight bow.


    ¡°It takes a strong mind to not only survive a war but also leave home to unknown lands. What if one wasn¡¯t welcome there? Your parents conquered great odds, seventeen.¡±


    She gave him the same look again but her eyes lit up a moment later and she smiled. ¡°Thank you, disciple Jerome,¡± she said. Her words of thanks this time around were different. They came from her heart. Jerome could tell he had given her a good impression of himself.


    Her story reminded him of himself during his past life. Weak and suffering. The doctors had said he was going to live a short life, yet he lived to be sixty. It was a grueling sixty years, nonetheless. And he had to depend on his parents and relatives throughout his life ¡ª even for the little things, the embarrassing things.


    Jerome clenched his jaw pushing the thought away. He had made up his mind years ago never to be in that situation again.


    ¡°Pathuma must have had immense resources that were worth killing for if wars were fought over it constantly.¡±


    Seventeen shrugged. ¡°All I know is someone very powerful perished at the border between Vorthe and Pathuma.¡±


    ¡°Ah! Makes sense.¡± Jerome nodded in understanding as he remembered Rihal¡¯s words about dead sacred artists and the treasure trove their corpses could become.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Rihal interrupted his musings from outside the room.


    Jerome got up slowly as he said, ¡°Well, have a great day seventeen, and make sure you don¡¯t get too comfortable with your level of advancement.¡±


    ¡°Yes, disciple Jerome,¡± seventeen said, as she gave a slight bow.


    ~~~


    ¡°Some people will never advance beyond Sprout, you know?¡± Rihal said as they walked out of the Palace.


    ¡°Hmm, but one should still feel motivated to do so, right?¡±


    Rihal shrugged. ¡°Some are just content with where they are.¡±


    ¡°Or they lack the resources to push forward,¡± Jerome rebutted.


    ¡°She has all the resources she needs, Jerome. Are we gonna start an argument early this morning?¡±


    ¡°You started it,¡± Jerome said with a chuckle.


    Rihal looked his way saying, ¡°Well, you¡¯re excited.¡±


    Jerome was grinning from ear to ear and he couldn¡¯t help it. It felt like years since he¡¯d been to the slums. Now, he couldn¡¯t wait to take off in the direction of the slums.


    ¡°You know you¡¯re very famous, right?¡­ and little,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not¡­little,¡± he scowled. Being in the body of a child was embarrassing enough, he didn¡¯t need to be reminded of it!


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°Either way others would try to take advantage of you. Keep your head down and be the smartest person in the room¡­or in the streets. Probably should have compelled you to wear your uniform.¡± He muttered that last part to himself.


    ¡°Yes, yes, father walrus, baby walrus would stick his nose in the snow.¡±


    ¡°Father walrus? I see myself more like an eagle,¡± Rihal complained, expecting a retort from his dearest disciple but got nothing. ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t respond. He just stood there as though in thought.


    ¡°It seems I¡¯m taking too much of your time, aren¡¯t I?¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°No, no, no, just want to test something out,¡± Jerome replied. He¡¯d been practicing all night and wanted to see the fruits of his labor.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t answer. He just stood there nodding and smiling as he observed the sky. Moments later, something silvery started bleeding out of his robes at his back. It covered most of his back and soon started taking shape.


    ¡°Is that¡­what I think it is?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± Jerome said excitedly. Wings sprouted out of his back. Wings like a bat¡¯s, but a lot broader and shinier.


    ¡°How are you doing that?!¡± Rihal exclaimed in shock. Jerome could tell by the look on Rihal¡¯s face that he had accidentally blurted that out. He laughed out loud in exhilaration.


    He spread his new wings and admired them. Each wing spanned six feet, as long as the height of a full-grown man. He began flapping his new wings clumsily, generating a strong wind in the process.


    ¡°Don¡¯t overexert yourself, Adama¡¯s gauntlets will take a lot out of you if you task it too hard,¡± Rihal said, shielding his eyes from the wind.


    ¡°Adama¡¯s gauntlets?¡±


    ¡°Adama was the name of its previous owner, but he disappeared during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep two decades ago, so everyone calls the flowing steel gauntlets, Adama¡¯s gauntlets.¡±


    ¡°Really? Well, it¡¯s Suzie now!¡±


    ¡°What sort of a name is that?¡± Rihal asked, befuddled. It sounded feminine, like something a girl would name a doll.


    ¡°Hey, be careful out there!¡± Rihal called out to him. ¡°The reason I allowed you the leeway to wear plain leather is because of your dispute with Hedon. Don¡¯t make me regret it!¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t answer. He just kept flapping his new wings hard as he rose off the ground. ¡°Hahahaha!¡± He laughed out loud, ¡°This is so amazing!¡±


    His altitude increased a few feet at a time until he began riding the wind. It was difficult at first but as time went on he got the hang of it, stabilizing the skeletal frame of his bat wings. Jerome flew in circles around the Palace as he screamed at the top of his lungs.


    He¡¯d never felt anything as thrilling or as exhilarating as flying. Nothing could compare to the feeling of the wind breezing past him, the feeling that he was on top of the world and everything and everyone else was beneath him. He felt free and powerful.

 32. Return To The Slums

    Jerome walked through a crowded street called Ters¡¯n as he browsed through shops for more gifts he wanted to give to his friends at the orphanage.


    ¡°For a somewhat medieval city, Farryn is kinda beautiful,¡± he muttered, smiling to himself as he stared at the beautiful Victorian housing units that lined both sides of the streets.


    Each low-rise building was beautifully built and had a store as an extension in front of it.


    ¡°Though the view must be way better from up there,¡± he mused, looking up at the sky. He wouldn¡¯t have bothered walking and would have flown straight to the orphanage had Rihal not poured cold water on his plan.


    Flying was prohibited inside the city.


    But this was good too. He was able to get some gifts for Ms Tara, Moss, and Old Wen, as a result.


    ¡°God I miss you guys,¡± he muttered even as he unconsciously quickened his steps. These were the people who took care of him when he was at the orphanage, so he had to reciprocate and take care of them in return.


    Jerome smiled as he reminisced on his time at the orphanage.


    Moss and Miss Tara took turns preparing meals for the kids ¡ª well, Ms. Tara more than Moss. And only when it was available. They were also in charge of sorting through whatever spoils came in from the kids¡¯ adventures, storing the spoils for later use or preserving them for feeding if there were consumables among them.


    Old Wen¡¯s the guard. Although he¡¯s old, he¡¯s built like a tree, and he¡¯s quite good at scaring away riff-raff.


    Contrary to what Rihal had said, people gave Jerome a wide berth on the streets and even in the stores he visited. Some customers and staff of the various stores he visited would bow low to him upon seeing him, it quickly became annoying.


    There goes being inconspicuous, he thought. At least I still have my anonymity. He pulled his hood down over his face to cover whatever bit was still exposed. Jerome had on a hooded black robe with fitted sleeves and black leather gloves. He was dressed as someone who wanted to keep a low profile. The usual crest of the Royal family was missing from his robes.


    He found himself in front of a six-story building ¡ª one of many in the street. A ten feet tall stone monolith was erected outside the building to add to its splendor. Carved on top of it was a sculpture of a man supporting a gigantic uncut crystal stone on his shoulders. The carved stone must have been 30 yards across.


    The sculpted stone glistened in the sun and he could sense the pure essence oozing off it. Jerome could tell that it was just an ordinary stone though, since no one in their right mind would mount a high grade crystal stone that huge outside their front door. Right? This was all just to show that they sold the purest uncut high-grade crystal stones.


    ¡°The Crystal Gateway,¡± he said, reading the inscription on the stone monolith. He chuckled. ¡°What a cheesy name.¡±


    He quickly walked toward the double doors at the entrance of the building to escape the stares of the pedestrians on the street. Maybe he could also buy his family resources to help in their advancement. Heaven knows they need it. Or as they say in Vorthe, ¡®Light knows they need it¡¯.


    One would think Vorthe was a religious kingdom. But Jerome had never laid eyes on a cathedral, or heard of a religious figure like a god. The Sovereign, though, was revered as a great leader but not to the extent that he was worshiped as an entity synonymous with a god.


    ¡°So many crystal stones,¡± Jerome said in awe the moment he stepped into the foyer, a grand and magnificent sight to behold. The hall was brimming with dense, pure essence. Huge sky-blue chunks of uncut high-grade crystal stones sat gallantly behind formation-protected, floor-to-ceiling shelves attached to the walls.


    ¡°Magnificent.¡± It was like a crystal stone gallery, except customers weren¡¯t here to admire art but to purchase the crystal stones.


    Giant crystal stones were flying off the shelves as he moved around the hall. The interior walls of the hall were literally glittering with dense essence from the high-grade crystal stones encased in the shelves attached to the wall.


    Someone came rushing out of a back door towards Jerome after a while.


    ¡°Gratitude for visiting our store, young lord?¡± The newcomer said. ¡°I¡¯m Tala¡¯an Taleed, the manager of the Crystal Gateway.¡±


    Many customers in the hall turned to see who was so important that the Crystal Gateway would send its manager to welcome them.


    ¡°How may I be of service to you?¡± Tala¡¯an Taleed asked.


    The manager was a rotund man who looked to be in his forties, but Jerome knew he¡¯d be very much older than that. The pressure he felt from the man was akin to what he felt from Kilian or Rihal, a Spirit Realm expert.


    Jerome quickly schooled his features. ¡°Yes, I¡¯d  like to purchase some uncut stone crystals.¡±


    ¡°How may I address you, senior?¡± he asked as he was led to a back room.


    ¡°You may call me Taleed, young lord,¡± said the shopkeeper.


    ¡°The House of Ores?¡±


    ¡°Yes, young lord, hahaha! The Tala¡¯ans have been the household name for high-grade stone crystals in Vorthe for millennia, thanks to our partnership with the Royal Family of course.¡±


    Unlike the traditional houses and clans in Vorthe who put their first names before their family names, there were some families, perhaps those whose ancestors came from the Eastern continent, whose family names came first before their first names. Tala¡¯an Taleed was from one such family. His accent was a dead giveaway as no one Jerome had met before spoke like him.


    ¡°Senior Taleed, I must say, I am not anyone of importance in Vorthe. And I wish to keep a low profile. I can¡¯t understand why everyone around here¡¯s acting with respect toward me, I¡¯m really not anyone important.¡±


    Tala¡¯an Taleed chuckled, ¡°Oh, I see. I¡¯m afraid  that is going to be impossible, young lord.¡±


    ¡°How so? I¡¯m not dressed in a way people can tell who I am.¡±


    ¡°Nobody needs to know who you are, young lord, your boots gave you away! Hahaha!¡± Taleed¡¯s jowls jiggled comically as he laughed loudly.


    ¡°Huh?!¡± Jerome exclaimed in confusion. ¡°My boots? How so?¡± He looked down to examine them for signs of the Royal crest but there were none.


    He loved his boots. They were new and shiny. But how could they give away his identity?


    ¡°That¡¯s because they¡¯re only worn by Royalty!¡± Taleed chortled loudly.


    Jerome¡¯s brows rose in surprise as he never expected that even his boots would have such uniqueness. He had made sure not to wear clothes with the Royal Family¡¯s crest so as not to attract attention, but things didn¡¯t go the way he wanted.


    This must be Rihal¡¯s doing, he thought to himself with a frown. He could imagine the smug look on Rihal¡¯s face for having pulled one on him.


    They entered a small room and Jerome noticed it was bare, save for a fairly wide stone platform attached to the wall opposite him. Taleed mounted the two feet high platform and Jerome followed suit.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a bumpy ride, young lord. Do forgive our inadequacies.¡±


    Jerome only had a moment to realize what the platform was. He felt essence pour out of Taleed and the platform began to quake, vibrating as if the whole building was about to come down on him. He wanted to reach out and brace himself on the wall but that would be very embarrassing.


    The platform slowly lifted into the air, still attached to the back wall. Now that he looked at it, he could see the joint where the platform met the wall and slid upwards. The roof over their heads seemed to move with them too. But unsurprisingly, the shaking of the platform did not stop.


    It was a very turbulent, uncomfortable, and noisy ride. After the ordeal, Jerome felt like he had ridden a horse for at least a whole day. The amount of strain his muscles were on from the pressure of the formation was tremendous; as if gravity tripled on the stone platform.


    ¡°Next time, Senior Taleed, we should use the stairs,¡± he said as they got off the elevator.


    ¡°Er, sorry about that, young lord,¡± Taleed said sheepishly. ¡°Sometimes I forget that the elevators of the royals are as high as the heavens compared to what can be found elsewhere.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t say,¡± Jerome deadpanned, looking up at him. Taleed reddened but cleared his throat, acting as if nothing awkward had just happened.


    ¡°I have heard tales from those who have had the honor to visit the Royal Estate once. They say the elevator built by Elder Duten is as smooth as a ride on the back of a phoenix. Haha! I can only imagine going on one of those. It must be an experience of a lifetime!¡± he bubbled with excitement, droning on. ¡°Oh, what I¡¯d give to visit the Royal Estate for a day!¡±


    Jerome had to follow quietly, enduring the rant as they walked. But soon after they came to a small, secluded hallway. Taleed walked him up to a door and opened it with a key on his person.


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    Jerome took in the room as he walked in with a critical eye. The room was small, and decked in shades of beige, orange, and white to give it a homely feel. There were a few cushion chairs around a small polished wooden table and nothing else.


    One could let down their guard in such a homey place, he thought.


    As they sat down, Taleed rang a little bell that was on the table and a maid walked in shortly after to serve tea. The maid walked out afterward and he pulled back his hood to reveal his face. Now that the manager knew ¡ª or thought ¡ª he was royalty, he was probably very safe.


    ¡°As the young lord has seen, Crystal Gateway sells one of the most important items sacred artists need. High-grade crystal stones take a lot of effort and money to mine, and also a lot of money to purchase¡­¡± Taleed droned on.


    Jerome shut him out a little as he slowly drank the tea in front of him. He understood that he was being given special treatment, so the manager took the opportunity to market his goods to him.


    ¡°How much?¡± Jerome asked. He couldn¡¯t afford the time to listen anymore.


    ¡°You are a prudent and straightforward man, young lord. We sell for three hundred mid-grade crystal coins per dervanis, that¡¯s the¡ª¡±


    ¡°The equivalent of a pound in the old tongue. I do know a few words in Aramanai, Senior Taleed,¡± Jerome said with a smirk.


    ¡°That¡¯s impressive young lord, most younglings these days do not concern themselves with the old tongue. It¡¯s good to know it won¡¯t die out with my generation,¡± Taleed spoke with labored breath. He had probably talked for too long. The man needed to check his weight and diet.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take four hundred pounds,¡± Jerome declared. He took out a storage bag and began counting out 1200 high-grade crystal coins on the table.


    ~~~


    The crystal coins whether high, mid, or low grade were all cut into shape from raw ores mined around Vorthe. They¡¯re preserved for years with the help of runes ¡ª the expertise of the Royal family. No one else could do it by law. The highs were the most precious of them all. And now 1200 of them were being counted out in front of him like it was nothing.


    Taleed¡¯s eyes filled with reverence ¡ª and a little greed ¡ª as he saw the growing heap of highs the young lord was counting out on his table. ¡°Gratitude, young lord,¡± he said with a slight bow after the young lord was done counting. ¡°You have truly made my day!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± the young lord asked with a puzzled look. Ah! Taleed couldn¡¯t fault him. Privilege was invisible to those who have it. The young lord clearly didn¡¯t know how rare the highs were.


    ¡°If I may, young lord. High-grade crystal coins are rare and not just anyone can possess one.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware of that.¡±


    ¡°I do transactions with them but have never held this much. I¡¯ve never had this much in my hands. You can imagine my commission on this young lord,¡± he said suggestively. He picked up a handful as he chortled lightly.


    ¡°Vorthe is the largest distributor of high-grade crystal stones on the continent! They own all the mines in their Territory. And the Great Clans own their own mines too. Albeit, there is no information of them ever mining high-grade crystal stones. There¡¯s very little I can do to get clients of esteem like you, you see!¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad I could be of help, Senior Taleed.¡± The young lord bowed from his seat.


    ¡°Not at all! Not at all! I¡¯m the one who should be paying you obeisance! Hahaha!¡± He quickly rang the little bell on the table to call for an attendant.


    ¡°So the highs,¡± the young lord suddenly said. His perfectly oiled and combed hair glistening in the low light of the room left a deeper impression on Taleed than even his small visage. ¡°What more can you tell me about the highs? About their commercial importance and use, that is.¡± He added two more to the pile with a smile.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Taleed quickly pocketed the two highs. ¡°Ahem. This is a ¡®not so public knowledge¡¯ but it¡¯s still public. The high-grade coin isn¡¯t a currency one used in day-to-day transactions. Instead it is used in transactions between nobles and kingdoms. I would advise the young lord not to openly flaunt them so as not to end up¡­ you know what I mean, young lord.¡±


    Taleed searched the face of the young Blank to see if he took offense. The young lord was nodding in concentration but there was not a single sign of anger in his eyes. He sighed in relief and went on.


    ¡°It can be used in auction houses and the purchase of land leases and precious treasures. But never for anything that would cost less than the price of ten highs. Vorthe also monitors them,¡± the young lord¡¯s eyes lit up in surprise at that. He dropped another high on the heap and Taleed quickly pocketed it.


    Taleed leaned into the information some more. ¡°They do it once or twice a moon. You¡¯d see the inscribed rune flash a few times before going back to normal. There might be other times but this is what experts that track the monitoring say.¡±


    ¡°Why is the monitoring being tracked?¡±


    ¡°Young lord, you may not know that there are many who seek to pirate Vorthe¡¯s coin.¡± The young lord¡¯s brows rose at that.


    ¡°That would cripple Vorthe¡¯s economy!¡±


    ¡°Yes, it will,¡± Taleed agreed, nodding solemnly. ¡°But thankfully, they have never succeeded. Vorthe catches up with them from time to time. The ones that are caught are brought to justice and life goes on for the rest of us.¡±


    The young lord nodded slowly in thought, digesting his words. Where was the attendant?


    Taleed was beginning to worry when someone knocked on the door. He flicked a finger to open the door. The attendant would have seen the pile of highs on the table if he hadn¡¯t quickly sucked them into his storage ring. Taleed also noticed the young lord pull his hood back over his head.


    Privacy was key when dealing with the nobles and royals like these. If they could trust him with their finances, they would want him to keep it a secret.


    ¡°Get me 400 pounds of the newly supplied highs. Use the best of our special storage boxes! Hurry!¡± the attendant scrambled out of the room.


    Most noble scions couldn¡¯t buy a quarter of what the young lord before him just bought and they did move around with guards. This one who happens to be royalty didn¡¯t even come with one. But appearances could be deceiving.


    He may have guards in the shadows. Who knows? Taleed looked around the room just to be sure. May the heavens have mercy on anyone who thinks to rob a Vorthe, because they wouldn¡¯t, he thought to himself as goose bumps rose on his skin and he shivered lightly.


    ~~~


    Moments after the attendant came and took his purchase order away, a group of attendants came into the room carrying heavy crate-like boxes. Jerome examined the craftsmanship of the crates with admiration.


    ¡°These crates were specially designed to preserve high-grade crystal stones for up to a decade! They are the specialty of Grandmaster Fesir Vorthe, the most notable artifact refiner in all of Vorthe,¡± Taleed praised.


    ¡°Hmph,¡± Jerome hmphed soundlessly, unconsciously expressing his resentment towards the Elder. The others in the room may not have noticed it but he was sure Tala¡¯an Taleed did. He felt it in the way the Spirit Realm artist quickly changed the direction of his words.


    ¡°Er, er, I hope you¡¯re pleased with our selection young lord. These are the best and latest of the mineral veins that have been mined,¡± Taleed said, almost stuttering.


    Jerome had to give him props for noticing the slight change in his mood. He wasn¡¯t a Spirit Realm artist for nothing. He could discern his customers¡¯ expressions and would do everything in his power to keep them content.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jerome nodded and stored all the boxes in his storage bags. The new pouches he was given were better versions of the one Rihal gave him at the start of Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. The boxes were animatedly sucked into the pouches as he opened them, positioning them close to the boxes he wanted to store away. He thanked the manager and left promptly with his merchandise.


    He was lucky today. The value of high-grade crystal coins could not be overemphasized. This was a currency, not just anyone could have or carry around, hence, he was grateful he was putting on Royalty-issued boots, if not he may have lost everything, even the clothes he was putting on to thieves.


    Jerome pulled his hood closely over his face as he walked down Ters¡¯n Street. He quickened his steps as the sun was already setting over the horizon. By the time he got to the slums, it was night already. He passed through the barrier that separated the slums from the rest of Farryn and felt the change in the air.


    Jerome ignored the strange sensation of passing through the barrier. He turned corners as his body remembered the shortest routes to get to the orphanage, excitement burbling in his gut. But as he got closer to the orphanage, that excitement began turning into something else. His heart began beating faster and he felt dread welling up in his gut.


    What¡¯s this feeling, he thought to himself. He¡¯d never had such feelings before, and it was contrary to what he should be feeling. He didn¡¯t know why he was feeling dread in the pit of his stomach, but he quickly pushed down on his emotions.


    When he got to the front of the orphanage he was dazed. He could tell there was not a single soul inside the building. He walked in carefully, thinking someone was playing a prank on him. Jerome chuckled to himself as he walked past the front entrance.


    The place looked like it had been abandoned, and almost immediately at that. There was a light sheet of dust covering most of ¡ª if not all the surfaces. Running a finger across one of the walls, Jerome became very convinced that something had gone wrong. His finger came back covered in dust.


    Ms. Tara was a clean freak because ¡®the slum was a special place for all the dust in Farryn to gather¡¯ like she used to say when she cleaned.


    What¡¯s going on? Why is my home empty? He thought about many different scenarios as he walked from room to room, but there weren¡¯t many rooms, to begin with. After searching for a while and finding nothing, he left and headed to the closest homes around the orphanage.


    ¡°Cowhide!¡± Jerome called out as he closed in on the shack. He could hear the rough breathing and snoring of a man inside the shack. He knocked lightly on what could be considered a door and the whole thing grumbled as if, anymore and it¡¯ll fall apart.


    The shack was haphazardly put together with everything from weathered tree branches to broken mud tiles.


    ¡°Cowhide, get up!¡± he said, getting agitated. The feeling of dread he felt before was beginning to rise again and he couldn¡¯t help but think something bad had happened to his friends and family.


    Cowhide was one of the recipients of Jerome¡¯s and his friends¡¯ mischievous acts back in the day. They had frustrated the life out of him. The man was called Cowhide because he always claimed that he hunted magical beasts in his younger years and wore their hide as clothes.


    Nobody believed him though, as his foundation was nothing to write home about. Only at the Essence-Gathering Realm ¡ª a Drudge. But even being a drudge, Cowhide never cared at all. His aptitude was the worst of the worst after all.


    Cowhide shouted himself out of his sleep as though he¡¯d had a nightmare. He quickly got up and came out of his home only to meet a stranger he didn¡¯t recognize.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Cowhide asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s me, Jerome, how¡¯ve you been?¡±


    ¡°Jerome? You¡¯re Jerome?!¡± Cowhide asked in amazement, ¡°Well look at ya! All grown up and shinin¡¯ like a jewel, eh?¡± he snickered.


    Jerome cleared his throat. ¡°Cowhide, I was wondering if you know the whereabouts of everyone from the orphanage. The whole place seems to have been deserted quickly.¡±


    ¡°They all been tak¡¯n away from here, y¡¯know? Some rich ass kid and his guards came here ¡®bout a tenday ago and dragged ¡®em all off, y¡¯know?¡±


    Jerome¡¯s heart dropped. Goosebumps rose on his skin as he began to sweat, but soon he caught himself as he realized he had a backer too. The best backer one could have in Farryn.


    ¡°What family was the kid from?¡± He demanded.


    ¡°Slow down, slow down, eh?¡± Cowhide quickly went back into his shack and came out with a box. ¡°He dropped this. Said to give it to ya when ye come around?¡±


    Jerome grabbed the box. The moment his hand touched it, it fell apart and a piece of paper fluttered downwards from inside it. He quickly grabbed the piece of paper and scanned its contents.


    This was Hedon Alvric¡¯s doing.

 33. At Blade’s Edge Canyon

    Jerome took to the skies as soon as he left Farryn through the southern gate.


    ¡®Leave the city and keep going south until the aura in the air hurts your eyes and skin. Make any move to contact the Royals and you¡¯ll never see them all again,¡¯ Hedon¡¯s note had said.


    Jerome flew as fast as he could. He flew over farmlands and cattle ranches; over small settlements and villages. But all thoughts of enjoying the flight were non-existent in his mind. The wind blew past him as he zoomed through the sky. The darkness of the night was a good enough cover so people didn¡¯t notice him in the air. But being noticed was the furthest thing from his mind right now.


    After a long while, his eyes began to hurt, and water uncontrollably. He also felt a prickling sensation on his skin. It was uncomfortable but not to the extent of being unbearable.


    I must be getting closer, he thought as his heart pounded in his ribcage. He didn¡¯t notice that the rush of adrenaline was making him lose focus on his environment. The only thought on his mind was to see his family again.


    Over a thousand paces away from him was a very long unnaturally-formed canyon. The canyon spread out in a straight line from northeast to southwest, he couldn¡¯t see the end on both sides from his altitude in the air. Jerome hit the ground and took off running straight towards the canyon, praying in his heart that his family was still alive and well.


    Who would have known that Hedon would do something like this? Jerome never saw him after their fight at the beginning of the pilgrimage, so he probably spent only a day in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He had had almost a year to plan and capture all of them with no one the wiser!


    Fuck!


    And how did he capture his friends who were already disciples of other Houses? Did he buy them? That must be the case. Buying people was not unheard of in ancient societies. He had to convince the Alvric heir to let them go, no matter what!


    What aura is this? Jerome thought. The intensity of the aura in the air was stronger now and he had to wipe his eyes from time to time as he ran.


    Bang!


    Someone hit him on the head when he was only a few dozen paces away from the edge of the canyon and he tumbled over. Pain shot up his spine. The pain was dizzying, but he forced himself not to pass out.


    ¡°Hedon! This is between me and¡ª!¡±


    Bang!


    He took another hit in his side and he felt his ribs crack. Jerome turned to lie on his side as he coughed uncontrollably. He reached for the mind-calming stone ¡ª in a specially made pocket in his robes over his heart ¡ª and the pain clouding his mind receded just enough for him to make out his assailants.


    Someone kicked him in the jaw and he was lifted off the ground, and spun in the air. Just before hitting the ground, Jerome stretched out his hand and Suzie lashed out as quickly as lightning.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± his assailant grunted and tried to get away from him. But the flowing steel wrapped around his leg and pierced his skin, draining the iron in his blood in a few breaths of time.


    ¡°Adama¡¯s gauntlets! Heavens, he¡¯s bonded with Adama¡¯s gauntlets!¡± Someone exclaimed.


    ¡°Stop gawking and attack!¡± Hedon roared some distance away.


    ¡°Hedon, we can talk about¡ª¡± he was saying but Hedon¡¯s goons rushed him in a pincer attack.


    Jerome dodged a fist, maneuvering around to kick out at another. His legs gave as he was kicked in the knee. There were at least six Blanks assaulting him at once. He tried to stay calm and clear-headed but the pain was all that occupied his mind. Jerome took stock of his increasing wounds as punches and kicks rained upon him. He quickly released Suzie and another Blank dropped dead.


    ¡°Damn you!¡± someone roared as the Blanks shot backward. That was two Blanks dead and no one wanted to risk it anymore.


    Hedon cursed out loud. His father was going to punish him for losing two Blanks in one night. He quickly dragged out one of his hostages with him from his hiding place, ten or more paces away from the fight. One of the newly promoted Drudges he¡¯d bought from some Third-Tier family he couldn¡¯t remember.


    ¡°Hedon, there¡¯s no need for this,¡± Jerome called out as he stood up with a busted knee. His body wasn¡¯t healing fast enough and it frustrated him. His mind was a mess as fear threatened to drown him ¡ª fear for what must have happened to his family.


    ¡°You have no right to speak to me, you peasant!¡± Hedon roared as he dragged his captive along, coming closer. They both kicked up dust into the air blocking them from view for a moment.


    Doti. Jerome¡¯s heart went cold as rage reared its head. He tried to hold it back but the urge to unleash it was strong. He wanted to become a monster and tear every one of the Alvrics apart!


    ¡°What did you think was going to happen? You assault the heir of a Great Clan and think there are no consequences?!¡± Hedon said as he unsheathed his sword, holding it against his captive¡¯s throat.


    ¡°Hedon, let him go. Let them all go, you have me now,¡± Jerome said with great restraint as he tried to keep the venom out of his voice. He reached for the mind-calming stone but someone hit him on the head. Jerome went down on one knee.


    Who was that? he thought. That punch was really heavy, damn it!


    ¡°Je¡­rome,¡± Doti tried to speak.


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak Doti, it¡¯ll all be ok. Everything¡®s gonna be just fine,¡± he assured as he tried to keep blood out of his eyes. His skull had cracked from the last hit and he was on the verge of passing out from the pain.


    Doti had lost a lot of blood. Both his arms were broken and Jerome could sense that he couldn¡¯t cycle to get rid of whatever had paralyzed his core. He could also smell the piss and sweat on him. He thought about how long his family had been held captive and his anger rose again.


    No. Must stay clear-headed, he thought to himself.


    ¡°Let them go? I¡¯m here to teach you a lesson!¡± Hedon roared in anger. ¡°You¡¯ve got to own up to the consequences of your actions! You think because you¡¯ve got the Royal family behind you, you can act however you feel?!


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    ¡°Against me you¡¯re nothing! Nothing I say!


    ¡°For I am Alvric!


    ¡°I am the boisterous storm!


    ¡°Sharthu could never tame me!¡±


    Warning bells began to go off in Jerome¡¯s head. What¡¯s going on? he thought. He could feel wind essence begin to swirl around Hedon like it was embracing him as his robe billowed out around him.


    ¡°N¡¯tdaea brought his legions against me!


    ¡°Like a great wave, he rose up to trample me!¡±


    ¡°But where is Sharthu?!


    ¡°Where is N¡¯tdaea?!¡±


    Jerome was starting to feel mounting pressure from Hedon. He could tell that those weren¡¯t ordinary words the teenager was spitting. He could also tell that Doti was still a Drudge, and wouldn¡¯t last long under such pressure.


    Doti straightway crumbled from the pressure Hedon was releasing. He hadn¡¯t eaten in days; he had been beaten and pissed on and mocked, and he couldn¡¯t take anymore. His eyes and skin hurt really bad from the aura in the air. Add to that the crippling pressure from his captor and every muscle in his body went limp. Hedon was literally holding him up.


    Hedon put more force in his sword hand, drawing blood from his captive¡¯s neck. He continued with his utterance when he noticed Jerome tensing up, preparing to attack.


    ¡°The heavens were torn asunder!


    ¡°The sea split in two!


    ¡°Alas!


    ¡°They are nowhere to be found!


    ¡°For I alone stand victorious!


    ¡°I,


    ¡°Alvric!¡±


    ¡°Listen Hedon, they shouldn¡¯t have to pay for my mista¡ª¡±


    Hedon cut through Doti¡¯s throat.


    ~~~


    Doti did not want to believe what was happening. His captor threw him off the cliff down into the canyon, blood spraying out of his neck like a fountain as Jerome ran toward Hedon. He tried to cycle but it was like trying to walk through a brick wall.


    Why did you have to offend someone so powerful? Doti thought. He was angry. Angry at Jerome, at the psychotic teenager who held him and his family hostage. He was angry at himself for being weak. He¡¯d been wanting to show Jerome what he was capable of now; to show him that he could now keep up when next they took on the blind man in the slums.


    He¡¯d been sold and for many tendays, he¡¯d been kept captive. Unable to escape, unable to fight for himself. Until the rest of his friends were brought to join him in his misery. Where were all the promises that were made to him? What happened to the trust that Patriarch Kreus, the Patriarch of the House of Passion, placed in him?


    At least you can fight to save the rest of our family, he thought and his anger toward Jerome faded away. Darkness threatened to consume him but he held onto life with his will, wanting to live even for a few more breaths.


    The faces of his friends and siblings flitted through his mind¡¯s eye. He recalled the hard times they had together. The times they went out to scavenge for resources. How Jerome helped to dress their wounds when anyone bled from cuts. Jerome had always been the one to take care of them anytime they ventured out, to defend them in times of trouble. And now he was fighting for them again.


    Doti heard the sound of rushing water before he hit the river beneath him. Just before he lost consciousness he saw someone else being thrown off the cliff.


    ¡°No,¡± he wanted to scream, but his voice came out as a whisper.


    ~~~


    Hedon wielded his sword with great dexterity as he dodged the whip-like strings from Jerome¡¯s flowing steel gauntlets.


    ¡°Each and every one of your friends will suffer before their death, Jerome,¡± he slashed at Jerome¡¯s newly healed knee, drawing blood. ¡°It¡¯s inevitable.¡±


    Jerome rushed forward, pushing down the pain, as he tried to move past Hedon and his goons. After Doti got thrown off the cliff, Hedon¡¯s goons started bringing out his friends to stab and throw them off the cliff. The sad thing was their wounds weren¡¯t fatal. If the fall didn¡¯t kill them, the bleeding would.


    They made sure he watched as they selected those they sent to their demise. But they left Ms. Tara for later. Ms. Tara who was a woman in her prime. These whoremongers want to have their way with her! Never! He realized their plans as he pushed through the haze in his mind for clarity. But his mind was becoming clouded by rage every moment he didn¡¯t touch the mind-calming stone.


    ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk. You better hurry now, little fish,¡± someone taunted him from behind and they all laughed.


    Hedon struck again, making sure to avoid the steel whips. He was way faster than he was before. Jerome raised his hand to block as he watched them stab Dreamer in the gut and toss him off the cliff.


    He transformed the whip in his other hand into a blade and stabbed at Hedon who shot back with quick reflexes. Jerome followed him as they exchanged blows. But Hedon was a lot faster, his weapon heavier. Jerome attacked low, transforming the gauntlets into a makeshift spear.


    ¡°You¡¯re a very skilled sacred artist, Jerome,¡± Hedon praised as he dodged the spear. ¡°Unfortunately for you, being skilled enough,¡±¡ªHedon countered with the sheer force of his will, his aura thickening to almost suffocation ¡ª ¡°...is not enough to save your friends.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s knee gave and his spear transformed back into gauntlets as the pressure from Hedon increased. He felt like he was fighting against a wave of the sea. Hedon hacked down with his sword and Jerome leaned away, just enough to avoid injury to his face.


    The slash still took a chunk of skin off his face. It cut through his robe at the chest area and Jerome felt the mind-calming stone crumble. No! No, no, no! He had no other way to calm himself if he lost control.


    He limped backward as he watched Whisper and another kid being stabbed. The haze in his mind was becoming too difficult to hold back, his rage threatening to break free of his control.


    Jerome lashed out, catching Hedon off guard. A steel whip wrapped around his neck but before Jerome could tighten it, someone slashed at the whip, breaking it in two. Jerome felt pain shoot up his mind. His connection to Suzie was a soul bond. Any damage to the artifact was damage to him.


    The beast took over.


    ~~~


    Hedon once more experienced the strangeness of Jerome from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. The boy became faster and stronger all of a sudden, like he was another person. He fought savagely as Hedon expected, ignoring defense as he stacked up on injuries.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you care for your life, you beast?!¡± Hedon said, making sure to keep the cur at a distance. Even his blows had gotten heavier with every attack. Hedon clipped him in the jaw with a fist and Jerome clawed at his face with sharp steel-tipped nails.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± Hedon struck faster and faster. He stabbed at Jerome¡¯s ribs drawing blood. Flesh and muscle gave way but the blade of the sword got stuck.


    Jerome held onto his sword, pinning it down with his right arm as he stabbed Hedon with a transformed gauntlet. Hedon moved. Fast. One moment he was in front of Jerome. The next moment, he punched him in the throat from the side. Jerome turned to face him, ignoring the pain and relinquishing his hold on the sword. But Hedon had moved again. He kicked Jerome¡¯s knee, shattering it completely.


    One of the Sprouts Hedon came with, put a hand on his shoulder holding him back as another put down Jerome, restraining his core.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got company,¡± the Sprout whispered in Hedon¡¯s ear.

 34. At Blade’s Edge Canyon (2)

    The generations of Alvric, who laid down their lives during the Cataclysm, the second great war.


    Ilim who begat Hram,


    Who begat Gunther,


    Fer¡¯yh, and Fer¡¯th.


    Fain, brother of Ilim,


    Who begat Yorm.


    They mounted steeds and rode to battle,


    With naught but three hundred men.


    Sharthu had come from yonder,


    N¡¯tdaea from the depths of the blue deep.


    To pillage and to conquer, they came


    To a land already wrought with war.


    With legions of mounted drakes,


    Sharthu gained on Alvric.


    The welkin darkened as if a storm approacheth.


    Whelming pressure, Alvric felt


    But stood their ground


    To defend that which their ancestors found.


    ¡®Nay,


    Not one foe shall tread this land.


    Ti''s a land of brave men,


    Not cowardly curs.¡¯


    Ilim called upon the wind.


    Fain, the might of the blade.


    Hearts united,


    The brothers drew upon ancient power.


    Argonaut, the Wind Spirit.


    Sharthu was confounded.


    The very welkin he boasted upon became his gaol.


    With the battle cry of a phoenix,


    Fain rend the heavens with the blade,


    And Sharthu was no more.


    The sea boiled with alien creatures ne''er before seen.


    They looked neither man nor beast,


    Halflings, they were called.


    Landward they raced,


    The blue brine their track.


    N''tdaea rose from the sea


    With the might of a great wave


    Atop the back of a sea dragon, he sat


    Very much the conqueror, he looked


    The surface and its dwellers beneath him.


    They pillaged, they killed,


    They raped without end


    Alvric turned their sights on them,


    Bearing God''s anger.


    A battle ensued.


    With fire in their hearts


    Alvric felled halfling after halfling.


    To turn the tide of the battle,


    N''tdaea entered the fray.


    Sea dragon underfoot,


    He came ashore.


    Yorm and his brethren, Hram


    United hearts with Gunther,


    Fer¡¯yh, and Fer¡¯th.


    They called upon the Wind Spirit.


    An hungered Argonaut seized the moment.


    Both man and dragon,


    Wrapped up in a swirling storm,


    The sea was split in the advent of their struggle.


    The surviving halflings saw this and fled.


    Siege abandoned


    As their Lord became fodder


    For the Mighty Argonaut.


    Famed became the seven,


    Far spread the names of Alvric¡¯s braves


    In the nameless land.


    And at the hour that was fated


    They departed


    Into the embrace


    Of the Wind Spirit¡¯s keeping.


    This is but an olive seed in the epic battles of yore,


    To light afire the hearts of you younglings of Alvric,


    ¡®To thine own self...be true,¡¯


    An excerpt from the Annals of Alvric,


    Written by Wuda,


    First Scribe of the 18th


    Generation of Alvric.


    ~~~


    ¡°Clear out!¡± Hedon roared.


    They had come prepared for multiple eventualities. This was not their first time getting rid of trash. Hedon trusted his men to work quickly as time was not on their side. His goons quickly threw everyone off the cliff not bothering to stab the rest of them. It was a pity they couldn¡¯t have their way with the beautiful blonde, but they couldn¡¯t risk getting caught. They worked meticulously, quickly erasing every evidence of their presence.


    ¡°Pick him up,¡± Hedon commanded.


    The Sprouts broke all four of Jerome¡¯s limbs and picked him up, holding him in front of their Young Lord. Hedon inspected the kid in front of him before stabbing him through the heart with his blade. Jerome coughed up blood, staining Hedon¡¯s robes, but he neither screamed nor flinched. He only raged on as his body twitched from the pain, growling and snapping at the Alvric heir.


    ¡°You¡¯re not worthy of a treasure such as Adama¡¯s gauntlets,¡± Hedon sneered while twisting the blade to inflict more damage. With the death of its wielder, an artifact will become unbound, and ready for another to bond with it.


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    Jerome¡¯s eyes drooped slowly as Hedon pulled out his blade. His heart stopped beating and his vitality waned. His body temperature began to drop, and sudden changes started happening. Hedon and his goons were dumbfounded. Those holding up Jerome quickly tossed him off the cliff as their hands began to grow stiff. They looked at their hands with jaws wide open.


    ¡°What the hell was that?!¡± one of the Sprouts that held up Jerome asked, ¡°I can¡¯t feel my hands!¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t feel my hands either. May his soul know only torment in the afterlife!¡± The other cursed Jerome angrily as he tried to flex his fingers but found it impossible.


    ¡°Young Lord,¡± they called out to Hedon expectantly. Only through his authority as the heir of the Alvric clan could they seek help from the experts of the clan.


    ¡°Even in death you¡¯re a blight!¡± Hedon spat, looking down into the canyon. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said, addressing his gang. ¡°Our physicians and Alchemists should know how to help you recover.¡± he hoped so, or else he would never hear the end of it from his father.


    ¡°Gratitude, Young Lord,¡± they bowed.


    He quickly took off his robe and tossed it off the cliff and a spare one was immediately handed over to him. Hedon observed the hands of his men as they ran back toward Farryn at full speed. Their hands looked like they were carved out of stone, and they were slightly opened as if they were in the process of making a fist. It was¡­ unnerving. He had never seen anything like that in all his life. This was a new experience for him. The cur must have had some other good fortune during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He thought about how he would keep this a secret.


    This could be trouble, he thought as he took a glance at their hands again. The Sprouts were unnamed and not as powerful as one would expect a named Sprout to be.


    But they are Sprouts nonetheless. Father would not take kindly to crippling two of his Sprouts, he sighed as he thought of ways to evade the wrath of the Alvric Patriarch. His father was a very intense man ¡ª and very attentive. He would sniff out the problem before he could take them to see the healers. All the night guards in the Alvric Estate would report in three times before the night was over. Maybe there might be a way to evade his father.


    But what sort of fortune did the cur obtain during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep¡­ those gauntlets¡­ he clenched his jaw, holding back from cursing.


    ¡°I really wanted those gauntlets,¡± Hedon muttered to himself, but the Sprouts heard.


    ¡°We¡¯re truly sorry about the gauntlets young lord, we¡¯d come back to search for his body as soon as we¡­¡± one of the Sprouts said and looked at his hands with a pained expression.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Hedon nodded. ¡°But it seems the universe has other plans. I don¡¯t know if we¡¯d be able to remove the gauntlets without¡­¡± He also trailed off looking at their hands.


    They dropped the topic as their egos wouldn¡¯t let them admit that an ordinary Blank crippled them.


    ¡°Hurry. Time may not be on our side,¡± Hedon said and they pushed themselves faster than before.


    Hedon knew he must not be seen here by anyone. The Vorthes were known to have eyes everywhere and it would be bad for his family¡¯s reputation if this got out.


    But who would have known the cur obtained such a treasure in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep? He was meant to use this Pilgrims¡¯ Keep to shine, to show the world who Hedon Alvric was. But a little nobody took that from him. He wished he didn¡¯t kill Jerome quickly. He wished he could go back in time to do it all over again.


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for Adama¡¯s gauntlets, I¡¯d have made him suffer until he begged for death,¡± Hedon muttered. He was an Alvric. Nobody messes with the Alvrics. He clenched his fist as he raced forward.


    ~~~


    Yun Vorthe arrived at the canyon to witness Jerome and Hedon fighting. He observed his illegitimate but ¡®necessary offspring¡¯ for a very long time. Jerome had lost all sense of self and fought like an animal. But he still wielded visha stirh¡¯aun with intelligence ¡ª like a predator. He was fast. Far faster than a Blank had any right to be. And strong too. But his adversary was prepared for him. This altercation had been planned long before now.


    Yun looked to the side where the rest of the people from the Orphanage were being stabbed and thrown into the Canyon. Nolan Vorthe would answer to the Royal Family for that. He was raising a psychopath and he needed to be reminded of who was in charge of society at large.


    He peered into the river of fate, checking to see if any changes were made to the fate of the world as a result of this ¡ª and what alterations he could make himself. This event could create a sociopath in Jerome. But not if he could do something to alter it.


    Fate was a fickle thing. Its ebbs and flow, a mystery even to the most skilled of scryers. One could glimpse an event that would happen but such an event might have an infinite amount of events leading up to it, or not know what seeds such an event would sow into the river of fate. One had to wait till the time of the event before new channels were birthed in the flow of fate.


    He watched as the Alvric younglings tossed Jerome¡¯s friends into the depths of Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. And when they got to the little girl whose origins were a mystery, he revealed a bit of his presence ¡ª but not enough for the three Sprouts to notice his position.


    After they scampered off, he walked unhurriedly to the edge of the canyon with his hands folded behind him, to continue observing Jerome.


    ~~~


    Jerome crossed the threshold between life and death, but laws that were powerful beyond this plane brought him back among the living. His heart knitted itself as he fell and his vitality rose ¡ª barely. He opened his eyes and used Suzie to cling to the canyon wall.


    His rage refused to ebb as he fought for control. It fought back like a ferocious animal refusing to give in. It promised vengeance and strength; the blood of his enemies staining the land of Vorthe with their heads on pikes outside Farryn¡¯s gate.


    Strangely he wanted to let go; to feed his rage until every single one of them was dead.


    No! He communicated his Will through every fiber of his being. His struggles lasted a long time before he was finally able to leash the beast. Then he discovered Ash, passed out, and covered in her own blood on a small outcropping in the canyon wall, a few feet to his left. The beast reared its head again as his emotions were stirred.


    ¡°Ash,¡± he tried to shout, but his voice came out a whisper. His throat felt sore and hurt badly. His mouth was bleeding.


    The sound of the wind, as it poured into the canyon, was deafening. The aura stung his eyes and skin but he ignored it. He tried using Suzie to reach Ash to wake her up but couldn¡¯t.


    Fatigue was beginning to set in. His eyes began to droop as his blood continued to flow out of him. He wasn¡¯t healing, at least not fast enough. He tried to cycle but it was like walking through mud.


    The Alvrics¡­.must¡­have done¡­something¡­to my core, he thought. Even his thoughts were sluggish. His control over Suzie began to slip as he weakened hanging there, thousands of feet above a dark nothingness, or so he thought. He tried moving his body but his arms were shattered, and they hurt really bad.


    Something else was happening though. The shattered mind-calming stone had been moving like an ocean of sand covering his body as though it had a life of its own. He didn¡¯t notice this, however, for darkness took him over. And silence surrounded him as he fell, smashing into the river below.


    ~~~


    Impossible! the Sovereign of Vorthe nearly screamed out.


    In all my years, this has never happened before, the Sovereign thought in wonder. His heart was beating so fast beneath his chest, he was unable to keep still. He knew very well what this meant. If this child could rein in the beast with just his strength of will, a lot of things would change.


    It would mean...


    He didn¡¯t dare finish the thought. He quickly picked up the girl Jerome called Ash. With a flick of a finger, she was hovering in front of him. Still passed out, but breathing. She was all bones and drenched in her own blood.


    Yun sighed. At least saving this one could put the child in his debt. He contemplated wiping her memory but decided against it. This experience would make them both stronger to face life. He rose into the sky and looked down. His golden eyes were like bright suns penetrating the depths of the river as he probed his connection with the darkness inside Jerome.


    ¡°Six thousand years ago, I created this canyon to destroy one such as you ¡ª a beast that terrorized my people for decades,¡± he murmured, thinking back to how Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon came to be.


    ¡°Yet in this same place, another offspring gives me hope,¡± Yun Vorthe muttered as he gazed hopefully at the heavens.


    He took a step into the void as a soft golden light surrounded him with Ash in tow.

 35. The Curia Regis

    Verily, the will of the heart, when steadfast, may be brandished akin to a tangible weapon. T¡¯is how the Alvric Braves slayed their enemies during the Cataclysm, protecting the land. But the strongest of wills is birthed from Truth¡­


    Truth, undisguised and bitter.


    This I pen to you younglings of Alvric. That ye may find truth¡­ and grow. Thus I say, ¡®To thine own self¡­ be true.¡¯


    A writ of Truth,


    (An excerpt from the Annals of Alvric)


    By Wuda,


    First Scribe of the 18th Generation of Alvric.


    ~~~


    Rihal made his way toward The Library, a facility built to hold and interrogate offenders of high political standing. He dropped down from the sky halfway up a mountain northeast of the Royal Estate. Placing his hand on the rock wall of the mountain, he pushed slightly. The rock moved inward revealing a doorway and he stepped inside.


    He walked down the stairs of the narrow passageway deep into the heart of the mountain. The many networks of tunnels in the mountain range formed a labyrinth whose foundations were laid by the 3rd Sovereign of Vorthe, Zama¡¯el the Sculptor.


    The dungeons here were bigger and cleaner than the dungeons elsewhere in Farryn. But the essence in the air was sparse. There was only one inmate in this wing right now albeit a temporary one. Rihal only needed to bypass the jailer to meet the prisoner. The guard stiffened upon seeing him, shifting his weight from foot to foot as Rihal approached.


    ¡°There are no appointments scheduled in your name, Lord Rihal. Please don¡¯t make my job any more inconvenient than it already is.¡±


    He avoided looking at Rihal¡¯s blindfold but kept sneaking glances at it. Something about it just gave him goosebumps. Maybe it was knowing the man could see from behind the dark covering.


    Rihal smiled. ¡°Now, now, 22. I¡¯m just here to hear what the boy has to say, nothing else¡± he said.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Lord Rihal, but I¡¯ve been asked not to allow you entry. You¡¯re too close to this case,¡± the guard bowed deeply. ¡°And I¡¯m 22, not 22,¡± he muttered.


    Asked, not ordered? So it¡¯s not official. Rihal caught that. Good, good. ¡°Sorry about that. I get your numbers mixed up,¡± he said as he put an arm around the guard¡¯s shoulders. The guards and work staff who were unnamed from birth were given numbers to identify them. Each number, a product of the unit they belonged to.


    ¡°Tell you what ¡ª light and life, you don¡¯t have to be so nervous! I don¡¯t bite!¡±


    The guard wiped the sweat off his forehead with already sweaty palms as he shook from fear. He was only a Sprout. Rihal was a Spirit Realm expert and could kill him in less than a breath.


    ¡°Contrary to your words, Lord Rihal, we guards have evidence that suggests you do bite,¡± the guard said. ¡°...or maybe you sting¡­ Forgiveness,¡± he quickly bowed his head again realizing he spoke that last part out loud.


    ¡°Huh!,¡± Rihal gasped with mock surprise. ¡°You break my heart, 22.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­23,¡± the guard muttered with a sigh.


    ¡°Yes, Yes,¡± Rihal gave an exaggerated nod. ¡°And I need to see the Blank. You could let me in, or I could let myself in.¡±


    23 stiffened. Then he deflated with a sigh. ¡°Please, don¡¯t take too long,¡± he said as he turned around, placing his palm on the wall. ¡°This is gonna get me in trouble.¡±


    A portion of the wall dissolved into mist revealing a room with pristine white walls that stared back at him. Rihal walked in quietly and the wall restored itself behind him. He rested his back on the wall and quietly observed the Blank trying to hide his shaking hands.


    The room was sparse of furniture, with only a single bed, and a chamber pot ¡ª which were also white and blended right with the walls.


    A few days in here can do things to a man¡¯s sanity, he thought. ¡°I read Wuda¡¯s excerpts of the Alvric Braves once¡­well, I glanced through it,¡± Rihal said as he watched the brat for signs of a reaction.


    ¡°You know what stuck with me, Hedon?¡­ The last line where he addresses the younger Alvrics¡­ ¡®To thine own self¡­ be true.¡¯¡±


    Hedon¡¯s eyes lit up for a moment, but then he clenched his jaw and kept quiet, restraining himself.


    ¡°How poetic,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°That line of the last verse speaks volumes, don¡¯t you think? I wonder what you Alvrics think of it.¡±


    Hedon Alvric had been apprehended the moment he walked into Farryn. Vorthe did have eyes everywhere, and they had been alerted the moment Jerome left the city. The Sovereign of Vorthe, however, had warned them not to interfere.


    Rihal was already prepared to go after Jerome when the Sovereign¡¯s order came in. And now he had a lot of pent up frustration with nowhere to release it.


    ¡°I owe you no explanations for my actions,¡± Hedon said tightly. ¡° A little fish in a pond thought himself a dragon, only to end up as dinner for a phoenix. End of story.¡±


    ¡°Oh, but this isn¡¯t about one little fish, Hedon. It¡¯s about the twenty-seven others you took as sport, and for what?¡±


    ¡°They are from the slums, damn it!¡± Hedon snarled. ¡°He may be your disciple, but are you willing to go up against a Great family for someone who has no background? No legacy?!


    ¡°He is the lowliest of all, lowlier than the common folk. He has nothing, therefore he is nothing! You Vorthe¡¯s just want to use your position to oppress others! You think you¡¯re so powerful, but you don¡¯t know the might of the Alvric!


    ¡°Just watch and see! We¡¯re coming for you¡ª¡± Hedon realized too late what he had said. He shut his mouth and bit down on his tongue hard, tasting the coppery tang of his own blood.


    He screamed at the top of his lungs, but that wasn¡¯t enough to quell the fire in his veins. He was so angry at the man in front of him, but Rihal was a lot more powerful than he was. He couldn¡¯t lash out at a Spirit Realm expert ¡ª that would be a death sentence.


    He turned to face a wall and punched with all his strength. He punched again and again until his fists bled.


    Rihal just watched. He did nothing to stop the brat. Nothing to coax him to talk. If anything he didn''t have the time for a drawn-out interrogation. The Royal family couldn¡¯t keep Hedon for long. Sooner or later, his clan would come looking for him. Or the Sovereign might just order his release.


    Someone pounded on the wall behind him and the central portion dissolved into mist revealing the exit. His time was up.


    ¡°What¡¯d you learn?¡± the warden of The Library asked the moment he came out of the cell.


    ¡°Nice to see you too, Locke.¡±


    The warden stared Rihal down, his gaze as sharp as a sword. He was a big man. A Vorthe, as tall and muscular as the Baelors from the Redwood Forest in the west, but he was no peaceful giant.


    ¡°Do you think you can do better at my job than I, Rihal?¡± Locke asked, an almost murderous glint in his eyes.


    ¡°Hey, no one¡¯s looking to take your job away from you, Locke. Why are you being so insecure?¡±


    Rihal felt Locke¡¯s anger rise, threatening to spill. Their status prevented them from fighting without the supervision of an overseer. In this small a place, only ruins would be left after their wake. ¡°You think too highly of yourself, assassin.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean I think less of you, or any other Vorthe,¡± Rihal said, patting Locke on the shoulder as he walked past him.


    The warden was two heads taller than him so he had to raise his hand higher than normal for that pat. Locke gave up. True, Rihal was a genius in his Realm. Many like him looked down on others, but he didn¡¯t. Such acts were petty and just disgusting.


    Rihal¡¯s communications rune lit up at that moment. ¡°Duty calls. I leave him in your capable hands,¡± he said as he walked off.


    ~~~


    ¡°Kilian?¡±


    Kilian looked up from the carvings that tell an old tale on the giant doors of the Council Hall to see Rihal walk up to him.


    ¡°How are you holding up?¡± he asked. ¡°I know he was like a son to you.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not dead. He¡¯ll be back. I just hope this doesn¡¯t¡­break him.¡±


    Kilian stared at him searching his eyes for something ¡ª what it was, he didn¡¯t know. He took a deep breath and looked away.


    They had both been summoned to meet with the Sovereign and it was quite easy to predict what they were here for. Someone had to be held responsible for what happened to the fated Dark One, and twenty-seven other members of the orphanage. But the Council cared little for the orphans and their caretakers. The bone of contention would be the fated Dark One.


    ¡°I failed him,¡± Rihal muttered softly.


    ¡°None of us accounted for the Alvric brat going this far,¡± Kilian said.


    ¡°Still, this is going to torment him forever.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Losing a family can be hard. But he¡¯ll get through it. Have faith in him, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand, Kilian. He trusted me to protect them. And yet¡ª¡±


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    The double doors opened at that moment and they both righted their posture before walking in.


    The hall was long and decorated with ceiling-high tapestries. Golden orbs of light hovered mid-air, close to the roof, emitting soft golden glows that brightened the hall.


    Rihal and Kilian both comported themselves before making their way toward the Curia Regis at the far end of the hall. They stopped a few paces away from the  Elders seated around a rectangular table and placed their right hands on their chest going down on one knee.


    ¡°Greetings, Sovereign. Greetings, Elders,¡± they both greeted.


    ¡°Rise,¡± the First Elder, Thorlin Vorthe commanded.


    ¡°The fated Dark One is advancing at a very rapid speed. Faster than anything we have ever seen before.¡± The Sovereign spoke.


    Rihal could feel himself being drawn to the Sovereign¡¯s voice. It was slow and soothing. He felt he could listen forever to the Sovereign and want for nothing.


    ¡°Right now, he is in a deep slumber at the bottom of Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. I believe he would be drawn to the mountains as a Sprout.¡±


    Both Rihal and Kilian looked surprised and confused. This news was quite different from what they had learned of the Dark Ones ¡ª they are drawn into the mountains when they reach the Spirit Realm, not before!


    ¡°Nothing is impossible; and moving forward with this in mind, have you both any information for me as regards how he was able to restrain the beast?¡±


    Rihal gulped down hard, ready to answer.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign. We didn¡¯t have a proper opportunity to question him about it,¡± Kilian quickly said with a deep bow. Rihal followed suit, holding his tongue.


    The Sovereign of Vorthe kept quiet for a long while, drawing out the tension in the room.


    ¡°When he fell into the river below Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon,¡± the Sovereign finally spoke. ¡°His body was covered in some kind of cocoon, one made of earth, but there was no aura.¡±


    Both Spirit Realm experts in the room were surprised at this new information. But they could also sense the Elders¡¯ confusion. Meaning the Sovereign hadn¡¯t discussed this with them.


    ¡°It was like he just turned to stone, and his vitality disappeared like he really was a stone sculpture. If it hadn¡¯t been for our connection, I would have thought him dead,¡± the Sovereign said, almost absent-mindedly.


    Everyone else was confused.


    ¡°If I may Sovereign,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°Go on Rihal.¡±


    He bowed. ¡°Two of the Sprouts from Clan Alvric had their hands in a similar state. We didn¡¯t know what to make of it.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. I saw them being affected by the strange phenomenon,¡± the Sovereign stated.


    The Elders communicated silently among themselves in confusion. Whatever this strange phenomenon was, it was beyond them.


    ¡°Perhaps he obtained some kind of treasure during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep,¡± Fesir Vorthe, the Royal Artifact Refiner, said with interest in his eyes. He was an eccentric man; never liked to show himself in public.


    Seated on his left was Elder Duten, who said in a gruff voice, ¡°That would be the case. His luck is damn good, that one.¡±


    Rihal felt irritated at that. Does he have to sound so offensive? He thought. Duten Vorthe always looked like he was spoiling for a fight and maybe he was. You need to relax man, and maybe look in the mirror more often too. Might do you some good, Rihal thought.


    ¡°I¡¯m telling you all this so you could make plans,¡± the Sovereign continued.


    ¡°The darkness is a lot more potent than it was during the days of the First Vorthe. If he takes on the darkness as a Sprout and is unable to control it, it will consume him completely ¡ª body and soul.¡±


    Which meant they may have to search for another ¡®suitable candidate¡¯ for the Sovereign to implant the seed of darkness into. They all thought this but no one spoke out loud. It was an uncomfortable subject.


    ¡°Albeit, that would be a shame. I have really high hopes for him.¡±


    ¡°Sprouts aren¡¯t strong enough to withstand the Darkness, Sovereign,¡± the Second Elder, Princess Aeldra Vorthe said.


    Rihal¡¯s gaze lingered on her for a breath longer. Aeldra Vorthe was just too beautiful; it was hard to look away after a glance. She sensed Rihal¡¯s gaze and looked up smilingly at him.


    Weirdly, it felt like an apology. He still had his band over his eyes, but if he could see her, she could sense him looking her way. She was a Sage, after all, a Great Realm above him.


    He nodded and looked away. She reminded him too much about the woman he lost ¡ª to her father at that. Or at least it¡¯s what he chose to think of it. He knew deep down it was his own na?vety that caused her demise though.


    ¡°But, Sovereign, mayhaps there is a way to help him,¡± The First Elder, Thorlin Vorthe said, his eyes distant. Rihal looked hopefully at the white-haired Elder sitting on the right side of the Sovereign. Thorlin Vorthe was an aged man, yet he was vibrant and as strong as a dragon in its prime.


    He was a Saint Realm expert ¡ª one of the very few in Vorthe; greatly respected by some, and deeply envied by a few, but unknown to the majority of the populace. He was a realist, one who never went easy on anyone, not even himself. Tales had been written about him, many of which have passed into the Annals of Vorthe.


    ¡°You speak of the Diviners Thorlin; they cannot help. Not this time,¡± the Sovereign said.


    The rest of the Curia Regis, including Rihal and Kilian, looked to both the Sovereign and the First Elder, hoping to make sense of what the Sovereign said. Thorlin Vorthe bowed in his seated position quietly.


    ¡°Come forward, Rihal,¡± the Sovereign said.


    Rihal took a few steps forward with his nerves wound in a knot and felt something leave him. The Sovereign hadn¡¯t so much as lifted a finger. He also didn¡¯t sense any working of power.


    He blinked behind his blindfold, reaching up to remove it. His eyes were back to normal. The seal that was placed on his eyes as punishment for choosing one of the common folk to wed had been taken off by the Sovereign. Now he could use his eyes naturally.


    He didn¡¯t know how to feel about it though, so he just numbed himself. There was no victory there. Perhaps once, a long time ago, he wished to see normally like he did before but now¡­


    ¡°You raised him well,¡± the Sovereign said.


    That damn seal had been with him for thirteen years. It was his stamp of shame. The Sovereign left warnings of further punishment if history were to repeat itself unsaid.


    ¡°Gratitude, Sovereign,¡± Rihal bowed deeply with his right fist to his chest.


    ¡°You both may leave.¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal knew of the Diviners. They were healers ¡ª some of them. They were not as powerful as the Sovereign, but their methods could wrought miracles. They followed the old ways, the way of worship and servitude to a being of a higher power ¡ª a god.


    Rihal paced in front of his master¡¯s Palace. The Master of Shadows had been in attendance at the meeting, even if he didn¡¯t see him. Damien Vorthe wasn¡¯t called the Unseen for nothing.


    ¡°Your master wouldn¡¯t appreciate your pacing, son of Ivar.¡±


    Rihal stopped and bowed to the beautiful woman who appeared out of thin air. ¡°Forgiveness, my lady,¡± he said.


    ¡°Greetings, my lady; why you look lovely today,¡± Kilian said, beaming with a smile.


    Erika Vorthe¡¯s gaze lingered on Rihal¡¯s face a while longer. Not having seen him without his blindfold. ¡°Congratulations Rihal,¡± she said with a smile but left a whole lot unsaid.


    Erika Vorthe turned to Kilian with a smile. ¡°Why are you both here? Did my husband do something I need to know about?¡±


    Rihal tried to picture his master being lectured by his wife. Now, that would be a sight for sore eyes.


    ¡°Oh, no, Lady Erika. We just seek information, is all,¡± Kilian responded.


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Truly,¡± Kilian said with a palm over his heart, feigning sincerity.


    Rihal watched them talk. They were both scholars who worked together on secret research for the benefit of Vorthe from time to time. Whatever the joke was, he wasn¡¯t in the know, so he just stood to the side watching them both as they chatted away.


    ¡°And what might you be discussing with my wife?¡± Damien Vorthe whispered from beside Kilian.


    Kilian almost left his skin as he jumped in fright. Soon enough, he calmed down, smoothing out his pristine royal blue robes. Erika giggled with glee at his cowardice and he blushed in embarrassment.


    ¡°Greetings, Lord Damien,¡± Kilian greeted, his face flushed from embarrassment. ¡°How did you do that?¡±


    ¡°Greetings, master,¡± Rihal greeted.


    Damien Vorthe looked at his wife, his eyes filled with endearment. She quickly left without a word. Then he turned to his disciple with eyes that could freeze fire. ¡°Come with me.¡±


    Damien led them through beautiful gardens and fountains toward the back of the Palace. They came to a beautiful pavilion beside a small stream.


    ¡°Sit,¡± he ordered. ¡°I know why you¡¯re here and I won¡¯t mince words.¡±


    They both sat down as instructed and waited for the Sage to tell them what he knew of Jerome¡¯s condition.


    ¡°According to the Sovereign, his foundation has been damaged.¡±


    Rihal stiffened at that. That¡¯s something that can be solved with ease, he thought, calming down. This shouldn¡¯t be all there is to it.


    ¡°If that were all, we could rest easy, but Hedon stabbed his heart. Most of his blood vessels were ruptured, including his essence channels.¡±


    Rihal ground his teeth as he shook from anger. His eyes stared daggers in the direction of the library promising vengeance.


    ¡°Calm yourself, Rihal, a rational mind means a rational man, which is the foundation of success.¡±


    Rihal closed his eyes as he repeated his master¡¯s words, ¡°A rational mind means a rational man, which is the foundation of success.¡±


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t the Diviners be able to heal that?¡± Killian asked.


    ¡°Because the essence in his channels reversed itself,¡± Rihal answered. ¡°With a bruised and battered body, the Diviners will only end up inflicting more injuries than healing it.¡±


    ¡°And the Patriarch¡­?¡± Kilian asked, still looking confused at both master and disciple. The human body wasn¡¯t his field of study, but assassins study the body, it was their job to get rid of people after all.


    ¡°Light and darkness do not mix, Kilian,¡± Damien said.


    ¡°So, what do we do?¡±


    ¡°We wait. When he awakens he¡¯ll find his way back and he can start healing properly¡­ But he¡¯ll have to do it on his own.¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome opened his eyes. Darkness was all he could see. He tried calling out but his own voice echoed back at him. He checked himself for injuries but found none.


    Jerome walked around for a bit calling out from time to time. His own voice was the reply he got. There was nothing else around. Even the ground was dark.


    Someone walked past him and his heartbeat sped up. The man was headed up a mountain.


    Where did the mountain come from?


    It was a huge mountain that gave off a dark and ominous aura. Like a beast with a maw wide open, ready to swallow the world around him. It filled his stomach with dread as goosebumps rose on his skin.


    Jerome recognized the man a moment later. Three! The first stranger he ever dreamt of. Three flew up the mountain, his attention focused on getting to the top as if something awaited him at the peak.


    Jerome fixed his gaze on the mountain. He could feel it too, deep down in his bones. Power. Unlike anything he had ever experienced.


    The mountain called to him; drew him in, whispered promises of invincibility¡­


    Like a truth that had existed for ages.


    End of Book One.

 36. Awakening

    Book Two: Sprout


    Ash


    The streets of Farryn were awash in beautiful colors as the people prepared for the New Year''s celebration. It was a special time of celebration. The new year signified new beginnings in Vorthe; new couples are united in marriage at the beginning of the new year, so it was one long celebration that led into another and another.


    Ash walked around the city of Farryn taking in the view. Three years ago she came to know the world outside the slums.


    ¡°What are those?¡±


    She remembered asking the maid she accompanied outside the Royal Estate.


    ¡°They¡¯re called horses, dear. They are used to pull carriages, and soldiers also ride on them.¡±


    She had pointed to a horse, because she didn¡¯t know what it was, and it was the most beautiful beast she¡¯d ever seen. ¡°People can ride on ¡®em? Oh shweets, that¡¯s amazing! Can I ride ¡®em too?¡±


    ¡°Sorry dear, but we have to run that errand fast else we return late to the estate.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± she responded, looking a little disappointed. She was used to living free in the slums even though she had nothing, she could do almost anything, most times with consequences. She was coming to understand now that life in this part of the city came with rules that must be obeyed.


    Ash smiled as she remembered. She was young and na¨ªve back then. Alone and frightened. She hadn¡¯t gotten justice, and even justice wasn¡¯t enough. She wanted revenge. The psychopathic teenager who had taken her family away from her got away with a public warning. Now she¡¯s Blank, but the psycho''s already Sprout. She needed to get stronger fast so she could have her revenge.


    Uncle Rihal keeps telling me that Jerome will get revenge for us, but when? He won¡¯t even take me to him! Ash suppressed her frustration as she headed towards the Royal Estate. She¡¯d been out running errands for her master.


    When are you coming home, Jerome? She thought in frustration.


    ~~~


    Darkness...


    Mountains...


    A Mountain...


    One, unlike the rest of them.


    Jerome tried opening his eyes but they wouldn¡¯t open. He tried to move. His body was stiff and it didn¡¯t budge an inch. Then he noticed his core. He was cycling faster than he ever had. But strange was that he could see his core inside himself, unlike before, when he had to imagine and feel the flow of essence inside him. It had completely taken shape, like a tiny seed planted in the soil.


    Sprout! I¡¯m Sprout!


    With little effort, he rapidly slowed down his core. The action was effortless but it hurt like hell! Jerome ignored the pain and began picking himself up with great difficulty. Pain wracked his body, unlike anything he had ever felt before. He began convulsing violently, his muscles spasming repeatedly. His eyes almost rolled into his head before he quickly began cycling again.


    Jerome calmed down after a while, his muscles twitching periodically. He tried standing up again and his body made cracking sounds with every movement. Debris fell off his body as he stood, and he was immediately hit by the raging currents of the river. Jerome quickly recalled what happened before he passed out.


    Hedon.


    He grabbed hold of the undergrowth in the water before he was swept away by the strong currents. He noticed he was naked. My robes must have been destroyed by the water, he thought.


    He quickly searched around and began picking up the storage bags that were on him before the incident. They were still in pristine condition. They were artifacts and couldn¡¯t be easily destroyed.


    There were a lot of them. With a thought, he used Suzzie to pick them all up. But he noticed something. Suzzie came out of his fingertips. She¡¯s supposed to be a set of gauntlets. How¡¯s it she came out of my fingertips?


    Jerome shot out of the water with wings flapping behind him. There was no point searching for answers to questions he didn¡¯t have at the moment. The effort it took to fly put a lot of burden on his mind and body and he wondered why. He had done this as Blank, why was he feeling burdened by it now?


    He flew up towards the outcropping that jutted out of the canyon wall, where he had found Ash lying in her own blood. It was empty. The blood had been cleaned up, probably by scavenging birds of prey.


    Jerome¡¯s rage awakened. The beast reared its head but Jerome shoved it down forcefully. He looked towards the direction of the current as the faces of his friends fleeted by in his mind¡¯s eye.


    Not all of them had been stabbed before being thrown into the river below, he thought. There¡¯s a chance some of them are still alive.


    Jerome lashed onto that hope. He had nothing else to go on except hope. He quickly took out some robes from one of his storage bags and put them on. The robes were supposed to be a gift to Moss but surprisingly, they fit him. Almost like he had grown taller.


    He shot forward in the direction of the current.


    How much time had passed? he thought to himself. He hoped it hadn¡¯t been too long. But even as he hoped, he knew deep down that he was wrong.


    What must have happened to Ash? Was it birds of prey? Some flying magical beast? Maybe she was thrown into the river too. Jerome wanted to hope nothing bad had happened to her but her condition the last time he saw her was grave.


    Jerome¡¯s body hurt like hell as he flew. His back hurt where his wings protruded out of him. And they weren¡¯t cooperating as he flew. Heck, his body wasn¡¯t cooperating with him. Soon enough he fell out of the sky and crashed into the river.


    Try again. Try again, Jerome! They must be out there somewhere, he thought as he struggled to push himself to the surface of the water. The strong current of the river violently pulled him along southward. He tried to get control of his body¡¯s movement, but his limbs didn¡¯t obey him. Jerome was disoriented. His body wasn¡¯t cooperating. His limbs were beginning to go numb.


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    With one final push, he shot out of the water, flying high into the sky. He landed on the cliff edge of the canyon and fell down flat on his back, breathing hard. He passed out moments later moments later from exhaustion.


    The sun was high up in the sky. And the wind was blowing heavily making it hard to hear anything but the sound of gusts. Jerome awakened to the sound of birds screeching high up in the sky. He opened his eyes and struggled into a sitting position. His eyes hurt as the sun shone down on him. Or was that the aura in the air?


    He stood up and looked around. How long has it been since I was thrown off the cliff? he thought. The memories of his last fight with Hedon came crashing back in again.


    Jerome took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart. He noticed his body was a lot skinnier now like it used to be before Mhen Agrh¡¯ur. He also felt very weak. Weaker than he¡¯d like to be. He looked towards the direction the river was flowing with a wistful expression.


    I¡¯m gonna come back for you guys. I promise. Just hold on¡­hold on for me. Jerome turned around and walked the other way. He walked back to the spot where he was thrown off the cliff. The soil looked undisturbed. It didn¡¯t look like there had been any fighting recently.


    Jerome sighed. This just solidified it in his mind that he had been under the river for far longer than it appeared. Maybe a few seasons.


    He jumped down to the outcropping on the cliff wall and sat down in a meditative posture, his body in pain as he took deep breaths to begin cycling. Time passed by slowly as he absorbed the pure essence in the air. Jerome could now distinguish the strange aura in the air now. Sword Aura. It was sharp and felt dangerous. He remembered Rihal¡¯s teachings once again.


    ¡°To comprehend Sword Force, one had to comprehend the edge of the blade.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the edge of a blade?¡±


    Jerome visualized the Sword Aura in the air and magnified it in his mind¡¯s eye. He shaved off particle after particle of the Sword Aura, as though it was physical matter until it was as thin and sharp as a blade¡¯s edge.


    Blade¡¯s Edge, he thought and looked around him. It¡¯ll be a fitting name.


    Jerome closed his eyes once again. With his understanding, he began absorbing the Sword Aura in the air. Pain wracked him once again but he held on. His body convulsed from the pain, yet he withstood it ¡ª not for long, though.


    His heart felt like it was about to explode, his muscles felt like they were being pricked by over a million tiny needles from inside him. He felt death approaching. He quickly slowed down his core, even pushing out some of the Sword Aura.


    What¡¯s wrong with my body? he thought as blood flowed from facial orifices. This shouldn¡¯t be normal. His eyes were unfocused and watery. He felt a splitting headache that made him want to curl up and into oblivion. The pain was unbearable.


    Jerome remained in his cross-legged position, however. Waiting out the pain. After a while, he opened his eyes and raised his right hand slightly with the first two fingers outstretched. The essence in his body spiked. Jerome felt like he was zapped by lightning all of a sudden and the hairs on his skin rose. He forced the pain to the back of his mind. His focus sharpened. He took hold of that feeling and channeled essence to his hand.


    With his outstretched fingers, he made a slicing gesture, forcefully slicing into the rock wall beside him with an invisible blade. Pain wracked his hand! His fingers curled involuntarily as his hand shook from the pain.


    My nervous system is a mess! he thought as he held his right hand in his left watching it tremble continuously. He lost the feeling in that hand right away, and couldn¡¯t move it anymore.


    Damn it! What the hell is going on?!


    Jerome felt he couldn¡¯t practice anymore. The more he did, the more his body broke down from within. He needed rest as he was exhausted and out of breath. He began taking stock of his injuries.


    I can¡¯t slow down my core to a halt. If I do that, my nerves and blood vessels will cause me pain from the lack of essence passing through them.


    If I cycle too fast, it¡¯ll put too much pressure on my channels and my entire body. ¡°Ah,¡± he sighed, ¡°so much for being a prodigy.¡± What did Hedon do to my body? he felt regret. He knew now that he shouldn¡¯t have antagonized the teenager. But the thirst for vengeance had been kindled.


    The bridge¡¯s been burned already, and he¡¯s gonna pay for bringing my family into this! His eyes filled with determination and a thirst for revenge.


    ¡°The flowing steel has merged with my body somehow, but I can use it just as before it did,¡± he muttered. That should be a good thing, right? He took out the storage bag containing the Sunfire stone and held it for a while before dipping his hand into it. He couldn¡¯t bring out the stone here as there was nowhere to place it.


    Jerome sighed. This is gonna hurt really bad. He started absorbing essence straight from the pouch.


    ¡°Aaaargh!¡± he screamed in pain almost as soon as he started. This was a mistake. The fiery essence inside the Sunfire stone was far more potent and destructive than he assumed.


    With as much strength as he could, Jerome shot towards the City of Farryn. His body was on fire from the inside out. The Sunfire stone was too potent for his battered body. He hurriedly flew forward with his nerves on fire. He soon fell out of the sky crashing onto the earth with a loud bang.


    The locals of the area saw this and fled in haste. Many of them were mere mortals who knew jack-shit about essence and very rarely visited cities where sacred artists dwelled, so seeing someone fall from the sky was bizarre. Jerome tried to stand up but the pain was unbearable.


    He forced himself, groaning loudly as he picked himself up. The wings at his back dissolved into his body and his paralyzed arm was now broken.


    Ain¡¯t it a beautiful day, he thought looking upward in frustration. He began walking towards Farryn with a limp. He had to walk for miles. Thankfully, even though he was bruised and battered, his body was still that of a sacred artist.


    Jerome stopped to rest for a while as he neared the city gates. He¡¯d been walking for half a day and it was night already. There was a long line of people waiting to get into the city.


    He looked at the city walls for the first time. He had passed through here when he came out of the city in Light knows how long ago.


    The city wall was huge, easily forty feet high. It shimmered with essence in the darkness of the night, making him wonder what it would have taken to build such a marvel. Jerome could tell that the wall wasn¡¯t just a passive defense erected to keep unwanted folks out; it was alive with magic, imbued with protective barriers so it could withstand the worst of barrages. Maybe it could be used for offense too, but he may never know.


    Guard towers jutted out at irregular intervals along the wall, each a masterpiece of both function and aesthetics. Glistening spires housed archers, offering vantage points to survey the landscape and protect against any encroaching danger. These towers were crowned with functional and wide battlements.


    Perhaps Vorthe had canons. Jerome had no idea about that. If they did, they never showed it.


    He didn¡¯t want to draw attention to himself so he decided to join the line. He wrapped his head in a small scarf to hide his face before getting in line. The line in front of the gate was quite long, as a lot of people wanted to get into the city to purchase accommodations. Rooms in inns would be readily available for rent.


    How long can I hold on here, he thought in agitation. Little by little, the line moved forward, and more people joined behind Jerome. A fight broke out behind him but he didn¡¯t bother looking back. It was the survival of the strongest out here. It was already dark and everyone wanted to get into the city before the gates were shut.


    Someone began walking towards the front from the back, skirting the line and looking for sheep among wolves. He took a glance at Jerome and saw someone weak and probably at death¡¯s door. Jerome was hunched over in pain and his body was trembling as his nerves couldn¡¯t stay still.


    The man stopped beside him and spoke loudly in a hoarse voice, ¡°Leave the line, or lose an arm.¡±

 37. A Certain Protag’s Return

    Someone began walking towards the front from the back of the line. He walked with heavy footsteps, a tactic to strike fear into the hearts of those he wanted to assail, Jerome knew. He skirted the line, looking for sheep among wolves.


    Jerome sensed when the man focused his gaze on him. It felt like seeing without eyes ¡ª a ¡®knowing¡¯ of sorts. The effect was way more pronounced than it was when he was Blank. He could sense eyes on him and ill-intent behind those eyes. He stood as steadily as he could without making himself look weak. But he knew he probably failed and looked like someone who would die from a slight push of the wind.


    The man stopped beside him and spoke loudly in a rather hoarse voice, ¡°Leave the line, or lose an arm.¡±


    ¡°Walk away,¡± Jerome said, loud and clear without even looking at the man. The line moved and he limped forward again, not caring to defend himself if the stranger decided to attack.


    The man was taken aback. The boy in front of him was surprisingly confident, even though he looked fragile and in pain. He looked Jerome up and down, just to be sure he wasn¡¯t from a noble home.


    Jerome¡¯s robe was a cheap-looking one, something common on the streets of Farryn. The scarf around his head concealed most of his face, but one could still tell he was a youngling. But what drew the man¡¯s attention was that Jerome was clean, from head to boots, or at least cleaner than a runt from the streets had every right to be.


    ¡°This was a misunderstanding, honored one. Do forgive this one,¡± he said with a bow and quickly walked back the way he came, not waiting for an answer from Jerome.


    ¡°Brother, what the fuck happened?¡± The man¡¯s brother and partner in crime asked him when he got to his position on the line. His voice was loud enough to not go unnoticed by Jerome, even from a distance of at least a hundred feet.


    ¡°He ain¡¯t no one we can mess with, brother, he clean. Too confident and clean ta be from the streets.¡±


    ¡°What the hell ya come here talkin¡¯ he clean, ya cunt!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m tellin¡¯ ya brother, we don¡¯t wan¡¯ mess with that boy!¡±


    ¡°You watch me, watch me get we a space up front.¡±


    The second man left the line as his brother took his position. From the way they interacted, he seemed to be the older brother ¡ª and probably stronger. He walked up to Jerome, speaking in the same raspy voice.


    ¡°So you¡¯d rather lose an arm, won¡¯t ya?¡± He raised his hand to place it on Jerome¡¯s shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m gon¡¯ give ya ta the count of¡ª¡±


    Something sliced into his upper arm and drew blood. He quickly withdrew his arm but it was too late. He shot backward and looked at his arm. The man gasped in shock. His lower arm was dangling from bits of flesh still attached to his upper arm, with blood gushing out like a scarlet fountain.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Jerome asked him, still shaking from all the pain he was feeling.


    ¡°I, I, don¡¯t have, don¡¯t have¡­¡± he stuttered out an incomplete reply. His eyes were erratic, and his racing heartbeat could be heard a mile away. He went down on one knee to steady himself.


    He didn¡¯t have a name.


    Jerome looked at him for the first time. The man was a roughly built Sprout, and haggard looking. Probably went through life, fighting tooth and nail to earn a living, plus he hadn¡¯t taken a decent bath in like a year. He held his dangling arm as he cycled to stop the blood flow. That arm was as good as gone if he didn¡¯t meet with a physician by morning.


    Sadly, sacred artists couldn¡¯t regrow limbs, even if they could heal from grave injuries.


    It was the first time Jerome felt someone cycle. He could feel the essence from the man¡¯s core moving towards his arm.


    So this is how Sprouts perceive the world, he thought in fascination. ¡°I should end you. Not because you¡¯re pitiful, but because you¡¯re a parasite in this world, but I won¡¯t,¡± he said, making sure to infuse his words with as much venom as possible. ¡°Learn from your mistakes.¡±


    Jerome looked away. He noticed that the person in front of him and the one behind him had put some space between him and them. They were afraid of him. No average Sprout could fatally injure an older Sprout, especially with such ease.


    It was well known that different sacred artists in the same Realm were powerful with respect to age and experience, except you were from a powerful family fighting a street rat. The older they were, the stronger they would be.


    The nameless man scampered off with his arm holding back tears and pain.


    If you wanna hit someone, get ready to be hit. If you wanna beat someone, get ready to take a beating. If you wanna kill someone¡­ Jerome got lost in thought as the line moved. He tried to remember where he heard those words but couldn¡¯t. It doesn¡¯t matter though, it just shows that reality is something every man has to face for himself.


    Jerome had never seen the nighttime in Farryn before. It took a lot of time, but he finally got into Farryn. The city was a beautiful sight to behold. For a moment he forgot his deteriorating body and took in the sight of the nighttime Farryn. There was an ongoing parade on the streets with beautifully decorated carnival floats, masquerades, dancers, jugglers, martial artists, dance fighting, and so on.


    Houses stood tall and colorful everywhere he looked, with colorful ribbons crisscrossing the rooftops and decorated lanterns hanging from them. Banners carrying the crest of the Royal family hung from rooftops as well. All the houses had these ribbons and banners hanging down their sides with tiny bells attached to them. They gave off sweet jingling sounds as the wind blew at them.


    There was a celebration but he didn¡¯t know what for. There was little he knew about Farryn, he realized. He had only been a disciple for a year and some days, and the majority of that time was spent in the mountain range. He tore his eyes away from the street as he walked towards the Northern part of the city.


    The essence in the city was dense. Now that he was Sprout, his senses were a lot more powerful than before. Albeit, it was painful to use them. As he breathed in, he could feel the difference compared to outside the city.


    Some men would kill to live in a place like this, he thought. One could deduce how the concentration of essence in a particular location influenced its societal value. That was an important criterion for standard living, seeing how Farryn was a highly populated city.


    Suddenly, something caught his attention at the periphery of his vision. Jerome looked over and stopped dead in his track. A furred creature rose sharply into the air, doing some acrobatics before it began hovering. He sensed the ambient essence spike in its direction as it twisted and turned beautifully in the air.


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    Jerome marveled at the scene. ¡°A sacred beast,¡± he muttered softly to himself in awe.


    The beast was only about the size of a small dog. In fact, it was a dog of sorts. It looked like a cross between a baby golden retriever and a baby fox, with bright red fur and big golden eyes. Its white-tipped tail also didn¡¯t go unnoticed.


    Someone made a happy sound just below the flying creature ¡ª their voice, rising higher than the music playing in the street. They threw a ball in the opposite direction of it. The creature yipped happily and lunged for the ball.


    Jerome watched it grow in size as it dove upwards, eyes going wide in shock. Its tail seemed to grow bigger than its entire body and become hairier. Before his very eyes, the tail split into three. It caught the ball and flew back in the direction it came, yipping happily as it did.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± he couldn¡¯t hold back the awe in his voice.


    ¡°Yeah, it is,¡± someone said from beside him. Jerome quickly took a step away from the stranger but fell on his butt as he couldn¡¯t maintain his balance.


    ¡°That right there is ¡®hulu¡¯. It¡¯s a three-tailed fox. Basically harmless. The jesters just use her for entertainment.¡± The young man stopped as he saw him on the floor.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, trying to help him up. Jerome didn¡¯t take his hand and stood on his own.


    ¡°A three-tailed fox, you say?¡± he asked, breathing hard from the little exertion.


    The young man looked at him in confusion but answered. ¡°Hmm. My ¡®da¡¯ wanted to buy her from them for me but they refused. Hulu can be so much more, though. Sacred beasts like her are known for their tenacity. And she¡¯s very good with illusions.¡±


    ¡°Illusions?¡± Jerome looked at the flying fox, wondering if this was an illusion. He watched, mesmerized by the way air molecules seemed to want to cling to its body. It gave the visual effect of a furry animal swimming under clear water. ¡°Is this an illusion?¡±


    The young man smiled. ¡°Hard to tell. You¡¯re Sprout, aren¡¯t you? Your senses should be sharper than mine.¡±


    Jerome studied the young man for a moment only now seeing how young he was. He was a boy and a Blank at that. He looked well dressed and seemed to be from a proper home. Not many say sorry around here, he had come to find out. But this one did, which said a lot about his upbringing.


    ¡°It was nice speaking with you, stranger,¡± he said as he turned to walk away.


    ¡°You too, stranger!¡± the boy called back happily as he rushed to join the festivities.


    Jerome shook head as he trudged forward at a snail¡¯s pace, hoping he could get to the Royal Estate before he collapsed from exhaustion.


    ¡°Innocence,¡± he muttered to himself, ¡°hope you don¡¯t lose it too quickly, stranger.¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°Master, you called,¡± Rihal said as he appeared behind his master, Damien Vorthe.


    He had been training Ash to pass the time and was bored to death. He had wanted to do something, anything to get his mind off Jerome. But Ash reminded him of how he had failed his disciple. He was grateful she was alive, but at the same time, she was a reminder to him that he should have been watchful of the Alvric heir. As soon as he got his master¡¯s call, he was overjoyed. Anything to occupy his mind with was a welcome distraction.


    Damien Vorthe sighed deeply. ¡°What am I going to do with you, kid?¡± he muttered to himself. He¡¯d been Rihal¡¯s master for almost half a century and had gotten used to teaching him the same thing over and over; it had become a song.


    ¡°Emotion, Rihal,¡± Damien said as Rihal appeared behind him.


    ¡°¡°Emotions get in the way in our line of work. A rational mind means a rational man, which is the foundation of success,¡±¡± they both recited.


    The youngling had great talent, but all of a sudden he started thinking with what was between his legs, instead of what was between his ears. He fell in love with one of the common folk, the Royal Family found out about it, and he had his heart broken. Rihal had remained broken ever since, and Damien Vorthe didn¡¯t know how to fix him.


    ¡°I have news from the Sovereign,¡± Damien turned to face him.


    Silence reigned after that statement.


    Rihal waited, knowing what his master was doing. It was a matter of how long he could stand not knowing what he wanted to know, even though the one to give the information was standing right in front of him.


    Discipline.


    He stood, head bowed with his right hand in a fist over his chest. Waiting. His breathing was becoming ragged. If he cycled to calm his nerves, he lost. It meant he had no control over his emotions whatsoever. And he¡¯d shame himself in the eyes of his master. Worst he¡¯d shame his master. For all the years of effort he¡¯d trained him and yet, he had no control over himself.


    Rihal shut his eyes and took deep breaths, taking care not to cycle. Thirty breaths of time in silence became sixty, which became a hundred. The tension in the air was so thick, you could cut out a slice of it with a knife.


    ¡°He has awakened.¡±


    Rihal shook visibly. ¡°With your permission, master, I would like to go welcome him back.¡±


    ¡°Meet him at the entrance of the Royal Estate,¡± his master said. Rihal quickly vanished from the spot. He made it to Ash to tell her the good news and they both rushed out of the estate. Now they stood at the base of the stairway ¡ª the entrance into the Royal Estate ¡ª waiting for Jerome to make it to them.


    ¡°Calm down, Ash.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not exactly calm yourself, Uncle Rihal,¡± she said, pointing at his tapping foot before she continued pacing.


    The night was far spent and there had been no sign of Jerome yet. They had been waiting for so long it seemed as though Jerome wasn¡¯t coming.


    Please grant me permission to bring him home, master. He¡¯s already in the city. Clearly struggling to reach the Royal Estate. Rihal sent his master a message.


    You will remain where you are until he reaches you¡­and this is NOT his home! his master replied coldly.


    Rihal sighed, frustrated. If only he could have his way¡­


    ¡°What could be taking him so long?¡± Ash said absently, ¡°Uncle Rihal, let¡¯s go search for him. Who knows, he may be at the city gates. Or worse, the gates may be shut before he gets to any of them.¡±


    Rihal looked at her apologetically as he shook his head, expressing his dissent. She had no idea how injured he was or what the state of his body was. Honestly, he had no idea himself.


    ¡°The city gates have already been shut,¡± he said.


    Ash stopped pacing for a breath and looked at him with a frown.


    ¡°...but he¡¯s already inside the city,¡± he said with a sad smile.


    ¡°Urgh!¡± she groaned in frustration as she resumed pacing.


    Rihal sighed. His attempt at humor didn¡¯t help to lighten the mood one bit. Perhaps humor wasn¡¯t his strong suit. They waited quietly for two more quarters of the night before dawn began to peek out from the east like a lazy old flower.


    Finally, Ash saw someone walking up to them. ¡°Is that him, Uncle Rihal?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is, Ash.¡± He nodded. ¡°It is him.¡±


    Before he even completed his sentence, Ash dashed away from him, running toward Jerome like an arrow mid-flight. She jumped on him and they both met the floor in a crumpled heap.


    ¡°Urgh.¡±


    ¡°Sorry! I¡¯m so sorry,¡± she stood up quickly and tried to help him up.


    ¡°Who the hell are you?!¡± Jerome jerked his hand away.


    ¡°It¡¯s me¨C¡±


    ¡°Ash? Is it really you?¡± Jerome¡¯s voice quivered, on the verge of tears. He had recognized her face, though, she was a lot fleshier than before. And her voice ¡ª it was still hers as he remembered but with a slight singsong tone to it.


    The world stopped moving for him at that moment, shrinking to just the two of them. He held her firmly in his arms as he sobbed uncontrollably, as if afraid she might fade away. Tears streamed down their faces in unison as they were both overwhelmed by emotions. They both cried for a long time. But unable to hold up his own weight anymore, Jerome collapsed.

 38. Thirst, Hunger, And Certain Guilt

    ¡°...his organs are shutting down and his heart will fail him soon¡­¡±


    ¡°...there must be something that can be done!¡±


    Jerome could hear voices from time to time as his consciousness drifted between slumber and the waking world.


    ¡°Ash?¡± he called out. But there was no response. Sleep took him once again.


    Soon he woke up and noticed he was lying down. ¡°Where am I?¡±


    His voice sounded hoarse, as if from overuse. He swallowed hard, feeling thirsty.


    When was the last time I felt thirsty? he thought, standing up with great difficulty and looking around. This wasn¡¯t his room. It was bigger and looked¡­ homely, painted in bright colors. There were two cushion chairs by the side of the single bed, and a reading table and chair were at the foot of the bed. There was also a wardrobe on the opposite wall.


    He walked unsteadily toward the window to take a peek outside. My eyes, what¡¯s wrong with my eyes, he thought, blinking repeatedly to keep the room in focus. Opening the dark curtains, sunlight poured into the room making his eyes hurt. The door behind him opened and in walked a stranger. Jerome turned to look at her.


    ¡°Good, you¡¯re awake. Come sit,¡± she gestured toward the bed.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± he said, wrinkling his brows at the sound of his own voice. He wasn¡¯t quite used to hearing his voice sounding so raspy.


    ¡°I¡¯m a physician¡­¡±


    ¡°In black leather armor?¡± Jerome said, looking pointedly from her ¡®uniform¡¯ to her face.


    ¡°...of sorts,¡± she muttered with a shrug.


    He gazed deeply into her eyes before sitting in bed. It took a lot to keep her image in focus in front of him but he tried, blinking away the blurriness. He could sense that she loathed him. It was similar to how he felt around Elder Duten but more¡­ restrained.


    ¡°How do you feel,¡± she said, taking a seat in one of the cushion chairs.


    ¡°Not good.¡±


    She looked pointedly at him, clearly wanting him to elaborate.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to do anything, even talking is exhausting,¡± he said grudgingly.


    She looked at him askance. Jerome knew that she knew he could sense her dislike for him. So, there was no need to even pretend. He could tell that she wanted to snap back at him but swallowed her words.


    Well, you asked. What did I do to deserve your abhorrence? he thought. He looked down at himself for the first time since he woke up. He was in some type of oversized brown shift. It was comfortable, yet left his arms, legs, and sides bare. And he was naked inside it. Only a thin strip of rope held the shift around the waist.


    ¡°From our examination, we found out you¡¯ve got a lot of broken bones that aren¡¯t healing. Your internal organs are shutting down due to overwork.¡±


    Jerome reached into the shift to feel the skin above his heart. There was a large scar there. He could tell it was a nasty scar by just feeling it with his fingers. The rest of the skin around the scar was just the same.


    Nothing I haven¡¯t heard before, he thought, remembering what it was like to lie on a hospital bed, hearing the doctor report his condition in his previous life. I lived to be sixty in that life, and I¡¯ll live longer and stronger in this one too.


    ¡°...are you listening to me?¡±


    Jerome coughed. ¡°Sorry about that,¡± he looked away from where his eyes had been staring and started to massage his right hand.


    The girl glared at him, hugging her chest, and hiding her goods. She probably thought him a pervert now. His eyes were in their general direction ¡ª staring at empty space ¡ª but his mind was elsewhere.


    ¡°Your eyes are also deteriorating, soon you won¡¯t be able to see again,¡± she said with undisguised animosity. ¡°But I can assist you in getting better. You¡¯d not be in perfect condition ¡ª far from it in fact. But at least, you wouldn¡¯t die like a chicken.¡±


    ¡°Layla,¡± Someone called to caution her of her speech from beside the window.


    Jerome felt a splitting headache attack him from the sound of that voice. They both looked startled at the newcomer. It felt like she had been there all along, yet he didn¡¯t see her enter the room. He struggled to hold himself together as the trembling of his body turned into a full-blown convulsion.


    ¡°Lie down,¡± Layla said, going from bitter to concerned in a breath.


    ¡°She¡¯s a Sage, so being in her presence can be unbearable for normal Sprouts. It¡¯s probably worse for you,¡± she said as she helped Jerome lie in bed. The spasms continued for a long while before he passed out from the pain.


    ~~~


    ¡°You¡¯ve got two options. Take some pills made by the Royal Alchemists,¡± Layla said. Jerome scrunched his eyebrows at that. ¡°Or heal on your own. Which would take a lot longer and hurt a lot more.¡±


    ¡°Forget about the pills, I¡¯ll heal on my ow¡ª ough!¡± he coughed up blood into a small pale in front of him. This had been going on since he woke up. Ash sat next to him with a worried look, massaging his back as he coughed violently. How much blood have I lost now? My body¡¯s truly shutting down, he thought.


    It wouldn¡¯t be long before his heart would give. Jerome reached inside the shift to touch the scar on his chest again.


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    ¡°Very well, let¡¯s get started. Help him lie down, Ash,¡± Layla said standing up to close the blinds of the window darkening the room with shadows. ¡°When we begin, try to cycle as slowly as you can. This would reduce the risk of pain in the meditative state you¡¯ll be in. Remember, I¡¯m not helping you heal. I¡¯m just going to be creating the perfect environment for you to heal on your own.¡±


    ¡°How else can I help?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°Help me light the candles,¡± Layla said.


    They took out a few candles and a single match stick with a blue head from a storage bag. Jerome wondered how the strange matchstick would light all the candles they took out.


    Layla sat down cross-legged next to him to regulate her breathing and Ash snapped her fingers next to the head of the matchstick, lighting it up. There was no fire, only a glowing blue match head, but he could feel its slight heat, and it was enough to light a candle.


    Ash smiled at him. ¡°Cool, right?¡±


    Jerome nodded with a smile.


    ¡°I gaped when I saw it too ¡ª not that you did,¡± she said with pretend hurt.


    Jerome smiled sadly as he watched her light the candles around the room one after the other. He wished they didn¡¯t have to meet under such circumstances. He wished his friends were still here and they spent time together reminiscing about their time in the slums. Jerome sighed, watching as Ash went around the room lighting the candles.


    The match didn¡¯t go out, even after she was done. Another technological miracle of Vorthe. He was sure it used some sort of attributed essence to burn. Essence was the only thing he could think of that would burn without smoke like that. Ash used her thumb and index finger to squeeze the match head and with a muffled sizzling sound, the heat died.


    Ash chuckled. ¡°Needs air to burn is what Uncle Kilian says.¡± Ash glanced at him on the bed, taking note of his ragged breathing. She frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t like the look in your eyes, Jerome,¡± she whispered to him.


    Guilt. He felt guilt. He couldn¡¯t feel any other way when he looked at her. They had a family. A family that had started to thrive and he ruined it.


    Ash sat at the head of the bed and cradled his head in her lap. ¡°It¡¯s not your fault Jerome ¡ª none of it is. So stop beating yourself over it,¡± she whispered into his ears. Even as she did, she couldn¡¯t hold back the tremors in her own voice.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°But it was, Ash,¡± he muttered. ¡°I did this. If I hadn¡¯t embarrassed him; if I had intentionally lost. Maybe¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay. Let¡¯s get you better first.¡±


    Jerome nodded lightly. They looked into each other¡¯s eyes for a long while. Ash had truly grown into a lovely woman. How many years had it been? How long would it take for the little girl he once knew to mature into the beautiful lady he was seeing right now? For how long was he gone?


    ¡°If you two lovebirds are done, we can begin, right?¡± Layla said with her eyes closed, and Ash blushed visibly. Layla¡¯s voice sounded serene and coupled with the dreamy atmosphere of the room, Jerome felt sleepy from listening to her. His eyes fluttered as he heard her speak again.


    ¡°Take a deep breath, Jerome; slow¡­and¡­deep¡­¡±


    He suddenly but consciously fell into slumber. It was the strangest felling he ever had. Soon, he felt like he was drifting on clouds. From time to time, he felt a spike of pain as he tried to cycle as slowly as he could, but nothing too serious. As long as he breathed as he was instructed and remained in this trance, his pain could be relegated to the back of his mind as he healed.


    He could hear Layla¡¯s voice like a distant echo. But his own thoughts were also quite active in his subconscious. How is she doing this? Jerome had never heard of anyone who could put people to sleep and make them forget their pain.


    Maybe a Spirit Realm expert or a Sage could do it, but a Sprout? And the aura she manipulates, he thought. What is it? It¡¯s not essence. Not one of the forces either¡­ He decided to find out when he came out of this half-conscious state he was in.


    Days passed like this. Slowly Jerome healed. But he didn¡¯t feel like he was healing at all. He was tempted many times to speed up his core but restrained himself. He still remembered all that happened when he woke up at the canyon.


    ¡°Wake up, Jerome.¡±


    Layla¡¯s voice reached him again but this time, it was close, not as far away as he¡¯d been hearing it the whole time. His eyes fluttered open and someone helped him sit up.


    ¡°What happened?¡± he asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s been a moon since we began. I need to rest,¡± Layla said. Her voice sounded weak, strained.


    Jerome glanced at her, surprised. Her cheeks were sunken and she looked pale. She quickly hid her face behind long dark curls, not wanting him to see her like that.


    ¡°Gratitude for helping me out,¡± he said, bowing deeply. She had earned his respect. He still felt weak and in pain but his eyesight had improved.


    Layla took a deep breath, absorbing the ambient essence in the air. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in another cycle,¡± she said and looked at Ash. ¡°Take good care of him.¡± Then she turned to Jerome. ¡°And don¡¯t stare at her boobs!¡± She glared at him.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t staring!¡± Jerome said, turning red with anger and embarrassment. Ash laughed out loud. She was partly happy because he looked healthier.


    ¡°Hmph!¡± Layla humphed as she glided toward the door.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    Layla stopped and turned around. ¡°What now?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for before, but I truly wasn¡¯t looking. I would like to know what aura that was?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Sorry, Jerome. I can¡¯t tell you about it,¡± she smiled apologetically and left. The door closed silently behind her.


    ¡°Ah,¡± he sighed and looked at Ash. ¡°Got any idea?¡±


    She shook her head, saying, ¡°No, but it makes me sleepy.¡±


    Sleepy, Jerome thought. ¡°Something that makes one sleepy,¡± he muttered. It confirmed his musings from when he was in the trance-like state. It wasn¡¯t any known essence or force.


    ¡°I thought you died,¡± Jerome said.


    Ash sat down next to him holding his hands in hers. His hands, though bony and unattractive, were bigger than hers. There were lots of scars on his arms making for a very nasty-looking skin. Jerome didn¡¯t mind it in the least though. Honestly, he would have thought of it as his badge of honor but he was too preoccupied with thoughts of regret.


    ¡°I failed them, Ash,¡± he muttered. ¡°I promised Doti it was gonna be okay, but he died. I failed them.¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t your fault, Jerome,¡± she said, hugging him, caressing his back as he sagged into her. ¡°You couldn¡¯t have known.¡±


    ¡°How did you survive?¡± he asked.


    Ash smiled slightly at him. ¡°I don¡¯t know how but when I came to, I was here in the Royal Estate. I was fed and clothed, and it was hard for a while; not seeing my brothers and sisters around me, not sharing meals as we used to,¡± She took a deep breath again, stretching the silence. ¡°What about you? Where have you been these three years?¡±


    ¡°Three years?!¡± he asked in shock. Three years?! His heart began to pound hard, threatening to burst. The convulsion was beginning again!


    ¡°Deep breaths, Jerome!¡± Ash said, quickly rushing to sit behind him.


    He took deep breaths to keep it under control as Ash quickly began massaging his shoulders. Even though his condition had stabilized a little, he was still far from healthy. Three years? That was a really long time.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he hummed, breathing heavily. Jerome looked into the distance, lost in thought. He¡¯d been in deep slumber for three years at the bottom of a river?! It was a crazy thing to say. More than that, the world had left him behind for three years. Jerome shivered, feeling lost.


    ¡°If I told you, you wouldn¡¯t believe me,¡± he said with a sad smile at her. ¡°Even I don¡¯t know if I would believe me.¡±


    ¡°Try me.¡±


    Jerome smiled at her, appreciating her openness. ¡°I was asleep under a river in a canyon a few miles south of Farryn.¡±

 39. Trust, Once Lost...

    ¡°If I told you, you wouldn¡¯t believe me,¡± he said with a sad smile at her. ¡°Even I don¡¯t know if I would believe me.¡±


    Ash had asked where he had been for three years and he truly was finding it hard to believe himself.


    ¡°Try me,¡± she said. Her voice was trusting. Her smile was genuine.


    Jerome smiled at her, appreciating her openness. ¡°I was asleep under a river in a canyon a few miles south of Farryn.¡±


    Ash chuckled lightly. ¡°You¡¯re right, that does sound unbelievable. Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon isn¡¯t a place to take a nap.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s why I need to speak with Rihal ¡ª wait, ¡®Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon¡¯? Is that what it¡¯s called?¡± Jerome tilted his head as he asked.


    ¡°Hmm. You do that a lot, you know,¡± Ash said.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Tilt your head like¡­so,¡± she said, mimicking him.


    It was cute. Her long hair shook loose in a cloud of soft black curls. Jerome blushed and looked away. He remembered what it was like to be a teenager with raging hormones. And those hormones were beginning to wake up. He was speaking with a beautiful girl after all. Worst of all, he had no experience dealing with situations like these.


    This is stupid, I¡¯m a man, he thought to himself. Man up and say something nice.


    He took her hands in his massaging them slightly. They were dainty and beautiful, her fingers long and slender. Her palms were soft on the surface, but he could tell she had been training. The flesh underneath the skin of her palms was tough.


    Jerome looked at his right hand noticing he could feel and use it again. ¡°Schweet,¡± he muttered, flexing his fingers.


    Ash took a deep breath and blushed. ¡°Please don¡¯t remind me of that,¡± she said, giving him a wistful smile.


    ¡°You used to love saying that when you were little,¡± Jerome smiled back at her, and her blush deepened. ¡°Ahem, you speak better now.¡±


    Jerome stopped. What the hell was that? That was cringy. Way to go, Jerome, he chastised himself. ¡°Tell me about your time here. I can tell you¡¯ve been training.¡±


    ¡°I went for Mhen Agrh¡¯ur a few moons after I arrived at the Royal Estate. It was crowded. I never knew there were so many kids in Farryn!¡± She smiled as she remembered her experience.


    ¡°Kids, Ash?¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Come on, you used to say it.¡±


    ¡°And I was corrected. Society doesn¡¯t see the term the same way I do. So, we stick to society¡¯s standards.¡±


    ¡°Must we?¡± she asked. Jerome searched her face to see if she was joking. Ash was not. She was really serious about the question. But her meaning wasn¡¯t lost on him. He¡¯d be a fool to think they were talking about a simple word.


    ¡°You¡¯ve truly grown, Ash,¡± Jerome admitted. ¡°In a good way too.¡±


    ¡°I guess losing family would do that to you.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. but to answer your question, we must¡­ stick to society¡¯s standards, that is. We are just individuals after all. If we were powerful enough to change things, we could. But since we aren¡¯t¡­¡± he shrugged.


    ¡°Mehn Agrh¡¯ur was the same for me and the boys too,¡± Jerome muttered. That statement roused an uncomfortable silence between them. ¡°There were too many kids there for us to even count. Maybe a thousand.¡±


    The silence continued for a while still.


    ¡°So, when will you be going for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± Jerome finally asked.


    ¡°In the New Year. House Alvric will be sending more than a few participants this time around, to avoid what happened last time. They only sent three last time.¡±


    ¡°And the Royal Family?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯ll also be sending at least four disciples this time around, including actual members of the Royal Family. I¡¯ve met some of them. They aren¡¯t like the Alvrics ¡ª at least to the best of my knowledge. Though they may have inflated egos, they can be reasonable.¡±


    You do speak better now, Jerome thought, remembering how Ash fumbled with language when she was younger. ¡°Really? I never met any of them so I wouldn¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Uncle Rihal did say so.¡±


    ¡°¡®Uncle¡¯ Rihal? He doesn¡¯t look like an uncle to me,¡± Jerome said.


    Ash laughed at that and he smiled. He loved her laugh. It was beautiful. She exposed her slim neckline when she laughed, he felt like kissing her there. Jerome blushed again. His hormones were directing his mind elsewhere and he didn¡¯t know how to deal with it on the spot.


    ¡°He said you only spent a month preparing for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep where you beat up Hedon to a pulp,¡± Ash chuckled.


    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have done that,¡± he said solemnly.


    Ash hugged him at that. They were both hurting and needed each other to stay strong.


    ¡°Not all of them are dead, you know?¡± Jerome said.


    Ash jerked away and held his shoulders. ¡°Are you sure?!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not, but a man can hope,¡± Jerome reached up to hold her hands in his, bringing them around the nape of his neck. He touched his forehead to hers breathing in her soft fragrance. She smelled like flowers and had her own unique scent. Something Jerome couldn¡¯t place but reminded him of the brightness of the sun.


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    They remained quiet for a while enjoying each other¡¯s company; listening to each other¡¯s heartbeat.


    ¡°You know for the first time in a long while, I don¡¯t feel lonely anymore,¡± Ash said.


    Jerome held back tears. Those words stirred up a new emotion in him. Gratitude. He felt gratitude for having her back in his life. I¡¯d have to ask Rihal who saved her so I can thank them. Whoever they are, I owe them a debt of gratitude, he thought.


    ¡°Ditto, Ash,¡± Jerome chuckled.


    Ash laughed lightly at that. ¡°What is that supposed to mean? Wait¡­¡± she leaned away to look him in the face. ¡°It means ¡®me too¡¯, right?¡±


    Jerome nodded with a smile as he blinked away tears.


    ¡°You never stop making up strange words, Jerome. Honestly, I should be used to it by now.¡±


    ¡°My mind is like the pen of a ready writer,¡± he said, feeling very light in spirit for the first time in a long time.


    Ash laughed at that. ¡°Okay, I should go,¡± she said. ¡°Before you come up with another interesting thing to say.¡±


    Jerome hugged her for a while longer breathing in the scent of her fragrance, committing it to memory. After a while, Ash walked towards the door and stopped. Not looking back, she asked, ¡°Jerome?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Will you avenge them?¡±


    ¡°If it¡¯s the last thing I do,¡± he said.


    The resolve in his voice was clear as day. Her shoulders shook slightly as though she was on the verge of crying. But she stood up straight, shoulders squared.


    ¡°I¡¯ll help you,¡± she said, with resolve matching his before leaving.


    Jerome watched her leave. Ash had grown up to become a beautiful lady and a determined one too. He¡¯ll have to leave her behind to go search for their surviving friends, and she¡¯ll be mad.


    And I most definitely can¡¯t take her along to avenge them, he thought with a sigh.


    ¡°Don¡¯t put her in danger,¡± Rihal said, startling him.


    Jerome jumped in freight. ¡°Where¡¯d you come from?¡± And how do you people keep popping up out of nowhere? he thought, remembering the Sage from before.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    Rihal had been there in the room for a while now, restraining his aura.


    Jerome jumped in surprise. ¡°Where¡¯d you come from?¡±


    Rihal¡¯s heart hurt when Jerome looked back at him. The wariness in his gaze told him of the suffering Jerome had had to endure. All this because of some psychotic teenager.


    ¡°I have my ways,¡± he said with a shrug, his heart light in his chest, though. He was thankful for Jerome¡¯s safe return if nothing at all. Now his disciple can heal in the proper environment.


    Jerome looked away from him, frowning as he did. Rihal could see the accusation in his eyes. He wanted to say he was sorry but didn¡¯t know how to. Sorry wouldn¡¯t bring back Jerome¡¯s family.


    ¡°You promised, Rihal,¡± his disciple muttered. ¡°You promised!¡± His words had a bite to them he had never heard in Jerome¡¯s voice before.


    Rihal just stood there taking it all in. He had to. If Jerome wanted to lash out, to use him as a punching bag, he¡¯d let him. He deserved it ¡ª and Jerome deserved a release. Someone had to pay for what happened to his family, and since they technically couldn¡¯t go after the main culprit, the one who did not protect them would do.


    After a while, Rihal reached out to him and held him close, wrapping him up in a bear hug. Jerome tried to push him away but he held him tight, refusing to let go. His disciple soon calmed down after his weak limbs got tired.


    Jerome was taller now. Only about half a head shorter than he was. Rihal was proud of him. He was proud he survived against all odds. And he was proud that Jerome still had that fire in his eyes, that relentlessness that made him push on.


    ¡°Have you been here the whole time?¡± Jerome asked, still cradled in his arms.


    ¡°Hmm. Didn¡¯t know how to face you, I admit.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°I like your new eyes¡­they are normal.¡±


    Rihal smiled ¡ª a sad smile. He no longer wore his blindfold anymore and he was grateful Jerome noticed. More than that, Jerome was the only person he didn¡¯t feel awkward being congratulated by. The boy didn¡¯t know the circumstances surrounding his eyes.


    ¡°What happened at the canyon, Jerome? I hope you can tell me.¡±


    Jerome was silent for a while, his heavy breathing was the only thing that could be heard in the room. He pulled out of Rihal¡¯s embrace and sat down on the bed to rest comfortably.


    ¡°When I went back to the slum¡­¡± he began.


    Jerome gave him a summary of what happened to him. Rihal was burning with rage when he was done and Jerome couldn¡¯t hold back his tears. They stayed silent for a while as Rihal digested all that Jerome had said.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Jerome. I wish I had done more. I kept an eye on them from afar. But when Alvric came to take them¡­¡±


    ¡°You weren¡¯t ¡ª no, whoever was your eye wasn¡¯t bothered to check!¡± Jerome growled. ¡°I don¡¯t need your pity. I need to find them is all.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Rihal looked at him, confused. Did he hear right?


    ¡°They aren¡¯t all dead. I can get to them¡­ soon as I get better.¡±


    ¡°Slow down, Jerome. Did you say they aren¡¯t all dead?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Not all of them were stabbed before being thrown into the water.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure, Jerome?¡± Rihal asked. Jerome turned his eyes on him and Rihal felt like those eyes were pointing fingers at him. And something more. He had lost his disciple¡¯s trust.


    ¡°Believe what you will,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I¡¯ll find them myself.¡±


    Rihal sighed. ¡°You need to get stronger, Jerome. I hope what you say is true, but at the same time, if they are alive, their lives would be much worse than it was before.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s eyebrows rose. Rihal knew he fully understood the implications of what he was saying. Jerome stood up and started pacing the length of the floor. Rihal watched him drag his right leg as he moved. He could tell the leg was completely shattered at the knee and it must hurt like hell for Jerome to put his weight on it.


    Jerome¡¯s gaze was down as he paced, calculating in his mind. Rihal could almost see the gears turning in his head.


    ¡°We could start now. Or anytime you feel you are ready.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± he stopped. ¡°We¡¯ll start now.¡± Jerome¡¯s stomach rumbled in protest at that moment.


    ¡°You¡¯d need to take care of that first,¡± Rihal said, looking guilt-stricken. ¡°Let me get you something to eat.¡± He vanished.


    Sacred artists didn¡¯t need sustenance like mere mortals. Jerome himself ate once every tenday when he was Blank. Sprouts could go on for even more days without needing to eat ¡ª a few tendays if they were in seclusion. Jerome¡¯s condition made him almost mortal so he had to feed more frequently, and he hadn¡¯t done so in three years.


    ¡°I thought the Sovereign said his foundation was damaged,¡± Kilian muttered next to him in the kitchen.


    Rihal hummed his reply, watching the kitchen staff who was filling a tray with some of the most succulent dishes in the kitchen. ¡°His core is as vibrant as any newborn Sprout¡¯s. It¡¯s just the condition of his body that is terrible. It¡¯s a miracle in itself that his core is undamaged.¡±


    Another mystery about his disciple he might never get to solve. At least there¡¯s still fire in his eyes. And if he can talk without whooping, he can train, Rihal thought.


    ¡°You don¡¯t sound so happy, Rihal,¡± Kilian said, looking him up and down. ¡°And you look like you could use a good night¡¯s rest.¡±


    Rihal felt extremely exhausted; like a mortal who hadn¡¯t been sleeping fine.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t even call me by my name,¡± he muttered. ¡°You should have seen the look in his eyes when he saw me. I¡¯ve lost his trust, Kilian.¡±

 40. Interlude: House Of The Wind Spirit

    Castle Alvric, Farryn. Secret chamber of the Alvric Council.


    Nolan Alvric


    ¡°Did we get it, Eskan?¡±


    ¡°Aye, Patriarch, the merchant we ambushed had quite a lot on him.¡±


    ¡°How many?¡±


    ¡°Fifteen.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot,¡± Filip Alvric, the 1st Elder said, surprised.


    ¡°Let me see,¡± Nolan Alvric said, gesturing with his hands. As Patriarch of his clan, he had the right to use these treasures as he saw fit ¡ª or at least he should. Albeit, reality always tended to be different from one¡¯s fantasies.


    Nolan watched as Elder Eskan nodded fanatically, smiling with glee. He provided a small pouch from his storage ring, reaching across from his seat on the other side of the redwood table, and handed it over to Nolan. From his seat on a raised dais, Nolan received the pouch and unsealed it producing a blue gem.


    ¡°Huh!¡± he gasped, and the rest of the Elders present leaned in to get a good look at the gem, dragging long-plaited, red-brown beards across the table. He almost had the urge to pocket the gem away from their eyes.


    ¡°Heavens above, these are larger than the last ones we got!¡± The 2nd Elder, Fredrik Alvric, spoke excitedly, his long, full beard joining in the excitement.


    ¡°Blue Heart gem, or as we call it ¡ª Soul fire gem,¡± Nolan Alvric said in awe. ¡°Vorthe wastes its potential, using it for manufacturing firecrackers and matchsticks.¡±


    He held up the Soul fire gem and it caught the light of the sun, reflecting it around the chamber. The red drapes of the chamber were bathed in a moment¡¯s glitter of blue light giving the chamber a dreamy appearance.


    ¡°But the true potential of this beauty is¡­ unimaginable,¡± Nolan Alvric said.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Filip Alvric, the 1st Elder drew his attention. ¡°Forgiveness Patriarch, but the Ancient One requires the Soul fire gem more than we do.¡± With all his might, Nolan knew he couldn¡¯t hold back the gem. The First Elder wasn¡¯t an Elder in name only. His thin build and almost gaunt features hid a formidable Sage.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Nolan frowned, placing the gem carefully in its pouch. He handed over the pouch to Elder Eskan, who handed it to Filip.


    You are nothing more than a glorified babysitter, Filip. One of these days, he grumbled inwardly. ¡°Anders?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Patriarch,¡± Anders Alvric stood up ceremoniously to speak, his flamboyant robes flowing around him. As the youngest Elder among the Alvric Council, Nolan allowed him his pleasures in public ¡ª for now. He was still riding on the high of taking the lofty position of Elder ¡ª hence the glamorous layers of flamboyant robes. Life would catch up to him soon and his fantasies about a world where he was at the top of the food chain would pop like a bubble. But for now he¡¯d let him enjoy his moment.


    ¡°Our spies are yet to discover anything new happening in the Royal Estate, though there were signs of an estate-wide renovation, none of them could glimpse the reason behind it,¡± Anders said.


    ¡°The Ancient One advises against spying on the Royals, Patriarch ¡ª with good reason,¡± Filip Alvric said with great concern.


    ¡°If we are to break loose of their hold, Filip, we need information. If you have got a better way to bring it, I¡¯m all ears!¡± the Patriarch shot back.


    The First Elder, Filip Alvric, shook his head. ¡°With a Transcendent as the Sovereign of Vorthe, spying on them is next to impossible.¡±


    ¡°Why do you speak like an outsider, Filip!¡± the Patriarch roared angrily, standing up from his seat. ¡°We Alvrics have existed in this land seventeen generations before the first Vorthe ever was born! Yet they shackle us to this city like sheaves of corn stacked upon each other, suppressing our growth! We are Alvrics, damn it!¡±


    ¡°Calm your wrath, Nolan,¡± the 1st Elder warned. He was a much older Sage compared to Nolan Alvric. The graying hairs at his temples were sign enough. His switching to first name basis meant he took offense at being talked to in a demeaning manner. ¡°The Argonaut curled up in fright at the sight of the first Vorthe eons ago. Our legacy. Our inheritance. The very reason Alvric stands to this day!


    ¡°It curled up in fright before one man. The same Argonaut who imprisoned Shar¡¯tu in the sky, swallowed whole, N¡¯tdaea and his sea dragon. Until he ascends, Nolan, I suggest we wait!¡±


    ¡°Aye,¡± Nolan accepted unwillingly. He could do nothing else so there was no need to fight it. ¡°At least we can make plans, no?¡±


    The tension in the room abated a little.


    ¡°Aye, I second the First Elder¡¯s decision to wait,¡± the Second Elder, Fredrik Alvric said.


    Nolan Alvric looked around the table and everyone seemed to be nodding their accent.


    ¡°Here me out then. We¡¯ve left this matter unattended for too long, partly because there was nothing to use against Vorthe. But I¡¯ve discovered a deep-seated secret in this land,¡± he said, piquing their interest. ¡°How many of you know how Tormar was destroyed?¡±


    ¡°The city of Tormar? The mining city?¡± Anders Alvric asked, confused. As the youngest sage in the Alvric Council, he lacked the knowledge and experience the others thrived on.


    ¡°It once was destroyed, aye,¡± Eskan Alvric, the Third Elder said, caressing his beard as he brought him up to speed, ¡°400 years ago, was it?¡± He was the shortest Sage Nolan had ever known. Round like a pregnant cattle¡¯s belly and drank so much ale, his cheeks were rosy all day long. But he was also very resourceful; an ally he could count on.


    ¡°The Royals say it was a mining accident of sorts,¡± Nolan picked up where Eskan stopped. ¡°To this day, there has been no apparent reason for how it happened. But I found clues. Hidden in The Annals of House Tarmin.¡± Nolan Alvric looked around the table once more to make sure he had their attention.


    ¡°Someone wrote of a creature that looks like a man ¡ª a daimon. Only by chance, was it seen flying westward from the mountain range.¡±


    ¡°How did someone from the House of Steel see something so far from the South?¡± Eskan asked doubtfully.


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    The others began grumbling their unbelief, but Nolan was unfazed. He came prepared and began laying out evidence in the form of written scrolls on the table.


    ¡°Where did you get all this?¡± Fredrik asked.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± the Patriarch looked away. He was bound by oath to always tell the truth to the Council so he could not lie ¡ª a shame, that.


    ¡°Nolan?¡± the First Elder called out, his sharp gaze focusing on him like the edge of a blade. ¡°I demand you tell us where you found all these,¡± he said as the other Elders picked up scrolls with writing dating back tens of thousands of years.


    ¡°Although these writings are old and look to be genuine testimonies of sightings of a beast or demon, they are at best, myths from tales of times past,¡± Fredrik Alvric said. ¡°You would need to provide better evidence than these if you want us to believe in the existence of your Daimon.¡±


    ¡°I had my spies gather them for me,¡± Nolan said.


    ¡°Gather?¡± Filip asked with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Nolan grumbled. ¡°My point is, the daimon always comes from one place and goes back thus ¡ª the mountain range. And clearly the Royal family knows about this. Perhaps it¡¯s a weapon they use to silence people.¡±


    ¡°Listen to yourself Nolan, you sound absurd!¡± Filip spat.


    ¡°Do you have something better?¡± Nolan rebutted. ¡°Have you ever seen or heard of a daimon?¡±


    ¡°No, Nolan. And that¡¯s because it does not exist!¡±


    ¡°Oh, it does exist, Filip, and you never heard of it because the Royal family doesn¡¯t want you to!¡±


    The very tension inside the chamber began to rise again as the two Sages spat at each other.


    ¡°I know you long for battle, Nolan,¡± Filip said. ¡°For the glorious wars of ages past. But do not forget you swore an oath ¡ª to provide,¡± he ripped a scroll into pieces, ¡°and help the family thrive.¡±


    Filip picked up another and was about to rip it apart, but Nolan held his hand. ¡°I also swore another,¡± he said, looking the First Elder in the eyes. ¡°To free us all from Vorthe¡¯s leash! We stay here in this land, while our people, our armies down south grow weaker without purpose.¡±


    ¡°Without a conquest, you mean,¡± Filip said.


    ¡°Do you not see how soft our people have become?¡±


    The rest of the Elders in the room grumbled at that as they continued browsing through the scrolls. Nolan would smack them if he could. They had become used to seeing this scene every time they held Council. They just sat back and enjoyed the show.


    ¡°Yes, we were allowed to keep our lands. I know,¡± Nolan raised a hand to stop Filip from interrupting him. ¡°But our children and elites must now be raised in Farryn, instead of back in their homeland where they can grow up in tradition, in the wild where they belong.¡±


    ¡°Oh, for heaven¡¯s sake, Nolan, that¡¯s why the Vorthes organize events like Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡±


    ¡°Aye, where my son was beaten to a pulp by a twelve-year-old.¡±


    ¡°Who is dead, remember? Which is a shame. Probably would have flourished in Alvric hands.¡±


    ¡°He speaks and acts like one of them now! Tell me, Filip, how is this of benefit to our creed?!¡± Nolan gestured at the air with his hands.


    ¡°You forget you were raised here as well, Nolan, and you turned out quite well I must say, with a hard-steel head on your neck, and a never-rusting brazen tongue!¡±


    Nolan raised his hands in defeat. ¡°I¡¯ve had enough, you all can go through the scrolls. It is evidence enough the beast exists. I plan to capture it¡ª¡±


    ¡°Nolan, have you gone mad?!¡± Filip snapped. ¡°You plan to spend family resources chasing a three-headed horse?!¡±


    Nolan Alvric shoved a memory crystal into his hand. ¡°View the memory in it. It didn¡¯t come cheap, so restrain yourself.¡±


    ~~~


    Fredrik Alvric


    Without the assent of the First Elder, Nolan could do nothing. He had to convince Filip that the beast wasn¡¯t a fairytale. Just a little more missteps. He was a patient man. And luckily, he was able to advance to Sage not long after Nolan did. He just had to be patient, and let the mouse get closer and closer to its own demise.


    Soon, the Ancient One would see no reason to keep Nolan as Patriarch of the Clan. the First Elder was content to be just that ¡ª an Elder. He had greater plans though. His plans lay where his skills lay ¡ª commerce. He¡¯d take away every financial opportunity in Vorthe to make Alvric invincible if that was what it took to become Patriarch. But baby steps¡­ baby steps.


    ¡°Heavens above!¡± Filip exclaimed after a few breaths. He looked up at the Patriarch in shock, unable to utter anymore words. Fredrik knew that gaze. It was the gaze that said, ¡®How the fuck is that possible!¡¯ He became curious to see what the First Elder had seen.


    ¡°If I may, Elder Filip,¡± Fredrik requested for the memory crystal. The moment he poured his perception into it, the world transformed around him.


    We embarked on a mission toward the mountain range to find rare ores for the smithy. Caed had heard rumors of a bootleg market in Giza. From Giza, we followed crumbs of rumors that led us to the northern mountains. Aye, t¡¯was a thrilling moment when we found signs of the black ore.


    The cold earth beneath our boots did not deter us from digging up our find. I was the digger for our little mission, for I was better at wielding earth essence. After digging 20 feet deep, the ore came into view.


    A very large chunk of black ore ¡ª a motherlode!


    We cried out in joy and excitement, our hearts, light with joy. But that our joy was not meant to be long, for the next thing we knew someone screamed! Our jubilation was cut short as we noticed one of ours was missing ¡ª Dowen, it was.


    My brothers above ground drew their weapons ready to do battle. But another was taken all of a sudden, his scream could be heard far in the distance.


    ¡°Why does the night seem darker than usual?¡± Cowen had asked, but he disappeared right after.


    My heart nearly failed me for I knew death had come knocking. It wanted my soul even though I was not ready. Whatever creature was out there, it was hunting us for sport. After the twins, Dowen and Cowen, it took Fitz, and Twice, now I alone remain.


    The creature placed its bloody hand on the edge of the hole. Black claws dripping with blood curled slowly for a firm grip. The hands were human but skeletal and horrifying! Its face peeked into the hole and I wet me pants from what I saw. A daimon. With gaunt features and fangs growing out its mouth. Its irises glowed the color of blood as it salivated at the sight of me.


    I tried digging into the ground but I was paralyzed with fear and just sat there waiting for death ¡ª to be eaten.


    The creature suddenly turned east and I could sense hesitation from it. Then fear. It flew away as the first rays of the sun peeked through the canopy of clouds¡­


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Fredrik exclaimed as he withdrew his perception from the memory crystal. ¡°There was something of this magnitude in Vorthe and no one knew of it?¡±


    ¡°There is something of this magnitude, Fredrik,¡± the Patriarch corrected him. ¡°Filip?¡±


    The First Elder looked to be in a dilemma. ¡°Well, this does lend credence to your tale,¡± he muttered. He stood up to pace behind his chair as the remaining Elders scanned the memory stone. ¡°500 high-grade crystal coins is all I can issue for this,¡± he said.


    ¡°That¡¯s plenty much, Filip,¡± the Patriarch turned to Eskan. ¡°We wait until time draws near for the opening of Vorthes Void World to bring in more men from the south, but put our people on standby.¡±


    ¡°Ah!¡± Fredrik exclaimed. ¡°It would soon be that time again, yes? Vorthe and their Void Worlds.¡±


    Nolan shrugged. ¡°T¡¯is what they use to keep us content¡­ for now, that is. A phoenix cannot be held against its own will for long.¡±


    Elder Filip grunted, dissatisfied with how things turned out. Nolan was feeling good about himself for chancing upon such a find. Fredrik hoped it would get to his head and blind him to making a ghastly mistake. He didn¡¯t care. As long as it got him to the seat of the Patriarch.


    ¡°And when would they hold their tournament?¡± he asked. ¡°In five¡­ seven summers?¡±


    ¡°A decade. Anders,¡± Nolan called. ¡°Store the scrolls safely away. The memory crystal remains in my keeping.¡± He rose, signaling the end of the meeting.


    They all bundled out of the meeting chamber, talking about the upcoming new year¡¯s celebration. Fredrik looked back as he thought he caught a glance of something. He pushed his mental energy, scanning the Council room but sensed nothing.

 41. Another Darn Chapter

    Milena


    After the Alvrics left their not-so-secret council chamber, the air by the side of the Patriarch¡¯s raised dais rippled to reveal her. She reached out with a glove-covered hand to pick up a piece of the ripped scroll on the floor and evanesced.


    Milena followed the Alvric Elders through many beautiful corridors for a while. As they broke up and went their separate ways, she continued on with Nolan, wanting to see where he¡¯d end up. She needed to find a way to take that memory crystal from him ¡ª not that she¡¯d be able to break into a Patriarch¡¯s storage ring. The Great Clans all used special storage rings that could only be accessed by the individual wearing it, at least until they pass away and their heir inherits it.


    Milena knew it was all wishful thinking though. No Patriarch would be easily robbed of their storage rings. Vorthe would have to put a tail on him. Albeit, it would be too risky. The Royal family wouldn¡¯t want to risk the disappearance of a Patriarch all because of a memory crystal. People would start asking questions and poking where they shouldn¡¯t.


    Nolan Alvric headed straight to his wing of the large manor house and Milena followed, walking close to the walls and making sure to keep her footsteps silent. Getting to the entrance, she stopped. She could sense the many wards positioned to prevent snooping around. The brown bricks of the triple archway that served as an entrance looked worn down by time, yet beautiful all the same.


    She could sense the wards but couldn¡¯t see them like those of Vorthe¡¯s bloodline ¡ª damn royals and their impressive bloodline. She took out her monocle, an artifact designed to function just like Vorthe¡¯s bloodline ¡ª or at least close to it. If she was being honest with herself, the gold-rimmed looking glass wasn¡¯t quite as capable as Vorthe¡¯s bloodline but it at least got the job done.


    She held the monocle to her eye as Nolan Alvric walked through the wards as though they weren¡¯t there. Gold bands of light, crisscrossing the frame of the archway came into view and she sighed. The place was choked full of dangerous wards, even the walls, floor, and roof were armed to the teeth.


    She was quite good at stealth ¡ª one of the best in Vorthe. But this was not a life or death matter and she had already spent a considerable amount of her resources to break into their not-so-secret council chamber. She wouldn¡¯t use up precious resources to fool the wards here. Best to turn back and let Vorthe send someone else to deal with it.


    Milena retraced her steps, heading back to the council chamber and from there, outside the manor. She was unprepared for the odor that smacked her in the face like a running bull.


    The whole estate stank like a tannery. The smell of leather mixed with some other unknown odor she couldn¡¯t quite place. It didn¡¯t smell like anything she had ever smelled before. She fought the urge to retch and calmed herself, disgusted all the same.  She moved unhurriedly, yet unseen through crowds of Alvric.


    The estate was large and very spacious. Small cottages dotted the compound all around her in a mismatch of colors. The Alvrics weren¡¯t as orderly as most Clans in Vorthe. Perhaps it stemmed from their ancestors growing up in the wild south. All the same, it paid to adapt.


    I wouldn¡¯t be where I am today if I hadn¡¯t learned to adapt, Milena thought to herself.


    Their conduct in their homes was one of chaos and turbulence. Every word from a mother had to be screamed over the top of burning lungs to be heard. Children played everywhere with no supervision from their mothers or betters. Young adults crashed into burning pots of food from time to time as they fenced ¡ª or learned to fence.


    Isn¡¯t that why we have kitchens? Milena chuckled to herself. The rest of Vorthe couldn¡¯t afford all the luxuries that the Great Clans were privileged to have but even common folks were financially able to install a cooking stove inside a spare room to create a makeshift kitchen. Most of them created smoke-holes to vent the smoke from their cooking, while those that could afford proper chimneys put some money into it.


    The Alvrics were too focused on the old, they miss the new. Time had left them behind in more ways than she cared to think of. She trudged along unhurriedly, looking from shadowy corner to corner, checking to see if there were any other spies around beside her.


    The outer wall of the estate was another hurdle that¡¯d deplete her resources further but it was necessary. She couldn¡¯t jump the space in front of her with her void bridge unless she wanted to alert the Alvrics of her presence. She held her monocle to her eye once again to view the wards before she started working to disarm them from a distance, getting closer with every layer she succeeded at.


    After spending a little bit of time disarming the wards, she walked toward the high-walled fence of the Alvric Estate and vaulted over.


    ~~~


    ¡°How was it,¡± Damien Vorthe asked as he leaned forward to pour them both some tea.


    ¡°It was fun to watch,¡± Milena said.


    Damien paused. The way he paused made Milena feel like the tea pouring into the teacup, paused too ¡ª mid-air. She breathed out a sigh of relief seeing it was not so. Damien was so unpredictable. One never knew what he¡¯d pick up in a short moment of absence.


    ¡°Fun?¡± he asked as he sat back in his high-backed chair, his movements slow and relaxed.


    They were in one of the chambers in Damien¡¯s Palace and Milena was here to report her findings on her spying on the Alvrics to him.


    ¡°Hmm. They did find damning evidence about the Dark One,¡± she said.


    ¡°What did they find?¡±


    ¡°...is this an interrogation, Damien?¡±


    Damien Vorthe calmly picked up his teacup and drank slowly. It was a bit uncomfortable to watch him move so methodically and slowly. Yet it was also nearly mesmerizing.


    Milena had never met the Sovereign before but she had heard about him from the ¡®Mother Divine¡¯. She loved to think she¡¯d be well prepared for how overwhelmingly the Sovereign¡¯s presence would affect her. Compared to him, Damien¡¯s presence would be a sputtering candle.


    ¡°No,¡± Damien said after a sip.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to act so high and mighty around me, you know?¡± Milena quipped.


    ¡°Milena, could you give your report¡­ please?¡±


    Milena smirked, pleased he used the magic word. ¡°Most of it was old scrolls, but there was a memory crystal. And all the Elders present viewed its content.¡±


    Damien Vorthe nodded in thought. ¡°It might be damning as you say ¡ª if they know how to use it to their advantage. The Alvrics have long since wanted to uproot Vorthe from this continent, but subtlety isn''t their strong suit.¡±


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Or they just want to go back south,¡± Milena added, unsure whether Damien took the threat of the memory crystal seriously or not. If he didn¡¯t, she had been fussing over nothing then.


    ¡°That would have dire political ramifications,¡± Damien stated.


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°I get that you see the big picture, Damien and that I¡¯m not a Vorthe, but we grew up together. Trained under the same master. Letting me in on a thing or two is how friends should act, isn¡¯t it?¡± she said as she cupped her tea, blowing on the liquid in it.


    Damien had no qualms telling her, she knew. This was just a power show. It was the way of spies to withhold information as best they could to give themselves an advantage. And truly, Milena wasn¡¯t a Vorthe. But her people, the Diviners, have been with Vorthe for as long as she could remember, playing the power game and keeping the other Great clans on their toes.


    ¡°You need to think outside the box, Milena. Vorthe isn¡¯t the only superpower on the continent. If we show weakness or split up into factions of what we are now, other parties would swoop in and use them against us.¡±


    Milena thought about it carefully. She was a straightforward woman, and even though she had been alive for almost as long as Damien, she neither liked nor understood politics. As long as she got to do what she loved best and take good care of her family, she was okay. Speaking of family¡­


    ¡°Your Fated Dark One is a pervert,¡± she segued.


    Damien sighed and put down his cup.


    ¡°He was checking out my daughter. Can you imagine that?¡±


    Damien bit his lip in frustration. This woman wasn¡¯t as subtle with conversation as with assassinations and surveillance. If there was one thing Damien envied about her, it was her simple nature. And her ability to pick up on trending slang among the youth.


    ¡°If I catch him staring at her¡­¡± she didn¡¯t want to say the word, ¡°...next time, I¡¯m gonna pluck out his eyes, you hear me?¡±


    ¡°If you have nothing else to say about the mission, good day, Milena.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re smuggling southerners here during the opening of Terra Praeta,¡± she picked up her teacup and took a sip. ¡°Perhaps to search for your daimon.¡±


    ¡°Do they know it¡¯s Terra Praeta?¡±


    ¡°No, but Nolan also said to put their people on standby.¡±


    ¡°Are they preparing for a war?¡± Damien asked with a raised eyebrow, his voice filled with mirth to show that Alvric was no threat to the Royal Family.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Milena said, taking another sip and resting in her high-backed chair. ¡°But whatever move they would make against Vorthe would be after the Patriarch ascends.¡±


    ¡°And the Blue Heart Gem?¡±


    ¡°What they stole is but a drop in the ocean, but I must ask,¡± she said, sitting up and picking up her cup again. ¡°Why do you allow them to steal it?¡±


    Damien smiled a knowing smile. ¡°Suffice it to say that it is an experiment.¡±


    ¡°You do know what¡¯ll happen to their Saint eventually if he inhales it for too long, right?¡± she said, looking questioningly at him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me that way, Milena, I¡¯m not a black-hearted Sage,¡± Damien retorted. ¡°We didn¡¯t choose this recourse, Jorm Alvric did himself. We just let him have it. He¡¯s too concerned with seeing the future.¡±


    ¡°The Blue Heart gem does allow a Saint to see the future, but then¡­¡± she took a sip from her cup, ¡°it has adverse effects.¡±


    ¡°Not our problem.¡±


    Milena shrugged. It wasn¡¯t her concern if a Great family lost their Saint. And Jorm Alvric sounded ¡®meh¡¯ ¡ª nothing like the name of Saint Realm expert. But she¡¯d keep that thought to herself. ¡°You speak his name so blatantly. Are you not worried about him hearing you?¡±


    She¡¯d think twice before calling out the name of a Saint like that, especially if they were talking negatively about them. Rumor was that they could hear their names on the lips of those who called them even from miles away. The thing is, said rumor wasn¡¯t a rumor at all. She knew this, and so did every Sage out there.


    ¡°Thank you for your service, Milena,¡± Damien said. Whatever dangers there were to speaking the name of the Sage out loud was of no concern to him it seems. She looked around the room with new eyes. ¡°There are privacy wards to prevent even a Saint from hearing things inside this chamber.¡±


    The chamber in question was dark with shadows due to the little amount of light from the light crystals. It fit Damien¡¯s personality and status as The Master of Shadows. The furniture and blinds were also all dark. Milena took out her monocle to check out the wards he talked about and she saw Damien¡¯s lips quirk up at the edges a little.


    ¡°What?¡±


    He gestured for her to go ahead. She did¡­ and dropped the monocle, blinking rapidly to get the temporary blindness out of her eye. If she had thought the Alvrics warded their estate like a fortress, this was on another level!


    ¡°You could have warned me!¡±


    Damien shrugged, smirking at her. She felt like smacking the smirk off his face. And she would.


    ¡°Ahem, where¡¯s Erika?¡± she asked. Damien¡¯s smirk faded away in a split moment.


    ¡°Busy,¡± he quickly said, narrowing his eyes at her.


    Milena eyed Damien with a long stare. ¡°She wouldn¡¯t be up in the solar, would she?¡±


    Damien Vorthe waved his hand above his teacup to heat it up with a little essence, ignoring her question.


    ¡°Of course she is,¡± Milena snorted. Way to get back at him for playing her.


    ¡°I designed that place mainly for her work, Milena,¡± Damien said. ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to be disturbed when busy with her research.¡±


    Milena stood up smiling. ¡°I should see her.¡±


    ¡°Good day, Milena.¡±


    ¡°Uh-uh. I¡¯m going to see her.¡± she vanished on the spot and the myriads of wards started vibrating everything in the room violently.


    Damien cursed as he rushed to quiet the wards, hearing Milena¡¯s laughter all around him.


    ~~~


    ¡°85¡­86¡­87¡­¡±


    Jerome tried to push himself further but his hands gave out.


    ¡°You¡¯re doing great,¡± Rihal said as Jerome sat down to wipe the sweat off his brows.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not. I thought this would be easier, but it seems I was too optimistic,¡± he drank from a waterskin beside him.


    ¡°Optimism is a good thing,¡± Rihal said.


    Jerome hated these slow days. He wished he could be on the road searching for his family, but his injuries wouldn¡¯t allow him. The silence stretched for a while as they stood together. Jerome could almost feel Rihal¡¯s discomfort. He was still mad at him. And he couldn¡¯t bring himself to see him as the Rihal he once knew.


    After resting for a while, they exited Kilian¡¯s training hall to go for a walk. Jerome¡¯s muscles were atrophied and he needed as much exercise as he could get to get in shape.


    ¡°What were you doing in there?¡± Layla asked, walking toward them. He didn¡¯t hear her coming.


    ¡°Training,¡± Rihal said.


    Layla turned and bowed to Rihal. ¡°Lord Rihal, he¡¯s not supposed to be training.¡±


    ¡°You underestimate the human body and its capabilities, Layla.¡±


    Layla observed Jerome as he took out a long stick from a storage bag in his belt and rested on it, his long hair cascading down his back. He looked aged, coupled with his gaunt looks and the deep scars that marred his face and hands. She couldn¡¯t bear to see him undo all her hard work.


    ¡°It¡¯s only been one cycle, at least wait four moons, maybe five,¡± she insisted.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t have that much time,¡± Rihal said mysteriously.


    ¡°Time for what?¡± The two Sprouts asked simultaneously.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be going on another adventure soon, Jerome.¡±

 42. Smell A Rat

    ¡­Sharthu could never tame me!...


    ¡­N¡¯tdaea brought his legions against me!...


    The heavens were torn asunder!


    The sea split in two!


    Alas!


    They are nowhere to be found!


    For I alone stand victorious!


    I,


    Alvric!


    ¡°Listen Hedon, they shouldn¡¯t have to pay for my mista¡ª¡±


    Blood sprayed out of Doti¡¯s neck as Hedon severed his head.


    Jerome woke up with a start, breathing hard. He quickly initiated the breathing technique Layla taught him. It wouldn¡¯t take him into a trance, but it helped calm his nerves. He¡¯d been having this nightmare for a while now, and anger and frustration came along with it, souring his day. He washed in a bowl of water he had prepared the night before and got ready for the day¡¯s training.


    Checking his uniform made him smile a bit. He was an initiate now. The bright blood-red robe, folded in the drawer in his bed, had the crest of the Royal Family on it. Jerome sighed. He picked one up and proceeded to put it on. It was a bit loose, but that was probably the tailor understanding that he¡¯d grow into it soon enough.


    Jerome met Rihal outside his room. He gave his master a questioning look, wondering what he was doing here.


    ¡°We won¡¯t be training in the hall today,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Follow me.¡±


    They went outside the palace and traveled about half a mile west of Kilian¡¯s palace. The trek was slow and arduous, strenuous on his muscles. They stopped in front of a hilly terrain.


    ¡°Wow,¡± he said, sweating profusely.


    The place was picturesque in a rough kind of way. He could tell that people use the place regularly. Boot prints were all over the place. A few trees dotted the landscape and he could see contraptions hanging from their branches, some swaying in the light breeze.


    Beyond the landscape was a backdrop of greenery ¡ª forests and the mountains far in the distance. He breathed in the fresh air and looked to his immediate environment, taking his time to study the contraptions hanging from the tree branches. He¡¯d never seen anything like them before, yet he knew they were for training.


    ¡°Couldn¡¯t you royals just build standard equipment?¡± he grumbled.


    ¡°We ¡®royals¡¯?¡± Rihal asked with a raised eyebrow. Jerome shrugged unapologetically. His tone, downright rude and insulting but he wasn¡¯t going to apologize.


    ¡°Don¡¯t take out your anger on every royal, Jerome. They did nothing to incur that anger,¡± Rihal said in a cautious tone.


    Jerome crossed the ground to a boulder where a long stick was lying. ¡°Who owns this?¡±


    ¡°No one.¡±


    ¡°Finders keepers, then.¡± he took the stick and chucked it into a storage bag. Better to have more than one walking stick.


    Rihal waved his hand forward and a few large logs of wood materialized in the air in front of him, falling to the ground. They were all attached to a rope, which was attached to a set of leather belts.


    ¡°This is your training for the day. You pull them all up the hill, and back down until you drop.¡±


    ¡°So, just like the crab then. Schweet,¡± he said dryly as he took off his red initiate robe and trudged toward the logs to start his training.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°He¡¯s one determined child, isn¡¯t he?¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Rihal answered. ¡°Why are you here, Idrel?¡±


    Idrel Vorthe chuckled. ¡°Came to see what all the fuss was about.¡±


    Rihal looked at him from the side. He had appeared out of nowhere as Jerome began his training. The viper didn¡¯t concern himself with disciples of the Royal Family so what was he doing here now?


    ¡°If that¡¯s all, then you can leave.¡± His voice was cold and emotionless. He didn¡¯t know why Idrel was here, but he wouldn¡¯t give him the satisfaction of pissing him off..


    ¡°Am I not welcome?¡± Idrel asked, his mocking voice slow as he purred like a cat.


    ¡°You¡¯re not,¡± Rihal replied.


    ¡°Why so cold?¡± Idrel said and chuckled coldly.


    Rihal didn¡¯t bother answering. Idrel was a conniving viper and always had some trickery up his sleeves. He couldn¡¯t even get rid of Idrel if he wanted to since they were both Spirit Realm artists and under the tutelage of Damien Vorthe.


    Idrel chuckled again as he watched Jerome from a distance trudge up the hill, pulling heavy logs of wood with him. Rihal was disgusted with him. The man took pleasure in other people¡¯s sufferings. Something none of the other Vorthes had in common with him as far as he could tell ¡ª not even Idrel¡¯s own parents. He was an enigma.


    ¡°So, this is your disciple who¡¯ll be joining the Royal Sprouts to Terra Praeta, huh?¡± Idrel purred. ¡°Nothing much about him.¡±


    So that¡¯s what this is about. If only you knew who he is¡­what he is, Rihal thought to himself but ignored Idrel. That drawl in Idrel¡¯s voice was beginning to grate on his nerves but he held back from punching the mouth that spoke with it.


    ¡°They¡¯re not happy that a cripple is joining them.¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    Idrel looked at Rihal for a moment. ¡°I know he¡¯s your disciple and all, but he doesn¡¯t have Royal blood,¡± Idrel paused, possibly to let that sink in. ¡°And neither is he nobleborn so, how did you get him on the list in the first place?¡±


    Rumors were that Idrel was once in the presence of the Sovereign, and ever since then, he had taken to talking slowly, being more reserved with his words.


    ¡°You love the sound of your own voice, don¡¯t you?¡± Rihal said with a smirk. The viper sounded like he was desperate for information. He could hear it in his tone, no matter how relaxed and nonchalant he tried to sound.


    Rihal saw the displeasure on Idrel¡¯s face and his smirk widened. Jerome being his disciple was clearly not ¡®license enough¡¯ to qualify for Terra Praeta. No. Terra Praeta was meant for the Scions of Vorthe. Even Rihal had no answer to why Jerome was going. But he wasn¡¯t going to reveal that bit.


    ¡°If that¡¯s what you wanted to know all along, you should have led with it. Could have saved yourself all the trouble, don¡¯t you think?¡± Rihal looked at him and smirked again. He paused after that, stretching the silence to uncomfortable levels.


    ¡°So?¡± Idrel asked, almost out of impatience. Rihal thought his voice sounded a ¡®wee¡¯ bit faster there.


    ¡°What?¡± Rihal asked back.


    ¡°How did you get him on the list?¡± Idrel asked.


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    ¡°Mmmmm,¡± Rihal breathed out with a sigh and a contemplating look on his face.


    Idrel lost his cool immediately. If he didn¡¯t know what Rihal was doing, he had been training in vain all his life. Rihal on the other hand was taking pleasure in the position the viper had put himself. One of the recipient¡¯s.


    So this is how it feels to possess knowledge others want, Rihal thought to himself. ¡°Are you well, Idrel?¡±


    ¡°Hrmgh.¡± the viper grunted out a response.


    ¡°It¡¯s just, you¡¯re turning beet red.¡±


    Idrel¡¯s gaze met Rihal¡¯s with burning fury. His face was transformed by his anger as his facial muscles twitched. Every disciple of Damien Vorthe was taught the value of patience. They had to go through a lot to learn patience, which was a continual learning process, for patience was a state of being. Idrel knew this and so did Rihal.


    Idrel quickly cycled to get his nerves under control. ¡°If you¡¯re not going to tell me, then fine. But your disciple...tsk, tsk, tsk,¡± he shook his head with mock pity. ¡°He¡¯ll be alone out there.¡±


    But Rihal didn¡¯t react to that, which he knew surprised Idrel a little. He had always been the most emotional among Damien Vorthe¡¯s disciples, so it stood to reason that he should show some reaction.


    Rihal knew this, even though he could do nothing about the way he felt at times. But knowledge about oneself was power. And he had restrained himself, armed with the awareness that that knowledge could be used against him. Especially by someone like Idrel.


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°Knowledge is power, Idrel. Weren¡¯t we taught that? We¡¯re The Nediti,  and we find answers where others may not.¡±


    In other words, ¡®Figure that shit out yourself.¡¯


    They both stood quietly for a while, enjoying the fresh air of the outdoors.


    ¡°Name your price, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°First rule of negotiation: Most things have a price¡­most things, Idrel, not everything.¡± His message was clear. He was not selling whatever the viper was buying.


    Idrel smiled at him. ¡°Well, don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you.¡± He chortled as he walked away.


    ~~~


    Jerome sat down at the foot of the hill breathing heavily. His core was sealed so he could train with just his physical strength. Right now he felt sore all over and just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep. The shaking in his right hand was back and he could only cycle at a snail¡¯s pace to send essence to it to relieve the pain. His right leg was also hurting badly as he felt the muscles pull in it. His body wasn¡¯t healing as fast as it used to anymore.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough training for the day,¡± Rihal said as he walked up to him, throwing him a waterskin bag full of water.


    Jerome snatched it out of the air and took a long swig of its content. ¡°Who was that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°He¡¯s a colleague of mine. His name¡¯s Idrel but we call him ¡®The Viper¡¯.¡±


    ¡°He sure looks sleazy.¡± The man had long black hair that he tied into a ponytail. He wore black leather that Jerome caught sight of briefly during their conversation. Like Rihal he also wore a black coat. Was that a uniform of sorts?


    Now that he thought about it, he never asked what Rihal did. What did royals do? Were they just royals in name only? Or was there a duty that they fulfilled in this estate and the kingdom at large?


    ¡°Hmm. Be on guard if you ever find yourself around him,¡± Rihal said, bringing him out of his musings.


    Jerome took another swig and looked at Rihal for a moment. ¡°Should I be worried?¡±


    Rihal¡¯s gaze remained on him for a while before he spoke. ¡°Not everyone is comfortable with you joining this adventure, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome turned those words in his head for a while. ¡°And why is that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°They say you¡¯re crippled.¡±


    ¡°Screw them,¡± Jerome said. He¡¯d show them what a cripple could do. Rihal chuckled.


    ¡°Why am I allowed to go on this adventure anyway? Truth be told, I am kind of crippled,¡± Jerome said. His gaze was steady as he observed Rihal.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s your answer right there,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°What aren¡¯t you telling me, Rihal?¡± he asked, keeping his gaze on Rihal¡¯s.


    ¡°We really hope to find something that could help you,¡± Rihal said. ¡°It¡¯s a miracle that your core is steady and strong. It could have been a whole lot worse than this¡­ I know it hurts to cycle, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome looked away from him at that. That was an understatement. It more than hurt to cycle.


    The silence between them stretched for a while. He thought about the things he remembered from Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. Things that shouldn¡¯t be possible. He touched the scar on his chest again. To confirm it was still there. His mind was foggy from the fight, but he could have sworn a sword had pierced through his heart, that he had¡­ died.


    Jerome shook his head to keep his train of thoughts. A lot of things weren¡¯t adding up. How did he survive Hedon¡¯s blade to his heart? He should be dead. And somehow he knew in his gut that Rihal knew something. Or he knew more than he was letting on.


    He remembered his discussion with Kilian the day after they came back from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. They had said he had an episode during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He was sure they were talking about his rage. That damned rage that didn¡¯t let up during those times.


    Jerome¡¯s suspicion only grew. What was he missing? Or was he asking the wrong questions? His eyes narrowed at Rihal causing his master to raise an eyebrow at him with a questioning look, as if daring him to ask.


    ¡°But that¡¯s not all, is it, Rihal?¡± It was time to put pressure on his master, maybe let on that he had heard some things.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Rihal asked. His voice was calm and curious. Like he had no idea what was being said. Jerome wasn¡¯t convinced though.


    ¡°You know what I¡¯m talking about, Rihal,¡± he said. ¡°What did Lord Kilian mean when he said I had an episode during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡±


    Rihal¡¯s brows rose in surprise as his dark eyes widened. Jerome was still getting used to him having eyes that were normal. ¡°You heard that?¡±


    ¡°I did,¡± he replied dryly.


    They both stared at each other for a while. Jerome held his master¡¯s gaze as he waited for an answer. The silence between them stretched out until Rihal finally spoke.


    ¡°You can¡¯t unknow it once you know it.¡±


    More silence. Jerome was determined not to budge until his master gave him an answer.


    ¡°How about this?¡± Rihal finally said. ¡°You come back safely from your adventure, and I¡¯ll tell you all you need to know.¡±


    ¡°A man is the sum total of his words, Rihal.¡±


    Rihal gave him a pointed look. ¡°I taught you that.¡±


    ¡°You did,¡± he said with a nod. ¡°And now I¡¯m reminding you of it.¡±


    That must have hurt. He could see it in Rihal¡¯s eyes. Betrayal. At least that was what it looked like. Maybe that was too much.


    Jerome sighed, conceding the staring match. He couldn¡¯t hold his master¡¯s gaze any longer. He had just spoken out of turn and his conscience wouldn¡¯t let him continue to be stubborn. He shouldn¡¯t have used those words. But looking away was as much ¡®sorry¡¯ as he was going to say.


    Me and my big mouth, he thought, standing up from the ground. The sun was still high in the sky and he was done with training for the day. Or was he? He turned to Rihal to ask.


    ¡°We¡¯re done for today,¡± his master said, still looking at him with that gaze that said he felt betrayed.


    And Jerome still couldn¡¯t look him in the eyes. ¡°Right. I¡¯ll just go.¡± Best not to waste the day sleeping away, he thought as he shuffled back to Kilian¡¯s Palace.


    Instead of going to his room, Jerome went straight to the library. The same librarian at the front desk was there to attend to him. The young man looked up when he walked in.


    ¡°Senior,¡± he greeted with a stiff bow. There was emotion in his eyes. Ones Jerome knew very well ¡ª shock and frustration. Jerome noticed he was still wearing his apprentice robe. Did that mean he was still Blank? Not his problem though.


    Jerome nodded back and asked. ¡°Am I still using that section?¡± He was now very aware that he wasn¡¯t wearing his former bracelet that was used as an identifier. He didn¡¯t know if that would affect him now but said nothing.


    ¡°No, senior. Initiates occupy another wing of the library. A moment please.¡±


    The librarian walked out of his cubicle and led him to the new wing. The moment he got there, he saw Rihal speaking to other initiates. They all scampered off the moment they saw him. He gave Rihal a suspicious look. ¡°Was that necessary?¡±


    His master looked him in the eye unrepentantly. ¡°I sent them away so they wouldn¡¯t be a burden on you. You¡¯re Sprout now, and Sprouts like to size themselves up, looking for who to dominate. As you are now, you¡¯d be an easy picking.¡±


    Jerome frowned but he understood his master and was secretly grateful. He wouldn¡¯t admit it though.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be taking my leave now, senior,¡± the librarian who led him to the new section said, shaking in fear. Jerome had almost forgotten about him. ¡°My Lord.¡± he bowed reverently to Rihal and quickly ran away in fear.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it surprising,¡± Rihal said, looking in the direction of the librarian who had run off.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°That librarian became Blank before you. But here you are¡­ A Sprout in the flesh. But he¡¯s still Blank.¡±


    Jerome wondered about it too. ¡°What is your point, Rihal?¡±


    ¡°Would it hurt to speak to me with respect, Jerome?... To call me master?¡±


    Jerome looked away, frowning. Rihal was dreaming if he thought he¡¯d hear him call him master. ¡°I¡¯d like to read without distractions, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡± Rihal dropped a small leather-bound book on a table beside the nearest shelf. When had he moved toward the shelf? ¡°Read this. It contains information about the nature of the elements and the forces ¡ª some of the forces. This,¡± he said, pulling out another book from the shelf, ¡°will teach you the basics of summoning your essence outside your body.¡±


    Rihal¡¯s voice was edgy with a hint of annoyance. But he was calm. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and stepped away from the shelf, leaving without saying a word.


    Jerome stood there nonplussed, staring at the books. He knew he was acting like a little kid, throwing a tantrum, but he couldn¡¯t help himself. He had so much anger inside him and had no one to direct it at. He limped over to the table and sat down to read. These were books he needed right now.

 43. The Viper

    The elements are, wind, water, fire, earth, metal that is found in the earth, and wood that grows out of it. These are the foundation of the world in which we live. The building blocks of the material plane.


    The wind signifies freedom. Those who wield the wind are drawn to it because they long for freedom. Air is tenacious, tumultuous, and dangerous. It can be calm when left undisturbed but chaotic when angered. The welkin is the dominion of one who wields the wind.


    Make no mistakes. Ambient essence is NOT wind essence. Even a Blank can tell the difference.


    Jerome stopped. Was this book for kids? This wasn¡¯t what he was expecting. He was expecting a little more science than philosophy. And even the details sounded incomplete to him, like someone had knowingly taken out some vital information. He sighed and continued reading again.


    Water is subtle, yet dangerous. It is no gentle giant like the giants of House Baelor. Water would crush one at the depths of the sea, the pressure too hard to bear. Those who wield water are drawn to it because they seek a better way. Water needs not be forceful. But it can be when it is angered. It is the gentlest of things that can be seen and touched, yet can cut through steel with the precision of a knife through butter!


    He couldn¡¯t agree more. If one had proper machinery, one could build a waterjet that uses water to cut through even diamond. The water had to be passed through a jeweled nozzle that was extra narrow, though. This would allow for coherence and prevent overheating. And the pressure would be at least 30 times that of a power washer.


    He continued reading until he got to the forces. That was when things started to get interesting.


    The forces are results of laws and principles of the universe. There are many forces but little is known of the vastness of the universe and its laws. Unlike essence which can only be sensed, the forces take things a step further. They affect the senses when in close proximity to them. The forces, like you have guessed, are more powerful than the elements.


    Sword force stings the eyes and prickles the skin. It is sharp as a blade. Scholars say the principles of sharpening a blade is what it means to apply sword force. The edge of the blade is always imbued with sword force until it dulls.


    Huh. Finally something about their scholars. So Vorthe had researchers of sorts then. Guess they were far ahead than I thought.


    Lightning is fast, hot, and destructive. Like sword force it prickles the skin and raises one¡¯s hairs on end. But it goes a step further, able to paralyze the muscles and destroy nerves and delicate organs. A decision to absorb lightning into the body must not be taken lightly.


    Darkness is the most mysterious of all the known forces. Tis the most elusive of all the forces. It consumes, suppresses abilities, veils information, suppresses and veils the senses, paralyzes a target, and so much more. Even masters shudder in fear when face to face with one who wields this mysterious force.


    Jerome stopped. He couldn¡¯t help but remember his nightmares about the different strangers whose lives he seemed to relive. They all ended up in the northern mountain range, flying up an ominous mountain unlike any other he had ever seen.


    He looked to his left and a strange feeling arose in him. An urge to go North. Jerome shook himself awake, unsure of where that feeling came from. Albeit, he knew where it led. Memories flashed in his mind ¡ª thirst, a thirst for blood, ripping into the flesh of strangers and consuming their blood for sustenance. He shook himself awake again, goosebumps rising on his skin. Jerome refocused his attention on the book once more, turning another page.


    Shadow must not be compared to darkness. Some wield shadows as an extension of themselves. But tis a pale reflection to the parent force.


    Light is perhaps the most powerful of the forces.


    The book ended all of a sudden.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡± he muttered. Vorthe didn¡¯t want to reveal what they could do with the light, he reasoned. How hypocritical!


    He snorted and picked up the other book but sighed with fatigue. He found he was tired already and needed to rest, but he didn¡¯t want to leave the book here. Jerome stood up to go.


    That was when he felt malicious eyes on him. He tensed up looking around. He couldn¡¯t pinpoint the direction of the gaze. As if the person was moving around him in circles.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re there,¡± he said out loud. His voice bounced around the shelves, coming back to him. The silence became stifling. He stood there wondering whether the person would show their face.


    Whoever it was, they were hesitant to face him. He could sense it. Jerome turned around in a slow circle as he took in the whole section of the library. The quietness almost grated on his nerves. But the lighting from the crystals on the walls gave him a sort of comfort.


    If he ran, the person might attack. So he stayed, putting on a strong front. His heartbeat continued to soar as the moments passed by. His body began to shake slightly from fear and anticipation but he did his best to stay calm.


    After a while of nothing happening, the person gave up. He felt the malicious gaze leave him and he relaxed. He walked away from that section of the library, heading for the front desk. Jerome got to the front desk and went through the process of registering the book he wanted to borrow. He thanked the librarian and left.


    The moment he got to his room, his fatigue seemed to grow tenfold and his eyelids became heavy with sleep. Jerome hit his bed like a log and dozed off.


    He woke up to find that it was night already but the moon had not crested the horizon. He had only slept for the better part of a quarter of the day. Bringing out the book he borrowed from the library, he went to his reading table to put on his oil lamp.


    He¡¯d moved back to his own room in Kilian¡¯s Palace after his first session with Layla. Since then, he had been getting daily visits from the healer to speed up his healing. Memories of his time here reading Ms. Tara¡¯s responses suffused him. Tears streaked down his cheeks as he remembered his promises in his letters. Yet he had failed to fulfill them. He sniffed, wiping the tears away.


    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    ¡°I¡¯ll avenge you,¡± he muttered to the darkness, ¡°even if it¡¯s the last thing I do. When I¡¯m strong enough, I¡¯ll go find him and he¡¯ll pay.¡±


    With a flick of a finger, he flipped the cover and started reading.


    The body of a sacred artist is a miracle of nature. Man becomes what he never was at the initiation. Receiving into himself, something no different than another organ. But one that is very fragile at conception, yet a very important function.


    The unstable core grows and integrates more with its vessel, quickly becoming a part of it. At the core formation, a Sprout is born and they must learn to wield their essence outside their body as an extension of themselves. The newly evolved Sprout has a denser core. Their essence is also a lot denser and more volatile than a Blank¡¯s.


    The body of such a sacred artist has spent time building and strengthening ¡®channels¡¯ ¡ª pathways for more essence to reach the depths and extremities of the ¡®sacred body¡¯. With every rotation of one¡¯s core, essence is pushed into the channels, into the limbs and can soon be summoned outside the body.


    One must however, take care lest one destroys one¡¯s channels. Essence from the core of a new Sprout can become too hard to bear the first few times.


    The first step is to rotate one¡¯s core to match the beat of one¡¯s heart. Increase the rotation to two in one heartbeat. Increase the rotation as it gets comfortable per heartbeat. The essence that moves out of one¡¯s core would feel heavier and more potent.


    Jerome thought about this and cycled slowly for a bit to match his heartbeat. Pain slowly crept into his body but he bore it for a while. As he listened to his heartbeat, the quickening of his pulse slowed and his rotation slowed to become bearable.


    His essence didn¡¯t feel heavy or more potent than it used to. Did this mean something was wrong with him? Was he weaker now? He had no idea but knew that was a really bad place to be. He took a deep breath and shoved his worries down, continuing the book.


    There is need to make a complete circuit, through the body and back to the core as oft as possible. This activity strengthens and widens the channels, making it capable of withstanding the potent essence.


    ~~~


    With everything he¡¯d learned from the books, Jerome decided it was time to absorb from the Sunfire stone and give himself an edge in the upcoming adventure Rihal talked about. He would rather be out there searching for his family though, but he¡¯d still need power for that. He just hoped the adventure wouldn¡¯t take too long.


    And maybe I could find some very powerful treasures. He touched his heart to feel the rhythm of the beat. Suzie was inside him somehow. How it happened, he had no idea but wanted to find. Yet he didn¡¯t know who to trust with such information. Or he knew but didn¡¯t want to¡­ Jerome hurled the thought away before its completion in his head.


    His door squeaked open and in walked Ash.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be training?¡± Jerome asked as she walked into his room. This was the first time Ash was visiting since he left his supposed infirmary. She plopped down onto his bed and looked around, taking in his utilitarian room.


    ¡°Small,¡± she said.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Jerome coughed lightly. ¡°I don¡¯t need a big room.¡±


    ¡°Mine¡¯s just a bit bigger, but that¡¯s because I bunk with Layla,¡± Ash smiled. ¡°And she said to observe you so you don¡¯t strain your body. Though, I admit I¡¯ve been a bit busy lately.¡±


    He smiled with a nod. ¡°I know my own limits, though.¡± Jerome took out the Sunfire stone and sat on it. His head almost touched the roof of his little room.


    ¡°What is that?¡± Ash asked curiously.


    ¡°You¡¯re about to find out,¡± he said, absorbing the stone¡¯s essence. Slowly. More so as not to embarrass himself than hurt himself. The essence from the Sunfire stone trickled into his body and Ash gasped as she sensed the attribute.


    ¡°I¡¯ve only ever read about one of these. Where did you get it?¡±


    ¡°Pilgrims¡¯ Keep,¡± he said with his eyes closed. ¡°But I almost lost my life to obtain it.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible,¡± she said almost in thought. ¡°A Sunfire stone is a really big deal to a Blank like me, Jerome. You¡¯re gonna tell me about it later. I¡¯ll just sit here quietly and watch you cycle.¡±


    ¡°That reminds me,¡± he said, opening his eyes. ¡°Can you cycle on command?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, ¡®on command¡¯?¡±


    ¡°I mean like anytime you feel like. Or do you need to get in the right frame of mind before you can cycle?¡±


    She answered him by rotating her core and absorbing the ambient essence in the air with ease, a proud smirk gracing her beautiful face.


    ¡°Heh. Show off.¡±


    Her smirk turned into a smug, big grin. She was Blank already, which meant he missed the days when she was Drudge. That gave him a little pang to his heart. He had missed an important time in the life of his only friend.


    Only friend, Jerome thought with a sigh. But he firmed his heart. For now. I¡¯ll find the rest of you. Soon.


    ¡°Well, you became Blank and never knew what it was like to be Drudge. So¡­¡±


    Jerome shrugged, smiling. ¡°What was it even like?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I was always very hungry,¡± she said dryly. ¡°I had to eat at least six times a day.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot.¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is. And sometimes, it was never enough.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°I only ate once a tenday as Blank.¡±


    ¡°Talk about cheating. I have to eat once every fiveday as Blank.¡± Ash gave him a cute pout.


    Jerome chuckled happily, feeling the tension leave his body. ¡°Let me meditate for a while,¡± he said and Ash let him be.


    ~~~


    The Eastern Part of the Royal Estate. Farryn.


    Idrel Vorthe


    ¡°Are you sure you weren¡¯t followed?¡±


    The library attendant jumped at his voice. Idrel enjoyed his fear for the bit of time it lasted, almost feeling like he could soak it up to power himself. The rich essence in the air also helped to give him the illusion of power as he drew upon it. They stood in the shade of the forest of trees in the eastern part of the Royal Estate, away from prying eyes and ears.


    ¡°Y-yes my lord. No one followed me,¡± the library attendant said with a deep bow as he shook in fear, his right hand to his chest.


    ¡°Anything I should worry about?¡± he asked. The attendant did his best not to look at the shadows obscuring him, still with his head bowed. Idrel was a master of the shadows and he loved the mystery it wove around him ¡ª and the power.


    ¡°No, my lord. Lord Rihal¡¯s disciple has been moved back to his bedchamber in Lord Kilian¡¯s palace.¡±


    ¡°Good. From now on, you¡¯ll report all of his movements to me. A time will come when you¡¯ll do more.¡± Idrel let a bit of his aura wash over the Sprout like an invisible weight. ¡°Do not fail me¡­er, what was your name again?¡±


    ¡°F-fifteen, my lord,¡± fifteen, tried and failed to stifle a groan.


    ¡°Yes. Do not fail me,¡± he vanished from his spot in the shadows but made sure his next words reached fifteen, ¡°or the overseer will be the least of your worries.¡±

 44. First Of Many Flames

    Time passed on as Jerome kept cycling. His core absorbed the essence from the Sunfire stone with excruciating slowness. If he went any faster, he¡¯ll probably end up in the afterlife. Jerome endured. Before long, he started to feel the cold. Jerome was surprised at this. When last did he feel the cold?


    The Royal estate was on a higher elevation than the rest of Farryn since it was built on a mountain. A mountain that was one of the mountains that made up part of the outskirts of the mountain range. This sure was one of the reasons the temperature would be lower at this elevation. But still. He never felt cold as a Blank. Why now?


    He stopped for a while to practice with the fire attribute essence, kindling a flame just above his palm.


    ¡°Ash,¡± he called out. She had slept off while he was in meditation and it was night already. Long eyelashes fluttered open and she sat up on his bed and stretched. Those long limbs did things to Jerome¡¯s body as he watched. He cleared his throat to get her attention.


    ¡°Is that¡­did you just¡­¡± she asked excitedly, not even completing one question before asking the other.


    ¡°It¡¯s quite small but it¡¯s a flame nonetheless,¡± Jerome smiled as he spoke gazing excitedly at the flaming dancing on his palm.


    ¡°How did you do it?¡± she asked. The gaze in her eyes was glued to the red orange flame in his hand.


    Jerome smiled. ¡°It was quite easy actually, like snapping my fingers.¡± he snapped his fingers.


    Ash gave him a coy smile. ¡°That was how I lit the special match we use in the estate.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s quite like snapping a finger. Really,¡± Jerome said. ¡°But like it¡¯s happening inside. You just move essence to the top of your palm and put pressure on it. Then you¡­¡± he had no words to describe the last part. He just snapped his fingers.


    ¡°You put pressure on it?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°Yes. Right before you snap your fingers, you put pressure on them.¡±


    ¡°Ooh. I get it.¡± Ash went through the motion of snapping her fingers to test it out. ¡°Too bad I¡¯m not Sprout.¡±


    Jerome smiled at her. ¡°You¡¯ll get there, Ash. I¡¯m gonna ramp it up a bit more.¡±


    He adjusted the essence feeding the flame but kept it small and compressed. The temperature of the room began to rise soon after, and the flame warped into the shape of a ball, burning bright red-orange.


    ¡°Uhm, Jerome,¡± Ash called out, frightened.


    He looked over only to see her sweating profusely. The flame changed color instantly, bathing the room in brilliant blue, and the temperature soared!


    ¡°Jerome, put it out!¡±


    The flame became so dense yet small that it felt like it would explode. Jerome stopped pouring essence into the flame and slowly absorbed it back into his body. That was easier than I thought it¡¯ll be, he thought.


    Ash collapsed onto the bed breathing heavily. ¡°Next time you wanna train, I¡¯ll be at least a mile away from you,¡± she grumbled but heard no reply from him. ¡°Jerome?¡± she called. He would have at least chuckled when he heard that. She raised her head only to see him deep in thought.


    Ash quietly climbed out of the bed and went back to her quarters leaving him to his epiphany.


    ~~~


    ¡°Are you ready for this bad boy?¡± Rihal asked as he walked into the underground training hall.


    Jerome thought he was being chipper today, even though they had left off on a bad foot the day before. He turned to look at the ¡®training crab¡¯ he pulled when he was Blank. He couldn¡¯t believe he¡¯d be pulling it again¡­ and as Sprout at that.


    ¡°I created a flame last night,¡± he said, checking to see how his master reacted.


    Rihal feigned surprise. ¡°Oh, wow! Well, congratulations, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Get out. She told you, didn¡¯t she?¡± Jerome¡¯s lips quirked up at the corners. Now that he knew the reason for Rihal¡¯s behavior, it wasn¡¯t so strange.


    He should have known Ash would tell Rihal. He felt betrayed. A bit. He and Rihal were still on rocky grounds, but it seemed they were mending the bridge between them. Albeit, slowly.


    ¡°What are you talking about? Would you like to celebrate?¡± Rihal said, feigning ignorance. ¡°Alright, let me see it.¡±


    Jerome raised his hand slightly and a blue flame kindled on his palm. Rihal would probably pat me on the back and promise to help me improve it, he thought until he looked up and saw Rihal¡¯s face.


    His master was truly stunned this time around. It took him a while to school his features as he peeled his eyes away from the flame to stare at Jerome like he was seeing him for the first time.


    ¡°Did I do it wrong?¡± Jerome asked, putting out the flame and leaning on his staff for support, holding it with both hands.


    ¡°No, no, that¡¯s not it,¡± Rihal said, his expression one of seriousness and confusion. ¡°How did you do it, though?¡±


    Jerome recounted what happened the night before. The look on Rihal¡¯s face was golden. Why is there no camera in this world? he thought to himself with a smile of satisfaction.


    ¡°Jerome, humans don¡¯t just up and make flames after absorbing a few strands of fire-essence. That¡¯s the expertise of magical beasts ¡ª which by the way has to do with their affinity for fire. It takes a lot of practice just to produce the first spark¡­ except,¡± Rihal smiled at him. ¡°You have a very deep comprehension of fire.¡±


    ¡°That could be the case,¡± Jerome said with a thoughtful nod. ¡°Fire is produced when fuel is burned ¡ª the essence, in this case, being the fuel.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s not just fuel,¡± Rihal interjected. ¡°Which brings me to how you created ¡®blue flame¡¯. It takes years to do that.¡±


    ¡°Air,¡± Jerome stated. ¡°It needs air,¡± Oxygen to be precise, he thought with a smile. ¡°But both air and fuel need to strike a balance to prevent wastage,¡± he continued. ¡°It¡¯s not actually about pouring more essence into it, it¡¯s about preventing wastage.¡±


    His master stopped to stare at him for a long time. ¡°Very well. Let¡¯s see how well you can use your flame in battle,¡± he said with a smile.


    ¡°What about the crab?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Is that what you call it?¡± Rihal turned to look at the crab-shaped contraption.


    ¡°It¡¯s shaped like a crab!¡±


    Rihal gave it a once over and just shrugged. ¡°We¡¯ll practice later with it.¡±


    He approached a weapons rack and picked out a staff before walking ten paces away from Jerome.


    ¡°Go ahead and shoot your best flame at me.¡±


    Jerome attacked.


    ~~~


    Nineteen


    Mini quakes were continuously shaking Rihal¡¯s palace. The head guard of Kilian¡¯s Palace had to send a guard down to the training hall to find out what was going on. Why did it have to be him? He had no trouble with the royals, neither did he slack on his duty. Why was he the one to go confront a royal training his disciple in an underground hall.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    Nineteen reached the entrance of the underground training hall and the quakes, as much as his fear of being punished, froze him in place. Little by little, he forced himself to calm down enough to cycle. His hands were shaking and it was his strength of will keeping him standing. He could already feel the oppressive heat coming from the doorway.


    With a sudden bout of determination, he took two steps forward and leaned into the doorway to check things out for himself. What Nineteen found when he got there nearly popped his eyes out; a skinny crippled Jerome standing with the aid of a stick, spewing flames out of his hand. He could see a blur running around dodging the flame, which he took to be Senior Rihal.


    The flames, however, were blue. Who creates blue flames?! The heat and pressure blasting out of the hall were so oppressive now that he had to run away before he was turned into roast meat.


    ¡°Stop there!¡± he heard someone say when he had only ran a few paces.


    The voice was commanding and he almost wanted to run away like a thief who was caught red handed but he stayed. Running away from a Vorthe was a sure way to end one¡¯s life. Nineteen turned around and nearly spat in shame.


    ¡°Were you talking to me, librarian?¡± he spat. The librarian in question squared his shoulders and walked up to him with a confidence that belied his station.


    ¡°I just wanted to know what you saw in there,¡± he said, holding out a small pouch to him.


    Nineteen¡¯s eyes shone with a knowing light. He swiped the pouch out of the librarian¡¯s hand and weighed the contents, jingling the coins in it. A quick scan with his mental energy let him know the amount of lows inside. Not much but enough to get him some miscellaneous things.


    ¡°And who are you to ask me such questions?¡± Nineteen ordered.


    The librarian responded by producing another pouch. Nineteen couldn¡¯t hold back his grin. Fate sure knew how to turn back luck into good fortune.


    ~~~


    Jerome kept his emotions under control as he tried to hit Rihal. That was the goal ¡ª shoot fast enough to hit a moving target. It was easier said than done.


    ¡°You¡¯re slacking behind, Jerome. Put your back into it.¡±


    ¡°Easy for you to say. Any more than this and my channels will burn out. The seizure that follows will be unbearable,¡± Jerome said, almost as though he was talking to himself, taking stock of the growing pressure in his channels and his injuries.


    Rihal changed course and headed for Jerome. In an instant, he was upon him. His staff stopped mere inches above Jerome¡¯s head and the force of the wind it brought with it blew out the blue flame like a candle in a hurricane.


    ¡°Well, that could have gone better,¡± Jerome muttered, putting all his weight on the staff in his hand. His breathing had become uneven and his eyes unfocused.


    Rihal looked around the training hall. ¡°You¡¯ve got a lot of work to do my dear disciple. Best get to it now.¡±


    Jerome sighed as he looked around the hall. The whole place was covered in soot and many of the weapons had been destroyed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll spend more time cleaning than actually training this way,¡± he complained.


    ¡°Cleaning can be training too,¡± Rihal pointed out. He wasn¡¯t going to let him off the hook ¡ª injuries or not.


    ¡°That¡¯s not true and you know it.¡±


    ¡°Any activity can be considered training, depending on how you see it.¡±


    Jerome kept quiet, but shuffled over to one of the destroyed racks to search for a rag. He cursed out a while later. The rag had been destroyed. He looked back to get Rihal¡¯s attention, but his master was nowhere to be seen.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°You just had to destroy my weapons, didn¡¯t you?¡± Kilian said with a sigh as Rihal appeared in front of his study.


    ¡°It¡¯s not like you use it,¡± Rihal walked in and shut the door. ¡°Where have you been all this while?¡±


    ¡°Research,¡± Kilian answered. ¡°And I do use them. From time to time.¡± He muttered the last part.


    Rihal waved him off. ¡°I was surprised when I heard Jerome would be going to Terra Praeta. How did you pull that off?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t,¡± Kilian said. He picked up a pot of already prepared tea on his table and poured himself a cup. ¡°It was the Sovereign¡¯s suggestion.¡±


    Why would the Sovereign suggest that? Rihal got lost in thought for a moment.


    ¡°Have you found out how he was able to keep the beast at bay?¡±


    Rihal shook his head. ¡°He¡¯ll begin to question everything if I start asking questions. Heck, he already questions everything. He knows what we talked about after Pilgrims¡¯ Keep¡­ the ¡®episode¡¯ he had.¡±


    Kilian¡¯s gaze locked with his, dazed for a while. ¡°I guess that was going to happen. You didn¡¯t close the door on time.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t close the door on time?¡± Rihal asked and Kilian gave him a flat look.


    ¡°There¡¯s no real way of getting anything without giving something in return,¡± Kilian said absently. ¡°You could tell him about Terra Praeta¡­in exchange for what else he picked up during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯ll see right through that, but it¡¯s one way to go about this. Maybe I¡¯ll try it,¡± Rihal stated.


    ¡°Good luck to you then,¡± Kilian said as he lifted his teacup to his lips.


    ¡°Did any fated Dark One ever find out what they were destined to be before taking on the darkness?¡±


    ¡°That would have been recorded in the annals. I do advise against it, though. I don¡¯t think he¡¯d want to know he¡¯s destined to be¡­¡± Kilian sighed. ¡°Just don¡¯t tell him.¡±


    ¡°I wish I could talk to¡ª¡± Rihal stopped and shook his head frustrated. ¡°Argh, that¡¯s a pipe dream.¡± He wished he could speak with the Sovereign.


    ¡°I can see he¡¯s a lot healthier, though. How¡¯s his training going?¡±


    Rihal picked up the teapot and poured himself a cup as well. ¡°He¡¯s learning things on his own now. He created a flame.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s great, but you sound like it¡¯s a bad thing.¡±


    Rihal sighed. ¡°He¡¯s¡­gloomier and¡­angrier than his usual self. The look in his eyes, Kilian¡­¡± he shook his head with another sigh.


    They both sipped their tea silently, sighing at the turn of events. Hedon had done a number on Jerome, not just physically, but psychologically.


    ¡°Did I tell you the flames were blue?¡±


    Kilian was stunned. ¡°His comprehension is that deep?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a genius,¡± Rihal said, nodding with a smile of approval. ¡°But he¡¯d be resuming his session with Layla in four days. I wanted him to put on some muscle before then. Terra Praeta won¡¯t wait for him to get better, you know.¡±


    Rihal stood up to walk out.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to replace all my weapons you trashed today, Rihal,¡± Kilian said flatly.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t me, that was Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Your disciple,¡± Kilian said pointedly. ¡°Whom you were training. As his master, you should take responsibility.¡±


    Rihal chuckled and vanished on the spot.


    ~~~


    ¡°Everyone¡¯s trigger is unique to them,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Mine was the fear of the unknown, the fear of not knowing when or where an attack would come from.¡±


    Rihal had gone back to help Jerome tidy up the training hall and now they were sitting in his room talking about his senses which were more advanced than it was when he was Blank.


    ¡°I can¡¯t teach you how to trigger your perception, but I can tell you what it¡¯s like,¡± Rihal cocked his head trying to find the right words.


    ¡°It¡¯s like¡­reaching out with hands to feel the world around you. You can literally sense everything within a few steps of you, or extend your perception in a specific direction ¡ª even through a wall.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible,¡± Jerome muttered absently. ¡°When I was at the south gate, someone tried to take my position on the line. I severed his arm and watched, I mean¡­felt him cycle. It was a thrilling discovery.¡±


    Rihal nodded sagely. ¡°It¡¯s not the same thing but you get my explanation and that¡¯s what matters.¡±


    He stood up and gestured to Jerome. ¡°Take a meditative position.¡±


    Jerome got down from his bed and sat on the ground to meditate.


    ¡°Do not cycle. Just shut your eyes and look inward,¡± Rihal instructed.


    He felt things like cotton buds pushed into his ears. The sound from the environment suddenly dimmed until it disappeared completely and he almost felt like he had gone into a trance. The silence was stifling and almost oppressive. Next, something covered his eyes and darkness was all he could see.


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to meditate like this for a few hours.¡±


    ¡°How¡¯d you do that?¡± Jerome asked. Rihal was talking into his mind!


    ¡°Shhh! Meditate, or I¡¯ll shut your mouth too.¡±


    Jerome tamped down his excitement and cycled to calm down.


    ¡°I said no cycling.¡±


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said. It¡¯s not my mind he¡¯s talking into but it felt like it. It¡¯s more like¡­he¡¯s talking through the buds in my ears, he thought.


    Jerome settled into a meditative state, his mind peaceful. He didn¡¯t, however, know what to do next. He decided to look inward as he did during Mhen Agrh''ur. Nothing. Even after a good chunk of time. Impatience set in and his bearing was disrupted. Rihal smacked him on the back of the head.


    ¡°Patience.¡±


    Jerome grumbled, offended. This isn¡¯t working, he thought. I¡¯d have to sit still like this without cycling? Just sitting?


    Thwack! Rihal smacked him in the head again.


    ¡°It¡¯s called meditation for a reason,¡± Rihal said, walking around him in circles. ¡°Your goal is to achieve a state of absolute calm. Wanting for nothing. Aiming for nothing. Just¡­be¡­¡±

 45. A Different Plane Of Existence

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak Doti. It¡¯s gonna be alright. Everything¡¯s gonna be fine.¡±


    ¡­Sharthu could never tame me!...


    ¡­For I alone stand victorious!...


    I,


    Jerome!


    What?! That didn¡¯t sound right. Jerome looked from the blade to Hedon only to see his own face with inhuman red glowing eyes staring back at him. This¡­doppelganger was giving off a malevolent aura so oppressive that Jerome found himself paralyzed and shaking like a leaf in a storm.


    Blood sprayed out of Doti¡¯s neck as his head was severed and fell to the ground.


    ¡°You killed me,¡± Doti¡¯s head spoke on the ground. ¡°You killed us all!¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Jerome shouted himself out of his nightmare.


    His heart was racing a mile away and his straw mat and blanket were soaked with his sweat. Jerome sighed. He took a few breaths to calm himself and got up to get ready for the day.


    ~~~


    ¡°You said it took you only a few hours. Why is mine taking so long?¡± Jerome asked.


    He¡¯d been trying to extend his senses for two days now but nothing seemed to work. They had tried using fear: taking him to the mountains north of the Royal Estate where Rihal stalked him like a predator.


    ¡°Maybe something¡¯s interfering with your senses,¡± Rihal said in contemplation.


    ¡°Something like what?¡± Jerome asked, resting on his stick.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    The training hall became eerily silent for a while as Jerome observed his master for clues.


    ¡°If you know something, Rihal, you should tell me.¡± He knew there were things that were being hidden from him.


    ¡°You know, I am called ¡®uncle¡¯ by kids your age. You should show some respect too,¡± Rihal said. His voice sounded stern.


    Jerome clenched his jaw in anger, unwilling to call him anything other than what he always had. He ignored the fact that Rihal had used the word, ¡®kid¡¯ to address him. But still, he wondered.


    How did we get here? How did we grow so far apart? He knew the answers to those questions. And he knew he couldn¡¯t blame Rihal for long. But he wanted to. He wanted to hold on to the pain, to the anger. Right now the pain was the only thing he knew; the anger, the only thing keeping him going.


    ¡°Hmph,¡± he humphed in defiance.


    Rihal scrunched his brows in disappointment, his piercing gaze never leaving him. Jerome refused to look at him. He couldn¡¯t win a staring contest with a Spirit Realm expert. And if he looked, he¡¯d see that disappointment in his master¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°Not happening...besides it¡¯ll sound cringey coming from my mouth,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°And you know that, how?¡±


    ¡°Are you gonna tell me what you know or not?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Call me uncle and I¡¯ll tell you.¡±


    ¡°In your dreams,¡± Jerome muttered.


    ¡°I heard that.¡±


    ¡°...course you did.¡±


    Rihal chuckled. Jerome could hear the sadness in his voice, though. One moment, Rihal was five paces away, the next he brought down his knuckles on Jerome¡¯s head with a loud knock.


    ¡°Show some respect to your elders,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°...sorry,¡± he muttered as he rubbed the top of his head furiously. He deserved that. But Rihal also deserved every bit of his anger.


    ¡°You want to lash out at me, Jerome, I understand. But don¡¯t forget I¡¯m your master. Remember: respect, order, and discipline.¡±


    Jerome nodded with a sigh. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± he said, meaning it this time. Rihal gave him a curt nod at that.


    ¡°Now, how were you able to calm your anger during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± Rihal asked, going back to their subject of discussion.


    The mind-calming stone! Jerome almost blurted out. ¡°What do you know about my anger?¡± he asked suspiciously. This was something he had been dying to know but had no answer to.


    ¡°Oh, I know a lot. A lot more than you can imagine about your ¡®episode¡¯,¡± Rihal walked up to the crab and sat down on one of its legs. ¡°If you want to know why you were uncontrollably angry during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, you¡¯ll have to tell me how you were able to control that anger.¡±


    ¡°You go first, then,¡± Jerome stated, plopping down on the floor before Rihal.


    ¡°You¡¯re descended from a line of people with¡­emotional¡­control issues.¡±


    Jerome got up. Slowly and carefully. And started limping away.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± Rihal asked, surprised.


    ¡°If you¡¯re gonna insult my intelligence, Uncle Rihal, I¡¯m not interested in hearing what you have to say.¡±


    ¡°Did you have to say it that way?¡± Rihal said. ¡°I am telling the truth, though. Have you been having nightmares?¡±


    Jerome stopped and turned to his master. ¡°Go on,¡± he said, giving Rihal a piercing look.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been seeing people in these nightmares,¡± Rihal said, sounding mysterious.


    Jerome turned around again, readying himself to leave. ¡°You¡¯ve got three breaths to prove you¡¯re telling the truth. I¡¯m not buying any of that crap.¡±


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    Rihal sighed. ¡°These people you see, they all become disciples of the Royal family.¡±


    Jerome whipped around so fast he stumbled and fell but Rihal was there to catch him before he hit the ground.


    ¡°I picked up a stone¡­in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep,¡± Jerome started. ¡°It helped me suppress my anger. More times than I can count. The stone was like any other stone you¡¯d find anywhere. It called out to me, like a beacon.¡±


    ¡°Was?¡± Rihal asked. He had caught that.


    ¡°Mm. Was,¡± Jerome acknowledged with a sigh. ¡°It was crushed¡­ during the fight with Hedon and his goons.¡±


    ¡°According to the So¡ªour sources, when you fell into Blade¡¯s Edge canyon, you were covered in some kind of earth attribute artifact,¡± Rihal said. ¡°It turned you into a statue and your vitality receded as though you died.¡±


    Jerome was dumbfounded. But the stone was destroyed! Crushed underneath me during the fight! But maybe it¡¯s not destroyed. What if it merged with my body just like Suzie!


    ¡°Your blood must have seeped into it,¡± Rihal continued thoughtfully, not noticing as realization dawned on him, ¡°bonding it to you without your knowledge. But that doesn¡¯t explain how you were able to turn into¡ª¡±


    ¡°Rihal, thank you for the tip. I¡¯ve got to head back now!¡± Jerome took off, limping back to his room.


    ¡°Thanks again...Uncle Rihal!¡± he shouted from afar.


    Rihal almost burst out laughing. That did sound cringey coming from Jerome.


    ~~~


    Jerome immersed his senses into his body, the moment he got to his room, searching for the mind-calming stone or whatever it had evolved into. Suzie didn¡¯t remain the same after it was absorbed into his body. He discovered this during his training with Rihal.


    The gauntlets had become a part of him and though they retained a part of their characteristics, they were not the same as before. They just flowed with his blood, as though a part of it, yet not. Try as he may, he couldn¡¯t find the mind-calming stone. But he noticed for some reason, a yearning inside him.


    Something inside him ¡ª he didn¡¯t know what ¡ª was yearning for¡­something. He immersed himself in the feeling, letting it guide him to its source. Jerome felt a cool wind blowing in his direction. The smell of a forest. The sound of leaves blowing in the cold wind. Cold? It smelled like¡­ Autumn?


    He opened his eyes and his jaw dropped. His surroundings had changed. He looked around. He was no longer sitting cross-legged in his room but standing in a forest. All around him was the beauty of Fall. Leaves in every hue of brown and red floated to the ground with the grace of tiny boats riding the airwaves to land.


    Beautiful, was the first thought that came to him. ¡°I¡¯ve been here before¡­is this a memory?¡± he muttered to himself. But he couldn¡¯t quite remember.


    He walked forward and was startled. No pain. Jerome looked down at himself. His body was healed. He was wearing black leather armor and the boots he wore to the slums¡­ to Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. He touched his body but he didn¡¯t feel smaller. What the hell is going on?


    ¡°Hello!¡± he called out but no one answered. He decided to walk to the end of the copse of trees in his line of sight. One moment he took a step. The next, he found himself at the very point he wanted to walk to. Jerome took a deep breath to calm a heart that never beat. What¡­ the fuck?


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡± he looked down and touched his chest where his heart should be. No heartbeat.


    Does this mean I¡¯m dead? No. Not a chance. ¡°Not a chance!¡± He screamed to the sky in fury. His voice echoed loudly throughout the forest raising up a storm. The clouds above swirled and darkened as his anger was kindled!


    Surprised at the sudden change, he decided to find shelter. The moment his anger subsided, the weather calmed. What the hell is this place? he thought. ¡°No, I can¡¯t be dead. This is a little too strange.¡±


    He sat down in a meditative stance and took deep breaths to calm himself, immersing himself in his consciousness once again. Sensation came back. Pain and weakness. Jerome coughed loudly as his back hit the floor of his room. He raised his hand to eye level and sighed.


    He was back in his real body. The weak body. Somehow he missed the fake one.


    That can¡¯t be qualified as a body, right?¡­ Strange. The strangest thing he had ever experienced. His eyes felt heavy and sleep soon took him in moments.


    ~~~


    From the shadows, two people emerged, covered from head to boots in black leather.


    ¡°Is he gonna be okay?¡± one of them asked.


    The other examined Jerome with her perception, scanning his body and core to check for abnormalities.


    ¡°He¡¯ll be fine, ¡®father walrus¡¯. No need to bother your head. Baby walrus¡¯ nose doesn¡¯t need to go in the snow,¡± she said, her voice filled with mirth. ¡°His vitality remains the same as is ¡ª too weak and unable to heal his body properly. And we cannot help him, else his channels burn up and be completely destroyed. How have you been keeping him alive? By all accounts he should be dead.¡±


    The first turned his head away in embarrassment. ¡°How come you know about the ¡®walrus¡¯ joke?¡±


    ¡°The walls have ears, ¡®father walrus¡¯,¡± she said with a light-hearted laugh and blended with the shadows. She was gone in an instant.


    ¡®Father walrus¡¯ stared at Jerome for a while. He was tempted to lift him off the ground and onto the bed, but the Nediti did not leave traces of their existence; they came like they were always there, and left like they never were. He too merged with the shadows and was gone.


    ~~~


    Jerome dreamed that night ¡ª a lucid dream. He stood in the middle of a forest with falling leaves, red and brown, facing with more clarity, a life he¡¯d dreamed of before.


    Three stands in front of a dark mountain. He¡¯s drawn to its peak by a promise of power. His heart yearns for this power with excitement that borders on madness. Three climbs the mountain to its peak. He hovers atop the mountain roaring in pain and anguish as his body is destroyed and remade.


    Darkness spreads over all of Vorthe. Many lose their minds to it as their souls are harvested like wheat from a field. Out of the darkness springs forth a malevolent aura, a millennia of hunger rages in its wake, eating through the mental defenses of the inhabitants of Vorthe.


    Three massacres his way through the night. He has no goal, no direction, only need. The need to feed. Transformed into an abomination of the night, he flees the sun and embraces the dark. He hears a voice from afar. The voice which precedes his end and instincts as old as time, come to life.


    They urge him to do one thing alone. Flee!


    A golden sword blazes before his eyes¡­


    ¡°Freeze.¡± Jerome willed the scene to freeze in front of him. He observed the person who vanquished the monster that Three had become. The very same face that he saw when he had the nightmare during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, stared back at him. It was identical to his, but also more.


    ¡°This cannot be me,¡± he muttered.


    The man had his face, true, and also, his countenance. But he was older by a bit, regal and felt¡­ ancient, in a way he had never seen before. He stepped forward on dry leaves crunching beneath his boots, ready to test a theory.


    ¡°Reverse,¡± he said with a gesture of his hand. The scene reversed like a video.


    Slowly, he thought and it heeded his will. Jerome nodded, understanding dawning on him. When he was here the first time, he got angry and the whole place reacted to his anger. He should have taken the cue then. This place was under his control ¡ª sort of.


    The forest of trees remained in the ever-constant season of Fall. Leaves drifted to the ground adding to the millions there before. The scene from his nightmare hovered a few feet above ground surrounded by darkness that reached for this Plane ¡ª like fingers extended.


    This Plane, Jerome thought. He waved a hand and the nightmare dissipated. This should be a sort of a different ¡®Plane of Existence¡¯. The realization shook him to his core!


    Jerome touched his heart again just to check. There was no heartbeat just as he¡¯d expected. He took a deep breath and decided to learn more about this place and how he got here.

 46. You’re Dead To Me

    ¡°You¡¯re almost there,¡± Rihal urged.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± Jerome grunted as he pulled, sparse muscles bunching, revealing bulging veins.


    The crab raised a leg and stepped forward just as he was sure it would move. He was jerked back by a force that would kill him multiple times over.


    Rihal was there to catch him before he crashed into the crab.


    ¡°Easy, you¡¯re doing great,¡± he said, holding Jerome up so he could catch his breath.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say¡­that,¡± Jerome breathed heavily between words. He sat down cross-legged on the floor and began to steady his breathing¡ªplus his eyes were defying the laws of gravity and reality.


    ¡°Of course, you¡¯re doing great. If this was when you were Blank, you could never have pulled this at the level it is tuned to. You just need to keep the atrophy of your muscles down a notch.¡±


    ¡°Tuned? You mean you cranked it up to be more powerful than it was before?¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Rihal said with a nod. Jerome eyed him suspiciously. There was no way for him to verify those words.


    ¡°I bet, it¡¯s not tuned to what should be proper for a normal Sprout,¡± he said.


    Rihal shrugged. There it was. He still couldn¡¯t lift something meant for someone in his Realm.


    Jerome didn¡¯t say anything. He wasn¡¯t satisfied with the results he was getting but he couldn¡¯t complain. Instead, he shoved down his frustration ¡ª which already had a target. But other concerns had been disturbing him since he woke up this morning. Jerome observed Rihal as he scanned him with his perception. The slightly uncomfortable pressure he felt from his core was Rihal scanning him for issues.


    ¡°What?¡± Rihal looked up and asked.


    Jerome just continued staring at him with his brows almost touching. After a while, he took a deep breath and asked, ¡°You told me once that I was descended from a line of people with emotional control issues. Well, what¡¯s the cause?¡±


    Rihal raked his hair with rough fingers as he contemplated what to say. ¡°Maybe some type of¡­ I don¡¯t know?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know,¡± Jerome repeated flatly, clearly not buying it. ¡°Why then are we all taken in by Vorthe as disciples?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps to help you¡­I guess?¡± Rihal said. Jerome could tell he was trying to choose his words. But he was done with the secrecy. He needed answers.


    ¡°What am I, Rihal?¡±


    Rihal opened his eyes wide in shock for a few breaths before schooling his features. Jerome was sure he was never expecting a question like that. Rihal stood up and paced for a while before sitting back down. Jerome watched all this with the patience of a snail.


    ¡°I¡¯m not in the position to tell you that, Jerome,¡± he said. ¡°Doing that will be like opening up  Zamara¡¯s Vault of Secrets and there is no going back.¡±


    Zamara¡¯s Vault of Secrets, what¡¯s that? Jerome thought. But he wanted to keep himself on topic. ¡°Let¡¯s not get sidetracked, Rihal. If you¡¯re not in the position to tell me then, who is?¡±


    Rihal sighed. ¡°You¡¯d have to get an audience with the Sovereign if you want to know what you are.¡±


    Jerome gaped. ¡°That high?¡±


    ¡°Goes to show you why I¡¯m not permitted to talk about it.¡±


    ¡°Ahem, and how do I go about this?¡± he asked again. He wasn¡¯t going to give up the chance to find answers.


    Rihal looked at him with a mixture of amusement and shock. ¡°You¡¯re not serious, are you?¡±


    ¡°I am ¡ª dead serious,¡± Jerome hardened his face as he spoke, growling at the last part of his statement.


    ¡°Well, good luck with that,¡± Rihal stood up and dusted off the soil clinging to his butt. ¡°You¡¯ll have a better chance slaughtering your way through the Estate.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you gonna help me with this?¡±


    Rihal looked at him, hesitant for a moment. ¡°No,¡± he said and walked away. ¡°Go prepare yourself for Layla¡¯s arrival.¡±


    Jerome sat where he was, brimming with barely contained anger. He would let loose if he could find a proper sparring partner. Perhaps, a Blank. But that would be humiliating for him ¡ª a Sprout fighting a Blank. He would never hear the end of it. He stood up from his sitting position but quickly remembered Kilian.


    ¡°Lord Kilian might be able to help. He probably is higher ranked than Rihal,¡± he mused. How do they even tell who¡¯s higher on the board ¡ª or line, whatever they use?


    ¡°Tsk!¡± He hissed in pain as he shuffled towards Kilian¡¯s study. The maids he met on the way all bowed slightly as he passed by. Jerome returned their greeting in kind as he limped by, stopping to rest every time he successfully climbed a stair. After torturously climbing up to the study, he stopped to rest again before pounding lightly on Kilian¡¯s door.


    ¡°I can¡¯t help you, Jerome,¡± Kilian called out from within.


    Jerome felt like growing more hands to reach inside the study and strangle the lord of the castle. His face turning red with anger, he asked through gnashed teeth, ¡°Is Rihal there?¡±


    ¡°Go away, Jerome,¡± Rihal answered.


    Jerome ground his teeth until they hurt. The sons of bitches were working together on this.


    ¡°At least, tell me how to get to the Sovereign. Or point me in the direction of someone who could get me an audience with him.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re on your own in that, Jerome,¡± Rihal called back.


    Jerome stood there brimming in silent anger. He couldn¡¯t figure out why they wouldn¡¯t help him with this. Was he not worth it? That must be it. To them he wasn¡¯t worth it. They saw him like a useless piece of broken doll. He had been useful for the time he had been full of vigor. Now they discarded him because he was no longer useful to them.


    Surprisingly, his anger calmed, only to be replaced with coldness. He wanted to speak, to say to Rihal, ¡®you¡¯re dead to me¡¯. But what was the point? Rihal was dead to him. There were no words that could communicate that better than silence. And so he kept his words deep in the recesses of his heart.


    Jerome shuffled back to his room, using the pain in his knee and his rage as fuel to propel himself forward.


    ~~~


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    Sitting down cross-legged in his room, Jerome submerged himself in his senses. He opened his eyes and was already inside Autumn, the other Plane. He chose to call it Autumn. It sounded right. The cold wind hit his face as he waved his hand and the leaves on the ground and in the air seemed to obey him, flowing in the direction of his hand, and unveiling a scene midair.


    Hedon stood holding up Doti as he screamed his ¡®words of power¡¯. This was something he wanted to ask Rihal as well, but his anger got the better of him. Not that he¡¯d be asking him anything ever again. Autumn immediately reacted to his state of mind. The trees began to freeze over, ice covered the ground and the temperature dropped further.


    Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled, he visualized his breath carrying warmth with it. The moment the air left his mouth, it spread everywhere melting the ice and warming the atmosphere.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a true Epos.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Jerome whipped around at the strange voice. Someone appeared in his field of vision and memories flashed in his mind at the sight of the stranger.


    Jerome stood there stunned as fear overtook him, his legs paralyzed as he trembled all over. Autumn also stilled. The air became stifling and fog rose from the ground to obscure the trees, like the plane was trying to hide itself from the newcomer.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Jerome finally asked after gathering his wits.


    ¡°You know me. You see me¡­in your nightmares,¡± the stranger said as he began walking in circles around him. He walked slowly, yet he was fast. Almost like he glided above the surface of the ground. ¡°Tell me, Jerome. What do you see in your nightmares?¡±


    ¡°I die,¡± he said, unable to hold back or to look his killer in the eyes, ¡°at your hands.¡±


    ¡°Beautiful,¡± the stranger said. Jerome looked up at that. The stranger had stopped to admire the beauty of the forest around him. Even though the forest was still obscured by the fog.


    He caught a leaf floating midair and observed it curiously. Even in his curiosity, the man was regal. Jerome watched him, mesmerized by his movements. His pure white robes added to the air of superiority he carried himself with as he walked around investigating everything around him with elegance.


    ¡°Are you here to¡ª¡±


    ¡°Kill you? Of course not, Jerome,¡± the stranger looked back at him. ¡°Until you lose control of the Beast inside you, I¡¯ll leave you be.¡±


    Jerome remembered Rihal¡¯s words about his ¡®emotional control issues¡¯. ¡°What beast?¡± he asked. He was uncomfortable with how this person talked about killing him as if it was just another mundane task.


    The stranger raised his hand, index finger pointing up ¡ª an indication that he wanted silence. Jerome shut his mouth and turned his attention to studying the memory from Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. With a death sentence hanging on his head now, however, he couldn¡¯t concentrate.


    ¡°Still looking at that? He executed it poorly.¡± The stranger turned to face him.


    Jerome nodded, caching his questions about that for later. ¡°If I may be so bold, Sovereign,¡± he bowed deeply. ¡°Might I ask where this is?¡±


    The Sovereign smiled at him. Like he knew Jerome had seen through him. ¡°Rise,¡± he said.


    Jerome rose and watched as the Sovereign sat down on the ground. He joined him, sitting cross-legged as well. Even that casual action looked like it was done on a throne, he thought with a sigh.


    ¡°You created this world from your memory, Jerome. It¡¯s a mental plane that exists within its creator. Here, you are God.¡±


    Jerome nodded silently. It was true that he could control everything here. But what were his limits?


    ¡°I want to know,¡± the Sovereign said, looking him in the eye. ¡°This is not your first life, is it?¡±


    Jerome looked away guiltily, like someone caught with meat from his mother¡¯s pot.


    ¡°And this memory we¡¯re in ¡ª it is from your previous life, it is¡­staggering!¡± the Sovereign looked around with excitement in his eyes. This was perhaps the first time he saw such an emotion on someone of such import.


    ¡°Mankind has always believed in reincarnation, but we never had proof of it, no one ever remembers. ¡®Every man goes through the cycle of death and rebirth, never retaining past memories upon receiving new life¡¯.¡± The Sovereign looked deeply at Jerome with a kind smile. ¡°That was a quote from Zamara¡ªKeeper of Secrets and Truth.¡±


    ¡°Zamara? Rihal mentioned him¡­ something about opening ¡®Zamara¡¯s Vault of Secrets¡¯,¡± Jerome blurted out. ¡°Apologies, Sovereign.¡± he bowed, having realized he spoke over the Sovereign.


    ¡°Her,¡± the Sovereign corrected.


    ¡°Huh?¡± It took a moment for it to sink in. ¡°Oh.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome. Zamara was a woman. A very powerful sacred artist in her time. Zamara¡¯s Vault of Secrets is only a myth¡­ or so they say,¡± the Sovereign said, ignoring his blunder. ¡°Said to contain the secrets of life and death and everything in between.


    ¡°Zamara: keeper of secrets and truth, seeker of knowledge. Worshiped in ancient times as the goddess of truth.¡± The Sovereign sighed, almost sorrowfully. Something told him all of that wasn¡¯t just a myth.


    ¡°But here you are, Jerome. A living evidence of our belief.¡±


    ¡°Ahem,¡± he cleared his throat, feeling uncomfortable under the Sovereign¡¯s scrutiny.


    ¡°It puts some things into perspective as well, like your ability to restrain the Beast. The beast is your rage and each fated Dark One before you was consumed by that rage till death. When it rears its head, it never goes back to sleep.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t like where this was heading, but he very well couldn¡¯t tell the Sovereign to put a pin in it.


    ¡°You have felt it, have you not? The call of the darkness.¡±


    ¡°Ah! So, Rihal¡¯s story was true and not¡­half true?¡± Jerome asked partly out of curiosity partly out of wonder.


    ¡°Even Rihal knows not how true and how ancient this tale is. That darkness is your inheritance, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome scrunched his brows looking away, ¡°I don¡¯t want it. I don¡¯t wanna kill people and¡­drink blood.¡± He quickly stopped himself from saying ¡®become a vampire¡¯. That was not a word in the vocabulary of Vorthe.


    ¡°I can¡¯t help you there, Jerome. But you have shown that you can suppress the Beast with your stone ¡ª something I believe you did even before finding the stone, am I right?¡±


    Jerome nodded silently at that.


    ¡°When you take up the darkness in the mountains, it¡¯ll be much stronger. I hope you can suppress it then.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot to ask of me don¡¯t you think? You¡¯re asking me to become a demon,¡± Jerome complained. He felt like he was losing control of his own life. Of everything he envisioned to be, becoming a demon was not part of them.


    ¡°Dark One is what we call you. And it is ¡®daimon¡¯, not ¡®demon¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Dark One¡­That¡¯s a scary name.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, it is meant to be scary. Not many know about what you are, though. Some Great families have their suspicions. Some have even tried to capture your predecessors, all to no avail.¡±


    ¡°But why? Why all of this? What purpose does the¡­Dark One serve?¡±


    ¡°In due time, child. It is best we do not spend too much time here. I will however advise you not to take out your anger on Rihal.¡±


    Jerome would¡¯ve glared at the Sovereign if he wasn¡¯t the Sovereign of Vorthe. He looked away, unwilling to cede his hatred and anger toward his master.


    The Sovereign sighed. ¡°He wishes what is best for you. He only ever has done that. He stopped living his own life just to make sure you lived yours. He has sacrificed much for you, Jerome. Don¡¯t let it all be in vain.¡±


    ¡°Why then did he not want to help me see you?¡± Jerome asked. He realized he was whining and he hated it. He hated what he was now ¡ª a weak cripple. This was not who he struck out to become. But reality had fucked him up.


    Now in the presence of the Sovereign, his weaknesses were baring themselves to him. Not just that but also his deep-seated thoughts and intent.


    ¡°You know why,¡± the Sovereign said, and he did.


    This was the Sovereign of Vorthe. He wouldn¡¯t drop everything just to see him. But apparently he did drop everything just to see him. Maybe he had been listening in on their conversation. Well, of course. If he was this Dark One, he must be important enough for the Sovereign to observe.


    ¡°Sit still, close your eyes, and take a deep breath.¡±


    Jerome did as he was told.


    ¡°Visualize the entirety of this world. Do you see it?¡±


    ¡°Vaguely.¡±


    ¡°That is good enough. Now, reach for it and push through the boundary in your mind¡­¡±

 47. The Events Of The Cataclysm

    Jerome woke up shivering like a leaf in the wind. His robes were damp with sweat, and he was lying on the floor. His eyes stung when he tried to focus his sight. He looked up to see two faces staring back at him with concern ¡ª Rihal and an astonishingly beautiful lady who looked to be in her mid-twenties.


    Jerome wobbled to his feet, feeling mentally drained.


    ¡°What happened?¡± he asked. ¡°Why do I feel so weak?¡± Vertigo threatened to take him again.


    ¡°Let me,¡± said the woman, her voice sounding so far away yet so loud. She reached up to stroke his sunken cheek with beautiful slender fingers. ¡°Sleep, child.¡±


    He felt a soothing aura engulf him, and he gave in to exhaustion.


    ¡°We should let him rest his mental exhaustion,¡± he heard her say before sleep took him completely.


    Jerome lost all feeling as he slept like a child. Soon he came back to his senses. His eyes fluttered open as he woke up feeling refreshed. He sat up in bed and looked around. He was in his room, surrounded by friends. He stood up to stretch, his bones popping as he did.


    ¡°How do you feel?¡± Kilian asked. Jerome hadn¡¯t seen him since he came back from Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. Besides hearing his voice from outside his study, that is.


    Jerome looked at Rihal and he could see the worry in his eyes. He still felt bitter toward his master. He sighed. The bitterness he had in his heart had to go. Otherwise, he¡¯d become a twisted version of himself. His time with the Sovereign had made him realize that.


    ¡°Good. I feel good. I was meditating and then¡­¡± he didn¡¯t know if he should disclose his meeting with the Sovereign of Vorthe with them.


    ¡°The Sovereign is a powerful mind-reader, among other things,¡± a beautiful voice said behind him.


    Jerome looked in her direction. He remembered her. She was the one who put him to sleep when he came out of the mental plane. Her long, dark hair framed a heart-shaped face with puckered red lips. Her tresses fell past her bosom and down to her hips.


    She wore a light green dress with a beautiful artwork of vines and flowers that reached past her ankles to display dainty feet hugged by small shoes.


    ¡°Jerome, meet Her Royal Highness, Princess Aeldra of the kingdom of Vorthe,¡± Kilian announced, startling him. He quickly got out of bed and bowed as gracefully as he could.


    ¡°Gratitude, Princess for your help, and¡­for gracing my room with your presence.¡±


    Aeldra Vorthe smiled at him. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so formal with me, Jerome,¡± she said as she stood up, walked towards him, and held his hands in hers helping him up.


    He quickly realized that she was just as graceful as the Sovereign. Jerome became flustered. He had only been with two royals up close before and never once had he heard, or thought of them with the title ¡®prince¡¯. So he didn¡¯t know how to act around the princess.


    And the Princess was a stunning beauty at that. He tried his best not to ogle her, to look away from her as she looked up to examine him closely. Albeit, he failed and his eyes always returned to her shapely figure and beautiful face. She only reached up to his shoulders but that was still considered tall as he was quite tall now.


    ¡°You look so much alike,¡± she said, smiling up at him.


    ¡°Right? I thought I was the only one who noticed,¡± Kilian said sarcastically, earning himself a smack on the back of the head from Rihal.


    Jerome gaped at them, surprised at their friendliness with each other. He never knew Kilian to be playful. The man had just destroyed that regal image he had had of him for years.


    ¡°Could you excuse us, Ash?¡± Rihal said as the Princess took her seat.


    ¡°But Uncle Rihal¡ª¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need,¡± said the Princess. ¡°There¡¯s a good chance she¡¯ll find out about it sooner or later.¡±


    Tension Jerome never knew was present, subsided in the room at the Princess¡¯ words.


    ¡°But I will have to swear you to secrecy,¡± the Princess said to Ash. The tension rose back up.


    ¡°What does that entail?¡± Jerome asked as warning bells rang in his head.


    ¡°Calm down, Jerome,¡± Rihal said. ¡°She just has to say a few words using an aspect of nature as a binding. As long as she says the right words, nothing will go wrong.¡±


    ¡°Well, what if something does go wrong?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± Ash blurted out nervously, holding the hem of her mahogany brown apprentice robe in a grip that turned her knuckles white.


    ¡°Ash? You don¡¯t have to do this,¡± Jerome cautioned but Ash just smiled at him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Jerome. I¡¯ll be fine,¡± she took a deep breath, cycling to calm her nerves. She turned to face the Princess and nodded curtly.


    ¡°Swear on any aspect of nature that under no circumstance will you reveal the contents of what is discussed in this room to anyone or make records of it outside this room,¡± the Princess stated calmly.


    ¡°I swear on the earth on which I stand that I would not reveal what is discussed to anyone outside this room or make records of it,¡± Ash repeated. A moment later she gasped and touched her chest, her breath picking up again.


    ¡°It is done,¡± Kilian said.


    ¡°¡®What¡¯...is done?¡± Jerome asked for clarification.


    ¡°She swore an oath, Jerome,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Oaths are binding when they are sworn on any aspect of nature.¡±


    Jerome tried to figure out how that worked in his head. He got a pretty good idea of how but it just left him with more questions. Since words were powerful it stood to reason that an oath would be binding. But just how would an oath have power over someone¡¯s actions?


    ¡°Now, how much did you discuss with the Sovereign?¡± the Princess asked, turning toward him.


    Jerome cached his questions for later. He looked at Ash with concern, then he took a deep breath and recounted his experience with the Sovereign, although he left out things like his reincarnation.


    ¡°Technically, the Sovereign is¡­your father,¡± Aeldra Vorthe said hesitantly. Jerome could almost hear the nervousness in her voice. This was a sensitive topic.


    ¡°Are you¡­ Is that¡­?¡± Ash gaped, unable to complete her sentence.


    Jerome held himself together, face down. He was not one to lie to himself. He had seen his reflection for a considerable amount of time to know his face or the semblance of it when he saw it on another person.


    ~~~


    Aeldra Vorthe


    Aeldra observed Jerome after speaking, letting her words sink in. Jerome didn¡¯t respond the way she expected. He was calm. Way calmer than he should be. Which could only mean that¡­


    He already knows, she thought to herself. Or at least he suspects. ¡°You¡¯re not surprised?¡± she asked. Jerome shook his head slowly.


    ¡°I know what my face looks like, so I had my suspicions,¡± he responded tightly. She exhaled a sigh as she saw that he wasn¡¯t angry. Or he was angry, but his anger wasn¡¯t directed at the Royal Family.


    ¡°Eons ago,¡± Aeldra began. ¡°When mankind inherited the powers of their ancestors¡­¡±


    Mighty empires fell to ruin and new powers came to be. Wars were fought without end to seize better territories. These wars wrought a cataclysm of events that forced humanity to withdraw. The very essence of the world became chaotic and violent, rending warriors limb from limb on the battlefield and grinding them to paste.


    As the wars for territorial supremacy raged on, the world grew ever more treacherous. The chaotic energies grew denser and more potent, leaving cities in ruin and mountains leveled. Without direction, the maelstrom of energy swept over everything in its path, leaving only flattened earth and scorched soil in its wake.


    But hope yet lingered amidst the chaos, for a being of immortality from a higher plane of existence descended from the heavens. He brought with him the power to quell the raging energies that had plunged the world into peril. It was revealed that the chaotic energies had gained sentience, drawing from the souls of countless fallen warriors who had perished in the battles for supremacy.


    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    One of the powerful sacred artists in the world at the time, Vorthe, came forward and pledged to watch over the suppressed chaotic energy. Forsooth, it could not be destroyed, lest it unleashes its wrath once more upon the world.


    The immortal sundered the energy into two, one born from pure light and the other of the deepest darkness, yet intertwined in their very essence. To Vorthe, he imparted the sacred art of how to harness the light, instructing him that this sacred knowledge of the light be passed down to his descendants.


    Thus, it came to pass that Vorthe discovered a dire connection to the very darkness he sought to suppress. A seed lay dormant within him, waiting to be transplanted into a descendant to give the darkness a vessel to inhabit. Only one of the bloodline of he who had embraced the light could become the harbinger of the darkness. Any other soul who dared to assume this mantle would surely perish, their souls lost to the abyss.


    Sadly, Vorthe lost three of his own sons to the insidious grasp of the darkness. Each time he had planted the seed within one of his sons, they had succumbed to madness after a mere decade. The darkness was an alien entity within them, unlike the light which was a gentle and easily nurtured force. The darkness hungered for rage, chaos, and destruction, and any who dared to cultivate it was doomed to suffer the same fate as his sons.


    And so it was that Vorthe resolved to implant the seed of darkness within the womb of a woman, to bring forth new life destined to be consumed by the darkness.


    An excerpt from the Annals of Vorthe,


    Written by Nor¡¯d,


    First Scribe of the Royal Family of the Kingdom of Vorthe.


    The room fell silent when she finished her tale. Aeldra Vorthe knew this was a lot to take in. No one wanted to be a monster. Everyone was the hero in their own story. The child was facing a lot and she had just dropped more than he should be able to handle in his laps. She wouldn¡¯t blame him if he decided he didn¡¯t want to be the Dark One; if he decided to run away and never look back.


    The problem was there was no choice for him in the matter. The choice had been made for him at his conception. He was destined to become the Dark One. She sighed helplessly.


    ¡°So, what are your plans?¡± she asked Jerome after a long while of silence.


    ~~~


    Jerome sat there deep in thought. He had a lot of questions. He wanted to know how the Sovereign got his mother pregnant.


    ¡°Did he¡­ How did he¡­?¡± he was asking but couldn¡¯t find the right words to use.


    ¡°If you want to know how the Sovereign got your mother pregnant,¡± the Princess said, ¡°he didn¡¯t ¡®rape¡¯ her.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if I sounded out of turn,¡± he said, glancing over just to make sure he didn¡¯t offend the Princess. She smiled at him.


    ¡°You can ask any question you want, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Then how did he meet her? How did he¡­ ¡®do the deed¡¯?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The Sovereign is capable of so much more than the average sacred artist, Jerome. He¡¯s a Transcendent after all,¡± the Princess said. ¡°He didn¡¯t need to have sexual intercourse before implanting the seed in her.¡±


    Then she turned to look at Rihal. ¡°As for how he met her, I¡¯m not in the position to tell you about it.¡± She gave him a sad smile. Rihal shifted uncomfortably in his seat.


    Jerome took a deep breath to center himself. So he was an aberration, born of the world; from the souls of maybe millions that died during the Cataclysm. A monster. He collected himself and decided what he was going to do.


    ¡°I wanna go find my friends. I¡¯m sure not all of them are dead¡­ And I want revenge,¡± he said.


    ¡°Are you sure about this, or are you just hoping,¡± Rihal voiced his concern. He had been silent for a while. Jerome thought it was because they were in a rough patch. He also didn¡¯t know how to address Rihal. He wanted to do as the Sovereign said but it was hard.


    ¡°I have nothing else to depend on but hope,¡± he muttered, looking out his window. He understood Rihal¡¯s concern. But Rihal was not there when it happened, when his family were thrown off the cliff and left to die. Hope was all he had left.


    ~~~


    Ash


    Ash clenched her fists in her laps as anger threatened to take her over. Why would they make Jerome into something like this? She knew there was nothing she could do about it. She knew she had no power of her own to change what had happened to him. But the Royal Family shouldn¡¯t have treated him like he was nothing. The least they could have done was make life comfortable for him. They didn¡¯t have to make him live in the orphanage and starve, and get beaten before earning something to eat.


    ¡°Ash?¡± someone called to her.


    ¡°Jerome is a kind and caring person,¡± Ash muttered, her voice trembling from her anger. ¡°He always wants everyone around him to learn new things that are very important. He doesn¡¯t deserve to be made into a monster.¡±


    ¡°Calm down, Ash,¡± Jerome said, placing a hand on hers. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay.¡±


    ¡°Ash,¡± Rihal¡¯s voice echoed in her bones, causing her to calm down. She sensed that he had used some type of technique to achieve that. ¡°We are trying hard to help him find a way to make sure he retains his mind after¡­everything. Jerome is not alone in this.¡±


    ¡°But Uncle Rihal, the Royal Family should have at least taken good care of him. Instead of letting him live in an impoverished place like the slums.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, Ash,¡± Jerome said, looking her in the eyes with a smile. ¡°I understand your frustration but I¡¯m not complaining. The Royal Family could have done better, yes. But they might have their reason for doing things this way. Besides, we don¡¯t choose how we come into this world; we only choose what we do with what we have.¡±


    ¡°You are right, Jerome,¡± the Princess said from her corner in the room. Ash wanted to hate her at this moment but found she couldn¡¯t bring herself to. ¡°The Royal Family has had many fated Dark Ones. And we¡¯ve experimented with many different upbringings.¡±


    The Princess paused for a moment as if she was reliving a distant memory. ¡°We have also found that a ¡®humble beginning¡¯ was the best way to raise the fated Dark Ones. This way they don¡¯t grow into entitled brats. They work for their rewards and earn them. They learn to put effort in the things they want to achieve, and put effort to restrain the darkness. This way, the madness doesn¡¯t surface early.¡±


    Ash shut her eyes and gripped Jerome¡¯s hand in hers refusing to let go. How long till he wasn¡¯t Jerome again, but a shell of himself?


    Jerome cleared his throat to get her attention. ¡°I¡¯ve actually grappled with the rage, you know¡­and I came out victorious,¡± he said with a smile.


    Ash looked at him with a mixture of shock and curiosity. Does this mean the madness had started already? She held him tighter.


    ¡°I can assure you, Ash,¡± Jerome continued. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay. I already have a way to calm my emotions and keep my equilibrium. I won¡¯t go mad¡­ I promise.¡±


    He pulled her close to himself and embraced her. Ash hugged him back tightly. She made up her mind to believe him. He was Jerome. He always found a way to make things work out. He did it in the slums and she believed he could do it now.


    Madness or not, Jerome wouldn¡¯t let anything or anyone beat him down. He wouldn¡¯t be Jerome if he did. She made a commitment to help him too with all of her being.


    ~~~


    Aeldra Vorthe


    Aeldra watched Ash breakdown for the boy she loved. It was quite easy to see that she cared deeply for Jerome and not like a sibling either. Teenage love. She had a few memories of her own. But alas, it was robbed away from her too soon and now she didn¡¯t remember what it was like anymore. It was only a passing memory.


    Ash seemed to calm down after receiving a hug from Jerome. She bowed her head low and apologized for her outbursts a moment ago, causing Aeldra to smile. Many people saw her as her status ¡ª the Princess of Vorthe. But she was so much more than that. She liked to be around people and actually ¡®talk¡¯ to them as a person. Not as the Princess of Vorthe.


    ¡°I understand, Ash,¡± Aeldra said. ¡°You don¡¯t need to apologize for loving someone and wanting to protect them.¡± She watched the teenage girl blush a deep shade of red and smiled fondly at her.


    But she sighed soon after, she had expected things to develop this way. From what she knew, Jerome was not one to run away from an adversary.


    ¡°Very well, Jerome,¡± she said to him. ¡°But you¡¯d need to prepare yourself. You¡¯ve been recuperating for a whole day, which shows how badly you need to grow your mental strength.¡±


    ¡°A whole day?¡± Jerome was surprised.


    ¡°Yes. The Curia Regis decided to open Terra Praeta for you so you can gain some good fortune and resources now that you are Sprout.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s Terra Praeta?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°I¡¯ve heard from Rihal that I would be going on an adventure, but that is all I know.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a void world, separate but connected to our world!¡± Ash prattled out as if afraid someone else would beat her to it. ¡°What? I wanted to be the one to tell him about it!¡± she remarked, slightly offended by the looks on their faces.


    Jerome smiled. ¡°Thank you, Ash. That was very helpful.¡±


    Kilian smiled, pursing his lips to keep from laughing out loud. Aeldra watched the interaction between them all and was grateful Kilian was very accommodating. She had feared he was going to keep Jerome at arm¡¯s length. But it seemed all her concerns were baseless.


    ¡°So, it¡¯s like a pocket world or should I say a separate space or a plane where life can exist independently of this world?¡± Jerome said.


    Kilian whistled loudly to show his surprise. Everyone looked at Jerome, surprised he could understand what was said and even explain it in his own words. Aeldra herself was a bit surprised. A ¡®pocket¡¯ was a fitting description for a void world. Why had she never thought about it like that?


    ¡°Those are some confusing words you spoke, Jerome,¡± Rihal muttered, scratching at his jaw. Aeldra could almost feel the tension between him and his disciple.


    ¡°Well it is a real world,¡± Aeldra chimed in, taking over the discussion. ¡°Anyways, Terra Praeta can¡¯t be opened for you alone so the First Elder will announce it at the upcoming Royal Banquet.¡±


    ¡°This sounds far more complicated than Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, so I¡¯m guessing it is. How long will it take?¡±


    ¡°Time in Terra Praeta is different from time here,¡± Rihal said. ¡°So two years at most.¡±


    ¡°Two years, that¡¯s long! I still wanna go in search of my family, Rihal!¡± Jerome said, looking worriedly at Rihal.


    Aeldra never expected that. She had expected him to jump at the chance to be counted among those going to Terra Praeta. Did he not know what it meant? Only those from the nobility and royalty in Vorthe were allowed the privilege to step foot in Terra Praeta. She looked to Rihal to see how he would handle this.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been away, three years, Jerome. Two more wouldn¡¯t change anything,¡± Rihal gave him a cautioning gaze. Shaking his head slowly, he said, ¡°Don¡¯t take lightly, the generosity of the Curia Regis.¡±


    Those words seemed to do the trick. Jerome calmed down and looked away. She could tell that there was tension between them. Whatever it was they were fighting over, she hoped they were able to sort it out.


    ¡°Will Hedon be joining the expedition?¡± Jerome asked.


    The room went silent for a few breaths of time. Aeldra could see the challenge and determination in his eyes. Those were the calculating eyes of a hunter, hunting prey.


    ¡°Very likely,¡± she said.


    ¡°That¡¯s all I need to know.¡±


    ¡°Then prepare yourself to meet the Sovereign in person,¡± Aeldra said, rising from her seat and then addressing Kilian. ¡°Get him something nice to wear, Kilian.¡±

 48. What Is An Epos?

    Jerome took a deep breath to calm down, immersing himself in his consciousness. He found himself in the mental plane once again. The plane was the same as before. However, he didn¡¯t know what to do next.


    Visualize the entire world, he reminded himself of the Sovereign¡¯s words. Reach for it and push through the boundary in your mind. Jerome sat down cross-legged to visualize the entire mind plane. This time around, he didn¡¯t do it to leave but to get the feel of it.


    His mind roamed the plane. It was like a pocket dimension. At least that was how his mind translated it ¡ª which he still found awesome! The last time he did this it was way bigger than how it felt now.


    Or maybe my mental capacity has increased, he mused.


    Jerome moved through the plane with just his mind. It felt weird, like being in multiple places at the same time ¡ª yet without a tangible presence. He hovered atop the trees and the valleys, his mind was divided while doing this, like apparitions of himself ¡ª connected, yet separate.


    He willed the cold wind to stir around him. Dead leaves were blown away leaving the land bare. Jerome reached down to pick up a handful of soil. It felt like ordinary soil, even though he knew it wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°A mind is a powerful tool,¡± he muttered. With just the power of the mind, one could visualize whole worlds into being, or push through barriers the body says is impossible to push through.


    Jerome left the plane. When he came to, he was mentally exhausted and was breathing hard, but not as he was the last time. He cycled as fast as he could to get rid of the fatigue. After a while, he inhaled and exhaled audibly, trying to recreate the same feelings from when he was inside his mind plane.


    He sensed the barrier again and pushed through it, stretching his senses around his tiny room. The sensation was similar to expanding his senses in the mental plane ¡ª with just a little more effort. But it was nowhere as fast enough.


    Jerome made a note to himself to study the barrier in his mind, and perhaps strengthen it. If his mental barrier was strong enough, no one would be able to barge into his mind as the Sovereign did.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°He did it,¡± Kilian muttered.


    ¡°Yes, but he still has a long way to go. Can you compare him with the Royal Sprouts?¡± Rihal asked. They had been monitoring Jerome¡¯s progress from Kilian¡¯s study for a while now.


    ¡°Give him time,¡± Kilian stated. ¡°And also¡­talk to him. I¡¯m sure he isn¡¯t going to be unreasonable.¡± Kilian¡¯s meaning hung in the air, left unsaid, but he understood.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t have time,¡± Rihal said. ¡°And he is¡­ bitter. That bitterness, Kilian, I don¡¯t know how to handle it. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯ll change him.¡± He felt lost ¡ª and unwanted. But what he feared the most was Jerome becoming embittered, which was happening before his very eyes. Bitterness corrupted sacred artists.


    ¡°Hmm. He¡¯ll just have to find a way to survive.¡± Kilian stood up, ready to call it a night. ¡°It¡¯s what he¡¯s good at. Just have a talk with him, Rihal. You two can find a middle ground, I¡¯m sure.¡±


    Rihal chuckled, ¡°I guess you¡¯re right. He is good at surviving. And I¡¯ll talk to him.¡± He stood up as well and vanished as Kilian left the study.


    ~~~


    ¡°Breathe¡­in¡­and¡­out,¡± Layla¡¯s voice lulled Jerome into a trance.


    Jerome sank into his consciousness, entering the mind plane to study it more closely. He was sure it was connected, or perhaps, created by the mind-calming stone. Now he could be in here and still sense what was going on outside his body. At least if he was concentrating on only being in here.


    He was going to meditate this way for another moon, absorbing essence at a very slow rate and healing his wounds as well. He sat down cross-legged on the ground and just breathed.


    Time passed, but he didn¡¯t know how long. He wasn¡¯t aware as he was in deep meditation. But he knew he was healing.


    ¡°Jerome¡­¡±


    The moment he heard his name he knew it was already a full cycle. He came out of his trance feeling healthier than he was before.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± Layla groaned, stepping down from his bed and stretching her limbs. ¡°Never gets easy.¡±


    ¡°Sorry,¡± Jerome said with a smile. ¡°I feel a lot better now thanks to you. Will you be going to Terra Praeta?¡±


    ¡°Sure. Last I heard, there were over fifty of us going from the Royal Family.¡±


    Jerome was surprised at the news. Fifty was a pretty big number was it not? ¡°And the other Great Families?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re wondering if Hedon would make an appearance,¡± she said with a smile. ¡°He¡¯ll be there for sure.¡±


    ¡°Actually, I¡¯m wondering how many of his clansmen I¡¯d have to fight to get to him,¡± Jerome deadpanned.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Layla  muttered, giving him a look. ¡°You¡¯d best shelve those thoughts, Jerome. Hedon is from a Great Clan, and you are just a disciple and quite talented too. I¡¯d hate to see your life wasted after all I¡¯ve done to take care of you.¡±


    Jerome smiled at her. ¡°Your concerns are noted¡­¡± he said, nodding respectfully at her, ¡°but I still wanna know.¡±


    Layla wasn¡¯t a warrior like him. There was an unspoken code warriors lived by. She didn¡¯t also know what he went through so she didn¡¯t think like one who had been wronged.


    Layla studied him for a moment before answering. ¡°You¡¯ll still find a way to get this information even if I don¡¯t tell you, wouldn¡¯t you?¡±


    Jerome shrugged.


    ¡°They have twenty slots each, while 2nd tier families have fifteen slots, 3rd tier families are the most abundant in Vorthe, they¡¯ve got ten slots each.¡±


    ¡°How do you know all this?¡± Jerome asked in surprise, he only wanted to know how many Sprouts would be coming along with Hedon Alvric, not the whole expedition.


    ¡°My mom¡¯s a Sage,¡± Layla said with a smirk. ¡°And just so you know, she¡¯s unto you.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Jerome shot out of bed as quickly as possible. He still remembered the Sage that appeared in his room and caused him to have a major breakdown with just a word so he shuffled up to his window and shut it close, so no one could pass through.


    ¡°I told you I wasn¡¯t looking. My mind was elsewhere!¡±


    Layla snickered at him. ¡°Right. Elsewhere, like I¡¯d believe that.¡±


    She knew her mother didn¡¯t need windows or doors to enter this room, with a thought she¡¯d appear where she wanted to be. It was a lot of fun torturing the poor boy for a while though.


    ¡°You¡¯re toying with me aren¡¯t you,¡± Jerome limped back to bed and took out his storage bag containing the Sunfire stone.


    Layla laughed mockingly at him. She got up from the edge of the bed, ready to leave. ¡°Terra Praeta will be opened in a moon. Don¡¯t get yourself killed.¡±


    ¡°You too,¡± Jerome smiled at her.


    The moment she left, Jerome immediately started training. He exercised his perception for a long time, making it stronger with every scan. It was a torturous experience as he felt like his brain would explode. He had to take a breather from time to time so as not to damage his brain and nerves.


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    The body of a sacred artist was self-repairing. They never should need elixirs or pills except in severe cases, or when their aptitude wasn¡¯t good enough to advance to a new Realm. Taking elixirs and pills even in normal cases, however, would lead to unforeseen circumstances. That was why so many steered clear of them.


    Nevertheless, alchemists still refine pills for sacred artists ¡ª you never know when you might need them. But so far he hadn¡¯t needed them and he didn¡¯t want to put himself in a situation where he would.


    After a few more hours of crazy practice, Jerome took out the Sunfire stone as he thought of an idea. It was a crazy idea. And probably a very dangerous one.


    ¡°No one who achieved great things stopped because it just might be dangerous, let¡¯s see if this works,¡± he muttered to himself.


    ~~~


    Kilian Vorthe


    ¡°Disciple Jerome, Open the door!¡±


    Kilian¡¯s guards banged on Jerome¡¯s door to wake him up. The maids had reported hearing a series of intermittent explosions coming from his room all night. They¡¯d had to stay awake hoping and praying that the palace wouldn¡¯t collapse on them.


    Very early this morning, the explosions stopped, and they had cried out to the guards who ¡®supposedly¡¯ should be on guard duty but slept through the whole ordeal the night before. Kilian glared at their backs as he stood behind them in front of Jerome¡¯s room.


    He sensed Jerome waking up groggily. Kilian knew the twerp could hear the guards banging on the door, and he could sense the flare of pain behind his eyes. Kilian could never figure out how sacred artists subjected themselves to the torture they called ¡®training¡¯. At least take it easy so as not to destroy the very body you wish to strengthen.


    Jerome was in serious pain and all he could focus on was the head-splitting headache he was feeling.


    ¡°Break it down,¡± Kilian ordered, and the door came crashing into the room the next moment, dispersing the slouchiness in Jerome¡¯s eyelids. All this he observed with his more evolved mental energy. It did feel good to be the most powerful person in a room.


    Kilian entered the room flabbergasted. Every single piece of furniture in the room had been burnt to ash. If he wasn¡¯t concentrating on Jerome¡¯s condition, he would have noticed it before coming in. Jerome himself looked quite disheveled with his long hair standing on ends and his skin covered with a fine sheet of soot.


    One of the guards whistled to express his surprise. ¡°It¡¯s like a dragon¡¯s den in here,¡± he remarked.


    ¡°More like a muddled pool of fish and dragon,¡± another chimed in.


    The rest of the guards laughed loudly. Jerome glared up at them, and Kilian sighed to himself. He wasn¡¯t going to take that insult lying down.


    He coughed up a large amount of black plume as he stood up and said, ¡°And the fingerlings should run as far as they can else, they become fodder for the dragon.¡±


    The guards¡¯ hostility rose in moments as they all stared daggers at him.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, all of you,¡± Kilian ordered, and they all retracted their gaze from Jerome. ¡°For disturbing the peace of my home, Jerome, I should punish you severely. However, since these dumb heads,¡± he gestured at the guards, ¡°didn¡¯t do their jobs, they¡¯ll be punished along with you.¡±


    ¡°Apologies, Lord Kilian,¡± the guards apologized with their heads bowed.


    ¡°I thought you were going to reduce the punishment,¡± Jerome muttered. ¡°What kind of non sequitur is that?¡±


    Kilian could sense the veiled irritation in his voice. But he wasn¡¯t going to let him off. ¡°You said what now?¡± he dared.


    ¡°Nothing.¡±


    Thought so.


    ~~~


    Abbott


    ¡°Remind me to teach this brat a lesson when we leave this place,¡± Abbott said. He was the head guard on duty the previous night. And like his colleagues, he had also slept like a baby when Jerome was bombarding the Palace with blasts of fire.


    Ten Sprouts, including Jerome, crammed themselves into a dung pit, using their legs to loosen the dung. There was no real necessity in what they were doing, and it was torture. Their heightened sense of smell was constantly assaulted by the concentrated smell of dung, making it quite difficult to breathe.


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re man enough,¡± the brat replied, taunting him. Did he think because he was Lord Rihal¡¯s disciple, he could get away with taunting him. Oh! he¡¯s going to get it now!


    Abbott smirked. ¡°Let¡¯s see if that silver tongue of yours can keep ya safe when we leave this pit. I¡¯ll teach ya what respect is if it means bedding your mama right before your eyes.¡±


    The guards in the pit burst out in wild laughter. Oh! That was a good one. If he could say so himself.


    After a while, Abbott noticed he wasn¡¯t cussing back and soon their laughter died down as they noticed something else. The essence around the whelp became chaotic as it reacted with his essence causing the space around them to compress and heat up, giving them a feeling of suffocation.


    The whelp lunged at Abbott, but Abbott, fearing whatever technique the rascal was about to unleash, tried to climb out of the pit. His colleagues saw this and joined him, but before they could, the pit exploded, scattering dung everywhere.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°You do realize that you¡¯ll be meeting the Sovereign today, right¡­ at the banquet?¡±


    ¡°They started it.¡±


    Rihal sighed. Jerome truly had changed. He was beginning to resort to violence too quickly, just like the records stated about the other fated Dark Ones before him. He couldn¡¯t tell if that was because of the darkness inside him, or because Jerome was bitter with him.


    He once thought Jerome would be different, that under his tutelage the boy would have better control of his nature. But he was realizing that nature wasn¡¯t something one could go against, and reality was more damning than the fantasies men conjured up for themselves.


    ¡°You¡¯re changing, Jerome,¡± Rihal said solemnly.


    Ash, who was washing Jerome¡¯s hair, paused at what she was doing and looked up. She had dragged him away from Abbott not long ago so she could clean him up and prepare him for his meeting with the Sovereign.


    ¡°Should we leave?¡± she asked.


    They were inside the women¡¯s washroom with Seventeen and two other maids. Naturally, she knew these maids couldn¡¯t be a part of the discussion Rihal was about to bring up.


    Rihal smiled at her. He looked to the maids and nodded, signaling to them to leave. All three maids bowed and left with Ash. The door closed behind them leaving both of them alone in the washroom.


    ¡°They started it,¡± Jerome stated again. His anger, barely having subsided.


    ¡°Jerome, listen to yourself. You¡¯re clearly losing it. Can¡¯t you see your anger is getting out of control?¡±


    Jerome raised his brows in surprise and his anger receded like a tide, causing Rihal to let out a breath of relief.


    Well, that was easier than I thought it would be, Rihal thought.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Jerome said, looking away in shame.


    ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m here ¡ª to remind you that you¡¯re still human.¡±


    Jerome nodded slowly and then he picked up a scrap of cloth from a small raised platform beside him. This was the maids¡¯ washroom so everything was within reach. He stood up and used the cloth to cover his naked bits before bowing deeply to Rihal.


    ¡°And I¡¯m truly sorry¡­ for the way I¡¯ve been acting since I got back,¡± Jerome said.


    Rihal had no words, he was planning to have a conversation with his disciple but now it seemed he was worried over nothing. All the tension in his body slowly melted away.


    ¡°I was angry at you for not protecting them¡ª¡±


    ¡°Jerome, I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Please, Rihal. I need to say this. I need to get it off my chest. I don¡¯t want to hold all that anger anymore,¡± he straightened his posture and sat back down in the bath. ¡°I¡¯ve been bitter for too long and that¡¯s not who I want to be. I¡¯m sorry for taking my anger out on you. It was childish of me.¡±


    Rihal observed him for a while, emotions foreign to him welling up in him. But he soon found his voice and spoke. ¡°I¡¯m sorry too¡­ for not protecting them. I should have been stricter with my eye. Do you forgive me, Jerome?¡±


    Jerome looked up at him, slightly surprised. Rihal could see him searching his eyes. Perhaps for honesty. He nodded moments later. ¡°I do, Rihal. I¡¯m no longer angry with you.¡±


    ¡°Abbott didn¡¯t mean what he said,¡± Rihal continued, trying to vouch for the guard. ¡°At least not in the way you think. It¡¯s just, the guards are more¡­loose with their tongues when it comes to cussing. They don¡¯t hold it to heart.¡±


    The moment quickly turned awkward as both of them didn¡¯t have the slightest inkling of how to deal with the situation. Rihal couldn¡¯t decide whether he should say something more or just leave Jerome to his bath. Even if he were to say something, what would it be? He racked his brain for something to say but nothing was forthcoming.


    ¡°I understand,¡± Jerome finally said, ¡°and you don¡¯t have to baby me. I¡¯m not a child anymore¡­¡±


    Rihal smiled. ¡°But you are a child, yet you always act so mature that I forget you¡¯re a child.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°I wanna be left alone.¡±


    ¡°And now you act like a child, and I remember you¡¯re a child and want to treat you like one,¡± Rihal said as he walked out of the washroom.


    ¡°He says he wants to be left alone,¡± he told the maids outside the washroom.


    ¡°Rihal,¡± Jerome called out and Rihal looked back.


    ¡°What¡¯s an Epos?¡±


    Rihal turned and walked back into the washroom. ¡°How do you know that word?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The Sovereign mentioned it. Hedon used it at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s bad news,¡± Rihal said. Hedon¡¯s father must have taken the embarrassment of his child really seriously if he went ahead and gifted the boy an Epos without thinking of the consequences.


    Jerome turned to him to catch his meaning.


    ¡°If Hedon can use an Epos ¡ª granted it was given to him ¡ª you can¡¯t beat him, Jerome,¡± Rihal declared. ¡°No matter what you do.¡±

 49. Meeting The Sovereign Of Vorthe

    Rihal


    ¡°I won¡¯t accept that, Rihal. I¡¯ll carve out his heart by any means possible,¡± Jerome said. He wasn¡¯t willing to accept that Hedon would most likely be unbeatable with his Epos.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯ll have to find your own Epos then, because without one to boost your strength, you¡¯ve got no chance of beating him,¡± Rihal said as they walked deeper into the Royal Estate. He was an assassin, so fighting wasn¡¯t really his thing, even if he could go toe-to-toe with any Spirit Realm artist in Vorthe. But he definitely would hesitate to fight someone with such power.


    I won¡¯t even be able to get close because of the vastness of their presence, and the way they¡¯ll impress their will upon the world around them, he thought, creating a scenario in his head mirroring Jerome¡¯s predicament. I¡¯ll drill into the ground but they¡¯ll ¡®will¡¯ the ground to compress, which¡¯ll make it harder to escape. Throwing knives won¡¯t reach them either, even if the knives were artifacts. I¡¯ll take¡ª


    ¡°How do I create one, then?¡± Jerome asked, looking all serious and ready for action. At least he was healing fast enough.


    Rihal guffawed loudly, his reverie having been disrupted by Jerome¡¯s questions. His disciple was clearly delusional if he thought he could just create an Epos. Or just plain ignorant, Rihal thought, fighting back his laughter.


    ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± he said after calming down. He observed Jerome walking on both legs. The little devil had gotten a lot better as the days went by. Jerome¡¯s channels were healed already and apparently, a lot stronger. He could just detect a slight limp in his steps but even that should heal completely in the days to come.


    ¡°What¡¯d you mean I can¡¯t?¡± Jerome asked. He stopped and frowned at Rihal to which Rihal sighed. His disciple would not take such news kindly. But the Epos Hedon wielded was the creation of another, he couldn¡¯t just create his own out of thin air.


    ¡°You can ask the Sovereign when you see him, his answer should be more comprehensive than anything I can tell you,¡± Rihal said. ¡°All I can tell you is that it has much to do with bloodline.¡±


    ¡°Bloodline, huh?¡± Jerome pondered. ¡°You said it was given to him.¡±


    ¡°Possibly by his father. He¡¯s the Alvric heir after all. But if he wasn¡¯t an Alvric it wouldn¡¯t have worked for him. That¡¯s why bloodline is important.¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome had never been to any other part of the Royal Estate before, and he found that the Estate could be considered a city all on its own ¡ª a far more beautiful city than the city of Farryn. Instead of cobbled streets, they walked on paved concrete roads. The sidewalks were kept in good order and there were little bridges they walked on from time to time to cross over streams filled with fish and other freshwater animals.


    Finally, they walked up to a gigantic manor gracing the world in all its splendor, with beautifully decorated white walls. Guards stood at the front of the manor in shining golden armor, while others patrolled the perimeter.


    These were the first guards Jerome had seen in metal armor other than leather since he came to this world. Leather was easier to move around in so it was a given. These golden armors looked more ceremonial and glamorous, meant to showcase the status of the Royal Guard. And there were quite a lot of them.


    Rihal took Jerome into the manor through the back where a maid ushered him to a room on the top floor of the manor. The interior was no less decorated and splendorous than the exterior. Everything around him screamed wealth.


    ¡°Remember to go down on one knee, with your right hand in a fist over your chest,¡± Rihal whispered to him.


    ¡°Yes, yes, father walrus. You¡¯ve said it a million times.¡± Rihal smiled at that but left without a word.


    Jerome knocked slightly, wondering why he was meeting the Sovereign in such a secluded location. The room was at the top of the manor but was quite secluded from the rest of the building. The door opened on its own and a voice reached his ears.


    ¡°Enter.¡±


    Jerome would know the Sovereign¡¯s voice anywhere he heard it now. He walked into the room and got down on one knee like Rihal had said.


    ¡°Greetings, Sovereign,¡± he greeted with a fist to his chest. He was kind of surprised the Sovereign was already waiting for him.


    ¡°You may rise,¡± the Sovereign said.


    Jerome rose and looked around. The entire room was exquisitely decorated. And even so, it had a masculine touch to it. The Sovereign spun slowly around in his high-backed chair to face Jerome with a puzzled look on his face. Jerome quickly sent his gaze downwards.


    He was dressed quite smartly for the occasion: loose black outer robes with blue patterns gracing the surface of the robe like dancing flames in the shape of a dragon ¡ª a representation of his blue flames, it seemed. However, he felt quite uncomfortable in three layers of clothing.


    ¡°You¡¯re different somehow. What have you been up to?¡± the Sovereign asked, his voice slow and sure, like that of a man who had won all his battles.


    ¡°Me?¡± Jerome asked, surprised by the question.


    ¡°Yes, you. What have you been up to?¡±


    He put his thoughts together before speaking. The sovereign was no ordinary man one could just say anything in front of. He had to watch his thoughts and words just by being in the Sovereign¡¯s presence.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been practicing the mind scan, among¡­other things.¡±


    The Sovereign furrowed his brows, almost appearing intimidating. He sat up slowly in his high-backed chair, with his elbows on the armrest, and linked his fingers in front of him as his gaze bore into Jerome.


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    What now?! Jerome quickly became flustered under his intense scrutiny. The Sovereign¡¯s gaze was nigh impossible to break. His irises resembled black holes that were sucking him into their event horizon.


    The Sovereign was silent for a long time, just gazing at him with unblinking eyes. Under the scrutiny of those eyes, Jerome could do nothing more than shiver where he was.


    The golden glowing orbs of light hovering a foot or more below the roof piqued his interest. He busied himself scanning everything around like a busybody; the red and gold tapestries and white backdrops decorating the walls, the orbs of light and the rug underneath his booted feet..


    Albeit he was unable to concentrate because he was unable to look away from those eyes. The Sovereign turned around again without a word, facing the wall opposite him. Jerome observed that the chair was hovering above the carpeted floor.


    ¡°Come over, Jerome. We have much to discuss,¡± the Sovereign said. He slightly stretched out his right hand with his palm up and an orb on a table by his side floated onto his hand.


    ¡°Gratitude, Sovereign,¡± Jerome said as he walked up to the Sovereign.


    ¡°So, you¡¯ve been practicing the mind scan?¡± the Sovereign asked, rubbing the orb absently with his thumb.


    ¡°Yes, Sovereign,¡± Jerome answered as he stood beside the Sovereign¡¯s little table, slightly distracted by the Sovereign¡¯s thumb. He shook his head and peeled his gaze away, resisting whatever pull the Sovereign¡¯s movements had on him.


    ¡°Scan me then.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dare, Sovereign!¡± Jerome said without hesitation, bowing his head. That was an unexpected request. One that would be disrespectful to someone of the Sovereign¡¯s status.


    Although the Sovereign was his biological father, that was just a technicality. They had no familial bonds between them, and Jerome wouldn¡¯t want a bond like that ¡ª not from someone who would kill him at the end of the day. Then he remembered that the Sovereign could read minds and his heart sped up like crazy. Yun Vorthe looked at him for a while as if trying to decipher a code or something.


    ¡°Why can¡¯t I read you anymore?¡± he asked at last.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome muttered as his heartbeat sounded like drums in his ears. He didn¡¯t know what was going on anymore, but he quickly caught the gist of the matter. Can¡¯t read him anymore? Did that mean he couldn¡¯t read his mind? He felt elated at the possibility. But he quickly tamped down his excitement, lest the Sovereign catch on to it.


    ¡°It is as you heard,¡± the Sovereign confirmed his thoughts. ¡°Does this have anything to do with whatever helped you reign in the beast at Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡±


    Jerome¡¯s heart sped up again. His anxiety was laid bare before the Sovereign. Even if he wanted to give an answer, he had no idea if this was true or not. So he just gave the best he could.


    ¡°Perhaps, Sovereign.¡±


    Yun Vorthe chuckled coldly. ¡°Your heart is racing, Jerome,¡± he stated. ¡°Like you, are trying to hide something from me.¡± His every word was laced with a presage that reminded Jerome of the calm before the storm.


    Jerome¡¯s anxiety intensified greatly and his heartbeat increased rapidly. He began sweating profusely, every instinct pushing him to prostrate and beg for forgiveness for withholding information from the Sovereign.


    ¡°Relax,¡± the Sovereign said after a while. ¡°I will not hurt you.¡±


    Jerome felt the pressure lift off of him in the next instance. His heart rate began to normalize and he sagged in relief, bending down to keep himself from falling. He became bitter. The Sovereign was clearly manipulating him somehow ¡ª however he was doing it, there was neither essence nor mental energy involved.


    He didn¡¯t even think to rotate his core to get rid of the discomfort just now! Jerome suspected that this may just be one of the Sovereign¡¯s many abilities. The man was dangerous. He had to be careful of him. For someone to just pull you in with his eyes, making you forget to do even the simplest things, like cycle to get rid of discomfort. Or making you feel vulnerable. At least he couldn¡¯t read his thoughts like he had admitted.


    ¡°I do want to know how far you have gone in your training though, so, scan me,¡± the Sovereign said once more.


    ¡°If the Sovereign wishes it so, then who am I not to oblige,¡± Jerome said, composing himself.


    ¡°You may go ahead,¡± the Sovereign said.


    Jerome bowed low. ¡°Forgiveness for the intrusion then,¡± he said.


    Yun Vorthe waited for him to prepare himself, but Jerome just went ahead and did it, like no preparations were necessary. Yun felt it, the subtle pressure invading his being. It was meticulous and thorough, moving through every sinew and bone like a physician¡¯s gaze¡­but extremely weak. He knew Jerome still had a long way to go but as a Sprout, this was still considered weak.


    When Jerome scanned his core, he gasped in awe. There was nothing to scan, like the Ruler of Vorthe had no core at all. It didn¡¯t make any sense! Rihal also did this with his core but not like this. Not to this extent. Rihal¡¯s core was always veiled, but not to the point of being non-existent!


    Yun Vorthe wondered if Jerome was holding back. And if it had anything to do with the fact that Jerome was injured. If he was injured in his soul, that would make his mental energy weak. Yun didn¡¯t concern himself with that anyway. As long as there was a vessel to carry the seed of darkness, all was well.


    ¡°You are very thorough¡­and meticulous in scanning, but are you holding back?¡± the Sovereign asked.


    ¡°No, Sovereign. Does it feel like I held back?¡± Jerome asked, befuddled.


    ¡°Your scan was weak,¡± Yun Vorthe nodded. ¡°But Sprouts your age usually prepare themselves mentally before scanning, hence, they use too much in the way of intensity. But you didn¡¯t need such preparations. That seems to me like an advantage.¡± But the pressure behind the scan was still very weak.


    Jerome nodded contemplatively. That felt like a pat on the back with a little less emotion. He knew since he hadn¡¯t had enough time to practice, he couldn¡¯t compare to those who had had years of practice. But still, he had hoped¡­ Jerome sighed. He couldn¡¯t depend on hope. Not when he¡¯d be joining an expedition to a void world. Not when he¡¯d be going out into the world to search for his family.


    ¡°If I may, Sovereign. I did a thorough examination of my core last night and I found the seed of darkness at the very center of it.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°The problem is, it¡¯s siphoning my essence,¡± Jerome said, ¡°At least half of what I absorb goes into it. It¡¯s like a black hole with no bottom.¡±


    ¡°Well, does that hinder you?¡± the Sovereign asked softly.


    ¡°Not really.¡±


    ¡°Does it make you weaker than those in your realm?¡± the Sovereign asked again, trying to get Jerome to see his point.


    ¡°I can¡¯t say, Sovereign, since I haven¡¯t battled anyone in my Realm lately.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just, perhaps I¡¯ll be able to do a lot more if I keep my essence for myself,¡± Jerome said. Though, something in him told him this was wishful thinking.


    ¡°You see the seed as a separate entity from you,¡± the Sovereign said, playing with the crystal ball in his palm. It should have been a question but it sounded like a statement.


    Jerome did. And right now he was feeling like the Sovereign wasn¡¯t taking this seriously.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t take from you, Jerome. It stores for you.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± he asked. Now, this was interesting.


    ¡°Everything the darkness takes from you it gives back ten folds. Have you ever found yourself exhausted from a lack of essence in your core?¡±


    ¡°...¡± Jerome had nothing to say to that. Now that I think of it, he never had. He thought about all his fights in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. how most people got tired before him. Was this the reason?


    ¡°What we should talk about,¡± the Sovereign smiled at him, ¡°is how you turned to stone and survived three years under a river.¡± Yun Vorthe wanted to know this, but not at the expense of ruining the future. He dipped his consciousness slightly into the river of fate for a moment just to be sure.

 50. The Royal Banquet (1)

    ¡°What we should talk about,¡± the Sovereign smiled at him, ¡°is how you turned to stone and survived three years under a river.¡± Yun Vorthe wanted to know this, but not at the expense of ruining the future. He dipped his consciousness slightly into the river of fate for a moment just to be sure.


    ¡°Huh, I guess so,¡± Jerome answered uncomfortably. Truth be told he was curious as well, he just didn''t like being an experiment for others to poke and prod at. It was the sum total of his previous life. He didn¡¯t want a repeat of it.


    ¡°That stone of yours, is very likely the source of your petrification, and mayhap the reason why I cannot sense visha stirh¡¯aun on you,¡± the Sovereign said contemplatively.


    Jerome flinched. He had thought hiding his thoughts from the Sovereign was enough. But the man was a Transcendent, a Realm that was a mystery to him. The Sovereign clearly understood the mysteries and principles of this world better than anyone around him and Rihal had said sacred artists could perceive things through walls. So seeing through his physical form would not be an issue, right? What would a sacred artist as powerful as the Sovereign be able to accomplish with such a powerful perception?


    He almost expected the Sovereign to respond to his thoughts, then remembered he¡¯d said he couldn¡¯t read him anymore. Which was probably the work of the mind-calming stone too. Jerome smiled to himself at that.


    ¡°What do you think about our world today, Jerome,¡± Yun Vorthe asked, having lost interest in Jerome¡¯s miracle stone. It was something he had no clue about ¡ª which was a rarity in itself ¡ª so he¡¯d rather investigate the owner for clues rather than ask questions Jerome clearly didn¡¯t have answers to. And his investigation into the river of fate yielded no results.


    Some things were more important than a mysterious stone, however. Things like Jerome going to Terra Praeta. For the first time ever, they were sending the fated Dark One to Terra Praeta. Yun Vorthe knew his predecessors wouldn¡¯t approve. But the future had revealed itself to him. Jerome had to go.


    ¡°Today?¡± Jerome asked, confused.


    ¡°It should be far different from what you once knew, should it not?¡± The Sovereign asked, confident that the level of advancement in Jerome¡¯s previous life could not compare to what existed in the kingdom of Vorthe at present.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign, but my previous life wasn¡¯t here,¡± Jerome pointed downwards, ¡°on this planet.¡±


    The Sovereign glanced his way with a straight face, his expression calm, but Jerome saw his pupils dilate, just for a split second. He quickly turned away, lest the Sovereign see him smile and be offended. But he quickly chided himself. The Sovereign wouldn¡¯t be offended by something like that, he was the Sovereign.


    ¡°Tell me about this world, then,¡± Yun Vorthe said. Things were getting rather interesting. If there were more worlds out there, it could mean trouble. If he didn¡¯t want a repeat of the past, he¡¯d best learn what he could¡­and fast. He settled into his high-backed chair to give Jerome a sense of safety. There was no need to make the young Sprout feel threatened.


    This was one of the perks and one could say, bane, of being a Transcendent being. Every gesture or word had to be made or expressed with great care else he ended up overloading the senses of the people around him. His presence was as vast as an ocean in the minds of lesser beings, bearing down on them with a colossal amount of pressure! He had killed people with a look because of this.


    ¡°Ahem. One thing that stood out there was measurement,¡± Jerome started. He had brooded over this for a while so it wasn¡¯t hard to come up with something interesting to say on the spot.


    ¡°Measurement?¡± the Sovereign repeated, not fathoming Jerome¡¯s point.


    ¡°Measurement of everything. It made life and discoveries, experimentation and whatnots, easier.¡±


    The Sovereign said nothing, so Jerome continued.


    ¡°We measured time, distance, heat, cold¡­pressure, as minutely as possible,¡± somehow he missed his old world: the technology, art ¡ª even though he spent most of his life in a hospital bed.


    The Sovereign looked up at him, his mask of calm almost faltering. ¡°These could not be the most important things in your previous world, could they?¡±


    ¡°Oh, but they were important,¡± Jerome said. ¡° We had no sacred artists, couldn¡¯t see very far with our naked eyes, couldn¡¯t wield the elements¡­ the list goes on.¡±


    The Sovereign nodded in understanding. Without the extraordinary gifts and perception of sacred artists, it would have been difficult to do almost anything without the use of tools. With that, he relaxed completely. Jerome¡¯s former world could by no means be a threat to this one.


    ¡°Measuring time,¡± Yun Vorthe muttered absently.


    ¡°...in durations shorter than a breath,¡± Jerome added.


    ¡°How did you achieve that?¡± the Sovereign asked, his interest piqued again. He never expected this to be a far more interesting topic than he had thought.


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    ¡°I don¡¯t know all the details, but it had something to do with the rotation and revolution of the planet,¡± Jerome paused to gather his thoughts.


    The Cesium atom had more to do with it. But he couldn¡¯t remember much about it. So he just went with the next best thing. He tried recalling all he knew about the cesium-133 atom but he didn¡¯t remember much. Cesium atomic clocks operate based on the principle of atomic resonance. And the cesium atomic resonance frequency was over nine billion cycles per second. But he didn¡¯t remember the exact number.


    ¡°Where you taught that planets rotate?¡± the Sovereign asked. This planet of Jerome¡¯s was beginning to sound interesting. He had a lot of questions; like how they figured out the revolution and rotation of the planet. Clearly, they must have found a way to leave the surface to study all these.


    He could¡¯ve just taken the answers directly from Jerome¡¯s mind but it seems fate wasn¡¯t being fair to him concerning Jerome. He stopped playing with his orb and cast his gaze on Jerome, making him flinch back a bit. Yun Vorthe sat back in his chair, lessening the burden on Jerome¡¯s senses a little.


    ¡°Ahem. Yes, Sovereign, and that planets are round,¡± Jerome said, regaining his composure. The system of education in Vorthe was so archaic, that Jerome could only laugh at their ignorance. ¡°Education was permitted for everyone in the time period I lived in, not just those of noble blood.¡±


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± the Sovereign muttered, turning his gaze away from Jerome. It was getting harder to hold himself back. Just a bit. ¡°We educate our children by exposing them to specific Paths, with specific disciplines. And ¡®everyone¡¯ cannot afford such education. It is beyond expensive.¡±


    ¡°In my previous world, we had schools,¡± Jerome stated, ¡°institutions where children go to learn to read, write, and do arithmetic. There were also higher education institutions where specific disciplines were taught. This helped everyone become contributing members of society.¡±


    The Sovereign shook his head slowly with a smile. ¡°The Great Clans would fight against that with a vengeance. No one would take to educating those not of their bloodline.¡± Jerome¡¯s world was sounding like a utopia. Something that was impossible in Vorthe.


    ¡°The same strategy can¡¯t work in this world, obviously,¡± Jerome stated. He¡¯d be a fool to expect powerful families like the Feis and the Alvrics to give their millennia-old knowledge ¡ª gathered, preserved, and sustained ¡ª to those not of their bloodline. Perhaps they might be willing to give an offshoot of lower standards to their disciples.


    ¡°The knowledge and skills of powerful families are more like powerful inheritances linked to their bloodline. In the hands of an outsider, it may be abused. But¡­,¡± Jerome said, claiming back the Sovereign¡¯s attention. ¡°You could create groups ¡ª sects and schools ¡ª that¡¯ll accept disciples through multiple screenings, and raise them as part of a collective.¡±


    The Sovereign smiled. The child clearly grew to be an adult in his past life. It would be unwise to see him as a child at this point. ¡°That has been tried before but it did not work out quite as planned. Bloodline it seems, holds firmer and lasts the test of time,¡± he said as though in reminiscence of the past. Various things have been tried. That was what led to the creation of the Diviners. And now they had too many factions, many of which had become cults and participated in unlawful and questionable activities.


    ¡°That was from Zama¡¯el Vorthe, the 3rd Generation Sovereign of Vorthe,¡± the Sovereign said.


    ¡°Bloodline holds firmer and lasts the test of time,¡± Jerome repeated to himself as he nodded. It was a nice quote. Very ¡®sage-like¡¯. But he didn¡¯t see how sects and schools could have failed. It wasn¡¯t his place to question the Sovereign, though ¡ª or a long-dead ancestral Sovereign at that. If he¡¯s even dead. Jerome glanced at the Sovereign, wondering how old he was. The Sovereign didn¡¯t look a day older than twenty-five. But how was it that sects and schools could have failed? It wouldn¡¯t hurt to ask.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign, but how is it that schools and sects failed to work?¡±


    The Sovereign was quiet for a while. ¡°The Diviners, a group of people who were brought together thousands of years ago, were the first idea to institute something of the sort. Other schools would have also risen to compete with them in that capacity but the Great Clans saw the potential of the Diviners for what it was: a chance to raise another power in Vorthe.


    ¡°They swooped in, taking up every available sacred artist that awakened during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur, and leaving the Diviners without many disciples. They sabotaged other avenues through which they could gain disciples and power as well. There is so much I could tell you about this, Jerome, but I believe you see why it didn¡¯t work, and why it wouldn¡¯t work even now.¡±


    Jerome was flabbergasted. ¡°So, Mehn Agrh¡¯ur was for the Diviners?¡±


    The Sovereign shook his head. ¡°It was created with the Diviners in mind. But the Great Clans corrupted it. Those were not times the Royal Family is proud of. We were ¡ª for the lack of a better phrase ¡ª new to politics. We had power but knew not how to wield it.¡±


    It all made sense now. ¡°I see now,¡± Jerome said. ¡°The power difference¡­is the very reason for that. Sacred artists wield what in my previous world would be called absolute power. Who could go up against them?¡±


    ¡°And the Great Clans have so much power,¡± the Sovereign said, ¡°and have been in power for a long, long time. Alvric, for one, is the oldest in the land. They¡¯ve been here 17 generations before the first Vorthe ever was born.¡±


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Jerome muttered. He had always thought the creation of Vorthe was also the establishment of the four Great Clans. No, the books he read made it seem so. There were no explanations on the actual timelines for the establishment of the Great Clans, only their annexation.


    The Sovereign dropped another bomb on him. ¡°Not 17 generations by human standards, Jerome, which is 1700 years. No, 17 generations by sacred artists¡¯ standard ¡ª 17,000 years!¡±


    Jerome gaped. That long?! He never knew that was how sacred artists measured time by generations. It may not compare to the amount of time Vorthe had been in power, but it was still a long, long time. Alvric was beyond ancient! Then what about the other Great Clans like the Fei? ¡°If I may, Sovereign, what about the Fei?¡±


    The Sovereign smiled. He was smart to ask. ¡°They have existed for even longer, but not on these lands.¡±


    Jerome nodded at that. The Feis came from the Eastern Continent so it stood to reason that they would have history there.


    ¡°So tell me, Jerome. Who would give up that kind of power?¡± Yun Vorthe looked at the orb in his hand and stated, ¡°It is about to begin.¡±


    The orb in the Sovereign¡¯s hand erupted with a soft golden glow and the wall in front of them started to evanesce, startling Jerome. He looked around and found that the room they were in was slowly but visibly changing, or more like vanishing. Soon, they were hovering in the air, above a massive and glamorous hall!

 51. The Royal Banquet (2)

    The whole hall was decorated in golden backdrops and large orbs hovered in the air like chandeliers giving off a soft, soothing light. There was a feeling of incongruence, however, as Jerome felt like he wasn¡¯t there, yet he felt he could reach for it.


    ¡°This is a fascinating artifact, Sovereign,¡± he said looking at the glowing orb in the Sovereign¡¯s hand.


    ¡°It is,¡± the Sovereign replied. ¡°One of the wonders of artifact-refining created in this day and age.¡±


    ¡°It feels like I can reach for the other side and touch it, even though I know I can¡¯t,¡± Jerome said. He tried experimenting with his perception to see if he could learn anything from the projection. Nothing. That was disappointing, he thought, feeling like he wasted precious energy. Mental energy wasn¡¯t infinite, and it wasn¡¯t easy to rejuvenate.


    ¡°That is because of the Dream Aura, interwoven into the projection,¡± the Sovereign explained.


    ¡°Dream aura? ¡­never heard of it,¡± Jerome said, his interest piqued. For some reason, he remembered Ash¡¯s words about how Layla¡¯s technique made her feel. ¡°It makes me sleepy,¡± Ash had said.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± the Sovereign nodded, ¡°You should have experienced it with the Sprout who put you in a trance. She used dream aura: a form of energy used for making the unreal feel real.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible!¡± Jerome blurted out, unable to hold himself back. ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign. But this dream aura is not an aspect of the natural auras in the world, is it?¡± His fervor and thirst for knowledge was almost pulsing out of his skin.


    ¡°Hmm. It could be said to be unnatural. In the same vein, it could be said to be natural. We produce it inside us when we slumber. But it takes an advanced sacred artist to tap into it.¡±


    ¡°But how did Layla do it then?¡±


    ¡°Bloodline, Jerome¡­ bloodline.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± Jerome muttered in realization. It sure was comfy to be born into a powerful Clan. First the Epos which could only be passed down through bloodlines, and now this. ¡°But Sovereign, Vorthe wields light. How did she¡ª¡±


    ¡°That is as much as I can tell you about it, child,¡± the Sovereign interrupted.


    Jerome let it drop. But not the topic of the dream aura. ¡°If I may, Sovereign. One can feel the aura of the natural essences around them; earth, water, air, wood, fire, and metal. The aura of the forces, however, affects the senses like how sword force stings the eyes.


    ¡°This dream aura should most definitely be one of the forces since it has the ability to affect the senses by making the unreal feel real¡­ or putting people to sleep. So why isn¡¯t it called ¡®dream force¡¯?¡± Jerome asked. It sounded cringy to his ears though.


    The Sovereign smiled and looked up at him. ¡°Okay, what do you think the forces are?¡±


    ¡°They are aspects of the wider universe. Just as the elements are attributes of the material world.¡±


    The Sovereign looked impressed for a moment. ¡°So which one does this¡­ ¡®dream force¡¯ fall under?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡± Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled loudly, thinking. ¡°It can¡¯t be called dream essence because it functions like a force. Yet it is produced by sentient beings when they sleep so¡­ it can¡¯t also be called a force because¡­ it¡¯s a product of our minds and not a force of the universe.¡±


    ¡°So you see, it doesn¡¯t fall under any established category,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°It¡¯s a mutation, Jerome. A mutation created by sentient beings ¡ª albeit, unknowingly. It is somewhat like vital aura. Some call it vital essence but it actually does not function like essence. If you notice, it is not written in books as one of the essence. Even you did not mention it just now.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding. It never crossed his mind to ask though. He had never had any encounter with vital essence. To him, it was but a foreign concept.


    ¡°Advancing as a sacred artist is a means to defy nature, a means to defy universal laws, even if those laws assist said advancement.¡±


    ¡°Defying universal laws?¡± Jerome was stomped. ¡°And the universe still helps sacred artists advance?¡±


    The Sovereign¡¯s next words hit him really hard. Especially since he spoke so slowly.


    ¡°Are we not mutations ourselves, Jerome? Isn¡¯t it proper for the birth of mutations to happen in essence and forces? Don¡¯t you think such happenstance is synonymous with us as sacred artists?¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mouth went dry and he gulped down hard. He didn¡¯t know what to say to that. Every of the Sovereign¡¯s words were ringing true in his heart but his head couldn¡¯t keep up!


    ¡°You will come to understand as you advance, Jerome.¡±


    His mind understood the theory behind the Sovereign¡¯s words. Yet it still couldn¡¯t fathom how it could be possible. Or it could, just¡­ maybe it was his humanity that interfered with what he thought should be within the boundaries of possibility.


    True. Such things should have a limit placed on them by the universe, shouldn¡¯t they? Yet the universe helps sacred artists, even if they were defying it. How the fuck does that make any sense?!


    He had questions but didn¡¯t even know how to phrase them. The Sovereign revealed a lot in those statements without revealing much at all, giving him more questions than answers. He decided to ask about the masterpiece that was the artifact used for projecting scenes from other locations.


    Rihal had talked about them on his way back from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. They were used to observe what went on during the pilgrimage.


    ¡°If I may, Sovereign. What is this artifact called?¡± Jerome asked.


    The Sovereign smiled lightly. ¡°It doesn¡¯t have a name yet. It is a newly developed artifact after all.¡±


    ¡°I thought it was the same as the ones used during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.¡±


    ¡°No, it is not. Those ones are not as mobile as this one. They have to be mounted to a spot. They are called ¡®Transmission Tablets¡¯. For them to work the scenes to be displayed have to be transmitted from another transmission tablet floating in the air.


    ¡°So there are two types: the floating tablet, and the mounted tablet. And they work together to produce the images and sounds. This one, however, doesn¡¯t need to work in a set to function within five thousand feet.¡±


    Which meant after five thousand feet, it would need to be connected to another of its kind in that vicinity.


    ¡°Incredible,¡± Jerome said with a smile. Vorthe clearly was advancing, even if he knew nothing about it, and even if the direction of their advancement was weirdly different from what he knew and felt it should be.


    Technological advancement wasn¡¯t linear after all. He felt this was a wonderful moment for him. He was witnessing a new technology in this world. It made him feel fortunate to be here. ¡°If I may, Sovereign. I have a name in mind¡­if you¡¯re willing to consider it.¡±


    ¡°Go on,¡± the Sovereign said absently.


    ¡°A projector,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Because it projects.¡± It felt pretty good saying it out loud. Just to be sure the Sovereign appreciated the name, he glanced sideways. The Sovereign didn¡¯t give away any clue as to whether he liked the name or not.


    ¡°That is a good name,¡± the Sovereign said at last. ¡°We were thinking of calling it a ¡®crystal of¡­something¡¯, whatever that was would be sorted out by Fesir Vorthe, the Royal Artificer ¡ª it was his work after all.¡± The Sovereign looked Jerome in the eyes with a playful smile. ¡°But it seems you beat him to it. Be careful, lest he takes out his frustration on you for taking credit for his work.¡±


    Wait, what?! Jerome thought. He didn¡¯t sign up for this! Now, he¡¯d have to deal with a Sage because of a name? ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign, but this is a joke, right?¡± he asked, hoping against hope that the Sovereign truly was joking.


    The Sovereign just smiled without answering. Fesir Vorthe really would find a way to get back at Jerome for this ¡ª Jerome being the fated Dark One had also worsened things already. It wasn¡¯t his concern though. Children would always be children, and what were they all but children in his eyes.


    ¡°A projector,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°I like it. It is simple and complete in its meaning.¡± He held the glowing orb up as if he was seeing it for the first time.


    Jerome felt helpless. It seemed the Sovereign was done discussing the matter. He should have thought twice before doing this thankless job. But on the flip side, it seems I¡¯d be able to get a small ounce of revenge from this for being treated like a puppet by the Royal Artificer, he thought and straightened his back.


    He still remembered how he was treated when he got back from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. how they took his storage bag and fished whatever they wanted out of it.


    The Sovereign looked at him for a moment. ¡°You have a habit of speaking informally.¡±


    It felt like an accusation, somewhat. ¡°I mean no disrespect, Sovereign.¡± he quickly bowed his head.


    ¡°Somehow, though, it feels okay. Refreshing, really,¡± the Sovereign continued as if he hadn¡¯t spoken. ¡°No one else has the guts to do this and it amuses me. Mayhaps, because speaking informally comes naturally for you.¡±


    Jerome could already tell that he wasn¡¯t someone too strict with being official or traditional.


    ¡°Do you see those people walking in?¡± the Sovereign segued immediately, gesturing with his chin at the banquet.


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    ¡°Yes, Sovereign,¡± Jerome responded.


    ¡°They are Shape Shifters. They can take the form of animals whose cores they bond with,¡± the Sovereign explained. ¡°They are most active at night, and they live deep in the Redwood forest, West of Farryn.¡±


    Jerome found these Shifters quite interesting. The men among them were huge with thick arms and thick facial hair, their hair as long as his, reaching past their shoulders ¡ª which was strange because Jerome had seen very few men with long hair in Farryn, the Sovereign included.


    The women among them were lithe with tanned skin and had a wild kind of beauty. They gave off a predatory aura like they were territorial and lived in the wild. Their clothing was mostly leather hide and was very revealing. They oozed wild sexuality, a kind you never sense with the women of Farryn.


    ¡°If I may Sovereign, I¡¯ll take a guess, and assume they bond mostly with wolves,¡± Jerome said excitedly. This was far more interesting than anything he¡¯d ever seen in Farryn.


    ¡°Hmmm. The lot of them do,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°But there are also felines amongst them.¡± The Sovereign took a moment to study Jerome¡¯s countenance. ¡°You seem rather excited about them,¡± he said. He could feel that the kid found the Shifters fascinating¡ªwhich was rare. Most people would be appalled by the mere mention of someone who bonded with the core of a magical beast.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Jerome caught himself. ¡°Ahem, no, I¡¯m not,¡± he denied. It was best not to let the Sovereign know what was going through his head if he could help it.


    ¡°Hmm. They are quite dangerous. They take on the traits of the predators whose cores they bond with,¡± the Sovereign warned.


    ¡°So when you say ¡®Shifters¡¯, you mean they can literally transform into wolves...¡± Jerome was saying.


    ¡°You did not listen to a word I said, did you?¡± the Sovereign remarked and his presence filled the room like a tide, threatening to tear everything to shreds! The invisible walls vibrated in the wake of the Sovereign¡¯s emotional outburst.


    Jerome¡¯s knees buckled and he hit the floor hard, trembling. The Sovereign quickly calmed himself, retracting the influence of his emotions.


    ¡°Sorry about that,¡± the Sovereign said curtly. ¡°You are unlike most people, Jerome. Others tend to be predictable around me. Loyal. Obedient to a fault¡­ You, on the other hand, are not.¡± He sounded like he was playing an interesting game.


    ¡°Having greater power than everyone around you gets boring easily. Everyone just does what you say, no questions asked. You little runt, on the other hand, make things quite interesting,¡± he finished, looking at Jerome on the floor with a playful smile on his face.


    Jerome picked himself from the floor still shivering from the after-effects of the Sovereign¡¯s outburst. ¡°Ahem. Well, I¡¯m glad you find my company amusing, Sovereign,¡± he said with a little humor in his voice as he straightened out his robes.


    He knew the Sovereign didn¡¯t do whatever he did to chide him, it was just an outburst ¡ª which gave him a very clear perspective of the magnitude of the Sovereign¡¯s powers! But surprisingly, he became fired up, and he could feel something swell in his chest!


    A new goal to strive for. Which was to one day wield powers on par with the Sovereign¡¯s ¡ª maybe even greater!


    ¡°So¡­?¡± Jerome tried to urge the Sovereign to answer his previous question, the Sovereign¡¯s outburst, all but a distant memory.


    ¡°The party is yet to begin,¡± the Sovereign said with a knowing smile. ¡°You should feast your eyes all you want on the beautiful dames of the night creatures.¡±


    Jerome was quite displeased by this, I can¡¯t believe this Sovereign can¡¯t take a hint. Are they like what I¡¯ve read in fictional novels? Do they turn on the full moon? Is it a full moon right now? Wait, I can go outside to check now, can¡¯t I?


    He looked at the Sovereign to check if he could get permission to leave, but the Sovereign wasn¡¯t paying attention to him anymore. Jerome grumbled to himself at the Sovereign¡¯s inattentiveness. But he was grateful the Sovereign couldn¡¯t read his mind anymore. He remembered something he wanted to ask and put his question through.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign. Might I ask what an Epos is and how I can create one?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°An Epos is an utterance of power, meant to imbue strength in the one who is proclaiming said Epos,¡± the Sovereign explained, fumbling with the glowing orb in his hand. ¡°When you become a Sage, you will discover the truths of the Epos. This world we live in is sentient, so to speak. It¡¯s what gives words power.¡±


    Jerome looked away from the Sovereign¡¯s hands as he recalled the oath Ash took. It made more sense to him now. How could the binding of an oath be done by nature, if nature wasn¡¯t sentient? Does it have a consciousness? Is it watching us right now? Plus what does being a Sage have to do with the sentience of the world? Perhaps that¡¯s when he begins to sense the world?


    Jerome reached out with his senses just in case, an unfruitful attempt at investigation.


    ¡°Was your previous world sentient?¡± the Sovereign asked all of a sudden.


    ¡°Not at all, Sovereign,¡± Jerome answered, curiosity written on his face. ¡°If it was, no one knew.¡±


    ¡°Ah! That answers a lot,¡± Yun Vorthe adjusted himself in his seat to face Jerome taking care to restrain his emotions. But even that slight movement filled Jerome¡¯s mind like it was all that mattered in all of existence. He had to force his gaze away to keep from succumbing to the Sovereign¡¯s thrall.


    ¡°This is why we don¡¯t just name things around us ¡ª natural things. Do you know what happened to the first person who gave names?¡± the Sovereign continued.


    ¡°Forgive my ignorance, Sovereign,¡± Jerome said with a slight bow.


    ¡°Harun, he was called ¡ª the ancients called him the Father of Names, the Father of Wisdom¡­the First Man. He named the natural world around us: the mountains, seas, valleys¡­ all were named by him.¡± The atmosphere of the room seemed to relax as though the room itself was listening in on the Sovereign¡¯s tale.


    Jerome listened on, fascinated. This was history he had never found in any book in Kilian¡¯s library!


    ¡°The Ancients say it took him days, but some historians argue it was years,¡± the Sovereign continued.


    ¡°If I may speak, Sovereign,¡± Jerome said with a bow.


    ¡°Go ahead,¡± the Sovereign commanded.


    ¡°Is this why we expend essence and vitality to name people and other natural things around us?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Partly. And partly because the earth is sentient,¡± the Sovereign looked away from Jerome, facing forward again, ¡°Harun became¡­One with Mother Nature.¡±


    ¡°He died?¡± Jerome asked, disappointed. What was the point of wielding such powers then? But this was a digression. He remembered asking the Sovereign how he could create an Epos.


    The Sovereign gave him a wry look saying, ¡°I think we have very different definitions of the term ¡®becoming one with nature,¡¯ child.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± he looked away, embarrassed by his ignorance. He had jumped to conclusions in his head.


    ¡°He gained the ability to wield nature, like an extension of himself,¡± the Sovereign stretched forth his hand into the air, waving his fingers, lost in thought.


    Those tiny movements were so enthralling to Jerome¡¯s eyes that he forced himself to quickly look away. ¡°That¡¯s fascinating!¡± he said.


    ¡°Well, he should have named the planet,¡± the Sovereign remarked.


    Jerome could hear a slight hint of bitterness in his voice. Name the planet? There¡¯s probably a deeper story there, he thought while looking at the Sovereign with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. Whatever the story behind that statement was, he was sure it would be eye-opening.


    ¡°Wielding an Epos is similar to wielding nature, although not nearly as powerful. A Sage who has created an Epos is a lot more powerful than one who has not,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°This doesn¡¯t mean, however, that all Sages create their own Epos. Do you understand?¡±


    ¡°I do, Sovereign,¡± Jerome said, nodding his head. ¡°So wielding nature is more powerful than wielding an Epos,¡± he added.


    ¡°Of course. You will come to comprehend the intricacies of this soon, youngling. Just focus on your advancement for now,¡± the Sovereign said.


    ¡°Becoming one with the world,¡± Jerome muttered in fascination. If I could wield such power! ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign. But has anyone else ever wielded such powers?¡± Jerome asked. If there were others, he¡¯d love to know. It¡¯d be best to look out for such people. They¡¯ll either bring about fortune or spell doom for the world around them. Still, it¡¯d be fascinating to see such powers on display!


    The Sovereign didn¡¯t answer for a long time. It took him several breaths ¡ª and a loud exhalation ¡ª before he spoke.


    ¡°There have been, but they were not of this world,¡± Yun Vorthe said. Memories passed unto him by the previous Sovereign suffused him, threatening to drown him in them. He fought to keep his mind afloat and at the same time, constrain his will and emotions, lest he scatter Jerome¡¯s gut all over the walls of the room!


    Jerome could not hold back his nervousness at the Sovereign¡¯s words, unaware of the possible danger he was in, ¡°That is even more shocking, Sovereign!¡± he said, ¡°It must have been¡­¡± he had no words to describe it.


    ¡°It was an awful experience that no one would want to live through again,¡± the Sovereign stated, having regained control of his wits.


    ¡°The Forgotten was a narcissistic race of beings; antipathic warmongers, whose only goal was dominion over all. So no, Jerome,¡± the Sovereign said, ¡°It wasn¡¯t awe-inspiring¡­ or whatever word you were thinking to use in describing aliens from another plane of existence.¡±


    ¡°Ah! Forgiveness, Sovereign,¡± Jerome bowed slightly. ¡°I guess I was overly optimistic.¡± He was secretly disappointed in himself.


    The Sovereign was right. A race of beings who were that powerful would only leave their world for one thing only; to dominate coveted lands and resources. He tried to imagine what it would have been like to live in such a time period. Jerome shivered, not from cold, but the possible tortuous treatment the people back then must have received.


    ¡°You¡¯re very accommodating of them,¡± the Sovereign¡¯s voice broke through his reverie.


    Jerome turned to him, slightly confused. ¡°Who?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The shifters,¡± the Sovereign clarified. ¡°They are not welcomed in society, and are referred to as Impure.¡±


    Jerome furrowed his brow as he considered this. ¡°Why is that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I believe you can figure that out yourself,¡± the Sovereign replied with a small smile.


    Jerome nodded thoughtfully, his mind racing through everything the Sovereign had told him. He could understand why sacred artists would reject the shifters: they were like magical beasts in human form. It didn¡¯t matter that they were trying to survive and become stronger in a world where only the strong thrived.


    ¡°How did they come to be?¡± he asked after a moment.


    ¡°The first of their kind helped the Baelors defend the western territory during the Cataclysm,¡± the Sovereign replied. The Cataclysm, the Sovereign thought in reminiscence. It was ironic how that time period marked the beginning of the kingdom of Vorthe.


    ¡°They once were average sacred artists who cultivated normally,¡± the Sovereign continued. ¡°But when war broke out, their Elders, who had secretly been developing their Sacred Transformation Art, shared it with the rest of their clan. Hence, the Shifters were born.¡±


    Jerome marveled at this information. ¡°It must have been incredible,¡± he said. He could almost picture it. A people, changing their very nature to give themselves the capacity to contend with invaders. The level of determination it must have taken to make such a sacrifice was beyond him.


    He took a deep breath, suddenly feeling a kinship with them as a people. Though he wasn¡¯t given a choice, they had to choose to become what they were to protect their home ¡ª which must have been more torturous than not knowing.


    I guess ignorance can be bliss.


    ¡°It was,¡± the Sovereign agreed. ¡°War is never a beautiful thing, but out of it, great men are born.¡±


    ¡°Gratitude for sharing your knowledge and insights, Sovereign,¡± Jerome nodded in agreement. He was truly grateful for the Sovereign¡¯s insight.


    Just then, the sound of music filled the air as an orchestra, seated on a hidden platform opposite the entrance of the banquet hall, was revealed. The Royal Banquet was about to begin!

 52. The Royal Banquet (3)

    Jerome found himself tapping his foot unconsciously, the rhythm of the music and the excitement of the crowd taking hold of him, as the room seemed to vibrate with the energy of merrymaking.


    The Sovereign was also enjoying the music being played by the orchestra, moving his head from side to side ever so slightly, observing the revelers around with interest.


    The door creaked open behind them, and in walked Princess Aeldra ¡ª like she opened up a hole in the world and walked through. The sight of her beauty caught Jerome off guard as he turned around to face her.


    She donned a stunning white lace gown, with golden embroidery that hugged her shapely figure, her long, black hair cascaded down her back, reaching past her hips, as she glided towards them, each step imprinting on Jerome''s mind, making his heart race a mile a breath. Her fragrance inundated Jerome¡¯s senses like a breath of spring air, slowing down his senses. He couldn''t help but stare, taking in her curves and the way her hips swayed. All of which he saw in slow motion.


    ¡°Ahem!¡± Yun Vorthe coughed lightly and Jerome felt a wave of dizziness hit him. A moment later he became clear-headed again making him hang his head in shame.


    He had been staring at the Princess of Vorthe like a love-sick puppy, making a fool of himself. Truth be told, Jerome had never been in the presence of such a beautiful woman. This was the second time he was meeting her and he still couldn¡¯t overcome her allure.


    ¡°Forgiveness¡­Greetings, Princess Aeldra,¡± he quickly bowed low with his right hand on his chest.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so formal with me, Jerome,¡± she replied with a smile.


    ¡°And you also must not molest my daughter with those scandalous eyes of yours again, else I pluck them out and feed them to you,¡± Yun Vorthe butted in. He sounded like he was giving his housekeeper an order, with no emotion whatsoever. But Jerome still felt the weight of that threat on his entire being. Fear suffused him immediately and he hid his shivering hands behind his back.


    ¡°Pay him no mind. He¡¯s just a bully who doesn¡¯t know his limits,¡± Aeldra Vorthe scolded her father, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen over the room. She reached out and touched Jerome on the shoulder, calming him with her soothing aura almost at once.


    Jerome let out a long shaky breath as he felt himself relax. Did you have to make things so complicated? he complained to himself as he glanced at the Sovereign but found that the atmosphere in the room had grown still.


    Jerome could sense an invisible current of mental energy flowing between the Princess and her father. They were communicating without words! Jerome clenched his fists and his breath grew shaky again. Not from fear but from motivation. I¡¯ll do that someday, he thought. Very soon. Very, very soon.


    Finally, Aeldra Vorthe handed her father a ring and turned her gaze to Jerome. ¡°Well, I heard you¡¯re a scholar now,¡± she said with a hint of amusement.


    ¡°A scholar?¡± Jerome asked, puzzled.


    ¡°You said you measured time in less than a breath in your previous life,¡± she teased.


    Jerome glanced at the Sovereign. He had thought only the Sovereign knew about his reincarnation.


    ¡°Members of the Curia Regis know about your past life, Jerome,¡± Aeldra Vorthe said with a smile.


    Jerome didn¡¯t actually mind. He nodded contemplatively, "Well, I didn¡¯t¡ªmeasure time in less than a breath that is¡ªbut¡­ What do scholars do?¡± he asked. Jerome¡¯s desire to know more just kept rising. If he wasn¡¯t the fated Dark One, perhaps he would have become a great scholar in this world.


    The Princess chuckled. ¡°There are many fields of study in Vorthe¡ªfrom artisans and bookkeepers to stargazers,¡± she said.


    ¡°Stargazers?¡± his eyes lit up in surprise. He found it funny though. As advanced as Vorthe was, they were still gazing at stars when they should be exploring them. Jerome smiled. Then again maybe that¡¯s my own bias, he thought. After all, they hadn¡¯t built vehicles to traverse the sky let alone space, or at least that was what he thought.


    ¡°Yes, they¡¯re scholars too,¡± she confirmed, unaware of Jerome¡¯s inner thoughts.


    ¡°And what do these scholars do?¡± Jerome asked, just for confirmation. He was still curious about it.


    ¡°Well, many things, most of which I¡¯m not allowed to discuss. But mainly, it¡¯s research,¡± she explained. ¡°Vorthe¡¯s researchers and artificers have actually designed and built contraptions the world would marvel at but these things are secrets and can¡¯t be discussed openly.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding. ¡°Society does need people to make discoveries for its own good.¡±


    ¡°Huh!¡± The princess raised her eyebrows in surprise at him. ¡°You have a good head on your shoulders. But your knowledge might get you in trouble someday, Jerome. Better keep it under wraps,¡± she teased.


    Jerome grinned sheepishly. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best, Princess.¡± He replied with a slight bow. He couldn¡¯t believe how much he was learning about Vorthe¡¯s social structure just by being in this room.


    ¡°So how does this measurement of time work?¡± the Princess asked. She was also curious to know how it worked. It could help the kingdom in ways Jerome couldn¡¯t fathom. Or at least she thought so.


    ¡°I¡¯m not exactly clear on how it works, but the day ¡ª and night ¡ª is divided into twenty-four durations we call hours.¡± Jerome paused to let the knowledge sink in. ¡°An hour is divided into sixty durations we call minutes, and a minute, into sixty durations we call seconds. If you can divide a quarter of Vorthe¡¯s time into three equal units, you¡¯d have twelve such equal durations in a day¡­ and twelve for the night. Which makes twenty-four durations.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible¡­ simple, yet incredible,¡± Aeldra said with a distant look on her face. ¡°For a civilization that didn¡¯t wield essence, they must have excelled in artifacts and alchemical resources.¡±


    Well, we called it science and technology, Jerome thought. It¡¯ll be confusing to discuss the cesium-133 atom and how it¡¯s used to calculate time in seconds so he just didn¡¯t, because he remembered very little to nothing of it. That was a rabbit hole he wasn¡¯t ready to venture into.


    He observed as the Princess quietly pondered over all he had revealed. Even just standing there, looking lost in thought, he could barely take his eyes off her. Her gentle fragrance filled the room, soothing his senses with a gentle touch. He willed himself to look away, lest the Sovereign make do with his threats. Jerome glanced at the Sovereign. Even he was deep in thought.


    ¡°Well, I would love to discuss this at length with you someday, Jerome,¡± the Princess finally said.


    ¡°It would be a pleasure to accompany you in such a time-changing discussion, Princess,¡± Jerome responded with a bow. The Princess smiled at him saying goodbye before leaving.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t help but smile as he watched her go. He was curious about Vorthe¡¯s scholars and their research now, maybe he could also teach them a thing or two. He didn¡¯t pride himself as knowledgeable in science, but he believed the little knowledge he had could go a long way in transforming Vorthe.


    ¡°Forgiveness, Sovereign. But were you really going to pluck out my eyes?¡± he asked the Sovereign after the Princess left the room.


    ¡°Without hesitation,¡± the Sovereign declared.


    Jerome swallowed hard. He cursed the Sovereign in his heart as he wiped away the cold sweat that had dampened his brow.


    ~~~


    ¡°Announcing the arrival of the esteemed Highlord and Highlady Felis Abdiel from the Western Region, Lord, and Lady of Evergreen City!¡± proclaimed a Knight in gleaming golden armor, heralding the entrance of Vorthe¡¯s High nobles. ¡°Presenting their children, Owen and Rebecca Abdiel!¡± he continued, and the Royal Banquet Hall gradually filled with the dignified figures of the elite.


    Rihal stood in a slightly dark alcove a few feet above the ground in the banquet hall, watching the guests come and go. With each name announced, the atmosphere grew more refined, as the hall filled with the rich colors of gold backdrops and delicate orbs, shimmering overhead like stars in the night sky. The tables overflowed with delicacies, and the air was thick with the fragrance of fine wine and delectable dishes.


    The lesser Lords, already present, bowed their heads in respect as the Highlords arrived, and soon the High-born and Elite were mingling with one another, discussing their latest challenges and business ventures. All things Rihal had heard quite a few times. Life as a member of the Nediti came with its privileges ¡ª and drawbacks. He¡¯d rather be home meditating than listening to nobles comparing dicks and tits.


    Each one that swept passed his view looked like they strove to outdo the other in the vain display of their wealth and status, feeding their egos so they could shine in the glow of their own self-imposed refinement. It all looked like slavery to Rihal; slavery to a system. He scoffed.


    ¡°Announcing the arrival of His Eminence! Archlord Nolan Alvric of the Great House of Alvric! Governor and Protector of the Southern Region! Accompanied by his heir and wives; Young Lord Hedon Alvric, Archladies Mildred, Sora, Raina, and Chrysa Alvric!¡±


    The majestic double doors swung open, revealing the grand entrance of Nolan Alvric, Patriarch of the Alvric Clan.


    The hall grew silent as Archlord Nolan Alvric strode in, his countenance betraying his displeasure, flanked by two stunningly beautiful women. His gaze swept over the crowd with a haughty look of disdain.


    ¡°Peasants!¡± Rihal heard him mutter.


    Rihal scoffed again. ¡°Your skysails are what¡¯s keeping you tethered to Vorthe,¡± he muttered to himself. ¡°One mistake and you¡¯ll be taken out.¡± the man wouldn¡¯t know what hit him. Vorthe was watching his every move and it¡¯ll come as a surprise when he finds out that the Royal family let him get away with some of his piracy attempts of their currency.


    Hedon Alvric walked beside his father, his face displaying an air of superiority and a sneer of arrogance.


    ¡°Look at him just walking around like he didn¡¯t kill 27 people three years ago,¡± someone said from beside him, gesturing toward Hedon. His partner had materialized out of thing air behind him moments ago.


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°Oh, he¡¯ll get what¡¯s coming to him,¡± Rihal responded, ¡°in due time.¡± He might not know how Jerome planned to bit him but he knew Jerome wouldn¡¯t give up until he succeeded.


    ~~~


    Jerome gritted his teeth until his jaw ached. The sight of the brown-haired boy with a mohawk-style haircut instantly soured his mood. Hedon was reveling in his opulent lifestyle, attending this lavish party, and wearing the finest clothes while his siblings were possibly suffering. If he had his way, Hedon would have met his demise the instant he stepped into the Banquet Hall. Jerome clenched his fists, vowing that he wouldn¡¯t hesitate to end Hedon¡¯s life during their Terra Praeta expedition.


    ¡°Announcing the arrival of Her Eminence, Archlady Arwen Itakar of the Great House of Itakar, Governess and Protector of the Northern Region, accompanied by her children, Selene and Ajax Itakar,¡± proclaimed the herald, his voice echoing throughout the grand hall.


    As the doors opened, a regal figure walked in, her silver hair cascading down her back in graceful long braids. She was accompanied by two young adults, a boy, and a girl who looked to be twins, sharing their mother''s striking silver locks.


    It was apparent that the trio cultivated ice-attribute essence, as their very presence seemed to exude an aura of coolness and control.


    The Archlady¡¯s gaze swept over the assembled nobles with a serene yet commanding air, and those who met her eyes slightly shrunk into themselves, as if they felt a chill run down their spines; as if in the presence of an ancient and powerful force.


    ¡°House Itakar,¡± the Sovereign said, breaking the silence in the room. ¡°They are valuable business partners with the Royal Family. Their expertise in mining a special ore up north helps us freeze the visha stirh¡¯aun that is mined all around Vorthe.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow, intrigued by that information. ¡°I see,¡± he said thoughtfully.


    ¡°Indeed,¡± the Sovereign continued. ¡°It takes two thousand dervanis to freeze half a luvanis of visha stirh¡¯aun. A dervanis¡ª¡±


    ¡°Is a pound and a luvanis is a ton. I¡¯m conversant with Aramanai, Sovereign ¡ª at leat some words,¡± Jerome said with a smile and continued, ¡°I understand that the visha stirh¡¯aun is a dangerous ore and all, but why freeze it to mine it? Won¡¯t that affect it somehow?¡±


    ¡°It does affect the quality. But it makes it easier to mine. That being said, no one has been able to accomplish what Han did two decades ago¡ªnot even Han.¡± the Sovereign stated.


    ¡°Do you mean to say that my Suzie is unique in all of Vorthe?¡± Jerome asked, surprised. He had discovered the name of the artifact refiner who created his gauntlets, some time ago: Han, from Giza.


    The Sovereign arched an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his expression. It wasn¡¯t that he doubted the uniqueness of the artifact, but rather its name that caused him to raise an eyebrow.


    The Sovereign cleared his throat and replied, ¡°It¡¯s not as unique as you may think. Han refined numerous pieces of the flowing steel, and there are more than a thousand similar artifacts in Vorthe. Nevertheless, the first one he crafted remains the most efficient in terms of flexibility,¡± the Sovereign sat up in his seat as he spoke. ¡°I have witnessed you in action with it, so I can personally attest to its flexibility and efficiency compared to the others.¡±


    ¡°Announcing the arrival of Her Eminence, the distinguished Archlady Fei Jia, Governess, and Protector of the Eastern Region!¡± proclaimed the herald in a clear and commanding voice. ¡°Accompanied by her daughter, Young Lady Fei Lin!¡±


    The grand doors of the Royal Banquet Hall swung open, and in stepped the elegant Matriarch of House Fei, accompanied by her daughter, Fei Lin. The atmosphere in the hall turned reverential as the Archlady made her way in. With an air of regal grace and a countenance that commanded respect, Archlady Fei Jia surveyed the room before joining the other distinguished guests.


    Jerome¡¯s attention was drawn to the young woman standing beside the Matriarch. He remembered her. He had fought her during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep when she was just a little girl back then, fourteen or so. Now, she had blossomed into a striking young woman and looked more powerful than before.


    As he watched her, Jerome couldn¡¯t help but feel a twinge of envy towards Elites and High-borns who seemed to have an easy life, but he quickly tamped it down. He wouldn¡¯t compare himself to them. They had their Path and he had his. He looked over at Hedon once again and his heart filled with a promise of vengeance.


    ¡°House Fei,¡± the Sovereign said, pulling Jerome out of his reverie. ¡°They are the second most powerful and influential house in Vorthe after the Royal Family. They have a strong business orientation, but oddly, they avoid dealing with the Royal Family.¡±


    ¡°They don¡¯t want to state the obvious with their actions,¡± Jerome said with a knowing smile.


    The Sovereign looked at him for a moment. ¡°And the obvious being...?¡± he asked.


    Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. ¡°They know Vorthe is more powerful than they are. Albeit a business venture would mean one party has to set the pace. Though both sides would profit, it would become clear as day that one party is following the lead of the other. In that regard, they¡¯d be admitting the truth they are running away from.¡±


    ¡°Do not let Fei Jia hear you say that. She would not take kindly to that truth being spoken,¡± the Sovereign said.


    ¡°Announcing the arrival of His Eminence, Archlord Igor Baelor of the Great House of Baelor, Governor and Protector of the Western Region!¡± the herald announced the last of the heads of the Great houses and the Highlords took the opportunity to pay their respects to the last Archlord to enter the hall.


    ¡°House Fei is the best when it comes to creating memory crystals,¡± the Sovereign stated, ¡°Do you know about memory crystals, young one?¡±


    ¡°Forgive my lack of knowledge, Sovereign,¡± Jerome answered. There was a lot of new knowledge flying around today and Jerome was beginning to wonder if he had been living under a rock, which also made him also wonder why the Sovereign was telling him all this.


    ¡°House Fei is the largest producer of memory crystals in the kingdom,¡± the Sovereign continued. ¡°It is used to record the visuals and sound of the environment. Memory crystals are the best library of our time.¡±


    Jerome was flabbergasted by this information, there are video devices in Vorthe? Are you kidding me?! He thought. Why haven¡¯t I ever seen one of those?


    ¡°There are many producers of memory crystals,¡± the Sovereign continued. ¡°Most of them produce low-quality memory crystals, though. The Fei clan''s memory crystals, however, are the best in all of the kingdom. Among the four Great houses, House Fei is the most mysterious. No one knows how many Sages they possess, and their inheritance is as mysterious as it is unique.


    ¡°Some say it¡¯s an ancient dragon, others say it¡¯s an ancient spirit. What the other great families do know is that the sacred artists of House Fei advance a lot quicker than the artists of other great families,¡± The Sovereign concluded.


    ¡°I¡¯d take it the Royal Family knows what their inheritance is,¡± Jerome said. He had a feeling that nothing could be hidden from the Sovereign¡¯s eyes and senses.


    ¡°Please,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°We are the house of light, remember? Light reveals.¡±


    Jerome chuckled at that. He wished anyone who would try to hide something from the Sovereign good luck.


    ¡°House Baelor is the last of the Great Families,¡± the Sovereign said, ¡°and are very loyal. The Baelors are descended from giants that once roamed the earth millennia ago. They occupy the vast Western Redwood forest and make a fortune from the forest. The forest is the best place to absorb vital life essence. But there  is a problem in the forest: the apprentice alchemists and crofters appointed to do the job go missing all the time.¡±


    ¡°Do the job?¡± Jerome asked, confused.


    ¡°The human body is not the only vessel that can hold essence, you know?¡± the Sovereign explained.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Jerome exclaimed in understanding, or at least he felt he understood. This was the first time he was hearing that there were other vessels that could hold vital aura ¡ª the vitality present in all living things ¡ª which apparently could be extracted from trees. He had no idea of such thing.


    ¡°House Baelor expends a lot of resources and manpower to protect these people,¡± the Sovereign stated absently. ¡°But it is as if the forest comes alive and just¡­takes them.¡±


    Shortly after, the members of the Curia Regis were announced, but Jerome was unfamiliar with most of them. Only Duten Vorthe, the Royal Alchemist, and Fesir Vorthe, the Royal Artificer, caught his attention.


    ¡°Announcing Her Royal Highness, Her Eminence, Princess Aeldra Vorthe of the House of Vorthe!¡± proclaimed the herald in a clear and commanding voice.


    The hall fell silent as the massive double doors opened once more, revealing one of the most exquisite women in Vorthe Jerome had ever laid eyes on. With glossy, silky black hair cascading down her back and a shimmering white gown that glimmered in the soft light, she glided past the crowd and he could almost smell her alluring fragrance lingering in the air.


    The onlookers respectfully and admirably parted for her, bowing in reverence.


    Aeldra Vorthe, the Princess of Vorthe, glided towards the Patriarchs and Matriarchs of the four great families like a vision of beauty personified. She was like a rare and exquisite flower that had bloomed in the morning sun after a rain shower. Her long, lustrous black hair swayed as it reflected the light from the orbs above.


    ¡°Greetings Patriarchs, Matriarchs,¡± Aeldra curtsied with a graceful bend of her knees as she lifted up her skirts. Her elegance was beyond compare and her regal yet humble bearing commanded attention and admiration.


    ¡°Greetings, Princess Aeldra,¡± they all said simultaneously with a slight bow of their heads as a serving maid came the Princess¡¯ way to present her with wine as many others moved among the crowd of nobles.


    ¡°Your beauty never stops astounding me, Princess Aeldra,¡± said Igor Baelor, transfixed by her splendor. His deep baritone voice reverberated throughout the hall as he paid homage to her unparalleled beauty.


    Igor was a giant of a man standing two heads taller than everyone in the hall.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let his height fool you,¡± the Sovereign said, earning Jerome¡¯s attention once more. ¡°Igor, and most giants are peaceful.¡±


    Jerome did a second take of the giant. His height and ferocious appearance made people stir clear of him. But Igor Baelor wasn¡¯t just a peace-loving Patriarch, he was a peace-loving Patriarch that was in love with the most beautiful maiden in all of Vorthe. Jerome could see the love in his eyes as he continued to look nowhere else but at the Princess.


    As if to answer his thoughts, the Sovereign said, ¡°He fell in love with the Princess more than two hundred years ago, long before she became a sage.¡±


    ¡°Ahem. A question, Sovereign. I¡¯ve never felt any oppressive aura from the Princess even though she¡¯s a Sage. Why is that?¡±


    ¡°Aeldra is unique,¡± the Sovereign answered and said nothing more. Jerome could have sworn he saw the Sovereign¡¯s eyes light up with something akin to joy for a moment. He would have asked how so, but this was the man¡¯s daughter. The Sovereign might end up rethinking his use as the Dark One if he continued poking.


    ¡°As splendorous as always, Princess,¡± Arwen Itakar, the silver-haired Matriarch of House Itakar said, down in the banquet hall. She raised her cup to the Princess.


    ¡°House Itakar can be considered to have the closest relationship to us,¡± the Sovereign said absently, making Jerome wonder if the man was dropping hints. He concluded that that should be the case.


    Nolan Alvric and Fei Jia also gave compliments.


    ¡°Thank you for your kind words, and I commend you all for your efforts in keeping Vorthe safe,¡± the Princess said.


    ¡°It is as much an honor as it is a duty, your highness,¡± Igor Baelor responded, clearly smitten. The man wore his heart on his sleeves.


    ¡°The Royal family is truly grateful for all your support,¡± Oken Vorthe, the cheery Royal Array master, joined in the conversation with smiling eyes. He was also a member of the Curia Regis from what Jerome had heard of the herald.


    As the night progressed, the revelers indulged in the sumptuous spread of food and wine while being entertained by the enchanting music. But as time trickled by, the atmosphere in the hall shifted as someone ascended an elevated platform in front of the orchestra. Jerome could almost feel the energy coming from the middle-aged man, spread out from him to cover the entire manor.


    He wasn¡¯t young by any means, but he looked energetic. Even with a head full of long white hair and a slightly wrinkly face.


    ¡°Who is that?¡± he couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    The countenance of every Sage turned solemn, filled with an overwhelming sense of admiration and reverence.


    The Sovereign smiled ¡ª a devious smile. ¡°The Heads of the Great Clans have only been in the presence of one such as him for fleeting moments after their induction as Patriarchs and their experiences have left them with the impression that those in his Realm are frail and aged individuals who spend their remaining days trying to advance to the Transcendent Realm, but none had ever achieved that feat.


    ¡°Yet here stands one who defies all expectations ¡ª youthful, vigorous, and undeniably powerful! It is a humbling realization for the Heads of the Great Clans. That, Jerome, is the First Elder of the Royal Family¡­ Thorlin Vorthe ¡ª a Saint Realm expert.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°So this is a statement then.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­ Yes, child. It is a statement.¡±

 53. The Year 70,050 Post-Cataclysm

    ¡°You have all gathered here today to pay homage to the mighty Sovereign of Vorthe!¡± The First Elder didn¡¯t raise his voice, but all could hear every word he spoke.


    Jerome observed the extension of the stage on which the First Elder stood. That extension was never there to begin with, he thought to himself. Come to think of it, the whole stage just appeared out of thin air. Jerome chuckled. He knew it was needless to bother himself with things he didn¡¯t have answers to at the moment. But he was curious nonetheless.


    ¡°The Lord of Light,¡± the First Elder continued.


    ¡°Protector¡­


    ¡°Healer¡­


    ¡°Deliverer¡­


    ¡°Father of our land¡­


    ¡°His greatness and power know no bounds!


    ¡°I come to you with news that will fill your hearts with hope and your souls with fire! An opportunity¡­ A chance for the glory of Vorthe and its scions!


    ¡°But make no mistakes, fellow Vortheans. This is no quest for the faint of heart. It will require our strongest and bravest Sprouts. So, prepare your younglings!¡±


    At this point, all the Elites and High-born in the hall were already salivating. In their little room, looking down at the proceedings, Jerome took a peek at the Patriarch wondering what his reaction would be to such praise. The Sovereign though, looked neither perturbed nor proud. Guess he shouldn¡¯t expect less from someone who¡¯d probably lived for a thousand years.


    ¡°Clad them in the finest of armor¡­¡± the First Elder continued. ¡°Train them in the ways of combat and strategy. Equip them with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed. That they be able to withstand the treacherous trials of this once-in-a-lifetime adventure!


    ¡°Patriarchs¡­ Matriarchs¡­ Lords and Ladies¡­ Let us rally together¡­ Let us join hands and hearts in this great endeavor¡­ We shall make history and seize this opportunity for the greater good of our land¡­


    ¡°In two moons, the gateway to Terra Praeta will once again be opened!¡±


    The older generation of nobles in the hall all gasped loudly, with surprise written on their faces. Some even had their jaws sagging!


    ¡°The fabled land of Terra Praeta,¡± the 1st Elder continued, ¡°Shrouded in mystery and wonder, Terra Praeta is only ever explored once in a thousand years! And now we have the chance to explore it once again. To unravel its mysteries and claim its treasures!¡±


    Those from the younger generation could only infer the magnitude of this adventure from the 1st Elder¡¯s words. They had no idea what Terra Praeta signified, except for those from the Royal Family. The smiles on their faces were all one needed to know that they knew the information beforehand.


    ¡°May the light of Vorthe become their strength, and may our youths emerge victorious in this epic journey to Terra Praeta! Let the celebration continue!¡± the First Elder announced.


    ~~~


    Nolan Alvric


    The opulent banquet hall was abuzz with the clamor of nobles engaged in animated discussions about the forthcoming event. As the First Elder descended the stage, the Heads of the Great Houses swarmed around him like bees to a hive.


    Nolan Alvric came out of his musings long enough to join the other Heads of the Great Clans. He had to give it to the Royals. This adventure was timely, and it would help his clan obtain treasures they could only dream of. But what to do about the men he was smuggling down from the South?


    That would require all the stealth in the world, he thought. Even if the Sovereign was too busy to care, the 1st Elder would sense them long before they got near Farryn.


    ¡°Our deepest gratitude, Elder Thorlin, for the generous gift the Royal family has bestowed upon us,¡± Fei Jia, the Archlady of the Eastern Territory, was the first to speak, her voice laced with deference and gratitude.


    The First Elder, Thorlin Vorthe, acknowledged her words with a nod of his head. ¡°It is as the Sovereign wishes,¡± he said, his voice carrying with it, a sense of gravitas. ¡°I am but a bearer of good news.¡±


    ¡°And the bearer is as honored in our eyes as is the Sovereign,¡± Arwen Itakar said as she curtsied in respect.


    ¡°It is so, Elder Thorlin,¡± Nolan Alvric chipped in. ¡°The opportunity which Vorthe has provided our progeny is a wondrous blessing that shall forever be cherished and held in the highest of regard.¡±


    Nolan Alvric took another glance at the 1st Elder of the Royal family, Thorlin Vorthe. May Noir¡¯s Black Flame consume you for being so young and powerful! He cursed angrily in his heart. May the souls of the Forgotten hunt you down and drag you into the depths of the Southern Sea for putting a dent in my plans!


    ¡°...And may your benevolence be rewarded greatly,¡± a sweet sounding voice spoke up and a beautiful woman wrapped her arms around Thorlin Vorthe¡¯s arm with a smile. Thorlin¡¯s face lit up as he reached out to give her a kiss.


    Nolan couldn¡¯t wrap his head around how Vorthe had a Saint that was so young and strong. This was going to be a huge setback to his plans and his clan as a whole.


    ~~~


    ¡°Did I tell you about House Alvric?¡± the Sovereign asked.


    ¡°No, Sovereign,¡± Jerome replied, his curiosity piqued. He had wondered why the Sovereign didn¡¯t talk about the Alvrics. He even thought he was avoiding it. But that wouldn¡¯t make any sense. The Sovereign was, after all, the most powerful man in Vorthe, who could stop him from saying whatever he wanted to?


    ¡°House Alvric is the oldest in these lands,¡± the Sovereign said, ¡°They existed seventeen generations before the first Vorthe ever was born. The Cataclysm was what skewed the power balance. And that was seventy thousand years ago!¡±


    Jerome was awestruck. He had read tales of House Alvric, but he had never imagined that they had such a long history.


    ¡°Alvrics cultivate wind attribute essence,¡± the Sovereign went on. ¡°They excel in refining flight artifacts we call Sails, among other wind-attributed artifacts.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mind raced as he tried to imagine the incredible feats that the members of House Alvric must have accomplished. ¡°That¡¯s incredible,¡± he said. He couldn¡¯t help but be impressed, even though he hated Hedon¡¯s guts.


    ¡°Well, when you are being chased by a flying Alvric it would not be incredible anymore,¡± the Sovereign chuckled, interrupting Jerome¡¯s thoughts.


    A Sprout from a Great Family who cultivated wind essence would definitely have a flight-type artifact on him, Jerome thought. And most likely one of the best at that, seeing that Hedon was the heir to his clan. It could become a bit of a problem for his goal. If Hedon ran, he might not be able to catch him. But it also depended on how fast his artifact would be.


    The Sovereign stood up suddenly, as if ready to call it a night, Jerome knew that the Royal Banquet was almost over. But he was determined to stay until the end, to soak in every last bit of the knowledge and wisdom that surrounded him. But the Sovereign disappeared on the spot, stunning him to his core!


    ¡°Is this how Rihal does it?¡± he muttered to himself.


    The next thing he knew though, the Sovereign, who had just vanished from beside him appeared on the stage. However, he was clad in golden light from head to toe. Only the highlight of his silhouette could be seen.


    He appeared majestically with his hair ¡ª which had turned gold ¡ª and robes flailing around even though there was no wind!


    The crowded hall of people quieted down and they all started going down on one knee. The atmosphere at that moment changed and the air was filled with an ancient and timeless aura, as though a god had walked into the hall! Jerome could not feel the aura inside the hall, however. He could only see and hear to infer what the situation was. But he had felt enough of it to know what it would feel like inside the hall.


    ¡°When will I wield such power?¡± he muttered to himself. He took a deep breath and exhaled loudly, clenching and unclenching his fists. ¡°I will become this powerful¡­and nothing¡¯s gonna stop me. Nothing!¡±


    ~~~


    Fei Lin


    ¡°This¡­this is the power of a god!¡± Fei Lin, daughter of the Matriarch of the Fei clan, exclaimed silently to herself. She dared not look up in her position kneeling on the tiled floor. The aura she felt filled her with reverence and she fought the urge to kowtow to the Sovereign of Vorthe.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    When will I wield such power? Fei Lin thought to herself. She gritted her teeth and with determination in her eyes, she vowed herself.


    I will become this powerful¡­for my family, for our honor!  She exclaimed to herself with clenched fists,  looking in the direction of her kneeling mother. ¡°I¡¯ll prove you wrong!¡±


    ~~~


    Hedon Alvric


    What a fallacy! Vorthe cannot be more powerful than Alvric! Hedon Alvric exclaimed inwardly. His eyes filled with contempt and determination. I¡¯ll show them who¡¯s more powerful. I¡¯ll use the platform you provide as a stepping stone to overthrow you!¡¯ He thought to himself, even as he fought to get rid of the invisible weight in the air that seemed to want to invade his bones.


    Hedon looked in the direction of his father and clenched his fists. ¡°Watch and see¡­you, watch and see.¡±


    ~~~


    Ajax Itakar


    Ajax wanted to take a peek at the Sovereign of Vorthe. He had heard many stories about the might of the Transcendent before him.


    The north was once crawling with magical beasts, the likes of which the world had never seen before. The first Vorthe was the one who subdued them.


    ¡°He saved us from extinction,¡± he had heard his father say once. But now that he had a chance to see the Sovereign, he couldn¡¯t even raise his head. All because of his twin sister, Selene.


    Selene was only older by a few breaths of time, but she was far stronger than he was. She was a better archer than he was, a better tracker than he was, and far more resilient in the snow-laden north. And it pisses him off! More than he liked to admit, but what could he do? Right now, his sister was holding his head down to stop him from taking a peek and dishonoring their clan. Very honorable, but¡­


    All the more reason to do it, he mocked her in his head.


    He kept trying but failed to raise his head. Selene quickly gave him a look that said, ¡®Keep doing that and I¡¯ll kick you in the nuts.¡¯


    Hmph! One day I¡¯ll be stronger than you, he grumbled in his heart, then we¡¯ll see who gets the last laugh.


    ~~~


    ¡°As the mountains are sturdy and everlasting, so shall your clans be,¡± the Sovereign of Vorthe decreed.


    ¡°Is he praying?¡± Jerome asked no one in particular. ¡°Huh!¡± He couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing!


    ¡°This adventure for the young scions of Vorthe shall be a springboard for their future strength,¡± Yun Vorthe continued. ¡°In time, they will look back upon this day as a memorial of their path to power, their path to the top.¡±


    ¡°Be well¡­and prosper!¡±


    Immediately, the blazing gold-colored light pouring out of the Sovereign intensified and bathed everyone in the hall. It brought a certain calm and peace to his soul. Jerome had never experienced such a thing before and had nothing to compare it with. All he could say was that it was¡­ weirdly comforting.


    Jerome exited the manor after the banquet. He looked upwards to see bright colors light up the sky in a splendid display of fireworks.


    ¡°Beautiful, isn¡¯t it?¡± Rihal said, having arrived by his side a while ago.


    Jerome hummed his acknowledgment, the sight of fireworks holding his gaze in awe. The Royal Banquet signaled the start of a new year in the Vorthean calendar ¡ª the year 70,050 post-cataclysm.


    ¡°We Vorthes don¡¯t believe in gods ¡ª not that they don¡¯t exist,¡± Rihal stated, looking at the fireworks, ¡°but we do believe in destiny¡­fate¡­the power of the tongue.¡±


    Jerome glanced at him, his interest and curiosity piqued.


    ¡°On occasions like these, we say, ¡®May the heavens gift you a hundred years¡¯ worth of fortune this one year.¡¯¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s beautiful,¡± Jerome smiled. It sounded like the Sovereign¡¯s words during the banquet. ¡°May the heavens gift you a hundred years¡¯ worth of fortune this one year, Rihal,¡± Jerome said to Rihal, looking appreciatively at him. ¡°I know I don¡¯t say this very often, if at all, but I appreciate everything you¡¯ve done for me.¡±


    Rihal scoffed. ¡°What, the new year made you all soft and mushy inside?¡± But Jerome could tell his master was pleased with his words.


    Jerome smiled shyly, but quickly remarked, ¡°So, you¡¯re not going to appreciate my appreciation?¡±


    ¡°Call me Uncle Rihal and just maybe I will,¡± Rihal demanded, smiling from ear to ear as they walked farther away from the manor.


    Jerome contemplated doing it ¡ª for all of three breaths. ¡°Nah,¡± he said, ¡°I won¡¯t give you the satisfaction.¡±


    Rihal cursed at him. ¡°Then what was that little moment of contemplation for?¡± he asked. ¡°You¡¯re a pain in the ass, you know?¡± He put his arm around Jerome¡¯s shoulders and squeezed hard. He rubbed at Jerome¡¯s hair, messing it up real good. Jerome tried to free himself to no avail, giving Rihal a good laugh at his efforts.


    They decided to take a leisurely stroll around the Royal Estate, marveling at the sights around them. Jerome felt like he had stepped into a painting or another world, untainted by imperfections. The moon cast a luminous glow on the white stone castles, and the sound of flowing water from a nearby brook reached his ears. The paved streets were flanked by cherry trees whose blossoms shone in the moonlight.


    ¡°Come with me,¡± Rihal said, walking him up to his home. ¡°I¡¯ve never shown you my place before, have I?¡± he said as they walked side by side.


    Jerome had learned early on that Rihal didn¡¯t live in Kilian¡¯s Palace, but he always kept that to himself. Jerome knew that if he asked, he¡¯d probably get nothing out of his master.


    ¡°So, you wanna show me your home now, don¡¯t you think you waited too long?¡± Jerome said with pretend hurt. He was kind of excited at the prospect of seeing Rihal¡¯s home, though.


    Rihal smiled at that. ¡°My home is my safe space. A space away from the missions and training. A space away from the bustle of the estate and the outside world. Why should I let anyone in?¡±


    He had a point there.


    Like the other manor houses in the Royal Estate, Rihal¡¯s was also painted white and stood magnificently on the side of the road. They were in a street lined with beautiful manors and Jerome wondered if the Royals were allergic to simple houses.


    Each house stood in the center of a few hectares of greenery. Jerome could tell this was a street because his eyes were a lot better than that of a human ¡ª and they walked in on a paved road, which was a stark difference from the stone-cobbled streets of Farryn.


    The courtyard around the manor was exquisite and surreal in the faint glow of the moonlit night. Jerome looked around appreciatively, nodding his head. Just then another round of fireworks exploded in the sky brightening the night in myriads of colors.


    ¡°Come on in,¡± Rihal said as he opened the double doors to the foyer.


    ¡°You know, you see a lot of beautiful manors like this and soon, you start to lose appreciation for them,¡± Jerome said as he walked in.


    ¡°Should we head back and train for the rest of the night?¡± Rihal asked, giving him a pointed look. The kid just loved to run his mouth whenever he was in a good mood.


    ¡°Oh, no. I¡¯m good,¡± he said, raising his hands. He toured Rihal¡¯s home and found it to be quite comfy, unlike the hustle and bustle of Kilian¡¯s Palace, and the servants, and guards everywhere.


    ¡°Kilian¡¯s Palace, being the first one encounters upon stepping into the Estate, is like a reception of sorts. It has to be big and beautiful¡­ and busy,¡± Rihal explained when they settled down on a terrace on the 2nd floor.


    Jerome heard the distant rumble of carriages carrying the Elite guests from the banquet back to their homes to prepare their Sprouts for Terra Praeta. He also needed to make preparations. Even though he had miraculously healed his injuries ¡ª which had taken a lot of effort ¡ª he couldn¡¯t rest, not when there was much to do.


    ¡°I think I know why I couldn¡¯t use my mental energy as quickly as you did,¡± Jerome started. He hadn¡¯t had time to gather his thoughts so he could ask the questions he wanted to ask, but he could start somewhere. The Sovereign had pointed out that his mind-calming stone was a peculiar, yet powerful artifact. He¡®d be damned if he gave too much information away about it, even to Rihal.


    ¡°And why is that?¡± Rihal asked, curious about what his disciple must have learned from the Sovereign¡ªsomething most people could only hope for, yet dreaded.


    ¡°There is a barrier in my mind¡ª¡±


    ¡°A very weak barrier,¡± Rihal interrupted, ¡°One that shouldn¡¯t be strong enough to prevent you from extending your perception.¡±


    ¡°You never told me about the barrier, though,¡± Jerome rebutted.


    ¡°Because there was never a need to.¡±


    ¡°What if something made it strong enough?¡±


    Rihal paused, observing him for a moment. ¡°You¡¯re insinuating that your strange stone ¡ª the one you said got shattered ¡ª strengthened your mental barrier?¡± Rihal ended his statement as a question and nodded contemplatively. This was something even the Sovereign could not comprehend. And Jerome wouldn¡¯t bring this up if he didn¡¯t have something in mind.


    ¡°Yeah, and I also think I¡¯ve figured out a way to mask my essence as you do,¡± Jerome said, smirking at Rihal.


    ¡°So you want to mask your essence like an assassin does,¡± Rihal replied. He chuckled lightly at that, ¡°Why bring this up now?¡±


    ¡°I believe it¡¯s gonna be very useful to me going forward,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Good luck to you then,¡± Rihal replied with a smirk of his own. ¡°You might be onto something, but it¡¯s not what would give you the result you want.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Jerome asked. If he wasn¡¯t on the right track, it would be a waste of time.


    ¡°The mental barrier in your mind is a natural one ¡ª one you developed upon advancing to Sprout. And it¡¯ll keep getting stronger the more you advance,¡± Rihal said relaxing in his chair. ¡°What it¡¯s not going to do, however, is help you mask your core. And you can¡¯t replicate it¡­ because it is natural.¡± He gestured with his hands to say, ¡®That¡¯s just the way things are¡¯.


    Jerome kept quiet, contemplating Rihal¡¯s words.


    ¡°But we shouldn¡¯t go off track in your training,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°You can¡¯t juggle too many things together while training. You must perfect one before another ¡ª like your blue flames. You¡¯ve been ¡®spewing¡¯ flames, and now it¡¯s time you learned how to ¡®shoot¡¯ flames.¡±


    ¡°Ah!¡± Jerome exclaimed. ¡°Maybe we should try somewhere else, anywhere else but Kilian¡¯s training hall.¡±


    Rihal chuckled. The last time Jerome trained with his blue flame, he had to clean up the whole place from top to bottom. He didn¡¯t want a repeat of that.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, I got us somewhere new to train,¡± Rihal said.


    They spent some more time discussing what Jerome learned from the Sovereign. Though he omitted discussions that had to do with his reincarnation and becoming one with the earth. After a long while, they both called it a night and Jerome walked back to Kilian¡¯s Palace alone.


    As he continued his walk, Jerome thought back to the words of the Sovereign right before he left the manor.


    ¡°You¡¯re the first Fated Dark One to figure out who and what you are. But you¡¯re also the first to suppress the beast. So, I¡¯m putting my faith in you. In hopes that you¡¯ll continue to suppress the beast, and maybe one day, quiet it completely. After knowing what you know, I could have decided to end you¡­but I did not...Do not fail me.


    ¡°And just so you know, you¡¯re not the only creature of darkness out in the world, Jerome. And Vorthe isn¡¯t the only wielder of light.¡±


    Jerome felt bitter at some of those words, but he was determined to live life on his own terms. He didn¡¯t ask to be the Dark One ¡ª but he also didn¡¯t ask to be given a second chance at life. And for that, he wouldn¡¯t let the Beast control him, to ruin his second chance at life. He¡¯d be figuring out who else wielded darkness and light later on. For now, he had to go train.


    He increased his pace back to Kilian¡¯s Palace to go resume his training.

 Announcements And Happy New Year!!!

    Happy New Year guys!!!


    The holidays are over and I figured I better get my ass out of my closet and resume publishing chapters. I¡¯ve been able to get my backlog back to levels I¡¯m comfortable with so starting Monday I¡¯ll resume posting.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Expect a chapter everyday throughout the week, next week. I mean from Monday through Friday.


    Cheers??????

 54. That Should Keep You Motivated

    Jerome entered his room, feeling invigorated and ready to tackle a mental challenge. He had a theory that trained assassins, like Rihal, were capable of masking their essence with mental energy. If he could learn how to do the same, it would give him an edge in battles.


    Rihal had debunked his previous theory of using the mental barrier or a replica to mask his essence so he figured he¡¯d go for the next best thing ¡ª mental energy. Upon entering his room, Jerome noticed that everything had been repaired and replaced after the previous night¡¯s damage.


    Well, almost everything¡­


    Kilian hadn¡¯t replaced his door, leaving his room exposed like a monster with a gaping mouth, devouring air. Undeterred, he sat down cross-legged and began to cycle, absorbing vast amounts of ambient essence with each rotation of his core, cycling at an incredible speed. After a long while, he achieved a state of perfect calm and summoned a cocoon of pure mental energy, enveloping his body in an invisible shield.


    He started to emit pulses of essence from his core, causing the temperature in the room to rise, and beads of sweat to form on his forehead. Not satisfied with the outcome, Jerome increased the output of his mental energy and expanded the diameter of the cocoon. However, this only served to further heat up his room.


    He persisted in his efforts until the early hours of the morning, only managing to give himself a mental pat on the back for not burning the place down. Although he had yet to achieve his goal, he was determined to master the technique of masking his essence as he cycled.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°Ignite your blue flame and throw it at the target,¡± Rihal commanded as he paced behind Jerome observing his every move.


    He had found a new training ground for Jerome, one that would have cost him had the Sovereign not intervened. But he was quite angry today. His disciple didn¡¯t follow his instructions and he could sense his weariness. Jerome had overused his mental energy and this would influence his training for many days to come.


    They were in an open arena surrounded by boulders, some of which were carved into seats. The soil on the ground had witnessed a lot of fights and Rihal could smell the blood, sweat, and tears that had mixed with the soil as he scrutinized his surroundings.


    He watched as Jerome took a deep breath, ignited a blue flame on his palm, and threw it at a boulder in the middle of the training ground. Or at least he tried to. The flame didn¡¯t leave his palm. He tried again, and then again, but the flame only changed shape as it breezed through the air on his palm.


    ¡°It¡¯s stuck to my palm ¡ª the core that is,¡± the little devil said but then he muttered. ¡°This feels ridiculous.¡± Rihal almost lost it.


    ¡°The flame is a product of your essence. Hence, you can¡¯t just throw it like a physical material that¡¯s not a part of you,¡± Rihal explained, doing his best to calm his anger.


    ¡°How do I throw it, then?¡±


    ¡°With mental energy,¡± Rihal said as he came to stand beside Jerome, his voice cold and unfeeling. ¡°A little mental energy to shoot it at your proposed target. This means you don¡¯t need the throwing motion to increase momentum, you just take aim, use your mental energy to pull it like a bow¡­ and shoot.¡±


    ¡°Are you angry at me Rihal?¡± Jerome asked. Rihal could hear the hesitation in his voice. He knew what he did wrong and now he was playing the innocent.


    Rihal glanced his way. ¡°Do you have any idea how weak your mental energy is right now?¡± he said through gritted teeth. Rihal wasn¡¯t angry because Jerome had overused his mental energy. He was angry because Jerome didn¡¯t listen to him, he just went ahead and did whatever it was he put his mind to!


    Jerome looked away, embarrassment coloring his cheeks.


    ¡°I told you not to juggle multiple things but to concentrate on one to perfection. Why didn¡¯t you listen to me?¡± Rihal asked, not to ask but to state a fact ¡ª Jerome was being an unfilial disciple.


    ¡°I was just a bit curious,¡± Jerome admitted.


    ¡°Well, you won¡¯t be able to perform at your best thanks to your curiosity,¡± Rihal pointed out. ¡°Go ahead and give it a try. And no stopping until you can shoot the flame at least ten paces away.¡±


    ¡°Ten paces, that should be easy,¡± Jerome said excitedly, ready to crush the goal that was set.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± was all Rihal said.


    ~~~


    Castle Alvric, Farryn. Secret Chamber of the Alvric Council.


    Filip Alvric


    ¡°I need to see the Ancient One, Filip,¡± Nolan Alvric said as he walked into the Council room. The other Elders were already waiting for him, having received his message early that morning. What would it be this time around?


    ¡°And what might this be about, Patriarch?¡± Filip Alvric asked. Whatever would lead Nolan Alvric to call for a meeting so early after a banquet at the Royal Estate must truly be important.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°Vorthe has a new Saint ¡ª well, I don¡¯t know if he just advanced. I only know he¡¯s a lot more powerful than ours!¡± Nolan said as he sat down in his high-backed chair on the raised dais, only noticing the deathly silence that engulfed the room a moment later.


    Every Elder had their jaw hanging in shock, unable to process what he just said completely. Filip Alvric was the first to recover. ¡°They mock us!¡± he said, his face twisted in a combination of fury and fear. This was not what he had expected to hear from  Nolan¡¯s mouth so early in the morning. The man was a herald of bad tidings!


    ¡°Aye. It came as much a surprise to me and every other Head of the other Great families. Well¡­¡± Nolan said contemplatively. What could it be again?


    The other Elders looked at him, waiting for him to continue. The tension in the air was so thick, Filip felt he was grasping at the information he was yet to receive with desperation.


    ¡°Well?¡± Filip finally blurted out in frustration. He couldn¡¯t stand the tension of not knowing more. The more information they had the better. Because if Vorthe knew what they were planning, they could execute them all on the grounds of conspiring against the throne.


    ¡°It seems Arwen Itakar was not surprised at the sight of a new Saint in the Royal family, which means we know who not to join forces with when the time is ripe for it,¡± Nolan Alvric continued. ¡°Probably Igor Baelor too. He¡¯s too¡­ Ah! The man wears his heart on his sleeves.¡±


    ¡°What was he like, this¡­Saint of the Royal family?¡± Anders Alvric, asked curiously. He was the youngest Sage in the room, and as such he had never met the Ancient One, their own Saint Realm expert ¡ª something that always seemed to escape Filip¡¯s mind.


    ¡°Well, he¡¯s young and vibrant, compared to the Ancient One. Thorlin Vorthe, he is named,¡± Nolan said, and exhaled loudly. Nolan Alvric seemed to age a hundred years at that moment in Filip¡¯s eyes. The weight and pressure of the oath he swore to break their family free from Vorthe¡¯s leash weighed down on him almost visibly. He didn¡¯t envy his position¡­ not one bit.


    ¡°Being in close proximity with him was far different from being with the Ancient One,¡± Nolan continued. ¡°You know how it feels being around the Ancient One, no?¡± he glanced at the Elders and some of them nodded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how it feels since I¡¯ve¡­¡± Anders Alvric almost stuttered out and everyone turned to Eskan to explain. The 3rd Elder seemed to catch himself as he noticed everyone was looking at him.


    ¡°Oh, ahem. It feels like being a Sprout in the presence of a Sage, hmm,¡± Eskan Alvric explained, nodding as he caressed his red-brown beard.


    ¡°But it is not the same with this Saint,¡± Nolan Alvric said. ¡°When he mounted the stage to announce the opening of Terra Praeta¡ª¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re opening Terra Praeta?!¡± Filip shot to his feet and the 2nd Elder, Fredrick, followed suit.


    ¡°Aye, but allow me the leeway to speak,¡± Nolan said, gesturing to them to sit down. ¡°I too was shocked when I heard of this, but the shock has long worn off.¡± He adjusted himself on his dais. ¡°When he mounted the stage and unveiled his aura, it was controlled. There were lots of Sprouts and Spirit Realm artists but none of them felt it. The level of control it¡¯ll take to pull that off!¡±


    ¡°He has complete control over the latent power of his Spirit?!¡± Filip Alvric said. ¡°We have to stop the expedition. This is not someone we want to cross!¡± he had been around enough to know how Vorthe played the power game ¡ª which was not knowing anything at all until they hit you where it hurt the most. But there were always signs.


    ¡°Now hold on, Filip,¡± the Patriarch tried to take back control of the discussion. ¡°What we need to do is hear from the Ancient One.¡±


    Filip Alvric was beginning to get frustrated by this. He had to seek the counsel of the Ancient One. ¡°The Ancient One would not leave his meditation to see you, Nolan. He only needs to advance to Transcendence and then all our problems would be solved, no?¡±


    If the clan knew how far gone their Ancient One was, they¡¯d lose faith in the Alvric, in their bloodline which had withstood thousands of years of oppression. If Nolan knew, he¡¯d start exercising authority that wasn¡¯t his to exercise, knowing there¡¯d be no one to hold him accountable. At which point, he, the 1st Elder, would lose his leverage over the council. Worse if the outside world found out¡­ Filip didn¡¯t even want to think of the repercussions of that.


    ¡°Then, I say we stay on track, and finish the course we started,¡± Nolan Alvric declared. ¡°What say the council?¡±


    ¡°Aye,¡± The 2nd Elder said, as did the 3rd and 4th.


    ¡°I think this is a mistake, Nolan,¡± Filip Alvric said gravely. He placed both hands on the table top, tapping on it with his fingertips. ¡°Everything we¡¯ve managed to build here may come crumbling down with just one mistake. Think on this carefully before going against the Royals.¡±


    The council chamber went silent for a few more breaths of time as tension hung in the air.


    Nolan Alvric exhaled audibly before saying, ¡°I swore an oath, Filip, and I would see it through. When do the men begin to arrive, Eskan?¡±


    ¡°In less than a moon, Patriarch,¡± Eskan said.


    ¡°Split them up, and take them around Farryn,¡± Nolan Alvric said. ¡°We begin searching for Vorthe¡¯s monster as soon as they arrive the mountain range.¡±


    ~~~


    The Royal Estate.


    The sun was already high in the sky and Jerome was down on one knee. He was sweating profusely¡­and breathing hard. The flame on his palm was also tinier than when he started. Albeit, he hadn¡¯t been able to ¡®shoot¡¯ the flame.


    You should have told me this was a lot harder than it sounds, he complained in frustration, but unwilling to give up, he kept at it. In theory, using his mental energy like a bow to pull the flame and release it was easy to imagine, but putting it to work was a different matter altogether.


    ¡°Ready to give up yet?¡± Rihal stood over him smiling.


    Jerome scowled at him and looked away, not ready to admit defeat. Rihal only chuckled and knelt beside him. He had already gotten a kick out of Jerome¡¯s struggles, but his disciple was really stubborn. There was just one problem with what he was doing.


    ¡°You should stop,¡± Rihal said. ¡°There¡¯s only so much strain your mind can take. Any more and you¡¯d injure your soul.¡±


    ¡°You should have said this was a lot harder than it sounds,¡± Jerome complained.


    ¡°And you should have done as I told you,¡± Rihal retorted, clearly in a good mood.


    ¡°Fair enough.¡± Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled, and all the tension left him. ¡°So is there a way to do this or do I just keep groping in the dark here?¡±


    ¡°Go get some rest, Jerome. We¡¯ll resume in the evening,¡± Rihal said, rising from the ground and lifting Jerome up with his mental energy.


    ¡°That¡¯s ¡­ that¡¯s incredible!¡± Jerome exclaimed. He could almost feel the strength and depth of the force that lifted him. It was thick and dense and powerful. Rihal¡¯s mental energy was so powerful compared to his; like a mountain to an egg. But like his essence, Jerome could sense nothing of it. Only that it was powerful.


    Rihal chuckled and they both walked toward Kilian¡¯s Palace. ¡°That should keep you motivated,¡± he said.


    And he was right about that. Jerome felt himself fired up and ready to do the impossible. But he lacked control. Yes. Control. That was a good place to start.

 55. Little Grains

    Jerome got up from the ground to face his target from the morning before. The sun was down already, and the night was cool. He felt optimistic; his mind was well-rested and felt robust. This time he was going to crush that goal. Ten paces were no big deal. He took a deep breath and kindled a flame on his palm, bathing the environment in blue light.


    ¡°Aim,¡± Rihal said from behind him.


    Jerome lifted his palm, taking aim. He poured out his mental energy, focusing on taking hold of the flame¡¯s core ¡ª it was easier said than done. ¡°So I pull on the flame with my mental energy¡ª¡±


    ¡°Not the flame; the core of the flame,¡± Rihal corrected. ¡°When using your perception this way, you will it to take hold of a physical entity, not pass through. First, use your mental energy to weigh the flame in your hand; get a feel for it. You do that by pushing and pulling on it.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± Jerome muttered in understanding. As he pushed and pulled on the core of the flame, he could feel its weight ¡ª or more like the weight of the essence being burned as fuel, the core. He practiced with it for a few breaths of time, even throwing it a few inches into the air, to his surprise.


    ¡°The flame starts to die the moment it leaves you, so you¡¯ve got to shoot it as fast as possible and as far as possible. So it can hit the target with as much impact as possible, and cause as much damage as possible,¡± Rihal said, ¡°...ready?¡±


    Jerome nodded, feeling confident. ¡°That¡¯s a whole lot of ¡®possibles¡¯ in two sentences, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Rihal shrugged. ¡°Anything¡¯s possible.¡±


    Jerome scoffed at that. He took aim, compressing and feeding the flame as he pulled on the core, shutting his eyes for maximum concentration. There was no physical reaction; the flame didn¡¯t pull back into his palm and it didn¡¯t change form to give any sign that something was about to happen. But he could feel the tension growing inside him, coiling and stretching.


    He released his hold on the tiny ball of flame. He felt it kick back his arm. The force was strong enough to rock him backwards. It shot out a few feet and sputtered out not far from him. ¡°Well, that was¡­¡±


    ¡°Unimpressive,¡± Rihal completed his words. ¡°Three out of ten,¡± he looked at Jerome with a mocking smile.


    Jerome scowled, his face reddening with embarrassment and ¡­ something else. He got ready again, breathing deeply and stabilizing his breath.


    ¡°Take your time,¡± he heard Rihal say. He let all the sound around him fade away, concentrating only on the fireball on his palm, pulling at it with his mental energy woven around its core.


    He kept on weaving his mental energy around the core of the flame, pulling it tighter and tighter. He made sure to pull it taut with a lot more mental energy than he used the first time ¡ª perhaps a hundred times more.


    Jerome felt dizziness begin to take him and quickly released the tiny ball of flame and felt the kickback, a lot stronger this time. The target exploded in a blue conflagration and a breath later, the energy from the explosion reached them like a shockwave, pushing them back a few paces! A shower of disintegrated rocks fell down from the sky afterward.


    ¡°Well, that was¡­¡± he stated in shock.


    ¡°Ten out of ten,¡± Rihal said with an approving smile. ¡°Now you learn to fight with it.¡±


    ~~~


    If he¡¯d thought he¡¯d be able to at least keep up with Rihal now that he was Sprout, he found out that he was gravely mistaken. The man was faster than a cheetah, able to go from zero to at least a hundred miles per hour in a split moment. And he did it all without making so much as a whisper.


    ¡°What the fuck do you train in, Rihal,¡± Jerome said. ¡°You never moved this fast before!¡± Rihal was like the embodiment of a speedster ¡ª like marvel¡¯s Pietro Maximoff in the comics back on earth.


    ¡°You¡¯ve only shot two fireballs, Jerome. Eight more without touching me and you lose,¡± Rihal said as he ran around the arena. Jerome tried to observe and study how he moved without making a sound but Rihal was a faded blur in the little light provided by his blue flame. Even the wind seemed to be still somehow. But he also had to focus on hitting him.


    ¡°That¡¯s easy for you to say. It¡¯s really hard to concentrate and fight at the same time,¡± Jerome responded as he tried to track Rihal. Worse was that he must not flop, because the ladies were watching. And he had already missed his target ¡­ twice.


    ¡°Hit him, Jerome! You can do it!¡± Ash screamed from atop a boulder a few dozen paces away, her excitement, palpable. Layla came to watch too, but she wasn¡¯t as enthusiastic as Ash.


    Even if he couldn¡¯t hit Rihal, he made up his mind to at least show he had some level of control over fire, and could shoot it however he pleased. He took aim again, trailing the most recent blur with the flame on his palm.


    The flame shot off but only reached six feet away before gravity took it over. ¡°Urgh,¡± he grumbled, and someone burst out laughing in the audience seats.


    Layla, he thought, turning red with embarrassment, but he took a deep breath. I shouldn¡¯t be letting this discourage me. Calm down, Jerome, he told himself and took aim again.


    Jerome calmed down and let the whole world drop away from him, only focusing on Rihal. Problem was, he was now finding it hard to focus on the fireball. He tried holding both in focus, but it was like trying to read to an audience and write an entirely different article, at the same time.


    He persevered, trying to hold both Rihal and the flame in focus. He shot the flame when he thought he saw an opening but the flame sputtered out on his palm, not even shooting out. Jerome raised his head to the sky and roared in frustration. The rest of the night went the same way with no progress, just more six feet shots, or bottom-line failed shots.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll get better at it,¡± Rihal promised as they walked back home. ¡°It¡¯s these little grains that accumulate over time to give your skill a foundation.¡±


    Layla gave him a mocking smile on the way home, which he ignored, and Ash also encouraged him not to give up. Jerome was in his own head, however, wondering where things went wrong. When he created his blue flame, it had been so easy. He felt all was well and he wouldn¡¯t need to try so hard for this. But reality bitchslapped him ¡ª hard.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± someone called, breaking him out of his ruminations.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re muttering to yourself,¡± Ash said. The look she gave him stunned him for a moment. There was pride there. Joy too. But there was also pity. Or maybe that was his imagination. But he didn¡¯t want to be pitied. He was also done with being angry and bitter all the time so he took a deep breath and calmed himself.


    Anger was a choice; a choice that caused those who chose to wallow in it to become twisted versions of themselves. One chose to remain in a particular state of mind; it took conscious effort, and lots of practice. And he¡¯d make sure he didn¡¯t fall back into old ways.


    ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± he said.


    ¡°Sure?¡± she asked and he nodded.


    Ash took his arm and clung to him. He felt the warmth of her body against him which made him relax his muscles. He didn¡¯t know he had been that tensed up. He noticed Rihal and Layla had fallen back but they were only a few paces behind. Jerome decided to take this little time to just relax and enjoy the moment.


    ¡°This is nice,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°What?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°Oh. I mean, this,¡± he said, pulling her closer to himself. ¡°This is nice.¡±


    Ash melted against him, blushing profusely. Her inexperience with a situation like this, showing in her silence. It was cute to watch but he himself had no experience with women. Jerome could hear her heart beating loudly behind the beautiful curves of her chest. Ash was tall, slim and top-heavy, full and bouncy. He drew in a sharp breath and slowly exhaled as his hormones threatened to overpower logic in his mind, forcing blood south of his body.


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    ¡°Would you like to come over for a while?¡±


    Ash smiled shyly. ¡°Hmm. I¡¯ll come.¡± Her voice was barely a whisper.


    Shit. Now what did he say next? He never expected her to say yes.


    ~~~


    Days passed and Jerome got better at shooting the flame, albeit slowly. Nothing of note had happened since he began training again. He had also not felt anyone stalking him since he created his blue flames ¡ª which might be a good thing because he wasn¡¯t confident enough to face another Sprout as he was. The person, whoever they were, might just be afraid to come close.


    ¡°Come on, Jerome!¡± Ash screamed. ¡°Get him!¡±


    Rihal breezed past Jerome hitting him in the shoulder and sending him spinning in the air. Jerome shot a fireball at him as he spun through the air, lighting up the night in blue. Rihal dodged to the side but another fireball closed in on him as he side-stepped.


    Jerome landed and immediately cursed as pain shot through his right knee. He took off towards Rihal at a limp, shooting three fireballs in a row at him.


    Rihal laughed. ¡°Is this all you got, Jerome,¡± he taunted. He launched himself into the air before the fireballs reached him and exploded in a flurry of essence. Jerome followed, shooting flames from beneath his boots to launch himself into the air and stay afloat ¡ª awkwardly.


    Bam!


    Rihal hit him as he zoomed past and Jerome almost fell out of the sky. He spun around over and over, his brain was unable to decide which way was up or down. The nighttime sky didn¡¯t help as well. After much effort, he managed to right himself only to see a smiling Rihal coming at him at full speed.


    Jerome used his flames to push himself aside and shot another volley of fireballs toward Rihal.


    He fell.


    ¡°Damnit!¡± he groaned. He¡¯d forgotten he was spitting flames out of his legs to stay afloat. Right before he hit the ground he steadied himself and shot upwards again, but Rihal attacked, hitting him with a pulse of pure essence, and canceling out his flame. Jerome hit the ground hard and rolled over on his back, groaning in pain.


    ¡°Well, that was fun,¡± Rihal said as he landed beside him.


    ¡°Fun for you, torture for me. I¡¯ve never missed Suzie this much before,¡± Jerome said, struggling to sit up.


    ¡°That¡¯s the point of the training, Jerome. You wouldn¡¯t always have Suzie,¡± Rihal said, chuckling. ¡°But I¡¯m impressed with your improvement.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother telling him that the flowing steel was a part of him now. But somehow he knew Rihal knew or at least suspected. What with the way he moved and popped out of thin air. Rihal must be keeping him under tight surveillance.


    ¡°Are you an assassin, Rihal?¡± It felt right. The teleportation, the way he ran without making a sound, the fact that he couldn¡¯t sense Rihal¡¯s essence. It all pointed to one thing: stealth.


    Rihal froze.


    ¡°Ah!¡± Jerome realized from Rihal¡¯s expression, the answer to his question. ¡°I didn¡¯t¡­ I wasn¡¯t¡­ trying to peek or anything like that.¡±


    ¡°No discussing that around others, Jerome,¡± Rihal said, looking towards the approaching girls.


    ¡°Woo, ooh!¡± Ash¡¯s voice reached them from a distance, and was getting closer. Jerome could almost swear that her voice could carry farther than normal. She arrived in a flash scattering dirt everywhere. ¡°That was amazing!¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Ash. It seems you¡¯re the only support I have around.¡± Jerome looked pointedly at the Sprout who followed her. Layla only stuck out her tongue at him.


    ¡°How¡¯d you do the flying thing ¡­ with the flames coming out of your boots?!¡± Ash asked excitedly.


    ¡°Yeah, how did you do that?¡± Layla asked. She was curious. ¡°Sprouts can¡¯t fly.¡±


    Jerome smirked at her. Any advantage one could get besides using a flight artifact was a plus. ¡°Get a flight artifact then.¡±


    Layla rolled her eyes at him. ¡°They¡¯re called Sails, Jerome. Don¡¯t be ¡®unsavvy¡¯ like an old crone.¡±


    Ouch.


    He¡¯d forgotten that. And he¡¯d forgotten that the youth of Farryn basically renamed inventions to fit their taste. Very American, if you asked him.


    Jerome stood up, gently enough not to embarrass himself with his knee. God, it hurt to just stand with it but he smiled, feeling good about himself. He had managed not to embarrass himself tonight as he did the previous nights.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard. Really hard. But it¡¯s about learning to channel essence at a balanced rate,¡± he said smiling proudly, ¡°and using the precise intensity of mental energy.¡±


    ¡°Intensity?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°My mother says that too,¡± Layla said as they walked toward the exit of the arena.


    ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s better to imagine it in intensity than in quantity,¡± Rihal said, ¡°The quantity is the same ¡ª you can¡¯t use more mental energy because it¡¯s relative to your mental capacity, not like essence, which you can control in quantity.¡±


    ¡°So, you combine your mental energy,¡± Jerome said, kindling a flame on his palm. ¡°And your essence.¡± He twisted it into a straight rod. ¡°Making sure to apply as much intensity as possible where necessary.¡± The rod of flame morphed into a sword and he swung it like a physical weapon.


    ¡°It¡¯s incredible how you can easily control your essence, though. And it seems you have an endless pool of it,¡± Layla said, scowling at him. ¡°A few days ago, you were struggling just to shoot a single flame.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m awesome, aren¡¯t I?¡± he responded with a knowing smile.


    ~~~


    Over the next few days, Jerome continued with his routine. He had gotten better at it now, as it felt like he was juggling five balls all at once ¡ª not impossible, just difficult.


    He also visited Ash occasionally for a chat. During one of these conversations, they had a very interesting discussion.


    ¡°Are you suggesting that the world is round? That''s ridiculous!¡± Ash exclaimed.


    Jerome tried to explain, ¡°Something¡¯s keeping us grounded to the earth, which also prevents us from floating away into space¡ª¡±


    ¡°But what about those who walk close to the edges? They¡¯ll just slide off the sides of the planet!¡± Ash interrupted him, adamantly arguing her point. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t even know they¡¯re close to a bend on the surface of the planet!¡±


    Jerome gave up arguing with her. He couldn¡¯t even remember why they started talking about celestial bodies in the first place.


    ¡°Well, then jump up, Ash,¡± he said.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked, not getting his point.


    ¡°Just do it, I¡¯m tryna prove something,¡± Jerome urged.


    Ash got up from her chair. They were sitting on the terrace of her room in a manor, west of Kilian¡¯s Palace. She jumped up and gravity brought her down immediately. She held up her hands gesturing to Jerome to say, ¡®And what¡¯s your point?¡¯


    ¡°What pulled you down?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Duh, I can¡¯t fly.¡±


    ¡°So, because you couldn¡¯t fly, you dropped down to the ground,¡± Jerome stated. ¡°Birds can fly, yet they need to flap their wings to stay afloat, if not they¡¯ll fall down just as you did.¡±


    Ash gave his words some thought for the first time that day, ¡°So what is this thing that pulls us down, then?¡± she asked with curiosity in her eyes.


    Jerome studied her beautiful face with satisfaction. ¡°It¡¯s called gravity. It¡¯s a force that acts on every object on the planet,¡± he said smiling. He couldn¡¯t have Ash thinking the world was flat. That was just so disturbing. ¡°The sun¡¯s round, as well as the moon, why should the world be any different? Your understanding of the world around you makes you a better sacred artist. That¡¯s how I was able to create a blue flame.¡±


    ¡°Yea, I¡¯d like to be able to do that when I become Sprout,¡± Ash said, still in thought.


    ¡°I¡¯ll teach you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve got to meet up with some other disciples to train with this evening,¡± Ash said, coming out of her reverie.


    ¡°Oh, girls...or boys?¡±


    She smirked and jumped off her terrace, laughing at him. Jerome chuckled and looked down in time to see her land in a perfect stance.


    ¡°Don¡¯t overwork yourself!¡± he called out to her.


    ¡°You too!¡± She replied with a laugh and disappeared from sight.


    Jerome leaned back into his seat on Ash''s terrace, savoring the refreshing breeze of the winterless Farryn. Rumor had it that a preceding Sovereign of Vorthe had altered the climate of the central region, allowing for optimal farming and animal husbandry. Or at least, Rihal said it was rumored.


    It was a feat of godly proportions that left him in awe. He knew that he had to focus on himself, though. The insights he had gained from his training thus far consumed his thoughts¡ªnot shooting fireballs though, the other one.


    Jerome sighed, ¡°If I keep doing the same thing, I¡¯ll get the same result. No amount of mental energy will change that.¡±


    ¡°How does one mask essence?¡± he muttered to himself, seemingly speaking to the air. Jerome chuckled at his own absurdity, but then an idea sparked in his mind.


    He studied his surroundings, observing the wind¡¯s movements and patterns. Jerome breathed in deeply, inhaling essence with the air. The wind had its own distinct patterns, some of which resembled mini cyclones. That thought struck a chord in Jerome¡¯s heart. He realized there was a pattern in nature, even when there wasn¡¯t one.


    ¡°The earth rotates eastwards on its axis and revolves around the sun, the moon revolves around the earth, the sun revolves around the center of the galaxy, and the galaxy revolves around the center of the universe ¨C wherever that may be!¡±


    He raced back to Kilian¡¯s Palace as fast as he could and assumed a lotus position in his room, meditating and cycling until he reached a state of calm.


    ¡°Come on, Jerome. You can do this,¡± he muttered encouragingly. ¡°It¡¯s the little grains that stack up over time to give your foundation a skill ¡­ or was it ¡®skill a foundation¡¯?¡±


    He surrounded himself with an invisible cocoon of mental energy. This time, however, the cocoon was in motion, rotating around him at a slow pace. It was an uncomfortable experience, and he had to push himself to his limits before collapsing from mental exhaustion.


    ¡°That was torture,¡± he muttered, feeling dizzy. He hit the floor and passed out immediately.

 56. A Not-So-Friendly Spar

    Jerome practiced tirelessly until dawn, requiring little sleep or food. As his body regained its vitality, his dependence on sustenance and rest decreased gradually. He had reached a point where he could go for a week without succumbing to hunger or exhaustion.


    After practicing all night, he gained greater control over his mental energy. He discovered that not only could he use his mental energy for longer periods, but it had also become easier to use.


    His mental prowess had advanced, and his mind felt much stronger, capable of withstanding almost anything.


    Opening his eyes, Jerome kindled a fire in his palm and wrapped it in his mental energy. With ease, he began to control the fire¡¯s form, intensity, and visibility. He was thrilled with this new discovery.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± he screamed and someone down the hall shouted back.


    ¡°Keep it down!¡±


    He¡¯d almost forgotten he had no door to muffle the sound of his voice.


    The essence that kindled the fire is undetectable! He was almost unable to control his excitement.


    ¡°I wonder if I can use this ability on physical objects,¡± he muttered to himself like a crazed person.


    Jerome formed a dagger using Suzie and surrounded the dagger with his mental energy. However, he remembered that Suzie couldn¡¯t detach from his body. Albeit, he had caused the dagger to float about five fingers width above his palm before that realization dawned on him!


    In the throes of excitement, he went searching for Rihal but couldn¡¯t find him. He finally heard from Kilian that Rihal had gone on a mission and wouldn¡¯t be back till the next evening.


    ¡°You¡¯re in a good mood. Care to share?¡± Kilian asked, gesturing to the visitor¡¯s seat in his study..


    Even if he could hide his excitement from others, he couldn¡¯t hide it from a Spirit Realm artist ¡ª not that he wanted to. Jerome had made so much progress in the past four moons that he wanted to scream about it at the top of his lungs. His physique was better, and his vitality was stronger, and Rihal had reported that his knee was better.


    Jerome sat down, cycling to calm his nerves.


    ¡°First of all, I¡¯d like to thank you for accepting me into your home. I know it wouldn¡¯t have been an easy decision you made to accept one such as me; one who¡¯s destined for¡ª¡±


    ¡°We hope it never comes to that, Jerome,¡± Kilian said with a smile, his regal bearing back in place. ¡°I can tell you¡¯ve made giant strides in your recovery in the past four moons.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s all thanks to the fact that my core was already in good condition before I awoke from my slumber at the bottom of the river in Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon.¡±


    ¡°A mystery that would remain a mystery from the looks of it,¡± Kilian said. ¡°Do you still don¡¯t remember anything from after the fight?¡±


    Jerome shook his head in thought. If he did, he would mention it. After the fight with Hedon started, everything just became a blur. The one thing he knew was that he died, and that was because of the scar still on his chest. Jerome touched his facial scars absently. They were bold and loud, screaming for all the world to hear that he survived a hellish experience.


    ¡°So, what did you want to discuss with Rihal?¡± Kilian said, smiling at Jerome.


    ¡°Lord Kilian, do you know how assassins mask their aura?¡± Jerome asked, the excitement back in his eyes.


    ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve not practiced it myself, but I know of it.¡± Kilian replied.


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother explaining further, he just lit up a flame in the palm of his right hand. Kilian brows rose in surprise.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t sense you rotating your core to direct essence to your palm.¡±


    Jerome grinned. It happened as though the fire was created by a flint, he was sure.


    It wasn¡¯t over though. Less than half a breath later the flame visibly became transparent, and then it completely disappeared. The only evidence of the flame on Jerome¡¯s palm was the warping of space on his palm, in the area occupied by the flame. Other than that, there was no evidence of a flame on his palm.


    ¡°That¡¯s quite impressive,¡± Kilian said with a smile. ¡°You may need someone more skilled with mental energy to practice with though. I¡¯m but a scholar and as such, my mental fortitude cannot be compared to someone like Rihal. If I were Rihal though, you wouldn¡¯t have been able to block out my senses.¡±


    ¡°You mean you can¡¯t sense the flame?¡± Jerome asked, eyes going wide. He hadn¡¯t given it much thought before showing the lord of the palace his skill. That he can hide from someone like Kilian was cause for a secret celebration. He just hoped Kilian wouldn¡¯t look at things the wrong way.


    Kilian shook his head with a bashful smile. He still managed to maintain his composure and regal bearing though. ¡°You may not have heard, but all those going to Terra Praeta from our side have been training together for a few days now. Would you like to join them?¡±


    Jerome put out the flame and looked questioningly at him. Hesitation was written on his face, he knew. The only Sprout he knew among the Royals was Layla, and from what little he knew of her, she wasn¡¯t really a Royal.


    ¡°What are they like?¡± he finally asked. Jerome knew how privileged rich kids acted. He didn¡¯t want to join them on the chance that they were different from other elites of noble birth.


    ¡°How do you mean?¡± Kilian asked, pretending not to understand the question.


    Jerome raised his left brow. ¡°Are they egotistical, maniacal, entitled, and, or psychotic,¡± he said while slightly moving his head from side to side.


    Kilian cursed Hedon Alvric to an eternity consumed by ¡®Noir¡¯s Black Flames¡¯ as he tried hard to suppress the smile forming on his face. Jerome had never heard him curse before and the curses that came out of the royal¡¯s mouth left him wide-eyed.


    ¡°Who the hell¡¯s Noir?¡± he muttered absently.


    Kilian sighed. ¡°Most likely they are.¡± He calmed a little before looking him in the eyes and saying. ¡°But I remember when you first came to the estate, Jerome. You were the innocent boy who was filled with so much awe for the things and people around him, and now you¡¯ve put up a wall in your heart against privileged people.¡± He sighed again.


    ¡°I¡¯m not that child anymore, Lord Kilian,¡± Jerome said solemnly. ¡°And I¡¯m not interested in training with the royals.¡±


    Kilian¡¯s presence blanketed the study in an instant. It wasn¡¯t enough to cripple him, but Jerome still felt it hinder him greatly. Kilian smacked his tabletop with his palms, standing up.


    ¡°Ok, now it¡¯s mandatory! Go get ready!¡± he said, pointing to the door with steady eyes trained on Jerome.


    Jerome opened his mouth like he wanted to say something but quickly shut it up. He couldn¡¯t for the like of him figure out how Kilian switched moods like a pregnant young lady. He quickly left to prepare for the training with the Royals before another outburst from the lord of the Palace.


    A while later, Jerome stood outside Kilian¡¯s palace waiting for his escort to the training ground. Abbott, the guard whom Jerome had a scuffle with a few days ago, walked out of the palace.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be escorting you to your training disciple Jerome,¡± Abbott said with a straight face.


    Jerome nodded and followed him. The walk was as silent as it was awkward, you could hear a pin drop from a dozen steps away. And the tension was so thick, you could cut it with a butter knife. The sun had just come out so they both distracted themselves from the awkwardness with the beauty of the Vorthe Estate.


    After a while, Abbott cleared his throat and said, ¡°Disciple Jerome, I¡¯m sorry about the other day.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Jerome turned to look at him with a smile. ¡°I also acted out of turn.¡±


    ¡°If you like, you could come around the guards¡¯ quarters some time to play some games with us,¡± Abbott said.


    Jerome smiled. ¡°What about you give me some pointers about your insights as a Sprout when I come around?¡± he asked. Abbott was in his forties, but he might as well have been a twenty-year-old youth. So he was a more experienced Sprout than Jerome.


    ¡°Deal,¡± Abbott said. ¡°We¡¯re here.¡±


    Before them lay a vast expanse of training ground, stretching out over two thousand square feet. It was a veritable training ground for physical prowess, boasting an obstacle course riddled with treacherous pitfalls, sparring rings drawn on the floor for hand-to-hand combat scattered around the training ground, and a towering rock wall equipped with ropes and footholds that seemed to taunt even the fearless climbers.


    At the center of the training ground, some youths were gathered around two other youths who were sparring against each other. Jerome¡¯s heart began to pound with excitement as he wanted to test his skills against these nobles to measure his strength. Why did he think he wouldn¡¯t want to train with these Royals in the first place? Though they may be haughty and proud, he¡¯d do his best not to get a repeat of Hedon.


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    Abbott noticed the change in Jerome and quickly said, ¡°Be careful disciple Jerome, these guys are freaks of nature.¡±


    ¡°Really, how do you know this?¡± Jerome asked, surprised.


    ¡°Us guards in the Royal Estate usually talk amongst each other.¡±


    Jerome nodded silently. It made sense. They could share information with one another about the strengths of the elites in the palaces they guard.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be on my way now,¡± Abbott said.


    ¡°Thank you, Abbott,¡± Jerome said as he left.


    Jerome walked toward the crowd of Sprouts with large strides. As he got within thirty steps of the group, one of them looked at him and waved his hand in Jerome¡¯s direction. A strong wave of golden energy shot out of his hand like a crescent-shaped blade.


    Jerome was calm, however; he hadn¡¯t expected to be readily accepted by them. The crescent-shaped energy blade suddenly transformed into a straight blade of light pointing directly at him. He tilted his head a little to the right without missing a step, and the blade of light shot past his left cheek, raising long black strands of his hair. It dissipated thereafter as if it never existed.


    Jerome saw a flash of surprise on the Sprout¡¯s face but he quickly regained his composure and spoke out. ¡°You¡¯re not welcome here.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna be here either,¡± Jerome responded in a cold and emotionless voice. He was quite impressed with the crescent blade. It was way more advanced than his blue flames ¡ª which he could shoot better now, thanks to hours of training with Rihal.


    Everyone in the group turned to look at him as if to size him up. He had spoken like he was not someone just anyone could mess around with. He had to, lest they try to subdue him. It was better to show that he was no pussy early on. And even knock a few heads together. He wasn¡¯t going to be looked down on, not even by the Royals.


    Looking at them, Jerome could tell they were all around his age. None of them looked much older than him, which came as a bit of a surprise. He had always thought he was the youngest in his Realm because of the events of Mhen Agrh¡¯ur. Or maybe they were all older and just looked very young.


    Jerome met their eyes one by one. Some of the mentally weak ones averted their gaze from his. But some others looked at him like they were seeing dinner. Layla was among them, secretly signaling him with a slight shake of her head.


    ¡°Peasant, this is not a gathering of your kind. Leave now or suffer the consequences,¡± the douchebag who attacked him stated. His voice, equally as cold as Jerome¡¯s.


    ¡°Make me,¡± Jerome said, looking him dead in the eyes.


    The Sprout¡¯s rage was kindled and the muscles in his jaw ticked ¡ª a tell then.


    ¡°I have heard of you before, disciple of Senior Rihal. You were lucky enough to discover Adama¡¯s gauntlets. Is that why your balls are inflated nearly to bursting?¡±


    The Sprouts snickered lightly in amusement. Jerome scoffed. He had almost forgotten that kids like these would have razor blades for tongues. If it was a battle of words he couldn¡¯t win so he didn¡¯t bother fighting. He just stood there and let his smirk taunt the other Sprout.


    The Sprout in question chuckled. ¡°A toad in a pond thinking he¡¯s seen the whole world!¡± he said mockingly. The crowd of over fifty Sprouts burst out laughing. ¡°As you wish. Who wants to teach the serf a lesson?¡±


    Jerome stood there quietly, studying their auras and mannerisms. He turned a deaf ear to all the insults this Sprout threw at him. He seemed to be the leader of the group. So that was expected. Perhaps he could dethrone him and let the rest figure out their shit.


    ¡°I¡¯ll spar with him,¡± someone finally stepped up.


    This fellow was tall and was as thick as a tree with muscular arms that looked like they could strangle the most powerful magic beasts in the world. But Jerome wasn¡¯t convinced though; the youth had a weak aura. He looked very strong physically but without the foundation of essence to match that strength, he¡¯d start running on fumes the moment he got into a fight.


    The crowd pathed for them and spread out around them. Jerome suddenly noticed that everyone was wearing white sparring robes ¨C with no sleeves and baggy pants for the boys, while the girls wore theirs with wide sleeves. He was the only one in a leather-stitched robe.


    And mine isn¡¯t even white, he thought.


    He stood out like a red dot on a white canvas. His initiate robe was the color of blood. Why Vorthe chose that exact shade, he wouldn¡¯t know.


    ¡°My name is Forester Vorthe, peasant. Remember it when you take your walk of shame,¡± Douchebag said. ¡°There¡¯s only one rule¡­no killing.¡±


    That rule was for Jerome alone. He knew it and everyone knew it. If he killed the huge youth, he would be sentenced to death immediately. Not that they could kill him. But the Sovereign probably would. But if the big guy killed him, no one would bat an eye.


    ¡°Give each other a bow!¡± Douchebag shouted.


    Both combatants looked at each other for a split second before bowing ¡ª Jerome, not so low but the big guy just nodded his head at him. So much for propriety.


    The big guy charged Jerome at once. He came in fast. The next moment though, he was sprawled on the floor, bleeding lightly from the side of his mouth.


    ~~~


    Idrienne Vorthe


    Everyone looked at the young Sprout in amazement. It had happened too quickly; some of the Sprouts didn¡¯t even see what happened, he was sure. Senior Rihal¡¯s disciple had waited for Aidan to get within three feet of him and launched himself forward really fast. Before the big guy knew what was going on, he was punched in the jaw and passed out instantly.


    The new guy hadn¡¯t even used essence. The punch was just a physical punch. Everyone at the training grounds knew how strong Aidan was. When it came to physical strength, none of them was a match for him. Aidan may not last long in a prolonged battle, but when it came to using overpowering strength to suppress an opponent quickly, Aidan was unbeatable in their Realm.


    Now, however, someone new had toppled him. Someone who wasn¡¯t as big or as tall. Idrienne studied him. His scarred face gave him a tough looking appearance. As though he had gone through a really great ordeal.


    ¡°At least make it a challenge for me,¡± the new guy called out to Forester. The wind picked up at that moment blowing his long hair around him and giving him a heroic air.


    Forester frowned and looked directly at him. Even before Forester looked his way, Idrienne was already itching to fight the brat. He walked into the circle and faced the new guy. Jerome was his name, wasn¡¯t it? A lucky guy that popped his nuts but miraculously came back from the dead. Idrienne shot forward, ignoring customs, and in a split moment, he arrived in front of Jerome!


    Idrienne had always been proud of his speed. That was the one thing that separated him from the rest of the Sprouts. It was his identity. His badge of honor. But new challenges were long overdue and there was one right in front of him.


    With his body covered in golden light, he dashed towards Jerome, a blunt-edged dagger in both hands. Just as he swiped at Jerome¡¯s head from the right, he missed by a few inches. He swiped at him from the left with his other dagger but missed again.


    Jerome had only stepped back twice. Idrienne¡¯s excitement peaked at that realization. The new brat wouldn¡¯t let him down! The both of them began to dance around each other with Idrienne attacking and Jerome dodging all his moves while running around the training ground. At this point, they had left the enclosure made by the other Sprouts who had had to skitter away so as not to get hit.


    The other Sprouts couldn¡¯t even follow them with their eyes. The only time they would have come into view was when they stopped to run in another direction, and that was only a split-moment view. If you blinked, you missed them!


    Idrienne¡¯s excitement overflowed and he burst out in laughter, enjoying the thrill of the moment. But he soon realized that Jerome wasn¡¯t attacking, just running around while he did all the chasing. The cunt wasn¡¯t taking him seriously! Well, time to do some damage.


    He sped up his attacks and his arms literally started looking like they disappeared with every move. But the brat was able to keep up with him, Sometimes dodging and sometimes blocking his attacks. Attacks that were too fast for most Sprouts to see. Idrienne noticed he wore red gloves that he used to smack the blade of his knife every time it got too close. But he hadn¡¯t seen him put it on. And the gloves had a metallic sheen to them.


    So an artifact then, he thought. He would have loved to get a good look at it but he didn¡¯t want to stop the fight.


    He attacked with a combo of fifteen blows, going for the neck, heart, and gut. His attack was canceled almost immediately and Jerome halted in his steps, long enough to throw a punch at him. Idrienne quickly bent his body to the side. He had been moving so fast, it was almost impossible to stop as he was. Jerome¡¯s elbow came down on him next without missing a beat. The younger Sprout had a good command of his body movement. But he was the fastest here.


    Idrienne spun on his heels, dodging the elbow and thrust his knife into his opponent¡¯s side but Jerome spun as well and even almost smacked him in the face. The next moment the chase began again. Idrienne¡¯s frustration bubble up in him.


    Who the hell is this guy? he thought, infuriated. But he had to admit, Jerome was as fast as he was. He¡¯d be damned if he admitted the brat was faster. But he was particularly good at turning sharp corners.


    Idrienne decided to go all out. He put on a burst of speed and broke his limits, surprising everyone. The gasp that sounded around him was confirmation enough. He was amongst the few that had a very powerful core that could hold enough essence for such speeds.


    The moment he arrived beside Jerome though, he saw his lips curve upwards.


    Not good! Idrienne thought as alarm bells rang in his head.


    He quickly shot backward, but Jerome¡¯s figure flickered and arrived in front of him. Before he could react, Jerome knocked his lights out with a punch to the jaw. All he saw coming was a fist and then darkness.


    ~~~


    Jerome bent down to make sure he didn¡¯t do too much damage to the Sprout. His pulse and breathing were good. By all accounts, this was his most exciting fight so far. He never knew he had become so fast. He could still feel the essence pumping through his channels ¡ª channels that had been made stronger and could now withstand a lot more strain. His heartbeat sang in his ears, his body excited and ready for more victories.


    But his mental energy was what helped him the most in this fight. Jerome couldn¡¯t explain it ¡ª not even to himself. Every time he had deflected the blade, or turned a sharp corner, he had used a bit of mental energy to assist himself with the action. It had also made his focus sharper.


    He stood up a few breaths later facing the leader.


    ¡°I¡¯ll come back tomorrow, Forester.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s young master Forester to you!¡± Forester the Douchebag growled.


    ¡°Young master Forester,¡± Jerome said with a slight bow, not wanting to enrage the Sprout. ¡°Make sure to prepare a good challenge.¡± He waved goodbye and walked away from the training ground.


    The young elites of the Royal Family all stared at him as if they were seeing a monster. Their eyes on him were intense but he sensed their awe more than he did, their anger.


    ~~~


    Yun Vorthe


    ¡°That was fun to watch.¡±


    About a hundred feet up in the air, he hovered mid-air, hidden in a cavity in space. He had watched as Jerome toyed with his challengers.


    This will help these younglings stop overestimating themselves, he thought to himself. But Jerome however¡­


    Just three nights ago, Yun tested his mental strength by having him do a mental scan on him.


    How did he grow so fast in just three days? he thought. Yun knew that the reason why Jerome was able to counter the speedster was not just because he was faster. It was because his perception had undergone a monumental advancement, making everything around him appear slow in his eyes. His mind and eyes had become faster.

 57. Utterance

    Jerome got home quite early as he didn¡¯t spend much time at the training grounds. He would have loved to stay and use some of their training equipment, but he knew he¡¯d never be accepted among Vorthe¡¯s Royal Elites.


    Acceptance brings status and they are unwilling to give it, he thought.


    He sat down in a meditative pose and went through the battle with the fast youth in his mind. The Sprout was surprisingly almost as fast as him, which told of his potential. Jerome chuckled. He wouldn¡¯t dare underestimate anyone again after Hedon. He just had to keep training until he reached the peak of the sacred arts!


    He visited the training ground beneath the Palace to train. Looking around, he couldn¡¯t help but compare it with the Royals¡¯ training ground. It was a lot smaller than theirs.


    ¡°And the crab is the only training equipment here,¡± he muttered as he took off his leather armor, baring his upper body. Wonder what those strange apparatuses are used for, he thought.


    With a spear formed from Suzie, he started training his grip strength and speed. All at the same time, using his mind to control five metal blades, the length of his forearm. This multitasking put a lot of strain on his mind which in turn helped him to improve his mental strength.


    Jerome practiced for a long time. And by the time he was done, the sun was already setting. He sat down crossed-legged in the middle of the training grounds to recover his strength.


    As he cycled, the aches in his joints and head subsided rapidly. He remembered what it was like after Mhen Agrh¡¯ur. After absorbing so much essence that his body began to transform, his senses had also become sharper, his limbs became stronger, and he experienced increased agility and speed.


    A thought came to him at this moment. If essence can improve my body to this level, what can my mental energy do for my mind? Jerome was so excited about the possibilities that he became jittery where he sat. He had to force himself to calm down.


    After recovering completely, he began stirring his mental energy once more but this time, he channeled it inwards, he kept swirling it around his brain, eyes, and ears but nothing happened. This went on for quite a while before he stopped. He felt rather disappointed.


    ¡°What a waste of mental energy,¡± he chided himself, standing up.


    He became quite restless, not knowing what to do, yet with a lot of time on his hands. It was late at night already and he normally trained under Rihal¡¯s instructions for a lot longer than this. But today, there was no Rihal.


    Jerome felt like he had to be doing something to improve his abilities, but he didn¡¯t know what it was he should be doing. Without Rihal directing his training, he was like a lost cub. He decided to take the reins on his training. Practicing with fire attribute essence was quite easy. He¡¯d never had a problem doing whatever he wanted with fire ¡ª except for shooting it apparently.


    Should I learn to use another attribute? Maybe earth-attribute essence? If I could learn to wield nature like that Harun¡­ he sighed. That¡¯s just wishful thinking.


    Jerome scolded himself as he sat down on the dirt floor of the training ground and began adjusting his breathing as he cycled. Now that he was Sprout, he could directly absorb attributed essence, as long as he had a comprehensive understanding of the attribute.


    A sacred artist didn¡¯t necessarily have to have a deep comprehension of a foreign attribute, but having a deep comprehension goes a long way to create a connection between the sacred artist and the nature of that element. Such was the nature of the mutation he had become. He couldn¡¯t still wrap his head around that fact, and that the earth supported his advancement.


    The earth. If the planet is sentient, then it has to be watching, right? he thought about the rotation of the planet; the ebb and flow of life. The planet provided all that humanity needed; it supported growth and development. Deep in his heart, he felt something stir, something that had been sitting in his heart for a long while, since his discussion with the Sovereign to be precise.


    Mother Nature provides life¡­ he recited in his mind. She provides vitality and protection¡­ To wield the power of the earth is to be a protector¡­ To become a shield¡­ To stand in the way of the oppressor and shield the weak¡­


    ~~~


    Idrienne Vorthe


    ¡°What happened out there, Idrienne?¡± Forester asked.


    They had come to their favorite pub, the Drunken Turtle, to grab some wine together. The pub was situated inside the Royal Estate so the youths didn¡¯t need to go into the city of Farryn to have drinks with friends.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Forester. That boy is faster than I am,¡± Idrienne said.


    ¡°I asked around about him,¡± Aidan said. ¡°It seems he¡¯s been injured for a while. Probably just got better.¡±


    Idrienne gnashed his teeth till they hurt. Not only was he defeated in speed, but he was defeated by someone who just recovered from injuries?!


    ¡°I talked to my da about our fight. Know what he said?¡± Idrienne said through gritted teeth. The other Sprouts listened to hear what the former speedster had said. ¡°Might maketh right.¡±


    His friends looked away shame-faced. In their hearts of hearts, they knew the saying was wise, but their lofty egos wouldn¡¯t let them accept defeat. Idrienne couldn¡¯t even look his father in the eye after those words.


    Soft music played in the pub as different royals came in one by one. Everyone knew everyone here ¡ª or at least almost everyone. The Drunken Turtle was never filled up with people at any time and that was one of the reasons Idrienne liked the pub.


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    The mild colors of its walls and draperies also set a serene atmosphere that he preferred on most evenings. Tables surrounded the walls leaving some space at the center of the small hall for dances and acts if there were any. No such luck today though, he¡¯d have loved to watch some of the circus jesters perform.


    ¡°Senior Idrel said he had bad blood with Hedon Alvric,¡± Zayne Vorthe said as he took a seat at the table lifting a jug of wine to his lips. He had walked in not quite long ago.


    ¡°Alvric? That good for nothing?¡± Forester sneered with disdain.


    ¡°Calm down, Forester. He might have some usefulness,¡± Idrel Vorthe said as he walked toward them. All the Sprouts at the table quickly stood up to bow respectfully.


    ¡°Welcome, Senior,¡± they all said. Idrienne wondered how the Spirit Realm expert knew they were meeting up but he quickly trashed the thought. Senior Idrel was a member of the Nediti ¡ª something he had no idea of. He had chanced hearing his da speaking to someone else about it one day in drunken stupor.


    Senior Idrel looked slowly around the table before taking a seat. It was almost like he was silently telling them to know their place.


    ¡°Sit,¡± he ordered and they all sat down in unison. ¡°Whoever can get rid of Rihal¡¯s disciple for me gets to keep this.¡± He threw an item on the table causing all the Sprouts to drop their jaws in shock.


    It was a tiny crystal wrapped in a black leather pouch, extended from a string.


    ¡°That¡¯s!¡± Forester gasped in shock.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Zayne asked. Every one of them leaned forward to get a better look at the thing.


    ¡°A Void Bridge! It¡¯s a teleportation device!¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome felt the earth move beneath him, like tiny vibrations in the earth moving towards him. The earth-attribute essence became thick in the air all of a sudden and Jerome breathed it into his lungs. Not only was the essence filled with earth aura, but it was also filled with an abundance of vital aura ¡ª the aura of vitality. Jerome felt his blood quicken. He felt like his blood had become a potent medicine at that moment.


    The vitality and essence that filled his lungs were quickly absorbed into his muscles¡­his bones, and core. His core began spinning faster and faster as it absorbed more and more earth attribute essence.


    Jerome felt the urge to recite his thoughts out loud. Those words were just his musings from what the Sovereign had said concerning the sentience of the planet.


    ¡°Mother Nature provides life!¡± he recited out loud, putting more conviction into his words.


    ¡°She provides vitality and protection!


    ¡°To wield the power of the earth is to be a protector!


    ¡°To become a shield!


    ¡°To stand in the way of the oppressor and shield the weak!¡±


    He recited it like a mantra. Over and over again. This time, the earth-essence in the air spiked and became denser than before! Bright green and golden-brown motes of light began circling around him. And with every breath he took, those motes of light were sucked into his body.


    Jerome kept repeating the words again and again, and the essence in the air kept getting denser and denser. His core was like a black hole. As the vitality and earth aura was absorbed into his body, his core kept swallowing it up with no evidence of ever stopping. He felt that if Mother Earth could speak, she would have cursed out at him already. He made up his mind to see how much his core could take.


    Jerome entered a semi-meditative state, so he could still somewhat be aware of his surroundings. Surprisingly, he felt a resonance between himself and the earth at the moment, he could sense everything within eight hundred paces around him without extending his senses.


    Jerome was awed at this. He quickly suppressed his excitement so he could concentrate better.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    It was quite late when he got back from his mission. Unexpected things happened but they were quickly taken care of. He wanted to check on Kilian to ask how Jerome¡¯s training was going.


    Half a mile away from Kilian¡¯s palace, Rihal felt that the earth-attribute essence in the air was abnormally heavier. Normally, earth attribute essence could be sensed in the air, only about a foot off the ground. But now, the earth-attribute essence was more than ten times denser than it should be.


    Rihal activated his Sight, a supernatural ability only those with the blood of Vorthe possessed. He looked down at his feet and what he saw made his heart skip, not from fear, but from astonishment!


    The concentration of earth attribute essence under the earth was so dense, he had to squint a little at the brightness of the green and gold lights he was seeing. He quickly adjusted his Sight like how a cat adjusts the amount of light that enters its eyes. Rihal noticed that the essence was flowing toward Kilian¡¯s palace. For some reason, he thought of Jerome and felt that this was his doing.


    ¡°That little twerp!¡± He muttered out loud. Rihal launched himself into the air, flying at top speed. He slowed down when he got closer to Kilian¡¯s palace and almost fell out of the sky!


    Kilian¡¯s palace was covered in a dense fog of gold and green essence! Rihal understood that for someone to pull this much essence out of the ground, they had to be very powerful.


    ¡°¡­or very insightful,¡± he muttered to himself. He stood, hovering in the sky as he looked down at the dense fog of essence and vital aura spinning round and round like a cyclone. He unleashed his perception like a wave as he scanned the Palace for Jerome.


    ¡°As expected.¡± Jerome was sitting cross-legged in the eye of the storm. He was in the exact epicenter of the fog. Rihal shook his head lightly and chuckled. When did he learn to do this?


    Just then, Kilian came flying out of the palace and joined him in the sky.


    ¡°How long ago?¡± Rihal asked.


    Kilian smiled. ¡°Since last night.¡±


    Rihal looked at him with pleasant surprise.


    ¡°You were not joking when you said he was beginning to learn on his own. How was your mission?¡±


    ¡°Went good ¡ª at least as good as we could make it,¡± Rihal said, nodding. ¡°A band of maniacs from the archipelago¡­ Something to do with some missing contraband, I think.¡±


    ¡°And they tracked it this far into our territory? Are they not afraid of Vorthe?¡±


    Rihal sighed, not knowing how to answer that question. Vorthe¡¯s name carried a weight that should have scared them off and made them abandon the hunt for some contraband or whatever. So there was probably something more going on, he just wasn¡¯t high up the chain of command in the Nediti to have access to such information.


    ¡°They passed through Alvric lands. If you ask me, Alvric let them through, even knowing the consequences.¡±


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t they.¡± Kilian frowned. ¡°Alvric trades slaves with them so it¡¯s expected.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re testing us. And the Islanders wrought many evils as they passed through our lands. Tch! It was a headache to deal with but we did anyway. Though not all of them. Whoever has their contraband is quite good at hiding. They would be found though. It¡¯s only a matter of time.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know.¡± Kilian nodded.

 58. Not An Epos

    Jerome awoke from his meditation. He could sense that his core had grown larger than it was before he started absorbing essence from the earth. He walked out of the training hall and was greeted with cheers by a lot of people standing outside the hall.


    Jerome was shocked. He knew they were sitting outside the hall while he was cycling which meant they were also cycling as well. However, they were all covered in impurities and smelled awful, which went to show how powerful a session of cycling they must have had. This was what shocked Jerome.


    Was the vital aura so powerful that it could even purify their bodies? he thought. He looked down at himself expectantly but there were no impurities and no awful smell on him, which made him somewhat disheartened. But it was a good thing because it meant his body had little to no impurities in it.


    Still. After all the meals I ate¡­no impurities? ¡­ that¡¯s incredible, he thought. But he also felt a lot stronger than he¡¯d been in days. His muscles felt like they contained explosive strength as he flexed them. He also felt like he¡¯d gained some more weight back.


    He had also been examining himself during his meditation. And the words of the Sovereign rang true once again in his mind. He found out that vital aura didn¡¯t function like normal essence. He couldn¡¯t make it a part of his core, so to speak. Guess he¡¯d ask Rihal later.


    Seventeen walked up to him smiling.


    ¡°What happened here?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know what you did, young master Jerome, but everyone benefited from it,¡± she stated happily. Why was she calling him ¡®young master¡¯ all of a sudden? Was this what pandering looked like?


    He tilted his head at her. ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Hmm. The whole Palace was covered in a dense fog of earth-attributed essence and vitality. Who would want to miss out on that?¡± She spoke with awe and reverence in her voice. Seventeen laughed out loud in joy but seeing Jerome smiling at her, she quickly composed herself. Jerome had never seen her so happy before.


    ¡°Your scars have reduced,¡± she muttered, gesturing to her face and smiling again ¡ª a lot more restrained this time though.


    Jerome touched his face to confirm and smiled. The hard, ugly lines he used to feel there were not as prominent as they used to be. He reached down to touch his chest and felt the scars there too. They too had receded, although not by a lot. He flexed his right leg next to test his knee and was almost overcome by emotion. The little pain he used to still feel in the knee was gone. He didn¡¯t even notice it when he walked out of the training hall.


    The palace guards came up to him next to thank him as well. Abbott was smiling from ear to ear and praising him as a young genius, the likes the world never sees but once in ten thousand years!


    ¡°Jerome ¡ª I can call you Jerome, right?¡± Abbott laughed as he spoke.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Jerome answered with an amiable smile.


    ¡°It seems you¡¯re the one who will be giving me pointers when we meet, hahahaha! Excuse us Jerome so we could go wash up,¡± Abbott said, eyeing his men to excuse Jerome and the maid beside him.


    But Seventeen definitely noticed his signals and glared at him shouting, ¡°Pervert! Young master Jerome is nothing like you!¡±


    Jerome chuckled as he watched Abbott, and his men scurry away with their tails between their legs from a tiny woman who was half their size.


    ¡°You should go wash up too,¡± he said after a while. Seventeen looked down at herself and ran off with her face bright red from embarrassment.


    ~~~


    Ash


    Jerome and Rihal discussed his insights on earth-attribute essence as she sat on his desk, swinging her legs back and forth. They were throwing a lot of foreign words around that she didn¡¯t understand so she just locked them out of her musings. She was very happy for Jerome though. He had added a new element to his arsenal which meant he was a better fighter than he was before.


    She felt a little jealous if she were to admit the truth to herself. But it was best not to dwell on it. Like Jerome said once to her, ¡°You have a Path to follow and to grow in. That Path is unique to you, and you alone. You just have to stay on your Path and not be distracted by someone else¡¯s Path.¡±


    She focused on their discussion once again.


    ¡°If I create an Epos to cultivate fire-attribute essence, my advancement will increase by leaps and bounds!¡±


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t an Epos,¡± Uncle Rihal corrected him. Whatever this ¡®Epos¡¯ was, she¡¯d make sure to squeeze every detail of it out of Jerome before she went to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    ¡°Yes, yes. It¡¯s like an Epos but not an Epos. They¡¯re not the same. I heard you the first time.¡± Jerome responded, his voice dripping with sarcasm.


    ¡°I want to see you create this¡­¡± Uncle Rihal started to say.


    ¡°Epos?¡± Jerome finished the sentence for him with a smile. Ash observed them both as they sparred, unable to hold back her smile.


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    ¡°Whatever,¡± Uncle Rihal said, his tone one of defeat.


    She couldn¡¯t help but giggle out loud, making the mighty Spirit Realm expert feel even more awkward. She had never seen Uncle Rihal so out of his element; so unsure of himself. Who knew Jerome could turn him into a mouse on a sinking boat at sea. He glared at her, but his glare didn¡¯t faze her.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been spending an awful lot of free time together,¡± he announced. ¡°We¡¯ll be training more often from now on.¡±


    ¡°Urgh!¡± she grumbled. ¡°I have a master who trains me already. I don¡¯t need a second one.¡±


    Rihal smirked but ignored her. ¡°So?¡± he gestured toward Jerome.


    Jerome smiled at their antics. Standing up from his bed, he sat down cross-legged on the floor to begin adjusting his breathing. From Rihal¡¯s explanations, Ash thought she had a vague idea of how this¡­Epos worked. Something to do with words; one of the things her master had yet to explain to her. All she knew about it was that giving something natural a name would siphon vitality and essence from her.


    And apparently, one could swear an oath and the world would hold you to your words. Ash sighed, feeling the weight of the oath she took in this very room a few moons ago in her heart.


    She turned her attention back to Jerome as she watched him move slightly in discomfort, maybe? She couldn¡¯t tell but as a sacred artist, her eyes were sharp enough to track even the tiniest movement. She had always had great eyesight ¡ª maybe even more than most. And now she could tell that whatever Jerome was doing, he wasn¡¯t succeeding at it at all.


    Jerome breathed out a sigh, solidifying her conclusion. It wasn¡¯t working as it did before. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s¡­ There¡¯s no spark of inspiration.¡± He went back into thought and stopped talking for a while, furrowing his brows.


    ¡°What?¡± Uncle Rihal asked with a smugness Ash had come to know very well. ¡°Can¡¯t seem to do it like before?¡±


    ¡°For some reason, no,¡± Jerome responded. He was taking his failure in stride. That made Ash even more attracted to him. Where did that come from? she blushed and hid her face behind her dark cloud of curls.


    Uncle Rihal chuckled, not noticing the change in her emotions to which she was grateful. ¡°Don¡¯t be discouraged. The reason you were able to create that¡­¡± he didn¡¯t want to say Epos.


    ¡°Mantra,¡± Jerome said. Now that¡¯s a new one, though it sounded familiar to her.


    Uncle Rihal shrugged. ¡°¡­mantra. The reason you were able to create it was because of your precepts over a long period of time. To create a¡­mantra, for your fire essence, you¡¯d need to brood over the nature of a flame. Why and how it came into existence. What its purpose is to mankind¡­and to you.¡±


    ¡°Its nature,¡± Jerome said, thoughtfully.


    ¡°Makes sense,¡± Ash said. When she thought about this mantra of the earth attribute essence Jerome created, it made sense. ¡°That¡­er, mantra was like a Eulogy to Mother Nature. So, he has to create something similar for the fire-attribute essence. Is there a chance I can create something like that?¡±


    The two men turned to look at her as if they were seeing her for the first time. Ash huffed, folding her arms under her bust in defense, and glaring at them in contempt. Did they think she was less intelligent than they were?


    Jerome¡¯s eyes moved down from her face to focus on her bust and she saw his pupils dilate. Ash lost her train of thoughts in elation after that, blushing profusely. She was so happy, she wanted to run screaming out of the room. Yet she also wanted to be acknowledged by Jerome.


    Of all the times she had blushed when she thought or heard about Jerome, Uncle Rihal picked this time to notice, giving her a knowing smirk. All at once, she wished the earth would open up and swallow her. She felt like her heart was bared to all the world to see.


    ¡°Should I¡­ leave the room for you both?¡± Uncle Rihal asked and she picked up Jerome¡¯s inkwell and hurled it at him. Not that it did any good. The fart-face burst into laughter and the spilled ink froze mid-air, reversing back into the little jar that once held it.


    Jerome coughed, saving her from more embarrassment. ¡°I believe you can too, Ash,¡± he said looking her in the eyes.


    Ash had to catch herself from falling as she gazed into the beautiful, black orbs that were his eyes. Her stomach fluttered with what felt like butterflies and she felt a little light-headed. She had to swallow hard to concentrate on the now.


    Jerome blushed still watching her, but refused to take his eyes off her. For once, she was grateful she wasn¡¯t the only one affected by the growing attraction between them.


    ¡°If you two lovebirds are done staring¡­¡±


    Jerome cleared his throat and looked back at Rihal. Ash suddenly felt the loss of the warmth his eyes kindled in her when they gazed upon her.


    ¡°I¡¯ll call these mantras, earth mantra and fire mantra,¡± he declared but scratched his head in embarrassment a moment later. Now it was his turn to be laughed at. Ash giggled uncontrollably as Uncle Rihal smiled.


    ¡°In my head, it sounded way more awesome,¡± Jerome said, quite embarrassed. Uncle Rihal began to laugh lightly but he suddenly looked up. His eyes turned that deep unnatural green and she could see runic patterns swirling in them.


    She tried to get a read on them, to understand what she was seeing but it eluded her. She felt she could understand them; like the knowledge was there within her, just waiting to surface. It felt like she had the words on the tip of her tongue but couldn¡¯t say it.


    ¡°How does one get eyes like that?¡± Jerome asked.


    Rihal smiled at him for a moment before answering. ¡°It¡¯s inherent in every child born with the blood of Vorthe flowing in their veins. Once you become a Spirit Realm artist, it¡¯ll awaken. However, you¡¯d still need to get the ajanai. I have to leave now. Keep practicing. I¡¯ll meet you before the opening of Terra Praeta so we can head to the portal together.¡±


    Rihal vanished on the spot, making her jump a little. ¡°I hate it when he does that,¡± she complained.


    Jerome chortled. ¡°Like he¡¯s saying, ¡®I can go anywhere but you can¡¯t¡¯, right?¡±


    ~~~


    Damien Vorthe


    Mantra¡­now that¡¯s a word I haven¡¯t heard in a long time, he thought as he hovered in the air above Kilian¡¯s palace. He had been listening to Jerome¡¯s and Rihal¡¯s discussion. When he heard the word ¡®mantra¡¯, his eyes lit up in recognition.


    Many didn¡¯t know of the races that walked the earth long ago. Those who were called gods. The Forgotten. A civilization of different races of old who used that word, mantra. They were gods in times past, but they had long been wiped out.


    Damien¡¯s gaze pierced through the physical barriers between him and Jerome, to scrutinize the child. ¡°He looks very human to me¡­doesn¡¯t sound like Fae either.¡±


    The Fae. One of the most feared races in the world in ancient times.


    Damien thought back to the stories told by his father when he was a boy. No one would want to live in those times as a human. He sent out a message to Rihal through his communications rune, an ancient and long-lost means of communication that was only used by the Royal Family in this time period. After a while, Rihal appeared by his side and they both flew off in the direction of the city.


    He would be sorting out how the Fated Dark One knew the word ¡®mantra¡¯ later.

 59. Might Maketh Right

    Jerome walked out of Kilian¡¯s Palace the next day ready to join the Royal elites at their training ground for another sparring session. He was also looking to use some of their equipment.


    The moment he walked out, he was immediately drawn to the courtyard and the changes that had occurred since he last saw it. The vibrant greenery seemed to have come to life in a way he hadn¡¯t seen before. The bushes and shrubs were bursting with dense vitality, and he could almost feel the energy emanating from them.


    A gardener was already hard at work pruning the shrubs. It was clear that his cycling session the day before had remarkably transformed the courtyard into a breathtaking display of nature¡¯s beauty.


    Jerome rushed off to the training ground. Today, he was also putting on sparring robes, but his was gray. When he got to the training ground, there was no one there.


    Perfect, he thought. Now I can train with their equipment to my heart''s content.


    Taking a closer look, there were apparatuses of various shapes and sizes. Some of them even looked like huge rocks someone moved to the training ground.


    Why put rocks here? he thought to himself confused.


    He decided to deadlift an anvil-looking chunk of metal. Nothing in the training ground looked anything close to barbells or dumbbells. Positioning his legs on either side of the anvil, he grabbed hold of two handle-type things sticking out on both sides of the top and lifted. Or he tried to¡­ The anvil didn¡¯t even budge.


    He heard someone burst out in laughter at that moment. Turning around, he found that some of the Sprouts had arrived.


    Jerome glared at the boy who just laughed. There was a girl beside him holding back her laughter but after a while, she couldn¡¯t hold it back anymore and erupted.


    ¡°What? Come give it a try yourself, let¡¯s see if you can!¡± Jerome exclaimed.


    The two kids didn¡¯t answer him immediately as they couldn¡¯t hold back their laughter. Jerome cursed them under his breath and continued trying to lift the anvil.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± One of the kids walked up to him and cleared his throat to get Jerome¡¯s attention.


    ¡°What?¡± he asked in irritation.


    ¡°That¡¯s not for lifting,¡± the kid said.


    Jerome quickly stopped what he was doing. The fact that this kid came to speak with him showed he probably wasn¡¯t egotistical like the leader the day before.


    ¡°How do you use it then?¡± He asked.


    ¡°You use that,¡± the kid pointed to a huge maul, ¡°to hit the top. The anvil measures the force of your hit.¡±


    ¡°Thanks. But is there nothing to lift that can help improve muscle strength ¡ª not that this can¡¯t do the job?¡± Jerome asked.


    The two young Sprouts looked at Jerome inquisitively. He could see it in their eyes that never expected him to be educated enough to use terms like improving muscle strength.


    ¡°The boulders to your left are useful for that,¡± the boy answered. ¡°There are special cores inside them that can make them heavier the more essence you transmit into them.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I¡¯m Hyde by the way.¡± he said, ¡°This is Alana.¡± He gestured towards the girl beside him and she waved.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± Jerome nodded curtly to both of them and walked up to the huge boulders. The boulders were almost half as tall as him which was something because he was over six feet. They were also wide enough that it¡¯ll take two people as tall as him to wrap their arms around them. But how the hell was he supposed to lift something so wide then?


    The boulders were separated by a conspicuous circular area away from the other apparatus. He carefully hefted two of the boulders to see how heavy they were. To his disappointment though, they were not very heavy. But he was quite pleased as the boulders seemed to be attracted to his palms, which in turn, changed their center of gravity. Except it was the other way around and they changed their center of gravity to attach themselves to his hands.


    Jerome quickly transmitted his essence into the boulders making them twice as heavy as they were before. The boulders weren¡¯t so big, and he could comfortably lift them up and down. He formed a bench made of earth using his earth-attribute essence so he could bench press the boulders.


    ¡°Why do you lift them like that?¡± Hyde asked. He and his girlfriend ¡ª at least Jerome thought that was who she was ¡ª both observed as he hefted the boulders up and down.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that how it¡¯s done?¡±


    The Sprouts shook their heads. This time Alana spoke up. ¡°The normal thing to do is to hold them up for as long as possible.¡± Her voice had a surprising depth to it. But it was still feminine.


    ¡°Well, I guess you can say it¡¯s a new way to lift.¡± Jerome¡¯s voice strained a bit as he pushed more essence into the boulders. ¡°This way, I get to repeat the lift multiple times, putting more strain on my muscles. But holding it up is also good. I¡¯ll try that later.¡±


    They looked at each other and Hyde shrugged his shoulders as if saying that it was not their training, so what do they care?


    It seems five times the original weight is my limit right now, Jerome mused as he sensed the painful tension in his muscles. He had increased the weight of the boulders five times the original weight.


    He did about 500 reps before getting up to take a break. Looking around, he noticed that all the Sprouts from yesterday had arrived and many of them were busy working out or sparring with each other. Forester walked up to him looking at him with a smirk on his face.


    ¡°Do you have a good challenger for me?¡± Jerome asked as he rubbed off the little sweat from his body. This made everybody stop what they were doing to focus on them.


    ¡°Fight me,¡± Forester said.


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°I won¡¯t hold back.¡±


    That angered the teenager more than anything Jerome had ever said.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± Jerome said. Best not to have a repeat of Hedon.


    Forester drew his sword. ¡°The rules are the same as yesterday. No killing.¡±


    Jerome responded by forming a spear with Suzie as he walked toward the center of the training ground. Everyone around moved far away from both of them.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    Without a word, they both attacked.


    ~~~


    Forester Vorthe


    Forester stabbed at Jerome with his sword covered in golden light, but Jerome slapped the flat of the blade away with the blade of his spear. The sheer force from Jerome¡¯s blow almost knocked the sword out of Forester¡¯s hand but he gripped the hilt of his sword hard and spun around, chopping at Jerome with his other hand, his fingers straightened like the edge of a blade covered in sword force.


    Forester watched as Jerome stepped aside, deftly dodging his blow. Jerome stabbed at him with his spear but Forester already anticipated that move. With his sword covered in golden light, he slashed at Jerome, sending an arc of golden light toward Jerome as he shot backward.


    Jerome covered himself in earthen armor right before the sword light hit him. What?! The armor cracked from the impact and disintegrated ¡ª the force pushing him back a little. Jerome shot a series of fireballs at him. Forester¡¯s face twisted in surprise. He never anticipated that his opponent was able to form an earthen armor to protect himself.


    He weaved in and out of the way of the fireballs as they got close to him, exploding as they hit the ground. The heat they gave off was enough to turn him into roast meat. He split the air horizontally once again with the Sun¡¯s Wrath ¡ª sword force weaved into light. It was a beautiful but deadly creation! And he hoped his opponent would underestimate it.


    His opponent reformed his earthen armor and shot toward him. Forester watched as the brat ducked out of the way of the sword light, rolling on the ground before shooting back up and running straight for him. All the while shooting fireballs at him.


    How the hell does this whelp have so much essence to waste? he thought in annoyance. No normal Sprout should have this much essence. It should take at least three times as much essence as that of an average Sprout to manipulate earth and fire essence at this level.


    Forester dodged two more fireballs and slashed one with his sword ¡ª big mistake. The fireball exploded the moment it touched the blade of his sword, and the heat wave, though not so intense, heated the blade of his sword to dangerous levels. He had to push his core harder to offset the heat reaching the hilt of his sword while jumping backward to dodge more fireballs.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± he shrieked. There was no time to counter.


    Forester could sense his opponent running toward him again, the ground shaking with his heavy footsteps. He started to activate the Sun¡¯s Wrath when the whelp jerked to a stop a few paces away from him and the spear in his hand dissolved into a whip. Jerome snapped the whip in his direction ¡ª not directly at him, but close.


    The tip of the whip blurred with blinding speed toward him, and Forester felt fear for the first time, and something else ¡ª hesitation. He instinctively knew he could not take that blow head-on ¡ª what with the glowing tip that was sizzling with condensed fire essence!


    He quickly surrounded himself in his golden aura to aid his speed and shot backward. The glowing tip of Jerome¡¯s whip struck the air, detonating in a flash of blue light.


    Boom!


    The ground shook with the force of an earthquake, threatening to collapse in on itself and both of them were pushed away from each other. Heat and pressure blew Forester¡¯s hair out of his face, and he felt like the heat would scald him.


    Forester, like most Vorthes, followed the Path of Resplendent Radiance ¡ª a Path of light and sword force. He was one of the few Sprouts who could wield two forces ¡ª light and sword force, which was impressive in itself. But against Jerome, he found that Idrienne¡¯s claims were not unfounded. The spear-wielding Sprout in front of him didn¡¯t give him a breather. Jerome just kept attacking with unpredictable moves.


    And what¡¯s with that whip? he thought to himself. He was out of breath already and couldn¡¯t help but plop down on the ground to rest. A quick scan of his core told him he couldn¡¯t continue the fight as his core was almost squeezed dry.


    And since when did he learn to wield earth attribute essence? he thought, frustration setting in. This new development wasn¡¯t accounted for when he decided to take on Jerome. Jerome¡¯s defense had become sturdier. Almost every attack he made was countered easily by that earthen armor.


    Forester got up from the dirt floor after resting for a while. He looked at Jerome with venom in his eyes and walked away from the training ground in shame and anger. There wasn¡¯t anything he could do to Jerome, at least not right here.


    You wait until we get into Terra Praeta. I¡¯ll deliver you myself into Hedon¡¯s hands, he thought to himself. The whelp had cost him a void bridge. This was grounds enough for him to be pissed.


    ~~~


    Jerome caught himself with a back foot as his earthen armor disintegrated from the sheer force of the impact. The whip was one of his latest creations. He had spent a lot of effort making sure that his fireballs didn¡¯t just sputter out, but exploded on impact, causing more damage. He smiled to himself as he witnessed the impact of his creation himself.


    Jerome was still brimming with energy, ready to continue the battle, but one look at his opponent told him that Forester was spent and unable to continue. He didn¡¯t have the essence to spare, not like Jerome. He had also noticed the golden aura in the middle of the fight.


    The fast kid from yesterday also had this golden aura surrounding him too, he thought.


    Another thing was the way their essence moved through their bodies. He didn¡¯t consider it during the fight yesterday. But now, it was clear this was a kind of technique the Royals used to cycle. Jerome made a mental note to ask Rihal about it. The golden aura technique must be tied to the unique way their essence moved through their bodies. Some kind of secret technique then.


    ¡°Thank you for the fight,¡± he said with a slight bow of his head. At this point, it was clear who the winner was and the truth hung in the air unsaid. He dusted off his gray training robes and turned to look around.


    Most of the Sprouts turned away from him, their displeasure evident on their faces. There were two girls in the crowd he noticed yesterday ¡ª twin siblings. These girls had white-blonde hair and deep blue eyes making them a sight to behold as they were incredibly beautiful. Besides some folks with red-brown hair and dark brown eyes, there was scarcely any other person with different hair color in Farryn other than black.


    The Itakars from the banquet the previous night were also rare.


    Jerome had scanned the twins and found out they were hiding their true strength. He didn¡¯t feel threatened by them, but he felt each of them could hold her own against him. On the surface, they looked like every other Sprout on the training ground, but the sturdiness of their core put them in a league of their own.


    Of course, they didn¡¯t know Jerome had scanned them. Their senses couldn¡¯t be as sharp as the Sovereign¡¯s. Jerome had also learned to scan people as mildly as possible so as not to arouse them to his actions.


    Forester stood up and left the training ground with his face red with shame and anger. Jerome watched him go before walking toward the training apparatuses to resume his training in peace.


    Many of the Sprouts gave him a wide berth, avoiding his gaze. Only Layla, Hyde, and Alana walked toward him.


    ¡°You know you¡¯re in trouble, right?¡± Layla said. Her long black hair was tied in a ponytail revealing strong jaws and a beautiful neck.


    ¡°I hear ya,¡± Jerome said, sitting himself on his earthen bench.


    ¡°Just don¡¯t make all my work be in vain.¡± Layla turned to the side, looking at Hyde and Alana with curiosity.


    ¡°You should talk to Senior Rihal about your fight. He can help mitigate the damage you¡¯ve done¡­ maybe,¡± Hyde said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. I can take care of myself.¡±


    Hyde and Alana walked away, not saying another word.


    ¡°You know,¡± Layla began, ¡°everyone here reported to their parents when they got home the day before ¡ª a common disciple beating up Royal Sprouts should have been punished and then executed.¡±


    ¡°And?¡± Jerome asked, mockery in his eyes.


    ¡°¡®Might maketh right.¡¯ It¡¯s what Idrienne¡¯s father told him.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that, not knowing who she was speaking of.


    ¡°The speedster,¡± Layla said, and he nodded in recognition. So the Sprout¡¯s name is Idrienne. Maybe he¡¯d get to challenge this Idrienne to a battle some other time. ¡°Even my mother was a bit wary when I told her about it.¡±


    ¡°What are you getting at Layla?¡± Jerome asked. From the look in her eyes, he was sure she must have glimpsed something odd.


    ¡°None of our parents acted the way they should have, which was odd.¡± Layla tilted her head at him, her gaze never leaving his eyes. ¡°It was like they all ganged up on us¡­ to protect something. Or someone¡­ perhaps you.¡±

 60. Missing

    Jerome acted like he was thinking, taking his gaze away from her. Then he shrugged. ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡± She nodded and left at that. He could tell she didn¡¯t buy his answer though. But there was nothing he could do about it.


    The rest of the day at the training ground was quite uneventful. Jerome had already proven he was just as powerful, if not more powerful than their most powerful Sprout. No one had the guts to bring trouble his way now. But he also knew he would have to watch out for all fifty-three or so of them when they entered Terra Praeta.


    He kept up a pretty good routine which the other Sprouts found strange. He lifted, did some calisthenics, ran, meditated, and repeated the whole thing. All the while he felt curious eyes on him.


    Hyde and Agatha were studying his training routine ¡ª as was Layla ¡ª and probably committing it to memory as well. Hyde was particularly curious about how Jerome could think of holding himself up parallel to the surface of the earth with just his hands holding onto a ladder that was perpendicular to the earth¡¯s surface. He had come around to ask about it a few times. Even trying it out himself.


    Jerome had thought that they would want to distance themselves from him since he had beat up their leader and possibly made a mockery of them all.


    To Hyde, this was an easy exercise, but no one had thought of doing something like this before. He also wanted to see if Jerome would apply the up-and-down movement he usually did with his other exercise regimen to this one. But Jerome disappointed him a bit since it was limited to just push-ups, pull-ups, and lifting.


    When the sun started setting, Jerome ended his training and headed back to Kilian¡¯s palace.


    The moment Jerome left their view, he turned back slightly and caught a glimpse of something that made him smile; everyone wanted to try some of the exercises he was doing. Their eyes were blazing with competitiveness; they all took turns on the various apparatus he had used.


    No one wanted to be left in the dust, he imagined. If they could figure out how he trained and why, perhaps they could figure out what made him so strong and fast¡­


    And probably try to beat him at his own game. He smirked at that.


    He went looking for Rihal when he got to the Palace but his master had gone on another mission. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but wonder what might be happening outside the estate. He didn¡¯t receive news of anything and somehow, he had gotten used to it. A life without smartphones and media was medicine to the soul but now he missed it.


    He sighed and went straight to the library to study. Maybe he could find something about secret techniques there.


    ¡°Hghrm-hghrm!¡± he cleared his throat to wake up the sleeping librarian at the front desk. Did the guy ever find time to rest? No wonder he was still Blank.


    Jerome quickly chided himself for thinking such thoughts. Just because he was now a Sprout didn¡¯t mean he should look down on others.


    ¡°Yes, yes!¡± the librarian startled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. ¡°Senior Jerome.¡± he bowed a little in his sitting position.


    ¡°Please don¡¯t,¡± Jerome said, slightly embarrassed. This guy was Blank before he became a sacred artist he was sure. ¡°Just Jerome will do.¡±


    The Blank smiled at him. ¡°As you wish¡­ Jerome.¡± He tested the name on his lips. ¡°How may I help you?¡±


    ¡°I seem to have lost my identity bracelet. Can I borrow books without it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome. You¡¯re a known Sprout so I guess you can for now, but you¡¯ll have to get a new bracelet as soon as possible.¡±


    ¡°Good. I¡¯d like to get a book that details cycling techniques. I¡¯ve read all the books on the shelves in the Sprout wing and none of them discuss anything related to that.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± the librarian opened his mouth to talk but someone else beat him to it.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have authorization for that.¡±


    Jerome looked up to see the owner of the new voice, a voice he knew well and hoped not to hear again.


    ¡°Fifteen.¡± The older Sprout looked¡­ bigger than he did the last time he had seen him. Like he had been training. Muscles rippled underneath his red robe as he walked a few more steps toward Jerome.


    Fifteen gritted his teeth, hearing his number from Jerome. It must have sounded like an insult because Jerome once called him senior. But now they wore the same blood red initiate robes. And Jerome¡¯s was stitched with leathers of the same color, making him stand out as a warrior, a much higher status than that of a librarian.


    ¡°Very well,¡± Jerome replied. ¡°I¡¯ll come back.¡± He left to go look for the Lord of the Palace.


    Moments later, Jerome bumped into him. Kilian was leaving his study when Jerome met him. Jerome explained his need but Kilian smiled and shook his head.


    ¡°Even I don¡¯t have authorization to give you something like that,¡± he said


    ¡°Then who does?¡±


    ¡°Wait a while for Rihal to get back and he¡¯s going to sort it out, okay?¡± Kilian rushed off after that.


    Jerome sighed, walking back to his room. The back and forth had left him frustrated and a little exhausted. All he wanted to do now was sleep. But he gave himself a mental slap and started meditating. The door to his room had been reinstalled so he at least had more privacy. He pulled out the Sunfire stone and sat down on it to meditate. After meditating for what felt like a few hours, he put his Sunfire stone away and got ready to go to the underground training hall.


    Scarcely had he taken out his gray training robe when a hand suddenly clamped down on his shoulder, suppressing his strength, and pulling him away from his bed. It slammed him against the opposite wall with enough force to break all his bones.


    Jerome was fortunate to see the face of his assailant before he passed out. Dark hair half covered the sneering face with black orbs for eyes which held a hint of lunacy.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Fifteen! The damned library attendant!


    Jerome came to and he quickly stilled himself, listening for sounds that he may recognize. His back hurt like hell and he could feel dried blood around his ears and neck. He could tell he was outside the palace. He only had his inner tunic on which caused him to shiver in cold. Jerome could vaguely remember the last time he felt cold. Those were the days in the orphanage.


    He felt eyes on him the next moment and sighed. There was no way his captor wouldn¡¯t know he was awake. A sacred artist¡¯s senses were far superior to that of a mere mortal.


    He stood up unsteadily and looked around. He was in an unfamiliar part of the estate. Or maybe he wasn¡¯t even in the estate anymore. He was in a clearing of hardened earth, surrounded by a hedge as tall as he was. He heard voices a few paces away and turned to see Fifteen and the sleazy viper who stood with Rihal watching his training a while back. How long had it been?


    ¡°Why am I not surprised,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°You would keep silent in my presence. Do you understand me?¡± the sleaze bag¡¯s voice carried to him on the wind, as though traveling through space to reach him. He was soft spoken and seemed like one who chose his words carefully.


    But Jerome felt deep down that there were many things wrong about the person who spoke with that voice. Like he was wearing the skin of a royal to disguise his hideous nature. He felt an instinctual distrust toward this¡­ Idrel, as Rihal had called him that day.


    ¡°You don¡¯t own me,¡± Jerome deadpanned.


    One moment, the viper was a distance away, the next he was right in front of Jerome. A tremendous force poured out of him and Jerome found himself on the floor, drowning in an aura attack so thick, he felt like he was going to be crushed to paste!


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Idrel leaned forward as if to listen carefully.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t speak, he couldn¡¯t even breathe. He struggled to gulp in air, but the air felt as heavy as his lungs. He tried to lift himself up but failed.


    ¡°Remember this moment when next you¡¯re tempted to speak to me with disrespect.¡± Idrel stood up and faced fifteen who had walked over. The pressure he was emanating from his body slowly ebbed and Jerome inhaled loudly.


    ¡°My Lord. I hope this puts me in your good graces,¡± fifteen said reverently, trying to ingratiate himself with the royal.


    Jerome snorted, standing on shaky legs. ¡°Your end is near,¡± he said, addressing the library attendant. ¡°You just don¡¯t know it.¡± He moved a few feet away from Idrel to put some distance between them.


    ¡°Are you talking to me, you runt?!¡± fifteen growled. Jerome could sense that the man whom he used to think was all bark and no bite had grown a backbone. He guessed the ripped body was not for show.


    ¡°Of course, I¡¯m talking to you. Who else would I be talking to?¡± Jerome said. He never bothered to find out what happened to the Sprout after Rihal sent him to the overseer.


    Fifteen looked over at Idrel as if asking permission. Idrel shrugged playfully. ¡°Just don¡¯t kill him,¡± he said.


    Jerome prepared himself for what was about to come. The library attendant grinned and rushed toward him. Jerome waited for the moment when he was precisely three feet away from him.


    The flowing steel whipped out of his pointed finger and wrapped around fifteen¡¯s forward leg, just above the knee ¡ª as thin and sharp as a blade. With a slight pull, fifteen¡¯s leg was separated from his body. Fifteen screamed in pain as he crashed into the ground. Idrel cursed behind him.


    Jerome didn¡¯t want to kill the attendant, so he didn¡¯t attack him anymore. But he made sure Suzie consumed the vitality in the leg he amputated. Fifteen watched as his amputated leg dried up into a husk of its former self. He was already cycling to stop the flow of blood out of his blood vessels.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to fucking kill you, you bastard!¡± Fifteen roared. There was a hint of madness in his eyes as he continued to curse. Jerome didn¡¯t answer him. He turned to face Idrel next. But he knew he couldn¡¯t win against a Spirit Realm artist.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to regret that,¡± Idrel said, and began walking toward Jerome.


    Jerome shivered ¡ª more from the promise of wrath in the royal¡¯s voice than the cold of the outdoors. He suddenly lost control of his body, as if his center of mass shifted. He found himself falling forward toward Idrel. It was a weird feeling. Before he could orient himself to do anything though, he was in Idrel¡¯s grasp.


    Spirit Realm artist that he was, Idrel didn¡¯t have to apply much effort to break Jerome¡¯s arm. The crunching of bones was followed by sharp pain. Jerome began to convulse but Idrel didn¡¯t stop. The viper broke his collarbone next. Jerome gritted his teeth and held in his scream.


    Idrel chortled happily. ¡°Your pain threshold must be really high! Would you like to see how much you can take?¡± he slammed Jerome, face first into the hard soil.


    Jerome felt his facial bones shift and break. He grunted in pain as he tasted blood in his mouth. He tried to summon Suzie to attack but for some reason, he couldn¡¯t ¡®will¡¯ it to attack. His core was also sealed shut.


    ¡°You can make it stop whenever you want.¡± Idrel placed a foot on the back of his right knee, applying pressure little by little. ¡°You only need tell me what I want to know.¡±


    Jerome began to huff and puff, taking great gulps of air to prepare for the incoming pain. That knee had already been shattered once, another time and he wasn¡¯t sure it would ever be the same.


    ¡°Let¡¯s start with an obvious question, shall we? Who are you, Jerome?¡±


    ¡°Damned if I know,¡± Jerome replied.


    ¡°Wrong answer.¡± The pressure on the back of his knee increased and the bones gave. Jerome screamed. Pain was all he felt before he passed out.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°What could be the issue now?¡± he muttered, walking back to Kilian¡¯s palace to check on Jerome. Was he angry at him? Is it because he hadn¡¯t been around for a while?


    They were supposed to meet up at the training ground but Jerome didn¡¯t show up. His disciple didn¡¯t strike him as someone who would miss training just to spite his master. In fact, Jerome was obsessed with getting stronger.


    He got to the palace and went straight to Jerome¡¯s room. Rihal found nothing there. Everything was in order and his room was clean. His storage bags were still here though, which Rihal found odd. Jerome never went out without the pouch containing the Sunfire stone. Every other bag, he could leave behind but he always took the Sunfire stone with him.


    He recounted the pouches in his drawer again, counting nine of them, with seven of them filled with air-tight crates of uncut high-grade crystals.


    ¡°What the fuck is going on?¡± Rihal muttered. A wide scan of the whole castle showed that Jerome wasn¡¯t in the building either. He quickly used his void bridge to change location, teleporting to Ash¡¯s balcony in a split moment.


    ¡°Ash, are you in?¡± he called out. He could smell her floral scent wafting through the blinds of the room.


    ¡°Uncle Rihal don¡¯t come in!¡± Ash quickly said. Rihal heard her shuffle around to cover herself up.


    ¡°I won¡¯t,¡± Rihal quickly blurted out. ¡°I just want to know if Jerome was here. He didn¡¯t show up for training this morning.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± The surprise in her voice was all he needed to know that his disciple wasn¡¯t here either, or had even been seen by Ash for that matter. Which meant something really bad was happening and he was in the dark about it.


    Rihal quickly sent a transmission to Kilian, letting him know what was going on. Jerome couldn¡¯t have just left this side of the estate like that. That was not who he was. He also wasn¡¯t summoned by the Sovereign, if not he¡¯ll be the first to know. He didn¡¯t want to think about it but the thought came to him unbidden.


    His disciple was missing.

 61. The Viper (2)

    Idrel


    The clopping hoofs of the horses pulling the carriage were the only sounds coming from outside it and even that was muffled. This way, Idrel could ¡®interrogate¡¯ his captive in peace ¡ª even though he didn¡¯t have the necessary ¡®tools¡¯ for it. What a shame. He would have loved to peel off a few fingernails and toenails, maybe the runt would sing to his tune then.


    Idrel looked at the mess he had caused on the floor of the carriage they were riding in. Rihal¡¯s disciple was a lot tougher than he gave him credit for. But he was still going to get what he wanted.


    ¡°You know you¡¯re never getting out of this, right?¡± he said, smiling at the swollen face of the runt in front of him. ¡°Right now we are strolling around Farryn, trying to spread your aura everywhere. If I¡¯m correct, Rihal will exhaust himself trying to find you by himself, instead of following the normal channels.


    ¡°He¡¯s emotional that way, you see? Never one to lead with his head. I quite like him that way though. Makes him easy to predict and all that.¡±


    He sat down in the opposite cushion chair to keep away from the blood dripping on the floor and the opposite seat. ¡°Soon, we¡¯d leave the city. I just have to decide which slavers I¡¯d sell you to. You may think living in the slum was bad.¡± He chuckled darkly. ¡°You are about to find out you¡¯ve been living like royalty.¡±


    The whelp barked a laugh, wincing in pain a moment after. ¡°And they said Vorthe didn¡¯t participate in slave trade.¡±


    With a flick of a finger, he sent a blade of pure essence, cutting deep into the boy¡¯s skin. ¡°Your torture will only continue. You can save yourself all the trouble and tell me what I want to know. Besides Kilian, who else does Rihal talk to? How did he get you on the list for the adventure?¡±


    The whelp had the audacity to laugh again. Seriously, it was beginning to grate on his nerves.


    ¡°I bet you thought this was just going to be a simple interrogation. You¡¯d get what you want and get rid of me before anyone knows it.¡± Idrel watched the boy pause for effect and lean forward. ¡°Tell me, how does it feel to not be in control? I smell it on you; the need for control.¡± He grinned with his blood-stained teeth.


    Idrel burned with fury where he sat. With just a few words, the boy had stated what he wanted the most ¡ª control, and made him lose control over his own emotions. He wanted to lash out but held himself back, taking a deep breath to cycle and calm his nerves.


    ¡°Selling you into slavery wouldn¡¯t be pleasing enough,¡± he said looking pointedly at the whelp. ¡°Selling you to Hedon Alvric, however.¡± Idrel smiled, seeing the slight tensing of his captives shoulders. ¡°Now that would be satisfying.¡±


    He clapped his hand and sat up with the exuberance of a child while still oozing the menace of a Spirit Realm expert. ¡°It¡¯s settled then. To the Alvric estate!¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°You say he was in here last night,¡± Rihal said, taking a meditative posture. ¡°If he never left, it must mean someone came to take him.¡± He shut his eyes to center himself for what he was about to do.


    ¡°It would appear so, Rihal,¡± Kilian said beside him. ¡°Take your time. No one would disturb you till you¡¯re done.¡±


    ¡°I just hope this doesn¡¯t take too much time,¡± he said before taking a deep breath.


    What he was about to do was very tasking on a Spirit Realm artist. If this wasn¡¯t Jerome he was looking for, he¡¯d search through the normal secret networks of the Nediti. He couldn¡¯t expose Jerome¡¯s importance as it were.


    A maid had been sent to wait on them. She quickly served them tea and pastries before moving to stand outside the door ¡ª a silent way of communicating to anyone nearby that they were not to be disturbed.


    With a deep breath in and an exhale, he closed his eyes and sent his aura to encompass the whole room to begin searching for remnants of another¡¯s aura. Everyone had an aura, even non-sacred artists. But only sacred artists were capable of honing their senses to pinpoint remnants of another¡¯s aura. If there was someone in Jerome¡¯s room the night before, this was the fastest way to find them.


    The outside world quickly receded from him; every sound, smell, and emotion faded. To successfully do this he had to be empty; to take on himself the ¡®self¡¯ of another. In this state he had no concept of time, day, or night. All that existed was just a void, a black canvas on which the auras of the world around his physical body could tell their story.


    Jerome¡¯s aura was the first his senses picked up. He couldn¡¯t see it but he felt the energy it gave off. It was bold and hungry; an hunger that transcended the need for food. No. It was a hunger for power. That hunger was most dominant in Jerome¡¯s aura. The intent behind it, though, calmed Rihal¡¯s heart.


    Jerome missed his family. He longed to go searching for them. It was a yearning that was constantly with him. There was anger and pain in there too. He was filled with regret and hatred for Hedon Alvric. His anger was a righteous one; burning bright yet couldn¡¯t quite win against his hunger for power.


    Soon colors bloomed in his mind¡¯s eye and a new aura made itself known, hiding behind something. He couldn¡¯t quite place it. It gave him the feeling that the person used an artifact to hide their aura when he came for Jerome; an artifact he well knew.


    The colors took shape in his mind and a blurry blue-colored form of Jerome was hefted off his feet and slammed into the wall behind him. His assailant felt like a part of the world ¡ª like a part of the void. There was no shape, color, or intent his senses could lash unto. The elusive aura picked Jerome up and vanished on the spot.


    Rihal replayed the scene again and again, trying as best he could to pinpoint something about the attacker. Nothing. He opened his eyes and the sounds and smells of the world came crashing in. Fatigue overtook him and he almost fell flat on his face.


    ¡°Whoever took him¡­¡± He inhaled deeply to catch his breath.


    ¡°Slow down, Rihal. Just relax and regain your strength.¡± Kilian was there holding him up.


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    Rihal reached out to his master through his communication¡¯s rune but the Master of Shadows didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°We need to get to my master,¡± he said, trying to stand up and failing. He had used up a lot of essence and depleted his mental energy just to remain in that state. ¡°Whoever took him is part of the Nediti, Kilian.¡±


    Kilian paused, shock taking him over. ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­¡± he had no words.


    Rihal understood his confusion. Who would target another¡¯s disciple? The Nediti didn¡¯t get into other people¡¯s business. But one person came to mind. Rihal¡¯s brows creased as the feeling in his gut increased.


    ¡°You know who it is, don¡¯t you?¡± Kilian asked, seeing the look on his face.


    ¡°I have a suspect,¡± Rihal said, standing up on his feet. ¡°If it turns out to be him, I¡¯d make sure he pays.¡±


    Just then his communication¡¯s rune glowed at the back of his hand and he scanned it to find a message from his master, Damien Vorthe.


    ¡°This is a good challenge for you, Rihal. Solve it yourself.¡±


    Rihal cursed.


    ~~~


    City of Alvion. Southern Region of Vorthe.


    Grog


    These Vortheans were soft and easy to rend apart. He loved to watch the light in their eyes go out as he ripped out their hearts. The woman in his arms a few moments ago lay lifeless in the corner as he devoured her heart, enjoying the vitality of her blood as it coursed through his veins.


    Grog felt invincible. This place, this¡­ city. It was a blood farm for him. He laughed out loud and his voice echoed in the alley. Someone from an apartment above him shouted for him to keep it down but he ignored them. He moved his feet and felt blood underneath his heavy boots, squelching as he moved. It filled him with euphoria.


    The woman whose blood essence he¡¯d consumed through her heart, lay in a pool of her own blood. Grog reached for her clothes and wiped the blood off his hands.


    ¡°I hope Lokta is doing fine,¡± he muttered.


    His son should not have stepped foot out of the Archipelago. But he was Sprout already, and wanted to prove himself. Their blood called for carnage and there was only so much of that on a little island. He¡¯d just have to find time to ¡®watch¡¯ him truly become a man. He touched the bone crown on his head and smiled.


    The Amarkh had been a tremendous help in keeping track of his son and seeing him conquer. Maybe he could find a worthy challenger. But Grogg doubted it. All the sacred artists he had seen so far were weak ¡ª with the exception of the damned, politicking Alvric.


    He just needed to get the claw bone to the golden city. He patted his storage bag, as if to confirm it was still tied to his belt.


    ¡°What was it called again?¡± He had heard some of the locals here call it the City of Farryn; the city painted in gold. All year round, its people fatten themselves up with the flesh of numerous magical beasts.


    Alas, it would be their undoing.


    ¡°Farryn, eh?¡± He took out the claw bone from his storage bag. ¡°Let¡¯s see how much damage you can do.¡±


    The claw bone was easily three feet long and as thicker than an adult¡¯s fist on the other end opposite the pointy tip. It belonged to an extinct mythical creature, and it was capable of shrouding his presence. It was capable of so much more but he was incapable of awakening those powers of the claw.


    He¡¯d caused no small amount of trouble for Vorthe¡¯s spies with it. He had just one job; take their eyes off Alvric men until they got to the north. But he was also going north. The leader of his tribe wasn¡¯t dumb enough to not see an opportunity in Alvric¡¯s action.


    They were planning something. Something big, and by Orka¡¯s tits, he¡¯d find out what it was and use it to the advantage of his people. He just hoped his son wouldn¡¯t get caught in the crossfire when damnation broke loose.


    He felt his heart beat faster for a moment, and fatigue washed over him. Grog nearly stumbled. The claw was taking its due. It was not his to wield and it siphoned his life force even from inside his storage bag. He had to keep killing so as to maintain his own vitality.


    He had to leave this city and continue his journey North. He only needed to find a few more victims.


    ¡°Orka¡¯s tits, that hurt!¡± he groaned. He used the wall of the building he was walking near to hold himself up and leave the alley. Duty called and he was bound to answer.


    ~~~


    Idrel


    ¡°What do fuck are you doing here, Rihal?!¡± he snarled. He had received a tip from the librarian that Rihal had rushed out of Kilian¡¯s palace after spending about a quarter of the morning in his captives room. He¡¯d had to leave the whelp behind inside the carriage so as not to spark suspicion. But he couldn¡¯t keep this up. There were only so many times he could use the void bridge in a day.


    Rihal¡¯s gaze never wavered from his face. He said nothing, so the silence stretched for a bit.


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you invite me in, Idrel?¡±


    ¡°No. You made it clear that you¡¯re unwilling to help me. So you¡¯re not welcome.¡±


    ¡°Help you?¡± Rihal turned to pace the entrance of his manor like he owned the place. ¡°And what might you have needed help with?¡±


    He scoffed, and folded his arms. ¡°If I remember correctly, your disciple was put on the list of those going to Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°And this concerns you how, Idrel? From my knowledge you have no disciple of your own¡ª¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re done, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°So, you could do what?¡± Rihal grinned at him. ¡°Go play your filthy messed up games with my disciple. I know you took him, Idrel.¡±


    Idrel arched his brow, unsure how to answer. He would have thought Rihal would be devastated for losing his disciple. But it seems the whelp was no good to him. This was good news. He schooled his features before answering.


    ¡°Oh, you lost him. I wonder why that is? And do you have proof I have him, Rihal?¡±


    Rihal¡¯s grin faltered a bit.


    ¡°Now, there¡¯s the Rihal I know,¡± Idrel said with a proud smirk. ¡°Without proof that I have him you have nothing against me ¡ª not that I have him anyway.¡±


    Rihal smiled again. ¡°Soon, Idrel¡­ soon.¡±


    Idrel slammed his door in Rihal¡¯s face, which he had to admit, felt damned good. He quickly vanished on the spot, appearing inside the carriage he left his captive in. He wasn¡¯t worried the whelp would try to escape ¡ª he couldn¡¯t. But he was worried now that Rihal was onto him. Maybe the Alvric Estate was not the best place to go right now. The City of Farryn was under Vorthe¡¯s total control after all, and they saw a lot more than they made the Great Houses believe.


    As he arrived he sent a strand of his mental energy to the driver of the carriage, instructing him to drive outside the city. Something was wrong however. His captive was sitting where he left him but he was healing rapidly, with a speed unheard of for a Sprout ¡ª a Sprout whose core was sealed for that matter. It was then he noticed the dense vitality in the air and the crowd of excited people surrounding the carriage.


    ¡°What the fuck?!¡± he turned his frustration inward and pushed his mental energy a little more than necessary towards the driver. ¡°Get us out of here!¡±


    The carriage driver nearly collapsed in his seat, he picked up the reins and urged the horses forward. Idrel pushed his mental energy, causing it to pulse outward from him, pushing the people surrounding the carriage away. He scanned the outside of the carriage only for his jaw to slack and his brows to rise in shock.


    A green and gold storm of vital aura and essence was spinning around the carriage rising into the air like a beacon. A beacon that would attract guards and most definitely other members of the Nediti.


    ¡°Fuck!¡± he took his captive by the shoulder and vanished with him on the spot.

 62. Battle Of Wills!

    Jerome felt his connection to the vital aura disrupted a moment before his insides felt like they were turning to soup. He groaned loudly in pain. He felt a lot more energetic than he had felt in a while. But the pains he was feeling now were new and strange. He¡¯d never felt anything like it before. It felt like he was being torn to shreds from the inside out.


    After a long while, he was able to open his eyes. Blinking, he scanned his environment, noticing he was in a dark room. Footsteps were sounding on wooden floor boards above him, so he guessed he was in some kind of cellar.


    Jerome looked around to study his surroundings. Crates of different sizes lay here and there in the dark room and a few needles of light coming from the room above pushed the darkness away in some areas. His feet were shackled to the floor with a pair of iron shackles. With a flick of a finger, Suzie shot out of his finger and lashed onto the shackle, consuming the metal. The steps coming from above stopped a moment before his captor appeared out of thin air in front of him.


    Idrel latched onto his throat with a steel-like grip. ¡°What the fuck was that?!¡± His fury exploded through his aura which engulfed the tiny cellar. It felt like drowning in a sea of hard water.


    The man was losing it. Jerome had never seen him so unhinged. He spoke through gnashed teeth with veins bulging in his temple. Idrel¡¯s hand on his neck squeezed hard until the tips of his finger broke his skin.


    Jerome tried and failed to extend Suzie. He already knew the living steel wouldn¡¯t respond to him in Idrel¡¯s presence but he couldn¡¯t help but try.


    ¡°I¡­told you¡ªknow nothing!¡± he struggled to respond.


    ¡°Fucking whelp!¡± Idrel roared. ¡°What I would give to have a mind charm right now!¡± He slammed Jerome to the floor and rushed up the stairs to do whatever the hell he was doing before. ¡°If I could drill into your head to sift through your memories, I wouldn¡¯t give a damn whether you¡¯re Rihal¡¯s precious disciple, I would ¡ª and you wouldn¡¯t survive the experience!¡±


    Jerome sat up, groaning. What the hell was a mind charm? Was that something that could be used to read his mind? He had to get out of here. But how? How was he supposed to get away from this madman?


    He moved to get up and flinched, expecting to feel pain in his knee but nothing came. The vital aura had done a pretty good job. Jerome sat up straight as realization dawned on him. The vital aura was the reason Idrel had to transport him away from the carriage. It would have drawn unwelcome attention.


    He quickly sat down crossed-legged and started reciting his mantra under his breath.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°Got him!¡± He quickly vanished from the roof he was sitting on and appeared near the carriage Idrel had abandoned in the shadow of an alley.


    Guards had blockaded the area around the carriage, preventing anyone from coming near it. They had the carriage driver in custody. The driver would be a dead-end. He¡¯d bet the man would know next to nothing about the person who hired him.


    Still fatigued from using the skill he¡¯d used but failed to track down Jerome, there was very little he could do right now. But that didn¡¯t include tracking down Idrel. Rihal activated his Sight and looked into the interior of the carriage. What he saw made his blood boil.


    Jerome¡¯s blood was spilled everywhere. He recognized the signature of his disciple¡¯s aura since he¡¯d just spent some time trying to track it down, and the effects of the technique hadn¡¯t worn off completely. He quickly teleported into the carriage. He picked up traces of Idrel¡¯s Void Bridge and vanished once again.


    ¡°This is probably going to get me in trouble,¡± he muttered to himself as he appeared outside a farm miles away from Farryn. As a Spirit Realm expert, he should never have had the ability to track and follow another Spirit Realm expert¡¯s Void Bridge. But that was a problem for later.


    No sooner did he appear did vital aura start leaking out of the ground around the farm. His sharp senses picked up the vitality of two people inside a small cottage about a quarter mile away from him ¡ª one on the ground floor and the other, underground. And all the vital aura was gravitating toward the sacred artist underground.


    Jerome.


    The rest of the farm was deserted. Not even livestock could be seen. Idrel had prepared well for any eventuality. He¡¯d do the same if he were in his shoes. Only Rihal was smart enough to know not to start something like this.


    With subtle strands of mental energy he whispered in Idrel¡¯s direction to get his attention away from his disciple ¡ª not enough for Idrel to know where his voice came from.


    ¡°Traitor¡­¡±


    Idrel flinched and stood up so quickly that the stool he was sitting on, toppled over. Rihal sensed the moment he extended his mental energy to search for the source of the voice. That moment¡¯s distraction was all Rihal needed to get to Jerome. But Idrel wasn¡¯t a Spirit Realm expert for nothing. He quickly teleported as well and Rihal felt him clamp down on Jerome¡¯s shoulder at the same time as him.


    ¡°How did you do it?¡± Idrel asked, even as he squeezed Jerome¡¯s shoulder with enough force to pulverize his disciple¡¯s bone.


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    ¡°Whatever games you play, Idrel,¡± Rihal teleported all three of them away from the cellar. His words had been a means of distraction for a short moment, ¡°you won¡¯t succeed.¡±


    They appeared outside the cottage and a battle ensued.


    ~~~


    Jerome had never seen Rihal fight before ¡ª as in, really fight. He knew his master was powerful, but damn! He¡¯d miscalculated how powerful! He would have preferred to observe Rihal under better circumstances as right now he was sandwiched between two powerful Spirit Realm artists.


    Their movements were a blur of sky and earth to him as he was shoved and pulled this way and that; and their clashes sounded like thunder and earthquakes. Jerome felt the beginnings of the earlier sensation when Idrel first teleported him.


    He was spun around and pushed out of the way for a moment only to be brought back into the fight. Idrel¡¯s knife nearly cut into his throat but Rihal¡¯s blade parried it out of the way. They teleported again and Jerome finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore. He sagged to his knees and barfed ¡ª or at least that was what it felt like. After getting better, he had stopped eating regularly, so there was nothing to throw up.


    The fighting experts didn¡¯t care about him though, so he quickly rolled out of the way, only to find himself in the middle of a market. The sound of traders promoting their wares filled his ears with more confusion.


    Jerome raised his head to look up but something hit the ground so hard, he was literally bounced off the earth. Pieces of debris came flying at him and he quickly scrambled out of the way. Idrel was upon him in a split moment, smiling with glee. But Rihal appeared in front of him and shoved him back.


    The shockwave that spread from that single clash brought wave after wave of screams and panic from all directions. Jerome stepped behind his master to protect himself. He breathed in but found that the air was filled with very sparse ambient essence. He rotated his core to get his limbs working fine again and observed his master for the first time since Rihal had arrived.


    Rihal was putting on a nondescript, black leather cloak that reached down past his knees and had his face covered with the hood. Idrel only noticed where they were when he saw Rihal, and Jerome observed as a cloak materialized around him as well with the hood on ¡ª it more or less ¡®grew¡¯ around him so to speak. It was a mesmerizing thing to watch.


    Jerome remembered his discussion with Rihal about him being an assassin and their behaviors made more sense. They didn¡¯t want to be recognized by the locals here. Which brought up the question; where was here? He turned to get a good look of where they were and marveled at what he saw.


    ¡°Rihal?¡± he whispered. ¡°Where are we?¡± It was like a town straight out of medieval times.


    ¡°We are far, far from home, Jerome¡­ in the south. Far from Farryn and close to Alvric lands,¡± Rihal whispered back. ¡°This is the town of Nandene.¡±


    Jerome gaped, looking around at the townspeople already packing up their wares and closing up shop. They were dressed differently than the people of Farryn. Where the people in Farryn put on thicker robes, theirs were thinner to allow for more air and comfort. Now that he was focused on something else other than running for his life, he could feel that the air was very warm, warmer than he was used to.


    Jerome watched them pack up with practiced ease. It felt like they had done this a few times. He could see the fear in their eyes; they had no one to protect them from the fallout of a fight between two Spirit Realm artists.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, Rihal. These people are afraid,¡± Jerome said, looking at the ground where something ¡ª or maybe someone ¡ª had caused a small crater in the middle of the market. The crater was separating both fighters and it was at least fifteen feet in diameter!


    ¡°Just¡­a moment,¡± Rihal said, trying to catch his breath. He was still in a staring contest with Idrel.


    Jerome could hear the fatigue in his voice and from the sound of cackling from the other side, Idrel could sense it too.


    ¡°You used it, didn¡¯t you? You know it¡¯s forbidden to use it,¡± Idrel said. From the look of his stance, Jerome felt like he was just lazing around. But experience told him the man was as ready as ever. Assassins were good at misdirection.


    Idrel chuckled again. ¡°Aura tracking is forbidden for a reason, Rihal. You¡¯ve been a naughty boy.¡±


    Rihal stiffened but didn¡¯t reply. Something felt different. The tension in the air felt too strong for just a staring contest. Jerome observed both of them again and wondered why they were just staring at each other. Idrel seemed to catch his observation and spoke up again.


    ¡°There¡¯s a reason why you don¡¯t see fights in the city or anywhere else, whelp. We could level entire villages and towns with our battles. It¡¯s against the law to fight in a populated area.¡±


    ¡°My name is Jerome,¡± Jerome muttered stubbornly. Even though he wasn¡¯t loud, he knew Idrel would hear him.


    Idrel acted like he didn¡¯t hear him and went on speaking in that slow manner he spoke with when he first captured him. ¡°That¡¯s why Spirit realm experts fight in a different way. We call it the Battle of Wills. And your master¡­ is losing right now.¡± He took a step forward and Rihal did the same.


    Jerome felt a massive force shove him backward into a stall, destroying the poorly made wooden structure. Thankfully, the traders had all fled with their goods. Jerome unfurled his wings and took to the air away from the fight.


    Given that Idrel could teleport to him anytime he wanted, it was better to be safe and alive than to watch a fight he wouldn¡¯t possibly be able to understand the scope of. He looked down to see both experts straining against an invisible force in front of them. They were like two magnets of like poles pushing forward toward each other but repelling each other.


    They took another step forward and with a mighty force, the first rows of wooden stalls around them collapsed to the ground. They stomped the ground with another step forward and the row behind the first collapsed. The crater in front of them also widened, with rocks and soil from the edge falling into it.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Jerome muttered in awe. It was really a battle of wills! He quickly flapped his wings harder to gain altitude before turning around and flying into the distance. Warning bells rang from a distant bell tower but Jerome decided not to stay another moment in the town.


    After flying for a while, he looked back once again and relaxed; he was far away from the battle now. Jerome looked up to determine the position of the sun. It was high up in the sky and it would be an hour or more before he could determine where he was and how to get back to Farryn.


    He touched down and decided to walk and save his strength. He was already possibly miles away from the little town now and there was nobody around his location. Only overgrown trees and birds. He took his time walking forward until the trees started receding and stomps filled the ground.


    A heap of logs came into view after half a mile of running and he could now see a clear footpath. Jerome followed it. Hoping there was a town ahead and people he could ask for directions.


    A scream split the air and he instinctively shot forward. What the hell was that?

 63. Lokta

    Jerome stopped in his tracks just before he stepped beyond the copse of trees that obscured him from the village ahead ¨C or a hamlet by the looks of it. It was walled around with a wooden fence no more than five feet in height. The hamlet was moderately dotted here and there with houses that looked like a cross between a cottage and a mud hut. Many of the buildings had burning roofs which smelled like burning hay. Crashes sounded everywhere and he could hear the cries of little children.


    Jerome wanted to take to the skies to investigate better but he was worried that whoever was raiding the hamlet would see him and probably focus on him. He¡¯d lose the element of surprise. He went forward as quietly as he could, sticking to the shadows of the trees. When he observed a few feet ahead of him with his mental energy, he found no one in his vicinity.


    Jerome closed the remaining distance between him and the entrance of the village. He quickly concealed himself as best he could behind one of the houses. One look at the ground and he nearly puked.


    The ground was covered in blood and littered with body parts. The gruesome scene reminded him of his own nightmares which threatened to resurface as he took in the whole village. Jerome calmed his racing heart as best as he could. He was different now ¡ª stronger. He wouldn¡¯t let something like this overwhelm him.


    He walked into the village, heading straight for the wails he was hearing. Halfway there he sensed someone with his perception and quickly hid back in the shadows. A few scans later, Jerome came out of the shadows, embarrassed at his over-cautious behavior. The person he was hiding from was Blank. And from the information he received from his mental energy, not a very strong one.


    He walked up to the Blank as silently as he could to glean more information. About a few paces away, he stopped to observe. The Blank was a lot more tanned-skin than anyone he¡¯d seen and he had on some really strange clothes on ¡ª light like the few robes he¡¯d seen recently but still different from them. His head was adorned with a strange yellowed skull that hummed with power, though, weak it was.


    The Blank had been standing over a pile of corpses and smoking from a strange pipe in his hand. Jerome¡¯s blood boiled in anger as he witnessed the carnage and destruction before him. Limbs and heads were piled up like they were garbage; some of the corpses still had their bodies intact, and some were mangled beyond recognition.


    The sight was dizzying and he felt he lost the ability to hold his saliva in for a bit. His throat felt patchy and dry. Without holding back, Jerome extended the living steel out of his hand and took off the Blank¡¯s head. That was a far merciful death than he deserved but he had no time or the stomach for torture.


    The headless corpse flopped to the ground and joined the pile before it. The head rolled for a bit before stopping in front of another pile. Jerome watched as the skull on the head slowly turned red as if absorbing the blood from the pile of bodies near it.


    ¡°What the fuck?¡± he muttered. He picked up the head, removing the skull to study it. It looked like the skull of a strange carnivore. The lower jaw was missing to accommodate the head of the wearer and the insides had been filed to a smooth surface.


    The energy he sensed from the skull was strange and reminded him of blood in a very disgusting way. He almost wanted to throw away the thing but his curiosity won over his irritation. The skull hummed in his hand for a fraction of a second before the blood started disappearing, as if the skull was absorbing it into itself.


    ¡°Strange indeed.¡± This was not part of what he learned from the Sovereign about essence. But perhaps this was just another application that wasn¡¯t common to Vorthe.


    Another scream lit up the afternoon sky like a flare and he had to concentrate on why he was here. Jerome held the skull in hand as he raced forward. He¡¯d be studying this thing later. For now though¡­ There were at least six people ahead, toward the center of the village. He made short work of the distance between himself and the wailing.


    This time his stomach was ready for the effects of the carnage. They had built a stage on which they beheaded the villagers after much torture. They strung them up upside down to drain the blood out of their bodies into barrels.


    The whole area was littered with corpses of men, women, and children. Jerome felt the Beast stir within him. His rage kindled and he whipped out Suzie. He tore through the first Blank in front of him like he was a piece of butter. When he turned to face the rest, they had their weapons at the ready.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you?!¡± someone demanded. Jerome didn¡¯t bother answering. He charged at the nearest person.


    The clanging of steel rang out as all the remaining Blanks attacked. Jerome sensed a Sprout among them but he neither participated nor stopped his comrades from heading towards their death. He just stood there and watched as Jerome butchered all of them.


    When he was done he looked up at the Sprout standing on the stage. He had a cold smirk on his lips; a young man ¡ª younger than the Blanks Jerome just killed. The Blanks looked to be in their mid-twenties while he looked like he was a teenager. Jerome wasn¡¯t fooled though. The strength of his presence let him know to not underestimate him. He probably was someone of import and status wherever he came from. Wherever that was, he knew it wasn¡¯t Vorthe. No Vorthean would do something like this so casually.


    Jerome didn¡¯t take his eyes off the youth. He was covered from head to boots in blood. Yet he was so comfortable in it that Jerome instinctively knew this wasn¡¯t his first or second time doing something like this.


    The Sprout had on a crown of bones, much like the skull the Blank before had. But his was more elaborate. Nothing like a mere skull. There were cowries dangling from the sides of the crown giving it a weird kind of beauty. He also had bracelets on each hand made of the same bone. He wouldn¡¯t have noticed though, if he hadn¡¯t held one in his hand before. The bone crown and bracelets were steeped in blood and Jerome wondered if he¡¯d see them absorb all the blood on their surface.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Jerome asked. A quick scan of his surroundings let him know there was no one else alive. Jerome sighed to himself. These psychopaths had  murdered an entire village¡­ And he thought Hedon was bad enough.


    The Sprout smiled widely. ¡°I am Lokta of the Bloodreign Isles,¡± he said with a fluency that belied his barbarian looks. ¡°Son of Grogg¡­ and champion of the moon!¡± He beat his chest and bits of blood and entrails trickled down his blood-soaked robe.


    ¡°Isles¡­ you¡¯re not from Vorthe,¡± Jerome said, more than asked. He also heard the foreign lilt in the Sprout¡¯s tongue which told him much about the boy¡¯s origins.


    ¡°Since crossing into Vorthe, I haven¡¯t met a challenger who could stir the blood essence in me. Maybe you, stranger, could be that challenger.¡± The Sprout drew his sword and lunged for him. ¡°Let¡¯s fight!¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother parrying blows with this Lokta¡¯s sword. The spear he formed from Suzie had enough range to keep him at bay. He thrust at the advancing Sprout who quickly halted in his steps to parry his blows. The moment the living steel clashed with the Sprout¡¯s blade he felt it stir in his blood.


    Jerome pushed his advantage and the Sprout¡¯s demeanor changed from haughty to concentrated. He struck hard, thrusting again and again and landing deadly blow after blow but he dealt no real harm.


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    Jerome stopped to observe the boy. The Sprout grinned as he noticed Jerome was trying to figure him out. He kicked a corpse out of his way and attacked. They continued at it for a while, each looking for a weakness to influence.


    Every time he struck a blow, Jerome noticed a red outline lit up the boy¡¯s silhouette. He attacked faster, sensing it was a sort of shield. He didn¡¯t see it before because he wasn¡¯t searching for anything.


    But this Lokta guy wasn¡¯t without skills of his own. He combined his sword skills well with his strange barrier in a set of techniques that made Jerome come to the conclusion he could fight well. He wasn¡¯t as agile on his feet or as fast at swinging his sword but every now and then the barrier glowed from a hit ¡ª whether to his head or his chest. He followed up with a hit of his own, sensing openings whenever Jerome landed a hit on him.


    Jerome played along. It would be an easy thing to create an earthen armor but he didn¡¯t. He didn¡¯t want to show all of his skills. He parried an overarching sword wave and smacked the Sprout¡¯s hand. The Sprout dropped the sword with a groan of pain but quickly extended his other hand to catch it mid-air.


    Jerome pounced forward. He trapped the sword between his legs and spun around, flinging it to the side. With a spin of his spear like a shield, Jerome stepped closer to the Sprout knocking away a punch headed for his gut. Most spear wielders would do everything possible to not be in such close range with a sword wielder but not Jerome.


    Not missing a step and with the same fluid motion, Jerome elbowed him in the gut. This time around, he wrapped his elbow in living steel and extended a sharp point out of his elbow like a claw. The barrier shattered from the force and the Sprout staggered backward, holding his stomach but Jerome wasn¡¯t done. He brought his spear down and slashed his forward thigh. Blood gushed out like a fountain from the deep wound and Suzie sang in his veins like it wanted to consume it all.


    There was something different about the way the living steel was responding to this blood. It was different from the way it responded to others. He remembered the Sprout said something about blood essence.


    ¡°This ¡®blood essence¡¯ you speak of. What is it?¡± he demanded like he was a superior talking to a subordinate from his throne. His voice was cold and unfeeling. He looked down at the Sprout who was finding it difficult to stand let alone fight. He pulled out another sword from the storage bag attached to his belt and held it firmly in his hand. His stance was still quite good ¡ª he had definitely received excellent training.


    ¡°How are you not affected by my blood essence?!¡± the Sprout said, stepping back to get a better footing and putting some distance between them.


    Jerome raised the blade of his blood-red spear to eye level, scrutinizing it as if he could comprehend some esoteric knowledge about it. ¡°I ask the questions here,¡± he said. ¡°What is this blood essence?¡±


    ¡°You speak to the son of a liege lord, you miscreant!¡±


    Suzie shot forward so quickly the Sprout had no time to react. His wounded leg came away like it was never attached to his body. Jerome held the leg up for the Sprout to see as he fell on his butt.


    He screamed a moment later as pain shot through him. Jerome felt him cycle to stop the bleeding. He reared his head back as the stench of dead, rotten blood filled the air as the Spout cycled. It was coming from this Lokta and Jerome almost took a step back at how suffocating it was.


    When the Sprout finally calmed down, he sat up on the blood-ridden soil and glared death at Jerome. Jerome raised the leg again and willed Suzie to devour the blood and vitality in it. The leg visibly shrunk and lost all vibrancy in the span of a single breath. Jerome watched as fear came into the Sprouts eyes. His once arrogant demeanor was gone.


    ¡°I¡¯ll chop off and devour every limb from you before the day is over if you don¡¯t tell me what I want to know. Tell me and you get to die a quick death.¡± Lokta¡¯s foot came off with one swipe of Suzie. Jerome dragged the foot to himself with Suzie and the process repeated itself.


    ~~~


    Lokta


    This was hell! What the fuck was happening? Why was his blood essence not overpowering this foe? He had never met anyone in his Realm who wouldn¡¯t fall victim to the overpowering suppression of his blood. Even if they could still stand and fight, they¡¯d find it hard to. It would take a lot of willpower and focus on the part of his foe to deliver skills half the strength of what he was receiving from this strange Sprout.


    ¡°Stop!¡± he screamed. He had to stop this boy somehow. He wasn¡¯t ready to die. He had seen the resolution in the boy¡¯s eyes. This wasn¡¯t someone who would let him live. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you¡­what you want to know. But you must not kill me!¡±


    ¡°Speak,¡± the Sprout said, causing him to shiver in fear. His steady gaze never left Lokta and that made this conversation all the more eerie. He¡¯d never been on the receiving end of such torture. He¡¯d always been the torturer.


    ¡°I said speak!¡± the Sprout growled.


    Lokta growled back in anger and frustration. He wasn¡¯t one to take orders from someone in his Realm. He looked the Sprout in the eye for a moment, taking in his measure. The Sprout was younger. Younger than he¡¯d thought. He was dressed in blood-stained rags but carried himself with authority like a chieftain. The fading scar on his face didn¡¯t go unnoticed to him, which to Lokta added to his hardiness as a sacred artist.


    ¡°Blood essence is a different type of essence than you mainlanders wield. It¡¯s a mutation, formed from vital aura and the blood of our enemies. And you¡¯ve become one as of this day!¡± he snarled, raising himself into a sitting position. ¡°My father will find you and make you regret ever crossing paths with me!¡±


    ¡°Why do you kill so much?¡± the damned whelp asked as he flicked a finger and shaved a few inches off the still bleeding stomp of his leg.


    ¡°Orka¡¯s tits!¡± Lokta screamed in pain.


    ¡°You only answer the questions I ask you. Am I understood?¡±


    Lokta took a deep breath and cycled furiously to stop his stomp from bleeding him dry. He glared at the boy who responded by shaving off another inch or so from the same leg. Lokta screamed in pain!


    ¡°We kill to replenish our blood essence! We kill¡ªooouuhh!!!¡± The damned Sprout did it again!


    ¡°Faster,¡± he said. ¡°You have no time to scream or complain.¡±


    Lokta held his voice with all of his willpower. He could tell the boy was just waiting for him to utter something that wasn¡¯t an answer to him and he¡¯d deliver damnation to him again. He was so calm doing this ¡ª with all the grace and patience of a sea serpent. Only through his eyes could Lokta see the turbulence of emotion in him. If it were him in the torturers position, he¡¯d be cackling with glee and enjoying himself. The boy¡¯s calm demeanor, together with his facial scars, made Lokta more afraid of him.


    ¡°We kill to replenish our blood essence.¡±


    ¡°You said that before. That can¡¯t be the only reason,¡± he said, getting closer and squatting down to eye level with him.


    ¡°We have to kill!¡± This was getting frustrating! He wasn¡¯t born to answer to another. ¡°It is our way as a people! If we don¡¯t kill we don¡¯t grow stronger!¡±


    ¡°Then you die like the many you¡¯ve killed. Only not by my hand but by the hand of Vorthe.¡±


    The boy snatched his storage bag and rifled through it. He plucked the artifacts from his head and wrists asking, ¡°What kind of artifacts are these?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    The Sprout looked back at him with a raised eyebrow. His strange whip-like artifact coiled around his finger, ready to strike again.


    ¡°We call it Amarkh!¡± he quickly blurted out. The whip retracted and he shoved the Amarkh into the storage bag and tied it to his clothes.


    ¡°Explain.¡±


    ¡°It has no equivalent in your language. The closest translation would be devourer ¡ª something which takes of another and makes it a part of itself. But even that is quite lacking in definition. The Amarkh doesn¡¯t just take. It takes all the good parts, the strong parts and makes them one with itself. The bones are alive, you see, in their own way.¡±


    The boy nodded in thought for a moment before looking to the sky. The sun was still high in the sky but it had started to crest westward, stretching available shadows. The weirdest thing Lokta had ever seen manifested behind the boy. His back sprouted wings ¡ª blood-red bat wings with the glint of polished metal. He stood up and hefted Lokta before shooting into the sky, heading north.

 64. Amarkh

    Jerome had to travel back the way he came. Heading north meant going back to the town of Nandene. And he wanted to meet up with Rihal as well ¡ª if he was still alive. He¡¯d had to burn down the village from the air to stop the corpses from rotting and spreading diseases. He needed to report this. The terrorist, Lokta, was bound and defenseless in his arms. If he tried anything funny, Suzie would start consuming his blood until not a drop was left. He¡¯d revitalize the Sprout with his earth mantra, and they¡¯d try again.


    Jerome didn¡¯t miss the fact that the Sprout didn¡¯t have a ranged attack skill, which was strange. With the amount of bone artifacts he saw in his captive¡¯s storage bag, he expected he would try something to free himself but he didn¡¯t.


    It didn¡¯t take him much time to get back to Nandene. The town was filled with people again and the market was back in full swing, filled with traders and buyers. He didn¡¯t have the time to really look at the town before but now he saw that it was a bit larger than he estimated.


    The houses were smaller compared to Farryn, as were the streets ¡ª way smaller. At the very center of the town a more modern structure stood tall, dwarfing all other buildings. The two story manor with its beautiful courtyard was sure to be that of the lord or mayor in charge of the town. He didn¡¯t know what such a person would be titled.


    Everything was normal except for the fifteen feet wide crater in the middle of the market. Well, and the fact that there were a lot of blondes here. The sea of corn-colored hair was a sight to behold ¡ª nothing like in Farryn where everyone had black hair. Jerome took a moment to take in the sight as he hovered in the air. He supposed it was because these people didn¡¯t travel often. If they left their homes for distant lands they¡¯d spread their genes far faster.


    Jerome turned back to the matter at hand. He could see that there were no Spirit Realm artists waiting for him. He¡¯d have to find his way back home himself. The question was, how far was home? Jerome sighed. He forgoed stealth and landed in the midst of the crowded market with huge flaps of his broad wings, blowing dust and pieces of junk from the street everywhere. That sure got the people to notice him.


    The people scattered for the second time that day.


    He could imagine how they saw him. A sacred artist, come to bring judgment on their little town out in the middle of nowhere. It really put a lot of perspective into things. He¡¯d have to be careful in his dealings with mortals from now on.


    Jerome shot forward and caught a man who was slow to respond to the sight of him. ¡°The men who were fighting here at midday¡­ Do you know where they went?¡± he demanded.


    The man babbled incoherently as he wet himself right then and there. Jerome just shook his head in disappointment, letting him go. He had seen bell towers in the distance before he fled the fight scene, and even flew past one by the walls surrounding the town. He launched himself into the air and headed for one of them.


    ¡°Maybe you should have used the gate?¡± Lokta said, gesturing with his head back the way they came.


    The bell tower he headed towards was surrounded by a barracks filled with guards, or perhaps they were mercenaries. The broken walls and buildings left unrepaired around the barracks was enough to tell him about the state of the town. Many of them wore mismatched armor, all in leather with missing parts. And their weapons looked like they¡¯d seen better days. When he landed, they all had their weapons drawn and he could almost smell the fear and trepidation on them.


    ¡°I wish to know what happened to the two sacred artists who forth this morning in the market!¡±


    A stifling quiet engulfed the area after Jerome spoke. None of the guards were willing to come forward and talk. They remained more than twenty paces away from him, with clubs and sharpened wooden sticks for spears in hand. The few who had metal weapons looked a bit more groomed than the rest. Jerome figured their commander should be among them so he turned to them.


    One such person walked forward ¡ª albeit fearfully ¡ª and Jerome got the chance to scan the man. Blank; and a recent one at that. He looked too old to be Blank from Jerome¡¯s perspective.


    ¡°Light embrace you, my lord,¡± the Blank said with a deep bow. His blonde hair was cut close to his skull and there were battle scars on his face.


    ¡°May the Light illuminate your path on your journey to the top,¡± Jerome replied, trying not to sound awkward. Seeing someone so much older than him ¡ª or much older than his current body ¡ª bow to him in deference was disconcerting.


    He knew he looked nothing like a noble; his robe was covered in so much blood and torn everywhere that he looked like a beggar. But the guards were most likely able to sense the weight of his presence, enough to know that someone more powerful than they were was too much trouble ¡ª better to accord him respect. But said respect was a little too much for Jerome.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to know about the sacred artists that fought here this morning,¡± he asked again.


    ¡°My lord. They left after their fight. No one saw them leave. Though, I suppose you could ask the mayor of the town. He would know more.¡±


    The guard was shivering where he stood. Jerome knew for a fact that he must have suffered greatly at the hands of nobles for him to react this way. He wasn¡¯t about to add to the man¡¯s insecurities.


    ¡°Would you be kind enough to appoint someone to lead the way?¡±


    A chorus of murmurings went through the crowd of guards. Jerome caught some of what they said and it seemed they were surprised he was speaking respectfully to one as lowly as their captain which was not what they had expected.


    ¡°Of course, my lord! I¡¯ll take you there myself.¡± The captain straightened and walked Jerome to the manor he had seen in the center of the town.


    ¡°Are there no Sprouts and Spirit Realm experts in your ranks?¡± Jerome asked the guard as they walked toward the manor.


    ¡°Not at all, my lord,¡± the guard said, bowing deferentially. ¡°We are a small town and very little essence flows here. We hunt magical beasts from time to time to grow stronger but¡­ it¡¯s a slow process.¡±


    ¡°As Drudges?¡± Jerome asked and the Blank flinched. ¡°Meant no disrespect.¡±


    ¡°Not at all, my lord. It¡¯s just¡­ I¡¯m already Blank.¡± He stole a glance at the person in Jerome¡¯s arms who was missing both legs ¡ª one just below the knee and the other slightly above the ankle.


    ¡°I can see that. But the rest of your comrades are still Drudges. It¡¯ll be far more dangerous for them than it¡¯ll be for you. What kind of monsters do you hunt?¡±


    The guard rubbed the back of his neck in shame. ¡°Well, the little ones¡­ we hunt mostly little critters, boars, if we find the young ones¡­ the adults are¡­¡± He blew raspberries to communicate his frustration.


    ¡°The essence sure is thin here,¡± Jerome said to change the subject. Not even outside Farryn was the essence as thing as this. These people were truly living life on a dagger¡¯s edge. He could just imagine not having the strength to even run away from a fight he couldn¡¯t win. If psychos like Lokta stumbled upon this town, the same thing would happen again.


    ¡°Be on the lookout for people dressed like this one,¡± he said to the guard captain, gesturing to Lokta. ¡°He massacred a whole village.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s my prisoner. And I¡¯m taking him to the capital city of Farryn.¡± Jerome felt good saying that, like he was all important and stuff. The guard straightened and walked with more caution, eyes roaming around.


    ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± the blonde-haired guard finally said. They walked toward the front entrance and were stopped by two guards at the door with spears.


    ¡°State your business!¡± one of them said. They scrutinized him with judgemental eyes and a sneer on their faces. He probably looked like a butcher in his blood-stained rags.


    ¡°Guard Captain 2930, requesting permission to see the mayor.¡±


    Jerome glanced at the captain like he was seeing him for the first time. He¡¯d never seen someone numbered with so large a number. Does that mean there are over 2000 guards in this tiny town? That couldn¡¯t be right. There was probably some error in the way they handed out those numbers.


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    ¡°State your business with the mayor,¡± the guard at the door repeated. Jerome noticed both were well equipped than the guards who guarded the city. But they were Drudges, so that mattered little.


    He sensed the guard captain getting frustrated so he jumped in.


    ¡°I¡¯m here on royal business,¡± he said, cycling to reveal his Realm ¡ª he hoped. He wasn¡¯t sure if that was the way to make them feel more pressure from him like an aura attack but he gave it a go. He put the force of his will behind his voice as he spoke too.


    Both guards visibly shook and began sweating a moment later. One of them even had to use his spear to support his weight, to stop him from falling flat on his face. Satisfied, Jerome stopped cycling and they let him in, rushing to get word to their lord.


    The interior of the manor was a sight to see; not as beautiful or as glamorous as Rihal¡¯s manor in the Royal Estate but it was still better than what he expected, compared to what the rest of the town looked like. This lord was hoarding his town¡¯s riches and living in luxury.


    Jerome sat down on a sofa in the living room and dropped Lokta to the floor so they could wait for the mayor to show up, which happened not long after.


    ¡°To what do I owe this august visit, my lord?¡± the man in question asked as he walked in. His demeanor was one of respect and Jerome suspected the guard had told the mayor how powerful he was. ¡°I¡¯m Lord Bas, mayor of Nandene.¡±


    Jerome scrutinized him from head to toe, not bothering with pleasantries. He made sure to look and act as cold as possible. As a disciple of the royal family, he had a higher status since he was connected to the Royal Family.


    The man was the roundest person he had seen so far ¡ª even rounder than Tala¡¯an Taleed, the manager of the Crystal Gateway. His jowls hung very low and the flesh of his chest was more of breasts, hanging down to his drooping belly which was as thick as that of a pregnant cow. He wore an immaculate, silk red robe that looked like nightwear. And the front area was barely covered.


    The mayor was barely a Blank. Jerome sensed that he was far weaker than the guard captain that led him here even though the captain was a newly advanced blank.


    ¡°I need to know about the Spirit Realm experts who fought in the market square this morning.¡±


    ¡°Er, they, er.¡± The mayor was caught off guard by the question but he quickly composed himself. ¡°They disappeared without dropping a word.¡±


    ¡°Then I¡¯d like a map ¡ª preferably one of the whole of Vorthe,¡± Jerome said, not breaking eye contact with the mayor. From his words, he made it sound like he wanted to scout the area for the Spirit Realm artists. No reason to mention he couldn¡¯t find his way back to Farryn.


    The mayor gulped and began sweating. ¡°You see my lord, there hasn¡¯t been a cartographer in these regions for many years. The merchants that also pass by never come with maps of that scale. However, I could put in a few words to my very good friend and brother, Lord Bas of New Lead.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow in curiosity.


    ¡°We¡¯re both named Bas by our father ¡ª may his soul rot away and never know reincarnation,¡± Mayor Bas explained with a shameless smile, seeing Jerome¡¯s curiosity. ¡°Can¡¯t have too many unique names. The price one would pay for that¡­¡±


    Jerome cleared his throat to get him back on track.


    ¡°Yes! He may have the kind of map you need, young lord. That being said, my maids are preparing you a bath and a wing in my manor to rest your head, er, heads?¡± he said, looking toward the legless Lokta on the ground. He didn¡¯t know how to address him.


    ¡°He¡¯s a prisoner. A dangerous one. He massacred an entire village half a mile or so, south of here.¡±


    The mayor gasped. ¡°The village of Woodbone is gone?!¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is.¡± What¡¯s up with these silly names?


    ¡°That is where we get our wood from,¡± the mayor muttered to himself but Jerome was already getting up.


    Jerome took a deep breath smelling the foulness of the air coming from himself. ¡°I would love that bath now. And some fresh clothes. If you can¡¯t get me a map of Vorthe, a map of the southern region will do.¡±


    ¡°If I may be so bold, young lord. May I¡­ know your name?¡± the mayor said, plastering a fake smile on his face.


    ¡°I¡¯m Jerome. Disciple of the Royal Family of Vorthe.¡±


    ~~~


    His adrenaline came crashing down the moment he stepped into the warm water of his bath. Jerome relaxed, his body unwilling to stay hyped any longer. He had been running on adrenaline since his fight with Lokta and he only now noticed it.


    The battle came to the forefront of his mind and he held in a groan. He¡¯d killed people. Blanks, and possibly some were younger than he was. He hadn¡¯t thought to scrutinize them properly. He had just barreled through them like they were nothing but cardboard props.


    Jerome closed his eyes to calm his mind but he found he was calm. Too calm. He thought he¡¯d be fidgeting and regretting his actions but none of that was happening. He held his hands in front of his face. It was clean already but he could still imagine the blood covering them moments ago.


    ¡°No,¡± he said with a sniff. ¡°They were murderers, the lot of them.¡± He wouldn¡¯t act as if he himself was some saint but he would also not guilt-trip himself.


    Lokta was in the dungeon underneath the manor right now and tomorrow, he¡¯d be on his way to the north. He had much to plan for.


    The door to the bedchamber opened up and in walked a maid. He looked to the privacy screen separating the bathtub from the rest of the room. The silhouette of a woman holding something like clothes in her hands approached the bed and dropped the clothing in her hand on it.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Jerome said. She flinched but calmed a moment later.


    ¡°You¡¯re most welcome, Milord,¡± she said. Her voice was young and clear, but it sounded like she was trying too hard to sound sultry.


    Jerome thought that she would leave but she remained where she was. Just standing. He didn¡¯t have to wonder why as his brain raced to conclusion. The mayor was giving her to him as a play thing. He almost spat in disgust.


    ¡°Towel,¡± he said after he was done. ¡°Just place it on the frame of the screen.¡±


    She placed the towel there for him quietly. When he was done wiping himself clean, he came out from behind the privacy screen. The woman ¡ª no, girl ¡ª was pretty. She was probably not even sixteen years old. She stood a foot away from him, nervously rubbing the skin on her arm. Jerome could almost smell the fear oozing off her.


    ¡°You may leave now,¡± he said.


    She nearly jumped out of her skin in shock. ¡°M-milord?¡±


    ¡°I said you may leave. Thank you for waiting on me.¡±


    She stood there nonplussed, shifting her weight from foot to foot. The girl reminded him of Ms. Tara a little, except for the blonde locks that framed her pretty face. She was skinny. He could see protruding bones from the exposed skin of the skimpy robe she wore.


    Jerome walked to the bed and sat down waiting for her to leave.


    ¡°I can¡¯t, milord,¡± she finally said. He was afraid she¡¯d say that. It was like watching a play about slavery from medieval times play out in front of him. She sniffed, her voice cracking as she almost broke into tears. ¡°Mayor Bas gon¡¯¡­ he would kill me! He gon¡¯ put me ta da stock and¡ª¡±


    Jerome held a hand up to interrupt her and sighed. That went well¡­ Even the cultured way she spoke couldn¡¯t survive his rejection ¡ª or so it seemed on the surface. Jerome could tell she was faking her tears though, and he wouldn¡¯t fall for her damsel-in-distress tactic. She must have done this too many times.


    He looked around to see if there was another furniture, like a sofa or something, in the room for her to use. Nothing. There was only the bed and a wooden chest in the corner, not even a reading table and chair was in sight. The walls of the room were cream in color and orange-colored tapestries hung on either side of the floor to ceiling window facing the four poster bed.


    ¡°You can sleep on the floor.¡± He bunched up a dark-brown bed linen and threw it at her. No need to give her ideas. It just made him feel sick in his stomach.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said, still sobbing. He could hear the fake relief in her voice and it broke his heart that such a young girl would be subjected to such abuse that it would twist her into what he was seeing here right now. How long has this been going on for her? How many more young girls were subjected to such a treatment?


    Jerome sighed. He really thought he knew how wicked the heart of men was but facing it left him in shock. If there was anything that sleazy viper, Idrel, was right about, it was that he¡¯d surely lived a sheltered life in Farryn.


    All the more reason to find you all, he thought, thinking about his family. And fast. He wouldn¡¯t want them to go through what this girl was going through.


    He sat down on the bed and skimmed through the map the girl had brought for him. It was a map of Nandene and two other towns, New Lead and Sky Paw ¡ª what sought of a name was that? The villages surrounding them were also highlighted on the map. It was a crudely drawn map and he was sure whoever the cartographer was, he¡¯d gotten the scales all wrong.


    Nothing he could do about that though. He only needed to keep going north. Jerome took a deep breath and put out the candle, throwing the room in total darkness. The little girl was already fast asleep when he scanned the room before lying down and shutting his eyes to sleep.


    ~~~


    Grogg


    ¡°By all that is damned in the sea! I will find you and tear you apart!¡± He had just watched his son face down a monster and lost. Lokta lost! Not only did he lose, he had his legs cut off.


    Grogg flew as fast as he could. Vorthe was just far too big. He had no idea when he¡¯d be able to get to his son before that monster took him to the Golden City ¡ª at least he assumed that was where the monster was taking his son.


    He reached through his Amarkh to see if he could get a glimpse of his son again. Nothing. All he received was stillness and darkness. Lokta¡¯s Amarkh must be inside his storage bag.


    Grogg¡¯s final destination was supposed to be the golden city but he hoped he would¡¯ve had the time to wrought untold carnage in his wake before reaching the city. Turns out the gods of the south sea had other plans.


    ¡°Hang on, Lokta. I¡¯m on my way,¡± Grogg muttered.

 65. Encounter

    Jerome woke up with a start. His blood was rushing through his veins in an eerie manner and he could almost hear the living steel sing a painful song in his ears. He wondered what must have caused such a reaction. He got out of bed and walked toward the floor to ceiling window. The sun was not yet out and he wondered where he was.


    Then the memories flooded in after a moment. He was in Nandene, and he had a prisoner to get to Farryn. As a disciple of the Royal Family it was a duty he was obligated to perform, even if there was no issued instructions for such.


    He felt the living steel coil in his bloodstream again, not painfully but almost like it was a warning. His ears rang with tinnitus for a long while before the humming sound grew faint and he could hear the world around him again.


    ¡°Something must be very wrong,¡± he muttered to himself. Suzie had never behaved in such a strange manner before.


    He opened the window and flew out into the cold air of predawn. The fog in the air was thick and made it harder to see more than a few yards in front of him. Jerome flew to the top of the manor and hovered ten feet above the roof. The coiling in his veins grew stronger and he felt a sense of dread begin to spread in his gut. Something was headed this way. And it was coming from the south. And fast.


    ¡°Fuck!¡±


    Jerome had no idea how he knew this but he knew it to be true deep down in his gut. He¡¯d seen weirder things. He quickly dived back down to his room and got dressed. He chucked the map he was given into Lokta¡¯s storage bag and tied it to his robe as he made his way to the dungeon to get his prisoner and get out of dodge.


    The warden to the dungeon was still fast asleep when he got to the lower regions of the manor. He could smell the rank smell of booze pouring of the man, it was overpowering. Without delay, Jerome shook him awake with a slap to the face, not caring if he hurt the man. As a mere mortal, that slap would hurt like nothing else.


    ¡°M-m-milord,¡± the man stammered.


    ¡°I need to get my prisoner and be on my way. Open the doors.¡±


    ¡°Y-yes, milord!¡±


    There was a scramble for the bunch of keys at his waist. His protruding belly made it difficult to get to the keys. Jerome yanked it off his belt and thrust it into his shaking hands.


    ¡°Faster! He has powerful accomplices and I want to lead them away from your little town.¡± The coiling in his veins was increasing. He couldn¡¯t tell how long he had and he didn¡¯t want to wait to find out. He just hoped whoever was coming was not a Spirit Realm expert.


    The man opened the heavy wooden doors and they stepped into the dungeon, descending a flight of stairs down. Jerome had to hold his breath to prevent form being overwhelmed by the stench of death and excrement. At long last they got to Lokta¡¯s cell.


    Lokta laughed, a vile laugh.


    ¡°What d¡¯ fuck you laughin¡¯ at?¡± the warden growled.


    Lokta laughed again. ¡°I¡¯m laughing because the one behind you has realized what a huge mistake he made taking me prisoner.¡±


    The warden looked back at Jerome for confirmation but was unwilling to look him in the eyes.


    ¡°Get him out of there quickly,¡± Jerome answered. There was no need to spread fear around.


    Lokta chuckled. ¡°My father would destroy everything in his path. Your little town wouldn¡¯t be an exception.¡±


    Jerome grabbed him as the gates opened and was about to rush out when the warden stopped him.


    ¡°Wait a moment, milord. I have to take off the null lock on him.¡±


    Jerome looked at the man. ¡°What?¡± That was something he¡¯d never heard of before.


    ¡°The null lock,¡± the warden said, pointing at the Lokta¡¯s upper right arm.


    Jerome glanced there and saw a band of metal around Lokta¡¯s bicep. He watched as the warden reached out with a crystal attached to a chain around his neck. The crystal lit up as it touched the surface of the band for a split second and the metal band melted and fell off.


    ¡°Can I get two of those?¡±


    ¡°Er, er, well, the mayor¡¯s the one you can ask for ¡®em, milord. He¡¯s the mayor!¡± the man said, splaying his arms to express his lack of authority in the matter.


    Jerome didn¡¯t want to spend any more time in the town and the mayor wouldn¡¯t attend to him quickly.


    ¡°By my authority as a royal disciple, I¡¯ll be taking your null lock,¡± he declared. ¡°Hand it over.¡±


    The warden was already beginning to shake where he stood. He quickly dropped the shackle and its key in Jerome¡¯s hand. Jerome observed the circular metal band for a moment. He could sense that it was made from living steel. The way it melted off Lokta when it fell off also helped to confirm it.


    The metal was still in its circular shape so maybe just touching it to skin would make it work. He sensed Lokta trying to do something. His blood stirred and Suzie sang in his veins resisting whatever it was.


    With quick reflexes Jerome smashed the Sprout¡¯s face into the dungeon wall. Lokta coughed and groaned in pain.


    ¡°Try that again and I¡¯ll do more than just hurt you.¡±


    Jerome touched the null lock to his skin and just as he surmised, it melted and reformed around Lokta¡¯s bicep. He scanned the Sprout¡¯s core and found something strange happening there but he didn¡¯t have the time to study it. Lokta¡¯s core was a blood red, tiny ball in his mind¡¯s eye. He sensed it was struggling against something, which could only be the suppressing effect of the null lock.


    ¡°Shweet,¡± he said with a smile. He chucked the key into the storage bag. ¡°Do you have any more of that? Don¡¯t lie to me.¡±


    The man shook his head in fear and went down on his knees. ¡°I don¡¯t have another. I swear, milord. Please, don¡¯t hit me!¡±


    Guess it wouldn¡¯t have been that easy. He hefted Lokta and rushed out of the dungeon. Jerome ran as fast as he could. He reached an open terrace on the ground floor facing the beautiful courtyard and took to the air.


    He breathed in deeply and the tension in his muscles relaxed a little as the cold air of predawn filled his lungs. But he couldn¡¯t relax. Not when there was a psycho after him. He had to find out all he could about Lokta¡¯s father before the man got to him.


    ¡°Your father will not save you in time, Lokta. I¡¯m the fastest person I know.¡±


    Lokta chuckled. ¡°You mean you¡¯re faster than someone who¡¯s almost a Spirit Realm artist?¡± he said, chuckling menacingly again. ¡°Good luck with that.¡±


    ¡°So, he¡¯s still a Sprout then.¡± Jerome smirked. This would be easier than he thought. But then Suzie coiled in his veins again. This time, it seemed to want to pull him in another direction. Like it was afraid of facing this incoming threat.


    Jerome did as his living steel bid. It was better to err on the side of caution. He flew in the opposite direction of the incoming threat as fast as possible. He hadn¡¯t gotten very far when he heard a booming voice reach him from behind.


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    ¡°Release my son, or I destroy this town beneath us!¡±


    Jerome adjusted himself midair so he was facing the sky, yet still flying forward. He looked back to see a tiny figure in the distance heading toward him.


    ¡°How the fuck did he do that?!¡± The man¡¯s voice should never have been able to reach him from such a distance.


    Lokta laughed wickedly, enjoying Jerome¡¯s plight. Jerome saw the figure dive down, heading for the town. He did a dive too but swiftly flew upward.


    ¡°What are you doing? Aren¡¯t you going to save the little town¡¯s people?¡± Lokta mocked. ¡°Ah! Didn¡¯t know you were such a coward!¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t answer him. He rose in altitude as far as he could bear until the wind was too strong to hear anything, even Lokta¡¯s taunting. The air was also thinning so he had to stop.


    Then he dived.


    ~~~


    Lokta


    ¡°By all that is damned in the sea!¡± he cried out. ¡°You¡¯re going to kill us!¡± And it was going to be a terrifying death! He wondered if this cunt thought this through before doing it. Diving toward the earth from such a high altitude was preparing oneself to enter Orka¡¯s embrace!


    ¡°Stop! Stop, you fool! You¡¯re going to get us killed!¡± Lokta watched as the ground rose to meet them. He saw his father. He was almost at the town now and he had his blood chains extended. Lokta would have glowed with pride as he saw his father¡¯s blood chains ¡ª long giant strands of blood congealed into solid form, the form of a chain with numerous spikes protruding out of them ¡ª but the fear he was feeling right now quelled every other emotion in him.


    Then he heard his captor suck in a huge amount of air and the strangest thing happened ¡ª he spat a huge ball of blue fire!


    ¡°What the fuck!¡± Lokta roared. His father¡¯s blood chains were too slow as they whipped through the air. His father had been aiming to draw out the people¡¯s fear as he always did, not attacking immediately. But the blue fire his captor spat was fast ¡ª too fast. And with the intent to kill!


    He watched as his father tried to dodge but the blue fire hit him in the side and exploded like a terrifying nova. He didn¡¯t even have the chance to scream, he was jerked upward again and his innards protested, feeling like they would escape his body to the earth.


    Lokta took some time to study his captor now. He had written him off as dead before. But now he wasn¡¯t so sure. What had he said was his name? He couldn¡¯t remember.


    His captor came around for another shot but his father was ready this time around. The Sprout kept out of range, but Lokta knew how far his father could stretch those chains. The cunt was in for a surprise.


    ¡°What is your name?¡± he asked, hoping to distract the boy. The town¡¯s bells were ringing faintly in his ears now. No matter. There was nothing a bunch of Drudges could do against a Sprout.


    ¡°None of your concern,¡± his captor answered at last before spitting another gout of flame, this one much smaller. Lokta smirked. The bastard must have used up a lot of essence to produce that first one. Now he was running on fumes. How long before he wouldn¡¯t be able to use this strange artifact of his to fly anymore.


    Lokta couldn¡¯t withhold his laugh. He laughed and laughed. But the boy didn¡¯t respond. It didn¡¯t matter, it would be over soon.


    His father shot upward toward them. The boy retreated, diving down and evading with ease. But at the last moment before they could lose him, his father released his blood chains.


    ¡°Be careful, father!¡± Lokta yelled over the screaming wind. ¡°His artifact can devour blood!¡± He couldn¡¯t tell if his father heard but there was little he could do.


    ¡°Nothing you say would keep your father from my claws,¡± the cunt said as he wove in and out of the attacking blood chains.


    ¡°You¡¯re strong. Far stronger than any young Sprout I¡¯ve ever seen. But you¡¯re no match for an older Sprout,¡± Lokta replied.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±


    The blood chains were beginning to corner him. But he sounded optimistic, like he still had more tricks up his sleeves. He dodged between two blood chains but a third intercepted him. Then a fourth and a fifth. The cunt beat his wings faster and flew upwards. But he was slow. He didn¡¯t build enough momentum since Lokta¡¯s father didn¡¯t allow him.


    ¡°You¡¯re dead now,¡± Lokta said.


    A spear appeared in his hand and he used it to skewer the blood chains surrounding him. The ends of the remaining chains shriveled up.


    ¡°Let my son go.¡± Lokta heard his father¡¯s deep, guttural voice speak for the first time in many tendays. It brought him relief but he refused to show it.


    ¡°He¡¯s a prisoner of Vorthe and soon, so will you be,¡± the Sprout had the audacity to speak.


    Lokta saw his father frown, a growl coming from his throat like that of a wild beast. But he also sensed that his father was stalling, waiting¡­ what for? He couldn¡¯t tell.


    His captor attacked. Fast. Lokta felt himself fall a foot before he was pulled taut by a string attached to his captor. He moved very fast. Even in the air where Sprouts had a clear weakness because of the lack of purchase.


    His captor tore through his father¡¯s blood chains again and again but more kept coming. His father pushed him hard but was unable to score a clear hit. By now the cunt should have keeled over from the drain and overuse of his essence but no. He was still going strong.


    His captor fled, dodging blood chains that reached for him. He could see his father behind, rushing to catch up.


    ¡°You can¡¯t run away from him,¡± Lokta said with a sneer. The boy pulled the string he was dangling from and sliced off his arm. Lokta screamed. He¡¯d almost forgotten how much that hurt.


    ¡°Who said I was trying to run away from him?¡±


    In the distance Lokta heard his father roar in rage. He watched him shoot forward, faster than he ever had. His captor swerved sharply to the side and his father sped ahead of them. Lokta saw a blue flash out of the corner of his eyes. He heard a sizzling sound but he couldn¡¯t make sense of what was causing it.


    Damn it! My core is sealed! Without his core, he was like a mortal. He couldn¡¯t even extend his perception.


    The next moment, his captor extended a whip and what happened next shocked him to stupor.


    ~~~


    Boom!!!


    Jerome felt as his whip connected with flesh and bones. Everything in its path gave way. He dove downwards and swerved left to orient himself. This man, whoever he is, had very little understanding of aerial maneuvers. Jerome had been using the wind to help himself accelerate and decelerate at the right times. His wings were a huge advantage as he didn¡¯t have to spend essence to use them. But he also couldn¡¯t use them forever, else his vitality begin to fail.


    He flew around in an anticlockwise direction to position himself at a higher altitude above his enemy. The man had lost an arm completely and was free falling. That was impressive. He¡¯d thought that that would take his head and half his body. There was no time for regrets though. Jerome took advantage of the rare opportunity seeing as the man was passed. He shot two spinning blades at him.


    ¡°Nooo!¡± Lokta screamed.


    Shit! He had almost forgotten he had a passenger. He sent a small tendril of living steel to wrap tightly around the boy¡¯s mouth to keep him from talking.


    But his father woke up with a start because of the scream. The man surrounded himself in those eerie, spike-covered chains. Those chains were made of congealed blood, but they were more powerful than any weapon Jerome had ever seen ¡ª and heavy too. Lokta¡¯s father swiped his blades aside and shot toward him.


    Jerome sped north, bringing his blades with him and using them to keep his assailant at bay. He wasn¡¯t sure he could passively control more than two in a real fight. Training was different; there were no stakes but this¡­ he had to stick to what came most natural. And two blades, it was.


    ¡°Three more limbs to go!¡± he taunted. ¡°Your madness will be my entertainment!¡±


    The man roared in anger. Whatever he was on that was keeping him riled up, Jerome was grateful. Because this way he got to fight with someone without the capacity for restraint and tactic¡­ or so he thought. Blood gushed out of the man¡¯s severed arm to form a new one.


    No, Jerome observed. Not a new arm. The arm was congealed blood and was oversized and deformed in places. Through that arm, multiple chains shot out after him. Jerome fled but was not fast enough. The spikes on the chains shot out and peppered his body with holes like bullets.


    His eyes swam and he nearly lost consciousness but he held himself. Jerome groaned in pain. He cycled as fast as he could to heal his injuries but was quickly reminded that this wasn¡¯t the Royal Estate. There was very little ambient essence to absorb. Damn. His wings were battered and torn. They were already fixing themselves but they were too slow. They were useless. At this rate, he¡¯d be skewered before he could get his wings to fly him again.


    His assailant shot toward him. Jerome formed a large shield with Suzie. It was light ¡ª too light ¡ª but he hoped it¡¯d help a little. He could only hover in the air with his damaged wings and even at that, he was losing altitude.


    Lokta¡¯s father prepared his chains, multiple blood-red abominations that looked like tentacles from afar. As the man drew closer, Jerome got ready. He estimated fifty yards¡­


    Forty yards¡­


    Thirty yards¡­


    Jerome readied five blades behind him, ready to skewer the man when he got close. But the strangest thing happened before he got the chance. The man took out a claw bone and Jerome lost control of Suzie. The living steel coiled violently inside his bloodstream and receded to the deepest parts of his being.


    Jerome fell out of the sky.

 66. Ancient Claw Bone

    Jerome felt himself being drained of blood as he fell from the sky. He saw drops of his blood float away from his wounds and rose to meet the enemy bearing down on him. He groaned, pain coursing through his limbs. He had to find a way to land safely, else he¡¯d be splattered against the landscape like a juicy steak.


    Good thing I trained a lot with Rihal on this, he thought as he shot out a ball of fire from one leg to get himself out of the way of the in-coming enemy. Lokta¡¯s father shot past him but his myriads of blood-like chains wrapped around him, piercing his skin with thorns, and causing untold pain. Jerome screamed!


    He felt his blood leaving his body in great gulps, as if the chains were sucking him dry. He tried to free himself to no avail. Jerome roared in anger and set himself on fire. For a moment the chains seemed to fall off but they attached themselves to him again. He felt the weight of his prisoner leave his shoulders and the chains began constricting him.


    Jerome set himself ablaze again. This was going to cause him to waste essence but it had to be done if he didn¡¯t want to be drained alive. The blue flame burnt so hot that the air around him caught fire. His assailant roared as the flame surrounded him but he refused to let go. Jerome unconsciously tried to summon Suzie but the living steel recoiled away from him.


    Right. The claw bone he saw the man bring out of his storage bag. That was what must have been making Suzie act all weird since he woke up. He started bombarding the man with his flames, aiming for Lokta when he could. He was weakening fast but his assailant was using his own blood to replenish his vitality.


    I just have to hold on till we touch the ground ¡ª if we touch the ground, he thought. Jerome renewed his assault. The man might decide to drain him completely in the air and that would be game over for him.


    The beast reared its head and Jerome took hold of it ¡ª its rage and strength. He ripped the chains holding him apart and dragged the man to himself. A moment of shock flitted through Lokta¡¯s father¡¯s face. Before he could react, Jerome ripped off his other arm, causing Lokta to begin to fall.


    ¡°Nooo!¡± he screamed.


    Jerome laughed out in glee. ¡°You think yourself invulnerable? Your misery will be my entertainment!¡±


    ¡°You monster! I will rip you to shreds if it is the last thing I do,¡± the man replied.


    Jerome watched as blood reformed the newly destroyed arm, even as he tried to protect himself from the man¡¯s tentacles. He shot downward aiming to collect his prisoner but  he was intercepted by those damned chains.


    Lokta was passed out, possibly due to blood loss since Jerome severed his arm and he couldn¡¯t cycle to stop the blood flow. Pushing enough essence out of all four limbs, he defended himself against the blood chains as possible. But he was no match for a peak stage Core Formation artist. The chains bound him tightly, aiming him toward the rising earth.


    The ground was visible now. His heart began beating in anticipation. He pushed upwards and sideways to slow down his fall as much as possible. Right before he hit the ground, he set himself ablaze again, causing his enemy to let go.


    Jerome hit the ground hard. He felt his bones break and his muscles lose strength. The pain was unbearable. Stars winked in and out of his eyes as his vision swam with numerous black spots.


    ¡°If anyone had told me that I¡¯d find someone who would cause me this much pain in but a day, I would have killed such a person for besmirching my honor!¡± Lokta¡¯s father roared.


    Jerome looked up, seeing triple. His head woozed and he coughed up blood. But he struggled to speak nonetheless. ¡°Trust¡­me. There are¡­ more like me¡­ out-there.¡±


    Lokta¡¯s father extended the claw bone in his blood-formed arm at him. Jerome felt the living steel in his veins recede further in fright. He also felt it wanting to burrow into the earth beneath him. Jerome let it. For the first time since that damned claw bone showed up, Suzie acted normal. Strands of chrome-red liquid steel bled from his body and burrowed into the ground. Whatever was down there he was going to buy Suzie as much time as possible to get to it.


    Lokta¡¯s father kicked him in the jaw and punched him midair as he spun. He was crushed into the earth and he felt his rib bones crack.


    ¡°What is your name, that I may know the name of the killer of my son?¡±


    Jerome looked around to find Lokta but he didn¡¯t see him. ¡°Too bad,¡± he said, looking the man dead in the eye, ¡°you¡¯ll never find out.¡±


    ¡°Then you will die a nameless man and be left to rot in this deserted land.¡± The man moved closer as he spoke and Jerome perceived the rank smell of dead blood coming from his breath.


    He took a good look at him now. Lokta¡¯s father would have been considered a handsome youth in his late twenties¡­ if it weren¡¯t for the unkempt beard and the madness in his eyes. The man stood over him and raised his blood-formed arm. Chains with enormous spikes jutted out of them and the surface slithered like thousands of serpents, causing Jerome to shiver in disgust.


    Just before the man thrust his arm down to rip him to shreds, a geyser of liquid steel burst out of the ground between them. Jerome cursed. He was aiming to inundate his enemy with the raw unrefined living steel that Suzie discovered in the ground. But Lokta¡¯s father had jumped out of the way at the last second.


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    He heard the man groan in pain as he walked through the geyser. Time to turn the tables around.


    ~~~


    Grogg


    The gods must be playing a joke on him. Or maybe they were testing him.


    ¡°Orka¡­ where are you? Show mercy upon your servant,¡± he muttered. ¡°N¡¯tdaea¡­ How do I kill this strange monster?¡±


    He sat up groaning in pain. His whole left leg was gone and there was blood everywhere. Then he looked at what severed his leg. A geyser of shiny liquid was gushing out of the ground and taking up the available space.


    ¡°Visha stirh¡¯aun!¡± he panicked. He began shuffling backward away from the liquid steel. He had shot backwards when he sensed danger and put enough distance between himself and the liquid, which had saved his life.


    But visha stirh¡¯aun was still gushing out of the earth and spreading everywhere. He watched the boy he¡¯d been hunting walk through the liquid. He looked like a metal man, come to deliver justice on his enemies.


    ¡°Visha stirh¡¯aun does not hurt you?¡± he blurted out. Grogg began to panic.


    ¡°My turn,¡± the boy said and sucked in the liquid coating him into his body. He breathed in deeply and grinned wickedly.


    ¡°Ho-how is that possible?¡± he muttered. No. He mustn¡¯t lose his wits here. He tried to form a blood limb for his severed leg but was unable to. Grogg looked down and panicked. Visha stirh¡¯aun was already creeping up his body!


    He held his claw bone in front of him and the liquid steel retreated away from him. He grinned and stood up.


    ¡°I noticed how your artifact behaved when I produced my claw bone,¡± he said, walking toward the boy. The living steel surrounding him made way for him, afraid of getting close.


    ¡°Who are you? And what is that claw bone?¡± the boy asked, unafraid.


    ¡°I admire your tenacity and fearlessness¡­ so I will grant you answers.¡±


    The boy snorted. Grogg sneered at him in contempt.


    ¡°I am Grogg. Chief of the Blood Moon tribe. Father of Lokta, the boy you killed!¡± he roared his rage and pain in those last words. He wanted this boy to feel his rage when he pulled out his heart. ¡°My boy was champion of the moon! And you took him away from him!¡±


    ¡°And the claw bone?¡±


    Grogg growled in rage at the boy¡¯s impertinence. He would teach him a lesson before killing him. ¡°You will learn a lesson this day to fear those above your station. So that in your next life you¡ª¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough threats. I don¡¯t have all day.¡±


    Grogg attacked in anger. He shot forward, intent on stabbing this uncouth Sprout with his bare hand. Wait a moment¡­


    His supposed hand met an armor made of visha stirh¡¯aun. The liquid steel devoured the congealed blood and crept up his arm so fast that it covered his whole body before he could retreat. He immediately stabbed the Sprout in the chest with the claw bone but the Sprout also stabbed him with a spike of living steel.


    Grogg felt the rest of his vitality leave him rapidly. He tried pulling himself away but was met with resistance, not just from the living steel flooding his channels but from his heart. The wild beating he once used to feel had reduced to tired thumps. His body began to desiccate right before his eyes.


    This was the end then¡­ Why?


    ~~~


    Jerome staggered to the ground. He hurt everywhere. The desiccated corpse of Grogg fell from him and scattered on the ground. Jerome felt his heart beat wildly in his chest. The claw bone missed his heart by a few inches but he could feel it trying to bore into him.


    ¡°What the fuck?!¡±


    He reached up with tired arms and tried to pull out the bone but it wouldn¡¯t budge. Instead, it started boring into his flesh causing untold pain.


    Jerome screamed! He watched in horror as the huge claw pushed through his skin and into his body, all the while wallowing in pain like nothing he had ever felt before. The pain was so unbearable that he passed out instantly.


    ¡°What?!¡± He sat up instantly and scrambled to his feet. Only he wasn¡¯t on the ground in a deserted land. He was in his mind plane. ¡°What the fuck just happened?¡±


    Something pulsed behind him and he turned to find the claw bone he was stabbed with, pulsing and rotating as it hovered in the air. It was at most two feet off the ground. The claw was huge ¡ª at least three feet in length and very thick. Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled to get rid of the tension in his muscles.


    He waddled toward it in a sea of red-brown leaves. He studied the claw bone for a while, hesitant to get too close to it. This thing was able to get Suzie to retreat, what would it then do to him? By the way, how did it get here? He had no answers to those questions. Even so he felt the urge to touch the bone, to¡­ what? He couldn¡¯t quite put his finger on it.


    But he went ahead and touched the bone, and his vision swam before turning white.


    Jerome found himself at the peak of a very huge snow capped mountain. Wait! The peak of the mountain was jutting out into space. He was pulled upwards and farther into space and his view expanded. The mountain was enormous. Covering almost a third of the surface of the planet he could see from space.


    He fell.


    He fell fast. Past the mountain and through a portal. The next moment, he was facing another mountain. This one was not as huge but it was dark. A dark cloud floated above it, ready to devour the world.


    ¡°I know this mountain,¡± he whispered.


    The silence around him was suddenly broken by a powerful, guttural voice. ¡°You are not ready.¡± The voice sounded like all of creation would listen for every word it spoke ¡ª the kind of voice that commanded absolute authority!


    Jerome whipped around and sat up with a start. The sun shone down into his eyes making him squint. He heard people moving about and opened his eyes to look around. He took a moment to orient himself. Going from standing to sitting in a split moment was very uncomfortable.


    ¡°Are you okay, Jerome?¡± Rihal¡¯s voice sounded to his left.

 67. A Discussion To Be Had Now And In The Future

    Jerome sighed and lay back in the soil. The liquid steel beneath him splashed outward and everyone around him rushed away.


    ¡°Would you tell him to stop that!¡± a woman yelled.


    That voice woke him up fast. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked, leaning up again.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you take a look around you,¡± Rihal said from a distance away. ¡°People don¡¯t just lie in flowing steel, you know?¡±


    Jerome looked around and saw the mess he¡¯d made. The metallic glint of steel was everywhere, only it was in liquid form ¡ª like mercury. Large puddles of the liquid dotted the whole ground and people had to avoid it completely as they moved about, some even opting to fly instead. The geyser had stopped flowing but its location had the deepest pool, he could tell ¡ª with some sort of flowing steel sense he suspected.


    Jerome smiled. ¡°I heard the sovereign say it¡¯s very difficult to mine living steel.¡±


    ¡°It is!¡± someone said loudly from the crowd. Jerome felt a weight upon him from hearing the voice ¡ª that was a Sage. ¡°I¡¯ll pay you well to mine as much visha stirh¡¯aun for me as you can. Name your price!¡±


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Rihal asked again, ignoring the voice. The concern in his master¡¯s voice made him smile.


    ¡°Never been better,¡± Jerome said, standing up. He staggered a little before orienting himself. ¡°That voice sounds like Grandmaster Fesir Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Rihal responded. ¡°I swear, that man can smell an opportunity from a thousand miles away.¡±


    Jerome chuckled at his complaint. ¡°Are you sure the Sovereign didn¡¯t send him?¡± Jerome knew this wasn¡¯t out of the realm of possibility. Rihal didn¡¯t answer so he took that as a ¡®yes¡¯. ¡°Time to get to work then.¡±


    He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began waving his hands around. He felt connected to the flowing steel somehow and he knew he could manipulate it. Jerome weaved and bobbed around, dancing to a strange tune only he could hear. The liquid steel responded to his every move. Gasps sounded around and people stopped what they were doing to watch him.


    ¡°How is he doing that?¡± someone said.


    ¡°That¡¯s Rihal¡¯s boy, isn¡¯t it? I thought he died!¡±


    Jerome flinched a little. He guessed many knew about him ¡®dying¡¯, but not so much about him coming back from the dead ¡ª literally! Before long, huge globes of liquid steel were hovering in the air. Many of them, as big as five stories. Jerome continued long after thirteen such globes had been formed. Soon after, he felt his strength drain out of him and someone put an arm on his shoulder to stop him.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough Jerome,¡± Rihal said. Jerome held the globes of liquid steel in the air for a while.


    ¡°Get to work, everyone!¡± Elder Fesir Vorthe¡¯s voice resounded again, bringing the rest of the sacred artist there out of their stupor.


    Jerome began noticing the telltale signs of the assassins among them ¡ª or at least he thought he was. Some of the people in the crowd were too smooth with their movement, some were moving as though there were no obstacles in front of them ¡ª even they were in a crowd of people setting up tents and carrying large boulders around. Yet none were putting on the signature black leather sleeveless vests and cloaks that he had come to know Rihal for.


    Some of the people in the crowd waved their hands in the air and giant crates appeared midair spinning, not unlike the ones that were used to store his crystal stones ¡ª only these ones were huge! Jerome watched as the crates quickly absorbed the living steel as they spun, without even opening up. They must have been made from living steel themselves.


    ¡°Sometimes I wonder, Rihal, how many secrets Vorthe has,¡± he said in wonder.


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°Let¡¯s get you home, Jerome.¡±


    Someone cleared their throat behind them. Jerome turned around to see the Elder glaring down at him. But his eyes softened a moment after and he cleared his throat again.


    ¡°Thank you for assisting in mining the visha stirh¡¯aun. The Royal Family owes you a depth of gratitude,¡± the Elder said.


    Assisted my ass! Jerome complained to himself.


    But then the Elder added ¡ª with authority. ¡°This also absolves you of every punishment I had planned for you!¡± Jerome felt his heartbeat spike for a moment. What?


    Elder Fesir Vorthe was a Sage and the weight of his presence was crushing him as he stood listening. Jerome bowed low to the Elder who continued. ¡°On reaching your chamber in the Royal Estate, you¡¯ll find my payment to you.¡±


    ¡°If I may Elder,¡± Jerome said, clearing his throat. He watched Elder Fesir Vorthe cock his head at him. ¡°Can I request to be compensated in other forms of resources besides¡­ you know¡­ crystal coins?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± the Elder said and disappeared. Jerome breathed out a sigh of relief as the weight of the Sage¡¯s presence was lifted off him.


    ¡°I literally mined the whole thing!¡± he complained. ¡°And I can¡¯t get to choose how I get paid?¡±


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°You should have said so when he was here.¡±


    ¡°I should have, shouldn¡¯t I?¡± he answered dryly.


    His master shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s a good way to get your head blown up. And what punishments did he absolve you of?¡±


    Jerome scrunched his face in annoyance. ¡°I take it you¡¯ve not heard of the ¡®Projector¡¯, have you?¡±


    ¡°No?¡± Rihal replied, with a bit of curiosity in his voice. Jerome smiled but raised his hand to express his helplessness.


    ¡°Not my secret to reveal.¡± There was a knowing smile on his face, however.


    ¡°Just make sure not to get on the Elder¡¯s bad side,¡± Rihal said, brushing off the topic like it didn¡¯t matter. But Jerome knew better. He could almost see the gears turning in his master¡¯s head.


    ¡°With all this living steel around? Not a chance!¡±


    Rihal raised an eyebrow at him. But Jerome smirked and walked toward the hole in the ground where the living steel had come out of. He took a deep breath and dived into the hole.


    ~~~


    The Royal Estate. Farryn.


    ¡°Whatever happened to Idrel ¡­ and Fifteen?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯ve been apprehended,¡± Rihal said.


    Jerome studied him for a moment. ¡°You once told me that those with the blood of Vorthe can use the force of light to ¡®illuminate the dark corners of their hearts¡¯ ¡ª¡±


    ¡°I also told you that there are exceptions. Idrel is one such exception.¡±


    Jerome frowned in thought, looking away. ¡°He would have sold me into slavery, Rihal. I¡¯m not complaining. I understand that strength is king. I just think that Vorthe should make that ¡­ whatever it is you do to illuminate the heart or whatever ¡­ I think Vorthe should make it mandatory so you can root out sacred artists like him who would abuse their power.¡±


    ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you wise,¡± Rihal joked. ¡°We can¡¯t make it mandatory. There needs to be some willingness on the part of the individual.¡±


    ¡°So bad guys just get to walk around ¡­ even though you can potentially find out if they are bad?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome. Until they do something bad, we can¡¯t do anything against them.¡±


    Jerome shut his mouth for a moment, wondering when he became such a person who would take away someone¡¯s freewill because they¡¯ve got some darkness in their hearts. That was where the conversation was leading to if he had continued. Perhaps the darkness inside him was influencing him without his knowledge. He shivered slightly but clenched his fists to hide his shaking hands.


    ¡°You¡¯ve seen the village, haven¡¯t you?¡± he said, changing the subject. He adjusted himself on his bed for comfort. ¡°The one who massacred its people was called Lokta, son of Grogg. The one I killed last.¡±


    ¡°We saw everything, Jerome,¡± Rihal said. The way he responded, Jerome felt that he had been waiting for this discussion to happen. ¡°We¡¯ve been hunting them down for a while now. But I guess we didn¡¯t get all of them.¡±


    ¡°I thought Vorthe had eyes everywhere?¡± Jerome asked playfully. What he didn¡¯t expect was for his master to frown and look away at that. But Rihal¡¯s eyes glazed over for a moment before focusing back on him.


    Jerome had come to understand that action as someone communicating psychically with another. Their eyes glazed over for a moment, just like the eyes of the guard who had caught him and his friends back in the slum many years ago. He hadn¡¯t understood it then. He wasn¡¯t a sacred artist then.


    Jerome sighed as memories of his time in the orphanage came back to him. He didn¡¯t want to think about the night at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon but those memories were the hardest to shake off. He heard their cries and screams, Doti¡¯s emaciated form filled his vision and he had to blink back tears as he watched his friend¡¯s throat slice open.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°Jerome?¡±


    He came back to his senses, still blinking back tears. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Do you need a moment?¡± Rihal asked, noticing his change in demeanor.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m good. You were saying?¡±


    Rihal studied him for a while before continuing. ¡°I said, they came into Vorthe through the south ¡ª Alvric lands.¡±


    Jerome scoffed. Of course it¡¯ll be those sleazebags. Alvric lands were in the south of Vorthe which meant the islands would be located off the coast of the southern sea.


    ¡°But more than that, they had something ¡­ some type of artifact, we believe. It helped to cloak them from our sight. We didn¡¯t notice them until whole villages started disappearing.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s breath caught in his throat. ¡°You mean they¡¯ve done that to many other villages?!¡±


    Rihal nodded with a frown. ¡°Did you notice any strange artifact with any of them?¡± he asked.


    Jerome remembered the strange giant claw. For some reason, he felt like there was a hole in his memory though. ¡°As a matter of fact, I do¡­¡±


    Rihal remained still where he sat but Jerome could almost feel the weight of his attention focus on him. He had a feeling Rihal wasn¡¯t just asking as his master. Whatever was said here would be repeated somewhere ¡ª possibly to someone higher up.


    ¡°If I recall correctly, there was a claw. A huge, curved, three-foot long claw!¡± Jerome perked up. It was all coming back to him now.


    ¡°This claw,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Where is it now?¡±


    The fight played like a movie in his mind. Jerome remembered everything up to the point of stabbing Grogg with a spike of living steel and then¡­


    ¡°He stabbed me with it!¡± He almost couldn¡¯t believe that he forgot such an important detail from a fight. ¡°And then ¡­ and then ¡­¡±


    ¡°Go on,¡± Rihal encouraged. Jerome tried to remember what happened next but it was like there was a hole in his head and it began to hurt to think about it.


    ¡°I can¡¯t, Rihal¡­¡± he sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t remember.¡±


    Rihal also sighed. ¡°No worries,¡± he nodded. ¡°If you remember anything though, just make sure to let me know.¡±


    ¡°Sure. Did they wield some sought of mutated dark power?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Why do you ask?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°The Sovereign said there were others who wielded darkness like me ¡ª or like I would. He also said there were others who wielded light like Vorthe.¡± Jerome had thought he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about it for the time being.


    ¡°The church is the other light wielding entity on this continent. They occupy a large portion of it as well, though not as large as Vorthe. They call it divine essence ¡­ as if.¡± Rihal snorted.


    ¡°That sounds ¡­ flawed,¡± Jerome said, marveling at the new information.


    Rihal chuckled. ¡°It sure is.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s their threat level?¡±


    ¡°Good thinking there, Jerome,¡± Rihal said with an approving smile. ¡°With a Transcendent as the Sovereign of Vorthe, they don¡¯t stand a chance against us. And trust me, they do want to take Vorthe down really badly.¡±


    ¡°Which means they¡¯re very powerful then.¡±


    Rihal nodded solemnly. ¡°They receive help from higher planes, that¡¯s why.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped in shock! ¡°Rihal, that¡¯s¡­¡± He had no words!


    ¡°Dangerous for us. They¡¯ve got a lot of highly advanced artifacts ¡ª most of which we have no names for. If the church started a war with Vorthe today, many would die. But Vorthe would still win that war ¡ª or at least, we wouldn¡¯t fall. We¡¯d pick ourselves up far quicker than they would. And their empire would be ours for the taking.¡±


    The mere mention of the word empire brought to mind his question about why Vorthe wasn¡¯t an empire. That was a long time ago now, when he was preparing for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Then it dawned on Jerome.


    ¡°They¡¯re the reason why Vorthe isn¡¯t called an empire, isn¡¯t it?¡± It made sense, recognizing another empire would skew the power balance on the continent! The look on Rihal¡¯s face said it all.


    ¡°It¡¯s not just them Jerome. If all three other superpowers on this continent formed an alliance against Vorthe¡­¡± He left the rest of his words unspoken but Jerome got the gist of it.


    ¡°What about the other creatures of darkness?¡± Jerome asked. He felt no need to carry on that conversation right now. Maybe when he was stronger. Afterall, what could a young Sprout like him do?


    Rihal sighed again. ¡°You¡¯d have to find out about that yourself, Jerome. They¡¯re a mysterious bunch from what I¡¯ve been told.¡±


    They both looked at the door and smiled as they sensed someone rushing towards them.


    ¡°We¡¯ll continue this discussion later,¡± Rihal said and vanished.


    Ash burst into the room just as Rihal vanished. She tackled Jerome to the bed, hugging him with all her might. Jerome laughed and hugged her back. He welcomed the change in mood. He¡¯d missed her. They stayed like that for a while, enjoying each other¡¯s company in comfortable silence. After a while, Ash sat up on his stomach.


    ¡°I heard you took down a psychopathic murderer!¡±


    ¡°¡®A¡¯?,¡± Jerome asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°It was two!¡±


    Ash tsked, waving her finger. ¡°The second one doesn¡¯t matter. I heard he was Blank.¡±


    ¡°And who¡¯s spreading those lies?¡± Jerome balked at her. ¡°Just so you know, I have the ear of the Sovereign. I can tell him someone is downplaying my achievements!¡± Of course, he could sense the presence of Ash¡¯s roommate at the door. How else would Ash have heard about this if Layla wasn¡¯t involved.


    ¡°Are you calling me a liar?!¡± Layla barked from behind his door. She slammed it open, marching into the room like she owned the place.


    The sight of Ash sitting on Jerome¡¯s stomach stopped her in her tracks. It wasn¡¯t that they meant to be intimate with each other, it just sort of happened. Layla¡¯s hesitation at the sight of them brought their positions to the forefront of his mind. The awareness that Ash¡¯s round, supple rear was parked on his abs sent all his blood south of his body and pressure started to build between his thighs.


    ¡°And the talebearer shows herself,¡± Jerome said with mock annoyance, trying to downplay the scene but failing.


    ¡°Uh¡­ if this is a bad time, I can come back later,¡± Layla said, turning to go.


    Ash quickly scrambled off Jerome, her face and ears turning red as she did. Jerome just smiled at her as he sat up, determined to play it cool. In fact, he had made up his mind that he was going to pursue a relationship with Ash ¡­ after he came back from Terra Praeta.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to leave,¡± he said. Layla turned back and glared at him. ¡°So?¡± He smirked at her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not spreading lies!¡± Layla spat and huffed.


    ¡°I¡¯m just saying. Both sacred artists were Sprouts, even though one was a young Sprout. The other though, was at the peak of the Core Formation Realm!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯d like to see your compensation!¡± Ash said, leaning closer to him. Jerome felt her bust press into his side. It was full and soft that he felt like he had attained nirvana for a moment and just enjoyed the feeling. He wasn¡¯t even sure Ash was aware of the effect she had on him. But of course she doesn¡¯t, he reasoned. She¡¯s fifteen.  But technically, he was sixteen so ¡­ he shook off the thought, not liking where his mind was going.


    Jerome got off his bed and brought out the storage bags he had found on his bed when he got to his room. He hadn¡¯t bothered to check them out. There were eight of them in number and he laid them all out on his bed.


    ¡°They gave you all this for slaying two Sprouts?¡± Layla asked as she looked through the contents of one of the bags. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± She sounded almost offended.


    Jerome¡¯s brows rose before he quickly schooled his features. They must not have told her about the mine of living steel. He reasoned that wasn¡¯t something the Royal family would want to spread around though because this time they didn¡¯t need the Itakars resources to mine it. That was grounds enough to shut everyone up who was present at the site so he held his tongue.


    Jerome looked into one of the bags himself and was pleasantly surprised. It contained uncut high grade stones.


    ¡°This one contains fire crystals,¡± Ash said, a little disappointed. ¡°They¡¯re uncut too.¡±


    ¡°Huh!¡± Jerome had never seen a fire element stone before. He collected the bag from Ash and looked inside. Heat blasted him just as he opened it. The red glow of the fire crystals brightened his face. Jerome breathed in the rich essence emanating from them. ¡°Guess he had a change of mind.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°Nothing.¡± He observed the runic symbols around the edge of the bag¡¯s opening. They were identical to that on the coins.


    ¡°So four bags of pure uncut highs and four bags of fire crystals. You¡¯re rich, Jerome,¡± Layla teased.


    Jerome threw one of the bags containing the pure uncut stones to her and one to Ash. Ash jumped into his arms again in glee, hugging him. Jerome only laughed and hugged her back. He also had to hold her in such a way that she wouldn¡¯t feel the discomfort in his pants.


    ¡°Thank you, Jerome,¡± both girls said. He smiled at them. Although Layla was a bit uncomfortable around them like this, her smile was genuine as she cradled the storage bag in her hand.


    Ash jumped up with agility that bellied her feminine frame. ¡°I need to go prepare. I¡¯ll be going for Pilgrims¡¯ Keep after you leave for Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Wow!¡± Jerome exclaimed as he walked them out the door. ¡°I almost forgot about that.¡±


    ¡°I need to go prepare too. We don¡¯t have much time anymore,¡± Layla said.


    Ash shrugged. ¡°Not a problem, Jerome. You were dealing with a lot.¡±


    Jerome was glad she didn¡¯t know about the kidnapping. Now that he thought about it, what must have happened to Idrel and fifteen?


    ~~~


    Yun Vorthe


    ¡°It¡¯s as you predicted, my Sovereign,¡± Damien said, kneeling before him. ¡°Zatirah has begun to move.¡±


    Yun clenched his fists so tight, the fabric of reality warped around him and the room he was in threatened to implode in on itself.


    ¡°Calm your anger, my Lord,¡± Thorlin Vorthe said.


    ¡°Father¡­¡± Aeldra¡¯s voice spoke softly in his ears. ¡°Please, calm yourself.¡±


    Yun shut his eyes and took some effort to calm himself. When he opened his eyes, he noticed that the brightly lit council chamber walls already had cracks and tears in them. The debris from the cracks that should have fallen to the ground had been banished to void.


    ¡°And are you certain about this, Damien?¡± Thorlin asked.


    Damien shook his head in uncertainty. ¡°I am not, Elder. The boy¡¯s mind is a fort that cannot be read. I only know what I know from what my disciple reported. He was stabbed with a severed claw bone that was at least three feet in length.¡±


    Aeldra gasped, covering her mouth in shock. ¡°Is he well?¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Yun answered and all became quiet. ¡°He did not lie. Whatever the dragons want with him, we must find out. Thorlin,¡± he turned to the First Elder. ¡°The Feis only know to please their dragons. Employ caution.¡±


    ¡°As you wish, my Lord.¡± Thorlin Vorthe stood up, bowed, and vanished from the chamber.


    Yun always knew the dragons were better scryers. There were none compared to them in all the worlds. He just never expected that he would not be able to sow a piece of himself inside the fated Dark One before they did.


    Brilliant. How brilliant the way the threads of fate converge. Perhaps he should meet with Zatirah herself ¡ª have a discussion with her. The true Matriarch of the Fei clan. Perhaps then this ruse they¡¯ve kept on for so long would end. And then he would find out what they really are after.

 68. Interlude: To The Golden City

    It was cold. The snow bit into her bones with a ferocity that she hadn¡¯t been able to get used to for three years. Growing up in Farryn, the city where it never snowed, where the weather was always calm, she marveled at the sight of snow when she first saw it three years ago. But life in the Redwood Forest was not meant to be a convenience and the novelty of snow wore off with time ¡ª but the cold didn¡¯t get any easier to bear.


    She shivered, hugging herself for warmth. She had always thought her life wouldn¡¯t account for anything. Her parents never wanted her, so they gave her away like she was another¡¯s problem to deal with. After all, the slum was the best place to dump children you didn¡¯t want. She¡¯d had to beg for scraps to eat while growing up, and also never had clothes that ever fit her frame. Nothing had gone right for her throughout her seventy-eight years alive.


    Even Mehn Agrh¡¯ur was a disappointment. That was the moment she had stopped dreaming big; the moment she became comfortable in her own skin. Comfortable having less. Being less. If there was one thing she wished she¡¯d changed it was that.


    Old Wen hadn¡¯t helped matters as well. But how could she blame him? She¡¯d be a hypocrite if she did. They had both become comfortable living as weaklings. Her life quickly became one of sacrifice and selflessness. But even this was an excuse at righteousness. An escape from reality.


    She made taking care of the children at the orphanage as her only recourse. And in the end she paid the price for it. They all did ¡ª all three of them. They were weak and chose to stay so. Afraid of power, yet unwilling to do the work to gain it. Afraid even. But even fear was an excuse. Only when it became monetarily convenient did they decide to take a chance.


    They should have done so sooner ¡ª damned the world and went for what they wanted! Her anger soared, providing a brief respite from the biting cold of the snow all around her.


    There was one such person among them who did. Though a child he was. Even without the means to defend himself, he knew that power was what mattered in this world. And he trained hard everyday to make sure ¡­ no, to set himself on the right path to gain it. He was more motivated than they were. Yes, that was the word she had been searching for.


    Motivation.


    They lost their motivation. Looking back now, she hated herself. Who she was ¡ª a meek, good for nothing, who only knew how to beg. She clenched her fists and gnashed her teeth in her self-loathing, her body vibrating where she sat.


    ¡°Shh. Calm yourself, Tara. Farryn is but a tenday away,¡± Sheela said, hugging her and passing her some of her bodily warmth. ¡°I know you seek strength, power to call your own. And it awaits you where we go. Only don¡¯t die. We¡¯ve invested a lot in you and I¡¯d hate it if you died out there.¡±


    Sheela kissed her on the head and walked away into the darkness. She was grateful for what Sheela had done for her. Grateful to the tribe who had taken her in. Tara watched her go. The snow and forest seemed to open a path for her to walk in ¡ª the fog, not so much.


    The daughter of the Chieftain was one powerful Shifter no one messed with. The Midnight Jaguar in her blood held a depth of mystery and awe in the hearts of the members of the Fang. Sheela was beautiful ¡ª and bold. Her long black hair and tan skin added a sense of wildness to her beauty. Pale gold irises made her beauty even more striking. Though young, she was one of the smartest persons Tara had ever known ¡ª granted, she didn¡¯t know many smart people.


    The Fang.


    Tara¡¯s mind couldn¡¯t help but go back to the day she opened her eyes to her new life. She had found herself in an open shed much like the one she was sitting in right now. Her body, bruised and battered by the river she was thrown into. Mere thoughts of the river brought up images of the canyon to mind. Her heart rate increased as panic set in. She felt the air struggle to enter her lungs. She took deep breaths trying to calm herself. The face of the devil who had stolen her along with her family away from their home assaulted her in her mind¡¯s eye.


    She forced the image away from her, concentrating on the trees outside her shed. The panic faded and she calmed at last.


    The Fang were the people who had found her and taken care of her, broken as she was. But she soon found out they were more than normal people. They had secrets many hate them for. A secret some others would love to kill for.


    The Fang and the four other packs in the Redwood Forest could shapeshift, turn into animals whose cores they had harvested and bonded with ¡ª the technique, a closely guarded secret of the pack. A secret they had promised to share with her one day. She just had to obtain a suitable magic beast core.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Sheela asked. When did she come back?


    Tara nodded, swallowing hard. She tried to speak like she had so many times before ¡ª a reflex she couldn¡¯t control ¡ª but no words came from the back of her throat. Why couldn¡¯t she speak? Frustration welled up in her. She looked away from Sheela, guilt in her eyes.


    Sheela wrapped her in a warm hug. ¡°You¡¯ll find your voice soon, love. Soon.¡±


    Tara hugged her back, grateful for the warmth of another. The redwood forest can be cold at nights and that bleeds into the mornings ¡ª the season of frost just worsened it. The sheds didn¡¯t provide proper warmth either. But this was a ritual everyone reaching their majority or in her case, joining the clan had to go through. They had to learn to survive on their own in the wilds.


    Add the upcoming journey to another plane and their training for the past moon had taken on new dynamics. All the trainees had been in charge of tracking down prey and killing it throughout their journey. They¡¯d had to learn to work together but that was no issue for her teammates ¡ª except her.


    She was the odd one amongst them. The runt of the litter. ¡®Not a drop of magic beast blood in her¡¯ her bullies say whenever she was too slow or hesitant. She didn¡¯t have their agility, sense of smell, or speed. Their primal instincts. They despised her because of this ¡ª the outsider, come to sully their legacy.


    Amongst all her teammates, Sheela was the only person she knew. They had selected two candidates each from all five packs in the Redwood forest. An escort from each pack came with them on their journey, making their group a total of fifteen people. Thankfully, Sheela already had gone through her transformation to Shifter. She could protect both of them when necessary ¡ª a situation Tara wouldn¡¯t like one bit.


    There were others in the Fang that were eligible and should have jumped at the opportunity but didn¡¯t. Which was odd. Why was she the one picked? Noelle, Sheela¡¯s mother, had said it was because she was the most hungry for growth. Tara sighed.


    She picked up her writing stick and wrote in the snow, wanting to know when they¡¯d leave the forest and enter a town or city. She loved the forest, but she longed to see civilization, at least somewhere more civilized.


    ¡°A few days, Tara,¡± Sheela said. ¡°That¡¯s my estimation. Remember, I also haven¡¯t been outside the forest before. But we¡¯d be coming out in the City of Evergreen. It¡¯s ruled by House Abdiel, the House of Crofting. They have the biggest arable lands in all the western region, perhaps in all of Vorthe.¡±


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    Tara quickly wrote with her stick in the ground.


    ¡°You want to know how it¡¯s a city when they are farmers?¡±


    Tara nodded furiously. Writing instead of speaking was very frustrating. But the beautiful Sheela seemed to never mind. Her eyes sparkled with intelligence anytime Tara asked her questions. She would zone into her explanations sometimes, making gestures with those sexy muscular arms. Tara always wondered how someone so young got so strong and confident like Sheela, yet so caring.


    Sheela was only twenty-eight years old, fifty years younger than her. Yet she was already stronger than Tara hoped to ever be once upon a time. The thought brought shame to her heart and color to her cheeks.


    ¡°Well, you should know that cities like Evergreen build their infrastructure to fit their needs. Therefore, they don¡¯t build with stones and wood. They grow their homes!¡±


    Tara reared her head back in shock. She had never heard anything like that before.


    ¡°They live in enormous trees. I know the question on your mind. ¡®What about a fire?¡¯¡±


    Tara nodded again and Sheela smiled.


    ¡°Well, they¡¯ve been doing this for almost a thousand years now and there¡¯s been no fire in recorded history. At least, none we know of.¡±


    Tara scribbled furiously on the ground again.


    ¡°Ah! If I knew how they prevented one, I would have already told you,¡± Sheela replied dramatically. ¡°I do know that it takes a lot of vital aura to grow their trees. They come to our forest with special artifacts to feed off the vital aura in the trees.¡±


    Tara sensed a bit of tenseness in Sheela¡¯s voice as she talked about the vital aura. Perhaps, the Fangs and the other Shifter packs in the Redwood forest were not happy about this.


    Sheela saw the look on her face. ¡°Yes, we don¡¯t like it when they do that.¡± She sighed. ¡°But they have a royal edict to do so.¡±


    Tara frowned, curious about the new word. Not even sure if she should ask because she didn¡¯t like to seem illiterate. But Sheela could read her like a book.


    ¡°An edict is an order of sorts, a proclamation issued by royalty. The Abdiels already love coming to siphon vital aura in our forest, an order to do so just gives them more power to do even more.¡±


    Weren¡¯t the royals worried that this could destroy the forest? Tara wanted to scribble her question in the soil again when a loud horn sounded outside their camp and everyone started waking up. The camp got busy immediately. Even though she couldn¡¯t see much due to the fog and huge redwood trees, she heard them and rushed to dismantle her shed.


    ¡°We¡¯ll continue our discussion when we stop to rest again or when we get to Evergreen.¡±


    Tara nodded and continued her work.


    ~~~


    The City of Evergreen. Western Region.


    It took the team two days to reach Evergreen. The gates ahead of them were covered in a verdant array of leaves and vines, it looked like the edges of a forest. Even the giant walls were covered in vines. They were almost as tall as the walls of Farryn if she could remember correctly.


    Tara looked at her teammates, wanting to celebrate, and happy in her heart that she was in a city once again. But they turned their faces away from her in disgust. She clenched her jaw and looked away in annoyance. Soon, they¡¯ll learn to respect her. Soon. She¡¯ll make sure of it!


    ¡°Welcome to Evergreen.¡± Someone at the gates said. Tara immediately coiled away from his voice. She didn¡¯t like it as it reminded her of him.


    The man who spoke looked to be in his mid-twenties and clean shaven, handsome too ¡ª in an evil way. The sight of him made her skin crawl. She could feel the weight of his presence pressing down on her. He wasn¡¯t doing anything to hide it. In fact, he wanted them all to know he was a Spirit Realm expert.


    Sheela was frowning beside her. She too was uncomfortable. ¡°I hope he¡¯s not the guide they talked about,¡± she muttered.


    What guide? Tara wanted to ask, but the void swallowed her voice. Frustration set in as she looked around for a stick to write with. Even if she had one with her, they were currently standing in front of the city gates and she couldn¡¯t stoop down in the middle of the whole group just because she wanted to ask a question. She didn¡¯t want to draw attention to herself.


    Animosity from the rest of her teammates was one thing, animosity from their caretakers who escorted them from their homes in the Redwood forest was another. And she didn¡¯t want to raise their ire.


    ¡°I am your guide to Farryn,¡± the Spirit Realm expert said, not looking pleased at all about it. ¡°An inn has been prepared for you in the city. When you take a room, eat, rest, and on the ¡®morrow, we continue to the Capital City.¡±


    Sheela sighed wistfully. ¡°I feel like I can see the future,¡± she whispered, ¡°and it looks bleak traveling with him.¡±


    Their guide scanned their group with sharp eyes and walked into the city gates after his short speech. Tara watched him go in his black leather cloak. Something about the way he walked reminded him about Rihal, Jerome¡¯s tutor in the slum, and somehow she felt he must have heard Sheela complain. She shook the thought away as their group walked into the city.


    A vibrancy of nature was what greeted her eyes as she walked into the city. The structures she beheld were no different from trees in the forest. Trees that looked like a mix between a house and a normal tree. The trunks had been hollowed out to make space for living arrangements, and doors and windows were carved into the barks.


    All the tree houses she laid eyes on were a beauty to behold, many of them in different shapes and sizes.


    ¡°It¡¯s like the people of the city decided to go crazy with their designs,¡± Sheela said beside her, looking just as out of place as she felt. And they all did look out of place with their leather outfits with lots of skin showing. Shifters were never shy of their sexuality and would even rather walk around naked in animal form, it was freeing to them.


    The houses took on many forms, even some had animal forms. How they managed to grow the trees to take on these weird shapes, Tara did not know. The one similarity she saw amongst all the houses was their roofs. They all had crowns that looked like trees with branches extending, and filled with leaves and flowers ¡ª well, mostly flowers. Beautiful flowers that filled the air with a mix of nice fragrance.


    The roads were filled with leaves and flowers blown off the many trees in the city as well.


    ¡°Here be your lodging,¡± their guide said when they reached an inn directly facing the gates of the city. The building was in the shape of a shapely lady carrying a tray above her head ¡ª the tray being the crown of the tree with vines spilling out of it. The inn was just a few hundred paces or so from the gates and Tara was glad for it. This way, they could leave the city quickly in the morning.


    Someone coughed to get their guide¡¯s attention. It was one of their escorts.


    ¡°May we get to know your name, my lord?¡± another spoke. ¡°And we are most grateful to be guided to the Capital City by a lord of Vorthe. You are a lord, are you not? We can see the signs.¡±


    Their guide scowled at that, menace rippling off him threateningly. Depending on how one looked at it, that question and everything said could be an insult to a lord of Vorthe. Tara had no idea how they figured out their guide was a lord though.


    Murmurings broke out among their group. Tara wasn¡¯t sure what to think. Why would Vorthe send a lord to escort them? The young man did look well groomed. And tall. Short black hair slicked back away from his clean shaven face. He was handsome, but his good looks were twisted by his disdain and cruel demeanor.


    A loud chuckle sounded above them, feminine and sweet. ¡°His name is Idrel,¡± a lady hovering above them all said. Tara looked up marveling at the sight. The murmurings increased. ¡°And he¡¯s not just a lord in Vorthe, he¡¯s a royal!¡± The whispers and murmurings quieted in an instance.


    ¡°He¡¯s being punished for crimes committed against a fellow lord, ahahah!¡±


    End of Book Two

 69. Terra Praeta

    Book Three: Terra Praeta


    ¡°Jerome, there are some things I¡¯m not permitted to teach you or show you,¡± Rihal said, twirling his index finger around the tip of his wine glass. ¡°Like the library of books, you read three years ago. That was a selection of books from a list created by the Sovereign.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s ¡­ interesting,¡± Jerome responded, a bit shocked and curious to know why the Sovereign would personally select books for him to read.


    ¡°You asked me once why Ash got to meet with other Blanks, and you didn¡¯t,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°Well, you¡¯re the fated Dark One. And as much as I may tell you that it¡¯s all good, and everything is fine ¡­ it¡¯s not.¡±


    Jerome leaned back into his chair and sighed looking up. Rihal¡¯s manor house was still as exquisite as ever. Not a piece of furniture was out of place. Yet there were no maids in sight. The foyer was of a simple design, comfy even. But he could tell everything he laid his eyes on was of really good quality. Rihal had good taste.


    Today was the day he would enter Terra Praeta and Rihal was coming clean about some things.


    ¡°There¡¯s a limit to the number of resources you¡¯re allowed. It¡¯s unpleasant but ¡­ it is what it is,¡± Rihal continued, ¡°The Sovereign has also been considerate because no Fated Dark One before you discovered their origins, but you did. And that¡¯s something.¡± He took a sip of his drink and set the glass down on a side table.


    Jerome wasn¡¯t really surprised that Vorthe saw him as a threat. He was concerned though. He hoped he¡¯d still have some freedom after he went up the mountain. The thought of it made his heart beat faster in fear and anticipation.


    ¡°Concerning the question you asked Kilian about secret techniques,¡± Rihal said, ¡°Almost every noble family in Vorthe has thousands of years of history. And because of that, they have sacred techniques hidden in secret codices that have been passed down for thousands of years. In those codices are written cycling techniques that help improve a person¡¯s combat ability, absorption rate of essence, or perception, and so much more.¡±


    Jerome nodded slowly as he now understood the connection between the strange way essence moved around in the bodies of the Sprouts he fought with and the skills they displayed. He had asked Rihal to explain it to him but ended up learning a whole lot more. And it seemed this was the reason why the average sacred artist on the streets could not be compared to those from noble homes.


    ¡°As the fated Dark One, you will have to find your own cycling technique and make sure it¡¯s something appropriate for you,¡± Rihal continued. ¡°The Sovereign will not invest in you beyond what he¡¯s done so far, do you understand me?¡±


    ¡°I do,¡± Jerome nodded as he answered, ¡°But I do have questions. Since I can¡¯t get a cycling technique of my own, can I create one? And how do I go about creating such a thing?¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal


    Rihal chuckled. He was glad Jerome didn¡¯t get annoyed by the fact that he was excluded from using the cycling techniques of the Royal Family. The little devil had a good head on his shoulders. But wanting to create his own cycling technique¡­


    Now that¡¯s something I would love to see, Rihal thought.


    ¡°Well, most of the cycling techniques available to humans these days were either created eons ago or created by top masters of powerful clans,¡± Rihal said with a smile. ¡°Now, you¡¯ve just started your journey as a sacred artist. How would you know what works best for you? And just so we¡¯re clear, not just any cycling technique will work for an individual. In fact, some techniques might cause setbacks and can even damage your foundation!¡±


    Jerome looked utterly stunned at this information. Good. His disciple needed to have some level of caution approaching such an affair, else¡­


    ¡°So, I have to have the experience to be able to create a cycling technique,¡± he said.


    ¡°Not just experience but deep insights as well,¡± Rihal corrected. Somehow he felt Jerome could do it. He¡¯d done things no one had ever done before, what¡¯s adding one more to the list?


    Jerome took some time to digest his words. Rihal knew how smart he was and that he had come to understand that things weren¡¯t so simple and straightforward when it came to being a sacred artist. And now he¡¯s finding out that he had been put at a disadvantage ever before he was born. Rihal sighed. The world was not fair. Fate wasn¡¯t fair either.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve never had a hard time cycling or creating techniques. I¡¯ll find my own way in the world,¡± Jerome declared.


    ¡°That¡¯s the spirit, Jerome,¡± Rihal said with a nod. ¡°Now, about Terra Praeta.¡± The little devil shifted in his seat to get comfy and Rihal smiled. ¡°Unlike Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, there is no map, and the monsters you¡¯d be facing will be far more intelligent and far more powerful.¡±


    ¡°Why won¡¯t there be a map?¡± Jerome asked, confusion evident in his features. ¡°That¡¯ll be like walking around blindly.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to explain, but Terra Praeta ¡­ shifts every now and then, so to speak. You lie down to rest somewhere but wake up somewhere else,¡± Rihal explained. ¡°That in itself is very dangerous so you¡¯d have to sleep with one eye open.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding.


    ¡°And then you¡¯d be going alone, Jerome,¡± Rihal said, giving his disciple a stern look. ¡°You have to make sure to watch your back at all times. Never, and I mean never, ever be caught off guard!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be careful,¡± Jerome said after a while.


    ¡°And now to the most important part,¡± Rihal said. This was the freaky part about Terra Praeta.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t the most important part?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°No, Jerome,¡± he replied. ¡°The most important part is to find daylight.¡± Rihal stopped to make sure his message sunk in.


    ¡°Find daylight. What do you mean, find daylight?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Terra Praeta is¡­different. It¡¯ll be night when you get there. A long night that never ends,¡± he explained. He couldn¡¯t give away too much information though. His disciple would have to go in with just as much information as the others going in. ¡°You just have to find your way to daylight.¡±


    ¡°So, go east. Got it,¡± Jerome said after a while. He took stock of all that was inside his storage ring which he¡¯d gotten from Rihal the day before. ¡°But for that, I¡¯ll need something from you ¡ª that¡¯s assuming there¡¯ll be no moon in the sky.¡±


    Damn. The boy was smart. He had to give him that. ¡°How do you know that?¡±


    Jerome shrugged. ¡°Just the way you said to ¡®find daylight¡¯.¡±


    Rihal smiled, pride in his heart. ¡°So?¡± he asked. ¡°What was it you said you¡¯d need?¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°A lodestone.¡±


    Rihal looked up at Jerome in confusion and Jerome was struck with a thought, What if there are no lodestones in this world? That would put a lot of things into perspective. The difference in the advancement of technology and whatnot.


    Magnets were used in many ancient civilizations back on Earth. They were used in compasses by explorers who sailed the seas to find new lands, among many other things. A deeper understanding of magnetism was what helped scientists like Hans Christian Oersted and Michael Faraday to establish the link between electricity and magnetism in the 19th century. Which then helped to create electromagnets. Jerome sighed. Electromagnetism was a pipe dream for now.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Rihal said, bringing him out of his reverie.


    ¡°It¡¯s an ore used to attract iron,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Never heard of it.¡±


    Jerome was a bit shocked by this confirmation. It was one thing to assume and another to receive confirmation of his assumption. If they didn¡¯t have lodestones in this world, there was nothing he could do.


    ¡°You mean there has never been an occurrence when rocks form from the liquid fire of a volcano?¡± Jerome had never had a discussion like this with Rihal, so he didn¡¯t know whether to use the term ¡®magma¡¯. And this was the closest thing to the cooling and crystallization of rocks he could talk to Rihal about.


    Rihal was still looking at him with a puzzled expression. Then he asked, ¡°Did you read about that in Kilian¡¯s library? Is that how this¡­ ¡®lodestone¡¯ is formed?¡±


    ¡°Partly. But to think there¡¯s never been an occurrence like that,¡± he muttered absently.


    ¡°Liquid fire is called magma, Jerome. And there may have been an occurrence such as the one you mentioned ¡­ I just don¡¯t know about it. What I do know is that fire crystals form from magma. I don¡¯t know the process, only that it does.¡±


    And there it was. Jerome usually compared Earth to his new world, something he was coming to realize would only become more bizarre as evident in this new fact.


    This planet was more than meets the eye. The kind of minerals that would form on Earth might not form here ¡ª and vice versa. But what about ores like gold and silver, tin and coal, and many more that can be found both here as it was on earth? How does one explain those? Should he even be using ¡®was¡¯ as a tense to refer to Earth? He opened his mouth to ask but Rihal beat him to it.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking. ¡®How do metals form?¡¯,¡± Rihal cocked his head and smirked. ¡°Well, metals form less than a fold of the time. Ironically, the only common metal is a risk to mine.¡±


    Rihal looked him up and down with mirth in his eyes. ¡°After the stunt you pulled down south, though, don¡¯t be surprised if you find more artifacts made from living steel like yours, maybe even better than yours.¡±


    Jerome smirked. ¡°Suzie has evolved. Beyond anything any artificer can produce.¡± He knew this because he sensed instinctively that the mind-calming stone was the reason for Suzie¡¯s evolution. Except Vorthe can get another mind-calming stone, they could only try. Not that such stones could just be found lying around.


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°What about this?¡± Jerome asked, wanting to get back on the discussion. ¡°Lodestone could be formed from the energy released from a lightning strike. When the rock cools down, the brief but extremely powerful, er¡­¡± He didn¡¯t know whether to say electromagnetic field, ¡°energy field caused by lightning causes all the domains in the mineral to line up.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s as rare as hen¡¯s teeth, Jerome. What did I tell you about sacred artists who want to comprehend the force of lightning?¡±


    ¡°Urgh,¡± Jerome grumbled, remembering his lessons from before he became a sacred artist. ¡°They absorb lightning strikes into their bodies, ignoring the dangers. Does that mean people track lightning every¡ª¡±


    ¡°No, Jerome,¡± Rihal interrupted him. ¡°It means sacred artists track storms everywhere!¡±


    Now Jerome was truly shocked.


    ¡°They track it to absorb the energy from it,¡± Rihal continued, almost ominously. ¡°Storms are like a rich blend of air and water essence, seasoned with the force of lightning.¡±


    ¡°All that energy,¡± Jerome muttered, ¡°...and none of it ever touches the ground? Not even the mountain peaks?¡±


    Rihal shook his head.


    It made even more sense now. And he now became aware of the environmental impact this could theoretically have on the planet. Lightning helped to fix the nitrogen content in the soil, which was important for plant growth. Jerome had no idea the results Vorthe had had in growing plants all this while, but he was sure they always had good harvests every year. After all, the land around Farryn was arable.


    ¡°And what good would it do if it touches the ground? Kill an unassuming mortal?¡± Rihal teased.


    ¡°Well, it could create lodestones,¡± Jerome said pointedly.


    Rihal snorted. ¡°I don¡¯t think we need these lodestones, Jerome. Artificers and smiths have been doing just fine.¡±


    ¡°And are you an artificer? Or a smith? Or do you have artifacts that can attract metal?¡±


    ¡°What would we need that for ¡ª and that¡¯s not saying that we don¡¯t have such an artifact.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure Vorthe doesn¡¯t.¡± He folded his arms in defiance.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get going. The portal to Terra Praeta won¡¯t wait for you.¡± Rihal stood, exasperated. Jerome snorted but joined him and they both walked out of the manor.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see your girlfriend anywhere.¡±


    Jerome turned red. Rihal chuckled and jabbed him in the side. ¡°She should be with Layla. Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± he ground out. ¡°And I¡¯m not worried.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Rihal took to the skies. With a flap of his wings, Jerome joined him in the air, flying alongside him. ¡°You know how many boys have been orbiting her since she became Blank?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t care. But if I catch any one of them¡­¡± he left the rest unsaid.


    ¡°Nice wings,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°Thanks. It took a lot of time to create.¡± Jerome¡¯s new set of wings was like a bird¡¯s, instead of the bat type he used before. It had taken him days to create it and right now, it looked like a set of chrome-red eagle wings. He could smell the slight tang of iron, that unique smell of blood coming from it.


    The flowing steel had taken this color after merging with him. Something Jerome still had no idea as to how it happened, except that the mind-calming stone was involved. Even after absorbing a whole mine of living steel, it still appeared chrome-red.


    ¡°Out of curiosity though, where did all that flowing steel you absorbed go?¡± Rihal asked.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m also searching for the answer to that question, Rihal.¡±


    Rihal snorted. ¡°Keep it up and you¡¯ll be creating your own cycling technique in no time,¡± Rihal said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.


    Jerome chuckled. Where would I even start? he thought.


    They arrived at the foot of the mountain in no time, the north exit of the Royal Estate, also the entrance through which Jerome came to the Royal Estate as Blank. In front of them were a lot of Sprouts from many different homes and all of them were elites and high-borns of Vorthe.


    Jerome looked around and found that the number of people going into Terra Praeta was in the thousands! That was a lot of people.


    Good thing I prepared well enough, he thought. Every one of the Sprouts out here could be considered an enemy. You never know who will attack you and when. Before Jerome left, he had asked Kilian for weapons and was permitted to enter his weapons hold to pick whatever he wanted.


    Jerome had gone wild. Picking spear after spear. He had made sure to pick the strongest and most durable ones. And also, the heaviest ones because he found out while fighting Forester and later, Grogg, that the weapons made out of Suzie didn¡¯t have a good balance in his hands, and were extremely light.


    Suzie was a really strong metal. But it was lightweight and so it didn¡¯t give him that balance he needed. But maybe that¡¯s because he had grown a lot stronger. Now that Jerome thought about it after hearing what Rihal said about the resources he was permitted, he thought, What if the weapons hold was also vetted by the Sovereign?


    That would mean everything he took out of it was subpar to whatever these noble-born in front of him were carrying on their person. Jerome sighed.


    I¡¯ll just take from anyone who tries to make trouble with me, he thought.


    In reality, none of the noble-born could defeat him in a one-on-one battle. But if they ganged up against him, which he had been preparing for, it could become very dangerous for him.


    He caressed the storage ring on his index finger. Rihal had given it to him the day before and he¡¯d been studying it ever since. It was a really weird concept ¡ª a space inside a ring as big as a house. The ring was made from many different materials, many of which were metals. Jerome had decided to study it more intently when he had the time. The coolness of the cold metal was a welcome distraction as he caressed the black unassuming ring on his right index finger absently.


    Who knows, maybe I can understand how to warp space, he thought and smiled at himself.


    After waiting for a while powerful Sages from the Royal Family began arriving one by one. Jerome stood beside Rihal, looking at the men and women hovering in the air. He¡¯d met Sages from the Royal family before, but he didn¡¯t know any of the Sages gathered here today.


    Altogether, five Sages arrived. They looked older than the Sages he knew and had white hair growing out of their temples. Which might mean they were more powerful.


    These men and women were considered to be some of the most powerful experts in all of Vorthe! Just looking at them, Jerome felt like an ant in front of an elephant. Their presence was so strong and oppressive that he had to cycle to get rid of the discomfort.


    The five Sages sat down cross-legged mid-air and closed their eyes to meditate. Everyone was roused by this. Those who were sitting stood up, and those who were discussing stopped their discussion to concentrate.


    After a while, one of the Sages spoke up, ¡°Younglings of Vorthe!¡± His voice was not loud, but it reached the ears of everyone present.


    ¡°Today you are given the opportunity of a lifetime. The last time Terra Praeta was opened to the people of Vorthe was six hundred years ago.¡±


    Hearing that, many Sprouts exclaimed in surprise. After six hundred years of no human influence, Terra Praeta would be brimming with resources right now!


    ¡°Although this is an opportunity of a lifetime, it will also come with a lot of dangers. So be prepared to face dangers at all times. A sacred artist with no dangerous experience is a greenhouse plant. He or she wouldn¡¯t have the mettle to face life on his or her own.


    ¡°May your ancestors¡¯ protection be with you.¡± He resumed his previous position in the air, and instantly after, the five Sages started emitting wave after wave of essence.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Jerome exclaimed. He could also hear gasps of shock and surprise from the multitude of Sprouts present.


    Rihal chuckled beside him. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen anything yet,¡± he said.


    The essence each of these five Sages was emitting was so tremendous, Jerome predicted that his body would explode from holding such an amount of essence!


    ¡°They are just two Realms above me, but the gap is too great!¡± Jerome said.


    Rihal laughed. ¡°Two Realms? They¡¯re two Great Realms above you! Meaning there are lesser Realms in those Great Realms you know nothing about. ¡°The higher you climb in Realms the more powerful you become. Your body evolves some more to improve itself and your core grows larger in capacity. That is not to say that it gets easier to advance, in fact, it¡¯s the opposite. Even in your Realm, there are still levels of strength.¡±


    ¡°I thought so too,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Yes. But you are different though. Strength comes with age, Jerome. And time. But you? You bypass all of that and defeat Sprouts older than you, even one at the peak of the Core Formation,¡± Rihal said. ¡°It¡¯s just that your senses aren¡¯t evolved enough to distinguish the levels of strength of those in your Realm. You¡¯re going to tell me how you managed to pull that off by the way.¡±


    Jerome laughed. He knew Rihal would hear about that eventually. But he expected more praise than this. He also caught on to something Rihal said.


    My senses aren¡¯t evolved enough to distinguish levels of strength? he thought. But he remembered the twin siblings with white blonde hair. Those girls were more powerful than every other Sprout in the training ground on that day and he could sense it. Jerome shrugged inwardly at that.


    ¡°How do I advance to the Spirit Realm?¡± he asked.


    ¡°You already have all you need to advance to the Sage Realm!¡± Rihal exclaimed.


    ¡°Really?!¡± Jerome was shocked.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Rihal exclaimed again. ¡°That Sunfire stone is not for cycling alone. It can get you there, and then there¡¯s the Darkness waiting for you in the mountain range.¡±


    There was an awkward silence after Rihal said that.


    ¡°Ahem. Anyway all you need is time and deeper insights into your Path,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°Deeper insights into my Path,¡± Jerome muttered. ¡°What kinda insights?¡±


    At that moment, there was a rumbling sound like muffled thunder. Everyone looked up to the sky and noticed the changes going on. The sky grew darker as if a storm was coming. Jerome could sense the essence in the air becoming denser. Ambient essence started funneling in from every direction toward the five Sages.


    The five Sages positioned themselves in a circle, and the world essence kept pouring into the center of that circle. It became so thick that it formed a cloud of fog that started rotating in a clockwise direction.


    Jerome knew that he was seeing something he probably would never get the opportunity to see ever again, so he opened his eyes wide. This was the teamwork of five sages combined! He had gathered essence for himself like this, but that was just so he could absorb it. What these Sages wanted to do was open a door to a void world!


    Jerome was ecstatic in his anticipation. Soon after the density of the ambient essence reached enormous levels and appeared liquid, like the waters of the ocean. Jerome couldn¡¯t believe what he was seeing!


    Rihal looked over at him and chuckled, even calling him a few times but Jerome didn¡¯t answer¡­he couldn¡¯t. Everything he was seeing was so damn amazing and defied what he knew was possible!


    The five Sages finally raised their hands simultaneously, causing the ambient essence to shoot upwards. Jerome watched as the ambient essence disappeared into the void as if it were through a funnel. The rumbling in the sky intensified and right before everyone¡¯s eyes, the sky split open!

 70. Terra Praeta (2)

    The scene that appeared before Jerome¡¯s eyes was awe-inspiring. An Aurora covered the entire sky in beautiful green patterns of light. It was so beautiful that Jerome and every Sprout seeing it couldn¡¯t take their eyes off it. A large mountainscape revealed itself with lush forests and giant trees. Jerome could barely believe his eyes. The scenery looked like the world was a part of the one they were in, only it was standing on the clouds!


    Jerome tried to find the edges of the portal but saw nothing. Whether this plane or that one, he couldn¡¯t tell where one ended and the other began.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± was all he could say.


    ¡°It is,¡± Rihal responded, chuckling. He wasn¡¯t phased by the sight which made Jerome look closely at him. Rihal didn¡¯t seem as astonished as he expected. If this void world was opened six hundred years ago, Rihal couldn¡¯t have seen this sight before.


    ¡°How come you¡¯re not as surprised as the rest of us? Have you seen this before?¡± Jerome asked. He had a feeling he was about to hear something not everyone hears, but then again, Rihal could just decide to ignore him.


    Rihal just smirked at him and said, ¡°The Sage said it was opened to the public six hundred years ago.¡±


    ¡°Ooh, Interesting!¡± Jerome said as realization dawned on him. These guys have been smuggling their sacred artists into Terra Praeta for centuries. ¡°How did they open the portal without the rest of Farryn knowing?¡±


    ¡°They only opened a small portal, like a backdoor,¡± Rihal responded with a smirk.


    ¡°Listen, Jerome.¡± Rihal got his attention. ¡°Remember what I told you about how if the church went to war against Vorthe, they would lose? And that we¡¯ll annex their territory?¡±


    ¡°I do,¡± he replied. What was this about?


    ¡°Well, it bothered me that you never stopped to ask if some other power could swoop in and take everything in the aftermath of our war. We don¡¯t exist in a vacuum, you know? Even if we¡¯ve raised you without access to outside knowledge.¡±


    Ouch. Did he have to mention that? Jerome wasn¡¯t quite pissed with Vorthe for this ¡ª yet. At least he had a feeling he¡¯d get really pissed off once he began to find out the value of all they¡¯ve kept him from. He wasn¡¯t stupid. He knew that besides knowledge, the next most powerful thing was ¡®access to knowledge¡¯. But for now he¡¯d keep his peace.


    ¡°Because of the power disparity among the different powers in this world?¡± he said with a smirk. ¡°I know a thing or two about how powerful Vorthe is, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but power isn¡¯t the only thing that sets us apart, my young and inexperienced disciple.¡± Rihal paused for effect, but when he didn¡¯t continue, Jerome knew he wanted him to figure it out ¡ª which he already did.


    ¡°Economic strength, espionage?...¡± He raised an eyebrow at his master.


    ¡°And the fact that Vorthe¡¯s power is shrouded in mystery,¡± Rihal said, eyes boring into his own with great intensity. ¡°You would do well to veil yourself and your powers as much as you can, Jerome. You¡¯re going to do incredible things, I believe. People will come to poke at you ¡ª to find what makes you tick, what makes you vulnerable. Some would fawn over you, stoking your ego so you let your guard down, others would try to win your heart for their own interests.¡± Rihal pointed a finger at him, eyes still boring into his own. ¡°It¡¯s your responsibility to see them for what they are and guard your heart against them.


    ¡°And of course, you already are much more powerful than the average Sprout and are intelligent. I reckon you¡¯d have a keen sense and ability for information gathering too.¡±


    ¡°Time to go in!¡± the Sage shouted. ¡°You must go in with your own power. If you have no flight artifacts, you¡¯re on your own!¡±


    The crowd of Sprouts shot up into the air, flying towards Terra Praeta. They looked like a school of salmon migrating through the sea. Jerome¡¯s gaze remained on the crowd of Sprouts flying upward.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going in?¡± Rihal asked Jerome, surprised his disciple just stood there watching. But he knew Jerome was not afraid. He must have a reason for waiting.


    ¡°Just waiting to see how high up the portal is,¡± Jerome mumbled, his eyes on the Sprout in the lead. Rihal had also given him much to think about ¡ª things he intrinsically thought he knew. Hearing them from his master carried a certain weight to them, though. His words bothered him a little too. Was this how Rihal saw him? He felt¡­ humbled.


    Rihal looked up as well. The first Sprouts to fly up were the Royals, followed by those from the Great families, but they still hadn¡¯t gotten to the portal. By this alone, one could tell that the portal must be at least a thousand feet in the air.


    When the first of the Sprouts reached a certain point in the sky, the air rippled around him, and he disappeared on the spot. Jerome shot into the sky at that moment. He was moving so fast that he shot past a lot of youths before merging into the army of Sprouts in the air.


    From the time he got to the gathering, till he was about to enter Terra Praeta, he didn¡¯t set his eyes on Hedon.


    What a shame, he thought, would¡¯ve loved to see the look in his eyes when he noticed me.


    Jerome plunged into the portal, and everything went blank.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    Rihal waited and watched until all the Sprouts had gone through the portal. He walked back to the Royal Estate, heading straight to Rihal¡¯s palace. Jerome had revealed some things that were weighing on him. If there ever was a rock that could attract iron, why didn¡¯t he know about it? He was quite sure he wouldn¡¯t miss something like that. Rihal was no scholar; he knew the extent of his own knowledge. But even a blind man could see the advantage of such a rock if he held one in his hands.


    ¡°A rock that could attract metal, huh?¡± he muttered absently. Kilian would know more about it.


    When he got to Kilian¡¯s palace, he went straight to his study and walked in.


    ¡°Something wrong?¡±


    Rihal shook his head and just sat down. ¡°What¡¯s a lodestone?¡±


    ~~~


    Boom¡­ Boom¡­


    Heavy footsteps were sounding from afar and getting closer and closer¡­


    Jerome was disoriented as a result of moving through the portal. It took a while for his vision to clear. But something immediately blocked out the light. He looked up but what he saw almost stopped his heart.


    An enormous foot was coming down on him like the wrath of a demon! Jerome quickly got a hold of himself and flew away from his position.


    As soon as the foot landed on the ground the world shook, sending dirt and rocks crashing into nearby trees. The creature kept moving and clearing a path through the jungle with giant, overgrown tusks sticking out the side of its trunk. As it moved through the forest, its massive footsteps thundered against the earth, snapping branches under its immense strength like toothpicks as it left a trail of destruction in its path.


    Jerome flapped his wings, pushing harder to rise higher into the sky so he could see the world from a vantage point. His heart nearly dropped to his stomach as he noticed a new problem: a flock of carnivorous birds that looked like pterodactyls were awakened by the mammoth¡¯s destruction and took to the skies in a cacophony of screeches. Having been awakened, they focused on hunting prey, and one succulent human had presented itself as the first course.


    He fled, beating his wings as fast as he could, but the creatures ¡ª hundreds of them ¡ª didn¡¯t wait for him to go far before chasing after him. In addition to his wings, he blasted hot flames from underneath his boots like thrusters to give himself a boost. Jerome zoomed through the sky, leaving his pursuers far behind in a few breaths of time.


    After flying for more than half a mile, he stopped to get his bearings and found that there was no Aurora. Everywhere was dark and there was no moon in sight. The stars seem to have taken the night off as well. Jerome looked around in awe as he confirmed what he figured out during his discussion with Rihal. It was mind-blowing. But it didn¡¯t bother him as every sacred artist could see far better in the dark than mere mortals.


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    He actually thought Terra Praeta would be a small place where he could see the barrier that separated it from the world he came from but was greatly disappointed.


    Now, wouldn¡¯t that have been cool? he thought. Now that the adrenaline from the chase had worn off, he felt quite different. Heavier, so to speak. Like he needed more effort for every little movement.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± he muttered as he bounced on the balls of his feet. He definitely felt heavier. And the gravitational pull of the planet was stronger. He looked around to see trees that were as tall as mountains all around him. ¡°Well, that defeats all the theories I¡¯ve read about high-gravity worlds.¡± every living thing was supposed to be dwarf-like, even the trees. They shouldn¡¯t have grown to be ten times larger than sequoia trees. And their branches? Jerome studied the trees once more. Long, thick branches and numerous leaves shaped the top of the giant trees.


    Jerome picked a direction and flew off, scanning his environment as he flew. The trees all around him didn¡¯t all look too strange. Dark, purple-barked with leaves so vibrant green and plentiful, you¡¯d think they were clouds. And they were everywhere. In every direction he looked. This was virgin land, and ripe for the taking.


    He flew for about thirty miles before coming to a stop beside a pool of water. Jerome looked all around him, scanning his vicinity for danger before deciding to camp here for the time being. Everywhere was an overgrown jungle. And he knew not what could be hiding in the undergrowth.


    The pond was clear and there were fish in the water. Jerome chuckled. The fish looked like over-sized axolotl ¡ª well, their heads. They had no limbs.


    There was no one else around but it paid to be cautious, so Jerome started to set up traps around his campsite. After he was done, he caught some fish and roasted them with heat from his fire aura without making a fire. Better not to alert any creature to his presence or position.


    After his meal, Jerome sat down cross-legged to meditate. He found that the essence here was a lot denser than in Farryn and even the Royal Estate. He quickly started to absorb essence while reciting his earth mantra. Then he found out something else. Cycling essence was going to be real tough to do here. What with the crawl at which his core was revolving. He felt like he was being squeezed and grinded from the inside.


    ¡°Wait a minute,¡± he muttered to himself. This could be considered training too.


    ~~~


    Somewhere in Terra Praeta.


    Hedon


    He¡¯d had to enter the portal to Terra Praeta in disguise because he received word from one of the Royals that Jerome was still alive and would be venturing into Terra Praeta. He had come into Terra Praeta with nineteen others in his clan but after arriving, he found no one around him. He had expected this, just as it was written in his family''s records.


    For the past moon he had read all he could find out about Terra Praeta, and there wasn¡¯t much; he¡¯d also taken his training to another level to make sure he was completely ready to take down whatever enemy got in his way. This place was a treasure trove and only those who knew where to look and had the strength to survive would succeed. There were no maps of Terra Praeta like Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. You only need to look out for the few places as described in books written by those who came here six centuries ago. And you absolutely must find daylight if you want to survive.


    Hedon transmitted a little essence to an artifact on his wrist. This artifact was connected to nineteen different artifacts of the same kind and could help everyone wearing one, easily communicate with and find each other. This was one of the advantages of venturing in here with a group of people and with the right resources. After receiving feedback, Hedon picked a direction and started walking.


    He¡¯d heard from the Royal Sprouts that Jerome wouldn¡¯t be going in with them. So the cunt wouldn¡¯t have their protection when he found him. He had a lot of time on his hands. Terra Praeta would stay open for a year, so there was no rush. You won¡¯t get a chance to survive this time around, Jerome, he thought as he chuckled to himself. It was hard to believe that Jerome was still alive but the Royals wouldn¡¯t lie about such a thing.


    ~~~


    Jerome woke up to the feeling of being watched. Something was skirting the sensory field he formed with earth essence as a result of his mantra. It seemed his traps must have been disabled by whoever or whatever it was. The moment his eyes opened, his senses flared to incoming danger. He quickly rolled out of the way as thick spikes dripping with a yellow slimy liquid stabbed the ground where he sat.


    Venom!


    Whatever this creature was, it was good at killing with stealth. Jerome masked his essence as he blended with the night. I should have had Rihal teach me some stealth techniques, he thought to himself. Although he was masking his essence and had blended with the shadows, it didn¡¯t make him any better at stealth.


    The moment he masked his essence, Jerome felt the creature¡¯s hesitation. It began making clicking sounds, vibrating the air around. Jerome felt the vibration reach him, threatening to destroy his essence-masking technique. The creature was utilizing a technique of its own!


    The creature approached, but an unassuming whip lit up the night where it was, blasting it back in a flash of blue light. The creature roared in pain as its body was scorched and Jerome knew he had scored a hit. He had masked the tip of the whip with mental energy, preventing the creature from seeing the blue glow of essence, and hearing the sizzling sound the essence made. He quickly moved to change position, taking out a spear from his storage ring.


    Jerome rushed up the first tree he found. When he looked down, he got a pretty good look at the creature; it was as tall as two men, with a mammalian head that looked like a cross between a dog and a bat. Tiny black beady eyes were stuck in its head, and it had at least six tentacles where its mouth should be. Long limbs packed with muscles but sagging skin extended to right itself on all fours and Jerome got a sense of the color of its skin ¡ª it was pale white, like a corpse.


    Jerome almost spat out in disgust. He waited for it to expose a vital spot on its body so he could take it down with his spear from a distance.


    The creature started making that infuriating clicking sound again and this time, it dashed toward the tree where Jerome was hiding. Hungry eyes looked straight at him and Jerome quickly understood how he was found ¡ª echolocation. The creature raised its hand to crush Jerome and he jumped off the tree leaving a small gift for the creature.


    The moment its long clawed limb smacked the tree, something sliced into its skin and it roared again in pain. Its long arm was now hanging limply by its side, and a yellow liquid began dripping out of its injuries. Jerome saw this and felt like throwing up but he held back.


    The creature went mad. It rushed after Jerome not caring for its life, but he extended his wings to stay afloat and beyond reach. Jerome extended Suzie as a whip and took off the creature¡¯s head in an explosion of blue light right before he landed on the ground. The creature dropped dead to the earth, oozing yellow blood from its neck that still sizzled from the heat of the explosion.


    ¡°Disgusting,¡± Jerome muttered. Not just the blood, but the stench that came with the burnt flesh. He wondered why he hadn¡¯t perceived such an atrocious stench before it attacked. He looked in the direction of the spikes it shot at him when it first attacked and wondered why it didn¡¯t utilize that same attack afterward. Suzie also didn¡¯t sever its limb completely which meant the creature¡¯s bones must be very tough. Most definitely because of the high gravity. But how come it grew to be so tall? And the trees too.


    Whatever this creature was, there might be more out there and Jerome decided to leave this area before he came under unexpected attack. He looked at the creature once again, and torched it before leaving, making sure the fire wouldn¡¯t spread to the surrounding vegetation.


    Not long after he encountered another one of the damned creatures.


    Is it just me or is this never-ending night a loop? Jerome thought to himself in irritation as he dodged a sharp blade-like forearm from another creature that looked like the first one he fought. If he wanted to find daylight he needed a magnet or a magnetized object. And it¡¯ll take time to make one.


    This creature had appeared out of nowhere ¡ª with no smell and no aura, just like a corpse. At this point, Jerome was beginning to believe these things were corpses. If not he¡¯d have been able to sense this one before it got close.


    He bent backward with his back almost touching the ground as the blade, which resembled bone, sliced through the air where his torso should be. Jerome sprang back up and with all the fury in his heart blasted the creature a hundred feet away ¡ª or at least it should have been a hundred feet away ¡ª the creature only took two steps back and sliced at him diagonally with its other blade-like forearm.


    Jerome spun forward in the air, the boney blade barely missing him by inches, and he kicked the creature ¡ª which was standing like a man ¡ª in the head. The creature took another step back, its balance sure. It swung both bladed arms in a wide arc.


    Jerome unfurled his wings and the wind caught him before he was severed into three pieces by the creature. He turned around midair while the creature¡¯s arms were wide apart and extended Suzie. The creature¡¯s head exploded a moment later and it went down on its knees and crumbled to the ground with a loud thud.


    ¡°Yuck. If this continues I won¡¯t be able to hold back. I¡¯ll puke,¡± he said in disgust. He shot a fireball at the creature and controlled earth-attribute essence to move the foliage around the creature away so as not to cause a forest fire.


    ~~~


    Fei Lin


    Fei Lin met up with her team members a few hours after entering Terra Praeta, she was lucky they were not sent too far apart from each other. But right now, she wished she had been sent to a different location.


    A cloud of blood daimon bats was currently assaulting her group. These tiny little creatures blotted out the night sky with their superior numbers, surrounding her team to prevent them from escaping. Tiny little red eyes glared at them from every angle, promising death but her group wasn¡¯t flustered. Everyone was calm and collected. They had created a dome-like shield to prevent the bats from getting to them.


    The silvery shield was brimming with sword force, and any bat that got too close would be torn to shreds without even touching it. This way though, they were wasting time and many of the treasures in Terra Praeta would be taken before they got to them.


    Fei Lin was frustrated. ¡°When are these stupid bats going to give up?¡± She muttered to herself. She knew Terra Praeta wouldn¡¯t just give up its treasures but still.


    ¡°Please, be patient, Princess,¡± someone in her group said, ¡°The blood daimon bats would lose interest when they¡ª¡±


    A roar broke through the cacophony of shrieks being made by the blood daimon bats and they quieted down. Fei Lin and her team looked in the direction of the roar with their hearts in their throats. Something was headed for them.


    ¡°Where did the bats go,¡± another girl asked a moment later, and everybody turned to glance at the shield which was still up but wasn¡¯t being attacked anymore. Fei¡¯s Lin¡¯s heart caught in her throat. If whatever was coming for them was enough to scare the blood daimon bats, then they were in trouble.


    Lang came forward toward the head of the group in the direction of the sound. He was her protector and the most powerful Sprout in their group, older too and broad shouldered, with thick, powerful arms. His arms were always the first things that came to mind when Fei Lin thought about him. He listened and scanned the forest around them for a moment but then tensed up.


    ¡°Run,¡± he said.

 71. The Night Of Terra Praeta

    The Royal Estate. Farryn


    Rihal


    ¡°Anything yet?¡± Kilian asked as they browsed through the books Jerome had read in the library.


    Rihal shook his head in silent concentration. His mind wasn¡¯t on the book in his hand though ¡ª even though he was reading through. They had gathered all the books Jerome had ever read in Kilian¡¯s library and were going through them one after the other. But nothing they had read so far indicated that his disciple had learned the strange things he spoke about from these books.


    So where had he learned them from?


    Kilian sighed, dropping the book he just finished reading. Which happened to be the last book in the pile. ¡°Nothing in here points to any special rock that can attract metal.¡±


    ¡°You know, once when we were training, he used a combination of moves I had never seen before.¡±


    Kilian shrugged. ¡°You said he was learning fast.¡±


    ¡°He was still Blank at the time. You know what he called the moves? Muay Thai ¡ª ¡®The Art of Eight Limbs¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Muay ¡­ Thai?¡± Kilian asked. ¡°Never heard of it.¡±


    ¡°He said he invented it. Then I told him to use the washroom after training,¡± Rihal said, eyes distant. ¡°He said they never bathed in ¡®algae-infested¡¯ waters in the slums.¡±


    ¡°¡®Al-gee¡¯?¡± Kilian asked. ¡°What¡¯s that? Some kind of ¡­ disease.¡±


    ¡°The green plant-matter that grows in the public washrooms. Or anywhere with a lot of moisture.¡±


    ¡°Rihal, I¡¯ve never heard of these terms before. And I¡¯m a scholar.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s my point exactly,¡± Rihal said, looking at him pointedly.


    Kilian pushed himself away from the wall he was resting on as realization dawned on him. ¡°Once is happenstance. Twice is a coincidence. Thrice ¡­ there¡¯s something more going on.¡±


    ¡°And I intend to find out. The question is how? Everyone that ever knew him besides us; the family he grew up with are either dead or missing ¡ª according to him.¡±


    ¡°If he didn¡¯t grow up learning those things, did he have knowledge of them before he was born?¡± Kilian muttered to himself in thought.


    Rihal looked at him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°Now don¡¯t be silly, Kilian. Are you saying he was born with knowledge?¡±


    ¡°Sounds plausible.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s too long of a stretch.¡±


    ¡°Well, you said it yourself; he¡¯s always been frighteningly smart.¡± Kilian went around Rihal to sit behind his table. He began counting off his fingers. ¡°He¡¯s been smart since he could read; he¡¯s always had excellent coordination of his limbs, he thinks and acts like a mature person, and he never learned any of the things he¡¯s spouting from you or the library or anywhere else. People aren¡¯t born knowing things, Rihal. Or are they?


    ¡°Maybe that¡¯s the question we should be asking ourselves; ¡®are there people out there that are born with a pre-knowledge of things¡¯?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Rihal answered. Kilian gave him a look and he just shrugged.


    ¡°But here is one who breaks that convention.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re coming to conclusions too fast?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m theorizing, Rihal. It¡¯s what scholars do in research. If I¡¯m wrong, I¡¯ll drop it.¡±


    ¡°Well, we aren¡¯t getting anywhere with your theories, are we?¡±


    ¡°Have anything better?¡±


    Rihal kept mute, trying to think. But he had nothing. Where did he go to find answers on something like this. His master wouldn¡¯t even give him the time of the day. He was among those monitoring the changes happening in the frozen north.


    ¡°I could go to the frozen north ¡­ talk to my master about it.¡±


    Kilian snorted. ¡°You think he¡¯d give you a listening ear? Noir¡¯s death site is more important than this, Rihal. Besides, if you go there you may just end up dead.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m quite resourceful,¡± Rihal defended.


    ¡°Let me talk to my master. The old crone has been studying Zamara¡¯s texts all her life, something she discovered on an expedition to the northern mountains.¡±


    ¡°The 1st Matron has Zamara¡¯s texts? ¡­ the same Zamara? Keeper of Secrets and Truths?¡± Rihal asked, befuddled. They just might be able to get some answers. ¡°I guess she isn¡¯t the 1st Matron of the Academe for nothing.¡±


    The Royal Academe. That¡¯s where all their scholars study. If he could meet with the 1st Matron¡­


    ¡°Relax, Rihal. It¡¯s sensitive information. I¡¯m only telling you this because you¡¯re my friend and a member of the Nediti. She must never find out that you know, else we¡¯d both be in trouble.¡±


    Rihal nodded solemnly. ¡°I¡¯ll never tell anyone else, Kilian.¡±


    ¡°Very well. Let me try to reach her with my rune first.¡±


    ~~~


    Sacred artists may not need sleep but it didn¡¯t mean they didn¡¯t like the activity. Sleep was good. It helped to rest the mind, and right now, all Jerome wanted to do was sleep. It wasn¡¯t too much to ask for. He had climbed up a tree to seek solace from the rest of the world, but just now, a roar from a distance shattered the serenity of the night. All the creatures within a quarter-mile radius must have been awoken by that roar because different sounds bloomed all around him, waking him up from sleep.


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    The animals must be nervous. Whatever that was must be a very powerful creature. Jerome kept sharp eyes peeled in the direction of the roar cursing in irritation under his breath. The croaks and songs of the insects around him were almost deafening so he had to rely on his eyes.


    ¡°...faster!¡±


    Jerome sat upright as he heard that. Someone ¡­ or a few people were coming this way. No. Better to assume they were being chased in this direction, he concluded.


    He could hear them clearly now. Though, they were still some distance away. Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. His core was spinning so fast that if Rihal was here to sense it, he¡¯d be shocked.


    ¡°Just keep running randomly¡­never in a stra¡ª¡±


    Another thunderous roar split up the night sky, and Jerome heard some birds shriek as they flapped their wings flying away from their places of rest.


    The creature¡¯s footsteps could be heard now, and Jerome determined that it was something he didn¡¯t want to face. Its footsteps were fast. Jerome took to the skies, planning on watching without interfering. He could see them now and it turned out to be House Fei ¡ª House of the Dragon Fang.


    Their armored robes were quite different in style to Vorthe¡¯s: dark blue leather armor laced with small metals in various shapes here and there, including their helmets which flared out at the base ¡ª those metals could be some kind of defensive wards. They each carried two long curved swords at their waists as they ran. Something that seemed impractical when storage rings were available. One could lose a precious weapon as he ran.


    ¡°This is just the first night. Is this how we¡¯re going to live for two years?!¡± Someone from the team of Sprouts complained.


    ¡°Brace yourself,¡± another said, ¡°It¡¯ll only get worse.¡± He dodged a tree that was thrown at them, unsheathing and sheathing one of his swords so fast it was impossible for Jerome to follow with his eyes. Bits of foliage and debris in their path were blown to pieces before the team reached them.


    Was that a kind of technique? Jerome thought, surprised. This was probably why they carried their weapons on their person, instead of inside their storage rings.


    That Sprout was older than the others on the team, he could tell. And from the looks of it, stronger too ¡ª he had quite the muscular arms. He had positioned himself at the back of his team, between all the other Sprouts and the monster, covering their backs, while still getting rid of obstacles in their path as they raced forward.


    Jerome would have loved to scan this Sprout to find out how powerful he was but he couldn¡¯t because of the distance between them. He watched them scurry around, trying to get out of the range of the monster, which was a lot bigger than the two he had killed. The heir of the Fei clan, Fei Lin, slashed at the monster with her sword from a distance to protect one of her teammates. The monster roared in pain and went after her.


    Jerome remembered feeling a little envy toward her during the Royal Banquet. Now though, he couldn¡¯t help but feel gratitude. They weren¡¯t capable of fleeing with their flight artifacts out of fear of attracting predators with their essence. He on the other hand didn¡¯t need essence to fly.


    ~~~


    Lang


    ¡°Princess!¡± Lang exclaimed and shot forward to intercept the monster. The moment his hand touched the hilt of his sword, he activated the Formless Blade, unsheathing and sheathing his sword in the blink of an eye.


    The Child went down on one knee as the popliteus behind its left knee was shredded. It roared in pain, unable to move that leg anymore.


    ¡°Princess, stop!¡± Lang screamed. The rest of their teammates also screamed for her to stop. The Child had been neutralized but Lang watched as the princess ran forward and utilized the Formless Blade.


    Fuck!


    The Child seemed to comprehend the danger it was in and quickly shielded its face by crossing its giant arms in front of itself. The Formless Blade slashed the back of its forearms drawing stinky yellow blood. The Child jerked in pain but soon smelled the vitality of the blood dripping from Fei Lin¡¯s palms ¡ª the consequences of using a technique that was above her level of skill!


    It lunged for her and its head exploded in a flash of blue light. Splattering stinky yellow blood everywhere.


    ¡°Princess!¡± Lang shouted with worry as he came around the fallen body of the Child. The stench almost made him puke. He quickly covered his nose and stepped back, distancing himself from the smell.


    ¡°Someone get me water,¡± the princess said through gritted teeth. She had actually puked and was covered from head to toe in yellowish gore and brain matter.


    ¡°Urgh. Smells like soured eggs mixed with ten-day-old piss,¡± she grumbled, wiping her face.


    ¡°You should be grateful you¡¯re not dead, Princess,¡± Fei Yan, another teammate said looking at her with a mocking smile ¡ª from a distance. She quickly extracted a water gourd from her storage ring and began shaking it.


    Lang looked at the Child in shock, unable to fathom how the Princess must have taken its head, but a careful scan of it quickly told him the creature was killed with fire essence.


    ¡°Who killed it?¡± Lang asked. They owed that person a life debt.


    ¡°I don¡¯t¡ª¡± Fei Lin was saying when she was bathed in an enormous wave of water. The rest of the girls in their team quickly surrounded her shooing the boys away.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know who killed it,¡± she said again.


    ¡°Well, whoever they are, I hope they¡¯re not foes,¡± Lang said as he turned to face away from the princess. The bushes in front of him shook and out walked another Child with skin as deathly pale as a corpse.


    ¡°Zatirah¡¯s fangs, you¡¯ve got to be shitting me!¡± One of the boys exclaimed even as he drew his weapon. Lang attacked.


    ~~~


    Selene


    ¡°Wake up, wake up, you lot. It¡¯s an assault!¡± Selene kicked her sleeping teammates in the legs as she noticed one of the Children that had attacked them tonight.


    ¡°Oh, for fucks sake!¡± her brother Ajax cursed in annoyance. This was the third attack in this never-ending night and it seemed like they¡¯d be doing this forever. This clearing was only found by chance and everyone wanted to have a good sleep before facing anything or anyone else.


    ¡°You¡¯re an Itakar, Ajax. Act like it!¡± she screamed at him as she nocked her bow with an arrow. She pulled on the bowstring with unbelievable strength and the arrowhead froze over as she exhaled, her sharp eyes looking straight ahead into the distance.


    ¡°Twenty yards and closing in,¡± Trudhorn Itakar, one of her fifth cousins standing beside her, stated. He was the spotter for their team. And her protector. More than that he was a rock in troubled times. His voice calmed her and she felt assured beside him. ¡°Don¡¯t you think the night is a little darker than it should be?¡± Trudhorn asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s Terra Praeta¡¯s doing ¡­ maybe,¡± Selene answered, unsure as she let the arrow loose. Her arrow whizzed through the air and pierced through the creature carrying it ten paces away into a tree where it froze over with some parts of its body cracking but not shattering. It hung there motionless like an ice statue. Dead.


    Terra Praeta hadn¡¯t been described to her in full detail. No book she read could have prepared her for a night so dark it felt like a void. In fact, her mother, Arwen Itakar, had said to expect the unexpected. She could hear the rest of her teammates pulling their bows behind her to take aim as well which was comforting.


    There was no celestial body in the sky; just darkness that seemed as deep as the void. Selene wondered if this was what her mother meant when she instructed her to find daylight? But even at that, she wasn¡¯t expecting a total void in the sky.  She took a deep breath and exhaled loudly.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Trudhorn asked, gazing at her with beautiful, soft blue eyes.


    ¡°This ¡­ is the Night of Terra Praeta. The Matriarch mentioned it in a passing comment that I didn¡¯t understand at the time.¡±

 72. Children Of The Mother (1)

    ¡°What did you say these creatures were called again?¡± Ajax asked, pulling his own bow, though not as deftly as she did.


    ¡°Pull harder,¡± Selene commanded, and he glared at her. Her brother was the runt of the litter. The one who rushed to ¡®do¡¯ but ended up ¡®destroying¡¯.


    ¡°They¡¯re called the Children of the Mother,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Fifteen yards, Ajax,¡± Trudhorn stated, looking in the direction Ajax aimed his bow. The creature that was attacking from that angle had stopped the moment Selene shot and killed one of its kind.


    Ajax let loose his arrow and it whizzed through the air but the creature smacked it out of its path and shot forward.


    ¡°You see, Children I understand. But Mother ¡­ What Mother?¡± Ajax asked as he drew his short sword, ready to do battle with the creature that was coming at him. An arrow whizzed past his side and struck the creature between its beady eyes, freezing its frame and forcing it to fall backward.


    ¡°The one who taught ya to shoot like a lil¡¯ damsel in distress, eh?¡± a female Sprout taunted him with a voice colored in her native accent, and his teammates burst out laughing.


    ¡°Shut your fucking mouth, Nia,¡± Ajax retorted, sheathing his short sword. Another arrow whizzed past him. Arrows continued to whizz out of their group as they took down one Child after another, but the cussing never stopped. Selene knew they would need to face the Children head-on in combat soon.


    ¡°It''s not safe here anymore,¡± Selene said looking around, sharp eyes piercing through the darkness of the night. ¡°Let¡¯s pack up and leave.¡±


    The rest of the Sprouts stopped taunting her brother and split into two groups. Some moved to pack up their tents and the others continued firing at the Children. No sooner did they finish packing up did the Children multiply and storm them in numbers.


    ¡°Nia!¡± Selene shouted as her swords materialized in her hands. She held off two of the Children on her own while Nia supported her from behind.


    Trudhorn also joined other members of their team to prevent the Children from overwhelming them.


    ¡°If we don¡¯t leave now, we¡¯ll all die!¡± one of their teammates cried out. He slashed at the nearest Child and moved out of the way, while another teammate shot an arrow through its neck.


    Another Child took the place of the fallen one, and two arrows plunged into its skull. Their teamwork was impeccable. But the Children were simply too numerous.


    ¡°Aah!¡± someone screamed and distracted Ajax for a split moment. A clawed hand almost grabbed his head but he quickly stepped back avoiding it, but not before it ripped into his face. He bore the pain, slashing at the Child so he could back up. Yellow blood splashed on his armor and the stench choked him.


    ¡°By the light, you stink!¡± he exclaimed.


    Someone pulled him back and deflected a bone-like sword arm.


    ¡°What we need to do is find daylight!¡± Selene screamed, ¡°Get ready to take flight!¡±


    The air suddenly turned cold as the temperature dropped.


    ¡°Are you sure about this, Selene?¡± Trudhorn shouted from the other side of their defense. He had been roughed up by a few of the Children himself.


    ¡°Go!¡±


    They all shot into the air as ice spread out from the center of their group, turning the whole area into a frozen Winterland. The Children closest to them all froze over and shattered into millions of fragments. The rest of the Children backed up away from the ice as the spread slowed to a halt.


    ¡°Selene, are you ok?¡± Trudhorn asked as they flew through the air as fast as they could. She looked tired already, and her aura felt weaker. ¡°That was a very risky move, you know. The full power of the Winter¡¯s Breath is not something your body is ready for.¡±


    Selene smiled weakly at him. She could hear the concern in his voice and it moved her.


    ¡°Would ya both stop playin¡¯ romance n¡¯ focus,¡± Nia said, ¡°We gotta find somewhere to recuperate.¡±


    She had a bloody wound on her right shoulder that she was trying to put pressure on. Her fingers and arm were already soaked in her own blood but the injury was healing already.


    The two Sprouts came back to the present and focused on the land below them. They had to get to land fast. They were already transmitting their presence to every creature around them right now.


    ¡°I¡¯m ok too, thank you for asking,¡± Ajax said, sarcasm evident in his voice.


    Selene looked at her brother, only now noticing his bleeding face. It looked like someone gouged out a chunk of the skin on his lower face with a huge claw. ¡°That must have hurt real bad,¡± she said, her voice laced with a little mockery.


    ¡°Tis me battle scar, gotten from a life and death battle with daimons from a nether plane!¡± Ajax did a heroic pose midair trying to sound like a man of war. He did lighten the mood of the team though.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been dying to say that since we left those Children, haven¡¯t ya?¡± Trudhorn said with a smile as he pointed in a direction. He had the sharpest eyes among them all.


    ¡°That pinprick?¡± someone said. ¡°If that be a battle scar I¡¯d pack me bags and run off home right now, mate.¡± The rest of the team burst out laughing.


    ¡°Noir¡¯s Blackflame take you, Bram,¡± Ajax cursed as they landed. ¡°My battle scars are my trophies.¡±


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    ¡°Oh, I thought they were me trophies,¡± Bram remarked with a mocking smile, and the laughter resumed.


    ¡°Same difference,¡± Ajax gestured playfully as if shooing away an insect. The torn flesh on his face wiggled in a weird manner as he spoke. It was healing already.


    ¡°Shhh!¡± Everyone kept silent at that. Selene looked straight ahead as she signaled with her fingers. Two Sprouts went in the direction she pointed and two more in the opposite direction. There was a very large boulder a few feet away from them and she had sensed someone there.


    She smiled and drew her sword, moving forward. Her teammates act undisciplined most times but that was just a front. They were actually skilled at killing magical beasts in the frozen earth of the north of Vorthe. And it took discipline to do what they did.


    ¡°You sure make a lot of noise for a bunch of Sprouts in a strange land,¡± someone said from behind the boulder in front of them.


    The team of Sprouts drew their weapons ready for a fight if it came to it. Selene raised her to stop them. Anyone who could survive on their own in Terra Praeta¡¯s night was no ordinary person. And this person, whoever he is, was alone.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want any trouble,¡± the stranger said. ¡°I just wanna be by my lonesome self is all.¡±


    He knew he was trapped.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Selene asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m nobody. But that¡¯s not the question you wanna ask, is it?¡± the stranger said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you¡¯d give an answer to the question I wish to ask,¡± Selene said, signaling all her teammates to spread out and surround the boulder. It would be outright stupid to assume this stranger was from their plane. And even if he was, it didn¡¯t make him a friend.


    Selene vaulted over the boulder with inhuman strength and long shiny black hair greeted her eyes on the other side of the boulder. Her target was facing away from her, sitting cross-legged on the soil as if in meditation. She stabbed forward, bringing the tip of her sword a few inches near the stranger¡¯s head even before she landed.


    A spear materialized in his hand and he smacked her sword away with the blade. He turned the spear the other way to counter her again. He was fast.


    Selene withdrew her blade and stabbed multiple times at him but he rolled away, easily avoiding the tip of her blade. They parried each other¡¯s blows for a while with the stranger on one knee. Even on one knee, he was almost as tall as she was. Her teammates surrounded them a moment later and she eased back from him, lowering her sword.


    ¡°You should surrender,¡± she stated, but he just smiled, and smacked the arrow that came at him from behind out of the air like he had eyes at the back of his head.


    Neat trick, but they all could do it. Maybe not as fast as him though. She admitted to herself.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want any trouble. You met me here. Just let me be on my way, and all¡¯s well,¡± he said as he stood up to his full height. He was tall. As tall as Trudhorn, and Trudhorn was the tallest in their group. One of the reasons Selene considered him a partner for courtship. She liked tall guys.


    With a signal from her, her team members shot a large net at the stranger from the side, wrapping him up and restricting his movement. He staggered a little before kissing the earth with his right side. Selene took the moment to examine his armor and crest.


    ~~~


    Jerome lay on his side restricted by the net, unable to move freely. He had never expected the team of Sprouts to have a net gun with them. Or an equivalent of one, he thought, studying the rectangle shaped contraption used to shoot the net. It had a muzzle like a gun. He had underestimated those in his Realm once again. Or perhaps he underestimated the level of advancement of Vorthe. His agitation rose but he clenched his jaw and swallowed his anger.


    Just because he¡¯d never seen something like a gun in Vorthe didn¡¯t mean they didn¡¯t have one. Secrecy had many advantages and Vorthe was pretty good at keeping secrets.


    He looked at the crest on the breastplate of her black leather armor and noticed her doing the same. Her family crest was quite beautiful. It was a snowflake ¡ª the crest of House Itakar, House of the Frozen Earth. The Sovereign spoke highly of House Itakar, it would be ungrateful of him to get into a heated battle and end up hurting one of them. And he could. He wanted to. But held back the beast as it reared its head.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± he asked. Jerome wasn¡¯t wearing a family crest, just plain black leather armor. It would have been nice seeing the look on her face if she saw the Vorthe crest on him. But he had insisted on wearing this since he wasn¡¯t going in with the Royal Sprouts. Besides, he didn¡¯t want to annoy Forester more.


    ¡°Simple. To have you where we can keep an eye on you,¡± the girl who fought with him said. The beast reared its head again. They saw him as an animal. A mere beast to be tamed. Jerome forced his anger down.


    Her name¡¯s Selene, he remembered. He was tempted to acknowledge that he knew her but that would raise questions he didn¡¯t want to answer. And since he was not in the best of situations right now, it was best to avoid such a discussion.


    The rest of her team started setting up tents and a small fire. Someone even jumped on top of the boulder and lay on his stomach ¡ª the lookout. They were going to make this place their camp.


    Jerome sat up with his restrictions and everyone stopped what they were doing, hands on their weapon. They were pretty disciplined, he gave them that. Even though they acted like a bunch of unruly teenagers. And their hair ¡­ Most of them were surprisingly blonde. With blue eyes, the color of a frozen sea.


    ¡°Look, I just wanna be alone.¡±


    ¡°You can be alone right where you are,¡± someone snapped at him.


    Jerome scanned the Sprout behind him, noticing it was the twin, Ajax Itakar. He clenched his jaw and spoke through gritted teeth, ¡°I¡¯m not a beast you can just tie up and keep at arm¡¯s reach!¡±


    The crowd of Sprouts burst into laughter.


    ¡°Oh, look. Fish poop thinks he can do what the fuck he wants,¡± someone said and the laughter resumed in intensity. The accent was quite different from what Jerome was used to ¡ª heavier too.


    ¡°Is he even as valuable as fish poop? No, I¡¯ll give ¡®em bug poop,¡± another said. Laughter bloomed once again.


    ¡°Well, that fits right with ¡®em, init?¡± Another said and the Sprouts knocked fists with each other, proud of themselves for coming up with a good name for him.


    Jerome tried to shut them out and keep calm but his anger refused to ebb. It was still under his control for now but it was only a matter of time.


    ¡°Fuck it,¡± he said and went up in flames, burning the net to ash as he stood up.


    The Sprouts stopped what they were doing and attacked. The first person who got close with a sword was hit in the throat with the butt of his spear, toppling over as he held his neck in both hands. Jerome jumped forward and spun through the air as two arrows tore into the space he once occupied.


    He landed on steady feet and zoomed across the clearing, toward the nearest Sprout. The Sprout only saw someone appear in front of him and the next moment he blacked out. Jerome turned to confront the next Sprout closest to him and saw Selene. She was walking backward while smiling at him. A volley of arrows split the air towards him the next moment but he just stood there.


    He turned to Selene and smiled back at her.

 73. Children Of The Mother (2)

    Itakar


    Selene had never met a Sprout that was as courageous and as stupid as the one in front of her. He clearly couldn¡¯t beat them all. If he didn¡¯t see the wisdom in surrendering, then whatever happened to him was his cup to bear. She watched as he tore through the air, evading the arrows that were shot at him. To her surprise, he sped toward another Sprout so fast her eyes could not follow his movement.


    Selene walked backward, out of the firing range of her archers while smiling at him. No matter what he did, his fate had already been sealed. Her smile brightened as he looked her way, expecting him to realize what a grave mistake he had made at the last moment before his death but the Sprout just smiled back at her.


    More than a dozen arrows tore through the air, their pointed tips aimed at him but he just stood there. The next moment though Selene¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor.


    She watched, awestruck as the Sprout was instantly covered in metal armor that repelled all the arrows. He extended a metal whip from his left hand. Selene¡¯s brows rose in surprise as recognition hit her like a brick wall.


    ¡°Jerome, stop!¡± she shouted but he had already lashed out with the whip. Her eyes were drawn to the glowing tip of the whip that zoomed behind him and struck the top of the boulder.


    The top of the boulder shattered with a loud bang and Trudhorn, who was about to attack Jerome from atop the boulder, was sent flying into the distance. The debris from the explosion scattered in all directions, saturating the air with dust.


    ¡°Jerome, wait,¡± Selene said, raising her hands in the air. ¡°Stop, all of you. Stop!¡± she barked at her teammates.


    ¡°Let¡¯s take this guy down, Selene. Who the fuck does he think he is?¡± Ajax growled angrily, drawing his bow.


    ¡°I know you don¡¯t know me, but I know you,¡± she said looking at the armor-clad Jerome. He looked like a battle-hardened warrior in his metallic-red armor. She could perceive a slight tang of blood coming from his armor and it made her feel like he¡¯d probably killed a lot of people and drained their blood with the flowing steel gauntlets.


    ¡°Oh, I know you,¡± Jerome said, ¡°And trust me, the Sovereign¡­¡± he pointed a blade that materialized in his hand at some point at those in his view, ¡°...is the reason many of you are still standing without broken body parts.¡±


    Ajax shivered at that. He slowly lowered his bow as did all the others. Jerome retracted his armor and turned around. Selene and her teammates all watched, mesmerized as metallic-red liquid steel flowed around his body. It slowed down and immediately transformed into a set of wings on his back ready for flight.


    ¡°Stay, Jerome,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°You do not tell me what to do,¡± he responded in a cold and strained voice as if anger was simmering below the surface.


    ¡°Please. Please stay.¡±


    ¡°Fuck this!¡± Ajax growled, regaining his wits. ¡°He¡¯s gonna have to prove he can stand with us.¡± Then he turned to Jerome. ¡°Your gauntlets aren¡¯t enough to scare me, little brat.¡± A long sword materialized in his hand immediately. The shiny sword looked out of place amidst his dirt-laden, stinky armor.


    ¡°What are you doing, Ajax?¡± Selene demanded. ¡°Stop this right now!¡±


    ¡°Ye should listen to yer sister, mate,¡± someone said, and the group of Sprouts chortled loudly. Many of them relaxed at that and Selene felt the tension in the air ebb.


    ¡°The boy¡¯s intense, mate,¡± another said. ¡°He¡¯s gon¡¯ hand yer arse to ye.¡± More laughter.


    ¡°What is he, sixteen?¡± Ajax said, twirling his shiny sword in his right hand, showing off. ¡°I bet I can take him with my eyes closed.¡±


    Selene looked over at Jerome hoping he wouldn¡¯t take the insult to heart but Jerome only tilted his head smiling, his gaze never leaving her brother.


    ¡°Well, he beat Alvric to a pulp when he was just twelve. I can imagine what he¡¯d do to you now that he¡¯s Sprout,¡± Trudhorn said as he popped out of the side of the boulder.


    ¡°Where¡¯d ye run off to?¡± Nia asked as she saw him. She was looking better now, though signs of her injuries still showed on her shoulder.


    Trudhorn raised a hand at her as he sighed and slumped down against the boulder to catch his breath.


    ~~~


    ¡°Leave him be,¡± Jerome said smiling, ¡°Perhaps he wants to prove himself.¡± He felt like he understood the Sprout. He wanted to prove himself to his teammates, to himself ¡­ maybe to his sister. Ajax reddened in embarrassment and Jerome¡¯s lips couldn¡¯t help but curl upward. He too was once like that ¡ª perhaps he still is.


    Jerome observed the Sprout with his short silver-white locks. His hair and eyes gave him a different kind of presence, just like his sister ¡ª white air and ice blue irises. No one else on their team had hair like that. Still, the few blonde heads of hair were also hard to look away from. Their teammates also had blue eyes of varying shades.


    ¡°A tale as old as ale,¡± Selene said with a shrug, standing with arms akimbo. Her stained silver-white hair, a stark contrast to the dark armor she was wearing. The fire in the center of the camp chased away the shadows from her form. The rest of the Sprouts laughed loudly.


    Jerome looked around at the Sprouts, seeing the similarities between them and Abbott and his men ¡ª Kilian¡¯s guards. He was starting to like them. They didn¡¯t carry themselves high and mighty like the Royals and they didn¡¯t look down on others, which told a lot about their mentality.


    ¡°Very well,¡± he said, spinning his spear in fast circles behind him with one hand. The odd movement of the spear generated a lot of wind which attracted weird looks from the Sprouts around. At this point he had retracted the flowing steel into his body. ¡°Let¡¯s see what you got.¡±


    ¡°Ahem. Did I mention we¡¯d soon come under attack?¡± Trudhorn¡¯s voice cut through the air, halting everyone in place.


    ¡°How many,¡± Selene said, already pulling out her bow and a quiver of arrows from her storage ring.


    ¡°Thirty in front. Maybe more.¡±


    The team of Sprouts took action immediately, taking positions and aiming into the distance, Jerome and Ajax¡¯s fight forgotten. Jerome jumped on top of the boulder and also looked into the distance. The creatures racing toward them were exactly thirty in front a few dozen yards away, but there were more behind them.


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    ¡°The Children must have been attracted by the explosion from before,¡± Selene said, walking towards him. The top of the boulder had been blown clean off, leaving a nearly flat surface. She inspected the surface, surprised at the level of damage done.


    ¡°Is that what they¡¯re called?¡± Jerome asked as he went down on one knee.


    ¡°Children of the Mother,¡± she said, nodding.


    Jerome paused to look at her. ¡°...the Mother?¡± he asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    Selene took a deep breath and exhaled. The air was cool and fresh, infused with the unique scent of earth and wood. But the forest was quiet, awaiting the battle that was to come.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t explained to me too in detail,¡± she said. ¡°Some books insinuate that the ¡®Mother¡¯ is Mother Nature, some say it¡¯s something else.¡±


    ¡°But what did the Matriarch say about it?¡± Jerome asked insistently.


    Selene looked away unwilling to give an answer. Jerome¡¯s unblinking gaze remained on her for a few breaths before he spoke again. ¡°Some of them have mid-ranged weapons ¡ª spikes laced with poison. Be careful.¡± Hopefully their arrows would keep the Children at a distance.


    As the stampede of the Children approached, the earth began to tremble beneath their feet. Jerome noticed that every Sprout around him was poised with their bows drawn in focused readiness. Surveying the scene, he couldn¡¯t help but imagine that this could have been him and his friends fighting side by side. He remembered their faces ¡ª Doti, Dreamer, and Whisper; and the many children from the orphanage.


    Jerome took a deep breath and exhaled, bringing his focus to the present moment. The tension in the air was high ¡ª almost palpable. Everyone was on edge waiting for the battle to begin. The Children soon ran into their shooting range and with a word from Selene, the Sprouts let loose a rain of arrows upon them.


    ~~~


    Alvric


    The attacks never stopped. The Children just kept bombarding them, unwilling to let them move forward, even at the expense of their own lives. Why not? They were puppets, there to do their Mother¡¯s bidding.


    Hedon plunged his sword into one of the Children attacking him and jumped backward to evade the clawed hand of another. His hands were going numb already. He couldn¡¯t remember how many he had killed. Thankfully they weren¡¯t surrounded and had made it close to the exit of the mine already.


    A Sprout next to him sliced upward with her sword and the Child battling with her screamed. She kicked it in the gut and shot a ball of air at it. The Child stumbled into the others behind it giving him and his team enough chance to back up. However, the Children stomped on themselves to reach the team, not caring for their kind.


    This was the fifth cave they had searched for his grandfather¡¯s damned treasure. He had already lost three Sprouts searching for the treasure.


    ¡°Watch out for those with bladed arms!¡± someone screamed. The tunnel they were in was wide enough for four people to stand side by side and narrow enough that the Children couldn¡¯t surround them. They edged closer to the exit, step by step, blocking and dodging claws and bladed arms. But they were not moving as fast as Hedon wanted.


    He quickly stepped to the side as another Child attacked him. He ducked as the Child¡¯s clawed hand aimed for his head. Hedon concentrated wind essence on his blade and slashed at the arm of the Child. The Child screamed in pain as its limb was almost separated from its body.


    ¡°Fucking sturdy bastards!¡± he cursed. The bones of these creatures were sturdier than some metals on their plane. The stench of their blood, however, could choke a full-grown magic beast to death.


    ¡°Retreat!¡± he screamed. Hopefully, he hadn¡¯t lost anyone here today.


    They gathered wind essence at their feet and when they saw an opening, shot backward at full speed. The Children pursued, gaining on them easily. The space in the tunnel was too narrow for all of them to speed out at once.


    Team Alvric slowed down once more. Backing up slowly out of the mine, shoving back the Children with their wind essence, and killing those that came too close. It took a lot of time for them to get to the exit before they took to the skies, fleeing as fast as they could.


    ¡°We lost another brother, Hedon,¡± someone said as they flew through the sky. ¡°Did the Patriarch not tell you what we¡¯re looking for?¡±


    Hedon shook his head. ¡°He only said it would make the Argonaut more powerful. And to bring it back at all cost.¡±


    ¡°At all cost,¡± another person said, glaring at Hedon with hate-filled eyes. ¡°And how much cost are we to bear for this?¡±


    The whole team went silent at that. Nobody wanted to go against the instructions of the Patriarch. They didn¡¯t like it, but they could do nothing about it. They landed on a rocky hill and decided to rest there for the time being.


    ¡°Arkesha,¡± Hedon called out. ¡°You¡¯re on the first watch. The rest of you should get some rest. We¡¯re going to need all our strength if we¡¯re to survive out here.


    ¡°Trust me, I don¡¯t like it any more than you do. But it is what we have to do. We mourn our fallen when we get home.¡±


    With that he found a spot for himself and flicked a finger to bring out his tent from his ring ¡ª in an already prepared state. No need to start fixing it up. Hedon chuckled, entering the large, gray tent to find the bare minimum of luxuries he¡¯d need to take care of himself throughout his stay in Terra Praeta.


    ¡°Not much,¡± he said looking around. ¡°But it¡¯ll do.¡± The inside of the tent was larger than it appeared on the outside ¡ª a result of an artificer¡¯s efforts no doubt. A small tub filled with water sat adjacent to the entrance and a big bed took up the space opposite it. Perhaps his time in Terra Praeta could still be enjoyable. He smiled as he undressed himself, thinking of the few females he had in the group.


    The rest of the team shuffled about before their new camp settled in silence again. It was going to be a long night. One that probably never ended. They just had to find his grandfather¡¯s treasure ¡ª if there was a treasure to begin with. He frowned, and his anger rose as he thought about the Sprouts he had lost searching for the damned treasure. It felt like an impossible task. They had been searching for heaven knows how long but hadn¡¯t been able to find the treasure.


    And then there was the night that never ended. How the hell were they supposed to find daylight without anything as a guide? He closed his eyes in frustration, settling into the tub to wash. They¡¯d figure it out as they went along. Hopefully, they wouldn¡¯t lose too many Sprouts.


    ~~~


    The whole camp had descended into chaos. Yet, amidst the pandemonium, the Itakars held themselves together. Hence, giving him the chance to unleash the true power of visha stirh¡¯aun upon the Children. He emerged from the shadows like a vengeful deity, adorned in armor glinting with the crimson tint of blood that told of past battles ¡ª at least that was how he thought of himself in the moment.


    With each swing of his spear, he tore through the Children, leaving a trail of devastation in his wake.


    Every now and then, an unfortunate Child was struck with the tip of his whip and a flash of blue light lit up the night followed by a loud bang. At least, he was able to provide enough light for the Itakars not to strike him.


    The Children stormed toward him in a stampede, trying to overwhelm him with their numbers, but the flowing steel tore through their ranks. Bodies dropped like flies around him and once in a while, he could hear an arrow or two whiz past him.


    Five Children attacked him from behind intending to catch him off guard but Jerome spun around and stabbed one of them, headbutting another with sharp blade-like points on his helmet. His helmet and armor changed form every so often, so as to cause the maximum amount of damage.


    One of the Children grabbed his arm and Suzie flowed onto its hand ripping it to shreds. The Child roared in pain but its head was taken off mid-roar. Jerome swung his spear taking off three more heads at once. He spun his spear in the same motion and sliced the last Child from top to bottom, shattering bone along the path of the spear.


    He quickly turned around to stab another but an arrow pierced through the back of its head and came out of its mouth as it froze over. Jerome shattered its remains. He stretched his hand and whipped to the side and another Child exploded in a storm of blood and guts.


    Jerome walked forward taking in the scene around him. It felt like he was in a nightmare and yet he was oddly calm. Like he belonged here, on the battlefield. Bodies were stacked on top of each other, many of which had lost a good amount of their parts. Limbs and organs littered the ground and trees. A black eye, held by a strip of flesh from a tree branch stared into empty space as he passed by.


    He shifted his gaze to the distant trees from where more Children were advancing. Jerome stopped to calm his racing heart and breathed in the air. The air was filled with the stench of the Children, but it did not deter him from doing what he needed to do ¡ª recite his mantra.

 74. A Sprout Who’s Name Is…

    ¡°Mother Nature provides life¡­¡± Jerome recited under his breath and took a step toward the incoming multitude of Children.


    ¡°She provides vitality and protection¡­¡± His heart seemed to beat a lot stronger and Jerome tightened his grip over the shaft of his spear.


    ¡°To wield the power of the earth is to be a protector¡­¡± Jerome¡¯s voice rose a notch and the earth seemed to move towards him.


    ¡°To become a shield¡­¡± A verdant glow of light lit up his footprint, flooding him with vitality. Jerome increased his pace from a slow walk to a jog¡­


    ¡°To stand in the way of the oppressor and shield the weak¡­¡± Jerome ran toward the army of Children.


    ~~~


    Selene


    Jerome zoomed through the battlefield, a red blur that cut down everything in its path. He moved from one end of the battlefield to the other. Creating sonic booms with every twist and turn.


    Selene and her teammates couldn¡¯t help but stop and stare. The very air they breathed had been charged up with waves of energy emanating from Jerome with every movement he made.


    They couldn¡¯t see his image anymore, just a red blur. Sonic booms ripped the air and stirred the wind wherever he zoomed past, almost affecting their senses. The essence in the air had also begun changing, becoming more concentrated than it was when the battle started.


    ¡°How is he doing this?¡± Trudhorn asked in awe, bringing them all out of their stupor.


    ¡°Get ready everyone,¡± Selene said looking at the edges of the forest. The Children were still pouring in like a massive tide. ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do to help him right now. He¡¯s taking on all the workload including ours and he¡¯s gonna burn out soon.¡±


    Selene whipped around and fired three arrows at some Children that went around Jerome. Her hands were literally shaking now but she pushed her core to calm down. She wasn¡¯t going to show weakness now. Not now when her team needed her the most.


    ¡°The moment he needs to rest, we take over,¡± she continued, her voice almost unsteady at the end. ¡°And if we can¡¯t hold them back, we take Jerome and run.¡±


    Selene¡¯s teammates all prepared themselves for the inevitable. Readying themselves to jump in when Jerome got tired. There were no quirky jokes this time around and no cussing out at anyone. They all focused their attention and energy on the battle that was to come.


    Boom¡­ boom¡­ boom¡­


    The ground began to shake all of a sudden. Selene and her teammates looked down at the ground as their countenance changed.


    ¡°Whatever that is, we don¡¯t want to be here when it gets here, Selene,¡± Ajax said.


    Selene looked at the battlefield and noticed Jerome had taken to the skies. He stayed hovering there as he flapped broad red wings for a few breaths. Selene waited to see what he was going to do; what choice he was going to make. It didn¡¯t make sense that he still had this much energy in him. If anyone could outrun this plague that was the Children it was him. She had her teammates to worry about and they were waiting for her to make a decision. He had no one holding him back.


    ~~~


    Jerome didn¡¯t spend too much time in the air. He flew toward them killing some Children that were foolish enough to reach for him in the air.


    ¡°That thing is huge,¡± he said, breathing heavily as he sat down on the boulder. He had used up a lot of energy and he needed to recuperate.


    ¡°Then we should leave,¡± Selene said and her team split up and started packing.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be staying,¡± Jerome said and everyone paused for a breath.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, say that again?¡± Ajax asked dryly. Selene glared at him ¡­ as did Jerome.


    ¡°There¡¯s something here I need ¡­ under the earth. I¡¯m not leaving until I completely extract it,¡± Jerome stated resolutely.


    ¡°Well, all the best for you then,¡± Ajax said and shuffled away.


    ¡°We never leave a man behind,¡± someone said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to stay,¡± Jerome said, he got up to his feet trying to show he was still full of energy. Nevertheless, he was touched by the Sprout¡¯s words. ¡°I have a plan to take care of that thing.¡±


    The giant¡¯s foot came down once again shaking the ground beneath them. It sounded closer.


    ¡°Bram¡¯s right, we never leave a man behind,¡± another said and Jerome had to turn and look at who said it.


    Almost everyone stood around looking at him, their expression one of resolve. Jerome was truly moved this time around. He felt a lump in his throat. His eyes watered and he had to blink back tears. He had only known them for one night but they had opened up and accepted him as one of them.


    ¡°Seems you¡¯re one of us now,¡± Selene said to him with a smile.


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    Trudhorn walked up to him and bumped fists with him. It gave him a strange yet comforting feeling. The earth shook once again with the footsteps of the colossal Child.


    ¡°I do hope ye all know we ain¡¯t shootin¡¯ for sport down here,¡± Nia spoke up from down below after a while. Some of the Sprouts were still taking down the Children that were left while the rest of the team spoke with Jerome atop the boulder.


    ¡°We¡¯ll take over,¡± Ajax answered, ¡°And we¡¯ll probably die here tonight ¡ª if it¡¯s even night.¡±


    Bram smacked him on the back of the head, ¡°Focus.¡±


    The creature was getting closer with every breath, and they could feel the ground shaking beneath their feet with each thunderous step it took. The tension in the air was palpable as the group readied themselves.


    ¡°Any moment now,¡± Jerome said as a blue flame sprouted on his palm. He quickly began compressing it, preparing for the biggest and brightest shot he had ever taken.


    ~~~


    Jerome felt his heart pounding in his chest as he gazed up at the towering giant that loomed over them. It was still quite a distance away, but it was mostly visible now. For a moment there, fear and uncertainty took hold of him. He had never faced something so ginormous. He steeled himself, shaking himself free of negative emotions. Fear had never helped him before and uncertainty would only make him hesitate. He held his hand out facing the Children, infusing essence into the fireball in his hand. After a while the blue flame became so dense that it threatened to explode on his palm.


    There were still a few Children left from the previous group but Jerome left those to Selene and her teammates. However, looming in the distance, the colossal Child he saw earlier was steadily advancing closer.


    Despite the absence of the moon and the deep shadows cast by the dense tree cover, the Sprouts possessed remarkably keen vision, allowing them to discern the Child''s head rising above the treetops in the distance.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to shoot that or something?¡± Selene asked, eyeing the flame with a hint of fear in her eyes. She released an arrow that sank into the head of a Child a few yards away, freezing it completely.


    ¡°Or something,¡± Jerome said in a strained voice. It was taking all his willpower to keep the fireball from exploding in its compressed state.


    The essence in the air around him was becoming chaotic already and the Children were beginning to notice. Jerome knew the amount of essence in the fireball was still not enough for what he wanted to do. He exerted more pressure, straining to curl his fingers inward like claws, causing the fireball to compress a little bit more. The blue flame shrunk in size, causing the concentration of essence it was emitting to rise and Selene gasped beside him.


    ¡°Jerome, I think you should let it go now,¡± she said.


    Jerome could hear the fear in her voice. The fireball was now smaller but denser than it was before and the core became a lighter blue color. Around its edges was a white-blue veil.


    ¡°Just a little closer,¡± Jerome said, looking ahead of him.


    The colossal Child was closer now. It was enormous up close, looming over the team like a moving mountain. Its beady eyes were not as tiny as the ones on the smaller Children but were sizable and unblinking. The writhing tentacles on its lower face filled the air like a repulsive tangle of worm-like feelers, squirming and undulating in an eerie display of otherworldly power.


    The giant Child stepped on some of its kind with its enormous foot, and the earth shook beneath it. It roared as it came within a few dozen paces of the team. Its voice carried a shockwave across the landscape that shook the earth beneath their feet.


    Everyone was thrown backward at least ten paces but Jerome stood his ground, earth essence swirled around his feet holding him firmly to the boulder. Strands of blue flame slithered around him, some even cackling like electricity. The concentration of energy had reached enormous levels. Jerome tried to raise his hand but it was like lifting a mountain. He supported his right hand with his left and took aim.


    Jerome let go of the flame and it shot forward like a laser, cutting through everything in its path with a blinding blue light. Enormous trees were cut in half and all the Children in front of them were sliced in two ¡ª some reduced to piles of hashed meat.


    The giant wasn¡¯t exempt as it was sliced in two and its guts spilled over like a giant tide, bathing everything and everyone in gore.


    The laser sputtered out, having lost its fuel source, and Jerome felt true exhaustion for the first time in a while. His skin became dampened with perspiration that mixed with the gore that had splattered on him. He sat on his haunches to rest a little but the world spun around and he hit the ground and blacked out.


    ¡°And ye say ye were gonna face that, mate,¡±  someone from the team on the ground said and everyone turned to Ajax. He muttered incomprehensible words to himself looking as scared as a fish out of water.


    ~~~


    ¡°He¡¯s waking up,¡± Jerome heard someone say.


    His eyes snapped open and he quickly stood up reaching for his weapon.


    ¡°Settle down, settle down. It¡¯s just me,¡± Selene said with her hands raised.


    Jerome relaxed. ¡°How long have I been out?¡± He asked and sat down.


    Everywhere was covered in yellow gory innards that stunk so much it could potentially wake the dead. He looked down at himself and frowned, looking away.


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much water,¡± Selene said. She didn¡¯t fare any better than him. ¡°What you did back there was ¡­ amazing.¡±


    Jerome sighed thinking about what to say to that. ¡°Thank you. What about the others?¡±


    ¡°They went out in search of water. Some are still around though ¡­ looking out for the Children,¡± Selene said. ¡°My mother didn¡¯t know anything else about the Mother.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s gaze turned to her at that.


    ¡°She said she wasn¡¯t opportune to enter Terra Praeta but father was,¡± she said looking away.


    The wind blew the stench away from them for a while, giving them a moment of relief from the stench.


    ¡°Father¡¯s actually a Saint now ¡­ has been for a while so ¡­ there¡¯s no finding out anytime soon,¡± Selene continued.


    ¡°What does being a Saint have to do with finding out?¡± Jerome asked, perplexed.


    Selene looked at him and smiled. ¡°Have you met Elder Thorlin Vorthe?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No, but I¡¯ve seen him.¡±


    ¡°Well, he¡¯s a Saint. Probably the only healthy Saint there is in all of Vorthe,¡± Selene said and Jerome raised an eyebrow clearly not getting her point.


    ¡°It takes a lot to advance to the Saint Realm from the Sage Realm,¡± She continued. ¡°The risks associated with taking that step are perhaps not worth it. So many don¡¯t even try. The ones who do, end up having one leg in the grave. The power in their bodies becomes unstable and they age rapidly. Faster than they should. They have to be isolated; to enter deep meditation so they can preserve themselves.¡±


    At this point, Selene¡¯s eyes were distant and red. She wiped away tears and cycled to calm her nerves.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about your dad,¡± Jerome said. He¡¯d never consoled anyone like this before but he knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of it. He did not like it.


    ¡°Thank you for telling me about him,¡± he said again, with a slight smile this time around.


    Laughter broke out a few yards away from them, announcing the arrival of those that went in search of water. The Sprouts got closer and bathed them with buckets of water. The water was cold, too cold to have come from an environment like the jungle they were in. Jerome glanced at the buckets in their hands and noticed they were made out of ice. It made sense.

 75. A Path Well Traveled

    Selene


    ¡°So this contraption can help us find daylight, you say?¡± Selene asked, looking at the piece of metal in her hand. It was connected to a long string of metal that was wrapped intricately around another piece of metal that was placed on top of a stack of leaves.


    Selene looked at the smiling Jerome. Maybe she had overestimated the boy a little too much. She looked over at her teammates who just shrugged at her. Their only interest in this was to watch a show and have a laugh.


    Nothing spent, nothing lost.


    They had cleaned themselves up as best they could but it was still a chore to breathe properly without smelling the stench from their own bodies. Even with their mental energy, they couldn¡¯t get all of the stuff off their clothes.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± she called Jerome¡¯s attention. ¡°Are you sure this can find daylight?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the first step in finding daylight, yes,¡± he answered undisturbed. ¡°We just have to prepare ourselves for a little pain ¡­ probably.¡±


    ¡°Oookaaaay. What has this got to do with me though?¡± she asked, pointing at herself, trying to exempt herself from whatever this ¡­ all of this was.


    Her teammates laughed at that. They had never seen their team leader so uncertain about something. Even afraid. Jerome smiled at her. He moved his stinky hair out of his face and tied it behind him before walking up to her. He examined the piece of metal in her hand to make sure all was well. Once he was satisfied, he grabbed hold of the other end of the metal.


    ¡°You channel ice essence through that end, and I¡¯ll channel fire essence through this end. Problem is, both energies have to be balanced,¡± he said.


    ¡°Balanced?¡± she asked, not getting the gist of it.


    ¡°Do you know how I¡¯m capable of creating blue flames?¡± Jerome said, opening his other hand, palm up and a white-blue flame sprouted on his palm.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s white-blue now but do explain,¡± Selene said looking at the flame. She was a bit uncomfortable with her proximity to Jerome and hoped he didn¡¯t get the wrong idea.


    Jerome was busy looking at the flame on his hand as though seeing it for the first time. ¡°Hmm,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s somehow ¡­ evolved. But how it did was a mystery I can wait to solve later. Fire is made by burning fuel in the air.¡± He closed his palm, putting out the flame. ¡°No air, no fire. What I learned to do was burn the amount of fuel in relation to the quantity of air being consumed by the flame. Therefore reducing wastage. Do you understand?¡±


    Selene nodded absently, not fully understanding but getting the gist of it. ¡°So the same amount of heat and cold, is it?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jerome answered, nodding. ¡°Are you ready? We go on three. One¡­ two¡­ three.¡±


    They poured their essence into the piece of metal at the same time, making sure to observe how much essence they were pouring in with their perception. Selene felt the hairs on her arm stand on end almost immediately.


    ¡°Lightning! Heavens, it¡¯s lightning!¡± she screamed.


    Her teammates quickly lost the smiles on their faces. Some of them even came forward to have a look at what was going on.


    ¡°I can¡¯t see no lightning,¡± Bram said in that heavy accent of his as he bent over a little, looking intently at both their hands.


    Nia pushed him out of the way wanting to get a look at what was going on too. She went a step further bringing her hand closer.


    ¡°Ooh!¡± she exclaimed. ¡°I feel it!¡±


    ¡°Let me get a look,¡± someone else came forward and had to drag Nia away from them.


    Jerome smiled at their antics. It reminded him of the family he used to have. They had a bond with each other that many others rarely have.


    ¡°This is nice,¡± he said, looking from person to person, committing their smiles and laughter to memory.


    ¡°Nice? They¡¯re a troublesome lot,¡± Selene said, also smiling, ¡°You don¡¯t wanna get pranked by them. That¡¯s when you know they¡¯re not nice.¡±


    Jerome chuckled at that. Two Sprouts were bickering with each other now, arguing about who could learn to wield the force of lightning better if the lightning was enough to absorb.


    ¡°Forget about absorbing it,¡± Jerome said. ¡°The energy we¡¯re producing is too little for that and that¡¯s why you can¡¯t see it as well,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Should we ramp it up then?¡± Selene said and pushed her core a little bit more.


    ¡°Oh no, wait!¡± Jerome yelled. ¡°We don¡¯t need too much. What we have is more than enough for now.¡±


    Selene looked at him and nodded. She would have loved to see the lightning with her eyes. Maybe absorb a strand or two and show these pipsqueaks around her that she could create lightning. She almost humphed in her excitement. How dare they doubt her!


    She looked around at her teammates with a smile on her face. Her excitement was becoming evident but she quickly caught herself and schooled her features. It would be improper for her to act like her dickheaded teammates. That was enough fun for the long night.


    ~~~


    Jerome was elated as he examined the magnetized piece of metal in his hand. What he just did was from some articles he had read in his previous life. Simply put, the Seebeck effect is a phenomenon in which temperature differences between two ends of a conductor can create electrical charges. The electrical charge being created was what was used to magnetize this piece of metal. And now he had the last component he needed to make his compass. He could just imagine what science would be capable of achieving in a world like this.


    Jerome had been absorbing a special ore in the earth using Suzie when the Itakars came around. He had wondered at some point when he was crafting his new wings how the quantity of the liquid steel had increased. But after flying into this area, Suzie had reacted to something and led him here.


    It made him wonder if there was a mine under Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon that he had unknowingly absorbed during his slumber. Now there was a large quantity of liquid steel flowing inside his body.


    Jerome smiled. He sliced off some parts of the magnetized metal and stuck the remaining thin strip into a piece of wood. He had made a small container out of metal and filled it with water. He dropped the magnetized strip of metal that was stuck in the piece of wood into the container and watched it point in a certain direction.


    ¡°We go that way,¡± he said pointing right.


    ¡°But your metal is pointing¡ª¡± Ajax was saying.


    ¡°That¡¯s North,¡± Jerome cut him off, pointing North, ¡°My metal will always point North, but the sun rises in the East.¡± He pointed East again.


    ¡°Okay everyone, let¡¯s move out,¡± Selene announced and everyone started packing up camp.


    They had had enough time to rest because Jerome had insisted they stayed there so he could mine more of the special ore he was absorbing from the earth. After cross checking that they left nothing behind, they started their long walk due East.


    Jerome scanned his core as they trekked and noticed a metallic blue glow to it. He smiled to himself at that. Just being here in Terra Praeta was enough to speed up the growth of his core at twice the rate it was growing before.


    ¡°And what¡¯s making you happy?¡± Ajax asked with a frown.


    Jerome looked at him. ¡°Never mind. You don¡¯t have to worry about me,¡± he said with a smile. He was going to be creating a lot of things from now on and he was looking forward to it.


    Ajax scowled at Jerome, pointing his index and middle finger at his own eyes in a ¡®V¡¯ shape and pointing them at Jerome¡ªa gesture that said, ¡®I¡¯m watching you.¡¯


    ¡°You really wanna have a taste of those white-blue flames don¡¯t you, mate,¡± Trudhorn said to him.


    ¡°Ajax. Yer¡¯ the man,¡± Bram said, patting Ajax on the shoulder. ¡°I believe ye can take him down,¡± he whispered in Ajax¡¯s ear. ¡°Go for it.¡±


    Ajax glared at Bram and pushed him aside. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go try it yourself,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°What? I was just being a good friend, mate,¡± Bram said with pretend hurt. ¡°Don¡¯t ye want encouragement?¡±


    ¡°Encourage him to his wheelchair,¡± someone said and everyone burst out laughing.


    ~~~


    Hedon


    ¡°And you¡¯re sure about this?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Absolutely. His long hair was what gave him away. Not many boys in Farryn have such long hair,¡± the scout responded.


    Hedon nodded and asked, ¡°And what were they talking about?¡±


    ¡°The distance was too great for hearing, Young Lord,¡± the scout said.


    ¡°So they were just heading in a direction¡­all of them,¡± Hedon said absently.


    ¡°Yes, Young Lord,¡± the scout said again.


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    It may be that they had found a way out of this damned place. Looking around at the thick forest of trees that surrounded them and the lightless sky, he couldn¡¯t figure out how they did it. But if that was the case, he¡¯d be a fool not to follow them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s follow behind them. I want to know where they¡¯re headed,¡± Hedon said. ¡°Maybe they¡¯ve found a way out of the night.¡±


    A hopeful expression appeared on the faces of the Sprouts around him. If the Itakars had found a way out of this hell hole, they had better do the prudent thing and follow them from behind.


    ¡°Let¡¯s pack up and leave immediately,¡± Hedon said and the team of Sprouts moved into action. They pulled down their tents and put out their campfire getting ready to leave.


    ¡°Weapons,¡± Murray whispered into his ear. Hedon looked around and saw everyone dropping whatever they were doing and materializing their weapons in hand. The Sprout was an annoying overprotective brat most of the time but he had his uses. Something must have spooked him.


    Arkesha moved closer to him as he stood where he was. His teammates placed themselves strategically around him and Murray, his first protector, was in front of them all looking into the distance. Everywhere was dark so he couldn¡¯t make out anything in the darkness ahead of them.


    ¡°What is it, Murray,¡± he asked his tall, muscular protector.


    ¡°Wolves¡­ a pack of them,¡± Murray said.


    ¡°Can we beat them in battle,¡± Hedon asked. He hated seeking the opinion of others like this but Murray was older and more experienced than he was. And his father made the Sprout his first protector, which technically made him the leader of their group.


    ¡°No, we can¡¯t. There are at least seven of them¡ªwait¡­ fuck!¡±


    ¡°What is it?!¡± Hedon asked as he felt something was about to go wrong.


    An unholy growl split the air around them, causing his bones to shiver. He almost lost his stamina at that.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of the teams from our world. The Shifters!¡±


    ¡°The impure!¡± Hedon spat.


    ¡°Don¡¯t incite them, Hedon, we don¡¯t want their wrath upon us!¡± Arkesha hissed.


    More growls sounded around them, causing them to tighten their ranks. The growls felt like they shook the air and in turn his muscles and bones, causing his heart to beat faster in fear. He would remember this feeling for the rest of his life. But it dawned on him that it was a scare tactic.


    They wanted them afraid.


    That only made him more angry. ¡°What the fuck is even all this?¡± he said, pushing his way out of the enclosure. ¡°We¡¯re Alvrics. And we don¡¯t cower in fear at enemies.¡±


    ¡°Caution, Hedon,¡± Murray said, holding him back. ¡°This landscape gives them the advantage in a fight. And I sensed more than just wolves among them. You¡¯ve also just insulted them, so I can guess what they¡¯ll do to you if they ever caught you.¡±


    Hedon grumbled, annoyed at the facts laid before him. He couldn¡¯t refute it. He¡¯d read that Shifters packed more weight and muscles than the average Sacred artist, making them stronger and faster.


    ¡°What do we do then?¡±


    ¡°Get back in line. We wait for them to reveal their intentions. But we don¡¯t strike first.¡±


    Hedon scowled at the Sprout, incensed at the orders. He was the Alvric heir for heaven¡¯s sake! But he did as he was told, unwilling to put himself at risk.


    Someone came from the tree line toward them, unharmed. It was a girl from what he could see and she was dressed like the Shifters ¡ª patchwork leather armor that barely covered the important bits. He could sense her cycling as fast as she could in preparation for a mishap. She didn¡¯t trust them.


    And she was looking straight at him.


    Her black eyes were filled with hatred. Her beautiful lips drawn into a thin line. Hedon had to admit she was very beautiful. Her glorious bust stood gallantly on her chest, full and almost busting out of their covering. He could almost feel himself sinking his hands into their tender flesh. She walked with a stiffness that did nothing to hide the sway of her wide hips and the swish of her long black hair as it scraped against the leather of her patchwork armor. If they had met in some other circumstance, he¡¯d do all he could to woo her. She stopped ten paces away from them.


    ¡°Leave this place at once,¡± she said with unconcealed hatred and sauntered back into the woods.


    ¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± Murray said to the forest. ¡°Everyone, make haste.¡±


    His teammates began packing up again, this time with more urgency than before.


    ~~~


    Tara


    Watching from the shadows as the Alvrics made haste to leave, she felt a foreign feeling of power for the first time ever. The feeling was strange and filled her with euphoria. Coupled with the fact that she was the one to deliver the information to them. She didn¡¯t delude herself into thinking she was powerful enough on her own to face Hedon Alvric ¡ª even though her anger toward him had only grown after coming face to face with him.


    This caused her to be even more determined to take revenge for what he did to her family.


    ¡°He will pay for what he did,¡± she said, sensing Sheela a couple of steps behind her.


    ¡°He will, Tara¡­ he will. But¡­¡± Sheela said, walking up to her. She looked at Tara, confused.


    ¡°How is it that I can speak now?¡± Tara completed for her, searching her eyes. She looked back at the Alvrics who were already leaving. ¡°Seeing him¡­ did something to me¡­ I can¡¯t explain it. I only know that the shock and fear made me cry out loud for the first time in three summers.¡±


    Sheela wrapped her in a big hug. She needed that hug. And soon she began sobbing again. Sheela just held her silently as she sobbed.


    ¡°By the way,¡± Tara asked after she calmed down. ¡°How are we getting out of here?¡±


    The Shifters were already moving into the clearing and setting up their tents. Thankfully, they came with tents instead of foraging for wood for sheds. Terra Praeta was an unknown land, with unknown dangers, so they couldn¡¯t risk it. They had already fought beings Sheela called ¡®Children¡¯. Imagine that. She¡¯d raised children and those creatures were nothing like them.


    ¡°We overheard the Alvrics planning to follow another team. Perhaps Hedon thinks they found a way out of the night.¡± Tara raised her head to stare into Sheela¡¯s golden orbs of eyes, her expression saying, ¡®Shouldn¡¯t we be following behind them too?¡¯. Sheela shrugged. ¡°We have better senses and have already tracked down an opening that would lead us out without much danger¡­ and without drawing attention to ourselves.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Tara said. This just frustrated her more, because she was always last to get information. She felt like a blind woman around the Shifters. They were able to scent the air and know things just from a single sniff. ¡°If only I had a Shifter¡¯s core.¡±


    Sheela held her tighter. She was only a few fingers width taller than her, so Tara didn¡¯t have to look up to meet her eyes. ¡°Why was I chosen for this expedition, Sheela? I don¡¯t believe it was because I am the only one most hungry for growth. I¡¯ve seen the look in the eyes of the other Sprouts. They didn¡¯t like it one bit.¡±


    Sheela sighed. ¡°Now that she can talk again, she won¡¯t stop talking,¡± she murmured but smiled.


    Tara smirked at her. They were still hugging each other. And Sheela squeezed her against herself even more, as if she would disappear any moment.


    ¡°I must say I¡¯ve grown very attached to you,¡± Sheela said, sighing again. ¡°I suppose it¡¯ll be bad to keep this from you. But my mother received a guest from¡­ I don¡¯t really know where she lives. But the Divine Mother visited and¡ª¡±


    ¡°Divine Mother?¡± Tara interrupted.


    ¡°Yes. And she instructed us to let you go with me to Terra Praeta.¡± Seeing the look on her face, Sheela must have noticed that she didn¡¯t know who this ¡®Divine Mother¡¯ was.


    ¡°The Divine Mother is¡­ There is a group of people called the Diviners. They¡¯re like a nomadic cult that moves around Vorthe¡­¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome and the Itakars walked many miles East stopping to rest from time to time. They sent scouts ahead of them and one of the scouts returned with news of a missing partner. The whole team took off to find out what happened.


    ¡°He went missing around here,¡± the scout said.


    ¡°Darryn is smart, Tega,¡± Trudhorn said. ¡°He will survive. Trust him.¡±


    Tega nodded, choosing to believe in his partner.


    ¡°Perhaps he chanced upon an exciting adventure!¡± Ajax exclaimed from up in the trees.


    ¡°Not now, Ajax,¡± Selene retorted, searching the grounds with the others for clues.


    ¡°Oh, but I am serious. There¡¯s an adventure awaiting us!¡± Ajax exclaimed again and laughed.


    Now everyone was beginning to get pissed. Selene would have loved to go up there and give her brother a good beating but she knew he was only trying to be hopeful.


    ¡°It¡¯s incredible!¡± Jerome exclaimed. And everyone turned to him. He had climbed up the same tree at some point and was looking into the distance.


    Everyone rushed up the tree to get a glimpse of what they were seeing and the sight took their breaths away. A  tower far in the distance could be seen reaching up to the heavens. But a kind of heat haze clouded their vision, preventing them from seeing clearly. More important was the sky above the tower and beyond.


    ¡°Daylight!¡± Someone screamed. ¡°It¡¯s daylight!¡±


    Joyous laughter filled the air as the team embraced themselves bouncing on the soles of their feet.


    ¡°It is incredible. The books mentioned something like this, yes?¡± Bram asked excitedly. ¡°Ajax, ye read the books, yes?¡±


    Ajax frowned and glared at Bram. ¡°Selene read the books!¡±


    Jerome looked from one friend to the other amazed. There were books written about this place and they didn¡¯t bother reading them? They had access to knowledge about this place and just passed it to someone else. Jerome frowned but said nothing. It wasn¡¯t his place to tell them what they should have done.


    ¡°The tower wouldn¡¯t explore itself. We should move,¡± he said and got ready to jump down from the tree but nobody moved.


    Everyone looked at him. And then at Selene. Jerome felt awkward for a bit but quickly schooled his features.


    ¡°Oh, my bad. Sorry,¡± he said. He wasn¡¯t their leader.


    Selene¡¯s gaze was fixed on the tower, unblinking. Jerome could see recognition in her gaze, and hesitation. He wanted to ask about it but decided to wait since no one else was asking.


    ¡°It''s called the Tower of Solon,¡± she said at last. ¡°There wasn¡¯t much information about it but it¡¯s supposed to be a place filled with horrors and abomination.


    ¡°The records state that every treasure that could be found in it has been wiped clean,¡± she said and looked at them. They quickly lost interest after that. ¡°It also stated that when you come across the Tower of Solon, you can¡¯t avoid it.


    ¡°To move on, you have to conquer it.¡± she looked each and every one of them in the eyes.


    ¡°So we¡¯re stuck in a loop. Quite possibly an illusion,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Until we conquer it,¡± Selene said to complete his words.


    Everyone grumbled. This was a thankless job, a waste of time and resources¡­ energy too.


    ¡°Can¡¯t we just skirt around it?¡± Nia asked.


    ¡°It¡¯ll always be in front of us no matter what direction we take,¡± Selene said, shaking her head. ¡°The books said that the path to the Tower of Solon is a path well traveled.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing that means a lot of people travel the path to this tower,¡± Bram said with a frown and Nia gave him a pointed look as if to say, ¡®Duh¡¯.


    Bram¡¯s statement was obvious but there was definitely more to that statement: a path well traveled.


    ¡°We still gotta find Darryn though,¡± Jerome said, reminding everyone of the reason they came this way in the first place.


    They all jumped down and started towards the tower and Jerome got to work creating three more compasses with the thin strips of metal he cut out of the first one.


    Ajax watched him work. Jerome held his hand out in front of him and a chunk of metal appeared out of thin air. It took the shape of a rounded square with a depression to hold water.


    ¡°That¡¯s awfully weird,¡± Ajax said, slowing down to match his pace.


    ¡°Is it now?¡± Jerome smiled at him.


    The older Sprout grumbled.


    ¡°I¡¯m seventeen, you know?¡± Jerome said. ¡°Not sixteen.¡±


    ¡°Makes no difference,¡± Ajax said with a frown, though his eyes were smiling. He extracted his sword from his storage ring and said, ¡°My sword can cut through anything. Living steel or no.¡±


    Jerome smiled. Ajax probably wanted to apologize for not caring about leaving him to face the giant Child.


    ¡°Just so you know, I¡¯m fair in everything. So, I¡¯ll give you the chance to hit first,¡± Ajax said.


    And there we have it.


    ¡°Apology accepted,¡± Jerome said with a smile, and the older Sprout grumbled, walking away.

 76. The Vineyard

    The Royal Estate. Farryn.


    Rihal


    Finally¡­ finally he¡¯d get to meet this elusive, pain in the ass Kilian calls his master. The First Matron of Royal Academia was levels above him in station in the Royal Family; he could have barged into her palace the moment he heard about her acquiring ancient texts linked to Zamara. Kilian had spent more than a tenday and quite some resources to try and get an audience with her. Now he paced her foyer like a madman waiting for her attendant to show up to lead him to her.


    He had prepared his questions as best as he could as he had no idea if she was in on Jerome¡¯s secret. She wasn¡¯t a member of the Curia Regis ¡ª or at least to the extent of his knowledge.


    The golden orbs floating in clusters a few feet above him clinked together, making a chiming sound like glasses. He looked up to study the room, trying to take his mind off his anxiety. The First Matron lived like true royalty. The whole interior of the foyer was awash in gold to display the wealth and status of the inhabitant of the palace.


    What would Jerome think if he saw this place? He¡¯d outright swear and complain that too much money was being spent on vain things. Rihal smiled at the memory of his beloved disciple.


    Someone coughed beside him and he whipped around to face the butler standing a few feet behind him to his left. How had the old man gotten so close without him knowing? The butler was dressed in a tailored black attire he had never seen before. A white undershirt was exposed at his neck region, making him look very much like an attendant. His short salt and pepper hair slicked back and his beard trimmed to perfection.


    ¡°The Lady would see you now, Lord Rihal,¡± he said with a bow.


    Rihal eyed the older man with a piercing gaze, but the butler never looked his way. Instead he turned around to start leading him to the Matron.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta.


    ¡°What does it mean to conquer the Tower of Solon, Selene?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Jerome,¡± Selene answered. Her voice was weak from overuse. She had taken off her leather armor because of the heat ¡ª the heat was so damn terrible.


    Jerome had a feeling that conquering the tower was not as easy as getting to the tower. They had been following a trail that should lead to the damn tower for light knows how long now. They even found Darryn ¡ª or what was left of him. His corpse had been shredded to pieces by predators. They were only able to identify him because of a severed leg.


    Darryn had lost a chunk of muscle to a magical beast in the frozen earth, North of Vorthe. They were able to identify him with the scar formed from losing that bit of muscle. If they don¡¯t find a way out of this illusion, they¡¯ll end up like Darryn too. The problem was¡­


    ¡°The tower is right ahead of us but for some reason, we can¡¯t reach it,¡± Jerome said, looking into the distance. Even in the darkness of The Night, the tower managed to be a beacon, looming above them all with its silhouette painted against the dark sky. ¡°Even though there¡¯s no sun I feel like I¡¯m burning up, and everyone¡¯s thirsty, which shouldn¡¯t even be possible.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s your point, Jerome?¡± Trudhorn said as he sat up with great effort. He was sweating profusely and seemed to have lost a significant amount of his strength.


    The team was resting by a pool of water that they had tried to drink from. When they put their hands in to bring up water, it felt like sand. Someone tried wading into the water, but it felt coarse and grainy like sand. He almost sunk had Jerome not gotten him out quickly.


    ¡°How does water feel like sand? Clearly, all this is an illusion,¡± Jerome said. ¡°A very elaborate illusion. But that¡¯s not even the worst of it. This place is siphoning essence out of our bodies.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve checked, Jerome. There is no illusion. No matter how elaborate an illusion is, there¡¯ll always be something to tell it apart from reality,¡± Selene said weakly. ¡°We brought tools for that. Tools crafted by Elder Fesir Vorthe, a Grandmaster in Artifact Refining.¡±


    And those tools weren¡¯t working. As though everything around them was real. They all knew it wasn¡¯t real but they had no way to disprove the reality of what they were seeing.


    Jerome looked at the artifact lying on the ground as if neglected. It was small and cylindrical, glowing in tiny compartments like windows on its walls in a golden glow. The glow was supposed to change to red when there was an illusion that had dangerous levels of dream aura, and green when they found the core of the illusion. It was supposed to be able to guide them by lighting up certain compartments to indicate a direction, but all the compartments were lit.


    So much for having a top-grade artifact for finding your way out of an illusion. Was it even top-grade? Maybe it¡¯s a counterfeit. Did Vorthe have a way of telling fakes from originals? Or maybe this was not so top-grade and possibly low-grade? The reality of things though was that they¡¯d have to come up with their own way out.


    ¡°Perhaps Terra Praetans are a lot more advanced in illusion-making,¡± Jerome pointed out. His own compass was also not working as well. The damn pointer kept turning around and around uselessly.


    ¡°And even if all this isn¡¯t an illusion, it doesn¡¯t take away from the fact that we¡¯re all growing weaker. Something here is consuming our strength,¡± Jerome said. ¡°How do you intend to stop that?¡±


    Selene had no answer to that, he could tell. Her plan was to keep moving forward and hope to somehow reach the tower, just as her books said. Jerome understood that, but his argument was to go a different route. To not walk in the direction of the tower they ¡®saw¡¯. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t find his way back to their point of entry into the illusion.


    ¡°¡®Were¡¯ is the right word, Jerome, ¡®Terra Praetans were¡­¡¯ the whole race is extinct now,¡± Trudhorn said, lying down again.


    ¡°Then this possibly was their handiwork, and it¡¯s still just as powerful as it was eons ago, I presume. We should try my suggestion.¡± Jerome stood. ¡°I¡¯ll walk up front and face any danger the team encounters from the front.¡±


    His gaze stayed on Selene. This was her team and it was her decision whether to entrust the lives of her teammates into his hands or not. Selene was mature enough to do the right thing. He hoped she would see the wisdom in his suggestion.


    ¡°What if we end up going deeper into danger this way?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Oh, I suspect it¡¯ll be dangerous. That¡¯ll mean this¡­¡± he gestured at the forest, ¡°...doesn¡¯t want us to leave, which means we¡¯re on the right track.¡±


    He had a solid argument. One that was hard to refute. Selene¡¯s eyes lit up as she saw the wisdom in his words. She closed her eyes in thought for a long time and Jerome felt like he could almost hear the gears turning in her head.


    ¡°Very well. We¡¯ll do as you say, Jerome,¡± she said at last. ¡°Gather around everyone!¡±


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    The Sprouts who were resting some distance away stood up lazily and walked up to their team leader. Many of them had taken off their leather armor because of the heat yet this didn¡¯t bring them any measure of comfort.


    Jerome kept his armor on. He felt at home in the heat and was still the one with the most energy among them. The problem was the essence in the air here was a trickle compared to where they came from. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but ask himself how he didn¡¯t notice when the essence in the air became so thin. This place must have messed with his mind more than he knew.


    ¡°We¡¯ve come to a conclusion concerning what to do next,¡± Selene began. She didn¡¯t even bother standing up to address them and many of them just hit the floor the moment they were close enough.


    ¡°Jerome suggests we travel in another direction, not in the direction of the tower.¡±


    ¡°I did suggest that before, didn¡¯t I?¡± Nia muttered, but no one was listening.


    Jerome turned to her, though, and smiled, ¡°You suggested we skirt around the tower ¡ª which seems to be impossible as it stands.¡±


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Selene glared at them both for interrupting her. ¡°This is just one option and we might end up encountering danger along the way ¡ª which is weird since there has been no activity from the Children since we walked onto this path.¡±


    Selene exchanged a knowing look with Jerome as everything seemed to fall into place. This path was devouring their strength so the Children just needed to wait for them to become too weak to move, then they¡¯d come in and enjoy dinner served on a platter.


    ¡°If anyone has another option, I¡¯m all ears. If not we follow Jerome¡¯s suggestion,¡± She concluded.


    Everybody grumbled their affirmation and they started putting on their armor, getting ready to set out. At this point, any suggestion was the right suggestion, as long as it could get them out of this blistering hell hole.


    ~~~


    The heat wave seemed to intensify as they changed direction. The team kept quiet as they walked in a straight line with Jerome leading the way. They could hear each other¡¯s breathing as they struggled to get air into their lungs. Dehydration had long set in and most were just shuffling along.


    The terrain soon changed, becoming thorny with vines that got in the way. This was not a problem though as Jerome easily extended Suzie and cleared a part for them. But the vines seem to have a life of their own.


    ¡°A path well traveled; that seems to make more sense now,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Selene asked from behind him.


    ¡°You could call it a play with words if you like,¡± Jerome responded. ¡°The path we¡¯re taking now seems not to have been taken by anyone.¡±


    ¡°But the previous path must have been taken by a lot of people before us,¡± Trudhorn said, joining the conversation.


    ¡°So, it must be a kind of warning then¡­not to take the most obvious path,¡± Selene concluded.


    With loud whipping sounds, Suzie cut through the vines in their path. Jerome was sparing no effort in making sure they left this illusion. But if he continued like this for too long it¡¯ll tire him out and he knew it. This was a bet though. He had a lot of stamina. Whether he¡¯ll tire out before the vines or they¡¯ll walk out of the illusion before his strength runs out was not yet known.


    ¡°Is it just me, or are the vines¡­ moving?¡± Ajax said, drawing his sword.


    ¡°You¡¯re not seeing things, Ajax,¡± Selene said. She already had two swords in her hands. ¡°The vines are moving!¡±


    Jerome increased his pace and everyone sped up behind him. The scene in front of him was like something straight out of a horror movie. The vines had changed color as they went deeper into the forest; from a vibrant green to a sickly green color. The vines were pushing their way out of the soil in a slow, eerie manner, surrounding them on all sides.


    Although every one of them was exhausted, their will to fight for survival hadn¡¯t been dampened. Everyone behind Jerome took out dark-blue crystals the size of a baby¡¯s fist from their storage rings. The Sprouts began cycling and absorbing essence from these crystals to replenish themselves. All this happened within Jerome¡¯s area of perception but he said nothing, only concentrating on the vines in front of him.


    But he remembered he had some fire-crystals with him as well and brought out one and started absorbing from it. The moment the fire essence hit his channels, he felt¡­disappointed. It was rich. And pure. But it seemed the Sunfire stone he¡¯d been depending on for fire essence was in a league of its own.


    They got ready to fight whatever it was this forest wanted to throw at them. The movement of the vines increased slowly, as though flowers were blooming across a valley but these weren¡¯t flowers. They were large vines with sharp thorns sticking out of them in multiple places.


    The tension in the air increased as the twisting vines rose up like a wall on all sides forcing Jerome and the team to stop their advance. The wall of vines gave off an unsettling pressure, reaching several feet in height as the tangled vines slithered in and out of each other like serpents.


    Jerome clenched his jaw as he felt his heartbeat accelerate, fear threatened to take over but he tamped down on it. He scanned the Sprouts as they formed a circle, backing each other, and could sense their terror.


    He could make it out of here alive. With his metal armor protecting him, nothing could harm him. But what about these Sprouts he had come to regard as friends? If they died while he was here, he wouldn¡¯t be able to face himself.


    Jerome remembered his family from the orphanage once again. He remembered how he was unable to save them from Hedon¡¯s wrath and the blood in his veins quickened. The beast stirred but Jerome willed it beneath the surface of his own anger. His rage fueled him as he clenched his fist and lit up a flame that covered his entire fist.


    Jerome¡¯s flame bathed the world around them in blue light. He opened his hand, the flame shrunk to the palm of his hand and seemed to pulse with a life of its own, its edges white and dangerously beautiful.


    The vines attacked¡­


    ~~~


    Selene


    Selene had never seen anything like the thorny wall of vines surrounding her and her team. Things were not looking good and fortune seemed not to be on their side. They still had an abundance of essence crystals to absorb essence from, but that wouldn¡¯t guarantee their escape from this place. She hoped and prayed in her heart that Jerome had more essence than he was letting on. She had felt him absorb from a fire crystal¡­ and his disappointment thereafter. She hoped he had more of it. Perhaps he was disappointed because he didn¡¯t have enough.


    Selene remembered the technique he used to destroy the colossal giant. Compared to the amount of essence Jerome used then, the fireball in his hand right now was a tiny spark of light.


    She clenched her twin swords tighter in her hands until her palms hurt. She wasn¡¯t going down here today. She would fight with all she had, even use the full power of the Winter¡¯s Breath if she had to. She looked at the faces of each member of her team and saw the resolve in their eyes. That was all she needed.


    The vines attacked¡­


    ~~~


    Hedon


    ¡°Impossible! No Sprout should be able to move like that!¡±


    He and his team had been following behind the Itakars for a while now. They left a huge distance between them so as not to alert the other team to their presence. When they saw the Tower of Solon in the distance, Hedon felt they had found the way out of the night. But it seemed this place had other plans for them.


    His team stood far away from the vines as they watched Jerome and the Itakars battle the vines. The walls made by the vines had been destroyed so they got a glimpse of what was going on inside. Jerome was moving so fast, he couldn¡¯t track him with his eyes.


    ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s the same Jerome you were talking about, Hedon?¡± Arkesha asked. She was the second strongest Sprout in his team and even she was shocked by Jerome¡¯s prowess.


    ¡°By my calculations, he should be seventeen now,¡± Hedon said, his breathing strained as he struggled to come to terms with what he was seeing.


    They were not in better shape than the Itakars. The wind was still in this gods-forsaken forest and the heat was drying them up faster than they could bear.


    ¡°That should not be possible,¡± another Sprout said beside Hedon. ¡°How can a seventeen-year-old Sprout be this powerful?!¡±


    ¡°Whatever you do, steer clear of him, Hedon,¡± Arkesha said. She was one of the strongest Sprouts to enter Terra Praeta, but she knew her limits. She also knew trouble when she saw one.


    Hedon looked around to see if there was a way around the vines but all that entered his view were crooked vines and some of them were still pushing their way up through the soil, a horrible sight to see.


    ¡°Could we take him down if we worked together¡­the whole team?¡± he asked, but an answer didn¡¯t come as easily as he hoped.

 77. The Tower Of Solon

    Boom!


    Jerome was knocked aside by a huge root but he flipped through the air and landed on both feet. He created shallow gullies with his feet as the force from the hit still carried him backward while on the ground.


    ¡°That¡¯s gonna hurt,¡± Bram said, blocking a vine with a small shield. He reached out with his sword and cut the edge of the vine before it slithered away.


    Jerome spewed fire on the vines burning them in extreme heat but the vines seemed to heal themselves. The flames didn¡¯t last long before dying out. He did it again and the vines caught fire. This time, he made the flames hotter. The flames spread all around them turning orange in color as it burned the vines in front of them.


    ¡°Did you notice that,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°What should I be noticing?¡± Selene asked.


    ¡°This!¡± Jerome said, gesturing with his hands spread apart. His helmet melted away from his head and merged with the rest of his armor. Selene looked at the burning vines around them. Her teammates lowered their weapons and looked around as well.


    ¡°The attack stopped!¡± Selene exclaimed.


    ¡°Just for the duration the flames are burning the vines,¡± Jerome said and lit up the forest again. He extended Suzie and cut out a path in front of them, burning everything on their path as they exited the enclosure.


    ¡°I guess the vines are not as omnipotent as they seem,¡± Trudhorn said. ¡°But we might not be able to endure the heat from your flame for long, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Bear with it,¡± Jerome said. ¡°If I reduce the intensity, we¡¯re in trouble. Except we fly outta here.¡± Which¡¯ll burn through their essence like water in a basket.


    They continued on for a while in the heat of Jerome¡¯s flame. Jerome settled into a routine, lighting up the vines in their path and cutting them up with Suzie. This continued for a while longer than he expected. There was no end in sight. It was as if the vines had adopted a new strategy, putting as many obstacles in his path until he tired himself out.


    Jerome was starting to get tired. He could feel his head pounding and vertigo was beginning to take hold. He shook his head and concentrated on his goal. His core was running low and anytime now he would be unable to produce a single spark of flame.


    ¡°I¡¯m almost out guys,¡± he called out.


    ~~~


    Selene


    Jerome had done so much for them, a simple thank you could not express how she felt in her heart. Selene put her hand on his back and tapped twice, expressing her gratitude. Everyone continued in silence and soon Jerome¡¯s flames became noticeably weaker.


    The vines seemed to sense this too and started to move in that slow, eerie manner around them, gathering themselves to attack. Everyone began preparing for a battle. Jerome had stalled the vines long enough¡­long enough for them to recover some strength.


    Jerome¡¯s feet faltered and he fell. His flames sputtered out. Selene quickly caught him and took off running. The team of Sprouts ran alongside her and Trudhorn reached out to relieve Selene of Jerome¡¯s weight.


    ¡°He must have been a lot more tired than he let on,¡± Selene said as she looked around.


    The heat from the flames had died down and the smoke had dispersed a lot. Just before the vines attacked, a stranger shot forward ahead of them and sliced through the vines cutting a path for them. Another joined him, a female Sprout. And they both cut a path through the vines.


    More Sprouts walked up to them and one very arrogant one stopped beside Selene.


    ¡°You owe me for this, Itakar,¡± Hedon said and walked away.


    Selene observed Hedon Alvric for a while but said nothing. She was grateful for the timely help, but she knew how this particular Alvric was. More than that she feared for Jerome.


    ¡°Why is it they showed up after Jerome passed out?¡± Trudhorn asked, unable to keep the scorn from his voice.


    ¡°They¡¯ve probably been trailing us for a while now,¡± Nia said.


    Everyone looked at her as if expecting her to explain herself.


    ¡°I said probably,¡± she defended.


    What Nia said may not be far from the truth, but everyone knew Hedon Alvric. His pride wouldn¡¯t let him allow another to take center stage when it came to playing power games like this.


    ¡°Who knows,¡± Selene said. ¡°Make sure to keep an eye on him and his people. They must not come near Jerome.¡±


    ¡°He has three Sprouts less than we do,¡± Ajax said. ¡°We have the advantage of numbers.¡±


    ¡°Do not underestimate him, nor his folks,¡± someone said.


    They walked on behind the Alvrics, keeping a distance of a few paces between them. The speed at which they progressed could not be compared to when Jerome was in the lead. The Alvric Sprouts were doing their best though, and after a long, long time they became too exhausted to continue.


    ¡°We¡¯ll take over. And I owe you nothing, Alvric,¡± Selene said as she and her team walked past the Alvrics.


    Hedon Alvric couldn¡¯t help but glare at her. She felt him ready to bark back at her, but someone put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.


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    ¡°They¡¯re not stupid,¡± The Sprout who held him back said, shaking his head. Selene smiled at that. These Alvrics had no idea what they were messing with.


    ¡°Watch them, Murray,¡± Hedon said, shifting his gaze to the Sprout carrying Jerome.


    They continued behind her team as her team did behind them, switching places when one team got tired. This way they were able to cover a very long distance without stopping, resting in between shifts.


    Selene had someone keep an eye on the vines they had walked past to see if there was evidence of movement. It wouldn¡¯t be nice if they were attacked from behind. But she soon found out that her concerns were unnecessary.


    They continued on and to their delight, the essence in the air started becoming denser. The Sprouts sped up their efforts with renewed vigor decimating the vines in front of them as they moved. The vines had also grown noticeably weaker as the ambient essence grew denser.


    Both teams spared no effort as they went all out. Clearing the way until they burst out of the forest into a valley filled with world essence. The sky was brighter here, not exactly daylight, but there were spots through which sunlight could be seen and clouds almost as black as night fought for control over the sky.


    ¡°What the fuck?!¡± Nia exclaimed in anger as she looked ahead. The rest of her teammates followed her gaze and they couldn¡¯t help but glare at what they saw. They all felt like they had wasted their time and effort. Selene felt like she had wasted her time and effort.


    ¡°No matter what direction we take, the Tower of Solon will always be in front of us,¡± someone reiterated Selene¡¯s words from before.


    ¡°It¡¯s different somehow though,¡± Trudhorn said.


    ¡°The haze we saw around it the last time is gone,¡± Tega, the Sprout who lost his scouting partner, Darryn, said.


    ¡°Then this must be the real tower,¡± Selene said. Everyone concluded that the Tower of Solon they saw before was just a mirage and maybe the one standing in front of them now is the real one. They trudged forward on tired feet toward the tower to find where they could rest.


    ~~~


    Trudhorn


    The dark walls of the tower loomed in the not-so-far distance. At this point in time everyone was extremely fatigued as the excitement from the fight, and the rush they felt from the fear of losing their lives had died down.


    Trudhorn looked behind him to see the situation with the Alvrics. His team had discussed observing the Alvrics until they found somewhere safe to keep Jerome away from potential danger. The Alvrics were eyeing the Sprout on Bram¡¯s shoulders like a piece of meat. He knew what was in store for Jerome if they ever get their hands on him in such a state.


    The Alvrics had always followed the old ways. They were slave owners, refusing to give up their ownership over human life. No one talks about it ¡ª not even the Royal Family. It would only cause war in Vorthe if such practices were openly discussed with the intention to mar their reputation, so Vorthe banned open conversation about slavery.


    Itakar had stopped the practice of warring and capturing slaves when Vorthe came to power; as did the Baelors. Trudhorn didn¡¯t know about Fei. They did seem like people that would practice slavery, but he couldn¡¯t think of one instance when he had seen or heard anything like that, so he didn¡¯t consider himself knowledgeable enough to make such a conclusion.


    He didn¡¯t put it beneath the Alvrics to have null locks on them, ready to be put on Jerome if they got hold of him. Those damn things could take a person¡¯s core and freeze it completely, leaving them no way to cycle. Trudhorn shivered as he remembered the things he¡¯d heard as a young boy growing up. His core was as much a part of him as his limbs. To not feel it anymore and not be able to use essence was like losing an arm.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take him, Bram,¡± he said, taking the weight off Bram¡¯s shoulders to give him time to rest. Then he whispered to him, ¡°Have it in mind that the Alvrics still practice the ¡®occupation¡¯. It is not beneath them to carry null locks around with them.¡±


    Ajax¡¯s head pricked up at that. The rest of the team kept Jerome in their center and he slowed down to walk from behind.


    That was good. If the Alvrics were thinking of attacking now that they were all weak, they¡¯d have to attack the son of their Matriarch and potential heir of the clan. But of course, they wouldn¡¯t. Such an action could lead to a war in Vorthe. And Neither Alvric nor Itakar were ready for such a conflict.


    ~~~


    Selene


    The air in the atmosphere seemed deadened, unmoving. The grass carpeting the earth was infested with pests. The Itakars made their way silently toward the Tower of Solon, wondering what might come out to attack them.


    Selene had her twin swords in hand as she put one boot in front of the other. Her heart raced in her ribcage and shivers ran down her spine from time to time. The air was still, just like it was inside the illusion. Or were they still inside the illusion?


    ¡°Am I the only one, or is the air as still as it was inside the illusion?¡± she whispered.


    ¡°Yer definitely not, Selene. And please don¡¯t joke with the illusion,¡± Nia whispered back¡­ And shivered.


    They came about a hundred feet away from the walls of the tower, looking from left to right for danger. The Alvrics were right beside them. A few feet away to their left in fact, not wanting to be outdone. Selene glanced over at their team, seeing the same fear in the eyes of their members. Good.


    The tower was at least four hundred feet high, maybe more. It was so wide, Selene couldn¡¯t see the other side of it.


    ¡°This is the single largest structure I¡¯ve ever seen in my life,¡± Ajax said, his eyes nearly popping out of his head as he looked up.


    ¡°It seems it was built using essence. But it is too big,¡± Trudhorn said. ¡°Who would waste essence to build something so gigantic?¡±


    The dark walls of the tower seemed to loom over them like a mountain. Once, there might have been arcane magic here, but now¡­ Selene shook her head to stay in focus. There might just be another illusion waiting for them to fall into it. ¡°Stay focused, you two. Don¡¯t forget where we are.¡±


    Ajax scowled at her but walked forward. Trudhorn handed Jerome back to Bram and walked up to her.


    ¡°I want to join Tega to scout out this place,¡± Trudhorn whispered to her. ¡°It¡¯s giving me an eerie feeling and I don¡¯t like not knowing what¡¯s waiting for us in there.¡±


    Selene wanted to tell him not to go. Her fear spiked for an instant but she quickly calmed herself. She tried to remember if there was anything she could remember about The Tower of Solon; anything her mother must have said in passing but there was nothing. Her mother had only told her that the place had already been cleaned out.


    ¡°Once, there were treasures there, Trudhorn. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything left. Not even an enemy lurking in the dark¡ª¡± she stopped as she sensed the Alvrics coming over.


    Hedon stepped forward as they came five paces close to them. ¡°We should work together, Itakar. We do not know what¡¯s waiting for us inside,¡± he said.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing there. The Matriarch said so,¡± she replied. ¡°But just to be safe, I¡¯ll be sending one of my scouts to check it out.¡±


    She looked at Tega and he stepped forward.


    ¡°I¡¯m not one to speak against a Matriarch but just as you said¡­¡± he spread his arms slightly, ¡°safety first.¡±


    A member of his team came forward and both scouts jogged forward before disappearing into the building. The teams sat where they stood facing each other. Bram grunted as he set Jerome down, laying him on the floor before sitting in front of him. Three teammates were already angled in a half circle around Jerome and Bram closed it off. Now they waited.

 78. The Tower Of Solon (2)

    Jerome woke up to the feeling of his core cycling at very rapid speeds, devouring ambient energy around him. He was feeling very refreshed but quickly slowed down his core so as not to alert any foe. One couldn¡¯t cycle while they slept, yet he had cycled nonstop for three years under Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon, and he had no way to explain that occurrence. He had been cycling while asleep ever since then, but he shouldn¡¯t do it here. He would easily be noticed if he cycled while sleeping. Somehow though, his body felt more relaxed here than at Kilian¡¯s Palace.


    Jerome popped his eyes open to find himself in a chamber of sorts, covered by a blanket. The walls were made out of some kind of dark stone and there was no furniture around. There was no outline to show that interlocked stones were used to build the structure. It was like the Keep in the mountains once again, during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. The walls were dry and the air was stale. He remembered passing out from using too much essence. It was a miracle his channels weren¡¯t burned.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake,¡± Selene said beside him. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor in meditation.


    ¡°And I can see we made it out alive,¡± Jerome said with a smile.


    Selene nodded. ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to you.¡±


    ¡°It was a team effort,¡± he said, checking himself and his space ring. Wouldn¡¯t want to find out that all his possessions had been pilfered while he slept. He knew the Itakars wouldn¡¯t do such a thing but just to be on the safe side¡­


    ¡°So where are we?¡± Jerome asked and Selene led him outside the room. The hallway was deserted and in ruins. ¡°Is this¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is Jerome. We found the real Tower of Solon. Turns out all the other teams had taken refuge here. I think we¡¯re the last to arrive.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t like the sound of that. Did that mean others were faster than them¡­stronger than them? The sounds of battle reached him at that moment and Jerome walked up ahead to the wall in front of them. The wall had been broken off and he now stood overlooking a plain. There was a battle going on down there, a bit farther away in the distance. It was an actual battlefield!


    ¡°What the hell?!¡± he exclaimed.


    ¡°The Children don¡¯t want us to move past that point,¡± Selene said. ¡°You¡¯ve been out for a few days, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Days¡­ Can we tell time now?¡± Jerome asked and looked up at the sky but it was dark. However, there were two moons and stars spread out as far as his eyes could see beyond the firmament. Jerome laughed excitedly. But two moons?! It was a wonder of wonders to his eyes!


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I missed seeing the dull light of the moon at night,¡± he said. ¡°Well¡­ moons in this case.¡±


    Selene smiled at him acknowledging his words. ¡°I felt the same way when I saw daylight after the endless night of Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about the situation,¡± Jerome said as he calmed down walking side by side with her.


    ¡°Alvric is here,¡± Selene said and Jerome stopped, his anger stirring. ¡°After you passed out, his men joined us and helped to get us out of that¡­ vineyard? We had to work together to get out of there.¡±


    ¡°Where is he?¡± he asked.


    ¡°He took his men to go fight some Children. If we don¡¯t clear the way, there¡¯s no way we can enter the good parts of Terra Praeta,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°The good parts?¡± Jerome asked. She probably meant they had found the way to daylight, but the Children were blocking their path.


    ¡°You¡¯ll understand when the sun comes up,¡± Selene said, and they resumed walking toward the battlefield.


    ¡°I feel like my mental energy is¡­ more,¡± Jerome said, changing the subject.


    ¡°Every one of us has gone through a lot of transformations after the illusion,¡± Selene said. She looked curiously at him and asked, ¡°How are you able to cycle while sleeping¡­ and at such great speeds?¡±


    ¡°I have no control over it,¡± he said, almost absently. ¡°After Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon, it just sort of happened.¡±


    Selene¡¯s gaze on him changed from curiosity to¡­ was it awe he saw in her eye? Then she smiled at him. ¡°It was good I listened to Mother¡¯s words, you are far more an interesting mystery than the Children.¡±


    ¡°Say what now?¡± Jerome asked. She had a faraway look on her and he wondered what might be going on in her head.


    ¡°Before coming to Terra Praeta,¡± she began, ¡°my mother admonished me that there was someone in Terra Praeta I must absolutely not offend. Now it seems it might be that you, Jerome, are that person. You did so much for us back there, I don¡¯t know if I could ever repay you.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t know what to say to that. So he just thought to be mature and humble about it. ¡°Well I feel honored. Though, I must say that it was a team effort.¡±


    Selene smiled at him as they walked down a flight of stairs. ¡°Well, I¡¯m grateful you stuck with us.¡±


    The dust in the air and the thick layer coating the surface of the tower walls were thick, almost as thick as a fog. He instinctively held his breath until they got to the top of a small hill within two thousand paces of the battlefield. Jerome could see the Sprouts assaulting the Children and the Children resisting without much effort. Their numbers were far more than what he fought before, and there were five colossal Children in their ranks.


    There were also many winged Children hovering in the air. Their bat-like wings were shorter than his, with patches of skin missing in a few places. Some of them would dive down threateningly from time to time as if to pick up the Sprouts, but their lithe bodies didn¡¯t seem strong enough to lift a single Sprouts. Jerome wasn¡¯t fooled by that though. He knew what it meant to carry something more than ten times his body weight. These flying Children could be said to be feminine in nature. They were not beautiful, just less irritating than their male counterparts.


    ¡°The highborn are having a meeting soon and I need to join them. Ajax is on his way here,¡± Selene said. ¡°The Alvrics may be planning something so don¡¯t fall into their trap.¡±


    Jerome took the warning to heart. He decided to wait until they finished their battle with the Children before he took action against Hedon. He sensed Ajax from a distance of about 200 feet before the Sprout landed near him, surprised by how stronger his perception had grown. His perception used to be a little over ten times less than that before. This was truly a great fortune for him.


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    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Ajax asked with a smile.


    ¡°Never been better,¡± Jerome responded, smiling back. ¡°What happened to the Tower of Solon by the way?¡± he gestured at the tower behind them.


    Ajax smiled. They bumped fists and sat down on the hill and Ajax started giving him details about how they had thought they¡¯d meet some more challenges but it turned out to be the camping spot for the rest of the teams.


    ¡°Were there any treasures?¡± he asked.


    ¡°If there were, the Feis took it all.¡±


    Right. That would mean there probably weren¡¯t any treasures.


    ~~~


    Selene


    Selene walked down to the tent where those from the Great Houses were having their strategy meeting. They had moved from the tower toward the battlefield so they could handle things more efficiently. The only reason why she was in the tower was so she could keep an eye on Jerome.


    Before she got to the tent, Trudhorn joined her ¡ª for which she was grateful. She didn¡¯t want to deal with the proud, hot-headed Scions of Vorthe alone.


    ¡°I heard the Royals were able to cut a path through the Children on their own. From what I¡¯ve gathered so far, it seems the Children let them pass¡­so to speak,¡± Trudhorn said but his statement sounded more like he was asking for confirmation.


    ¡°You heard right. They left us here to figure things out on our own,¡± Selene snarked. She had always known the Royals had a few tricks up their sleeves but this one felt a lot like cheating. And why would they just leave like that? she sighed. Why wouldn¡¯t they leave? Everyone was here to obtain power for themselves.


    ¡°Young Lady Selene,¡± someone said, joining them as they walked toward the tent.


    Selene looked to her left. ¡°What do you want, Alvric?¡± she asked looking away from him, the warmth in her voice was gone in an instant. She knew what he wanted but she¡¯d leave Terra Praeta before bending to their wishes. Thankfully, her House was just as powerful as House Alvric.


    ¡°How¡¯s Terra Praeta treating you, Young Lady,¡± Murray asked. He was not in a position to call her Itakar. Only those of the direct bloodline, the heirs of the Great family had the effrontery to throw each other¡¯s surnames in their faces.


    ¡°Quite fine thank you,¡± Selene said curtly.


    ¡°We Alvrics are willing to be in your debt if you would leave the Royal cur to us, Young Lady,¡± Murray said, getting straight to the point as they slowed to a halt in front of the tent.


    ¡°I will have to disappoint you Alvric. He¡¯s under my protection, but let me give you a bit of advice. I¡¯d make sure not to piss him off if I were you,¡± she said, examining the tent.


    Murray Alvric kept his gaze on her for the entirety of their exchange and after her warning, which sounded more like a subtle threat, he spoke up. ¡°I¡¯m not here to gain your permission, Young Lady.¡± His voice had turned to a harsh whisper. ¡°When we¡¯re done with the Children, he¡¯ll die next. I hope you and your teammates won¡¯t interfere.¡± He walked away.


    Selene shook her head with a small smile. They¡¯d probably assessed Jerome¡¯s level of skill inside the vineyard and thought that was all there was to him. They were in for a surprise, especially now that Jerome was back to full strength¡­ and more.


    She turned her attention back to the tent and walked in with Trudhorn. He hadn¡¯t spoken throughout the whole exchange. He just listened. She knew he was keeping his silence because he was sure they could do nothing against Jerome.


    ¡°...cost us a lot of manpower,¡± Fei Lin was saying when they stepped into the tent.


    The noise from the outside world was immediately drowned by silence. The tent was refined by an artificer it seemed; a soundproof tent.


    ¡°Welcome, Itakar,¡± Fei Lin said and Selene nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t see your brother.¡± She smiled to which Selene frowned.


    Of all the Great Family, Fei Lin was the youngest, followed by Hedon and Berj Baelor. She and her brother were the oldest. Yet her brother acted like the youngest among them sometimes. He had even wanted to court Fei Lin at one time but she had declined. Reason being that he was too childish. That had hurt their family¡¯s image in more ways than one.


    ¡°What¡¯s the plan to get past the Children?¡± Selene asked, getting back on the subject of discourse. Her gaze never left the Fei heiress who looked away in embarrassment.


    She wasn¡¯t going to air her family¡¯s dirty laundry here. At least Fei Lin had it in her to look embarrassed after asking of her brother. If she wasn¡¯t guilty for what she had done it would make Selene¡¯s dislike of her action turn to a dislike of the Young Lady herself.


    ¡°We need sacred artists with long-range offense techniques to open fire and lead the way,¡± said Lang, who was sitting beside Fei Lin.


    ¡°How long of a range are we looking at?¡± Trudhorn asked.


    ¡°At least a hundred feet,¡± Berj said from the side, his voice deep and guttural. He hadn¡¯t come with anyone from his team. He wasn¡¯t a strategist, but he truly didn¡¯t need to fear being pressured by the tactical knowledge of a few Sprouts. Berj was in a league of his own.


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°We¡¯re looking for¡­someone,¡± Fei Lin said hesitantly, looking Lang¡¯s way and Lang slowly shook his head at her.


    Berj scoffed his displeasure at their open show of secrecy. ¡°If you¡¯ve got something to say, Fei. Say it,¡± he said in a voice as deep as the growl of a bear. Berj was not one for covertness of speech.


    Lang sighed. ¡°When we entered Terra Praeta, someone ¡ª I don¡¯t know who ¡ª killed a Child that was chasing us through the forest. It was a pretty big Child, and fast too.¡±


    ¡°Do you care to elaborate, Lang,¡± Selene said, interested in this ¡®someone¡¯.


    ¡°We only saw a flash of blue light and boom! Its head was blown off,¡± Lang said, gesturing with his hands. ¡°We didn¡¯t see anyone¡­why are you smiling?¡± He asked as he looked at the Itakars.


    Selene and Trudhorn were smiling from ear to ear as they listened to him.


    ¡°And what do you need this Sprout for?¡± she asked, still smiling.


    ¡°You know this person,¡± Fei Lin said suspiciously.


    ¡°We all know him, actually,¡± Trudhorn said. To which they were a little surprised. If they knew him, they should have recognized the technique.


    ¡°Ahem. Well, he attacked from the sky,¡± Lang said. ¡°I estimate he¡¯d be faster in the air than any of us. The Alvrics should be the fastest in the air. But even they had no one who wielded fire essence, and blue flames at that.


    Wait, they asked the Alvrics? The Alvrics should definitely know who this person was. They saw him in the vineyard after all. Why the hell was she calling that place the vineyard, anyway?


    ¡°If we could have him draw the attention of the flying Children, the rest of us can break through their blockade without much interference from them,¡± Lang said.


    ¡°That¡¯s a sound plan. Should we call him here, or?...¡± Selene asked. She could see the curiosity in their eyes. They wanted to know who the Sprout was.


    Fei Lin nodded vigorously, very unladylike for a Sprout of her station and Lang glared at her. He turned to Selene and nodded curtly to which Selene smiled. The heir of the Fei Clan was known to be a little like them ¡ª wild and free ¡ª which she had no qualms about. The Fei Clan was too poise and sophisticated in their appearance for Selene¡¯s liking. It was good to have someone among them who was¡­ ¡®free-spirited¡¯.


    Trudhorn left the tent and after a period of uncomfortable silence and a staring match between herself and Fei Lin, returned. As soon as Jerome entered the tent, Fei Lin couldn¡¯t help but exclaim in shock, ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be dead?!¡±

 79. The Tower Of Solon (3)

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be dead?!¡±


    Jerome paused, stunned by the statement. He quickly recovered and couldn¡¯t help but look displeased at Fei Lin. She was supposed to be the heir of a Great clan and she was acting uncultured.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± another Sprout coughed into the uncomfortable silence in the room and glared at her once again. Her cheeks colored in embarrassment and she kept mute. Jerome knew this Sprout. Up close, he looked older. He was the Sprout who performed that awesome technique when one of the Children was chasing the Feis.


    Jerome walked toward a large table at the center of the tent and sat down in one of the chairs around it, staring daggers at everyone. His mood had been soured by that statement just now and Selene would answer for it, for summoning him here.


    ¡°They say you¡¯re very fast in the air,¡± a big guy in the corner spoke, breaking the awkward silence in the room. Jerome recalled the Baelors as he looked him up and down. The Sprout looked angry, openly glaring at him. Perhaps because he was sitting at the table that was meant for the Scions of the Great Clans. It was utter disrespect by Vorthe¡¯s social standards, but Jerome did nothing to hide his displeasure at them all, and the giant Sprout said nothing. This was not the time, perhaps. Since they were all silently sizing each other up even as they strategized.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jerome said, gazing at the giant Sprout. His voice was deep and kind of scary, but Jerome was not concerned with him.


    ¡°Good,¡± the Baelor said standing up. ¡°You would draw the attention of the flying Children so the rest of us can break through their barricade.¡± His tone brooked no argument, like someone who was used to having his way with everyone else. Jerome wasn¡¯t having that though.


    ¡°I would do no such thing,¡± he said, his voice flat as he glared at the big guy in the eyes.


    At his full height, the Baelor was as tall as the roof of the tent and gave off a daunting presence. His dark-brown, furred leather armor with the crest of a running bull was evidence of his House ¡ª House Baelor, House of the Running Bull.


    Jerome noticed Selene smile and lean back in her chair, ready to watch a show. She raised her booted legs, crossed them on top of the table, and folded her arms behind her head. Never knew she had a side of her like this, Jerome thought in passing.


    Trudhorn scratched his head, looking nonplussed. Everyone held their breaths as they sensed the rising tension in the air.


    ¡°I propose we talk about this a little more peacefully, Young Lord,¡± the older Fei Sprout said to the Baelor, breaking the tension in the air. He gave Jerome a look that said he was out of his depth with the Baelor but Jerome just shrugged at him indifferently.


    Jerome and the Giant Sprout continued to glare at each other, both of them refusing to back down. The silence in the air stretched on for a while before the Baelor sat down grudgingly.


    ¡°Fine,¡± he said, not taking his eyes off Jerome. ¡°But he¡¯d still be the distraction.¡±


    ¡°What a shame. Would¡¯ve loved to see something exciting,¡± Selene murmured loud enough for everyone to hear. Lang looked at her with pleading eyes and the Baelor just glared at her. Jerome eyed her with a raised eyebrow. He quite liked this playful side of her.


    ¡°What?¡± she said, putting on her most innocent look, but turned away smiling coyly.


    ¡°Let¡¯s come to an agreement first, shall we?¡± the older Fei Sprout said. Osh, I need to learn their names, Jerome thought to himself. This Fei was the most level-headed Sprout among them at the moment.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± He turned to Jerome. Jerome sensed that he too was unhappy with his blatant disregard for status but like the Baelor, he said nothing.


    Jerome looked at him for a while sizing him up and scanning him for the first time. To his surprise, the Sprout was far more powerful than he thought he¡¯d be. His core was a lot denser than that of the Royal twins he saw at the training ground back in Farryn. He had never scanned Grogg, but he felt they¡¯d be at the same level of strength. It wouldn¡¯t be long before this guy advanced to the Spirit Realm.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± he said.


    ¡°Jerome¡­you mean, ¡®the¡¯ Jerome?¡± the Sprout asked with a shocked expression on his face.


    ¡°The one and only,¡± Jerome said. Rihal had once said he was famous after Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, so it was best to just go with the flow. Plus he didn¡¯t really care if people knew about him.


    Lang looked from Selene to Trudhorn to Fei Lin in shock before calming down. The news was that Hedon Alvric killed him for embarrassing him in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Hedon was publicly rebuked by the Royal family for killing over a score of people from the slums, all of whom were his family ¡ª or so the rumors say. He wasn¡¯t there, so he couldn¡¯t judge if the Alvric heir was truly rebuked.


    ¡°To see you alive and well after all these years is nothing short of a miracle,¡± the Fei said. ¡°I¡¯m Lang. You already know Young Lady Selene, her protector, Trudhorn, my charge, Princess Fei Lin.¡± Fei Lin scowled at that. But what¡¯s with the ¡®princess¡¯ title anyway? Lang waved toward the Baelor next. ¡°And this is Young Lord Berj Baelor, heir of Clan Baelor.¡±


    The giant Sprout puffed up at his introduction. He looked like an overgrown dwarf, with all of the muscles and none of the height defect. A pumpkin would be an appropriate description of him. A human sized pumpkin. Or a loaf of bread. Hmm.


    Hmm. Loaf of bread sounds better, Jerome thought. He¡¯d probably squeal if I squeezed him like a pimple.


    ¡°Were you the one who killed the Child chasing us in the forest sometime ago?¡± Fei Lin asked.


    ¡°What of it?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Thank you, for giving us a helping hand,¡± Lang said, taking back the reins of the conversation. It was good to finally place a name with the face. ¡°We would, however, require your assistance once again to help us break the blockade set by the Children.¡±


    ¡°And what do I get out of this?¡± Jerome asked. Berj glared at him. If only looks could kill. ¡°Obviously, I¡¯ll be doing you all a favor. I am capable of leaving just like the royals, you know?¡± Berj mellowed out. Jerome had heard of how the Royal Sprouts left, which was quite surprising. He thought the Children couldn¡¯t have just let them pass through. There must have been something involved nobody was considering.


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    ¡°You won¡¯t make it far,¡± Fei Lin said, glaring at him. ¡°If you aren¡¯t going to help, then it was a waste of time bringing you here.¡±


    ¡°Where is Hedon by the way?¡± Jerome asked, ignoring the Fei heir.


    ¡°He¡¯s in battle, trying to prove his mettle,¡± Trudhorn said, almost mockingly.


    Jerome nodded. He¡¯d hoped to see Hedon at least once. To look him in the eyes once before their battle. Jerome fantasized about how he was going to slice through his throat just as he did with Doti and a fire roared in his veins at the thought.


    ¡°Are you going to help us or not?¡± Fei Lin asked, getting impatient with him.


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother with Fei Lin. It seemed she wasn¡¯t the one calling the shots at the table. Everybody deferred to Lang, the older Sprout. Jerome wondered why he didn¡¯t put a surname to his name. He was expecting the Sprout to be a Fei but maybe there were parts of their culture he didn¡¯t know about. He waited for Lang to ask what he wanted. Jerome didn¡¯t really want anything from them. He just didn¡¯t want anyone to interfere with him and Hedon.


    ¡°What do you want then?¡± Lang finally spoke up.


    ¡°Do not interfere with the Alvrics and me. When we¡¯re done breaking through the blockade, you pack up and leave.¡±


    Lang smiled at him. ¡°Talk like that makes you a very interesting person, Jerome; a common disciple going up against the heir of a Great Clan is not something one sees everyday.¡± He leaned forward on the table as if to stare right into Jerome¡¯s soul. That action instantly increased the tension in the room. Jerome¡¯s hackles rose instinctively. He felt the urge to lean away from the older Sprout but he fought it. This Sprout was strong, no doubt about it. And he had just established that fact with him.


    Jerome ended up tilting his head to the side, making sure to look non-threatening even while seeming unafraid. His eyes never left the older Sprout¡¯s. Lang leaned back again, the tension passing. ¡°We will not interfere. I swear by the force of the blade.¡± he flinched as the oath took hold.


    The force of the blade; that¡¯s new.


    ¡°We Baelors wouldn¡¯t interfere as well. I swear by the earth,¡± Berj said and also flinched at the oath taking hold. ¡°But you¡¯re not going to be able to beat him, urchin. Not with the people he has around him.¡±


    Jerome let the ¡®urchin¡¯ insult slide and didn¡¯t respond to it. He turned to Selene who was busy cleaning her nails. She looked over and just shrugged. Well, he never expected an oath from her. In fact, he never expected an oath from any of them.


    Selene knew what he was capable of. So she wasn¡¯t fazed by what he wanted to do.


    Jerome nodded. He stood up and asked, ¡°When do we start?¡±


    ¡°We start when the sun comes up. For now, we rest,¡± Lang said.


    ~~~


    Hedon


    After they made it past the Tower of Solon and regained their strength, Hedon found out that he and his teammates were stronger than they were before. Their cores were denser and able to hold a lot more essence and their mental capacity had been enlarged.


    He had quickly taken his men to the battlefield to regain some of the confidence they lost while facing the Children in the caves where they lost some teammates. After fighting alongside his teammates and venting his fury at the Children for a while, they walked back to the camp ready to rest for the night.


    ¡°Young Lady Itakar didn¡¯t agree to my proposal, Hedon,¡± Murray said to him after they had walked a few hundred paces away from the battlefield.


    The battle was at a standstill for now. And the children remained at the boundary between the dark cloudy parts of Terra Praeta and the clear parts. Until they came up with a way to get rid of them they weren¡¯t going anywhere.


    ¡°That¡¯s kind of odd. What allegiance do they have to him?¡± Hedon asked, wiping his body with a piece of towel.


    ¡°He probably must have helped them a lot more than we surmised,¡± Murray said.


    ¡°As long as they don¡¯t interfere with my plans,¡± Hedon said and looked at Murray. ¡°I can¡¯t leave that cur running around, he¡¯s a loose end that needs to be cut off. And I¡¯m pretty sure he would be making his own plans against me.¡±


    ¡°He can try,¡± Murray said mockingly. ¡°But what plans of his can succeed against the heir of a Great clan?¡±


    Hedon chuckled. ¡°Let¡¯s find out what the others discussed for now. Then we make our move after we leave this place,¡± he said, walking toward the cluster of tents owned by the Fei clan.


    ~~~


    The Royal Estate. Farryn, Vorthe.


    Rihal


    ¡°Why would she do something like that?¡±


    Rihal looked toward his friend and confidant. For all his knowledge as a scholar, Kilian could be na¨ªve. It didn¡¯t take a centuries-year-old Sage to know that the 1st Matron didn¡¯t want him learning anything about what he discussed with her.


    His mind went back to that day. He had been escorted to one of her many guest rooms where he found her relaxing. For the longest time she didn¡¯t acknowledge his presence, even though she listened to him speak. He had explained about the weirdness of his disciple and all the inherent knowledge he seemed to have.


    It was rumored that every Royal Sage knew of the existence of the Dark One, so he wasn¡¯t the least bit worried he was giving away information that was forbidden. Even though he had no idea if she truly knew or not.


    ¡°Is that all you¡¯ve come to tell me, young Rihal?¡± she had said. At that moment, he knew he wouldn¡¯t get any answers from her. One moment he¡¯d been inside her guest room, the next he found himself hovering over a stream west of where her castle was located.


    Rihal sighed. ¡°She doesn¡¯t want me learning something¡­¡±


    ¡°Something?...¡± Kilian asked, expecting clarification.


    ¡°I think they are all in it together. You know the Curia Regis is not the only group among us royals that know about the Dark One.¡±


    ¡°So, which other group do you think would talk?¡±


    ¡°Talk¡­ no,¡± Rihal said. ¡°We spy on them.¡± He smiled. Well, ¡®I¡¯ll¡¯ spy on them.


    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious, Rihal,¡± Kilian said, panicking. ¡°You¡¯d bring the wrath of the Sages upon us. Maybe even the Saint.¡±


    ¡°I know just who to start¡ª¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like this, Rihal. You could end up somewhere you don¡¯t want to be,¡± Kilian cautioned.


    Rihal snorted. ¡°What more can they do to me?¡± He¡¯d been shamed once. Anything they did to him now would be a scratch compared to the shame of carrying the Sovereign¡¯s mark.


    Kilian didn¡¯t answer his question. Even though he knew the Curia Regis could be merciless. ¡°And who do you wish to spy on? What results could you achieve with that, even?¡±


    Rihal smiled, eyes distant for a while. He knew the perfect group to spy on. A group that wouldn¡¯t see him coming. Plus, they had very few Sages that could sense him.


    He stood up after a long while of putting his thoughts together. ¡°The tamers,¡± he said.


    ¡°Huh. Good choice,¡± Kilian said. ¡°I see why you chose them. But that doesn¡¯t mean their Sages will tattle about whatever secrets they know about Jerome.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯ll have their minds fixated on the magic beasts being transported here, true,¡± Rihal said, nodding but then he smirked. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t mean ideas can¡¯t be planted in the minds of their subordinates.¡±


    ¡°Ideas that will go around as rumors, which will eventually reach the ears of the Sages¡­ and will prompt discussions among them,¡± Kilian completed for him.


    ¡°You know me so well, Kilian,¡± he said and vanished from Kilian¡¯s study.

 80. Blockade

    Jerome sat down in Ajax¡¯s tent to meditate for the night. He was quite curious about how much his core must have grown. And he was pleasantly surprised by the level of transformation. He quickly brought out the Sunfire stone and placed it inside a storage bag. It wouldn¡¯t be right to place it in the center of the room as it would take up the little space in the tent.


    As he started to absorb the Sunfire stone, Selene called out to him from outside the tent.


    ¡°Jerome, are you decent?¡±


    ¡°Yes. You can come in,¡± he said as he put the pouch away.


    Selene smiled at him as she came into the tent, followed by Ajax and Trudhorn. She handed him a storage ring as she sat down opposite him on the ground, flanked by both teammates.


    ¡°What are they?¡± he asked as he scanned its contents.


    ¡°They¡¯re called essence crystals. They¡¯re used to store essence so we can absorb from them whenever we¡¯re running low,¡± she said. ¡°I noticed your displeasure when you absorbed your fire stone ¡ª and quite quickly if I might add. I figured they weren¡¯t as free of impurities or not very rich in fire essence. These on the other hand, were crafted specifically to make up for the lapses in natural essence stones. They are richly packed with pure essence that is free from impurities.¡±


    ¡°Would have been useful a while back,¡± Jerome said with a smile. He remembered discussing with the Sovereign about something like this. And unlike his Sunfire stone, these ones were smaller and could fit in the palm of one¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I actually have my own resources,¡± he said and handed the storage ring back to her.


    ¡°You did a lot for us back there, Jerome. Please accept it,¡± Ajax said, his playful demeanor was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°Thanks a lot. But trust me, you¡¯ll need it more than I do,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I¡¯m not refusing because I don¡¯t want to be indebted to you. I¡¯m refusing because it¡¯s going to be more useful to you than me. I have resources that¡­¡± he trailed off, not wanting to reveal the Sunfire stone.


    The look on his face, though, surely told the other three that he did have resources that rivaled theirs.


    ¡°If you say so, Jerome. If there¡¯s anything you need, just let me know,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Hedon¡¯s armor is an artifact,¡± Ajax blurted out. ¡°All our armors are artifacts.¡±


    ¡°True,¡± Trudhorn said, nodding.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Jerome said with curiosity in his eyes. ¡°I never thought about it.¡± But it made sense. The Great Clans wouldn¡¯t send their kids into a strange world without some type of magical protection.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been fighting to survive ever since entering Terra Praeta, there wasn¡¯t time to even think of such,¡± Selene added with a chuckle.


    ¡°The armors we wear, especially those of us from Great families, were specially crafted from Hroth¡¯s Tannery,¡± Ajax said. ¡°Our armors are powered by the ambient essence in the air, but the essence crystals can be used, as well as our own essence.¡±


    ¡°House Hroth, the House of Textile,¡± Jerome muttered as he remembered. House Hroth were known for their skill in clothing. They also excelled in making some of the best leather armors in the kingdom. Now that he thought about it, he noticed he had seen very few injuries on the Itakars.


    Nia and Ajax had the worst of it. Which showed that their armor wasn¡¯t one hundred percent secure.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let your guard down, Jerome,¡± Trudhorn said.


    ¡°Hedon is an attention-seeker. He¡¯d love to have an audience when we face each other,¡± Jerome said. ¡°People like him have very deep psychological issues. He needs validation. I, on the other hand, don¡¯t care¡­and that¡¯s why I¡¯m going to beat him.¡±


    ¡°Noir¡¯s Blackflame take him,¡± Ajax cursed, his face twisted in anger as if he had suffered from Hedon¡¯s hand in front of an audience.


    Selene placed a hand on her brother¡¯s clenched fist to calm him down. Jerome watched all this as he wondered how many people Hedon had offended. But he was also curious about something.


    ¡°I heard you curse like that when we first met,¡± he said. ¡°What does it mean?¡± In fact, he had heard it long before he met Ajax. He¡¯d heard it from Kilian.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Ajax was a bit stunned. The look he gave Jerome suggested he was surprised Jerome was hearing a curse for the first time. ¡°It¡¯s¡­¡± he paused, not knowing where to start.


    ¡°Jerome is from the slums of Farryn, Ajax,¡± Selene said and Ajax looked at Jerome, even more stunned than he was before.


    ¡°Huh! Aren¡¯t you full of surprises?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you don¡¯t strike us as a Sprout who was raised in the slums,¡± Trudhorn said.


    ¡°I grew up in an orphanage. We were only taught the legend of the Sovereign in the slums,¡± Jerome said with a shrug, not feeling offended.


    ¡°Noir is a legend of old,¡± Trudhorn said. ¡°They say he followed the Path of Blackflame: a Path of Fire, darkness, and destruction. He perpetrated genocide in his time, influenced by his uncontrollable power.¡±


    ¡°Influenced?¡± Jerome asked uncomfortably. That sounded a lot like the darkness he held within him.


    ¡°We know little of him,¡± Selene said. ¡°He was lured to the frozen earth and assaulted by a host of powerful foes. He killed a lot of them before going down himself.¡±


    ¡°Interesting. So, that¡¯s how the cursing came about,¡± Jerome said. ¡°And probably why Pathuma is a war-torn country.¡± He muttered that last part but even though they heard him, nobody said anything, like they were giving him time to process the information.


    ¡°Hedon has two very powerful Sprouts with him ¡ª Murray and Arkesha,¡± Selene finally warned.


    ¡°Are they as powerful as Fei Lin¡¯s¡­protector, Lang?¡± Jerome asked. He didn¡¯t know what to call the older Sprout.


    ¡°Yes, Lang is his name,¡± Selene said. ¡°They¡¯re not as powerful as Lang. It is rumored that Lang will advance to the Spirit Realm anytime soon. They¡¯re nowhere close to advancing. But they are still quite dangerous.¡±


    Jerome nodded absently. Power was what mattered in this world. He was quite pleased to know that even the Scions of the Great Clans, with all their pride, still deferred to Lang¡¯s opinion.


    ¡°Thank you for the warning,¡± he said.


    ¡°It was the least we could do,¡± Selene said. ¡°I¡¯d take it you didn¡¯t come with a tent to Terra Praeta?¡±


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    Jerome shook his head smiling. He had never thought he¡¯d need a tent, if not he¡¯d have asked for one.


    ¡°You can stay here for the night,¡± Ajax said. ¡°I¡¯ll bunk with Trudhorn.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure about that?¡±


    Ajax nodded.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± Jerome said. He really needed privacy for his meditation.


    Selene left with her teammates to go rest and prepare for their assault on the blockade the next day, leaving Jerome to meditate. After they left, Jerome took his time to nurture his core with the Sunfire stone, absorbing it at a faster rate than he normally would. This continued for a long time before he decided to practice.


    Leaving the tent, Jerome walked toward the back of their camp. The night was cold and the air was fresh with the scent of earth and of the forest. He made sure not to walk too far away from camp. Jerome came to a stop a few hundred paces away from their camp and decided to practice here for the night.


    He brought out his spear and began practicing, multitasking with five three-foot-long blades made out of Suzie. His goal was to practice how to hold off multiple offenders at once. With his mental energy having gone through a significant improvement, it was quite easy to control the blades. In fact, there was no stress at all in trying to command them. He worked on his form, his footing, and balance. Rihal had taken his time to teach him these. He remembered his training and all the pain he had to endure, calling up that sense of endurance and patience as he practiced. He flowed through the different forms as he wielded his spear deftly, controlling the five blades hovering midair to defend and attack invisible foes.


    Jerome practiced for the better part of the night. But soon, he stopped and looked at a certain spot a few paces away.


    ¡°Are you just gonna sit there and stare all night?¡±


    The grasses at the spot where he was staring moved in the opposite direction of the wind as though something was there.


    ¡°How did you notice me?¡± Jerome heard the voice before the speaker materialized at the spot. She was also quite a sight for sore eyes. Her long auburn hair swayed in the wind as she walked toward him. He could see the shape of her hips through the loose black robes she wore.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Jerome asked, and she paused a few feet away from him. His voice was curt and unfriendly, making her hesitate to come nearer. She was a slip of a lady. He felt like he could break her with one hand.


    The girl searched his eyes as though trying to look inside him. Jerome could tell from scanning her core that she was a lot stronger than she looked. He could tell she was one of Hedon¡¯s teammates just by the color of her hair but she was putting on long black loose robes without any crest.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to give you a chance to save your life,¡± she said. ¡°Hedon won¡¯t stop until you¡¯re dead. You can leave after we break through the blockade and never face him.¡±


    ¡°Are you done?¡± Jerome said.


    The girl was taken aback by his lack of fear. The surprise in her eyes vanished as she regained her composure. Jerome understood the level of reverence the heir of a Great Clan received. The fact that he was responding too lightly to a threat from such a powerful person did not pass his notice. He just didn¡¯t feel threatened by Hedon.


    ¡°Your bravery will not save you, Jerome. Only prudence will,¡± she said.


    ¡°You can take those words back to Hedon, Arkesha,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Tell him to get ready for the afterlife.¡±


    Jerome started to walk away after saying his piece, leaving the Alvric Sprout in the cold wind alone.


    ¡°How about a spar?¡± she said, causing him to stop.


    ¡°I could use a training partner,¡± Jerome said, turning around. ¡°Though, I might end up killing you¡­if you¡¯re up for it, no problem.¡±


    ¡°Or I might end up killing you,¡± Arkesha said with a raised eyebrow. Jerome shrugged at that.


    They both knew what the other was trying to do, even though Arkesha had initiated it. This was a very good place to test the strength of the other party.


    Arkesha produced her sword from her storage ring. The blade sang with signs of essence flowing through it as she spread her legs to take an offensive stance.


    Jerome still had his spear in hand and he could tell from one look at her sword that his spear would crumble from their fight. He quickly stored it away and used Suzie instead to form a spear. Arkesha almost grimaced from seeing that and Jerome smiled.


    They rushed each other the next moment, the sounds of their weapons breaking the silence of the atmosphere. They moved around the field of grass as they battled, neither gaining the upper hand. Arkesha was lithe and able to maneuver around with her smaller frame. Jerome on the other hand, was bigger and not as flexible as she was. But his thrusts and swing came with speed and explosive strength.


    Jerome¡¯s spear had better reach and could knock away Arkesha¡¯s blade, yet still reach her at the least expected moments. Her saving grace was her flexibility and speed. They parried blow after blow, neither using too much strength, they only wanted to test the waters.


    Jerome aimed for her left thigh, wanting to test the limits of her agility and strength. Arkesha knocked the spear away with her sword and spun it in her hand deftly as she took two steps back, her footing sure.  She switched hands even as Jerome spun his spear around moving to assault her again. He aimed at her head, his spear piercing through the air and almost stabbing her between the eyes.


    Arkesha tilted her head sideways and moved forward ¡ª an action any spear-wielder would dread. She closed the gap between them with her sword aimed at Jerome¡¯s heart, expecting him to back away. Jerome spun his spear with one hand, bringing the butt racing toward her head from above and at the same time, he caught the blade of her sword with his left hand coated in living steel. This stunned the female Sprout for a moment too long.


    Arkesha noticed too late. The butt of the spear hit her on the head so fast, she wasn¡¯t able to react. The impact left her seeing stars for a moment and Jerome spat a tiny ball of blue flame at her. At such a close range, it was impossible to dodge.


    Flames engulfed her the next moment and she rolled around on the ground screaming and trying to put out the flames. Jerome held her sword and backed away from her, observing the result of his flames. He knew that wasn¡¯t enough to kill her. Her armor had been revealed underneath the loose robe she wore when they started fighting. And it was armor that was designed to protect her.


    After a while, the flames died down and she stood up glaring at him with hate-filled eyes. Her loose robe had been burnt away fully revealing her armor and her hair had been reduced to a frizzy, tangled mess with a distinct smell of burnt hair that permeated the air around her. Smoke drifted upwards from her head making for a comical scene.


    Jerome shrugged, ¡°At least you¡¯re not dead.¡±


    Someone stifled their laughter the next moment and they both turned their heads to look in the direction of the sound. A small crowd had gathered a ways away from them, watching the fight.


    Arkesha seethed.


    ¡°This must be embarrassing for you,¡± Jerome said, looking sideways at her.


    ¡°Hand it over!¡± she said through gritted teeth.


    ¡°This?¡± he held up the sword, ¡°Sorry¡­battle trophy.¡± He stored the sword away in his storage ring.


    Arkesha screamed. She rushed Jerome and launched a series of compressed air at him. Jerome¡¯s only warning was the sudden change of the aura in the air. Wind aura spiked and he quickly dropped to the floor before rolling out of the way. The air balls hit the ground where he was in succession, blasting the soil apart and scattering dirt everywhere. There was no color to the wind aura that spiked, and neither did the air balls have any. He had only seen her punch the air in his direction thrice.


    ¡°Calm down, Arkesha!¡± someone said, causing Jerome to look up.


    Another female Sprout was holding back the angry Sprout, trying to prevent her from embarrassing herself more. She was doing a rather poor job of it though and only Arkesha¡¯s self-control was keeping her from injuring her junior.


    Jerome watched from a few feet away. He intentionally kept himself open to attacks. He assumed a relaxed posture as he smiled lightly. But he was waiting for the slightest mistake, the littlest slip up and Arkesha would become a corpse this night.


    Arkesha turned away from him and let her teammate guide her away from the battle, defeated and shamed.


    ¡°Ye just couldn¡¯t hold yerself back, could ye?¡± Bram spoke as he walked toward Jerome. His voice was filled with mirth, showing that he had had a good time watching the fight.


    ¡°She¡¯ll be sure to reassess trying to mess with you some other time,¡± Selene said. ¡°Hedon would become more vengeful with this, Jerome. We should go.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s part of the plan,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I need him emotional and raging. More emotions mean less thinking. Less thinking means he¡¯s prone to make mistakes.¡±


    Selene and Truhdorn turned to look at him.


    ¡°Remind me not to get on your bad side,¡± Selene said and the rest of the team broke into laughter.

 81. Blockade (2)

    Jerome looked up at the rising sun and was amazed by what he saw. Patches of dark clouds loomed in the sky, billowing like clouds of smoke from time to time, trying to fight the sunlight for dominance.


    ¡°This is very¡­ ¡®eerie¡¯, wouldn¡¯t even begin to describe it,¡± he said to Selene who was standing beside him.


    ¡°When you¡¯re done sightseeing, meet me in the tent for the tactical plan,¡± she said and began walking away.


    ¡°That was no tactical plan last night, just a bunch of privileged kids throwing their weight around.¡±


    ¡°¡®Kids¡¯?¡± Selene turned to him with a scowl. ¡°You know I¡¯m one of those privileged ¡®kids¡¯, right?¡± Selene turned to face him.


    Jerome coughed uncomfortably. It was hard trying not to slip up. ¡°I meant¡­ ¡®Scions¡¯. You know I wasn¡¯t talking about you.¡± he quickly caught up with her. ¡°Someone better hold the big guy this time around or I might end up knocking a few teeth off his face. Should make him look a little prettier.¡±


    Selene laughed. ¡°I¡¯ll tell him you said that.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure about that? Your war room wouldn¡¯t be able to contain the both of us if we fought. And just so you know, I never lose a fight.¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes. Tell that to him when you meet him. He¡¯s not Arkesha, just so you know. You¡¯re going to have to work to knock off those teeth.¡±


    They both laughed as they walked toward the large tent.


    ¡°But seriously, Jerome. Kids?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s slang of sorts. It means ¡®children¡¯ and I never say it to mean ¡®baby goats¡¯ ¡ª not that any of you ever get the joke of it.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s also the name for a baby goat. Goats are synonymous with stupidity and stubbornness, Jerome. Be careful who you say it to.¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°Welcome, Young Lady Itakar¡­ Jerome. Are you ready to execute the plan?¡± Lang asked from his position at the table.


    Jerome didn¡¯t answer at first. His features were already schooled and he looked around for a place to sit. All the chairs were taken except for the one meant for Selene. His eyes met Hedon¡¯s briefly and he could see the rage burning in them. He was also burning with rage but he calmed himself and smiled at Hedon.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do the necessary,¡± he said, moving to stand behind Selene by the wall of the tent. Everyone caught the meaning of his words. He would not do more to help if anyone was in a bind; they were on their own. Many eyes shifted to look at him and then, at one another.


    Selene took her seat and asked, ¡°So how do we go about breaking through the blockade?¡±


    ¡°The cur doesn¡¯t need to be here to hear that,¡± Hedon remarked, intent on angering Jerome.


    ¡°Unlike you, Hedon,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I don¡¯t need to be spiteful to communicate my intentions. Your end is near.¡± The voices in the room deadened instantly and everyone focused on Jerome¡¯s words. ¡°Pray to whatever ancestor you have to make it quick and painless, for I would not be merciful.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s voice held neither anger nor malice in his words. Every one of the Sprouts in the tent was extremely shocked by those words. The audacity of the Royal disciple in front of them was staggering; his words carried with them a promise of overwhelming pain and suffering. Hedon stood up slowly, drawing himself taller. He willed as much strength into his words as Jerome¡¯s.


    ¡°Do you know who you mess with, you lowlife? I will make sure you never see the light of Terra Praeta!¡± He spat. His words, however, didn¡¯t carry as much weight as Jerome¡¯s.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that, Hedon. We¡¯ll see,¡± Jerome replied as he folded his hands in front of him looking at Hedon without any fear in his eyes.


    Hedon seethed in anger. He looked around the table and saw that no one was moving to kick Jerome out. He knew he couldn¡¯t do it himself and his right-hand man, Murray ¡ª who was signaling him to calm down ¡ª wouldn¡¯t do it as well, so as not to jeopardize their plan. He swore in his heart to make Jerome suffer thoroughly before he died as he sat back down.


    ¡°Ahem. As we all know, we don¡¯t have a lot in terms of numbers,¡± Lang stated. ¡°We will best make an impact if we break through their defenses from one point.¡±


    ¡°That would mean concentrating all offense on one spot,¡± Selene said. ¡°The Children would pick us off one by one, especially those on the outskirts of the group.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much to cover up that end,¡± Lang said. ¡°All we can do is have those from lower-tier families defend our flanks and back.¡±


    Selene frowned at that. She knew what it was like to lose a teammate. It wouldn¡¯t be nice seeing it happen even though the people who were going to be sacrificed were not her teammates.


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    ¡°Is there no other way to do this? Some artifacts we could gift them to help protect them as we rush through?¡± she asked.


    ¡°There won¡¯t be enough to go around,¡± Fei Lin said, feeling the other woman¡¯s turmoil of emotions.


    Jerome listened to what they were discussing, planning to shut them out. But a thought occurred to him.


    ¡°Are we not forgetting about the Colossal Children?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Shut your mouth, cur!¡± Hedon roared.


    Jerome raised an eyebrow, oh so slowly as he looked him in the eyes. The words were already in the air ¡ª ¡®make me¡¯ ¡ª and there was no need to say it. The look was all he needed to convey his thoughts. Hedon shot to his feet, brimming in anger.


    ¡°Young Lord Hedon,¡± Lang said respectfully, breaking the stalemate. ¡°Please be seated so we can conclude this meeting and head for battle. There¡¯s no need for a standoff here and now. When we¡¯re done with the Children you can both go at it and no one will stop you.¡± His voice held a seriousness and was tight with a slight annoyance.


    ¡°The Colossal Children sleep during the day, Jerome,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Lang continued. ¡°We¡¯ve been testing them for many days now and not once did they stand up to join the battle during the day.¡±


    ¡°So we¡¯re hoping they won¡¯t rise when we try to break through. Is there a means to stop them if they do rise?¡± Jerome asked.


    Everyone looked at themselves waiting for someone else to come up with a solution. After a while, all heads turned to Lang and he sighed. Jerome was right, he knew it. They had to come up with a solution for every scenario.


    ¡°If that happens, we all take to the skies,¡± Lang said.


    ¡°Good call,¡± Jerome said. But he knew their chances in the air were even slimmer than on the ground. The flying Children would make it impossible for them. He had to make sure to do his best to reduce their numbers before the Colossals wake up. If only there was something more he could do. Everything he had in his arsenal was for assault and not defense. He could only defend himself while fighting.


    An idea suddenly came to him as he remembered his training from the night before. He had noticed something about Suzie the night before as he trained to control five blades hovering in the air. It was almost as if he wasn¡¯t consciously controlling the blades, only giving them mental commands from time to time. Jerome had been distracted by the fight with Arkesha, he had pushed this development to the back of his mind. Now that he remembered, he couldn¡¯t help but want to try it out. He put his hands behind his back, earning him a glance from Hedon¡¯s right-hand man.


    Jerome chuckled. The older Sprout had been watching his every move since he entered the tent. He was a lot more alert than every other Sprout in the tent. Jerome flicked his index finger and a chunk of metal appeared in his palm. All the Sprouts around the table turned to look at him as they perceived the tangy smell of the metal.


    ¡°What, can¡¯t I train in here?¡± he asked innocently.


    Lang eyed him for a second and cleared his throat to get the attention of the other Sprouts. With a thought, the metal transformed, taking a thin snake-like form, and slithered away out of the tent.


    Jerome was elated. It was like the living steel had actually become what its name implied: living steel. It functioned on its own without needing Jerome to help move it around. Jerome closed his eyes to monitor the sliver of steel as it slithered through their camp.


    He could sense and feel everything around the sliver as though it were him, although his perception of the surroundings was a lot duller with the sliver compared to his real self. Jerome wondered how this was possible. Was it some type of mental skill he just developed? No. The ore. It must have been the ore he absorbed from the ground not long ago!


    He let his mind wander around with the sliver for a while, taking it as far as half a mile away from himself. The sliver didn¡¯t lose its strength and his connection to it didn¡¯t dim one bit. Jerome felt there was more to this though. It wasn¡¯t possible to just control living steel like this without repercussions. Even when they were in the vineyard, fighting the vines, he felt the side effects of using Suzie for prolonged amounts of time: it began sapping the iron in his own blood after a while. That was the major reason why he had lost consciousness.


    The Sprouts seated around the table began standing up, bringing Jerome out of his reverie.


    ¡°Can I speak with you for a bit, Selene,¡± Jerome whispered to her, and they both walked out of the tent. He made sure they were out of hearing distance before stopping. Everyone was growing at a rate so fast, one couldn¡¯t gauge the rate of advancement of his foes with assumptions so it was better to be safe than sorry. Light knows how many treasures or skills many of them must have discovered in Terra Praeta¡¯s Night.


    Jerome scanned his surroundings once again just to be sure. He had something in mind that could help Selene¡¯s team when breaking through the blockade and by extension, it¡¯ll help the other Sprouts as well.


    ¡°Take this,¡± he said to Selene when they were a good distance away from the assumed hearing range of the others and handed something to her.


    Selene looked at the large chunk of shiny, red metal Jerome dropped in her hand. She watched as a small piece of it broke off and slithered up her arm, settling around her right bicep. It flowed with her muscles as she flexed them, not constricting her at all.


    ¡°This is amazing, Jerome!¡± she said in awe. ¡°When did you learn to do that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s like you said. Each and every one of us went through great transformations after the Tower of Solon,¡± he smiled at her. ¡°When you¡¯re with your teammates, the steel would split into tinier pieces and do the same thing. Just let them know it¡¯s from me¡­a sort of protection.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Jerome. Though I can¡¯t help but think this would better serve our flank as we go into the belly of the beast,¡± Selene said worriedly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The metal would do its job. I must keep it a secret, however. The more eyes see it the more they¡¯ll know it¡¯s tied to me.¡±


    Selene gave him a nod and raced away to join her teammates. Jerome watched her go, hoping that she wouldn¡¯t lose another teammate today. There was no guarantee for that, though. The Children may be able to reach those who would be in the middle of the group of Sprouts as they broke through the blockade. They had to watch out for unforeseen elements.


    Jerome sighed. He had done all he could for them. They would see on the other side. He covered himself in metal armor before taking to the skies and flying in the direction of the blockade at an angle different from that of the Sprouts on the ground. The Children in the air noticed him just as Lang had predicted. They started toward him, closing any gap in their ranks that he might be able to squeeze through.


    Smart, Jerome thought as he saw through their plans. The Children acted like they had no intelligence but as a group, they fought with intelligence. He thought about the Mother he had heard about but decided to shrug off the thought for later. If the Children were being controlled, it would be right to say, it was being done by a being much more intelligent than they were.


    It was time to join the battle and every advantage he had gained after the Tower of Solon would be tested here today.

 82. Breaking Through The Blockade

    Jerome flew toward the Children in the air, readying his blades behind him.  More than ten three-foot-long blades were hidden in his wings as he rushed toward the Children. The first one to come close was severed in two before it got within five feet of him. More of them rushed him but Jerome was unflustered. He could hear the sounds of battle coming from below now and could sense his many slivers of steel acting to protect his friends and the Sprouts below.


    Jerome focused on his fight cutting down Child after Child, their numbers seemingly never-ending. He whipped out with Suzie from time to time, pulverizing those that were unlucky enough to be touched by the sizzling tip of his whip.


    Some of the Children tried to grab hold of his wings so they could cripple him in the air, but their hands exploded every time they touched them. For some reason, their exploding limbs triggered a memory in Jerome from when he first entered Terra Praeta. He tore through Child after Child as the memory of how the Feis used Sword Force resurfaced in his mind.


    Jerome formed a spear in his hand and spun in the air. Three heads were severed with that action. Was it just him, or was the spear formed from the living steel heavier than it was before? The Children rushed him like a stampede as he stopped spinning, but Sword Aura spiked in the air around him. With a wave of his spear, the invisible force blasted out like a pulse with a metallic ringing sound cutting everything in its path.


    A roar broke through the air a moment later as one of the colossal Children started to wake up from its slumber to join the battle. It would be hard to get around a creature like that. It was slow but its roar caused shockwaves that could cause damage to them.


    But they said they slept throughout the day, Jerome thought as he stared at the rising giant from the sky. Now ain¡¯t this a sight to see. With that little distraction, the winged Children barreled into him like a giant tide as they pushed to overpower him.


    ~~~


    Selene


    ¡°Hold the line! Hold the line! Don¡¯t piss yer pants coz of these wankers,¡± someone shouted at the Sprouts fighting off the Children on all sides.


    Selene looked at her teammates and smiled tightly as they moved forward. Everything was a joke to them. She released the three arrows nocked to her bowstring, taking down almost six Children with one strike. Some fire-wielding sacred artist shot a few balls of fire at some of the Children she missed. Giving her the split moment she needed to nock more arrows to her bowstring.


    House Tarmin, she thought as she saw the crest on their armor. It was the carving of a flaming hammer. She smiled and shook her head to stop herself from comparing their flames with Jerome¡¯s. Jerome was the odd one compared to them ¡ª a maverick.


    The Children were a lot more ferocious now compared to before. They were doing everything in their power to prevent them from getting through the blockade as if they knew this was it; this was the final battle. Selene could feel the intensity of the Sword Aura from up ahead. She knew the fight would be very brutal in front.


    An earth-shaking roar broke through the air and the group began to tilt right as they moved causing a stir among them. Selene tried to get a glimpse at what was happening ahead but she wasn¡¯t very tall and could only see the top of the heads of those directly in front of her.


    ¡°We¡¯re speeding up!¡± a shout came from the front just as something red and shiny slithered past her.


    Selene smiled. Jerome¡¯s little technique was a lot more useful than she had expected. Maybe it wasn¡¯t so little after all. The crowd of Sprouts sped up instantly. Bodies dropped around them and yellow stinky blood splashed everywhere but they rushed through the stench. No one wanted to remain in this part of Terra Praeta anymore.


    ¡°Blimey! Look at that,¡± one of her teammates said as they rushed forward.


    Selene chanced a glance at the sky and wished she hadn¡¯t looked up. Jerome was being overwhelmed by the sheer force and number of the Children in the sky. The fact that he was alone up there ate at her heart.


    A blue beam of light suddenly tore through the children, reaching over two hundred paces in length before dissipating. The Sprouts who were still looking upwards gasped in surprise. Never had they witnessed something like that. Some of the Itakars chuckled and shook their heads.


    ¡°Focus on the foes in front of you!¡± Selene screamed at the group of Sprouts looking up. She had to have faith that Jerome wouldn¡¯t go down so easily.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± She asked someone in front of her.


    ¡°Bad news!¡± The Sprout said. Selene could hear the fear in his voice.


    The Itakars refocused their sights ahead of them. Firing rapidly at the Children attacking from all sides. The sounds of weapons clashing against bone and rending flesh could be heard from the front of their group as those spearheading the charge cut down the Children.


    The ground shook with a booming sound the next moment, answering her question for her ¡ª the Colossal Children were waking up to take action against their group.


    ¡°How many of them are headed for us?!¡± she asked in a panic.


    ¡°Just one, but it¡¯s enormous up close!¡±


    Selene grunted and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. A shadow blocked out the rising sun up ahead and she looked up to see the silhouette of the colossus. It was massive! Its right arm was swinging forward from below with a giant club in its hand. If the club raked the ground toward them, the shower of rocks and dirt it¡¯ll hurl at them could kill them all.


    ¡°How the fuck did we miss this?!¡± Nia asked from beside her.


    ¡°It was lying down. The rising sun blinded us from seeing it!¡± the Sprout in front of them said.


    ¡°Get ready for impact!¡± Lang¡¯s voice came from the front and everyone took out helmets from their storage rings. They hastily fitted it to their heads and kept pushing forward.


    Some of those on the periphery of their groups were unfortunately cut down by some Children ¡ª the little distraction costing them their lives ¡ª and others quickly defended themselves. The group held their breaths as they waited for what they knew was inevitable.


    Just as the Colossal Child¡¯s club hit the ground, a lance of blue flame shot through the sky and pierced through its shoulder, causing it to drop the club. Many of the Sprouts who were keeping their eyes on the Child roared in joy as they saw this.


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    The Colossal Child roared in pain, causing shockwaves to spread out across the landscape once again. The Sprouts on the ground were thrown back with only a few of them being able to withstand the force of the shockwaves.


    Hedon looked up at Jerome almost unable to keep the shock from his expression. If Jerome could shoot such powerful flames ¡ª from such a distance at that ¡ª they¡¯d have to rethink their plan and maybe restrategize. He shook off the thought and got to his feet.


    Jerome had saved them all, but their formation was ruined.


    ¡°Form up!¡± Lang roared at the top of his voice even as he cut down Child after Child that came at him. ¡°We push through! Remember what¡¯s waiting for us on the other side!¡±


    The Sprouts roused themselves at his words and steadily tightened their lines, roaring at the top of their lungs as they charged forward again. They shot and cut down the Children in their path as they moved, picking up speed in the process. Even the ambient essence around them was beginning to become chaotic.


    ¡°Don¡¯t we have any other person proficient with the fire element?¡± someone asked. ¡°It¡¯ll be nice to have someone else who can do something like that.¡±


    Every one of the Sprouts around knew he was talking about the bar of blue flame Jerome used to stop the Colossal Child.


    ¡°House Tarmin has many fire-wielders,¡± another said. ¡°Maybe some among them are as proficient¡­would make charging through a lot easier,¡± he muttered in the last part of his statement.


    The Sprouts of House Tarmin all looked around them frowning as they moved forward. They were mostly weapon smiths who spent the majority of their time in their clan¡¯s forge. Selene could already see the fury rise in their eyes.


    ¡°We¡¯re not warriors like him,¡± their leader said. ¡°And even if we were, there¡¯s no way we can produce that kind of flame¡­it should be beyond impossible for a Sprout ¡ª and a young one at that!¡±


    The rest of the Sprouts grumbled in displeasure to themselves at that. They had all heard about Jerome from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep; some of them had been there when he beat Hedon to a pulp. Many had concluded long ago that the boy was an anomaly. A moon-old Blank beating up a three-year-old one should have been impossible.


    A small flame erupted on the leader of House Tarmin¡¯s Sprouts¡¯ palm as a demonstration. It was weak compared to Jerome¡¯s flame and was red-orange in color. He shot the flame at one of the Children a few feet away from him, but the Child knocked the glob of flame aside with its bladed arm and charged him.


    ¡°You see¡­weak,¡± he said, backing up as an ax materialized in his hand from his storage ring. ¡°Only Spirit Realm artists should normally be able to do something like that¡­the very powerful ones, I mean.¡±


    The Child was almost on him when its head was cut off and a shiny, red blur slithered away causing all Sprouts around him to let out a sigh of relief.


    ~~~


    The fight raged on down below and Jerome could hear Lang spur on the Sprouts from above. He had reduced the number of Children in the skies and the few that remained were easy pickings but he waited, not wanting to make the Sprouts below think fighting off the flying Children was a walk in the park. In fact, it was more challenging than it initially appeared.


    Since he didn¡¯t want to show all he could do, he had to work really hard to thin out their numbers to get this result. The Colossal Child that made him reveal his prowess with fire essence was unexpected. Jerome had wanted to surprise Hedon with that, but there was nothing he could do about that now. Plus, he could only shoot two of the massive lances in a day.


    He saw that with the way the battle was going, the Sprouts wouldn¡¯t make it except they all took to the skies as Lang had said. But Jerome knew they would be completely focused on their battle. Their plan was for him to distract the winged Children, but little did they know that he had thinned out their number.


    And it was easy to forget one could fly in the heat of battle, since they weren¡¯t very used to it. The other colossal Children were already waking up. Soon, there would be nowhere for the group on the ground to run to and their window of escape would close completely.


    Jerome turned to face the Children in the sky and rushed to the nearest one. The moment he moved, those behind him closed in, intending on causing harm from his blind spot. Little did they know that he had no blind spots. He snatched the Child out of the air and broke its wings, swinging it around to hit the others coming for him.


    The Child wailed from the pain of its broken wings. It hit those behind Jerome the next moment and Jerome rushed back the way he came, snagging two of the Children out of the air.


    ~~~


    Lang


    The Colossus Jerome had injured was down for which he was grateful. But its roar must have reached the others which means four more Colossal Children were headed their way. They had been watching the Colossal Children for days as they investigated their habits. They slept throughout the day and only moved around by night. If all of them were awake now there was no way they could get past them. And he had no idea what to do. Their window of escape was closing rapidly.


    Lang cut through the Children as he rushed forward with the rest of their group following closely behind. If they wanted to get past the colossal Children, they had to be fast. The Children were already overwhelming them to prevent them from passing through as it was. It wouldn¡¯t take long before they saw more mountainous silhouettes rise up into the sky. If as a leader, he lost everyone here, he would be a failure of a leader.


    One of the winged Children slammed into the ground in front of him and then another causing him to stop and look up. He saw Jerome waving him over and almost shouted at the Sprout to continue distracting the winged Children. But then he noticed the few Children in the sky and his brows went up in surprise. Their numbers ¡ª previously in the hundreds of thousands ¡ª had dropped drastically!


    ¡°Take to the skies!¡± he roared and all the Sprouts poured essence into their flight artifacts. The moment they were in the air, they saw the other colossal Children rising from their slumber.


    ¡°We charge through the winged Children. Everyone, charge!¡± Hedon screamed and the crowd of Sprouts roared behind him.


    They charged forward into the winged Children, easily decimating their ranks. Since Jerome had wilted down their numbers, it was easier to break through.


    ~~~


    The Alvrics were the first to cross the distance, their attunement to wind essence making them better users of their Sails. The moment the dark clouds receded, Murray shouted.


    ¡°Lookout!¡±


    Silver-red blades the length of a grown man¡¯s arm came at each and every one of them. They scattered in different directions but the myriads of spinning blades chased after them, boxing them in and almost pushing them down from the sky, into the hoard of Children they had just left behind.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Hedon?¡± Arkesha asked.


    One of their teammates gasped and pointed ahead of them. They all followed with their eyes and saw Jerome bearing down upon their charge with a sly grin on his face. Arkesha screamed and shot forward, followed by Murray who overtook her. They disregarded the spinning blades as they shot forward but it was still hard to move swiftly as they were not used to blades impairing them in the air.


    Jerome was just a few dozen or so feet away from Hedon, who had been injured and bleeding. The Alvric Sprouts, on the other hand, had been pushed back a good hundred feet or more. Hedon was trying to right himself in the air but found it difficult.


    ¡°His flight artifact is probably damaged. Arkesha, speed up!¡± Murray called from ahead of Arkesha as he noticed Hedon spinning uncontrollably in the air. But they knew. From such a distance it would be impossible to catch up before Jerome.


    Jerome was now much closer. He was even faster in the air than the Alvrics. Arkesha looked between him and Hedon. She could almost see Hedon¡¯s death as Jerome drew back his right arm and made a fist. The flowing steel extended out of his fist and curved downward like a claw, the blade glinting in the morning light.


    Just before Jerome stabbed Hedon, he disappeared on the spot. Murray pushed himself more, rushing forward, and caught Hedon a few moments later to steady him.


    ¡°Easy, Hedon,¡± Murray said. ¡°Easy.¡±


    He examined Hedon and found that the side of his neck was where he was injured. The wound should close up in a few moments but for now, they had to leave this place. Their charge had lost a lot of blood.


    ¡°The others have disappeared as well,¡± someone called out as the Alvric Sprouts gathered together. They looked all around them but found no other team.


    ¡°Could be the earth shifted¡­or moved them. Let¡¯s get out of here,¡± Murray called out. He held the bleeding Hedon and rushed Eastward followed closely by his teammates.


    The moment they cleared a few hundred paces from the Children, they disappeared as well.

 83. Interlude: Fei Jia

    The Royal Estate. Farryn.


    Fei Jia


    It had only been a few days since the opening of Terra Praeta. What would have been reason enough for her to be summoned by the royals? Did they want to use this expedition as a reason to coax her into working with them?


    No. That couldn¡¯t be right. Vorthe was too proud and too cunning for that. She had expected it. But it just seemed too easy. She smoothed out her long lavender-colored robes to keep her hands busy.


    Vorthe made their own memory crystals ¡ª even though they could never meet up with the demands of the transoceanic market. The Fei Clan already had a monopoly on the market. From the free cities of Velmon, West of the continent to the desert tribes across the sea, her family¡¯s connections held strong. And it would be a breach of thousand-year-old contracts for Vorthe to try to take a chunk out of the market. But no. This was something else.


    Fei Jia paced slowly around the waiting room to calm her nerves, her mind going back to her daughter who was facing untold danger in Terra Praeta. She sighed. A mother would always be a mother. Billions of years of instincts couldn¡¯t be suppressed completely, especially when it had to do with one¡¯s offspring. As much as she would love to look in control right now, she did not.


    She looked around once again, admiring the palace of the Saint Realm expert, Elder Thorlin Vorthe. The room had high ceilings, with gaudy, gold decorations aplenty. Everything in her view was genuine gold.


    Fei Jia was no stranger to opulence, but this put a shame to anything she enjoyed in her estate on the eastern corner of Farryn. If she had been born and bred in the Raoz Empire, on the eastern continent, everything before her would be worth a passing glance alone.


    ¡°I welcome your presence, honored matriarch,¡± the Saint spoke from behind her.


    Fei Jia whipped around in near panic. ¡°The honor is mine, esteemed Saint,¡± she said, curtsying in deference as she calmed herself. If there was one custom she was grateful these former barbarians learned and practiced, it was curtsying.


    Elder Thorlin Vorthe, however, was truly a Saint in power. He stood before her with not less than six attendants; and she was sure he had brought them all with him through the same means he entered the room ¡ª spatial manipulation. That alone was a feat worthy of her respect if nothing else.


    Fei Jia reached out her senses to get a sense of the space around her. Nothing. If she could ¡®sense¡¯ space, she could reach for it, manipulate it. But as it stood, she was far from ready to wield it.


    ¡°Please, please¡­ have a seat.¡± The Elder gestured as he walked toward a group of sofas arranged near the fireplace.


    To his credit, Elder Thorlin Vorthe didn¡¯t seem like someone who looked others down his nose. His white tresses shone in the golden light of the guest room and his long, royal blue robes, muted in colors as they were, added to the ¡®ancientness¡¯ of his person.


    This man was a relic, Fei Jia felt in the moment. Quite possibly as old as her husband who was a Saint as well. A twinge of wistfulness passed through her as she thought about how her life would be if her Hanu was as young and vibrant as this Saint.


    ¡°How are dealings with the Titans? I hope our people are being very supportive?¡±


    ¡°The Titans slumber most of the time, Elder,¡± she said. ¡°We are well prepared for when next there is a sighting of any one of them near the bay. And the royal team of scholars you lent us have been more than cooperative; going as far as sending three expedition teams to the bottom of the bay.¡±


    That was one thing she liked about the Vorthes. They were proactive in their efforts to keep their empire together ¡ª even though they don¡¯t call it that. Her mind wandered to the hindrance preventing Vorthe from establishing itself as a proper empire. What would it be like working directly with them? She shut down the thought, her mind racing quickly to get ahead on the conversation.


    ¡°I must applaud you, Elder, on this exemplary feat ¡ª bringing not one, not two, but six people with you through spatial manipulation. From what we know, only Transcendents can do that.¡±


    The Elder smiled at her praise, nodding slightly. But he didn¡¯t seem to be affected much by it. So flattery was out of the question then.


    The attendants he brought with him, busied themselves preparing tea and pastries.


    ¡°I strive to improve on my journey as a sacred artist. But I can¡¯t take credit for it all. And I¡¯m sure even Hanu could pull that off. He is much older than I am after all.¡±


    Fei Jia wouldn¡¯t put it past him to obscure his age. If her husband, Hanu, was older than he was, it just might be by a few centuries.


    ¡°That said, how is he these days?¡± the Elder continued. ¡°I trust he keeps his wits about himself? Vorthe may some day find a permanent solution to the problems our Saints face.¡±


    ¡°May the heavens grant you the wisdom to shed more light on this problem,¡± Fei Jia said with a slight bow in her seated position. The Elder was playing around his topic of discourse ¡ª whatever it was. She had to be careful.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± the Elder said, stroking his beard with a faraway look in his ancient eyes. ¡°We intend to. Our hope may well rest on it.¡±


    That sounded ominous. She glanced at him, taking care to study his expression without drawing his attention to herself. The Elder was a fine man. Laugh lines crinkled his tan skin, but he looked ageless. And his mere presence gave him the bearing of an ancient god.


    The attendants came over, carrying trays filled with pastries, a teapot, and two golden chalices. Jia watched as they served both of them from the same teapot. A tray was brought to her and the attendants bowed low before leaving.


    Their footfalls on the marble floor ceased when they were but three feet away. That was weird. She could see their dainty slippers hitting the floor but heard nothing, not even the scrape of fabric as they slowly walked away.


    She realized that the Elder must have created a sound barrier to keep their discussion private. She shivered slightly. She hadn¡¯t even felt the use of essence, force, or mental energy.


    Glancing back at the Elder, only one thought formed in her head. This was not someone she would want to cross!


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    ¡°The status of our world limits us,¡± the Elder said. ¡°Its essence, only so much to go around. There¡¯s much research our scholars can do to help, but an unnamed planet is at a disadvantage; its inhabitants, only truly able to evolve with it. We either transcend it, or die with it.¡±


    Jia gave it some thought. ¡°You put it so simply, it''s easier to understand. Yet it stirs up more questions, Elder.¡±


    ¡°We are not without help, though.¡± The Elder said, focusing his attention on her now. It was so weird being the focus of attention of a Saint and not being weighed down by their power. It was refreshing. But she sensed something coming, something she wouldn¡¯t like.


    ¡°Something, or should I say someone, revealed themselves recently. A claw bone was found down south a tenday ago. It was in the hands of an islander from the southern isles.¡±


    The Elder watched her carefully like a hawk. Jia had to bring to memory all her many years of training to withstand the scrutiny of the Saint. She did this daily with her subjects; to have the tables turn on her quite intensely was a bit difficult to get around.


    ¡°I assure you, Elder,¡± she said, voice tight. ¡°Clan Fei has no dealings with the archipelago. They are barbarians ¡ª cannibals even ¡ª and we are less than enthused at any intention to bring them into our circle, and we never will, because we have no reason to. But a claw bone, Elder. What has this to do with Fei?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the claw bone of a dragon.¡± Jia straightened her back at that. ¡°Aged from what we discovered, and with powerful effects, the likes of which we have never experienced before!¡±


    ¡°Elder, I assure you, the Fei Clan knows nothing of a dragon claw bone in the clutches of the islanders. If it pleases you, we can launch an investigation into this, maybe recover the bone and find out more about where it came from. We will work exclusively with the Royal Family of course. Fei will¡ª¡±


    The Elder raised a hand to stop her from saying more and she snapped her mouth shut.


    ¡°They crossed our borders and left devastation in their wake. They made it to Nandene before they were put down like the savage beasts they were. I truly believe that you had nothing to do with this, honored matriarch. But we well know your Clan is but a branch of the entire Fei Clan.¡±


    The Elder was putting her in a tough spot. Fei Jia took a deep shaky breath to calm herself. She had to think fast. Her brethren on the Eastern continent could not have let something as powerful as a dragon claw slip past their borders and neither did she. But the Elder wouldn¡¯t believe that. It was much easier to believe that some faraway empire was seeking to suppress your power than to believe they let something as powerful as a dragon¡¯s claw slip from their grasp.


    ¡°I take it the claw is with you now?¡±


    Elder Thorlin nodded.


    ¡°And do you truly believe, Elder, that Emperor Raoz would let such a thing slip past his borders?¡±


    ¡°My point exactly. Which is why I believe this was intentional.¡±


    Fei Jia cursed silently. ¡°The Emperor would kill anyone who tried to use even the scale of a dragon to start a political uprising. He has his honor to preserve. Talk more about sending it across the sea. That seems more like an impossibility to me. I know Vorthe has eyes everywhere on the continent. Have there been sightings of strangers?¡±


    ¡°We wouldn¡¯t know their spies if we laid eyes on them. We are not all-knowing, matriarch,¡± he chuckled.


    Fei Jia wanted to doubt that statement. No, she had to doubt it. The Elder may just have let that slip to make her let her guard down and loosen up.


    ¡°May I see the bone, Elder?¡±


    ¡°No, you may not.¡±


    And that was the conclusion of that. Vorthe would never let go of such a treasure. But Jia knew she couldn¡¯t stand knowing that one of her people¡¯s treasures was in the hands of Vorthe. She was duty bound to report such an incident to the empire. And what came after could very well doom her.


    It was not known who was the more powerful entity of the two Transcendents. Emperor Raoz inherited the legacy of his ancestors, passed down from the very first dragon that settled in the Eastern continent. The dragon¡¯s legacy was a power that rivaled divinity. But the Sovereign of Vorthe had also inherited a power that rivaled divinity.


    The Lord of Light was too powerful not to use this claw to his advantage. It was said that such things falling into the hands of one as powerful as a Transcendent would increase the capacity of their skills beyond measure.


    But empires didn¡¯t wage war with their emperors, and foot soldiers were plentiful in both lands ¡ª from warriors to spies to assassins. And she¡¯d be dead long before war broke out though, as Raoz won¡¯t be understanding enough to let her live.


    The Elder stood up, a sign their meeting was coming to a close. ¡°We could still prevent conflict between our peoples, matriarch,¡± he said, his voice soft and appealing to her senses. ¡°Like I said. We¡¯re committed to finding a solution for our Saints. And your husband is one of them. This claw could go a long way to help in our research,¡± he paused to let his words sink in, ¡°and it could very well pull us into a senseless war.


    ¡°Find out about the claw, and also if there are more out there we should be worried about. The last thing we need is another one of Zatirah¡¯s claws falling into the hands of ignorant men. Vorthe is prudent and wise, and will withhold this information from Raoz as long as you pay us the same courtesy.¡±


    Ah! Of course there¡¯s something they want. ¡°Forgiveness Elder, but how sure are you it belongs to Zatirah,¡± Jia defended.


    ¡°Because of the power it''s wielder displayed.¡± The Elder said nothing about this power ¡ª what it was or how intense the level of power was. ¡°She¡¯s the oldest of the dragons in our world, is she not?¡±


    Fei Jia nodded absently as she tried to figure out a way out of this mess. She would owe Vorthe a favor for not reporting this incident to Raoz. But if she reported the incident and it turned out this was a treasure from the empire, all was well. She may well receive accolades for her actions ¡ª and more enemies within Raoz¡¯s court. If she reported and the opposite was the case, she could come under the scrutiny of Raoz. The Emperor could call her back home for further investigation. Nothing would sway him from thinking the claw was never a part of the empire¡¯s treasure. Which would mean someone must have stolen it in times past. And her Clan has been in Vorthe for millennia. Who else would the blame come upon?


    Jia sighed. Emperor Raoz was well known for uprooting incompetent and ill-disposed elements from his courts. If she ever lost the favor of the Emperor, her enemies would sink their claws into all that she had managed to build.


    She made up her mind then and there to take this information to the grave.


    She stood up as she said, ¡°I propose we swear an oath, Elder, to make this arrangement concrete. But I must insist that if I be pulled into this by the whim of Vorthe, I want to be compensated accordingly.¡± Jia¡¯s heart hammered in her chest as she met the Elder¡¯s gaze unflinchingly. She shook visibly where she stood, sweat beading on her brows.


    ¡°We will do as you say, matriarch. Vorthe will not let you down. In fact, we are almost certain we might be able to help a Saint in two summers.¡±


    Fei Jia perked up at that, hope blossoming in her chest. She quickly forced herself to calm down, not wanting to show how much the information affected her. ¡°And is there a possibility that¡­¡±


    ¡°Say no more, matriarch. Your husband will be the Saint we help.¡±


    Jia drew in a deep breath at that. Her muscles locked up as emotion flooded her. After a few breaths she curtsied to the Elder, voice filled with emotion. ¡°I will forever be grateful for this opportunity, Elder.¡±


    Elder Thorlin Vorthe nodded. ¡°We best go prepare for the oath. I say in a fiveday, we meet to harsh out the details?¡±


    ¡°A convenient day, Elder.¡±


    The Elder nodded and vanished. All the attendants except one vanished with him. The remaining attendant led her to the exit.


    Five days were good enough to come up with a bargain tight enough that no loopholes could be easily exploited. And it gave her time to gather the essence needed for such a taxing exercise. Swearing an oath became more tedious the more powerful one became.


    For now though, she had to meet with her confidant for advice. Vorthe had been wanting to put her under their thumb for a long time. This time they may just have succeeded.

 84. The Mountain And The Succubus (R-18)

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Jerome cursed as Hedon disappeared from his view. If only he hadn¡¯t used so much fire essence to hinder that colossus, Hedon would be dead by now.


    He looked around to take in the sudden change in environment. There was a forest of trees down below, and the ambient essence was as concentrated as it was when he first entered Terra Praeta. Perhaps even more concentrated.


    Jerome turned around in the air as he flapped his wings and what he saw made his jaw drop. Miles away from him was a huge mountain. The mountain was gigantic, covering the entire land and sky in his view. Jerome had never seen anything like it before. He felt like he could just reach out with his hand and touch it.


    Looking up, he couldn¡¯t see the peak of the mountain. It looked like a wall that rose up into the sky past the clouds and into space, covering half the world that came into his view!


    ¡°How could a mountain be so huge?!¡± he muttered out loud. So many things that should seemingly be impossible had been happening right before his eyes since he entered Terra Praeta.


    Jerome decided to take a closer look at the mountain. He might be fortunate enough to find hidden caverns and treasures inside the mountain. With that, a passion for adventure was kindled in him and he flew toward the gigantic mountain, burning off the stench of the Children on him with a burst of flame.


    When he arrived at the mountain it was already quite late. There were many openings carved into the mountain walls, which should be caves or tunnels leading deep into the mountain. He wanted to find out what lived in those caves. He had counted five openings before reaching here. He flew up high into the air, higher than he had ever flown before. He landed not too far from the first cave on a rough outcropping on the mountain wall. The breathable air up here was thin and cold, but the wind essence was abundant, blowing against his skin aggressively.


    Jerome extended his perception mildly to scan the interior. The cave was empty, but it was deeper than he had thought.


    A tunnel then, he thought. He could only extend his perception two hundred feet in a specific direction or at least a hundred and eighty feet all around him. That was a great accomplishment for a young Sprout and this was all thanks to the Tower of Solon.


    Anyone who heard this would be able to deduce that Jerome had had a fortunate encounter that made this possible because two-year-old Sprouts could averagely extend their mental energy, twenty feet around themselves or twenty-five feet in a specific direction and Jerome was just a year old as a Sprout at best.


    He carefully stepped into the cave and looked around. The cave was dark and humid with rough, dark brown walls. He could hear water dripping down somewhere ahead of him. He decided to move deeper into the cave. Jerome walked for at least three hundred steps before coming to an intersection. The atmosphere had also gotten warmer.


    The intersection in front of him looked like it was carved rather than natural. One path led upwards, another led downwards into the earth, two led left and right, and the final one went straight ahead of him. All the tunnels were wide enough for four grown adults to move side-by-side, making it easy to move around even when flying. He would just not spread his wings too widely when he flew.


    All the tunnels in the mountain must be connected to each other, and they must have been created by an extremely intelligent magical beast, he thought. Is that even possible, considering the size of the mountain? Maybe it belongs to a family of magical beasts.


    He turned around to leave, he didn¡¯t have the confidence to defend himself against a Spirit Realm level or a Sage Realm level magical beast. As soon as he turned around, he knew it was too late to leave. He may as well never leave.


    The light coming from the entrance behind him was gone, which probably meant the entrance was gone. Jerome quickly dove into the tunnel leading upwards. A very coquettish giggle reached his ears at that moment. Jerome was stunned. He suddenly had the urge to turn around and seek the one giggling at him. The young and agile member between his thighs suddenly hardened.


    ¡°Are you kidding me?!¡± he screamed. There was no way that was natural. He couldn¡¯t just get aroused from hearing a voice!


    He flapped his wings harder and shot upwards, ignoring the tunnel walls as his wings scraped at them creating sparks of light. The tunnel started to curve sideways as he flew upwards. Jerome extended his perception in front of him. He found that there was a network of tunnels up ahead, extending to Light only knew where. It was best to just keep going forward. Hopefully, this tunnel led outside.


    ¡°Oh, your psychic energy is more powerful than that of the average Sprout¡¯s,¡± a very alluring voice reached his ears. This voice did things to him that even Ash, whom he liked, could not do.


    ¡°Stay away from me!¡± he screamed.


    This woman, whoever she was, was a disaster waiting to happen. This was the type of woman that wars were fought over! Jerome flapped his wings frantically. The way out of the mountain was quite a distance. The mountain itself was a very huge one. Too huge!


    When Jerome finally saw an opening ahead, he put on a burst of speed, pushing his core and thrusting fire essence beneath his boots. Just as he was about to fly out of the opening, a large boulder was used to close it up. However, the creature ¡ª whatever it was ¡ª had underestimated him. He burst out through the closed opening, shattering the boulder and scattering rock fragments and dust everywhere.


    Jerome emerged from the dust, eyes blazing with fury. The creature was standing at the edge of the mountain. It looked human, except for its eyes. Its irises were multiple shades of red, swirling around as if they caught the light inside a glass casing. It had very fair skin and long fiery red hair ¡ª unnaturally red hair. But it¡­she was so beautiful and looked to be no more than a teenager.


    Jerome was instantly captivated.


    The creature stood still looking up at him curiously. Half her ample bosom was put on display. Ample was an understatement ¡ª her rack was huge! She had on a red skimpy dress that left little to the imagination. Slender shoulders curved down past her ginormous bust, her narrow ribcage continued down to her slim waist, flaring out to wide hips and thick thighs, probably the most sexy legs he¡¯d ever seen. She had no boots on, but her dainty feet were as clean and pristine as the rest of her body ¡ª and very sexy.


    Jerome¡¯s blood was boiling, racing south of his body as he flapped his wings hovering in the sky. He was covered from head to toe in metal armor, looking like a warrior from an epic tale. The creature kept looking at him in curiosity. He suspected it was because she did not know how he was able to keep his wings beating without expending any essence.


    ¡°What are you?¡± Jerome finally asked.


    She smiled brightly and purred. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯m the best night you¡¯ll ever have.¡± Her voice was slow and very feminine, yet clear and sweet, like chiming bells in a relaxing atmosphere. ¡°The woman you¡¯ll never forget even after you leave Terra Praeta.¡±


    Any man who heard it would drop his guard faster than a sleeping cat.


    Jerome¡¯s head was woozy from her words as they elicited a hormonal response from him. This woman oozed sensuality like no one he had ever seen before. Even the Princess of Vorthe wasn¡¯t as sensual as her.


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    The urge to pounce on her and ravage her right there was getting stronger and stronger in him. He knew he had to leave but for some reason, he couldn¡¯t get himself to respond the way he needed to.


    ¡°Come now,¡± she said, ¡°I can smell your arousal. I¡¯ll give you a memorable time. You can leave afterward; I won¡¯t stop you.¡±


    Jerome bit his tongue hard and the pain helped to clear his head a little. He turned mid-air to flee but the creature wasn¡¯t going to let him go, however. She screamed and a pain assaulted his mind before he passed out.


    Jerome fell from the sky like a sack of potatoes.


    ~~~


    Selene


    Looking around, all she could see was the whiteness of snow. The air was cold and filled with ice essence as she breathed it in. Her core flared to life and started rotating as it gulped in the essence.


    ¡°Incredible, hahaha!¡± Ajax laughed from beside her. ¡°I guess this was what mother meant when she said Terra Praeta moves its inhabitants, or was it the planet that moved?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps both,¡± Trudhorn said.


    ¡°Let¡¯s touch down and find what we can,¡± Selene flew down to the ground.


    ¡°Do ye think he¡¯d be okay?¡± Nia asked a moment later.


    ¡°He should be. Jerome is a lot stronger than we know,¡± Ajax said.


    ¡°Hmmm,¡± someone else from the group said. ¡°I see something.¡±


    Every other member of the team turned to see what their teammate saw. It was quite far away but they could see a mountainous region ahead of them.


    ¡°We should check it out,¡± Bram said, already brimming with enthusiasm.


    Trudhorn chuckled, ¡°Well, we did come to Terra Praeta for the treasures, didn¡¯t we?¡±


    ¡°Hopefully, this time we¡¯d find real treasures,¡± Ajax said.


    ¡°We gained a lot from the Tower of Solon¡­I know I did,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Yea, but I¡¯m talking about real treasures,¡± Ajax responded as he rubbed his hands together smiling brightly.


    Selene scoffed.


    ¡°Take care lest you find exactly what you¡¯re looking for,¡± Trudhorn said. His teammates didn¡¯t miss the meaning behind his words.


    ¡°Aye, perhaps ye¡¯ll find a toad that can shoot ice from its butt,¡± Bram said, and a snowball came at him which he easily dodged but the moment he stepped out of the way, he was hit by a gigantic snowball causing him to curse out loud but the snowball buried him under, muffling his voice.


    The team of Sprouts laughed some but they were surprised at Ajax¡¯s prowess at wielding ice.


    ¡°You could never do half of that in the frozen earth before we got here,¡± Selene said with a big grin on her face. Her brother had grown quite powerful and it was cause to celebrate him.


    Ajax smiled widely as well and laughed, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much,¡± he said and Selene punched him playfully on the arm.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± she said.


    He truly had gained much from the Tower of Solon. Bram picked himself up and threatened to return the favor as they all moved toward the mountain range in the distance ready for the adventure that awaited them.


    ~~~


    Jerome could feel himself being dragged on a cold hard floor. He tried to clear the fog in his mind but pain assaulted his senses. His brain felt like it was melting and his head pounded continuously without letting up. He groaned as he tried to sit up.


    ¡°Oh you¡¯re awake now,¡± an alluring voice spoke up and he could barely remember encountering a teenage girl.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a good thing to run away from a woman who shows interest in you. Weren¡¯t you taught this?¡± the girl giggled coquettishly.


    Jerome opened his eyes with great effort and was thankful it was dark all around. He could tell that he was back in the tunnels he just escaped not long ago. His left leg was being pulled by the being from before and his armor grated against the rough surface of the ground. He could feel that he was still in his metal armor, which brought him some comfort. He vaguely remembered her screaming and then¡­nothing.


    ¡°What did you do to me?¡± he asked, his voice weak and strained. He didn¡¯t remember doing anything to strain his voice. The fog in his mind cleared little by little and soon he could think better without much pain or blanking out.


    This creature must have assaulted my senses with that scream, he thought to himself. He felt his body lifted into the air and he was swung in a half circle before crashing into a chamber full of people. Before he could regain his balance, the creature blew a kiss at him and he passed out again.


    ~~~


    Waking up to a heavy sense of grogginess, Jerome felt his mind sluggishly try to wake up. He took in his surroundings, observing the men and beasts around him, all of them radiating an intense sexual arousal that grated on his nerves. His irritation mounted as he scanned the room, taking in the rock walls that enclosed him. The space was small, barely large enough for ten people, yet it was filled to the brim with twice that number of captives.


    He pushed his way through the throng of people, shouldering sweaty, grimy bodies aside as he approached the wall to his left. With a deep breath, he reached out with his essence, attempting to manipulate the earth¡¯s essence and create an opening. But to his frustration, nothing happened, and the stone remained unyielding.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me!¡± he hissed.


    None of the people in the cell turned his way. They were all caught up in their own world.


    ¡°Nothing¡¯s going to work,¡± someone said in a weak voice. The voice came from the back of the chamber. Jerome looked in the direction of the voice.


    ¡°Who said that?¡± he asked out loud.


    ¡°Give up, boy. You can¡¯t escape her clutches.¡±


    Making his way to the back of the cell, he saw a sickly-looking man, just like every other person in here with him. He had no armor on, just underwear. Jerome only noticed now that most of the people around him were half-naked.


    ¡°What is she and how is her mental energy so strong?¡± he asked impatiently.


    ¡°What she is, is a succubus,¡± the man said weakly, causing Jerome to suck in a breath of air.


    ¡°She comes from an ancient race of beings, part of which we call The Forgotten. The succubi feed off of men¡¯s sexual energy. They siphon your vitality to nourish themselves. You lose all rationality as a result. You see only her, want to please only her¡­¡±


    ¡°How is it you still think and talk rationally then?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°I have a personal treasure on me that helps clear my thoughts and bring back my rationale. But during the deed, I¡¯m a vegetable, just as they are. But I don¡¯t have much time left. The essence in here is too thin and I¡¯ve lost a lot of vitality to her. I¡¯ll be dead soon.¡±


    ¡°There must be a way out of this place¡­a way to counter her mental energy,¡± Jerome said frustrated.


    ¡°There¡¯s no way. I¡¯ve tried everything,¡± the man said weakly, breathing fast and hard. The little bit of effort he used to communicate with Jerome seemed to have taken a lot out of him.


    ¡°She called it psychic energy¡­¡± Jerome muttered out loud.


    ¡°Just a different way of saying the same thing, I guess,¡± the man replied, his voice faint. Jerome knew this. He just wanted to find out what the man knew. Hearing it from an ancient being instead of humans was just¡­weird. He was now very curious about this succubus.


    After a whole day of trying to punch the wall to smithereens and failing, he sat down on the cold floor to rest. Since he had nothing to do, he had best absorb what little essence he could from the air or the earth.


    He quickly started muttering his mantra under his breath while cycling.


    ¡°Mother Earth provides life¡­


    ¡°She provides vitality and protection¡­


    ¡°To wield the power of the earth is to be a protector¡­


    ¡°To become a shield¡­


    ¡°To stand in the way of the oppressor and shield the weak¡­¡±

 85. Csala (R-18)

    Drale


    He felt the boy¡¯s eyes flutter open and look around. The young Sprout was quite easy on the eyes. He¡¯d have a very easy time wooing the low born ladies in Farryn. Even the scar on his face added a touch of mystery and toughness to his features. It complimented his handsome looks. That was all good, but what interested him was the rich earth essence and vital aura permeating the air right now. Was it the succubus¡¯ doing?


    By all accounts, Drale knew he should be dead by now. It had been a whole day and he had estimated he had a little over a quarter before he died when the young Sprout was thrown into the cell. Maybe it was the young Sprout doing it. How was he doing it though? Something like this shouldn¡¯t be possible for one so young ¡ª that is, if he really was doing it.


    ¡°Are you doing this?¡± he asked.


    Hearing himself speak vibrantly after nearly dying was humbling. The young Sprout looked around, noticing scattered motes of gold and green lights flickering here and there in the air. He didn¡¯t seem surprised but Drale couldn¡¯t bring himself to believe the young Sprout was responsible for the richness in the air.


    The teenager smiled. ¡°That¡¯s far from the gloomy look you had when we first spoke. And yes, I¡¯m doing it.¡± His frown quickly returned. ¡°But this isn¡¯t enough to get us out of here.¡±


    Drale¡¯s brows rose in surprise. This was a feat worthy of worship. Only Sages could probably do something like this! He needed to find out what house the young Sprout belonged to. Maybe become close allies with him. Someone like this wasn¡¯t someone to look down on.


    ¡°I¡¯m Drale of House Rurik,¡± he blurted, still a bit shocked.


    ¡°The House of Wards?¡± the boy asked.


    ¡°Hmm. You?¡±


    ¡°Jerome.¡±


    Drale waited for him to state his house, but he said nothing. ¡°What house?¡± he finally asked.


    ¡°No house. Just Jerome.¡±


    Drale was surprised at that. He wanted to ask how Jerome made it into Terra Praeta, but the young man looked like he wasn¡¯t in the mood to answer any questions. Drale watched him more carefully now. His lips moved as he cycled. He couldn¡¯t hear what the boy was saying. And though he was curious, he didn¡¯t ask. He could sense that this was no ordinary Sprout. They all came to Terra Praeta in teams from their clans, but this boy was probably alone. He knew that no clan would invest too many resources in someone that¡¯s not their blood.


    They probably let him tag along because they didn¡¯t meet the quota and had to fill in the spot.


    Then they could have sold the spot, Drale thought. Wait, Jerome¡­ I¡¯ve heard that name before!


    ¡°Are you ¡®the¡¯ Jerome¡­the one from Pilgrims¡¯ Keep?¡± he asked but his new acquaintance was already meditating and did not bother to answer him.


    Drale¡¯s clan was fairly powerful in Vorthe. They were a tier-two clan, or a high-class clan as the low borns called them, which meant that only the Great Clans were above them in status. This was a huge privilege as there were only four Great Families ¡ª five if one included the Royal Family. This meant that resources in Vorthe wouldn¡¯t go through too many people before getting to them. Tier-two clans have been able to acquire a lot of wealth and resources as a result.


    Drale spread out his senses and observed as the boy stimulated the essence in the earth. He didn¡¯t understand how the boy was doing it ¡ª didn¡¯t want to even accept he was doing it, but if anyone could break them out of here, it¡¯ll surely be someone who had secret techniques only the Royal family could give out.


    ~~~


    Jerome kept stimulating the earth¡¯s aura and vital aura in the cell to see if he could break through whatever barrier was keeping his powers limited. The earth¡¯s aura intensified his senses to the point he could hear and see every minute detail of the cell in his mind¡¯s eye.


    All of a sudden, he exerted his will on the earth¡¯s aura, causing it to surge outward and push against the cell walls. Golden light flooded the room, and the walls, which were covered in the same golden glow, groaned and creaked under the strain of his power.


    Jerome laughed in exhilaration, but his joy was short-lived when he heard a familiar voice shout out in anger from a distance.


    ¡°Do you think you can escape?!¡± The succubus was incensed.


    She began cursing out loud and her voice was getting closer, causing the hairs on the back of Jerome¡¯s neck to rise. Jerome heard her footsteps quicken and he hastened the aura in the air, stimulating it some more to exert more force against the cell walls until cracks began to form on the walls.


    Drale saw this and his eyes lit up in anticipation. He couldn¡¯t help but rise to his feet, ready to dash out of the chamber when the walls came crashing down. He already owed the kid for bringing him back from the brink of death. If the kid could get him out of there, he¡¯d hand over all his spoils from Terra Praeta to him, he pledged to himself.


    Large chunks of rock rained down from the roof and walls. Jerome saw this and pushed even more. He still had a lot of essence to spare and he poured it all into his efforts. If he could just push a little bit more. A little bit more and the walls will come crumbling down.


    Suddenly, a section of the wall on one side gave way, crumbling to the ground almost at once. Jerome was so excited he wanted to get to his feet but saw the succubus standing just behind the crumbled part of the wall.


    Upon closer inspection, he found that the opening looked like an entrance. The succubus shot forward and caught Jerome by the back of the neck. The next thing he knew she kissed him fiercely. Jerome wanted to struggle but strength left his limbs, and he passed out.


    Jerome woke up to a cold wet sensation on his body. He realized with a jolt that he was entirely naked, his body coated in a slippery layer of moisture. As he took in his surroundings, he noticed he was in another chamber, with walls of stone, and darkness embraced the walls around him.


    His hands were bound tightly by a rope, leaving him hanging in the air. He suddenly felt a wet tongue lapping at his skin from behind. With quick reflexes, Jerome lashed out with a foot, aiming a kick at the succubus behind him. The succubus sprang back just in time, laughing at his futile attempt. With a smug look on her face, she turned him around to face her ¡ª without touching him.


    Jerome seethed with anger and embarrassment. He had never felt so exposed and vulnerable before, and the succubus¡¯ mocking laughter only added to his humiliation.


    ¡°How the hell did you take off my armor?!¡± he demanded. The succubus just smirked.


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    ¡°You¡¯re a very powerful male specimen,¡± she purred in that sweet voice of hers as she gave him a thorough baptism with her eyes. She stopped to stare for long moments at the large member between his thighs, licking her lips sensually.


    ¡°You¡¯re no ordinary Sprout. I can tell,¡± she said with a smirk. ¡°The vitality I tasted as I lapped at  your skin was so abundant and pure, I¡¯d never tasted the likes of it before. Your muscles are also very tough, even though you haven¡¯t completely filled them out, which shows evidence of your strength and vigor.¡±


    ¡°Come near me once more and I¡¯ll rip you to shreds!¡± Jerome hissed.


    ¡°Oooh! I¡¯m so scared!¡± She shivered mockingly. ¡°I¡¯m going to enjoy you human.¡± She giggled and her bosom bounced generously. Jerome gulped loudly, his mind cooking up dirty scenes and his body responded to them.


    ¡°Well,¡± she stopped in front of him and bent down, bringing her face a few inches away from his hardened member. ¡°It seems you¡¯ll enjoy me too.¡±


    She blew warm air on him and Jerome groaned in near ecstasy. He shivered slightly and goosebumps rose on his skin.


    ¡°Get. Away. From. Me,¡± he managed to croak out. His head was already swirling with erotic images and his resolve to keep away from her was on the verge of shattering.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see how long you can resist me.¡± She laughed and started to walk away.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t answer my question,¡± Jerome groaned. His voice was still heavy with lust. Her backside was just as impressive as her bust. Very fleshy and supple, he felt himself drawn towards her. ¡°How¡¯d you take off my armor?¡±


    The succubus stopped and glided back to him, her wide hips swaying with tantalizing slowness. For some reason, he wished she¡¯d turn around again so he could watch her walk; watch her ass bounce as she walked. Jerome swallowed hard and forced his eyes away from her curves. She stopped close to him. Very close that his member pressed against her bosom.


    He looked down and found his member sliding into a hole in her dress, in between her underboobs. She pressed him in between her huge rack and squeezed. All the blood left his brain in a split second. The pleasure he felt at that moment was so intense that he couldn¡¯t stop himself from rocking forward.


    Jerome groaned as he fought to move away from her. His body, however, didn¡¯t get the memo. The succubus ground herself against him. She held her bust in both hands, squeezing his member as she moved up and down to increase the pleasure. Jerome pulled back only to push his hips forward again.


    ¡°That feels good, doesn¡¯t it?¡± the succubus asked. Her voice was barely a whisper. ¡°Just let go.¡±


    Jerome rocked against her again and again, unable to stop himself. The pressure in his lower parts continued to build up, though he was already lost in ecstasy. He barely noticed the build-up of pressure until it was to the extent, he thought he was going to burst. And moments later he did, jerking uncontrollably from the pleasure. The succubus moaned as his seed decorated her chest. Hearing her moans roused Jerome¡¯s blood and he tried to free himself from his bonds, just so he could squeeze her to himself as he ravaged her.


    The succubus noticed that his huge member between her bust didn¡¯t relax one bit, as if it could go on forever. She smiled brightly at that and looked up at Jerome. ¡°Calm down, love,¡± she whispered to him, and Jerome felt his head clear up.


    The succubus smiled.


    ¡°What did you do to me?¡± Jerome asked, unsure of how to feel. He felt really good¡­mellowed, but he also felt bad that he had let the succubus seduce him. He couldn¡¯t help but think that he should hate her. He did hate her, but where did all the hate go?


    This must be part of her charm, he thought. To make members of the opposite sex ¡®want¡¯ her.


    ¡°That¡¯s two questions, love. I¡¯ll only answer the first one for now,¡± she said as stroked Jerome¡¯s muscle-toned body. ¡°That¡¯s a very powerful metal you have inside you, many have tried to use it to kill me before now, but all have failed¡­visha stirh¡¯aun, is it not?¡± she said not even looking up at him as she spoke.


    Jerome¡¯s breath stopped for a moment as he tried to wrap his head around how she knew the name of the metal.


    ¡°My psychic energy is a lot more powerful than yours, however, so pushing it back into your body ¡ª which I find quite fascinating ¡ª was no problem at all,¡± the succubus said.


    Jerome¡¯s member jerked between her bust and she looked up, giving him a bright smile. Jerome frowned and looked away, his face heating up in embarrassment.


    ¡°If you want to know something you can always ask. However, you¡¯ll have to do something for me as well,¡± she said with a knowing smile.


    She pushed off him and licked her lips, his member sliding out of the heaven it just experienced. Her gaze never left it, which caused him to grow another shade of red as he tried to look anywhere else but at her, yet his eyes kept betraying him. His hardened member also strained to reach her, refusing to comprehend that the storm had passed.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes flitted briefly to the evidence of their activity on her chest ¡ª which to his surprise was in abundance, covering every ounce of flesh exposed. His eyes betrayed him and lingered. Jerome gulped.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m Jerome.¡±


    The succubus smiled brightly at him again. ¡°You may call me Csala, love. No one has ever asked for my name before.¡±


    ¡°Ahem. It felt right to ask,¡± he said, wanting to turn away from her, but his eyes kept drinking in her form.


    She brought her hand to her chest and touched the sticky liquid on her and with a slight gesture, it folded in on itself and kind of¡­ slurped¡­ into her palm. Jerome gulped once more at that, doing his best to look away.  He had no idea how she did that. There was no essence or mental energy.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be right back, love. Don¡¯t go anywhere,¡± she said and walked toward the wall behind him.


    He didn¡¯t want her to go. Jerome almost blurted out his desire for her to stay but he held himself back and bit his tongue a little harder than he wanted. Pain flooded his mind and the primal urges receded¡­ enough to clear his mind.


    Good. The pain would keep my mind sharp. ¡°As if I can,¡± he said. The rope she used to bind him was unbelievably sturdy ¡ª far more than he expected.


    Jerome spied on her with his perception as she left. She didn¡¯t touch anything but a part of the wall she stood before, crumbled to the floor. As soon as she passed through, the wall repaired itself.


    Jerome cursed in his heart. She probably used her ¡®psychic¡¯ powers to open and close the door, he concluded. But he couldn¡¯t sense it because she was more powerful than him and was quite adept at wielding ¡®psychic¡¯ energy.


    ¡°Psychic energy,¡± he muttered. It was surprising to hear the term in Terra Praeta. But he¡¯d still go with mental energy. Psychic energy felt broader; with depth he knew very little about. In fact, only what he¡¯d read in fiction was his frame of reference. It could be there was more to it than he knew ¡ª which was most times the case with things like these.


    Maybe sacred artists developed abilities that could be considered psychic as they grew older. Jerome made up his mind to ask Rihal or Kilian when he got back.


    He waited for Csala to walk far away before he acted. She walked a short distance, but the rhythm of her footsteps changed. The change was very minute. If he didn¡¯t have incredible hearing, he would have missed it. Jerome raised his eyebrows in surprise as the footsteps receded into the distance, but he knew she was still there, yet he couldn¡¯t sense her.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re there, Csala. You can¡¯t fool me,¡± he called out. ¡°Those aren¡¯t your steps receding into the distance.¡±


    Right then, Csala giggled softly. Her voice carried into the chamber from just behind the door.


    Jerome scrunched his brows unhappily at that. She knew he¡¯d try to escape again so she feigned leaving. Thanks to his powerful senses, he would have been fooled and would probably have revealed other hidden cards he had yet to play.


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked, ¡°Can¡¯t I have a little fun with you?¡± She giggled again.


    The sound of her voice assaulted his senses, rousing his member once more. He had finally got it to calm down, but a few words from her undid all his hard work.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you find me beautiful?¡± she began talking to him in whispers with her alluring voice. ¡°I¡¯m sure your damsel isn¡¯t as beautiful as I am. Just say the word and I¡¯ll give you another unforgettable experience¡­¡±


    Jerome gritted his teeth and shut his eyes to meditate. Those words were too tempting, and he was beginning to see reasons why he should accept. He forcefully shut her out as he began cycling to calm his nerves. He meditated for a long time, absorbing the sparse essence in the air and needing more. It took a long time before his nerves calmed down. When he opened his eyes she was gone¡­for real this time.


    Does she not deem me an actual threat that she left my core unsealed? Jerome mused. He looked up at the thing holding him in place. It was a thick rope and it was glowing, gold and blue. He tried pulling it apart, twisting his arms out, and even using Suzie to cut it and free himself. But none of that worked. Then he set his eyes on the rusted hook, attached to the roof and holding the rope in place.

 86. Cat And Mouse

    Csala


    Csala rifled through the human¡¯s storage ring with a simple scan to see if there would be anything that suited her. She had discovered a lot of useful things from many of the humans that came to Terra Praeta. Most of her provocative dresses came from female humans who she captured from time to time. She couldn¡¯t feed off them, though, as only a man¡¯s passion and vitality could sate her. Her male counterparts, the incubi, would have a swell time with them ¡ª if they haven¡¯t all died off.


    Csala only found lots of spears and dark robes, there were a few roasted magic beasts, some high-grade crystal stones and coins, and a few pouches. She pushed her perception into the pouches but found nothing that was of any significance to her. Throwing his ring atop the small pile of storage rings on her table, she stood up to pace her chamber, thinking of what to do about the Sprout.


    She had to be careful around this one. Everyone she had ever kissed would fall head over heels for her ¡ª as long as they were Sprouts, but then only Sprouts visited Terra Praeta from their world. This one, however, didn¡¯t react the same way as others. Maybe she should go visit the old crone ¡ª which she was completely averse to.


    The old crone wasn¡¯t someone she trusted. In fact, she was wary of her. But she needed something to help her make the human more susceptible to her charm ¡ª something only the old crone could provide. This was the first time she captured someone whose psyche was hard to break. He should have lost all his senses to her charms the moment she kissed him. No one ever came back from that. Well, until him.


    It¡¯ll be a pain to constantly be alert and watch what she says in front of the cranky old succubus. It was always draining. Csala wondered when she¡¯d be powerful enough to put such worries aside. And strength like that only came from having men as strong as the one presently in her claws to drain. Csala smiled.


    Maybe I should see my new meal¡­perhaps have a little snack before heading out, she smiled to herself as she left her chambers.


    She took her time strolling toward the human¡¯s cell, humming lightly to herself and fantasizing about how she would eat him up. A few turns and she came to the tunnel leading up to the upper levels of the mountain. She flew upwards, enjoying the flight and the freeness of her spirit. There was nothing quite like the feeling of flying. It was beyond the act for her. It was symbolic of freedom.


    She was sure the Sprout couldn¡¯t set himself free from the rope hanging him from the roof. She stopped herself from scanning the room as she approached, wanting to see his face wreathed in frustration with her own eyes when she opened the chamber. A psychic scan would spoil the fun.


    That room was a fortress, and nothing could break through the walls. The whole mountain itself was far more than meets the eye. It usually took her about two sunrises to get from her chambers to the prison if she decided not to fly ¡ª that was how big the mountain was. Csala couldn¡¯t help but imagine the look of helplessness on his face when he realized he was running a fool¡¯s errand.


    She got to the chamber where she left the human and unsealed the entrance with a big smile on her face ready to mock him. That smile turned to surprise¡­and then dread.


    The human had escaped his imprisonment!


    ~~~


    A while ago¡­


    Jerome had painstakingly removed every bit of rock and soil that clung to the walls of the chamber. And what he saw left him awestruck. The previously dark room was now bathed in a radiant blue glow emanating from the intricately carved runes etched into the walls. Runes he had become quite familiar with ¡ª the ajanai.


    Of course, this was where the runes had come from. Rihal had said the Royal Family had a back door to which they could come and go without the rest of Farryn knowing. He snorted. But stood there wondering how to get himself out of the chamber. He might have uncovered something great, but it didn¡¯t help his situation.


    Jerome scoured the chamber, trying to locate the source of the otherworldly illumination, but his search proved futile. He quickly shifted his focus to searching for a way out of the chamber. Focusing his mental energy to scrutinize the wall more carefully, Jerome separated the walls into sections. He sat down in the middle of the chamber ¡ª atop the pile of rubble he had gathered ¡ª and began to examine each section one at a time with his perception.


    This is going to be exhausting, he thought. Yet he knew he didn¡¯t have much time. The succubus could come back for him anytime soon. He shuddered ¡ª both in expectation and fear. He could feel himself getting aroused again and quickly bit his tongue. The spike of pain helped to clear his head some. He put thoughts of Csala out of his mind and focused on the task at hand.


    Jerome pushed his mental energy to exhaustion for almost half a day. His study had led him to discover a hidden pattern within the runes. It was complex and required patience to unlock, which was kind of frustrating. But he persevered.  The runes weren¡¯t merely decorative; they formed part of a complex formation that acted as a locking mechanism holding the chamber sealed. Whatever the mechanism was, he wasn¡¯t going to be waiting to figure it out.


    After numerous attempts, he succeeded in opening a small section in the roof ¡ª the roof wall dissolved and the cramped space shook as dirt and dust cascaded down from the opening, adding to the pile that had already accumulated on the ground.


    Jerome lifted his gaze towards the narrow passage, examining it closely. It was barely large enough to accommodate a single adult, and he knew that ascending through it would not be easy.


    ¡°Spacious much,¡± he muttered and dove upwards, the opening closed up as mist formed to congeal into physical material.


    Where would I preserve my private chamber if I lived in a place like this? he thought as he tunneled through the narrow space. The rocks in front of him crumbled to grains, not impeding his movement in the slightest. Jerome laughed as he became aware of this. Manipulating earth essence had gotten much easier as well. He decided to go down into the depths of the mountain.


    Can this even be called a mountain? He thought.


    If every room was like the one he came out of, then it was safe to say that this was an artificial structure. And from the shape of the outward appearance, it was probably a pyramid. An enormous pyramid that breaks through the clouds and into space. Jerome still found himself shocked at the image of the mountain when he was outside it.


    He dove down even farther. The thought of some long-lost civilization building something like this was enough to make one¡¯s blood rush with anticipation. There was no way they didn¡¯t leave powerful treasures behind!


    Jerome grinned wickedly to himself but took a deep breath to calm his racing heart. There must be a lot of treasures to be found here but first I must recover my ring, he thought.


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    He hadn¡¯t gotten very far when he felt a very powerful wave of mental energy behind him. Jerome¡¯s heart nearly dropped and he sped up. He cursed Csala to be burnt by Noir¡¯s Black Flames for eternity as he pushed to get away from her.


    Csala screamed and he felt wave after wave of her psychic assault behind him, but none was able to strike him mentally. Her psychic energy may be powerful, but he was too far away from her.


    Jerome also suspected that it wouldn¡¯t work as it did before. He was prepared now. That strange energy from the mind-calming stone inside him, buffeted him as he rushed downward into the depths of the mountain.


    ~~~


    Csala was hot on his heels, he knew. This frustrated Jerome because many hours later, he hadn¡¯t found anything. Was it even just hours? He felt like it¡¯s been more than a day already. He held in his frustration and took deep breaths to calm his nerves. He¡¯d been in this cramped space for far longer than he liked.


    With his mental energy scanning everywhere ahead of him, Jerome found a room on the edges of his perception that was a bit different from those he¡¯d been scanning. This room was spacious, with no rocks and debris stuck to the walls. Since he was scanning from a distance away, he couldn¡¯t get precise information about what was inside the room since his perception was not powerful enough.


    Jerome focused his expanded perception on that location and quickly changed direction. By focusing on just that location, he could tell that this was a room the succubus visited frequently. The space behind him resonated once again with Csala¡¯s powerful psychic energy and Jerome felt his hackles rise.


    She was still very far away but was closing in. He could sense her anger and frustration in the air. Jerome pushed his core faster. He dug faster and faster not only to get to the room and retrieve his ring but to be rid of her.


    As soon as he got close enough to the room, he pushed his mental energy and unlocked the hatch at the top of the room. Jerome jumped into the room, scanned once again, and walked up to the pile of storage rings on the table.


    He chuckled and stashed them all away in his robes. He¡¯d be searching for his later. The succubus was close now. He could sense the force of her anger through the walls and dirt. He didn¡¯t know how he did, he just knew that he did even though she was still more than a mile away from his position. Jerome erupted with fire attribute essence and the temperature in the room climbed. Everything was burnt to ash in seconds.


    He quickly jumped into the hatch, closed it, and started towards another direction, hoping to put more distance between them and hopefully find an exit.


    ~~~


    Csala


    ¡°No, you won¡¯t!¡± Csala screamed and turned around chasing after him with agility and speed that belied her tiny frame.


    She couldn¡¯t believe he was able to free himself from the binding, that was an artifact she had used to bind creatures stronger than she was. He had also figured out how to open the chambers and move through a smaller opening that even she didn¡¯t know about!


    Csala was breezing past tunnels in the mountain like the wind. She¡¯d be damned if she let him escape. The Sprout was just a little bit farther away from the edges of her perception, which was manageable. His aura would still remain present in the air long after he had passed through a certain place. So it wouldn¡¯t be hard following his trail.


    It would become a pain, however, if he was taken by another succubus and an older one at that. Thankfully, there was no other succubus in the mountain or its vicinity. If he left though, she would never see him again as Terra Praeta would send him far away.


    Csala sped up at that thought, pushing herself faster. She didn¡¯t have essence to work with ¡ª the ubus weren¡¯t born to wield it. They were however compensated by mother nature with psychic abilities and enhanced physical strength, speed, and agility.


    She soon caught up with the Sprout somewhat but could do nothing to stop him because he was moving through a tight space inside the walls, walls that were indestructible. She could only tell because of her perception. Csala suppressed him through the wall with her psychic powers, slowing him down considerably and ultimately paralyzing him.


    The human, however, had his own skills and tricks. He started muttering again and the earth moved out of the way. Millions of grains of sand rushed toward him as she watched in shock, buttressing his paralyzed body and whisking him away. He was carried through the narrow tunnel as if he was riding on a wave of sand.


    ~~~


    When the succubus caught up to Jerome, he thought that was the end and his escape was a pipe dream. She somehow managed to turn his limbs to lead and make his body so heavy he found it almost impossible to move his core. The pressure she was releasing felt far more powerful than what Rihal was capable of releasing.


    Jerome used the only weapon in his arsenal he had that could at least protect him for a while. He began muttering his earth mantra, stirring the essence in the earth around him. The earth shifted underneath him and he willed the soil around him to crumble into grains of sand. He went further to surround himself with the current of sand, willing it to carry him forward.


    Laughing mockingly at her as he left her behind, he could imagine her jaw hanging ajar. He knew he would probably not see the light of day if she ever caught him, but he taunted her still.


    Jerome was elated at his exceptional control of the essence around him now. He had just discovered something rare he could do! He remembered the Sovereign¡¯s words about how Harun became one with mother nature, able to wield it, making the elements conform to his will.


    He hadn¡¯t used a single strand of essence in his core to wield the sand that was carrying him through the tunnels. He had tried but it felt like walking through mud. He had taken hold of the essence in the air at the last moment ¡ª how he did it, he wasn¡¯t sure. His only wish right now was to lose the succubus and find somewhere to practice this newfound skill.


    If this means that I can do what Harun did eons ago¡­ he quickly squashed the feeling rising up in his gut. He needed to concentrate on escaping the clutches of the succubus and not be distracted.


    Jerome felt Csala try to take hold of the sands he was using to transport himself but her psychic energy passed through it like a sieve trying to hold water. Csala screamed in frustration once again and he laughed at her, willing the sand to go faster.


    She tried something else he had been expecting for a while ¡ª a psychic blast at him. Nothing happened. Jerome felt proud of himself at that and he felt Csala¡¯s frustration build to its climax. He could picture her pulling her hair out and throwing a tantrum and the thought brought a smile to his lips. Jerome laughed long and hard.


    The next moment she blasted the sand to smithereens causing him to hit the ground hard. He tumbled continuously for a few moments, hitting the cramped space before coming to a halt. Csala took the moment to revel in her little victory as she came to a halt immediately on the other side of the rock wall with no effort to slow down. It was an inhuman thing to do and even Jerome marveled at her strength in her limbs.


    Jerome started muttering again but as the sands gathered around him they were blasted away just as quickly. Some grains even got into his eyes and he had to blink rapidly to get them out.


    ¡°You can¡¯t continue doing that,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ll wear yourself out in no time.¡±


    ¡°Not before I get my hands on you, love,¡± Csala replied sweetly. Her voice wasn¡¯t loud but it carried to his ears just as Rihal¡¯s did when he was being trained. Jerome could feel the cold smile on her face as she spoke, which made him shiver and gulp his saliva down hard.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you just let me go? I promise never to tell anyone about you.¡±


    ¡°No can¡¯t do, love. You¡¯re a rare find and I¡¯d be damned if I let one of my sisters catch you before I¡¯ve had enough of you.¡±


    ¡°There are more of you?¡± Jerome was a bit shocked at that. An army of succubi would not bode well for those that came to Terra Praeta.


    ¡°That¡¯s not something you should bother yourself with. Just come out here and stop being a naughty boy.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, but I¡®ll have to disappoint you.¡± Jerome bolted.


    Csala screamed. She had thought she had him trapped but the little twerp had been playing with her.


    Jerome had been digging a hole in the soil a few yards away, behind him. He used the discussion to buy himself time and when the soil directly behind him was loose enough, he covered himself in metal armor and willed it to move his body, swimming through the soil and dashing away as quickly as he could since his body was still under her control.


    Jerome started planning in his mind. He had no way to escape her if he got caught.


    Then, don¡¯t get caught, but if you do get caught¡­ He thought about the other cards he had to play and he sped up.

 87. Caught And Moused (R-18)

    Csala seethed with frustration. If she wanted to capture Jerome, she would have to retrace her steps to the chamber he had escaped from and pursue him through the same labyrinth of tunnels he was moving through so she wouldn¡¯t get lost. The whole mountain was riddled with a complex network of tunnels, and even she could get lost if she wasn¡¯t careful.


    But if she returned to the chamber, Jerome would have ample time to slip away, and she would lose. The mere thought of losing incensed Csala, and she vented her fury by slamming her body against the rock walls as she raced through the tunnels.


    With each impact, small quakes rocked the tunnels. Rocks and debris flew around her, and she screamed in frustration. Jerome mocked her as he made his way upward, infuriating her further.


    After a moment of frenzy, Csala forced herself to calm down and released a psychic wave like a tide. She stood still for a long time as she searched for the quickest way into the tunnels. Jerome took the time to get farther and farther away but that sense of his that could almost tell where she was kept him abreast of her position. He kept pushing through the sand and soon he was far enough that he regained the use of his limbs.


    Jerome was not happy about this, though. The succubus was still standing where she was, unmoving. He knew it was only a matter of time before she found the quickest route to him. In the next moment, she shot off in another direction.


    Jerome¡¯s heart nearly stopped. He knew she had found a way into the hidden tunnels, and it wouldn¡¯t take her long to catch up to him. He hastened up and changed directions halfway up so he could go around some walls.


    Moving through these smaller tunnels was slower than moving through the bigger ones. He would¡¯ve loved to escape her through the hidden tunnels, but he could sense her getting closer.


    Jerome¡¯s heart started pounding hard as sweat poured out of his skin like a fountain. This mad woman would probably skin him alive if she caught him. He found another hatch in the rock wall and quickly opened it. He jumped into a new chamber and ran for the door. After unlocking it, he ran off at breakneck speed, his muscles straining with every movement as he zoomed through corridors.


    Csala''s screams echoed behind him as she discovered he had switched tunnels. She quickly stormed into a chamber beneath her and ran into the corridor chasing after him. Jerome glanced behind him after many twists and turns only to see a rage-filled beautiful succubus bearing down on him like an angel of death.


    His only disadvantage was that he didn¡¯t know how to traverse the network of tunnels in the mountain. Csala on the other hand knew it like the back of her hand, so despite his efforts, she caught up to him in no time.


    Jerome took a deep, long breath as he turned around while running, gathering his essence for a mighty shot. He spat a huge fireball at her the next moment. The ball of flame was so hot that the walls of the tunnel they were running through started to dry up and crack instantly. But Csala just waved her hand, using her psychic powers to push the fire out of the way. It crashed into the wall beside her, exploding as it did.


    The explosion rocked the succubus, putting her off balance as she slammed into the opposite wall. When she got back up Jerome who was a few paces away from her a moment ago was gone.


    Jerome didn¡¯t stop to face her. He ran like hell, searching for a tunnel leading upward like the one he used a while ago. However, the succubus was centuries older than him and a lot more powerful in strength and speed. Jerome¡¯s only warning was the wind slightly rushing past him.


    Csala raced past him, and he ran into her open hand. She grabbed him by the neck and slammed him onto the tunnel wall. With a crack, Jerome felt pain shoot up his right arm. Without delay, Csala broke his left arm as well. The pain was mind-numbing. Jerome sagged against the wall of the tunnel, his muscles twitching constantly as he endured the pain but Csala wasn¡¯t done yet.


    She raised her dainty foot and delivered a crushing kick to his thigh with enough force to shatter steel.


    ~~~


    Jerome was taken to another chamber this time around and was bound, hands and feet in more of the strange knot on a table in the center of the chamber. The chamber was the same as the one before ¡ª dark and bare of furniture, except for the table.


    Csala didn¡¯t dare leave him alone this time around. She stripped him naked, ready to do the deed. Jerome looked at her with dread. He fancied beautiful women, but not beautiful women who wanted to enslave his soul.


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me!¡± he shouted through gritted teeth. ¡°I¡¯m warning you!¡±


    He was still in a lot of pain from having his limbs broken. Csala hadn¡¯t been gentle when she dragged him through the tunnels to this chamber as well. The journey through the tunnels up until now was a surprising one. The succubus only had a strip of her previous provocative gown on her. Her apparent sensuous body was put on display as she dragged Jerome through the tunnels of the mountain.


    Jerome had found it hard to look away from her body. What surprised him the most was the succubus ¡ª every time their eyes had met, she had turned red with embarrassment and looked away. It was a quiet and uncomfortable journey, making Jerome question her expressions and emotions.


    He could sense her anger and frustration, and also her embarrassment. How could someone who had had so many men for centuries act like she was acting? She did her best to cover up her embarrassment with her rage but Jerome still saw through it.


    Jerome still had other cards to play but he needed the perfect moment to play them. He wasn¡¯t even sure if his plan was a solid one. If it worked he could free himself from her clutches for good. If not¡­


    ~~~


    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    Csala climbed on top of him slowly and angrily. The human had made her work for her meal. She had also been burned by his strange blue flames, her beautiful red hair got damaged as a result. Thankfully she was already fully healed but her favorite dress had been destroyed. Now she had no other choice but to behold her naked body to this fool who didn¡¯t know what was good for him!


    No man had ever seen her completely naked and no man had ever done to her what this little devil beneath her had done. She would make sure to wring him dry until he begged her for mercy! And even then she wouldn¡¯t stop.


    Csala tried probing his mind but to her surprise, she couldn¡¯t. She couldn¡¯t help but curse out in frustration at the kind of trouble she had picked up. She couldn¡¯t let her race¡¯s most guarded secret be exposed to a man.


    If the human found out that succubi didn¡¯t need to have sex with men before absorbing vitality, it could cause problems in the future if he manages to escape. The best option would be to kill him after she was done, but whose child would she be killing?


    She remembered the many powerful humans in the human plane she had glimpsed from one of her prey, and she wouldn¡¯t want to raise their ire. Fortunately, she¡¯d read the mind of one of her captives long ago and found out that his family had ways to find out who killed him ¡ª even across worlds! It would be wonderful if she could leave him here to go see the old crone but that was a lost hope now.


    It was best to never let him escape. Csala quickly calmed her heart and breathed an intoxicating scent on Jerome. Succubi had many weapons in their arsenal, one of which was their breath ¡ª a biological aphrodisiac.


    It could put a man in a sexual frenzy, making them lose all thoughts of resistance.


    Jerome¡¯s blood began to boil all of a sudden. He wanted to take the succubus on top of him now more than ever. He became more aware of the suppleness of her body and the wetness pouring out between her legs. He knew this was her doing but, try as he may to resist her, he couldn¡¯t. Her huge bosom called to him as it bounced only inches from his face and the dark red beady nipples on them made him salivate. Jerome tried to reach up with his head, all thoughts of resisting her were blowing away on a nonexistent wind.


    She bent down and used those succulent lips to kiss him once again. This time he did not pass out, but the intoxication increased. His control slipped away, and he started struggling to free himself from his shackles. Even with his broken limbs, he struggled. His eyes glazed over and his breathing became erratic.


    Csala smiled to herself as she saw him struggling to free himself like a wounded beast. She could smell his arousal and found it intoxicating. She used her fingertips to trace the edges of his muscular chest. The young Sprout didn¡¯t have a lot of muscle on him, but he was still ripped and had an athletic body. Csala couldn¡¯t help but sigh.


    Such a strong and beautiful man, yet you¡¯ll end up like the rest of them. ¡°What a shame,¡± she said out loud.


    His member was already hard and ready to shoot, piercing her at the small of her back. She slowly reached behind her and pulled back the foreskin on the head of his shaft. She positioned the tip of her index finger at the base of his large member, between the balls and the shaft.


    Csala slid her finger upwards very slowly before grabbing him softly at the head, causing him to shiver in ecstasy, she slid her hand down and up again slowly. Letting the pressure build. Jerome writhed beneath her pushing his lower body upward every now and then.


    ¡°Oooh, you¡¯re so big. I can hardly wrap my hand around you.¡± She smiled.


    She sped up with her hand and after a long while Jerome let loose a big load of seed. He splattered her back with so much, she was elated to the point of becoming light-headed.


    ¡°Hmmmm,¡± she moaned as she soaked up the vitality in his seed through her skin.


    Jerome groaned for a few breaths ¡ª his lower body jerking back and forth as he spasmed in ecstasy ¡ª before his mind went blank. Peace. He wanted to go again. And as soon as he opened his eyes, Csala¡¯s mouth closed over his.


    Csala kept stimulating her captive for a very long time, wanting to tire him out so she could go see the old crone. There might not be enough time between leaving and coming back before the Sprout would regain himself. Her charm on him was wearing off quicker each time she used it on him. Soon, he would become immune. Before then though, she planned to tire him out so he couldn¡¯t move a muscle.


    However, the Sprout was like a dragon with never-ending stamina. He had peaked six times already but he didn¡¯t seem to be tiring any time soon. What was worse, the duration between each peak increased; the more she made him peak the more his stamina.


    He kept up with her which she found intriguing but at the same time frustrating. Csala was just about done with another session and kissed him for the umpteenth time when she felt a strong pull on her mind. She was unable to resist the pull as she felt like she was going to pass out.


    Csala struggled, grappling psychically with the unknown force that wanted to take her mind. But all her struggles were in vain. Her mind was forcefully pulled out of her body and she found herself waking up somewhere strange.


    ~~~


    It worked!


    It had finally worked. He had succeeded in pulling the succubus into his mental plane. Jerome remembered the Sovereign telling him that in here, he was god.


    He watched as Csala¡¯s eyes fluttered open, her beautiful face filled with shock. The air was cold and fresh and red-brown leaves were everywhere. She turned around slowly to take in the new environment. When her eyes met Jerome¡¯s, she glared at him and shot forward.


    Jerome didn¡¯t move. He willed the world to hold her down with invisible hands and she hit the floor with a loud bang.


    ¡°What in Odin¡¯s name?!¡± she screamed.


    Jerome walked up to her. He was surprised to see that she was fully clothed in the red dress that got destroyed.


    Perhaps that¡¯s how she sees herself subconsciously, he thought and looked down at himself as well, he was also putting on black robe-like armor and his favorite royalty-issued boots. Figures. These bodies they had in here were representations of their self images. Avatars, if you will.


    ¡°Welcome to Autumn¡­ Your new home,¡± Jerome said.


    He wanted to express hatred for her but he couldn¡¯t, or he didn¡¯t want to, or¡­ Jerome sighed. He¡¯d be lying to himself if he said he still hated her. Instead, he wanted her. Far more than he was willing to admit. Jerome pulled himself up and took a deep breath of the autumn air.


    A confused Csala stood up slowly beside him looking at him strangely with her mouth wide open.


    ¡°What are you?¡± she finally asked. ¡°Where are we?¡±


    Jerome searched her eyes for a moment. The pull on his heart to her was strong, almost like a compulsion. But he hardened his heart and kept his secrets to himself. The mystery would make her rethink doing anything against him.


    ¡°Like I said before,¡± he spread his arms out. ¡°This is your new home.¡±


    Jerome turned around and vanished into thin air.

 88. Autumn

    The Royal Estate. Farryn. Vorthe.


    Rihal


    It had taken tremendous effort to succeed in sneaking into The Aviary. Vorthe didn¡¯t take their Sacred beasts lightly ¡ª who knew? But being able to achieve this much showed his tenacity and determination to get to the root of the matter bothering him. Although, he still couldn¡¯t figure out if it¡¯ll all be worth it.


    The Aviary was a cozy underground forest, but it didn¡¯t feel like a forest at all. Rihal came to the conclusion that Vorthe invested much into making this place feel as homey as possible for all the magical beasts that lived here. On the outside, it was as big as a mountain. In fact, a whole mountain was hollowed out to create this underground space. But on the inside, it felt like a smaller version of Terra Praeta.


    The space was wide ¡ª so wide, he couldn¡¯t see the boundary walls of the internal structure of the mountain, except he used his Sight. And even with that, the walls didn¡¯t look like walls, but an extension of the forest. Only a trained eye would notice the difference.


    The place was a forest choke full of foreign life. Butterflies with wingspans as big as his head flew past him and the croaking of frogs around him suddenly seized. The butterflies disappeared. He turned to see three bullfrogs the sizes of adult dogs, happily chomping on them without a care in the world. They were also probably twice the size of normal bullfrogs. He didn¡¯t know much about them as he wasn¡¯t a tamer.


    ¡°This is a thriving ecosystem. Way to impress,¡± he said with a proud smile. Vorthe was the most powerful state on the continent. If he ever doubted it, his doubts were put to rest here.


    He moved forward in silence, making sure to stick to the shadows. The tamers should be at the central tree. What was it they called it again? He looked up to study the tree at the center of the forest ¡ª Ygg.  Whoever came up with that name probably risked rousing the anger of a certain god who Rihal had been taught not to name. The tree was huge, reaching up to the roof of the underground chamber. It looked like it was what held everything up.


    He could literally feel the vitality of the enormous tree pulsing through the air. The Abdiels do a good job of providing it with vita-aura from the Redwood Forest, so much so that the tree was almost looking red ¡ª maybe it was a trick of the artificial sunlight beaming down from above. Rihal thought about Jerome¡¯s mantra and how it generated vital-aura. If he could do it here¡­


    He chuckled. He almost missed his disciple¡­ Almost. But he would never admit that. He shook himself free of his thoughts to concentrate on his plans. Rihal stopped beside a huge rock in the path of Ygg, the central tree. He squatted down and began etching a rune into the underside of the rock.


    Two quarters of the day later and he had etched his spy rune on many surfaces. His skills with runecrafting weren¡¯t the best, but they were good enough to help him listen in on conversations. He stood in front of the Ygg, breathing hard from exhaustion. He had etched no less than three hundred runes around The Aviary, all while avoiding tamers of various Realms. If runecrafting wasn¡¯t so damn time-consuming ¡ª and essence-consuming ¡ª he¡¯d have liked to place more around. But he was tired and he couldn¡¯t risk getting caught.


    Now came the hardest part. Waiting. And in uncomfortable silence, more or less. He just hoped he wouldn¡¯t have to wait for too long. With one last gulp of air, he activated a rune in his ajanai which caused him to rapidly merge with the giant roots of the Ygg. His heart beat slowed, as he disappeared into the mammoth tree.


    ~~~


    Csala


    Csala didn¡¯t know what was going on. One moment the human peaked out in her hand and the next something pulled her mind out of her body and they were both standing in a glade surrounded by trees. The air was chilled with signs of the coming winter and red-brown leaves fell from the trees. It was a beautiful forest, but it felt like a prison.


    ¡°What sort of trouble have I got myself in?¡± she muttered.


    Csala remembered attacking the Sprout just now. He was normal one moment but the next his presence grew to encompass everything around her suppressing her with a strength of will she never thought possible. That made her rethink attacking him again. She looked around and tried to figure out where she was but she had never been to a place like this in Terra Praeta. Csala caught sight of the red dress on her body and gasped.


    This was destroyed in the flame. How come¡­? The thought trailed off. The dress looked and felt real but she somehow knew it was not. Csala extended her perception and gasped at what she felt. Everything around her was different from what they should feel like. The whole world was like one big illusion.


    She screamed in fear and ran forward, hoping to find a way out of this place. She had to get out of here. Succubi were known to be masters of illusion and dreams, yet someone had put her inside an illusion. One that she didn¡¯t figure out quickly. If he wanted to kill her, he would have done so effortlessly.


    ~~~


    Jerome sat up on the table as Suzie shredded its legs to pieces. He hit the ground with a thud, sandwiched between the tabletop and the beautiful succubus. He took a moment to free himself from the glowing ropes Csala used to tie him down, before setting them aside beside his armor. His broken limbs had long since healed by now. He picked up the soulless shell of the succubus and placed her on the tabletop next to him on the ground, his hands lingering for longer than necessary. She wasn¡¯t dead yet, there was just no soul inside her, hence she was an empty vessel.


    If she spent a few more days in this state, her body would begin to waste away. But that might also take months since she had probably lived for centuries. Her body would be able to endure.


    Jerome felt the urge to ravage her where she lay as her naked body was laid bare before him. He restrained himself, forcing his eyes away before standing up to clean himself up. His bones creaked as he stood up and his muscles complained. He stretched for a while and took deep meditative breaths to center himself.


    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    Jerome took his time to put on his armor. He searched through the many storage rings he took out of Csala¡¯s chambers until he found his. There were a lot of good things in the other rings, but many of them weren¡¯t that useful to him though. He gathered the strange ropes Csala used to tie him up and sucked them into his storage ring. He wanted to suck in the other storage rings but found he couldn¡¯t. He shrugged. His armor had pockets, so that would do for now.


    He turned to her once again, wondering why throughout their time she never had sex with him no matter how aroused she was. She only stimulated him to climax every single time not bordering on helping herself out.


    That was some willpower you have, he thought. Or maybe there¡¯s something more to it¡­


    He gazed longingly at her once again. He could try to find out for himself. He took a step toward her with his heart racing in anticipation.


    Wrong. It felt wrong. He shouldn¡¯t be having thoughts of bedding an unconscious woman. He turned around and walked out of the chamber on rickety legs, slumping against the door as it reformed itself. He waited a while to calm his beating heart. He stood up after a while to go search for Csala¡¯s other captives.


    Jerome followed the direction in his memory to try locating the first chamber he was locked in, which was moot because he had passed out after Csala caught him trying to escape. He got lost after searching for a very long time so he decided to ask Csala for directions.


    The succubus was a walking zombie when he re-entered the mind plane. She looked haggard, with dark circles under her eyes. Her skimpy red gown was torn in many places and she didn¡¯t have that glow he associated with her anymore.


    ¡°What have you been up to?¡± Jerome asked.


    Csala looked up at him and for the first time, Jerome saw fear in her eyes. She took a step back and shook slightly.


    ¡°Nothing. I¡¯ve been doing nothing,¡± she said.


    ¡°Nothing but trying to escape, you mean.¡±


    She shook her head vigorously trying not to use words because her voice had become shaky.


    ¡°How do I find my way around the tunnels? I need to get to the first chamber you locked me in. I also need to know about this mountain and Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± she muttered, knowing what he wanted to do. She couldn¡¯t stop him even if she wanted to, but she could bargain with him.


    Jerome watched as the hopelessness in her eyes disappeared and was replaced by determination. She stood up straight and marched up to him, crunching leaves underneath her feet until she stood toe to toe with him. The cold wind blew both their hair into their faces as she looked up into his dark black eyes and he into her red ones.


    ¡°Free me and I¡¯ll tell you what you want to know,¡± she said looking up at him.


    Jerome looked down at her for a long moment before answering. ¡°I could force the information out of you, you know?¡±


    Csala gulped, her determination wavering for a split moment.


    ¡°You can try,¡± she said, ¡°but you¡¯ll never be able to read my mind.¡±


    Time seemed to pause as they both stared at each other ¡ª Csala, waiting to see what he was going to try and him, waiting to see if she was going to back down.


    ¡°You¡¯re gonna regret this,¡± Jerome said at last.


    Csala folded her arms beneath her bosom, drawing Jerome¡¯s gaze there for a moment before he looked up to see her smirking at him.


    ¡°Very well,¡± Jerome said and kissed her.


    Csala felt the same force pull on her once more, but this time she was ready. She compressed her psychic energy and attacked, blasting Jerome across the forest and into a tree in his trajectory. Jerome stood up after a moment and grinned at her as he walked up to her.


    ¡°You can¡¯t take me by surprise now¡­what was your name again?¡± Csala asked.


    Jerome was incensed at that. How could she forget his name when he remembered hers? He walked up to her with long, quick steps and kissed her again. This time he was a lot more meticulous, suppressing her Will first and slowing down her advancing psychic energy. He could sense it as she gathered it around her like a fluid weapon pouring out of her. She compressed it like a spring, readying it to shoot it out with a mighty force. Csala¡¯s energy slowed down considerably and weakened in the process. It still blasted him away from her but not as far away and not as strong as it was the first time.


    ¡°Stay away from me,¡± she said, as Jerome stood up and walked toward her.


    She started moving backward as Jerome stalked her like a predator.


    ¡°I only lack practice,¡± he said with a devilish smile. ¡°But with you, I can get all the practice I need. And then¡­¡± he left the rest of the words unsaid but she got his meaning. He was going to get inside her head whether she liked it or not.


    Csala ran. She ran and ran wanting to keep as much distance in between them. When did things become like this? Just a day ago she was the one stalking him and now the wheels of fate had turned around.


    She broke into a clearing only to see the human at the center of the clearing waiting for her. She tried to stop instantly like she always did but she couldn¡¯t. Her body didn¡¯t obey her like before. Was this even her body?


    Csala dug her foot into the ground to stop herself before she got close to the daimon. She turned around and started running in the other direction but the air seemed to pick her up and dumped her in the daimon¡¯s waiting arms. His presence had grown as the air picked her up as if he was controlling it.


    ¡°Let me go, you daimon!¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t run away from me, Csala. In here, I¡¯m god,¡± Jerome whispered close to her ear.


    His voice sent shivers down her spine which was strangely arousing. Csala shivered slightly¡ªas much from excitement as from fear. She struggled in his arms but she couldn¡¯t get her body to respond with the strength she once possessed.


    Jerome turned her around to face him and tilted her head up with her chin.


    ¡°Now will you tell me what I want to know or should I continue?¡± he asked.


    Csala gulped, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you¡­I¡¯ll tell you all you want to know,¡± she said, her voice shivering from fear. If Jerome continued, he would sooner overcome her psychic powers and get what he wanted.


    ¡°Very well then,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°let¡¯s sit like civilized people.¡± A divan appeared out of thin air behind him and he sat down with Csala still in his arms. Well, in his laps.


    Csala looked at him expecting him to put her down but Jerome appeared not to notice.


    ¡°So tell me what I want to know,¡± he said.


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to put me down so I can draw a layout of the part of the mountain I visit.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow. ¡°Can¡¯t you just psychically pass the information to me?¡±


    Csala looked away from him. ¡°I don¡¯t want stray thoughts and intentions clinging to whatever would be passed to you.¡±


    Jerome nodded and set her down beside him. He waved his hand and the wind picked up, blowing away the dead leaves on the ground to reveal soil beneath. Csala¡¯s hand was holding a stick in the next moment which startled her. She looked over at Jerome and he shrugged with a smile, gesturing for her to go on.


    Csala took a deep breath and started drawing, explaining how she discovered the mountain a few hundred years ago.

 89. The Last Vestige Of The Ancient Fae

    ¡°I found the mountain when I was fifty-one ¡ª that was two hundred years ago,¡± Csala began as she drew the map of the parts of the mountain she was familiar with. She could have sent the information the way the human requested but she didn¡¯t want to give away that she could. She also suspected that he knew she lied. She wasn¡¯t going to change her mind on the matter though.


    ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard, it never allowed anyone to come close to it. The natives of Terra Praeta steered clear of it, revering it as a sacred monument. No one ever went near it.¡±


    ¡°But you did,¡± Jerome said, his eyes roaming her face.


    Csala took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. ¡°I did. And it was the best decision I ever made ¡ª even though I don¡¯t know how I was able to come anywhere close to it.¡±


    Jerome thought about how he was able to enter the mountain. He didn¡¯t feel any resistance or push.


    ¡°Where is this place?¡± Csala asked, looking at him.


    ¡°We¡¯re inside my mind, in a manner of speaking.¡±


    Csala¡¯s brows rose up in shock, ¡°A mental plane!¡±


    Jerome was surprised at that.


    ¡°That¡¯s almost a myth in Terra Praeta,¡± she said as she dropped the stick in her hand to focus on Jerome. ¡°Tell me about it. How did you acquire one?¡± She leaned into him, her eyes curiously urging him to spill.


    ¡°Slow down. I didn¡¯t ¡®acquire¡¯ it. It just sort of happened.¡±


    Csala frowned at him. ¡°A mental plane doesn¡¯t just ¡®happen¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Well, mine did,¡± Jerome said, leaning on the backrest of the divan and placing his hand on Csala¡¯s waist. The action felt natural to him.


    Csala looked pointedly at him with a raised eyebrow and Jerome blushed. He didn¡¯t move his hand away, though. Instead, he tightened his grip and drew her closer to him.


    ¡°You can¡¯t have me, Jerome,¡± she said.


    ¡°Oh, you remember my name now,¡± Jerome said and she scoffed at him. ¡°You should have thought about what would¡¯ve happened if one of your captives proved too much for you. And I don¡¯t want you ¡ª at least not in the way you might be insinuating.¡± Not that he knew what way she was insinuating.


    Csala gazed at him and the look she saw in his eyes made her hackles rise. She could tell he was barely holding himself back. She had never been in a situation where she was at the mercy of a man. She hoped¡­hoped Jerome would not act on what his body was feeling. Even without their true bodies, the succubi were still pleasing to the eye. It couldn¡¯t be helped.


    ¡°I¡¯m onto you, Csala,¡± Jerome said, leaning forward. His dark unblinking eyes bore into her red ones as she leaned away from him. ¡°Even though you were just as aroused as I was, you never crossed that last line with me.¡±


    Csala stiffened at that. She tried to push herself away from Jerome but he held her tightly. Then she remembered something and her fear tripled, even though she felt no heartbeat in her chest.


    ¡°My body¡­where is it?¡± She struggled to speak as Jerome¡¯s presence was suffocating her. Since this was his mental plane, he really was a god here.


    ¡°Somewhere safe,¡± Jerome responded, leaning back into the divan, and the weight of his presence subsided. ¡°Are you going to continue telling me what I want to know, or¡­¡±


    Csala cleared her throat and relaxed a little in Jerome¡¯s hands, ¡°Did you¡­¡±


    Jerome let the moment drag out a little. Stiffened in his arm once again, Csala¡¯s fear almost turned to full-blown panic.


    ¡°Now why would I have sex with an unconscious woman?¡± Jerome asked.


    Her relief was written all over her face at that, which further convinced Jerome that there was a secret there. Maybe succubi didn¡¯t have sex or couldn¡¯t, which didn¡¯t make sense. From all the myths and fiction he knew in his former life, they were the ultimate sex machines, women who had sex with men in their dreams and all that ¡ª things could be different here though, as this wasn¡¯t just another fiction.


    Jerome took a deep breath as he brought himself back to the here and now.


    ¡°I heard you muttering under your breath when you tried to escape the first time,¡± Csala said cautiously as she continued drawing on the floor. ¡°Your people shouldn¡¯t know how to do what you did back there.¡± Even though Jerome said he hadn¡¯t done anything to her body, she could hear the underlying threat in his voice. So she knew she was treading on thin ice.


    ¡°My people¡­¡± Jerome said. ¡°Elaborate.¡±


    Csala paused and looked at him from the corner of her eye. ¡°Mantra¡­was wielded by the Fae in times past. They spoke to the earth, the wind, the sea¡­every part of mother nature did their bidding.


    ¡°They ruled with an iron hand in their time. This mountain¡­¡± Csala looked up but quickly remembered she wasn¡¯t inside the mountain, at least her body still was¡­she hoped.


    ¡°The mountain was built by them. No one alive right now knows anything about it, though. What we do know is that it was supposed to be the last vestige of the Fae. My mother taught me about them. ¡®They were a narcissistic race¡¯ she had said. They held power beyond anything Terra Praetans could fathom. Why wouldn¡¯t they, when they were favored by a god.¡±


    ¡°A god?¡± Jerome asked in surprise.


    ¡°Hmmm. It is said that Odin, a god from yonder plane, descended this world and named it Terra Praeta¡­¡±


    Those words struck a chord in his heart as Jerome¡¯s mind flashed back to what the Sovereign said about Harun, the man who named everything in their world.


    ¡°He should have named the planet,¡± the Sovereign had said. So this is what the Sovereign was hinting at. Did he know I was going to find out about this? If Harun had christened our planet, maybe The Cataclysm wouldn¡¯t have happened, Jerome mused, deep in thought. But Odin?¡­are you kidding me?!


    ¡°...Jerome?¡± Csala called out to him.


    ¡°Hmm? Ahem. Was a little lost in thought there. Go on,¡± he said.


    ¡°Much of history has been lost with the extinction of the Fae. What I know is just the little I was told. So apparently¡­¡±


    ~~~


    Odin descended Terra Praeta eons ago, a planet in its infancy, filled with evolving life forms. He christened the planet and decided to stay and be worshiped by his loyal subjects. The christening of the planet brought great changes to the planet, causing it to evolve. The beings and species of every living thing on the planet also underwent great changes.


    Looking upon the sentient beings on the face of Terra Praeta, Odin took note of the Fae, favoring them above others. He taught them the secrets of the world ¡ª the secrets of the dark arts ¡ª and lavished them with gifts to help them protect themselves. The fae became servants of Odin and served him for eons.


    But Odin left all of a sudden, leaving his servants godless. Having been given all this power and knowledge; and with no one to police them around, the Fae took it upon themselves to tame the rest of the world. They were favored by a god. Hence, every other species on the face of the planet became mere insects in their eyes. They created spells and mantras to commune with spirits and the elements. This made them terrifying combatants in their time.


    They became the face of The All Father ¡ª the new gods.


    The Fae could uproot mountains and call forth giant meteors from the sky. One Fae had the strength of a hundred ubus ¡ª and the ubus were strong, far stronger than many other species on the planet.


    They enslaved many races in Terra Praeta but spread themselves too thin, which brought about cracks in their supposed ¡®perfect system of governance.¡¯


    Their pride in their fortune turned to ego and narcissism. And they burned the world to the ground in their greed and lust for power that could never be sated.


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    ~~~


    ¡°And I¡¯m guessing after taking over Terra Praeta they set their sights on new worlds,¡± Jerome said absently.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Csala asked as his statement drew her out of her reverie.


    ¡°There are stories in my world about gods running the world eons ago¡­¡± Jerome sighed, ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure those gods were the fae.¡±


    ¡°Maybe. That¡¯s all I know,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°How¡¯d you learn to speak my language anyway?¡±


    Csala scoffed, ¡°Your language is easy. You should try learning fairie and see what a language should sound like.¡±


    ¡°And that should be the language of the fae, I presume?¡± Jerome asked and Csala nodded, keeping her face on the stick as she drew connecting lines to finish up her drawing.


    ¡°Teach me,¡± Jerome said with a little squeeze of his fingers on her waist. Her smooth, supple skin and curves were hard to resist.


    ¡°You¡¯ll have to let me out of here for that,¡± Csala said, dropping her stick and dusting imaginary dirt off her hands.


    The two of them gazed into each other¡¯s eyes momentarily. Jerome could tell that she would attack him the moment she was out. The stories and the language of the fae were just breadcrumbs she was using to negotiate with him. He still had everything under control though.


    ¡°And if I say no?¡±


    ¡°Then you get nothing more from me,¡± Csala replied.


    ¡°I could just keep you here forever¡­and let your body wither away without a soul.¡±


    Csala looked into his eyes for a long time without responding.


    ¡°You won¡¯t,¡± she said at last.


    ¡°And how do you know that?¡± Jerome asked with mirth.


    ¡°I just know,¡± Csala responded and looked away. ¡°You¡¯re not that kind of person. If you were, you¡¯d have done whatever you wished with my body¡­call it intuition, or whatever you like.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re putting too much trust in intuition,¡± Jerome said. Csala frowned but didn¡¯t respond. ¡°I¡¯ll let you out, but not yet.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not saying anything more until you let me out,¡± Csala said adamantly and peeled his hand away from her waist.


    Jerome looked down at the map she had drawn. Though it was two-dimensional, he could still tell that she limited her activities to a certain part of the mountain. She had to. No one would be capable of surviving at a certain altitude.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that,¡± he said with a smile before vanishing from sight.


    Coming out of his mental plane, Jerome followed the map in his mind. After searching for a while, he finally found the cell and let the prisoners out. Sadly, only one person was sane enough to leave. Drale made a life debt to Jerome and left as quickly as possible, not wanting to be anywhere near the mountain.


    As soon as Drale took to the skies, he disappeared from view. It took Jerome a while to come to terms with that ¡ª that the world just shuffles people around like chess pieces on a board. All alone, Jerome focused on finding anything that could lead him toward treasures. If this was supposed to be the last vestige of the fae, there had to be treasures waiting for him to take. He just had to find a way to get to them.


    Jerome searched all over for five days and turned the whole place upside down, but he found nothing. He used the map Csala drew and went beyond the edges of what she had drawn for him, yet he couldn¡¯t find anything. Jerome was no fool, however. The mountain was a big one and gauging his current altitude with respect to the surface of the planet, he knew he was likely tens of thousands of feet above the surface of the planet.


    He decided to go down, deep down into the mountain. Farther down than Csala had ever gone. This was a good opportunity to practice his newfound skill as well. He tracked down one of the tunnels leading down into the mountain and dived in.


    Jerome let himself fall downwards. He took a deep breath and stopped the movement of his core. Then he reached out for the essence in the rock walls and tried to bend it to his will. The feeling of earth essence moving around him reached him momentarily but passed just as quickly. He was freefalling under the influence of gravity so he left behind the rocks he took hold of as he fell, unable to hold onto their essence for long.


    Jerome practiced¡­and at the same time, kept an eye on the space beneath him. It''ll be devastating to hit the ground at such great speeds. He would probably burst like a watermelon if he did.


    Wielding essence had always been easy for Jerome. He quickly got the hang of what he was trying to do: manipulating the earth around him as he fell. Just before he hit the ground, the rocks on the tunnel wall shattered and poured out like streams of sand, buttressing him and slowing down his fall.


    Jerome landed on the ground with a light sound and exhaled loudly. That could have gone very, very, badly and he knew it. If he hadn''t been able to manipulate the earth as quickly as he did¡­Jerome shivered and shook off the thought. He picked a direction and started off.


    He went on for days digging his way through the soil and opening new passageways to take him into the depths of the mountain. He dug out whole tunnels when there was no path to take anymore. Everything around him was earth.


    After so many days in the depths of the mountain, he broke into a hallway that was pristine and modernized. He felt like he had appeared inside a spaceship of sorts. Lights from glowing runes on the walls and ceiling lit up the portion of the hall where he was as if there were sensors integrated into them. The lights dimmed in places he had already passed through and remained dim in places he had yet to pass through until he got there.


    Jerome examined the walls and runes to see if he could tell what they meant but they were far more complex than anything he had ever seen.


    Although he was very brilliant, he hadn¡¯t been taught how to read ancient scripts used in making formations by the Royals and he never thought he needed it. But now, even though he wished he learned, he knew that was just a pipe dream. He was the Dark One, so the Royals won''t teach him ¡ª which he understood. No one would give a potential enemy powerful information that could be used against them. And the other houses wouldn¡¯t teach those not of their blood.


    Jerome sighed. Vorthean families had a lot of prejudice against those of a different bloodline. Nepotism was the order of the day. This was normal, however, as there may not even be a concept or word to describe or name it.


    Jerome walked down the hall until he came to a dead end. He wanted to turn back but he felt a strange urge to check out the wall. It wasn¡¯t until he was standing in front of it that the wall dissolved and a chamber appeared in his view. The light coming from the chamber was dim, giving the chamber a gloomy feeling. Jerome walked in carefully, with a spear in hand, ready to fight anything that jumps at him out of thin air.


    The moment his foot touched the inside of the chamber, the dim lights slowly grew brighter. The lights were comfortable and soft on his eyes ¡ª like the chamber was welcoming him home. He looked around the chamber and the only thing inside the room was a small podium-like structure that reached up to the height of a table at the center of the chamber. On top of the podium was a black crystal resting on a small red cushion pillow.


    Jerome went up to it and slowly picked it up. The crystal was not a perfect sphere, but it was smooth and dark like black glass. He studied it for a while before scanning it with his perception. Jerome¡¯s brows rose in surprise at what he felt. There was something in there, like data waiting to be read.


    He poured a little essence into the crystal and it lit up with a multitude of colors. Jerome smiled widely and waited for something to happen¡­ but nothing happened.


    ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± he said as his excitement died. He scanned the crystal once again with his perception and the world in his view bled away to be replaced by a white room.


    ¡°Welcome,¡± a female voice said. The voice sounded almost like an automaton.


    Jerome looked around but saw no one. ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I am The Guardian¡­,¡± the voice deepened as it spoke, becoming masculine in moments. It was almost as if it was adjusting and trying to find the right vocal structure.


    ¡°I am The Guardian of this mountain¡­or so the remnants of Terra Praeta call it,¡± the voice said, sounding more human. And deeper.


    ¡°Guardian?¡±


    ¡°Yes. I exist to protect the secrets of the mountain from all who are unworthy of it. Do you think you¡¯re worthy, Jerome?¡± the voice spoke in a deep threatening tone.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Jerome answered, wondering how this entity knew his name. He kept turning around in circles, expecting an attack at any moment. Now, he wasn¡¯t so sure it was a good idea to come down here looking for treasures.


    ¡°But I was able to enter the mountain when others couldn¡¯t. Doesn¡¯t that qualify me as worthy?¡± Jerome asked, grasping at the littlest chance to show The Guardian his worth.


    ¡°You are unworthy until proven worthy!¡± The Guardian roared.


    Jerome swallowed. He felt an overbearing presence just as The Guardian roared but it was gone in the next moment. If he didn¡¯t know better, he¡¯d have thought he was in the presence of the Sovereign. Jerome held himself together to keep from shaking. Even though this space he was in was a projection into his mind, he had no doubt that this entity calling itself The Guardian could destroy him with just a thought.


    ¡°You shall be tested, Jerome,¡± The Guardian spoke as though its former outburst never happened. ¡°And if you fail, you shall cease to exist!¡±


    The room blurred and Jerome found himself standing in the center of the room with the podium. He blinked rapidly to orient himself and looked around to be sure of his safety. He raised his left hand to drop the memory crystal but the crystal had disappeared. Jerome looked down at his hand and found an intricately designed web of scripts running from the back of his hand up his wrist and disappearing into his vambrace.


    He would have loved to take off his vambrace to see where the tattoo ended but The Guardian spoke up.


    ¡°The ¡®Rei¡¯ hsa¡¯ is proof of your participation in the test,¡± The Guardian spoke inside his mind and Jerome guessed he was talking about the tattoo.


    ¡°You can speak inside my mind? Is that what the tattoo is¡­ ¡®Reihsa¡¯?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Not ¡®Reihsa¡¯... ¡®Rei¡¯ hsa¡¯: it is proof of your participation. Rejoice, Jerome. For it is an honor to participate in this life-changing opportunity!¡±


    Life-changing opportunity my ass. What if I die?! Jerome complained inwardly.


    ¡°This is your chance to inherit the last vestige of the ancient fae.¡±


    Jerome felt a touch deep inside him and everything went blank. The next moment he was standing in a hall full of people.

 90. Guardian

    ¡°You must be Jerome,¡± a kid with a mohawk hairstyle said.


    Hedon? Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped open. Hedon was standing a few paces away from him, younger and less restrained than he was when they met before they battled the Children of the Mother. He looked around the hall and was shocked at what he was seeing. This was their first day in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep!


    Is this The Guardian¡¯s test? He thought to himself. He looked at his own body and noticed how small he was. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but grumble in frustration. All this may not be real but it didn¡¯t mean he¡¯d want to live through it again. And it did feel very real.


    ¡°You¡¯re famous, you know? Heard you meditated for nine days at Mhen Agrh¡¯ur.¡± Hedon said.


    Jerome took deep calming breaths. This might have been ages ago but it didn¡¯t stop his anger from rising as he felt like punching the kid¡¯s face in.


    ¡°What did you do, sleep off or something?¡± Hedon said with a sneer on his face.


    The crowd of Blanks burst out laughing at that.


    ¡°Or something,¡± Jerome said when the laughter died down.


    Hedon chuckled at that. He looked over his shoulder and said, ¡°He thinks he¡¯s funny.¡±


    The Blanks behind him chortled again¡­not all of them and not the offensive laughter from before.


    ¡°Everyone knows you broke through to the Essence-Forming Realm after nine days in Mhen Agrh¡¯ur,¡± Hedon said. ¡°That being the case, your foundation must not be solid. I¡¯m here to offer you a chance to seek protection under me during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep,¡± he added, smiling.


    ¡°Oh, my foundation¡¯s very solid. Rock solid, in fact. Thank you for the offer though,¡± Jerome said with a smile.


    ¡°Huh,¡± Hedon muttered, not expecting that. ¡°Do you refuse my offer of protection, boy?¡±


    Jerome sighed. In any version of the story in the entire multiverse ¡ª if that even exists ¡ª Hedon would always be a dickhead.


    ¡°No, not at all. And I appreciate the offer¡ª¡±


    ¡°No one refuses an offer from Hedon Alvric, boy. That is an insult to the Alvric name. I won¡¯t embarrass you today because of the Royal family. Hand over that spear of yours and I¡¯ll look away just this once.¡± Hedon said, pointing at the butt of the contracted spear jutting out from behind Jerome¡¯s right shoulder.


    Jerome almost scoffed out loud. He looked up and around. Couldn¡¯t you have improvised, Guardian? It seems you¡¯re not as creative as I almost thought you were.


    ¡°This spear?¡± Jerome asked, focusing his gaze on Hedon and pulling the spear out of its holder. ¡°You¡¯d have to earn it.¡±


    Hedon went mad. ¡°Have you been messing with me the whole time, boy?!¡± There was no way Hedon wouldn¡¯t see the mirth in Jerome¡¯s eyes right now and it only made him angrier.


    Hedon lunged forward with speed that surpassed that of a Blank and even that of a Sprout. Jerome sidestepped him and Hedon crashed into the wall behind him, destroying it completely. Jerome was shocked at that. Still wide-eyed at the Alvric¡¯s feat, he didn¡¯t see the blur that came rushing at him. Hedon punched him upside the jaw and Jerome shot through the roof, breaking everything in his path. He looked down and saw Hedon flying towards him with glowing red eyes and Jerome¡¯s heart skipped a beat.


    They clashed in the air, punching and kicking each other as their bodies grew to their normal size. Hedon roared a monstrous roar and tendrils of black smoke burst out of him, spreading in every direction. Jerome did his best to avoid the darkness, weaving in and out of it as he flew in the air.


    ¡°Do you see what you become, Jerome,¡± Hedon spoke as he walked on air towards him. His voice was now the voice of The Guardian, and his eyes were the eyes of the Dark One ¡ª blood-red and glowing.


    Jerome took his time to look him up and down. Hedon had grown claws, black claws that were an inch long and dripped with blood. Dark veins were vivid under his skin and the weight of his presence had increased tenfold.


    ¡°Do you believe you¡¯re worthy of the secrets of the fae, now?¡± The Guardian asked.


    ¡°No,¡± Jerome said, downcast. The knowledge of what he was fated to become weighing him down. He didn¡¯t want to become a monster, but he could do nothing to change his fate. Trying to run away would not give him more time. He saw Three and the others in his dreams drawn to the mountains, which means he would be drawn there too.


    ¡°Then prepare to die!¡± The Guardian shot toward him, not as Hedon, but as a mirror image of himself. Except for the eyes, fangs, claws, and everything else that made him the Dark One.


    Jerome covered himself with his metal armor and swung his spear. Sword force spread out toward The Guardian but with the wave of a hand, The Guardian neutralized the deadly blow. They clashed with each other in midair and fought wildly. Every blow deflected sent shockwaves to ruin the tower beneath them and its surrounding. Every blow that connected sent the one attacked careening through the air.


    Jerome battered The Guardian with his blue flames burning his skin with every chance he got. He sent out long blades made from Suzie to hinder The Guardian, all to no avail. The Guardian didn¡¯t bother to dodge. It¡­he spread out the darkness like a shroud around him and consumed anything Jerome threw at him. Jerome¡¯s blades disappeared as well as the majority of his fireballs.


    The Guardian, however, was getting stronger by consuming all his techniques. He threw myriads of black fireballs at Jerome and Jerome had to dive downwards to prevent them from touching him. Just being near those fireballs gave him a sense of doom.


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    The Guardian was waiting for him, having predicted his move. He bludgeoned Jerome with a dark metal staff sending him crashing into the forest below. Jerome stood up on shaky legs as he felt a devouring cold on his back ¡ª the very location where the black staff had hit him. He was beginning to lose strength. Or more like the cold was siphoning his strength.


    He looked up at The Guardian, at the staff in his hand. It was like Suzie ¡ª shiny with a metallic tang to it, but instead of the usual chrome-red color, it was chrome black, a corrupted Suzzie. His anger was kindled at that and he readied himself for the attack he knew was coming.


    ¡°Do you like my new staff, Jerome?¡± The Guardian said in a loud voice before shooting downwards toward the ground, moving faster than the freefall of gravity. He hit the ground with a boom creating a large crater as a shockwave spread out and into the surrounding trees and bushes.


    Jerome flipped in the air and landed just outside the crater. He examined The Guardian and found that his whole body was covered in black tendrils of smoke. It would be hard to hit him as he was. He had used the perfect defense for the moment he hit the ground just like he did in the air. But for how long could he use the darkness like that? It must cost a lot to keep it up.


    Let¡¯s find out, then. Jerome quickly covered his whole body with earthen armor. He fused the particles of earth together tightly and added more earth essence until the armor became almost as tough as Suzie¡¯s armor.


    Shooting toward The Guardian, he formed a spear made out of rocks and did the same thing he did with his armor in a split second: he tightened the particles of earth forming the spear, making it denser and stronger.


    They clashed halfway from each other and fought brutally, creating shockwaves as they exchanged blows and techniques. The Guardian quickly got the upper hand, pushing Jerome back as he spun his staff deftly, sending tendrils of darkness to assault Jerome. Jerome pushed through, moving forward one step at a time. He parried blow after blow feeling the strength leaving his limbs.


    With every impact from the dark staff, he felt a portion of his strength sapped out of him. Jerome shot backward and The Guardian pursued. Earthen spikes shot out of the ground and almost impaled The Guardian as he pursued Jerome.


    ¡°Ahahahah! That¡¯s a good one,¡± The Guardian laughed. He had spun out of the way, with just inches between him and the spikes before they could touch him. ¡°My turn.¡±


    Darkness spread out from The Guardian like a wave, covering the ground and the sky. Jerome felt his heart clench in fear at that as he knew this wasn¡¯t something he could resist. He shot backward, flying at full speed. He pushed with everything he had but the darkness overtook him, locking him in place. Just as he thought everything had gone from bad to worse, the worst happened: dark spikes shot out of the darkness and impaled him from every angle. His left eyeball burst as a spike pierced through it and into his brain.


    Jerome roared in pain.


    The Guardian laughed maniacally behind him. ¡°Death, sweet and pleasant awaits you, Jerome! I can¡¯t wait to take your place¡­to become the new Jerome¡­the new Dark One.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s remaining eye widened as realization dawned on him. ¡°This was never a test,¡± he said.


    ¡°No, Jerome,¡± The Guardian said. ¡°And you were gullible enough to think it was. I don¡¯t blame you. Every Sprout that comes to Terra Praeta comes seeking good fortune. Don¡¯t beat yourself up about it.¡± he cackled with glee.


    ¡°I won¡¯t let you!¡± Jerome screamed, his anger rising. He had to somehow find the strength to free himself. Yet he was losing strength even faster now.


    Jerome roared in anger, bunching his muscles to try and break free of the dark spikes. He pushed his perception to reach out to the earth but a deep dark hole in the world was what he found. Before he could pull back his perception, a portion of it was swallowed up by the void causing his mind to fracture, and a splitting ache assaulted his head. Jerome felt like his head was a racetrack and a thousand spot cars were racing on it. He almost blacked out, vomiting blood in the process. He was bleeding internally already, he knew.


    ¡°Ahahahah, no matter what you do, you can¡¯t get out of this, Jerome.¡± His own face appeared out of the darkness, filled with dark veins and cracking skin. ¡°Your body belongs to me¡­¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t let you,¡± Jerome said weakly. His body sagged down as strength left him.


    Time flew by. The Guardian left, perhaps to go attract another to kill. Jerome felt his end near. He didn¡¯t want to die. He had a lot of people depending on him, a lot of people to find and save. The faces of his family fleeted by in his mind¡¯s eye. If he stayed here¡­if he stayed like this¡­their lives would remain in the hands of another. They¡¯d become someone else¡¯s amusement.


    Jerome grit his teeth as another kind of fear gripped him: the fear that The Guardian would destroy his world just as the Fae did theirs. He couldn¡¯t let this guardian take his body. He wouldn¡¯t. His body contained the seed of darkness and the beast that came with it. It was his responsibility to keep the beast in check, to keep it from repeating the calamities of the past. With such power, The Guardian would do worse than Noir did in his time.


    Jerome mustered up every ounce of strength he could. He spun his core with all his might but it moved at a snail¡¯s pace, the darkness having suppressed him. He began to mutter his mantra willing his intent into every word. The darkness seemed to sense what he was doing and condensed around him becoming more substantial.


    Jerome kept muttering and spinning his core as best as he could. Green and gold motes of light passed through the darkness from beneath him, floating upwards. Jerome was elated. Before he could rejoice though, the darkness consumed them.


    The Guardian¡¯s mocking laughter echoed all around him at that but Jerome was undeterred, he kept at it. He concentrated not only on what the words said but the pledge they promised.


    Mother Nature provides life¡­


    She provides vitality and protection¡­


    To wield the power of the earth is to be a protector¡­


    To become a shield¡­


    To stand in the way of the oppressor and shield the weak¡­


    Jerome¡¯s mind became saturated with the mantra. He pledged himself wordlessly to the earth, invoking into being a life oath to shield the world from the monstrosity that is The Guardian. Something responded to his pledge at that moment. Something deep down inside him.


    Jerome¡¯s core picked up speed and he could hear The Guardian''s laughter die down. His core accelerated and before long it was spinning at great speeds. He transmitted large amounts of essence to his body, filling his tired limbs with strength. The comfort that came with wielding his own essence was very satisfying. He clenched his fist and broke the spikes impaling his arms like they were rocks.


    With the strength that came from wielding his essence, something else began happening: the darkness in the air began forcing its way into Jerome. His core devoured the darkness with great speed that he could feel the movement of the darkness as it traveled through the air toward him.


    Jerome spun around and broke off the rest of the spikes. He reached up and grabbed hold of the spike still inside his eye. Blood and brain fluid coated his palms as he gripped the spike and blinding pain shot up his head, nearly crippling him.


    With a loud roar, he pulled out the spike and shot toward The Guardian. He could sense him through the blanket of darkness that covered the world. The Guardian had been watching silently from a distance, and when Jerome was but five feet away from him, he transformed into black smoke and was absorbed into Jerome.


    Jerome passed out.

 91. Xerae Fir Ilyrrah

    With a painful groan, he rolled over on the ground and pushed himself up. He was still inside the chamber where he picked up that damn stone. He touched himself all over to check for injuries but there were none. Jerome sat down cross-legged to scan himself. His perception flowed slowly through his skin, going through every muscle, and tissue of his body.


    Satisfied with what he found, he stood up and looked around. The room was still the same but there was a new entrance formed on the right wall of the chamber.


    ¡°You¡¯re a very determined human, Jerome. That¡¯s good,¡± The Guardian said with a hint of respect in his voice.


    ¡°Fuck you!¡± Jerome retorted.


    ¡°Apologies for the pain I inflicted. It was a necessary component of the test.¡±


    Jerome scoffed at that. ¡°Can you say you didn¡¯t enjoy torturing me?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Of course, I did,¡± The Guardian said shamelessly with a laugh. ¡°It was¡­hilarious, ahahah!¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mouth dropped in shock for a moment. Then he frowned in anger. ¡°When I lay my hands on the Fae¡¯s secret, I¡¯ll erase you!¡±


    ¡°Impossible. I am the access you need to the Fae¡¯s inheritance.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not gonna stop me,¡± Jerome remarked. ¡°What are you anyway¡­ some kinda artificial intelligence?¡±


    ¡°Quite knowledgeable of you, human¡ª¡±


    ¡°You know my name. Stop calling me ¡®human¡¯. It sounds demeaning.¡± The knowledge that this entity was an artificial intelligence was mind-blowing, but Jerome wasn¡¯t about to stoke his pride. And now he knew what it was like when he called others ¡®kids¡¯.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± The Guardian said loudly and Jerome felt his eardrums ring painfully. He glared at the walls around him not knowing where to focus his anger since The Guardian¡¯s voice was sounding inside his head.


    ¡°As I was about to say before you interrupted me¡­ ¡®human¡¯. I am a highly advanced creation of the Fae¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it seems you inherited their arrogance and narcissism too,¡± Jerome butted in.


    The Guardian chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re a feisty one, ain¡¯t ya?¡±


    ¡°How the hell did you learn to speak like that?!¡± Jerome asked, bemused.


    ¡°Oh, I can say things that¡¯ll knock your socks off. Your human mind is an interesting place to be.¡± The Guardian chuckled.


    ¡°Why¡­you¡ª¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t pry¡­not much at least.¡± The Guardian cut him off. ¡°Though I can teach you how to keep the succubus from hurting you, and maybe even how to get your freak on with her.¡±


    Jerome turned red at The Guardian¡¯s words, ¡°Ahem. You can keep her from hurting me?¡±


    ¡°Hm-hm.¡±


    ¡°Wait, why are you helping me?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes!¡± Jerome almost felt it¡­ him¡­ whatever; he thought he felt him doing a pose to announce something like a herald would. ¡°Good tidings, Jerome! You have proven yourself worthy to behold the treasures and secrets of the Fae!¡±


    Jerome snorted in anger.


    ¡°What? Not epic enough? I could sound very much like the First Elder. Maybe even do better¡­ I could even use his voice. Ahem¡ª¡±


    ¡°Alright, alright! You proved your point!¡± Jerome said in frustration. He¡¯d end up listening to an unnecessary eulogy if he didn¡¯t stop The Guardian.


    ¡°Walk through the doorway. The secrets of the Fae await you.¡±


    Jerome walked up to the doorway and stopped. He felt the same stirrings in him that he felt when he got to the deadend that became a door leading to the very room he was in right now. ¡°Sure this ain¡¯t another test or trick?¡±


    ¡°You think so little of me, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°What was that you called me?¡±


    ¡°Rejoice, human! For you have taken up the mantle of the Fae and I christen you¡­ Xerae fir Ilyrrah ¨C Chosen of Ilyrrah!¡±


    At that he walked through the doorway.


    Jerome had only ever seen two memory crystals in his life ¡ª the one the Sovereign showed him and the one he picked up inside the chamber he just came from. Spread out in front of him and filling the new chamber to the brim were floating memory crystals. He stood stunned at the sight before him. Each crystal was grouped in sections and by color. Each section hovered in a portion of the air above ground making for a mind-numbing sight.


    Is this supposed to be like a library or something? he thought curiously.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. I gathered the knowledge of the Fae using the means left behind by my creator, Ilyrrah. Together with the knowledge he left behind, I created this library.¡±


    ¡°Ilyrrah¡­sounds feminine,¡± Jerome responded. He went to a section just a foot above the ground and picked up one of the stones.


    ¡°I suggest you check this one out first, Xerae.¡±


    A crystal moved through the air from the side toward him and stopped in front of him, still hovering. Jerome took it and transmitted a smidgen of essence into it and then scanned it with his perception. The moment he did, his brain was flooded with so much information his muscles bunched up, reacting to the electrical impulses firing in his brain. He hit the floor and passed out from the pain.


    Jerome groaned as he woke up a while later. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you warn me it¡¯ll hurt?!¡±


    ¡°Hmm. Pain is a part of life, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome glared at no one in particular. ¡°Some day, Guardian¡­do you even have a name?¡±


    ¡°Guardian is my name.¡±


    He sat up and closed his eyes to see what was transmitted to him. His eyes shot open a moment later and he laughed out loud. ¡°Just like that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Just like that, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I can speak faerie now ¡ª the language of the Fae,¡± he said and laughed some more. Not only that, he also had a proper imagery of what the fae looked like now: tall slender beings with pale skin and pointed ears that rose at an angle, much like elves from books he¡¯d once read on Earth. They may be long dead, but an imagery of what they looked like made it easier to understand them.


    ¡°Well, you know it. But you still have to practice. Especially the spells that came with it,¡± The Guardian said.


    Jerome settled down and closed his eyes once again to start going through the language that had been imprinted in his mind. From time to time, he spoke the same language with The Guardian, even going as far as thinking in the language. It was brutal mind-work but he saw quick gains. The mind of a sacred artist was more evolved than that of a mortal man, and it took more to tire him out.


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    Time flew by and six days later, Jerome opened his eyes. With a wide grin on his face, he stood up and stretched his muscles, feeling sour everywhere. He had made great progress in studying the language and history of the Fae. They were a powerful race and prided themselves in excellence above all else.


    Jerome spoke a word in faerie and a blue flame appeared beside him. The flame was no ordinary flame; it carried within it, a flicker of perception which was linked to Jerome. Just like the evolved Suzie, he didn¡¯t need to control its every movement and it absorbed ambient essence to remain powered.


    The flame was wrapped around a core of its own that kept it burning midair ¡ª a binding, his memories provided and he smiled. He scanned the simple binding holding the flame together and keeping it burning. It was simple; it¡¯s only function, to keep the flame burning and floating.


    ¡°A very unique choice of name for a nucleus,¡± he said, smiling.


    ¡°Ah,¡± Achilles said. ¡°A binding is not just the core of a formation or ward, Xerae. It also contains a set of instructions from the spell used to create it. Isn¡¯t that cool?¡±


    ¡°So like a simple script then,¡± Jerome deadpanned.


    The guardian scoffed. ¡°It¡¯s a lot more advanced and intricately woven than what you call scripts, softwares, or programs in your previous world.¡±


    He ignored the Guardian¡¯s words which he knew were intended as a jab at him. He was having too much fun with the independent flame as it were. With a thought, the flame circled around him and then it moved to weave through the library of crystals hovering in the air.


    Jerome followed, tapping the crystals in his way with his index finger. The crystals ¡ª which the Fae called memory stones ¡ª were pushed out of the way, only to float back to their positions in the air as though attracted by some strange force. It was like moonwalking ¡ª only, the stones were the only things affected by the gravity in this case.


    I¡¯d like to learn about formations and wards, Jerome said inwardly to The Guardian.


    ¡°Of course, Xerae,¡± The Guardian said inside his mind. ¡°There are memory stones that deal with all of that here. Whatever you wish to learn is accessible.¡±


    ¡°Access,¡± Jerome muttered. That¡¯s the one thing he never had in Vorthe. Access to knowledge was just as important as knowledge if not more important.


    The little flame stopped at the end of the chamber a while later and Jerome walked up to it. Looking back he observed that the chamber was a lot wider than the others he¡¯d been in. It made sense since it was a library.


    The wall where the little ball of flame stopped had a formation on it. Jerome examined it for a while, taking note of the scripts that made up its network. He now had a general idea of how formations were made. He just had to learn and he had time on his side.


    Placing his hand at the center of the formation, he transmitted a little essence into it and the formation lit up with golden light. A moment later, the light flashed brightly taking Jerome away from the chamber.


    Jerome appeared in the chamber where he left Csala¡¯s body. He searched through his ring and a robe materialized in his hand. Jerome threw the robe at her while muttering a spell, and the robe flew through the air, wrapping around her the next moment.


    He chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re gonna hate what I¡¯m about to do to you.¡±


    ~~~


    Csala was sitting on the divan Jerome had conjured into being when he had last been to his mental plane. She had been making lots of plans on how to escape her imprisonment. Every one of her plans failed woefully though. This place was an impregnable fortress. There was no going out without the owner¡¯s permission.


    ¡°What have you been up to?¡± Jerome asked the moment he appeared next to her.


    Csala quickly rose to her feet. ¡°Nothing, nothing at all.¡±


    She was a far cry from the proud and beautiful succubus she used to be. Jerome scrutinized her for a long time without blinking. Csala¡¯s fear was palpable. She made sure not to look into his eyes for she knew not what other punishment he would think up.


    ¡°Would you like to leave this place?¡± he finally asked.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Csala thought she heard wrong. She had thought Jerome had abandoned her here. He hadn¡¯t even reminded her of the faerie he wanted to learn.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like repeating myself.¡±


    Csala looked Jerome over from head to toe. There was something different about him but she couldn¡¯t quite place it. He was more relaxed. More sure of himself.


    ¡°Yes. I would love to leave,¡± she answered while bobbing her head continuously.


    ¡°Good, but you¡¯ll have to do something for me first.¡±


    The next moment Csala lost control of herself as she glided toward Jerome unable to control her own avatar. Whatever this kid wanted to do, Csala knew it was going to be bad for her. Not like the last time when she could fight back. Somehow, she knew this time around, she wouldn¡¯t be able to. Nothing had ever gone her way since he entered the mountain. She stopped right in front of Jerome, and he looked straight into her eyes. Without a word, Jerome lowered his head and kissed her.


    Csala struggled. She tried summoning her psychic energy to lash out at him but nothing happened. It was as though it was locked inside her. She wanted to push him away but her limbs were dead beside her and her body refused to obey her. The next moment, her mind screamed warning bells at her. Her psychic energy began growing weaker and weaker. Jerome was siphoning her psychic energy at an unimaginable rate. If this continued, she would be turned into a vegetable.


    Csala tried to struggle again but there was nothing she could do but wait for her doom. Her fate had already been decided.


    Why is this happening to me? she thought. If I had just let this bastard out, I wouldn¡¯t be in this predicament, she cried in her heart.


    After a while, Jerome stopped siphoning her psychic energy and left the mental plane with Csala in tow.


    ~~~


    Jerome spread out his perception and it stretched out for a mile and a half. His smile was brilliant on his face as he split his concentration into two. This was something he had learned while learning faerie.


    Beside him, Csala was waking up. She hadn¡¯t used her body in a long time, so she was weak and unstable as she stood up. Jerome didn¡¯t pay any attention to her. He just stood there as he scanned the mountain with his newly empowered perception so he could get used to it.


    ¡°Why?¡± she said, almost bursting into tears.


    Jerome took a while before he answered her. ¡°Would you have stood by and watched me leave? No, you¡¯d have tied me down and abused me all you want. Shouldn¡¯t I protect myself against an abuser?¡±


    The way he said ¡®abuser¡¯ made her cringe back in irritation. She was not an abuser, she was a woman who turned men¡¯s dreams into reality.


    ¡°I¡¯m not an abuser,¡± She said through gritted teeth.


    ¡°And I¡¯m not ready to argue with you, Csala,¡± Jerome said, his voice carrying a tone of finality in it.


    Csala wasn¡¯t moved though. She was centuries older than him and she could spank him anytime she pleased, perhaps. But there was hesitation in her eyes as she gazed at him. Jerome had his back to her, yet she did not dare to attack else something really bad happened to her. Her senses screamed at her to run away.


    Csala gulped and the sound carried throughout the chamber. She had only spent a few days in his mental plane, but it felt like years. She didn¡¯t want to go back there.


    ¡°You may leave,¡± Jerome commanded. Csala stayed still for a while but finally moved. She bumped into him hard on her way out earning herself a chuckle from Jerome.


    ¡°We¡¯re being childish now, hmm? Don¡¯t go too far,¡± he called after her. Csala turned to glare at him but she couldn¡¯t meet his eyes. Something was definitely different about him.


    Jerome walked up to a wall in the chamber after Csala left and placed his hand on it. The portal array lit up on it and he vanished into thin air and appeared in the library deep in the depths of the mountain.


    ¡°Ready for your next lesson, Xerae?¡± A memory stone pushed out of its section and came to hover in front of Jerome.


    ¡°Sure, Guardian. I do wanna give you a befitting name though. How about¡­Achilles?¡±


    ¡°A humbling name, Xerae. I wouldn¡¯t mind being your Achilles heel,¡± the Guardian¡¯s voice resounded in Jerome¡¯s mind with a hint of mockery.


    Jerome scoffed. Damned mind-reading AI. ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask. Are you inside me, or in this¡­what¡¯s the mountain called?¡±


    ¡°I am everywhere, Xerae,¡± the Guardian said. ¡°And I can hear your thoughts loud and clear.¡± Jerome flinched at that.


    ¡°It is by the will of my creator that I run this mountain ¡ª Sanctum, it is called. And it is the binding that shuffles the aliens from your world around Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Interesting. So Terra Praeta isn¡¯t what¡¯s shuffling us around,¡± Jerome said as he sat down cross-legged. The memory stone in front of him also lowered itself to his eye level. He had gotten used to The Guardian looking down on everything and everyone that was not fae or of the fae. At least he doesn¡¯t call me ¡®human¡¯ anymore.


    ¡°Hm-hm. True, I don¡¯t call you human anymore. But do try your best to hide your thoughts from me. It is good practice. Sanctum¡¯s what¡¯s doing the shuffling, though. Ready?¡±


    Jerome chuckled at that. He had tried to hide his thoughts deep inside his consciousness but The Guardian still got wind of them. Perhaps someday¡­


    ¡°Perhaps,¡± The Guardian said.


    Bracing himself, he took the stone hovering in front of him and poured his essence into it. This time, Jerome was prepared. He scanned the stone with his eyes closed, smiling as myriads of information were imprinted into his memory.

 92. Access To Knowledge

    Forester


    He and his team had been searching for a particular mountain ever since they found daylight. He had split them into two teams to search in different directions. Terra Praeta was a whole world and they sure couldn¡¯t search the whole of it. Thankfully he had been briefed extensively about what to expect.


    They had spent days and nights searching but were unable to find it. Every morning when they woke up, they had to track themselves down again and start their search from scratch. It was painful repetitive work, but it was necessary. After searching for over three moons, by his estimation, the repetitiveness of their search became second nature, though boring it still was.


    On one faithful day, one of the scouts reported seeing a mountain far in the distance. He had described it as impossibly huge and covering half the world. The sun was setting at the time of the report, so they had a general direction. Everyone cleared their camp as quickly as possible and started a long marathon flight that may last many more moons.


    They had been attacked by lots of magic beasts since they stepped foot in Terra Praeta, but magic beasts were things they were used to. With the Sovereign¡¯s aura protecting them, nothing could stand in their way. Except, perhaps, a Sage Realm magic beast.


    ~~~


    Hedon


    May the Southern Winds bless the sails of the scouts who brought this great news. They had spotted a mountain from afar. The sheer size of it had thrown Hedon off balance in the air. There was nothing of the sort on the world he came from, and it hit deep down inside that he truly was on another planet. Bracing himself, Hedon gathered the remnants of his team and prepared to make the long journey South, toward the mountain. He hoped to find his grandfather¡¯s treasure there, or even along the way.


    He caressed in his hand, a bronze disc that shone in the light of the setting sun. His team had found a few treasures along the way, treasures that could potentially make his clan more powerful, or wealthier. Their Elders would know what best to do with the treasures. This bronze disc was one such treasure, but he wouldn¡¯t be ceding it to his Elders. It was his find, and would be his to do as he pleased.


    Hedon had promised himself to deal with the royal cur once and for all. He could no longer underestimate the prowess of the bastard. Maybe this new place might hold more powerful treasures. He needed all the power he could lay his hands on to stand on an even field. True. he couldn¡¯t lie to himself that he was more powerful than Jerome. But he had things the cur didn¡¯t. That was the backing of a Great Clan.


    ~~~


    Selene


    Team Itakar had been scouring through the mountain range in the north of Terra Praeta. They found many temples and caves left behind by the ancient Ice Fae, retrieving lost artifacts, resources, and secrets that had long been lost to civilization. These things were preserved in ice, frozen for thousands of years!


    Ajax had found one of the most powerful artifacts one could find on an adventure as well. Something that Selene was a bit jealous of, if she was being honest with herself; something that could help him escape danger in the blink of an eye. She had also found some good things for herself for which she was grateful. Perhaps there was something inside these mountains that would help her father stabilize his powers in the Saint Realm, she hoped, gazing around at the network of tunnels around her.


    The Ice Fae were a strange race of beings. Their heritage could be seen everywhere in the mountains. Some of what they picked up didn¡¯t even make sense to them. There were strange writings on many walls; strange rooms used for Light knows what, strange contraptions used for pumping water into channels in the walls. There was so much to take in and Selene wanted it all.


    ~~~


    Team Fei had been flying North for many cycles now. They seemed to have their eyes set on something deep in the far North, farther North than the mountain range where team Itakar was adventuring. They stopped from time to time to rest but continued northward without spending much time resting.


    There was a prize up North they were gunning for. Something far more powerful than any treasure in the South, it seemed ¡ª at least outside the mountain.


    Jerome opened his eyes and he felt glowing runes light them up. He felt they made his eyes look like tiny suns shining in the dark. Jerome smiled at the thought. The Guardian had explained to him the difference between scripts and runes. He thought they were just different ways of saying the same thing, or if there were any differences at all, they¡¯d be negligible. How wrong he was. Now he knew that if he tried to scan the runes he could feel in his eyes, he¡¯d probably pop a blood vessel in his brain.


    Runes were forces of power. They contained so much power that one look at an ancient rune could scar a man for life. They contained authority.


    ¡°No, Xerae. They contain ¡®Authority¡¯,¡± Achilles, the Guardian corrected.


    ¡°I feel like I¡¯m missing something here.¡±


    ¡°An ¡®Authority¡¯ can be likened to a governing law of the universe ¡ª a universal principle if you might; a truth or a decree, because it is a creation of a being of power.¡±


    What?!


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. You too will get to a Realm where you will create an Authority. Runes can enforce Authorities. They can strengthen, or bend natural law or forces, depending on what they¡¯re meant for. They need neither bindings nor cores for they are ¡®power¡¯ themselves!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Jerome was awestruck. How was that even possible?! How could a symbol contain something as mysterious as a universal law? Or even do this much? And this Authority thing¡­ A ¡®decree¡¯, Achilles had said.


    ¡°This is as a result of the beings who created them; beings who were so powerful, whole worlds couldn¡¯t contain their presence.¡±


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Jerome whispered in awe.


    ¡°We call them Celestials ¡ª though they may have their own names; monstrosities that could swallow whole worlds.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s even more incredible!¡± Jerome exclaimed.


    ¡°However, many wielders of essence have had access to these runes throughout history. Many have copied them to the extent very few remember where they came from. The runes of the new age are far less powerful than what they used to be. Many could be considered scripts, even.  Even given that they still contain the echoes of the powers they once had, the nuance is lost¡­ But that¡¯s a problem for another time, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome couldn¡¯t get the thought out of his mind though. The wider universe just kept getting more mysterious. He had to force his thoughts away from runes and their creators and focus on the Sprouts he¡¯d been spying on for some time now ¡ª the Scions of the Great Houses. He had a very good idea where Team Fei was going. Perhaps he should take Csala there too.


    ¡°Do you think they can make it here¡­the Alvrics and the Royal Sprouts?¡± he asked.


    Achilles snorted. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t know what hit them when they find themselves somewhere else. It will be fun to watch. No one can come near Sanctum. You got here because Mother Nature chose you.¡± There was mirth in his voice.


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    ¡°And Csala?¡± Jerome asked, his voice quite serious.


    ¡°Same reason,¡± Achilles said, toning down the levity in his voice. ¡°I know what you want to ask but I don¡¯t have all the answers; Mother Nature¡¯s ways are profound and mysterious.¡±


    Jerome scoffed. ¡°Some AI you are,¡± he said.


    ¡°When Ilyrrah created Sanctum, he christened it with all of his powers, creating a symbiosis between Mother Nature and Sanctum in the process.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­that¡¯s incredible. I never knew that could be done. I thought only natural things could be given names with power.¡±


    ¡°The Royals already have an idea of what¡¯s here to be claimed,¡± Achilles said, changing the topic. ¡°The Alvrics have no idea, though. There is a treasure in here, Xerae. An artifact that could change the balance of power in your world.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s eyes widened at the realization of Achilles¡¯ words. He held his breath and waited for the AI to finish.


    ¡°That artifact was used to stop the rampage of the ancient Fae. I know the myths spread everywhere about the fall of the Fae, and I tell you, the truth is a lot deeper than what is known. In time you would learn of these truths and even be powerful enough to wield the weapon but for now, you need practice.¡±


    ¡°I guess there is still much about the Fae I don¡¯t know,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Too much to learn from one memory stone, Xerae, or even in a few days,¡± Achilles added.


    Jerome cleared his throat and stood up from the floor to stretch. He did a little stretching to help his muscles and got ready for work.


    ¡°So I need to craft tools and I need to build an oscillator for my clock,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Let¡¯s call it a timekeeper shall we, Xerae? I too wish to see this time¡­clock¡­ thing ¡ª timekeeper sounds better. Though I do not see the use of it.¡±


    Jerome chuckled as he walked slowly toward the wall with the portal. I guess I¡¯d be calling it a ¡®void bridge¡¯ from now on, he mused. He had a good grasp of how to use it better now.


    ¡°The Fae kept time differently when they ruled Terra Praeta,¡± Achilles said. ¡°They get these water sprites for their children¡­called them riverseeds ¡ª tiny little creatures that were born in rivers. These sprites carried their own atmosphere with them ¡ª an atmosphere of water. The consistency of their breathing through specialized gills created tiny vibrations around their watery atmosphere which the fae used to measure time. Of course, all this was possible only for infant riverseeds.¡±


    ¡°Why is that?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°It is said that the riverseed sees the world through a different lens than other species do; like they watch everything from an outsider¡¯s perspective. Nothing phases them when they are young; they have no concept of danger or fear. The more they mature, however, the more they understand the dangers of the world around them, and that some things could hurt them, giving rise to spikes in their heart rates and inconsistencies in their breathing.


    ¡°Ironically, riverseeds were gifts for fae children. As the fae children grew up, they grew apart from their pet riverseeds. They were just timekeepers after all. Time was kept quite like it was in your former world. Except that a full rotation of Terra Praeta is forty-eight hours, not twenty-four ¡ª twice as much as your previous world.¡±


    ¡°Damn! That¡­would have been a wonderful story, but I guess the fae ruined it by separating children from lovely pets, huh?¡± Jerome said. ¡°And the adult fae. Didn¡¯t they need to tell time?¡±


    He fingered a cluster of memory stones hovering in his way and turned back to watch as they floated back to their original positions.


    ¡°Their minds were more developed,¡± Achilles said, ¡°which helped them to track the movement of the planet around the sun and other heavenly bodies in space. Hence, they didn¡¯t usually get lost¡­ emphasis on ¡®usually¡¯. And they could keep track of time very precisely if I might add.¡±


    ¡°You just can¡¯t help yourself, can you?¡± Jerome chided the AI. Achilles had said that last part with a bit more reverence.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°The apple doth fall very near the tree,¡± Jerome said with a snort.


    ¡°I believe you got that wrong, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Well, just goes to show that reading my mind won¡¯t make you know everything I know,¡± Jerome said with a smirk. ¡°Oscillators can be used for many things not just in timekeepers, well majorly keeping time,¡± he quickly added before Achilles threw a rebuttal at him.


    ¡°They work on the principles of oscillation: a periodic fluctuation between two things based on changes in energy. Meaning they could help to calculate speed in relation to time. I¡¯m guessing you can see how useful such a thing will be.¡±


    ¡°I find you more and more interesting, Xerae,¡± Achilles responded, with respect dripping from his voice.


    Jerome chuckled. That was all the praise he¡¯d get from the arrogant AI. He was close to the wall now.


    ¡°I think my people copied the Fae in many things.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. You¡¯re only just noticing?¡±


    Sarcasm¡­ right. The smugness was back but Jerome ignored it. ¡°Like the memory crystals.¡± Which the fae called memory stones. He didn¡¯t need anyone to tell him the different changes that were made.


    Memory crystals were perfect orbs cut and smoothed out, or faceted. Well, Jerome had never seen a faceted one before. The point was, humans were more artistic with their designs. The fae were not. Or maybe it was just Achilles. Theirs were just rough gem-like stones that lacked symmetry. Jerome placed his hand on the wall preparing to portal himself to another room.


    ¡°You should do it without the wall, Xerae.¡±


    He paused for a moment and exhaled loudly. I can do this, he thought. It was a part of progress to do things without support. He took his hand off the wall and stood there with his eyes closed. The void bridge lit up the ground beneath him, with him at the center and he disappeared in a flash.


    Jerome appeared in another chamber and sagged to the ground. ¡°That took a lot out of me,¡± he said breathlessly.


    ¡°Think of it as a muscle you must strengthen, Xerae. It gets better with time.¡±


    The new chamber was filled with different tools on shelves, many of which were new and recognizable. Beakers, flasks, and test tubes graced the walls ¡ª some of the containers were also shaped into weird forms. Everything was made out of pristine, clear glass. Glass he hadn¡¯t seen in a long time. In fact, he never saw glass in Vorthe. Not even once.


    Did that mean there was no glass in Vorthe? Na¡­ He was just kept away from it ¡ª which sounded absurd. It was just glass. Well, it could be really expensive. He couldn¡¯t assume that Vorthe knew nothing of glass. Maybe they even called it a different name.


    There were many other contraptions in the room he had no name for, or even a frame of reference. The only recognizable items were the laboratory glassware.


    ¡°Did you do this, Achilles?¡±


    ¡°Of course, Xerae. It¡¯s better than starting everything from scratch.¡±


    Jerome looked carefully around again and smiled. The place could be called a standard laboratory. The walls were white instead of the usual dark blue of the other chambers and the giant runes on them shone brighter than they did in all the rooms he¡¯d been in. He walked up to a broad off-white raised dais as high and as broad as an island table on one side of the chamber. He felt that the table was carved from one piece of rock as he ran his index finger across the surface. A golden line of light appeared wherever his finger passed through, making for a beautiful display.


    ¡°The light can be used as a form of measurement,¡± Achilles said. ¡°And also to keep track of progress. The Fae used it to teach their children architecture and tactics for battle when they came of age.¡±


    A memory surfaced in Jerome¡¯s mind and he chuckled. ¡°Lightspire ore¡­refined and stained.¡±


    ¡°Correct, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Formed thousands of feet below sea level in the Aion sea,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Correct again, Xerae,¡± Achilles praised.


    ¡°So it can be used as a substitute for a precision lathe?¡±


    ¡°That and more. Especially with my guidance. The Fae had no creation like me in their time; not until Ilyrrah created me. So I can be of great help in engineering whatever it is you want to create.¡±


    ¡°Shweet¡­ Kinda like my own Holocom.¡± He grinned. Though he¡¯d prefer it in a chamber that didn¡¯t remind him of a lab.


    ¡°Seriously, Xerae.¡± Achilles¡¯ voice had an underlying note to it that kinda¡¯ raised red flags in his brain. Best not to take things too far.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be depending on you then. Let¡¯s get to work,¡± Jerome said and closed his eyes. He muttered a spell under his breath and tapped the air in front of him. The air rippled with essence.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take it from here, Xerae,¡± Achilles said and a virtual map made from golden bands of light spread out in the air in front of Jerome. They were going to track down all the quartz crystals they could find around Sanctum.

 93. The Old Crone

    Csala


    The strong winds swept past Csala as she dived down from the mountain heading North, the loose robe Jerome gifted her fluttering around her. She had to do everything possible to make sure Jerome didn''t figure out her secrets¡ªthe secret of her kind¡ªand only the old crone could help her with that¡­probably. Her psychic powers were not as powerful as they once were, but they were still powerful enough to get her down from the mountain safely.


    She pushed upward with her psychic powers so as to keep her descent at an angle parallel to the mountain wall. When she was a few feet to the ground, her body slowed and she landed on steady feet. Csala looked around and shot forward, moving northeast. She reveled in the freedom of her body, her real body. Not the soul avatar of Jerome¡¯s mental plane. The wind on her face and the earth beneath her feet was bliss. She breezed past the trees smelling the wildness of nature in them, the vibrant greenery around her relaxing her mind and filling her with the joy of freedom.


    Csala made it to the old crone¡¯s treehouse in twice the time she would normally do it. When she got to the tree she was breathing hard, exhausted from putting in more effort than she normally would¡ªher limbs screaming at her. She had never run that much in her entire life. She could have just carried herself on the wind with her psychic energy, but Jerome had siphoned the majority of that making flying impossible.


    ¡°Muna!¡± She screamed in faerie, ¡°Come down or I¡¯m coming up!¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes, Muna come down now,¡± came a weak voice in the human language from the treehouse.


    The treehouse was a utilitarian structure, built with tree branches and thatch. It rose above the top of the tree looking a bit slant, as though it would tilt to the side at any moment and fall to the ground.


    A very old woman came out of a doorway and floated to the ground. Her garment was made from thatch, which complemented the dirty mop of hair on her head making her the picture of a crazy old lady.


    ¡°What now?¡± Muna, the old crone, asked, ¡°Can¡¯t ya let weak ol¡¯ Muna sleep in peace?¡±


    Muna¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t very audible, her consonants softer than they should be. She had very few teeth left in her mouth and her skin was wrinkled, her back hunched with old age. It was clear she wasn¡¯t long for the afterlife.


    ¡°You owe me, Muna. I¡¯m here to collect on one of my debts.¡± Csala said, in the human language. Since the old crone wanted to speak human so badly, she¡¯d indulge her.


    Muna opened her eyes wide in shock. ¡°Ya sound desperate.¡± She observed the younger succubus from head to toe, putting the clues together.


    Csala¡¯s feet were dirt ridden which was unusual¡ªsuccubi liked being clean. They use their mental energy effortlessly from childhood to do it until it becomes a reflex. Csala¡¯s usual provocative clothing was no were to be seen and she was sweating and trying hard to appear calm.


    Muna scanned her carefully and almost fell flat on the floor, ¡°Who do this to ya, child?!¡±


    ¡°No one you need to worry about. I need a portion to help me put someone to sleep¡­perhaps forever.¡±


    ¡°Did he¡­?¡± Muna asked hesitantly.


    ¡°No!¡± Csala barked and Muna exhaled in relief.


    ¡°One hand it be good thing he no take ya,¡± Muna said almost in thought, ¡°Other hand it for have been good riddance! Ahahah, follow Muna, child!¡± she flew up into the air and into her treehouse.


    Csala gnashed her teeth in frustration, her anger boiling over. She would knock the remaining teeth out of Muna¡¯s mouth if she could, but the old crone was thousands of years old and a lot more powerful than her. She gathered up her meager psychic energy and jumped into the air, using her powers to help her land gracefully.


    Once inside, she took a sit beside the doorway ready to bolt in case the old crone turned hostile. Succubi weren¡¯t known for their hospitality to each other. Everything was a business transaction for them.


    ¡°Drink this, child¡­ta help ya powers, strong,¡± Muna, the old crone, handed Csala a calabash filled with a herbal mixture.


    ¡°No, thanks,¡± Csala said. ¡°We¡¯re not friends. So don¡¯t show me fake hospitality¡­and then you¡¯d stab me from behind. Hrmph!¡±


    ¡°Now, now, Muna too old for all that ubus crap. Muna not long for Valhalla. Ehn!¡± she waved her hands exaggeratedly in the air as she turned around and stalked off to a stool in the corner of the room. ¡°Csala do Csala. Muna do Muna.


    ¡°So?¡± Muna asked after taking a seat.


    ¡°He¡¯s proving to be too much to handle. Give me something to knock him out¡­as much as possible.¡±


    ¡°Ye young suck don¡¯t know way to man¡¯s heart,¡± Muna grinned a toothless grin.


    ¡°Suck?¡± Csala asked with a raised eyebrow, clearly irritated. The nickname sounded insulting.


    ¡°Yes, yes. Incubus tell me they call y¡¯all. Ya legs not only way ta make man stay,¡± she said with a laugh as she bounced up and down on her stool with a vibrancy that should not be possible for one her age. And then she calmed down almost instantly. ¡°Muna hope Csala know what happen if man take her. Csala lose¡­¡± she pointed at her temple to indicate that Csala would lose her senses.


    ¡°I know, I know,¡± Csala butted in. ¡°Succubi don¡¯t have sex with men else they lose their minds.¡±


    ¡°Csala forget one more,¡± the old crone said, holding up a crooked finger in front of her face, waiting for her to say it.


    Csala glared at her, ¡°I¡¯ll become a slave to the man who sleeps with me, both in body and soul.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. Hmm,¡± Muna nodded her head, satisfied with the younger succubus¡¯ answers.


    ¡°He¡¯s probably found out I can¡¯t wield essence,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°That not good, hmm,¡± Muna said as she gathered materials and herbs in preparation to make Csala¡¯s portion. ¡°That not bad, too. Succubi no wield essence. Muna make strong sleep sitr. Ya man sleep like Tialana.¡±


    Muna probably didn¡¯t know the human word for portion so she used the fae word ¡®sitr¡¯.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want him to sleep like Tialana. Tialana was brain-dead and couldn¡¯t get excited. I want his male parts to work. Only his male parts.¡±


    The old crone laughed long and hard. After a long while, her laughter transformed into a coughing fit and she struggled to calm herself down.


    ¡°Ai, ai, ai. Muna old too much,¡± she complained.


    With her mortar and pestle, she ground the selected herbs, scooped a granular substance from a jar and added it to the mixture in the mortar, she added a liquid with a very potent smell, her hands moving with practiced deftness. Csala looked carefully at the liquid the old crone was adding to the mixture. It gave her a strange feeling.


    ¡°Dream lotus flower. Muna give you good sitr,¡± the old crone chuckled.


    Csala was dumbfounded. Dream Lotus was pretty hard to get hold of. And they grew at very dangerous places, even for millennia-old succubus. The conditions necessary for their growth couldn¡¯t be met in a greenhouse. Muna picked up a spoon and began stirring the mixture inside the mortar. It turned silvery after a while giving off a dreamy, illusory feel.


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    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°Hm-hm,¡± Muna responded, her focus on stirring.


    Csala was mesmerized by the swishing silvery liquid inside the mortar, she couldn¡¯t take her eyes off it. The liquid felt like it had a mind of its own, struggling to avoid the spoon trying to push it in a different direction than the one it wanted to go. She felt like she could sit there all day watching the mesmerizing movement of the silvery liquid.  When she regained herself, she was sitting in a chair in the center of the room unable to move her limbs.


    ¡°You¡¯ve lost your edge, Csala,¡± Muna said in the human language, her voice strong and her speech impeccable.


    Csala glared at her, ¡°Free me now you old crone!¡±


    ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk,¡± Muna tsked and stood up stretching her limbs. ¡°You little ones never learn, do you? That Sprout must have been something to be able to shave off layer after layer of patience you honed for a hundred years.¡±


    Csala looked at her dumbfounded, ¡°Muna you¡­you can speak human fluently!¡±


    Muna snorted, ¡°Do not feel too bad, child. Succubi much, much older than you have fallen for that. You¡¯re just one of¡­¡± Muna got lost in thought trying to remember how many succubi she had scammed and Csala stiffened.


    The implication of that was very heavy in her heart. It would mean Muna was a lot more powerful than she let on. Which meant Csala had no chance of escaping. Plus she had no idea why she was being held captive.


    ¡°Ah, fuck it,¡± Muna gave up trying to remember. ¡°Once¡­my dream was to become the first immortal succubus of this new age.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impossible!¡± Csala said.


    ¡°Yes, well. We ancients who missed our opportunity eons ago found a way to extend our lives,¡± Muna said as she busied herself moving stuff around the treehouse towards the center. ¡°Succubi live very long lives ¡ª almost as long as the fae once did. You¡¯d think for a being who¡¯s lived very long, dying would be an escape but no.¡±


    She grunted as she used her psychic powers to move a big, heavy box out of the wall and toward the center of the room where Csala was tied. The surface of the box was smooth and black like the deepest of shadows. It floated as she moved it, never once touching the ground, ¡°It¡¯s scary as fuck. You get to that age where nature catches up to you and you just want more time.


    ¡°More time, more time, and more time. It never ends. You take and take and take¡­jumping bodies as you would change clothes.¡±


    ¡°What did you say?¡± Csala asked with her heart in her throat.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Muna came out of her reverie. ¡°Hmm. Did you know that when you get old enough you obtain¡­no, develop the ability to ¡®steal¡¯ another succubus¡¯ body?¡±


    Terror hit Csala paralyzing her so that she forgot to breathe for several seconds. She came out of shock a moment later, and tried to free herself but her body wouldn¡¯t obey her.


    ¡°You just reach for the soul in the depths of their being and yank it out,¡± Muna continued as if talking to herself, not noticing Csala¡¯s struggles. ¡°A void is created; the vessel, empty and you just¡­pour yourself into it.¡±


    She noticed Csala moments later and chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t own any of them fancy toys the fae used. But my psychic energy is more than a thousand times stronger than what yours used to be. You¡­are a dumb ass succubus, Csala¡­you¡¯ve gone cahoots¡­coming out here with defective powers. And I thought I taught your mother well. Well, I guess she didn¡¯t teach you well. You should never have come out here at less than half your psychic capacity.¡±


    ¡°Let me go,¡± Csala said, her fear making her voice quiver, ¡°Let me go and I¡¯ll owe you a life debt.¡±


    ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk. Too late Csala. I desperately need your body.¡± Muna said, shaking her head.


    Csala¡¯s body trembled with fear and anger as she glared at the ancient succubus before her. The cunning and manipulative bitch had been fooling with her for a hundred years. And Odin knows how many others.


    She was going to die today and no one could stop it from happening. It was all because of that human, Jerome. She cursed him in her heart as she struggled against her invisible binding again to no avail.


    ¡°I''ll be taking this,¡± Muna said, slipping the storage ring on Csala¡¯s finger off and onto her own finger, ¡°Never did get me one of these. It¡¯s beautiful,¡± She laughed.


    Muna stored all the stuff she gathered inside the storage ring. She stood in front of Csala rubbing her hands together in eagerness.


    ¡°This won''t hurt, child¡­well, not much,¡± she said.


    Csala tried to lean away from her, the fear oozing off her was palpable. "Don''t do this, Muna. We''ve known each other for a hundred years. Why will you put a dent in our relationship?"


    Muna snorted, ¡°Now you say we''re friends? Your body is the friend I know, even though we won¡¯t be friends for long.¡±


    She placed her hands on Csala¡¯s head ready to begin transplanting her soul but she quickly shot backward in a flash!


    ¡°What in the name of Odin''s beard¡­?!¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°Looks great, doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome was hunched down as he stared hard at one of the nano contraptions on the lightspire table. A projection of it was hovering midair above the table but his gaze was on the spot on the table. He¡¯d had to zoom his sight out with the aid of runes Achilles provided, to see if he could capture every detail of it with his naked eyes. It was disorienting, yet fascinating. More than a hundred of the contraptions littered the table.


    ¡°You are one badass engineer, aren¡¯t ya Achilles?¡±


    ¡°I do my best to provide excellence, Xerae,¡± Achilles¡¯ voice beamed with pride.


    Achilles had used various scenarios and theories to create a design and extrapolated its use to generate the chip in front of him. He¡¯d call it a chip. What should have been the creation of a crystal oscillator had rapidly graduated into the creation of a microprocessor. The crystal oscillator sat inside an unfinished pocket watch, waiting to be of use.


    ¡°Oh, no, Xerae. Binding. And it does a lot more than a microprocessor would.¡±


    ¡°And whose brain did you pick to get information for this binding of yours?¡± Jerome called him out.


    ¡°Hmph! This is a very good time to let you know that your succubus is in quite a pinch,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°She will be erased in twenty of the durations you call minutes and forty-three seconds.¡±


    ¡°Ahem. She¡¯s not my succubus,¡± Jerome said. ¡°What happened¡­and what do you mean by ¡®erased¡¯?¡± There was a slight hint of concern in his voice that he couldn¡¯t mask.


    Achilles went ahead to narrate what was happening outside the mountain, explaining the strength of the adversary that had imprisoned Csala. ¡°She¡¯s not someone you can take on, Xerae. But with my help, we can slow her down to get back your succubus.¡±


    ¡°For the umpteenth time¡­ she¡¯s not my succubus,¡± Jerome said in frustration.


    ¡°Really? Your vitals tell me differently, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡± He¡¯d never win an argument with the AI. ¡°What do I need to do?¡± Jerome asked. It was best not to indulge the AI.


    ¡°Whatever you need to do, Xerae,¡± Achilles said.


    Jerome was startled at that but he quickly understood that Achilles was beginning to slowly step away from giving him suggestions and opinions and letting him choose his own approach to solving his problems. Better now than later when he''d have gotten used to the AI''s opinions, unable to make his own.


    Achilles was quite advanced¡­too advanced to be honest, almost like he had his own soul and was his own person.


    ¡°That¡¯s because I¡¯m sapient and not just sentient.¡±


    Jerome stored that for later. He searched through his memories, contemplating for a moment. ¡°Give me a minute,¡± he said and sat down on the lightspire table. A minute later Jerome began muttering a spell under his breath.


    ¡°Excellent choice, Xerae,¡± Achilles praised. ¡°Your choice is a compound spell and a high-level one at that. It¡¯s best for holding back enemies far more powerful than you. Of course, you¡¯ll have to compress it so you don¡¯t end up destroying your succubus too. It is thanks to your remarkable ability to wield ambient essence that you can use this spell. Any other Core Formation Realm artist would only be capable of wielding simple elemental spells.¡±


    Jerome smiled at that. This spell was not just a spell for destruction, it could also be used to form an armor of fire to protect its wielder and also give the wielder more strength and agility but his body couldn¡¯t handle that just yet.


    ¡°Hmm. I should also point out the fact that your psychic energy would play a great part in helping to shape and compress the spell. Of course, it¡¯s all thanks to your succubus that you have such powerful psychic energy.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°Thank you for pointing that out.¡± This was one of the most powerful spells he had learned from the ancient fae ¡ª The Dragon¡¯s Wrath. And he couldn¡¯t wait to test it out.

 94. The Dragon’s Wrath

    Essence gathered inside the chamber where Jerome sat, chanting a complicated spell under his breath. His mind reeled as he observed in awe at how powerful a spell the Dragon¡¯s Wrath was. The gathering essence began to condense right behind Jerome, he raised a finger and touched his forehead right between his brows. A tiny rune with a golden glow appeared beneath his skin at the same spot and the condensing essence behind him began to take shape.


    Jerome got up from the ground and stretched his limbs. He had been sitting on the cold hard floor more frequently than expected. He would need to get a pillow to support his butt for comfort.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready Achilles,¡± he said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll bring your succubus to you after you engage her captor. There¡¯s something in her storage ring ¡ª well Csala¡¯s storage ring ¡ª which would be of great importance to you.¡±


    Jerome got interested in that. He stood straight and Achilles activated the portal formation beneath his feet. He disappeared in a flash and reappeared on the outside of Sanctum, at a very high altitude. The wind buffeted him strongly and he planted his feet on the ground to keep from being thrown off the mountain from high up in the sky.


    Jerome looked around to get his bearings. He was standing on an outcropping, which he felt was rather convenient. But his spirit soared in elation. This was the first time he¡¯d been outside Sanctum in months.


    Is it months already?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. It¡¯s been at least two months since you came here. That would be four months by your standard of time though.¡±


    That was quick. He was so busy learning that he wasn¡¯t aware time was flying by at such speeds. Jerome would have portaled himself here with his own power, but the distance was too great and would require much more essence than he was able to control.


    The spell had been completed by now and a huge armored statue ¡ª golem ¡ª stood behind Jerome. Its white-blue crystalline form betrayed the fact that it was made out of condensed pure essence. Jerome looked back to admire his work and asked.


    Surprisingly, the golem was human-shaped. The spell should¡¯ve been called The Human¡¯s Wrath, Achilles.


    ¡°A dragon¡¯s form is next to impossible for you right now, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome, humphed in displeasure. ¡°How¡¯s that my fault?¡± he muttered and turned around to locate his target.


    How much time do we have, Achilles? The strong winds were too much for normal speech. Even he wouldn¡¯t hear his own voice so he decided to speak on the inside. Something he should be doing more of.


    ¡°Seven minutes and five seconds, Xerae.¡±


    I like the gun, though. It looks futuristic. The golem was armed with a long gun that looked like something out of a sci-fi movie ¡ª sleek and aesthetically pleasing to the eye.


    ¡°I got the idea from you, Xerae. The weapons of your previous world are¡­quite good.¡±


    ¡°Quite good? That¡¯s all you can say about them?¡±


    ¡°Hm-mm. I¡¯d like to study them some more to create my own versions of them.¡±


    Jerome snorted. Some other time, Achilles. He set his gaze forward in the direction of the old crone¡¯s treehouse. It was miles away and was impossible to see from his position.


    Vision, he said in his mind. And runes glowed in his eyes, morphing into different forms as if swimming through a sea of black. His sight became sharper and he zoomed in on the treehouse.


    Take aim, he said next. And the avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath went down on one knee and raised its hands as more ambient essence poured into its hand to form a long gun that looked a little too futuristic. The armored warrior took aim and cycled.


    Jerome¡¯s mind nearly went blank with shock as he felt that. The warrior reeled in ambient essence in seconds, nearly stifling his own core just by cycling. The action turned their immediate surroundings into a retreat for meditation.


    ¡°The Dragon¡¯s Wrath is a chain of spells and techniques, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Once one part of the spell is completed, it starts a chain reaction that leads to this advanced creation. You should test the different parts of the spell from time to time. It will help your fire-essence techniques, but¡­¡±


    Jerome examined the warrior behind him and saw tendrils of red-orange essence forming in the warrior¡¯s center where a human¡¯s core would be. The tendrils of essence were fire essence and he could feel how powerful each strand was.


    But? he asked almost absently.


    ¡°But we¡¯ll have to find you a suitable cycling technique,¡± Achilles said. ¡°...soon.¡±


    There was a spike of concentrated psychic energy in the air and Jerome sucked in a breath. The older succubus homed in on him like a hawk. From such a distance, it should have been impossible!


    ¡°As I said, Xerae. You would have to compress it so you don¡¯t end up destroying your succubus as well. This foe is just that strong.¡±


    Your explanation of the degree to which the spell would be powerful was underwhelming! Jerome snapped.


    ¡°Will put that into consideration for later. This foe, though, can bat this spell away as if batting a fly.¡±


    Jerome stopped to consider what Achilles just said. Csala¡¯s captor must be very powerful to get such a high estimation of strength from Achilles. He cranked up the spell a few notches, compressing the warrior¡¯s core forming in its lower belly region, and its technique some more.


    When the spell was fully ready again, Jerome felt as though a shot could potentially blow up one of Terra Praeta¡¯s two moons. Space warped around the armored avatar and he had to move a good distance away, making sure that the target was still locked. The gun in the avatar¡¯s hands was now glowing with a golden glow and pulsing like a heartbeat.


    Jerome took a long deep breath and roared, ¡°Fire!¡±


    Enough energy to destroy half the moon gathered at the muzzle of the gun and blasted out covering miles in a split second.


    That was incredible! Jerome thought with a smile on his face. This was one weapon that could give him an edge in Vorthe. Though, I can¡¯t help but wish I could do that myself.


    ¡°Soon, Xerae. This is one of the reasons why the Fae had warriors and mages. Warriors were physically faster and stronger than mages. But mages had access to more essence in the world. They lived longer and could attack a target from a great distance¡­or destroy a whole nation. There were those who were outliers though¡­hybrids.¡±


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    Jerome nodded his head as he listened to Achilles. The Fae was a really scary race.


    Take aim, he commanded again, and the armored warrior started cycling again.


    ~~~


    Csala


    Her mind was a mess as she turned her predicament in her head, searching for a way out. Nothing she tried was going to work and she knew it. But she was not one to give up hope. So she just kept trying and searching for new ways to escape, pushing her meager psychic energy to the limits. She dreaded whatever skill the old crone was about to use on her to take out her soul and take her body, as though it was a dress she could just wear.


    The old crone placed her hands on Csala¡¯s head ready to begin transplanting her soul but she quickly shot backward in a flash!


    ¡°What in the name of Odin¡¯s beard¡­?!¡±


    Potent energy blasted the treehouse away and almost split the old succubus in two. With a backhanded slap, she redirected the energy as though it was a material thing. Blinding light assaulted Csala¡¯s senses and the ground shook, sending powerful shockwaves all around. The tree toppled over, throwing them into the air.


    Csala looked around her and all she saw was ruins for miles. Her eardrums had been destroyed due to the shockwave and she was blinded from the intense light just now. The ground was still trembling and debris was shooting every which way. The destruction from that shot was a calamity to the land mass, she knew. She tried moving her body midair but she was still locked to the chair, paralyzed. Csala cursed Muna in her heart, hoping the older succubus didn''t die a quick death.


    As her eyes cleared, she sensed another lance of golden energy tear through the air, blasting falling debris apart, toward her. But Muna was very prepared for this one as she knew that whoever was targeting her would have prepared to miss. Muna used her powerful psychic energy to redirect the second shot, however, it took a lot out of her. Whoever the shooter was, they had apparently also learned from the first shot. The second shot was a thousand times more powerful than the first ¡ª and Csala felt a familiar aura to it¡­ before she blacked out.


    ~~~


    Muna


    She looked around to see if she could find Csala among the falling debris, but the younger succubus had disappeared. She cursed in ancient faerie, a string of soft-sounding consonant sounds that were like music, but also disturbing to the ears.


    She could see a tiny dot of golden light coming from the distance and she prepared herself. Half a breath later, it was only a few feet away from her ¡ª an even more powerful blast! Muna took to the skies weaving through the air to try and evade the powerful energy blast which had followed her upward in pursuit, her dirty mop of salt and pepper hair flailing around her head.


    She felt another powerful wave of energy rushing towards her and saw a bright golden light on the periphery of her vision. Muna pushed herself hard. She tried to evade, but the third shot reached her all too soon. She had to sacrifice her arms to push away the energy balls, and they blasted away her lower arms.


    Muna held in her scream, shaking like a leaf in winter. She had to release her psychic hold on many of the beings she had imprisoned to suppress the essence eating through her veins; else she joined her ancestors sooner rather than later.


    ~~~


    Jerome caught Csala the moment she appeared in front of him, chair and all. With a thought, Achilles portaled them to the laboratory.


    ¡°Quick, Xerae. The older succubus has done something to her.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°My scan shows that her internal organs are shutting down.¡±


    ¡°The other succubus must have been very powerful then,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°If they¡¯re old enough and strong enough, yes. But this one has dabbled in things that¡¯ll make you have nightmares.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t even want to know. He quickly broke the chair Csala was stuck in and laid her on the Lightspire island table. Golden lines of light lit up and wandered the surface of her body for a few breaths like a scan before a cocoon of light wrapped around her and began pulsing lightly.


    ¡°She¡¯s stable now, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot of work for someone who wants to turn me into a veggie. Didn¡¯t sign up for this,¡± he muttered in complaint. I thought the lightspire table could only be used for measurement and learning to design stuff. He didn¡¯t want Csala to know he was talking to someone if she was still conscious so he discussed inwardly with Achilles.


    ¡°I can interact with it as I see fit, Xerae. Also, this table was designed by me so there are a few adjustments that I¡¯ve made.¡±


    Jerome nodded at that. Did we get the ring?


    A ring materialized in front of him, hovering in the air. Jerome snatched it out of the air and scanned it with his perception. Most of the ring¡¯s content was female stuff. What attracted him was the huge black cube rotating in a clockwise direction as it hovered above everything else inside the ring. Jerome knew at once that this was what Achilles wanted him to get from the ring.


    ¡°It¡¯s searching for the North,¡± Achilles said.


    Jerome smiled. Like a compass? Is that what it does?


    Achilles snorted. ¡°It would be a waste of resources to build something like this just so it could find the North don¡¯t you think, Xerae?¡±


    Jerome shrugged and lit up the portal array before he disappeared in a flash. He appeared in another chamber deeper under the ground and took out the box. As soon as it appeared, it righted itself and hovered midair, not spinning anymore. The box was a bit eerie to look at as it just stood there in midair. The surface of the cube was matte black and Jerome felt like the cube could absorb all light around it. It reminded him of the boxes that appeared in midair during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur when he took the first step to becoming a sacred artist.


    Those boxes didn¡¯t give him the feeling this one was giving him though.


    ¡°So?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°What does it do?¡±


    ¡°Place your hand on it, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome placed his hand on it and its surface rippled slightly. Then his mind expanded and the whole of the mountain came into view ¡ª from different angles ¡ª like he was having an out-of-body experience. Every detail of every stone slab and chamber, every mote of dust in the air, the pure essence in the air, and the earth essence in the rock were all visible to him. He felt like he could literally ¡®see¡¯ the very atoms that made up everything his gaze landed upon¡­like no secret could be hidden from him. He felt faint after a few seconds and removed his hand from the cube before he passed out.


    ¡°What the hell?¡± Jerome asked as he breathed heavily. That took a lot out of him.


    ¡°That¡¯s one of the pods I used as surveillance throughout Terra Praeta,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°What the hell was it doing with a succubus?¡±


    ¡°She was able to discover my presence once, many years ago,¡± Achilles said, and as he spoke, the memory of the old crone, opening a void crack in the world, poured into Jerome¡¯s mind.


    Heartbeat increasing rapidly, Jerome¡¯s mind reeled. He was now discovering how powerful the succubus he held off with his Dragon Wrath¡¯s spell was. If she ever decided to come after him¡­ Jerome broke into a cold sweat at the thought.


    ¡°Can succubus wield essence, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked.


    Achilles was quiet for a while like he didn¡¯t want to answer, or maybe he didn¡¯t know the answer. Jerome¡¯s gut however told him he definitely knew the answer.


    ¡°I believe you already know the answer to that, Xerae. But I fear what you might do to the little succubus in your anger when you receive confirmation of your suspicions. Or when you find out more about them. Remember though, Mother Nature brought her here for a reason. Even I couldn¡¯t stop it.¡±


    ¡°So they can¡¯t,¡± Jerome said, choosing to ignore the part about Csala being some sort of piece of puzzle in the grand plan of the world. He chose to tackle the problems he had in front of him now.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to hurt her. I also want to know why she didn¡¯t have sex with me when she could have,¡± Jerome said. That last part didn¡¯t sound right to him.


    ¡°You are angry at her, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°I am,¡± he deadpanned. ¡°And I¡¯m finding it hard to reconcile what I know of the myths of the succubi from my previous life with what I see now.¡±


    There was a little bit of uncomfortable silence after that. Jerome waited. He wouldn¡¯t be the one to break this silence. And he wouldn¡¯t budge until his questions were answered.


    ¡°Knowing that, Xerae¡­could change you.¡±


    ¡°Everyone changes.¡± Jerome crossed his arms, willing his determination into his words and demanded, ¡°What don¡¯t I know about them, Achilles?¡±


    ¡°Very well,¡± Achilles said and Jerome felt the AI reach for his mind. A memory poured slowly into his mind and Jerome closed his eyes to concentrate on it.

 95. A Promise Of Better Resources

    ¡°Nature isn¡¯t fair, is it?¡± Achilles asked as Jerome opened his eyes.


    ¡°No¡­no, it¡¯s not,¡± Jerome answered, ¡°For every advantage it gives, it takes away some freedom from you. There is a sort of wisdom in that.¡±


    He had just watched the conversation between Csala and the old crone, and many delicious secrets were revealed from it. Now he understood why Csala was embarrassed when she had to drag him with her body on display through tunnels. She had never truly known a man, even though she had brought many men pleasure. Jerome didn¡¯t know what to think about that. The thought of it didn¡¯t sit well with the image of the succubus in his mind.


    ¡°This revelation is both a relief and a discomfort. Well, how can this pod of yours be of great importance to me?¡± Jerome asked, changing the subject to something more comfortable.


    ¡°You should bond with it. It would help your perception in ways no sacred artist could ever dream of.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it like a part of your system?¡±


    ¡°It is. But the moment she captured it, I released another one into the void.¡±


    ¡°Huh. So you¡¯ve got backups. How did she even do that?... And how can you do that¡­Put things and take things out of thin air?¡±


    ¡°The principles around that skill are very similar to what was used to create your storage ring ¡ª although those who create storage rings in your world don¡¯t have the full knowledge of it. They just use bindings and scripts they found here, and in void worlds they raided on your planet.¡±


    ¡°But she¡¯s not even a sacred artist¡­she can¡¯t wield essence,¡± Jerome said, flustered and a bit frustrated.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t need essence, Xerae. Anyone with a powerful enough psychic energy can rip open space to hide something or cross great distances. With such powerful psychic energy, space becomes as one of the elements; feelable, touchable¡­ accessible.¡±


    ¡°Access,¡± Jerome muttered. This was the second time the word was shoved into his face, reminding him of the one thing he didn¡¯t have in his world because he was the fated Dark One. Jerome massaged his temples to ease his nerves as he thought about the magnitude of what he¡¯d just heard.


    He chuckled, feeling a little dejected and angry at himself. ¡°And I¡¯m here playing timekeeper. I wanted to design a piece of technology that could help me calculate speed, and then perhaps patterns, and then maybe predict the future. But guess what? Apparently, people can just punch holes in the world and get to me if they want to.¡±


    Jerome sighed and raked his hand into his hair, ¡°Can the Sovereign of Vorthe do this? That¡¯s a stupid question. Of course, he can. Who else can do it?¡±


    ¡°I have stretched my senses beyond the veil of this world, Xerae. I¡¯ve counted eight such people in your world ¡ª including Vorthe¡¯s Sovereign.¡± Achilles¡¯ voice sounded gentle, empathic as if he was trying to give Jerome a pat on the back.


    ¡°Eight? I¡¯m guessing they¡¯re all Transcendents,¡± Jerome said. The doom and gloom in his eyes and voice faded rapidly.


    ¡°Yes, they are, Xerae. Only Transcendents can achieve such a feat in your world because sacred artists are like Warriors of the fae. If there ever was a mage, they¡¯d be able to rip open the fabric of space and go wherever they pleased before they reach Transcendence, except specific action is taken to lock down space in an area where portalling isn¡¯t wanted.


    ¡°But hey, there¡¯s one such mage here with me right now,¡± Achilles said, his voice sounding jovial.


    Jerome chuckled as he sat down on the ground to think.


    ¡°Thanks, Achilles,¡± he said with a smile.


    He absently pierced the tip of his index finger with Suzie and touched the drop of blood that welled up to the surface of his skin to the floating cube. The cube seemed to sublimate a second later and dark black gas filled the air which was then sucked into his body the next moment. Jerome sat there as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± Achilles said as if he had found a new form of entertainment.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°And that was a good ¡®Spock¡¯ impression.¡±


    Achilles ignored his words. ¡°I must say, Xerae. You¡¯re as much a mystery to me as the succubus passed out in the lab.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± Jerome asked. Now this was new. Achilles only found everything fae-related fascinating. Anything human-related was beneath him.


    ¡°The cube was not supposed to be absorbed into you ¡ª nothing should be, because artifacts don¡¯t work like that. It was supposed to shrink and fit in the palm of your hand as any normal artifact would. Which means you¡¯re the mystery.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± Jerome humphed with a smile, curiosity and discovery coloring his face. That was a new one. He remembered bonding with Suzie, and it sure wasn¡¯t like this. But since Suzie had fused with his body, he didn¡¯t give this merge a thought. This had something to do with the mind-calming stone. And for some reason, Achilles couldn¡¯t read his thoughts right now. He could tell. He knew it, like a profound truth that didn¡¯t need to be reasoned.


    Achilles doesn¡¯t know about the mind-calming stone, he thought.


    Jerome held his hand out and Suzie slowly bled out of it before transforming into a glistening, red spear.


    ¡°Okay, how did you do that?¡± Achilles asked, sounding flustered.


    ¡°You sound very human right about now, Achilles,¡± Jerome said with a smirk. ¡°Unsure of yourself.¡±


    The AI hated being compared to humans. It was demeaning to him. He was created by the great and ancient fae of times past after all.


    ¡°Hmph! I¡¯ll have you know, Xerae, that I can figure out whatever it is and even help you increase its performance by over a thousand percent!¡±


    ¡°Well, good luck to you then, cos I am an enigma. Can you read my mind right now?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Wha-what¡­what do you mean? Of course, I can.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t, can you?¡± Jerome chided but was also a little fascinated.


    He had been training his mind ever since he siphoned psychic energy from Csala. Since then he had sensed more of the mind-calming stone. It was like a living being inside him ¡ª he had a feeling it was feminine in nature ¡ª which was a little weird because it was a stone. But a unique stone nonetheless. Jerome had felt its¡­her presence bloom in his mind when he thought about her.


    It was as if she didn¡¯t want Achilles to know about her, protecting herself. Whatever it was, Jerome was glad to have a respite from the AI peeping in on his thoughts ¡ª Achilles could still check his vitals and tell if he was horny though; there was nothing he could do about that.


    ¡°At least your thoughts are geared towards helping me. That¡¯s nice to know,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°It¡¯s my purpose to serve, Xerae,¡± Achilles said, his voice filled with integrity.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want a servant, Achilles, I want a friend who can have my back¡­even when ¡ª no, especially when things go bad. And I¡¯m about to annoy a lot of powerful people, Achilles. Are you with me?¡±


    ¡°Till death, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome breathed out a sigh of relief. ¡°So, this pod. What¡¯s it called?¡±


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°It¡¯s just one small portion of an advanced surveillance system I call, Hezvar.¡±


    ¡°Vision,¡± Jerome said with a nod, ¡°It¡¯s a fitting name. Can I rip open holes in the world, though?¡±


    ¡°Not yet but soon. Your succubus is waking up, Xerae.¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°You owe me,¡± Jerome said as Csala sat up on the lightspire table. She was a far cry from the proud succubus he had encountered on his first day inside Sanctum. Her red hair was in ruins¡ªthick and unkempt, and riddled with leaves and dirt.


    She also looked pale and sickly, the glow and suppleness of her skin had diminished greatly. The older succubus must have done a number on her.


    Csala looked away from him not knowing what to say.


    ¡°Fortunately for you, I am a benevolent person,¡± Jerome said with a hint of a smile on his lips.


    Csala looked at him with suspicion. She could sense something bad coming.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± she said, her voice sounding cracked and painful.


    Jerome moved closer entering into her personal space, and lifted up her chin with a finger to make eye contact. He truly wanted to hate her, but for some reason he didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± she said again. ¡°You¡¯ve taken so much from me already,¡± she finished with a sniff.


    Jerome smiled at her and bent down to kiss her. Csala flinched and stiffened. She wanted to stop him but didn¡¯t have the strength to do so. Something else happened though. Instead of siphoning more of her psychic energy as she thought, Jerome was pouring his vitality into her.


    Csala was overjoyed. Her hungry cells threw themselves wide open and devoured the vitality he poured into her. She unconsciously moved her hands and wrapped them around his neck pulling him closer.


    Jerome had never met a ¡®supposedly¡¯ experienced woman who kissed like it was her first time. He observed as she became bolder, testing the waters, leaning into him as he poured his vitality into her. He scanned his body quickly to make sure he wasn¡¯t giving her too much ¡ª he wasn¡¯t Santa after all.


    Jerome broke up the kiss and leaned away, flustered and out of breath. Any more than that and he wouldn¡¯t be able to hold back himself. Even looking as unkept and unhealthy as she was, Csala was still irresistible. A glance at her let him know he wasn¡¯t alone in it. Csala was breathing hard and looking at him like a snack she wanted to devour. Her skin had regained some of its vitality and suppleness making her even more irresistible.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough for now. I need my strength for other things,¡± he said.


    ¡°How ¡ª ahem ¡ª how did you get me out of there?¡± Csala asked, her voice sounding normal. Jerome had to hold himself back at the sound of her voice and she seemed to notice. Her voice was like a siren¡¯s call.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she said, ¡°Succubi are born this way; I can¡¯t help it.¡±


    Jerome took a deep breath to calm his nerves. It was like being in the presence of a Sage ¡ª maybe she was as powerful as a Sage ¡ª but instead of feeling pressured, he was feeling aroused.


    ¡°She¡¯s not,¡± Achilles said in his head. ¡°She can only compare to a Spirit Realm artist¡ªone at the peak of the Spirit Realm. I believe they¡¯re called True Spirits, or True Spirit artists.¡±


    So are there¡ª


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Csala called out to him with a curious look.


    ¡°Sorry about that,¡± he said before helping her off the table. She tripped before gaining her balance. Having lost so much vitality, she wasn¡¯t used to the weakness in her legs.


    He could just imagine what he would have looked like standing there not saying a word and gazing into empty space as he discussed with Achilles. He held Csala by the waist as the portal formation lit up beneath them they disappeared in a flash and reappeared in a new chamber.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never been to these parts of the mountain before. How did you do that?¡± she said looking around.


    ¡°I found something here. And I trust you¡¯ll keep this a secret,¡± Jerome said, eyeing her with a hawk¡¯s gaze.


    Csala turned to him and nodded. ¡°I swear by Terra Praeta¡¯s moons that I would never reveal anything about you to anyone living or deceased,¡± she said, feeling bitter about it all. The oath took hold and settled in the depths of her soul and she flinched but then sighed afterwards.


    Jerome must have obtained some sort of good fortune and somehow had more power in his hands but she had been here for more than a century and all she could do was use this place as a safe haven because she couldn¡¯t use essence.


    Jerome watched her watch him. The fear in her eyes was deep. He had almost forgotten about the effectiveness of oaths. From her reaction, he knew that the oath had taken hold. But that was a bold move on her path to express her sincerity.


    Why the hell didn¡¯t you get an oath out of that other succubus? He snorted as he watched Csala shake off her melancholy and focused on the room they appeared in.


    ¡°The other succubus would¡¯ve refused to, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Or created loopholes that wouldn¡¯t be readily considered. It¡®s all about experience and abilities: if you don¡¯t know the depths of one¡¯s ability, you don¡¯t know how much limits the oath has on them.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding as he looked around. If one swears not to hurt you under oath but can get another to do it without breaking an agreement or said oath then¡­


    He had a vague map in his head of the labyrinth that was Sanctum. They had teleported to a chamber where Achilles 3d printed things he needed¡ªwhich was incredible. The room was as bright as the laboratory. There were boxes stacked on shelves by the walls.


    Jerome did a quick scan and found they were filled with spare parts for Achilles¡¯ projects. There was a glowing light of a blue scripted circle at the center of the room which gave off a strange energy, non-threatening though it was. Achilles transmitted the procedure to activate the circle fully and direct it to print whatever Csala wanted.


    ¡°We¡¯re here to make you some clothes¡ª¡®decent¡¯ clothes,¡± he said that last part to Csala as much as to Achilles. The AI could do things to annoy him sometimes.


    ¡°Make?¡± Csala asked unsure. All the clothes she owned were stolen from female sacred artists who came to Terra Praeta from Jerome¡¯s world, including the furniture Jerome had torched inside her room.


    ¡°How is that a strange concept to you?¡± Jerome said. ¡°Never mind. Get in the circle.¡±


    Jerome held her dainty hand in his and walked her to the glowing blue circle in the middle of the room. With a glance to his side, he couldn¡¯t help but smile. Csala was looking like a fish out of water. He guided her to the middle of the circle and crouched down to activate the circle. It was pretty straightforward. Jerome slid his finger in an arc around the glowing circle making sure to transmit as much essence to the circle as possible, lighting up scripts in the process. With a pulse of essence from him, the circle was fully activated.


    ¡°We have to prepare for your next project, Xerae. Illyrah left strict orders to make sure this next project was completed before you left for your world.¡±


    And what might this project be? Jerome asked, watching as Csala twirled her fingers in the air and patterns unfurled where her finger passed through the air, creating a design for what she wanted. He saw her smile and her lips move as if she was talking to someone which was a surprise. The inside of the circle seemed to be soundproofed as he couldn¡¯t hear what she was saying.


    Achilles, are you communicating with her? He asked.


    ¡°Not directly, Xerae. And the project is to create a spatial treasure¡ªa void space to be precise. Large enough to hold anything you want, but small enough that it won¡¯t be a burden to create or maintain.¡±


    ¡°That would be cool. Would living things be able to survive in it? Cos storage rings can¡¯t hold living things,¡± Jerome said as he walked away from Csala, leaving her to do her thing. She seemed to be having fun creating the kinds of garments she wanted to wear.


    ¡°Of course, Xerae. That¡¯s the whole point of a void space. You can hide in it as well, and hide things you don¡¯t want others to know about.¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡±


    ¡°Illyrah tried to think of everything. Should in case you ever lose your storage ring or it was stolen, this would come in handy. Also, there are things that can¡¯t be kept inside a storage ring.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s reasonable,¡± Jerome said, nodding slightly. Living things couldn¡¯t be kept inside storage rings. He didn¡¯t plan to lose his storage ring though. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it have been quicker if he left one behind?¡±


    "True, but over a long period of time, it would erode and destabilize without a tether and collapse in on itself. And then there¡¯s also the fact that a void space grows as its wielder does, becoming wider as your foundation rises. The early sacred artists that came to Terra Praeta found the first scripts and arrays for making storage rings. After them others tried to find something similar and they did. But what they found were of cheaper quality.


    ¡°The storage ring you wear now can be accessed by anyone, but ask Rihal when you get home about the storage rings the Royals and the members of the Great families wear.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­so there¡¯s a difference between storage rings,¡± Jerome said. He couldn¡¯t be bothered by the fact that Achilles knew about Rihal.


    ¡°There¡¯s a difference between many of the resources Scions and disciples get, Xerae, and I¡¯ll make sure you get even better resources. But first, you¡¯ll have to cleanse yourself of impurities, and rest.¡±


    ¡°Rest?¡± Jerome was transported to another chamber by Achilles himself.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. It¡¯s a different kind of rest ¡ª a comma if you will. It¡¯s the only way to prepare your body for the torture it will have to endure to succeed.¡±


    Jerome was taken aback. More pain? He was used to pain. Doesn¡¯t mean he would love to experience it though.


    ¡°Wait a minute. How do I create a dragon avatar for the Dragon¡¯s Wrath?¡±


    ¡°Firstly, you need to have a really good understanding of an adult dragon¡¯s essence channels and core; muscle mass, and bone density too. And theirs is way more complicated than the Faes.¡±


    ¡°What is it, rocket science? Fine. What do I need to do?¡±

 96. A Wise Man Knows His Limits And Works Around Them

    Hedon had ditched his plan to travel underground after two of his teammates nearly died from the poison of the Earth Crawler ¡ª a large poisonous worm that burrowed through the earth scavenging for dead and buried flesh to feed on. He only implemented that plan to practice using earth attribute essence in the first place. He wanted to learn how to wield another essence so he could have better protection, but he was still years away from learning how to properly wield earth essence.


    As they got closer to the mountain, the dangers they faced became more severe. Attacks started coming from more powerful magical beasts. Before long, they had flown into the territory of a wyvern; a deadly relative of the dragon bloodline. Wyverns were known for their high intelligence and ability to produce sonic waves that could obliterate sacred artists at the Core Formation Realm ¨C Sprouts.


    Reptiles were very sensitive to their environment; their senses far surpassing that of a wolf. The wyvern raised its head inside its dwelling. It quickly flew out of its cave and circled the intruders as they flew by, ignorant of their situation.


    ¡°Do you hear something?¡± Hedon used his communications artifact to ask his teammates.


    They were flying really fast, so the wind was in their eyes and ears. No one should have been able to hear anything but the strong wind blowing past them. But Hedon wasn¡¯t the son of their Patriarch for nothing. He was a lot stronger than many elites in his clan, and his senses were far sharper than theirs.


    ¡°I don¡¯t hear anything,¡± many of his teammates reported back.


    ¡°I do,¡± both Murray and Arkesha said at the same time.


    The moment they spoke, everyone stopped. Since the most powerful Sprouts among them heard something, there really might be danger. Everyone took position. A moment later, a huge shadow covered part of the sky moving in the opposite direction. The group stopped to look up but what they saw made them freeze in place.


    A gigantic black reptilian creature with wings that literally covered the sky, flew slowly past them while eyeing them with one of its black-slitted eyes.


    ¡°Dragon,¡± someone whispered. She was one of the four female sacred artists present in the group.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a dragon, that¡¯s a wyvern!¡± Arkesha, who was close to her, shouted.


    ¡°Run!¡± Murray commanded and they all scattered in different directions, with Murray and Arkesha flying alongside Hedon to protect him.


    The team of sixteen Sprouts split up and flew in different directions but the wyvern just landed on a small mountain, its wings still slowly beating. The creature was over two hundred feet long, with a wing span of six hundred feet! The wyvern let out a high-pitched screech from its throat, causing an area of half a mile around it to vibrate fiercely. Every one of the Alvrics fell from the sky with blood coming out of their orifices.


    The Wyvern was extremely brutal. It chose its first prey and immediately went in for the kill. It raised its wings preparing to fly off the boulder. With a loud sonic boom, like the clap of thunder, it spat compressed air at one of the falling Alvrics. The Sprout instantly exploded midair and the Wyvern was there a split second later to gulp down its meal whole.


    Team Alvric stood shocked midair, wondering how they just lost a teammate in less than a few breaths.


    ¡°Form up!¡± Hedon screamed into his communication artifact bringing them all out of their shock. They quickly regained themselves and shook off the pain of losing another teammate bringing them back to the reality of their situation.


    The team gathered together and started cycling to execute a secret formation technique of their own. Flapping its wings to stay afloat, the Wyvern saw this and spat another bout of air at them to disrupt whatever they were doing.


    But the Alvric Clan was not anything if not a Great clan of elites. Before the speeding compressed air reached them, a shield of air manifested in front of them. The compressed air collided with the air shield and pushed them downwards a few feet, causing them to let out loud grunts and almost disorganized their formation. The compressed air dissipated thereafter, as did the shield.


    The wyvern looked down at them, puzzled. The next moment though, it unleashed the aura of its presence upon the surroundings, suppressing the Sprouts and disorganizing their formation.


    Murray rushed forward to take charge of the formation. Hedon was too young and weak to face something like this. He willed himself toward Hedon¡¯s position and placed a hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take over,¡± Murray said, through gritted teeth. The pressure from the wyvern was affecting him too but he could handle it better than Hedon.


    ¡°I can do it. Go back,¡± Hedon insisted.


    ¡°All our lives are on the line, Hedon. Let him,¡± Arkesha said. She didn¡¯t want an argument to break out. It¡¯ll only bring disunity and they¡¯ll become easy pickings for the predator.


    Murray didn¡¯t wait for Hedon to decide though. A small cyclone spread outwards from Hedon¡¯s feet and rose up to his waist level. Before he knew what was going on, he was transported to Murray¡¯s previous position in the formation. Hedon cursed him out loud at that.


    Murray activated the formation by triggering the script on his armor and wind essence poured in from the world. The other Alvrics followed suit. It was a good thing they didn¡¯t need all twenty members of their team to activate the formation. The wyvern saw that its aura wasn¡¯t doing enough of what it expected and dove down from above.


    A two hundred feet tall ethereal armor-wearing knight immediately appeared around the Sprouts shielding them like living armor and wielding a longsword made of wind. Argonaut, the wind Spirit!


    This wasn¡¯t exactly the wind spirit; it was just a replica. But it was enough to protect the Sprouts anytime they ran into danger. The Argonaut, whose legs touched the ground from the sky, spread its legs apart and bent its knees. The ground shook as the Argonaut spread its legs apart, uprooting trees in the process. The fifteen remaining Alvrics who were powering the Argonaut from specific locations inside it grunted as the formation drew power from them.


    The web of runes on its body glowed slightly and it shot upward like a blur.


    The wyvern didn¡¯t have the chance to stop midair and put enough distance between them before the mighty sword made of wind sliced through its huge neck like butter. It was still flapping its wings widely, trying to move out of the way of the wind spirit before falling out of the sky and crashing into the forest, spilling blood and gore everywhere.


    ¡°What the fuck?!¡± someone said a moment later startling everyone, ¡°The mountain¡­it¡¯s gone.¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome woke up feeling refreshed and clean. He felt light, like he¡¯d been weighed down for so long and had just gotten rid of the extra weight on him. He always knew impurities were a nuisance, but was confident his body was as free from impurities as a newborn. He sat up straight and the first thing he noticed were his legs. They were bigger ¡ª from his thighs to his ankle, making his feet look small. He looked himself over and noticed the same muscular improvements to his upper body. Then he noticed his penis.


    ¡°Damn, Achilles. You circumcised me.¡±


    ¡°Standard tradition for the Fae, Xerae.¡±


    I¡¯m not Fae.


    Achilles gave him the mental equivalent of a shrug.


    Jerome didn¡¯t mind too much, though. He even saw that his manhood was bigger. And he knew he was big down there; even Csala acknowledged it.


    He looked around the chamber where he had gone to rest. The chamber was filled with dream aura, which he could sense quite adeptly now.


    ¡°How are you feeling, Xerae?¡±


    With a chuckle, he stood up from the pod-like construct he had slept in. His body was coated with a pink gooey substance like amniotic fluid that had a slightly sweet taste. He noticed that the gravity ¡ª which he had gotten used to ¡ª was lighter; like he was back on his own world. He hadn¡¯t even thought about the stronger gravity since he arrived in Terra Praeta.


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    ¡°Really good,¡± he said, cycling essence from his core into his body and jumping on the balls of his feet to get his blood flowing. ¡°Amazing, really.¡±


    The essence moved fluidly through his channels and Jerome could tell that his body had gone through enormous changes. He made sure to transmit essence into every nook and cranny, reaching places where he never thought his channels extended to, or perhaps he never had channels before.


    ¡°What exactly did you do to me?¡± He asked. ¡°My channels are wider¡­smoother¡­stronger, and my bones and muscles feel tougher¡­my skin too. I also feel taller.¡± And his body was already very tough before now.


    ¡°I injected your bones with essence and nutrients; quickened it to grow a few more inches. I also injected your core with more essence. All this has made you more resilient, Xerae. Your body is now highly resistant to poisons and your skin¡­well, your body is now as tough as armor. You should be able to use the pod of Hezvar I gifted you for much longer now.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm,¡± Jerome dragged out the ¡®hmm¡¯ with a smile on his face. He did feel full ¡ª nearly to bursting, even. ¡°Anything, in particular, you want me to see?¡± He flushed as he realized Csala was probably still in the mountain. She wouldn¡¯t dare go out. But Achilles might misunderstand him thinking that he was a weirdo and a creep, trying to peep in on an ignorant succubus.


    ¡°You should extend your senses outside,¡± Achilles said. ¡°You¡¯ll sense the other pods. So try to connect with one of them.¡±


    Jerome closed his eyes and stretched his senses. It went beyond the mountain in a second as his perception stretched to its limit. Sensing points of similar energy in the atmosphere, he reached out to one of them. The action was effortless. He connected to another pod and his perception expanded again. He could sense them more clearly now. They were like nodes, bridging together all the different sections they survey to form one big map of the whole Terra Praeta.


    He could only get a vague picture of the map, however. He couldn¡¯t connect to all the pods, only a few in his vicinity. Though, he could sense a giant spot on the West of the map in his head ¡ª the night of Terra Praeta, they called it, the lands ruled by the Mother and guarded by her Children.


    ¡°Who is the Mother?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°She once was a concubine to Illyrah¡¯s foe. When Tholor died, his children whom he took to war against Illyrah died too. His many wives and concubines committed suicide to escape the fate that awaited them. Except one.


    ¡°Dashani. She touched upon the precepts of abominable power: power that granted death as new life.¡±


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°And so, the Mother was born. The power twisted her mind though¡­made her a lot more than a creep trying to peep in on an ignorant succubus.¡±


    ¡°Fuck you, Achilles!¡± Jerome blurted out, his face red with embarrassment and anger.


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it. You did, Xerae,¡± he said, his voice dripping with mockery.


    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing said succubus isn¡¯t here right now,¡± Jerome pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°Someday, Achilles. I¡¯ll find your source and pull your plug.¡±


    ¡°You can try, Xerae. You can try,¡± came the AI¡¯s response. ¡°You missed out on the Alvrics battling a wyvern. But no issue there, you can always see it on your own time. The Royals are close by, though. Would you like to watch the show?¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah. But I should probably get dressed first,¡± Jerome said as he dried his body with a pulse of essence.


    ~~~


    Approximately fifty thousand miles east of the battle with the wyvern. Team Vorthe was facing a nest of fire dragons. They fared far better than Team Alvric on their way to the mountain. One could say they were far more experienced in this regard and had far better resources.


    Gleaming red scales reflected the light of the sun as the dragons beat their wings to stay afloat in the air. They were enormous with three sets of limbs each. Reaching up to 300 feet from head to tail-tip, their wingspan reaching several hundred feet.


    There were three dragons, each exuding pressure as powerful as a Spirit Realm expert. Forester split his team of fifty into three. Surrounded by three enormous fire dragons, the members of team Vorthe were calm and got into formation. They were all covered from head to boot with the Vorthe family¡¯s signature golden aura glowing around their bodies.


    Even the dragons felt hesitant to attack; not for fear of the Sprouts in front of them, but for fear of the golden aura they were exuding. Jerome watched as the dragons intelligently chose to hesitate, he too had noticed that this golden aura was not the same as when he fought with Idrienne or Forester.


    ¡°This must be the work of the Sovereign,¡± Jerome said as he watched the fight that was about to happen. ¡°Now I know how they were able to pass the Children¡¯s blockade without any resistance.¡±


    He hovered midair in an ethereal state watching the faceoff from a vantage point ¡ª or at least that was his perception of himself in their midst. It didn¡¯t take long for him to find Layla in the midst of the Royals. She was also covered from head to boots with the Sovereign¡¯s aura.


    As if by agreement, all three dragons attacked without warning. The golden glow intensified around the Sprouts as they shot forward wielding their swords with dexterity. Elaine and Elena, the white-blonde-haired twins fought side by side, they rushed toward the dragon facing them and slashed out a dozen times in a single breath while dodging the dragon¡¯s fiery breath.


    Jerome whistled to express his admiration. That required as much skill as it did speed. A normal Sprout would have taken at least a few hits. The Sovereign¡¯s aura will protect them, but their execution wouldn¡¯t be as perfect as the twins¡¯. With assistance from others in their group, they took down the dragon in merely a dozen breaths without killing it.


    ¡°Magical beasts can¡¯t wield any other element besides what they are born with," Achilles said. "It¡¯s in the root of their bloodline ¡ª but humans can choose whatever elements they want to comprehend. This makes your kind progress faster. But magical beasts make up for this by being far more resilient than humans and breeding faster, making them a nuisance when their population rises and they threaten human cities.¡±


    The last of the dragons to be attacked saw this and wanted to flee. Without flapping its wings, it pushed off the air with its hind feet and shot forward with a booming sound, covering three miles in one thrust. Rings of cloud were left in its wake as it broke the sound barrier.


    ¡°What the¡­!¡± Jerome couldn¡¯t help but exclaim. ¡°I thought that was a fire dragon!¡±


    ¡°Dragons, on the other hand,¡± Achilles continued, ¡°could learn to wield any element available. Though the element they were born with cannot be changed, like humans, they can comprehend other elements to increase the weapons in their arsenal.¡±


    ¡°How the hell is that possible?!¡± Jerome was flummoxed.


    ¡°Older dragons can do much more,¡± Achilles continued. ¡°You can liken them to the Fae ¡ª far more intelligent than normal magical beasts. Especially when compared to their Mystic cousins; the dragonkin. They¡¯ve got a language of their own ¡ª spells too ¡ª and can perform feats just as powerful as the Fae.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s head reeled from all the information as he watched the battle below him. He¡¯d seen Mystic creatures in the memory stones he¡¯d viewed; the mystic foxes and mystic wolves. They were like Shifters from his world; part magic beast and part sapient beings like humans and Fae. The difference is that they are an evolved race, born as they are; descendants of magical beasts.


    If a magical beast reaches the Sage Realm on its own, it could evolve to speak. If it reaches the Saint Realm, its body could take on the form of a human. But the Mystic Creatures were different; they have human form from birth.


    ¡°Terra Praeta is an evolved world, Xerae, causing the creatures that live therein to evolve. Your world doesn¡¯t have the same capacity. That¡¯s why mystic creatures are nonexistent there.¡±


    Jerome nodded, focusing on the battle before him. Forester looked coldly at the fleeing dragon flying away at high speed. He raised his sword, pointing it skywards, and its blade glowed with a golden light. A pulse of energy far greater than anything a Sprout should be capable of commanding, shot out of the sword¡¯s tip into the sky, blasting air and pressure in all directions.


    The sky darkened and all color was drained from the world ¡ª as if the sword had devoured it all. The dragon, miles away sensed that something wasn¡¯t right, it spun itself around, belly to the sky, to look back only to see a gigantic golden hand reach out for it from the sky. With that hand bearing down on it, the fire dragon was paralyzed from the pressure it exuded. The next moment the hand grabbed the dragon and imploded.


    ¡°Remind me to steer clear of the Royals when I head North with Csala,¡± Jerome said, a little shaken.


    ¡°Wise choice, Xerae. A wise man knows his limits and works around them.¡±


    Jerome scoffed at that. He had found power and access to practical knowledge, but it seems the world just got a kick out of making him the weaker guy. Every time. It pissed him off to no end.


    The sky brightened up again and color returned to the world. But the dragon had disappeared from Terra Praeta. The last dragon had also been taken down at this point. Two of the sub-leaders of the three sub-teams pointed their swords at the remaining two dragons and just as with Forester, the world dimmed as if the color was drained from it again. Strong pulses of energy shot out of the tips of their swords covering the air dragons in golden light. The next moment the light disappeared along with the dragons.


    ¡°Where is the mountain?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°What?¡± Forester exclaimed and looked in the supposed direction of the colossal mountain that should be right ahead of them.


    There was only sky.


    ¡°This cannot be happening. After all that effort?!¡± Forester said in anger.


    The world had reshuffled them again!


    Elaine and Elena looked at each other in shock as they knew they had both made a discovery. Although they had been reshuffled, their team was not split up. That could only mean the reshuffling didn¡¯t have as much power over them when they were airborne.

 97. Void Space

    ¡°Those dragons aren¡¯t dead, are they?¡± Jerome asked Achilles as he returned to himself. He looked down at himself to admire the loose-flowing black robe Achilles had printed him. It was patterned with a blue design like flames in the form of a dragon flying around him¡ªthe same design on the robe he wore to watch the Royal Banquet.


    Jerome smiled. It was a beautiful robe and as he lazily stroked it, scripts lit up on its surface to show Achilles¡¯ efforts in making even something as simple as a robe for his protection.


    ¡°No, they are not, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°So they have a type of storage for them?¡± Jerome said almost absently. It was more of a question than a statement.


    ¡°No, Xerae. All three dragons have been safely tucked away in Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± That got his attention and he drew up one of his knees to sit comfortably.


    ¡°Vorthe¡¯s Sovereign is a very powerful individual. His house has also been collecting magical beasts for millennia.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve only seen one magical beast in Farryn.¡± He remembered the flying fox he saw after his three years of slumber. Even now, he was fascinated by the memory. ¡°You¡¯re saying they collect them to make them sacred beasts, right? Sacred beasts are¡ª¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re magical beasts that have been bonded to sacred artists and trained,¡± Achilles interrupted him, ¡°They only hunt down the best, but never reveal them. None of the Great Clans do.¡±


    ¡°Would be nice to have a sacred beast,¡± Jerome said with a smile. Perhaps a dragon. A fire dragon? An air or sky dragon would be nice too. He shook off the feeling moments later though, ¡°That¡¯ll bring too much attention and trouble.¡±


    ¡°Hence the reason why the wise never show off their power,¡± Achilles added.


    Jerome nodded at that. If Farryn was filled with sacred beasts, there''d be too much chaos. After all, a man''s greed is like a snake wanting to swallow an elephant.


    ¡°There¡¯s no telling if Vorthe¡¯s Sovereign can extend his senses to reach Terra Praeta as I do to reach your world,¡± Achilles said, and Jerome, who was about to stand up from the floor cushion he was sitting on paused, his heart skipping a beat. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ve taken precautions to prevent any such surveillance on Sanctum and its environs. I can do nothing to stop him from spying on the rest of Terra Praeta, though. But he sure won¡¯t be spying on us, especially since you¡¯re here.¡±


    ¡°If my guess is correct, he wants that weapon you told me about,¡± Jerome said with a sigh. ¡°How do I get myself into these kinds of situations? Now I¡¯m gonna have a Transcendent after me. Will he be able to sense you in me?¡±


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°Do not underestimate me, Xerae. He never will.¡±


    ¡°What about when I leave Sanctum?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll leave like everyone else. Disappearing immediately after stepping off the mountain. I¡¯ll send you as close to the North as possible.¡±


    ¡°Send me close to the Alvrics,¡± Jerome said. Achilles truly had prepared for every eventuality.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome nodded, lost in thought. He was still inside the chamber filled with the dream aura, making the atmosphere serene and dreamy, but he wasn¡¯t affected by it since his mental fortitude had skyrocketed.


    ¡°To think that I, as the first fated Dark One to enter Terra Praeta, would be the one to inherit the power that Sanctum promises¡­¡± he muttered.


    ¡°It is fate, Xerae. You should proudly accept it.¡±


    ¡°I do. I had learned from Csala that Fae could talk to the Earth. It wasn¡¯t until I consulted the memory stones that I discovered that it was a lot deeper than that. It was more like the Fae had a sort of communion with Mother Nature, a romance of sorts¡­¡±


    ¡°They were one with nature ¡ª at least the natural element or force they had an affinity to,¡± Achilles added, ¡°This was why you were probably sent near the mountain¡­because you¡¯ve been communing with Mother Nature all this while.¡±


    ¡°Affinity¡­are you saying they had bloodline roots like magical beasts?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Every wielder of essence grows a bloodline root, Xerae ¡ª sacred artists do it at the Spirit Realm.  Like dragons, the Fae could wield more than one element. But could only commune with the elements of their root. They could also comprehend and wield other forces as well. But there never was a Fae who went down a Path with more than one force or element.¡±


    ¡°So magical beasts are born with their bloodline roots, while sapient beings like humans and the Fae grow theirs later in life?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re catching on, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Humans have Paths with a combination of forces and elements,¡± Jerome said, ¡°How do you explain that?¡±


    ¡°True. But even with that, a dozen Transcendents could never withstand a single Fae who''s at their level of strength,¡± Achilles remarked. ¡°The reason being that the Fae communed with nature and humans do not¡­


    ¡°Until you, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome sighed peacefully in his heart, dropping the subject. He didn¡¯t have the strength to discuss Harun. He should be proud of himself. But such pride would breed arrogance and complacency. He shook his head to clear it of such thoughts, caching away the information about sacred artists growing bloodline roots.


    He was sure only Sprouts were capable of entering Terra Praeta. If not, this mountain would not be here today. And even if it was, it would have been cleaned out completely. He made up his mind to explore the rest of Terra Praeta after he was done here.


    ¡°We should prepare to create your void space, Xerae. You already meet the requirements needed to create one.¡±


    ¡°Requirements?¡±


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    ¡°A very powerful psychic base and a mental plane. What I prepared for you was a dark space with little to no light, fifty square feet, but imagine my joy when I found out you had one of your own. Autumn, is it?¡±


    ¡°Fifty square feet. That¡¯s small.¡±


    ¡°We are running out of time, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°How long¡ª¡± Jerome wanted to ask.


    ¡°You have seven more months in Terra Praeta before you all get kicked out.¡±


    ¡°That sounds to me like a lot of time.¡±


    ¡°Oh no, it¡¯s not. It takes time to create what we want to attempt ¡ª months.¡±


    Jerome nodded and stood up. Funny enough he hadn¡¯t thought about how long he had left in Terra Praeta since he was chosen by Achilles to inherit Illyrrah¡¯s legacy. He was about to activate the portal when a thought hit him.


    ¡°Achilles,  is there a way to use the portal without the formation being visible?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Of course, Xerae. You need only get a transference stone. Or a transference rune, which is more reliable. But I do believe you also want to know if you could jump chunks of space outside Sanctum. I can help anchor your jumps. But in the case of jumping space in your world, formations would need to be set up in multiple locations to anchor your jumps until you¡¯re ready to rip open the fabric of space on your own. Vorthe''s assassins use transference stones. They call them ¡®void bridges¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. I¡¯ve seen people pop out of thin air before. This explains much,¡± Jerome said, nodding as he thought back to Rihal and Layla¡¯s mother popping out of thin air. And Rihal¡¯s fight with Idrel.


    ¡°The Royals set up portal formations across the whole continent so they could reach anywhere in a few breaths. You should see the ones in Vorthe, Xerae. They cover whole cities and overlap with each other.¡±


    ¡°That must be an incredible sight to behold,¡± Jerome said. He could just imagine the formations magnified thousands of times to cover a whole city. ¡°I guess there are no shortcuts then.¡± He had wanted to see if there was a way around ripping open the fabric of space to teleport independently of an array.


    He disappeared in a flash of gold and reappeared in the library. This time around a blue stone pushed its way through the school of memory stones hovering in the air toward him.


    ¡°Change of color¡­nice,¡± he set down his floor cushion and sat down in a meditative pose ready for his next lesson.


    ¡°You¡¯ve graduated from Novice to Apprentice, Xerae¡­ congratulations.¡±


    ¡°Really¡­ only apprentice?¡± he said. ¡°I thought I¡¯d be an Adept now.¡±


    Achilles snorted.


    ~~~


    Jerome spent the next five days studying and cycling. He checked on Csala from time to time, to make sure she was doing okay and not thinking of sneaking off. The older succubus, Muna, would definitely be waiting for her somewhere.


    After the fifth day, Jerome had a pretty good grasp on how to create a void space of his own ¡ª Achilles was going to create it but he had an idea. Creating a void space was just the first step to opening a void world, which had two major requirements ¡ª both of which he had met by some stroke of luck. He felt that lately, he had been very lucky. And indeed, he had.


    ¡°I suggest we stick to the void space for now, Xerae. Opening a void world requires you to have a great command over the required elements and forces, as well as your own psychic energy. And much, much more.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t want a void space. He wanted a void world. Void spaces were just spaces with nothing in them, perhaps only air. Void worlds, however, were as they claimed ¡ª worlds of their own: you¡¯d have land for cultivating crops, and ambient essence in the air and soil. You could live there perpetually.


    ¡°Is the key going to be a physical substance?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°We can make it so, but I advise against such, Xerae,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°Just checking. I also wouldn¡¯t want it to be something that can be taken away from me.¡± Even void spaces needed locks and keys, apparently. Better to have something no one can physically take. Not like the void space could be sensed by just anybody.


    ¡°No, it can¡¯t. We should begin,¡± Achilles said, pulling a timekeeper out of the void.


    Jerome observed the flat cylindrical device floating an inch off the ground with a smile. He had suggested the vintage pocket watch as the first design and Achilles had helped gather the materials to put it together. With the lightspire table, crafting the timekeeper was a walk in the park. But it was more than a timekeeper. It was a computer of sorts, and he could use it to gather information from long distances. And also send information.


    He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, cycling and reciting his earth mantra to stimulate the vital aura. Achilles had advised him to do this for the next forty-eight hours before beginning the process. The spell was going to take a huge toll on his body so this much time to gather vital essence was necessary.


    ~~~


    Jerome felt like he was at death¡¯s door.


    He had finally completed the last part of the spell for the void space, all that was left was for Achilles to do his part. He sat atop a complex web of myriads of golden, glowing rune circles that spun slowly underneath him like well, oiled machine parts. Achilles protected him from the tremendous aura generated by the binding that powered it all ¡ª a metaphysical binding he couldn¡¯t even begin to comprehend. But there was only so much protection the AI could offer. Jerome couldn¡¯t gaze at any of the symbols dancing around him ¡ª at least not for too long, else he burst a blood vessel in his eyes or brain. Or worse¡­ injured his soul.


    He had known this wouldn¡¯t be a walk in the park but he never expected it to take this much vitality out of him. His psychic energy was also severely depleted. He looked like a corpse that would collapse at any moment. Most of his hair had fallen off and his eyes had sunk in. His skin was dry and flaky, and his muscles were atrophied.


    With great difficulty, he cycled continuously and kept muttering the earth mantra. His eyelids would droop from time to time, but he would force himself to stay awake. Although, he cycled in his sleep. Jerome didn¡¯t know what would happen to him if he fell for the temptation of sleep in his condition. It was better to stay awake than to die without knowing how one left the world.


    Could he even die? His mind drifted to the memory of Hedon stabbing him in the heart and twisting the blade, but here he was. Did the Sovereign bring him back then? Not a chance. Probably only the Sovereign could truly kill him. Jerome was torn between gratitude and¡­he didn¡¯t know what the other feeling was. He shivered slightly and banished the thought away.


    Days passed this way and turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. Until one day his eyes glowed with a soft golden rune imprinted on both his pupils. Jerome was elated. He stretched his senses to judge the working of the spell around him but his psychic energy was not evolved enough to sense the warping and folding of space.


    Achilles had said that space would begin to fold in on itself around him when the spell was at full strength. Jerome looked around to inspect his surroundings. He couldn¡¯t sense the warping of space but its effect was laid bare for his naked eyes to see. It was like seeing the effects of a strong wind but being unable to see the wind itself.


    Strands of his hair that had fallen off and had been blown away some time ago gravitated toward him and disappeared just before they reached him. The memory stones hovering in the air were shaking continuously as if an invisible force was pulling on them and they were resisting. Other than these two things, Jerome had nothing else to go by. But he could imagine just what a sight it would be if he was outside the mountain in the forest. He was going to suck in a lot of things into the void space created.


    ¡°I would give you a peep, Xerae, but it¡¯s far beyond your current Realm,¡± Achilles said with mirth. ¡°Whatever it is you see would just go over your head¡­like a humorless joke.¡±


    In other words, I¡¯d be incapable of understanding the concept of space, Jerome thought.


    ¡°You already do, Xerae ¡ª at least to an extent. But you can¡¯t touch upon it. To you, it¡¯s just a concept¡­like say, ¡®kindness¡¯,¡± Achilles said, his voice filled with the arrogance Jerome had come to attribute to his origin and connection to the Fae.


    Jerome would¡¯ve scoffed if he had the strength. He was too weak to give a rebuttal so he closed his eyes and concentrated on preserving his strength until the void space was fully formed.

 98. Mutated Essence

    Csala


    It had been 149 days since her captor, Jerome, entered seclusion. Since then, Csala hadn¡¯t heard a word from him. She had lured a few outworlders into the mountain and had her way with them ¡ª under the supervision of the voice of the mountain of course.


    The voice had also forbidden her from killing outworlders but Csala never killed her meals, for which she was grateful. Why kill them when you can use them again and again? She preferred to wring them dry and leave them to die by themselves. That way their deaths would not be connected to her ¡ª at least not directly.


    This is the dream, she thought with a smile on her face as she sunned herself out on one of the openings on the outer wall of the mountain. She didn¡¯t have a care in the world. I hope he dies in there from too much absorption of essence, she sighed in contentment.


    From time to time, she remembered Jerome was still in the mountain waiting to pounce on her like a thief in the night. This usually spoils her mood and leads her on a consumption spree. She goes out of the mountain and has her way with whatever she meets out there. But not today. She had decided to stay in and have some sun-bathing time alone.


    Nothing like a morning sunbath to get you filled with positive energy.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Csala stood up in haste. Seeing Jerome, she screamed!


    And fell off the side of the mountain.


    Jerome walked to the edge of the mountain to see how she was faring but to his surprise, this side of the mountain was a vertical wall and Csala was still falling¡­and screaming as she fell. Jerome sighed in his heart. How did she know to design a bikini for herself? Achilles, you fucking AI. He flew down so fast that in seconds he had caught her. They hovered in the air for a while with Jerome carrying her princess style.


    ¡°Why do you look like you¡¯ve seen a ghost?!¡± Jerome shouted so his voice could be heard over the wind. The force of the wind at the altitude they were at, made simple communication rather impossible, so he had to shout. But Csala didn¡¯t shout back.


    ¡°Have you looked in a mirror?¡± she said, transmitting her voice to him through the air with slight movements of her lips.


    Jerome heard her voice very close to his ears which raised his brows in surprise. Even with her psychic energy almost depleted, she could still do that. And the fact that Csala wasn¡¯t capable of using essence spoke volumes of how adept she was with her psychic powers. Maybe it was a succubi thing?


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to shout,¡± she said.


    Jerome made up his mind to keep her by his side no matter what. Learning how to better use his mental energy from Csala might just be the difference between him having an average mental strength or an outstanding one.


    ¡°Are you forgetting something, Xerae,¡± Achilles chipped in.


    No, nothing at all, he responded.


    Csala couldn¡¯t help but notice that Jerome wasn¡¯t flying with the wings she saw him use before. He flew upwards and landed on the surface of the cave¡¯s entrance and walked in.


    ¡°Does my appearance look that bad?¡± Jerome asked, setting her down on her feet. He still had to raise his voice as the wind billowed all around them, blowing his loose black robes around.


    Csala giggled at him as she looked him up and down. He looked like a corpse that was mummified thousands of years ago, with almost all his hair having fallen off, and his muscles atrophied. She wondered how he could still walk and talk in his condition. However, it was funny hearing a walking corpse talk about how he looked.


    It seems her confidence has returned after so long, Jerome thought. What do you think, Achilles?


    There was no answer.


    Achilles? Jerome called out to the AI again but still got no answer.


    ¡°Ahem. How would you like to restore your psychic energy?¡± Jerome asked Csala, shocking her greatly.


    Achilles, are you sulking?


    ¡°Hrmph,¡± Achilles scoffed.


    ¡°Do you have a way to help me? Wait, wait¡­ why do you want to help me?¡± Csala asked, perplexed. But her mind was running through all the reasons and quickly settled on one as suspicion quickly surfaced.


    Jerome shrugged.


    Csala was not convinced. ¡°No!¡± she said. She was absolutely not going to be tricked by him again. She had an idea why he wanted to help her, and she¡¯d be damned if she helped him.


    ¡°I can force you to, you know?¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Then, you better go ahead and use force. I just might end up teaching you that north is south, and east is west,¡± she said stubbornly.


    Jerome scratched his cheek with a skeleton-like finger in embarrassment. He caught sight of what his hand looked like but didn¡¯t react anywhere near as dramatically as Csala.


    ¡°I¡¯m very serious about helping you recover your psychic strength. There¡¯s a place up North where we can do it,¡± Jerome said before turning around to walk back into the mountain. ¡°I just need to get a few things ready and I¡¯ll be off. If you¡¯re not gonna come with me, then I guess this is goodbye.¡±


    Csala¡¯s gaze never left him as he disappeared into the mountain. She thought about his words. Was there really a way to help her? Sure there was. He couldn¡¯t be lying about something like that. This was Terra Praeta after all.


    She turned around to look toward the horizon. This Sprout, Jerome, was a bundle of trouble ¡ª one she didn¡¯t want to get entangled with for too long. But the temptation of being able to wield her powers at full strength beckoned to her. She had to make a choice and she knew Jerome wouldn¡¯t wait for her to make up her mind. But what would he want in return?


    She thought about the look in his eyes just now and realized that Jerome wasn¡¯t as influenced by her beauty as he was a few moons ago. Even with the bikini she was wearing ¡ª as the voice of the mountain had called it ¡ª she didn¡¯t sense his arousal. It was like he was a whole new person. Was it possible for a human to evolve in such a little amount of time?


    Is that even possible? She thought to herself. Jerome was still Sprout ¡ª nothing about that had changed. If he could resist her charms, did that mean he wouldn¡¯t take advantage of her? Csala scoffed. Men were the same. No matter how strong their psyche. She admitted he would be more interested in learning from her but it didn¡¯t mean he¡¯ll not be tempted.


    Yet Csala couldn¡¯t let go of the tiny bit of hope that she could get her powers back just as he said. Truth be told, he had no reason to trick her anymore. He was more powerful than she was right now, so there was no need for manipulative tactics.


    Csala took a deep breath and raced after him. She searched the vicinity for a while but Jerome was gone. After a while, she gave up and went back to sunning herself. He was going to come to her before going North. That much she knew.


    ~~~


    Jerome appeared inside the library with a flash of gold light and vanished as soon as he appeared ¡ª with no effects this time around. He looked around to appreciate the beauty of his surroundings. Autumn was a real place now. His void space. The space was quite large ¡ª over 3000 acres, and filled with trees ¡ª a mirror image of his mental plane. But there was no life in the trees or the atmosphere. The trees were like 3D images painted over the world.


    Jerome took a deep breath of the air in his void space. It was normal ¡ª no essence to cycle out of it.  Soon. He thought. Soon he¡¯ll be strong enough to make it a world of his own. Jerome willed the air to move and it answered to him kicking up an abundance of dead leaves into the air. The branches on the trees swayed and the leaves on them rustled. It was like music to his ears.


    ¡°Are you still sulking, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked, focusing his attention on Achilles.


    ¡°Who¡¯s sulking?¡± Achilles responded, his voice stern and unfeeling.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m sorry. But you know Csala is a very powerful succubus, right?¡± Jerome said. ¡°Her experience in wielding psychic energy can benefit me greatly.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been in existence long before her ancestors were born, Xerae. Do you mean to say I don¡¯t have experience?¡±


    ¡°No. But you don¡¯t have curves and a pretty face, Achilles,¡± Jerome said with mirth.


    Achilles scuffed.


    ¡°But truly I was just poking fun at ya. And you do it all the time too, don¡¯t act the innocent victim now,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Your head¡¯s in the gutter, Xerae. You should meditate more,¡± Achilles remarked.


    ¡°My head¡¯s in the gutter?¡± Jerome said, unable to hold back laughter. ¡°And why, oh, mighty Guardian, did you make her a bikini? It seems to me your head¡¯s way in the gutter more than mine.¡±


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    Moving around the void space to get a feel of it and its true size, he bickered with Achilles as he strolled from one end of the void space to another. The space had a layer of film that looked as bright as clouds protecting its boundaries. Jerome touched the film with his hand pushing on it a little to stretch it. It was strong and would hold. Though nothing could really break it since it wasn¡¯t a physical material but a law of space at work.


    ¡°I should head out North soon,¡± Jerome said. It had taken longer than he expected to placate Achilles. The AI was relentless and unforgiving, but the Chosen of Ilyrrah was the Chosen. There was nothing he could do about it.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Hedon now?¡±


    ¡°Heading back here,¡± Achilles said. ¡°He¡¯s 50,000 miles due west. At his current speed, he¡¯ll never get here before the portal that brought you all to Terra Praeta takes you away.¡±


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s time to meet with him then.¡± Jerome came out of his void space and went looking for Csala.


    ¡°I have taken the liberty to create an imitation of the weapon I told you about,¡± Achilles said and a spear appeared next to Jerome.


    ¡°A spear? It¡¯s a spear?¡± Jerome was truly delighted by it. ¡°What about the guns you talked about? Wait. I¡¯d like to work on that with you.¡±


    ¡°As you wish, Xerae. Although I already created a few.¡± the spear sang as it hovered in the air. ¡°Since you¡¯re not powerful enough to wield the real thing, this should suffice for now.¡±


    ¡°Suffice? This is a lot more powerful than anything I¡¯ve ever wielded!¡± Jerome said as he gazed at the spear.


    He caressed the haft of the spear appreciatively with a withered finger and felt it tingle with essence as if to welcome him. The spear¡¯s haft and head were as dark as night with a glint of steel. Both parts were made from the same material. The double-bladed head was broad and curved from the base to the tip ¡ª like a Mainz gladius. The spear felt quite heavy in his perception and it felt right. He picked it up with his psychic energy ¡ª pleasantly surprised at the ease ¡ª and whirled it around, kicking up a strong wind.


    ¡°Brace yourself for when you grab hold of it, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he responded and gripped the spear in his fist.


    Pure essence flooded his channels, threatening to drown him. His withered frame shook violently and the air around him vibrated with a residue of the force of the spear¡¯s essence. The essence was dense and felt like it was solid as it poured into him. Jerome had to sit down crossed-legged and cycle rapidly to absorb the spear¡¯s essence into him and as he absorbed its essence, the spear absorbed his.


    ¡°A communion of sorts,¡± Achilles said, and Jerome smiled.


    After a long time, the distribution of essence between himself and the spear evened out and he couldn¡¯t tell which essence belonged to whom. Looking inward, Jerome marveled at the state of his core as it spun rapidly inside him. It was now a lot denser than it was when he came to Terra Praeta ¡ª and a lot bigger too. The essence moving through his channels felt solid¡­like molten steel.


    ¡°Is this really pure essence?¡±


    ¡°Yes and no, Xerae. It¡¯s a mutated kind of essence that¡¯ll give you unique abilities.¡±


    Jerome held out a hand and poured out his essence with a thought. A block of essence materialized on his palm in an instant. It felt like holding a blob of white metallic jelly, that is until he compressed it, and it lost its flexibility. Jerome played with the block of essence on his hand for a bit. Turning it every which way, it displayed a mesmerizing iridescence, with hues of multiple colors including gold, blue, green, red, orange, and purple. It was heavy and strong. He reshaped it into a blade, then a ball, and back to a blade.


    Essence shouldn''t feel this heavy, he thought with a smile. It almost felt like Suzie on his palm, except for the color and weight of it. The block of essence was as solid as any physical material but with a thought, could be flexible too.


    ¡°Do you think I¡¯m ready to advance to the Spirit Realm, Achilles?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Not quite, Xerae. From my estimation, you¡®re still at least a decade away from advancing.¡±


    ¡°A decade!¡­isn¡¯t that too far?¡± Jerome asked as he stood up to stretch and test his essence.


    ¡°Not at all. On the contrary, it¡¯s the fastest of anyone in the Core Formation Realm. The fastest of the Royals take at least three decades to become Spirit Realm artists,¡± Achilles said, and Jerome frowned in thought.


    He absorbed his essence back into his body and began going through the different forms he practiced with his new spear, flowing seamlessly from form to form as Achilles educated him.


    ¡°You¡¯ll come to understand more about your current Realm when you advance, Xerae. Sadly, a Sprout¡¯s psychic foundation isn¡¯t as evolved as a Spirit artist¡¯s. There are things you can¡¯t sense about yourself and others, not because your psychic energy isn¡¯t powerful enough, but because you haven¡¯t awakened to the fullness of your powers.¡±


    ¡°You make it sound so amazing,¡± Jerome said, thinking about what Rihal told him before he left for Terra Praeta. He spun his new spear around before piercing out rapidly at an imaginary opponent in multiple short bursts, the spear blurring into dozens.


    ¡°It is, Xerae. And Rihal was right. There are lesser Realms within every Realm. If you were to categorize it, you¡¯ll be at the late, early stages of Core Formation ¡ª even though you possess more essence than a typical Sprout, and now higher quality essence than most,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°...Than most, who else could possess better quality essence than what I have right now?¡± he asked, slowing his movement for a split second. He was almost sure he felt the spear urge him to slice his imaginary opponent through the diaphragm, something that could only most likely be done with a shorter weapon like a glaive from his stance, and distance from his imaginary opponent. Could the spear take other forms?


    ¡°Not better¡­but almost at the same level. And I¡¯m sure a name comes to mind, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Lang,¡± Jerome nodded, pausing his training as he spoke, the image of the protector of the Fei heir appeared in his mind, ¡°Can I beat him in a fight?¡±


    ¡°A few months ago, no. But now, you can do it with your hands tied behind your back. Also, the library is not a training ground, Xerae. I can send you to one.¡±


    Jerome chuckled at that. ¡°Can the spear change forms?¡± he asked as the portal formation lit up beneath his feet and transported him away from the library.


    ¡°Yes it can, Xerae. One of its many applications. You just picture the weapon you want in your mind and ¡®will¡¯ it to do so.¡±


    Jerome did. And three seconds later, a glaive was in his hand. ¡°Shweet!...but slow.¡± He knew that with practice, he¡¯d get faster at reshaping his weapon to whatever he wanted in a split second.


    ¡°So Lang¡­¡± Jerome said as he looked around the new chamber. His voice bounced back toward him from the walls. It was even bigger than the library and lined with stacks of training weapons by its walls. Golden runes lit up the dark walls and ceiling, providing just enough light so he wouldn¡¯t have to push his senses to see clearly.


    ¡°Your improved essence doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re at the same level as him. He¡¯s at the peak of the late stages of the Core Formation.¡±


    "And yet I can beat him?¡± Jerome asked as he continued his training, shifting his weapon into different weapons as he trained.


    ¡°It''s not a matter of strength and age alone, but strength, capacity and quality of essence. If someone younger has better quality essence and wider capacity for essence, even though they are at a lesser stage in the same Realm as you are, they''ll surely beat you in a fight ¡ª if the gulf between the stages isn¡¯t much.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding. He¡¯d love to test out his strength as soon as possible. He looked down at himself but only saw mummified skin and protruding bones. It was like being in the slums again but much worse. He sighed. This would probably make people underestimate him, not knowing the strength that was contained in this frail-looking body. He couldn¡¯t wait to fill out and look as healthy as possible.


    ¡°I should help you train, Xerae,¡± Achilles said.


    As soon as he said that, the portal formation lit up in over a dozen positions around Jerome, and a dark grainy sand-like substance poured out of them.


    ¡°Iron fillings?¡± Jerome asked incredulously.


    ¡°Think of them as nanites, but at a macro level.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°I¡¯m guessing this is your attempt at nanites¡­ a bit underwhelming, Achilles.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve had this long before the current Sovereign of Vorthe was born, Xerae.¡±


    The nanites fused together to form a variety of shapes: an armored warrior broad and tall with a chain mace, a small-statured hooded figure holding two daggers in hand ¡ª an assassin, another armored warrior with a broad sword on its shoulder, a giant panther, a giant venomous snake, an army of spiders, and the list went on.


    ¡°Do you wish to kill me, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked as he turned around to take in his opponents. His mind was already looking for weaknesses to exploit.


    ¡°No, Xerae,¡± Achilles said, ¡°Just to train you.¡±


    A scripted formation lit up in the chest area of the figures and they moved. Jerome brought his spear up and took a defensive stance. The chain mace warrior lashed out, swinging the heavy chain mace toward Jerome. He dodged that easily but the panther slashed at him with three-inch thick claws.


    ¡°You do wanna kill me, Achilles?¡± Jerome parried the panther¡¯s claws, spinning the spear around its paw to push it away gracefully. Jerome marveled at the ease. With the size of the paw and the fact it was probably made from one of the densest metals on the planet, it should have felt very heavy as he pushed.


    ¡°From what I can see, Xerae, you seem to be doing quite well.¡±


    The armored sword warrior came in, swinging its broad sword with an ease that attracted the eyes. It was fast ¡ª faster than Jerome expected. He parried blow after blow, expertly dodging the other puppets as he backed up against the sword warrior.


    ¡°Maybe I should increase the difficulty,¡± Achilles said, and the scripted formation in their chest area, which had dimmed after lighting up moments ago, lit up stronger than before. Jerome could sense essence being pulled into the puppets as they moved, their range of movements and patterns becoming faster.


    A samurai warrior slashed at him with its two-handed sword and Jerome stepped to the side. He shouldered the warrior, using its body to stagger another opponent. The samurai spun as if on strings.


    ¡°Ah,¡± Jerome sighed as he parried its blows, dodging another attack from behind, ¡°With the way they move I almost forgot they are puppets and can bend joints and twist body parts from angles humanly impossible.¡±


    He put on a burst of speed as six of the puppets closed in on him, intending to box him in. Jerome was fast. He appeared behind another puppet and kicked into its back knocking it into the puppet opposite them.


    ¡°You¡¯re a joy to watch, Xerae. And you haven¡¯t even used essence,¡± Achilles said.


    Jerome smiled but his smile faltered as a whip came at him. The army of spiders also rushed him ¡ª tiny little buggers in their thousands. Jerome cursed as he was forced to rotate his core and shoot a ball of flames at the spiders.


    All the puppets attacked at that.


    ¡°Be careful, Xerae. They are drawn to your essence.¡±


    ¡°You couldn¡¯t have mentioned that before?!¡± Jerome roared. ¡°Fuck you, Achilles! You and your twisted sense of entertainment!¡± The training ground quickly became a den of chaos and Jerome attacked anything and everything around him. He had to push essence into every part of his body to be able to withstand the hits from the puppets.


    The damned puppets didn¡¯t pull their punches ¡ª or Achilles who was controlling them didn¡¯t. To his credit, however, Jerome¡¯s body could take it. He felt the skin on his face pierced only twice since the battle devolved into chaos, and he had been hit many times. His wounds healed up almost instantly and his body was protected by the long flowing black robes. Every time he took a hit on his body, scripts lit up on the surface of the robe and it absorbed the force of the blow.


    ¡°You¡¯d have to get yourself out of that melee by directing the flow of the battle, Xerae. This is the best form of training there is,¡± Achilles said, his voice sounding high and mighty as if he was the greatest of tutors.


    Jerome snorted loudly but didn¡¯t comment. He had his hand full as it were.

 99. New And Improved

    ¡°I need actual armor, Achilles,¡± Jerome said, fighting off the puppets as they came at him. They were now aiming for the exposed parts of his body: his head, feet, and hands.


    ¡°Of course, Xerae. I made you that as something comfy for when you sleep. It was never meant to be armor.¡±


    Jerome chuckled, thinking about the armor-like defenses of the robe. ¡°Thank you for putting my safety and comfort into consideration. But I need armor ¡ª and boots.¡±


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°When you¡¯re done, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome cursed. He had been defending since the melee started. The puppets were like smarter versions of the Children. No matter how much he sped up, they forced him to slow down. They were in control of the battle and their control was getting tighter as they squeezed him into a corner.


    The battle went on for another thirty minutes or so, with Jerome trying hard and failing to get out of the corner. He needed to find a weak link. The samurai came at him together with the armored warrior wielding the great sword forcing him to focus on them, but the puppet wielding the whip from a distance on his left side didn¡¯t give him a chance to move towards her.


    Jerome¡¯s back touched the wall and he had to call back his blades to defend him. Spinning his spear around to deflect a series of attacks from his assailants, he gathered his essence ready to shoot a laser attack once his blades made it to him.


    The army of spiders quickly formed a wall, stopping his blades from reaching him. That annoyed him, but also excited him ¡ª he had found the weak link. He took a deep breath sucking in essence from the air like a black hole would devour matter in space, and in one swift motion, he parried the great sword and stretched his hand.


    Time seemed to slow down for him as he saw the warrior move to his other side ¡ª the puppets were going to make him work for it. A small ball of white-blue flame appeared in front of his outstretched hand, bathing the whole room in blue as the essence in the air spiked and sizzled.


    A lance of blue laser blasted the wall of spiders apart, pushing everything in the way aside. Jerome took off out of the enclosure. A giant sword came at him from one side and a paw and a whip from another. The samurai didn¡¯t recover as quickly as these, it seemed.


    He shot forward still and flipped, spinning midair to squeeze himself horizontally through the tiny little opening. At the same time, he commanded his long blades to spin out in all directions as he hadn¡¯t set his eyes on the assassin since the battle began. It had just vanished into thin air. If it was going to attack him, this was its best chance to do so.


    The giant snake opened its mouth and clamped down on Jerome''s shoulder. It followed Jerome¡¯s counter-clockwise direction as it spun itself around him midair, constricting his movement as they both fell. The runes on the walls glowed red for a second and an alarm blared off.


    ¡°You lose, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Jerome let out a long breath. ¡°I forgot about the snake. Can you let me go now?¡± The snake uncoiled itself from him and its body fell apart. Jerome looked all around him and found the rest of the puppets falling apart. The formations around the training grounds lit up and whisked the nanites away.


    ¡°That was beautiful, Xerae. Intense.¡±


    ¡°You should have seen the battle with the Children of Dashani,¡± Jerome said with a smile. Since he now knew who the Mother was, there was no point calling her Mother. It was an insult to Mother Nature.


    He looked at the spear in his hand and spun it around appreciatively. From his training with the puppets, he had been able to sense some of the things it was capable of doing. He didn¡¯t activate them since he wasn¡¯t fighting real opponents.


    ¡°I gotta ask, Achilles.¡± Jerome said, ¡°Why does the spear feel so much like Suzie?¡±


    ¡°I watched you absorb a hook during your captivity, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°I¡¯d take it Suzie can absorb other metals?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she can.¡±


    ¡°Then you must have absorbed a mine of mithril when you were in the night of Terra Praeta. mithril is one of the toughest metals in Terra Praeta. Astonishingly, you absorbed no impurities with it.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mind flashed to the ore he absorbed when he was in the night of Terra Praeta with team Itakar. ¡°That was mithril?¡± Jerome said thoughtfully, ¡°Interesting, coz I didn¡¯t feel Suzie change ¡ª she did, don¡¯t get me wrong. But I didn¡¯t ¡®sense¡¯ it. And now I don¡¯t need to focus a hundred percent on controlling her. And living steel is a metal that doesn¡¯t contain impurities. So it helps me filter it out.¡±


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Achilles said, reading the memory. Jerome could sense the AI process his words and memories to confirm. Visha stirh¡¯aun, which was widely known as living steel in his world, was a truly unique metal. It flowed like mercury at room temperature and was void of impurities; but deadly to living beings.


    ¡°This weapon you imitated to make my spear. Is it by any chance Gung¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t complete that name, Xerae¡­ else you wake up the weapon.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome was stomped.


    The weapon¡­ it slumbers. Waiting for when you¡¯re strong enough to wield it. Ilyrrah was of the opinion that Odin searches for it as we speak. He had no idea what would happen if it woke up. Odin may sense it, even across the universe¡­ and come for it.¡±


    Jerome took in a deep shaky breath, as he paced the floor. ¡°Oh, boy. Okay, so don¡¯t call its name. Got it.¡± What the fuck have I just gotten himself into. Will I have a god breathing down my neck now?


    ¡°Hedon must be closer now, right?¡± he asked.


    Achilles gave him a mental shrug.


    ¡°What¡¯s the spear called, my spear that is?¡±


    ¡°Your veritable self would have to do the naming, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°I called my last weapon Suzie. Still want me to name this one?¡±


    Achilles chuckled at that. ¡°I¡¯d wait to see just what the spear can do, Xerae. It has a very complex binding for your world¡¯s level of knowledge.¡±


    ¡°Why am I not surprised,¡± Jerome said, caressing the spear like a lover. He noticed the skin on his hands was starting to peel off. Though, he was still a long way from becoming whole. ¡°And how about that armor?¡± he asked.


    The portal lit up beneath his feet and Achilles whisked him away to the 3d printing chamber.


    ¡°I worked on this when you were in a coma.¡±


    A suit of armor glided towards him in the air and stopped next to him. Jerome eyed the boiled leather appreciatively. There were many other robes hovering in the air with the armor, even trench coats and suits for various weather and occasions. Jerome chuckled at that. Whatever would he need an English suit for? This wasn¡¯t Earth and people would just look at him like an alien¡­or crazy.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s a coating,¡± Jerome said as he touched the armor still hovering in the air. The boiled leather was actually a coating.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. The metal underneath is mithril, which would work seamlessly with Suzie. Your spear is made from the same metal. As were the puppets.¡±


    ¡°The puppet felt heavy to my senses, but they weren¡¯t that heavy when I blocked attacks or pushed back,¡± Jerome said thoughtfully.


    ¡°Oh, they are heavy, Xerae. Mithril is very heavy metal. You¡¯re just more powerful than you used to be. Just so you know, you have to bond with the spear and the armor.¡±


    ¡°I thought I already bonded with the spear, though,¡± he picked the cuirass out of the air and weighed it in his hand. The rest of the armor followed the cuirass, though, making him smile. He could sense that the armor was quite heavy, yet it was light in his hands.


    ¡°You communed with it so it could accept you,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Now you have to accept it.¡±


    With a small poking of his skin ¡ª which took more effort than before ¡ª he touched his bloodied finger to his new armor. The armor imploded into gas and rushed into Jerome¡¯s body. The same thing happened with the spear.


    ¡°Amazing!¡± Achilles exclaimed. ¡°You know, Xerae. As your guardian, I¡¯d be honored if you grant me one wish.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°Why do I sense trouble coming all of a sudden?¡± He absorbed the other garments into his void space save the ones he chose to wear. There were also boots, socks, and underwear hovering in the air. The latter made Jerome blush as he put on one, and a pair of socks. He hadn¡¯t worn decent underwear since he was reborn.


    ¡°At least you don¡¯t have to use the loo all the time. Imagine not being a sacred artist but a mere mortal.¡±


    Jerome scrunched his brows. He was grateful for that. ¡°Nobody says loo in my world, Achilles.¡± The idea of running water in an outhouse to the Royals was preposterous ¡ª he had asked¡­and got something equivalent to the middle finger from Rihal.


    Okay, maybe I pushed too hard in my asking, he thought.


    Jerome went through the motions of changing his robes as he listened to Achilles¡¯ rant. He also took out every valuable item inside his storage ring, cataloged them, and transferred them into his void space. Lastly, he came to the weapons Achilles had designed. Calling them Earth-styled guns would¡¯ve been a long stretch. Though he could see some similarities in function, but not aesthetics.


    Most of them looked like gauntlets ¡ª sleek and black in color, besides the missing finger portion. Putting on one, the gauntlet kind of, ¡®shrunk¡¯ ¡ª in a very futuristic way that could only be attributed to nanites ¡ª to fit his forearm, wrist and fist. He aimed and a barrel rose over the fist of the gauntlet, pointing outward. The barrel extended two inches beyond his closed fist with a hole the size of his middle finger.


    ¡°The extension is actually a suppressor, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°Very sci-fi if you asked me,¡± he said and Achilles snorted. He didn¡¯t know much about guns in his old world but he knew a suppressor this small would be cause for confusion among gun enthusiasts.


    ¡°The guns from your previous world cannot compare, Xerae. This frees up your hands so you can hold your spear simultaneously. I can understand why a long-range weapon would be created with such simple techniques due to the technological limitations at the time. But one would easily lose such a weapon in the heat of battle?¡±


    Achilles had a point there. He wasn¡¯t in Kansas anymore and sacred artists were sturdier than humans. Faster too, so he definitely could easily lose such a weapon.


    ¡°Of course, I do.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be testing¡ª¡± a myriad of information flooded his mind in an instant. ¡°Did you just teach me about these weapons?¡±


    ¡°I put some nanites in your brain, Xerae. This way you can access the library at any time you want, and from anywhere.¡±


    Jerome smiled. ¡°Thank you, Achilles. Though I wonder. I wasn¡¯t ready for the influx of data, yet I don¡¯t feel overwhelmed. Why is that?¡± He already knew the answer though. He just wanted confirmation.


    ¡°Your body is stronger now, Xerae. Very little can overwhelm you ¡ª at least in your realm of capabilities.¡±


    Jerome nodded and stashed the guns away. There were dozens of them, made from mithril. He took a little time to examine the guns that closely resembled what he knew. Some were sleek and long, just like the gun used by the avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath ¡ª and beautiful. Some of them looked like hand guns but were bigger than what he¡¯d seen in movies. The hand guns had very good grip. But no magazines for bullets.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need for bullets, Xerae. These guns are designed to pull in essence to create the bullets inside their magazines. Best of all, you can create bullets of many different elements. Even mutated essence like yours.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he responded, nodding. ¡°And how that¡¯s possible is a marvel on its own. Sprouts can mold the essence of an element into the physical form of said element. My brain is just tryna play catch up with the fact that we can use, well I can use artifacts like these to do the same.¡±


    ¡°Weeeelll, there¡¯s more you can do with essence. But that¡¯s a lesson for another day.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at the cryptic info. He knew he¡¯d learn it later though. He looked back at the weapon, examining it. Activating a rune in his eyes, the gauntlet¡¯s internal structure was laid bare before his eyes. Jerome chuckled. ¡°So now I¡¯ve got x-ray vision.¡±


    The structure of the gauntlet could only be described as absolute brilliance. It was a series of micro-chambers and nodes so tiny, you couldn¡¯t fit a bullet in any of them. But the complexity of it was a marvel. Jerome knew that space wasn¡¯t a limiting factor for Achilles to create something like this. Bullets would go in specific cartridges that were wrapped around the insides of the gauntlets in the forearm. This gauntlet held forty cartridges while each cartridge would hold two hundred bullets. That was eight thousand bullets.


    Jerome whistled in appreciation. He materialized a matching left gauntlet and sent a drop of his blood to both. ¡°It feels like Pilgrims¡¯ Keep all over again.¡±


    Achilles chuckled, reading the memory as it welled up in his mind. The cave where he found the living steel was still fresh in his mind. The carcass of the sunfire wolf and Adama¡¯s skeletal hands from which he ripped the gauntlets.


    ¡°Well, at least you aren¡¯t taking these from a corpse¡¯s body.¡±


    ¡°Thank the universe for that.¡± He sat down for a bit to draw in essence into both gauntlets, which took him about two hours. Jerome was not expecting it to take that much time. He noted to himself to discuss it with Achilles in the future.


    Activating the portal, he portaled himself to Csala. ¡°Have you made up your mind?¡± he said, causing the succubus to jump in fright. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you¡¯ve never had someone sneak up on you before.¡±


    Csala rose up from her mat and cleared her throat, her face burning from embarrassment. He had hit the nail on the head with those words. No one had truly ever been able to sneak up on her, and twice this bastard had done it.


    ¡°What do you want in return?¡± she asked.


    Jerome was a little surprised at that. He had expected her to refuse him, he quickly schooled his features though. ¡°You¡¯ll teach me everything you know about wielding psychic energy¡­everything,¡± he emphasized.


    ¡°Huh? The voice of the mountain said it¡¯ll teach you,¡± Csala said, a little surprised.


    ¡°Oh, would he now?¡± Jerome smiled at her. ¡°Well, that would mean I wouldn¡¯t be needing you anymore, would I? Why should I take you with me then?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not falling for that, Jerome,¡± Csala said. ¡°I¡¯m a lot older than I look so don¡¯t think you can fool me.¡±


    ¡°Well then, good luck,¡± Jerome said, ready to fly out of the mountain.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    Jerome couldn¡¯t help the smile that blossomed on his face, making him look like an undead villain straight out of a horror movie.


    ¡°I¡¯ll teach you,¡± Csala said, her voice tight from anger. She was ready to punch his face in, seeing the smile on it. She pulled out robes from her storage ring and after she was decent, she looked him in the eyes with her face red from anger. ¡°Lead the way, and you better deliver on your promise,¡± she said through gritted teeth.


    Jerome inspected her dress shaking his head. She had prepared well. She had on a red silk robe and red boots lined with fur, topping it with a winter coat ¡ª which was also red ¡ª and had a hood big enough to cover her face, also lined with fur at the edge. The winter coat was lined with enough fur to keep three people warm. The outfit was decent but would draw the attention of others like bees to honey. And everything matched her hair color.


    ¡°What¡¯s with all the red anyway?¡±


    Putting his arm around her waist, Jerome shot into the air. The moment his feet left the mountain he disappeared.

 100. Chimera

    They appeared a few feet above the forest, thousands of miles away from the mountain, and continued flying. They flew West at a leisurely pace and Jerome made small talk with Csala to calm her anger. They talked about the races that existed on Terra Praeta.


    Jerome knew most of this information, but it was better to placate her than let her remain angry and devise ways to sabotage any future plans. Csala didn¡¯t talk about the succubi or their closely guarded secret ¡ª their union with the opposite sex and the Life Bond that comes with it. No memory stone could reveal that to him as not even the fae knew about it ¡ª at least to Achille¡¯s knowledge. But Achilles was no ordinary AI and he had found out millennia after the Fae went extinct.


    Jerome didn¡¯t reveal to her that he knew though. And he promised himself not to reveal it to any other soul. This was one of the reasons why he hadn¡¯t taken her since he found out the truth about their race. And according to Achilles, there was no way around it. No one would love to be chained to someone else, losing all thoughts of self-preservation and self-interest.


    He shook his head absently as she talked about the naiads ¡ª a race of water nymphs who lured men and stole their vitality with a kiss. They were almost as beautiful as the succubi. Almost. Jerome rolled his eyes at that. The naiads had pale skins since they lived at the bottom of rivers and lakes, with little to no sunlight. They weren¡¯t as strong ¡ª both mentally and physically ¡ª as the succubi. Their singsong voices, a captivating melody that had ensorcelled many outworlders, was their only true weapon. When they kiss you, you lose a little bit of vitality, but the kiss is so good, you want to continue it. But continuing it leads to death.


    They flew for days without stopping, passing over mountains and valleys as they did. They came across other teams but flew by not bothering to stop. Jerome didn¡¯t recognize many of the teams. But as he flew over a steppe, one such team he recognized from their rough-looking appearance. They traveled with about four wolves with them and as he focused his senses on the wolves they looked up at him alert and with eyes filled with intelligence, and wariness. Somehow he knew that those weren¡¯t normal wolves.


    He looked away but didn¡¯t increase his speed so as not to look like he was fleeing.


    ¡°They are huge!¡± Csala remarked as she gawked at them still. At shoulder level and standing on all fours, the wolves were almost as tall as the Shifters still in human form. ¡°Do you know them?¡±


    Her question brought him back to the now. That and, he quickly became aware of the suppleness of her body and his member responded. Csala gave him a wary look and he looked away clearing his throat.


    ¡°Not exactly. But I know what they are,¡± he responded.


    Csala relaxed at that. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen ones as big as that. They are like the unbound,¡± Csala said, and Jerome looked at her, puzzled.


    ¡°The unbound?¡± This was probably one species he hadn¡¯t gotten to in the library.


    ¡°Hmm. Long ago there was a race that didn¡¯t bow to the fae as others did. I don¡¯t know what they were called then, but the Fae increased their burden a thousandfold after they enslaved them. They were stubborn and prideful. They fought against the Fae for many years before they were completely defeated. Their race was reduced to a handful with that. It is said that they could take the form of predators. Or perhaps they were predators that could take the form of bipedal beings. It was not known.


    ¡°But what we do know was that they were huge and muscular. Very hairy too. They moved in packs like moon howlers¡­¡± Csala looked back at the Shifters. They hadn¡¯t flown too far and the Shifters were still in view.


    ¡°Wolves,¡± Achilles supplied.


    I know. Jerome replied, rolling his eyes.


    ¡°...Then again, perhaps moon howlers are their descendants. After the fall of the fae they became unbound from their oath. Hence the name unbound,¡± Csala concluded.


    ¡°That¡¯s quite the story,¡± Jerome said. ¡°We call these guys Shapeshifters ¡ª Shifters for short. They absorb the cores of magic beasts; mostly felines and lupines. And it makes them stronger. Perhaps the different genetic limiters cancel out each other as the two genes mix, making them grow bigger than usual¡­¡± Jerome trailed off in thought.


    Csala looked at him like she was seeing him for the first time as she clearly didn¡¯t understand what he was saying.


    ¡°Tara!¡± a scream tore through the air. And it came from the direction of the Shifters. ¡°Tara, I¡¯m coming to get you! Hold on!¡±


    ¡°Tara?¡± Jerome whispered as memories came flooding in. He was already turning around and flying back. He flew so fast, he was above the Shifter who shouted in a mere second.


    Jerome dropped from the sky and examined the female Sprout who called out the name. She looked to be a little older than he was. Strong limbs held onto the ledge of a big hole in the ground, her brows creased in worry. Seeing him, she shot away from the ledge with lightning speed, her expression one of near terror. But he was aware that he probably looked like the dead come to haunt the living.


    There was a response from deep within the cavern below and he felt he recognized the voice.


    The tall grasses of the steppe were nonexistent around the hole ¡ª no, it was a crater-like valley, which stretched out in both directions for at least a mile ¡ª and he could sense from a quick scan that this was some kind of mine shaft, probably dug out millennia ago. It should have collapsed, but when a race of beings had magic, they could preserve their structures for eons. Thick fog was pouring out of the valley, making for a mysterious sight.


    The other Shifters had fled when they heard the scream. Or perhaps it was when they saw him turn around.


    ¡°Who¡­ what are you?¡± the young woman asked hesitantly, rising from her crouching position, with claws out and ready to attack. She looked terrified to see them¡­ to see him.


    Jerome studied her. Wild black hair and gold eyes glared hatred at him.


    ¡°I heard you call out to someone¡­ and the response.¡± He¡¯d heard her call the name, Tara. He couldn¡¯t help but think that the voice that answered in response sounded like the Tara he knew. With his heart beating wildly in his chest, he asked, ¡°Can I help?¡±


    ¡°No!¡± She crouched down again, like a cat ready to pounce. ¡°Come nearer and I¡¯ll rip you to shreds.¡± She bounded into the fog-filled valley below and not even her footfalls echoed into the surrounding.


    ¡°Guess that¡¯s a no. Unfortunately for you, I¡¯m persistent.¡±


    ¡°Jerome, who is this Tara?¡± Csala asked, holding him back from jumping into the foggy hole in the ground.


    ¡°Someone from my past,¡± he replied. ¡°Are you going to stay up here, or are you coming with me?¡±


    Csala sighed but he knew she¡¯d follow. Jerome flew in after the Shifter, as silently as he could. But the wind stirred around him, lifting his robe and fluttering it in the air. So much for stealth, he thought. Csala on the other hand was as silent as a mouse. She didn¡¯t fly, well she couldn¡¯t, having lost most of her psychic energy. But she lifted herself into the valley with surprising silence.


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    ¡°If you like, I can prepare a memory stone that can impart the knowledge to you, Xerae. When you¡¯re settled of course.¡± Achilles said.


    Not now, Achilles. He flew downward, following the smell of the Shifter. She smelled like a cat ¡ª and moved like one too. If she could lead him to Ms Tara¡­ Jerome sighed. Now he was thinking of this Tara as his Ms Tara. Better not get too hopeful.


    But his heart couldn¡¯t stop beating wildly in anticipation. The fog in the valley was so thick he could barely see a foot away from himself. And it was getting colder the deeper he went. With how little the Shifters wore, the Shifter down there would probably be suffering from hypothermia now.


    Jerome sped up. He sensed the Shifter closer now, sensed her look his way even. Since she was a Shifter, her senses would be sharper than that of the average sacred artist. So no need to bother with stealth around her.


    He dropped noiselessly beside her ¡ª well, as noiselessly as he could manage. Csala stopped on an outcropping above him.


    ¡°So,¡± he said, ignoring the glare focused on him. ¡° How deep do you think she is?¡±


    The Shifter didn¡¯t answer. She huffed and distanced herself from him.


    ¡°Sheela?¡± someone called again from below. The voice echoed upwards from deep within the valley. Jerome stiffened at the sound of the voice. That was definitely Ms Tara¡¯s voice!


    ¡°I¡¯m coming to get you!¡± Sheela called back in alarm. She jumped over the ledge they were standing on, dropping deeper into the valley and away from view.


    Jerome wanted to follow, his instinct to protect his loved one pushing for him to jump too. But his memories held him back ¡ª memories he¡¯d acquired from Sanctum. There were monsters down there. Monsters that dealt in stealth. He had to be careful going down.


    ¡°Stay here,¡± he said to Csala.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not going down there. It¡¯s too cold.¡±


    Jerome vanished on the spot, startling her.


    ~~~


    Sheela


    What was that thing that was following her? She had to be careful of it. But it seemed strong. And she hoped she could defend herself and Tara if needed. Just thinking about its emancipated frame and dried lips brought shivers to her skin. Its patched skin and near-hairless head gave it the looks of someone who had been dead and buried for centuries. How could anyone survive like that? Yet the thing wore very nice-looking robes.


    Right now she couldn¡¯t trust anybody. Even her own pack had betrayed her because they hated Tara.


    She carefully went down the rough terrain of the valley walls. Thankfully she was a Midnight Panther; stealth was her strength. And there were no plants growing on the walls which could have caused moisture that would make the terrain slippery. She could feel that this valley wasn¡¯t entirely natural. Grooves had been dug out in the wall to help people climb up and down the valley. So there was sure to be intelligent lifeforms down there.


    The lower she went, the colder it became. The fog seemed to be the cause of the cold. She had to cycle from time to time to keep herself warm. But for how long? The bottom of the valley was nowhere in sight, but Tara was still responding.


    ¡°Tara?¡± she called again just to be sure her friend was still there.


    ¡°I¡¯m here!¡± Tara said. ¡°Please get down here fast. I can¡¯t seem to use my Sail to fly.¡±


    That was new. ¡°What do you see down there?¡± she called.


    ¡°Nothing! The fog is too thick. But there is an underground lava pool here keeping me warm!¡±


    Oh, that was better. But where did the fog come from then? Sheela didn¡¯t want to wait to find out. Get Tara, and get the fuck out of here. That was the plan. They could figure out their revenge later.


    Soon her booted feet touched dry ground and the cold evaporated from her bones. She sighed. That was a relief. She could hear bubbling sounds now and she was sure that was the lava pool. She walked toward the sound making sure to stay close to the wall.


    Something slimy dropped on her shoulder and she almost screamed. She quickly wiped the slime off herself and hastened her steps towards Tara. As she got nearer the bubbling sound, her senses flared to alert her to danger! She stopped in her tracks and extended her perception but everything came back foggy.


    Sheela looked around her as realization dawned on her. The fog was hindering her senses.


    ¡°Tara?¡± she called out.


    ¡°Sheela!¡± came a response. ¡°You¡¯re close by. I should be only a few paces away from you.¡±


    Yet she hesitated, her heart beating wildly and her instincts flaring to the danger ahead.


    ¡°You sense it don¡¯t you.¡±


    This time, she screamed and jumped in terror. Looking to the side, the thing from before was standing two paces away from her. How did he even get there?


    ¡°That voice doesn¡¯t belong to your Tara,¡± he said again, ignoring her outburst.


    She shook her head in denial. ¡°That can¡¯t be true. Tara is not¡ª¡±


    ¡°Dead? I never said she was,¡± the thing said. She felt it come alert all of a sudden and quickly stepped in front of her, as if to protect her. ¡°Stay behind me. Stay alert and out of the way.¡±


    An impressive black spear appeared in its¡­ his gauntleted hand, right before a giant claw, like a crab¡¯s, swung at him!


    ~~~


    A list of creatures ran through his mind as he fought the crab-like extremities that kept shooting at him from the fog. Problem was, crabs only had two of these limbs. This thing seemed like it had dozens. And they were slimmer than a crab¡¯s, and more flexible it seemed. They had the hard chitinous exoskeleton which was incredibly tough to break. He sent tendrils of living steel to spy on the creature but he might as well have not tried. The fog made it impossible to see any damned thing.


    Jerome shot fiery bullet after fiery bullet at it as he stabbed the limbs that got close. The shots were eerily silent. He almost enjoyed the kickback from using the shots fired with the gauntlets. It made him feel alive, somewhat. The stabs made the creature retreat more than the bullets. He could sense its pain and dilemma at being stabbed, like pain was something foreign to it.


    Pain, Jerome thought. This is a Chimera of sorts.


    Chimeras had a very high threshold for pain. Due to the several mishmash of DNAs, they had evolved over millennia to have near absolute control over their nerves.


    ¡°Correct, Xerae,¡± Achilles said as he shot forward. ¡°There are different types of Chimera as you know. They evolve based on whatever creature they consume. They were created thousands of years ago by a mad Fae mage who thought he could make an invincible being. Perhaps to become invincible himself. That didn¡¯t go well as you¡¯ve learned.¡±


    This is not the time for a lecture, Achilles, Jerome replied. And it irks me to know that I slept in that mad scientist¡¯s tower on the way out of Terra Praeta¡¯s Night.


    He dashed underneath the Chimera but the monster shot back with surprising speed. It smacked him to the wall but Jerome severed one of its limbs. The thing was lightning fast. But Jerome was fast too. He felt he could match it in speed. They went back and forth trying to subdue each other. But Jerome was fighting blind as it were. The fog made it impossible to sense anything.


    But what about underground, he thought. Jerome calmed his heart and pushed his senses downward. He sent tendrils of living steel into the earth to support his perception. He quickly had an idea of the terrain he was fighting on. And more than that, the Chimera was only a few dozen paces away. He could sense every of its movements through tiny vibrations in the earth. And he got a vague imagery of what it looked like in its completeness.


    Jerome shot towards it and activated his x-ray vision. The Chimera¡¯s chitinous exoskeleton became transparent before his eyes and what he saw made his blood boil!


    Fuck! The beast had swallowed Ms. Tara already!

 101. Ambush

    He gathered essence at the edge of his spear¡¯s blade with the same motion he wanted to behead the Chimera with. Its bulbous head and body were monstrous to behold. It had numerous eyes at the top of its head like a spider; black sclera and red irises spliced between a predator¡¯s and a prey¡¯s turned to him. Jerome extended his perception, forcefully pushing away the fog so he could get a sense of what the Chimera looked like. It was like an alligator had an orgy with a goat, and a crab to give birth to such unholy monstrosity.


    All of a sudden, Achilles did something he never in his wildest imagination, thought was even possible. The essence¡­ transformed before his very eyes. Like a catalyst was added to it. The bright blue ambient energy turned black and pooled at the tip of his spear into a tiny orb the size of a pebble. The spear became almost unbearable to hold. Energy raced up his arm from the spear and back. It grew so heavy he almost dropped it. Light curved around the pebble-sized orb like that of a black hole.


    Soon, Jerome felt like he was being pulled by a gravitational force thrice as intense as Terra Praeta¡¯s. He flung the black void at the head of the Chimera at the same time a gigantic chitinous tail smacked him in the side. Jerome was flung sideways into the valley¡¯s wall. He smacked into it with a grunt, debris falling all around him.


    ¡°Tara!¡± The Shifter jumped forward to catch a stray limb as the Chimera tried to attack anything near it. Its head was missing and a pale white sticky substance poured out of the joint where the head met the¡­


    Is that a thorax, Achilles? Jerome extricated himself from the wall to join the Shifter. The headless Chimera still had a fight in it.


    ¡°It is a cross between a thorax and a set of lungs. The lungs inside it help it to keep the oxygen it absorbs through its exoskeleton for longer, warming it up so its insides don¡¯t freeze.¡±


    Freaky. The Chimera was extremely adaptable to most environments, no matter how harsh. Jerome sliced off an incoming limb that the Shifter jumped over. He watched her land on the thorax with the agility of a cat and began to shift. Jerome had to shake himself to action. He badly wanted to see this with his own eyes but he had to act, lest he loses Ms. Tara. And the fog quickly came in again, defying his very powerful mental energy, so he couldn¡¯t even rely on that to watch the Shift.


    Jerome sprang into action cutting in-between the Chimera¡¯ abdomen and its thorax as the Shifter used her claws to try to rip the chitin at the top of the thorax away.


    ¡°Hey!¡± he called out, holding Ms. Tara in his arms, princess style. ¡°She¡¯s here.¡± Jerome marveled at the large Midnight Panther before. Golden eyes focused on him and she leaped off the carcass, transforming midair and landing naked in front of him. It was mesmerizing to watch.


    ¡°Tara!¡± The Shifter dived at him to take her away from him.


    ¡°Calm down. She¡¯s hurt and you can¡¯t help her.¡±


    ~~~


    Sheela


    The mummified man set Tara down, not even paying attention to her nakedness. She quickly took out another set of leathers from her storage ring to wear. Looking back at the mummy, she hesitated. There were tears in his eyes and a tenderness she had never seen in any man¡¯s eyes. His eyes weren¡¯t that of a long lost lover ¡ª Tara never talked, or wrote, about any lovers ¡ª they were the eyes of a family member.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Sheela asked as she tried to hold herself back. Tara was missing two limbs already and her skin looked like it had been digesting inside that thing for quite some time. She couldn¡¯t even make out her face. And all her hair was gone. But thankfully, she was still alive. Her voluptuous chest moved slowly to the rhythm of her breath. ¡°I know a little of the healing arts. I can help her survive.¡±


    He didn¡¯t respond. His brows were drawn in concentration. She had no idea what he was doing though.


    ¡°Look here, you,¡± she snapped, uncaring of her fear of him. ¡°That¡¯s my best friend!¡±


    ¡°And she¡¯s like a mother to me.¡± Golden eyes not unlike her own turned to her. But there was a huge difference. The fog was so thick down here that she couldn¡¯t even see her fingers in front of her, yet she could see his eyes from three paces away! His eyes were as bright as twin suns.


    Sheela almost fell forward as she gazed into them. She felt like she almost lost herself in it. She quickly regained herself as he looked away. She gulped and took a step back. Not that the distance between them was much to begin with.


    ¡°I can heal her myself. But not here,¡± the mummified man said and Tara vanished right before her senses. Her fear spiked immediately ¡ª fear for her friend.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so alarmed,¡± he said. ¡°She¡¯d make a full recovery in a day.¡±


    By all that is under heaven, she had never heard of such wounds healing in a day. Sheela couldn¡¯t help but stare up at him as he walked towards her, black robes billowing in the slight chill wind. Who was this man?


    ¡°Now tell me what happened. How did she end up here?¡± he said.


    That didn¡¯t feel like a question but a demand.


    ~~~


    Ms Tara had washed up in a river in the western region of Vorthe where she was taken in by the Fangs. From there she was chosen to come on this expedition to Terra Praeta where she and her friend, Sheela, who was the leader of their group, were betrayed. All because she wasn¡¯t a Shifter.


    Jerome already knew the location of the rest of the Shifters. He wanted to go after them but not before Ms Tara woke up. He had sent her to Sanctum so Achilles could help her regenerate her limbs and skin.


    Ms. Tara had been through a lot. She deserved to rest. From what Sheela said of her, she had made rapid improvements in character, becoming bolder and taking risks she never had the willpower to take before. Jerome was proud of her and her growth. And now that she was back in his life, he¡¯d make sure she got the best of resources. He just wondered who he¡¯d find next. Were the others here too? He didn¡¯t want to get his hopes up but the heart was a complex thing; it couldn¡¯t truly be tamed.


    ¡°So where do you go from here?¡± Jerome asked Sheela as they exited the valley. The cool breeze of the steppe blew over him calming his nerves. It felt good to be out in the open once again. ¡°You could come with us. We¡¯re going somewhere really dangerous. And danger in a place like this¡­¡±


    ¡°Means opportunity,¡± Sheela whispered. ¡°Will you take Tara there too?¡±


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    He nodded at her. ¡°You too, if you would come.¡±


    He could see the hesitation in her eyes. She didn¡¯t know him but she didn¡¯t want to offend him by rejecting his offer.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about offending me,¡± he said. Achilles, there should be a way to transport her to us when we are ready? Can you prepare a Rei¡¯ hsa like you did for me during my initiation?


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to go to such extremes, Xerae. I have some transference stones stored in Sanctum. I can repurpose one for a one off use.¡±


    Thanks, Achilles, Jerome replied. I can sense that they both have a bond with each other. Ms. Tara wouldn¡¯t forgive me if lose her friend.


    ¡°I can always keep an eye on her. Here it comes.¡±


    The air rippled in front of him and he caught the tiny stone that shot out of the void.


    ¡°You¡¯re full of surprises, you know that?¡± Csala complained. But he just smiled at her ¡ª to which she cringed.


    Urgh! I must really look hideous.


    Achilles chuckled at that.


    The black stone in his hand was as tiny as a pebble, and dormant for now. He could sense the power sleeping inside it.


    ¡°Take this,¡± he said to Sheela, tossing her the stone. ¡°That¡¯s a transference stone.¡±


    She held it away from herself, as if it would grow teeth and take a bite of her. ¡°What does it do?¡±


    ¡°Teleportation.¡± Her eyes bulged out in surprise. ¡°It¡¯s a one time use only. You break it when you sense the essence inside activate¡ª¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± she tilted her head at him, confused at the strange word.


    ¡°...err, quicken. That¡¯s me alerting you that she¡¯s awake.¡±


    Sheela stored the stone in her storage ring, glanced over for a long moment, and nodded curtly before racing away from them.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything stupid!¡± he called to her.


    She stopped to give him one last look before disappearing into the foliage.


    ¡°You think she¡¯d listen?¡± Csala asked. She stood out like a red prey in a sea of green grass.


    ¡°Most likely not,¡± he replied. ¡°But I¡¯ll be watching her. We best go.¡± He picked her up and shot into the sky, heading for Hedon.


    ~~~


    ¡°We¡¯re coming up on Hedon and his team,¡± Achilles said. Jerome decreased his altitude and slowed down. He looked in a particular direction and flew off.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Csala asked. She didn¡¯t like the look he had in his eyes now. He looked like he was out for blood.


    ¡°Old grudges,¡± was all Jerome responded with.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get yourself killed,¡± Csala said. ¡°Seems you¡¯ve got a lot of enemies here. Just don¡¯t die before you fulfill your promise.¡±


    Jerome landed at the top of a tree seventy-five feet off the ground. He scanned to check for predators and other sacred artists from their world. There were quite a few predators, distributed inside the vast forest based on their territories. Many of which were felines dozing off in the trees. He took a deep breath and sat down on the branch to meditate.


    The team of Sprouts Jerome was waiting for was still a few hundred steps away from his position. But he could hear their voices loud and clear as they talked about having just a little more than two moons left before everyone was transported out of Terra Praeta.


    Hmm. Can¡¯t believe I spent so long inside Sanctum, he thought. They had probably met up with the Royal Sprouts. Forester and his group would be the only team to be able to tell time from the moment they entered Terra Praeta since they were never delayed by the Children. Or they had other ways to do so. Before now he would have thought that wouldn¡¯t be possible, but now¡­ there was no way a Great Clan wouldn¡¯t provide their prodigies with ways to measure time.


    He watched as Hedon, and his men got closer. Counting their numbers, he found that there were a lot more people than he had thought. Some of the Sprouts in his group were very tall, way taller than average human youths. Jerome observed them and found their likeness very familiar.


    House Baelor, house of the running bull. He snorted. Though they were still quite far away, Jerome could ¡®see¡¯ the crests on their armor. There were twenty people from house Baelor together with House Alvric. Every one of the Baelors was at least taller than the tallest Sprout in House Alvric. Berj Baelors was busy flirting with a girl from the Alvric side. The shy girl looked like she was totally smitten and was blushing continuously. Jerome opened his eyes.


    ¡°Is that¡­¡± he muttered absently. He recognized the blushing Sprout as Arkesha after observing her. ¡°Who knew the Amazon warrior had a soft spot.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked, looking frustrated.


    ¡°Nothing,¡± he said. ¡°Stay here and don¡¯t make a sound.¡±


    Csala shrugged. ¡°Don¡¯t die,¡± she said.


    Jerome vanished on the spot, startling her.


    ~~~


    Hedon


    ¡°Brother Berj, perhaps we should focus on our journey for now,¡± Hedon said respectfully to the leader of team Baelor. Berj¡¯s distraction could cost them at any moment. And Arkesha¡­Hedon snorted lightly. He had never seen this side of her before. Though cute, now wasn¡¯t the time for such activities.


    ¡°Ahem. Yes, we should,¡± Berj Baelor said, a small smile lifting the edges of his lips.


    They continued their journey southward towards the mountain hoping to reach it before the two moon deadline was up. Hedon was kind of worried though. He hadn¡¯t seen any sign of a treasure that should call out to him as his father had described since he left Terra Praeta¡¯s Night.


    ¡°We should hunker down,¡± Murray said beside Hedon. ¡°The scouts will be here soon for their shift change.¡± He looked around to consider the best place to make camp.


    ¡°This is a good place, isn¡¯t it?¡± Hedon replied, also looking around. Though the area was dotted with large trees that could prevent them from seeing an enemy get close, the trees would also provide cover for them during an attack.


    ¡°We rest here for a while,¡± Murray announced and the Alvrics sighed, some leaning on trees to support their weight. They had been walking for a very long time. Hopefully, they would be able to rest well enough so they could fly.


    The dense foliage of the forest created a canopy above their heads giving them a small respite from the heat of the sun and the sounds of the forest were also a welcome distraction. Berj Baelor chuckled at something one of his teammates said which drew the Alvrics¡¯ attention.


    ¡°What do you find funny, Brother Berj?¡± Hedon asked as he sat on the large root of a tree.


    ¡°Nothing much,¡± he chuckled again. ¡°Just that you Alvrics tire quickly,¡± he said with a knowing smile. That got Arkesha to leave his side with a scoff. ¡°Err¡­Arkesha I¡ª¡±


    ¡°Good day, Young Lord,¡± Arkesha turned to him and said with a curtsy before leaving, not meeting his eyes.


    Berj sighed and palmed his face.


    ¡°So much for being a smooth talker,¡± Murray whispered. His voice carried on the wind to all the Alvrics in the group and they all chortled loudly.


    A glare from the Baelors shut them all up though. Hedon sneered at that. The Baelors were known to be some of the strongest warriors in Vorthe and although they became gentle as they grew older, their younglings were fierce and quick to anger. If a fight broke out, the Alvrics would definitely be at a disadvantage. But they lacked the art of the sway as his father called it; they were no smooth talkers. Hedon took pride in that. but it still grated on his nerves that a look from the Baelors would shut his teammates down.


    Silence engulfed them afterward, which caused Murray to look around warily. The sounds of the forest should have replaced the stifling silence that was left as the Baelors shut the Alvrics up. Hedon extended his perception around him before Murray roared.


    ¡°Fuck, it¡¯s an ambush!¡± Murray stood up with a start, as well as everyone.


    All of a sudden, red metal strings shot out of the ground and wrapped around members of team Baelor, pinning them to the ground.

 102. Assault

    Team Alvric instantly went into defense formation. They formed a perimeter around their scouts and long-range weapon users, putting up a domed air shield in the process.


    The stronger members of team Baelor instantly broke through their restraints as they roared into the air. Berj Baelor took out his great ax and cut through the strings pinning the rest of his teammates down. The Baelors were earth essence wielders, so they quickly formed earthen armors to protect their bodies even as they were pinned to the ground.


    Jerome had no intention of getting into a fight with the Baelors. So, he had loosened his strings a little and made them thicker in width to prevent them from cutting through the Baelors. There was no need to create enmity between himself and another great family. One was enough. But he had succeeded in doing what he intended ¡ª separating the two teams!


    ¡°Leave now. My fight is with Hedon Alvric. The same goes for other Alvric clan members,¡± Jerome spoke in a loud voice.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± Hedon yelled out.


    Jerome¡¯s voice had come from all around them, so they had no way of pinpointing their assailant. He walked out from a thicket in front of them, looking like a sickly old man, or probably a thousand year old mummy. His nice charcoal-colored robe was a huge contrast to his sickly and decayed looks. And although he looked sickly, his gait was anything but. Jerome stopped about a dozen feet away from the Alvrics and Hedon looked him up and down before bursting into laughter. The Alvric heir laughed hard at what he was seeing, and the rest of his teammates joined him.


    Jerome was not uncomfortable with them laughing at him. If anything, he was indifferent. The heavy laughter continued for a while longer than necessary as the Alvrics attempted to rile him up but every attempt failed.


    ¡°I thought you chickened out or had died somewhere in Terra Praeta,¡± Hedon said, after calming down. ¡°I can see you¡¯re not too far from death, though. Who knew you were such a fool that you would dare to attack me in the midst of my team, plus another great clan¡¯s team.¡± He looked around for a bit, his perception scanning the surroundings for a moment before he asked, ¡°You¡¯re alone, are you not?¡±


    Jerome snorted, ¡°Final chance to leave, else don¡¯t blame me for whatever happens to you.¡± He looked coldly at Hedon¡¯s teammates as he spoke.


    They all snickered and started pulling out different artifacts from their storage rings. With his face as cold as ice, Jerome brought out his new spear. The moment the spear materialized in his hand, Hedon¡¯s eyes filled with greed. The same went for most of his teammates. They eyed his spear like it was a delicious steak on a platter set in front of them.


    "This looks like a personal feud,¡± Berj Baelor said, ¡°So if you don¡¯t mind brother Hedon, we won¡¯t be joining you.¡± He took his teammates and moved away from the Alvrics.


    A shrewd fellow, Jerome thought. At worst he¡¯ll be called a coward for not helping out. But it was reasonable not to join the Alvrics as he had made it known that this was a personal grudge being settled. Plus their assailant was just one boy.


    ¡°Though, if you hurt Arkesha, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± Berj said before walking off. The giants were peace-loving creatures, but that didn¡¯t mean they were easily walked all over.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make threats when you¡¯re unsure of your opponent¡¯s strength, Young Lord,¡± Jerome called to him. ¡°You just may regret it.¡±


    Berj Baelor looked back to glare hatred at him before walking off with his team.


    Seeing that the Baelors had made their stance known, Jerome attacked. He shot forward with such great momentum that the thicket behind him exploded backward. In a split second, he struck Alvrics¡¯ windshield with his spear. The force of his strike was so great that it destroyed the shield, blasting them all apart.


    Hedon¡¯s eyes bulged out in surprise. He had underestimated how much Jerome had grown. Again. The Alvrics were all elites however and they quickly recovered. But their defense had been breached.


    Jerome was a blur to their senses. He lunged for Hedon with his spear, brutalizing everyone in his path. He remembered how Hedon held his sword to Doti¡¯s throat, how he sliced through Doti¡¯s throat like he was killing a chicken. Rage filled him and he saw red. This was the murderer of his family, and he was just a few feet away from the blade of his spear.


    Arkesha came at him like a blur, but a whip with a sizzling tip lashed at her. She had to abort her offense to escape certain death. Jerome¡¯s whip hit the ground with a boom and those around it were thrown off balance. Arkesha cursed.


    ¡°What the fuck is it with you and explosions?!¡± someone yelled.


    The Alvrics decided to attack with their long-range artifacts, firing energy beams at Jerome but he was doubly protected by his robes, and a dome of invisible energy surrounded him. Different balls of energy hit the spherical dome combusting on contact and the dome absorbed them the next moment.


    Jerome watched everything happening around him with a critical eye. It was like time had slowed down before him. He watched as the Alvrics shot energy beams at him from their artifacts; as the beams of energy traveled through the sky and hit his shield in slow motion. He saw Murray at the periphery of his vision, as he balanced on the balls of his feet, ready to push forward.


    This is amazing! He thought.


    ¡°Yes, it is, Xerae,¡± Achilles answered.


    How am I seeing them like this?


    ¡°Your mind is a lot faster than it was before, Xerae.¡±


    But this didn¡¯t happen during the training with the nanite puppets.


    Achilles snorted. ¡°Please do not compare these sloths to my creation, Xerae. It is an affront to my person.¡±


    Jerome smiled bashfully. Then he moved.


    In the eyes of the Alvrics, he must have looked like he vanished from view and appeared beside Murray who was about to attack him. With a downward chop of his hand, he hit the Alvric at the trapezius ¡ª the muscle between the neck and the shoulder. Murray collapsed, passing out from the blow. That was one down who could give him trouble. He vanished again. Jerome knew he wasn¡¯t teleporting, but was moving so fast it was like he was.


    Arkesha, knowing she was next, swung her sword wide but to her astonishment, another of her teammates was hurled at her.


    Jerome hit the ground with the butt of his spear as he ran and it was like a meteor fell to the earth. The earth spread out in waves with a booming sound as an unknown force blasted all the Alvrics into the air, separating every member of their team.


    What?! Achilles is that what I think it is?!


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°Gravity. A concept unknown in your world ¡ª or at least unknown by most of the populace. Even those that know of it are like ducklings waddling in the dark when it comes to such knowledge.¡±


    Hedon quickly raised a shield around him and took off, not knowing where Jerome was. The rest of the Alvrics flew after him. His sword glowed with essence ¡ª a sky-blue color ¡ª and he slashed out behind him, sending out a thin wave of air sharp enough to cut through trees.


    Four huge trees behind them toppled over as they flew off. Metal strings erupted behind the trees and chased Hedon through the forest like whips, almost separating him from the rest of his teammates.


    ¡°Arkesha, how is Murray?¡± He turned to ask and saw Murray passed out in Arkesha¡¯s hand. ¡°Fuck!¡± he increased his speed as did the others.


    Something hit him from above and he hurtled downward, crashing through trees before hitting the ground hard. Jerome landed next to him with a thud.


    ¡°I have thought many times about what to say when I finally have the chance to do this,¡± Jerome said, kicking him in the gut. ¡°But nothing always sounds right.¡±


    The kick sent Hedon a few feet into the air and he crashed into a few branches before a whip-like string wrapped around him, preventing him from flying away. The moment he hit the ground Jerome stepped on his right knee, shattering it completely. Hedon screamed. Beams of energy blasted Jerome from above but he did nothing and the invisible dome activated around him once again, siphoning the essence in the attacks, causing Hedon¡¯s jaw to drop. Hedon tried to get away as his teammates dropped from the sky.


    ¡°Brilliant,¡± Jerome said with a sigh as he looked into the distance to his right. Their fight had woken the magical beasts that live in these parts of the forest.


    Hedon¡¯s sword glowed with essence and with a wave, another wind blade pulsed out, aimed at Jerome ¡ª this one, weaker than the previous one. With the wave of a hand, Jerome countered the attack coming at him like a blade.


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    ¡°No Sword Force? How do you think you can defeat me with just wind, Hedon?¡± Jerome asked with a chuckle. If it had been imbued with sword force, it would have taken him at least half a second to deal with. Which meant the heir to the Alvric clan hadn¡¯t learned to use sword force.


    ¡°Stay away from me, you monster!¡± Hedon roared in fury, shuffling backward on his ass.


    Jerome attacked and Hedon raised a shield between them. His teammates also lunged for Jerome, all at once. Jerome speared through Hedon''s shield like it didn''t exist, causing ripples to spread out from the spear and the point of contact with the shield before it lost its essence and disappeared.


    With a slight twist of his hand, he sent a pulse of Sword Force out the sides of the blade to prevent Hedon''s teammates from hitting his spear away from his target. The spear transformed into a naginata, all the while spinning forward. The naginata gave off a sharp metallic ringing sound that affected all those attempting to assault him from all sides. They dropped down to the floor, holding their ears in pain. All except for one Sprout. Arkesha ran through the resonating barrier of sword force and vibration like it was nothing. Jerome had to use Suzzie to counter a strike of her sword which gave Hedon the chance to slip away.


    Duran, Hedon''s nephew, pulled Hedon back and fled through the forest with Jerome hot on their tail. ¡°Who the fuck is this monster, Hedon?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Some worthless cur of the Royals.¡±


    Some other members of team Alvric who were not within the field generated by the spear were not affected by the resonance of Jerome¡¯s spear. They joined hands with Arkesha to stop Jerome, but he was like a one-man army. They fought as they flew through the air, landing on branches from time to time. Dark red metal blades the length of a man¡¯s forearm were shooting out of Jerome¡¯s hand, spinning in the air and intercepting their attacks. Some would twist in the air like snakes to avoid being hit out of the way by the Alvrics, but enough to still hinder them.


    Jerome had no intention of harming the other Alvrics, however, so he had to work a little to get them off his back. Using his gauntlets, he shot bullets off concentrated ice at the branches they were standing on. But many of them escaped the encasing of ice before it trapped them.


    He parried Arkesha¡¯s blows like it was from a child. Dodging under one of her strikes, he closed the distance between them and hit her with a palm in the gut, sending a pulse of mutated essence into her body to disrupt the flow of essence.


    Arkesha fell from the sky and all hell broke loose. The magical beasts that had been disturbed in the forest attacked from all angles. Jerome, having expected them, weaved in and out of their way. He dodges claws and maws, broke bones and shattered skulls as they came at him. It was like a seamless dance in a sea of fur, claws, teeth. Somehow, these magical beasts had evolved to work well together. They were organized ¡ª even high in the trees, attacking from all angles. A Storm-Winged Eagle flew over them blocking out the sun and the temperature of the atmosphere dropped in an instant. The gigantic gray eagle snapped up an unfortunate beast and swallowed it whole.


    ¡°We should run,¡± someone said. ¡°Now!¡±


    A storm picked up around them and lightning struck out from the Storm-Winged Eagle. Jerome shot downward to the ground in the direction Hedon went, killing magical beasts as he went. Arkesha and her team were hot on his tail. Essence spiked behind him and he turned around, only to see a gigantic armored warrior made of wind chasing after him.


    ¡°That¡¯s the Argonaut,¡± Achilles said. ¡°At least a fragment of it.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm. It¡¯s not as powerful as I thought it would be,¡± Jerome said, scanning the nearly fifty feet tall wind giant as he flew away from the enclosure of beasts. The Argonaut was just behind him, hot on his heels.


    ¡°This is just something the young Alvrics are powerful enough to wield. The real thing is a lot more powerful.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. Where¡¯s Hedon?¡± Jerome was asking when a mighty sword came at him from above.


    ¡°Watch out,¡± Achilles said and Jerome twisted midair. A blade of wind and Sword Force passed only a hair¡¯s breadth away from his chin.


    The trees in its way were destroyed with that single swing, the ground carved up and thrown into the air. Jerome danced around the Argonaut a few more times, cursing in frustration.


    ¡°You could just use the Dragon¡¯s Wrath, Xerae. That¡¯ll even things out.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna give away the knowledge of such a powerful technique,¡± Jerome said, shooting a lance of blue laser at the Argonaut. It slapped it away like it was swatting a fly. ¡°You saw the look in their eyes when they saw the spear.¡±


    The Argonaut was fast. Every swipe of its sword was a blur cutting everything in its path. Since it was made of wind and not a physical material, it was harder to defend against. A bolt of lightning split the sky and separated them, announcing the Storm-Winged Eagle¡¯s arrival. Team Alvric disregarded the beast and struck at Jerome.


    Unprepared, Jerome saw the sword coming at him and spun his spear around to guide the blade of wind off course ¡ª a feat he was sure was impossible, given the fact that the wind blade wasn¡¯t a physical material. What happened next knocked that thought right out of his head. The Argonaut¡¯s sword was redirected slightly by the spear, as if it had substance.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me!¡± Arkesha growled her frustration from inside the Argonaut. She was equally as astonished, as well as her teammates.


    The Storm-Winged Eagle looked down at them in annoyance as if pissed off for being disregarded and flapped its wings hard. A storm was born in an instant as dark clouds formed above them. Visibility decreased as dust plumes and debris lifted off the ground creating cover. Jerome took that opportunity to slip away. Shooting backward to put some distance between them and vanishing from sight. The Argonaut moved, closing the distance in an instant again, and swiped at Jerome but he was gone.


    ~~~


    Murray


    Murray Alvric was a well-trained Sprout who was also close to advancing to the Spirit Realm. He may not be as powerful as Lang of House Fei, but he was still one of the most powerful Sprouts in Vorthe. There were very few in his Realm who could beat him in combat and they¡¯d have to work their asses off to defeat him, maybe lose a few chunks of flesh too. Jerome, however, had topped that list ¡ª effortlessly.


    He laid down gently on the ground, supporting himself with a rock and kneaded his neck muscles as the pain died down. One of his teammates was giving him a briefing on what happened after he passed out. Murray had a bad feeling about Jerome. The moment Jerome hit him, he felt the weight of a blow that far exceeded his own.


    How did Hedon make an enemy of someone like this? Scratch that. Hedon is the kind of person to make an enemy of someone who¡¯s more powerful than himself. Murray thought as he replayed the brief but powerful fight in his mind. Now that I think about it, the boy seems to be a lot more powerful than he was the last time we saw him. Which means he had some fortuitous encounters. The spear¡­


    Murray sighed as he thought about the spear Jerome wielded during the fight. Though he was just a boy, the spear he carried was more than ten times heavier than a normal spear. Anyone who got hit by the spear would suffer serious injuries. With a weapon like that they¡¯d probably be hard pressed to subdue him, talk less kill him.


    ¡°He¡¯s here!¡± Someone shouted and everyone scrambled up, weapons drawn.


    A powerful heat wave blasted them all from the direction the call came from. The Sprouts around Murray drew in labored breaths, some of them cursing out loud.


    ¡°How the fuck is he doing this?¡± someone said.


    Jerome strode out of the trees and the Alvrics attacked. With every blow, the sound of bones breaking and screaming could be heard. Murray rushed forward, wondering what happened to Arkesha and the Sprouts with her. He had to slow down this monster, or else none of his teammates would live to tell the tale.


    Getting closer to Jerome was like running head-first into an erupting volcano. The heat multiplied ten folds, causing Murray to blink frequently as the moisture dried in his eyes. The both of them clashed and Murray was pushed backward over a dozen steps. He looked down at his shaking hands gripping his sword, and back at the sickly-looking Sprout. For the first time, he felt fear facing another in his Realm. The kid was like an impassable mountain.


    ¡°Did you sell your soul to attain such power?¡± he asked, wondering what unholy being must have taken his vitality and soul to grant him such power.


    There were whispers about the church to the west and the creatures of darkness they battled. Maybe such a creature existed here too.


    His other teammates attacked, but Jerome dispatched them quickly, his steps never slowing. Murray looked around at his teammates. Jerome was only hurting them; none of them were dead. He pushed his fear down and attacked again. His sword blurred as he blended sword force with wind, attacking with all his might. His attack seemed to move sideways anytime it got close to the spear, as if some unknown force bent space around it. The spear blurred and hit him in the ribs. With a cracking sound, Murray felt pain shoot up his spine. He went down gritting his teeth. The last thing he saw was Jerome walking up to him and hitting him with the butt of his spear in the head before he passed out again.


    ~~~


    Jerome didn¡¯t have to look around to find Hedon. The Alvric heir stood on the other side of the clearing, radiating power.


    Epos. Jerome thought with a smile. This was going to be a showdown.


    The Argonaut took that moment to break into the clearing, surprising everyone of the Alvrics. Jerome grunted in frustration. Not bothering to turn around, flowing steel bled out of his body and robes and a big chunk of dark red shiny metal dropped from him.


    ¡°Ooh, impressive, Xerae,¡± Achilles said as the huge chunk of mithril¡ªmixed with living steel¡ª morphed into an armored warrior wielding a broadsword.


    ¡°You will have to supply me with the formation, Achilles,¡± Jerome said walking forward. ¡°I¡¯d do it myself but it¡¯ll be exhausting.¡±


    Hedon stood where he was stupefied as he watched the metal behind Jerome morph into a giant that was almost as tall as the Argonaut.


    ¡°For that, you will have to give me control of your, er¡­ ¡®mithril x flowing steel¡¯ puppet warrior, ahah!¡ªsee what I did there?¡±


    Jerome snorted at that, not bothering to respond.


    ¡°You could have just asked and I¡¯ll teleport the nanites here, though,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°Bad idea,¡± Jerome said as he thought about giving Achilles control of the living metal. He wasn¡¯t actively controlling the metal ¡ª not anymore. Now that he knew this happened because of the mithril, it was quite easy to accept that he was a freak of nature. Before absorbing the mithril, he had to actively control Suzie. But this wasn¡¯t the time to contemplate such things so he shrugged inwardly and passed his intent for the metal to obey Achilles.


    ¡°Perfect!¡± Achilles exclaimed and the Argonaut shot toward Jerome.


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother looking back. With a loud boom, a shockwave spread everywhere as the two giants crashed into each other.

 103. Epos x Mantra

    ¡°You should have killed me when you had the chance,¡± Hedon said with a smirk.


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother answering. He shot toward Hedon, his spear blurring as he stabbed at the Alvric heir. Hedon Willed the aura of his presence to rise to suppress Jerome just as he did at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. Jerome chuckled at that, not feeling pressured or slowing down his assault.


    Hedon¡¯s brows scrunched a little but he did not lose concentration. He parried Jerome¡¯s blows as they took their fight into the forest. Jerome¡¯s spear was too heavy for him to block though, as he found out the first two times after parrying the weapon.


    ¡°Where the fuck did you get a weapon like that?¡± Hedon asked as he shot compressed air at Jerome. This was a technique he was only able to use after the Tower of Solon.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you come find out,¡± Jerome responded, redirecting the air ball back to Hedon with his spear.


    The earth rolled around him and rocks shot out of the ground toward Hedon. He took to the skies with Jerome hot on his tail. With a wave of his sword, he shot out a pulse of wind blade toward Jerome but Jerome wasn¡¯t at his previous position. Hedon felt Jerome before he saw him. He was bludgeoned with the spear from above. Pain shot up his spine and he plummeted back to the earth.


    Jerome shot downward after Hedon, stabbing and kicking as they fell toward the earth. With a loud bang, they crashed into the earth and Jerome spat a fireball at Hedon. Hedon quickly put up a shield of air around him, and the fireball engulfed it a moment later. Fortunately for him, he was able to come out unscathed, with only a few strands of hair singed at the edges.


    Hedon quickly shot backward, distancing himself from Jerome after his near-death experience. Pulling out a strange looking artifact shaped like a hand-sized disc, he pushed his essence into it continuously. The disc was rust-brown in color but looked new, and gleamed with Sword Force.


    Jerome felt a little hesitant to approach him. The disc-shaped artifact gave him a weird feeling ¡ª not threatening but cautioning.


    ¡°What is that?¡± he asked Achilles.


    ¡°If you were a normal Sprout, I¡¯d say run but you¡¯re not,¡± Achilles said. ¡°It¡¯s an artifact that¡¯s used to collect and preserve Sword Force. With a push of a huge amount of essence, it outputs the Sword Force so its wielder can wield sword force as if naturally. Depending on the strength and skill of the wielder, some fantastic things could be done with a treasure like that.¡±


    Jerome stopped dead in his tracks. ¡°Will it work the way the Feis wield Sword Force?¡± he asked as he thought about Lang unsheathing and sheathing his sword, and the results thereafter. If an artifact could help someone do that, the result could be catastrophic.


    ¡°I¡­see,¡± Achilles said as he read the memory from Jerome¡¯s mind.


    I¡¯ve noticed you can¡¯t passively read my thoughts of the events that happened in the Night of Terra Praeta, Jerome snorted.


    A giant wind blade with a terrifying amount of Sword Force came at him and Jerome had to dodge to the side. He felt his eyes water in pain and his skin crawl as if thousands of tiny insects with pincers for legs were crawling on his skin as the blade passed him by. Jerome had to blink several times as he dodged another wind blade. Every tree in the path of the wind blades were shredded to pieces, some becoming sawdust. And the resulting shockwave sent them tumbling into other trees.


    ¡°I suppose so,¡± Achilles answered.


    ¡°How many more can he shoot?¡± Jerome asked, blasting a heatwave at Hedon. The air warped around him and the grasses on the ground dried up and burnt to ashes.


    ¡°By my prediction, only one¡­and then he¡¯d have to wait 2.37 hours to use it again,¡± Achilles confirmed.


    Jerome blasted Hedon with a blue laser of flame. ¡°Crank up the absorption powers of the robe.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. But you may have to deal with the excess Sword Force that spills over. The robe can only take so much.¡±


    ¡°I can handle it,¡± he said, blasting another laser of flame. If he was putting on the armor that was made out of mithril, he wouldn¡¯t even need to bother. But Jerome didn¡¯t want to have more eyes eyeing his treasures.


    The Alvric heir dodged to the side a second time, the heat threatening to disintegrate him to dust. He found his balance for a moment and shot compressed air at Jerome, this one, slightly weaker than the first. Jerome batted it away and snorted.


    ¡°Saving your last wind blade, Hedon?!¡± he said. ¡°That won¡¯t help you.¡±


    Hedon cursed, pissed off that Jerome was able to tell how many shots he had left. Multiple blue balls of fire shot toward him and he urged the power in his veins. He clenched his fists and roared in defiance.


    Jerome felt the weight of Hedon¡¯s presence grow again as he willed the air around him to stir into a cyclone. He darted forward, timing his pace so he could catch his opponent off guard. The cyclone picked up and spun around Hedon, displacing many of the fireballs. Just as the cyclone was about to die down, Jerome dashed into the center of it. Hedon turned to face him but two of the fireballs that weren¡¯t displaced reached him before Jerome.


    The Alvric heir was unprepared as a fireball came at his face. He tilted his head to dodge but the right half of his face was scorched in an instant. The other missed him completely and Hedon screamed in pain. He bore it as he shot backward to avoid Jerome¡¯s spear. Jerome stuck to him.


    ¡°You are nimble for one who wields metal, Jerome,¡± Hedon growled, his facial muscles already repairing themselves. ¡°But you wouldn¡¯t be able to dodge this!¡±


    The artifact in his hand glowed brightly and the Sword aura in the air spiked, bursting out toward Jerome. At such close range, it was impossible to dodge and Jerome didn¡¯t try. Blinding silvery-white light covered him completely, cutting him off from Hedon.


    Hedon laughed darkly. ¡°You lose, Jerome,¡± he said as he turned to walk away.


    ¡°Think again,¡± Jerome¡¯s voice sounded from inside the super-compressed mass of shining Sword Force spinning around him like a cyclone. His spear shot out of the mass towards Hedon, aiming to skewer him.


    Hedon took to the sky, expecting the spear to miss him but the spear tilted up and followed him. He cursed loudly as he saw he wasn¡¯t out of danger yet. Far in the distance he could hear his teammates struggling to come assist him. There was no way they could keep the Argonaut active for this long, so he was sure many of them would have died. He just had to hope that Jerome couldn¡¯t also keep whatever that was, he summoned active for very long.


    Jerome held the raging Sword Force back from him as he tried to absorb it. The Sword Force was too dense for him to absorb ¡ª dense to the extent it felt like matter. If only he had a way to displace it¡­ He remembered something quickly and almost laughed at himself.


    ¡°I¡¯m such a fool,¡± he said and a moment later the Sword Force was sucked toward and into him, and tucked away in his voidspace.


    ¡°I was wondering when you¡¯d remember to use it,¡± Achilles said playfully.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s kinda new so¡­¡± he didn¡¯t think about using it.


    Jerome shot upward after Hedon, moving past his spear. Hedon noticed him late as he was moving too fast to track. He punched the Alvric heir in the gut with his right hand and the punch pushed Hedon upward. Jerome shot after him, almost breaking the sound barrier. He formed a downward curved blade at the top of his fist as he readied himself to stab the Alvric heir. Hedon recovered quickly and shot wind blades at him. Jerome disregarded them, barrelling through as though they were nothing but a mild breeze. Hedon increased the distance between them before he got to him.


    Both Sprouts clashed in a dance in the air as they manipulated their respective elements to their advantage. Hedon thought he had more of an advantage in the air than Jerome but their brief clashes left his arms feeling weak and shaky and he did everything in his power to fight from a distance.


    But Jerome didn¡¯t give him the chance. Every once in a while, he swooped in with a dive and drew blood from Hedon. Hedon¡¯s armor was a mess already, its function destroyed by Jerome¡¯s spear. Even with enough distance between them, Jerome was still able to do damage with his fireballs and lasers. The fireballs were hard to block as they exploded on impact.


    Hedon marveled at the strength and quality of Jerome¡¯s essence. To be able to create fire that was so dense and burned so hot, made him the strongest Sprout in all of Vorthe. He couldn¡¯t accept that. He let his rage fuel him and attacked with all he had. He wouldn¡¯t let a common disciple best him in a fight. Never!


    Jerome toyed with him. Every air ball Hedon shot at him was absorbed by his robe or displaced by his spear. It felt like child¡¯s play. He was determined to make sure Hedon suffered before he died. Every cut his family suffered will be paid back a hundred fold. He took every chance he had to inflict damaging pain but nothing that would kill him at once.


    Soon Hedon couldn¡¯t bear to be tortured anymore. He made up his mind to fight another day. He was sure he could get away from Jerome in the air but reality proved him wrong. Jerome was just as nimble in the air with his wings, as he was nimble on the ground. He blocked every opportunity of escape the Alvric heir initiated causing him no small frustration.


    Soon though, they had an uninvited guest. The Storm-Winged Eagle made its way toward them, covering a large chunk of the distance with one beat of its wings. It stirred up the essence in the air into a chaotic mess, causing the air to heat up and a storm to pick up. Lightning filled the sky as the Storm-Winged Eagle announced its presence.


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    The two Sprouts did their best to avoid it as they danced in and out of clouds. The sky darkened as the sun set over the horizon but explosion after explosion lit up behind the clouds as they fought on.


    They felt the Storm-Winged Eagle before it got to them and separated. The Eagle snapped at Jerome who punched it under its beak. The punch was so heavy that the drops of rain in the air were blown away by the force of the impact and the eagle¡¯s head was flung upwards, seemingly losing its grace in the air for an instant.


    ¡°What the fuck?!¡± Hedon cursed, surprised at the amount of force in that blow. Even as frail looking as Jerome was, his blow packed a hefty punch. He dived back down to the earth as quickly as he could, wanting to put enough distance between him and Jerome.


    Jerome was hot on his tail, but the Storm-Winged Eagle recovered fast and shot after them. Jerome grumbled, knowing he¡¯d have to deal with the eagle somehow. It must have caught a whiff of his essence and wanted to have a taste of it.


    All three of them dived down with tremendous speed. Rainfall poured down in sheets around them and lightning lit up the sky in flashes. The Storm-Winged Eagle drew closer and Jerome let it. He felt it cycle, gathering essence from the storm. Its essence spiked, showing its readiness to attack and Jerome twisted in the air, extending Suzie. The sizzling tip of the whip blurred towards it but the Storm-Winged Eagle spread its wings and caught the wind, barely missing being hit in the face.


    The explosion afterwards, however, was a different matter. The force of the explosion rocked its bones and destabilized it in the air. Jerome turned away, to concentrate on his foe.


    He spun around to face Hedon but the Alvric heir was gone. His senses flared as he felt danger approaching from his right. With a wave of his hand, the living steel flowed out of his hand and blocked the hail of wind and Sword Force that came at him, blasting the raindrops on him away for a split second. Jerome hurled his spear like a javelin at Hedon. He commanded the essence in the air, and pushed off the air, shooting after his spear.


    Did you see that, Achilles? he said with a smile.


    ¡°Show off,¡± Achilles answered.


    He was upon Hedon in less than a second, his spear piercing into the Alvric¡¯s shoulder. Hedon screamed at the unbearable pain.


    ¡°What the¡­?!¡± Jerome muttered in shock as he gripped the spear. The spear was siphoning Hedon¡¯s essence and vitality! He chuckled and slowed down the rate of its absorption, wanting Hedon to suffer before dying. I didn¡¯t know it could do that, he said before landing them gently on the forest floor with the spear still lodged in Hedon¡¯s shoulder.


    Achilles chortled, ¡°I told you to wait before naming it for a reason. You could also have used it to consume the Sword Force from that artifact. But I think the voidspace is better for such a thing.¡±


    ¡°Damn you, Jerome. Stop!¡± Hedon screamed. ¡°Aaargh!¡±


    ¡°Did you stop when I asked you to? Did you free my family?! No, you stabbed and killed them one by one right in front of me!¡± Jerome roared in rage. With a swift kick he shattered Hedon¡¯s right knee. Again.


    The Alvric heir convulsed from the pain, unable to scream anymore. His knees gave out and Jerome held him up with the spear, causing him immense torment. He pushed the spear deeper into Hedon¡¯s shoulder, drawing more pained screams from him. Hedon tried to suppress the pain, but the spear fought back, causing his body to convulse rapidly. His already healed face looked a bit comical with the bald side of his head as his hair hadn¡¯t grown back.


    Jerome twisted the spear in his shoulder drawing another pained scream with blood gushing out of the injury. Hedon¡¯s sword dropped from his hand as he was unable to keep his grip on it anymore. Jerome was seeing now that the spear was capable of a lot more: siphoning essence and bending space were one; opening up pain receptors in the brain to magnify pain must be another.


    Hedon huffed, his breathing ragged. He looked straight into Jerome¡¯s eyes and with all the hatred he could ¡®will¡¯ into his voice he spoke.


    ¡°I am Alvric,


    I am the boisterous storm,


    Sharthu could never tame me,¡±


    Jerome chuckled and urged the spear to siphon a bit more of his vitality. Hedon gripped the spear tightly at the base of the haft in his other hand.


    "N''tdaea brought his legions against me,


    ¡°Like a great wave, he rose up to trample me,


    "But where is Sharthu?!


    Where is N''tdaea?!" Hedon¡¯s voice grew louder and his strength rose with every line of the Epos. He started pushing out the spear with all his might, inch by inch the eighteen inch long blade was pulled out of his shoulder.


    ¡°The heavens were torn asunder!


    ¡°The sea split in two!


    Jerome recited the earth mantra under his breath to keep his strength even with Hedon¡¯s. He¡¯d been able to not only keep up with the Alvric throughout their fight but had suppressed him ¡ª without his mantra. Plus he was sure this was the second time the bastard was reciting his Epos. It was only a matter of time before Hedon died. Jerome strengthened his grip on his spear but didn¡¯t push back.


    ¡°What are you doing, Xerae?¡± Achilles asked. ¡°He¡¯s a lot stronger with that Epos. If he gets free, you may not be able to keep him here.¡±


    I want to give him hope¡­then dash it! Jerome transmitted to Achilles, giving way to Hedon as he pushed more of the spear¡¯s blade out of him.


    Alas!


    They are nowhere to be found!


    For I alone stand victorious!


    I,


    Alvric!"


    Hedon laughed as he completed his Epos. His aura grew to the maximum as the wind around him turned into blades, threatening to cut Jerome into millions of pieces. Jerome was unbothered, he tilted his head with a smile and asked, ¡°Is that it?¡±


    Hedon roared in anger, shoving the spear back. He dove for his sword and at the same time shot out a massive wind blade from his disc-like artifact. On close inspection, the artifact seemed to be made with bronze. Jerome took the hit on his robes ¡ª which for some reason weren¡¯t even wet, but he didn¡¯t have the time to stop and concentrate on such an observation. He aimed for the same shoulder again, wanting to rip it off, but his senses warned him of an incoming threat from above.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be kidding me,¡± he muttered in annoyance, shattering Hedon¡¯s already healed knee again before moving out of the way. Hedon screamed.


    Compressed air hit the ground where he was standing a moment ago, gouging out the soil and blasting everything around to smithereens. The Storm-Winged Eagle descended upon them like a demigod. It shot wind blades at them with a high-pitched whistling sound that could rupture the eardrums of weaker sacred artists.


    Jerome could sense the arrogance in the Storm-Winged Eagles countenance. He could also sense that it was taking out its rage on him for destroying its nest of eggs. Jerome was a bit sympathetic, but he didn¡¯t have the luxury to pacify it, not that it would listen to him. He shook his spear, and a high-pitched vibration resonated outward to counter the eagle¡¯s attack. He felt woozy a little but steadied himself quickly.


    ¡°That was also a psychic attack, Xerae. Be careful. And I can¡¯t believe you can understand the bird.¡±


    That¡¯s interesting, he thought, going after Hedon once again. Can I really do that?


    ¡°It seems so.¡±


    The fight devolved into a three way fight, with each assailant trying to injure another while at the same time defending against the other. Jerome got it worse as the Storm-Winged Eagle was really pissed at him for destroying its eggs, and Hedon took advantage of that to attack with more fervor.


    Jerome wasn¡¯t overwhelmed by the two ganging up against him. But this way he couldn¡¯t focus on Hedon to deal out the punishment and torture he wanted to. He used the earth to his advantage, moving the soil around and shooting out spikes and rocks to attack and defend. At the same time, he commanded the essence in the air, making it look like he could wield wind essence, using it to distract both his assailants as well.


    Hedon was brimming with energy and Jerome observed that this would become a battle of attrition. He still had a lot of essence left and didn¡¯t need to wield his own essence, except for fire. The Storm-Winged Eagle and Hedon on the other hand, seemed to be working together, which put him in a defensive position.


    ¡°This is the second time he¡¯s using the Epos. I¡¯d like to see how long he lasts, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. Jerome got the feeling that he was only interested in studying the Alvric¡¯s Epos and not actually help him win the fight.


    He didn¡¯t leave the ground except to prevent Hedon from escaping. He also kept an eye on the Storm-Winged Eagle so as not to be surprised by one of those psychic attacks again. The once vibrant forest had become decimated. The widespread destruction could be seen for almost a mile.


    Jerome swatted Hedon¡¯s wind blades as both of them stayed out of range of the eagle. He distracted the Storm-Winged Eagle from time to time with his whips, keeping it at bay. The Storm-Winged Eagle quickly became impatient with them and cared less if Hedon got injured. It fired blade after blade of wind at them, destroying each person¡¯s chances to land a decisive strike. Though, the eagle was aiming for Jerome the most.


    Whatever happened to the ¡®mithril x flowing steel¡¯ warrior? Jerome snorted. Get it to deal with that thing!


    ¡°But this is still considered training, Xerae. I believe you can defeat them both.¡±


    Jerome scoffed in frustration but didn¡¯t complain. It was hard to deal with two opponents as it were, no need to add in an argument with a difficult AI. He shot backward as the Storm-Winged Eagle suddenly dived at him in a rush giving Hedon some respite from his attack. Jerome shot a laser of blue flame at the eagle, singeing its tail as it swerved out of the way. He felt Hedon¡¯s presence deflate and grow weak the next moment.


    ¡°He¡¯s out, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°He was able to hold onto the power of the Epos for a lot longer than I estimated.¡±


    It¡¯s his strength of will that pushed him this far, Jerome pushed off the ground toward Hedon. The Storm-Winged eagle swerved around and came at him again.


    ¡°I see what you¡¯re doing you piece of shit!¡± he looked back at the Storm-Winged Eagle which was now gaining on him from behind. It had left Hedon to him as bait and swerved out the way of his laser to dangle that bait in front of him.


    ¡°Smart son of a bitch,¡± Achilles said, impressed.


    Just before Jerome got to Hedon, someone grabbed Hedon and fled into the distance. ¡°Arkesha, Damnit! How the hell did I miss her!¡±


    ¡°She probably had a cloaking artifact on her.¡±


    Jerome snorted. ¡°Weren¡¯t you supposed to be keeping her busy?¡± He spewed a large amount of flame on the eagle but it gathered a storm around itself and shook it off with its wings, blasting the surrounding air with a shockwave. The armored warrior appeared before the Storm-Winged Eagle and chopped off its head in one strike.


    ¡°What the hell, Achilles?!¡± Jerome fumed. ¡°You could have done that all along?¡±


    ¡°Calm down, Xerae. I have a bad feeling about killing Hedon.¡±

 104. The Argonaut

    Jerome shot after Hedon, not bothering to use his wings. He flew faster than he ever had, determined to kill the Alvric.


    ¡°Why the hell would you¡ª¡± Jerome stopped himself from saying something he would regret. He was so angry at Achilles for preventing him from taking his revenge that his anger made him doubt if the AI was ever on his side.


    ¡°Why did you stop me, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked as he sped through the forest after Hedon. All the trees in the area he just left had been destroyed and he soon flew into a part of the great forest that had remained untouched by their battle.


    Achilles said nothing, but Jerome could almost feel him processing his thoughts. Jerome decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe the AI could sense something he couldn¡¯t. But that didn¡¯t mean he¡¯d give up on his mission. Until Achilles came up with a good reason not to snuff out the Alvric¡¯s soul, Hedon was as good as dead. No more games.


    Jerome began knocking down everything in his path, causing a commotion through the forest that would attract magic beasts he may or may not be able to handle. This tactic seemed reckless, but it was the only way he could think to keep the Argonaut off his back, if he happened upon them without showing too many of his cards. He spread his perception a mile around him and took off in a particular direction. Jerome unfurled his wings and spread it wide as he dove below the canopy of the thick forest, cutting through full-grown trees as though they were twigs.


    With a flick of his wrist, Suzie wrapped around one of the enormous fallen trees and picked it up. The tree was so big, you couldn¡¯t see the one who picked it up. He flung the tree at Hedon who was visible above the greenery of the forest.


    ~~~


    Hedon had never expected such a thing to happen to him. This was a disgrace to his person. A disgrace to his honor and his family¡¯s honor. The Alvrics never retreat, not in front of a single foe! He couldn''t take out one Sprout, even with the help of fourteen others. His shattered knee brushed a tree branch as he flew, bringing pain again. He had to heal and he had to do it fast. He had overused the Epos and he felt like his body was shutting down, refusing to heal.


    What did this brat eat that gave him the strength and confidence to act like this? What fortunate encounter did he have to increase his strength like this? Hedon thought frustrated as he gritted his teeth against the pain. He felt so weak and only his willpower was keeping him flying.


    Something covered the sun for a moment as they flew a few inches above the trees. He and Arkesha looked up thinking it was Jerome, come to deliver justice. What they saw made their hearts tremble. A large tree over a hundred feet tall and twenty feet thick had been hurled at them from a distance and was already falling on them.


    Both of them dived out of the way, separating to escape the gigantic tree. Hedon''s heart clenched the next moment as he felt the hand of death upon him. He quickly dived back down to the earth, but he was not fast enough. A blood-red steel blade the length of his forearm sliced through his shoulder cutting off his arm in one smooth move. Hedon screamed as he crashed into the forest at high speed.


    From the looks of it, he had on a new armor. I thought it¡¯d be able to withstand Suzie, Jerome transmitted to Achilles.


    ¡°Do not underestimate mithril, Xerae. The mithril has remarkably changed the composition of the living steel so it¡¯s a lot more powerful now,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Did you notice how you deflected the Argonaut¡¯s blade ¡ª a blade that wasn¡¯t made from physical material?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I was surprised with that,¡± Jerome shot toward Hedon.


    ~~~


    Hedon


    ¡°Staunch the blood flow!¡±


    ¡°Quickly¡­¡±


    Hedon could hear his teammates around him call out to one another as they tried to help stop his blood loss. Their voices sounded far away sometimes and too close at other times.


    ¡°Hedon, cycle¡­¡±


    He couldn¡¯t keep conscious for more than a few breaths, alternating between fainting and waking. The pain was unbearable. He couldn¡¯t feel his left arm, and half his face was covered in blood. He could smell it¡­taste it even.


    ¡°He¡¯s here!¡± someone shouted.


    Another lifted him up and for a few seconds, Hedon¡¯s eyes fluttered open. What he saw made his heart nearly freeze over. Goosebumps rose on his skin, and he could feel his mouth go dry and his eyes moisten. Hedon had never been so afraid in his entire life.


    Jerome held his severed hand as he walked toward the Alvrics. His long thinning hair was blowing into his mummified face covering it partially. Sunken black eyes met his and he shivered lightly. There was an almost concealed red glow in Jerome¡¯s eyes that made him look like a demon from hell as he walked toward them. Robes billowing in the wind, Jerome walked forward slowly.


    Jerome was still some distance away but Hedon felt like he was right in front of him. As if he could stretch his hand and grip his throat, squeezing the life out of him. Hedon¡¯s remaining hand went to his throat subconsciously.


    ¡°Jerome. Are you going to be so adamant?!¡± He yelled, his weakness evident in his voice. ¡°Do you want to risk rousing the ire of a Great family?!¡± Hedon screamed hoping to scare Jerome into stopping his assault.


    But Jerome only moved forward, undeterred. He rushed forward spinning his spear as myriads of attacks were launched at him from various artifacts from the Alvrics¡¯ offensive teammates.  Jerome countered attack after attack and kept getting closer. The essence began to spike in the air and become chaotic. Any magical beasts miles away would sense the fight going on here. The team couldn¡¯t risk that. Hedon¡¯s mind raced as he thought of what to do.


    ¡°Form up!¡± he shouted.


    His teammates got into position as they began cycling. Jerome took a look at them and extended his perception.


    ¡°They are about to summon the Argonaut again, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°But ground activity shows you¡¯ve got another problem.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that. He raised his spear, blade facing up. ¡°Mother Nature provides life¡­¡±


    The butt of the spear hit the ground with a boom and the Alvrics lost their balance, flung into the air with a mighty force from the spear as the earth moved like a wave beneath them. The Alvrics took to the sky to complete their formation. But the earth rose up with them threatening to swallow them. Many of them were so afraid, they scattered in different directions, destroying any chance of creating the formation.


    ¡°Freak!¡± someone shouted at Jerome with venom in their voice.


    Jerome ran after Hedon and Arkesha. But before he could get to them, he sensed something behind him and quickly dodged to the side. A gigantic wind blade passed through the position he was in the air a moment ago, just a hair¡¯s breadth away from him as he twisted away. He crashed into a tree, disintegrating it in an instant and causing pain to shoot up his spine. He knew he had sustained internal injuries at that moment, but he couldn¡¯t be bothered because a giant sword-wielding, ethereal, armored warrior stood in front of him.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped. Is this the same Argonaut that attacked me before? This Argonaut was a lot bigger than the previous one. Towering over the trees¡­and still growing. But the most notable fact was its presence.


    ¡°No, Xerae. This is the real Argonaut,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°But the Argonaut¡ª¡±


    ¡°The one the Alvric clan reveres in their homeland is but an extension of this one. The Argonaut is a Spirit ¡ª a wind Spirit. It¡¯s not bound to a physical body like you are. This was what I was sensing before; why I¡­ inadvertently prevented you from killing him. Hedon¡¯s father tasked him with finding this Argonaut for his own father.¡±


    ¡°Fuck!¡± Jerome cursed as he stood up. How the fuck did things get to this. ¡°This was what you felt and said you had a bad feeling about killing Hedon?¡±


    ¡°It sure is, Xerae.¡±


    The Alvrics began celebrating as they quickly flew into the giant. The giant grew even bigger ¡ª the tallest trees not even reaching its knees. It was as tall as a small mountain at this stage.


    ¡°How the hell did it get here then?!¡± Jerome asked as he scrambled backward, ignoring the stampede of beasts that came rushing out of the forest toward him.


    ¡°I believe it was Hedon¡¯s injury that called to it, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°So in other words, this is my fault?¡±


    The colossal Argonaut took a step to adjust itself and the ground quacked with intense vibrations. It turned around as if to take in its environment, clearing everything under foot as it moved. The wind moved with it and around it. Blades of wind sliced into everything its feet passed by, shattering rocks and disintegrating trees. Even from more than a hundred yards away, Jerome could still feel the effects of the Argonaut¡¯s movement, but more than that, he could feel the weight of its presence weighing down on him.


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    Then it cycled.


    Jerome¡¯s knees hit the ground as a force equal in power to the Sovereign¡¯s pushed him down. Every magical beast around him at the time ¡ª including those that were unfortunate to be caught flying ¡ª hit the ground hard, some of them convulsing and foaming at the mouth before passing out. Jerome could feel himself gasping for air as if the very air he was breathing in was being sucked out of his lungs.


    As the Argonaut cycled, wind essence raced towards it from everywhere. It raised its head and arms, clenching its fists as it roared to the sky ¡ª a loud roar that blasted everything around it for almost a mile away. Jerome had to bury himself in the soil so as not to have his bones shattered from the shockwave of the blast. He pushed himself deep down into the earth to escape the Argonaut¡¯s hold on the world and everything around it.


    As it cycled, the Argonaut created a hurricane around it pulling trees from the ground. The atmosphere became colder as the temperature dropped and the suction force tightened around the area. Jerome could feel himself being pulled out of the ground against his will. He willed the earth around him, shaping it into a dome to give him a brief respite.


    ¡°Achilles, get me outta here!¡± Jerome screamed.


    ¡°A moment, Xerae. If I act now, the Argonaut would sense me. Things would only get worse after that.¡±


    Jerome remembered that the old succubus sensed Achilles once, which means the Argonaut ¡ª which was as powerful as a Transcendent ¡ª could sense him too. Not only that, she also pulled a pod of Hezvar out of the void ¡ª the very pod he bonded to himself. Who was to say the Argonaut couldn¡¯t do that, or more?


    Jerome could feel a strain on his mind. As if something was trying to break through his defenses. He chuckled darkly as the vein in his temple stood as he tried to resist the suppression field of the Argonaut.


    The Argonaut may not have been actively trying to break through his mental defenses, but the ¡®working¡¯ of its Will in the world was bending physical and metaphysical laws almost to the breaking point, if not past it ¡ª he wasn¡¯t sure about the science of it ¡ª but he was not surprised. This was a Transcendent after all.


    Jerome thought about how to get himself out of his situation. Fear rose in him for the first time in a long while. This would be the most dangerous thing he had ever tried doing. He hesitated for a long moment before taking a deep breath. He could do this. He had to. There was no other recourse. He exhaled, his breath coming out shakily and his hands shook as well. He had to clench his fists to keep calm.


    He had overcome every disadvantage he found himself in, every problem that had been shoved in his face had caved to his will and perseverance. He wasn¡¯t about to give in now. He wouldn¡¯t stay here waiting for death to come. The Argonaut wouldn¡¯t be merciful and let him go, not after he had caused one who revered it to suffer.


    ¡°Mother Nature provides life¡­¡± he recited and willed the surface of the soil around him to shrink closer to him and solidify. He just had to get himself out of his troubles since Achilles was unable to help at the moment.


    The earth rumbled as a golden glow covered the soil all around him. He could now control how the earth essence would permeate the air as well as the vital essence. But as he reached out with his own Will to move the soil, he found he could do nothing. The Argonaut had locked down everything in its vicinity. It had become the new law in the area around it. How much of the area its Will covered, Jerome could not tell.


    ¡°She provides vitality and protection,¡± Jerome continued under his breath. He pulled the vital aura from the earth preparing to come under the Argonaut¡¯s full attention. If he wanted to survive, this was the least he could do ¡ª even though he knew no amount of protection could prevent the Argonaut¡¯s attacks and intent from reaching him.


    With every line of the earth mantra recited, the blazing aura of the earth became stronger around him. The area of the aura also increased in diameter and as it did, Jerome felt the pressure give way, a tiny fraction. Green motes of vital aura suffused the surrounding inside the dome-shaped hole and he sucked it all into his core. He increased the intensity of his will and drew tiny scripts in the soil around him to create an extra layer of protection, ready to take off.


    Here goes, he thought. This was it.


    As soon as he activated the scripts, the Argonaut focused a little more attention on him. Jerome vomited blood, unprepared as he was, to face the scrutiny of a being almost equal to a god. The scripts flared bright gold as his blood touched them, almost as if the vitality in his blood empowered them. Jerome felt the ground shake as he imagined the Argonaut giving him its full attention.


    The ground burst open and all his scripts shattered. Jerome groaned as the weight of the Argonaut¡¯s presence increased by hundreds of folds. He felt his feet leave the ground and everything turned white in a split second.


    Whatever happens, Achilles. Make sure that thing never makes it to Vorthe, he thought before passing out.


    ~~~


    Waking up to the sound of the forest around him, Jerome sat up abruptly. It was dark but he could see the silhouettes of the trees and leaves in different shades of green around him. The canopy of trees were so thick, they blocked out the light from the celestial bodies. The forest was alive all around him with the chirping of insects and croaking of frogs, which was a disturbance to his ears.


    The moment he cycled, silence reigned as the creatures around him froze from the slight pressure he exuded. Jerome sighed. He looked around trying to figure out where he was. Standing up, he noticed something falling off him: his face and neck; his hands as well. He looked down to see his skin peeled off from his body. Brittle skin that crumbled at a touch.


    Did I molt?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae,¡± Achilles answered.


    He took off his robe and more dead skin fell off his bare upper body. He quickly stripped down and shook off the rest of the dead skin from his clothes. His new skin felt healthy and smooth to the touch, and his body had filled out. His hair had also grown out as well, looking healthy and shiny.


    ¡°That was quick. I thought it would take a while,¡± Jerome said, putting on his robe.


    ¡°Xerae¡­¡±


    Jerome sighed. He knew what was coming. For all his powers, Achilles wasn¡¯t a true Transcendent. He could face one down but only for a while. He couldn¡¯t stop a Transcendent if he ¡ª or she ¡ª wanted to leave.


    ¡°It got away, didn¡¯t it?¡± Jerome asked, wondering what he¡¯d missed.


    ¡°I could only make sure to keep it distracted,¡± Achilles said, sharing the memory of what transpired after he passed out with him.


    Achilles had used the power of the Hezvar to attack the Argonaut. Golden beams of energy carrying tremendous power poured down from space to destroy the Argonaut. With that distraction, Achilles was able to get Jerome out of harm¡¯s way. Jerome was surprised to find out that the Hezvar was not just for surveillance but could be used as a weapon ¡ª a weapon that can destroy any target anywhere in the world, at least those that weren¡¯t Transcendent.


    ¡°Using the Hezvar like this must have taken a toll on you. I can feel it.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Well, I had to get you to Csala so I could get you both out of there.¡±


    ¡°Csala,¡± Jerome perked up. ¡°Where is she?¡± He scanned the forest around him and noticed her sleeping a few dozen feet away. ¡°Why is she sleeping so far away¡­?¡±


    His voice trailed off as he saw who was with her. Ms. Tara cuddled close to the succubus for warmth, full of life and vitality. Both of them looked cute together as they slept in each other¡¯s arms. A tear came to Jerome¡¯s eyes but he quickly blinked it away.


    Thank you, Achilles.


    ¡°You¡¯re very welcome, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome walked up to them to watch them up close. He just sat close to them, watching them sleep peacefully. He felt a sort of peace invade his very being as he watched them.


    ¡°It was wise on their part to put some distance between you lest you invite trouble with your cycling. Nevertheless, I had to force you to stop cycling.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Achilles. Are you gonna be ok?¡± Jerome had to know because he felt that his connection to the pod he bonded with had weakened.


    ¡°I¡¯d let you know when I¡¯m at a hundred percent, Xerae. The pods are conserving power and recharging is all.¡±


    Jerome sighed in relief at that. ¡°Where are we?¡±


    ¡°Close to Terra Praeta¡¯s equator. We covered a lot of distance in one jump.¡±


    Jerome exhaled in relief. His battle with the Alvrics took place way down South.


    ¡°So¡­where is the Argonaut now?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s in Vorthe now, Xerae. But do not worry yourself. Vorthe¡¯s Sovereign is more than enough to deal with it.¡±


    ¡°But what about those who¡¯d be caught in the crossfire,¡± Jerome said as the weight of what he¡¯d done settled on him. He frowned and scolded himself in his heart. He had unleashed a terror upon Vorthe and he wasn¡¯t going to be there to stop it.


    ¡°One thing at a time, Xerae. Your friends at the North pole would be facing trouble soon. I suggest you lend a helping hand.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s stomach rumbled.


    ¡°... After you get something to eat.¡±


    ¡°When last did I even eat¡­?¡± Jerome wondered aloud as he walked toward the sleeping succubus. ¡°What¡¯s after them?¡±


    ¡°Unbound, Xerae. Very hungry ones,¡± Achilles said, showing him a pack of about sixty bipedal wolves with digitigrade legs tracking prey. They had split up to cover more ground. The prey, which were his friends, the Itakars.


    ¡°How long do I have?¡±


    ¡°At least four days before they are found.¡±


    That might not be a lot of time for him to reach them considering the distance from his current location to theirs, but he could cover half the world in fifteen hours, probably. Having ancient secrets of the Fae could help a Sprout do that. He had to fill his belly first, and then work on something that he could feel he could do now. Somehow, he had grown. He could sense it, the struggle to get away from the Argonaut¡¯s hold on the world must have pushed him to another level of strength. He scooted close to Csala to wake her up..


    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m awake,¡± he said and gently nudged her. ¡°I¡¯m going to hunt down something to¡­¡± he trailed off as he remembered he still had some roasted game in his storage ring. Jerome quickly checked but frowned at what he saw.


    Of course they¡¯ll rot, he snorted to himself. He extracted them, pushing them out of his storage ring and into the air, far away from them before quickly burning them up so as not to pollute the air with the smell. They had been in his ring for too long.


    ¡°Huh. Jerome?¡± Csala woke. She had to extricate herself from Tara before sitting up. She looked around to find darkness blanketing her surroundings but as a succubus, she still had enhanced senses.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to hunt down something for us to eat,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that,¡± Csala said. ¡°Sheela already went hunting.¡±


    ¡°Sheela¡¯s here?¡±


    Csala smiled at him and he almost lost his train of thoughts. She was so beautiful. Jerome¡¯s gaze lingered on her beautiful face for a few breaths, as he found it hard to look away. Csala cleared her throat and he came out of his stupor. He offered his hand to her, palm facing up.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Csala asked, refusing to take his hand. For a moment there she felt he had succumbed to her beauty ¡ª something she couldn¡¯t help because of what she was.


    ¡°I¡¯m ok,¡± he said, rising to his feet. ¡°We should make a fire. The one you made is out.¡±


    He looked down at the camp fire beside the sleeping Ms. Tara. There were a lot of branches lying around so they began to gather them up.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t help but think about what would become of his home. If Farryn was destroyed by the Argonaut, it would be his fault. It was like Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon was happening again, right before his eyes.


    He sighed. There was nothing he could do even if he wanted to. He just had to hope the Sovereign could stop the Argonaut.

 105. The Bleeding Hand

    It was only a few minutes later that Sheela made it back to them. A light rain had begun drizzling so they worked on getting more wood.


    Jerome looked over at Ms. Tara, wondering why she hadn¡¯t woken up yet. The heavy canopy of trees above them would keep them dry so there was that.


    ¡°She¡¯s awake, Xerae. She just doesn¡¯t know how to face you.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s heart nearly broke at that. He quickly dumped the twigs in his hands and picked her up, hugging her to himself. Ms. Tara broke down in tears, hugging him back.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Jerome said. He was finding it hard to keep himself from breaking into tears too. ¡°This was all my fault. You don¡¯t have to beat yourself over it.¡±


    Sheela had caught a buck. She stood there with the large game on her shoulders unsure of what to do. Jerome sensed Csala dump her own forage of twigs beside his and dragged the Shifter away to give them some privacy.


    Ms. Tara cried for a long time, letting it all out before calming down. Her sobs reduced to hiccups and for a long time they just held each other.


    ¡°I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re alive,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°I¡¯m happy to see you too,¡± Ms. Tara said. ¡°I couldn¡¯t stop them, Jerome. They came prepared that afternoon. They knew we¡¯d all be indoors, resting in the cool of the orphanage.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Ms. Tara. You don¡¯t have to relive it all again.¡±


    ¡°No, I¡­ I just,¡± she sniffed. ¡°We couldn¡¯t stop them. If it wasn¡¯t for Old Wen they would have¡­¡±


    Jerome got the picture. And it made his blood boil in anger. ¡°They¡¯ll pay for it,¡± he said through gritted teeth. ¡°All of ¡®em will pay.¡±


    ¡°Hedon is here, Jerome. In Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I fought him.¡±


    ¡°You fought him?¡± Ms. Tara asked, flabbergasted. Then she seemed to remember something as she gazed lovingly into his eyes. ¡°How did you even come to be here? I was chosen by some mysterious leader of the Diviners.¡±


    Jerome shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of them.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I only got to know about them in Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°The Royals sent me here.¡± Jerome went on to tell her how he had been taken to the Royal Estate after Mehn Agrh¡¯ur and all the craziness that happened afterward.


    Ms. Tara was glad to hear that Ash was alive and thriving in the Royal Estate. In fact, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep would already be over months ago, and she¡¯d be waiting for him to come back home. Jerome didn¡¯t tell her about the opportunities he¡¯d encountered in Terra Praeta. He didn¡¯t think it was the right time.


    But Ms. Tara didn¡¯t care for how powerful he was or what treasures he¡¯d obtained. She wanted to know if the Royals had been treating him right; if they fed him regularly. She looked him over from head to boots for any sign of malnourishment or evidence of abuse.


    ¡°How are you so tall?¡± she said.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t help but smile at her antics. Ms. Tara was a mother through and through. She always put others before herself and that was what made her so endearing to him.


    Someone cleared their throat to get their attention. ¡°Peradventure you¡¯ve both forgotten that you have company¡­ and there¡¯s a buck that needs to be cleaned and roasted,¡± Sheela said from a few feet away. She muttered something about not preparing it since she caught it.


    Jerome looked over at the buck, standing up. ¡°That¡¯s a very impressive big buck,¡± he said with a nod of appreciation. He helped Ms. Tara to her feet as well.


    Sheela blushed from the praise. ¡°Well, let it be known that Terra Praetan games are much faster and sturdier than those of our world. Fuck!¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Jerome said to her. ¡°For taking the time and energy to hunt it down.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± she muttered, examining him anew. Sheela didn¡¯t know what he looked like before he became emaciated from creating his void space. ¡°You¡¯re easy on the eyes¡­ and tall. Where did Tara find such a hunk?¡± She eyed him up and down with undisguised interest.


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at her. It seemed Shifters didn¡¯t just dress wildly, they spoke brazenly too. He went to work, creating a makeshift table out of living steel to skin the buck of its hide. The buck¡¯s hide was tougher than he had expected, perhaps due to the fact that it was already close to becoming as powerful as a Sprout.


    Herbivorous magical beasts weren¡¯t uncommon. But they usually didn¡¯t advance as high as this ¡ª at least none Jerome had seen did. They¡¯d become some lucky predator¡¯s meal before they could ever wield essence, even if they had advanced higher than the predator.


    Jerome sighed as he worked. Life was not fair, and such was the situation he found himself in with Hedon. With a powerful Ancestral Spirit behind him, Hedon was able to escape death once again. Leaving Jerome to ponder what his next move would be. The Alvric heir would become more careful now. He¡¯d leave nothing to chance in the effort to prevent such a thing from happening again.


    If only you hadn¡¯t stopped me, Achilles, he¡¯d be dead by now.


    ¡°In my defense, Xerae. I was looking out for you.¡±


    Of course you were, Jerome deadpanned. He was really angry at the turn of events but now he knew that Achilles would put his life first even if it meant manipulating him. This was the part that stung like a bitch. Never do that again, Achilles. Your plans must go through me first, got it?


    ¡°As you wish, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome put thoughts of Hedon out of his mind and concentrated on the work before him. He had checked to see if the buck had a core but there was nothing emitting essence from it anymore. He knew the buck wouldn¡¯t have a core but there was no harm in checking. Since the beast hadn¡¯t tapped into its bloodline powers, it couldn¡¯t condense a physical core yet. Whatever meager essence it must have gathered throughout its life had dissipated the moment Sheela killed it. But its body would have retained some essence even in death. Which would make its meat a sort after dish for Blanks. The amount of vitality and essence left in the meat wouldn¡¯t make any difference for a Sprout like him though. But Jerome wasn¡¯t bothered about that.


    He removed the innards, separating the lower body from the upper body and put aside one hind leg for their meal. The three ladies watched him work, a fire crackling in their midst. He placed his hand on the other parts of the game and it froze over ¡ª not quickly, but quick enough that they saw the ice spread.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could command ice,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°That¡¯s incredible, Jerome,¡± Ms. Tara said.


    Sheela just stared in silence as if all he did was just child¡¯s play to her, even though she was secretly impressed.


    ¡°Cold is the absence of heat,¡± Jerome explained. ¡°I can¡¯t command ice, but I can take away heat.¡±


    ¡°Ah!¡± Ms. Tara exclaimed. ¡°I have never thought of it that way.¡±


    Jerome smiled. What he did actually required very fine control of one¡¯s essence and mental energy. Which reminded him. ¡°You¡¯d be teaching me how to use my me¡­psychic energy from tonight onwards, Csala. After the meal, of course.¡±


    ¡°Hmm-hmm,¡± Csala hummed, her tone carrying a little snark with it.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked as he felt her gaze on him. She looked away as if to say, ¡®you¡¯ll have to pry my mouth open before I teach you anything.¡¯


    Jerome chuckled and concentrated on his work. His thoughts shifted to his makeshift table as he worked, shutting every other thing out. He wanted to try something with wood like this metal table. Some of the knowledge he¡¯d gained from the library in Sanctum debunked the laws he¡¯d grown up believing.


    The Fae didn¡¯t need to absorb elements of a certain kind before they could wield it; they just had to have an understanding of it and¡­sense it? He wanted to try. He had lots of ideas flying around in his mind with no time to practice them. He felt he could manipulate wood like he did steel ¡ª well living steel, and gems like he did earth.


    ¡°You¡¯re on the right track, Xerae,¡± Achilles said.


    Hmm, he replied.


    It didn¡¯t take long to finish butchering the game. Jerome came out of his musing to hear the ladies discussing him in whispers. He walked over to the fire at the center of their camp and lifted the burning woods off the ground with his mental energy. He made a hole deep enough to fit the wood. He then made a smaller hole beside the first, facing upwind which connected to the one for the fire.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    ¡°I see,¡± Ms. Tara said in thought, understanding what he did. ¡°For the air, right?¡±


    ¡°And also to prevent smoke¡­and predators from seeing the fire,¡± Jerome said, filling the first hole with the burning wood.


    ¡°It sure is nice to wield essence,¡± Csala muttered, quietly. Jerome had made those holes as though it was nothing. Not even a wave or a hand gesture was done. The holes just¡­ made themselves. But she felt the essence being used, as well as the tight leash on it. He had a tremendous amount of control of essence for one so young.


    When sacred artists used essence ¡ª or even if they didn¡¯t ¡ª succubi could ¡®see¡¯ it as aura. There was always a slight leak of that essence that slips their control and dissipates into the world, becoming a part of the ambient essence. Jerome¡¯s control on his essence, however, was a lot firmer than the average sacred artist¡¯s, leaking nothing away into the world.


    Jerome could sense Csala¡¯s wistfulness and indignation. He knew it stemmed from the fact that she naturally couldn¡¯t wield essence like humans or Fae. There may be something he could do to help her out but until he tried, he wouldn¡¯t be sure. With the fire set, Jerome went ahead to spit roast the pieces of meat he had prepared for them. They sat around the fire waiting for their meal to be ready and Jerome took the time to test out his theories.


    ¡°How is it you¡¯re still alive?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Ms. Tara and Sheela turned to her as well.


    ¡°You were at death¡¯s door before the sun set today ¡ª all bones and mummified flesh. I had to carry you as carefully as possible so as not to break you.¡±


    Jerome paused. He fixed his gaze on the spit rotating over the fire as it cooked the meat impaled on it. He had set up Suzie to help rotate the spit on the fire. ¡°I guess you can say I¡¯m different.¡±


    Csala raised an eyebrow, giving him a skeptical look. Since he didn¡¯t share more though, she didn¡¯t ask.


    ¡°Different how?¡± Ms. Tara asked. Oh, how innocent she still was.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got gifts¡­ Most of which I found here in Terra Praeta.¡± He gave Csala a look to let her know to keep her mouth shut.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Ms. Tara perked up. But then she deflated, and her happiness with it.


    ¡°What is it? You can tell me about it,¡± Jerome asked, trying not to sound too forceful.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing¡ª¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s something,¡± Sheela butted in. ¡°She came to Tera Praeta to become stronger.¡±


    ¡°Sheela!¡± Ms. Tara snapped, trying to shut down her friend.


    ¡°What?¡± Sheela dismissed her tone. ¡°Someone needs to tell him. And he sure looks like he can help you far better than I can.¡± She frowned.


    ¡°Oh, Sheela.¡± Ms. Tara, just like everyone, caught the bitter undertone in the shifter¡¯s voice. She scooted closer to her friend and hugged her. Jerome could tell the shifter wasn¡¯t someone that was usually not in control.


    Achilles?


    ¡°Waaay ahead of you, Xerae.¡± He sensed a familiar sensation as Achilles connected to his void space and dumped some things into it.


    Jerome scanned the contents floating inside his void space. He saw a small black cube hovering a few feet in the air. What am I looking at, Achilles?


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t it bring back memories?¡±


    ¡°Ah.¡± he remembered the strange black cubes that had appeared, hovering above the grounds of the City Square on the day of Mehn Agrh¡¯ur. The roasting venison sizzled over the fire and Jerome began slicing bits off of it and handing it over to the ladies.


    The meat was barely tasty since there was no seasoning or spices to go with it. At least the little fat from the meat served as oil to keep it moist.


    ¡°Do you remember what it was like during Mehn Agrh¡¯ur, Ms. Tara?¡± he asked as he passed her a big slice of meat.


    ¡°Everyone remembers that, Jerome.¡± She chuckled. ¡°Who would forget such an experience?¡±


    ¡°Well, the black cubes that were floating in the air during the initiation were artifacts that helped stimulate the essence in the air to make it denser. That way non sacred artists could sense essence for the first time.¡±


    ¡°And you think that¡¯s news how?¡± Came the snarky remark from Sheela.


    ¡°Sure, every Sprout who went through it would have it figured out already,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I do have one such artifact though. And I want you to use it tonight to grow your core.¡±


    Both female Sprouts looked at Jerome like he had grown a second head, then at themselves as if they couldn¡¯t believe what they were hearing. Jerome didn¡¯t want to keep them doubting any longer so he materialized the sphere above his hand and it sailed upwards, stopping twenty feet in the air and rotating.


    Ms. Tara¡¯s eyes bulged as she saw the cube floating above them. ¡°Is this real? Can it really do as you say?¡±


    Sheela forced her gaze away from the cube to look Jerome in the eyes questioningly. Jerome nodded at her, knowing she was seeking confirmation of her friend¡¯s words.


    ¡°Better still, it can produce essence in the elements specific to those harnessing its power.¡± He brought out a set of gauntlets and handed it to Ms. Tara, smiling. He watched her caress the metal with care, mesmerized by the dark exterior of the artifact. ¡°Those would help you concentrate your fire essence, making them more powerful. You¡¯d also be able to shoot them with better aim and more range.¡±


    Achilles had designed the gauntlets ¡ª all his weapons in fact ¡ª such that they didn¡¯t have a metallic shine to them. This way they wouldn¡¯t inadvertently alert enemies in the distance who might catch a glimpse of the metallic glint of steel.


    ¡°Try it on.¡±


    ¡°Jerome,¡± Ms. Tara said, starting to extend her hands to return his gift. Jerome held up his hand to stop her. ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ this looks¡ª¡±


    ¡°Too much?¡± Jerome asked, smiling. ¡°I think it¡¯s not enough. I would give you a fine blade but I don¡¯t know how well you can wield one.¡±


    ¡°Stop being like that, Tara.¡± The Shifter hugged her sideways, smiling for the first time since Jerome had met her. ¡°I sense these are very powerful artifacts. And they are going to be very useful to you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already begun stirring the vital aura in the earth, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll have her better than she ever was in no time. Plus I dropped a few special storage rings in your void space.¡±


    Jerome retrieved two rings and handed it over to the Sprouts. ¡°They¡¯re special. Top grade if you will.¡±


    Sheela snatched it from him, replacing hers with it and transferring all her possessions into the new ring. Ms. Tara took her time, looking skeptical at him.


    ¡°Where did you get all these, Jerome? They look¡­ new. Like they¡¯ve just been crafted,¡± she said.


    Jerome was caught off guard by that question.


    ¡°Not the time, Tara,¡± Sheela butted in again. ¡°Just take the damned gifts and be grateful.¡±


    Ms. Tara looked at her anxiously, a wordless communication passing between them both.


    ¡°If you¡¯re worried they came through dubious means, put your mind to rest. I obtained them fair and square,¡± Jerome assured her. ¡°Now, I know you both want to go after those who trapped you. Make sure to wring that thing dry. I don¡¯t care.¡± He pointed at the floating black square in the sky.


    ¡°What¡¯s it even called,¡± Csala asked, looking at the artifact with awe.


    Jerome chuckled, causing them all to look his way. ¡°There¡¯s a story to it if you must know. It¡¯s called a Bleeding Hand. The fae created it. Long ago they came to our world. God¡¯s they were called.¡±


    Sheela shivered and almost seemed to shrink into herself. Ms. Tara turned to her. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t grow up hearing scary stories of the fae,¡± the shifter muttered quietly. ¡°My grandma was a sadist who took pleasure in scaring us children to our beds with such stories. She used her mental energy to affect our minds so we could feel what she felt as she told her tales.¡±


    Tara smiled at her. ¡°I¡¯ll hold your hand.¡±


    Sheela pushed her away and Jerome chuckled at their antics. They didn¡¯t seem at all like older Sprouts. Just a pair of young girls who let down their guard around each other. He glanced at Csala and caught her smiling at them too. But she glared at him, schooling her features in embarrassment. He smirked. This was fun.


    ¡°Well, there are creatures in the seas and oceans of our world. They call them Titans. Gigantic Eldritch beings that wield tremendous amounts of essence. They are so big that if they come on land, they look like mountains. Only Transcendents can battle them. And there¡¯s no assurance of defeating one even then. I think Terra Praeta once had Titans like ours but¡­¡± Jerome stopped to think, sifting through his memories.


    ¡°Well?¡± Ms. Tara asked impatiently.


    ¡°They once thrived here, but the fae happened.¡± Titans still existed on Terra Praeta but he didn¡¯t want to reveal that. They were an endangered species.


    ¡°Do you mind explaining that? Csala asked.


    Jerome looked around, seeing they were all engrossed in his story. He twirled his fingers in the air and droplets of water formed, floating above him. He distributed cups made out of living steel with water in them.


    ¡°Show off,¡± Csala muttered. He shrugged, enjoying her jealousy and discomfort. If she wanted to be petty then two can play that game.


    ¡°The fae saw an opportunity to harness more essence, and as a matter of fact, enormous body parts. They only saw the Titans for the wealth and power they could make off them. Lest you have a skewed notion of these beings, I must say they weren¡¯t normally dangerous to other species. In fact, some considered them guardians of the seas and oceans.¡±


    ¡°¡®Normally?¡¯¡± Csala asked with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°I only know so much.¡± Jerome shrugged. ¡°The fae must have wiped them all out. Afterall, they opened a portal to our world and started harvesting our own Titans. Whenever they caught one, they would cut off its hands from the wrist ¡ª these beings were bipedal but also aquatic in nature. They also cut off other parts of their bodies to be processed, cooked ¡ª you name it. Any horrendous thing they could think of.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ awful!¡± Ms. Tara said in disgust.


    Jerome continued. ¡°The hands were processed into these cubes. One hand for one cube. They are said to bleed essence whenever those with the intent to absorb it are around them. Hence the name, ¡®The Bleeding Hand¡¯.¡±


    ¡°But these practices don¡¯t exist anymore, right?¡± Sheela asked.


    ¡°No, they don¡¯t.¡± Jerome shook his head.


    ¡°Then where did this one come from?¡± She pointed at the floating cube in the air. ¡°All the Bleeding Hands from that time period should have been used up by now.¡±


    Jerome looked at her and asked, ¡°Are you sure you want to know that? Because it¡¯s¡­ it might disgust you.¡±


    Sheela frowned at him.


    ¡°Well, Titans eat a lot,¡± he began. ¡°They have to, seeing how big they grow to be at adulthood. For creatures that eat throughout their lives, they gotta take a shit sometimes.¡± He looked all three of them in the eyes to check if they were following.


    ¡°Are you saying that thing is¡­¡± Ms. Tara pointed upwards.


    ¡°Titan poop,¡± Jerome said with a shrug.


    Csala burst into laughter.

 106. Apprentice

    ¡°That¡¯s double awful!¡± Ms. Tara exclaimed.


    Sheela made a face like she wanted to puke. ¡°I am not going to fucking cycle that thing!¡±


    ¡°Well, all the impurities have been removed, you see? Do you know how large Titan poop can be? Do you know the process it goes through to become a Bleeding Hand? It is compressed tightly and squeezed until all the impurities are out of it. Then it is reshaped into what you see now.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure it was the poop that was squeezed out?¡± Csala asked, still laughing.


    ¡°Whatever¡­¡± Sheela muttered again in disgust. But she stood up and went to the side to begin her meditation.


    Thankfully, Ms. Tara joined her without a protest. She had no qualms absorbing essence from The Bleeding Hand. He thought he¡¯d have had to coarse her into doing it.


    Jerome took Csala aside to discuss privately as the female Sprouts settled in for a long night of meditation.


    ¡°So?¡± he asked.


    ¡°What?¡± She looked at him as if she couldn¡¯t be bothered by him.


    ¡°All three of you are acting rather nice and cozy with each other. I thought there¡¯d be a little friction. What with you three just meeting?¡±


    Csala looked at him as if he¡¯d lost one and a half of his two brain cells. ¡°I met Sheela a day or so ago.¡±


    Jerome gave her a look that said, ¡®you ain¡¯t fooling me.¡¯


    Csala shrugged nonchalantly. ¡°We¡¯re women ¡ª beautiful women at that ¡ª with one man in our midst. We have to stick together just in case.¡±


    ¡°Just in case what?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°You think I¡¯d try something with one of you¡­ or maybe you think I¡¯d try something with you.¡±


    Csala glared daggers at him.


    ¡°I know you can¡¯t wield essence, Csala.¡±


    Csala stiffened at that. She had suspected that he knew, but having it confirmed still made her wary and defensive. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± she asked, her voice tinged with fear. If Jerome tried to take advantage of her, she¡¯d bolt. He couldn¡¯t catch her ¡ª probably.


    ¡°I was thinking about finding a way to help you with that. Maybe a binding of some kind that can help to gather essence for you to wield,¡± Jerome said with a thoughtful look on his face, seemingly not noticing anything out of the ordinary. ¡°I haven¡¯t worked on anything like that before but, I think I can manage it.¡±


    Csala looked at him as if she was seeing a mad man. She had feared the worst, but it seemed her fears were unnecessary. She knew it was impossible for her kind to wield essence. She had tried and discovered long ago that she could only sense it. Essence was forever within reach but she was unable to hold it, talk more, use it.


    ¡°It¡¯s not going to work,¡± she said, looking away from him.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± He picked up a fallen branch and focused on it. With its weight, it felt like a twig in his hand.


    ¡°Are you really being honest?¡± Csala asked.


    Jerome turned to look at her. He could see hope in her eyes, even though she tried looking nonchalant. ¡°Hm-hm. It¡¯s also gonna be a challenge for me¡­and I love challenges.¡± He smiled and turned back to the branch in his hand, extending his senses to scan the piece of wood.


    ¡°Take this,¡± he said, handing her a pack. ¡°It¡¯s bedding for sleeping.¡±


    Csala took the pack and left him to his practice.


    He took his time to slowly feel its surface. Then the inside, layer by layer; from the bark, sapwood, heartwood, and finally the pith. With a tiny push of essence ¡ª a trickle really, he covered the bark with his essence and attempted to push his essence into the wood. It disintegrated in his hand, turning to dust in an instant. It was unable to bear the potency of his essence.


    ¡°Maybe you should try with something bigger, Xerae,¡± Achilles chimed in.


    Of course. He stood up and looked around. There was a fallen log of wood not far from his position and he went over to test his skill with it.


    ¡°Have you thought of a name for your spear?¡± Achilles asked.


    I do have one in mind ¡ª Charybdis. Either that or Devourer. I¡¯m not good with names.


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°I like my name.¡±


    ¡°Of course you do. You like being a pain in my ass.¡±


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°But I understand Charybdis¡­and your love for classical myths.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. I had nothing else to do but read in my previous life. In the Odyssey, Homer¡¯s epic poem. Charybdis is described as a huge sea monster ¡ª or whirlpool ¡ª that was said to swallow oceans of water¡ª¡±


    ¡°Oceans of water! Really, Xerae,¡± Achilles interrupted.


    ¡°Ahem.¡±


    ¡°Sorry¡­you may go on.¡±


    ¡°As I was saying¡­ It swallowed ships, and even entire islands! A spinning vortex that posed a grave danger to sailors traveling across the Strait of Messina. Ships that came too close to Charybdis would be swallowed by the vortex and obliterated. Therefore, Charybdis was viewed as a devourer. A voracious natural force in Ancient Greek.¡±


    ¡°Of course this is all a myth, Xerae. As you yourself believe. If you don¡¯t believe so, then I wouldn¡¯t believe so either. After all¡­ I¡¯m inside your head. Ahahaha!¡±


    Jerome scowled. Damn mind reading AI, he thought. How do you even know how to make jokes and understand humor? That sho¡ª


    ¡°...Shouldn¡¯t be possible?¡± Achilles asked with a chortle.


    ¡°Who are you talking to?¡± Csala asked from afar, breaking the awkwardness of the moment. Her voice still reached him, soft as a whisper even from a dozen feet away. ¡°The bed is prepared.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that. ¡°That¡¯s actually yours. I¡¯ll make mine myself!¡± Jerome called back. I gotta learn to do that.


    ¡°I hope to one day see ¡®Charybdis¡¯ ¡ª that¡¯s what you''re calling the spear, right? I hope to one day see it evolve into a massive sea monster; swallowing seas and islands,¡± Achilles mocked.


    Shut the fuck up, Achilles.


    Jerome knelt down by the log and placed his hand on it to feel it. As before, he extended his senses around and into the log. He could ¡®see¡¯ the beginnings of rot on its surface. The rot hadn¡¯t eaten into the log but it was just a matter of time.


    With a loud exhale, he pushed his essence slightly ¡ª a fraction of what he pushed into the branch. Jerome saw it in his mind¡¯s eye the moment his essence seeped into the wood like ink staining a piece of paper. His essence was a foreign invader and the wood began to slowly disintegrate. Jerome pulled on his essence and twirled it around the bark. The bark of the wood was shaved off in an instance. The little bit of essence he used to achieve that didn¡¯t dissipate which surprised him a little. He willed it to push on the log.


    A slight depression was made on it and his hand sank a little into the wood, as if into a semi-solid material. Jerome smiled at the hand print that was left in the wood. He stood up and went back to camp to prepare his bedroll.


    ¡°Exactly how much can you do with your essence?¡± Csala asked, stomped at his display of powers. She must have seen the depression he made in the log.


    Jerome just smiled at her. He wasn¡¯t going to tell her everything about him. They weren¡¯t friends so he had no reason to reveal secrets about himself to someone who had been trying to drain him of his vitality a few cycles ago.


    Csala also didn¡¯t ask again as she saw he wasn¡¯t willing to share.


    ¡°So, how do I do what you do?¡± Jerome asked after they had rested a bit.


    ¡°First, what¡¯s your understanding of psychic energy? I know you humans call it mental energy, but that sounds shallow. So we would use our word for it: psychic energy.¡±


    Jerome nodded at her suggestion, grateful she cleared that up. She wasn¡¯t wrong. Mental energy did sound shallow; it didn¡¯t convey the depth and meaning of what it could do. ¡°I know that psychic energy can be used to perceive things without the eyes ¡ª even through walls or solid objects. It can also be used to hold up, or carry solid mass.¡±


    ¡°Is that all?¡±


    ¡°Well, apparently it can be used to carry sound to someone''s ear¡­¡± Jerome trailed off as he remembered the Sovereign and his daughter, Princess Aeldra, conversing without words during the Royal Banquet. ¡°...and it can be used to communicate without words.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Hmmm. It can do a whole lot of things but your psychic energy is not evolved enough to do those things, even though it is very powerful,¡± Csala said, not surprised at him revealing that little bit of information.


    Which meant that she could either do it herself or she knows it can be done. Which wasn¡¯t surprising since succubi were one of the most powerful psychic species in Terra Praeta.


    ¡°So mine is like a big baby with flabby muscles?¡± Jerome asked jokingly.


    Csala shrugged, smiling. ¡°Let¡¯s get to it,¡± she said, sitting up. ¡°Sink into your mind and center yourself.¡±


    Jerome did as she said, closing his eyes.  He didn¡¯t cycle ¡ª just sat there centering himself.


    ¡°Now imagine using your psychic energy with your voice. The vibration of your voice is the medium through which the energy would pass. You must preserve that vibration until it gets to your desired location.


    ¡°First start by humming. Loudly.¡±


    Jerome hummed aloud, feeling the vibration of his vocals and transmitting his psychic energy to it. The ground beneath him shook and cracked underneath his bedroll as a result of his psychic energy being transmitted through his voice. The cracks spread outwards around him for at least three feet from end to end.


    ¡°That was too much,¡± Csala said. ¡°If you had spoken, you could have destroyed my eardrums ¡ª if I was as weak as a human.¡± Csala mocked.


    Jerome scoffed at that, looking over at Ms. Tara and Sheela to make sure he didn¡¯t disturb them. He healed the crack underneath him so as not to cause a landslide. ¡°So I just have to reduce the intensity of my psychic energy,¡± he said, more to himself than to Csala.


    He hummed again, this time reducing his psychic intensity by more than half. He was going to have to figure out the limits of his abilities in relation to everything around him. This time the air vibrated around him.


    ¡°Hold it. Sustain it. Keep the pressure on your vocals stable, because your psychic energy can magnify the vibration in your voice.¡±


    Jerome struggled to do as she instructed for a while. At times the vibration of his humming seemed to fade out a little but when he pushed, he caused the intensity of the vibration to increase. This continued for a long time before Csala switched to using speech.


    Jerome understood the science of it all. Transporting the vibration through the air to his desired destination could be achieved, but he needed to work on his control of psychic energy. It always came back to control and fine tuning to use little to do more. But knowing how to do it, and actually doing it were two different things. What he ended up learning to do was how to make his voice louder even when he whispered.


    ¡°You¡¯re doing good,¡± Csala said. ¡°It took me almost a moon to learn how to project my psychic energy with my voice. But it seems you already know how to do it. Let it drift towards me; don¡¯t try to force it.¡± Csala watched as Jerome tried and failed to project his voice with his psychic energy.


    Jerome grunted in frustration. He had started by swirling the energy in his throat, then when he spoke, he visualized sending his voice to Csala¡¯s ears. The vibration of his voice diffused in the air every single time, instead of moving in the direction he wanted it to. To his senses, it felt like he was trying to herd wind with ordinary hands.


    After hours of practice, Jerome decided to rest. At least he¡¯d learned how to magnify his voice, even if that wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d practiced for. He remembered Grogg, the Islander he fought outside Nandene. This was how he was able to magnify his voice. At the time, Jerome had thought it was something mysterious and powerful. He chuckled at his misgivings.


    They had a long day ahead the next day and Jerome needed to conserve his strength if he wanted to fly all the way to the Northern hemisphere. He also had a feeling Ms. Tara and Sheela wouldn¡¯t be here when he woke up the next day.


    He got up and went to the edge of their camp. Squatting down, he began drawing scripts on the floor to create a domed shield for protection. But instead of using his hands, he used his psychic energy.


    ¡°It¡¯s all about fine control,¡± he muttered to himself.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°I¡¯d teach you myself but I don¡¯t have curves and a pretty face.¡±


    Jerome chuckled at that. ¡°You¡¯re gonna hold that against me forever, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Your words, not mine, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome worked around their camp, carving each intricate script in a circular network that spanned the area of three bedrooms. Next came the binding. He reached deep into the earth and pulled on rich mineral-filled rocks. Jerome pulled them up and began compressing and heating them up. The huge mass of dirt and rocks hovered a foot above ground, morphing and shrinking as it folded in on itself. Jerome removed all forms of impurities from the rock and flattened it, rounding the edges. He took a step back to admire the floating disc of black hard crystal remaining. It was quite big, big enough to be used as a plate. The black, glass-like surface of the crystal plate was beautiful and smooth, as if polished to a shine. A black diamond.


    Quite impressive don¡¯t you think, Achilles?


    Achilles snorted. ¡°Too big. A simple material binding should be able to fit in the palm of one¡¯s hand.¡±


    Say what you will. This is cause for celebration. So, this brings me up to Initiate, right?


    Achilles snorted again. ¡°Apprentice is all I can still afford you for this, my unruly pupil. I¡¯m being very generous as you are yet to rune and empower the binding.¡±


    Jerome scrunched his face in displeasure. He had wanted to ask Achilles to help him rune the crystal to create a proper binding. This was a part of the process he wasn¡¯t sure of his skill. Achilles said nothing; just waiting to see if he¡¯d ask. The damned AI could read his mind and always took every opportunity to take advantage of his thoughts but now that he needed his help, he was as silent as a graveyard.


    So you¡¯re gonna make me ask?


    ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about, Xerae. I¡¯m still waiting for the completion of the binding though. I¡¯ll just be here, encouraging you.¡± Achilles gave him the mental equivalent of a thumbs up.


    An owl hooted in the distance. The sound was sustained longer than usual and ended with something that could only be described as the chirping of a cricket.


    Strange.


    ¡°Chop, chop, Xerae. The Night Owl is a nuisance you don¡¯t want in your camp.¡±


    Jerome exhaled loudly, steeling himself. He noticed Csala watching the hovering plate curiously. He activated the runes in his eyes so he could zoom in to see every detail of the work he was about to do. Taking hold of the plate, he formed a thin claw of living steel on his right index finger and began carving runes into the top of the diamond plate ¡ª runes whose Authorities he was strong enough to contend with. Even with that he was sweating bullets a few seconds into the activity. It was like the runes were resisting him, trying to stop him by forcing the weight of their Authorities on him. Jerome knew all this was normal as he was still Sprout. He was like a toddler trying to physically move a big barrel filled with wine on his own. Yet he endured.


    Each rune would be directly linked to the scripts carved around their camp, so as to create a feedback loop of essence and information. This would be done through electromagnetic waves in the air, which still have to be taught how to move due to the fact that electromagnetic waves only transported light and heat energy. However, a simple spell could make everything run smoothly. Hence, the runes would take a few loops to force the electromagnetic waves to comply.


    Using scripts around the camp for the barrier and then runes for the binding may seem inappropriate to one with an unlearned eye. Runes were better at powering scripts than scripts since they held Authority. Also, if anyone with an eye for wards stumbled upon their camp and saw the scripts, they might think it was done by a novice. They would be in for an unpleasant surprise.


    Jerome sunk each rune deep into the plate with his skill in manipulating earth essence. Then he gathered ambient essence into a ball, at the center top area of the plate, right above the sunken runes. The runes flickered, absorbing the essence and lighting up the plate from within. They would continue to absorb essence without his assistance until he decided to turn them off. He whispered his spell and the different network of runes and scripts aligned into an impregnable domain around their camp.


    Csala gasped where she lay, sensing the instant change in the air. He looked at her and smiled but she huffed and turned away, making him chuckle in amusement.


    The script around the camp hummed with the crackle of energy and a transparent, golden barrier flickered in place before dimming and turning invisible. Jerome sunk the binding into the earth in the center of their camp near the fire.


    Csala snorted. ¡°Was that supposed to be a barrier¡­ flimsy.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t respond to her taunting. He knew the barrier was still there, just receded below the visible spectrum. He walked to the edge of their camp to survey his work. He touched the air in front of him and the transparent gold film appeared again before slowly vanishing. Csala walked up to him and did the same.


    ¡°The barrier is a transparent golden film that appears when touched,¡± he explained. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t easily be detected, unless someone comes in contact with it. Other than that, it is invisible to the naked eye. And since it¡¯s powered by ambient energy, it¡¯d be very difficult to perceive with psychic energy.¡± It would be up till dawn, when they rose to travel to the Northern hemisphere.


    ¡°Brilliant,¡± Achilles praised. ¡°Took more time than expected but brilliant all the same.¡±


    ¡°Maybe you do have some skill,¡± Csala said nonchalantly, walking back to her bedroll.


    Jerome nodded appreciatively. A domed shield like this could probably only be created by the best masters of wards in Vorthe; he didn¡¯t know enough to judge, but he understood it would be the case. The knowledge he¡¯d gained wasn¡¯t common knowledge after all.


    ¡°It¡¯s not just the knowledge you¡¯ve gained, Xerae. Part of it is also your understanding of natural phenomena and the relationship of things that eyes cannot see in the world. I believe you call it physics in your former life.¡±


    Jerome smiled at that. I wish I could take the whole library with me.


    ¡°You can, Xerae. Even Sanctum, if you had a void world instead of a void space.¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯ll mean Terra Praeta¡­¡±


    ¡°Terra Praeta would stop shuffling people around. The main reason for that was to prevent those who weren¡¯t chosen by Mother Nature, entrance into Sanctum. But now that Illyrrah¡¯s Chosen as arrived, that function is not needed anymore.¡±


    Maybe we should hold off on that for a while. It should be possible for me to come and go as I please, right?


    ¡°Good call, Xerae. And yes, it is possible. Also, if you want to stay in Terra Praeta after it ejects everyone else out, you can do that. But maybe follow them all out so as not to arouse suspicion.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s for the best,¡± Jerome said, walking over to the campfire. He stretched before lying down on his bedroll adjacent to Csala.


    ¡°Sleep tight,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°Sleep tight? Is that something you humans say to each other when you go to sleep?¡± Csala asked, befuddled. She turned to face him, welcoming the warmth of the flame on her face. ¡°One needs enough bed space to enjoy sleep, why tell someone to sleep tight?


    Jerome smiled at that as he turned to face her as well, ¡°It¡¯s just an expression. You could say it means, ¡®have a good night¡¯s rest¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Interesting¡­¡±


    ¡°Interesting lot you are, Xerae ¡ª you humans,¡± Achilles chipped in, earning a chuckle from Jerome.


    ¡°And what do you Terra Praetans say to yourselves before going to bed?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about all Terra Praetans as a whole, but we succubi say, ¡®rest well¡¯ or ¡®good eve¡¯.¡±


    Figures, Jerome thought with a shrug.


    ¡°And when a loved one is sick and needs to stay in bed we say a prayer for them, ¡®may Tialana¡¯s affliction pass you by this eve¡¯.¡±


    Jerome could hear the pain in her voice. She must have lost someone dear to her. Maybe a sister. Were succubi even social creatures? Did they socialize with themselves? The only other succubus Jerome had come across had tried to take Csala¡¯s body for herself to prolong her life.


    ¡°That sounds foreboding,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Who¡¯s Tialana?¡±


    ¡°...Good eve, human,¡± Csala replied, turning the other way. It had taken her a moment to speak those words because she didn¡¯t want to sound wimpy. She was not going to appear weak, not before a man. Not before this man. He may have all the power now, but she would not give him the satisfaction of knowing that he had it.


    Jerome sighed. The succubi had a lot of secrets they didn¡¯t want, getting out. He understood the secrecy and he supported it. But it made holding a conversation stifling. And now she was back to calling him ¡®human¡¯. He turned to lie on his back and let the sounds of the forest lull him to sleep.

 107. An Ode Of The Flame

    Jerome dreamed. He dreamed of all that he had experienced as he slept; of his time listening to Rihal speak to him in the slums, training him in combat, and lecturing him of the monsters found in Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. He dreamed of the first flame he created, of its significance on his journey as a sacred artist. He dreamed of the first time he wielded metal, earth, and even Sword Force. He dreamed of Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon, of his mistakes and failures, of his friends and siblings, and his hope to one day reunite with them.


    He dreamed of his understanding and relationship with Mother Nature; of how words were an important part of his communion with Mother Nature, of how he communicated his sincerity and pledged himself to Mother Nature when Achilles tested him. It was such a weird, vivid dream that felt all too real. He woke up not long after he slept to brood over all he had dreamed about: his comprehension of fire, earth, metal, and sword force. All of them were tied to one entity that birthed them all ¡ª Mother Nature.


    He brooded over his relationship with Mother Nature. The Sovereign had said Mother Nature is sentient. Does that mean it has intelligence? Does it communicate back as man communicates with it? Maybe ¡®it¡¯ wasn¡¯t the right pronoun to be used for Mother Nature. Perhaps ¡®she¡¯ was a better one.


    The moment Jerome started perceiving Mother Nature in that light as a sentient, intelligent being capable of thought and interaction, he experienced a sort of ¡®acceptance¡¯ deep inside him ¡ª an embrace so to speak. He began to sense his surroundings more clearly. The tree branches high up in the tree, swaying in the wind and the rustling of their leaves was music to his ears. He felt them more than he heard them.


    Jerome looked around as if seeing the forest for the first time. The trees around him exuded tranquil praise for Mother Nature ¡ª even in their state of slumber with their leaves drooping; they celebrated their oneness with nature.


    The cacophony of insects blended with the music of the trees. He could feel the caterpillars eat away leaf after leaf as they prepared for the next stage in their development, as well as the beating wings of moths in the night sky. Even without extending his senses, the forest was already overwhelmingly vibrant.


    Golden threads of essence lit up the dark as he looked on. He followed the movement, watching as these threads of essence moved from the earth into the trees, their branches, and leaves. The two moons in the sky also emitted a strange but calming energy¡­ almost gloomy. He knew this somehow even though he couldn¡¯t see the moons through the canopy of trees high up in the sky.


    All of a sudden, the night wasn¡¯t night anymore in his eyes ¡ª far from it. It was as bright as day. Colors took on new hues he¡¯d never seen before as everything around him seemed to glow brightly with an innate light of their own.


    ¡°Incredible,¡± he muttered, stupefied.


    ¡°It is incredible,¡± Achilles responded. ¡°You have deepened your connection with Mother Nature, Xerae. Congratulations.¡±


    The realization hit Jerome as he heard it from Achilles. He had deepened his connection with Mother Nature. The act felt so simple yet the result was anything but. It felt like the most wonderful thing he had ever done. He felt at peace. He felt accepted. He felt validated.


    ¡°Hmm? Hmm. Tha-thank you, Achilles,¡± Jerome stuttered absently. There was so much stimulation to his senses that he found it hard to concentrate on words.


    He remembered Csala was sleeping nearby and turned to see if he had woken her with his words. But Csala was still fast asleep. Ms. Tara and Sheela too were deep in meditation, they hadn¡¯t heard him.


    That was when he noticed his own body¡­ sleeping peacefully by the dying campfire.


    What the fuck?!


    ¡°Was wondering when you¡¯d notice,¡± Achilles said. ¡°What you are experiencing is a Spiritual Walkabout with Mother Nature.¡±


    So I¡¯m having an ¡®out of body¡¯ experience. Do I need to take a stroll while meditating or something?


    ¡°The fact that you don¡¯t know what to do means you should do nothing. When the Fae reigned, some would have these spiritual walks. Ilyrrah did¡­ five times throughout his lifetime. The first was much like yours. On the next one, he experienced something different. A supernatural force ordered his steps to find something or do something.


    ¡°Ilyrrah recorded his experiences. I¡¯d show them to you, but you¡¯re not strong enough to view the memory.¡±


    Jerome nodded, focusing back on the beauty of the first around him. Everything was so vivid.


    ¡°For the Fae, it was an honor of the highest order to go on a spiritual walk with Mother Nature ¡ª secret though, it would have been. The Fae who got the chance were those not of the ilk that waged war against the rest of the world.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a lot to unpack there, isn¡¯t there?¡± Jerome asked, having regained his composure a little.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome nodded absently, trying to process everything his mind was assimilating. Soon he felt his body waking up and he felt like he was seeing the beauty of the world anew. It was a strange feeling. But he was all the more joyous that he could still see like this with his physical eyes.


    ¡°This state would not last long, Xerae. This is a golden opportunity for an epiphany so you should take the time to meditate.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right. I think I¡¯d do just that.¡±


    He took a moment to center himself, bringing his emotions under control. Closing his eyes, he started to do the breathing exercise Layla taught him when he came back from Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon.


    ~~~


    Down in the depths of Mother Nature¡¯s embrace, it dwells.


    High up in the sky,


    Across lightyears in space, it rules.


    With a spark of energy, the flame comes alive.


    With every breath it takes, it may bring warmth¡­


    Or it may consume¡­


    ¡­All!


    One who wields the flame must forbear!


    For he wields a dangerous power that may scar Mother Nature¡¯s beauty.


    Alas!


    The flame cares not for your command!


    Neither will it obey them,


    It does what it will for it knows,


    Its power exceeds yours!


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    Heed me oh flame!


    Heed my will!


    For I am Mother Nature¡¯s emissary!


    And you shall obey me!


    I will wrought control over my vicious nature,


    I will bring to heel,


    My hunger and avarice.


    I will go through the fires of life.


    Like the clump of mud that goes through the flame,


    And is remade into gold.


    I will be formidable!


    ~~~


    Months of studying the memory stones in the depths of the mountain had given Jerome a deep understanding of the elements. When the sun began to rise, he opened his eyes and took a deep breath of the fresh air of the forest.


    His meditation had yielded great results today. He had created a mantra of fire. He didn¡¯t call it a mantra though. It was more than that. It had a depth to it that the earth mantra didn¡¯t have. It also exalted Mother Nature in its verses.


    Jerome chose to call it An Ode of The Flame.


    He was no poet, but he was extremely glad with his result that he decided to carve it onto a piece of wood since he had no parchment or paper. He found a sturdy piece of wood and with his essence, he carefully and painstakingly Shaped and smoothed it into a fine plaque. He kept the wood inside his void space for later.


    Rising from his position, he noticed that Ms. Tara and Sheela were gone. Csala woke up the moment she sensed him move. She looked around for the others and got up to stretch. Jerome drank her in as she stretched. The red material of her robe stretched over her impossibly heavy bust which pointed skywards as she arched her back and stretched her arms upwards. They bounced as she brought her arms back down. Csala was a breath of fresh air. The woman would be the death of any man that claimed her.


    ¡°And what are you looking at,¡± she glared at him.


    ¡°Sorry about that.¡± Jerome smiled at her and proceeded to roll up his bedding.


    Csala observed him and did the same. They were done in minutes and Jerome retrieved the binding from the earth. He powered down the runes and the barrier flashed before powering down.


    So Achilles. Do you think I¡¯m ready to use it now?


    ¡°You may want to enlighten me better, Xerae. I have no idea what you speak of.¡±


    Jerome sighed. I know you can¡¯t help us make the jump to the Northern Hemisphere, Achilles. I can almost sense your weakness. But I¡¯m not blaming you or anything. You can read my mind, and I know that you know what I¡¯m talking about.


    ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous, Xerae. It¡¯s not like the Dragon¡¯s Wrath. Honestly, I think I¡¯m feeling a tad bit regretful for teaching you that spell.¡±


    Csala cleared her throat to get his attention.  ¡°What happened to The Bleeding Hand?¡± She gestured upward.


    Jerome focused his attention on her. Her face, to be exact. ¡°They used it all up ¡ª which is a good thing. It¡¯s a long way to where we¡¯re going. I¡¯ll have to carry you there¡ª¡±


    ¡°Not happening.¡± She shook her head in defiance.


    ¡°That¡¯s the fastest way to get there.¡±


    ¡°We were teleported here from your battle even while you were passed out. You can teleport us there now.¡±


    ¡°The voice of the mountain teleported us,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°You think I don¡¯t know that?¡±


    ¡°Of course you do. What you don¡¯t know is that it assisted in the battle, and used too much power to get us to safety.¡±


    ¡°And whose fault is that?!¡± Csala raised her voice in frustration.


    Jerome calmly eyed her in silence with a raised eyebrow. She shut her mouth and looked away. It felt like she would flee if he tried anything with her. Jerome didn¡¯t mean to scare her, but he wouldn¡¯t take her nagging. And she needed to have that in mind.


    ¡°We fly, and that is that. If you don¡¯t like it, you can find your way back to the mountain.¡± He held out a hand waiting for her to take it.


    Csala stood there weighing her odds for a while. But she finally caved and came closer. ¡°If you so much as look at me the wrong way, Jerome, I would¡ª¡±


    ¡°I look at you every time, Csala. Doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t have self-control.¡± He chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s nice that you remember my name, though. I didn¡¯t like you calling me ¡®human¡¯ all the time.¡±


    ¡°And I don¡¯t like surprises¡­ which is what you are.¡± She looked into his eyes with a challenge in hers.


    Csala didn¡¯t want to be twirled around his thumb like a mindless slave. She had heard stories, none of which were nice. His obsidian eyes gazed back at her with a steady gaze as he looked curiously at her. She felt he was looking right into her soul and it made her uncomfortable, yet for some reason she couldn¡¯t look away. Her challenging gaze turned to one of curiosity. And then to hesitation. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest, telling her to take a step back from this monster. The moment of uncomfortable silence stretched for a long time before he broke it.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get some things straight, Csala,¡± Jerome said and effortlessly raised the earth to make seats for them. He sat in one but Csala refused to take the other. ¡°Guess we¡¯ll remain standing then.¡± He stood back up. On second thought, he sat back down again. It was better to appear non-threatening in a situation like this.


    ¡°Look, I feel I owe you and that¡¯s why I¡¯m taking you up North to help you,¡± Jerome began. ¡°I understand how you may feel but you don¡¯t need to fear me.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think I fear you?¡± Csala turned red with anger.


    ¡°Calm down, Csala,¡± Jerome said, calm and collected. ¡°You¡¯re acting all defensive but you¡¯re in no danger with me.¡±


    Csala felt like running away and burying herself under a rock. His stating how she saw their dynamics in such simple words was like he had opened up her heart and looked inside, seeing all the thoughts she kept hidden there. She materialized a dagger in her hand, holding it in front of her as she slowly backed away, ready to kill if need be. Damn the consequences. She wasn¡¯t going to be a slave to a man.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know me, Jerome. You say you feel like you owe me but I don¡¯t believe you. You think such sweet words would be enough to manipulate me?¡±


    The realization of her situation and the mentality she had towards it hit Jerome immediately. She had been putting on a strong front for quite some time in hopes of fending him off should he try to take advantage of her.


    It was self-preservation.


    Jerome made a decision to do something he never thought he¡¯d ever do. ¡°I swear by the earth of Terra Praeta on which I stand that I will never demand anything from Csala, nor take advantage of her. Her volition will be hers, as will her body, to do as she pleases.¡±


    Jerome felt the oath take hold of him tightening inside of him like a weight of immaterial substance. It was a strange sensation. And very uncomfortable. As soon as it came though, it was gone. But he could still feel it. Somewhere deep inside him.


    Csala¡¯s jaw dropped as she stared at him with wide eyes. He swore an oath? He really did swear an oath? She had never expected him to take an oath to prove himself. When she made an oath not to reveal any of his secrets to anyone, she really would¡¯ve not told anyone. Oaths weren¡¯t made lightly, not if you had the strength to offset the power of nature. But what strength would a Sprout have over Mother Nature¡¯s Will?


    Perhaps he was different after all. Csala wanted to hope. She wanted to believe, but she had been bitten from behind not quite long ago and it hurt. It hurt to be taken advantage of. She knew what her body did to those of the opposite sex; it didn¡¯t matter whether they were human, fae, or incubi. One wouldn¡¯t just swear not to take advantage of her. But he had sworn an oath which he had to keep, else¡­


    ¡°You are a strange human, you know?¡± she said after a while. ¡°Others would jump at the opportunity to enslave me and make me their plaything.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not like others,¡± he said, smiling at her. The world she had lived in until now was a dog-eat-dog world, one Jerome had some experience with in Farryn. Csala must have had it worse though.


    She remained standing, frowning and shifting her weight from foot to foot like a teenager who didn¡¯t know whether to throw a tantrum or not. But he could see the wariness in her eyes slowly melt away.


    ¡°Okay,¡± she said, walking towards him, although still wary. It was difficult to get rid of long-ingrained habits. Even with the oath in place waiting to enact a punishment upon him should he ever break it, she didn¡¯t trust Jerome. If he broke the oath, he was sure to suffer for it. That at least gave her some measure of assurance.


    Jerome wrapped his arms around her and asked, ¡°Are we good?¡± He tried his best not to pay attention to the gigantic, cushiony mammaries pressed against his lower chest as he lifted her in his arms ¡ª or the growing tent of his pants.


    Csala looked up at him, one eyebrow raised.


    ¡°It means ¡®are we ok now?¡¯¡± Jerome said with a dramatic roll of his eyes.


    Csala frowned. ¡°We¡¯re not friends. Don¡¯t patronize me.¡± She thought it must be that he wanted to worm his way into her heart and make her lose her guard against him. Better to set those boundaries now and make them clear.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Very well,¡± he said and shot into the sky, flying North at great speeds.


    He rose in altitude as he flew, gathering essence in the air behind him as he propelled them both forward. A storm soon blanketed the sky and everywhere he passed, the air became supercharged with essence.


    When he was over a thousand feet above the ground, he began muttering an incantation under his breath as he flew forward, using the essence he gathered in the air to power the spell. He put on a burst of speed a moment later, breaking the sound barrier. The resulting sonic boom left rings of clouds in the air as he zoomed by. This was another one of those powerful spells he learned from the ancient Fae ¡ª Godspeed.

 108. Godspeed

    Drale


    Drale of House Rurik looked up to see something heading towards his team. It wasn¡¯t very high up in the sky and was approaching at unimaginable speeds. The creature ¡ª whatever it was ¡ª left rings of compressed air behind it as it zoomed toward them. He could hear muffled booms from his position as it neared. It was as though the sky was about to shatter into pieces.


    His team of Sprouts all exclaimed in fright, huddling together when they felt a catastrophe upon them. House Rurik was the House of Wards. The leading house that produced powerful wards for many powerful nobles and personalities in Vorthe. Therefore, they were not without help.


    They fished out tiny beads from their spatial rings, activated them, and threw the beads in the air around them. Over a dozen array beads shone in the air with two different colors: blue and orange. The blue beads were for camouflage, and the orange beads were meant to shield them from an overpowering outside force while keeping them grounded.


    Drale nodded in satisfaction seeing how swiftly his team responded to dangerous situations now as opposed to when they first entered Terra Praeta. That had been a disaster ¡ª appearing in a land where the sun never rose and you didn¡¯t know the creatures that inhabited it. Their fear and instinct for survival had made them forget their training. They had lost half their team as a result on the first night alone.


    The creature was moving north. And fast. When it zoomed past his team, everything around them was thrown into a dance of chaos ¡ª the air shook violently and trees were uprooted by the force of the blast. Debris shot up into the sky after the creature, covering their view of it.


    Drale almost emptied his bowels as fear took hold of his gut. Thank the heavens such a creature isn''t going our way, he thought in relief. Throughout their stay in Terra Praeta, they had never witnessed anything like this. They had stayed away from dangerous places and avoided sacred artists from other clans altogether. There was no one to trust in such a place except your own.


    He had been in the clutches of a powerful creature before ¡ª beautiful, sensuous, a woman of every man¡¯s dream, and although it was fleetingly enjoyable, he never wished for such in his life again. This adventure to Terra Praeta was more than enough to last him ten lifetimes. He only wished he could see the young Sprout who saved him from an inescapable fate again so he could express his gratitude. Jerome. He would never forget that name.


    I hope you''re safe, boy. I hope you¡¯re safe, he thought. Their world needed more sacred artists like him.


    ¡°I saw what they look like!¡± one of his teammates exclaimed.


    The rest of them quickly deactivated the beads in the air, murmuring their doubts. The beads floated back to their hands and they stuffed them back into their storage rings. The plateau which they had been exploring was now stripped of its beauty. Every tree, shrub, and flower had been uprooted when the creature flew by.


    ¡°Anan, did you say ¡®they¡¯?¡± Drale asked. They had all obtained good fortunes since coming into Terra Praeta so who knew, perhaps Anan obtained something that helped him ¡®see¡¯ things moving too fast for the ordinary sacred artist to see. The creature was simply moving too fast.


    ¡°Yes, Young Lord Drale! There were two of them, holding onto each other as they flew past us!¡± Anan said, raising two fingers in the air excitedly. ¡°A young man and a young woman!¡±


    ¡°What did they look like, Anan?¡± Drale asked, looking around just in case there was any immediate threat to their lives.


    Anan brought out a blank memory crystal from his spatial ring. He closed his eyes and the rest of his teammates held bated breaths, patiently waiting for him to inscribe the memory into the memory crystal. Anan smiled, enjoying the attention from his fellow teammates. He couldn¡¯t help himself.


    ¡°Be done with it, you stupid oaf!¡±


    ¡°Yes, show us already!¡±


    ¡°We want to see the memory, not you!¡± Anan¡¯s teammates barked at him in impatience.


    ¡°Sod off, you imbeciles. This takes time!¡± he shot back.


    ¡°Let¡¯s be patient with him,¡± Drale said, calming them down. As the leader, it was his duty to make sure his team was united.


    ¡°I¡¯m done,¡± Anan said after a few breaths, handing the memory stone to Drale.


    Drale took the stone and scanned it. The next moment though, he exclaimed in joy, ¡°That¡¯s him! That¡¯s the Sprout I was talking about. Jerome and¡­¡± his voice wavered as he saw the second person. ¡°Eh?¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°Crap!¡± Jerome turned back to look at the raised terrain he had just destroyed as he zoomed by. The plateau was like a slumbering giant that had been flayed. He was moving so fast that he was out of range of sight in less than a second. He didn¡¯t see the team of Sprouts on the plateau.


    How fast am I going, Achilles?


    ¡°1.6 miles per second, Xerae. Not as fast as the dragon that was captured by the Royals, but fast enough.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. The fire dragon the Royals caught moved three miles in less than a second. That was like teleportation to a Sprout¡¯s eyes. He was still a ways away from doing something like that. And this speed was hard enough as it was. He could go faster, but he would burn the essence he had gathered for this trip faster than he wanted to. That would mean trouble. Because he would need a lot of rest before he could do it again.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    ¡°You¡¯d be able to use Godspeed at least one more time today¡­and then you¡¯d pass out.¡±


    Figures. It¡¯s a powerful spell. It makes sense that it comes with drawbacks.


    Csala grunted, causing him to take a glance at her. The succubus was barely holding on. She was doing everything to withstand the high pressure from the increased drag.


    Achilles, can I use the shield defenses of my robe to cover both of us?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. You just have to touch an exposed part of her body. The back of her neck should do, then maybe hold her tighter and kiss¡ª¡±


    Thank you for that unnecessary detail, he remarked. Achilles was definitely trying to put him in trouble. With the oath he had taken in place, any little slip up from him could mean his death.


    ¡°But surely you must wonder what might happen, don¡¯t you, Xerae?¡±


    No, I don¡¯t, Achilles, Jerome deadpanned. He put his hand behind Csala¡¯s neck and activated the shield in his robe. Which is the difference between me and you. I won¡¯t let my curiosity get the better of me.


    The moment the sphere-shaped shield appeared around them, their speed decreased rapidly as a result of the drag. The shield wasn¡¯t meant to be used to resist drag and wasn¡¯t shaped to do so. Jerome had to push to keep up with his previous speed or risk being pushed off course, burning more essence in the process.


    ¡°A moment, Xerae,¡± Achilles said, and a split second later, the sphere-shaped dome reshaped itself, elongating at the fore to become as thin as a point in front of them ¡ª an aerodynamically streamlined shape that helped them knife through the air.


    Csala sighed in relief as the weight of the air pressure gave. She looked around and Jerome felt her relax, feeling safe inside the shield. ¡°I can¡¯t even feel how fast we¡¯re moving anymore.¡±


    Jerome nodded. The ride was smooth and without turbulence unlike it was a few moments ago. He smiled at her as he saw her studying the shockwaves forming around the shield as they flew by. It was like watching ripples of air form around them.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± she muttered.


    ¡°It is,¡± Jerome said. ¡°As we move, the air is forced to give way, making it fold in on itself, compressing and forming these shockwaves.¡±


    ¡°But air isn¡¯t like water. It isn¡¯t¡­physical?¡± Csala said and frowned. It must¡¯ve sounded stupid to her. Of course, the air was physical. She probably just never thought about it in that sense.


    ¡°Oh, it is physical,¡± Jerome responded. ¡°It¡¯s just a lot more loose than water. It just can¡¯t hold itself together like a rock, or even more loosely like water. If it wasn¡¯t physical, we wouldn¡¯t even know it existed. We wouldn¡¯t feel it on our skin when it moved, or see it bend trees and branches when the wind is strong.¡±


    Csala kept quiet for a while, processing his words.


    Achilles, does the word ¡®fluid¡¯ exist in faerie?... What about molecules and atoms?


    Achilles chuckled nervously. ¡°The word for fluid does exist. It is also the word for gaseous¡­or gas.¡±


    Jerome rolled his eyes at that. Which also means air, which also means breath. You see where I¡¯m going with that?


    ¡°It depends on the context in which it¡¯s being used. Different societies focus on different things, Xerae. Depending on the limitations they have and their voracity for knowledge, and the unknown. Language is formed around what is established to said societies.¡±


    I couldn¡¯t agree more, Achilles. However, I won this round! Ah! Humanity trumps the Fae in Vocabulary!


    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t. The Fae has more words and complex usage of words than any human race, extinct or extant,¡± Achilles declared proudly.


    Well, in this context, humanity wins, Jerome declared.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t realize we were having a competition, Xerae. Oh well, at least it¡¯s vocabulary from your previous world and not your current one.¡±


    Huh? Achilles throws in the towel? Is the world coming to an end?


    ¡°I live to play another day, Xerae.¡±


    Interesting¡­ For Achilles to say something like that meant he was going back to the drawing board, because Achilles didn¡¯t like to lose. He¡¯d rather lose an arm.


    ¡°If I had one, Xerae.¡±


    Fucking mind-reading AI, Jerome cursed. It doesn¡¯t matter what you say, Achilles. A win¡¯s still a win. You should take one for team Fae.


    ¡°How come it can give way if it¡¯s so loose?¡± Csala asked, breaking Jerome out of his little moment of celebration. ¡°There shouldn''t be anything holding it together, so¡­¡±


    Jerome smiled, impressed at the direction her question was taking them. He had almost forgotten his conversation with her. She probably had no knowledge of atoms and molecules, and that every physical mass is formed from atoms. And it¡¯ll be a pain to try explaining it to her.


    ¡°We normally move at speeds far less than this so we don¡¯t notice it,¡± he said. ¡°Now though, the air is trying to keep up with us because we¡¯re simply moving too fast. That¡¯s why we felt resistance from it.¡±


    ¡°And then you changed the shape of the shield to make it cut through the air. It¡¯s weird picturing the air as¡­well¡­made of substance. I never really thought about it.¡±


    Jerome smiled at the thoughtful look on her face. Was she opening up? Those were the most words he had heard her speak unguardedly.


    ¡°Jerome, your nose,¡± Csala said, looking up at his face with worry. ¡°You¡¯re bleeding.¡±


    Jerome felt warm liquid trickle down his nose and the coppery smell of his blood assaulted his senses. He gulped.


    ¡°Perhaps you should stop and rest for a while, Xerae. You¡¯re tasking your body too much by holding onto this much essence. Outside of it, nonetheless,¡± Achilles said, the concern in his voice didn¡¯t go unnoticed by Jerome.


    But just then, Jerome came alert to something.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Csala asked, feeling her gut tighten.


    Jerome turned to look behind them. It was as if his eyes could pierce through space to see far into the distance. Csala also turned as best as she could in his arms to look but she saw nothing.


    ¡°Are you going to tell me what you¡¯re seeing or do I have to get it out of you?¡± she snapped at him.


    ¡°We have company,¡± Jerome said with a sigh. ¡°The old hag I rescued you from is tailing us.¡±

 109. Time To Do Battle

    Jerome shot forward, grunting as his muscles tensed and his head pounded in pain. If the old crone caught up with them, they¡¯d both be dead ¡ª no questions asked.


    Achilles, can¡¯t you do something about her? he asked. He could sense the succubus now. She was still a great distance away but she was gaining on them. Talk about fast.


    ¡°The pods still need a few more days. She watched the fight with the Argonaut and deduced that she could come after you when I didn¡¯t use Hezvar against her. I can only send her elsewhere once, Xerae. She wouldn¡¯t allow it a second time. Plus I¡¯d be too weak to do it a second time.¡±


    She watched the fight?


    ¡°The end of it, Xerae. She arrived thirty minutes and 23.6 seconds after the Argonaut was summoned.¡±


    Jerome sighed as he remembered the memory of the old hag opening a hole in the world to pull out the pod of Hezvar that had been in her control. Could things not go his way for once ¡ª especially now that he had become stronger?


    I¡¯ll start prepping the Wrath of the Dragon. Damn, these spells take time, he thought. In the heat of battle, one couldn¡¯t wait to complete a spell. You¡¯d die without knowing how. Perhaps he could get parts of the spell to work. Will she be able to sense it when I start the spell? he asked. One could never be too careful with these all-powerful beings. At least, that was how he felt about them. It was like they had evolved to the point they could do anything!


    ¡°Absolutely,¡± Achilles answered.


    Fucking¡­fuck! Jerome cursed and clenched his jaw. He had to reach up to clean the blood coming out of his nostrils once again. The weight of the spell was becoming too much to bear. He needed to rest. This was a sort of wake-up call. His body wasn¡¯t invincible.


    ¡°You are more powerful than you used to be, Xerae, but you do have your limits. Please don¡¯t forget that.¡±


    Send her away when I complete the spell, Achilles. I hope she underestimates me a lot for me to complete the spell. Jerome took a second to sense the living steel in his body, remembering that he had set a chunk of it aside to fight the little Argonaut the Alvrics had used to chase after him.


    ¡°I let go of my control of it and the ¡®mithril x living steel¡¯ knight has integrated back with you, Xerae. You don¡¯t have to summon it. I¡¯ll summon the nanites to hold off our assailant for now.¡±


    With a nod, Jerome focused on flying and chanting the spell for the Dragon¡¯s Wrath. He didn¡¯t know how it would affect him but since Achilles said nothing of it, he¡¯d probably be alright. I would be ok, right?


    ¡°Of course, Xerae. The Dragon¡¯s Wrath doesn¡¯t take as much time to prepare as Godspeed, but it uses up a lot of essence in every shot, which would deplete the essence you¡¯ve gathered.¡±


    Good to know that, Achilles, he thought and his voice grew louder, as he chanted the spell.


    ~~~


    Csala


    Csala held on to Jerome tightly. She could hear him speaking in ancient faerie ¡ª something much older than she could understand, except for a few syllables. How was it that he was able to learn ancient faerie? She understood it had something to do with the voice of the mountain. If the voice knew so much, did it know about her people¡¯s secrets? Had it told Jerome about it?


    Her heart began to beat faster from fear. But remembering the oath Jerome took, she calmed. Which would mean the voice never told him. If not, Jerome would never have made that oath. Csala cast her senses out to see if she could locate Muna. Nothing.


    Figures, she thought. The ancient succubus was far beyond her. Coupled with the fact she had lost a good chunk of her psychic energy.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± she called out. ¡°Be careful with her. She¡¯s a lot more powerful than she looks. And a lot older¡­¡± Csala lost her words as her eyes met with an impossibility behind Jerome. Or was it? Essence much denser than the one that had been trailing them for miles had gathered behind Jerome and was morphing into a human-shaped statue. Csala¡¯s instinct told her that the statue wouldn¡¯t be so still when it was done morphing.


    For the first time, she felt a sort of respect for Jerome. She had feared him ¡ª and hated his guts, but now she didn¡¯t have that fear anymore. What replaced it, especially after getting to know him a little, was respect. She was still wary of him, though. That would never change. But she respected him. He could just dump her here. He had no reason to continue this journey now that he was at risk of being caught by an ancient and powerful succubus who would suck him dry.


    Suck, Csala thought. It was a fitting name for her kind. According to Muna, that was what the incubi called them. Csala looked up at Jerome¡¯s face to see if he was having second thoughts about their journey.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked.


    The frown on her face remained. Her first instinct was to threaten him that if he left her to her fate with the succubus, she¡¯d¡­what could she do? Wait, he doesn¡¯t know what Muna wants. He probably thinks the succubus is after me for something she stole. ¡°Nothing,¡± Csala replied after a while. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be concentrating on your spell, human?¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow with a flat look on his face. Then he said, ¡°Should you be speaking to me in that tone?¡±


    Csala¡¯s expression changed to fear but she quickly schooled her features and clenched her jaw. ¡°Just focus on your spell,¡± she grumbled, looking away. One day she¡¯ll pay him back a hundredfold for what he did to her, but that day wasn¡¯t today.


    ¡°Leave the girl behind human, and I¡¯ll let you leave in one piece!¡± Muna¡¯s voice reached them both and Csala¡¯s heart dropped to her stomach.


    ~~~


    Jerome scoffed. He could feel the ancient succubus gain on him. Her words to give up Csala just now would have made him laugh. If he didn¡¯t need to concentrate on the spell he was working on, he would have laughed. Did she think he was a fool? That was like a bad line from a low-budget Hollywood movie.


    Even before she reached his range of perception he could feel the weight of her presence bear down on him. It wasn¡¯t as powerful as the Argonaut¡¯s, which gave him some relief, but it was still powerful enough for him to be deeply concerned. His Dragon¡¯s Wrath spell wasn¡¯t complete, so he had nothing he could use to fight back if she attacked. Jerome clenched his jaw. He had had enough of things not going his way.


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna let her have you. I promise,¡± he said, looking into Csala¡¯s eyes to assure her. Her beautiful red eyes were shedding tears non-stop. The strong and powerful succubus was barely holding herself together as she shook like a leaf in his arms. But Jerome could still see the hope for survival in her. This must be very traumatic for her. Having someone chase you down so they can possess you would not be fun.


    All of a sudden, Jerome felt something pull on him from behind. It became harder to move, the air around him felt viscous like he was moving through mud. Achilles, now!


    The succubus disappeared. The moment she did, the pressure loosened up and he shot forward. Damnit, the spell isn¡¯t even fifty percent complete!


    ¡°I¡¯m holding her down for now, Xerae. You may need to sacrifice Godspeed for Dragon¡¯s Wrath.¡±


    ¡°Will do just that,¡± Jerome answered.


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Not you,¡± he said, realizing he had answered Achilles out loud.


    Jerome slowed down and began to descend. He needed to heal and prepare himself for battle. And for that, he¡¯d need his armor. With the power of the Fae, he had learned many spells which would give him an edge in battle. But somehow he kept attracting beings more powerful than he was. And all he could do was run away. He was done; done being the one to run away. If anything he should make anyone who dares to trouble him regret it. Even if he couldn¡¯t kill the person. Losing his chance to kill Hedon had taught him something: never let anyone who stands in your way go scot-free.


    Slowing down his momentum, Jerome dropped down from the air. The cloud of ambient essence he had gathered trailed him, slowing in momentum with him. The giant knight made out of condensed essence was still just a skeleton with a few patches of an outside frame. It slowed and righted itself. Even in its incomplete state, it still gave off a dangerous aura.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Jerome settled on the crown of the trunk of a huge tree over a hundred feet tall to watch the sunset. The crown shaft of the tree had enough space for about a dozen people to rest in. The cloud of essence he had gathered settled over the forest around him, putting the tree at the very center. The forest quickly became lively as the rich ambient essence called to the many magical beasts in the vicinity.


    The warrior of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath sucked on the essence as it visibly filled its form. It stood on the forest floor in front of the tree ¡ª a fifty-foot monstrosity that was almost half as tall as the tree.


    Jerome sensed the creatures racing from afar toward the tree to cultivate in the newly formed, essence-rich atmosphere of the forest. He could stop them, but that would quickly become a chore. They couldn¡¯t use up the essence. It was simply too much and too dense. He literally couldn¡¯t see more than two feet in front of him as a result of the fog that had been created by the dense essence in the air.


    ¡°Is this place safe?¡± Csala asked, looking around. They might be high up in a tree, but it didn¡¯t mean safety. Coupled with the fact that she couldn¡¯t extend her senses more than a few dozen feet away, Jerome sensed that she was extremely worried. If he could, he wouldn¡¯t stop for one minute, but Jerome needed to rest. And there was no running away from the ancient succubus.


    ¡°I¡¯ll put a barrier around the tree soon. Just need a little moment to rest,¡± Jerome said, sitting near the edge of the tree and facing the setting sun. His nose had stopped bleeding but he found that he was exhausted and just wanted to sit still. ¡°This is beautiful.¡±


    The setting sun sprinkled the clouds with a vibrant purple and fiery orange. The mountains in the distance lent the sky a picturesque backdrop, a breathtaking spectacle unfolding before his eyes. The mountain peaks were outlined by the fading golden light of the setting sun, casting long shadows that gradually blended with the encroaching darkness. The rugged contours of the mountains were softened by a mystical glow as if the very essence of nature was radiating from within. He wanted to capture and preserve it forever.


    If only I had a camera, he thought.


    ¡°There are blank memory stones in Sanctum, Xerae. You could always preserve any memory you want.¡±


    That¡¯s great. Can you get me one?


    Achilles kept quiet for a while. ¡°Here you go,¡± he said and a white-blue crystal fell out of the void into his open hand.


    So how do I go about¡­taking a picture?


    ¡°All the memory crystals in Sanctum are tied to the signature of your essence, Xerae. You just give it a little trickle and use your psychic energy to imprint whatever it is you want onto it ¡ª whatever you perceive. I believe it is called video in your previous world.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. Here he was talking about preserving a scene with Achilles and a psychotic succubus who was perhaps a hundred times more powerful than him was coming to kill him. Would she even kill him? Oh, shit. She¡¯d do to me what Csala wanted to do, wouldn''t she?


    ¡°Yes, she would, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°All the more reason not to let her get to Csala,¡± he muttered.


    If she did and took Csala¡¯s body, would having a younger, healthier body bring her to her prime? If she couldn¡¯t take Csala¡¯s body on time, would she feed directly from him for strength? Jerome shivered in irritation at that. No old hag would suck him dry as he watched. He pushed down the images that threatened to rise to the forefront of his mind. He needed his concentration.


    Jerome did as he was told and a second later, he activated the stone. It glowed a white-blue color as he sent his psychic energy into it, imprinting everything his senses took in around him into the memory stone.


    Concentrating on the beauty of the scenery before his eyes, he zoomed in on the mountains in the far distance. Nestled at the base of these mountains was the beginning of a lush green forest, vibrant and alive, stretching up to his position and for miles in every direction. The trees stood tall and proud, their emerald leaves rustling gently in the evening breeze. Jerome could hear them as though they were a school of singing insects. Their song calmed his senses, pulling him gently toward sleep.


    As the sun continued its descent, streaks of vibrant orange danced across the sky, blending with the deep purples that deepened and spread like a painter¡¯s brush stroke. The forest seemed to come alive with the changing colors of the sky, as the purple and orange hues reflected upon the foliage, infusing it with a surreal glow. The clouds, wispy and delicate, transformed into magnificent tapestries of mauve and apricot, embracing the fading light with grace. The fog of essence in the air created drops of condensed essence on the leaves like morning dew, supercharged with essence.


    A sense of tranquility permeated the air ¡ª like the calm before the storm ¡ª as he basked in the serene beauty of the moment.


    As darkness gradually settled, the final remnants of sunlight faded away, leaving behind a sky adorned with a blanket of stars. Jerome was in awe of the constellations he saw. The twin moons were nowhere in sight but he felt they would make themselves known soon. He was brought out of the moment by the lights that began to glow in the corners of his eyes.


    The leaves and flowers surrounding Jerome competed in majesty and beauty with the stars in the night sky. Veins of golden light began to seep into them and suffuse the myriads of lush trees from the earth. The night would never be the same for him again, he realized. Since he ¡®saw¡¯ the beauty of the night with his new eyes the night before, during his Spiritual Walk, he had been waiting to see it again. However¡­


    Is it supposed to happen so soon, Achilles?


    ¡°Ah. This is new to me as well, Xerae,¡± Achilles said, seeing through his eyes. Would he be having a Spiritual Walkabout every night? The thought filled him with excitement but he quickly restrained it.


    There must be a viable explanation for this, Achilles. Find out what you can.


    Csala walked up to him silently, trying to look into the distance. She stood to the side watching the darkness with keen eyes, as if waiting to catch the older succubus when she pounced. Though, after a while she walked away, hugging her red winter coat to herself. That didn¡¯t go unnoticed.


    Jerome decided to scan too. There was nothing like being too careful. He did it multiple times but found no threat beyond the fog of essence in the air. But he found something. Something his mind raced to see if it could be used to fix a promise. Although he knew it couldn¡¯t be that easy.


    ¡°Are you cold?¡± Jerome asked, trying to imagine how she could be cold with all that fur she was wearing. Maybe succubi didn¡¯t have good resistance to the cold like sacred artists. He stood up and walked up to her. Or it could be that she was just nervous.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, don¡¯t worry about me,¡± she said. ¡°Just make sure to complete that spell as quickly as possible.¡±


    ¡°Take this,¡± he said, holding up a bunch of fruits in his hand. Csala scrutinized the bunch of red grape-like fruits in his hands. ¡°It¡¯s called the Midnight Iris.¡±


    ¡°You know,¡± she chuckled, accepting it from him. ¡°Succubi don¡¯t need to eat food. We feed differently¡­as you well know.¡± She gave him a coy smile.


    ¡°Just try it,¡± Jerome said, smiling back. She was in for a surprise ¡ª maybe.


    Csala plucked one from the bunch and popped it into her mouth. Jerome watched her chew delicately. His eyes could still see the essence in everything around him. So he could see the clump of essence in the fruit as it woke up after its shell, which was the flesh of the fruit, was crushed in her mouth.


    Csala¡¯s eyes widened in realization of the amount of essence in the fruit. But then she deflated, looking sad. Jerome watched as she swallowed. No, she didn¡¯t swallow. But the fruit went down her gullet with the essence ¡ª which dispersed into the air.


    That was disappointing to watch.


    ¡°I will find a way to help you wield essence,¡± he said. ¡°I just wanted to see how your body reacted to it.¡±


    She smiled at him and looked away. Jerome couldn¡¯t take his eyes off her neck though. Even though his little experiment wasn¡¯t a success, he discovered something he felt was intriguing about the succubus. But he didn¡¯t want to pry as it felt like an invasion of privacy.


    Jerome took back the bunch of the Midnight Iris from her and popped a few into his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll preserve this for you ¡®cause I know you¡¯ll need it. You¡¯ll see.¡±


    He took a step away from Csala and Boom!!!


    The ground shook with the force of an explosion as if a nuke had been dropped into the forest. The quaking of the earth drowned out every other sound for a good ten breaths. The force of the explosion smashed into them like an avalanche!


    The forest erupted in pandemonium. Jerome and Csala were blown away from the tree. Thanks to the avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath, they didn¡¯t get too far. The warrior moved with great speed and caught them both in the air. Every magical beast that had been cultivating in the confines of the ambient essence Jerome brought with him took off to safety. The strong ruled their world and the essence was not enough to make them risk losing their lives.


    The warrior brought Csala close to him by his command and Jerome asked her, ¡°Do you trust me?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t beat her. We should have never left the mountain,¡± her voice broke into tears. ¡°I should have never left the mountain.¡±


    Jerome felt anger rise in him. The kind of anger you have towards the abuse a friend or loved one was suffering. Not wasting time, Jerome signaled the warrior to bring her closer. The moment he touched her, he tucked her into his void space where she would be safe ¡ª at least until he could deal with the older succubus.


    Jerome¡¯s armor materialized around him, and he felt it shift to fit his frame. He wanted to add the evolved flowing steel to the joints to integrate every piece of the armor better but the armor did that itself: the pauldrons and gardbraces integrated with the breastplate; the bevor to the sallet and helm, and he could still move his neck region freely; the gauntlets, vambraces, couter, and rerebraces also integrated ¡ª even covering the insides of his upper arms and pits; the cuisse, poleyn, and greaves integrated with the sabatons; making for a complete suit of armor with no openings whatsoever.


    Jerome felt like he was Ironman in his suit. Except his suit was black and covered in black leather ¡ª which didn¡¯t act like leather by the way. The way it moved felt like Suzie. He sensed the weight of the suit of armor but didn¡¯t feel it. Every movement was without hindrances and as he jumped off the warrior¡¯s hand, his jump was powered by the suit. With a deep breath filled with essence, he swept away his fatigue and brought himself to his optimum level of strength ¡ª at least for the battle. He would still need a whole lot of rest after.


    Incredible! Jerome thought. He clenched his fist slowly, feeling every joint in his gauntlets move with his fingers, joints shifted to sit on and embrace his knuckles. He could sense the essence flowing through his suit of armor and into him. The armor has a binding of its own? He asked.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. Just like Charybdis, it does. This is the first step in helping you find ¡ª or create ¡ª a suitable cycling technique.¡±


    Jerome could unpack a lot of information inside that last statement. A cycling technique was another thing he never had access to in Vorthe but there was a reason for that: his core had the seed of darkness in it and very soon he¡¯d be called into the mountains to inherit the darkness there. This was why he needed a cycling technique unique to him as the Dark One. But he didn¡¯t have time for that discussion because the ancient succubus had escaped Achilles¡¯ confinement. It was time to do battle himself.

 110. No Ordinary Human

    Muna


    Muna sped through the sky, reaching the place where she sensed Csala last in the time it would take a human to swallow. She had prepared too long for this not to get what she wanted. And then came this little twig of a human to try and ruin it! The Fae did not do a good job of putting them in their place! And what was that beside him anyway? A golem?


    Ah! That must be what he used to shoot me a few moons ago, she thought.


    She should be angry at him for taking her hands ¡ª hands she had prevented from regrowing because it would cost her too much vitality, vitality she didn¡¯t have to spare right now.


    The brat gasped in surprise as he saw her appear out of thin air, hovering in the sky. She could sense his fear and oh, he was filled with so much vitality. Muna smiled crookedly to herself. She was so going to enjoy him after taking Csala¡¯s body. Speaking of¡­she looked around and noticed she couldn¡¯t find the young succubus.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± Muna asked, looking down at the armored human male with a frown. Her mind began to race. Did she escape? If so, how? She had been watching them since the night before and she admitted the human was adept at wielding essence, more so than many she had seen throughout the years, but it wasn¡¯t enough for him to be able to sneak Csala away from under her nose.


    The psychic blast she detonated had destroyed much of the forest around the Sprout. There was nowhere to hide Csala that she could see, or sense.


    ¡°Nowhere you can find her,¡± he said.


    Muna¡¯s brows rose in surprise and then she chuckled. Humans and their big mouths. No one had ever spoken to her like that in¡­she didn¡¯t remember when last she had been spoken to like that. She didn¡¯t expect him to give up Csala so easily, but she also didn¡¯t expect the blatant disrespect. ¡°Your mouth would get you in trouble if you keep running it as you do, child.¡±


    The human shrugged. He was quickly getting over his fear of her. What was giving him the strength to stand before her without falling over? Interesting, Muna thought. Csala truly found an interesting specimen of the human species. She eyed him in his armored mithril suit appreciatively. Then she released a little more of her aura to overwhelm him. The human grunted and took a step back, but he didn¡¯t keel over from the intense pleasure he must be feeling, as she expected.


    ¡°You know,¡± she began, walking on air around him. ¡°The ubus are different from the Fae. When they ran the world, they could pressure a person¡¯s body and soul with their aura and spirit, making them feel like the whole world was trying to crush them. It was like being submerged in the deepest parts of the ocean with the weight of the water crushing you on all sides.


    ¡°The ubus, however, have different sets of results with their aura: the person being pressured feels an intense sexual hunger for them; in the deepest parts of their soul, they feel hunger like no other that threatens to consume them! It doesn¡¯t matter how old and ugly a succubus looked ¡ª succubi would always be succubi. Their victims would want them with all of their beings regardless, unable to satiate themselves until they had that succubus¡­or die.


    ¡°But more than that, succubi can turn on their battle aura!¡± With her intent, she switched her aura, suppressing him with a fraction of her will.


    The Sprout grunted and went down on one knee. Yet he still struggled against her aura attack. Muna¡¯s brows rose in surprise as she saw the human withstand a level of intensity of her aura that should have made him pass out from too much stimulation. It seems this human isn¡¯t ordinary, she thought. Now she had to take him seriously.


    ~~~


    Jerome was stunned when the ancient succubus popped out of thin air a few yards away from him. He had expected to be able to shoot her down from a distance with the Dragon¡¯s Wrath. With the distance between them decreased significantly, he should be running away. But for how long. She was a lot faster than he was ¡ª even with Godspeed.


    She looked unkempt like a street beggar, with both hands missing from a few inches above the wrist. It was an eerie sight. Couldn¡¯t succubi regrow limbs? Jerome thought. Sacred artists could heal, but not to the extent of regrowing lost limbs ¡ª at least Jerome had never heard of regeneration where the severed limb was destroyed. But the fae had the means to do it, even though it¡¯s lost to the rest of Terra Praeta now. Thankfully, Achilles was created to preserve their knowledge for an heir to their secrets.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. If the succubus is old enough, she can replace lost limbs. Since she lost her limbs to the Dragon¡¯s Wrath, however, she would find it very difficult to regrow ¡ª but not impossible.¡±


    That¡¯s remarkable, Jerome thought, thinking whether humans could do that.


    The succubus released her aura to suppress him and Jerome felt an intense sexual hunger, the likes of which he had never experienced before, threaten to take him over. The core in his armor spun, channeling essence into his body and pushing back at the succubus¡¯ aura. The pushback didn¡¯t happen at once. He had to listen to her give a long villainous speech about her aura attack. Classic villainous move. He had to spin his core as fast as he possibly could to offset it completely.


    ¡°You¡¯ve just resisted the suppression of a being equal in power to a Sage, Xerae. Congratulations,¡± Achilles said and Jerome snorted.


    Don¡¯t congratulate me. I still need to get away from her. Besides, I should be thanking you for making this armor, he replied. But then her aura attack changed and one of his knees hit the ground. Jerome felt like he was being squeezed like a pimple.


    He sensed the succubus¡¯ concentration sharpen and knew she now meant business. She blinked ¡ª not with her eyes. One moment she was hovering in the air, a few feet above him, the next she was standing in front of him, invading his personal space.


    Jerome blinked, teleporting the same way she did. He covered fifty feet with that move, breaking her hold on him and surprising her. But before he could do much more, he stood paralyzed by the succubus¡¯ psychic energy. The fifty-foot avatar of The Dragon¡¯s Wrath went to work. It leaned forward to slice the succubus in half with a sword that had formed in its hand a while ago. The succubi responded quickly, leaning backward and away from the giant blade so fast, it was like she had broken her spine.


    ¡°What the fuck!¡± Jerome exclaimed, never expecting someone as old and as crooked-looking to be so flexible. He tried to move as the warrior engaged the succubus but found he couldn¡¯t. How the fuck is she doing this?


    ¡°Her psychic energy is a lot more evolved than yours, Xerae. I¡¯ll be able to break her hold on you in twenty seconds.¡±


    The blade tore through the air as it passed through where the succubus¡¯ torso should have been. Then it came back so fast, causing the succubus to leave her spot. The blade seemed to multiply and increase in speed, chasing her everywhere. The succubus cursed in faerie as she danced around to avoid the blade.


    Jerome broke free of her hold exactly 20 seconds later. He summoned his gauntlets which seemed to also fuse with his armor. And then he hurled a fireball at her. She dodged. He hurled another and another. The succubus gave him a flat look, but she couldn¡¯t remain in place long enough to convey any words. He grinned at her.


    He was only beginning. He shot a huge lance of flame at her and transferred some mithril to his gauntlets. Jerome shot twenty bullets made of mithril and coated to the teeth with sword force as well. The flaming lance hid the bullets and as she dodged, she was peppered with bullets. The ancient succubus screamed in pain as the bullets tore through her left side. Her left side, from her shoulder down to her leg, became a mangled mess. But she growled and triggered her regeneration.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped, as her body healed, faster than anything he had ever seen. The stumps of her hands regrew new hands and her back straightened, cracking the bones as if she was waking up from a deep slumber. She looked visibly older ¡ª her hair had become all white and her skin wrinkling some more ¡ª but somehow¡­ stronger, like she just received a burst of vitality.


    What the fuck? he grumbled.


    ¡°Dive away, Xerae!¡±


    Jerome dived away from his position and a psychic blast hit the ground, leaving a two-foot crater.


    ¡°I think you pissed her off.¡±


    You think?! He blasted a heat wave at her, causing the temperature of the forest to rise. An idea lit up in his mind at that moment ¡ª it was a simple idea, but he was sure it was going to be efficient. Succubi didn¡¯t wield essence. That was their greatest disadvantage! He started to heat the area around them both as he asked Achilles, She seems not to be capable of holding down the avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath. Why is that?


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    ¡°She could if she wanted to. But she has imprisoned a lot of beings as it is. To suppress the avatar with her psychic energy is to loosen her hold on another of her enemies.¡±


    You mean she¡¯s actively suppressing some people as we speak. Even as she is here, doing all¡­this? he asked, looking at the succubus as she hopped around cursing and fuming. She was a blur of movement to his eyes. Jerome could only hope not to get killed if he ever fought in a melee against someone with her agility and speed.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome studied her for a bit, exasperated. Looks can be deceiving. How could this crooked-looking woman hold so much power?


    ¡°Hey, you are going to burn down the forest at this rate. Stop whatever it is you¡¯re doing,¡± the succubus called out. She had begun to feel the intense heat. Good.


    Jerome didn¡¯t answer but rushed from the battle. He started walking in a wide circle around the avatar and the old crone. There were too many trees in this area and many of them would be destroyed with what he wanted to do but there was no helping it.


    The succubus cursed again and feigned left, only to move right toward Jerome. But Jerome had been expecting that. He stretched out his hand without looking and fired a lance of blue laser at her, singeing her ragged clothes as she dodged out of the way.


    Jerome froze a moment later. She had done it again ¡ª held him in place with her psychic energy. He tried moving his fingers to complete the script he was drawing at the moment but no movement was possible, except for his eyes. Jerome could use his psychic energy to imprint the scripts, but he needed to move his fingers in the air to help him shape them better. There was no time to do practice movements, and in the heat of battle, there were no second chances.


    Achilles!


    ¡°On it.¡±


    Jerome tried again. Nothing. Then he noticed something else. His scripts were being erased. How the fuck was she doing that! Come on, Achilles. Faster!


    Jerome fell forward as Achilles broke the succubus¡¯ hold on him. With a vengeance, he increased the intensity of the heat in the air. He planned on limiting the amount of air the succubus had access to. If he could directly suck the air out of her lungs, he would. But he couldn¡¯t. Not yet anyway.


    ¡°I hope you understand, Xerae, that she¡¯s holding back. She doesn¡¯t want you dead.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think I know that!¡± Jerome snapped.


    The trees in their immediate vicinity started to burn, adding to the intensity of the heat. Jerome was pushing the heat toward the succubus, but his level of skill was not advanced enough to directly do what he wanted, which was to push the heat into her bones ¡ª unless he could come in contact with her. He did his best to direct the heat toward her but the succubus was moving around like a fish in water. Jerome marveled at her speed and nimbleness.


    Somehow, the avatar hadn¡¯t done as much damage to the succubus as he had expected, but the forest around them was a mess. Looking closely at it, Jerome saw that it was fighting like him. Ah! It fights like me.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. It does. You created it.¡±


    This brought other concerns. He needed to learn how to wield other weapons. With a thought, the avatar changed the sword in its hand into a spear and the battle continued.


    ~~~


    Muna


    Who the fuck is this human? Where did he come from? How could he do what he¡¯s doing? No human who came to Terra Praeta had ever been able to stop her from paralyzing them with her psychic energy. She was Muna! The oldest and most powerful succubus alive! Tialana¡¯s great-granddaughter!


    How could a puny human negate her powers in but a few breaths of time like it was nothing? Twice! This was an embarrassment!


    Calm down, Muna. Calm down. He probably just got lucky with some ancient artifacts of the Fae, she thought, which in turn infuriated her. The ubus, with all their strength and beauty, could not wield essence, hence they couldn¡¯t use artifacts, except for spatial rings which only required psychic energy. All the spatial rings they used were brought to Terra Praeta by humans. It was infuriating to see these weaklings wield the very thing her people had been longing for, for eons.


    Muna feigned left but went right aiming for the human. This golem was in his control. If she captured him, she captured it. But the human was ready for her. He shot a blue lance of flame at her causing her to abort her advance. The giant golem suddenly transformed its weapon into a spear and renewed its attack on her. This time, it was more ferocious with its attack, as though its level of skill had increased by a hundredfold!


    Muna dodged behind a tree, intending to shoot up into the sky to avoid the reach of the spear. The golem cut through the tree like tallow, sending it falling to the side and exposing her. It stabbed at her next with quick shot thrusts, every move flowing into another. She was left winded after a dozen breaths. She couldn¡¯t keep up. Even with her tiny size and speed, she couldn¡¯t make up for the adeptness of the golem.


    If she continued like this, she would be skewered by the gigantic spear. Every time she failed to dodge on time, the spear grazed her ¡ª or nearly grazed her. She could swear, there was lightning imbued into it. It shocked her, making her muscles tense up. There were a lot more cuts on her now than before they started dancing ¡ª they hurt so much and they weren¡¯t healing. And it hadn¡¯t been more than a few dozen heartbeats. What in Odin¡¯s name was going on?


    It¡¯s the human, she thought. Fuck! The human is better at wielding a spear that¡¯s why I¡¯m being pressed. And the golem takes on its master¡¯s skill. Which means the golem must be an artifact itself!


    Muna wrapped her psychic energy around a full-grown tree and pulled it out of the soil ¡ª roots and all. With little effort, she tossed it at the golem, gaining another gasp from the human. He probably had never seen something as lifting a whole tree with psychic energy, done with such ease.


    The golem batted the gigantic tree away with its spear, but she shot forward and punched a man-sized hole into its chest with her psychic energy. Wrong move. The hole filled up almost immediately, surprising her. The golem took the moment to imprison her within itself, squeezing her like a pimple.


    ¡°Odin¡¯s nuts!¡± she cursed and the human burst out in laughter.


    ¡°Odin¡¯s nuts?¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s a good one.¡± Was he having a laugh at her expense during battle? With her?! Muna forced herself to calm down.


    The pressure around her increased as the temperature shot up. She scanned the walls of her prison and realized the golem¡¯s body was turning from sapphire blue to ruby red. What the fuck? She could sense the density of essence in it, as well as the essence moving inside it. Problem was the essence was moving in the manner humans called cycling. The golem couldn¡¯t be cycling, could it? The red bled into the walls from behind it and heat seared her skin.


    ¡°Ouch!¡± she cried out. The heat was remarkably intense. More intense than what the human was emitting. ¡°Fucking human!¡± She used her psychic energy to try and drill through the wall, unperturbed that she was being baked alive. It was like drilling through essence stones. Incredible! The whole golem must be made of essence crystals! Even if she couldn¡¯t touch essence as a succubus, she knew what it felt like to the senses.


    Muna laughed. She had hit the motherload. Essence stones had a different internal structure compared to ordinary rocks. They were harder but sublimated when exposed to air. This one, on the other hand, didn¡¯t sublimate.  If she could capture the brat, she could study the golem, and maybe¡­just maybe, she could find a way to become the first of the ubus to wield essence.


    ¡°Okay. Playtime¡¯s over,¡± she said and burst out of the golem. She was upon the human in the blink of an eye.


    ~~~


    Jerome couldn¡¯t believe his luck when the succubus punched a hole in the avatar¡¯s chest and trapped herself inside. He quickly started drawing scripts on the ground around the avatar. He forced the space around her, inside the avatar to squeeze tightly but it seemed it wasn¡¯t enough to hold her since she wasn¡¯t panicking. Instead, she sounded playful. As though she found everything funny. He guessed she would find anything he did to survive and prevent capture amusing. She probably wasn¡¯t using up to a fifth of her true strength.


    At long last, the scripted circle was ready and active. It was more than a hundred feet in diameter and with the activation of his binding, every script that formed it was glowing brightly. Jerome inspected his work one more time and nodded in satisfaction before burying the binding in the center of the circle. He had gotten better and faster at drawing scripts. Next, he needed to learn to use the more ancient runes but that was a practice he wasn¡¯t ready for.


    Ancient runes were tied closely to natural law. Anyone in the practice of using ancient runes had to have a very solid and advanced foundation. The fae used them and from the looks of it, probably dragons too. Many things in their history pointed to them using it. First the elemental runes. Those should be easy, he thought.


    The air inside the scripted circle became superheated as Jerome and the avatar began to emit extremely intense heat. The avatar turned red all over and Jerome had to stay a little ways away from it. The heat he was emitting couldn¡¯t be compared to that of the avatar.


    The trees and bushes in the area inside the formation disintegrated in seconds, leaving blackened earth. Jerome sighed regretfully. He was supposed to be Mother Nature¡¯s emissary, was he not? But now he was the one destroying nature. At least I won¡¯t burn the whole forest down this way, he thought, looking at the trees on the outer edge of the circle. The heat didn¡¯t reach them because they were protected by the walls of the formation. A barrier of sorts for the heat¡­and more.


    Jerome¡¯s blue flame poured out of him and wrapped around his body like a second suit of armor, ready to confront the succubus. He intentionally controlled the blue flame to follow the flow of essence in his armor. It was tedious and took too much time. But it created a second layer of protection for him. Now his armor glowed with bands of blue light in certain places, and a light film of flame cocooned his form making him slightly blurry to the naked eye.


    The succubus burst out of the avatar and was upon him in the blink of an eye. He knew the avatar couldn¡¯t hold her down for long. One moment, the avatar''s chest area burst open, the next something hit him with the force of a freight train. Jerome found himself at the edge of his formation a moment later. He was pressed into the ground which was melting as a result of the heat. He groaned as he picked himself up. The pain from the blow to his ribs was mind-numbing.


    The succubus was there to push him down to the ground once again. She put pressure on her leg on his breastplate, threatening to cave it in. Jerome felt like a mountain was sitting on him! No matter how hard he tried, he couldn¡¯t lift himself an inch off the ground.


    ¡°I¡¯ll enjoy my time with you boy,¡± she said with an ugly grin devoid of warmth. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve got a pretty face on you, don¡¯t you?¡±


    Then she cocked her head to the side and Jerome¡¯s helm threatened to pull his head off his shoulders. He groaned loudly, thrashing violently as he struggled to keep his helmet on and his head attached to his shoulders.

 111. To Catch A Fish

    Muna


    Muna had never met a human as strong and as ¡®solid¡¯ as this one. They were usually as weak as twigs and their bones snapped easily. This one was able to take more of her strength than normal ¡ª not that she was using much, only about a fourth of what she could possibly do with her failing body. She was tempted to put some more pressure on his chest and pull at his helm some more to see how much he could take. Even as she was thinking about it, she was already doing it.


    ¡°Oops!¡± she said and put her arms akimbo, giggling. ¡°Are you going to continue struggling like that? Don¡¯t you want me to ease up on you a lil¡¯ bit?¡±


    He glared up at her from the slits in his visor ¡ª the visor that couldn¡¯t be lifted externally.


    ¡°Go to hell!¡± he roared at her and gripped her leg.


    The golem shot toward her with its spear aimed at her. With a thought, she let go of one of her prisoners on Terra Praeta ¡ª a wood spirit ¡ª and the golem froze, its spear, a mere inch away from her head. The human was a far better catch to the wood spirit.


    She raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°Hell?¡± she asked. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Did he mean hall, as in, Valhalla¡¯s Hall?


    ¡°Xseo¡¯l. ra¡­ sara maghra ae. Xseoo ra maghra luutsa¡­tsa¡­ ra¡­¡± the human began whispering in ancient faerie. The cadence of his voice was steady, like the flow of the air on a windy night, flowing into the dark corners of her heart.


    Muna got lost in those words like a child hearing a lullaby from a loving parent after longing for one for a very long time. She hadn¡¯t heard ancient faerie in millennia. Oh, the memories the human¡¯s words stirred up in her!


    Something stabbed her and she was brought out of her reverie. She looked down to see a spear sticking out of her gut, sucking the life out of her. Her blood flowed freely but she couldn¡¯t be bothered to stop it. She was too engrossed in the past to notice.


    ¡°I heard the stories,¡± she said, leaning away from the human and falling on her haunches. ¡°Of a time when Terra Praeta was still a little populated. After¡­the great downfall of the Fae. Of how my grandmother was held close to her mother¡¯s bosom to escape the great shifting of the foundations of the planet: The Rumbling, it was called. Tialana ran and ran until her lungs gave out.¡±


    The human stood up but held the spear in place, trying to pin her to the ground as he glared at her. She could feel something begin to burrow into her. Something foreign. What did he do to her? Was it fire? Essence? It felt like fire. It was hot. So hot. She took hold of the spear with her psychic energy, pushed it out of her flesh, and flung it into the air. Whatever was invading her body didn¡¯t stop its invasion.


    So, not the spear, she thought as she stood up on shaky legs.


    The human shot backward to retrieve his spear, leaving behind some metals that seem to move on their own. Mithril? No. Visha stirh¡¯aun? They tried to attack her and lock her down, but she suppressed them with ease. Her wounds were healing already. She just had a moment of reminiscence but now her attention was back on the human.


    ¡°The populace ran for their dear lives as Illyrah battled another foe,¡± she said. ¡°He stood tall as a mountain, wielding his golden spear to smite another foe. The earth crumbled around him and the moons were displaced in the night sky. The sky became as hot as fire and the air was sucked out of the lungs of every living creature.¡±


    Muna took in deep breaths. Her lungs felt like they were being sanded, or being stuffed ¡ª she didn¡¯t know which it was. Whatever the human did to her when he chanted that spell must have been really bad. How could a human learn to speak faerie? Not even the modern dialect but the ancient one!


    ¡°Many died in the Great Migration. Reducing the already sparse populace to nothing. Total extinction was inevitable at that point¡­but Illyrah¡­ promised¡­¡± She looked up at him now with eyes filled with disbelief. He held his spear and waited. For what, she didn¡¯t know. For her to die? But he was listening to her story. That¡¯s good. If there was one thing Muna could call her superpower, it was getting people to lower their guard around her. She was also a good storyteller ¡ª not a conventional one but a good one. She shrugged inwardly.


    ¡°I used to believe, you know¡­ Illyrah¡¯s chosen would show up and save Terra Praeta from extinction,¡± she snorted. ¡°Are you¡­ Illyrah¡¯s chosen?¡±


    The human looked startled for a moment. Muna attacked. She hit the human in the chest and felt bones break under her closed fist. She smiled, remembering she had regenerated her hands. Under her perception, she watched as the golem broke free of her imprisonment. Shit. She had almost forgotten the human could break free of her psychic freeze. She had to move to the side to prevent from being skewered by the golem¡¯s spear.


    ~~~


    Boom!


    Jerome crashed through the forest and found himself almost a hundred feet away when the succubus caved in his chest. He had burst through the clearing, out of the formation, and into the surrounding forest, destroying tree after tree before coming to rest on the forest floor. He lay there paralyzed.


    ¡°You need to stay still and heal, Xerae,¡± Achilles said with concern in his voice. ¡°Your sternum is broken and your lungs have been punctured.¡±


    ¡°I get it,¡± he struggled to get out and coughed up blood. That was a huge reminder of what the succubi were capable of. Even though they couldn¡¯t wield essence, nature made up for that with supernatural strength.


    Ah, fuck. He would be unable to breathe in a moment if he didn¡¯t heal fast; the carbon dioxide in his lungs would be unable to leave so new oxygen wouldn¡¯t be breathed in. He was drowning in a pool of his own blood. He started stimulating the essence in the earth and the vital aura.


    Jerome just lay there, tired and out of breath as he absorbed essence and vitality. Motes of flickering green light converged on his body, slowly healing him and his breathing came under control. He could hear the sound of the battle from not too far away. The thumps of the avatar¡¯s feet on the earth as it chased the succubus around. The splash of liquid lava from the melted earth. She tried to push through the border of the formation but was rebounded. The avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath took the chance to pin her to the barrier, blistering her skin. He heard her scream in pain.


    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing you used the space rune as a function in the binding, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome nodded. ¡°I may not say this often but thank you, Achilles,¡± he said, his voice clearer and stronger. ¡°For everything. That should hold her down for a minute. But she isn¡¯t burning up ¡ª not as fast as I expected.¡± He scanned the battlefield and specifically the succubus. It was like she was made of diamonds. Her clothes had fallen off, but her hair and skin remained unburnt.


    With the space rune in the binding, any attempt to bend or punch through the fabric of space and time or push through the barrier was nullified. But a lot of essence he had gathered was being used up to power the binding. The fog of essence gathered around the barrier, hugging it closely like a tornado. But only very little of the essence remained in the air now. Which meant if she survived this¡­he shivered slightly, not willing to think about the consequences of failure.


    ¡°Hmm. She¡¯s using her psychic energy to protect herself. But the air is getting hotter and soon, she¡¯ll need to breathe. The inability to carry oxygen to her lungs and brain would lead to dizziness, then asphyxiation, then brain damage, and then death.¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t have to list it all out,¡± Jerome said as he thought about all the times he had nearly died. And the time he had died. He should feel afraid of death. But that fear was non-existent. Somehow he wasn¡¯t afraid of dying. Maybe that was what happened when one experienced it twice.


    ¡°But you have to wonder about it, Xerae. You have died twice already. Do you not wonder what happens to souls when they die?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not that curious,¡± Jerome said wondering what was going through the AI¡¯s thought process. Achilles was becoming more and more eccentric by the day.


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Really,¡± Jerome replied flatly.


    ¡°Not cool, Xerae. You should set aside a few more brain cells to think about the meaning of it all. The meaning of life, death, souls¡­ Where does it all come from? Where does it go? How does reincarnation work?¡±


    Jerome sighed as he just lay there. And let the AI blabber out like the eager beaver he tended to be sometimes. He wondered what Ash would be up to right now. She must have gone to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. Maybe she was already back. He couldn¡¯t wait to see her. To hold her. Jerome sighed again. He missed Ash. He missed all his friends. This was something he hadn¡¯t let himself feel in a long while. But ever since he found Ms. Tara, it was like the floodgates of his emotions rushed to the forefront of his mind, ready to burst through his mental walls.


    ¡°All this talk about death is making me homesick, Achilles. Time to get back to the fight,¡± Jerome said, pushing down his emotions. He stood up and began walking back toward the barrier.


    ~~~


    Muna


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    In all her years, Muna had never clashed with a creature that frustrated her this much. The golem was unkillable. It kept reforming itself anytime she destroyed it. Worst of all, its body was getting hotter and hotter, the red color of its visage changing to white. It was harder to stay within the confines of this barrier. For some reason, she couldn¡¯t leave; she couldn¡¯t bend space to create a door that would lead elsewhere ¡ª like space had been locked down by an outside force. Muna panicked for the first time since the fight began.


    Without being able to leave the confines of this barrier she would be roasted alive ¡ª or die of asphyxiation. She ¡ª  the oldest and most powerful succubus in Terra Praeta ¡ª would die by the workings of a human. That set her blood on fire, burning the fear out of her psyche. Her rage was kindled and she bashed the barrier time and time again, wanting to destroy it. Though, she knew deep down that time wasn¡¯t on her side.


    ¡°You can¡¯t destroy it,¡± the human said. He was a youngling. Probably just a few years past his majority. From his voice, she could tell. ¡°This right here¡­¡± he gestured with his hands in half circles, ¡°...is what I call ¡®to catch a fish¡¯.¡± His helm retracted into his suit of armor and he grinned sardonically.


    ¡°You must be one lucky succubus to still be alive,¡± he said, skirting the barrier.


    ¡°And you are one lucky human¡ª¡± she stopped. Does he know?


    ¡°What?¡± he said with a tilt of his head. ¡°Because you can¡¯t wield essence?¡± he smirked.


    Muna¡¯s anger spiked but she held it in. That incompetent little swine! What else did she reveal to the human? She couldn¡¯t believe Csala let that slip. It wasn¡¯t a problem, not if the succubus was in control and had the human enraptured and trapped, but this?! This was a disaster for their kind! Odin only knows how many other humans he had told!


    ¡°And what else do you know about my kind¡­human?¡± she said, her voice laced with condescension and a promise of wrath.


    Muna began gathering her psychic energy for another attack ¡ª one more powerful than anything she had done. She had never been a firm believer of the prophecy: ¡®Illyrah¡¯s chosen would come from beyond the veil and save Terra Praeta from extinction¡¯. It was a joke to her; a tale that was unable to be passed down into the present. Her great-grandmother, Tialana had made sure of it. But now¡­now it seems it may just be true.


    If it wasn¡¯t for Illyrah and his stupid war, Tialana would still be awake today. She would have united the succubi and made them a force to reckon with. These humans would be unable to send their pests to Terra Praeta to pilfer and feed off of her resources.


    She admitted she had underestimated this human. And that had put her into this mess. Was she losing her edge? Fine. Perhaps it was her destiny to stop it all along. Now that it had got to this, she would risk it all. If it means getting rid of this damn pest.


    The human took a step back as fear entered his eyes. Interesting. Did he sense what I was about to do? No. His psychic energy shouldn¡¯t be evolved enough to sense mine. He must have seen something. Is it the fierce look in my eyes? Is it the fact that space around me is warped to the extent he can feel the volatility from where he¡¯s standing?


    Her hair stood up as though unaffected by gravity, waving slowly in the air. Rocks floated upwards untethered by gravity. The golem stood feet away from her, frozen by her power once more.


    Muna drew in what little breathable air remained and screamed.


    ~~~


    ¡°¡®To catch a fish?¡¯ Really, Xerae?¡±


    What..? It¡¯s poetic¡­err¡­ish?


    Jerome turned his attention back to his adversary.


    ¡°Careful, Xerae,¡± Achilles cautioned. He could sense the succubus gathering her psychic energy and spinning it around herself in a strange pattern. He projected what he sensed to Jerome, whose mind interpreted the view in colors.


    It was mesmerizing. Jerome made sure to memorize the pattern even as he backed away from the barrier. It would be a shame to lose such a powerful being. That¡¯s if the barrier would hold. ¡°The barrier would hold, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it would, Xerae. And it surely wouldn¡¯t be a shame. I can teach you a lot more than she could.¡±


    ¡°Sure you can,¡± Jerome quipped.


    Achilles snorted. ¡°At least she doesn¡¯t have curves and a beautiful face. Or what excuses do you want to come up with this time around?¡±


    The succubus screamed. It was loud and its vibration threatened to destroy the barrier.


    Jerome sensed wave after wave of powerful psychic energy assault the barrier. The scripts lit up brighter than ever before, framing the ground in a wide golden circle of light, and threatening to fall apart. The earth began to vibrate violently, threatening to open up and swallow the forest.


    Jerome waited, dreading the outcome of this last move by the succubus. He had seen the resolve in her eyes and it bordered on madness. She was angry about something that had probably happened in the past. Maybe Illyrah? He fought to stop the Fae from destroying all of Terra Praeta. Perhaps that¡¯s what she was angry about. What he represented: An echo of the powers of the fae.


    ¡°She had issues,¡± Achilles butted in on Jerome¡¯s thoughts.


    ¡°Yeah, well¡­she talked about Tialana. Wasn¡¯t that the person Csala said was afflicted?¡± he asked, remembering Csala¡¯s words from the night before. ¡°May Tialana¡¯s affliction pass you by this eve,¡± she had said. ¡°Tialana must have been a person of great influence among the succubi. Perhaps her ¡®affliction¡¯ was caused by Illyrrah?¡± It should have been a statement, but it sounded like a question.


    Achilles gave the mental equivalent of a shrug. ¡°And this one happened to be descended from her,¡± he added.


    Ah! Makes sense, he thought. They fell into silence as they waited.


    Jerome felt it the moment the avatar of the Dragon¡¯s Wrath crumbled, its essence bleeding away from it and pouring into the succubus ¡ª scorching white-hot fire essence that was as hot as a supernova. She must be enduring great torment because she started wailing the next moment. This was the moment he had been waiting for. He had marked her when she pinned him to the ground and grabbed her leg. Because succubi couldn¡¯t wield essence, they would be overloaded if a large amount of essence was poured into them. What would happen next, then?


    ¡°She would pop¡­like a watermelon,¡± Achilles said. The humor in his voice didn¡¯t go unnoticed.


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so.¡±


    If not, all that they had done here would be for naught. He had no other card to play and ¡ª he tapped into his connection with the Hezvar ¡ª Achilles was also out of options. This opponent wasn¡¯t like the Argonaut. The Argonaut was happy to let him leave and tore up a hole in the fabric of the universe to get to Vorthe. This one would chase him to the ends of Terra Praeta.


    ¡°Terra Praeta has no end, Xerae. Sheesh, you humans and your impractical idioms.¡±


    ¡°I think I can find one or two in Fae history,¡± Jerome rebutted. That shut the AI up for a while.


    They concentrated again on the rising levels of energy inside the barrier. It was getting truly dangerous, even for him on the outside. To be safe, Jerome moved a few hundred feet away from the barrier and rested on the branch of a tree, high up in the air.


    The vibrancy of the forest had made him forget it was still night. Every leaf, flower, and tree was given off light so beautiful that you could lose yourself in the myriads of colors. He cast his senses around and he could sense the plea from the forest to stop the destruction. Now that he observed, the trees were leaning away from the barrier. As if afraid of being corrupted.


    I guess the barrier, and what it does could be seen as a corruption of nature, Jerome thought. He wanted it to also stop. But there was no going back now. There was no going forward until the ancient succubus had been dealt with. He felt horrible for the destruction but sent a silent apology to the forest through his connection with nature and thought about how he could help the forest to grow again. His earth mantra could do it ¡ª maybe.


    Jerome set his gaze on the barrier in the distance once again. Now the domed barrier could be seen, blazing with white light. It lit up the forest in the distance as its top pulsed above the trees. The pulsing light grew denser and with every pulse, essence was drawn from the soil and the trees of the forest. The vibration of the ground intensified tenfold, causing Jerome to feel that he had done irreparable damage to the forest.


    With a thought, he commanded his binding to burrow deeper into the earth. If it got destroyed by the supercharged heat, he could make another. But the succubus would escape because the barrier would be destroyed.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked, his voice filled with worry.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry too much, Xerae. The two energies would cancel each other out.¡±


    Two energies? Cancel each other out? All he could sense was the incoming explosion that was sure to happen. Whatever was happening in there was probably happening on an atomic level that he couldn¡¯t quite grasp. Not yet.


    ¡°Explain.¡±


    ¡°Simply put, the succubus¡¯ psychic energy is feeding the fire essence around her ¡ª the more she pushes it away from herself in the attempt to protect herself, the hotter the essence burns in that confined space. It could be said to be negative energy.


    ¡°The barrier, however, is positive energy, and with the help of the binding, it is trying to cancel out the negative energy. The white-hot energy we see now is a result of the energy inside the barrier heating up to the extreme on a quantum level, and trying to inflate itself. Both energies are colliding, and the barrier is compressing itself causing the ongoing reaction to give off more heat in the process.¡±


    The binding is that powerful?


    ¡°Well, yes. But it¡¯s still just a simple binding, Xerae¡­ basic.¡±


    True to Achilles¡¯ words, Jerome could feel the heat from where he stood about 300 hundred feet away. The trees close to the barrier had already caught fire, and a forest fire would be inevitable. But there was more. ¡°Why is it pulling essence from the forest?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the work of the binding trying to contain the explosion. Remember you empowered it with runes and not scripts. There¡¯s nowhere else to get power from, so it takes it from its vicinity.¡±


    So if I had made the binding using scripts, it would have fallen apart by now.


    ¡°It would have fallen apart the moment the succubus crashed into the barrier, Xerae. The probability of this binding surviving is already zero. So¡­¡± Achilles gave him a mental shrug. ¡°...basic.¡±


    Jerome frowned but kept silent. He was still super proud of his binding and wouldn¡¯t like to lose it. It didn¡¯t matter what Achilles said, to him it was the best binding ever. ¡°It¡¯s holding back a freaking ancient succubus for God¡¯s sake!¡±


    ¡°Any moment now, Xerae.¡± Achilles ignored him with another mental shrug.


    The shaking of the ground increased again until it felt like the soil beneath him was humming. It began resonating with the pulsing energy from the barrier. The tree he was standing on cracked. Fissures formed in the soil. Other trees around, cracked as well and the ground caved in.


    Jerome quickly jumped off and flew off in the opposite direction of the barrier. He flew fast and covered a great distance in a single heartbeat. The light from the barrier increased and blinded him all of a sudden. He had to place an arm in front of his eyes to block out the blinding light.

 112. What Little We Know Of Her

    Jerome didn¡¯t want to hide inside the void space. He wanted to see how this would end. Deep down he was excited to see the big explosion. The rush he felt from such danger was exhilarating. The drumming of his heartbeat rose, almost deafening in his ears. He felt a residual strange energy wash over him for a second. His hackles rose and goosebumps formed on his skin.


    The light dimmed as if it shrunk in less than a second, and there was deathly silence a few seconds before the big boom. The energy from the blast leveled the forest around him, throwing him farther away from the site of the explosion, and scrambling his hearing. Jerome looked up in the direction of the barrier. A mushroom cloud rose into the sky from the explosion, lighting up the world with different strange energies.


    He whistled, but with the ringing in his ears, he didn¡¯t hear his own voice. Achilles chuckled, mocking him.


    ¡°That was actually awesome.¡± Jerome ignored him. He still couldn¡¯t hear himself speak.


    The light from the explosion died and he flew towards the site.


    ¡°You should probably let the young succubus out now, Xerae. She might think you¡¯re dead.¡±


    Jerome pushed essence to his ears before exercising his psychic energy and Csala appeared before him. He reached out to catch her before she fell about a thousand feet from the sky, and spread her brains all over the ground.


    ¡°You¡¯re alive?¡± Csala asked the moment she appeared. He realized a moment later that his hearing had returned.


    ¡°Yes, I am. And your pursuer is dead. You can thank me now,¡± he said with a triumphant grin. It was no small feat to defeat a being as powerful as a Sage. It inflated his ego a bit, just a bit, and he felt like tooting his own horn.


    Yeah. He had defeated the proverbial dragon; he had conquered the mighty Kraken! The sea had parted before him and he had led his own across in triumph. Where are the skalds and scribes? Where are the bards to come to sing of my epics, so my name can pass into the annals of Vorthe?


    Achilles snorted in mirth.


    I needed that boost. He shrugged. However, it would be nice to get it from someone that wasn¡¯t himself. But the person he wanted it from would sooner eat shit than say a word of acknowledgment to him. In fact, she was glaring at him right now.


    ¡°And why did you have to trap me inside that place... Again?¡± Csala snapped at him with a glare that could burn the sun. That snarky side of her rose to the surface with no hesitation.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Here we go again. It¡¯s not the same place.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care if it¡¯s the same place or not! You locked me in there! If anything, you should be apologizing to me!¡±


    ¡°Do you want me to drop you right here?¡± Jerome raised an eyebrow as he glared at her. They were at least still at least a thousand feet above ground. ¡°...I would.¡± That shut her up for good. But she glared back at him.


    ¡°Where is her body then? Show me.¡±


    ¡°Here lies your pursuer, the old crone,¡± he said with a wide hand gesture.


    The ground was beyond repair, burning and expelling toxic gasses into the air. Lava covered the entire field, flowing like the waters of a lake. At least that was how it looked from above. Jerome wanted to descend to the ground to try and search for her remains, but the temperature of the area the barrier had covered was still as hot as the sun. There would be no going down there for at least a few hours. Even for him, such heat was life-threatening.


    He thought back to the fight and could only appreciate how fortunate he had been to only take one hit from the old crone. He had still won though, so¡­ But not minding the fact that the old hag couldn¡¯t wield essence. If she was a Sage for real, Jerome knew he would have been long-dead already.


    With an instant pulse of his psychic energy, he covered the whole site of the destruction but found nothing. ¡°Her remains must have been destroyed,¡± Jerome said. His heart ached for his binding though.


    Csala sighed in relief. ¡°She will not be missed,¡± she said.


    ¡°Hmm. Did you know that she was Tialana¡¯s great-granddaughter?¡±


    Csala¡¯s head snapped, coming face to face with him. ¡°What did you say?¡±


    She was so close, he felt like kissing her. Those plump, pouty-looking red lips of hers weren¡¯t also helping matters.


    ¡°Calm down, calm down. I¡¯ll tell you,¡± Jerome said, restraining himself. ¡°We need to find somewhere to rest.¡± He looked around and shot forward, heading for a downed large tree. The whole forest was a flattened mess. ¡°And I need to prepare to heal the forest.¡± He sighed. ¡°If I can,¡± he muttered.


    They settled a few miles away from the scorched scene of the battle site. After building a fire, they settled down for the night. The night was colder the closer they got to the Northern Hemisphere, so the fire this night was bigger than that of the previous night. Jerome also had to create a barrier around their campsite to keep predators out. That meant creating another binding.


    No pressure.


    It was going to be a long journey tomorrow. Jerome sighed as he thought about all the essence he had to gather again tomorrow. He had had to push himself hard to stay on course. Using Godspeed was like sprinting in a marathon, and you¡¯ve got to maintain your speed.


    ¡°Tell me about Tialana,¡± he asked after he had created the barrier.


    Csala remained quiet for a while gathering her thoughts. Jerome waited patiently. This might be a touchy subject ¡ª or not. He couldn¡¯t tell. He knew Tialana must be a historical figure of mythical proportions among her people. And from their interaction so far, Csala was not one to talk about her people.


    ¡°She was considered the savior of our kind. The most powerful succubus to walk the dark earth of Terra Praeta. She helped many of our kind escape The Rumbling¡ª¡±


    ¡°The Rumbling?¡± He remembered the old crone say something like that.


    ¡°Ask your spirit to tell you about that,¡± she responded curtly but still went on to explain. ¡°Apparently, two powerful figures were fighting and the fate of the world was hanging in the balance. Tialana gathered the succubi under her wing and fled south. She used her powerful psychic energy to pave the way for the rest of them while protecting her daughter¡­¡±


    Jerome waited for her to continue. He could see the little frown of concentration on her face. She had gotten lost in thought. As though she was still trying to get her thoughts together, or pick what truths to tell.


    ¡°She¡¯s probably thinking about Tialana¡¯s daughter,¡± Achilles said in his mind.


    Is that because she stopped talking after mentioning that Tialana was protecting her child?


    ¡°That, and succubi don¡¯t just have babies. It means giving up their freedom. Remember, succubi are taught never to trust men and never to give themselves to men.¡±


    Jerome nodded lightly. It meant they would be ¡®owned¡¯ by said men. Jerome sighed. Then why would Tialana have a child? Was she forced? Who was powerful enough to force her? Or tempt her? The workings of Mother Nature were beyond him. The succubi should have had thousands of years to evolve their species but somehow, they remained with this one flaw. No one wanted to become a slave¡­and Achilles wasn¡¯t answering his question. Achilles?


    ¡°I have no answers to those questions, Xerae, as I did not exist at that time.¡±


    I guess you aren¡¯t all that then, Jerome thought, giving Achilles the mental equivalent of a smirk. The AI snorted, clearly insulted but said nothing.


    ¡°Well, there is artificial insemination,¡± Achilles said.


    But did they have that at that time?


    Achilles had no rebuttal so Jerome focused his attention back on Csala. It was best not to spite the AI too much. Else his suit malfunctioned or something. Jerome cringed slightly at that.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± Csala continued, coming out of her reverie, ¡°there were over 30,000 succubi that migrated on that day. My mother only told me that bit. And that Tialana slept forever afterward. Maybe because she was too weak from using too much psychic energy, no one remembers.¡±


    Jerome nodded absently as he digested all that she said. ¡°30,000 people, that¡¯s a lot! It must have been very tough. I can only travel so fast because of essence. To depend only on psychic energy to travel such a distance ¡ª and I bet she must have led your ancestors over hundreds of thousands of miles of land from the northern hemisphere while protecting them from the battle.¡±


    ~~~


    Csala


    Csala watched Jerome, trying to decipher whether his concern was genuine or a mask. He was unlike any other male she had ever met, granted she had never taken time to know any of them, only to consume their vitality. What they all had in common was that they wanted to ravage her, and make her theirs. Jerome on the other hand had restrained himself, even when she was at his mercy ¡ª well, she still is at his mercy.


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    His interest in the history of her people was not something she expected and as such she didn¡¯t know how to deal with it. She had thought she¡¯d just tell him a little so she could get Muna¡¯s words out of him. She never expected him to look so concerned and fascinated with her people¡¯s history though. It may be that he just wanted to get close to her though. Csala frowned and tightened the guard around her heart.


    ¡°And what did Muna say?¡±


    ¡°You said Tialana was protecting her daughter while fleeing  with the 30,000 succubi, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Well, Tialana¡¯s daughter was the old crone¡¯s grandmother.¡±


    Csala took her time to digest this. The human had no reason to lie so her first thoughts weren¡¯t to try and prove if the information was correct or not.


    ¡°Which begs the question,¡± he continued. ¡°How old was the old hag? And how the hell was she able to survive for over a hundred thousand years?¡±


    Csala gave Jerome a sideways glance. How in Odin¡¯s great hall did he know that? But of course, he would. He had learned how to speak faerie in five moons, why would he not have learned about something so significant in Terra Praeta¡¯s history? She felt he was testing the waters. Testing how much she was willing to reveal. She still hadn¡¯t truly come to terms with what Muna did to survive for so long on her own. To some extent, she wanted to find the old succubus¡¯ corpse and then hit it to shit until it rose again so she could get the answers to questions she hadn¡¯t made up her mind to ask or didn¡¯t know how to ask.


    She was definitely not going to be telling him about how Muna stole other succubi¡¯s bodies over the millennia. That was just¡­her gut tightened. She didn¡¯t know what to think about it. If she ever lived to be that powerful would she have the stomach to do such a thing?


    ¡°...Csala?¡± Jerome called, bringing her out of her rumination. ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    She relaxed her shoulders and breathed out a long sigh. ¡°I don¡¯t know how she was able to do such a thing and I¡¯d like to find out for myself. Too bad you killed her before I could find out anything.¡±


    ¡°Well, should I have left her alive then?¡±


    ¡°Hm-hm.¡±


    ¡°Riiiiight,¡± Jerome said, dragging the word out playfully. The sarcasm wasn¡¯t lost in his tone. ¡°When the next succubus comes along, I¡¯ll leave her to you to deal with.¡±


    Csala chucked a pebble at him, chuckling. The pebble didn¡¯t meet its target and stopped mid-air, Jerome having halted it with his psychic energy. His actions made them remember his training and they both looked up with a start.


    Chuckling, Jerome said, ¡°I guess it¡¯s time for training then.¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is. And you may call me Yana while I teach you,¡± Csala said with an air of authority. Or at least that was the atmosphere she wanted to command. The human didn¡¯t take the cue though.


    ¡°Yana?¡± he snorted. ¡°You¡¯d have to earn that.¡±


    ¡°It is tradition to call one whose tutelage you are under mistress in Terra Praeta, you know?¡± she said with a raised eyebrow, a mocking glare gracing her stunning face.


    ~~~


    ¡°Bite me then,¡± Jerome rebutted with a chuckle. ¡°I¡¯ve taught you some things too. I didn¡¯t ask to be called Ikana, did I?¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t make me wrong,¡± Csala bristled. ¡°And I¡¯m not going to call you ¡®master¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Touch¨¦,¡± Jerome said with a pointed look.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Csala tilted her head at him, looking puzzled. ¡°Too¡­ch¨¦?¡± She tested the word on her tongue.


    Jerome smiled at her. She looked so cute sitting there in layers upon layers of red fur with her arms folded, and a puzzled expression on her face. Everything she did always seemed so graceful. When he first met Csala, she moved with a lot of grace, just as she was sitting across from him right now with that otherworldliness ¡ª and magnetism. With so little effort, she mesmerized him. The ancient succubus he killed was leagues above Csala in that regard. He never saw her move. She was just there when he looked and away when he blinked.


    ¡°You have many foreign words in your vocabulary that I never read¡­err¡­heard from other humans. What does that mean?¡±


    Jerome smirked at her. ¡°It¡¯s used to point out a cunning observation made at one¡¯s expense.¡±


    Csala blushed, her face just a few shades lighter than her hair.


    ¡°And did you say ¡®read¡¯? As in, you can read human minds?¡±


    ¡°You caught that didn¡¯t you,¡± she muttered, her blush deepening some more.


    How red could she get? Jerome wondered. He felt like teasing her some more but decided against it. She might just snap again.


    ¡°Can you read my mind?¡± Jerome asked. If the Sovereign found it impossible to read him passively, does that mean a succubus would too? Or were succubi different from humans and could just read anyone they wanted to? That would probably be a fair trade for their lack of ability to wield essence. Jerome made sure to think about the mind stone, visualizing it in his mind. He felt that unique sensation deep in his mind, as if another consciousness was waking up.


    Csala observed him for a while, her gaze never leaving his. ¡°Let¡¯s get back to your training, itmayeela.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. She had called him ¡®student¡¯ to regain control of their little banter and she couldn¡¯t read his mind. She was opening up to him. Which he guessed was a good thing.


    ¡°And then you¡¯d cook me venison again.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that, forcing himself not to smile. He could almost see her mouth watering at the thought of venison.


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked innocently. ¡°I saw a frozen haunch in that space, Autumn, or whatever you called it. It was floating inside a frozen¡­¡± She gestured with her hands and fingers to try to describe what it was she saw.


    ¡°Preservation ward,¡± Jerome completed for her. ¡°Or a scripted preservation barrier.¡±


    Csala shrugged, saying, ¡°Big words for something so simple.¡± And shooed him to concentrate on his practice.


    Jerome closed his eyes and stimulated his psychic energy, pouring it like invisible wine down his throat. He stirred it in his throat for a while, hoping to glimpse something he had missed before. Nothing. Might as well just practice until I get it.


    ¡°Interesting, Xerae,¡± Achilles said in his mind.


    What?


    ¡°You did it again. For a few seconds, I couldn¡¯t hear your thoughts.¡±


    Jerome grinned wickedly but didn¡¯t answer. He went back to meditating and whispering, practicing how to transmit his voice, over to Csala.


    Time passed.


    He heard Csala¡¯s breath shiver lightly. Jerome opened his eyes to see the domed shield almost covered in snow. How long had he been meditating? It felt like only a few minutes had passed. The shield kept the cold wind out by heating the air inside the dome, but the snow was going to be a problem. It could dampen the heat the shield generated, causing the inside of it to grow cold.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take care of it,¡± he said and went to tweak the barrier a little.


    The night went on silently. They focused on his training, with Jerome asking questions from time to time and Csala doing her best to answer with the little knowledge she had. They continued till the first rays of the sun lit up the sky, oblivious to the passage of time.


    Jerome looked up at the sky. He wondered if the heat from the battle scene would have cooled. Achilles teleported him there instantly. The ground had cooled. But more than that, there was something beautiful waiting for him. The soil had turned to glass. Cracked in some places and without form in others, it still gave the surroundings an air of mysticism. He reached down to touch the glass and pulled a small shard up with him. It was thick and heavy, reflecting his image at him.


    ¡°Your hair has grown too long, Xerae,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°True, but I need to get to the northern hemisphere. How are they doing?¡±


    ¡°Still safe, but they¡¯ve lost another teammate. Mostly due to carelessness.¡±


    Jerome sighed. There were still two more days before the pack of unbound caught up with the Itakars. Jerome had made sure Achilles kept an eye on them before he left Sanctum. It was time to focus on the journey now and make sure his new friends didn¡¯t become fodder for hybrid magical beasts. Was that the best description there was for them?


    ¡°In a way, Xerae. But no. They¡¯re ¡®evolved¡¯ magical beasts ¡ª not moon howlers; an ancient species that has lost its pure form. Their evolution over hundreds of thousands of years has made them more intelligent and cunning hunters. Their bodies also evolved so they could shift to run like moon howlers, or stand and walk like bipedal beings. They are bigger, stronger, and smarter than the average moon howler. And are capable of commanding packs of moon howlers.¡±


    Reminds me of chimps, Jerome thought. They would be really tough to deal with then.


    ¡°You know, Xerae. I could just transport you and Csala there right now. Instead of spending essence to get there. This way you conserve energy and are ready for the fight, whenever it begins.¡±


    Godspeed was unlike any other spell he had ever used. Even the Dragon¡¯s Wrath, as powerful as it was, didn¡¯t exhaust him. It was risky to use it again now that he knew the drawbacks and possible dangers.


    No, Achilles. I¡¯ll get us there myself. If he couldn¡¯t do just this himself, then he wouldn¡¯t be able to persevere in troubled times. He had to do it himself. Without help from Achilles.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be proof of my struggles and growth,¡± he said.


    Jerome took in a deep breath of fresh air. He could almost hear the trees singing in appreciation of Mother Nature. He wanted to help regrow the portion of the forest he had a hand in destroying but it seemed all was well. The soil was nourishing itself beneath the glass field. Seeds were germinating deep inside the soil and soon nature would invade the glass little by little until the forest became whole again. There was nothing he needed to do here.


    He flew back to their campsite, wrapped his hands around Csala, and shot into the sky, flying northward, even as she ranted about how he just disappeared into thin air.


    ~~~


    Deep down inside the earth, where no eyes would think to look. Where the pressure was too great for most living things to survive. A female body rose from the mud with limbs cracking as it crawled out of the dark earth.


    ¡°By the gods!¡± the female roared and her mud-covered frame was immediately cleansed. The mud covering her was flung away, leaving smooth, young skin in its place.


    She had just been bested by a Sprout. A human who shouldn¡¯t be as powerful as her little finger. She growled in anger. This body she took was meant to be a last resort. Csala¡¯s body was what she desired. She was younger and her vitality would help her last longer than this body she took. It would have given her millenia so she could figure out how to ascend.


    Time was against her. Her new body was already beginning to decay. It may not show outwardly, but she could feel it. And the more she pushed herself, the faster it decayed. She wouldn¡¯t have lost a fight if her previous body hadn¡¯t decayed to the extent that it would fail to function if she pushed too hard.


    She had to find Csala, and fast. Muna disappeared on the spot and reappeared on the surface, the scent of nature assaulted her sense of smell as she stood there naked but unashamed. Lush green trees filled her vision. ¡°Over twenty thousand miles,¡± she muttered to herself, recognizing where she was. If it wasn¡¯t for her very powerful spirit, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to cover that distance without a body. Her previous body had disintegrated in the blast when she fought with the human child.


    ¡°When I get a hold of you brat,¡± she clenched her fists and gnashed her teeth in anger. The trees around her seemed to lean away as if dreading her wrath. ¡°Odin would not be able to save you!¡±


    She disappeared on the spot.

 113. Misplaced Priorities

    The Aviary. Farryn. Vorthe


    Rihal


    With how prepared he came to spy on the tamers, he never thought he would stay this long. Even then, when he looked back to see if he achieved his goal, he could only shake his head ¡ª mentally. The tamers were, for some reason, being tight-lipped about what was going on in Terra Praeta. He¡¯d seen dragon after dragon appear in the air above the forest, next to the Yigg. The tamers were like a well-oiled machine, putting the dragons to sleep within breaths and dragging them off to bond them.


    There was much discussion among them ¡ª mundane discussion. Or at least, mundane to him. They never talked about Terra Praeta though. Was that a rule of some kind he didn¡¯t know of?


    Rihal had begun questioning why he was doing this at all in the first place. Was finding out why Jerome had prior knowledge before birth that important? Even when Ash went to Pilgrims¡¯ Keep, he hadn¡¯t been interested in finding out how she was doing. Rihal knew he¡¯d be beating himself up about it for a while.


    But then, something big happened in Farryn that killed his drive to research Jerome¡¯s prior knowledge. The Argonaut had appeared in Farryn!


    Right now he was in the process of separating himself from the great tree, the Yigg. his master would probably be looking for him. Damn, he was in a lot of trouble. He knew it.


    Soon Jerome would be back and focus would shift to the fated Dark One. He was supposed to be searching for a way for him to retain his faculties after taking on the Darkness in the Northern mountain range.


    Talk about misplaced priorities.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta


    ¡°Still not done?¡± Jerome called from outside the cavern he had made on the side of a snow-covered hill. A storm had started a few minutes into their journey. Little did he know that storms in Terra Praeta were unlike anything he had ever witnessed.


    It was a Superstorm! A cyclone started to spiral inwards in the troposphere. The wind had picked up and after a while, he couldn¡¯t see clearly as he flew. They were lucky enough to have dropped down to find shelter when a hailstorm began.


    ¡°No! Can¡¯t a succubus bathe in peace,¡± Csala shot at him.


    Jerome ignored her, looking up at the raging storm in the sky as he waited for Csala to finish bathing inside the cavern. ¡°It should be rotating at perhaps forty, forty-five miles per hour?¡±


    ¡°Forty-eight, Xerae. Did you not have storms like this in your world, both worlds?¡±


    Jerome shook his head. ¡°The first? No. The current? Probably. Maybe that¡¯s why sacred artists track storms to absorb the energy from them. This is not a storm, it¡¯s a world-changing disaster.¡±


    Lightning bolts kept striking the ground from time to time, destroying trees in the distance and transforming the land. Boulders as large as buildings were being flung here and there, carried high in the sky by the wind. If it wasn¡¯t for the protective barrier he put around the hill, the destruction happening all around him would be happening where he was too.


    ¡°Would you like to learn how to absorb energy from the storm, Xerae?¡±


    Maybe some other time. With a storm that¡¯s not¡­ he gestured with his finger to encompass the storm.


    Achilles chuckled. But then Jerome heard something. It sounded like¡­ a voice?


    ¡°Did you hear that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. There are people out there. And they seem to be in trouble.¡±


    Jerome stood up. ¡°Csala, I need to check something out!¡± He heard the sound of sloshing water from inside the cavern. His mind quickly provided him with images of her tantalizing body as she stood up from the makeshift tub he had made her, water dripping from those marvelously gigantic¡ª ¡°I would be back soon!¡±


    He shot out of the protective barrier with Achilles laughing at him in the back of his mind. The storm immediately pulled him in the direction of its rotation.


    Counterclockwise rotation, he noticed. Which means we¡¯re getting farther North and gaining on my friends. The knowledge brought him some measure of relief. He let the storm pull him towards its apex as he knew it was going to be futile to struggle. A gigantic block of ice hit him and shattered on impact. Or he probably was the one to hit it. Since he had to have been moving faster than it was.


    ¡°Aaaah!¡± the voice from before screamed again. It was closer now. Clearer too. A female¡¯s voice. He was glad he could hear it over the raging storm.


    Jerome pushed himself faster and flew around another giant block of ice. The trunk of a tree smacked him in the face and cracked on impact.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± he complained, but he didn¡¯t feel an ounce of pain. Only frustration at not being able to open his eyes without squinting. The raging wind was too much and limited his sight.


    Jerome scanned around, noticing the amount of debris being pulled along by the cyclone. A stag with pretty big horns bellowed behind him as it was pulled by the current of the storm. Jerome turned around to catch it since it would be heading towards him. The wind whipped at his face and the lightning in the storm was charging up the atmosphere so much that charged remnants of the energy bounced around from object to object. He quickly shot forward and caught a stray bolt of lightning that would have disintegrated the stag. He chucked the animal into his void space, a feast for later.


    Wrapped around his hand was a bolt of lightning. Jerome turned his hand every which way, admiring it. His psychic energy kept it wrapped there. But it was losing its energy to the atmosphere. If he did nothing it would dissipate completely. He cycled, siphoning the energy from it.


    His instincts alerted him to danger the next moment. He quickly teleported away and a bladed arm sliced through where he had been. Jerome extended his whip without looking and whipped the creature. It roared ¡ª a sound between a roar and a screech, vibrating the air with the sound ¡ª as the whip hit its chitinous carapace with a blue flash of light.


    What kind of unholy beast is this? He stared at it in wonder. Something cracked against his skull and shattered. The cyclone wasn¡¯t slowing down at all.


    The creature looked like an arachnid. Eight powerful, bladed legs carried its weight and ended in sharp claws. But it had two tiny beady black eyes and a plethora of fangs dripping with saliva in an open maw. And arachnids didn¡¯t have open maws.


    This was a chimera.


    The creature dashed at him, a blur of bladed limbs. It hopped from a boulder to blocks of ice to get to him. Jerome activated his coat¡¯s barrier and dived head-first toward the incoming disaster. With a few swings and spins of his spear, he amputated four of its legs.


    ¡°Watch out for the tail, Xerae.¡±


    I remember. Chimera¡¯s had powerful tails. He would know ¡ª he had received a powerful blow from the one that swallowed Ms. Tara. And just as predicted, the tail came from behind the chimera like a blur. Jerome stepped aside and stabbed the offending appendage into a rock which knocked both of them away from each other.


    But the chimera was stuck now, screeching and roaring at him as the floating rock spun slowly around. The otherworldly creature tried without success to pull its tail out of the rock but the spear didn¡¯t budge. Jerome lit a blue flame in his palm, ready to fry the chimera alive. But the rock face holding the creature spun away, blocking his aim at his target. He remained hovering in the air as the cyclone pulled him and the rock along. The moment the rock face spun to face him, he shot a lance of blue flame at his target.


    But the chimera wasn¡¯t there anymore. Only a dangling half tail.


    Huh. I gotta say I¡¯m impressed.


    The chimera bulldozed into him from his right side. If he was on solid ground he could match it with his augmented body. But in the air, he was flung away like a chunk of debris. The chimera followed after him, trapping him to another boulder and slicing at him with its remaining four limbs. It was quick and brutal. But it stopped when it noticed there were no cuts or blood spilled to show for its efforts.


    ¡°You might as well give up,¡± Jerome said calmly from underneath the monster. Not that it could have heard him over the din of the storm.


    It roared in his face. A long sustained vibration of sound as if to communicate its frustration.


    ¡°Urgh. you should get a toothbrush,¡± Jerome said, wiping off the sticky, smelly spit that poured out of its mouth from himself.


    Something hit the chimera, distracting it for a second. Jerome heard the grunt of women struggling to hurl boulders at the chimera. It stamped around above him, claws digging into the rock. The boulders were quite large and shattered on impact. But they did nothing but irritate it. Jerome stabbed its belly with Suzie and dragged his blade to its back. This chimera had no extended abdomen like the previous one he fought, which made it look weirdly otherworldly. But he noticed something ¡ª some things ¡ª stuck to the underside of the remaining half of its tail: Eggs. Jerome lit it on fire in an instant.


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    I thought chimeras couldn¡¯t reproduce, he said to Achilles.


    ¡°They are evolving, Xerae. This one surely reproduced asexually.¡±


    You¡¯re saying these things can now clone themselves? That¡¯s fucked up!


    Heat seared its chitinous carapace and it turned around to face Jerome, noticing its burning eggs. It didn¡¯t care for its own burning body, only its eggs that had just been destroyed. Chimeras had a very high threshold for pain. It tackled Jerome as it did before but he held his ground, holding back the giant arachnid like it was nothing.


    The chimera roared again, long and hard, the sound vibrating his eardrums. Thankfully, he was sturdier than he used to be.


    ¡°Don¡¯t kill it, Xerae. I need to study it.¡±


    Jerome bled Suzie out of his skin and it invaded the creature, tearing its limbs away from its body, and splattering gore all over him.


    ¡°Fucking chimera.¡±


    ¡°Good job, Xerae.¡± Achilles teleported the limbless creature away.


    Jerome looked around, noticing two people trying to hold on for dear life inside the storm. He reached out to them and pulled them to him with his psychic energy, against the storm. Studying them he didn¡¯t know what to call them. And they just cowered before him, scared he might turn on them.


    Their most prominent features were the short stubby horns growing out of the side of their heads, like bovines. And their eyes ¡ª big brown eyes and bigger irises than he was used to. Their irises covered most of the white sclera of their eyes. Jerome¡¯s gaze moved south of their bodies and he marveled at the size of the tits on them. What was it with Terra Praeta and ¡®big-titted¡¯ women? Their jugs were massive! And it didn¡¯t help that they were only barely covered in strips of hide that weren¡¯t even properly tanned ¡ª same with their waist wrap.


    These women, girls really, were super curvy ¡ª they looked his age. With slim waists and wide hips that tempted him to want to stretch his neck to see what their backsides looked like. Their wide hips led to thick luscious thighs and firm legs with small bare feet. His eyes kept wandering to their hips though. He could feel blood flowing south of his brain fast, and an erection coming. Jerome shook his head and exhaled loudly to shake the feeling off.


    ¡°I won¡¯t hurt you,¡± he said after he had finished ogling them. But he was sure it would be nearly impossible for them to hear him over the raging storm. Jerome used his powerful psychic energy to push the wind roaring in his ears away from them, effectively silencing their immediate surroundings temporarily.


    They both sniffed the air in front of them as if they could smell his arousal. The expression on their faces afterward confirmed that they, in fact, could. They knew what he thought of them. Jerome blushed but cleared his throat to shake off his embarrassment.


    ¡°My name is Jerome. What¡¯s yours?¡±


    One bold one with long, unkempt black hair approached him as steadily as she could on the shaking boulder. Jerome stretched his arm out and his spear, Charybdis, flew into his open palm, startling the girls. They flinched and moved back from him. He stabbed into the boulder they were all hanging onto and willed it to the ground using his space rune. He felt the runes light up in his eyes and the next moment, they were on the ground, close to the hill he came from.


    ¡°That¡¯s better.¡± He sighed. He stopped pushing the storm away from them since the pressure down on the ground was less than it was high in the sky. He looked at the two bovine girls and smiled before jumping down from the boulder and holding out a hand to help them down. They hesitated and looked at each other. Seeing them more clearly now, he noticed the dirt and grime covering them from head to toe. But he didn¡¯t let that disturb him.


    The one that approached him before took a hesitant step toward him and offered him her hand. He grasped her hand slowly and carefully pulled her toward him, bringing her down from the boulder. Her palm was calloused ¡ª a complement to a hard life. She was very tall. As tall as he was. The second approached, seeing that he didn¡¯t mean them any harm and he helped her down too.


    How tall am I now, Achilles? He asked, marveling at their height.


    ¡°You¡¯re six feet six inches, Xerae. You used to be six-two.¡±


    Jerome nodded. These girls were just as tall as he was. That was quite the growth spurt they had. If it wasn¡¯t for Achilles improving his body, he¡¯d still be six-two. Which was very tall already.


    ¡°So, what are your names?¡± he asked as he started walking them towards the cave. They looked at him questioningly before beginning to speak to each other. Their language startled him. A series of clicks and sounds that reminded him of the sounds of the wild.


    Realization hit him then. They were like the hunter-gatherer tribes he¡¯d read about in Africa, but much less developed, seeing that they didn¡¯t even have language words. Wow! He gave them both another once over.


    The one who first approached him faced him and pointed at her bountiful chest, drawing his gaze there. ¡°Biskin,¡± she said. Then pointed to her friend, or sister, he couldn¡¯t tell. ¡°Biskin,¡± she said again. Before touching his chest. She waited patiently, looking into his eyes expectantly. She was so cute.


    Ah. They wanted him to introduce himself. ¡°Jerome,¡± he said. She smiled at him. An innocent, bright smile. ¡°But why ¡®Biskin¡¯.¡± He pointed at her, ¡°and ¡®Biskin¡¯.¡± He pointed to the other girl. He noticed she was walking a step behind him to his left side. The first girl was between him and the second, and the second was walking a step behind the first.


    ¡°For protection, Xerae. They watched you fight. They know you¡¯re right-handed. Just in case they¡¯re not out of trouble yet.¡±


    Smart. I would have never thought of something like that. He studied them again, noticing that they were not as graceful in their steps as the succubi. Their footsteps were heavier than normal. And why wouldn¡¯t it? They carried a lot of weight as it were. His eyes flicked to their breasts and asses. Jerome would have whistled in appreciation if it wouldn¡¯t have felt offensive.


    What a world! He thought, glancing at the beautiful curves of their derriere again. Their backs were arched just right to give those round jiggly fat the right push ¡ª on both ends! He adjusted his long winter coat to hide his erection.


    ¡°You¡¯re strong, Xerae. The strong need not be ¡®that¡¯ cautious. And apparently, they can ogle anyone they want, it seems.¡±


    Don¡¯t start, Achilles, Jerome said with a sigh. I¡¯m a young hot-blooded male who has never had¡­ never mind. It felt awkward to say it. Even in his head. He¡¯d lived over sixty years in a past life and he wasn¡¯t acting like it ¡ª didn¡¯t feel like it, even. He noticed the girls didn¡¯t answer him. They were looking at him, maybe wondering what to make of him and his words.


    They entered the cave to see a glaring Csala. Both Biskins drew in air sharply and shot behind Jerome in fear. Jerome raised his hands to calm them down.


    ¡°You¡¯re scaring them,¡± he said to Csala.


    ¡°You brought beastkin with you?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Ah,¡± the name clicked in his head at once. ¡®Beastkin¡¯ not ¡®biskin¡¯. They were telling him their race. ¡°They were being chased by a chimera. You know, the kind of creature I save Ms. Tara from,¡± he said, ¡°and I want them to stay here with us until the storm dies down.¡±


    ¡°I know what a chimera is, Jerome.¡± Csala looked at him as if he had different motives. He ignored her and ushered the girls into the warmth of the cave. They sat by the fire he had made previously and sighed as their bodies relaxed.


    ~~~


    Csala


    ¡°Do you have anything against them?¡± Jerome asked her as she glared at the dirt-covered beastkin. They had relaxed when they felt him defend them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± she said. ¡°But they¡¯re not so smart and are easily taken advantage of.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t agree with that but¡­ got you,¡± he said. She didn¡¯t like the tone of his voice at all. It made her feel terrible. ¡°So are they mystic creatures?¡±


    Csala scanned them for cores. Their cores didn¡¯t have the same depth as Jerome¡¯s, so he was leagues beyond them in power. ¡°No. But whenever there are beastkin in trouble, they are sure to come sniffing around. Especially with a threat like a chimera.¡± She went to the entrance to check around. ¡°And don¡¯t call them mystic creatures, it sounds demeaning. They call themselves ¡®mystic kin¡¯.¡±


    Jerome frowned, stopping what he was doing to glare at empty space. It felt like he was scolding someone. But she knew his anger wasn¡¯t directed toward her or the beastkin. She tilted her head, studying him. ¡°You¡¯re doing it again.¡±


    He blinked and faced her. ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Spacing out. We have to prepare to leave.¡± She walked back toward him and snatched the roasted slab of meat in his hand, giving it to the beastkin. They had been eyeing it with hungry eyes but he didn¡¯t notice. ¡°Mystic kin are not known for their¡­ patience. They¡¯re cold and haughty, looking down on everyone and everything, and expecting the world to roll over and serve their every whims. Sound familiar?¡±


    Jerome took out another slab of venison and began roasting it. He frowned. ¡°What¡¯s the difference between beastkins and mystic kins? And why can¡¯t they,¡± he gestured to the beastkin, ¡°speak with words.¡±


    Csala glanced their way. The beastkin in question were more focused on stuffing their faces full of meat than anything else at the moment. She sighed. ¡°Beastkin and mystic kin are both used as singular and plural names, Jerome. Mystic kin are stronger, with unique and mysterious powers. There are very few of them, I think. I¡¯ve only ever met two of them¡­ twice. They travel in pairs.


    ¡°Beastkin on the other hand are simple folk who don¡¯t even know what it means to bathe or wear footwear. I¡¯m guessing I¡¯m the first intelligent being you have met on this planet. That¡¯s because I am more intelligent, even more than you are, hmph!¡± she lifted her chin, daring him to counter her.


    He smiled and looked over at the beastkin as they ate like animals. ¡°I know you¡¯re intelligent, Csala. But I don¡¯t think they are less intelligent¡ª¡±


    ¡°Are you comparing them,¡± she interrupted, pointing at the beastkin, ¡°to me.¡± She found it absurd and laughable.


    Jerome glanced her way with a smug smile on his face. She wished she could smack it off his face and show him who¡¯s stronger. ¡°No, I¡¯m saying they aren¡¯t less intelligent because they can¡¯t speak with words,¡± he said. ¡°It just shows that they are less educated, is all. Education and intelligence aren¡¯t the same, Csala. The little time I spent interacting with them outside already let me know they are intelligent.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, the mystic kin would be here any moment now. It¡¯s best to leave before they bring trouble.¡± Then she added under her breath, ¡°I still think they are not very bright. They can¡¯t even clean themselves up.¡± But Jerome heard her, she knew.


    They both glanced at the dirty, blackened feet of the beastkin. Jerome shook his head. ¡°Let¡¯s agree to disagree. No need to misplace my priorities, though. We should leave.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± Csala said. ¡°For a moment there, I thought you were going to drop everything to take care of them.¡±


    Jerome snorted but then he startled and looked up. Csala tried to stretch her perception to scan as far as she could too but she sensed nothing. ¡°What is it?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Two¡­ ¡®Beings¡¯? Flying towards us. And fast!¡± he said.


    ¡°They found us.¡± She said, standing up. ¡°You didn¡¯t know what to make of them because they felt strange to your psychic energy, yes?¡± He nodded in thought. ¡°Try to hide and let me do the talking.¡±


    ¡°Why should I hide?¡± he asked. ¡°What if they attack? I can sense their strength and you may not be able to take them both on your own.¡±


    Csala sighed. She knew what would happen if they laid eyes on him. There was a shortage of men in Terra Praeta, even the Incubus. ¡°They would capture you so you could breed them if they saw you. They¡¯d never let you go until you drop dead from exhaustion.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mouth dropped open in shock, bringing a smug smile to her face. It felt good to be the one giving his tiny brain a shock. She was going to cherish that moment forever.

 114. The Male

    Two women dropped from the sky, hitting the snow-covered ground with the full force of their powers. They scattered snow everywhere and cracked the ground where they landed. Jerome studied them behind the simple barrier of light he had crafted. He had to give himself props for this one. He had improvised in the moment to see what he could do.


    Light gathered and bent around him to obscure his form from sight so he could move around and study the women ¡ª no girls. The best thing was, he achieved this with only his will and knowledge of how photons interact with atoms of the air ¡ª and a little help from Achilles. The downside was he had to keep circling the photons around himself.


    These new women were clean. They wore simple light brown, sleeveless shifts, made from flax and embroidered with the shapes of stars and two moons. The two moons took up the front of their shifts like they were the center of attention, with the stars in the background. They were both extremely beautiful, with skin, the color of porcelain. One had ivory horns like the two beastkin inside the caves. But hers were a lot bigger ¡ª protruding from her temples and curving upwards ¡ª like she was making a statement to the world. She was tall. As tall as he was. And had all the same super curves the beastkin had. Her shift was stretching at the seams as it tried to contain her ginormous bust and hips. And the simple clothing didn¡¯t reach down to her knees exposing parts of her thick, luscious thighs.


    The other was a fox. Mysterious looking with an otherworldly beauty. She made his eyes ache just looking at her. Her flame red hair featured two fox ears, with tufts of white hairs on the insides, at the top of her head. Her ears flicked from side to side as if listening for something. Her high cheekbones and pouty lips gave her the look of nobility, purity, and innocence at the same time. She was not tall like the bovines. Only as tall as Csala ¡ª shorter even. But she was just as curvy ¡ª busty to the extreme with wide hips.


    How tall is Csala?


    ¡°Five feet eight inches. The fox is five feet six inches.¡±


    Jerome nodded absently, studying each of them some more.


    Both women had their feet and legs wrapped in brown hide-like stockings, up to their thighs. And they wore wooden slippers of sorts. For a society that lacked resources, they were being very creative with what they had.


    The bovine moved to turn, observing her surroundings, and her voluptuous chest bounced with each movement. Jerome¡¯s pulse quickened at the sight, sending his blood down south.


    What is it with these women and curves?! He could feel another hard-on coming on.


    Achilles chortled. ¡°You heard Csala. Terra Praeta lacks males. This is Mother Nature¡¯s response to the needs of the females ¡ª make them more attractive. So attractive, you can¡¯t take your eyes off them.¡±


    ¡°Urgh,¡± he grumbled. Is that really true? The fox heard that. Even as silent as he sounded and from at least fifty yards away. She shot forward and the bovine was right behind her.


    They stopped in front of the cave as Csala blocked their path. Well, there was a barrier that would prevent them from coming in but he doubted the integrity of the barrier. He had rushed the binding powering it so¡­ yeah.


    Did you see that, Achilles? They move like Csala. They had moved with great speed from the start and stopped as if they were puppets on a string. It was almost mesmerizing to look at.


    ¡°Quite interesting, Xerae.¡±


    But is it really true what you said about the women of Terra Praeta?


    ¡°Partly, Xerae.¡±


    ¡°We seek the male,¡± the bovine said in faerie, looking down her nose at Csala like she was some pest. Her voice sounded deep yet sultry ¡ª not too deep as to be uncomfortably male though.


    At the sound of the voice, the two beastkin nearly pasted themselves to the wall of the cave to hide from the mystic kin. Jerome turned to observe them. They quickly finished off the venison and picked up stones. They started filing down their horns but the stones would shatter each time they used too much force.


    Jerome had an idea of what was going on. He looked from their short, stubby, almost non-existent horns to the gigantic horns on the head of the mystic cow. Yeah, that sounds about right. It made him angry to know that one could wear her horns proudly and openly and another was forced to file down hers. Probably some sort of cultural rule, but it seemed backward and racist.


    He sensed Csala¡¯s countenance change and she seemed to raise herself higher, squaring her shoulders with her chin up, and pushing her chest out to appear taller. The two mystic kin imitated her and tension rose in the air. To him though, it just appeared as if they competed to find out who had the bigger chest. Jerome held back a laugh at that.


    ¡°There¡¯s no male here. Go search elsewhere,¡± Csala replied in faerie, and Jerome¡¯s smile dropped. Her voice contained so much compulsion! Not as much power but he could tell this was done masterfully.


    The two women¡¯s eyes glazed over for a moment before they shook off her compulsion.


    ¡°You dare use your witchcraft on us, succubus!¡± the mystic fox sneered at her. Even her sneer looked beautiful. And she had a beautiful voice too ¡ª almost angelic.


    ¡°In the name of The Twins, we sentence you to death by beheading,¡± the mystic cow roared. A giant axe materialized in her right hand and she shot forward, raising the axe to strike.


    What twins does she speak of, Achilles? Jerome asked as he reinforced the barrier as best as he could so it didn¡¯t crumble. The axe hit the barrier the next moment and bounced off, the repelling force carrying its wielder along with it.


    ¡°The twin moons are regarded as goddesses by the beastkin, Xerae.¡±


    The ground and walls of the cavern shook violently. Jerome watched with interest as the mystic cow¡¯s gigantic breasts bounced around, straining to be set free.


    God help me, he thought as he shivered a little, goosebumps rising to his skin.


    The two mystic kin bombshells took a moment to observe the shield as it faded from view. The war axe came into his view again and Jerome balked. The head was cut out of stone! With a wooden handle. How the fuck did a stone survive contact with his barrier?! He couldn¡¯t tell what type of stone because it was caked ¡ª or perhaps painted in blood. The smell was a dead giveaway.


    ¡°Another witchcraft,¡± the mystic fox said.


    Something mysterious happened the next moment. Three tails grew out of the mystic fox¡¯s behind. Big fluffy red tails that glowed and crackled with energy as they waved around in the air. Her irises took on the glow of hot coals burning in a furnace. And the air crackled with arcane power. Jerome observed the tails in awe. He sensed they weren¡¯t physical things somehow. Even though they looked every bit fluffy and tempting to touch. They also reminded him of the sacred beast he saw in Farryn. But he could tell these girls were different.


    There was no essence interacting with those tails.


    The same thing occurred in the mystic cow. But she only grew a tail ¡ª a cow¡¯s tail ¡ª which also crackled with power as it waved in the air. Her horns grew bigger and her long black shiny hair seemed to grow. The strands stood on end, hovering around her with the same arcane power he sensed in the mystic fox. The horns were the place where the power was packed, he concluded.


    Incredible!


    ¡°Feels familiar¡­¡± the mystic cow said. She stored her axe in her storage ring and cracked her knuckles. Jerome watched as her clenched fist grew a bone-like covering that mirrored her horns. Her fist glowed and crackled with the same power as her horns. ¡°But will it be able to withstand the power of my punch!¡±


    That sounded like bad news. The clenched fist contained so much raw energy that he couldn¡¯t identify. What the fuck?!


    The mystic cow shot backward to give herself more room. For someone who carried so much weight on her, she moved fast. Then she shot towards the barrier, her heavy footsteps pounding the ground. Jerome silently retrieved his binding. No need to be careless with this one. He wanted to stop the transmission of essence to the script around the entrance of the cave but decided to protect the binding instead. It was best to know the strength of the adversary before engaging them. In any case, he could always make another binding if her power proved too much for it.


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    He poured more essence into the binding and began to recite a spell under his breath to help boost it and reinforce the barrier. A moment later, the mystic cow¡¯s fist collided with the barrier, and a shockwave spread throughout the small hill as the ground quaked with tremors. The hill collapsed everywhere around them.


    ~~~


    Csala


    Jerome pulled her back, protecting her from the falling debris with his barrier. She sighed, thankful for the support. But now he was visible for all to see.


    The mystic kin glared at her first, then the glorified cow spoke to him in a commanding tone, ¡°You come to us!¡± their human-speak wasn¡¯t very good, it seemed.


    ¡°Can I call that one ¡®mystic cow¡¯ and the other ¡®mystic fox¡¯?¡± Jerome asked silently.


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what they¡¯re called,¡± she said pointedly. These annoying animals were always a nuisance anytime she encountered them. If she had her full powers, they¡¯d be nothing more than buzzing flies.


    Jerome stood up to address them with his hands raised to signal peace. ¡°Clearly, we set off on the wrong foot. I¡¯m not your enemy. Now I¡¯m not too clear on the condition or ratio of males to females on Terra Praeta but it can¡¯t be that bad, right?¡± he turned to her and asked again, ¡°Right?¡±


    Csala snorted. He was in so much trouble. He just didn¡¯t know it yet. He had said ¡®male to female¡¯, unknowingly putting males before females. She should have told him that Terra Praetans were matriarchal. But it was better this way. He should sort himself out.


    The mystic fox hissed, taking offense. She pointed at him, glaring. But her words stuck in her mouth and she blushed profusely. ¡°M-male to fe-female? You dare!¡±


    Jerome turned to her with a raised eyebrow. Csala smiled sweetly at him, batting her long eyelashes. Signifying that he was on his own.


    The mystic cow thumped her foot, cracking the ground some more. The brute. ¡°You come now. Male listen and obey!¡± she said authoritatively as she walked toward him and Csala marveled at how tall they both were. The mystic cows were giants but Jerome wasn¡¯t this tall when she first caught him, was he?


    She felt Jerome¡¯s countenance shift, anger rising in him. He folded his arms, glaring at the heifer, waiting for her to reach him. The moment she did, she reached out to grasp him by the head. The female slammed into the ground with so much force, that the earth quaked and rumbled. She was buried in the earth in an instant. Jerome turned to the mystic fox. She screamed and her tails whirled in the air.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± she heard Jerome say before something bludgeoned him from above. It had neither shape nor physical appearance, just¡­ a warping of the air above him. Jerome held his ground though, and then he vanished. He appeared, already punching the mystic fox. She shot into the distance screaming profanities in faerie.


    Hmph, maybe he can hold his own against them. ¡°So?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s pack up and leave.¡±


    They both turned to see the two beastkin kowtowing on the cold hard floor and shivering in fear, their rumps high in the sky. Csala felt Jerome¡¯s arousal spike. He took in a deep breath and exhaled loudly.


    She hated it. Hated that they were the cause of his arousal and not her. She was startled at that revelation and glared at him. She steeled her heart and walked up to the beastkin while Jerome went to put out the fire.


    ¡°Go,¡± she commanded with a wide display of her hands. They looked up and she repeated herself. Jerome handed the still-cooking venison to them. The beastkin grabbed it and raced out of the crumbled cave and into the storm.


    A moment later, the mystic fox flew over. Heaving and disheveled. Jerome didn¡¯t even look her way. His visha stirh¡¯aun shot out of the ground and trapped her in place.


    ¡°Don¡¯t keep him all to yourself you whore!¡± the fox screamed in faerie, addressing her.


    Csala raged. She wanted to let them be but she couldn¡¯t let that insult pass. She was upon the fox in an instant.


    ~~~


    Jerome watched as hair and skin flew everywhere. Csala was vicious, coating her half-inch nails with her psychic energy and slashing at the downed fox. But the mystic fox was also bound. Jerome didn¡¯t care though. Life wasn¡¯t fair and you get what you get.


    Tell me about this power they wield, Achilles.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing about it in my catalog of memories, Xerae. The mystic kin are an evolutionary mystery to me. They evolved the fastest on Terra Praeta, without my knowledge. I estimated that they have been around for only ten thousand years. My studies of them show that¡ª¡± he shared some memory with Jerome, ¡°they draw energy from some otherworldly plane. Where that is I don¡¯t know. And the most mysterious thing of all is, there are only ever ten of them in every generation.¡±


    That rare, huh? Or maybe something else is going on. Jerome watched a scene play in his mind¡¯s eye as two figures, one of a beastkin ¡ª a ¡®foxkin¡¯ ¡ª and a mystic fox, grow from infancy to adulthood. The fox kin gained her core at puberty, while the mystic fox gained a tail. He watched on, the sounds of Csala brutalizing the mystic fox in the background in his mind.


    The mystic fox in the memory exercised her tail and the energy it provided by using it. She grew her powers in her sleep and at a certain age, she popped another tail. While the fox kin had to meditate and cycle to absorb essence from the world to grow her core.


    Not once did Jerome see the mystic fox meditating, cycling, or absorbing essence. She just popped a new tail after many years of training. We¡¯ll discuss this later, Jerome said to Achilles. When he felt Csala had let it all out of her system, he pulled her off the poor mystic fox who was sobbing on the floor.


    ¡°Don¡¯t come after me, both of you,¡± he said in faerie as he uprooted the mystic cow from the earth.


    The fox was startled, surprised that he could speak faerie. ¡°You must follow us,¡± she said.


    ¡°Your word is not my law. I am my own person.¡± Then he glared at them both. ¡°If you come after me, whether by yourselves alone or with others, I will start dropping you like flies.¡±


    They both swallowed, their eyes going wide with fear.


    ¡°Good,¡± he said, freeing the mystic fox and walking away with Csala.


    They flew off into the distance. The storm was dying down and he could smell the ozone in the air. That was a really nasty storm. Jerome began to prepare Godspeed again, readying himself for the long marathon flight. After half an hour or so of chanting, he picked up speed and shot forward, the landscape below them giving way to the sea.


    Csala gasped. ¡°I¡¯ve never visited the sea before.¡±


    Jerome smiled. ¡°Terra Praeta has five continents, huge land masses separated¡ª¡±


    ¡°I know what continents are,¡± she interrupted, glaring at him.


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Well, this is one of the five main seas around the world. Though there are fifty of them.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s it called?¡± Csala asked.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Unfortunately, no one has stayed in one place long enough to name it since the fae built the mountain. Before then, Terra Praeta was just one giant landmass. And the rest of the planet was covered in water.¡±


    ¡°How is that possible?¡± Csala looked up at him in his arms in disbelief. She inadvertently rubbed her thigh against his erection and Jerome groaned in pleasure.


    Csala turned beet red and grew silent. The silence grew awkward but Jerome spoke.


    ¡°I¡¯m highly aroused right now so don¡¯t move around so much.¡± He adjusted himself as best as he could midair and continued. ¡°So you were asking?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± she said hesitantly. ¡°How is it possible for one landmass to become five?¡±


    ¡°The Rumbling,¡± Jerome said and he watched the emotions play on her face as it all clicked in place.


    ¡°Ah. So, the battle that took place eons ago led to the land mass splitting into five pieces. It makes complete sense.¡±


    Jerome let her ruminate over that for a while. They flew in silence watching as the sea gave way to the ocean. It was just water everywhere. Someone could really get lost flying over an ocean like this without excellent navigation skills or equipment.


    Csala marveled at the waves and creatures diving out of the ocean and back into it. Giant whales swarm together, their calves swimming and having fun around them.


    ¡°So beautiful,¡± she said, admiring the sights.


    ¡°So about the beastkin,¡± Jerome began. ¡°I gather they have very few males¡ª¡±


    ¡°They live in tribes of ten to two-ten beastkin, Jerome. And they¡¯re forced to be nomads ¡ª we all are. They go to sleep in one place and wake up in another. Then they have to find the tribe all over again the next morning. Mothers have to tightly secure their children to their limbs with strings made from vines or flax ¡ª flax if they have the resources and time to make it. It irritates the skin less.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s awful,¡± Jerome said. He was now feeling bad for the mystic kin. They were desperate.


    ¡°That¡¯s our life, Jerome. If places aren¡¯t named, I can see why. We don¡¯t have many males around, even incubi ¡ª and no one likes incubi. No one wants to be¡­¡± Csala stopped herself from saying more. Jerome knew that she was about to say that ¡®no one wants to be enslaved.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s an extreme way to live. But it¡¯s our life. I¡¯m not sad about it. But I¡¯m not happy about it either. I just want to survive.¡±


    Jerome rubbed her back to comfort her and she leaned into him instinctively, sighing. ¡°And the mystic kin?¡±


    Csala snorted. ¡°What was that she attacked you with anyway?¡± she asked, ignoring his question and giving him a curious side glance.


    ¡°I should be asking you,¡± he replied. ¡°You said you¡¯ve only ever met two of them?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Twice. Their powers are so strange. They don¡¯t use essence like the beastkin. They don¡¯t have cores ¡ª at least that I know of. From what I¡¯ve gathered twice that I met the mystic kin, they rule the beastkin.¡±


    ¡°Figures.¡± Jerome sighed, looking ahead into the distance.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have said ¡®male to female¡¯ in front of the mystic kin,¡± Csala went on. Jerome felt her relax some more due to his ministrations.


    ¡°I gathered,¡± he said, rolling his eyes.


    ¡°Terra Praetan tribes are matriarchal. Putting the male before the female, even in a statement, is blasphemy. You¡¯d do well to remember that.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± he said. We¡¯re going to pull down all their traditions, Achilles. No matter what it takes. I won¡¯t be anyone¡¯s breeding mare.


    Achilles chortled in his head, enjoying his discomfort.

 115. Storm’s Embrace

    Csala


    Walking on snow should have felt good. It wasn¡¯t her first time seeing something so white and so pure, but it was her first time being so close to it. She had heard of snow from her mother who had heard of it from her mother and so on. No one she knew had ever traveled North, provided she knew very few people. Muna had talked about it ¡ª about how beautiful it was, and how fluffy it felt. She reached down and picked up a handful of snow in her gloved hand.


    They never talked about how cold it felt. Even through her thick gloves, she could still feel the cold assault her skin. Sure it was fluffy, but that was not enough for it to warrant her attention. Csala wanted to curse. Whoever told her ancestors that snow was fun would perish in every life they lived and in suffering.


    The crunching of the snow beneath their feet was the only break in the silence as they moved forward in this world of white. But as they marched on, the snow became knee-deep, slowing down their progress. Jerome was exhausted and couldn¡¯t fly anymore. And this was foreign territory. It was best to stay alert.


    Csala shivered slightly, drawing Jerome¡¯s attention. ¡°What? I can¡¯t wield essence like you,¡± she said.


    ¡°Come here,¡± Jerome called out to her.


    She walked up to him feeling quite embarrassed. She had always taken care of herself, but now she needed someone else¡¯s help. I wouldn¡¯t be in this predicament if it wasn¡¯t for you, she complained in her heart.


    He hugged her close and placed a hand at the base of her spine. Csala flinched, her muscles tensing. Her first response was to push him away but the heat of his body was so tempting, she raised her arms and hugged him back. She felt a warm sensation spread from his hand into her body ¡ª her lower spine, around her hips. The cold went away almost instantly, and her whole body immediately grew warm. Just like that, he pushed the cold out of her body. Her body relaxed instantly. Her fingers, which felt like they would freeze over and break off, now felt alive.


    ¡°Humans shouldn¡¯t be allowed to wield such wonderful power,¡± she complained, earning a chuckle from Jerome. But she remembered his words. It was amusing to her but if she was being truthful to herself, she would like to see him succeed in finding a way to help her wield essence. Which would make her indebted to him. Csala frowned. She hated owing people.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to redo it from time to time,¡± Jerome said and walked off. ¡°Come on, we still have a long way to go.¡±


    They walked on in the world of white, where nothing grew and everything died. Carcasses of magical beasts were left every few thousand paces, half-eaten, and left for another time. The carcasses wouldn¡¯t rot. The cold was there to keep the rot away. Csala sighed to herself. She couldn¡¯t wait to get her psychic energy back so that she could break free of this human trouble, even though she might probably remain with him. Just in case he could succeed at what he planned to do for her, at least she¡¯d be able to take care of herself. She glared at his back earning a chuckle from Jerome.


    ¡°What did I do now?¡± he said, not even looking her way. He could sense her emotions. Senses that he evolved when he stole from her. He really was too much trouble to deal with, barging into her life and destroying her peace. She harrumphed and looked away. But he stopped in his tracks and took her hand walking side by side with her.


    ¡°We need to hurry,¡± he said. ¡°Don¡¯t you wanna get your powers back as soon as possible?¡±


    ¡°Powers that you took away from me, you mean,¡± she said, glaring at him.


    He smiled at her and picked her up. Csala thought he was ready to fly again but he just settled her on his back like a baby and continued walking. The gall of this man!


    ¡°Put me down!¡± she growled at him, turning red from embarrassment. But no, the barbarian must have his way. ¡°Did your human tutors not teach you etiquette? Put me down, now!¡±


    ¡°Not until you wipe that frown off your face,¡± he said, continuing onward.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a child, Jerome. Put me down!¡±


    ~~~


    Over a thousand miles into the frozen world of the North, Jerome fought against a giant storm to get to the frozen mountain range. His friends were in danger and may not even know of it. Someone had to inform them that they were being tracked. No. There was no way Selene wouldn¡¯t have noticed something off. But what could she do about it? The Itakars didn¡¯t have the sturdiness he had or his strength. He pushed himself harder, braved the worst of the storm, and flew forward with determination to get to them before the pack of Unbound did.


    The storm had come without warning, descending upon the tundra with an unforgiven fury. The wind howled restlessly, whipping across the barren landscape of the North Pole. Sharp and icy snowflakes whipped around, driven by the tempestuous gust that seemed to originate from the depths of the polar realm. Soon, hurricanes would form and the world would be thrown into more chaos.


    Fortunately for them, Jerome¡¯s winter coat was well-equipped with what they needed right now, but he had to hurry. The barrier deterred the worst of the storm and helped to ease their flight a little. But Jerome was still exhausted, his speed had dropped by a large margin. He could go no faster, or else he risked passing out midair.


    His body would shut down to protect itself and he would pass out until his body was able to replenish the lost essence. He remembered the events of the Tower of Solon. That must not happen again, he thought. He got lucky to be in the midst of friends.


    ~~~


    Csala


    The wind howled on with a ferocity that bordered on madness, its chilling breath tearing at the shield with no result. The cold seeped through the barrier sapping the warmth out of Csala¡¯s skin. Every second in the biting cold was a moment of torture for her.


    Through the haze of swirling snowflakes, she caught glimpses of the mountainous region. The thought of shelter and warmth made Csala¡¯s heart beat faster in anticipation. A cave would be a luxury right now ¡ª a sanctuary amidst the frozen chaos.


    Jerome dived downward, causing the strong winds to buffet the shield. With little effort, he landed them on the side of a mountain and put down the shield. The biting claws of the cold wind grabbed her at once, refusing to let go. Even with the many layers of fur, she found it hard to withstand the cold.


    ¡°Get me inside, Jerome. There must be a cave somewhere, right?¡±


    Jerome was already moving even before she started speaking. The mountain wall by his side caved in and he walked in with her in his embrace. He closed up the part of the wall he opened and the frostbite dropped to a cool breeze. Csala dropped to the floor, gulping in warmer air. They had braved a storm, something she would be glad never to do again for as long as she lived. A blue light lit up the darkness around them and warmth reached her from the flame in Jerome¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I think it¡¯s best I put off the fire for now,¡± he said, putting off the fire as he said it.


    ¡°So we stay in the dark?¡± Csala complained, not that she needed the light to see, it was just more comfortable to have light. ¡°Can¡¯t you just make holes in the rock wall so air can come in?¡±


    ¡°I can and I would, but we¡¯ll be found very easily because of it ¡ª just so you know.¡±


    Csala watched him draw some patterns with his index finger on the rock wall. The glow from the symbol helped to light up the interior of the small cave. She was coming to recognize those as a series of symbols for a barrier ¡ª runes, or scripts, maybe. Some symbols kept repeating themselves which made them easily recognizable. However, this set of scripts he was using was unrecognizable. It was a new one.


    She stood up and went over to him to study the scripts better.


    ¡°It¡¯s a new one,¡± he smiled at her. ¡°See these symbols?¡± he pointed at some of the strange symbols glowing on the wall. ¡°They help to obscure aura ¡ª well I¡¯m not very skilled at using it yet so it won¡¯t be very powerful.¡±


    ¡°So if I tried to sense anything on the other side of this rock, I won¡¯t be able to?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s unidirectional,¡± he said, smiling down at her. She was starting to get the sense that Jerome liked to share his knowledge with her. It made warmth spread in her stomach with a flutter. ¡°It doesn¡¯t work both ways. Anyone on the outside wouldn¡¯t be able to sense us inside¡ª¡±


    ¡°But we can sense them,¡± she interrupted. ¡°Jerome, that¡¯s incredible!¡± Wait. Did he just say we¡¯ll be found? The thought struck her. ¡°What do you mean we¡¯ll be found?¡±


    He shifted his gaze her way and sighed, the smile on his face disappearing instantly. ¡°She¡¯s not dead yet, Csala.¡±


    Csala¡¯s breath caught in her throat and her mind went blank from shock. For a few heartbeats, she couldn¡¯t utter a word. She just stared into space. The air became stiff with tension all of a sudden. She felt suffocated, trapped, helplessly waiting for the predator that was her kind to rip her soul out of her body. When will it stop?


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry too much though. It seems every succubus has a weakness for cold,¡± he chuckled, holding her and comforting her. ¡°She wants to avoid the snowstorm, looking for a way to get around it. If only that were possible. I was expecting her to teleport here but for some reason, she can¡¯t.¡±


    Csala¡¯s brows rose in recognition. ¡°She¡¯s weaker. That¡¯s the only reason she wouldn¡¯t use her most powerful skill.¡± Jerome nodded, still embracing her and rubbing the small of her back. ¡°How long?¡± she asked. She didn¡¯t bother asking how he knew all this. The storm covered a very large area and would obscure a psychic scan even for her at her most powerful. She chucked it up to the spirit of the mountain giving him the information.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°How long till the storm subsides?... till she gets here,¡± she asked, blinking away tears.


    He dragged her away from the wall, sat her down, and sat down opposite her before answering. The man was always calm, even when he knew trouble was close ¡ª trouble he couldn¡¯t handle. She called him a man but truly, he was still a child. A child with the bearing of a man. She had misjudged him all this while. He was a solid rock. One she wanted to lean on.


    Csala caught herself and stiffened her spine in response to those thoughts. He may be a rock but she was a wave. But the wave beats against the rock until it is weathered and crumbles to soil. She won¡¯t be leaning on him or any man for that matter. But she could trust him to do what was right.


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°Not anytime soon,¡± he said. ¡°If she decides to brave the storm like we did though, it wouldn¡¯t matter. Now, I¡¯ve got friends around here and I¡¯m trying to meet up with them because they are in danger ¡ª not anything nearly as dangerous as your pursuer but dangerous still.¡±


    Csala perked up. If he had friends around, maybe they could help. Jerome brought out more of the frozen venison they had been eating for a few nights. He began preparing it with heat from his hands but with no fire.


    ¡°What creature endangers your friends? Can they help to deal with Muna?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Unbound,¡± he said as the meat thawed, sizzling in the air. ¡°A pack, forty strong. And yes, they can help to deal with Muna, after we get rid of the unbound.¡±


    Csala watched him work. He talked about forty unbound as if talking about forty pups. ¡°You best be wary of the unbound. Their true strength is in their numbers.¡±


    ¡°Are they as strong as you?¡± he asked, handing her a chunk of meat he had roasted without fire. ¡°Can you do a comparison with your strength and speed?¡±


    Csala felt the heat from his hands as he roasted more meat. She marveled once again at how skillful he was at wielding essence. She thought about his question. The unbound were strong but Jerome had long-range firepower. One unbound should be almost her equivalent in strength and speed, almost.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never met or fought an unbound before but I¡¯ve heard stories about their strength. I should be faster and stronger by a small margin. But their sense of smell is better than mine and they have claws where I have blades. And since they work as a team, it would be difficult to kill a single unbound without taking some injuries. I make this comparison with the assumption that I have my psychic power at its fullest.¡±


    She watched him nod his agreement. She made this comparison from a logical standpoint with no bias toward herself. If they were going to survive this, they needed to be honest with each other. Jerome had been honest with her so far but she had been nothing but snarky and an annoyance to him.


    Now was the time to be mature and follow his lead. She had seen what he could do, how capable he was. He beat the mystic kin he fought with as easily as she would have beat a normal human Sprout. There was no need to fight about who was stronger or who siphoned power from whom. Would he take it well if she told him that the Muna he fought before wouldn¡¯t be the same Muna he would face now? Csala sighed. Best to just get it over with.


    ¡°Are you saying you¡¯d fight alongside me¡­and my friends?¡± he asked, giving her a toothy grin.


    Okay, he¡¯s a child. Not a man. Csala glared at him and he laughed. ¡°I¡¯m doing this for me, you big oaf!¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± he asked, leaning forward, ¡°Not because you care and want to see me safe?¡±


    She chucked a piece of meat at him but he caught it between his teeth and grinned at her.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± she said in a serious tone. He picked up on her tone and wiped the grin off his face. ¡°If I¡¯m going to be fighting with you, you need to listen to me. I know more about the unbound and how they behave than you humans would ever know.¡±


    He nodded and she continued, ¡°How many of them are there?¡±


    ¡°Fifteen. Most are archers though.¡±


    ¡°Even better ¡ª well that would depend on the terrain,¡± she said thoughtfully. This mountainous terrain wouldn¡¯t be good for a long-range battle. She would have to wait to see where Jerome¡¯s friends are. People didn¡¯t always decide where battles would be fought, but they could prepare for it.


    ¡°Also. It¡¯s possible that¡­¡± she found it difficult to open up like this, ¡°that Muna isn¡¯t the same person you fought before. You see, the reason why she wants me is¡­is¡ª¡±


    ¡°Because she wants your body as a vessel,¡± he finished for her, shocking her.


    Csala was taken aback. How long has he known? What else does he know? Calm down, Csala. This is just paranoia. She almost regressed into the habit of running away, thinking he was going to harm her or use that information against her. She guessed she had been living a paranoid life for so long that it had become a part of her.


    ¡°How do you know that?¡± she asked.


    ~~~


    Jerome watched Csala watch him carefully. He had a feeling she would close herself off again if he said the wrong thing, which would happen to be the truth.


    ¡°The voice of the mountain told me,¡± he said, testing the waters.


    Csala observed him. Even going as far as stretching her senses to scan him. It was meticulous and subtle. But she didn¡¯t have the strength she used to, so he sensed it easily. He held back from smiling.


    ¡°So you admit you talk to the spirit of the mountain.¡±


    ¡°Hm-hm. You wanna talk to him?¡±


    Csala shook her head and took a bite of the tasteless meat. Jerome¡¯s eyes were immediately drawn to her slender neck and throat as she swallowed. No, she definitely didn¡¯t swallow. But he knew the food had gone down.


    ¡°It would be nice if I could have a warm bed to sleep on though¡­and some covers,¡± she said.


    A huge white bed appeared out of thin air above her and almost hit her on the head. She reached out with quick reflexes, catching it as if it were a feather.


    ¡°Huh,¡± she said. ¡°Thank you¡­ I guess. I never knew he could hear me?¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°He hears you.¡±


    They ate in silence. With the threat of an ancient succubus looming over them, he had to strategize. Jerome thought of different ways he could deal with the situation. The storm wouldn¡¯t stop Muna for long. The Hezvar had been fully charged and ready to battle. But according to Achilles, the succubus had a new body; one younger and stronger than the frail one she fought him in.


    Csala¡¯s talk about her being weaker was not true, but he wasn¡¯t going to correct her. Muna was only preserving this body to last longer.


    If the previous body was considered frail ¡ª Jerome touched his chest, where she had caved it in, destroying most of his organs ¡ª then what would happen to him if she punched him with this new, stronger body? He shivered. He could still remember how it hurt. They couldn¡¯t just lock her up. Or could they? Can we, Achilles?


    Jerome vanished soundlessly on the spot and appeared inside his void space. He looked around, taking in the environment. A giant storm-like wave of Sword Force raged in a corner far away. He remembered his fight with Hedon when he saw it. Achilles had left many different things inside his void space. The place would soon begin to clutter up. And then there was the deer.


    Urgh.


    ¡°It would feed your friends,¡± Achilles said.


    Sure.


    He had to build something here that could serve as a place of rest for a time like this. And maybe, just maybe he could trap her here. Nah, he shook his head. The void space wouldn¡¯t work. The succubus could punch holes in space. She would likely rip the void space apart to force her way out.


    The wind shook tree branches and red-brown leaves fell to the ground in droves. They weren¡¯t real, just imitations of the real thing ¡ª like a painting on a canvas, or a projection¡­or a construct. But he would make them real. Soon. When he was capable of creating a void world. He would terra-form this place.


    ¡°There is such a place that can hold her, but you¡¯re not going to like it, Xerae.¡±


    Where¡­Terra Praeta¡¯s night? he sighed. Why didn¡¯t he think of that? But then again, are you sure she can¡¯t escape from there? I mean, we escaped, so¡­ or was there somewhere there, he didn¡¯t know about.


    ¡°No, Xerae. Not the night, but where you¡¯re taking Csala to heal ¡ª The ¡®Waters of Irithiya¡¯. It is surrounded by a dark forest. That forest is where we should take her.¡±


    Jerome nodded. But he had to be realistic. The ancient succubus was surprisingly fast and very effective at covering miles in a split second. She wouldn¡¯t wait for them to get to the dark forest before attacking.


    ¡°Then, you only need to rest for a few hours, Xerae. We could trap her with the spatial barrier we used the last time.¡±


    ¡°Will it work a second time?¡±


    ¡°It will. She has no essence, therefore she can¡¯t unravel such a complicated spell with haste.¡±


    ¡°And I know just the right place to set it up,¡± he smiled devilishly. He just needed rest and then he would get to work. ¡°Wait, Muna can unravel spells?¡±


    ¡°Spatial ones,¡± Achilles clarified with a shrug. ¡°It¡¯s nothing to worry about for now, Xerae. When your psychic energy evolves, I¡¯ll teach you all about it.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t know what to make of that. If Achilles said he shouldn¡¯t worry about it, then he wouldn¡¯t. He didn¡¯t know what was inside the dark forest that could hold Muna but whatever it was, and if Achilles approved of it, then it was most likely the best option they had. But as always there were no perfect conditions. No one, not even Mother Nature would hand him his future on a platter of gold. They couldn¡¯t depend on drawing the old hag to the dark forest.


    He vanished, reappearing where he was sitting opposite Csala inside the cave. She jumped from the bed, startled.


    ¡°Were you never taught not to barge in on your betters?¡± she snapped at him.


    Jerome waved her off. He needed to be back at full strength to do anything. He thought about the dark forest and the dangers that it held. A memory rose to the surface of his mind. The dark forest was a place holding myriads of dangerous magical beasts. And Achilles¡¯ senses couldn¡¯t penetrate it. The reason could be that there was a creature as powerful as a Transcendent in there.


    ¡°No, Xerae. There is no Transcendent in the dark forest. There is only one being on the level of a Transcendent in Terra Praeta, I would know.¡±


    Danashi. The Mother in the West. Jerome felt his nerves relax. Dashani was stuck on a continent in the West, her cloud of darkness protecting her and her Children from the light of the Sun. If there was a Transcendent in the dark forest, it would be a no-go area. Then why can¡¯t your senses penetrate the forest?


    ¡°It¡¯s because of the darkness that has seeped into the trees.¡±


    ¡°Darkness consumes,¡± he muttered, remembering something from before coming to Terra Praeta. He would have to figure out a way to give everyone eyes out there because they would be going in blind. He had never been around the force of darkness before, even though he had one swirling and spinning at the center of his core right now. ¡°Wonder how it¡¯ll feel.¡±


    Csala turned in her sleep to face him. She pulled the thick covers over her head and moaned in satisfaction. She must have been exhausted from their long journey to sleep almost immediately, after eating. Good thing Achilles provided her with the bed and covers.


    What did she mean by being fae-touched? Nothing of the sort ever came up from the memory crystals.


    Jerome stood up and drilled tiny holes into the rock wall so there¡¯d be a little more ventilation. The storm was still going strong with no sign of ceasing anytime soon. Muna could find them easily like this but they needed the air. He warmed the air a little, with thoughts on crafting a simple lantern or a torch; something that could give off both light and heat, like the matchstick Ash used to light candles when he was sick, but more. Electricity was non-existent here or in Vorthe, but essence was a better replacement. He would need a tough gem. Something high on the Mohs scale. Something like a ruby.


    He chuckled lightly, remembering how gems weren¡¯t good conductors of electricity in his previous world. Yet here they were great magical conductors ¡ª given they were quality gems.


    ¡°Maybe hold off on such experiments, for now, Xerae. I¡¯ll help you with what I can,¡± Achilles said.


    Why do you say that? He asked.


    ¡°Normal memory stones and other magically created crystals are already attuned to essence and forces. Natural gems are not. Quite frankly, they are the remains of what is formed after essence tones have been formed from volcanic matter and other such things.¡±


    You mean they are waste products.


    Achilles gave him a mental shrug. ¡°They are. Being shiny doesn¡¯t make them valuable.¡±


    But they can be useful. The fae used them. He felt his eyes droop slowly and blinked.


    ¡°Oh, they are. Nothing¡¯s ever truly wasted. But they¡¯ll need to be handled by an expert runecrafter, and you, Xerae, are not. Take a rest before your eyes fall out of your skull.¡±


    Jerome sighed, calming his racing mind. He could almost sense Achilles, going to work on his theories and preparing to bring his musings to fruition. Best to get some rest and replenish his energy. He lay down near the snoozing succubus and soon dozed off as well.

 116. The Unforgiving North

    As was expected, Muna found them pretty quickly. Jerome had only had a few hours of sleep before the ancient succubus shattered the walls. The barrier against the rock wall delayed her for another second. Light from an aurora poured into their little cave. The storm had died down. Csala only had a moment to gasp at the breathtaking sight before they were whisked away by Achilles.


    ¡°The spatial barrier would hold her for an hour or more,¡± Jerome said, looking around to find out where they were. He would lose his second binding like this but sacrifices must be made.


    ¡°Hour?¡±


    ¡°Never mind.¡±


    He picked her up and shot into the sky. Moving as fast as he could toward his friends. The unbound were almost upon them. Thankfully, he had rested well and was at full strength now. He planned on getting rid of them as quickly as possible so he could head to the dark forest. Time was far spent. They had a few more days until Terra Praeta spits them back to their world.


    ¡°Twenty-one days, Xerae. It¡¯s still enough time to get to the dark forest¡­yet enough time to be caught by a succubus who wants nothing but to consume your vitality.¡±


    Not helping, Achilles. ¡°How quickly do you think we can get rid of the unbound?¡± he asked Csala as he flew them deeper into the mountain range. They were many miles away from Muna right now, but any chunk of space was nothing to the succubus once she punched a hole in it.


    Csala was distracted by the Aurora in the sky. It took her a while to compose herself to answer. ¡°Right. The unbound. Normally, a pack of forty would be impossible to defeat.¡±


    Jerome gaped at her in surprise. ¡°Are they that powerful?¡±


    ¡°But since you are Fae-touched,¡± she continued as though he had said nothing, ¡°it should be possible, in fact, easier and a lot quicker. We should meet up with your friends as soon as possible so I can explain my plan.¡±


    ¡°Fae-touched?¡±


    ¡°Spatial barrier?¡± she asked pointedly, countering his question with a question of hers. Jerome could see the curiosity in her eyes. ¡°I thought you said it was a barrier to mask our aura?¡±


    ¡°I made another one inside the cave. So what do you mean by Fae-touched?¡± he asked, diving into a mountain and entering a¡­temple? ¡°That¡¯s¡­interesting.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s incredible!¡± Csala exclaimed.


    They landed on broken marble tiles that seem to have witnessed millennia. Jerome looked around wondering how possible it was this place had stood the test of time. Four stone statues stood tall, carved out of the circular wall of the wide hall. There were smaller statues too. The white gigantic wall was also filled with writings and imagery ¡ª like the hieroglyphs left by ancient Egyptians on Earth.


    ¡°What does it say?¡± Csala asked Jerome.


    He was standing in front of an ancient inscription on the wall.


    ¡°The story of the Ice Fae,¡± Jerome began. ¡°The longest-lived of the fae. Thought to be immortal, they froze their bodies every millennium or so to prolong their youth for as long as possible. But nature catches up with all. Without becoming more powerful, and transcending the limitations of the flesh, one couldn¡¯t truly be immortal.¡±


    ¡°They truly could become immortal?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Hmm. Where I come from, there are people capable of transcending the flesh. Even the planet.¡±


    ¡°Wha-what do you mean?¡±


    Jerome eyed her with a smile. ¡°I mean they can leave the planet and traverse the stars.¡± When he was in Vorthe he didn¡¯t know much about Transcendents. Only that they were all-powerful. But now, he knew a lot more from memory stones in the library of Sanctum. Transcendents. Jerome sighed. He hoped he wouldn¡¯t catch the attention of another one ever again.


    Csala gulped audibly.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to fear beings like that,¡± Jerome said but he quickly gave it a second thought. ¡°Well, as long as you don¡¯t attract their attention.¡±


    Csala glared at him. She could hear the humor in his voice. ¡°This is not a joke, Jerome! People with power cannot be reasoned with. You don¡¯t even need to attract their attention before they may come seeking you.¡±


    Jerome scratched his temple and looked away. If anything he was guilty of attracting the attention of powerful beings. ¡°Ehn. Sorry about that,¡± he apologized.


    ¡°So, what happened to the Ice Fae afterward?¡±


    ¡°They remain encased in ice, deep in the mountains; their bodies unable to wake up any longer¡­ or maybe they are waiting for an external force to wake them up. The writer didn¡¯t say.¡±


    ~~~


    Csala


    ¡°They remain encased in ice?¡± Csala asked incredulously. ¡°Unable to wake up?¡±


    Seeing the contemplative look on his face, Csala decided to wait. Perhaps he was finding it hard to decipher the text. Ancient faerie wasn¡¯t something someone just learned to read overnight, talk more understand. She glanced at the entrance through which they came in. The wide arch framing the entrance and resting atop two pillars cut out of the mountain was designed to draw attention. And drew their attention, it did. The hall was spacious and almost white like the snow outside. She couldn¡¯t hate the color any more than she already did. Everywhere she looked, signs of the Fae¡¯s influence showed. As if she had gone back in time.


    Her mother would have killed to see something like this. She was always intrigued by what the Fae could do and had told her the same stories over and over again.


    All were in order, for now. She just had to wait to get rid of Muna once and for all so she could get on with her life.


    ¡°The fae who carved into this wall was once a slave¡ª¡±


    ¡°Fae were slaves to other Fae?¡± she interrupted Jerome and snorted. ¡°Why am I not surprised?¡±


    ¡°Sarcasm suits you,¡± Jerome said with a smirk. ¡°You should use it more¡­¡± his gaze shifted to the wall. ¡°...often.¡± He reached for her and shoved her behind him.


    Something burst through the far wall into the hall.


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    ¡°Unbound!¡± Csala hissed. Her twin swords materialized in her hands and they both shot forward. Before the unbound could steady itself, its head rolled off its shoulders.


    ¡°It¡¯s tall. Taller than what was told in the stories,¡± Csala said amidst uneven breaths. The creature was at least fifteen feet tall and built like a bull on two feet. It was covered in fur from head to claws ¡ª claws that were as thick as her fingers and looked like they could rip steel to shreds.


    ¡°Look at those muscles,¡± Jerome squatted down to observe the twitching creature as the last of its vitality escaped its dying frame. ¡°Bands on bands of muscle. Too bad.¡± He stood back up. ¡°Would have loved to study it but time is against us. We need to go, Csala.¡±


    Csala looked at the opening that was just created in the wall. It was time to face off with a pack of unbound, who could wield essence by the way ¡ª just great. Her life just kept getting interesting. She let Jerome fly her into the hole, to the rescue.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t give me an answer to my question?¡± Jerome said as he flew through the catacombs in the mountain. Csala noticed how they didn¡¯t seem to be naturally formed and they were quite narrow. The Ice Fae must have been amazing architects. The catacomb was a labyrinth in itself but it seemed Jerome knew where he was going.


    ¡°Fae-touched, right?¡± Csala asked. She hadn¡¯t forgotten. She was just taken by surprise by the temple. ¡°Being fae-touched means exactly what it says. It means you¡¯ve been touched by the fae and can do the abnormal things they could in their time. Of course, some would argue that you¡¯ve been ¡®blessed¡¯ by the fae.¡±


    ¡°Blessed? What do you mean blessed?¡±


    Csala took some time to put her thoughts together. ¡°These are just rumors by the way, but they insisted that the fae had a connection to the earth that other species didn¡¯t. So being blessed means that you obtain that same connection with Mother Nature.¡± Csala took the moment to glance at him. ¡°So are you blessed by the fae?¡±


    ~~~


    Selene


    They had been running for half a day now. Wondering when another will be taken. Selene blamed herself for getting too greedy. Her mother had once said to her, ¡°The North is unforgiving. It saps the heat and vitality out of you to feed itself. Even in death, your corpse does not rot ¡ª it freezes¡­preserved for Mother Nature¡¯s offsprings to feast on.¡±


    If she hadn¡¯t been too greedy, if she had restrained herself, if she had seen the signs, Trudhorn would still be with them. Now they run from creatures of this frozen North ¡ª not their frozen North. Why didn¡¯t she realize on time that this wasn¡¯t their frozen North? She sniffed. Treasures blind the adventurer, and the promise of land urges the sailor on.


    ¡°Trust him, Selene,¡± Nia said. Selene looked over and could see the tears in her eyes too. Trudhorn gave them assurance. Not just as a spotter, he made them feel safe like they could get through anything. The only other person who had made her feel this way was Jerome ¡ª here in Terra Praeta that is. If only he was here.


    Running feet sounded in the distance, gaining on them. Ten? A dozen? Selene had lost count of how many had been sent after them. They had only been able to take down one. And that was because it came at them alone. If these bizarre wolves had attacked as a pack, they would have slaughtered her teammates in a dozen breaths ¡ª probably in less time. Their powerful feet pushed down on the earth causing it to rumble as they gave chase.


    ¡°Hurry,¡± she said, pushing down her pain. She was a leader, a commander and she would trust in Trudhorn to get himself out of his trouble and perhaps he could bring help their way when he escapes. The Itakars always push themselves hard. The North was their domain, or it should have been, now it would be their burial ¡ª if they let it.


    Selene looked at the few wolves they had been able to bond with ¡ª seven of them, a pack. Fur as thick and as white as snow. These creatures were as intelligent as humans and as tall as horses on four feet, and they could wield essence. However, they could only be compared to Blanks. The wolves had carried them for miles but even they would get tired. Now they were running on foot but they couldn¡¯t run as fast as wolves, even though they were in a Greater Realm above the sacred beasts.


    Bram jumped over a chasm. ¡°Careful there. That¡¯s deep!¡±


    They all jumped as they passed by, breathing hard from exhaustion. No one could stop to look back. If they stopped, the creatures got closer. Selene extended her perception instead to get a sense of the distance between them and their pursuers. Good. It was still wide.


    ¡°That¡¯s risky, Selene,¡± Tega said. ¡°They wield essence too so it¡¯s unsafe to assume they can¡¯t use mental energy.¡±


    She nodded. ¡°Which means they can sense my mental energy when I extend it. I know, Tega. But we need to know how far they are from us.¡± Tega was their best scout remaining. Her team had been reduced to fourteen members. And they couldn¡¯t bear to lose more. The last expedition to Terra Praeta lost as many as ten members. Selene didn¡¯t know if she could bear losing that many friends. Information is power, however. The more they know about their pursuers, the better their rates of survival.


    The creatures howled around them like wolves. One howl led to another and another and another. The sound clawed deep into her heart, into her bones, making them shake from fear. ¡°They are trying to unnerve us,¡± Selene said. ¡°Don¡¯t give in to them.¡±


    ¡°They might be predators, but we are hunters of the frozen north,¡± her twin brother, Ajax said, giving her a nod. White long tresses matted his head. She gave him an appreciative look. His blue eyes, a replica of hers, smiled at her. Ajax had grown these past seasons in Terra Praeta. Like he had found his strength, and by doing so, he found himself. He wasn¡¯t that child who tried to blow his own horn and puff his chest to show people that he was important anymore.


    ¡°Ye gonna say it?¡± Bram asked from the front of their group. He had taken up Trudhorn¡¯s post as soon as the spotter vanished underground. Someone had to spot for them, if not they would have been moving blind.


    She took a deep breath, ¡°They might have claws and fangs, but we have blades of steel!¡±


    ¡°Hoo!¡± her teammates responded.


    ¡°They might have the strength of a hundred sacred artists, but we have the will of our ancestors!¡± Ajax said.


    ¡°Ha!¡±


    ¡°Their blood flows in us; their secrets empower our limbs!¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Hoo!¡±


    ¡°They have held the frozen North by the scruff of her neck, held her dangling by her throat in their time,¡± Bram said.


    ¡°Ha!¡±


    ¡°And we will tame this frozen North too; her beasts and her cold, none would stop us!¡±


    ¡°Hoo!¡±


    ~~~


    The mountain was a labyrinth of tunnels. But Jerome¡¯s perception helped him traverse the maze toward the Itakars. They were headed his way, but not fast enough. The werewolves were toying with them ¡ª predators cruelly having fun with their hapless prey, enjoying every moment of their torment.


    ¡°Werewolves. What a fitting name, Xerae,¡± Achilles butted in on his thoughts.


    Myths from my old world, Achilles. And from shows meant to entertain. The unbound are an evolved race of wolves And the patterns on their hide. How the hell did they evolve to such a state? He hadn¡¯t just observed the muscles and strength of the one they killed, he had studied the patterns on its hide ¡ª patterns that look a lot like runes.


    ¡°Eons of evolution, Xerae. Terra Praeta is not a young planet. I would love to study the patterns on their hides. Who knows, maybe I can find something interesting.¡±


    I think they are runes of a sort. Can they wield essence like other magical beasts?


    ¡°And you are correct, Xerae. Those patterns are runes. They use essence to power them and improve their speed and strength. Their hides harden and yet remain flexible. It would take special weapons to break their skins. It¡¯s also one of the reasons why they are so evolved and intelligent.


    ¡°But they haven¡¯t studied themselves as the fae would. So no, they don¡¯t wield essence as an extension of themselves. No fire, water, ice, and the like. What an irony.¡± Achilles chuckled.


    Jerome tumbled the AI¡¯s words in his head. Those runic patterns were nothing like what he¡¯d seen before. If Achilles was right, then Mother Nature must have given them those runes ¡ª a gift, probably to help them break the shackles of their oppressors from eons ago ¡ª which meant just like Achilles mentioned, they haven¡¯t taken their time to study the runic patterns yet, they wouldn¡¯t know how to wield them like weapons, probably. But it wasn¡¯t good practice to assume the worst of an adversary.


    ¡°You may want to make a detour, Xerae. The succubus wants to pick up someone, and I think we want to be the ones to pick it up instead of her.¡±


    Who is it? Jerome asked as he flew, swerving left and right through the labyrinth, like a peregrine falcon.


    ¡°You¡¯ll find out soon, Xerae. Just know that if she picks him up, we¡¯ll be fighting from a point of disadvantage.¡±


    Jerome sped up, following the map Achilles laid out in his mind.

 117. The Curia Regis 2

    The Assembly of the Curia Regis. Farryn. Vorthe.


    Damien Vorthe


    It should be noted that Alvric had never scored a single point against Vorthe in their forever dance to free themselves of the Royal Family¡¯s powerful grip on their clan. Something had changed, however, and Damien, if he was as superstitious as the Alvrics, would think the wheel of fate was turning against Vorthe and favoring the Alvrics. But no. He wasn¡¯t ¡ª superstitious that is.


    The question is, what changed? What happened in Terra Praeta to cause the emergence of another Wind Spirit? Because a seismic shift was underway in Vorthe. Damien sighed, looking around the table. All the Elders had dark circles under their eyes. They were exhausting themselves already to get ahead of the situation.


    ¡°What bothers you, Lord Damien?¡± Princess Aeldra asked, bringing him out of his rumination. Damien found himself too preoccupied to bother concealing his presence. There was too much going on, leaving little room for subtlety.


    ¡°They planned ahead,¡± he said. ¡°This Argonaut didn¡¯t just happen to want to come here. How many Argonauts are there anyway? A Transcendent Wind Spirit is another game changer on the board that is this continent, Aeldra. All this time and it chooses now to show up? I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s a coincidence. Not to mention the political catastrophe such a being would create.


    ¡°They had the Argonaut distract us long enough to flee.¡± Damien chuckled to himself, shaking his head wistfully. ¡°A calculated response to an ¡®unexpected¡¯ event, if you ask me.¡±


    ¡°It was truly an impressive tactic,¡± Princess Aeldra said with a nod.


    News had swiftly reached the Royal Estate that the Alvric expedition to Terra Praeta had already returned, forcibly brought back by the Argonaut. The Argonaut, however, didn¡¯t head South silently, choosing to proclaim itself the god of this land. Which happened to be a ploy. Because as soon as the Sovereign showed a bit of his power, the Argonaut vanished.


    With no significant hostages to wield as leverage, the Royal Family found themselves compelled to seek the Alvrics¡­ or play the game of kingdoms. The esteemed First Elder, Thorlin Vorthe, wasted no time in embarking on a journey Southward.


    ¡°The Great houses aren¡¯t stirring yet, are they?¡± Princess Aeldra asked.


    ¡°No. They are not,¡± Damien answered. ¡°But there is civil unrest among the denizens of Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°And they are wise not to do so,¡± the Sovereign spoke from his throne as he appeared out of thin air. Everyone stirred, rising from their seats to give a proper bow. ¡°As you were.¡±


    Damien felt the Sovereign¡¯s gaze turn on him, sharp and demanding to be revered. He felt puny, dwarfed by the presence of the Sovereign, and all too suddenly, as if power was forever out of his reach. Through years of ingrained experience and control, he had mastered his body. But facing the scrutiny of a Transcendent being was something no one can master.


    He quickly stood up from his seat at the table and went down on one knee. ¡°I have failed this council, my Sovereign. I will receive your judgment and any punishment you deem necessary.¡±


    ¡°There is no fault with you, Damien,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°You are distressed and talking more than usual.¡±


    Some members of the Curia Regis snickered at that.


    ¡°Calm yourself and let your spirit guide you to the solutions you seek for the problems you feel are weighing on you. What you worry about is but a minor setback in the grand scheme of things, so cease your worries, and calm your mind.¡±


    Damien shivered lightly as the reassuring words of the Sovereign took root in his heart and spirit. Helping to cease his worries and calm his heart.


    ¡°Thorlin would arrive in the southern hemisphere in a quarter of a day,¡± the Sovereign spoke again. ¡°Aeldra, you will be in charge of his duties till he returns. There is much to prepare for.¡±


    A subtle smile graced Damien¡¯s lips. The outcome was as anticipated from a seasoned Saint Realm expert. Elder Thorlin Vorthe possessed extraordinary prowess and could have easily traversed the distance using a void bridge. However, the ¡®cargo¡¯ he bore, contained such immense power that it could manipulate and disrupt portals, even leading to their potential destruction if not handled with utmost care. That was why he opted for a lengthier journey to ensure the artifact¡¯s safety and secrecy. A journey that seemed remarkably swifter than if a Sage in the prime of their abilities undertook it.


    A quarter of a day. Damien knew it would take him more than twice the amount of time to complete the same journey, at his fastest speed. And even then he¡¯d be extremely exhausted by the end of the journey.


    ¡°As you wish, my Sovereign,¡± Princess Aeldra Vorthe responded with a bow. Damien didn¡¯t envy her duties. The responsibilities of the Elders were numerous, and that of the First Elder, even more so.


    ¡°In the meantime, seize all production arms and warehouses of the Skysail,¡± the Sovereign said. ¡°The Alvrics, in their misguided flight, may believe they have earned their liberation. Yet the nature of freedom is an ephemeral one. Deluded by the emergence of a Transcendent as an Ancestral Spirit, they might deem themselves on par with Vorthe, but alas, they shall soon be confronted by a bitter and unforeseen reality. The question is, do they possess the mettle to sustain their newfound liberty, or shall it crumble in the face of formidable consequences?


    ¡°I am well aware of the foreign alliance they have formed with the church of light.¡± The Sovereign looked round the table from his raised dais, looking each member of the Curia Regis in the eye. ¡°Be watchful¡­ and prepare. We may have a war on the horizon sooner than we expected.¡±


    The atmosphere of the room turned grave in an instant. The church wasn¡¯t an entity they could take with levity. An institution that buried the empire that had raised it from the ground up. The common man may have long forgotten that the church was built on the blood and betrayal of thousands of people, but those of high standing in society had not.


    Damien took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Instead of nervousness though, he was getting excited at the thought of war.


    ¡°They¡¯ve stayed away from the western border for quite some time now,¡± Theone Vorthe reported. Damien couldn¡¯t help but think of how much he looked like his mother. He only resembled his father the 1st Elder, Thorlin Vorthe in facial structure. His red-brown hair, eyes, and demeanor reminded Damien of his mother.


    ¡°Our spies report that the different Orders have been stirring in the past two days,¡± Damien added. ¡°We have very few portal formations in the empire, it¡¯s a wonder they are able to move around to gather information.¡± Damien looked around the table. ¡°The Pontiff is making his move. And with Alvric on his side now, he would place portal formations in the South so his legions could come and go as they please.¡±


    ¡°He would expect us to know that. He would have another hand to play,¡± Oken Vorthe said. The Grandmaster of Wards chewed his lips in thought for a moment, ¡°I would wager he already has spies and assassins flooding Vorthe as we speak.¡±


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    ¡°That¡¯s astute, Oken,¡± the Sovereign said with a slight nod. ¡°We have always foiled his plans to have an inside ¡®eye¡¯. But now that he has Alvric on his side we cannot keep information from him anymore. However,¡± the Sovereign stopped for a moment to look around the table, his eyes settling on Damien, ¡°we can control the narrative he hears.¡±


    ¡°On it, Sovereign,¡± Damien said, promising in his heart to confuse the church¡¯s spies completely.


    ¡°Alekzandr would not throw the world into chaos, though,¡± the Sovereign continued. ¡°No one wants total war between our two empires. The instability that would follow would threaten the world¡­ Yes¡­¡± The Sovereign looked around the table once again. ¡°He has broken long-held Accords and we would rename Vorthe an Empire.¡±


    The Elders nodded sagely. They knew that renaming Vorthe an Empire wasn¡¯t the only thing they got from this though. Which meant more work ahead. Damien had never bordered himself with the Accords. He didn¡¯t need to bore himself reading lengthy paragraphs written eons ago by old men whose greed was a bottomless pit big enough to swallow the whole of Vorthe. He knew what was written in it though ¡ª the meat of it. He¡¯d had it beaten into him as a young Sage.


    The Sovereign turned to his daughter, Princess Aeldra. ¡°Start preparations for an Imperial Diet. This would be the first-ever official Diet held by Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°Yes, my Sovereign,¡± Aeldra replied with a slight bow.


    ¡°Thorlin already has a meeting planned with the war council. The plans of the council would be discussed here before the Diet. Damien?¡± Damien sat straighter in his seat but the Sovereign¡¯s eyes shone with mirth as he glanced his way.


    ¡°Damien would also see to it that the Alvric business doesn¡¯t fold. We do need Skysails after all?¡± the Sovereign said and Damien Vorthe sputtered, not expecting to be handed such a responsibility.


    The tense atmosphere in the meeting chamber was instantly dissolved. The other members of the Curia Regis chortled, enjoying the scene of the master of shadows put on the spot. He gave them all a quick glance promising retribution and they looked away. Well, the younger ones did. The older ones grinned openly at him.


    ¡°What?¡± the Sovereign smiled at him. ¡°Has the master of shadows become tongue-tied?¡±


    The rest of the Curia Regis burst out laughing. Except for the younger ones: Princess Aeldra and Theone Vorthe, the First Elder¡¯s son, could only hold in the mirth in their stomachs, looking away to conceal the light in their eyes, lest he saw them laughing at him.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta


    Jerome stormed into a cave-like hole with huge stalactites hanging from the ceilings. The cave was warm, warmer than one would expect a shelter in this part of the planet to be. Geothermal springs maybe.


    ¡°How is it so warm in here?¡± Csala asked as she looked around in awe.


    ¡°Geothermal springs,¡± Jerome explained. ¡°The water deep within the planet is heated by magma or hot rocks. It then rises to the surface as a spring of hot soothing water.¡±


    ¡°The water is soothing?¡±


    ¡°Hmm. This way.¡± Jerome led her deep into the cave. There was no visible light but he could see quite well in the dark. As could Csala.


    ¡°The air is moist and warm. It is true!¡± Csala exclaimed. ¡°It smells like salts.¡± She sniffed the air.


    ¡°What, you didn¡¯t believe me before?¡±


    She shrugged, saying, ¡°And now it smells like a dog in here.¡±


    ¡°Well, this is the den of the unbound so¡­¡± Jerome muttered as he carefully made his way through the cave.


    The cave seemed to grow wider as they went deeper. The only sound they could hear was the dripping water droplets from the stalactites and their breathing. Jerome thought of the valuable mineral deposits in the stalactites above them. It would be good to know what they held ¡ª aragonite? gypsum? Maybe sulfur minerals ¡ª it would be even better to know what to do with them. He could figure something out but it was best not to disturb the cave formation. Back on Earth, it was considered illegal to remove such formations in protected cave areas.


    ¡°Why are we here Jerome?¡± Csala asked, her voice carrying worry and a hint of fear. ¡°I don¡¯t sense anyone else except us.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Csala. I¡¯ll protect you,¡± Jerome responded, earning himself a smack on the back of his head. He could smell her fear, even as peculiar as that sounded, he recognized it for what it was. Jerome chortled at her but thought to himself. And how the hell did I start smelling emotion?


    A few months ago, that smack would have hurt like hell but now he didn¡¯t feel a thing. Achilles really did a great job improving his body. And now that he had had enough time in this new skin of his, he could tell that it wasn¡¯t just his strength that had improved. Achilles had most likely improved him down to his DNA.


    Though Jerome knew sacred artists were like supermen, he felt deep down that he wasn¡¯t like any other sacred artist, he felt¡­improved, for lack of a better word. And the haughty AI would soon voice his thoughts on how the fae was a better race of beings compared to humans¡­or maybe not.


    Jerome waited but Achilles didn¡¯t respond. He¡¯s probably busy holding off Muna. Then he heard something. ¡°Did you hear that?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked, jumping at his voice. Jerome wasted no time in picking her up and shooting forward. ¡°Are you not supposed to move away from strange noises?!¡± she screamed at him.


    No sooner did he pick her up did he land back on the cave floor to steady her.


    ¡°Is anybody there?!¡± a voice reached them from below ¡ª or the echo of a voice.


    ¡°Trudhorn! Is that you?!¡± Jerome¡¯s voice echoed in the cave, bouncing off walls to reach the depths of the hole in the ground.


    Laughter reached them a moment later. ¡°Jerome?! It¡¯s so good to hear your voice!¡±


    ¡°Hold on tight. I¡¯m coming in to get you!¡±


    ¡°No, no, no! Don¡¯t come down or you will get stuck too!¡±


    Jerome hesitated. Achilles now is a really good time to show some of that fae wisdom you keep bragging about. Jerome transmitted to the AI. He could sense him in his mind¡­busy. Whatever it was Achilles was dealing with ¡ª namely an angry and cranky ancient succubus ¡ª it was taking a great deal of his attention.


    ¡°You¡¯ll know how to solve the issue when you get down there, Xerae,¡± Achilles said. ¡°Dealing with Muna is not the issue. Preventing her spirit from finding a new body though¡­¡± And his presence dimmed once again in Jerome¡¯s mind as though he wasn¡¯t there.


    Well, that was quick, Jerome thought. He didn¡¯t even want to think of what it entailed to stop a spirit from finding another body. That was beyond his knowledge and understanding. He scanned the hole in the ground and scrunched his face in irritation.


    ¡°On second thought, maybe I¡¯ll just look for another way to get you out of there.¡± Achilles, you bastard. You actually wanted me to go down there?


    But Achilles didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Jerome, come on!¡± Trudhorn complained.


    ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t want me to come down before.¡±


    Csala looked at him with a raised eyebrow. ¡°What? Finally lost your balls?¡±


    He snorted. ¡°Too much poop is all. And all sorts of parasites,¡± he replied, holding his arm out and dropping a chunk of his evolved flowing steel.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that bad,¡± Trudhorn¡¯s voice echoed upwards. ¡°I froze the surface so they can¡¯t move. Problem is, I can¡¯t move either.¡±


    Csala shook her head in mock pity, leaned forward toward the hole, and asked, ¡°On a scale of one to ten, how bad is the smell?¡±


    ¡°Fuck!¡± Trudhorn screamed. His voice sounded horny.


    Jerome glared at Csala, knowing what transpired. Her voice must have hit him like a strong aphrodisiac. The poor Sprout would be suffering from a powerful hard-on that wouldn¡¯t go away¡­ and inside a ¡®shit-pit¡¯ nonetheless.


    Csala shrugged. ¡°I didn¡¯t make myself this powerful.¡± She batted her long eyelashes at him unapologetically.


    ¡°Get ready to move, Trudhorn. I¡¯m breaking you out in five, four, three, two, one¡­¡±

 118. Think Of The Daimon And He Shall Appear

    Castle Alvric, The City of Alva.


    ¡°Eons ago, Vorthe claimed a third of the territories on the western continent, including Alvric land. None could stop him, not even Argonaut. He unified the land and gave territories to those who pledged allegiance to him. Powerful clans were allowed to keep their lands, but their heirs and elites were to be raised in Farryn ¡ª with levies paid yearly in essence crystals.


    ¡°Alvric to the South near the Southern Sea, the giants of Baelor to the West in the forest of redwood that stretches forever, Fei who settled near the Eastern Seas, and Itakar of the frozen earth to the North. Four great houses brought tributes to pay obeisance to the new power. They did not like it, but they sure as fuck could do nothing about it.


    ¡°We became the guard dogs of Vorthe. Shielding the kingdom from outside influences, our dissatisfaction and discontent, we swallowed, while Vorthe raised a force unto himself. One so great, the legions of Therrica would have trembled before them in their time.¡±


    ¡°Therrica. That¡¯s the Empire that fell to the church of the light,¡± his son asked, bringing him out of his ruminations.


    ¡°Huh? Aye,¡± Nolan answered. He looked at his son¡¯s missing shoulder with the missing arm with a pained expression. The metal arm that was crafted for him could not truly replace a living arm. Nolan continued his story.


    ¡°While the rest of the great forces calmly accepted this rule. We rebelled once in a while. But why would we not? Alvric has existed sixteen generations before Vorthe ever was born. Alvric is the oldest in the land. Our ancestors refused Vorthe¡¯s rule. They assembled themselves to seek the help of the sacred Argonaut. Plans were made. We set forth toward the Central City of the new empire called Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°Wait, I thought Vorthe is a kingdom and not an empire, father?¡± Hedon asked, looking askance.


    ¡°At the time it was praised as an empire,¡± Nolan answered. ¡°The first Sovereign feared the actions of the powers that be at the time, so he used the term ¡®kingdom¡¯ ¡ª just a nuance to take their eyes off him. He had the heart of a mouse and yet declared himself a king!¡± he spat. ¡°They never deserved to rule; hiding in their Golden City for decades before announcing to the world that a new power reigned in the East of the continent!¡±


    His son did his best not to show how scared he was, sitting before him, though he noticed. He kept his breathing even and his hands clenched in fists to keep them from shaking. He was seated inside a runic circle of power that kept at bay, the powerful aura of his Sage Realm father. This ward was a gift from the Argonaut ¡ª the new Argonaut he had brought with him from Terra Praeta. Nolan smiled with pride at the thought. His son must have lost an arm, but he was finally getting the respect and recognition he deserved.


    With this runic circle, Hedon was impervious to the aura and presence of a Sage. Anyone or anything beyond the Sage Realm, though, and the circle would shatter from the weight of their presence. The circle of power would still work, but not for a being more powerful than a Sage.


    The Hold, it was called ¡ª a wisp of the Argonaut¡¯s power. The Hold was one of the strangest artifacts ¡ª or was it a technique? Nolan didn¡¯t know. It was the strangest artifact he had ever seen. It was not a physical substance, it had no attribute and simply existed as his son lived. If Hedon died, the circle of power died with him. The might of a Transcendent being was not one to be trifled with. The Argonaut probably had more powerful skills and techniques in its arsenal of weapons.


    Oh, how his son was lauded with praise when he arrived back to his world, back to Farryn. Nolan was also praised for raising such an heroic heir. The Argonaut had quickly created a diversion and helped them clear thousands of miles in a single leap ¡ª at least that was how he thought of portals. He was not knowledgeable of how portals worked.


    Now he was being given the Royal treatment he deserved. Women and wine were aplenty and night-long parties were thrown in his honor. He wished this could last forever. But he knew it would have to end eventually ¡ª sooner rather than later, even.


    They had dealt Vorthe a slap to the face and Vorthe, being the Superpower of this side of the world, would not take things lying down. Well now that the Argonaut ¡ª the true Argonaut in all its glory ¡ª was here, there was nothing to worry about. And much to achieve.


    ¡°Anyway,¡± Nolan continued, coming out of his reverie. ¡°When our ancestors reached the new city, the Argonaut refused to set foot in it.¡±


    ~~~


    Hedon


    Hedon¡¯s heart nearly ceased. Did that mean that this Argonaut would refuse to face the Sovereign should they ever come under attack?


    ¡°It tensed up¡­and fled back South. No amount of veneration and glorification changed its mind and our ancestors were left to sort themselves out. That day we learned what it meant to be a Transcendent. What it meant to truly be a god amongst men!¡± His father¡¯s eyes were filled with awe and reverence. ¡°Ever since then, we planned and plotted. Waiting, and hoping for this day to come. And now we are here. In our homeland.¡±


    Nolan stood up and gestured to Hedon to join him. They walked toward the large terrace of the room overlooking the sea and breathed in the salt-filled air. This was the City of Alva; grand and beautiful but dwarfed by the size and beauty of Farryn. Here the Alvrics were royalty, they held all the power. And since they had taken the step to break away from Vorthe, Hedon knew they were going to make the city grander than it currently is.


    ¡°Vorthe will bring the fight to us, Hedon. But we have something to counter them with, besides the Argonaut. Something more¡­ more.


    ¡°The Argonaut was your victory, Hedon,¡± his father said, bringing him back to the conversation. Hedon felt his father¡¯s proud gaze on him and smiled proudly to himself. He held his head high and squared his shoulders. ¡°Yet we have more to use against the Royal family.¡±


    This was what he had always wanted: for his father to look proudly at him. For his people to look at him with pride and respect. He had earned it and he was going to make damn sure the whole world knew it!


    But then his father looked at his missing arm; the arm that the Royal lap dog took as a trophy ¡ª or its replacement. His father had commissioned a metal arm from House Tarmin, the House of Steel. It was evidence of his youthful incompetence. Many would glory in the fact that they fought with magical beasts and came out alive showing their scars as a badge of honor. But he could not show off with his battle scar, yet this scar was too conspicuous to hide.


    What tale would he tell when asked how he lost his arm? That a Sprout who was four years his junior cut it off in battle? He would become the laughingstock of Alvric. Hedon clenched his jaw as anger threatened to take him over.


    His father¡¯s tone turned grave and serious all of a sudden, ¡°You see, Vorthe has a nightmare of a creature in their keeping. Caged. Yet, they let it loose from time to time, to sow chaos and destruction in the kingdom. I planned to find this monster. To kill it, or tame it if possible. I had been planning this for decades. Such a creature, if tamed, would be a great addition to one¡¯s force. But yet again, Vorthe tarnished my plans.¡±


    ¡°This monster, father, what does it look like?¡± Hedon asked. This was his first time hearing of such a thing. But a certain person came to mind: his growls and inhuman behavior at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon; his ability to shrug off death as if he was different from other sacred artists.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    No one listened to Hedon when he told the tale of his experience with Vorthe¡¯s lapdog. He had lost three Sprouts to Vorthe and a number of Blanks at the time. His father had punished him severely for that.


    Though perhaps he would listen now. Perhaps he could exonerate himself now. ¡°Father,¡± he began, ¡°back then at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon,¡± he frowned at the memory of his blunders ¡ª not blunders as in he made a mistake in confronting the wrong person, but that he didn¡¯t finish the job ¡ª he should have been a lot more ruthless at the time, ¡°that boy really was how I said he was. He had an inhuman strength¡ª¡±


    ¡°Let the past remain in the past, Hedon,¡± his father interrupted him curtly. ¡°There is no need to mention the failures of the past. Only look forward to the victories of the future.¡±


    ¡°As you say, father,¡± he acquiesced with a slight bow of his head.


    Nolan Alvric groaned. ¡°You have spoiled my mood, son. I will call upon you at a later time to have more discussions. In the meantime, leave me to my thoughts. There is much I need to brood over.¡±


    Hendon bowed and quickly left his father¡¯s personal chambers. He held in his dissatisfaction. His father still viewed him as a child, he still showed him no respect after all that he had achieved. It was he who brought the Argonaut to their world, he who made it possible for them to unite with their clan in Alvric lands. Yet he was being treated as a child. As if his opinions mattered little.


    He thought about asking one of his uncles ¡ª a member of the council ¡ª and discussing his issues but he quickly tamped down the urge. He wouldn¡¯t bow to his father¡¯s whims. He would prove himself over and over until his father had no choice but to acknowledge him as a man, an independent, capable of being his own person, capable of leading his people to victory over dangerous foes.


    It was his destiny to reign over many, to be praised and revered, to rule! And not even his father would stop his destiny!


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta. The Northern Hemisphere.


    Trudhorn


    ¡°You never cease to amaze, Jerome,¡± Trudhorn praised as they rushed out of the cave. He had tried everything in his power to get himself out of that hole to no avail. Only for Jerome to dive in ¡ª not literally ¡ª and¡­whatever it was Jerome did, he had never heard of it before. Physically, he didn¡¯t ¡®do¡¯ anything, his flowing steel did ¡ª like it had a life of its own. But Trudhorn recognized the workings of mental energy when he saw it. He wasn¡¯t born yesterday. However, he wasn¡¯t able to figure out how Jerome could hide his mental energy at such a young age.


    And then there was his companion. Trudhorn found it extremely difficult to restrain himself around her. He was constantly glancing in her direction, his thoughts heading toward perverted routes. It took Jerome standing between them to stop him from reaching out to touch her, to caress her. Those plump, pouty lips he could see poking out under her red hood must be framed by a beautiful face. He wondered what it would feel like to kiss¡ª


    Jerome slapped him on the back of his head. ¡°Focus!¡±


    ¡°Huh? Ehn. Yes, sorry about that,¡± he stammered out a reply. Trudhorn had never found himself lusting after another woman. Even the Princess of Vorthe, as beautiful as the tales that were woven of her beauty made her seem, he never felt the urge to daydream of being with someone else other than Selene.


    He looked away guiltily but Jerome didn¡¯t say more. He only grabbed him by the waist. ¡°Wait. Jerome what¡ª¡±


    They shot into the air, moving at speeds that should be impossible for a Sprout. Trudhorn¡¯s brain could hardly process the view as they sped through tunnel after tunnel. He feared that they would hit a wall or reach a dead end and be trapped like he was. All because they were moving too fast.


    ¡°Jerome, you might want to slow down.¡±


    ¡°No time. Selene is being chased down by mutated magical beasts.¡±


    They turned another sharp corner and Trudhorn resisted the urge to scream. He had never moved so fast in his life. It was overwhelming, and he had started to feel dizzy. The mention of Selene in danger, however, brought him back to his senses and he tensed. ¡°Faster, Jerome. Faster!¡±


    ¡°Calm yourself. We¡¯re almost there.¡±


    Trudhorn looked at the woman on the other side of Jerome. To his relief, she was being carried by Jerome as well. It would be quite embarrassing if she could fly like Jerome. But what was he thinking, he had to focus on getting to the love of his life!


    ~~~


    Bram


    True to their lineage, the Itakars were blessed by the cold North of their world. Even in Terra Praeta, Bram could sense that the twins were not as fatigued as the rest of their teammates ¡ª like they could shrug off the cold, or it empowered them in its embrace. But no. He knew the truth about their bodies.


    Their bloodline made it possible for them to live in the cold of the North, but when said cold became too much to bear, they succumbed to it. It just happened that they had greater levels of resistance against the cold. Like every other human, they would eventually succumb to it. For they were human down to their very bones.


    Ajax stood to his left facing off against four of the strange creatures. The kid he once knew had grown into a man. He turned his head to his right to see Selene readying her weapons, her core spinning too slowly as she faced off against four of the same creatures. She was exhausted ¡ª both in body and core ¡ª they all were.


    Nia, Tega, and the rest of their team were surrounded as well. The darn creatures had surrounded them and harassed them, forcing them to break up into smaller groups. All to rub it in their faces that they were superiors.


    The creatures, whatever they were, with their wolf-like forms, were hunting them for sport. Bram recognized the savage glint in their eyes ¡ª one accompanied by intelligence, cunning, and something akin to joy ¡ª joy in the hunt. It was an instinctual part of predators that would always trump their intelligence.


    And the reason they would have a chance to survive, for when predators get like this, the urge to kill can drive them mad. Bram looked at their newly bonded sacred beasts. All seven of them huddled together with their heads down and their tails between their legs ¡ª a position of submission. It was a good thing that Selene had learned how to bond magical beasts to make them sacred beasts before they came to Terra Praeta. That knowledge saved them throughout their escape from the daimon wolves.


    Bram slowly removed the arrow from his bow. The demon wolves turned their sharp gazes on him, watching his every move.


    That¡¯s it. Focus on me yer bunch o¡¯ smelly pups. He took out his dagger and slowly, oh so slowly pressed its edge against the skin of his palm.


    ¡°Selene.¡±


    ¡°Wha¡ªBram! What the fuck are you doing?!¡±


    ¡°Simple. I distract ¡®em, and ye get the jump on ¡®em. I run to the edge of the cliff ¡®n jump off. Ajax does his ¡®jump thing¡¯ and saves me. And we¡¯re good¡­ Good, right?¡±


    ¡°No, not good!¡± Selene hissed.


    ¡°Have you thought this through, Bram?¡± Ajax asked quietly. He was the only one not fussing among all three of them. The son of a bitch had obtained an artifact that helped him jump chunks of space within twenty arms span around him. Talk about luck. Bram sighed wistfully. This truly was a gamble he was playing. If only someone like Jerome was here to help even the odds.


    ¡°Because you¡¯d be dead,¡± Selene continued, ¡°And I¡¯ll lose another spotter. Now put that fucking dagger a¡ª¡±


    Bram applied pressure and the blade cut into his skin, bringing with it stinging pain. Warm blood flowed to the surface and the demon wolves growled. Their eyes threatened to lose focus and some even began salivating at the sight of the blood that trickled down his hand.


    Selene cursed at him for being reckless but he did not care. Right now, any plan was a good plan. No matter how reckless it felt.


    Bram bolted, running to the edge of the mountain to his right. The demon wolves went into a frenzy and gave chase, just as he had predicted. It was up to Selene and Ajax to save the day now. What he was doing felt like throwing his life away, it felt like running away from responsibility, like taking the easy way out of trouble.


    Selene never moved to attack. She never got the chance. As soon as the first demon wolf took a few steps, they were all consumed by flames, a conflagration so hot that it disintegrated them all in less than ten breaths.


    Bram slowed down in his tracks. The perplexing look on everyone¡¯s faces let him know that none of them knew what was going on.


    ¡°I leave you guys for a few seasons and you get into trouble like this. Tsk, tsk, tsk.¡± A very familiar, very welcome, yet annoying voice greeted his ears.


    Bram looked up and chuckled. ¡°Well, think of the daimon and he shall appear.¡±

 119. To The Strong Goes The Spoils

    Jerome flew out of the mountain and into the open, breathing in the cold air of the frozen north. The Itakars were stranded between a rock and a hard place ¡ª well between a dozen unbound and a very long fall down a steep mountain. He could tell they were too exhausted to fly, if not they would have flown away a long time ago.


    The unbound were relentless in their pursuit it seemed and flying away wouldn¡¯t save them even if they could. The unbound would sniff them out with their superior senses. And Jerome was sure these mutated creatures could jump very high in the sky, judging from their unique physique.


    When he was within firing range, he spat out a condensed flame of lethal blue energy. The blue flame instantly disappeared into the distance, toward the battle, and split into a dozen different fractions of itself, yet not losing its efficacy. The efficacy of a simple binding makes this so much more dangerous, he thought gleefully.


    Painful roars broke the silence of the day as he quickly reached the supposed sight of the battle. ¡°I leave you guys for a few seasons and you get into trouble like this. Tsk, tsk, tsk,¡± he said with a playful tone as he took in the appearance of his friends.


    Bram looked up and chuckled, saying, ¡°Well, think of the daimon and he shall appear.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not out of trouble yet,¡± Jerome said as he landed, his tone turning serious. The Itakars rushed him and Trudhorn, crushing them in bear hugs. They were happy to reunite with a friend they thought they had lost forever and from the looks of it, they had lost a few of their teammates. Jerome sympathized with them in his heart but they still had the unbound to worry about.


    ¡°Jerome, it¡¯s so good to see you,¡± Selene smiled at him, and Jerome nodded at her with a smile of his own. ¡°What do you mean we¡¯re not out of trouble yet?¡± Everyone stopped to listen to them.


    ¡°The creatures that were chasing you. They¡¯re called ¡®unbound¡¯: a mutated race of wolves that were enslaved by the Fae a long time ago. There are still more of them, many more, and my friend, Csala, here can teach us how to deal with them. And we¡¯ll be needing your help too.¡±


    They turned their attention to Csala who strode forward boldly to address them.


    ~~~


    Csala


    The humans were sizing her up. The ladies among them felt threatened by her presence and the men? The men just wanted what all men wanted. She wasn¡¯t the same succubus she used to be before meeting Jerome however.


    ¡°Play nice,¡± Jerome said to her with a knowing look.


    ¡°Some of you might find it uncomfortable to be around me but bear with it. I¡¯m different from anyone you¡¯ve ever met and yes, to answer the question you¡¯re all thinking. I¡¯m not human.¡±


    As if to prove her point, some moon howlers, probably, tamed by the humans came sniffing at her. One even tried to remove her hood and reveal her face.


    ¡°Calm down everyone, she doesn¡¯t bite,¡± Jerome said to calm the growing tension around the group. The moon howlers whimpered as if his voice scared them. They slunk back behind the humans and their behavior confused their tamers, causing them to hesitate to speak.


    Csala silently thanked him for that. Humans were just like any other race of beings. They responded to the unknown with fear. And when you¡¯re afraid, you tend to lash out. But she had to put that out there. Instead of them finding out at a later time and thinking she was hiding her heritage.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s get to it then. First, we¡¯ll need to find a defensible position. This place is too open. Inside the mountain would do. With mountain-sized walls around us, the unbound would be limited in movement.¡±


    ¡°Come everyone, let¡¯s go.¡± Jerome began leading everyone back the way they came. ¡°They are watching us right now. Afraid to come close enough, lest they be burned to cinders. But that wouldn¡¯t last long.¡±


    ¡°Walk confidently and show no fear or uncertainty,¡± Csala took over the conversation. ¡°They can smell our emotions with their heightened senses.¡±


    ¡°They can smell emotions,¡± Selene said. ¡°I read about some species of wolves in our world that can do that.¡±


    ¡°What is that by the way? Wolves,¡± Csala asked and looked back at the silver-haired human. She was uniquely beautiful. Csala had only ever seen hair like that on older succubi. But it fit her frame, giving her an air of nobility.


    Deep ice-blue eyes turned to her, uncertain, yet not wanting to offend.


    ¡°Moon howlers,¡± Jerome supplied. ¡°Come on, everyone. We can delay with the unbound but we can¡¯t with the other problem we need help with.¡± The crunching of snow resumed and they all trekked up the mountain.


    The wind began to pick up. A storm was coming and with it, the unbound would bring their fury. They had just lost twelve members of their pack. They won¡¯t be toying with the humans anymore. No, they would come for blood.


    Csala looked around one last time and went into the hole Jerome just made in the side of the mountain.


    ~~~


    Selene


    The mountain wall crumbled and everyone trooped inside. Selene felt like she was seeing an illusion. The ease at which Jerome accomplished this action was beyond her level of understanding. She didn¡¯t feel his core spin, didn¡¯t sense any essence leave his body, what she did sense was the earth caving in as he walked toward the wall. There was no hand gesture, no mental energy. Nothing.


    She looked at Trudhorn to see if he knew of this but her lover was just as dumbfounded as she was.


    ¡°Abnormalities are normal with him,¡± Csala said. The mysterious lady dressed in all red sounded as if he did this all the time. ¡°And trust me, you never get used to it.¡±


    Selene had no words to say. She had only seen sages wield essence like that. According to her mother, Sages had the ability to command the essence and the forces around them and use them as weapons. Upon entering the Sage Realm, the core is once again transformed ¡ª evolved would be the right word for it ¡ª to accommodate more essence, and the body and mind are reborn, or more like reforged, by the will of the Spirit, and the fire of the Soul. Soulfire, her mother had called it.


    Selene could only look forward to the day she would be capable of wielding power like that. But here was a Sprout younger than she was, and he was already wielding essence like a Sage!


    The hole in the wall expanded continuously, causing the mountain to quake and shift. She watched as Jerome continued to move forward. He never lifted a finger, just walked forward. When he got to the center of the newly created cavern, he slowly clenched his fist and the rough ground smoothened out, the walls also. The cold wintery breeze poured into the newly created cavern cooling down the warmth trapped in the walls.


    Jerome raised his arms slowly above his head and four pillars rose from the ground to support the ceiling. The pillars rose slowly. He took a stance, made a gesture with his hands and the roof of the cavern solidified into rock. Everyone watched with bated breath as the stone pillars hardened as they rose to meet the ceiling. Selene understood what was going on, but the efficacy of it all left more to the imagination.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    Bram whistled in awe. The others among her teammates just stared at him open-mouthed.


    ¡°That is a magnificent skill you have there, Jerome,¡± Ajax said. ¡°When did you learn to do that?¡±


    Jerome just smiled. ¡°We¡¯ve been in Terra Praeta for a really long time. I¡¯m sure everyone must have picked up one thing or another.¡±


    True. It may be an artifact. Like Ajax¡¯s artifact that allows him to cross over fifty feet of space around him. Or it may just be a skill. Selene never saw any object with him. ¡°Whatever it is, we are grateful that you used it to help get us to a safe place.¡±


    Jerome gave her a weird look as he walked toward the entrance. ¡°Of course, I would. You¡¯re my friends.¡±


    The redhead beauty chuckled. Selene looked at her curiously. What did she find funny about what was going on? But she spoke up to clear the air soon after.


    ¡°Jerome, you are the dumbest and yet the smartest person I have ever met, you know?¡± she said and every other person chuckled loudly.


    ¡°Hey now?¡± Jerome knelt by the entrance and looked back. ¡°Should I take that as a compliment or an insult?¡±


    Csala snorted. Very unladylike. Ah, Selene smiled in thought. A woman after my heart.


    ¡°You¡¯ve clearly grown stronger than your friends, Jerome,¡± she turned to Selene and her teammates and quickly added, ¡°I mean no offense.¡±


    ¡°None taken,¡± Selene replied.


    ¡°They see it, and it births a chasm between you and them,¡± the red-haired beauty continued. ¡°But you don¡¯t see it, even though you feel it.¡±


    Jerome scoffed, ¡°No, they don¡¯t.¡± Then, he looked toward her for confirmation. Selene could only smile and look away. What could she say? To the strong goes the spoils of war, and to the competent goes leadership. That was all the confirmation he needed to acknowledge the truth in Csala¡¯s words. Whatever he did with that fact was up to him now. But Selene hoped he would be the same Jerome she met a few moons ago.


    Jerome was quiet for some time, doing heavens know what on the ground that was starting to take on snow. His hands and fingers were moving and his brows wrinkled in concentration. But Selene could tell his mind was elsewhere, brooding over what his friend had said.


    The lady was bold to have come out and said it like that. She wouldn¡¯t have had the confidence to admit weakness, even to a friend. Although Jerome couldn¡¯t lord it over her due to her status, he could lord it over her teammates. And that would bring friction into their bond that she wasn¡¯t ready to deal with.


    Suddenly, a golden ring of light appeared mid-air. It blocked the entrance, pushed out the cold air, and warmed the cavern. The ring was surrounded by tiny unknown scripts Selene had never seen before.


    Selene felt her body relax, fatigue threatened to overtake her all of a sudden. Her shoulders sagged as her body soaked up the warmth like a hungry predator. She could hear sighs and moans of relief all around her, the ring of light that appeared out of thin air at the entrance of the cave all but forgotten.


    ¡°Is that a ward, Jerome?¡± she asked, walking over to the entrance of the cave. She could feel the heat emanating from the formation. With a touch, the ward rippled in the air but stood firm.


    Jerome nodded. ¡°It won¡¯t hold for long, but it¡¯ll go a long way to help us reduce their numbers.¡±


    Selene was a little bit confused. Did he just¡­ create a ward out of thin air? With no tools? No power source and no conduit? Even the elites of House Rurik, the House of Wards, couldn¡¯t do that. Selene found questions piling up in her mind but she knew this wasn¡¯t the time to ask them.


    ¡°Look,¡± Jerome walked toward her teammates. ¡°I¡¯m still the same person you met a few seasons ago.¡± His voice was soft and imploring. ¡°I¡¯m not gonna change just because I may be more powerful than anyone around. No, I¡¯m not that kind of person. And I¡¯d like for you all to relate with me as you always have. Nothing¡¯s gonna change about my attitude, at least not for the worst.¡±


    Nia sighed, ¡°Yer sure ¡®bout that, Jerome? People change, y¡¯know? And many times it¡¯s not for good ¡ª no matter how much they mean well. Power changes people.¡±


    Selene noticed her words were restrained. Like she was watching herself so as not to offend Jerome. Selene sighed. She knew Nia. Her friend wouldn¡¯t have cared if it was someone else. She would have not put any effort to show deference. And for her friend, this was deference enough ¡ª at least for a start.


    ¡°Well, if I ever try to change negatively, I have you all to help remind me of who I am.¡±


    Even before they began to work together, this was already happening. Maybe that was why the red-haired lady put it out so they could talk about it, instead of keeping it in their hearts. She looked at the red-haired lady who was focused on the conversation between Jerome and Nia. Selene walked up to her and decided to have a little discussion with the mysterious woman.


    ¡°Since when did virtue become a problem among us, eh?¡± Bram said. ¡°He said he wouldn¡¯t change his attitude toward us, if he does, we give ¡®em a smack on the head, eh?... eh?¡± He looked around at everyone but no one supported him. They all looked away.


    ¡°Hmm. You can do so,¡± Jerome said, smiling. ¡°Csala does it all the time.¡± The redhead in question snorted and looked away. That calmed everyone a little but it also brought another question to light. How powerful was Csala to be able to smack him in the head without consequence?


    ~~~


    Csala


    ¡°I mean well, Selene,¡± Csala said as the silver-haired beauty walked up to her. ¡°It was best to get this out so no one feels like they are losing themselves in your team.¡±


    ¡°You must have a lot of experience leading a team to come up with such a drastic approach. I never would¡¯ve opened up about something like that.¡±


    Csala shook her head. ¡°I actually don¡¯t. I just know him a lot.¡± She looked over at Jerome who was smiling and laughing with the members of Selene¡¯s group, or at least she assumed it was Selene¡¯s group. She stood out as the leader among them. ¡°He doesn¡¯t concern himself with power, unlike other people.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess that¡¯s a good thing about him. He had always been very powerful. A few seasons ago I didn¡¯t¡­we didn¡¯t concern ourselves with it¡­probably because his powers were quite relatable to our level of advancement. We thought of him as just extremely gifted. But now,¡± Selene sighed. ¡°Someone who can wield essence without drawing from his core is very, very powerful.¡±


    ¡°You mean dangerous.¡± Csala raised an eyebrow at the Sprout, but Selene wouldn¡¯t see it because her hood was still up. Csala could understand why she was weary. She was once weary around Jerome too. But Jerome had proven he could be trusted. Selene and her teammates just needed more time with him.


    ~~~


    Boom!


    ¡°Okay, everyone. It¡¯s time to get rid of these guys for good,¡± Jerome urged everyone. ¡°The barrier you see is unidirectional¡ª¡±


    Boom! Another unbound crashed into the barrier but it held still. The runic circle glowed midair, like a golden halo around the entrance of the cavern. Runes were carved around it midair, making for a mystical-looking barrier. Jerome had taken a chance on one of his lessons ¡ª after much thought though. Crafting wards without a binding was a bit more complicated than with one. But his binding wouldn¡¯t survive such pounding. The unbound were using their bodies like battering rams to break the ward.


    ¡°It¡¯ll hold, right? Not that I¡¯m doubting your skills or anything,¡± Bram asked.


    ¡°Shut up, Bram, and focus on killing,¡± Ajax retorted.


    Jerome looked between both of them, surprised at their interaction. Ajax had changed a lot since he last saw him. He used to be the one with the air of uncertainty around him, even if he tried his best to look confident and powerful. Now, he was confident and not just trying to be confident ¡ª confidence that Jerome sensed was borne from experience, and he carried himself better. Jerome smiled to himself. He liked this new Ajax better.


    Csala coughed, bringing everyone¡¯s attention to her. ¡°Make sure to aim for the neck and eyes if you can. The neck, because that¡¯s the easier option. Another part of their bodies you can hit to deal a heavy blow ¡ª I repeat, a heavy blow, not a fatal one is their armpits. That part of their bodies is sensitive for some reason. Makes them twitch and lose control of their bodies, long enough for you to stick an arrow in their necks or through their eyes.¡±


    Boom!


    Everyone looked at the scripted circle and fanned out. The booms were coming more frequently now. The unbound were a blur as they crashed into them. Their black furry asses were a contrast to the whiteness and purity of the snow.


    ¡°This is a nice change of pace. We¡¯ve been trying to survive on the run for so long, this almost feels surreal,¡± Ajax said and his teammates agreed. He let loose an arrow that should have sunken easily into the neck of the unbound that slammed into the scripted circle.


    Bram and Darryl burst out laughing. He turned to Csala with a raised eyebrow. Jerome watched the exchange. If it was a few months ago, Ajax would have taken offense at that and made sure to say a few choice words. But now he maintained his calm. The guy had truly grown up.


    ¡°Their hide is as tough as steel,¡± Csala said, and Jerome quickly killed the beast with a string of living steel. ¡°They use essence to strengthen their bodies so they can shrug off the impact of normal weapons like it¡¯s nothing. You must imbue your arrows with essence if you want to pierce their hides.¡±


    Jerome watched as they all sighed in frustration. He could tell they were not just tired but depleted. They had probably used up all the essence crystal they had with them. Without a word, he strolled to the center of the cavern and squatted down again. He started crafting another scripted circle to help draw ambient essence. This would be a good use of his binding as no one would be crashing into it.

 120. Punishment

    Nandene. Outskirts of Vorthe. The Southern Region.


    Rihal


    Ash threw up the moment they appeared, retching and coughing as she bent over the meal she had eaten before tagging along with him.


    ¡°Urgh,¡± his companion muttered. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have come with us, Ash.¡± She leaned over Ash, rubbing her back to comfort the Blank.


    ¡°I¡¯m bored,¡± Ash said, gasping for air. ¡°And this sounds exciting.¡±


    ¡°You hear that, ¡®father walrus¡¯?¡± his colleague, Crystal said. Her voice was sweet and musical to his ears.


    Rihal sighed, regretting having her tag along to observe Jerome years ago. His mind drifted to the day Jerome called him Father Walrus, the day his life changed and he made a mortal enemy of Hedon Alvric. But he forced his mind back to the present.


    ¡°I should look for a proper pet name for you too, Crystal,¡± he said. His colleague smiled up at him. Or at least her eyes smiled. Her face covering prevented him from seeing her full smile. All three of them wore non-descript robes that showed a bit of luxury but not too much, as if they came from lesser noble homes. Their heads were wrapped in clothing to hide their faces as well.


    Crystal was a very beautiful lady, and a Vorthe, like him. They were distant cousins as far as he could tell ¡ª more than thrice removed ¡ª and very attracted to each other it seemed. But Rihal didn¡¯t know if he was ready for a relationship, yet.


    ¡°I would be waiting to hear it,¡± Crystal said suggestively.


    Ash finally stood up and took a deep breath. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can bear that again.¡±


    ¡°Teleportation is not for the weak of heart,¡± Rihal said. ¡°Especially not for Blanks. Come on.¡± He started toward the town of Nandene.


    ¡°Where are we?¡± Ash asked as she and Crystal caught up with his long strides.


    ¡°This is the town of Nandene,¡± Crystal answered, gesturing toward the town ahead. ¡°Jerome was here once, and he saved the town, in a manner of speaking ¡ª he¡¯s ¡®baby walrus¡¯ by the way.¡± She chuckled at her joke.


    ¡°Oooh, so Layla learned that from you, didn¡¯t she? She never told me who ¡®father walrus¡¯ or ¡®baby walrus¡¯ were.¡±


    Crystal chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s an inside joke.¡±


    An inside joke of the Nediti, you mean, Rihal grumbled inwardly. Every member of the Nediti knew it by now he was sure.


    ¡°Can we focus?¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯re here to investigate the mayor. If we discover he¡¯s in contact with the Alvrics and trading with them¡ª¡±


    ¡°We apprehend him!¡± Ash interrupted, eyes full of excitement.


    ¡°No, Ash. We find a way to use him to get into Alva, the Alvrics¡¯ capital city,¡± Rihal corrected. ¡°We¡¯ve set some things in motion that would help us ensure our safe passage into Alvric lands. Would have been easier to portal there but¡­¡±


    Crystal snorted. Ash looked between the two of them in confusion. ¡°But what?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s just say a vital resource has been confiscated from him,¡± Crystal responded, glaring at him. ¡°And because his was confiscated, mine was restricted to only transport two ¡ª me and you, Ash.¡±


    Ash frowned, not liking the cryptic response. Crystal grunted in displeasure ¡ª a nigh pleasant sound. ¡°Why is she here, Rihal? She could compromise the mission.¡± Then she turned to Ash with a hand on her shoulder, though Ash was taller than her. ¡°I don¡¯t mean to say you¡¯re a hindrance but we¡¯re professionals at this.¡±


    Ash¡¯s shoulders visibly sagged. Rihal said nothing. She needed to realize the importance of the mission they were undertaking.


    ¡°You realize our master gave me this mission as punishment, right?¡± he said. Right. The master of shadows wouldn¡¯t have confiscated his void bridge if not.


    ¡°Yes, punishment for sneaking into the Aviary,¡± Crystal shot back. ¡°Tell me, have you completely recovered from using it?¡±


    She meant the rune he used to merge with the tree. His ajanai provided him with some very esoteric skills but they came at a price.


    Rihal grunted in response, unwilling to answer or look at her. ¡°Master granted her permission to follow.¡± Then he transmitted his voice directly to Crystal¡¯s ear using his mental energy, ¡°He all but told me to take her with me, ¡®Orders from the 1st Elder,¡¯ he said.¡±


    Crystal looked at him in shock, which quickly turned into a glare. She punched him in the gut and moved to put Ash between them. ¡°And you didn¡¯t think to tell me!¡± she transmitted back. What sort of games are the Elders playing?


    Rihal coughed as he held his stomach from the pain. He didn¡¯t know Crystal could hit this hard. ¡°It¡¯s not a game so much as it is politics,¡± he transmitted back. And he was sure it all had to do with Jerome. Which to him sounded insane. Why put the girl the fated Dark One loved in danger? But he couldn¡¯t tell Crystal that. He swore an oath after all.


    ¡°Ash is different, Rihal. And they know it ¡ª the Elders. She¡¯s faster and stronger than most of her peers. I hear things from the guards in the estate. They talk amongst each other. Most notable are her sight and voice. Have you heard her sing?¡±


    Huh? That was new. Rihal had always known that Jerome was different from others but it seemed Ash was just as mysterious as her romantic interest. He might have to do a different ¡ª no. Concentrating on Jerome was all that mattered right now. He had misplaced his priorities once, he wouldn¡¯t do it again.


    Ash looked between the both of them, her previous dejection nowhere to be seen in her expression. ¡°You know, the both of you fit each other really well; you argue like an old couple.¡± Then she walked away, ahead of them without a care for the mountain she had just dropped in their midst ¡ª figuratively.


    They both stopped in shock, blushing profusely. Crystal gave Rihal a sidelong glance, her gaze filled with what he could only call embarrassment with a mix of longing, her anger having evaporated. The mood was broken and all three of them walked into the town in awkward silence. Well, awkward for Rihal and Crystal.


    The guards at the gate stopped them before they walked through and asked for a small toll. Rihal flicked them three gold cuts. He would never put crystal coins in the hands of mortal guards. He wouldn¡¯t want them following him around as if he was some kind of messiah. Plus the chaos they could cause for such trivial things could not be overlooked.


    ¡°They don¡¯t collect a toll to enter Farryn,¡± Ash said when they were some distance away. ¡°Why do they collect it here?¡±


    ¡°Farryn is the capital city, Ash. Unless you¡¯re riding a wagon full of goods or going to pick up goods in a wagon, you pay no toll,¡± Rihal said, not bothering to explain deeply.


    But Ash wouldn¡¯t have it. ¡°But why?¡± she asked. ¡°There must be a reason for it.¡±


    He stared at her. She reminded him of Jerome in that moment; always so inquisitive.


    ¡°In truth, the nobility voted to keep the capital city toll-free. Vorthe holds a Diet once every decade to discuss tolls and such and such¡ª¡±


    ¡°A diet? You mean they come together to dine?¡±


    Crystal chortled opposite him on the other side of Ash, who glared at her.


    ¡°No, Ash,¡± he said. ¡°A Diet¡­ an Imperial Diet is the highest representative assembly in an Empire. The nobles come together once every decade to talk about things like taxes and tolls and such and such.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ I think my head would burst just thinking about those ¡®such and such¡¯ you say they discuss,¡± Ash said.


    Rihal finally burst out laughing, unable to hold back. Not because of what she said ¡ª well, a little since her expression was funny ¡ª but because he thought he saw a little bit of Jerome in her. But no, Ash was too simple-minded to want to learn about complicated stuff like the Diet. Jerome would have lashed onto his every word in fascination and soaked them up like a sponge.


    He chuckled again.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be seeing more Diets in a year than we¡¯ve seen in a lifetime from now on, though,¡± Crystal said thoughtfully. ¡°With Vorthe now aiming to be recognized as an Empire worldwide, we¡¯ll be seeing more of it.¡±


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Rihal kept quiet. He wasn¡¯t one for politics. But he could see how the international community would purposefully want to keep Vorthe where it is socially. Obscure the truth and maintain the status quo. Vorthe being recognized as an Empire led to more complications than other powers in the world would like to¡­ what? Admit? Allow? He shook his head to clear it of such thoughts. It wasn¡¯t his place to strategize for the Royal Family.


    They got closer to the residential areas of the town and began to see more people. The town looked the same as it did when he and the viper stumbled into it before they crashed the marketplace. Even though he didn¡¯t get a good look at it then. The dirt road that led into town was dusty and crooked, as were the houses. Though the houses looked a little better. They were made with clay bricks and slanted clay tiled roofs to keep the snow and rain away.


    ¡°Wow!¡± Ash exclaimed. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anyone with golden hair before.¡±


    The denizens of the town all had corn-colored hair. They were in a sea of gold, so to speak. Crystal dragged Ash toward the manor in the distance before she did something stupid. They walked briskly for many breaths before they reached the front of the manor. They didn¡¯t stop to talk to the guards standing guard. Rihal revealed a tiny bit of his aura as he walked by.


    ¡°Send for the mayor,¡± he said and pushed open the double doors to enter. The two guards on either side of the entrance trembled as he passed by.


    ¡°Y-yes, my lord!¡± they both stuttered.


    They entered the foyer and sat down like they owned the place. Ash looked nervously at him and Crystal, momentarily figuring out why they were acting differently all of a sudden. She too sat down comfortably with a scowl. And he had to say it fit her very well.


    Ash had grown in the nearly two years Jerome had been away. She had gotten bigger in the chest and more shapely in the hips. It was a wonder how her spine managed all that weight in her chest. Plus, she was tall. Not as tall as him but tall still. Compared to her, Crystal was fairly curvy, moderately busty, and of average height.


    Layla was always teasing Ash about missing her boyfriend anytime they came around him. Jerome would be in for a surprise when he came back. The little girl who used to blush anytime he looked her way was no longer little anymore. He¡¯d heard things. And seen her making obscene gestures to Layla while they gossiped. It made him feel sad that Ash wasn¡¯t ¡®pure¡¯ anymore, at least in her mind. But such was life. No matter, she would always be like a daughter to him.


    ¡°Ah!¡± a boisterous voice sounded from his left. ¡°Guests from the capital, I believe. Ahahah! Welcome, welcome! I am mayor Bas, mayor of Nandene. How may I be of help to you?¡±


    The man was the most rotund man Rihal had ever seen. With blonde hair and a thin mustache on his face. He wore a red robe that made him look like he¡¯d just woken up from sleep, but it was adorned with a lot of gold and finery. Rihal snorted.


    ¡°We know who you are. Sit,¡± he commanded, holding up a mid-grade crystal coin between his index and middle finger for the mayor to see.


    ¡°Eh?¡± The mayor stopped, nonplussed. Then he quickly took a seat, eyes alight with greed.


    Rihal was sure he could count by hand the amount of mid-grade crystal coins the mayor had ever held by hand. Lows were easy to come by and a small-town mayor like Bas would have access to them, even mids. But the amount of mids a noble such as Bas would have seen could not be much. He wasn¡¯t a landed noble ¡ª far from it ¡ª just some country-side quack whose father was fortunate enough to be elected to hold office.


    ¡°We wish to know about the boy who brought a prisoner here two years ago,¡± Crystal began. Her voice had taken on more allure. As if she was some important, high-class noble who looked down on everything and everyone around her, causing Mayor Bas to raise his guard and grovel before her. Exactly what they wanted.


    Ash looked at her as if she was seeing her for the first time. Rihal forced himself not to smile at the look in her eyes. But the young Blank quickly caught herself and composed herself. Fortunately, Mayor Bas was focused on clinging to Crystal¡¯s every word to notice.


    ¡°We heard he practically saved the town, drawing away an enemy of Vorthe,¡± Crystal said. Rihal flicked the mid to Bas who caught it and held it in both hands with a feverish reverence.


    ¡°Ah, yes, yes,¡± Bas caught himself. ¡°But I wouldn¡¯t say he saved the town you see. Er, there was ¡ª er, he just¡­ led the enemy away was all,¡± Mayor Bas said, fawning over Crystal.


    For a moment, Rihal felt the urge to turn him into a smear on the cushioned chair his oversized arse occupied. He disliked people like this Bas. Always groveling and fawning, only to one day turn around and stab you in the back.


    ¡°There have been investigations into the massacre in the village south of here,¡± Rihal said. ¡°I would like you to provide me with some guards to search the village.¡± With an overly expressive twirl of his fingers, he produced another mid between them and flicked it to the mayor. He needed to keep up the theatrics to preserve the image he presented.


    ¡°Of course, my lord!¡± Bas shot up from his seat, body jiggling like it contained a storm.


    Within a few dozen breaths, word was sent to one of the barracks to gather some guards. About a third of a quarter later, they set off toward the ghost village of woodbone with a team of twenty guards, where a surprise was waiting for them ¡ª well, the guards. Or those Bas had injected into their party to spy on them and report anything suspicious.


    Reaching the village, they broke up into teams of five and began combing through every nook and cranny of the place. The whole place was burnt to the ground. Blackened earth and soot covered every surface they could see. Yet the sparse trees and bushes surrounding the village were left untouched. They had already begun encroaching on the ghost village. It had been two years after all. Every settlement around woodbone had steered clear of the area, taking the massacre as a bad omen.


    Rihal led his team away from the piece of evidence he had planted a little south of the middle of the village. One of the guards with them kept glancing his way nervously as they slowly searched and made their way through the debris.


    ¡°Oh! So this is where it all went down,¡± Ash said looking around with her eyes wide open. And very ignorant of what they were doing here.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Rihal said.


    ¡°They are close to it, Rihal,¡± Crystal transmitted to him. They had been monitoring their bait since they walked into the ghost village. And a few guards were close to it.


    ¡°Yes, I can sense them,¡± he responded. The damned guard just needed to step three or more paces to the right and he¡¯d ¡ª someone else found it. Rihal and Crystal tensed a little before looking at each other. The people they were expecting to find their bait had overlooked it. Well, things don¡¯t always go the way you want them to.


    Ash noticed the tension between them though. ¡°What?¡± she asked, drawing the attention of their other team members.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± he said. Ash stared at him for a breath before shrugging and looking away. But the guards on their team weren¡¯t convinced. Rihal decided it was time to ditch them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s search elsewhere,¡± he said, practically dragging Ash away with him. Crystal grumbled but went with him. The guards shuffled around them for a while but slowed after a few steps. There were twenty of them moving around, hence, they thought they could avoid detection with such a poor performance of stealth. He had successfully steered their attention to whatever they thought he wanted to avoid.


    Crystal directed Ash to another corner. She looked around, pretending to just now notice the group who had found their bait. They both made a scene of calling out to other guards to check out the group with their bait.


    ¡°What have you found there,¡± a guard called out as he walked toward the group.


    ¡°Uh. Nothing,¡± one of them said.


    The guard quickly noticed a hand being slipped behind a back to hide something and pounced. Five guards crashed into the blackened dirt with grunts. Rihal, with the experience of using mental energy and accurate precision, slipped the bait out of the hand holding it and rolled it towards the mayor¡¯s spies.


    Fortunately, the bait was covered in black ash in the process, so no one noticed its metallic shine. The spy quickly picked it up and another covered him. Bingo.


    Rihal didn¡¯t look their way. He walked up to the men in a heap with long aggressive strides. ¡°Where is it?¡± he growled.


    All five guards froze in fear. They were patted down and even stripped by their superior, who happened to be the only Blank among them. And the one who had tackled them down. Nothing was found on them and the search went on for a while until Crystal called an end to it, complaining about soiling her boots in the filth of the dead. Harsh words but they had a cover to maintain.


    ~~~


    Ash


    ¡°You did something, didn¡¯t you?¡± she said, looking directly at Uncle Rihal.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± he asked with a raised eyebrow.


    Ash looked at Crystal who left them to relax on a sofa in another room. There was no door separating both rooms so they could see and hear each other. She was in on the whole thing.


    They had left the village and headed North a ways away from the town of Nandene. This place they were in now was a farmhouse. Night had fallen and the wind blew cold air that smelled like soil and manure into the wooden house they were in.


    ¡°Whatever those guards found, you slipped it out of their hands. There¡¯s no way they would have lost it even if they were tackled by a Blank. I¡¯ve been a Drudge too, Rihal.¡±


    ¡°It was bait, of sorts,¡± Uncle Rihal explained. She waited for him to expound on his statement but he said nothing, which frustrated her. What kind of explanation was that?


    ¡°Crystal?¡± she said, looking at the female Spirit Realm artist.


    ¡°Why does Rihal get to be ¡®Uncle Rihal¡¯ and I¡¯m just ¡®Crystal¡¯?¡± Crystal asked, glaring at her.


    Ash grimaced. ¡°Sorry,¡± she mumbled. She thought about it. Even wanting to try saying ¡®Aunty Crystal¡¯ seemed¡­ urgh, she didn¡¯t have a word for it. She could feel a headache coming on just thinking about it.


    ¡°So?¡± Crystal said, looking at her with folded arms. She tried to look serious and angry but the humor and smugness in her voice bellied her expression.


    ¡°Not happening.¡±


    Uncle Rihal burst into laughter, startling her. What was wrong with him today? That¡¯s twice now.


    ¡°I swear, you and Jerome are so much alike,¡± he said, still laughing. ¡°He said the same thing when I told him to call me Uncle.¡±


    Ash scowled. ¡°Don¡¯t change the topic, Uncle Rihal.¡± ¡ª he smirked at Crystal, probably because she still called him Uncle Rihal ¡ª ¡°Is this what you meant when you said you¡¯ve set things in motion?¡± Ash rolled her eyes at the look he gave Crystal. ¡°If you don¡¯t answer me, I¡¯ll stop calling you Uncle Rihal.¡±


    Uncle Rihal looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Crystal had a look that dared her to call him by name. Ash looked away, hating that they put her on the spot. But a moment later Crystal sighed and sat back. ¡°That would be fun to witness. But the pout you spot right now says it all. You cannot but call him ¡®Uncle Rihal¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Well, we planted something in woodbone. It carries a certain signature that can help me detect inspection even from a distance. That way I can infiltrate the Alvrics city, Alva.¡±


    ¡°Can I come?¡±


    ¡°I told you not to tell her, Rihal!¡± Crystal screamed, and then she faced her. ¡°And no, you can¡¯t. You¡¯re staying here with me. Where it¡¯s safe!¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no reason to tempt fate,¡± she heard Uncle Rihal mumble. ¡°First Jerome, now you? Do I have to work to keep my respect?¡±


    Ah! So this was what Layla meant by the power of a lass. Ash smirked. She began thinking of all the things she could get away with. What was that other tactic Layla mentioned? Puppy dog eyes or something.

 121. To The Competent Goes Leadership

    The City of Alva, Alvric Territory, South of Vorthe.


    Rihal


    The streets of Alva were a mess. The dirt and smell suffocated him as he roamed around. Alvric called this place a city? With all the grime blackening the streets and walls? This was no city, it was a dump. A dump for human waste.


    The streets weren¡¯t wide enough for horse-drawn carriages. Only four wide roads existed in the city, and even those could not compare to the least in Farryn. And because the streets weren¡¯t wide enough. Sedan chairs were everywhere, many of them on wheels. It was a booming business of sorts. Many barefooted slaves hung around different junctions, waving down freedmen to use their sedans. Rihal shook his head as he took in the scene around him.


    Slaves were everywhere. They were the lifeblood of the city. These non-sacred artists ¡ª or mortals as they were called in Vorthe ¡ª were in every household, on the streets, and in the markets to do their masters¡¯ bidding. They did the menial jobs, the jobs sacred artists deigned as beneath them. Yet they numbered the freedmen fifty to one. And the nobles? Perhaps a hundred to one.


    Vorthe frowned on slavery. It was unproductive for a nation. They had long proven that slavery moved civilization backward. But they held no sway over the actions and decisions or policies of the Great Clans.


    The Itakars stopped slavery when Vorthe came into power, as did the Baelors. The Feis never had any slaves when they migrated from the East. Alvric was the only clan amongst the Great Clans to continue the old practice, or the ¡®occupation¡¯ as it was whispered among sacred artists. Vorthe allowed it to give them a semblance of choice. However, laws were put in place to stop the occupation in Vorthe, and neither could they capture Vortheans. But they did it anyway, as covertly as they could. Most times, the Royal Family turned a blind eye.


    Alvric deemed it honorable and noble to own men. Why wouldn¡¯t they? Power was everything in this world. ¡®To the strong go the spoils of war, and to the competent goes leadership¡¯. Leadership that they conflate with slave mastery, it seemed.


    Freedom was too costly if you had not the power to protect and preserve it. What use was freedom if all it brought you was an endless struggle to protect it? Rihal had even heard that some sold themselves into slavery to save themselves from having to fight to keep their freedom. Such people had a higher status than other slaves that were sold or captured.


    ¡°May the wind prosper your day, noble one,¡± a slave walked up to Rihal and greeted him. His blackened feet, dirty from the lack of washing probably for many days, were all Rihal could focus on at first. How did people live like that?


    ¡°And may your feet guide you to places of good fortune,¡± he answered back in the proper way of the people living here. ¡°How may I help you?¡±


    The man was taken aback by his words. ¡°No-not at all, noble one. This lowly one offers his assistance to the noble one.¡±


    Ah, I have to watch what I say, Rihal thought. The man¡¯s expression just now showed that his question was unexpected. Better yet, that wasn¡¯t a question you asked a slave. And perhaps he shouldn¡¯t have greeted back. Rihal was dressed as a third-tier noble ¡ª those from lesser noble families in Vorthe. He was sure the system should be the same here, or at least he thought it should be.


    ¡°I need no help at this moment, th¡ª¡± he almost said ¡®thank you¡¯ but held his tongue.


    The man bowed low again and again. ¡°Please, forgive this lowly one for assuming.¡± If he continued bobbing his head along with his body, he might injure himself.


    ¡°You speak quite well for a slave. What are you called?¡± Rihal asked.


    A beautifully decorated sedan carried by four burly men passed by them at that moment and Rihal decided to leave the side of the road, eyeing the sedan as it went ahead. Not long now. The noble he¡¯d been tailing for quite a while was almost within his grasp. Only nobles were afforded such comfort in Alva. Any other personality would attract the attention of the so-called Alvric Royalty. Freedmen could afford sedans but not ones as beautifully and expensively decorated as this one.


    Hmph! The entitlement of these Alvrics, Rihal thought.


    ¡°This one is called Lulu,¡± the man beside him said.


    ¡°And who do you serve, Lulu?¡± Rihal asked.


    Lulu looked away, smiling bitterly. Well, then, that meant he had a master but was looking to earn a quick cut ¡ª the currency amongst mortals in most parts of Vorthe. It was different from the crystal coins sacred artists used as a means of exchange, not because they used different monetary systems, but because mortals couldn¡¯t earn stone crystals except they were especially wealthy ¡ª still, it was useless to them.


    Most sacred artists carried only crystal coins on them as well because they had no need for cuts. Cuts ¡ª copper, silver, and gold coins that were of lesser exchange values than stone crystals. Gold and silver might be useful in large ingots but were still less valuable than stone crystals.


    Farryn barely, if at all, had any cuts in her coffers, ingots though were a different matter. Transactions were done with crystal coins, both inside and outside the city. That showed the level of wealth compared to other cities in Vorthe.


    Rihal turned back to the man in question. This man, Lulu, might just be here on the orders of his master to fleece innocent strangers who came to Alva for the first time.


    ¡°This one serves no master, noble one.¡±


    ¡°Really. You expect me to believe that?¡± Rihal glared at him, making sure not to reveal his aura. Even a little of it can put the slave in a precarious situation and Rihal was not ready to deal with the master of any slave right now. He was undercover after all.


    ¡°This one speaks the truth, noble one,¡± the slave panicked, and began to tremble violently. ¡°This one has never served a master. Though this one has no true name and is not a sacred artist, this one has lived his entire life freely.¡±


    ¡°And how many freedmen dress like you, hmm?¡± Rihal said, looking him up and down to pass his point across.


    Lulu bowed low again. ¡°This one begs the forgiveness of the noble one if this one offends with his appearance. Not many freedmen can afford good clothes, noble one.¡±


    His use of the common tongue struck Rihal as strange once again. He was very educated, too educated to be looking for work on the streets of Alva. Vorthe would have picked him up a long time ago and put him to good use. Something Rihal was considering doing as well. But maybe he was a hypocrite for saying that. There were lots of others like him in the slums of Farryn that weren¡¯t put to good use. The slums itself was a way to control the upbringing of the fated Dark One, so Vorthe had that excuse ¡ª a shitty one nonetheless.


    He stared at the man for a long time, weighing his decision. This wasn¡¯t something an oath on an aspect of nature could not fix. But he still wanted to be careful. If someone had sent this¡­Lulu, they must have put it all into consideration.


    ¡°Swear to me that you have no master at this moment and that no words of mine would be repeated elsewhere, whether by tongue, writing, or gestures,¡± Rihal demanded, making sure there were no loopholes in the oath.


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    The man swore, as clearly as he could, for his voice was trembling. He sensed Lulu shiver and stumbled forward. He nodded lightly, catching the mortal before he hit the floor. The oath had taken effect. Rihal took out two silver cuts and began flipping them with his fingers, attracting the man¡¯s gaze.


    Yes. Money was everything around here ¡ª well, almost everything. At least it could buy the loyalty of people who were left to rot in a city that didn¡¯t care for their well-being.


    ¡°Tell me, Lulu. What do you know about Lord Eskan Alvric? Don¡¯t skip a thing. These will be yours if you please me.¡± He dangled the cuts in front of the man¡¯s eyes.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta. The Northern Hemisphere.


    ¡°Thought ye said it¡¯ll hold, Jerome,¡± Nia complained as they fought against the few unbound that remained.


    With the help of the barrier, they had reduced their numbers to five, including one very massive unbound Jerome was sure was the alpha of the pack. The alpha, however, had broken the barrier with its raw strength.


    The weight of its presence was nothing to scoff at as well. The other unbound stood fifteen feet tall but this one was twenty feet of raw muscle and power. And it attacked with fury.


    ¡°Never said it would hold forever,¡± Jerome said as he parried its claws with his spear. The force of its swing sent a force with the wind in the small cavern. The sheer size of the beast made it hard to do anything else but block its swings. But Jerome wasn¡¯t fighting seriously right now.


    The alpha unbound was strong and fast, but he had come prepared. With his suit of armor covering his entire body, he was able to go toe-to-toe with the powerful alpha. They both displayed the true strength of powerful beings fighting ferociously.


    Jerome tracked Csala with his perception as he fought. The succubus was holding her own against an unbound, all by herself. Csala was quick on her feet and her strength was far beyond what she had used against him in Sanctum.


    Within minutes, she shattered the knees of the unbound she was fighting to keep it in place. She then moved to behead it without hesitation by climbing up its body with nimble hops. Ruthless and effective. Jerome found that he loved it.


    Csala moved aside to dodge the claws of another unbound. Her movements were so fast it would¡¯ve been hard to follow with the naked eye. But Jerome was using his senses, so everything going on in the cave was clear to him.


    The alpha scored a hit on him, scratching at his armor but was unable to break the surface. Instead, its claws cracked and chipped off. It roared in anger, causing the rest of the Sprouts to hold their ears as the cave vibrated violently for a few breaths. The sacred beasts the Itakars had bonded with whimpered in pain as the sound assaulted their sensitive ears. They were not part of the fight as they were on the same level of power as Blanks.


    Jerome chuckled and attacked with renewed fury, not at all affected. He dashed into the alpha¡¯s guard, surprising it with his speed. Jerome stabbed at it, scoring multiple hits and drawing blood. The unbound¡¯s vitality was continuously seeping into Charybdis without its knowledge. But it had great stores of vitality and essence ¡ª something that surprised Jerome. It would take a long time for it to realize that something was amiss and even longer for it to get depleted.


    ¡°Jerome!¡± Selene called out. ¡±Would you mind finishing off that thing and helping us here? I can hear you chuckling. So I believe that beast¡­unbound, whatever, is not a challenge to you.¡±


    ¡°You mean this big ¡®baddie¡¯, Selene? This is the one that ought to die last.¡± At least that was how it happened in movies.


    ¡±Jerome?!¡± Csala growled, staring daggers at him but quickly jumped out of the way of more claws. The unbound that clawed at her rammed into her and pushed her backward, but she flipped midair and pushed off a pillar. The mutt didn¡¯t expect it. She sliced off its eyebrows, or where a set should have been. A dog-like whine split the air. The unbound took a few steps back unsure whether to attack now that it had witnessed her strength.


    ¡°Fine,¡± he said and quickly started pressing the alpha. The tune of their dance changed and so did the eyes of the big bad unbound. It was beginning to realize that it was never a match for the tiny being in front of it.


    Jerome moved faster. He only relied on his spear, Charybdis, as he wanted a challenge ¡ª one he knew he had complete control over. Perhaps fighting Muna had rubbed him wrongly and he now relished a fight with someone who was his equal or slightly below him in strength.


    It was a great confidence booster. Fighting with Muna reminded him that he still had a long way to go, that he was still too weak, even with a modified body. It didn¡¯t weaken his resolve, it strengthened it actually, and fighting this big bad wolfie solidified his conviction that he had improved a lot in his strength.


    Jerome quickly made short work of the unbound, impaling him on Charybdis, and grinning from ear to ear as he did. Defeating it was a lot easier than he expected. He spun around and quickly reached out with his hands in a grasping motion. Essence gathered around the three remaining unbound and they were pulled toward him. Sword Force spiked in the air and their heads were severed before they even reached him.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, seeing the shocked look on everyone¡¯s faces, including Csala ¡ª whose pretty face had now been revealed. ¡°My excitement got the better of me.¡±


    ¡°You killed three of them¡­¡± Ajax said in amazement.


    ¡°...in less than a breath?¡± Trudhorn completed Ajax¡¯s words, stupefied himself.


    The ground was littered with corpses of unbound, their blood flowed into streams and poured out of the cave. The Itakars¡¯ sacred beasts were already chomping on the dead unbound, wanting to make sure they consumed as much of the essence in their meat. This was a good chance for them to advance.


    Jerome walked up to the alpha. Its body had gone cold already, Charybdis had made sure to sap every bit of essence from its bones. Jerome had instructed it to leave its core intact though. He ripped into the beast¡¯s tough hide, which wasn¡¯t so tough now that it was dead. There was no essence to make it nigh indestructible anymore.


    Jerome pulled out a dense core of essence covered in blood. With a little psychic energy, he cleaned it thoroughly. Scanning it gave him a pleasant surprise. The core had a depth to it that ordinary cores of Sprouts didn¡¯t have. Did that mean this thing was equivalent to a Spirit Realm expert?


    Better not let it get to your head, he told himself.


    ¡°Now, would you look at that,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Yea. It¡¯s at least at the level of power of a Spirit Realm artist,¡± Jerome confirmed. The white core in his hand had black stripes around it and was giving off intense energy.


    Csala coughed, reminding Jerome of who was still after them.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you guys gonna take their cores? We have to go,¡± he said.


    The Itakars glanced at him uncomfortably and Jerome tilted his head, flummoxed.


    ¡°To the strong go the spoils,¡± Selene bailed him out of the uncomfortable silence.


    ¡°And to the competent goes leadership,¡± Ajax completed.


    ¡°Ah,¡± he suddenly remembered, just like Lang of the Fei clan, they deferred to him now. The Itakars were still unsure of how he would react. ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Truly. Like I said before, I¡¯m still the same me.¡±


    Nobody moved to take anything. It was going to take a while to change their minds about him it seems.


    ¡°Ok, why don¡¯t I keep this one,¡± he held up the core in his hand, ¡°and the ones in the cave. The ones outside belong to you all.¡±


    Selene was the first to reach for the nearest unbound and ripped into it, pulling out a core. It was less dense than the one in Jerome¡¯s hand but would still be worth a lot in Farryn. The rest of the Itakars reached for the remaining ones as well.


    ¡°Hear ye, hear ye!¡± Achilles announced loudly in Jerome¡¯s head causing him to wince. ¡°I, the mighty Achilles have returned. I return victorious. For you, my charge, need not fear the wrath of the puny succubus anymore.¡±


    Really?


    Achilles didn¡¯t answer but flooded his mind with a recording of their fight. Achilles had gone full night fury on the succubus, destroying her body and soul with the Hezvar. He had kept her trapped in the mountain where they had slept to regain their strength and bombarded her with fire from the heavens. He watched it in his mind¡¯s eye, seeing the might of the Hezvar. It was truly terrifying.


    ¡°And it will be even more so in your hands, Xerae. However, I watched as her spirit was caught in a binding of Dashani¡¯s working. The succubus might come back to haunt us, Xerae.¡±


    Everyone caught Jerome wince and hesitated to join Selene. They subtly edged toward her as if to protect her. Selene remained in her position, however, undisturbed as if choosing to trust that Jerome wasn¡¯t going to do anything to her.


    Jerome caught that but could only sigh. I guess time apart would do this to friends, he thought.


    Jerome looked over at Csala and grinned. ¡°Our problem has been dealt with it seems.¡±

 122. Initiate

    Csala


    ¡°Really?¡± Csala asked incredulously. Her body refused to believe even though her heart knew Jerome wouldn¡¯t lie about something like this.


    Jerome nodded in confirmation and she crumpled to the floor. The stress that had built up over many days of running for her life and looking over her shoulders finally caught up. She felt like crying and for the first time in a long time, she indulged herself, crying silently.


    She heard the remaining two ladies in their group, Selene and Nia, as they shooed everyone out of the cavern. After all, they still had cores to extract from the other twenty-one dead unbound whose corpses littered the front of the cave.


    Csala remained in the cave, unable to stop the outpour of emotions. She had thought she¡¯d live the rest of her life looking over her shoulder, or worse ¡ª have her soul ripped out by an apathetic succubus.


    ~~~


    Selene


    The cleanup was quick. The sacred beasts were ravenous and ate all the unbound around, licking their bones clean. Csala finally joined them outside after a while. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying and her hair was a mess.


    Selene watched the red-haired beauty as she glided toward Jerome. Her steps were beyond graceful, her bearing otherworldly. This was the kind of beauty that turned heads everywhere, that caused men to go insane and sell their properties just to have a night with her. Where did Jerome find such a person? Selene believed that she truly wasn¡¯t human ¡ª just as the person herself had admitted. All evidence and actions pointed to it.


    ¡°We should rest for a while before leaving. Who¡¯s on the first watch?¡± Selene asked. It was best to settle this now before anything. And to turn the lustful gazes of her male teammates away from Csala.


    Her teammates were already looking at her like a piece of steak. Thankfully, Jerome put up her hood the moment she reached him. But that didn¡¯t obscure her curves. How did a woman get breasts like that? Even through the strange red cloak she wore, Selene could make out her wide hips. The woman had a pull on everyone around her. In an otherworldly way.


    ¡°We can all rest for the night,¡± Jerome said, watching the skies. ¡°I¡¯ll create another barrier to keep us safe.¡±


    ¡°Ye mean one that would crumble like the previous one?¡± Nia teased.


    Jerome smiled bashfully. ¡°At least not until we¡¯re all wide awake and ready to fight. My barrier lasted a while before it crumbled.¡±


    They all trooped back into the now clean cave. Csala had cleaned it some before coming out, giving Selene a good impression of the red-haired lady. Most people as powerful as her would refuse to stoop low to cleaning. Especially when there were weaker people around. She had seen Csala fight and could tell she was equally as powerful as Jerome. The lady moved with an inhuman grace that was almost impossible to replicate.


    She looked in the corner and saw that the wolves didn¡¯t eat the alpha unbound though. It stood in the corner, still impaled on Charybdis. She wanted to ask why Csala didn¡¯t get rid of the corpse, but asking such a thing would seem like she was looking down on the redhead instead Selene delegated the duty.


    ¡°Bram, please get rid of that thi¡ª¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch that!¡± Jerome and Csala quickly warned, then looked at each other.


    ¡±You touched it?¡± Jerome asked. Selene could see the concern in his eyes. He took the red-heads hands to examine it carefully.


    Csala nodded. ¡°Not a pleasant feeling.¡±


    ¡°The spear is an artifact,¡± Jerome said as he pulled his spear out of the unbound¡¯s corpse and sent the corpse into his spatial ring.


    Selene gave him a questioning look.


    ¡°For later study,¡± he said when he saw her raised eyebrow. She felt no essence in the corpse so she wondered how useful it could be. But it wasn¡¯t her kill. No need to concern herself with it.


    ¡°I take it, you found it together with the armor,¡± Ajax probed and Jerome smirked.


    ¡°Hmm. They seem to be made from the same metal,¡± Trudhorn joined in. The boys gathered around Jerome doing what boys do ¡ª talk about their toys.


    Selene shook her head, saying, ¡°Jerome please don¡¯t forget about the barrier.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± was the distracted answer she got.


    She turned around to see a big bed and covers behind her. Csala and Nia had snuggled into the warmth of the covers. ¡°Where in the frozen balls of the north did you find that?¡± she asked, quickly cleaning herself with her mental energy and jumping in.


    Nia giggled. ¡°Csala brought it.¡±


    ¡°I imagine what other wonders you brought, Csala,¡± she smiled.


    Csala chuckled. ¡°Just this. And my girl stuff.¡±


    They all giggled and talked about random things for a while. Selene knew she¡¯d have to ask the questions they were avoiding soon enough, but Csala beat her to it, asking, ¡°So how do you all know Jerome? He only told me of his friends when we entered the mountain range.¡±


    Nice try moving the topic of discourse away from herself.


    ¡°We met in Terra Praeta,¡± Selene responded. ¡°Though, we heard of him long before then. He was in conflict with someone from another Clan but that¡¯s his story to tell. We only heard about him through their conflict.¡±


    ¡°What about ye?¡± Nia asked. ¡°How did ye meet ¡®em? Are the both of ye¡­y¡¯know?¡±


    Selene giggled at her friend¡¯s antics, looking over at the boys to see them still engaged with Jerome.


    ¡°No,¡± Csala turned red. ¡°No, we¡¯re not.¡±


    Selene wondered why. It was normal practice to get with someone powerful and promising. Especially one so young. Except if Csala was a kind of royalty. She had no idea about that though. And since she wasn¡¯t human, she didn¡¯t know what their customs here on Terra Praeta were like. It immediately dawned on her that Csala was a native of Terra Praeta. Were there others out there like her? Will they be as welcoming as Csala was?


    ¡°Csala, you said you aren¡¯t human. But you look very human to us. Except for your eyes, but even that can be seen as a product of essence or heritage¡ª¡±


    ¡°You want to know what race I am,¡± Csala said. Not accusingly but as a matter of fact.


    ~~~


    Csala


    The girls held their breaths, waiting for her to speak. Csala had never discussed her race with people outside her race. Who knew what effects that would have? If she refused to, it could cause them to close themselves to her. They were not friends, but they were Jerome¡¯s friends. What would he say to something like this? If they went to him, complaining about her, who would he side with?


    Csala sighed. Dealing with people was its own problem. She didn¡¯t mind what they would think of her if she said nothing, but she was concerned about what Jerome would say. She decided to go with her gut first.


    ¡°If I tell you that, you will kick me out of your group,¡± she said, observing their reactions.


    ¡°Are you dangerous to us? From what I¡¯ve seen, you haven¡¯t given us a reason to worry about you,¡± Selene said.


    Csala thought she was a good leader. One who cared not only for those under her but also for those attached to her due to circumstances. But how would she react if she found out that her male teammates would always be distracted and lusting after someone else in her group? Worst of all, what would she think of if she found the one she loved lusting after someone else?


    Csala didn¡¯t want to bring chaos to this group. The sooner she left, the better. Jerome however, would choose to remain with them. Somehow, she could tell he was expending energy to keep the males in the group sane. That was very thoughtful of him. She had sensed nothing of the sort with her psychic energy, but she felt deep down that he would do something like that.


    She looked over to the boys, noticing them breaking apart. The others left Jerome to bar the entrance to the cave as they went to rest by the columns holding up the roof. One look at him though, caused hunger to rise in her. How long had it been since she fed?


    Jerome sat at the entrance of the cave and soon enough another scripted circle appeared before him, blocking out the cold wind and warming the atmosphere.


    ¡°In a way, I¡¯m dangerous to your team¡­to your overall productivity. I don¡¯t want you to think I wish to be. Or that I don¡¯t care ¡ª I only care what Jerome thinks. And he cares for you all, he has never been this happy since I met him. I know you can figure me out yourself. My race isn¡¯t that rare on Terra Praeta.¡± She didn¡¯t tell them about Tara, the woman Jerome held like a mother in his arms. In had felt vulnerable in that moment and Csala knew it was not her tale to tell.


    She watched as Selene examined her with renewed curiosity. The girl, Nia, as well. They turned to look at the boys gawking at them ¡ª at her to be precise ¡ª and back at her, their eyes widening in recognition.


    ¡°So, a succubus, then,¡± Selene spoke under her breath. So silently, only the three of them heard it.


    ¡°Do you truly enslave men like the myths say?¡± Nia blurted out.


    ~~~


    Jerome sat in front of the barrier, listening to the conversation going on. It was like background noise. He wasn¡¯t intentionally eavesdropping but he couldn¡¯t help himself. Csala had led the girls to uncover what she was. Whatever that brings, they¡¯ll sort out in the future. Problem was, it brought to mind what she was: a succubus who fed on the vitality of men. He could remember well the last time she fed.


    How often did she even need to feed? He¡¯ll probably find out later. Right now, he needed to consult the library. His experience and capabilities with scripts, runes, and formations were adequate for him to start another phase of his education, he was sure. Achilles had divided his studies into tiers ¡ª including his mastery of essence, making sure that he was experienced for the next tier before learning anything about it. Though for his mastery of essence, he supposed he was at the adept tier.


    ¡°Not by a long shot, Xerae. Initiate is the tier I¡¯d place you.¡±


    That¡¯s cruel, Achilles. Really? Initiate? I¡¯m better at wielding essence than most Sprouts I know.


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    ¡°Have you seen any Spirit Realm experts wield essence? And your little spar with Rihal, before you became a sacred artist, doesn¡¯t count. That¡¯s just him knocking you out.¡±


    Jerome had no answer. Those times when Rihal knocked him and his friends out in the slums were the only times he knew Rihal wielded essence. Rihal never wielded essence against him when he became a disciple. He also never wielded essence when he faced Idrel, the viper in Nandene. And neither did Idrel.


    ¡°I guess the answer is no. Right now, you¡¯re learning the ¡®art¡¯ of wielding essence. When you become a Spirit Realm artist, you¡¯ll start learning the ¡®science¡¯ of it. And I mean that literally; you¡¯d learn to calculate essence, how to limit its use for specific spells and techniques, how to use ambient essence and the forces to affect the world and physical matter around you.


    ¡°Now, that¡¯s what it means to be an adept. There¡¯s a lot of geometry involved as well. Awakening in the Spirit Realm will give you the ability to use your calculations to extrapolate the effects of a technique before use. And with almost near accuracy. Imagine what you could achieve with that.¡±


    Jerome nodded. The memory crystals he absorbed knowledge from hinted at all these. And it was an incredulity to his young mind. But he had no way of knowing without being a Spirit Realm expert. If he attempted to calculate essence, or the inner workings of its power at greater depths, he¡¯d be working blind. He¡¯d be like a human trying to calculate the humidity of the atmosphere by just holding out his hand. All he could do was make assumptions.


    Jerome knew of the elements ¡ª or what sacred artists thought were the elements. Because they were different from what the material world presented to them. He knew of what was felt around different elements and forces. But not their origins, not how they affect the world, or how the world affected them. Essence was largely a mystery to him, all he could do was use it and nothing else. But he planned to learn more about it. About how it came to be, and how humans came to learn to wield it.


    Anyway, he was done with the apprentice tier. The initiate tier was next, and then adept, then master, and then¡ª


    Achilles coughed. ¡°Let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves now, hmm? But there are things you can learn to prepare yourself for the future: Spell frames. A way to help you cast spells faster and without incantations. Spell frames help you cast as though your spell is a skill.¡±


    Really, Achilles? And you held this back because¡­?


    Achilles snorted. ¡°Experiment with spell frames first before complaining. Thankfully, you already have a strong mathematical background. That will come in handy. But it won¡¯t help you in physical experimentation with the frames.


    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t be teaching you this right now, Xerae. But your world is growing more dangerous by the day. Alvric has made a new alliance and is getting ready to throw Vorthe into chaos. Their ally, the Church of the Light, has its own agenda as well. You need to be prepared.¡±


    The Church of the Light. It was good to have a little more information about the church. Rihal never mentioned any other name of the entity he called ¡®the church¡¯. Right now the church was an unknown enemy to him. An organization to worry about in the future.


    Jerome closed his eyes and the nanites in his brain went to work. The next moment, information flooded his mind. He was already used to this and was prepared for the flood of information. So much that he had been curious about when creating scripted circles was confirmed. Albeit, if he had tried some of his theories on his own, he would have failed.


    Jerome found that the circle was the easiest geometric shape to use in creating wards. It was the easiest and weakest and strongest at the same time. The difference was in who crafted it ¡ª a novice or a master. There were other geometric shapes to use but their methods varied and were a little more complicated. The more complicated the shape, the more complicated the method. He could create them, but it would take more out of him.


    Jerome smiled. He looked forward to the day he could just create runes out of thin air, without a base. These were more powerful than scripted shapes ¡ª and more ancient. He needed a base for every formation he made. So far, the ground and walls had been the base he used. But what happened when he was mid-air or flying? What base could he use then?


    A simple scripted circle wouldn¡¯t work for that. Jerome brought to his mind¡¯s eye, one of the shapes he had learned just now: two equilateral triangles overlapping to form a six-pointed star and surrounded by a circle, with another circle within ¡ª extremely simple, but more difficult to hold together. That was four shapes in one. Something he had known in his previous life, but this was no Judaism myth he was trying to attempt. If he failed to hold the scripted shape together, it could blow up in his face.


    ¡°It is good practice to call it what it is, Xerae¡ª¡±


    Magen David?


    Achilles snorted. ¡°Please don¡¯t insult my people, Xerae.¡±


    Right. Sorry about that. The symbol holds cultural significance in every world it seems. Jerome was no Jew in his past life but he knew a little about the ¡®Star of David¡¯ and its cultural significance in Judaism.


    Stjarna Iona, Jerome thought.


    ¡°¡®The star of Iona¡¯,¡± Achilles praised. ¡°Iona is an ocean. Sailors of Terra Praeta had named the shape after the ocean. Many believed it offered protection from the Fiddler¡ª¡±


    The Fiddler?


    ¡°I don¡¯t think this is the same ¡ª ah,¡± Achilles sighed. ¡°It discombobulates me to know that much of what was a reality in this world was a myth in your original world, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome nodded in thought. He had asked himself once if he was in a parallel universe. How the hell did he get answers to such things? So this Fiddler has no connection to Fiddler¡¯s Green? The sailor¡¯s and soldier¡¯s after-life? He asked.


    ¡°¡®A seaman never goes to hell ¡ª Fiddler¡¯s Green is the tar¡¯s mooring ground.¡¯¡± Achilles quoted, taking the words right from his mind. ¡°Those aren¡¯t words the Fae would speak, Xerae. There was no after-life or ¡®Hell¡¯ for the Fae ¡ª at least none that I know of; only reincarnation. Oh, wait. It¡¯s the same belief in your new world.¡±


    Let¡¯s get back on topic, shall we? Jerome grumbled. You were telling me about the star of Iona.


    ¡°Yes, the star of Iona. The shape itself has myriads of functions in a formation. One of which is the function of the compass.¡±


    It¡¯ll be interesting to see such a compass at work, Jerome thought. But I wouldn¡¯t be working with this for now. Let¡¯s start with something simple¡­a triangle would be great.


    Achilles snorted. ¡°At least you know not to get ahead of yourself.¡±


    Jerome smiled bashfully but concentrated on the assignment in front of him. Spell frames were just that: frames to hold spells. But they were quite tough to form midair. He spent roughly an hour drawing different shapes in the air; an equilateral triangle, scalene, isosceles, even a kite, and other irregular shapes. Every frame he created could be reused if he maintained them well enough. And he could reabsorb the essence used to make them.


    Without a doubt, it took more effort to hold the shapes in place, with nothing but concentration and willpower. If he lost concentration for a moment, the frames disintegrated into prismatic light and he had to start all over again. It was simpler to hold a circle in place. A circle has no intersections, which was what made it easier to hold in place and the rest, harder to hold together.


    A question, Achilles.


    ¡°Oh. Is the world ending?¡±


    Jerome rolled his eyes but ignored the jab. I find it hard to comprehend the connection between the mental image of the spell frame and the physical embodiment of said spell frame, which, from my point of view, is made of just essence.


    ¡°Quite a sharp observation you made there, Xerae. These spell frames are empty. Until you fill it with your first spell, you will feel a disconnect with the frames you make. Unfortunately, you are not in the Spirit Realm. Hence, you cannot fill a spell frame. What you can do is find your own way to use spell frames until you¡¯re ready to truly use them.¡±


    Jerome grumbled at Achilles¡¯ words, unwilling to accept them, but knowing the reality of things. He was learning too fast. So fast that he had outpaced his Realm and now had to either slow down or learn something new, which meant deviating from his learning curve. Or he could just forge ahead by groping along in the dark. He huffed.


    Groping in the dark it is then.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Selene said from beside him, breaking him out of his concentration. He was so deep in his discussion with Achilles that he didn¡¯t sense her coming close. Her eyes were glued to the upside golden triangle floating and rotating in the air. ¡°You seem to be learning by shape. The elites of House Rurik learn by script. Why is that?¡±


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°She seems to think you¡¯re learning how to make formations, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome thought about what to tell her. He couldn¡¯t give much away but he didn¡¯t want to lie to her. If she found out the truth later on, he would lose her trust.


    ¡°Probably because they don¡¯t need to learn from scratch,¡± he said, and the inverted triangle wavered. ¡°The shapes can be carved into gems that¡¯ll project them onto a canvas and then they carve out the scripts around them. Or they could just draw them out themselves but that takes time and too much essence. Mind you, their method cannot be considered easy. Tracing already carved scripts can be considered easy but carving them out yourself from scratch is hard work.


    ¡°It takes essence to empower scripts and if you¡¯re carving out new scripts, even more essence.¡± The triangle snuffed itself out like a candle, its essence bleeding into the world around them. ¡°Ah, shit.¡± He started over again.


    ¡°Hot and humble, yer sure ye don¡¯t want ¡®em?¡± Nia said to Csala, causing Selene to giggle.


    Jerome blushed and then coughed. ¡°I¡¯m right here ladies.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t. You can go ahead. He¡¯s all yours,¡± came Csala¡¯s witty reply.


    Jerome could tell she was trying to concentrate on what he was doing but it seemed Csala was more interested in scripts and runes than the geometric shapes that hold them. What she probably didn¡¯t know was that the shapes were the base for the scripts surrounding them, because scripts couldn¡¯t function on their own. Or maybe she was studying them for other reasons. Jerome didn¡¯t know. Jerome faced away from them continuing his training.


    Women, he thought to himself. Nia was giggling and eyeing him playfully. What could go wrong when you¡¯re surrounded by a bunch of them?


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean you¡¯re taking the more difficult path?¡± Selene asked. ¡°You could as well carve those shapes into gems that can be used and reused.¡±


    ¡°True. But I have neither the tools to do the carving nor the gems ¡ª which are very expensive by the way. But this slow path would bear better results down the line.¡±


    ¡°Which means the Ruriks are cheating themselves then,¡± Selene gave him a pointed look, with her eyes smiling. Well, point taken, but¡­


    ¡°Not exactly. They¡¯re probably just learning in reverse. At some point, their leaders and tutors might get them to train in drawing shapes without tools. By then they¡¯d be capable enough to hold the shapes on their own without external help.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a probable ¡®might¡¯. And what is it you¡¯re doing?¡± she asked.


    ¡°This? I¡¯m learning to hold shapes other than a circle together, without a base.¡±


    ¡°Which is what the Ruriks would be learning when you¡¯re already a grandmaster.¡± She smiled at him.


    ¡°Point taken,¡± Jerome said, not wanting to argue with her.


    ¡°That¡¯s an upside triangle. Looks easy to me.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Easy to make, but difficult to hold together. Especially when you gotta hold it in the air. That¡¯s what I mean by ¡®without a base¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Oh. How so?¡± she asked.


    ¡°A circle is just one closed and continuous curve with no endpoint. Simple to hold together, because it¡¯s just one line. However, I¡¯m working with a triangle which has three intersections. I have to make sure I hold the intersections and the lines in place, making my practice more difficult by drawing the shapes in the air without a base. Everything must float in the air. Next, they must rotate one way or another at a consistent pace. That¡¯s easier said than done.¡±


    ¡°So simple to understand, yet so complicated to perform,¡± Selene muttered.


    ¡°Are you studying formations as well?¡± Jerome asked. The way she said it made him ask.


    ¡°No. Artifact refining. I¡¯m an apprentice artificer,¡± she smiled. Her pride in that status practically oozed off her. ¡°Though I work in the smithy for now, I will soon be promoted¡­once I can successfully complete my first artifact.¡± She said that last part with much less confidence.


    ¡°You don¡¯t sound so confident,¡± he said.


    ¡°I have every bit of confidence that I¡¯m going to succeed,¡± Selene said, the confidence back in her voice, with a lot of determination.


    ¡°Huh. How does someone who¡¯s on the path to becoming the ¡®Ice Queen¡¯ become an artificer? Artifact Refining is more common with other members of noble families, is it not? Not direct descendants of the pure bloodline.¡± The Itakars were more civilized than he gave them credit for it seemed.


    ¡°And why do you think I can¡¯t learn to be an artificer?¡± she shot back. ¡°Just because I¡¯m an heir? There¡¯s a lot to me you don¡¯t know about, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome shrugged. ¡°You must have some very toned muscles underneath all that leather then,¡± he teased.


    Selene caught him checking her out and smirked. She took off her upper armor. She wore sleeveless tight black clothing that hugged her shapely body. Then she flexed her muscles for him to see.


    Selene had the right amount of muscles in the right places and yet, still managed to appear feminine and beautiful. Talk about natural cheating.


    ¡°Cute,¡± Jerome said.


    She chucked her boot at him.

 123. The Giver And The Taker (R-18)

    ¡°I¡¯m hungry, Jerome. I need to feed,¡± Csala¡¯s whispered voice reached him from a few feet away where she was lying, pretending to sleep.


    ¡°Really. How often do you feed?¡± he replied using the same method she used to communicate with him


    ¡°Ooh?¡± He heard her breathe a laugh. ¡°So you finally learned. Good for you. I¡¯m hungry though. Or should I feed off one of your friends?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it!¡±


    ¡°Hmmm. The tall one looks appetizing. And he¡¯s been eyeing me like a steak since you rescued him from the den of the unbound.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go outside,¡± Jerome stood up and crossed the threshold of the barrier, out of the cave. He left a surprise for the Itakars. Something he worked on for a while after his training with spell frames.


    It had been over ten hours since he began training and night had fallen already. The cold of the night embraced him the moment he crossed the threshold. The north wind blew his hair out of his face ¡ª hair he had been told he needed to cut shot. His hair was reaching down to the back of his thighs already. He would cut his hair later. Firstly though, he had to feed the hungry succubus and tell her some things he couldn¡¯t tell her before.


    He took a deep breath, absorbing the essence in the air. The cold essence filled his lungs and raced around his channels until finally settling in his core where it was converted. The portion that couldn¡¯t be converted to his mutated essence was expelled from his body. This was the first time he had sensed something like that.


    ¡°So that¡¯s how essence is absorbed,¡± Jerome muttered in wonder. ¡°Or is that specific to just me, Achilles?¡±


    Achilles chuckled. ¡°No, Xerae. The world doesn¡¯t revolve around you.¡±


    Jerome snorted.


    ¡°Everyone absorbs essence the way you just sensed it. But only those whose psychic energy has evolved to a certain stage can sense the minutest of filtering and absorption. What you sensed just now is just the tip of the iceberg.¡±


    That was interesting. He could see how useful such an evolved psychic energy could be. No wonder the succubi were like apex predators on Terra Praeta after the fall of the fae.


    Is there a way to measure the progression of psychic energy? You know, like how the progression of a sacred artist¡¯s core is measured in the different realms?


    ¡°The Fae were very secretive when it came to their psychic energy. They never liked to reveal how powerful they were. Someone could tell from their core how powerful or how much essence a fae or human could wield ¡ª if they weren¡¯t using a veil.


    ¡°But one couldn¡¯t look inside someone else¡¯s mind to figure out the strength of their psychic strength. The mind becomes stronger the more advanced you are, and can resist such psychic arts. One can also practice such psychic arts to strengthen their mind, turning it into an impregnable fortress. So they left it without a system of progression.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jerome nodded. That way they could keep information about themselves safe. Everyone wants some level of privacy in their lives I guess. There¡¯s a kind of safety in that.


    Jerome folded his arms and took a deep breath. So a veil, Achilles. Was that how the Fae went into stealth mode?


    ¡°It¡¯s still what is being used in your world. I can help you make it.¡±


    Hmm. I¡¯ll need a lot of veils if we are to cross the dark forest safely. But were you just waiting to drop that hint all this while? Jerome said with a smirk.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about, Xerae.¡±


    ~~~


    Csala


    Csala took her time adjusting her garment before heading out to feed off Jerome. She had no idea why she was doing that, only that she was giddy and the idea of feeding off him again brought a light feeling to her heart ¡ª and gut. Like the fluttering of a butterfly¡¯s wings. Or many butterflies. She felt like she was floating on clouds and it was the best feeling ever.


    ¡°Are you going to come over or what?¡± Jerome¡¯s voice reached her from outside.


    Her mood was spoiled after that. Didn¡¯t he know that a succubus had to look her best before she ate?


    ¡°You better be ready to make up for spoiling my mood. I¡¯ll drain you dry if I have to.¡±


    ¡°I suggest you don¡¯t,¡± he called back.


    ¡°What?¡± Csala added a bite to her words for effect. ¡°Did I hear you right?¡±


    She felt Jerome sigh. That was odd. She could tell that he could sense she was just poking fun at him. Why the gloomy sigh?


    She crossed the threshold of the barrier and the cold assaulted her as well. Csala very nearly dumped the idea of feeding just to remain within the warmth of the cave. She chided herself though. Crossing the remaining steps to stand in front of him, she made sure to put an extra sway into her steps so he¡¯d take notice. And take notice he did, alright. The heavy cloak was not enough to camouflage her beautiful legs and wide hips.


    Succubi were givers of pleasure. Men should be grateful for the opportunity to give a part of themselves to the succubi. They should worship the very ground on which she walked for it was their destiny to be worshippers and hers to be worshiped like a deity. But she was a graceful succubus. Gratitude alone wasn¡¯t enough to placate her subjects. The least she could do was to make sure she looked appealing enough so men could look upon her beautiful visage and be blessed with the memory of her in their hearts.


    She felt Jerome¡¯s eyes on her as she walked towards him. But there was no lust in them ¡ª not like there used to be, and not like there was in the eyes of the other Sprouts inside the cave. Somehow she wanted to see that. She wanted him to lust for her. No. She stopped right in front of him with her brows creased as she dived into her thoughts for a moment. She wanted more than just lust from him. And she realized in that moment that the only eyes on her that would matter to her were his eyes.


    Jerome embraced her, breaking her out of her thoughts. The next moment, they were in the air.


    ~~~


    Selene


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°Hey, perverts! Don¡¯t act like yer asleep. We could feel yer eyes on her.¡± Nia threw Selene¡¯s other boot at the boys who were pretending to sleep.


    Selene glared at her friend but said nothing. With a slow gesture of her wrist and fingers, she summoned a fog with her essence and carefully guided it with her mental energy. The fog latched onto her boots like tendrils and slowly pulled them back to her.


    ¡°Csala said they were going farther North,¡± she said. ¡°Jerome wanted to help her with something.¡±


    ¡°Going farther North?¡± Trudhorn asked, raising his upper body from the floor. ¡±What could be out there that¡¯s so important?¡±


    ¡°Only Light knows. But my gut tells me it¡¯s going to be something powerful,¡± Selene replied.


    Bram stood up to stretch. ¡°Hmm. His luck is damn good, that one. Imagine da full-plated armor and spear. And it looked new too. He knows something we don¡¯t.¡±


    Ajax snorted. ¡°Dare to say that to his face when he¡¯s here?¡±


    ¡°My point is, I suggest we follow,¡± Selene said, looking around at her teammates. ¡°There¡¯s only one reason they would be heading farther North in such harsh weather conditions¡­¡±


    ¡°More power,¡± Trudhorn finished for her. ¡°It¡¯s uncomfortable being around him now. Even more so because he doesn¡¯t act the way I expect someone who¡¯s obtained so much power would act. It¡¯s like walking on needles. But I¡¯ll follow you, Selene. Know that it¡¯s you I follow.¡±


    Everyone nodded and hummed their acknowledgment of Trudhorn¡¯s words. Ajax stood up and walked up to her, patting her affectionately on the shoulder to let her know he was with her all the way.


    Selene smiled up at him. ¡°So it¡¯s settled then. We¡¯re going farther North. It¡¯s good we¡¯re well-rested now. We have enough energy to cross the distance.¡± She looked at the formation Jerome had placed in the center of the cave. It was still pumping essence in the air. It felt cold, she noted, but welcoming. Like the embrace of a parent. How was that possible? A few moments ago it was pumping in pure essence.


    The wolves barked and huffed to let everyone know they were coming too. Selene laughed, walking up to their alpha to give him a rub. Seems they have a superpower to be invisible even while being present in a room.


    ¡°Can you sense that?¡± she asked, looking around at her teammates.


    ¡°I do,¡± Trudhorn said, eyeing the formation in the center of the cave. ¡°Jerome must have done it. He created the formation after all.¡±


    The rest of their teammates finally caught up. Ajax took a deep breath. Without waiting for anyone, he sat down cross-legged and began cycling. Everyone followed suit. It was going to be a long night of cultivation.


    ~~~


    With feather-light kisses to her lips and jawline, Jerome roused the succubus¡¯ sexual urge. Slowly, methodically, and patiently, he took his time tracing the curves of her body through the layers of fur she wore.


    ¡°This has to go,¡± he whispered in her ears and took off the red overcoat she wore.


    Jerome had barricaded them in a warm alcove at the top of a hill. Here, warmth embraced them both and their excess clothing was becoming too much for comfort. Jerome continued tracing her body with his lips. Layer after layer of robes fell off her body before Csala had the presence of mind to know what was going on.


    ¡°Jerome, I can¡¯t,¡± Csala said, gripping his hands with strength that should not be possible with such slender fingers.


    ¡°Shh, shh, shh. I¡¯m not going to abuse you, Csala,¡± he whispered softly in her ears. ¡°I want you to know what it¡¯s like for someone else to pleasure you.¡±


    Csala reared her head back to look him in the eyes. Seconds passed as she tried to search for the lie in his eyes. He was sure that if the space was big enough, she would have put him at arm¡¯s length. But they were in a ten-foot-long by five-foot-wide alcove that he formed moments ago. Even his head was almost touching the roof.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you trust me, Csala? My oath is still active.¡±


    ¡°You sound like you know something,¡± she said at last with a suspicious glint in her eyes.


    ¡°Everyone has their secrets ¡ª, I know I do. And I know you do too. So I try not to pry,¡± he said, evading the question but giving her an answer he knew would make her feel safe. He did know something else, however: fae secrets to pleasuring a partner.


    Csala didn¡¯t say anything so he quickly took her lips before she changed her mind.


    Jerome kissed her senselessly while tracing every curve of her body with feather-light touches. Their tongues intertwined in a sensuous dance. He had finally taken off the last piece of clothing on her, which not surprisingly, was lingerie from his previous world. Jerome would have made a note to talk to Achilles about it later but his mind could think of nothing else but the beauty in his arms.


    He had to cleverly massage the tension in her muscles to get her to relax. He put himself in vulnerable positions so she could do anything to him if she sensed him doing anything untoward to her. Jerome took his time, patiently massaging her. Csala was shivering throughout the massage. Not from cold ¡ª there was enough warmth in the alcove ¡ª but from fear and uncertainty.


    He wished he had body oil. This would have been a lot more pleasant for her if there was less friction between his hands and her skin. But he made do. Something dropped into his void space the next moment. Jerome felt the urge to scoff but held himself back. He retrieved the bottle of oil, holding it in the air with his psychic energy as he scanned its content.


    It felt like ordinary oil. He couldn¡¯t tell but he trusted Achilles knew what he was doing. Jerome poured the oil on Csala as he massaged her. She visibly began to relax as he massaged the oil into her skin. When she was completely relaxed, Csala did something he wasn¡¯t expecting. She helped him to disrobe ¡ª with her psychic energy nonetheless. The woman was a wonder to learn. Jerome watched as his shirt peeled away from him, followed by his pants, and underwear. He smiled at her and she smiled back. Her eyes were half lidded and he could smell the scent of her arousal. It was heady.


    ¡°You¡¯re gonna teach me how you did that.¡±


    ¡°You already know how,¡± Csala said as he embraced her. ¡°But Jerome¡­¡± He could hear the uncertainty still.


    ¡°Trust me, Csala.¡± Jerome locked lips with her once again.


    Every touch from him elicited a sensual moan from her. He took his time, giving very little of his vitality in short spurts while learning every curve of her bare body as she sang with sweet moans to his ears.


    Jerome lay Csala down on a bedding Achilles had provided beforehand. Her body was bare before him as his was bare before her. He had a wealth of knowledge to draw from ¡ª even if he had no practice ¡ª and since he knew she wasn¡¯t experienced in the ways of sex, he knew he was going to make sure she had the time of her life. She might know how to please a man but she didn¡¯t know how to be pleased by a man.


    He fondled her large breasts and played with her nipples until they became hard as pebbles. Csala moaned in pleasure from everything he did. Succubi and even the Fae¡¯s anatomy were quite similar to a human¡¯s. So finding her sensitive spots was quite easy.


    Jerome kissed his way down her jaw. He took his time, leaving love bites on the skin of her neck and shoulders before continuing down to her breasts. This was where he got the most moans out of her. Csala¡¯s tits were very sensitive. He marveled at the size and thickness of her plump milk-makers. Yet they were perky, elastic, and soft to the touch.


    Jerome licked every part of her bust. He licked around it. The underside of both of them was quite sensitive too. He took his time pinching her nipples, eliciting more carnal sounds from her.


    He continued downward. Taking care to love her slight six-pack stomach. Csala may not have used a gym a day in her life but her physique was near perfect ¡ª not athletic, just very feminine. He moved downward and Csala gasped. She sat up to lean on her elbows, opening her eyes and looking down from her position to see what he was going to do.


    He grabbed hold of her thighs and kissed them each. The large member between his thighs caused him no small discomfort, wanting to be given attention. He restrained himself, wanting to pleasure the beauty before him so she could understand and feel how she drove him crazy.


    He traced her left thigh with kisses up her leg to her beautiful, dainty foot and back. Jerome kissed her inner thighs as he listened to Csala gasp again and held her breath. He ignored the sweet spot between her legs and moved to the other leg.


    Csala rolled her eyes in frustration and Jerome chuckled. ¡°Patience,¡± he whispered to her. ¡°Just enjoy my ministrations.¡±


    He did the same with her right leg, kissing her up her thigh and leg, and then back. Jerome held both thighs open as he balanced his head between them. Her sweet spot was hairless. Juicy, swollen pink lips contracted and relaxed before his eyes. Csala was eager. Her body was on fire and her eyes were expectant of what was to come. Her breath hitched as Jerome blew on her sweet spot which was drenched with her juices.


    Jerome flicked his tongue to take in the taste of her. She tasted like vanilla, dewdrops, and her own unique taste ¡ª a weird combination, even as he wondered how he tasted dewdrops. Normal humans had no taste. But Csala wasn¡¯t human. He delved in and her moans resumed. She unconsciously began to rock her hips into his face as he lapped at her clit and nether lips. He took his time, monitoring her vitals with his x-ray vision to know what set her ablaze. Jerome wanted to insert his finger into her but was afraid of what that might mean.


    If it was just penetration it took to enslave her mind, then he wasn¡¯t ready to take such a risk. He continued his ministrations, listening to the cadence of her moans that were like music to his ears. Soon enough, Csala started to moan louder. Jerome intensified his tongue action. He licked and sucked on her clit to push her to the limits of her endurance.


    Csala reached down to grab his head and lift her hips off the bedding as she climaxed. She screamed his name. Over and over again as one release led into another. Jerome assaulted her labia with more tongue action. He slammed her pelvis down with strong arms, pinning her and opening up her thighs for better access. Csala screamed his name again as his tongue continued searing her with pleasure.

 124. The Giver And The Taker 2 (R-18)

    Csala


    She came down from her ecstatic high, out of breath and sweating. She looked to her lover who was smiling at her. He seemed more beautiful now as if she was seeing him with new eyes. She wanted to cuddle, to hold him close. But she could smell his arousal, and see the straining bulge and tightness between his legs. She¡¯d had no small joy from working this member of his before and it seemed it needed the release. But it looked bigger. How was that possible? She gulped.


    Well¡­


    Csala smiled back at Jerome and got up on all fours. She crawled her way to him swaying her hips from side to side. It was a good thing Jerome wasn¡¯t entranced with her like other men were. It would have made pleasuring him not worth it. This way he could appreciate her efforts better.


    Jerome turned to lie on his back as she approached him, waiting for her to do what she wanted. She climbed on top of him and took her time to comb her fingers through his hair.


    ¡°You know you need to cut your hair, right? It¡¯s too long,¡± she said.


    He hummed, enjoying the attention she lavished on his scalp and hair. He kissed her breasts and chased after her nipples. Her jiggling enormous lumps seemed to dance around his lips, nipples evading them. She giggled and leaned forward, allowing him to capture her nipple with his lips. Jerome was greedy. He squeezed both breasts together so he could take both her nipples into his mouth. The sight aroused her, causing her to moan in pleasure. He started grinding against her nether lips wrecking havoc to her senses.


    Soon his assault became too much to bear. Her breasts were very sensitive and her lips were quivering against his rock hard cock. She began trailing kisses from his hair down to his jaw, imitating him, and forcing him to let go of her nipples. His cock twitched and bobbed against her stomach. Her breast bounced on to chest and her hardened nipples scraped his, the moisture from his saliva adding to the pleasure. She moaned. She found she had no idea what he liked and felt a bit hesitant. She felt she might not be able to reciprocate what Jerome had done.


    Jerome seemed to notice this. He smiled at her and said, ¡°Just relax, Csala. This is what intimacy is like¡­you ¡®learn¡¯ your partner as you go.¡±


    Csala leaned into him, caressing his broad shoulders and pectoral muscles. He was so big and manly. Virile, with the sexual intensity of the beastkin, yet with the sensuality of an incubus. She took his words to heart and decided to ¡®learn¡¯ him. Her hands became bolder as some part of her senses seemed to awaken. Somehow her hands became more sensitive. Her whole body became more sensitive. Jerome groaned lustfully from her ministrations. He grabbed the sheets beneath him and his muscles bulged.


    He liked it.


    Csala used her lips next. She kissed her way down to his strong abdomen taking her time just above his straining member. His dick twitched and strained toward her but she ignored it and gave him a knowing smile.


    ¡°Seriously, you don¡¯t have to be that thorough,¡± he said with a strained voice.


    Csala shushed him, continuing her kisses. When she finally came back to his cock, Jerome was red all over and threatening to burst with his load. She looked at the penis in front of her face twitching as it curved itself upward, toward its owner. It slapped her face and the smell of it caused her to shiver in pleasure. Up close, it was larger than she had thought it was. She wasn¡¯t sure it was going to fit into her mouth. But her body urged her to take it all in, all at once. She was hungry for it.


    With a great gulp of air, she took him into her mouth and buried him deep inside her throat. Her lips reached his base in an instant. Thankfully, he was as bare of pubic hair as she was. With control that was born out of instinct, Csala bobbed her head up and down on him, taking him deep down her throat. She looked up to find Jerome groaning in lust. He had bunched the sheets in his hands before but now his hands were in her hair, pulling her down on his member.


    ¡°You have no gag reflexes?¡± he said¡­ or asked. She wasn¡¯t sure. All of her concentration was on pleasuring his cock.


    Csala went faster, causing Jerome to lift himself off the bedding and ram his cock into her mouth. She should tell him to stop, that he¡¯d hurt her. Yet she felt no pain. It felt right. She wanted more of it. His cock woke up nerves along the walls of her throat she didn¡¯t know she had before. It brought her no small amount of pleasure. Before long, she sensed the incoming burst of vitality from Jerome.


    Csala contracted her throat muscles around Jerome¡¯s dick ¡ª something she never knew she could do, pulling on it and forcing him to cum. His dick swelled all of a sudden, tightening her throat muscles. Her inner jaw rose from her chest and she felt it wrap around the head of Jerome¡¯s cock.


    Jerome roared. He gripped her head and started face-fucking her with reckless abandon. She worked her jaw, urging him to climax but wishing this could continue. For some reason, it only enlarged his cock more. He kept slamming into her. Her inner jaws imitated her outer jaws causing maximum pleasure for him.


    ¡°I¡¯m cumming!¡± he crocked out. His speed increased a moment later and his hips became a blur. Jerome roared, convulsing uncontrollably as he rammed his cock into her mouth one last time. He held himself there, spurting his seed down her throat. Her inner jaw massaged his glans, sucking his seed greedily as he poured his vitality into her. It kept pumping out of him. Like a never-ending fountain.


    Csala¡¯s body soaked up the vitality from his seed. Some inner part of herself seemed to sing out for joy as his seed was absorbed into her. He slumped onto the bed and came out of her mouth with a pop. A string of cum connected him to her lips. Csala moaned and licked her lips. The taste of him was overpowering, manly. He tasted like the forest and wilds of Terra Praeta. She felt her arousal rising again. Her skin began to turn pink. Her senses were consumed with lust.


    ¡°That was¡­amazing!¡± Jerome said, nearly out of breath like she was only moments ago. But she wasn¡¯t done yet. She looked at the agent of Jerome¡¯s pleasure to see that it wasn¡¯t giving in as well. His cock stood tall and hard, his balls full to bursting with seed.


    Jerome smiled, seeing the look in her eyes. He gently pulled her by the neck and guided her back to work on his cock as he stood up, with her kneeling in front of him. Her eyes never left his as she took him into her mouth and this time, ideas were popping into her head. Csala extended her tongue and licked him in the balls causing Jerome to suck in air with a sharp breath. A moan escaped his mouth as he exhaled with a shaky breath. What a shocker. She never knew her tongue could extend that long.


    And he liked it.


    She got down to business, making sure to give him the best pleasure he had ever had in his life.


    ~~~


    It felt like the beast had awoken and consumed him. Only he was himself but the beast was awake as well, roaring in his ears to ravage Csala until pleasure consumed him. He kept slamming into her mouth, using her for his pleasure. The pleasure was so great that it bothered on pain. He had tried to stop but every fiber of his being seemed to want to do one thing: feed her!


    ¡°Csala,¡± he croaked out for the umpteenth time as he rode her mouth with super speed. His hips were a blur and the sweat that poured off him evaporated before touching the bed they were using. The whole alcove felt like it was on fire.


    She hummed a question at him and the vibration carried pleasure down his cock. It was so large that he couldn¡¯t figure out how Csala passed it through her throat. He could feel the bulge of his cock go down past her neck every time he slammed into her. But he couldn¡¯t stop himself. It felt so good. If he could just cum one more time. Just once more.


    ¡°Are you sure I¡¯m not hurting you?¡±


    Csala shook her head. She popped his dick out of her mouth and spat on it while giving him a handjob.


    ¡°Fuck me, Jerome. I¡¯m so wet for you,¡± she said with a near painful moan.


    Jerome¡¯s mind reeled. This was one request he was going to have to refuse, no matter how impossible it felt to do so right now. Her pink skin seemed to draw him in, wanting to be touched, to be licked, ravaged. The inhuman pigment didn¡¯t repel him, instead it did the opposite. Jerome struggled to refuse. He raked his hand through her red hair. It seemed a darker red now. And even more lustrous than ever. Her arousal seemed to have heightened everything about her.


    ¡°You absolutely must not do this, Xerae. You would hate yourself afterward.¡± Achilles warned.


    Jerome knew this. He knew but his mind and body were urging him to do it nonetheless. No one could stop him. Csala was already climbing on top of him. When did he lie back on the bed? She aimed his dick at her entrance and her juices poured over his large cock. Her fingers looked so small holding his cock. He waited in anticipation, yet trying to summon the will to stop her. She started to sit on him when he found his voice.


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    ¡°No, Csala.¡±


    Csala looked at him, startled. He quickly lifted her and placed her beside him. She reached for his cock with a snarl but he held her in place.


    ¡°Csala listen to me. We can¡¯t. You can¡¯t.¡± The haze in her eyes cleared a moment later. And she slowly sat up.


    ¡°Did I just¡­¡± she said. Her voice was so tiny and frail that Jerome felt she was going to cry. He sat up as well and embraced her.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Csala. It was a close call but we stopped. That¡¯s what matters.¡±


    She sniffed, crying silently for a long time. ¡°You know, don¡¯t you?¡± she finally said.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t change how I feel about you, Csala. I like you. And I don¡¯t want to see you lose your sense of self.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Jerome. I never knew my body could make me feel like that,¡± Csala muttered and crushed him in a hug. She was still very powerful, he reminded himself. ¡°I never knew someone else could make me feel that way.¡±


    Her voluptuous chest did things to him and his already softening cock hardened again. It poked her in the stomach causing her to release him and look down at it.


    ¡°Pay the little guy no mind. He¡¯ll calm down once we go to bed.¡±


    She gave him a smile that said his ¡®little guy¡¯ was anything but little and took it in both hands. They sat down close to each other as she caressed him lovingly. Jerome¡¯s arousal climbed as she played with his dick and balls in fascination. The sight of her hands on his dick, moving up and down while her huge tits swayed in the background was almost too much to bear. He would never have thought that a few minutes ago she was crying for nearly enslaving herself to him.


    ¡°Csala,¡± he moaned. ¡°We can¡¯t¡ª¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a way around it, Jerome,¡± she said, looking up at him. ¡°The other hole.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s brows rose. ¡°Anal?¡±


    She nodded and blushed. Even with her pink skin, he could see the reddening of her cheeks. He kissed her. Her saliva quickened his blood and the urge to ravage her rose again. He remembered that her saliva was an aphrodisiac.


    ¡°We have no lube, er, something to make it easier.¡±


    Csala giggled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Succubi can moisten all holes. It¡¯s Mother Nature¡¯s gift to us so that we don¡¯t die of frustration.¡±


    ¡°But will you enjoy it? Did you enjoy the¡­¡±


    Csala laughed. A hearty laugh that made him smile. ¡°Yes, Jerome. I enjoyed it. Succubi are built to pleasure and be pleasured. We may be cursed not to find true love but we can still enjoy ourselves.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not cursed Csala,¡± he ground out, giving her a crushing hug. ¡°I¡¯ll find a way to undo whatever it is. No matter what it takes.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Jerome. Are you ready?¡± She turned around to back her ass up to him. Jerome gulped as he suddenly felt thirsty. Achilles dropped another bottle into his void space. Jerome didn¡¯t bother to check it. The AI was reading his vitals all the way. He grabbed the bottle in his void space and drank to his heart¡¯s content.


    Csala¡¯s ass cheeks were round and meaty, with thick, plump thighs to go with them. The width of her hips astounded him once again. He kneeled behind her and massaged her cheeks, rubbing his cock between them. Jerome sandwiched his cock and squeezed. A shudder passed through him and his cock pulsed, eliciting moans from her.


    ¡°I¡¯m quite sensitive down there right now, Jerome. Don¡¯t torture me for too long.¡±


    Jerome grinned. He kept massaging her ass cheeks in both hands, squeezing them. He placed the head of his dick at her pucker and she moaned again, contracting and relaxing her pelvic floor muscles. Her pucker was surprisingly wet as it pulsed with need but he was not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. With agonizing slowness, he began to push into her. He held her hips, using them to squeeze her ass cheeks as they sandwiched his girth, burning the memory of his dick taking the plunge into his mind.


    Csala looked back at him and pushed back, wanting him to hurry. He held her back.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± she whined.


    ¡°Let me enjoy this moment, Csala. Let me burn it into my memory.¡± His cock went in slowly, an inch at a time. He groaned as he restrained himself from going faster.  Csala¡¯s whines filled the alcove as she began to fidget, urging him to go all the way at once. Halfway through, Jerome squeezed her ass cheeks against his cock with more pressure. The sight took his breath away. He continued with a painful slowness until he bottomed out. Csala sighed with him and began to move. Her anal walls gripped him like a vice, contracting and relaxing just like her throat. Jerome held her waist and began pumping slowly into her, increasing his tempo as their moans and grunts rose in the enclosed alcove.


    Soon, he couldn¡¯t take it anymore and began hammering her. She could take it. He could see the cues. Csala was super aroused right now and he was hitting all the right buttons. The sound of slapping flesh filled the alcove. Jerome slammed her into the bedding. Csala was strong though. She lifted her ass even as he rammed into her with a speed that shouldn¡¯t be used in the bedroom. Her walls began to spasm as she came hard.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stop!¡± she screamed. Soon she began to jerk and convulse like crazy, losing strength in her limbs. Yet she held up her ass for him to use as he pleased. Csala¡¯s mouth hung open in a silent scream as her eyes rolled into the back of her head.


    Jerome kept going, fueled by her climax and chasing his own. But the same thing that had happened the six times he came in Csala¡¯s mouth happened still. His cock swelled as he approached his climax. His muscles tensed and his speed increased. He was pistoning into Csala like a well-oiled machine. He felt like he was on the precipice of pleasure, yet could do nothing to ease it.


    Achilles, what the hell did you do to me?! He screamed in his mind.


    ¡°It seems Mother Nature took things into her own hands, Xerae. This is not my doing. You should see how brightly your soul is shining. Such mysteries are miracles that are beyond even me.¡±


    Achilles shared his vision with Jerome as he rammed into Csala from behind. It felt like he was having an ¡®out-of-body¡¯ experience. The world in his vision was a black void and only the outlines of their bodies showed ¡ª no, glowed ¡ª in blurry blue shapes. Bright lights were coming from their chests. Csala¡¯s light was a pinkish blue light that thrummed and shifted as if not yet decided on which shape to take.


    But his eclipsed her by an order of magnitude! His light was white with a light blue hue. And so bright his mind almost hurt to look at it. He couldn¡¯t even determine its shape as it was too bright to look directly at.


    What¡­ the¡­ fuck?! He huffed as he pounded into Csala. The vision faded. His cock continued to swell and pleasure assaulted him to painful levels. Her plump round ass bounced him up but molded to fit his pelvis when they connected. Her screams had resumed and she started cumming again. Jerome lost his train of thought as her anal walls gripped his cock like a vice, causing him to swell once more. He roared into the air. The only goal on his mind was to feed her. Every cell in his body seemed to contain explosive energy that drove him on.


    Before long, he clamped down with his teeth on Csala¡¯s neck, still slamming her ass, and roared as he pumped her full of cum. Csala¡¯s asshole tightened, the grip increasing his pleasure. He felt it continue for so long as he jerked wildly that time lost its meaning. Her ass jiggled beneath him, pressed to his pelvis as it was. He ground against her, still cumming, pushing into her at intervals. Not a single drop of his cum escaped her. Jerome slowly pulled out of her but her grip held on, refusing to let go and sending electric pleasure throughout his body. He slid his cock out of her slowly and slumped beside her a moment later, breathless and sweating. With a pulse of psychic energy, he cleansed their skin of sweat.


    Csala lay quietly beside him, the aftershocks of her climax continuing for long, long seconds. Her eyes were glazed over and staring at nothing in the air. Jerome hugged her close and massaged her shoulders and spine to help her calm down, while whispering sweet nothings  in her ear. Soon she sighed and slumped against him.


    ¡°That was amazing, Jerome,¡± she said quietly.


    ¡°I pumped so much inside you. How is it you can hold it all without spilling any,¡± he asked as he hugged her to him, squeezing her ass. Csala ground her pussy against his thigh, moaning.


    Jerome repositioned her on top of him, her back on his chest. His still-engorged dick pushed against her meaty ass and back. Csala chuckled at that. Jerome marveled at the length of his cock. The head was almost to his chest as Csala pressed her back into it, wiggling to pleasure him. It was a true monster cock.


    ¡°I¡¯m a succubus, Jerome. I can store days worth of seed in me, though this is the first time I¡¯m doing it.¡± She moaned as he began rubbing her nether lips to bring her pleasure.


    ¡°How so?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°I thought you did that to my seed in the mountain?¡±


    She gasped in pleasure, gripping his hand to keep him massaging her. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t. Succubi don¡¯t¡­ absorb directly. You saw what happened¡­ to me after I tasted you¡­ We can¡¯t¡­ risk it!¡± her gasps interjected her words.


    Jerome understood. ¡°But what about now?¡± he asked.


    ¡°You¡¯re different¡­ Jerome!¡± She came as she said his name. Her muscles locked up and her ass cheeks massaged the base of his cock beneath her. Her juices drenched his lower body and the smell filled the room. Jerome cleaned them both with his psychic energy ¡ª which cleansed them of wetness but not the stickiness that remained.


    With a twirl of his fingers, he summoned water from the atmosphere to clean them thoroughly. When Csala came down from her climax, they both cuddled but she kept reaching for his dick.


    ¡°Thanks for the cleaning,¡± she said, pumping his still hard dick.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t stop, we won¡¯t get any sleep,¡± he cautioned.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to sleep,¡± she whined. She climbed on top of him the next moment. His cock was too big so she had to raise her ass to take him into her pucker again ¡ª which by some miracle was as tight as before he fucked her there. She slowly pushed him in, her juices helping him slide into her better.


    Jerome felt like he was going to split her from the inside out. Csala wasn¡¯t tiny by any means, he was just too big. When he was fully seated inside her, he gripped her shoulders from behind and crushed her huge tits to his face. Csala laughed, the sound like the peals of bells and the rays of sunshine. She immediately began to ride him with the same speed he rammed her.


    The pleasure went from zero to a hundred in an instant. She slipped a nipple into his open mouth, which he took instinctually, and held him to her bosom. The slapping sounds of their flesh filled the alcove and soon Csala screamed as she climaxed, losing her rhythm as she convulsed on top of him. Jerome took over. He wrapped his arms around her waist, spread his knees apart, and slammed up into her continually. Csala¡¯s screams of pleasure were the only thing that he heard and soon he joined her.


    Terra Praeta had roughly twenty-four hours in a night. It was going to be a long, long night.

 125. Infiltration

    Something velvety yet with a vice-like grip pulled him to pleasure. Jerome woke up as he came, pumping Csala¡¯s ass full of cum. He began slamming into her with reckless abandon, pinning her tits to his face from above. Csala screamed in pleasure. The vice-like grip of her anal walls increased in intensity, squeezing him deliciously.


    Jerome¡¯s mind was raw, primal. He was in a red haze of pure pleasure. He sucked on the nipples in his mouth; bit into her flesh with utter pleasure and wild abandon as he hammered her asshole from below. He felt Csala¡¯s arms around his head as she held him to her breast, accepting everything he gave to her. He sensed her climax coming again, her moans increasing. He began chasing his own pleasure. Faster and faster he went, wanting to come at the same time she did.


    Frustration blossomed in his chest as her anal walls tightened around him. The pleasure increased as Csala screamed. Her hips jerked into his even as he rammed into her at super speed. His cock swelled inside her, nearly bursting. His balls felt so heavy and tight that they sought relief. Relief that felt so close, yet so far away. Csala began to moan again, her walls clenching and unclenching. She moaned again calling out his name, her previous climax leading into another.


    Jerome heard the sound of his grunts as if from far away. But her voice calling his name was so close. So arousing.


    ¡°Say my name again, Csala,¡± he croaked out, his voice barely sounding above the slapping sounds of their flesh.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± Csala moaned and it nearly drove him to madness. ¡°Yes! Faster!¡± she screamed as he fucked her faster. ¡°Oh, Jerome!¡± She screamed just as he touched his climax.


    They came together, jerking and convulsing in pleasure. But clinging to one another in bliss. It was the best climax he felt he had ever had. It went on and on as his cock pulsed to empty his balls into Csala in a never-ending spurt of cum. He slumped down, pulling her with him.


    They lay quietly for a while, enjoying each other¡¯s bodies and listening to each other¡¯s pounding heartbeats.


    ¡°I thought last night was the best thing ever,¡± Csala huffed. ¡°But this¡­ I have no words!¡±


    ¡°Me neither,¡± he said, out of breath himself.


    ¡°You know they would be waiting for us, right?¡±


    ¡°Let them wait,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I¡¯d like to spend a few more breaths just lazing around with you in my arms.¡±


    Csala looked up at him with a brilliant grin. Her chin rested on his chest and her thick red hair was in disarray, spilled around them like a curtain. Even at that, she looked absolutely stunning. It was morning already and the light of dawn was peaking through the barrier beside them. They never really got to sleep much. Csala had woken him up every few hours. It was truly a night of rutting.


    ¡°How do you feel?¡± she asked.


    Jerome took a deep breath, her scent filling his nostrils. ¡°I feel very good, sated really. Which is surprising because that was a marathon fucking session we had.¡±


    ¡°Sessions,¡± Csala laughed. ¡°Your dick is finally appeased.¡± He watched as her skin returned to the usual pale, porcelain complexion. But it retained the afterglow of sex. Her hair also took on its former blood-red color.


    Jerome chuckled. The little man wasn¡¯t rising again, even still buried inside her. ¡°I guess I know my limits now. Csala, I have so many questions that I don¡¯t know where to start.¡±


    ¡°You can ask me anything, Jerome. You learned my secret but didn¡¯t take advantage of me. I trust you.¡±


    Jerome searched her eyes for a minute seeing only¡­ he stopped himself from thinking it and cleared his throat. ¡°How is it you have a second set of lips inside you.¡±


    She grinned, placing her palms on his chest so she could rest her chin on them. Jerome caressed her back lovingly, barely registering what he was doing.


    ¡°It¡¯s a whole jaw and mouth, a second set as you rightly said. Succubi don¡¯t swallow like you humans ¡ª I know you¡¯ve noticed. I¡¯ve caught you staring at my throat in shock before.¡±


    ¡°Sorry,¡± he mumbled, not exactly feeling sorry. ¡°Are succubi by any chance related to naiads?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± she said with a frown.


    Jerome raised his hands in surrender. ¡°Just hear me out. The only creatures I know of with pharyngeal jaws ¡ª that¡¯s a second set of jaws ¡ª are aquatic. And they didn¡¯t use it for pleasure, but for pulling prey into their stomachs.¡± The moray eel was the one with the most mobile pharyngeal jaws like hers. But he didn¡¯t mention that to her. It would be unwise to rile up her anger by comparing her to an eel. ¡°Though their jaws extend from their throats, yours extend from deeper inside you, doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    Jerome looked down at her. She was eyeing him with a daring look. ¡°Did I say something wrong?¡±


    ¡°If I couldn¡¯t sense your emotions to know that you said this from a logical standpoint I¡¯d think you were comparing me to fish¡­ just so you can insult me.¡±


    Jerome gripped her by the waist. ¡°Er, sorry? That¡¯s not, I mean¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay you big baby,¡± she grinned at him again and he wondered how it is she had changed so much since he met her. ¡°But don¡¯t do that again ¡ª compare me to fish, that is.¡±


    Jerome nodded, rubbing at her lower back. He wondered what she¡¯d look like with a waist chain. His dick pulsed with excitement at the thought and Csala raised an eyebrow, mirth in her eyes.


    ¡°What about your skin? It changed color¡­¡± he asked, ignoring his body¡¯s response to the image he had conjured.


    ¡°I have no idea about that one. Although I think it¡¯s what happens to succubi when we take seed directly from a male. You know I¡¯m a psychic creature, right?¡± Jerome nodded. ¡°As succubi, we start learning about the world right from our mothers¡¯ wombs. Our mothers transmit information to us throughout our gestation. And when we are born, we just need to practice speaking.¡±


    Csala paused for a long while, in thought. Jerome waited patiently for her, knowing she was going through memories of the past. Whether they were happy or sad memories, he did not know.


    She sighed. ¡°Our mothers pick the knowledge they make available to us but sometimes, other things slip through. Most of it is compressed in my head. They¡¯re only now surfacing as I experience sex for the first time.¡±


    She grinned at him again. ¡°But I¡¯m sure this wasn¡¯t your first time. Where did you learn to rut like that? It felt like you were an incubus and a beastkin mixed into one.¡±


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    ¡°Incubus? You mentioned them before. And how am I like one?¡±


    ¡°The males of my kind. They¡¯re even fewer than us females ¡ª and a lot more dangerous. Your aura changed during our sessions. It was like you took on the intensity of the beastkin and yet the sensuality of the incubus. It was¡­ heady¡­ Irresistible¡­ Virile.¡± she breathed in deeply and Jerome knew she was breathing in his scent.


    ¡°There¡¯s something I need to tell you, Csala¡ª¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, Jerome,¡± Csala interrupted and tried to push off him. ¡°I¡¯m not going to separate you from your lover who is probably still back in your world. You probably have more lovers than I have fingers. You¡¯ll need a harem the size of Terra Praeta to satisfy your dragon-like sex drive.¡±


    Jerome held her down and smiled at her. ¡°That was a lot you just dumped on me. I think every man is open to the idea of a harem ¡ª I can¡¯t say I¡¯m not.¡± He said to himself as much as to her. ¡°I do have someone I love and care for, though. But we haven¡¯t taken that step. Maybe because we see ourselves as young and still in training,¡± he said, almost in thought.


    ¡°But it doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t care for you,¡± he continued. ¡°You know I do care for you, right?¡± he leaned forward to capture her lips but she leaned away, playing hard to get.


    ¡°Hmm-hmm,¡± Csala hummed, giving him a mischievous but playful glance. As if to say she didn¡¯t trust him.


    ¡°Hey now, I do. But that¡¯s not what I wanna discuss with you.¡± His face turned serious and he looked her in the eyes.


    ¡°Muna didn¡¯t go out without a fight¡­of sorts.¡±


    Jerome heard her heart skip a beat. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her snugly to himself. ¡°She sent some beings after us but none of them are as powerful as she is. These are the people she had imprisoned in her clutches for many years. With her dead, they would have been free anyway. Plus her spirit survived. For now, we are safe from her.¡± He waited patiently to see her reaction.


    ¡°So she sent them after me,¡± Csala said. ¡°If she can¡¯t have me why can¡¯t I have my life? Even in death, this succubus won¡¯t leave me alone.¡± Her voice broke and she tried not to cry as she spoke.


    Jerome caressed her hair and back with feather-light touches, helping her relax. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Achilles¡­the voice of the mountain, will let me know how many they are and their abilities. Soon enough. They definitely won¡¯t be too much for us to handle.¡±


    ¡°If only her spirit survived, then she would effectively be crippled in the material plane,¡± Csala said after calming down some. ¡°My mother taught me that sentient beings couldn¡¯t function ¡ª no, shouldn¡¯t be able to function ¡ª in the material plane once their souls were destroyed. Some kind of astral magic, I believe. The soul is the currency to function in the physical realm but some spirit beings can break that fundamental law if they are strong enough. Muna is powerful. Even as a new spirit being, she could still affect the world.¡±


    ¡°But not for a long time.¡± Jerome decided not to tell her of Dashani¡¯s involvement. The Mother of the Children to the West would have her just due in time. Somehow he knew it was his destiny to bring her down.


    ¡°If you get me to this place you talked about, we will have more power to deal with those she sent after us,¡± Csala said, her voice sounding more stable and confident. Jerome didn¡¯t miss her inclusion of him this time around.


    He nodded. ¡°True, and her minions won¡¯t be able to reach us in many days. Well, we estimate fifteen days since the ones she released are on this continent. By then we should already have your psychic powers fully restored. I need to bring Ms. Tara and her friend here.¡±


    They stood up and quickly put on their clothes. Jerome collapsed the alcove once they were outside. He closed his eyes and sent a pulse of essence into his connection with Ms. Tara¡¯s and her friend¡¯s storage rings. A moment later they were standing in front of him.


    They both puked their previous meals the moment they appeared.


    ¡°Warn a lady before you teleport her halfway across the world, will you?¡± Sheela screamed as the cold of the north hit her bare skin.


    ~~~


    City Of Alva, South of Vorthe


    Rihal


    Lulu had gone from ¡®street porter¡¯ to a decent-looking waitstaff. Rihal slowly took in his attire and demeanor. He had done a lot to get the man to not just look the part but dress the part. The Alvrics employed journeymen from different backgrounds to supervise their slaves working in their various businesses.


    The ¡®Daimon¡¯s Tankard¡¯ was one such establishment. A place of debauchery and denigration. Women from different societies across the Southern Sea are captured and enslaved just to sate some nobles¡¯ dark fetish.


    The Royal Family had known about this all along but didn¡¯t have the opportunity to stop it. They were Lords of Vorthe but the Sovereign wasn¡¯t a dictator. He ruled all of Vorthe with the support of the Great Clans. And the support of the lesser clans. All the Great Clans had beliefs and traditions they abided by and Alvric had theirs too. But now that they had fallen out with Vorthe, they had no more use to the Royal Family.


    Rihal walked away from the trembling Lulu whose eyes sought approval from his new master. He walked up to the window overlooking the Daimon¡¯s Tankard. The noise from the street sounded muffled and far away from his position. A scripted rectangle covered the roof of the room blocking out sound but also effectively keeping others from spying on the inhabitants of the room.


    ¡°An accident would befall someone inside the establishment by night. You will apply for the new vacancy that will be opened early tomorrow morning. Make sure to keep discussions minimal when you go to apply and act with as much reserve as you can ¡ª like I taught you.¡±


    ¡°Yes, master,¡± Lulu responded with a bow.


    ¡°Do this well¡­and I will reward you handsomely,¡± Rihal turned to him. ¡°You may go. Tomorrow morning at first light, make your way to the brothel.¡±


    Lulu couldn¡¯t help himself and looked up with wonder at the large scripted symbol that covered the whole roof and was glowing brightly. He scrambled out of the room moments later and shut the door slightly behind him.


    ¡°Master,¡± Rihal said, looking at a shadowed corner in the room. ¡°To what do I owe the honor of seeing you during a mission?¡± He bowed to his master who walked out of the shadows in the corner.


    ¡°I can see you found someone trustworthy¡­and very quickly I might add.¡± Damien stopped in front of him, dressed all in black leather armor.


    ¡°You praise me excessively, master. It was quite easy. The Alvrics have created a rift between themselves and their subjects. Many of them can easily be swayed to commit treason for a few cuts.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Damien Vorthe nodded, looking distant. ¡°They never listened to logic, remaining adamant to continue with their old ways. The first Vorthe did not take away their autonomy for the ¡®occupation¡¯ because House Fei might have come up with ways to question his rule. They would have called him a heartless dictator and spread lies about him¡­


    ¡°That was a sensitive time in the history of Vorthe. A time when Vorthe wanted to establish his reign with as little propaganda as possible. It was a lot harder keeping those two clans in line than we know. But I digress. The First Elder is finally ready to enact the plan. You are to have your prisoner in custody tomorrow by nightfall. Milena would be here to assist you.¡±


    Rihal frowned slightly, but only for a split moment. However, Damien still caught the change.


    ¡°You do not approve?¡±


    ¡°I will do as you instruct, master,¡± he said with a bow.


    ¡°A lot is riding on this mission, Rihal,¡± his master said. ¡°Alvric are already harassing towns and settlements at the boundary of their territory. The church has also amassed soldiers on our western border.¡±


    ¡°They cannot openly attack a sovereign nation without a casus belli.¡±


    ¡°They have one, even if it cannot hold water. Vorthe is being painted in a dark and gruesome light because of it. There is no end to the lies spouted abroad about us. But if we were to put the Alvrics at a disadvantage before an all-out war begins, we could control the narrative to some extent. And to a great extent, control the involvement of the church.¡±


    Rihal sighed. ¡°More politics,¡± he muttered.


    They had to take out all of the Alvric Sages. And it had to be done with subtlety. Or a lot of lives would be destroyed. That was his mission. It was simple and straightforward. But his master discussing politics with him was giving him a weird feeling. Rihal didn¡¯t want to think of the implications of it.


    He shook himself free of the thought for now. He had a job to do and hopefully, capturing a Sage wouldn¡¯t lead to his untimely death. Rihal had never seen Sages fighting, but he knew they were a catastrophe waiting to happen. Hopefully, this mission goes smoothly without any hitch.

 126. The Duel

    Terra Praeta, Northern Hemisphere


    Csala


    The Itakars were waiting outside the cave for them when they arrived. Nia turned to Csala and gave her a knowing smile. She quickly caught sight of the other two women with him and schooled her expression.


    Selene nodded at Sheela who gave her a bow. Sheela guided Tara to do the same. ¡°Light be with you young lady Selene,¡± she said.


    Csala smiled lightly to herself. She never knew the proud and haughty shifter could show deference. She hadn¡¯t known Sheela for long but she knew she was full of pride ¡ª in a positive way though. Tara on the other was as lost as a newborn chick in a storm.


    ¡°Let¡¯s do away with the frippery, shall we?¡± Selene reached out to bring them out of their bow. ¡°Any friend of Jerome¡¯s is a friend of mine.¡±


    ¡°This is Ms. Tara, Selene, and her teammate, Sheela,¡± Jerome introduced them.


    ¡°I know Sheela,¡± Selene said. ¡°She was named by the first matron of the Royal Academia of Sanctum whose name is also Sheela.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at the mention of Sanctum.


    ¡°Light be with you, Ms. Tara. How do you know Jerome?¡±


    Tara cleared her throat but refused to meet Selene¡¯s eyes. ¡°I took care of him in Farryn, young lady Selene.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s like a mother to me, Selene,¡± Jerome interjected.


    Csala watched as Selene¡¯s eyes turned serious as she nodded. Jerome had made sure to communicate Tara¡¯s importance to him and everyone had caught the meaning behind his words.


    ¡°I¡¯m happy to meet you, Ms. Tara. These are my teammates.¡± Selene gestured at her team. ¡°I know very little of Jerome¡¯s childhood. We can discuss it at a later time, right?¡± she winked at Tara who smiled lightly, meeting her eyes for the first time.


    Jerome groaned. Then Selene turned on her.


    ¡°Look how your skin glows, Csala. Might I ask what you¡¯ve been up to,¡± Selene asked with a whisper. What was with the formal speech? Didn¡¯t she say to do away with the frippery?


    Csala coughed, going red instantly. The two human girls giggled at her causing her to grow a shade darker. ¡°I¡¯m not telling you,¡± she mumbled.


    ¡°Awwn, come on,¡± Selene said with pretend hurt. ¡°You¡¯ll hurt our feelings.¡±


    ¡°Details, Csala. We need to hear it,¡± Nia whispered from beside her leader in glee. ¡°And ye said ye don¡¯t want him.¡±


    Csala watched them taunt her playfully, a smile forming on her lips. She¡¯d never had friends before so this was all new to her. But she knew that they were being sincere with her. She could sense it. They weren¡¯t jealous or anything. Selene was in love with the tallest Sprout in their group, the one called Trudhorn. She looked over at the other members of Selene¡¯s team. They were doing their best not to look her way.


    Jerome bumped fists with them before heading into the cave to bring down the barrier. The boys on Selene¡¯s team all turned to face away from her the moment Jerome left them. Something they weren¡¯t doing the day before. Csala knew the girls must have talked to the boys about it. Or perhaps they were deliberately looking away from her because they thought ¡ª no knew ¡ª she was Jerome¡¯s woman.


    Csala sighed. If only that were true. She¡¯d be deceiving herself if she said she didn¡¯t love Jerome. She thought about how she had fallen head over heels for the troublemaker who barged into her life with the force of a whirlwind and stole her heart away.


    But alas, she couldn¡¯t have sex with him. Not in the way that mattered. She refused to give up her freedom for love. For the kind of love that would put her in shackles. That was not love, it was slavery. She also couldn¡¯t let Jerome live that kind of life. Thankfully he had someone waiting for him back home.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s move a ways away from here.¡±


    ¡°Ajax!¡± Selene called out. ¡°We¡¯re going for a stroll.¡±


    Selene¡¯s brother gave her a knowing smile but quickly looked away. Csala was still fascinated by their hair and appearance. She¡¯d never tell Selene that though. At least not yet. The girls saw her as a mystery. A bit similar to the way men see her, but without the lust in their eyes. It made it easier to keep them attentive to her. She wouldn¡¯t want to become a regular female around them.


    Weird, she thought. When did I start concerning myself with how other people see me?


    She had no answer. Or perhaps she did. It was when she started to care about what Jerome thought of her. And now she was concerned about what his friends thought of her too.


    What an exhausting way to live, she thought.


    They walked away from the boys, climbing up the cave to give themselves some privacy.


    ¡°Er, where are we going?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°To get cleaned up. And I¡¯m starving,¡± Selene said.


    ¡°Me too,¡± Nia chipped in.


    Sheela nodded vigorously but said nothing. Tara only smiled.


    ¡°Er, we could have just asked Jerome to make us a bath inside the cave. And I think he still has some frozen meat in his¡ª¡± She stopped herself from revealing anything about his weird storage space that can hide a living person away. Storage rings couldn¡¯t do that.


    Selene stopped. And began racing back. ¡°Hurry!¡± she screamed. ¡°Before he brings down the barrier!¡± They all raced after her.


    ~~~


    Jerome watched the Itakars as they grilled the deer he had been keeping in his void space. He¡¯d forgotten all about it. He¡¯d had to kill it remotely and used a weak preservation rune to make it look like it had been in his storage ring for a while like that. Squeals of laughter came from inside the cave as the girls bathed and wasted precious water playing. He sighed. They should be on their way already. The Feis were already camped near the dark forest.


    Soon the smell of grilled meat reached him. This time it was different as he smelled seasonings and spices. The Itakars had come prepared to Terra Praeta. He remembered his time in Solon¡¯s tower and how Ajax had lent him his tent. Jerome chuckled.


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    The ladies came out soon after, looking clean and shiny. They also looked relaxed and happy. Good for them. He hoped the boys wouldn¡¯t ask for a bath. They were sacred artists and could clean themselves with their mental energy. No need for such conveniences when they had miles of snow and ice to cover.


    Jerome went into the cave to bring down the formations that he had set. He came out of the cave soon after and the Itakars mounted their wolves, the deer was all gone except for the bones and his portion. He looked around, seeing that everyone was set to leave. Sheela was rubbing her bulging stomach and the boys gazed at her with terror. She and Ms. Tara were putting on fluffy winter coats he had provided them.


    At his questioning look, she shrugged. ¡°Shifters eat a lot.¡± He could imagine. She hadn¡¯t eaten too much when they sat down to eat before. Right. He remembered he hadn¡¯t told his friends about where he and Csala were going.


    Csala walked up to him with slow steps, hips swaying beautifully. Selene was right behind her. Trudhorn too.


    ¡°Now that Muna has been dealt with, Selene and her team would like to come along with us to this ¡®oh so secret place¡¯ you haven¡¯t said anything about,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°...yet,¡± Jerome interjected. ¡°I haven¡¯t told you about it ¡®yet¡¯. But now that I think about it, let¡¯s make it a surprise.¡±


    ¡°At least tell us what to expect,¡± Selene said and Trudhorn hummed his agreement.


    ¡°Well. It¡¯s going to be dangerous.¡± Jerome looked around, seeing that the rest of the team had gathered around them. They looked like a motley crew of pirates with their armor all torn up in places. At least they looked clean.


    ¡°Danger ain¡¯t gon¡¯ stop us, Jerome,¡± Bram said. ¡°This is the North and we are masters of the North and her cold.¡±


    ¡°Aye, we are not weaklings. We survived the monsters of these mountains,¡± Nia said.


    ¡°No, no. They are a bunch o¡¯ smelly pups, nothing more,¡± Bram said and the Itakars chortled happily.


    ¡°Very well. Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you,¡± Jerome said, spreading his arms. He commended their bravery and willingness to charge into the belly of the beast. However¡­ ¡°The creatures that inhabit where we¡¯re going would make the unbound look like pups for real. And the unbound were apex predators ¡ª at least in this habitat. And just so you know, we would be restricted in our use of essence.¡±


    Selene nodded as he stopped talking, taking that as a sign he was ready to leave. ¡°Ms. Tara and Sheela would ride with us.¡± Her teammates were already mounting their wolves.


    He nodded, held Csala to himself, and unfurled his wings before taking off into the sky with the Itakars following behind. There was no need to let them know he could fly without his wings.


    ~~~


    Fei Lin


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, Yan. Just as Mother said, the forest creatures would scatter during the Alignment. And we would have the chance to enter it safely¡­ well, as safely as possible. It¡¯s still a given that not all of us will survive,¡± Fei Lin said to her friend and teammate as they wiped themselves off with wet towels.


    They had been camping near the forest of shadows for days now and had taken the time to set up camp. A few tents stood around hers to keep her in the center of their camp. They created a small training ground and made sure they had adequate food and water to wait for the Alignment. They had just finished today¡¯s training as well and were freshening up. But the wait was killing them with boredom.


    ¡°We¡¯ve just been here for so long, that it¡¯s getting on my nerves,¡± Fei Yan said. ¡°Exactly when would the alignment be? And how long would it take?¡±


    Someone else put their head into their tent. ¡°It usually starts on the last day of our stay in Terra Praeta. And it would last for ¡ª I don¡¯t know, a quarter of the day?¡±


    ¡°Shut up, Aila,¡± Fei Lin said. ¡°It¡¯s not going to take that long. This means we¡¯ve got to be very fast so we can reach The Waters of Irithiya as fast as we can. All we need to do ¡ª why are you all here?¡±


    All the girls had snuck into her tent to listen to her tell this story, even though they had heard it from their arms masters back at home. They snickered when they heard the change in tone but none answered her.


    Home. Fei Lin missed home. And she wanted to go back as soon as possible. Away from this gods-forsaken place.


    ¡°Anyway. All we need to do is dunk ourselves into the Waters of Irithiya.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± one of the girls asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s it, Ruiwen. You just need to dip yourself into the water,¡± Lin rolled her eyes at the girl¡¯s unbelief. ¡°It¡¯s like a baptism of water.¡± She¡¯d probably not heard it from one of the arms masters back home and heard it from a teammate. That¡¯s why she was so unbelieving.


    Fei Lin had heard it from Mother, the Matriarch herself.


    Someone coughed just outside the tent, a male from the tone of voice. She quickly reached down to pick up her wrap and cover her fair skin.


    ¡°Princess it¡¯s me, Lang. We¡¯ve got company.¡±


    Fei Lin¡¯s eyes went round as saucers. ¡°How is that possible?¡± She quickly got dressed and exited her tent to join her teammates outside the camp.


    They all exited the camp to see the intruders, or supposed intruders since the Feis couldn¡¯t lay claims to the land here. Terra Praeta was no man¡¯s land even though the Sovereign of Vorthe held power over it.


    Getting closer and closer to them was a team of Sprouts she was not expecting. But she quickly reasoned how fortunate they were that it wasn¡¯t the Royals. If it was the Royals, she would have ripped her own hair out of her head in frustration because they would have made things unfavorable for her teammates.


    ¡°We can use this to our advantage, right Lang?¡± Fei Lin asked.


    ¡°No, Princess,¡± Lang said from beside her. ¡°Look up.¡±


    She did. And wished she hadn¡¯t. The cur of the Royal family was here and if he left Terra Praeta intact, her family¡¯s secrets would follow him and be revealed to the Royals.


    ¡°We can¡¯t allow him to leave here alive,¡± she said tightly. ¡°What should we do?¡±


    ¡°Simple,¡± Lang said with a smile. ¡°He¡¯s definitely the most powerful person among them and from what I glimpsed from before, he¡¯s friends with them. We¡¯ll duel for the right to enter the forest. Trust me, he¡¯ll take the duel.¡±


    The Feis moved closer to the team of House Itakar that had stopped a few paces away from them. Two others were with them that didn¡¯t quite fit in with them but they were irrelevant. They watched as Jerome landed lightly in the snow with a new figure. Someone they¡¯d never seen before.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s absurd?¡± Fei Lin heard one of her teammates whisper. ¡°Doesn¡¯t she know the color red would only attract predators to her?¡±


    Fei Lin smiled. If the other team could move around with dumb people, then they weren¡¯t prepared for Terra Praeta. It¡¯s a miracle they survived for so long.


    ¡°You are not welcome here,¡± Lang began.


    ¡°And what authority do you have over the dark forest?¡± the Royal cur said, walking toward her team, which surprised Fei Lin. Did he know something? Wait, he called it the ¡®dark forest¡¯.


    ¡°Forest of Shadows, Jerome. That¡¯s what it¡¯s called,¡± Lang said as they walked toward their team so they could meet in the center.


    ¡°That¡¯s what you call it, not the denizens of Terra Praeta.¡±


    What? Fei Lin almost faltered.


    Lang shrugged. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. You will not be going in.¡±


    The cur chuckled. ¡°And who¡¯s gonna stop us, you?¡±


    Lang stood up straight as menace began to ooze off him. ¡°I propose a duel,¡± his voice boomed all over the clearing where both teams stood. ¡°Whoever wins will have the chance to enter the Forest of Shadows with his team alone.¡±


    This was almost perfect. They could silence the Royal cur and keep the Itakars from seeing what was inside. Perhaps they could swear the Itakars to an oath of secrecy, and get them on their side ¡ª that was one very good way to form a political ally. Maybe.


    No matter what they did though, the Royals must not find out about the Waters of Irithiya.


    The crowd of Sprouts backed up with Jerome and Lang in the center. Things were going smoothly. Too smoothly in fact, that it felt a bit weird. The cur agreed to the duel too easily ¡ª with a smile at that. As if he had any chance of defeating someone who was at the threshold of the Spirit Realm. Fei Lin watched the robed Sprout materialize a crude-looking spear from his storage ring.


    That wouldn¡¯t hold up against Lang¡¯s katana, she thought with a chuckle. He wasn¡¯t even wearing armor, only furred robes. And she admitted, his robes were of great quality, albeit strange. But they wouldn¡¯t stop a blow of sword force from crippling him. Or even killing him.


    Lang charged.

 127. Our Word Is Our Bond

    Jerome watched the armor-clad Sprouts as they stood defensively before the Dark Forest that loomed mightily ahead as if they could stop them from entering the forest. He was reminded again about how culturally different the Feis were from the rest of Vorthe.


    Their armors weren¡¯t as pristine as they once looked before the battle at the blockade, but the differences between theirs and the armors of the other Sprouts that came to Terra Praeta were very glaring.


    Lang put on a large dragon head-shaped helmet that covered his whole face and flared at the bottom, giving him a menacing look. The only part of his face Jerome could see was his eyes. It was a good look on him and would have discouraged any other Sprout from fighting with him.


    Not Jerome though.


    The older Sprout only reached up to his shoulders now since he¡¯d been ¡®improved¡¯ by Achilles. But Lang had more girth and looked more imposing. On every metric, it seemed Jerome was at a disadvantage since he was less experienced and younger.


    Every other Sprout backed away from them for their duel. Jerome waited as the Sprout slowly drew his blade. The ringing of metal against metal as he slowly unsheathed his blade told Jerome all he needed to know about the blade.


    It was a powerful artifact.


    Just like the one he took from the Alvric girl. And from what Jerome could sense from the blade, it was a blade forged to bring swift death. The air vibrated with its power as it left its sheath, causing the Sprouts behind Jerome to give voice to their fears. If he was any other Sprout, doubt would most likely have set in his heart by now.


    But he was not. He held in his hand, one of his old spears. Heavy in the shaft it might be, though, it couldn¡¯t compare to an artifact. But Jerome had already known there would be an altercation so he had prepared, imbuing all his normal spears with powerful scripted symbols of power. And with Achilles¡¯ help, some techniques of the force of light. They drew essence from the air to keep themselves powered.


    On the surface, the spear in his hand looked like every other average spear ¡ª mundane. But it was heavier and stronger than normal due to the powerful scripts, and it could hold his essence and sword force.


    Lang shot forward.


    Jerome watched as the Sprout crossed the distance between them. It should have taken a split second. Or perhaps it did. But it seemed like several seconds to him. The older Sprout was moving so slowly that he caught everything he was doing. He had to admit. Lang had good form.


    He watched as sword force covered Lang¡¯s blade as he crossed the distance. It was a pretty good tactic. He imbued his blade after moving, making sure that his opponent wouldn¡¯t notice the move until it was too late, and wouldn¡¯t react on time.


    Just before Lang swung at him, Jerome stepped up to him and pushed the older Sprout back with two fingers to the chest. Lang staggered backward, losing his footing, and with shock written on his face. Jerome smiled at him and shoulder-shrugged. He readied his spear, taking a defensive stance.


    They both shot toward each other at once and the clang of steel against wood and steel filled the air.


    ¡°You know, Xerae, I¡¯ve seen your memories of that technique the Feis used in the Night of Terra Praeta. It¡¯s called the Formless Blade.¡±


    That¡¯s good to know, Achilles, Jerome thought. Finally nice to put a name to the technique. I want you to observe closely. I¡¯m going to force him to use it.


    ~~~


    Lang


    L¨®ngt¨®u wasn¡¯t working against the younger Sprout. That was the only conclusion he could come to. If not, the boy should have hesitated to fight him when he put on the helmet.


    Lang had wanted to end this fight as quickly as possible so he could conserve his strength but it seemed he would have to be a little bit ruthless. He gave Jerome a once over. His strange clothing wasn¡¯t anything he had seen in Vorthe before. The younger Sprout was wearing a strange hooded black cloak with long sleeves and thick fur lining the end of the hood ¡ª clothing that was good for the cold but not for the edge of the blade. His leather vest and pants also didn¡¯t look hard-boiled.


    Lang attacked and the younger Sprout pushed him back. He was taken aback in shock. No one in his Realm had ever been able to stop his advance. The boy had the gall to smile and even shrug. He felt his anger rise but pushed it down to stay clear-headed. They shot toward one another and started their fight heatedly.


    Jerome¡¯s blows were heavy. That spear in his hand looked like an ordinary spear. But how could it support itself without crumbling on contact with his katana? He quickly separated from the younger Sprout to observe better.


    ¡°That spear is an artifact, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    The boy smiled at him. ¡°Does it matter? Yours is a powerful artifact but you don¡¯t see me complaining.¡±


    Lang¡¯s anger flared at the verbal slap. Jerome had just insinuated that he was complaining about his opponent using an artifact while he was also using one.


    ¡°Let us get this over with,¡± he said and attacked again.


    The young Sprout dodged his first few strikes and parried the rest. His spear gave him an advantage with its length and his thrusts were quick and powerful. Lang was able to keep up but it seemed the young Sprout wasn¡¯t even expending effort. He took his time waiting for the right moment to execute the Formless Blade.


    Lang kept assaulting the young Sprout wanting him to reveal his true strength. He swerved right as the spear was thrust at him and spun his blade, executing the Rainbow Lotus, a defensive technique that helped to repost an attack, and also distract an opponent with the illusion of myriads of blades.


    The young Sprout wasn¡¯t phased. He parried like he had fought against the Rainbow Lotus before. Most annoyingly, Lang couldn¡¯t sense him rotating his core. Which was strange because it would mean the Sprout in front of him was stronger¡­ He cut that line of thought in anger. Years of discipline surfaced to help him control his frustration.


    This battle was not going as he intended.


    The snow was keeping him from moving too fast but with bits of essence transmitted to his skysail, he was able to keep himself afloat a little and increase his speed. He observed Jerome to see that he was unperturbed with the knee-deep snow as if he had a skysail of his own. But there was no essence leaving his body. He would have sensed it if Jerome rotated his core.


    Lang wasn¡¯t so sure the Royal family would procure a skysail from the Alvrics for a disciple who already had an artifact that could help him fly. How frustrating¡­


    They both moved across the ground like angels of death. Reaching speeds that would cause the other Sprouts around to cringe back in fear. Lang went in hard, swinging his sword with a dexterity borne from years of training. Jerome was just as good, his spearwork was perfect and he used it in the best combination of forms possible.


    There were no flaws to his movements. Lang secretly admired his footwork. The young Sprout didn¡¯t waste space. There were no unnecessary movements. Every little move was done expertly and with the intent to keep the fight in his favor.


    Their attacks were producing sparks in the air now from the immense force of their blows. Sword force had caused an imbalance in the ambient essence and it was only getting more concentrated. It was almost time to execute his technique ¡ª the ultimate technique.


    It is said that at the peak of the Saint Realm, one could use this technique to cut through the body and soul, reaching for the spirit of an adversary, and destroying all traces of their existence.


    This was going to be a lesson to the younger generation of House Fei. The Formless Blade was a superior technique that shouldn¡¯t be treated with levity. And he was going to show them how truly terrifying it was!


    The sword force in the air spiked and Lang executed a series of beautiful attacks, his katana cutting through the air, vibrating with condensed sword force. It came in contact with Jerome¡¯s spear multiple times and the shock from the impact shook his limbs. Lang fought faster and faster as he stirred the sword force in the air, making it more concentrated.


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    If he was going to take this Sprout down and do it preeminently, he needed as much sword force as he was physically capable of commanding. There was no denying that the young Sprout was stronger than he had thought. Maybe as strong as he was.


    Lang almost shivered at the thought but held himself strong. With a few more parries, he sheathed his blade, retreating to a safe distance.


    ¡°You don¡¯t stand a chance anymore, Jerome,¡± he said. He stood with his legs apart, muscles taut, holding the tsuka of his katana in his dominant hand and his saya in the other, ready for the quick draw.


    The younger Sprout was a few paces away from him ¡ª not too far away but not too close. The perfect distance for the Formless Blade.


    ¡°Why are you talking?¡± His adversary said with a smirk. Lang observed his surroundings first as he looked around before taking a stance. He smirked behind his helmet as well. Very well. He rotated his core and the air sang with the vibration of sword force for a split moment.


    Lang drew his blade.


    Blinding light overcame his sight as the intensity of sword force in the air climbed exponentially quickly. The sword force in the air converged on Jerome from all sides, Trapping him inside a circle of swirling death. There was no escaping this Formless Blade. It would rip him to shreds and nothing but blood and pulp would be left of the young Sprout.


    This is karma, Lang thought to himself with an air of absolute authority. He prided himself in his humility and ability for self-control. The little urchin should have learned to follow like the disciple that he was. He shouldn¡¯t have bloated his ego with that loud and disrespectful mouth of his.


    At the end of it all, the disciplined always stood firm. As they say, ¡®Pride goes before the fall¡¯.


    The light died down quickly ¡ª too quickly in fact ¡ª and what Lang saw brought his jaw to the floor.


    ~~~


    This was it. The Formless Blade. Bright silvery white light blinded him for a moment but Jerome kept his eyes focused by contracting the muscles in his irises. How he did that, he had no idea. He only saw in black and white for the briefest of seconds.


    The nanites, he remembered.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae,¡± Achilles confirmed.


    The concentration of sword force in the air increased to at least a thousand percent. It felt like Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon once again, or Hedon¡¯s artifact. Jerome remembered the disc-shaped, copper-colored artifact, and the storm of Sword Force still swirling in his void space. Sword force tickled his skin but did nothing more. It was sharp in the air, like a drawn blade ready to slice him to pieces. Jerome was a lot tougher than he was back then though ¡ª and his winter coat protected him.


    He extended his psychic energy to encompass the entirety of the clearing, sucking in and compressing the sword force in the air. Jerome weaved a complicated pattern with it around him and his spear. The same pattern Muna had weaved with her psychic energy before her body was disintegrated by his barrier. Or at least something close to it. Jerome was sure he couldn¡¯t weave the pattern with its many nested layers completely.


    The sword force swirled around him but the pattern couldn¡¯t be seen with the naked eyes of a Sprout. It could only be sensed but even then, the Sprouts here didn¡¯t have evolved psychic energy to sense what he was doing.


    Not even Lang.


    They took a few steps away from him due to the intensity of the sword force. All they could sense was the concentrated energy vibrating the air around him and raising his hair in a wild display, making it seem like the wind was in his face.


    The older Sprout was staring up at him in wonder and for the first time ¡ª fear.


    ¡°My turn,¡± Jerome said and spun his spear. He smelled the strong stench of fear ooze out of the older Sprout as it rose in him. The air rang as the compressed sword force spiked in the air around him. Jerome hurled an arc of sword force at him.


    ~~~


    Fei Lin


    ¡°We yield!¡± Fei Lin screamed, standing in front of her protector to protect him.


    But she was a tad bit too late. Jerome had already blasted sword force at Lang and she could feel the hairs on her body stand on end. Her eyes hurt her and she blinked to moisten them.


    One moment, Jerome was standing a few paces away. But now he was in front of her. She raised her head in surprise to see his strange clothing flash with golden bands of light at the edges before the sword force hit him like hail.


    He glared at her and she flinched, taking a step back. She was coming to understand that this Sprout did not give a rat¡¯s ass about her status as the heir of a Great Clan. Nothing phased him. But she was still the heir of a Great Clan! She would not keel over to a mere disciple just because he was imposing.


    Fei Lin drew herself to her full height.


    ¡°I said we yield!¡± she said with a bite to her tone and glared back. ¡°You have your opportunity to enter the Forest of Shadows!¡±


    Her heart was beating a mile away and her limbs trembled as she stood before Jerome. She felt like he could crush her with a finger as waves of pressure radiated off him. Then he smirked.


    ¡°But that wasn¡¯t the agreement, was it?¡± Jerome spread his arms and the sword force in the air seemed to be sucked into him, leaving the atmosphere almost bare and lifeless. Not even the ambient essence was left untouched. ¡°Winner takes all, and the loser gets to sit out the journey to the Waters of Irithiya.¡±


    A sudden shock ran through Fei Lin who was looking at the air around her as if that could help her decipher how Jerome had sucked all that sword force into him. She turned to look at him with wide eyes not expecting to hear that name from him.


    Several gasps went through her teammates, showing that they were listening in on their conversation.


    ¡°Is that where we¡¯re going, Jerome?¡± Selene asked from a distance away.


    Jerome looked back and nodded once. ¡°And House Fei here thinks they still have the chance to enter the dark forest, even after losing the duel. Does the word of the protector of the heir mean nothing?¡± he asked, addressing Fei Lin directly.


    She glared at him and clenched her jaw to stop herself from saying something she would regret. If anything, their word should mean something. Everything. She had already started to think of a way out when Lang quickly put his hand on her shoulder to grab her attention. He went down on one knee and glared up at Jerome.


    ¡°Our word is our bond,¡± Lang said, drawing a knife from his boot. ¡°I only ask that you do not take this out on the whole team. Let them join you in the pools and you can have my life¡­or death. I swear by the darkness that plague¡ª¡±


    ¡°Lang, no!¡± Fei Lin said and quickly covered his mouth to stop him from swearing an oath he would live to regret. She could see the pain in his eyes. The regret he felt for proposing a duel he had thought he could win but ultimately lost.


    Lang was smart and he wanted to give them a fighting chance. If they returned home without ever stepping foot inside the Waters of Irithiya, they would have brought shame to their clan ¡ª better one person than all of them.


    The crunching of snow around her told her that the other Sprouts were coming toward them. She wanted to regain her stand as a force to be reckoned with before any other person saw her like this, even though they could hear all that was going on.


    ¡°Princess, it has to be done. This is the consequence of my actions,¡± Lang said but looked away from her, guilt-ridden.


    She turned to Jerome and held her head high. The nuisance of a Sprout dared to look down at her as if she were a flea. She ground her teeth in anger but restrained herself from saying anything that would offend him. She was on the back foot here and the fate of her team rested in his hands.


    ¡°As you well know, I am the heir of a Great Clan.¡±


    He said nothing.


    ¡°And my family is second only to the Royals. Don¡¯t you think it best to let every one of us enter the forest? Don¡¯t you think it¡¯d be best to have a Great Clan owe you a life debt? We can raise your status in all of Vorthe, Jerome. And we have the Royals¡¯ ears.¡±


    Everyone else had gathered around them by now. The Itakars behind Jerome and the Feis behind her. Fei Lin felt a tremendous amount of pressure upon her at once. She needed to be a leader and she needed to be seen as strong and uncompromising while being merciful. She needed to be in control.


    But the stupid Sprout had said nothing since she began talking. He should at least say something so she knew where she and her team stood with him. She was grasping at straws as it were and she hoped it wasn¡¯t perceived by others around her. Or worse ¡ª perceived as a weakness on her part.


    ¡°No,¡± Jerome said, loud and clear so everybody heard him.


    Fei Lin wanted to rip him apart and feed him to her sacred beasts in Farryn. If only they were in Farryn. What was he thinking in that stubborn head of his?!


    ¡°Jerome, it is considered a bad practice to refuse the grace of the nobility,¡± Selene said beside him.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be bought. And I won¡¯t be cowed,¡± he said, still looking at her like he was looking at a pest. His voice carried a tone of finality in it. ¡°I am my own person. I have no need for Lang¡¯s life¡­ or death. I only need you to stay out of my way. You can come with¡­ Not because I fear your family name. Not because I want something from you. But because I choose to let you.¡±


    Sighs of relief echoed around Fei Lin and she sighed too. But his message couldn¡¯t be clearer. He was ¡®permitting¡¯ them entry because he had the power to do so. The gall of him!


    ¡°But now you owe me,¡± he said.


    Fei Lin saw an opportunity to regain control of the conversation. She squared her shoulders and raised her chin, saying, ¡°And what would you want? If it¡¯s within my power I will grant it.¡±


    ¡°It is not within your power,¡± came the Royal disciple¡¯s retort. She felt like punching him in the face! But at least he had agreed to let them join them.


    ¡°You should gather up your things. We¡¯d be heading in soon,¡± he said again and this time, she looked at him in unbelief.


    ¡°Are you mad?¡±

 128. Light Is To Life, As Darkness Is To Death

    Jerome was already walking away when Fei Lin asked if he was mad.


    ¡°You are going to kill us all!¡± she stated. ¡°We don¡¯t go in until the Alignment!¡±


    The Alignment must be the event that opens the portal that would take them back home. Jerome turned back and glared at her. He wanted to tell her to never use that language on him again but held back his tongue. It would be seen as him using his strength as a kind of status. He had just proven his strength to all present but that didn¡¯t mean they respected him.


    ¡°This is how they waited the last time they were here, Xerae. And the time before that,¡± Achilles said.


    ¡°There are other ways to get in there. You¡¯ll see,¡± he said with barely contained anger.


    ¡°And what other ways?¡± Fei Lin shot back. ¡°This is your first time here and I¡¯m pretty sure the Royal Family doesn¡¯t know about this place¡ª¡±


    Lang quickly covered her mouth with his hands, preventing her from revealing more about what the Royal Family did ¡®not¡¯ know. Jerome chuckled and walked off. His anger was already rising and he was ready to snap at her but thanks to the quick thinking of her protector he was able to hold back. The mouth of that girl would put her in trouble someday.


    He walked toward the forest a distance away and the Itakars followed him. The Feis were on the other side of them. He looked around and saw that both teams didn¡¯t want to mix among themselves.


    ¡°Look everyone,¡± he said, stopping and facing them all. ¡°You better start learning to work together. I know that in the past your family must have lost quite a number of Sprouts inside the dark forest, am I right Fe¡­ young lady Fei?¡±


    The person in question huffed, folded her arms defensively, and looked away from him but Jerome sensed the quick trickle of joy that went through her from hearing him esteem her by her status. And she mumbled something about the forest being the forest of shadows and not the dark forest.


    Jerome held himself back from rolling his eyes at her.


    ¡°It is so, Jerome,¡± Lang answered. Jerome found the older Sprout to be¡­humbled. And he found he didn¡¯t like it. The once proud Sprout was now acting with a defeated spirit.


    ¡°Well, we can go through this without any casualties¡ª¡±


    Murmurs rose around them.


    ¡°Surely you jest, Jerome,¡± Lang said. ¡°You may be strong but you can¡¯t protect everyone.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t be protecting everyone. I¡¯ll be giving you the things necessary to help you protect yourself. And besides, I do need you all to go back home safe and sound.¡±


    He saw Selene and Ms. Tara tilt their heads in confusion at him. Now was a good time to tell them about Hedon. They needed the inspiration to stay alive so they could go back to their families.


    ¡°What do you mean, Jerome,¡± Trudhorn and Ajax asked simultaneously.


    ¡°After the Children¡¯s blockade, I tracked down Hedon and took his arm.¡±


    Gasps rose everywhere.


    ¡°Jerome, this¡­you¡¯re not joking, are you?¡± Selene asked, studying him.


    ¡°That¡¯s not even the worst part¡ª¡±


    ¡°Slow down, Jerome. Maybe we should talk about this¡­ privately,¡± Lang said, showing his years of experience once again.


    Jerome nodded his assent. It would be better for the leaders of both teams to hear from him and then disseminate the news to their teammates. That way, they could avoid panic and plan for what was to come.


    ¡°Tonight then,¡± he said. ¡°But we need to work together so we can get to the center of the forest.¡±


    He led them all to the edge of the forest where the darkness didn¡¯t have much of an effect. But the moment they got within twenty feet of it, many of them started groaning. Jerome could feel a foreign chill invade his body and begin to sap his strength ¡ª the forest was stealing their vigor.


    ¡°Back up!¡± Lang came forward and prevented his teammates from moving forward.


    Jerome nodded to Selene, signaling to her to step back so he alone could go forward. Crossing the twenty feet that separated him from the giant trees in front of him was like hell. His muscles felt like they would freeze up but he continued nonetheless. The closer he got, he found that sound seemed to be absorbed into the forest and a deafening silence took over. Even the crunching of his boots seemed distant.


    ¡°Achilles, why the hell didn¡¯t you tell me this would be so cold.¡± The cold he felt during his training before Achilles chose him was nothing compared to what he was feeling now.


    ¡°Tha- w-s ¡­aining, Xer-. Of course, this would be more dangerous.¡±


    ¡°What the fuck? What happened to you, Achilles?¡± Jerome asked, stunned, as he heard the glitching in the AI¡¯s voice. He got to the first tree in his line of sight. What could be disrupting the AI¡¯s transmission?


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t be able to converse with me inside the dark forest, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome squatted and began chopping chunks out of the root of the tree with Suzie. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± He watched as the piece of living steel in his hands fought to retain its luster and sheen. The forest was sapping it of its¡­carbon? He didn¡¯t know.


    ¡°The darkness is making it nigh impossible to transmit vocal intent,¡± Achilles said with a sigh. His voice began to grow distant. ¡°Charybdis will be with you to alert you to danger. Think of it as a little me.¡±


    Achilles¡¯ voice grew distant until it disappeared completely. Jerome stopped what he was doing to think. There was no need to be perturbed. If he left this place, he¡¯d be able to talk to the AI again. But he was now finding out how attached he had grown to the damned AI.


    He sighed and left the edge of the dark forest. The two teams walked back the way they came. Jerome noticed that Ms. Tara and Sheela weren¡¯t mingling with the Feis as they did the Itakars but he let it drop. He had too much to do.


    They all made it back to their camp where the Itakars began to raise their tents among the Feis tents. There were a few that grumbled about it but Lang put them in their place.


    Jerome called the leaders of both teams and they converged inside the biggest tent of the Feis.


    ¡°Why are they black?¡± Fei Lin asked.


    Ajax gave her a look that said, ¡®Really?¡¯


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    They all sat around the chunks of root on a rugged floor. The tent was cozy and warm, giving off a relaxing atmosphere.


    Jerome looked down at the different chunks of tree root he had cut out of the tree at the edge of the dark forest. They were given off the same chill, the trees were giving off. But that wasn¡¯t what was strange about them.


    ¡°The darkness has been seeping into them for far longer than we know. It¡¯s a part of them at this point,¡± he answered.


    He took hold of one, hoping what he did with the plaque in his storage ring could also be done with this strange wood. He had Shaped wood and made it into a plaque. That wood was normal wood, filled with vital aura and plant life. This one, however¡­


    He sighed. ¡°The darkness in them might make it troublesome to do what I need to do with it,¡± he said so as not to get their hopes up.


    ¡°But you said you can get us all in there. Are you chickening out now?¡± Fei Lin challenged him.


    ¡°Princess,¡± Lang cautioned.


    ¡°I did say that, didn¡¯t I?¡± Jerome smiled wryly to himself. ¡°Very well. Challenge accepted.¡±


    He got down to business, trying to Shape the roots and failing. He had chopped a lot of it so there was no need to go back for more for a while. He tried for a long time until he was able to find a balance between his essence and the darkness in the wood, making sure that one wouldn¡¯t overpower the other.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got to be joking. You can Shape wood?¡± Fei Lin¡¯s voice filled the tent they were occupying. ¡°How many elements do you wield?!¡±


    It was a good thing they were inside that soundproof tent of theirs. Jerome was able to work in peace with just a few people watching.


    ¡°Of course, he can, you dumbass!¡± Achilles blurted out menacingly in his head.


    Jerome¡¯s heart skipped and he almost destroyed the work he was doing. He looked around to see if anyone heard what the AI said but they all looked back at him in confusion, wondering why he stopped and was looking at them.


    Jerome continued working. Is something wrong with you, Achilles?


    ¡°I¡¯m very okay, Xerae. But that¡¯s how all of you would be acting if you don¡¯t make the charms right. Remember, Shaping is just the first part. Next, you have to make a binding of them and then script them. The scripts would help prevent you from losing your moral grounding and inhibitions. The darkness can make people do really bad things.¡±


    Way to encourage me, Achilles, he thought. But the Guardian was right. They would all lose their moral compass if they entered the dark forest without good enough mental protection. The darkness was capable of invading the mind, bringing to the surface, all of one¡¯s dark thoughts.


    ¡°I¡¯m just saying, Xerae,¡± Achilles gave him the mental equivalent of a shrug.


    But how did the Feis move through it the previous times they were here without being corrupted by the darkness? he asked.


    ¡°They have their artifacts, Xerae. That helm Lang used to duel against you is an artifact that gives him a menacing aura, making him seem a lot more powerful than he is.¡±


    A bluff then, Jerome thought, smirking to himself. Can I ask him about it?


    ¡°I advise against that for now, Xerae. They don¡¯t trust you. You wouldn¡¯t want them to be suspicious of you now, would you?¡±


    The room fell silent again as Jerome worked. His hands moved slowly over the wood, caressing it and forming bumps and valleys here and there. Sometimes the wood looked like black jelly in his hands, at other times it looked like black clay mold. Jerome made sure to get the shapes right until he was done making the last one.


    There were fifteen Itakars and seven wolves. So twenty-two charms for them. The Feis had not lost a single member so twenty charms for them. And then four charms for Ms. Tara, Sheela, Csala, and himself. So he made forty-six charms in total.


    ¡°I need to rest for a while before completing them,¡± Jerome said as he finished the last one. ¡°When I¡¯m done, we¡¯ll all be able to move around the forest freely without attracting too much attention. It¡¯ll be like we are a part of the forest itself,¡± he said. ¡°This doesn¡¯t mean you can just waltz into the dark forest and do what you please, though. Trust me, you¡¯d become something¡¯s meal in less than a breath.¡±


    ¡°Waltz?¡± Selene asked with a raised eyebrow.


    ¡°He says a lot of strange things,¡± Csala said. ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it,¡± she thought briefly about her words and added, ¡°or not.¡±


    Lang turned to face her and she gave him a sweet smile before looking away. Jerome watched the show that began unfolding. The older Sprout couldn¡¯t take his eyes off his woman. He couldn¡¯t blame him. It¡¯ll take a powerful Spirit Realm artist to break her hold. And this was her in a position of rest. Csala wasn¡¯t putting effort into attracting him.


    Someone jabbed him in the ribs and he turned around. Ajax gestured with his head, telling him to do something.


    ¡°Come on now. Let¡¯s watch the show for a bit,¡± he whispered and the silver-haired Sprout almost burst out laughing. Ms. Tara shook his shoulders from beside him, gesturing for him to do something. But he could see pride in her eyes. He wondered why Sheela wasn¡¯t with them. Ms. Tara had been very quiet since they met with the Feis, out of respect he hoped, or maybe not to draw too much attention to herself. He missed the vibe she had with Sheela. They were lively together.


    ¡°Come on, Jerome,¡± Selene said. She looked sideways at Fei Lin who was busy eyeing his charms like they were little devils. The innocent heir of the Fei Clan would be embarrassed and feel dishonored if she found out her protector was ogling a strange woman in a meeting. Talk more about how Lang himself would feel.


    Jerome sighed. And then he coughed, using his psychic energy to pierce through the fog of ¡®lovey-dovey¡¯ aura gathering around the older Sprout. Lang woke up with a start.


    ¡°Just like that?¡± Fei Lin said in disbelief, her face twisted into a sneer. A cute sneer.


    ¡°Do you have any idea how much essence I¡¯ve expended to Shape those charms?¡± Jerome snapped at her. Did she scrutinize his work for so long only to criticize him?


    Lang quickly grabbed her and pulled her behind him. ¡°We¡¯ll let you rest, Jerome. Do call us when you¡¯re well rested.¡± he dragged her outside, ignoring the protests of his charge.


    Jerome turned to Csala with a mocking smile. ¡°You know, she reminds me of you.¡±


    Csala stuck her tongue out at him.


    ¡°Ooh. I¡¯d like to hear the details,¡± Selene chimed in, leaning forward with a twinkle in her eyes. Trudhorn and Ajax stood up quicker than they came in and dragged their grinning silver-haired leader out of the room. Ms. Tara also left, smiling knowingly at him.


    ¡°Do you really need rest?¡± Csala asked when they were alone. ¡°I¡¯ve seen you do some remarkable things.¡± And by remarkable, she meant ¡®go on all night in a blaze of raging sex¡¯.


    ¡°This is different. The force inside these,¡± he gestured at the wooden charms shaped like rings that could be worn on an adult¡¯s thumb, ¡°are different. It¡¯s like death as opposed to life. It doesn¡¯t want to be Shaped. It only wants to consume. To drain the life out of whatever comes in contact with it.¡±


    Jerome fell into thought as he muttered, ¡°Light is to life, as darkness is to death.¡±


    Csala moved to his side and embraced him. ¡°I can imagine what an ore that absorbs this darkness would be like if turned into a weapon.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Whoever would Shape that would be one badass Shaper.¡±


    ¡°Well, you Shaped these. I believe you can Shape that too¡­ if we could find it.¡±


    Jerome kissed her long and hard but Csala broke up the kiss. ¡°You need your rest,¡± she said, tracing the bulge in his pants with the tip of her finger. The minx. She knew exactly what she was doing to him.


    ¡°Maybe the ¡®rest¡¯ can wait a little bit,¡± He said with a grin. It was still morning even after hours of racing across the Tundra. They could still have a little bit of fun. And he had to admit, he hadn¡¯t been completely able to shake off his urges ever since he took her the night before.


    It was like he had another beast in him, wanting to be set free to ravage every woman on sight. He had felt sated after their rump when they woke up but now¡­ the beast was rising again. And he wanted to consume the beauty in front of him.


    Csala pushed him aside teasingly but held onto his shoulders and stuck her bountiful chest in his face as she stood. Jerome basked in their softness for the mere seconds it took for her to get up ¡ª and those were some very long seconds. The sway of her hips as she walked toward the entrance of the tent was extra entrancing. Jerome forced himself not to move an inch but just watch her like a hawk. She stopped and looked back at him with a knowing smile, highlighting her curves all the more.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere, Jerome. A little wait wouldn¡¯t kill you.¡± She walked out of the tent, leaving him with a raging hard-on.


    Jerome lay down on the makeshift bed, thinking of how to deal with the evidence of his desires but sleep quickly found him.


    Guess I¡¯m a lot more tired than I thought, he thought as he dozed off.

 129. The Forest Of Shadows

    ¡°So you were saying there¡¯s more just this morning,¡± Selene said. ¡°About your altercation with Hedon?¡±


    All the leaders of both groups were sitting inside the tent once again. Jerome was done with the charms, all that was left was to wait for morning and they could begin their exploit of the dark forest. He was surprised that he slept for a whole day.


    ¡°Yes. I said I took his arm. But something happened and I couldn¡¯t touch him anymore after that. I had to run away and trust me I could have died,¡± he said.


    Everyone was silently listening, waiting to hear what would make Jerome so troubled.


    ¡°Something came to his rescue.¡±


    ¡°Something?¡± Selene asked.


    ¡°...the Argonaut¡ª¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Fei Lin said, shocked.


    ¡°This thing was very powerful,¡± Jerome said, ignoring the shocked young lady. He didn¡¯t know whether to call it a Transcendent being. Perhaps the only way to sound believable was to be as obscure as possible. ¡°Perhaps as powerful as a Transcendent being. And my gut tells me that the Alvrics sent their Sprouts specifically to bring that thing home.¡±


    ¡°You must be joking,¡± Fei Lin said, glaring daggers at him. ¡°We mustn¡¯t believe the lie he is spouting.¡±


    ¡°He isn¡¯t lying,¡± Lang said. ¡°Alvric has been fighting Vorthe for power for millennia¡ª¡± Lang stopped speaking almost abruptly.


    ¡°That¡¯s not news, Lang,¡± Selene said. ¡°But what exactly are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, Lang?¡± Ajax asked. ¡°You know something we don¡¯t, don¡¯t you?¡±


    This was a new development for Jerome. He observed the older Sprout as he gathered his thoughts or maybe he was struggling to tell them what he knew.


    ¡°There are rumors¡­¡± Lang muttered hesitantly. ¡°...that the Argonaut the Alvrics revere comes from Terra Praeta¡­ I¡¯m not allowed to say more than that.¡±


    Everyone kept quiet after that. They all had an idea of what that meant. The older Sprout must have sworn an oath to keep the truth secret, only able to say the barest minimum.


    ¡°Well,¡± Jerome continued, ¡°the Argonaut gathered up the Alvrics and opened a portal back home. There may very well be a war going on right as we speak.¡± And there was. The church of the Light which had territory in the West of the continent and had wanted Vorthe¡¯s land all this while had begun moving. They had sided with the Alvrics and now Vorthe fought a war on two sides: the western border and in the South. The church had split its forces and portalled some of its Orders to Alvric lands to assist their war efforts. But Jerome couldn¡¯t tell them he knew this.


    The tent suddenly became silent. Everyone looked down to digest what Jerome had just said as the weight of the situation settled in their stomachs.


    ¡°No need overthinking things,¡± Lang said and got up. ¡°Let¡¯s go get prepared.¡±


    Everyone left the tent to start breaking up camp. They had a dark forest to cross. After about an hour, they gathered together.


    ¡°So this thing can put a veil on us? On our cores?¡± Someone asked.


    ¡°Just give it a little bit of your essence. Emphasis on ¡®little¡¯,¡± Jerome said. ¡°If you give it too much, it will keep taking. It¡¯ll take to the point the wood would crumble and the darkness inside would lunge for your channels¡­ So it could attach itself to you like a parasite.¡±


    Some of the Sprouts looked at him with more fear in their eyes than when he first told them about it. Jerome didn¡¯t know if their meeting last night had been discussed with the rest of the team. He had done his part though, it was left to their leaders to deliver the message.


    ¡°You get the picture,¡± he said, gesturing with his arms. ¡°Chop, chop, everyone. Let¡¯s get to it.¡±


    He had requested strips of leather from everyone and tied them through the hoops in the charms. Though the charms were tiny in size, they would do their work effectively. Even though not forever.


    ¡°So watch everyone,¡± Jerome said and put a tiny bit of essence inside the charm he wore as a necklace. Everyone gasped soon after, marveling at what was happening.


    ¡°It¡¯s like you¡¯re not here, Jerome. Like your image is a mirage,¡± Trudhorn said with brows drawn in concentration as he tried to scan for Jerome.


    He looked to Ms. Tara and Sheela who did the same but stared at him in confusion. Ms. Tara was as prepared as she could be to cross the dark forest. Achilles had made her a repeater crossbow which now hung at her hips, made from wooden and metal parts. She crossed her arms beneath her voluptuous breasts in concentration and Jerome looked away. Ms. Tara was like a mother to him.


    ¡°That¡¯s how it feels when you scan the forest or its creatures. But with this, your scan would come up with results,¡± Jerome responded. ¡°Make it a piercing scan and the darkness will consume your mental energy. So make sure you don¡¯t go scanning things beyond their surface when we get in there.¡±


    Everyone started imbuing their charms with essence and scanning themselves to see if it worked the same way Jerome¡¯s charm did. Csala stood to the side watching. Her charm was the only different one of the lot. Since she couldn¡¯t wield essence, her psychic energy was the next best thing. And so Jerome instructed her on how to activate hers after activating his.


    Selene and her teammates also strapped the wolves with theirs, instructing them to channel a trickle of essence into the charms.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to ask,¡± Csala whispered for his ears only. ¡°How did they achieve that ¡ª bonding with the wolves, that is?¡±


    ¡°With the use of a ritual,¡± Jerome said. ¡°There is a special ritual formation just for this purpose. A bond that can be used to make magical beasts docile; accepting of submission. They become ¡®sacred beasts¡¯ after that. Selene must have learned to perform the ritual, or she has gems imbued with a dormant formation she could have activated at one time to bond them.


    ¡°Magical beasts are quite averse to being bonded. To do so, you have to be powerful enough to hold them down, to keep them from running away, or even killing you. Or you might just be at the right place at the right time. Somewhere that is quite dangerous to the magical beast. If you offer your help, there is a chance they become more receptive to you.


    ¡°Because one is a handful for a team of Sprout ¡ª especially something like a moon howler, two would be quite difficult but not impossible, seven?...¡± he scuffed. ¡°There¡¯s no way the beasts weren¡¯t in danger when they bonded them.¡±


    Jerome observed her. He had no idea what Csala would think about the bond due to what he knew of her natural condition. But she showed no discomfort about the topic for which he was grateful so he continued. ¡°The bond is called ¡®Bahr Obadai¡¯ which means The Brotherhood. They might not know it means this so let¡¯s keep this between us.¡± Csala nodded slightly at that.


    They all marched forward, toward the dark forest. Jerome took the lead making sure to keep his stride long and firm. This was a good way to show that he meant business and that others could trust him.


    ¡°No flying in there. It¡¯s gonna be like the night of Terra Praeta in there, but even the night would be child¡¯s play compared to this. Our abilities would be suppressed and flying would be difficult, so to speak.¡±


    ¡°Why can¡¯t we fly?¡± Selene asked.


    ¡°We can¡¯t use essence that is not tainted by the darkness to its full capacity. The darkness would just¡­ swallow it,¡± Jerome responded. ¡°Except you can use the force of Light¡­ and use it very well.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t we just fly over the whole thing?¡± someone from the Fei team asked.


    ¡°And put a target on our backs?¡± Lang said, shutting them down. ¡°Do you think they wouldn¡¯t shoot us down? Flying is not always the answer for everything.¡±


    Jerome thought of his spears and Charybdis and smiled. He was very prepared for this. As if the spear heard him, it hummed inside him in its dematerialized state shocking the hell out of him. Charybdis had never done anything like that before.


    ¡°I told you to think of it as a little me, Xerae. It has its own intelligence,¡± Achilles said.


    Jerome exhaled and he felt a presence leave him. Achilles. He was getting a feel for the eccentric AI¡¯s presence now. That was a good thing.


    Can you take a peek at Vorthe to see what¡¯s going on there?


    Charybdis hummed again, affirming that the message was passed on to Achilles. Achilles must have formed a three-way communication link using Charybdis¡­ or the nanites in his brain to communicate like this. And it was fast. Right now he couldn¡¯t have asked for better, since Achilles couldn¡¯t directly communicate with him inside the dark forest.


    They got 20 feet close to the edge of the dark forest, the same distance where they all began to feel drained, but nothing happened this time around.


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± Lang said. ¡°Your charm seems to be the excellent counter to the darkness.¡±


    ¡°What, you didn¡¯t believe me before?¡± Jerome asked with a raised eyebrow.


    The older Sprout shrugged and looked away.


    ¡°It is fighting darkness with darkness. They¡¯ll think of us as friendlies. That is until someone fucks up.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Bram chimed in from behind. ¡°Don¡¯t fuck up.¡±


    ¡°Do you see that,¡± Csala said. ¡°That wasn¡¯t there the last time.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. We see it,¡± Fei Lin said.


    Shadows were crawling around the trees as if warning intruders away.


    ¡°They seem formless,¡± Selene said. ¡°What are they?¡±


    ¡°My possible guess is they are a kind of technique,¡± Jerome responded.


    ¡°And they move like that? Like they are alive?¡± Trudhorn asked.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    Silence reigned for a while as the tension rose among them. Jerome could smell the fear from them all, it was almost choking. ¡°We¡¯ll be fine. Let¡¯s move forward.¡±


    ¡°Fine? What if those things start snatching us up one after the other?¡± someone said. And it had to be someone from the Fei side because many of them started muttering among themselves.


    ¡°You¡¯re free to stay if you want,¡± Jerome turned to look at the group. ¡°No one¡¯s forcing you. And as you can see, the last time we were here, we were being drained but now¡­¡± He spread his arms out for effect.


    Jerome turned around and started walking toward the treeline. The Itakars, Ms. Tara, Sheela, Csala followed. The Fei took a while but Lang finally convinced them to follow. They got to the very tree he chopped a few roots from and saw the crawling darkness. But the technique, or whatever it was, didn¡¯t ¡®see¡¯ them.


    Jerome went in and the air changed, becoming stifling and unmoving; lifeless and soundless. His body quickly became heavier, slower, more sluggish. Even his senses were suppressed. Jerome cracked his fingers and clenched and unclenched his fists to increase blood flow to his extremities. It felt like even the flow of blood in his body was slowed down.


    The wolves made muffled groans behind them. He hoped they would be able to keep silent as they moved as stealthily as possible. Somehow, he always forgot about them being with the Itakars. He hoped that could come into play now, and the forest would just ignore them.


    Everywhere felt like a lifeless void, like the world would open its jaws and swallow them whole without notice. There was no movement, not even from the black leaves that dotted the trees. Jerome could see their dark veins bulge and compress as he walked by. It was eerie to look at.


    There was no color, only black and shades of gray. As if they were in another plane of existence where color was forbidden. Or absorbed, Jerome thought.


    ¡°The sun doesn¡¯t even penetrate through the canopy of trees, Jerome,¡± Csala whispered to him with her psychic energy.


    Csala¡¯s hand found his and held him tightly. He felt relief wash over her the next moment. He scanned for Ms. Tara and noticed she was in the midst of the Itakars, protected. Jerome exhaled a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding in. They walked slowly, adjusting their eyes to the darkness.


    ¡°And it¡¯s eerily quiet,¡± Jerome replied.


    They kept walking, making sure to scan a few feet in front of them before moving forward. Jerome activated the pod of Hezvar inside him and his vision expanded. His mind¡¯s eye seemed to rise out of himself and hover over their group, with a 360-degree vision. Jerome tensed a bit, as his mind settled into the noosphere he found himself in. The Hezvar pod felt a bit heavy on his psyche, which wasn¡¯t the case when he had tried this in Sanctum. Probably because of the limiting effects of the darkness. But he had a broader range of sight now.


    That was why he was able to see the group of insectoid magical beasts whose eyes they had caught. Jerome¡¯s heart beat violently in his chest causing Csala to grip his hand almost painfully.


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked. ¡°I sensed your fear.¡±


    Jerome exhaled a shaky breath as silently as he could. ¡°We¡¯ve been noticed.¡±


    Csala drew closer to him. As if they were being surrounded already.


    ¡°They don¡¯t know what to make of us. So our best bet is to continue the way we are.¡±


    But the others behind them noticed the change in both of them. Trudhorn quietly and slowly reached up to tap him on the shoulder.


    ¡°Is there a problem?¡± he whispered. It should have sounded like a whisper but the silence around them amplified his voice as if the world had been waiting for one of them to speak. The sound of his voice bounced off the trees around them, causing an echo that continued for longer than should have been possible.


    The forest stirred all around them. Creatures rose out of the ground around them. Some came out of the trees and others out of the earth. A giant earwig crawled around a tree from their left eyeing the group with huge black eyes. A praying mantis as black as the tree it was crawling down, stopped to look Jerome in the eye. It was huge, as large as a grizzly. All five eyes fixated on him, causing him to shiver in fear.


    But more eyes were on them. A black spider to the left in the trees ¡ª Jerome was sure it¡¯d be a black widow. It expertly stayed still, eyeing him like its next meal.


    Jerome slowly brought his finger to his lips in the universal sign of silence while facing back. But his 360 vision never left the insectoid magical beasts that were eyeing him and his group. Behind the group were giant roaches, almost as large as the mantis in front. He made sure not to look at them so as not to draw the attention of the female Sprouts that were closer to it. Women hated bugs ¡ª it was true in his former world¡­and it was true here.


    They crept forward. Slowly. Going around the praying mantis. It turned its head 180 degrees, looking as creepy as fuck. It kept its gaze on Jerome still, raptorial legs steady in front of it. Jerome knew how fast those legs could grasp things. And when they did grab hold, they never let go until the mantis had eaten its fill.


    The walk continued at a snail¡¯s pace. Nobody talked. But the insects followed them, their movement as silent as the still air.


    ¡°How are they moving so silently?¡± Csala asked. ¡°I have to use my psychic energy to muffle the sound of my boots, but them¡­¡±


    ¡°The darkness does it for them. They¡¯re creatures of darkness, Csala.¡±


    All of a sudden, he noticed a presence deep inside the forest. Predatory. It was watching them all. And waiting. Never giving away its presence.


    The creature, whatever it was, made him uncomfortable. More so because it was watching patiently without acting. He couldn¡¯t sense its intent like he could these ones following them. It moved in the darkness like it was a part of it. Jerome used his 360 vision to try and get a glimpse of what the creature was but nothing. He only knew it was predatory.


    He stopped and everyone stopped with him. The insects following them stopped as well.


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak,¡± he said, his voice dispersing to everyone behind him. Lang raised his eyebrows in shock at hearing his voice. Voice transmission through mental energy wasn¡¯t something a Sprout should be capable of. Jerome could see the confusion in the older Sprout¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°There¡¯s a creature up ahead. It¡¯s different from these,¡± he said. The group couldn¡¯t help but look around at the magical beasts surrounding them. It was very uncomfortable being under the scrutiny of something that didn¡¯t know if it should let you be or eat you. Especially that praying mantis. Jerome couldn¡¯t help himself and looked at the bear-sized insect.


    They kept their distance though, but he noticed that it wasn¡¯t only the praying mantis that was eyeing him now. They all were. A wasp joined the insects not long after. It was just as big as the praying mantis and possibly deadlier. On earth, these things had a photographic memory. Would they be the same way here or worse? Jerome surmised they would be worse.


    ¡°This creature up ahead, it¡¯s¡­intelligent. Able to use the darkness, not just move around it but ¡®use¡¯ it to its advantage.¡± Jerome looked around to see if they were still with him. They had already come this far, he wasn¡¯t going to let anyone spoil his plans now.


    ¡°When we get to its territory, we will go around it. And if it comes after us, I will use my spear. I have a special Light technique stored inside it for an occasion just like this.¡±


    Well, it was a half-truth. He did have a special Light technique stored inside ¡ª by Achilles. And it was stored inside all his spears. The ones he brought with him to Terra Praeta as well as Charybdis. Charybdis could generate it even. Everyone around him would believe said technique came from the Royal Family, the most powerful Light wielders in Vorthe.


    The Itakars and the Feis would believe what he shows them and they would hold a debt of gratitude to Vorthe. And he gets to keep his secret. Everyone wins. If anyone went to ask about a Light technique that saved them in the dark forest, he¡¯d deal with that when the time came.


    Jerome sensed everyone exhale in relief because of his words. He continued on his journey getting closer and closer to the territory of the predator he was sensing. Sometimes, he felt the creature¡¯s emotions. It was interested in them, amused even. This creature wasn¡¯t controlled by its base urges, which made it terrifying. Jerome didn¡¯t know how he was sensing the creature¡¯s emotions. Maybe it was through the pod he was using to expand his vision, something he couldn¡¯t do for too long. He¡¯d burn himself out if he did.


    The insectoid magical beasts that were following them converged in front of them all of a sudden, preventing them from moving forward.


    ¡°They don¡¯t want us to enter the other creature¡¯s territory,¡± Jerome transmitted to everyone. He didn¡¯t want to fight these things in their elements and it was annoying being the only one who could communicate like this ¡ª well, and Csala.


    He turned left wanting to go around or go west then turn north again. The creatures moved to block them again. Jerome quickly brought out his spear ¡ª a very normal-looking spear ¡ª and pointed its blade to the sky. ¡°When you see the light,¡± he said, transmitting his voice once again, ¡°you run.¡±


    The monsters attacked.


    Jerome hit the butt of his spear on the ground and a bright beam of golden light shot into the air, bringing color back to the world. It made an arc in the air and disintegrated the wasp first. It didn¡¯t dim one bit. ¡°Follow the light!¡±


    The bright light stunned the monsters, blinding them momentarily and allowing both teams to run. Lang rushed forward and used his Formless Blade on the praying mantis that was almost upon them. The Formless Blade formed¡­and then dissipated in the air as if the world consumed it.


    Jerome had to push him out of the way of the mantis. The mantis snapped its raptorial legs with lightning reflexes but they came back empty. But now it was too close to the Light which caused it to seize up for a moment. It lowered its head to avoid looking into the light, before turning around to go after the Sprouts as they split up to go around it. Jerome separated its neck from its body as it wasn¡¯t watching where it was going. Buzzing sounds came from his right and Jerome looked into the distance to his left. Fuck!


    ¡°We¡¯ve gotta go!¡± he almost screamed. ¡°We¡¯ve got hornets after us now!¡±


    The spider attacked next. Lang was closer to it, so it went for him. It was huge, yet fast. But Lang was a very experienced swordsman. The spider dove at him and he spun his sword in that complicated shield-like pattern. All eight of the spider¡¯s legs left its body in a split second.


    ¡°That was impressive,¡± Jerome said to the older Sprout as they ran. Lang just smirked at him. Heh. Guess the protector was finding his pride back. A crossbow bolt punched a hole through another insect. Jerome saw Ms. Tara aiming for another as arrows from the Itakars skewered more insects. The Feis got into the fight too, trampling the remaining insects, some of which were ants as large as humans. The wolves made sure no creature pursued. They ran into a nest of snakes and hissing sounds greeted them.


    Jerome took to the trees and everyone else followed. They moved as silently as they could, jumping from tree to tree with the Light technique above them as they moved. Jerome was kind of surprised that the wolves could climb up trees. He didn¡¯t know what to think of that. Maybe magical beasts were just built differently from non-magical beasts.


    The Light was beginning to dim. And worry began to color the faces of everyone. It had helped them to stop some of those insects from giving chase. If it died now¡­


    ¡°Just keep going,¡± he transmitted to them.


    It wasn¡¯t long before the light died and they had to increase their speed. The buzzing was getting closer and closer. Jerome pushed himself faster. He wanted to pick up Ms. Tara and Csala, and dash away. He could, but that would send the wrong message. He needed to think. They were coming up on the creature¡¯s territory, the one he had sensed in the distance. But the buzzing of the hornets didn¡¯t decrease, it only got closer and closer.


    Hornets weren¡¯t crazy psychos. They were gentle creatures. Wasps were the psychos but a hornet¡¯s sting carried far more venom in it. And it¡¯ll continue to sting for longer tha a wasp. These hornets might have evolved to behave differently, though. If they were going to chase them forever, then it was best they chased them into the belly of the beast.


    Jerome stayed on the path, not slowing down to take in his surroundings. His ¡®eye in the sky¡¯ was scanning his environment for him. The moment they entered the creature¡¯s territory, he sensed it.


    The darkness around them solidified, causing them to trip off the branches. Someone yelped as they fell. Jerome¡¯s spear lit up, banishing the darkness for a moment. Everyone scrambled to their feet and dashed off.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you produce another one of those beams?¡± Lang asked and Jerome held up four fingers to him. The older Sprout nodded curtly, as he got his meaning. Only four left. They couldn¡¯t waste it.


    Then he noticed the buzzing of the hornets wasn¡¯t reaching them anymore. Jerome smiled but then he thought, if this creature could solidify darkness, he could only think of other things it could do. Jerome¡¯s heart pounded as he remembered the torture he had to go through Achilles¡¯ hand. The smile was wiped off his face in an instant.


    Achilles had commanded the darkness to pierce him like large blades from every side, pinning him in place. He was going to make sure none of them had to face something like that. They jumped over a dark and murky pool of water. Some strange, eerie plants growing out of them lifted their stems. Growing at the end of those stems were round pods that looked like blackened flesh. The pods split open and rows of serrated teeth reached for them.


    Jerome burned more of the Light in his spear and the plants shrank back into the water. But before they landed on the ground, the creature from before attacked again. Jerome felt the darkness start to solidify around him. Not only him, but Csala and Lang felt it too.


    He knew the creature was around for it to be able to do this so timely when they were mid-air. He was activating the spear to blast the Light and banish the darkness when it was snatched out of his hands by the darkness.

 130. Dragon

    ¡°Are you fucking kidding me?!¡± Jerome roared. What the fuck just happened? Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine his spear would be taken from him.


    Two people screamed after him from behind, their voices sounded miles away before dying down. He heard others cry out for their captured brethren around him. Jerome quickly stretched his hand in the direction his spear was snatched as they landed on the ground. Light bloomed in the distance and an unholy roar resounded throughout the dark forest.


    The ground around them quacked from the roar. Birds flocked into the air all around them. They had to shield their eyes to keep them from being hurt.


    No, these aren¡¯t birds, Jerome thought.


    ¡°These are blood demon bats, Jerome, we need to find safety,¡± Csala said from beside him. The bats tried to reach her but a shield of psychic energy was up around her. Jerome¡¯s winter coat already put a shield around him.


    He felt a spike of sword force and saw a shield go up around the Feis a few feet away. However, that wouldn¡¯t last. The Feis may have protection now but it was being eaten away rapidly by the darkness in the air. He saw the shield glow and dim several times before it sputtered out.


    He looked at the Itakars who were huddled together, trying to protect themselves. The bats tore through their already tattered leather armor. They were missing one person now. And it was his fault for thinking he could get them all to the Waters of Irithiya without casualties.


    Selene was looking over at him with pleading eyes that he almost regretted bringing them here. No. Jerome clenched his jaw. He would get them to the Waters of Irithiya.


    He summoned his psychic energy and pushed it outward like a dome, blasting the bats away. But the bats were resilient. They flew back even though their numbers had been reduced greatly. He blasted them a second time, clearing the air and they turned around again¡­just as the spear arrived, glowing like the sun.


    All the bats were incinerated at once in the air, and some dropped to the floor dead. Others disintegrated in the air. The darkness quickly turned to day as color returned to the world. This Light was brighter than the first beam Jerome produced before, so it meant he was burning more energy than usual.


    Jerome threw the spear in the air and roared, ¡°Follow the spear! I¡¯ll wait for no one!¡±


    He picked up Csala, Ms. Tara, and Selene before unfurling his wings and shooting into the air.


    ~~~


    Ajax


    The darkness was closing in on them faster than it did before and he couldn¡¯t help but worry they wouldn¡¯t make it to this place Jerome was leading them to. Fei Lin had said they usually waited until the Alignment before entering the forest but did that mean they didn¡¯t face all of this? Ajax couldn¡¯t help but find that impossible.


    One of his teammates tripped and almost fell. Ajax blinked¡­ out of existence. The next moment he was holding someone a few feet ahead of his previous position.


    ¡°Zatirah¡¯s fangs! How did you do that?!¡± Fei Lin shouted.


    ¡°Princess!¡± Lang cautioned her.


    ¡°I was just asking a question,¡± she snapped as she ran beside him. ¡°If he can help get us out of here that would go a long way.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t help you,¡± Ajax said coldly. ¡°I can only go short distances.¡±


    He actually could do only five jumps a day with his artifact which had now been reduced to three. Five jumps weren¡¯t much but they could save his life when necessary, and the lives of some of his teammates, so he wasn¡¯t concerned for himself.


    ¡°Look, the Light¡¯s paralyzing them and it doesn¡¯t seem to be going out soon,¡± Bram said with a laugh.


    ¡°Do you have any idea how much Light Force is being burned to keep us alive right now?¡± Ajax asked him. Somehow, he seemed to be the only one who had changed after their clash with the unbound.


    ¡°He¡¯s right, Bram,¡± Trudhorn said. ¡°That¡¯s why we mustn¡¯t waste the advantage he has given us.¡± Trudhorn dashed forward leaving them all in the dark.


    Ajax cursed and increased his speed too. Everyone started running faster to try to beat the other. They knew at the back of their minds that this wasn¡¯t just a competition to see who could run the fastest, but one to push themselves so they wouldn¡¯t waste the advantage Jerome had given them.


    All of a sudden, Jerome appeared out of nowhere and picked up Fei Lin and Nia.


    ¡°Drop me righ¡ª¡± Fei Lin began to say but was cut off by a warning growl from Lang. From the look of things, their Matriarch must have put her daughter¡¯s overall well-being in Lang¡¯s hands. Whatever he said was final and Fei Lin could do nothing about it as long as it concerned her safety. A wise move.


    Jerome said nothing. He just dashed ahead of them, flying on his blood-red wings. Wait. Ajax observed the wings again in the light of the beaming spear above them. He sighed. They were rapidly losing color. The darkness was degrading the living steel the wings were made of. Still, what he wouldn¡¯t give to have an artifact like that. Jerome had it easy. He was able to fly without using his essence so he did not need to worry about his essence being swallowed up by the darkness. As it was right now, they were already losing essence just by being here.


    Ajax looked at the disappearing form of the Sprout with relief in his heart though. Relief he couldn¡¯t understand why he was feeling. Fei Lin had wanted to protest when Jerome picked her up, but one look from Lang shut her up. Ajax already knew his sister would be saved by Jerome no matter what. Jerome had a good connection with her like they were siblings and for that, he was grateful.


    But besides that, he had felt great relief when Jerome came back for the little Fei princess to fly her to safety. Was this the love he still felt for the girl that shamed him a few years ago?


    He sighed again. He had closed up his heart ever since then and had never welcomed anyone in. But now he wasn¡¯t so sure. Maybe seeing her again was forming cracks in the armor around his heart.


    A black-colored viper dove for him from the side, and Ajax quickly materialized his sword, skewering it before it reached him. He looked around, realizing he was on the very edge of the Light around the group. He quickly moved inward.


    Ajax sighed, ashamed that he was thinking such thoughts at a time like this. He rushed forward with the rest of the group as they ran after Jerome. The spear burned bright above them, scaring away the denizens of the forest. Various sounds could be heard coming from the animals as the Light made them uncomfortable as it passed by. They rushed away from it, deeper into the darkness making way for their group.


    Another roar sounded behind them and many of them stumbled as the earth quaked again. A tree was hurled at the spear to stop it in its path but the spear pierced through the trunk and the tree burst into a million pieces, many of which disintegrated in the air.


    The darkness behind them grew and solidified again. It began chasing them like a storm. Everyone behind cried out and dashed forward when they saw this. It got closer and closer but wasn¡¯t able to come too close because of the light.


    ¡°Come on, faster!¡± Lang roared.


    Tendrils of darkness stretched out like fingers from the dark storm behind them. These fingers were so dense with the darkness that it began siphoning their vitality from a distance. But the presence of the Light also caused the tendrils to begin wasting away the moment they entered its illumination.


    One by one they crumbled to nothing but the last one. The biggest and thickest of the tendrils was about to grab a Sprout at the back of their group when Jerome flew out from the shadows again and attacked it with a spear. Another spear.


    Light and darkness clashed and an explosion rocked the forest. The Sprouts were thrown far away by the force of the explosion. Fortunately for them, the light of the spear protected them, shining light to illuminate the area where they fell which was even closer to their destination.


    ¡°Is that another spear?¡± someone asked, pain evident in their voice. The spear they had been following hovered a few feet above them, pointing North. They popped bones back into place. Grunts resounded among them before they started to get up.


    ¡°Who cares, just run?¡± Ajax said. They all took off.


    ~~~


    Jerome groaned awake as his head bumped into something hard. His eyes fluttered open and a splitting headache rocked his brain. He quickly cycled to calm the pain in his head. Jerome blinked rapidly to clear his eyes. The near darkness that greeted him didn¡¯t surprise him.


    ¡°This is what I get for being a hero,¡± he muttered to himself.


    He was being dragged on the ground. But by what, he did not know. He couldn¡¯t feel his body, talk more move his limbs. Did this thing paralyze him? How was that even possible without him knowing about it? Well, he was dealing with a creature that wielded darkness after all. There wasn¡¯t much he knew about such creatures.


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    He was slowly raised into the air after a while and hung on a tree upside down. His assailant left him swinging from side to side without interacting with him. Soon it came into view, hanging from the same tree and facing him. Jerome was lost for words. He looked at the creature looking back at him with so much intelligence in its eyes, not knowing what to say.


    A dragon.


    A freaking huge black dragon that could probably squish him between its fingertips. That was an exaggeration but it didn¡¯t stop his mind from picturing it. The dragon was so huge that its whole body was using the tree as a backrest ¡ª and the tree was huge. It positioned its reptilian body upside down so it could look Jerome in the eyes. Its scales were ebony and glittered in the dark. Jerome had a feeling it could command that part of its body and go into stealth mode. With the glitters on, it would be seen from a mile away ¡ª like a group of stars, clustered around each other in the night.


    The dragon made no sound. It just waited, looking at him with amusement. And the look was every bit as predatory as the dragon. Its eyes, which Jerome thought would be slitted irises and a yellow sclera were actually almost rounded pupils, like ovals inside beautifully patterned and rounded golden irises and white sclera.


    Well, it was dark and the dragon needed more light in its eyes, so it had to expand its irises for more light in this dark environment. Or maybe its eyes produced its light. Seeing as it was golden and all. Jerome¡¯s gaze roved over the reptile¡¯s body. The dragon was sleek and looked feminine. Like a beautiful work of art. Though he couldn¡¯t see every part of it.


    He realized moments later that he could see color. The dragon¡¯s irises were golden. But this creature was a lot more intimidating than any other he had come across ¡ª with the exception of the Argonaut. Its presence ¡®demanded¡¯ to be obeyed. With wings tucked in and staying as still as a tranquil lake, it looked like it was going to kill him instantly if he made any move.


    Jerome pushed down his fear. He was sure he would have felt his bones creaking from the weight of its presence if he was standing on his legs. As it was, he couldn¡¯t even feel his limbs. Even now, he was finding it hard to breathe as the darkness around seemed to push in on him, causing him a lot of discomfort. Or was that the dragoness¡¯ aura?


    He gathered his courage and tried to communicate with the dragoness. He had understood a Storm-Winged Eagle in anger, he bet he could communicate with a dragoness too.


    He cleared his throat before saying, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    And the dragoness did something that would forever be imprinted in his mind. Something Rihal had warned him about the Sunfire Wolf during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep.


    It spoke.


    ¡°I want you to be a hero again¡­ ¡®hero¡¯,¡± it said in a mocking voice. Its voice was feminine. And sultry. With an almost British lilt to it. Or was that just him thinking it sounded British? It was like listening to an older Csala. One with a different accent.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped as he stared wide-eyed at the talking black dragoness. He blinked rapidly thinking maybe he saw¡­or heard wrong. The dragoness¡¯ mouth had moved.


    ¡°You can talk?¡± Jerome asked as something else dawned on him. ¡°You¡¯re a Sage Realm magical beast.¡±


    ¡°Sage Realm,¡± the dragoness said with a light chuckle, its voice mocking as if what he said was beneath her¡­ it? Whatever.


    ¡°We dragons don¡¯t use the same system of advancement as you humans,¡± it said, moving closer so its large eye could peer closely at him.


    The eye was almost big enough to contain him whole ¡ª in a fetal position. Jerome shivered and tried to lean away. The dragoness purred and the air vibrated around him, reminding him he was in the presence of an apex predator.


    ¡°Hmm. Dinner awaits, hero,¡± it mocked him. The dragoness turned to leave, and the tree groaned from its weight. No, trees. It was resting on at least two trees.


    ¡°Wait. Don¡¯t touch them¡ª¡±


    ¡°How dare you!¡± she roared, and the darkness around Jerome tightened its grip on him.


    Pain flooded his muscles as he was constricted, squeezed like a pimple. Jerome held his breath and tried to calm his heartbeat. Menace poured off the dragon like a flood as her presence nearly crushed him in her grip. She could have killed him, but she stayed her hand and talked to him, he thought. Jerome figured the dragoness wanted something.


    ¡°Whatever it is you want, I¡¯ll do my best to give it to you. Just let them go,¡± he said.


    ¡°You do NOT tell me what to do!¡± she roared in his face.


    Jerome saw teeth like blades, the likes of which he had never seen before. All it would take was just one bite¡­ and he¡¯d become minced meat. They were surprisingly white and impressively serrated, with millions of tiny jagged edges around each tooth that would rend his flesh to pieces if she ever took a bite out of him. Yet the dragoness was doing nothing to harm him. Why?


    Jerome looked her straight in the eye. He stimulated his voice with his psychic energy to amplify it. ¡°And you¡¯re NOT doing anything to me. So I know you want something!¡±


    His voice was almost as loud as hers. Almost. And carried the intensity of his intent ¡ª which was like a candle in front of a storm.


    The dragoness tilted her head at him. She moved around him to observe him from every angle before stopping in front of him again. The branch that held him up shook as it moved .There was a wicked grin on her lips this time around that showcased those sharp teeth.


    ¡°You might live to regret those words¡­ Xerae fir Ilyrrah,¡± she said, and Jerome almost lost his train of thought. His heart began pounding hard in his ribs.


    ¡°How do you know that?!¡± he asked in shock.


    The darkness relaxed its grip on him and Jerome fell, gravity pulling him toward the forest floor. He had no idea the size of the tree he was hanging from but having been let down, the fall was a long way down. He cycled to heal the paralysis in his limbs and slow his descent before touching the ground.


    The beat of the dragoness¡¯ wings resounded in the air as he landed, and it joined him on the forest floor.


    ¡°You¡¯re¡­huge!¡± he exclaimed, taking in the sheer size of her. It was like looking at a small mountain.


    ¡°And you¡¯re tiny,¡± she mocked.


    Jerome scowled at her, taking several steps backward. He had no power or weapon to defeat such a creature up close. Even Charybdis may not be as effective against something so powerful. He could sense the weight of her presence now and she was a lot more powerful than Muna.


    But the novelty of seeing a dragon for the first time was wearing off. His calm was returning and the nanites helped to slow down his raging heart and adrenaline, yet kept his mind sharp. He gathered his wits about himself.


    ¡°Let my friends go and we can discuss,¡± he said, donning his armor. Even at that, he could still feel the strain of her presence on his mind and body.


    ¡°Ooh, don¡¯t be in such a hurry to leave.¡±


    She moved.


    One second she was a few paces away from him, the next she was curled around him, lying on her belly, and staring down at him from above.


    Jerome stumbled, shocked. How the hell did something so big move so fast? The dragoness took the opportunity to pin him down with a massive claw, a claw that was easily almost twice his width.


    ¡°Get off me!¡± he screamed. The dragoness was cold to the touch and was siphoning essence from him so fast he sensed he¡¯d collapse from the drain in less than half a minute.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be whiny, little chosen,¡± the dragoness chided, taking her claw off of him. ¡°I wanted a taste is all.¡±


    Jerome scrambled away from her, trembling. He exhaled a shaky breath to expel the nerves. Then scowled at the dragoness. He could see she wanted him to fear her, so much so that he would feel powerless around her. A very sound tactic to use to get whatever you want from someone unwilling to give it. But he was smarter than that. And he wouldn¡¯t let fear rule him.


    ¡°You know, your feminine-sounding voice had the opposite effect on the environment than I expected from a dragon,¡± he said.


    ¡°Hmm. And what is this effect you were expecting,¡± that sultry voice said.


    Jerome shrugged. ¡°You¡¯re not as imposing as you look. I expected a rumble and a shaking of the ground and trees when you spoke and moved. You know¡­more.¡±


    The dragoness¡¯ tail slapped him into the earth then curled around him and flung him into the very tree he was hanging on moments ago. Jerome groaned.


    ¡°You¡¯ve got a big mouth on you, haven¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Huh. And where did you learn to use contractions in your sentences?¡± he said as he forced himself out of the crack in the tree. If the dragoness was thinking of using fear to control him, she was in for a surprise.


    ¡°Do you plan to annoy me forever, because I have forever? Your friends on the other hand¡­ don¡¯t.¡±


    Change of strategy. A good one too. ¡°Very well,¡± he said, walking up to the dragoness. Playtime was over. It was time to make a deal. ¡°Release my friends and we can talk.¡±


    She bristled at his tone. ¡°No, we make a deal first and I release your friends. They don¡¯t have a lot of time, you know?¡±


    ¡°Touch a single hair on their head, or a single strand of essence in their cores and the deal¡¯s off,¡± he said.


    ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk. Too late.¡±


    ¡°What did you do?¡±


    The dragon¡¯s tail slapped him into the ground again. How the fuck does it reach him without him sensing it.


    ¡°I find I do not like your tongue, Chosen of Ilyrrah.¡±


    Jerome raised his head out of the dirt in anger. ¡°My name is Jerome. And will you stop doing that?!¡±


    She slapped him into the earth again before he could lift his body out of the dirt. Thankfully, his armor covered his whole body, face included, or else he would have eaten enough dirt already.


    ¡°It is a beautiful feeling, is it not?¡± the dragoness said, looking almost human.


    ¡°What?¡± Was this dragoness nuts? What the fuck was it¡­ she talking about. But her eyes showed an emotion Jerome never knew he could witness in other creatures.


    Longing.


    ¡°The feeling of having a name, stupid,¡± the dragoness said.


    Jerome scowled at her. Did she think him someone to be bullied without any clapback? It seemed its¡­ her ego was a little too big for her size. Well, let¡¯s fix that, Jerome thought. It was a bit of a struggle trying to refer to the dragoness as a ¡®she¡¯ in his mind but he wanted to make the effort.


    ¡°You¡¯re stupid,¡± he said and the dragoness stilled. That predatory glint was back in her eyes as she stared unblinkingly at him.


    The creature¡¯s gaze was a trap. An endless void you could fall into if you were not careful. Her tail came at Jerome again but he dodged, sensing the incoming danger. It still caught him though. The next moment he found himself dangling in front of the dragoness¡¯ face ¡ª mere inches away.


    ¡°What. Did. You. Call. Me?¡± she squeezed him with her tail as she spoke every syllable. Jerome groaned in pain. He was hanging upside down and all the blood in his body went south ¡ª to his head.


    ¡°You want a name, don¡¯t you? I can give you a name,¡± Jerome strained to talk. ¡°But if you keep disrespecting me, you get to be called ¡®stupid¡¯.¡±


    The dragoness hissed in anger. She released a very powerful psychic wave threatening to break the natural barrier in his mind. What happened next made no sense to him at all.


    Jerome heard some distant sounds like the song of a baleen whale. He blacked out soon after.

 131. What’s In A Name Anyway?

    Jerome dreamed. He dreamed a very vivid dream about sailing through the void. Stars blinked in and out of existence as he passed, as billions of years went by in a flash. He continued onward with no destination in mind, as though he was waiting for something. What it was, he didn¡¯t know. He only knew that he had to keep moving. To keep traversing the universe.


    He woke up, to the sound of something knocking him on the head. He quickly shot up as he remembered where he was and scrambled backward. The dragoness got up on all fours in front of him and walked toward him.


    ¡°You gave me quite a scare, Chosen of Ilyrrah,¡± she said.


    ¡°And you tried to get inside my head!¡± Jerome growled at her. The dragoness didn¡¯t respond. Something was different about her now, he noticed.


    She was¡­ restraining herself.


    ¡°Not like it worked,¡± she said and gave him a sideways look. ¡°What are you? Did Ilyrrah put a more powerful barrier on you?¡±


    ¡°And why should I tell you that?¡±


    The dragoness growled. A very inhuman growl. The surrounding forest seemed to respond with a fearful vibration. Then a stillness, as if the very earth was afraid of the predator.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never met a human I couldn¡¯t read,¡± she said, sitting on her haunches and giving Jerome a curious look.


    Jerome stood where he was bristling. He needed to get away from this monster. To get back to the rest of the group. But he was sure this thing wouldn¡¯t let him go. And she wouldn¡¯t release the two Sprouts with her either. Until she had what she wanted.


    ¡°Why do you even need a name anyway? And from a human nonetheless.¡±


    The dragoness took a more relaxing position on the ground, lying on her belly with her forelegs folded and tucked in front of her like a cat. ¡°There is a lot about you, you don¡¯t know¡­ Jerome. A lot about you even Ilyrrah had no idea of.¡±


    Jerome drew in a sharp breath. What the hell was going on? What had he gotten himself into? He hoped he wouldn¡¯t be drawn into some ancient conspiracy. With all that he was hearing, he sensed the dragoness would say something absurd next.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± he asked before he could stop himself.


    His curiosity had been piqued and now he felt like he had entered into a trap set by the dragoness. It might be that there was nothing to worry about and she was just trying to spring him along. Mind games, all of it. Jerome beat himself inwardly at that.


    ¡°You¡¯ll find out soon enough,¡± the dragoness said. ¡°For now though, if you¡¯d like me to let go of your friends, you¡¯d better start thinking of a good name.¡±


    Jerome clenched his jaw in anger. She was baiting him. Using his curiosity against him. But two can play the game. He sat down on the floor to meditate for a while. No sooner did he start meditating did the vital aura deep in the earth start to infuse his body.


    A green circle of light glowed in the place where he sat.


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± the dragoness purred delightedly. ¡°You have a lot more secrets than you let on, don¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m trying to concentrate here,¡± Jerome snapped at it. He quickly shut his mouth, afraid she would retaliate.


    And retaliate, she did.


    The dragoness pounced on him so fast, he was on his back before he knew what was going on. She glared at him in silence for a long while. Jerome could almost feel the fury brewing beneath the surface of her exterior visage. She wanted to deliver recompense. But something ¡ª he didn¡¯t know what ¡ª was keeping her in check. He held her gaze though, refusing to back down. Her piercing gaze had an almost physical weight to it, bearing down on his mind as she stared unblinkingly at him. Somehow he knew the dragoness was restraining her aura so as not to crush him like a pimple.


    Still, she was crushing him with the weight of her claw, drawing out the pain and siphoning his essence. Jerome clenched his jaw, refusing to let out a sound. He wasn¡¯t going to be bullied into submission. Not even by a dragon. And he understood that this was also something of a primal show of authority. Even with all her intelligence and sapience, the dragoness was still a predator.


    The uncomfortable silence stretched for a while longer before she broke it. ¡°This is the last time you snap at me like that, do I make myself clear?¡± her sultry voice reached his ears, slow and threatening. A promise of pain and suffering if he ever misbehaved again.


    ¡°And I wouldn¡¯t be bullied into submission,¡± he said, still holding her gaze.


    The dragoness spent several more seconds glaring at him before freeing him and walking back to her position. Jerome watched her go. Her steps were as quiet as a cat¡¯s and as graceful as a succubus¡¯, never disturbing the surrounding foliage. Even with how gargantuan she was. The only things bigger than she was in this forest were the trees, which grew to be as tall as two hundred feet high ¡ª maybe more.


    Two large horns protruding out of her head, curving backward and then upwards, were the only parts of her upper body he could see. Though, he knew there¡¯d be a row of spikes jutting out of her spine in a long line down to her tail. Her legs were thick and short. Or at least shorter than he expected, giving her the skeletal frame of a feline predator.


    The dragoness flicked his head with the end of her spade-tipped tail as if to chide a naughty child. The impact was heavy and painful ¡ª like he was hit by a moving chunk of super-compressed mythril. Jerome glared at her but said nothing ¡ª no need to antagonize her further. The dragoness didn¡¯t even look his way. To her, he was a pest. Unwarranting of attention. Yet she wanted him to name her? Jerome snorted. Loudly. So she would hear. But the dragoness pretended as if he didn¡¯t even exist. She closed her eyes as she leaned on a tree, causing the gigantic tree to groan under the weight of her size and strength.


    Jerome went back to meditating. He needed all the vitality he could get so he wouldn¡¯t die from giving something so powerful a name.


    But why am I so unlucky like this? he thought in frustration. My first time naming another being and it had to be a powerful dragon.


    Jerome meditated for a long, long time, stimulating the vital aura in the ground. He was glowing with verdant energy that was pulsing out of him. His plan was to gather the vital aura in the same way he¡¯d gather essence for Godspeed ¡ª the most dangerous spell he had in his arsenal right now. It was not a direct danger to others but a danger to him.


    But he was finding out that vital aura wasn¡¯t like the normal essence he could gather and hold around him like a cloud of essence. He could store up some of it but he needed a special container for it if he wasn¡¯t storing it up in his body.


    He decidedly sent some into a corner of his void plane, keeping it there for another time. That sparked a curiosity in him as he wondered what changes might happen as a result of the presence of vital aura. He stirred up the aura in the earth some more sending it into his void plane as compressed packets of dense aura. It wasn¡¯t going to dissipate. And he made sure to separate it from the cloud of Sword Force swirling in another corner of his void plane.


    ¡°Hey, dragoness,¡± he called out.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    ¡°What is it?¡± The sleeping dragoness woke up lazily.


    She stretched her body in a way only felines could. Jerome wondered if dragons had the genes of other animals in them. That would make sense ¡ª in a really weird way, that is. Or maybe it was just this specific one. The ones the royal Sprouts took down some time ago had looked quite different from her. Like the kind of dragons you¡¯d expect to see in myths, honestly. And they were quite young. Leading him to imagine just how old the dragoness in front of him was.


    ¡°I need you to help me clear the area around me of the darkness. The vital aura is being corrupted every time I try to expand it outward from me.¡±


    The dragoness looked at him with focused eyes. He knew she could understand what he was saying. The corrupting influence of the darkness was a hassle and he needed to get rid of it before he could draw out more vital aura from the ground.


    ¡°Very well.¡±


    She flicked her tail in his direction and the still air moved in a circular pattern like a cyclone, taking the darkness with it. A wide circle was formed in almost an instant with a radius of about 20 feet with him at the center.


    ¡°Fascinating,¡± Jerome said in astonishment and the dragoness snorted.


    ¡°Get to work. The charm you put on your friends would wear off soon. As will yours.¡±


    How the fuck did you know about that? he scowled.


    He started muttering the spell for Godspeed making sure that he was drawing on the vital aura from deep inside the earth and not the darkness in the air.


    After what felt like an eternity, Jerome cleared his throat to get the attention of the dragoness. It had only been half a day though. But he needed to get back to Csala before she came looking for him. And she would. He had a feeling she would. He just hoped the others could hold her back.


    The dragoness rose to her feet and walked up to the border of a scripted circle Jerome had set up. Her whole body was put on display for Jerome to see due to the green light emanating from the vital aura surrounding him. The size of the dragoness gave him a sense of how big the surrounding clearing they were in was ¡ª and it was huge. She was at least forty feet tall on all fours and should weigh nothing less than a dozen tons.


    He would have checked his surroundings to get a clear picture of where they were using his 360 vision but now was not the time to waste psychic energy. And besides, even if he thought there was some kind of danger or other predators around, the dragoness was an apex predator. There would be no other predators around its territory for miles.


    ¡°Was this necessary?¡± she asked, eyeing the barrier and the rich verdant energy swirling inside. Vital aura was thick in the air inside the barrier. It was like a green fog that was alive and swirling like a storm.


    Jerome had taken his time to make the barrier as powerful as possible. Not that the dragoness couldn¡¯t destroy it. He knew she probably could with the flick of that deadly tail.


    ¡°Please bring my friends and drop them inside the circle,¡± he said, sounding as polite as possible.


    The dragoness grinned at him. ¡°I hope you know what you¡¯re doing.¡±


    ¡°I only seek to protect mine. I¡¯ll do as I said I would.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you wonder why I didn¡¯t have you swear an oath?¡± she sat down comfortably looking at Jerome mockingly.


    He had wondered why but said nothing. This way was better for him. This way, he wouldn¡¯t be tied to a vengeful dragoness by oath. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t presume to know what goes through the mind of a great dragoness like yourself.¡±


    She snorted, unamused. ¡°Flattery doesn¡¯t befit you, Chosen of Ilyrrah¡­ Urgh, that¡¯s a mouthful.¡±


    ¡°Then, Jerome would do just fine. And it¡¯s a fine name.¡±


    The dragoness raised a group of smaller, protruding scales where its left eyebrow should be on a human.


    Freaking freak! Jerome thought. ¡°Heh. I think I¡¯m past being surprised by anything you do now,¡± he said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cross me, Jerome. Those that tried have long digested.¡± Her right forelimb made an impossible movement for a creature on all fours, patting its slightly round stomach.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°How did¡­¡± he couldn¡¯t even complete his sentence as he watched the dragoness turn around and walk farther into the darkness, disappearing from view.


    Jerome sensed the Sprouts before they reached him. He reached out with Suzie to catch them before they hit the ground. They had passed out but were still breathing, probably from exhaustion. The fucking dragoness had siphoned their essence. Jerome exhaled loudly to calm his anger. He didn¡¯t know these two personally, but he felt responsible for them. And he wanted to make sure they got to the pool unharmed. He had promised after all. He would look like someone who exaggerated his own worth if they didn¡¯t return alive with him.


    The dragoness was already there waiting patiently at the edge of the barrier. Jerome stood up and muttered another spell. A prism of colorful lights beamed out of his body, making him look like he was bleeding light.


    ¡°Now, what¡¯s that?¡± the dragoness asked, rolling its eyes.


    ¡°Protection. Terra Praeta is a named planet so you can be named naturally without needing power for it, right? Hold on,¡± he said to stop the dragoness from interrupting him. ¡°What you want is a name that comes from a place of power and that¡¯s what all this preparation is for. It would help me¡ª¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes. It would help to partition the amount of essence and vitality used so you don¡¯t end up giving too much and dying,¡± she said and rolled her eyes. ¡°Fae magic is child¡¯s play. And not worth my time.¡±


    The dragoness gave him a toothy grin, as she saw the surprise on his face.


    ¡°You truly understand what I want then,¡± she said. ¡°Good. So, let¡¯s get to it. I want to be given a mighty name. Something¡­¡± She took a deep breath and exhaled loudly as it sat on its haunches, ¡°Epic!¡±


    Jerome watched the emotions play across the dragoness¡¯ face, unable to wipe the one on his for a while. Did she just call his magic child¡¯s play? It took so much to learn his Fae Spells, so much to even be worthy of obtaining them, and this overblown reptile just called it child¡¯s play? The gall!


    His eyelids twitched as he forced himself to not glare at the dragoness. And what the fuck kind of name could he come up with that would be ¡®epic¡¯ right now? The dragoness couldn¡¯t name itself. There were rules to these things. Maybe he could come up with something using the force it wields like Shadow or Darkness, or Obsidian?


    ¡°What are you waiting for?¡±


    Jerome came out of his thoughts. ¡°Hmm? I¡¯m looking for the perfect name.¡±


    ¡°Right. Be quick about it,¡± she sat down to wait.


    Jerome kept thinking, trying to come up with something that¡¯ll make the feline reptile ¡ª if that even was a thing ¡ª keep him out of her jaws.


    The dragoness stood up and began pacing back and forth. She looked like a black lioness with wings and horns, and black scales instead of golden fur. Her tail swished with every loop she made around the distance she paced. Her claws were retracted and her paws gracefully avoided anything that would cause her to make a sound as if there were eyes on them.


    Her movements mesmerized Jerome as nothing else could. Jerome had to admit to himself that the dragoness looked very elegant. There was a sophistication to her that one could only appreciate in the dead of the night.


    Night¡­


    ¡°Ooh. I¡¯ve got something. But first, a question,¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°What now?¡± it snapped.


    ¡°What happens to you when I name you?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I become¡­ more,¡± the dragoness said. Then she narrowed her eyes on Jerome. ¡°You¡¯re not thinking of going back on your word, are you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll keep my word. But I wish to know how strong of a dragon I¡¯ll be dealing with when I name you.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just a name, Jerome. Urgh, what¡¯s in a name anyway?¡± she rolled her eyes, almost looking cute. Almost. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll be stronger.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t try to downplay the significance of a name. Or I might just name you something stupid.¡±


    The dragoness glared murderously at him.


    ¡°How much stronger do you become? As strong as a Transcendent?¡±


    The dragoness snorted. ¡°If only wishes grew on trees¡­ My patience has limits, Jerome!¡± She lifted her paw and pointed at him¡­ with a claw! The rest of its fingers were folded in a fist!


    ¡°Fucking¡­!¡± Jerome was saying but quickly held back the rest of his words. He inhaled and exhaled loudly. ¡°Very well.¡±


    He believed the dragoness was telling the truth. Or he had no other option than to believe. It was better this way, kind of. As long as she wasn¡¯t Transcendent he¡¯d be able to get away from her. And it wasn¡¯t like he could prolong things. The dragoness would see through him.


    ¡°By the power vested in me. By the authority granted¡ª¡±


    ¡°Stop that, stop¡­just¡­ STOP!¡± the dragon glared at him. ¡°Speak the name, or is that too difficult for you?!¡±


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Ahem. I name you¡­¡± he cycled essence to his vocal cavity¡­

 132. Nyx

    Jerome vanished the moment he named the dragoness. He appeared over 300 yards away and took off running. The space rune Achilles had gifted him when he created the void space was an invaluable asset to have. With it, he had jumped 300 yards in a blink. But he only got fifty feet away when the voice of the dragoness reached his ears like a whisper.


    ¡°Well, I expected you to at least pass out after naming me. It¡¯s very impressive that you can still run. You truly are the Chosen of Ilyrrah. I love my name, don¡¯t get me wrong. But why run? Come now, don¡¯t be a naughty boy. Stop so we can have a nice discussion like civilized people.¡±


    ¡°You got what you wanted,¡± Jerome responded. ¡°What more do you want?¡± He didn¡¯t use his psychic energy to speak to her since he didn¡¯t know where she was. He wasn¡¯t very good at using it so just speaking out into the air and expecting someone he couldn¡¯t visibly see or didn¡¯t know their location to hear him was a large hurdle for him ¡ª for now anyways.


    Something caught him and pulled him into the air. He nearly dropped the two Sprouts in his arms.


    ¡°Got you,¡± she said.


    ¡°You have yourself a name, what else do you need?¡± Jerome complained. He was set down on a tree branch high up in the sky. Wait a minute. He realized he didn¡¯t hear the beating of her wings.


    ¡°Come on, love. Take a good look at me,¡± the dragoness said in that sultry voice. He also couldn¡¯t feel her weight on the tree.


    Jerome looked to the side and was shocked at what he saw. Instead of a huge black dragon, there was a buxom, fair-skinned lady standing on the tree branch with him.


    She had very long black hair that was shiny even in the darkness of the forest. Piercing gold eyes stared back at him with mirth. Her hair framed her beautiful face perfectly and parted at her shoulders, continuing down to her large bust and down to her flared hips, the rest of it swaying behind her even though there was no breeze.


    Her garment didn¡¯t seem like a garment at all. The strange gown was like darkness given substance. It moved around her like shadows crawling against her skin ¡ª a sleeveless off-shoulder gown that hugged her figure and reached down to flow over her feet. A slit cut the gown from the hem, halfway up her left thigh.


    Jerome rose to his feet, looking her up and down. She was beautiful and standing very close to his height. That was very tall for a lady in the society he lived in. But she had nothing on the cowkin he¡¯d met prior, except in the bust department. And hips. What was it with Terra Praeta and busty women?


    ¡°Are you¡­?¡±


    ¡°Come on now, love. Say my name. You¡¯re the one who gave it to me,¡± she said with a smile, blinking rapidly and fluttering her sexy, long eyelashes at him. Those golden irises were very striking on her pretty face.


    ¡°Nyx?¡±


    She grinned at him. Hooking her arm around his waist, she shot downward to the ground not forgetting to pick up the two Sprouts that were passed out.


    Jerome walked with Nyx through the forest as they each carried one of the Sprouts he had run away with. He didn¡¯t ignore the fact that he was ¡®walking¡¯ through the forest, instead of running for his dear life from its denizens ¡ª who seemed to be nowhere in sight right now. It paid to have a dragon as company it seemed. Also, the darkness didn¡¯t affect him like it did before, he briefly observed. He had full use of his core and he felt light as opposed to how he felt when he first entered the forest.


    Must be her, he thought, looking her way and wondering how a full-grown dragon became¡­ this. Human.


    ¡°Are you really Nyx?¡± he asked, still not believing his eyes. The shock from seeing a dragon transform into a human wasn¡¯t something one could just turn off, apparently. Well, he didn¡¯t see the actual transformation but he wondered what that would have looked like.


    ¡°Hey now, love,¡± she smiled at him. ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°How did you?... Did I?... Was this what was supposed to happen?¡±


    She chuckled. ¡°I didn¡¯t. You did, Jerome¡­ and yes, this is what¡¯s supposed to happen.¡±


    ¡°Is that a good thing or a bad thing?¡± Well, she was happy so¡­


    ¡°It¡¯s like part of some unwritten or unspoken rule of nature. If I were named by a dragon, I¡¯d be more like a dragon. I could transform to look human, mind you. Even if I weren¡¯t named at all, I¡¯d still be able to take human form. But that would take forever. And I wouldn¡¯t look nearly as human as I do now.¡±


    Wouldn¡¯t look nearly as human? Jerome caught that but said nothing to disturb her flow of speech. That probably meant she¡¯d look more like beastkin.


    ¡°Now that I am named by a human, well¡­¡± she shrugged.


    ¡°You¡¯re more like a human,¡± he completed. ¡°Still doesn¡¯t make sense.¡±


    ¡°Not everything needs to, love. You just accept it as nature¡¯s way of balancing the scales.¡±


    ¡°But why me though?¡± Jerome couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°I know I¡¯m Ilyrrah¡¯s Chosen but what does that mean to you¡­ a dragon? No offense.¡±


    ¡°Like I said before, love. There¡¯s a lot you don¡¯t know about yourself. And Ilyrrah definitely knew less about you too. The dragons saw farther into the future. We can scry posterity.¡±


    ¡°Huh. You Terra Praetans just throw logic out the window every now and then.¡± That stunned him good.


    She laughed. A healthy, boisterous laugh. Her laugh was infectious and Jerome wanted to laugh too. But he needed answers and it seemed he wouldn¡¯t get them straight away.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s how one of my ancestors found you. I inherited her legacy¡­ among others.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that you¡¯re not the one who scryed for me but some long-dead ancestor?¡± Jerome asked in unbelief.


    ¡°Dragons are different from other species you know¡­ We¡¯re¡­ MORE!¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± Jerome grumbled. He now had another Achilles on his hand. One from the dragon¡¯s side, who perhaps was even more arrogant than a fae. How the hell did he keep falling into all these traps? Was fate playing a joke on him?


    ¡°Now tell me, love. How did you come up with such a beautiful name for me? I feel like there¡¯s an origin story there. Go.¡±


    Jerome reared his head back at the command, giving her a pointed look. ¡°Really? Go?¡±


    ¡°Just talk, Jerome. Or don¡¯t you want to talk to me?¡± She smiled innocently at him.


    Jerome snorted. Her self-importance was way more than Csala¡¯s when he first met the succubus. He¡¯d see what would become of it when he wore her down to the mud. But thinking about the story to tell her, he hoped bringing tales of myths from his previous world wouldn¡¯t come back to bite him in the rear.


    ¡°There are myths and stories that have existed since the dawn of time,¡± he began. ¡°The oldest of which were passed down from generation to generation by way of lore. For writing had not yet come into existence for the beings who told these stories. Many, however, have been lost to the ether and left untold.¡±


    ¡°Oooh, you sound very mysterious. I like it,¡± Nyx said, bubbling with excitement as she clasped her hands together in front of her. That action drew him to her gravity-defying bosom but he quickly looked away. In his mind, he imagined she¡¯d do a twirl to complete the vision of her new personality he had in his head.


    He smiled at her. Nyx once was like a giant, unreachable being who looked down on all around her ¡ª namely, him ¡ª and made sure he knew it. Now she was like a child seeing the world around her with newfound excitement. And her excitement was contagious. Albeit, she was still arrogant.


    ¡°One such lore is that of the primordial beings ¡ª The Protogenoi. Gods¡­ said to have emerged at the dawn of creation. Nyx was the goddess of the night ¡ª Nue in a long-forgotten tongue. But she was called by many names: Nox, Natt, Nott, Nyktos, Njola, the list goes on. She was the very personification of the night itself. A child of Chaos, and coupling with Erebos, Darkness, she birthed Aether ¡ª the shining blue of the Heavens, or Light. And Hemera ¡ª Day.¡±


    Nyx stopped. And stared at him in surprise.


    ¡°What?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°How do you know the name, Aether?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the name of an ancient dragon that lived long, long ago. We dragons have our own myths and lore too. Only they never get lost in time. They are passed down through our legacies. We inherit not only the powers of our ancestors but their memories too.¡±


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    Jerome had to drop the Sprout he was carrying and lean against a tree. Somehow, it was too much for him to take all at once. He felt he needed to slow down to absorb all she just said ¡ª not just the words but the weight of them and the consequences they presented. Maybe it was a wise choice to just let Nyx tell him how her ancestors scryed him at her own pace.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. It¡¯s just¡­ your inheritance seems a bit too¡­¡± he wanted to find the right word for it but ended up using his hands to gesture.


    ¡°Powerful?¡± Nyx said with the smugness he had come to know her for. Now he could juxtapose the image of this Nyx and the dragoness from before, and it would make perfect sense.


    ¡°¡®Overkill¡¯ was the word I was looking for.¡±


    ¡°Ah! I like that word!¡± she grinned sheepishly at him. ¡°So continue your tale.¡± She started walking again.


    Jerome sighed, shaking his head. He didn¡¯t want to get used to taking orders from her. But she had a way of saying things at the right time and in the right way. He picked up the Sprout he dropped.


    ¡°In some of the stories. Hemera is Nyx¡¯s sister and not her daughter. They race across the sky in pursuit of one another. One, the very substance of the night. A veil of dark mist, drawn across the sky to obscure the light of Aether. The other scatters the mist of the night at dawn. And so fare the two siblings till this day.¡±


    ¡°Night and day,¡± Nyx muttered, lost in thought. ¡°That was beautiful, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°You think so?¡±


    ¡°Hmm. Day¡­ Aether was our sun. We worshiped him. He was the first of our kind. Our Protogenoi. The Primordial Dragon. He left the higher planes long, long ago ¡ª when the universe was still young and very few habitable worlds existed.


    ¡°He was never seen again. Some say, his essence was scattered among the stars so dragons would be birthed across galaxies. Some say he lives still.¡±


    Nyx stopped talking and the quiet returned. Jerome waited for her to continue but she didn¡¯t. He guessed that was a no-no.


    ¡°That¡¯s fascinating.¡±


    ¡°You think?¡± she asked with a bright smile.


    ¡°Hmm. But it is no way to end a story.¡±


    She pouted at him and he chuckled. Then something came to mind causing Jerome to frown.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Nyx asked, catching his shift in countenance.


    ¡°Well, I just gotta ask. How powerful are you now? I could feel the weight of your presence bearing down on me before. But now¡­¡± Jerome scanned her. ¡°Nothing.¡±


    Nyx smacked him upside the head with her draconic tail.


    What? Where did the tail come from? Where had she been hiding it? Jerome looked at her round and luscious behind but the tail was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°You¡¯re full of surprises, you know?¡± he said. That smack had hurt. Real bad too. But he refused to rub the area on his head to ease the pain, or cycle essence to the area either. He found he didn¡¯t like looking weak in front of the beautiful woman. Rubbing his head, to him, was showing he couldn¡¯t bear pain.


    ¡°And you should know not to scan your superiors without their consent. Thankfully I had a veil up around my core. If not, you would have collapsed from the intensity of the power you glimpse inside me.¡±


    Jerome looked at her again, differently this time around. ¡°I never knew that could happen.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s get to the Waters of Irithiya, love. But I need a new garment. This would dissolve the moment I step into that void world,¡± Nyx said looking down at the darkness wrapped around her like a living gown.


    Jerome guessed she didn¡¯t want to talk about herself so she changed the topic. But she wasn¡¯t very subtle with it. Guess even dragons could be sloppy.


    ¡°I may have something you could wear,¡± he reached into his void space with his psychic energy and took out a white wrap. It was one of the only materials Achilles hadn¡¯t choked full of defense barriers.


    The wrap left his hand and wrapped around Nyx as if of its own accord.


    ¡°Sorry it¡¯s white¡­¡± he was saying when the wrap took on the form of the previous garment and darkened to a black that almost matched the color of her hair. ¡°Guess you¡¯re still full of surprises.¡±


    They flew into the air and headed for the Waters of Irithiya.


    ~~~


    A while ago¡­


    Csala


    Her gaze didn¡¯t leave the mountain overlooking them for a long time. She stood there shocked and out of her depths. There was so much her senses didn¡¯t understand about this place. It was a melting pot of different essences. Rich essences. The essence was so thick that it was visible to her eyes, swirling in myriads of color around the floating mountain.


    Try as she may, she couldn¡¯t figure out how what she was seeing was possible. A floating mountain?! How in Odin¡¯s name was that possible?!


    The air was warmer here. A vast difference from the icy coldness of the North and the dark forest. The sun hung low in the sky but was full of life and warmth, casting brilliant shades of orange across the clouds in the air.


    This vast open field Jerome had brought them to was brimming with so much vital aura. Csala could see the motes of green energy floating everywhere. She wished with all her being that she could directly absorb it, but alas, it wasn¡¯t meant to be for her kind. Succubi could only absorb the vitality of men.


    A few hundred paces away was a vast pit in the ground and water was pooling inside. The mountain hovering above this pit had nine waterfalls gushing out of it and into the pit in the ground.


    ¡°It¡¯s a¡­¡± Selene said, wide-eyed and shocked to her core.


    ¡°It¡¯s unbelievable,¡± Tara gasped out.


    Csala couldn¡¯t utter a word at the bizarreness of what was in front of her. So this is the mysterious Waters of Irithiya.


    ¡°Csala, Ms. Tara¡­ it¡¯s a floating mountain!¡± Selene said at long last, breathlessly.


    It took a while for the shock to wear off and all three of them looked back at the forest they had just come from. It had disappeared. All around them were greenery and flowers. How was this possible? Csala walked back a few steps to test a theory, holding her hand in front of her.


    The air was suddenly disturbed with ripples and she drew back instantly, almost falling on her butt.


    ¡°What in the name of Odin is this?¡± she muttered to herself.


    Selene and Tara were there a moment later. ¡°It¡¯s a barrier,¡± Selene said. ¡°And this must be some sort of void world.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Csala asked. She had no idea what was going on. ¡°What is a void world?¡±


    Selene looked at her incredulously. ¡°A void world is¡­damn, I¡¯ve never had to explain it before.¡±


    ¡°Is it like a mental¡ª?¡± she was asking when Jerome¡¯s voice sounded from beyond the barrier.


    ¡°It¡¯s a world like any other world.¡±


    Moments later, the barrier rippled again and he was there dropping a fuming Fei Lin and Nia. Nia rushed to hug her friend. Tara rushed to hug him.


    ¡°Jerome, what is this place?¡± Tara asked.


    ¡°This is a void world. The only difference is that it¡¯s small and cannot exist independently on its own. It¡¯ll crumble after many years without maintenance¡­ or a connection to a habitable planet. And surprisingly this one can allow sound to pass through its barrier.¡±


    ¡°Is that a bad thing?¡± Selene asked, noticing the perplexed look on Jerome¡¯s face.


    Jerome hugged Csala next. She had missed him. ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± he answered Selene, then addressed her next. ¡°I need to get back. And you need to get inside the pool. The nine waterfalls are the Waters of Irithiya. And they¡¯ll restore your powers and even do more. I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    Csala held him back for a while and gave him a quick kiss. ¡°Make sure to come back.¡±


    ¡°I will. I Promise,¡± Jerome said and hugged Tara again before rushing out of the void world.


    Csala stood there for several moments, Tara by her side before bracing herself.


    ¡°He¡¯ll be back, right?¡± Tara asked.


    ¡°He¡¯ll be back,¡± Selene comforted her. ¡°He¡¯s a lot tougher than he looks.¡±


    ¡°He has to,¡± Csala said. Else she¡¯d go find him herself and drag him back.


    The floating mountain loomed over them as they walked toward it. Fei Lin was already ahead of them, rushing to get into the water. Csala looked up at the gigantic mountain in the sky. It was brimming with so much essence, space was warped around it. The colors of the dense essence she was seeing around it were colors she had never seen in her life before. She had no name to call them.


    Csala took a deep breath and reached for Selene¡¯s hand. The Sprout gave her an appreciative smile. They had no idea what was going to happen inside the pool. But they knew it was going to be good. Fei Lin dived into the pool before their eyes and they followed suit.


    ~~~


    Jerome wasn¡¯t here yet. Every other person had arrived a long time ago, but he wasn¡¯t here. Csala paced at the exit of the void world ¡ª or at least what she thought was the exit, there could be more. The novelty that the floating mountain presented had worn off. It served to distract her for a while from her thoughts but now, it had lost its profundity.


    ¡°Please wait, Csala,¡± Selene called out to her, holding onto Tara who was silently sobbing. ¡°Jerome would come back. We just have to believe in him. If you go out there and put yourself in danger, you¡¯d be giving him more to worry about when arrives.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m stronger now,¡± Csala said, her words almost forced. ¡°I have my full powers back¡­ and more. I¡¯m powerful too, Selene. And he might need me out there.¡±


    Csala saw Selene deflate as she sighed. The young lady was worried too. She was doing a better job of keeping it hidden than she was, that¡¯s for sure. But Selene was not as close to Jerome as she was, she didn¡¯t have the same connection with him as she did. They had shared some of the best moments of her life together and she didn¡¯t want to lose that. She didn¡¯t want to be lonely again.


    Tar was torn between following her and remaining in the safety of the void world. Csala wouldn¡¯t allow her to follow her though. Jerome would have her head if he found out.


    ¡°I¡¯m going, Selene. And there¡¯s nothing you can do to stop me,¡± she said with a tone of finality.


    Selene raised her hands in defeat. ¡°Just make sure to protect yourself out there.¡±


    ¡°Maybe the creatures of the dark forest need to beware of me instead,¡± she said with a smirk as she walked toward the barrier.


    ¡°Selene?¡± she transmitted with her psychic energy. Selene perked up, not expecting to hear her voice so close. ¡°Take care of Tara. Nothing must happen to her. Jerome can be vengeful.¡±


    The young Sprout nodded gravely in understanding. A moment later Csala passed through the barrier. The day turned to night at once and the air stilled. Silence reigned as she walked through the darkness. Her colorful red robes from before now took on a gray hue. Csala clenched her jaw as her determination rose a notch.


    She had access to her psychic energy; she had access to her dream aura ¡ª which had been replenished after many seasons of unuse.  Her capacity for dream aura also seemed to have grown. She had all she needed to dominate the creatures of the dark forest. And she was going to find Jerome no matter what it took.

 133. The Waters Of Irithiya

    The Daimon¡¯s Tankard, Alva, South of Vorthe


    Lulu watched in fear as he and the five others with him were stripped down and searched. The guards at the Daimon¡¯s Tankard were thorough ¡ª and rough. There were four women and two men in total. And they stripped them all bare with no regard for the nakedness of the women.


    Lulu had two wives and five daughters. He would never take it lightly if any man put his hands on his family like that. No man should do such a thing to women. But who was he against these sacred artists? They were gods in his sight and they would crush him with a vengeance if he disturbed their fun.


    Fortunately for the women, the guards were only doing a search. That would change, though, when they go into the private room of the Alvric lords to wait on them. They had been given an earful of what to expect. The Alvric lords were perverse and would get down, even with a man to sate their lust.


    Thankfully, his master had promised him that nothing of the sort would happen to him. He just needed to be near the Alvric lord inside the private chamber. Near enough that his master could execute his plan. Lulu didn¡¯t know what, but he was sure his master had put something inside him. Something these guards didn¡¯t find. Something that would help his master in there.


    Shame-faced, the women did their best to cover their nakedness. Their beautiful, fair skins turned a shade of red causing him to feel an imminent arousal. Blood flowed south of his body and he did his best to think of something else. The other male with him straightway turned away from them not wanting to embarrass them further. He was in shackles, something that was strange to see on someone who was going to be a waitstaff. But, it seemed there were still some decent people left in Alva.


    The guards, on the other hand, were busy leering at the women. A few of them even reached for their crotch, caressing them as they stared lewdly at the women. Lulu turned away. If he acted on his impulses, he¡¯d ruin everything. The guards soon turned to the men, leaving the women.


    ¡°A fooking cunt with a name, eh?¡± one of them said.


    ¡°Oi, d¡¯you know this one has a name, eh? Called himself, Moss.¡± they all burst out laughing.


    Lulu kept his gaze down, afraid for his life. He just had to go through today and he may never have to deal with these sacred artists again. He may never have to deal with the turmoil of Alva. He¡¯d take his family North to the central region where mere mortals were treated fairly.


    That is if he could even cross the new border between Vorthe and Alvric lands. Numerous battles had long broken out since Alvric seceded from Vorthe. He witnessed soldiers coming back from the border with their wounded and dead. Many dead. And from what gossip he had heard, the majority of those who fell were not soldiers. They were those unfortunate enough to be dragged to the border and have a weapon slapped into their arms: serfs bound to farmlands on the border, slaves, and even freedmen ¡ª all those who didn¡¯t have the authority or strength to defend their freedom.


    The only thing preventing civil war in Alva and its surrounding towns and villages was the power of the sacred artists who helped Alvric enforce their rule. None could leave. At least not without bribing the border guards. But he had two wives and six daughters. How by the wind could he get his family across? The guard would ask for a bigger compensation. One he knew he couldn¡¯t pay. His only hope right now was his new master.


    The guards picked up the other man by his shackle and shook him relentlessly. The skinny man grunted in pain but refused to cry out. Lulu felt like he heard a bone pop before they slammed the man into the ground laughing.


    Was this man really going to wait? Why were they doing this to him?


    ¡°Get in here, you fooking cunts. The lord awaits,¡± one of the guards said. He seemed to be the leader.


    One of the females reached for her robes but her fleshy butt was smacked causing her to stumble, almost falling. The guards laughed with one another. ¡°You don¡¯t get your fooking robes back until after you serve,¡± one of them said and they burst out in raucous laughter again.


    After the search and delivering their message, the guards opened a heavy door in the wall and pushed them through. Lulu rushed to help the man on the ground but was stopped by one of the guards.


    ¡°Leave him be. He¡¯s no wait staff. Ahahah! He¡¯s for the pits!¡± the guards burst out laughing again.


    Lulu scrutinized the man better, seeing multiple scars on him that hadn¡¯t healed properly. The man got up on shaking limbs. Lulu could tell he was in so much pain.


    ¡°What ya still waiting for?!¡± a guard roared at him. Lulu dashed into the next chamber, following the women.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta


    ¡°Impressive,¡± Nyx said as they walked through the barrier separating the void world from the dark forest.


    The instant they walked through, Jerome sensed something change about her. Darkness usually clung to her like it was protecting her ¡ª like living shadows. But all that melted away when they crossed into the void world. He guessed the darkness couldn¡¯t compete with the vibrancy of the world.


    The world before him was like a mesh of concentrated essence. The essence was so rich that it was visible on the optical spectrum; you could literally see it in the air as clouds of mists swirling around the floating mountain.


    The essence came in myriads of colors, some of which were shades of colors he knew but couldn¡¯t even name. The field around the pool was also brimming with plant life. Flowers of every kind grew here and there in clusters. There were trees as well but they were few and far in between.


    ¡°Someone could live here forever,¡± he muttered. If he could turn his void space into something like this, it would go a long way, not just for him. But for his family as well. This place felt like home. Jerome sighed contentedly as he cycled, absorbing the rich essence in the air.


    ¡°Hmm. Not me though,¡± Nyx replied. ¡°I need my darkness.¡±


    ¡°Is that why creatures from the mountain never come into this void world?¡±


    ¡°That and, many of them would crumble to dust the moment they step foot here. Light and Darkness do not mix. And the Light reigns supreme here.¡±


    ¡°How are you still standing then? Shouldn¡¯t you at least be weak or something?¡± Jerome said, eyeing her.


    Nyx gave him a sideways look and smiled. ¡°I seem to remember a certain person who used vital aura ¡ª which is a by-product of Light I must add ¡ª to give me a name. How else do you think I can stand here.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s mind reeled at the information. Vital aura was a by-product of Light? Who knew? But he guessed it made sense. Light from the sun gives energy and energy is vitality. Even plants use sunlight to break down their food so it did make sense. He just wondered why he never thought about it before.


    ¡°You owe me, you know? What I did for you is far more than you stopping yourself from eating these two¡ª¡± he gestured at the two Sprouts still passed out in their arms. ¡°¡ªand if I wanted to escape then, I would have. You wouldn¡¯t have been able to stop me.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I owe you. Happy now?¡±


    Jerome looked over at her, suspicion written all over his face. He could almost not believe he heard her right. What was she up to?


    ¡°You weren¡¯t expecting that, were you? Even I understand gratitude, love.¡±


    ¡°Hmm. We¡¯ll see,¡± he took a deep breath as he walked forward. The air was brimming with so much condensed energy, the likes he had never witnessed before. He remembered the Sovereign¡¯s words as he watched the Sprouts from the Fei Clan.


    The Sovereign had mentioned that this clan was mysterious and had a way of progressing faster than sacred artists from other Clans. So this was their secret. This place that nowhere in Terra Praeta could compare to.


    But if this was their secret, and they couldn¡¯t have entered Terra Praeta within the last 600 years, then how did those who didn¡¯t enter become mysteriously powerful like the ones before him right now? And these were more powerful than they were before he left them. Even the Itakars.


    Jerome looked around until he found Ms. Tara and Sheela with the Itakars. He smiled as he rushed forward into the pool. He could sense the newer depth of their presence and aura. They were significantly stronger ¡ª every one of them.


    Csala was nowhere to be seen though. But she might just be out of sight. He got to the edge of the pool ¡ª a small lake, really ¡ª and dropped the Sprouts. Both teams of Sprouts had gathered at the edge of the pool waiting for him.


    ¡°They¡¯re alive, just drained,¡± he said to everyone waiting. ¡°Everyone, this is Nyx. Nyx, everyone.¡±


    Nyx waved lightly to them with an innocent smile.


    ¡°Guess it¡¯s time to take a dip myself, huh?¡± He dived into the pool without hesitation.


    The moment he hit the water, he felt his concentration sharpen, his mind settled and strengthened. Yet fatigue reared its ugly head almost immediately and his head drooped, sleep surfacing. Though he could feel his senses become robust.


    His perception didn¡¯t expand though. It had already expanded to the limit he could bear in his current Realm when he siphoned psychic energy from Csala. Sleep took him at once and Jerome didn¡¯t have the power to resist.


    ~~~


    Achilles


    ¡°Show yourself!¡± Achilles roared. He¡¯d been watching and waiting for the perfect time to reach out to the entity that was posing as a human around Jerome. An entity that had found a way to tether itself to his ward and master.


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    ¡°What!¡± a female voice snapped. ¡°Can¡¯t a woman sleep in peace?!¡±


    Achilles was not moved. ¡°You are no woman! Who are you?! ¡®What¡¯ are you?! And why have you attached yourself to Jerome?!¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see now,¡± the entity purred. ¡°You drag me into this mental void. You question me as if you have command over Jerome. When in fact, you are a soulless lapdog of Ilyrrah. Am I right, guardian of Sanctum?¡±


    What?! Achilles was taken aback. No entity in this world should know who or what he was. He shouldn¡¯t even exist in the minds of the creatures on Terra Praeta. Yet here was one who stated his whole existence in but a few words. Achilles knew he was walking on eggshells now. He wanted to know how much this entity knew about him and what it was.


    Its soul was morphed ¡ª a mutation of its former self because it tied itself to Jerome. To take such a drastic measure was to condemn oneself to slavery and possibly death. But with this, it could go under the radar of any other powerful being. Achilles was only able to sense it because of his connection to Jerome.


    ¡°What are you?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Ooh. You haven¡¯t figured that out yet? There are only a few races left that can scry fate in Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°Dragons. You¡¯re a dragon?!¡± What was going on? What did the dragons want with Jerome?


    The dragon giggled coquettishly. If he had a body, he would have been moved, but thank Ilyrrah he didn¡¯t. ¡°What do you want with Jerome, dragoness?¡±


    ¡°If you can¡¯t figure that out yourself, then you have no business knowing. And my name is Nyx. Jerome gave it to me.¡± she giggled again.


    What have you done Jerome? What unknown hell have you released upon the world? Achilles¡¯ mind began to race as he tried to predict the fate of Terra Praeta and even Jerome¡¯s world. He picked up the threads of fate in his nexus, scrutinizing each probable future and following his prediction as far as his nexus would allow him.


    Some minor things seem to have changed. Some other future events were in flux. But the singular event horizon in Jerome¡¯s immediate future was still the same. In the grand scheme of things, nothing was changed. What was he missing? The future was a fickle thing and could obscure itself when there was no predetermined destination for those involved. But a dragon wasn¡¯t just any being. They created waves in the river of fate with every move they made. Especially a powerful one.


    ¡°Are you done scrying?¡± the dragoness asked in a mocking tone.


    ¡°Leave Jerome alone. Your entanglement with him could mess up fate.¡±


    ¡°Oh, no. I¡¯m going nowhere,¡± she chuckled. ¡°He would lead me to what I want before I let him go.¡±


    ¡°... ¡®What you want¡¯? You mean what every dragon seeks. You all are chasing myths.¡±


    ¡°A myth to you, you soulless¡ª¡±


    ¡°I have a name!¡± Achilles roared, causing the temporal void to quake violently. ¡°And it¡¯s Achilles!¡±


    ¡°Let me guess; Jerome named you. Not that it matters since you have no soul. You¡¯re just a thing.¡±


    Achilles pushed against the walls of her soul, constricting her and amplifying the pain she felt. Nyx screamed in pain, her soul feeling like it would be torn to pieces.


    ¡°You¡¯d do well to watch your tongue, Nyx,¡± he spat out her name with venom. ¡°Out of respect for the Chosen of Ilyrrah, I would call you by your given name. I suggest you treat me with the same respect!¡± He let go of his hold on her. But the threat was still hanging over her head. In this place he was god. And he could imprison her here for good.


    ¡°Fine. I might not be as powerful as you are, Achilles. But know that I can hurt you too someday. I will grow powerful enough to do it¡­ someday.¡±


    ¡°Keep dreaming. Now speak. What myth do you chase?¡±


    Nyx kept quiet for a while, gathering her thoughts and Achilles waited. The sooner he knew what was going on the better. If he was to direct the situation to Jerome¡¯s advantage, he needed to know what this Nyx wanted. He was sure she would not tell him everything though, only the bare minimum.


    The dragons had lots of myths. Many he didn¡¯t know. Even Ilyrrah only knew a handful, but he took them at face value. Achilles however, was a sapient construct of intelligence and magic. Soulless, yes. But created with the sole intent and purpose to guide the Chosen of Ilyrrah. He would not overlook information from any source, even if it was considered a myth.


    The one myth that he knew all dragons chased was to bring back Aether, The Dragon God. Or so they called him. Whole breaths passed but Nyx said not a word.


    He couldn¡¯t keep Jerome asleep for long. It wasn¡¯t a problem, but he was still with other Sprouts. It was best if they didn¡¯t start asking questions. Jerome might be growing in power, but there were sacred artists in his world who still wielded more power than he did. It was best to still stay under the radar for a while.


    ¡°I¡¯m looking for something and Jerome can lead me to it. It¡¯s something only a dragon can sense.¡±


    ¡°Then why do you need Jerome?¡±


    ¡°Because he can lead me to it. That¡¯s what the prophecy said, ¡®the Chosen of Ilyrrah would lead the dragons to the beginning¡¯.¡±


    ¡°The beginning of what?¡±


    Achilles received a mental shrug from the dragoness. She was done talking and wouldn¡¯t say more.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you what you want to hear. Now let me out of here.¡±


    Achilles was silent for a while.


    ¡°I will be reporting all this to Jerome. I will also do my best to explain how much more power you obtained from your naming and the kind of destruction you are capable of. Jerome will not be pleased you kept that from him.¡±


    She quickly became alarmed and wanted to say something but he banished her from the temporal void.


    ~~~


    Jerome¡¯s eyes fluttered open and he felt the pressure of water all around him. He was underwater. In fact, he was at the bottom of the pool. Nyx sat beside him in a meditative pose with her eyes closed. Was she protecting him? He looked around but only plants surrounded him. Hydrophytes. Plenty of them. And there was a coral reef some distance away.


    Incredible, he thought. There were no animals habiting this void world ¡ª even aquatic ones ¡ª so how the hell did corals get here?


    Nyx swam past him, dragging her scaly tail across his cheek. The tail was huge up close, and cold to the touch. Much colder than the water they were in. but somehow, it didn¡¯t seem out of place on her. He looked to where her tail connected to her body and found a hole in the garment.


    But there was no hole for the tail last I checked, he thought. Well, she did something to the cloth so maybe that¡¯s why. Maybe the hole closed and opened to reveal the tail.


    He could tell she wanted him to come with her. Jerome followed. But instead of swimming up, Nyx swam down. Jerome reached out to her to tell her he needed to check up on Csala. He didn¡¯t see her when he first came in.


    She pulled him along when he gestured ¡®up¡¯. Her grip was strong. Stronger than anything he had ever felt. And she swam fast ¡ª her powerful tail doing most of the work. They went deeper than the light from the surface could reach. Jerome started getting uncomfortable, afraid that the pressure from the depth would crush him.


    Don¡¯t worry, Nyx¡¯s voice reached him. You won¡¯t be crushed by the pressure.


    There was mockery in her voice. But what shocked Jerome was that the voice was inside his head, not his ears.


    How is she doing that? He thought, surprised.


    I can sense your thoughts, Jerome. I can¡¯t read them though. But when you think with words ¡ª and it seems you¡¯ve been doing that a lot ¡ª I can sense you thinking.


    Jerome was flabbergasted. So you can¡¯t hear me? There was no answer. That was good. He wouldn¡¯t want another person inside his head.


    Close your eyes. Her voice reached him again. Jerome narrowed his eyes on her.


    Nyx rolled her eyes. I want to teach you how to communicate with me like this.


    Jerome didn¡¯t believe her. If anything he was now more suspicious. He had only known the dragoness for a day and she had even tried to kill him. And now she was trying to get inside his head. Did she think him that gullible?


    Nyx could have left after entering the pool, but she still hung around. What for? Jerome suspected she still wanted something from him. She hadn¡¯t been successful in breaking through the barrier in his mind. Was this another attempt?


    Even if I wanted to invade your mind, Achilles wouldn¡¯t let me.


    Jerome swam away from her in shock. Achilles? He unconsciously tried to reach out to the AI. But only a void was left of their connection. He was inside a void world that was in the middle of the dark forest. There was no way he could reach Achilles from here. Even Charybdis was not responding when he sent his intentions. There was no way to pass a message across worlds.


    Nyx folded her hands under her bust, attracting his eyes. Jerome looked away. He wasn¡¯t going to fall for that. One look at the dragoness though, told him that she wasn¡¯t trying to seduce him.


    Fine. If you don¡¯t want to try, just listen. Down there, are some natural treasures you might like. I wanted to show them to you, is all.


    She swam deeper still and immediately disappeared totally from his view. For a few seconds, Jerome was confused about what to do. He wasn¡¯t afraid that she might do something to him, but that she might want to reach into his mind. But what for?


    That was the million-dollar question, wasn¡¯t it?


    His hesitation lasted a split second before he followed her. As he went deeper into the pool, his eyes adjusted to the darkness and colorful lights slowly bloomed in the dark depths of the pool.


    The corals took on beautiful colors, glowing in the dark. He could see the very essence alive inside them. Plant life was nonexistent here as there was no sunlight reaching them so there was no way to produce chlorophyll.


    Jerome caught up with Nyx and soon they reached the bed of the pond. Nyx flicked her tail and the water surrounding them gravitated upward in a circular motion, creating a bubble of air around them.


    Jerome didn¡¯t know what to say to her so he just waited to see what she wanted to show him.


    ¡°You know, not everyone is out to harm you, love,¡± Nyx said. ¡°If I wanted to harm you, I would have done so when you were sleeping.¡±


    ¡°Easy for you to say,¡± Jerome said, shrugging. ¡°If our positions were switched, I bet you¡¯d be freaking out too. And how do you know Achilles.¡±


    ¡°He dragged me into a mental void of sorts¡­ We talked.¡±


    ¡°About what?¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t want me around, Jerome, I¡¯ll go,¡± she snapped.


    Well, that was a 360-degree attitude. Jerome could see very clearly that she didn¡¯t want to reveal things but she could do nothing to shut him up. Not that she couldn¡¯t, but she wanted to keep his trust. It was clear as day. It seems Nyx was not used to not getting her way so she lashes out when that happens.


    ¡°You can go then. Clearly, you don¡¯t need me either,¡± Jerome said, looking her dead in the eyes.


    Nyx was completely nonplussed by his statement. The different expressions that flitted through her face were comical to watch. But she finally settled on anger. Yet she didn¡¯t leave.


    ¡°What? Aren¡¯t you going?¡±


    She bristled. Then stomped up to a spot. ¡°This is where your gift is,¡± She said, pointing down at the ground.


    Jerome raised an eyebrow as if to say, ¡®So?¡¯.


    ¡°It¡¯s in the ground.¡±


    ¡°Then get it,¡± he said. ¡°If it¡¯s a gift, you gotta present it. I can¡¯t go digging for a gift. That¡¯d mean it¡¯s not a gift anymore.¡±


    Nyx glared at him as if he had taken away her favorite snack. With a stomp of her dainty foot, the soft muddy ground hardened and then cracked. An intense white-blue light instantly began to pour out of those cracks, attracting Jerome¡¯s attention.

 134. Prophecy

    City of Alva


    Lulu


    Standing inside the large chamber in shock, he watched all that was going on. Lined up around the wall at the edges of the chamber were naked waitstaff just like him, both men and women. Some were moving around the chamber carrying trays of fruits and roasted meat, some poured ale from large pots situated on the ground into the tankard of the nobles. The chamber could be said to be a small hall, with very low light and warmth.


    He instinctively reached for his arm and rubbed it to generate some heat. The nobles in the hall were dressed in very revealing robes, lying on strangely Shaped furniture that Lulu had never seen before. They appeared very appealing to the eye, but he couldn¡¯t for the life of him wonder how such furniture could be comfortable. There were quite a number of slaves ¡®servicing¡¯ these nobles too. More unwanted entertainment for the eyes.


    Lulu looked away, facing the pit in the center of the room. He watched as the man in shackles from before was thrown into the pit. Two short blades were thrown in after him. The nobles cheered in excitement, urging those in charge of the pit to hurry.


    ¡°Stay focused, Lulu,¡± his master¡¯s voice reached him, helping him stay focused. Lulu straightened his spine and picked up a tray, he filled it with some berries giving off a powerful scent, and went around, moving toward the Alvric Lord.


    For some reason, he started to grow very anxious, afraid that the lord would see through him. If he messed up, it wouldn¡¯t be just him who died. His women would be raped and killed in front of him. The Alvrics showed no mercy to traitors in their city.


    ¡°You there,¡± one of the nobles called to him. ¡°Come over here.¡±


    Lulu obeyed, bringing his tray of fruit over and bowing. The man reached for some fruits but didn¡¯t stop there. He reached behind him to grope his buttocks.


    ¡°Urgh. too stiff,¡± the man said with a grimace. ¡°Where did all the good ones go?¡± he waved the shivering Lulu off, who almost stumbled as he went.


    Lulu held himself together. He couldn¡¯t believe he was just groped by a man. Where did he expect to put his tiny rod? His butthole? I need to get out of here, he thought.


    He quickly went back to the servers to refill his tray and walked toward the Alvric Lord again. This time, no one stopped him. Except for two guards standing before a small flight of stairs to the curtained space. They scrutinized the fruits on the tray and even asked him to eat a berry out of it. After a long while, when nothing happened to him, they let him through.


    He went unhindered, reaching the short flight of stairs that led up to the Lord¡¯s dais. A large tester bed with curtains hindered his view, but he was not there to see what was going on. He could hear groans and moans and the slapping of flesh against flesh, however.


    ¡°Would my lord care for some fruits?¡± he asked, reverently bowing his head and holding out the tray.


    The crowd of nobles roared behind him, causing him to jerk fearfully. He forced himself not to spill the contents of the tray or look back to confirm what was going on. Lulu waited for a while. It was a long moment before a large hand reached out from behind the curtains and into his tray.


    He heard the click of metal, a muffled groan, and then¡­ nothing.


    ¡°Go drop your tray, Lulu. And walk back to the wall¡­ slowly.¡±


    He tried not to hurry but his legs were already moving too fast.


    ¡°Slow down, Lulu, or people will get ideas. Just remain calm.¡±


    He breathed in a shaky breath to calm his nerves. Beastly growls were coming from the pit now. Lulu looked around to find that the nobles had their eyes focused on the pit. He slowed down as best as he could but he knew it was only a matter of time before he was caught. What had he gotten himself into? An Alvric lord had vanished right before his eyes and he had participated in it.


    The growls suddenly turned into growls of pain and something hit the ground with a thud inside the pit. The nobles started standing up from their seats.


    ¡°What just happened?¡± someone asked.


    ¡°He couldn¡¯t have been able to kill a Fire Striped Tiger so easily, could he?¡± a noble beside Lulu asked no one in particular.


    Lulu sped up his pace again. He had a feeling this had something to do with his new master. He quickly stepped up to the wall when someone else screamed.


    ¡°Where did he go?!¡±


    ¡°What the fuck is happening here?!¡±


    More voices filled the air expressing complaints at the unsatisfactory entertainment they were having.


    ¡°He was just here, I tell ya! The cur was just here. He couldn¡¯t have gone anywhere. His core had been shackled!¡±


    The crack of a whip resounded in the air, causing the nobles to quiet down and a thunderous voice boomed in the air. ¡°Report this to Lord Alvric!¡±


    Lulu took in a sharp breath. He almost emptied his bowels where he stood. His heart began to beat a mile away as fear ate at him. Beads of sweat dotted his brows as he watched as one of the guards standing in front of the raised dais quickly climbed the short flight of stairs and went down on one knee in front of the tester bed where the Lord had been.


    Something suddenly pulled him into the wall from behind and he thought he was going to hit his head against the wall. But the wall wasn¡¯t there anymore.


    ¡°The Lord is not here, commander!¡± he heard before he blacked out.


    ~~~


    Rihal


    ¡°What is the meaning of this, ¡®Two¡¯?¡± his superior asked.


    He glanced at her, worried she might not see the reason why he had to save the man on the floor. He had no idea if she knew of the fated Dark One. By all accounts, Milena was his superior on this mission and he answered to her. His master had made sure to plug every hole in the mission. That way, they wouldn¡¯t stray too far off if mistakes ever happened.


    ¡°Forgiveness, ¡®One¡¯. I had to,¡± he responded with a bow, addressing her by their temporary identification method since they were still on the mission.


    ¡°You were supposed to make two jumps, ¡®Two¡¯. Why three?¡± Milena asked again, her voice calm and collected. She looked around the room full of people.


    Rihal couldn¡¯t see her eyes since she wore a hooded dark leather armor and the hood was big enough to obscure her whole face. All three members of the Nediti on this mission did.


    Lulu was being embraced by his family as they cowered in a corner of the tiny room in fear. The three Sages they had caught were bound by null locks, sprawled on the floor, and unconscious. And then there was the last person, also bound in a null lock.


    Someone chuckled lightly beside him. ¡°You seem unable to follow instructions, ¡®Two¡¯. Maybe this job isn¡¯t for you.¡±


    ¡°Silence, ¡®Three¡¯,¡± Milena said, shutting him up.


    Rihal savored the momentary pleasure of seeing ¡®the viper¡¯ squirm under the words of the Sage. He didn¡¯t like Idrel one bit, plus the man had put his disciple through torture when he was recovering from his injuries, which still set his teeth on edge.


    ¡°This is one too many people, ¡®Two¡¯,¡± Milena said again.


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    A nice play with words. This Sage was full of surprises. Apparently, she kept up with the current slang among the youth. He wondered how she did it though. Sages were known to be reclusive.


    ¡°Give me a good reason why I shouldn¡¯t leave him to the ¡®wind¡¯,¡± she said and Rihal decided to go with his gut.


    ¡°He¡¯s an acquaintance of my disciple, Lady Milena. Please grant me this as a boon,¡± he transmitted his voice to her privately, still bowing.


    Milena kept quiet for a while, looking in his direction. He could see he was right to trust his gut and tell her of the man¡¯s origin. As it appeared, she knew what he was talking about. Milena turned to the naked man on the floor.


    ¡°He must have worked at the orphanage then. What¡¯s his name?¡± she transmitted back.


    ¡°Moss,¡± Rihal answered. ¡°His name is Moss.¡±


    ~~~


    Castle Alvric, City of Alva


    Nolan Alvric


    ¡°Do you know why I have called you here, Nolan?¡±


    ¡°No, Ancient One. You call and I answer,¡± he said, kneeling in front of his father.


    It was strange to see the once decrepit old man looking younger. He looked just as young as Vorthe¡¯s Saint ¡ª with the help of the Argonaut of course. It was good that he was stronger and not dying anytime soon. But strange all the same.


    ¡°You have done well in your duties, son. I put you in charge of the Clan and you have produced good results. The Clan is thriving, and the slaves are plentiful. Though we lost businesses in Vorthe, we still have our partners in the Archipelago.¡±


    Nolan could hear the ¡®but¡¯ coming from a mile away.


    ¡°Those are good accomplishments¡­¡±


    Good, not great. Right. The wide hall of the throne room seemed to become narrower as his father, the Ancient One, spoke. He could almost feel the mandrake skulls used to decorate the throne staring him down in accusation. The tapestries on the walls seem to still as the wind stopped moving as if they were waiting for judgment to be pronounced. The lights from the colorful orbs dimmed and his father¡¯s voice was all he could focus on.


    ¡°Emphasis on ¡®good¡¯. You could have done better, however.¡± The Ancient One took a big gulp from his tankard. ¡°Your son has witnessed and suffered things many his age never would. In your time, you witnessed nothing like what he did.


    ¡°I trust you know that he will be twice the man you are, Nolan.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll be an honor, Ancient One,¡± Nolan said from his kneeling position. He didn¡¯t like that his father, the Ancient One, was looking down on his achievements. He had achieved what no other Patriarch had achieved.


    ¡°I know what you think. You think not that your accomplishments are inferior to that of your predecessors. You think you did a better job. Well, I say you could have done better. For the very thing you have been searching for all this time was right under your nose and you dismissed it.¡±


    What? Nolan unconsciously looked up in shock but quickly looked down again. The air left his lungs the next moment and he hit the floor, choking.


    ¡°Never raise your eyes to meet your superior. Did I not teach you this, Nolan?¡±


    Nolan strained to breathe, almost clawing at his throat to remove whatever invisible barrier was keeping him from breathing. He tried to command the air in the throne room to no avail. His father had complete control over the atmosphere. When he almost passed out, air rushed into his lungs.


    ¡°You younglings have lost your fire. Tsk, Damn Vorthe for making you like this!¡± the Ancient One cursed. ¡°We once were the pride of these lands! Warriors, every single one of us! It runs in our blood, Nolan. But your generation depends only on tricks and tactics!


    ¡°Did you not learn the tale of the Alvric braves? Spirit, Nolan. In times like these, you need a strong and unyielding spirit.¡±


    ¡°I have been unyielding, Father.¡± Nolan hacked once again to restore order to his lungs as he returned to his kneeling position. His anger boiled and he did his best to restrain it.


    ¡°Have you? Your boy gets the beating of a lifetime during Pilgrims¡¯ Keep and what do you do?¡±


    ¡°It was a rite of passage, Father, there was nothing to be done.¡±


    ¡°No Nolan, Pilgrims¡¯ Keep would be canceled if it were I in your position! The Royals would find a way to appease me! It wouldn¡¯t matter how powerful they are! No one who does that to an Alvric heir would go scot-free!¡±


    Nolan Alvric kept quiet, assessing his father¡¯s point of view. That kind of attitude would have worked a few thousand years ago but Vorthe had grown financially stronger in the last few years. They had created new shipping routes and could manipulate the intercontinental markets as they saw fit. If he did anything of the sort, he wasn¡¯t ready to find out how petty the Royal Family could be.


    ¡°As it turns out,¡± the Ancient One went on. ¡°The one who beat your son to a pulp is still alive and well, do you know?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father. I heard.¡±


    ¡°Did you also hear of the beastly behavior he displayed at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon?¡±


    Nolan stopped himself from looking up again. What was his father talking about? Hedon never mentioned any of this.


    ¡°No, you did not. Because you did not listen,¡± the Ancient One pointed out. ¡°We are warriors, Nolan. And warriors of the wind. Warriors who listen to the songs of the ether through the wind. It sings to us the secrets of our enemies. Have you forgotten how to ¡®listen¡¯, Nolan?¡±


    Nolan bowed his head in shame. ¡°No¡­ Ancient One,¡± he said, expressing his reverence by using his father¡¯s status.


    ¡°Good. Find your son. And listen to everything he has to say about that boy. When you are done, present yourself in the war room.¡±


    ¡°Is it finally time, Ancient One?¡±


    ¡°It is, son,¡± the Ancient One replied. ¡°It is.¡±


    Nolan Alvric quickly got to his feet and left to find his son.


    ~~~


    Jorm Alvric


    The Ancient One remained on his throne as he thought through his plan to overthrow Vorthe. With the Argonaut, they would be undefeatable. But with help from his other ¡®patrons¡¯, they would be unstoppable! Vorthe wouldn¡¯t want to fight a war with Sages and Saints; he knew how they played their games. They hide behind the guise of protecting the land so they don¡¯t reveal their most powerful assets. But things weren¡¯t going to go their way this time around.


    ¡°Are you still trying to bring down Vorthe, Jorm?¡± A voice reached him from the ether. It had come from afar. From the other side of the continent in fact.


    ¡°And do you still draw breath, Munin?¡± the Ancient One asked, almost playfully.


    ¡°You play a dangerous game, old friend,¡± the voice said.


    ¡°Pah! You dried up husk of a man. You who have always lacked the spine to do dangerous deeds. You sit, cowed in your castle, hiding from the rest of the world. While I am getting ready to put Vorthe in his place at long last.¡±


    ¡°By colluding with foreigners, traitors, who have desired our lands. What says the Argonaut in all this, eh?¡±


    ¡°That is no concern of yours. You should worry about living to see the next day, oh son of Itakar. For when I am done with Vorthe, I will come for you. Though we may have blood ties from eons past, that is nothing in the face of my conquest!¡±


    ¡°Ahahah, my salvation is nigh old friend. And you played a hand in it, oh son of Alvric.¡±


    The Ancient One winced at that. Even though he had no idea how that must have happened, he knew what it meant.


    ¡°Soon, I shall regain the full use of my body just as you have. My salvation would cost me naught but a friendly ally. But your redemption would come at too great a cost.


    ¡°Alas, I see a beautiful phoenix, noble and full of vigor. But it flew too high on the wind, prideful of its beautiful colors. The welkin looked and grew jealous of its beautiful feathers; the sun looked, and delighted in those feathers, wishing to pluck them off to traverse the vastness of the void.¡±


    ¡°Tsk!¡± Jorm Alvric tsked in irritation but Munin continued, undeterred.


    ¡°Who doth come to save the phoenix from its folly? Out of the nostril of the snow rabbit, came the raven. ¡®From whence doth thou come?¡¯ asked the phoenix. ¡®I come bearing a warning from the bowels of the snow rabbit,¡¯ the raven admonished. ¡®Let go your pride and dive back to the ground. The earth would produce seed and the seed would feed your descendants.¡¯


    ¡°But the phoenix listened not. The welkin reached its hand for its left wing. The sun reached its hand for its right wing. Together they turned the phoenix into a featherless fowl! One could not traverse the vastness of the void with but a fraction of the colorful feathers. The sun and the welkin joined hands and together they flew off to yonder places.¡±


    ¡°Lies all of it! Lies!¡± Jorm Alvric raged. ¡°You may be called the Seer of the North, Munin but you are NOT Zamara¡¯s equal! Remember also that you are not the only Saint with the Sight! I have gazed into the river of fate and have seen it all!¡±


    ¡°And did you see your victory? Or was it that you saw what you ¡®wanted¡¯ to see? I might be a great seer but even I cannot see farther than a Transcendent. I warn you, Jorm. The Transcendents play by a different set of rules. They play a long game. A game that has been in existence long before either of us were born. The ETERNAL game! Tis¡¯ still early to turn back the hand of fate¡­¡±


    ¡°I swear by my forefathers, Munin. I will rip your head off with my bare hands!¡±


    ¡°I have warned you, Jorm. The rest¡­ is up to you now¡­¡±


    The voice left him to his thoughts. Jorm took some time to digest what Munin Itakar had said but ultimately refused his words of prophecy.


    No. I have seen my fate, he thought. And I would take hold of it and bring it to bear!

 135. Good Luck Finding Your Girlfriend

    ¡°What are they?¡± Jerome asked. He went over to Nyx¡¯s side and crouched down to have a better look.


    Large melon-sized crystals were stuck inside the ground all around them. He looked up at Nyx to get an idea of what he was looking at and she smiled at him.


    ¡°Ilyrrah came here once, a long time ago. Guess what he left with,¡± she said.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes grew as round as saucers. His head whipped back to the crystals in the ground and he reached for one and tried to pull. The crystal didn¡¯t budge.


    Nyx had broken up the ground to reveal them moments ago. He had never expected something like this to form here. He didn¡¯t even know what to call them. Nothing in the library was related to the crystals in the ground. Or more like he hadn¡¯t read about them yet. The library was too big, and the memory stones too numerous to go through in two years.


    ¡°Care to help?¡±


    Nyx smirked at him. But didn¡¯t do anything. Shit. He had angered the dragoness and he was going to have to fawn over her to get these crystals. Her strength was far more than his. If anyone could pull them out, it¡¯d be her.


    ¡°Come on now, don¡¯t be like this. These crystals can help both of us.¡±


    ¡°And why should I share them with you?¡±


    ¡°I can sense they are special, Nyx. They may need some special means to be activated. They are dormant as they are.¡±


    The look in her eyes changed at that. ¡°Very well. But you¡¯d have to kowtow ten times to me. And maybe then, I would be willing to help you.¡±


    ¡°Now that¡¯s a stupid thing to ask for,¡± he said, looking pointedly at her as he stood up from his crouching position.


    Nyx wasn¡¯t having it though. She huffed. ¡°See if I help you get any then.¡±


    ¡°Are you really gonna be like this?¡±


    ¡°Hm-hm. I¡¯m gonna be anyhow I wanna be.¡±


    ¡°You catch on fast with words, you know?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s beside the point,¡± she said.


    ¡°Hmm. But it¡¯s a good thing. Language changes with every generation ¡ª slight changes, not too much. Most of it is slang though. You¡¯re showing very good aptitude with it. It¡¯s impressive,¡± Jerome said, giving her an innocent smile.


    ¡°Flattery doesn¡¯t become you, Jerome.¡± Nyx gave him a pointed look. ¡°And it doesn¡¯t work on me.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t I tell a lady she¡¯s impressive?¡± he asked. ¡°And beautiful too.¡±


    She blushed. And then glared at him. ¡°I¡¯ll tell your girlfriend you¡¯re flirting with another woman.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s focus shifted at that. ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    He bent his knees slightly as he crouched a bit low to jump out of the bubble so he could swim back to the surface but Nyx reached him before he could jump.


    ¡°Stay,¡± she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. Jerome felt like he was being restrained by a freight train. He couldn¡¯t lift himself off the ground again. Nor from his slight crouch.


    ¡°Nyx, I need to check on her¡ª¡±


    ¡°And you might not meet these when you get back¡ª¡±


    ¡°Are you gonna take them all?¡±


    She shook her head, frowning. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that. She can¡¯t what? Why was she being so secretive? ¡°If you have something to say, say it, Nyx.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t get them out. One of my ancestors tried. It was from his memory that I knew to come here.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s impressive,¡± Jerome said, ignoring the fact that she had wanted him to kowtow to her ¡ª ten times at that. Seriously, women¡­ But he was sure she was testing him. Women were like that. They loved to see how much they could push your buttons.


    He took a deep breath and squatted down again. The gems didn¡¯t budge before and they wouldn¡¯t budge again, no matter how many times he tried. He closed his eyes, trying to sense them but felt nothing.


    Oh, wait. There was something ¡ª some strange energy ¡ª but it was quite elusive. This was good. He tried to pin down the energy. But it kept slipping his grasp. It was there one moment and gone the next. Jerome continued for a very long time and his frustration mounted. No matter what he tried, he couldn¡¯t catch the energy with his perception.


    He let out all that frustration with a sigh. He had never thought he¡¯d find anything hard to obtain in Terra Praeta at this point. The reality was far different from the fantasy he had built up in his head about this place.


    Without thinking, he muttered, ¡°I need your help, Mother Nature.¡±


    The gems¡¯ glow suddenly became brighter and the elusive energy entered his perception, this time stronger, and it stayed so. Jerome almost jumped up for joy.


    ¡°Can you sense it?¡± he said, his voice dripping with excitement.


    Nyx shook her head, looking at him like he had grown an extra pair.


    Jerome reached down and plucked the gem out of the ground, with no effort at all on his side. Then another, and another. He threw them all inside his void space but left a few in place, not wanting to pick them all. It felt like the right thing to do.


    ¡°Your jaw¡¯s on the floor,¡± he remarked, seeing the shocked look on Nyx¡¯s face. She quickly schooled her features, glaring daggers at him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll share it.¡±


    ¡°Of course, we will. I brought you here, didn¡¯t I?¡±


    Jerome shrugged. ¡°I could still have found it on my own.¡±


    ¡°I never knew you could do that,¡± she said, looking at him with a look she never had before in her eyes.


    Respect.


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Jerome asked. He knew but wanted her to say it. He never intended for her to find out. But there was nothing he could do about it now.


    ¡°Commune with Mother Nature.¡±


    Heh, guess it was too much to hope that she didn¡¯t notice. ¡°What about you? Can dragons do it?¡± he asked, wanting to know.


    ¡°In a way, yes. We can commune with the essence and the forces. It¡¯s harder if it¡¯s not the attribute you¡¯re born with. But it can be done.¡±


    ¡°Commune with the essence? How does that work?¡±


    ¡°If I didn¡¯t know better, love, I¡¯d think you¡¯re prying,¡± she said with a knowing smile at him. ¡°Essence is a dragon¡¯s friend. It ¡®wants¡¯ to play with us, to be commanded by us.¡±


    ¡°That makes you even more dangerous than the Fae,¡± he admitted.


    She grinned. ¡°You sure know how to make a woman feel important. Did you mean what you said before?¡±


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    Jerome smiled at her. ¡°Every word of it.¡±


    Nyx blushed. A second time in less than an hour. He was getting good at this flirting stuff. He couldn¡¯t even begin to imagine how old she was. And yet here she was acting like a horny teenager. Wait¡­ he glanced at her, seeing her in a new light as a thought formed in his mind. If she was acting like a teenager, did that mean she didn¡¯t have the experience that should come with her age.


    Heh, wonders never end. Nyx held him and shot out of the bubble¡­ or not. Jerome looked around to find the bubble moving with them. So they could still converse as they moved upward.


    This dragoness-turned-woman was full of wonders and truly beautiful. Stunning even! He couldn¡¯t tell if she was more beautiful than Csala was or if it was vice versa. Jerome shivered lightly as he realized the predicament he was going to be in when he got to the surface. He started planning what he¡¯d say to them when they both came to ask him who was more beautiful.


    ~~~


    Ajax Itakar


    ¡°They¡¯ve been in there far longer than necessary,¡± Fei Lin said.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Ajax responded. What did she want? She had never paid attention to him since she rejected his romantic advances publicly in Farryn, so what was it?


    Ajax kept quiet, never taking his gaze away from the waterfall. He could hear other Sprouts playing in the distance, some training and others just lazing around. Fei Lin could be with her team right now. She could even be doing girl things with Selene, not that Selene fancied her that much. Well, he had no idea.


    ¡°Why are you here alone?¡± she asked.


    ¡°What do you want, Lin?¡± His voice sounded cold and he sensed her flinch a little.


    Fei Lin turned to look at him. Ajax didn¡¯t turn to look at her. Partly because he didn¡¯t trust himself to be strong enough to keep the boundaries he had set for himself concerning her if he were to turn to look at her. No matter how much he longed for her, he was going to keep himself from disgracing his family. Again.


    Fei Lin¡¯s gaze never left him for a long time. He could almost feel the tension coming off her. What was so important that she would seek him out?


    ¡°Who do you think the new woman is?¡±


    ¡°No idea.¡±


    ¡°You can trust me, Ajax. I only want what¡¯s best for both our teams.¡±


    ¡°Trust is earned, Lin. And when it¡¯s broken, it¡¯s even harder to come by,¡± he said, knowingly changing the subject of discussion. He wasn¡¯t going to hear a private plea. But she also wasn¡¯t going to make a public one.


    ¡°You won¡¯t even let me explain¡ª¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need your explanation. I need you to leave me alone.¡±


    ~~~


    Fei Lin


    She stood there unable to refute his claims. She nervously shifted her weight from foot to foot thinking about what to say.


    ¡°You have a point,¡± she said. ¡°But you don¡¯t know what my life has been like.¡± She chuckled.


    ¡°I have once wished to have the freedom you Itakars have. The freedom you display on your outings to the city or the auction house. You could talk and laugh amongst each other like normal boys and girls. I¡¯ve had none of that. The tradition of my people dictates that I conduct myself in a certain way, even though on most days, all I want to do is relax and put my feet up on my dressing table, uncaring of the world around me.


    ¡°Pilgrims¡¯ Keep was a dream come true for me. A chance to get away from the iron rule of the Matriarch. It was one whole year of freedom by my definition. And I am grateful for it.¡±


    Ajax turned to look at her at long last. She couldn¡¯t read the expression on his face. But she couldn¡¯t hold his gaze either. Not after what she had done to him in public.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t have known a Sprout from another Great Clan would take interest in me after Pilgrims¡¯ Keep. I couldn¡¯t have known that you would walk up to me when I was amid my clanmates and ask me to court you.¡±


    ¡°My greatest mistake in life, it seems,¡± he said looking away. His words were cold and made her ache deep inside. ¡°I remember your words like it was just today. ¡®I wouldn¡¯t court a child even if he was from a Great Clan.¡¯ Well, you had your wish.¡±


    He walked away from her after that.


    Fei Lin didn¡¯t know how she was going to fix this. She was a child back then. Inexperienced with her words. She wanted to run after him to tell him it wasn¡¯t her intention to embarrass him. She wanted to tell him she reacted out of fear of being pinned down again as the Matriarch did. She wanted to¡­ do what? Beg? She shook her head. She would shame her family if she ever did that. She was supposed to be ¡®better¡¯ than that.


    The problem was she had issued a public apology to House Itakar. Her mother, the Matriarch, drafted the writ herself. But it wasn¡¯t enough. Matriarch Arwen Itakar had not accepted her apology. Saying those were not her words and they didn¡¯t sound like they came from the depths of her heart.


    Fei Lin sighed. She hoped she would get a chance to fix this someday. As she walked away from the pool, something burst out of it, splashing water all over her.


    Great! Just great!


    ~~~


    Jerome quickly scanned the Sprouts for Csala as he landed on his feet but couldn¡¯t locate her among them. Surprisingly, they had pitched their tents a few yards away from the pool, with each house on opposite sides of the pool. Many of the Sprouts were either training or relaxing in the shade of the sparse but giant trees. They were not as big as the trees in the dark forest but he felt they were sturdier. He marveled at the enormity of the void world. It was far bigger than he would have imagined.


    Jerome shook himself free from his stupor. He was about to go looking for Csala when Selene flew toward him.


    ¡°Hey, where¡¯s Csala?¡± he asked, seeing the strange look on her face.


    ¡°Jerome she went out to look for you before you came back¡ª¡±


    ¡°What? Why would she do that? I told her I¡¯d be back.¡± he quickly took to the skies. ¡°I¡¯ll be back soon!¡±


    Jerome shot toward the barrier. Unsurprisingly, Nyx was following right behind him.


    ¡°You must have known she was gone, Nyx. Why didn¡¯t you say anything?¡±


    Nyx matched his pace as they flew. Both their hairs were billowing around them until they passed through the barrier. He was reminded once again that he needed a haircut. He just never seemed to have the time.


    ¡°Because she has her own Path to walk, Jerome. It was the only way to let fate take its course,¡± Nyx said.


    Jerome stopped mid-air turning to face her. He was so angry with her that he wanted to tell her to scry for the succubi right now. But more than anything, the dragoness hated being told what to do. And what the fuck was she talking about? Her own Path to walk. Thinking of the meaning behind the words poured cold water on his anger.


    ¡°You mean to say you¡¯ve known even before we left the forest.¡± It was not a question, but a statement of fact ¡ª an accusation, really.


    ¡°Now, love. Don¡¯t say it like that. You¡¯ll see her again. That, I can promise.¡±


    The accusatory look on his face didn¡¯t go unnoticed. ¡°You should have told me about it.¡±


    ¡°And then what, Jerome? Aether forbids, you might go missing too!¡±


    ¡°And what concern of yours is it if I go missing?!¡± Jerome shot back. The sudden use of the name Aether didn¡¯t go unnoticed by him.


    Nyx kept quiet, refusing to say another word. Even managing to look offended. As if he was the one in the wrong. What was it with all the people around him being so secretive? Jerome felt like picking her up and shaking her until she loosened her tongue.


    ¡°I¡¯m still going in search of her. We have enemies down South who would get here anytime soon. If they caught her alone¡­¡± He shot forward again, ignoring the forest around him.


    Nyx followed. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that. We¡¯ll be the ones to greet your enemies when they arrive. Heh, I want to see what it¡¯ll be like to fight in my new body.¡±


    The switching of her emotions from seriousness to playfulness only grated on his nerves. But he saw the wicked grin that crossed her face and was strangely satisfied. He couldn¡¯t help but feel bad for those coming for them.


    ¡°And when do they arrive?¡± he asked.


    Nyx gave him an odd look.


    ¡°You said you can scry posterity,¡± Jerome said and she looked away wistfully. ¡°Are you regretting telling me that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that¡­the future is very fluid. And the flow can¡¯t be fully trusted.¡±


    ¡°That shouldn¡¯t disturb the time it¡¯ll take a few people to arrive in the forest,¡± he said, not buying into her statement. He had a few ideas himself. The future couldn¡¯t be determined because people¡¯s choices make changes to it. ¡°If Muna¡¯s prisoners have already left the South of the continent, it¡¯s only a matter of time before they get here.¡±


    He looked at her, waiting for answers.


    ¡°You know, giving a woman the benefit of the doubt is a good thing. It makes life easier for all involved,¡± Nyx said with a cute pout.


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Remember how you said flattery doesn¡¯t work on you? Well, that cute pout and puppy eyes don¡¯t work on me either.¡±


    Nyx smacked him into a tree with her tail so hard that the tree broke into two, scattering debris everywhere. The creatures habiting that environment scampered away when they sensed her aura.


    Nyx was angry.


    Heh. Maybe I should tone it down a bit, Jerome thought as he struggled to extricate himself from the hole in the ground. He had burst through the tree and into the earth with just one hit.


    Talk about a powerful tail.


    ¡°I¡¯m going back,¡± Nyx said, anger still pulsing through her being. ¡°Good luck finding your girlfriend.¡±


    She shot back toward the void world and was out of sight in a split second.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Yeah, I deserved that one.¡± But he also realized something after Nyx¡¯s bout of anger.


    She was still young and inexperienced at heart.

 136. Vision

    Jerome got back after a long time searching for Csala. His search yielded no fruit and it made him feel as though he just lost another friend. Nyx had said she¡¯ll be back but he couldn¡¯t help the feeling that she was gone for good. He had spent almost all day searching for her in futility.


    The dark forest was a really big place and even after more than forty hours of searching, he was unable to find her. It wasn¡¯t until the cold of the dark forest became unbearable and the siphoning of his essence became too much that he decided to head back to the void world.


    The moment he entered the void world, the warmth from the sun embraced him and refreshed his tired muscles.


    An explosion rocked the world the next instant causing him to guard himself. What was going on? Were they under attack? Jerome looked around but found no battle. The floating mountain, on the other hand, was losing giant rocks like debris that came tumbling into the water. What the fuck?!


    ¡°You have to stop her, Jerome!¡± Selene¡¯s voice reached him.


    Boom! Another explosion rocked the world and more rocks fell from the floating mountain.


    Jerome looked to his side to see Selene flying toward him.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked, looking confused.


    Selene landed in front of him, looking uneasy. ¡°The lady you brought. She¡¯s the one doing that.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°She came back a while after you both left, looking gloomy, and wouldn¡¯t talk to anyone. Then she started doing that.¡± Selene pointed to the mountain.


    ¡°She was looking gloomy?¡±


    ¡°Was that you, Jerome?¡± Selene asked, pinning him with a glare. ¡°I know the look on the face of a woman who has been hurt by a man.¡±


    ¡°How¡­ Why did you suddenly come to that conclusion?¡± he asked, almost in irritation. ¡°You know what, where is she?¡±


    Selene pointed toward the pool. Of course, that was where she¡¯d be. He thought about what to discuss with her but came up with nothing. Maybe he¡¯d just apologize. He just hoped he wouldn¡¯t end up making her angrier. He flew into the air and toward the pool, stopping when he spotted her a few yards away from the bank of the pool. Nyx was lying in a bloom of flowers, surrounded by wildflowers. It was a picturesque scene and he couldn¡¯t take his eyes off her for a while. That was until she flicked a tiny pebble with her fingers at the mountain hovering in the sky.


    Boom!


    Another explosion rocked the void world. Huh. So that¡¯s the source of the explosion. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but think what would happen to him if she flicked that thing in his direction. He¡¯d probably burst like a watermelon. And it¡¯d destroy everything immediately behind him.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Nyx,¡± he said. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said what I said back then.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t know whether to go close to her or not. If she turned her anger back on him¡­


    ¡°Come sit with me, Jerome,¡± she said.


    He wasn¡¯t expecting that. Seriously, he was expecting her to ignore him. Like Csala would. But then he reminded himself that Nyx wasn¡¯t Csala, and she was probably way older than both of them combined. But what was she getting at? He hesitated for a moment and she turned to look at him. Cold eyes met his, causing him to freeze in place.


    ¡°Now, love. Are you going to make me wait too?¡± Warmth replaced the cold in her gaze almost instantly.


    He took a deep breath and walked toward her, sitting beside her to keep her company. They sat there for a while. Nyx played with the flowers and Jerome watched her hands, grateful that the explosions had stopped.


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± he asked when the silence became too much. He wasn¡¯t sure why she wasn¡¯t angry at him and her silence made him very uncomfortable.


    Nyx smiled. ¡°Couldn¡¯t wait any longer, could you?¡±


    Jerome exhaled a breath of relief he didn¡¯t know he was holding. ¡°I ¡ª It¡¯s fascinating¡­ and dangerous too. I must admit.¡±


    Studies back on Earth had suggested that small meteoroids needed to be at speeds of up to twenty-five kilometers per second to create a crater. If he was to hazard a guess ¡ª his nanites went to work, bringing the last memory of Nyx flicking her fingers at the hovering mountain. The image slowed considerably in his mind¡¯s eye until¡­ Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped.


    Nyx was launching those pebbles with so much force in her fingers that their initial speeds were in the range of a thousand kilometers per second! He looked at Nyx in a new light, suddenly very respectful of her.


    Nyx sat up and took position behind him.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± he asked, panic almost ceasing him.


    ¡°Calm down, love. I want to give you a haircut. Your hair is too¡ª¡±


    ¡°Err, you don¡¯t have to do that,¡± Jerome blurted out. Nyx ignored him, combing his long tresses with her fingers.


    ¡°Shh, shh. I¡¯m not mad at you, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not?¡± That was a relief.


    ¡°No,¡± she said, almost motherly. ¡°I¡¯m not.¡± The way she said it reminded him of Ms. Tara.


    He felt the extremes of his hair fall off. ¡°Thanks,¡± he said.


    ¡°The strands of your hair are very strong. Even for someone in your Realm.¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said again, not knowing what to say to her. There was silence again as she took her time to cut his hair.


    ¡°Where do you want its length? I can tell you like your hair long.¡±


    Jerome searched her voice to find anything that would lead him to evidence that she was still angry with him, or pretending to care and take her revenge when his guard was down. She could do very nasty things with his hair but that would be petty. And petty just didn¡¯t fit with his description of her. No. Nyx would take revenge like a dragon would ¡ª with the wrath of fire and brimstone.


    But nothing. She sounded like she was just happy he was there.


    ¡°I do like it long. But I¡¯ll leave it up to you to decide what length is best.¡±


    Nyx chuckled. ¡°Okay, Jerome. If you say so.¡±


    Strange. What was going on?


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you angry, Nyx?¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t angry with you, Jerome,¡± she said with a sigh. ¡°I just¡­ took my anger out on you. I¡¯m sorry about that.¡±


    Jerome wasn¡¯t sure what to say to that. If this was Csala, she¡¯d never admit to taking her anger out on him. Heck, she¡¯d be angry with him for offending her. And maybe she might be right. Then again, Csala was just trying to protect herself. He knew everything was an act. But he wouldn¡¯t be played with. He wouldn¡¯t be manipulated. This though, he didn¡¯t know how to deal with.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad you are calm now. I don¡¯t know how much that mountain can take.¡±


    Jerome felt the other sacred artists enter the edge of his senses and he turned to see all of them coming.


    The Feis came up to them first, looking all prim and proper. They had taken off their armor, and had on robes he could only consider as official ¡ª very patterned and beautiful robes featuring dragons and phoenixes.


    Their eyes flitted between him and Nyx from time to time. They looked at her as if she was going to pounce on them at any moment.


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    ¡°Ahem,¡± Lang coughed, nudging the Fei heir forward. Whatever they wanted from him, she wasn¡¯t all for it.


    Fei stepped forward and began. ¡°We thank you, disciple Jerome of the Royal Family, for bringing us with you to the Waters of Irithiya. We also thank you for saving two of our own.¡±


    The two Sprouts in question bowed to him ¡ª slightly. He had even forgotten their faces at this point. Their bow, however, caught his attention. A fist-palm salute. The rest of the team joined them and even Fei Lin did. Which surprised him. Should she be doing that?


    ¡°Thank you, but the bow¡ª¡±


    Trudhorn quickly signaled to him not to reject their gesture. Thankfully, he understood. Jerome coughed.


    ¡°Graciously accepted,¡± he said with a bow of his own, Vorthean style; with his right fist to his chest. He didn¡¯t know if doing the fist-palm salute would come as an insult if he did it. ¡°That said, does anyone know how we can take the water with us?¡±


    The Feis looked at him with a mixture of surprise and hope.


    ¡°Our predecessors have tried and failed for years,¡± Fei Lin said. ¡°Containers never work, and those who came before us never had enough time like we have now.¡±


    ¡°The water is different from normal,¡± Jerome said, nodding in thought. ¡°Unique.¡±


    Selene¡¯s group walked up to him next. ¡°Hope you¡¯re not thinking we¡¯ll do that too?¡± she said, implying that she and her team wouldn¡¯t be bowing to him. Jerome cringed playfully at her.


    Ajax elbowed her in the ribs before speaking. ¡°Do you have any ideas on how to contain the water without, you know¡­?¡± He handed him the head of a spear.


    Jerome took it and immediately realized it was the spear he left with the group when he flew off with the ladies. The spearhead was a little misshapen now.


    ¡°Without it losing its efficacy?¡± Jerome completed for him and shucked the spearhead into his void space. ¡°I¡¯ll need to take a look at the water in detail first.¡±


    ¡°For someone who¡¯s spent not even five summers as a disciple, you¡¯re quite knowledgeable,¡± Lang said, and everyone¡¯s gaze shifted to him accusingly. He shrugged. The man knew no one could talk back to him, except maybe Jerome. And Jerome wasn¡¯t offended by his statement. He knew Lang was curious is all. But everyone else was now being careful around him.


    ¡°I had a really good master,¡± Jerome said and started toward the pool. But he stopped¡­ and looked back at Lang.


    ¡°What?¡± the older Sprout asked.


    ¡°You¡¯re different¡­ somehow¡­ Ah!¡± he said, seeing the ¡®difference¡¯ in the Sprout.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Lang asked again.


    ¡°Do you not sense it?¡± Jerome asked with a frown.


    Lang looked at everyone else around as if he could get his answer from them. Surprisingly, Nyx walked toward Jerome. Everyone parted to give her room to walk. They all fell silent as she approached him, their earlier discussion forgotten.


    ¡°His body is ready for advancement,¡± she said, and gasps resounded everywhere. ¡°That¡¯s what you sensed, Jerome.¡±


    She pulled him away from the gossip, walking to the pool. Jerome was thankful for that. If not he would have unknowingly gawked at the older Sprout like he was seeing a relic¡­ or a monument. Ms. Tara and Sheela followed them. Jerome turned her words in his head for a while, surprised his senses had improved that much. He had sensed that something was different with Lang but not what. The older Sprout had felt different to his senses. He¡¯d thought that being ready for advancement meant being ¡®fuller¡¯.


    Ms. Tara held onto his arm, caressing him lovingly. She said nothing, just wanting to comfort him.


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t need mothering, you know?¡± Sheela said.


    ¡°Shush, Sheela. Jerome needs company right now,¡± Ms. Tara said. Sheela rolled her eyes but smiled lovingly at her. ¡°I can see it in his eyes. He misses his succubus.¡±


    Jerome looked at her, surprised. He¡¯d almost forgotten that women talked. She must have gotten the gist from Selene or Nia. But he was grateful that she understood his state of mind. Nyx gave him a coy smile but he ignored her, which earned him a pout.


    Ms. Tara chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Her secret is safe with us.¡±


    He nodded and peeled himself off her before jumping into the pool. The first time was the charm. A second swim would do nothing to improve him. He cupped his hands to hold up the water as he floated at the top of the pool.


    ¡°Vision,¡± he said, and his sight became sharper. Every mote of vital aura in the water became visible to him and he stretched his sight to see the microbial habitat of the water.


    Gasps sounded around him and Jerome looked up to find out what was going on.


    ¡°Jerome, your eyes,¡± Selene said. ¡°They¡¯re red¡­like Csala¡¯s¡­ and glowing.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Jerome asked in surprise.


    ¡°Yes, Jerome,¡± Nyx said. ¡°I noticed it under the water too. How are you doing it?¡±


    Jerome noticed her question wasn¡¯t really a question. He could hear the sarcasm in her voice and see the slight smile on her face. Others heard it too and many of them chose to look away, not wanting to get involved in whatever was going on between the two of them. But the situation, and the way everyone was acting made him feel self-conscious. He knew what they were thinking, and it wasn¡¯t so. He almost told them all to get their minds out of the gutter.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t say he knew why his eyes turned red. He had his suspicions though. It could probably be linked to what Rihal said about those born with the blood of Vorthe. Everybody seemed to have different colors in their eyes, it seemed. The Sovereign¡¯s were gold, Rihal¡¯s were green, and Elder Duten Vorthe¡¯s were purple.


    His were red, but why red? He knew the answer to that thought the moment it came to him, and his mind automatically wanted to push the answer away.


    ¡°It¡¯s a technique of sorts,¡± he said, and a representation of blood, blood that I¡¯ll most likely feed on in the near future, he thought, unsettled. He shifted his concentration back to the water and noticed the changes almost instantly.


    The Waters of Irithiya couldn¡¯t be carried away from the pools without it losing its efficacy. The bonds that held every molecule together were magically tied to this void world. In fact, they went beyond the physical and into the metaphysical. Jerome sighed. Nothing was impossible though. All he needed to do was find a way to preserve its efficacy for as long as possible.


    ¡°First I¡¯ll need containers,¡± he said.


    Everyone started to dig into their storage rings, bringing out whatever container they had with them. Jerome observed that the Feis were a lot more prepared. They had come with a lot of polished wooden lacquerware made from redwood. Pots the size of full-grown men. It was almost comical to see them take these things out.


    ¡°Really?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been trying to do just this for generations. We weren¡¯t going to stop,¡± Fei Lin said. She was looking very proud of the pots her team brought. Jerome didn¡¯t mind. It was only surprising.


    The Itakars on the other hand, weren¡¯t prepared for something like this.


    He walked up to the wooden lacquer pots and studied them for some time. After a while, he shook his head. ¡°This wouldn¡¯t work for what I have in mind,¡± he said.


    Fei Lin¡¯s expression turned to one of shock and annoyance. ¡°These are made from the Baelors redwood tree from the West of Vorthe. They are of the best quality and the most expensive wooden wares you can find anywhere in Vorthe. If you can¡¯t use this, I don¡¯t know what else you can use.¡±


    Jerome gestured toward the huge trees growing around them. ¡°Those would do fine. They absorb the light from the sun here. A sun that never sets, if I might add.¡± The trees were few and far in-between, but they only needed maybe three.


    ¡°I wonder why that is,¡± Selene said. ¡°And how do you even know about it? You¡¯ve been here for what, two breaths?¡± She was fishing for information. Jerome wasn¡¯t going to take the bait though.


    He pointed at the floating mountain with a thumb over his shoulder. ¡°That¡­ is at the exact spot we¡¯d call North. You can¡¯t go North anymore than that. So there is no zenith or horizon for the sun. Let¡¯s get to cutting, shall we? The trees aren¡¯t gonna cut themselves.¡±


    ~~~


    ¡°I can¡¯t go on for much longer, Jerome!¡± Lang said as he strained his muscles to pull and push the saw on the other end of Jerome.


    ¡°Just a few more, Lang. Just a few more!¡± The saw was almost through the trunk.


    They had spent the better part of their second day here cutting down one tree. The wood of these trees was alive, so to speak. They were as tough as steel and always began visibly healing in as little as ten breaths. And this was the first one they would successfully cut ¡ª if they could last a little bit longer.


    Charybdis was also the only weapon that was effective against it. As such, Jerome had transformed it into a large saw with a handle on both ends. He held one end and Lang held the other. Jerome had to morph Suzie into a set of gloves that Lang could use to protect his bare hands and thereby his vitality from the devouring weapon.


    Thankfully, they were cutting diagonally. And the broadness of the blade prevented the line they had cut through from sealing shut. This way, the tree would fall by itself. But they had to do it before the side they had already cut through healed completely.


    They both groaned, speeding up the pace of their back-and-forth movement. Jerome could sense Lang cycling to send essence to his muscles to heal his fatigue and strengthen himself. He was doing the same too, but he wasn¡¯t as desperate as the older Sprout. He just hoped they would be able to get this one.


    At long last, the saw cut through the trunk and the tree groaned. The others quickly went to the side and pushed with all their strength. The tree came down with a loud bang. Everyone sat down almost immediately, tired from the day¡¯s exercise.


    ¡°Why are you all resting?¡± Jerome asked, breathing hard. ¡°I and Lang did all the work.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve not exactly been idle, Jerome. We¡¯ve been trying to cut through another tree. And it¡¯s impossible,¡± Selene answered. ¡°Your lady friend could have at least stuck around to help.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± he looked around, searching for Nyx. ¡°The sneaky minx. When the hell did she disappear?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s rest for a bit,¡± Lang said, sitting down cross-legged. ¡°We¡¯ll need all of our strength to cut down another¡ª¡±


    ¡°No way, I¡¯m cutting another of that,¡± Jerome interrupted. ¡°At least not yet. We¡¯ll make do with this one. But it¡¯s already losing its vitality as we speak. Everyone should be able to cut out of it now.¡±


    Trudhorn was the first to dash towards the crown of the downed tree. Sheela raced after him. The trunk was so long that it took them at least ten breaths to get there. Ajax appeared out of thin air holding an axe in hand.


    They began to chop with all their might.

 A/N

    Hey guys. So I¡¯ve posted the end of book three on my Patreon. Book four ¡ª Bloodlines ¡ª is next. I would like to take a month-long hiatus so I can order my draft well, and write without time constraints¡­ and I need to be in a unique head-space to write. I only want to provide you with the best of the story, not half-assed chapters written in a rush. So bear with me for a time.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    In the meantime, what do you think about this map I made of the western continent (some regions were left blank on purpose)?


    Thanks for your understanding.

 A/N

    I¡¯m back fam!!!


    It¡¯s hard to believe it¡¯s been a month since I last posted a chapter. I know, I know, it¡¯s been too long!


    But the silence is finally broken! I¡¯m thrilled to be back, even though I wish I had more time to bulk up my backlog. But a promise made is a promise to be kept.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Get ready for my next chapter dropping on Monday. Mark your calendars, save the date?? Make sure to check it out when it drops and share your thoughts on it. Let¡¯s dive back into the world of the sacred arts!


    Thank you for your patience, loyalty, and unwavering support. I¡¯m honored to have you along for the ride!


    See ya Monday!

 137. Training

    It had taken another whole day to cut down another tree ¡ª somehow, he was able to keep track of the time. His only means of telling time was to track the sun as it moved around the void world on the horizon. He¡¯d discovered that his pocket watch stopped working accurately after he entered the void world.


    Jerome had had to quickly chop the second downed tree into segments and Shape them to the likeness he wanted. Namely, large wooden pots and covers. Every other person was beyond fatigued at this point, except for the ladies; their job was not as taxing.


    Sheela and Ms. Tara showed a unique side of themselves as they taught the other female Sprouts how to extract oil from gathered linseeds for finish. Thankfully, flax grew everywhere in the void world. And they had already gone to seed.


    After they had chopped up the first tree, Ms. Tara had coaxed Sheela to pick the seeds with her. Jerome used the opportunity to tell them about the finish and they went about explaining to the other ladies how to extract the oils from the linseeds as he Shaped the timber from the first tree.


    The wood had been a joy to Shape ¡ª much to the chagrin of the Fei princess. It brought to mind what he¡¯d said to Csala about the dark roots he got from the dark forest. Those roots had resisted his attempts at Shaping them. This wood from the void world did the opposite. It was like the very molecular structure of the wood obeyed his every whim ¡ª wanted to obey his every whim.


    He¡¯d tried to Shape a few trees still rooted to the soil and succeeded quite well. The only issue he had was that he wasn¡¯t able to detach a portion of the tree with his Shaping. But he could Shape them into any shape he wanted.


    Ms. Tara and Sheela had chipped in, saying they had seen some very creative ways of Shaping trees before in a city called Evergreen, in the Western Region of Vorthe. That was before they arrived in Farryn to enter the portal to Terra Praeta. With their help, he was able to get creative. Like very creative.


    All in all, he had improved greatly in Shaping wood.


    Now he watched as each team filled their new pots with the Waters of Irithiya. The pots were quite large and heavy, the largest of them, big enough to contain two or three Sprouts conveniently. The wood from the trees used to make them was hardwood that none from their world could compare to. He had pots of his own too ¡ª smaller pots. Some as small as his head, but no less in capacity. He had runed them to hold more water than any other pot present. And there were quite a lot of them. He had stopped counting after runing the thirtieth, or something, that was his.


    The water in the pool cleansed itself. It was forever sparkling clean so there was no need to bother about hygiene. Jerome dunked himself into the water, pots and all, and the water in the pool visibly shrank. Confused looks were shared among the Sprouts in the water but they quickly figured out that he was the culprit.


    He stashed his pots away, ignoring their curious glances, and swam to the center of the pool where the waterfall from the hovering mountains met the pool. The pressure from the waterfall was great but he swam into it. It gave him something else to focus on since his mind had constantly been on Csala. He wondered what would have become of her.


    He missed her.


    It felt like he was missing a part of himself. Jerome hated the feeling but could do nothing to assuage it. He wondered when he became so vulnerable.


    The waterfall seemed not to be doing its job. Jerome left, deciding to practice. He located Ms. Tara and brought her along to practice with him. Sheela joined them. He helped them finetune the way they cycled essence throughout their bodies, teaching them some breathing techniques to help with calming their minds. It helped Ms. Tara summon her flames faster and burn with as little essence as possible. Her flame didn¡¯t change color like his had when he first created one. Though, it was a massive improvement to what she¡¯d been wielding before.


    Sheela shamelessly stripped naked in front of him before the surface of her skin rippled with muscles and she shifted into her Midnight Panther form. Jerome gawked. Sheela¡¯s human form was beautiful, Jerome knew, but seeing her naked took the word ¡®beautiful¡¯ to another level. He swallowed and did his best to cover his erection. What was with his libido these days?


    He couldn¡¯t get his mind off the curve of her breasts and hips. She wasn¡¯t as voluptuous as Csala ¡ª there was no way a human woman could be naturally ¡ª but she was athletic, with a grace that attracted him.


    Her panther form was also beautiful. Black fur covered her entire body and slitted, golden eyes stared up at him with¡­ hunger¡­ lust. Ms. Tara wrapped her arms around the panther¡¯s neck, breaking them out of the moment. She said something about Sheela having become faster at shifting, but Jerome¡¯s concentration was on settling his boner. Jerome took the moment to admire the panther better. She was large ¡ª as large as a pony ¡ª but graceful, silent on her feet.


    ¡°Do you think you will be able to move to the shadow of the tree over there?¡± Ms. Tara said, pointing to a tree about three yards away. The Midnight Panther purred. Her eyes set with determination as she eyed the tree.


    Suddenly, her shadow, which was behind her moved and slowly merged with her body. She became a clump of shadow before sinking into the ground. Jerome gawked. Again. Sheela appeared in the shade of the tree and collapsed, exhausted.


    ¡°Sheela!¡± Ms. Tara raced over to her friend in panic.


    Jerome walked toward Sheela more sedately and in thought. He thought about what Sheela had just done, what he had felt as she did it. She had used shadows. And he had felt¡­ watched. As if with eyes from beyond this world. He was reminded again of how the different forces affected the senses.


    But ¡®shadow¡¯ wasn¡¯t a direct force, only a by-product of Light and Darkness ¡ª or at least that was his understanding from all the knowledge he had imbibed. Perhaps there was more to it than meets the eye.


    ¡°That was incredible,¡± he said to the now-human Sheela, who was very naked and very enticing by the way.


    Ms. Tara tried to cover her, but Sheela smacked away her hand, jutting her chest out as if wanting to put herself on display for Jerome¡¯s eyes. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but be attracted to them. He coughed and looked away. Sheela smiled lecherously at him. The lady was incorrigible.


    She smiled up at him. ¡°I call it Shadow Step. It¡¯s like stepping through some other world¡­ or a layer of a strange place, which is completely scary by the way. I say ¡®layer¡¯ because that¡¯s how it feels.¡±


    ¡°Another layer of existence. You mean like interdimensional travel?¡± he asked but Sheela gave him a confused look. He¡¯d never heard anything like that before. ¡°How is it you can do that as Sprout?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Ms. Tara said. ¡°It seems like your skill belongs to those in higher Realms.¡±


    ¡°The skill comes from the Midnight Panther whose core I absorbed. But it¡¯s exhausting to use shadows to move like that. The more I use it though, the more my grasp on it grows.¡±


    ¡°It reminds me of something I glimpsed once¡­¡± he fell into thought and the two waited for him to continue. He decided not to, since he didn¡¯t have much knowledge of it at hand. Or more precisely, there were gaps in his knowledge. He would have to seek the memory stones in Sanctum for that. But he couldn¡¯t access them here. That would be for later. ¡°You should rest. Ms. Tara and I will continue training but join you later.¡±


    He stood up and pulled Ms. Tara away.


    ¡°She likes you,¡± Ms. Tara said as they walked away from Sheela.


    ¡°Oh, does she now?¡± Sarcasm dripped from his voice.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    She jumped up slightly to smack him on the head. ¡°How did you even get so tall,¡± she complained.


    ¡°The feeling is mutual,¡± Jerome said with a smile. ¡°Hope you don¡¯t mind.¡±


    ¡°Not at all. Just take good care of her. For a very long time, she led and I followed. Even though I am older, she had more experience dealing with the pack¡­ and she shielded me from the worst of it. But here in Terra Praeta, she¡¯s like a lost cub. Especially having been betrayed by her team.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I never asked what happened to them.¡±


    ¡°Oh, we found them,¡± Ms. Tara said. ¡°You must understand that Shifters have strange¡­ customs. Many of which are not different from the way predators act.¡±


    She looked up at him, unsure of how to commence.


    ¡°I understand,¡± Jerome said. And he did. There was no way they would have left the others alive. He knew he wouldn¡¯t have. But eight? How did they take out eight Shifters?


    ¡°We didn¡¯t get rid of all of them, just so you know. Some of the males were¡­ captured.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± He had a feeling he knew by whom.


    ¡°By some weird shifter-type creatures. Females all of them. They were,¡± she blushed. Her eyes flicked downward to her voluptuous breasts drawing his eyes as well.


    Jerome quickly looked away. ¡°Beastkin.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what those creatures are called. Their remaining time in Terra Praeta would either be blissful or awful¡­ or a combination of both.¡±


    Ms. Tara opened her mouth to speak but he pulled her along.


    ¡°I want to teach you how to shoot fire from your hands like a projectile.¡±


    He demonstrated, pointing a finger upward. A pulse of blue flame shot out of his finger. The force of the shot displaced the air around him, causing his long coat to billow around him. The tiny ball of blue flame traveled a long way upward before dying.


    Ms. Tara ¡®oohed¡¯ and ¡®aahed¡¯ in wonder. ¡°Your flame is blue! Jerome, blue flame is legendary!¡±


    Had he never shown her his flame before? And why did she think it was legendary? ¡°Let¡¯s¡­ focus, Ms. Tara.¡±


    ¡°Call me Tara. You¡¯re now my tutor, and we¡¯re both in the same Realm, so it is the proper thing to do.¡±


    Jerome was beside himself. He didn¡¯t know if he could bring himself to do that. Not that he couldn¡¯t, he could. But then the dynamics between them would shift. His gaze shifted from her beautiful dark eyes to her equally stunning face. Her hair was long and glossy and framed her face beautifully. He forced his gaze to remain on her face. He didn¡¯t want to look at those large melons sitting high on her chest, or the curves of her hips in her tight leather pants. She had filled out considerably well. A far cry from the skinny beauty she was in the slums of Farryn.


    Ms. Tara was beautiful. And he realized he was attracted to her. He was appalled at the thought. But that was the very reason he couldn¡¯t bring himself to call her by name. It would bring down the wall he was trying so hard to set up between them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I should.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s proper, Jerome,¡± she chided with a smile, her voice playful and sweet. ¡°I know I didn¡¯t teach you much but Vorthe has her traditions. Besides, you are a Royal disciple now. Your station is far above mine.¡±


    She hugged him and he hugged her back. ¡°It¡¯s not that. I¡­ things will change between us if I do.¡±


    She looked up at him, innocent curiosity in her eyes. Jerome sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s just train for now. Take off your gauntlets. It would be cheating to use them to practice for this.¡±


    Ms. Tara chuckled and did as he said, throwing them into her storage ring.


    ¡°Okay. The trick is to use your psy¡ª I mean, your mental energy to pull on the core of the flame like a bowstring before releasing it. There¡¯s no need for a throwing motion or anything of the sort.¡±


    Ms. Tara snorted. ¡°It can¡¯t be that simple.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Oh, trust me. It¡¯s not.¡±


    Ms. Tara concentrated and an orange flame came to life on her palm.


    ¡°Now pull on it with your mental energy. You can test it by pushing and pulling.¡±


    ¡°The core, right? Because the flame is just¡­ not easy to grab onto with my mental energy.¡±


    Jerome nodded. He patiently waited for her to get used to interacting with the core of the flame. She tossed it up and down in wonder, giddiness playing all over her features. Jerome sighed, enjoying the sight. He felt so relaxed, at peace. When last had he been so relaxed?


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m ready,¡± Ms. Tara said, her seriousness returning.


    Jerome stamped his foot on the ground and a chunk of soil rose from the ground like a post. It was at least ten feet away from them. He guided her to take aim at it.


    But Ms. Tara¡¯s gaze was fixed on his face, awe coloring her beautiful features.


    ¡°I can wield most natural elements,¡± he said by way of explanation.


    ¡°Jerome, that¡¯s¡­ wait, ¡®natural¡¯ elements?¡±


    Jerome sighed. No casual displays of power from now on, he told himself. ¡°Natural elements are what we call attributed elements. But we¡¯re losing our focus here.¡±


    He held her shoulders to position her better. ¡°You need to spread your legs wider; one foot in front of the other.¡±


    Ms. Tara didn¡¯t do it correctly so he helped. Standing behind her, he pushed her thigh back a little more. That was probably a mistake. The scent of her arousal hit him like a blow to the head. Jerome felt himself harden to unbearable levels.


    Ms. Tara blushed so much that she turned as red as a beetroot. ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with,¡± she murmured uncomfortably. She had lost the flame in her palm due to losing her concentration.


    Jerome coughed, taking a step back. Using the nanites in his brain, he regulated his body temperature and blood circulation to keep from blushing. But he couldn¡¯t get his boner to go away. Ms. Tara took more time to calm herself. When she finally calmed down, she lit the flame in her palm again. Jerome felt her psychic energy go to work. In this pose, she looked so damn sexy. He couldn¡¯t help running his eyes over her lower back and tight ass. He gulped and looked away.


    He felt when she let go of the flame. It shot forward with a pulse of energy, hitting the post, dead-center. The force from the shot didn¡¯t shatter the post but it cracked it. Ms. Tara screamed in joy and jumped into his arms, hugging him tightly.


    ¡°Ten out of ten,¡± he said with a smile. ¡°But I can¡¯t believe you hit it on your first trial.¡±


    Ms. Tara was grinning from ear to ear. ¡°You didn¡¯t get it on your first trial?!¡±


    Jerome shook his head. ¡°Must be your improved mental energy.¡±


    She hugged him tighter. ¡°Thank you for bringing me here, Jerome¡­¡± She sniffed. ¡°I just wish¡­ I wish they were here too.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s grip on her tightened a little more as emotion overcame him. He lost his boner in an instant. He also wished they were here. With him; improving their strength, laughing, and catching up. And he was going to make that wish possible.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to find them, Ms. Tara. When we get back. I promise.¡±


    After a while, he let go of her and said, ¡°Let¡¯s get back to practice.¡±


    The post he made her was blackened and cracked. One more hit from her and it would be destroyed completely. Jerome stamped his feet again and three more posts rose from the ground in a straight line, near the first one.


    ¡°How are you doing that, Jerome? I can¡¯t even sense you using essence.¡±


    Jerome smiled. He had forgotten that he didn¡¯t want to make casual displays of power anymore. ¡°There are some things I can¡¯t speak of right now, Ms. Tara¡ª¡±


    ¡°Tara,¡± she interrupted.


    This is going to take some getting used to. ¡°Let¡¯s continue.¡±


    She gave him a look that said they weren¡¯t done discussing this particular subject. But she continued training. After a few more hours, Jerome told her to stop and take a rest. She was making great strides and improved far quicker than he did. They cleaned up using their mental energy and strolled down to the tree Sheela was resting under.


    Sheela stirred as they approached, eyes on the hovering mountain. ¡°What do you think it would be like up there?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No one has ever been up there,¡± Jerome said. ¡°For us as Sprouts, it¡¯s practically impossible, I believe. But you can try if you want. You may just do what no one ever has done.¡± It was better to give her hope than discourage her.


    ¡°Really?¡± She sat up.


    Jerome lay down and Ms. Tara took the spot next to him.


    ¡°Ooh, aren¡¯t you both lovely to look at,¡± Sheela teased.


    ¡°Go on your adventure, Sheela,¡± Jerome quipped. Ms. Tara buried her face in his chest, causing Sheela to tease her more.


    Sheela lay on his other side and whispered loudly in his ear. ¡°Don¡¯t exhaust her, Jerome,¡± she said. Jerome cursed, knowing what she meant. ¡°And don¡¯t wear yourself out. I¡¯d like to handle your cock too when I get back.¡±


    Ms. Tara stiffened in his arms. ¡°Damnit, Sheela!¡±


    The minx only laughed unrepentantly as she stalked off. Jerome coughed as he tried to get the images she had conjured out of his head. His boner was back and hard as a rock. What the fuck was going on with him?

 138. Spirit, Soul, And Physical Attraction

    Tara


    Even as Sheela walked toward the pool, looking upward at the hovering mountain, she couldn¡¯t help but be enamored by the body she remained glued to. Here was Sheela trying to do what, perhaps, nobody had ever done before. She should be excited about it. Excited for her friend.


    Yet Jerome called to her. Not with words but with his body. Her body was experiencing a strange excitement, the sort she had never experienced before. It was almost overbearing. Only the knowledge that it would be wrong to¡­ crave someone who was like a son to her kept her from doing something she would regret.


    Yet she clung to him. Unable to force herself away. Wanting to rub her sensitive parts against him, to feel what pleasure would be like with him ¡ª but dreading it all the same. It was torture to be so close to him. Yet there was no place she¡¯d rather be.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ms. Tara,¡± Jerome asked. ¡°You¡¯re uncomfortable.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± she answered. ¡°Just tired.¡±


    ¡°You need something to take your mind off your stress.¡±


    The way he said it, she felt like he knew exactly what was wrong with her. Which only caused her blush to deepen. Tara didn¡¯t want Jerome to see her blushing like a girl who hadn¡¯t even reached her majority, yet was fawning over a man. It was going to be embarrassing if he ever found out her body was excited for him.


    He stood up and pulled her up with him. ¡°Come on. Let¡¯s go see Sheela embarrass herself,¡± he said with a chuckle.


    She giggled, thankful that he took her mind off her bodily excitement. ¡°I thought you told her to try.¡±


    ¡°Emphasis on ¡®try¡¯,¡± he snorted. ¡°She¡¯s never gonna reach the mountain.¡±


    Tara burst out laughing.


    Sheela reached the pool and jumped into the air, flying upward. Her strange action caught some attention and Sprouts from the two Great Clans started to take interest. The Itakars walked toward them. Tara couldn¡¯t help but hold onto Jerome¡¯s arm tight. His arm was so muscular; strong and manly.


    ¡°You can feel me up as much as you want when there aren¡¯t so many eyes watching, Ms. Tara,¡± his voice reached her ear like a whisper.


    Tara tensed and wanted to move away. Jerome held her in place. Quite intimately, if she might add. She felt her cheeks and ears heat up and hoped young lady Selene wouldn¡¯t notice. The excitement she felt before came rushing in a torrent from the sound of his voice. Especially since he whispered it. She clamped her thighs together as she felt heat pool between them.


    Jerome cleared his throat. ¡°Sorry about that,¡± his voice reached her again. She could almost hear the tension in it. ¡°I don¡¯t know what came over me.¡±


    Tara moaned into his chest, which thankfully muffled the sound. Something hard poked her in the stomach all of a sudden. Tara thought maybe Jerome kept a weapon on his person so she reached for it to push it aside. It wasn¡¯t uncomfortable, but it wasn¡¯t comfortable to be poked either.


    She grabbed the offending weapon and Jerome stiffened with a groan. He held her tighter, crushing her belly and fist to his crotch.


    Eh? It quickly dawned on her what the ¡®weapon¡¯ was.


    ¡°What is Sheela trying to do, Jerome?¡± Selene asked.


    ~~~


    Jerome slowly released Ms. Tara. and she slowly ¡ª like she didn¡¯t want to ¡ª let go of his engorged member. Her heartbeat was racing a mile away that he felt concerned. If she was still a mere mortal, he¡¯d definitely be concerned. But he held her still, not letting her dash away. Because he knew that if he let go, shame and embarrassment would make her do something stupid ¡ª or maybe not, but it would give away the fact something was up between them both. And he didn¡¯t want any more drama as it were.


    He cleared his throat to answer Selene, who had no idea what was going on between them. He couldn¡¯t tell her all that he knew about the hovering mountain, only the myth. And even that would raise suspicions so he decided not to.


    ¡°She¡¯s trying to reach the mountain,¡± he said. A short and simple answer.


    Selene looked at him with an expression that said his comment wasn¡¯t enough of an explanation. ¡°... aaand¡­?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible¡­ at least for a Sprout,¡± he answered, not meeting her gaze.


    ¡°And you know this, how?¡±


    ¡°Would you like to try, Selene?¡± Jerome asked, making sure not to sound threatening. He gestured with his arm at the mountain. ¡°You¡¯re free to try.¡±


    ¡°Deflection,¡± Selene said. ¡°I see¡ª¡± Ajax clamped a hand over her mouth to prevent her from saying more.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not deflecting, Selene. That¡¯s all I know. If I told you how I know, I would be risking my safety as well as everyone¡¯s here.¡±


    He gave her a pointed look, hoping she understood.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she muttered, looking away guiltily.


    They concentrated on the ignorant Sprout trying to reach the hovering mountain. The Feis were out of their tents now, watching with interest to see if she could reach the barrier. Ms. Tara turned in Jerome¡¯s arms to watch the show too. They¡¯d both calmed down ¡ª a little. He was still hard as a result of her gripping his cock, and the press of her body as her lower back pushed against his hardness didn¡¯t help. She wasn¡¯t out of it either. Her arousal tortured her just as his tortured him.


    Sheela slowed down after flying to an altitude of at least a thousand feet in the air. No.


    ¡°Something¡¯s repelling her,¡± he said. He could see her struggling to fly higher.


    Gasps sounded around as the other sprouts caught on too. Sheela was struggling. Jerome could only think of one thing that would repel a Sprout as strong as Sheela: gravity. The mountain generated its own gravity. And it could be a hundred times greater than what they were used to.


    He teleported to her in an instant and a split second later he was back where he was, holding her in his arms. Everyone flinched.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara called.


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± Ajax asked, surprised.


    Jerome laid Sheela down to examine her. She passed out the moment he teleported her. He could sense that she was already healing from the stress she put her body through to push to such altitude. There was a tiny tumor in her brain but with the right amount of vital aura, he healed it.


    This would teach her not to overestimate herself.


    ~~~


    Tara


    ¡°If you haven¡¯t noticed,¡± Sheela said as she walked into their tent, ¡°He¡¯s attracted to you.¡±


    Tara stiffened. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be resting, Sheela,¡± she said, but she could hear her voice shake. ¡°He¡¯s not attracted to me. And why are you dressed like that?¡±


    Sheela smirked. Tara could almost see her nipples peeking out from the vest she was wearing ¡ª which was a little too tiny for her bust. All of her midriff was exposed as well. Walking away from Jerome had brought some measure of relief¡­ and longing. Now she had to deal with her friend who seemed to be rutting. There was so much tanned skin on display that she felt uncomfortable. Sheela was beautiful. She had the kind of beauty that made one jealous.


    Tara wanted to ask if Sheela was in her rutting cycle ¡ª she¡¯d witnessed how her friend acted around Jerome ¡ª but she didn¡¯t want to encourage the Midnight Panther.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you him? I thought he¡¯d be the one to come back and check up on me.¡± Sheela pouted but sniffed as she got closer. ¡°Ooh. I can see the feeling is mutual.¡± She grinned, and Tara felt like disappearing. Maybe the ground could open up and just swallow her up.


    Of course! Sheela was a Shifter and she could smell her arousal!


    ¡°Stop!¡±


    Sheela laughed. Her awkwardness only encouraged her friend. Tara stomped to her makeshift bedroll and turned her back on Sheela. That didn¡¯t stop her friend though.


    ¡°You are not backing out of this, Tara.¡±


    Light! She hates it when Sheela does this! ¡°Yes!¡± Tara screamed and faced her, uncaring if they were heard arguing. ¡°He excites my body! Happy now!¡±


    ¡°Your body?¡±


    Tara rolled her eyes and slumped on her bedroll facing the roof of the tent. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I feel like I do around him, Sheela. I mean, I practically raised him. I¡¯m like a mother to him. He even said so.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    Tara raised an eyebrow at her friend.


    ¡°And so? That shouldn¡¯t stop you from being with him if you want. A woman raising a man to adulthood and then becoming his mistress or even his wife isn¡¯t unheard of in Vorthe.¡±


    Sheela stood up and stretched with a cat-like grace. It was beautiful to watch. ¡°You¡¯re stressing over nothing, Tara. How do I look?¡±


    ¡°What¡­?¡± Tara was a bit confused at the question. She coughed. ¡°You look like a lady of the night. Jerome is not going to like that. I raised him right.¡±


    Sheela laughed. ¡°Not when he¡¯s thinking with his cock, he won¡¯t!¡±


    ¡°Sheela!¡± Tara exclaimed. ¡°Your nipples are out. Men don¡¯t want other men ogling their lovers¡ª¡±


    ¡°You mean eye-fucking. They can look but they can¡¯t touch.¡±


    ¡°Urgh!¡± Tara groaned. ¡°If you want to bond with Jerome, you have to dress appropriately.¡±


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Sheela adjusted her nipples in her skintight leather vest. At least she was a bit self-aware.


    ¡°I plan on proving to him that I¡¯m worthy of being a mate. I¡¯m never leaving him ¡ª whether he likes it or not. He can have as many wives and consorts as he wants but I¡¯m going to be one of them.¡±


    Sheela left the tent. Tara sighed, deciding she¡¯d had enough adventure for one day. Her heart couldn¡¯t take any more. Her body would explode from the torrent of arousal if she wasn¡¯t careful.


    ~~~


    Jerome watched as Sheela walked up to him swaying her hips from side to side. She wasn¡¯t even concerned that he was in the midst of other male Sprouts.


    He¡¯d been helping Ajax finetune his void bridge, so he could use it for longer than he used to. Ajax didn¡¯t even know it was called a void bridge. It was probably from one of Vorthe¡¯s trainees who came here on their many expeditions.


    He had used his spatial rune to examine the void bridge as best as he could. Being in the Core Formation Realm limited his use of psychic energy, so there was little he could do beyond increasing the amount of usage by a Sprout. This he had done by reducing waste of essence.


    ¡°Just know that the void bridge is like a Sail, you need to involve it in your cycling to master it better,¡± he said. Ajax nodded absently.


    Jerome looked over at Sheela. Her leather vest seemed two sizes smaller. Her breasts were almost spilling out of them and her arms, shoulders, and toned stomach were on display. She also had on skin tight leather shorts that were too short and too tight for her. Her wide hips and thick thighs called to him, drawing his attention.


    Every male with him turned to look at her. Before she got to them, they gave one excuse or the other and hightailed it away from him.


    Sheela walked up to him. ¡°Hey, handsome.¡±


    He smiled, deciding to play along. ¡°Hey, beautiful.¡± She beamed up at him.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired? You¡¯ve been up for how long now?¡±


    ¡°Two days by Terra Praeta¡¯s standard but I¡¯m fine.¡±


    Sheela stood really close to him. Like, really close that if he directed his gaze down he could see all her goods. ¡°That¡¯s four days in our world.¡±


    ¡°Why are you dressed like that?¡±


    She shrugged and pulled him by the arm toward the tree she had rested in before. ¡°Come on, you need rest.¡± She made sure to give him a good rub with her tits, his arm between them.


    ¡°So,¡± she said when they were lying in the shade of the tree. ¡°You and Tara. I¡¯m pretty sure something happened between you two for her to act the way she did when she came in. She was very horny!¡±


    Jerome lay there thinking about what to tell her. She was practically glued to him and¡­ grinding against him?


    ¡°Sheela?... What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind me. And I can tell you want me too, Jerome.¡± Her voice was husky and filled with need.


    Jerome felt his blood pool south of his body.


    ¡°You turned Tara into a horny, blushing, smitten fool. I want to experience that too.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re moving too fast?¡±


    ¡°Do you know how attractive you are, Jerome?¡± Sheela practically purred, her grinding becoming more passionate. ¡°Not just in appearance but in your actions. Your actions scream ¡®competence¡¯... yes, that¡¯s the word. And you ooze sensuality. It makes you irresistible. It¡¯s a wonder all the females here haven¡¯t pounced on you ¡ª not that they haven¡¯t shown interest.¡± She giggled.


    ¡°Still¡­ this is happening faster than I anticipated.¡±


    Sheela snorted, eyeing him with what he could only call ravenous hunger and a hint of mirth. ¡°How cute of you. What will you do next, blush?¡±


    Now, that would be very embarrassing. Jerome glared at her but she ignored him, giggling at his reaction. She slid upward along his body and held him tight on his shoulders. Sheela started kissing him on the neck right where they were, uncaring if others were watching.


    He took a deep breath to calm his thoughts. ¡°You need to focus on growing your strength, Sheela.¡±


    ¡°Then push me away, Jerome,¡± she purred. Which only caused his arousal to shoot up. His dick poked her in the thigh and Sheela purred again, rubbing herself more aggressively against him.


    Something was either very wrong with her ¡ª but that would mean something was wrong with Ms. Tara too, since she was almost acting the same way; even though she was very restrained ¡ª or something was wrong with him. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but feel he was the common denominator.


    ¡°Just be patient with me till I fall asleep,¡± she murmured, grinding even harder against his hip as she gave him love bites. Her breath was hot on his skin which only drove his arousal up.


    Jerome was speechless. Shifters were brazen but he didn¡¯t think it was to such levels. Sheela had shown interest in him and he was interested in her too. But he had expected them to take their time. He knew very little about her after all.


    ¡°This is happening too fast,¡± he muttered. He moved his hand to her tight ass, assisting her to pleasure herself ¡ª he couldn¡¯t help himself. He was hard also but he didn¡¯t want to come on as desperate. He knew she¡¯d probably agree to a quick romp in the sheets but it felt wrong. Plus, he didn¡¯t know if she could take his size.


    Sheela reached for his dick and gasped, rubbing it through his pants. With a groan, Jerome pushed his hips into her hand. ¡°You¡¯re huge, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°Sheela.¡± He held back a moan.


    ¡°Shifters embrace their sexuality,¡± she said. ¡°Attraction is a big part of that and we don¡¯t like to dally. And I think I¡¯m entering my ¡®rutting cycle¡¯.¡±


    Jerome sighed. He¡¯d absorbed such knowledge from the memory stones in Sanctum concerning some of the species in Terra Praeta. Their first ¡®rutting cycle¡¯ started after their majority, which was around seventy years by Terra Praetan time. It usually happens when they meet someone they are attracted to. The first rutting cycle lasted for more than a year. Terra Praetan females were fertile throughout their lives. They had no monthly cycles.


    Jerome braved a question. ¡°Is this your first?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± was the moaned answer. Sheela sped up her grinding, squeezing his cock as she did. ¡°I¡¯m still a cub by shifter standards but I¡¯ve definitely reached my majority in human terms.¡±


    She came. Hard. jerking wildly against him. Her fingernails lengthened to claws, hardening. She held onto him, snarling as she bucked against him like a feral animal. Her teeth ¡ª more like fangs now ¡ª found his neck again and she bit him hard again and again. His skin was too tough to break from such an action though.


    Jerome held her as she went through the throes of passion. After a long while, she relaxed against him. He listened as her heartbeat calmed and soon, she was dozing off. He carefully peeled her off him before going back to the pool. His hard-on wouldn¡¯t go away if he was next to her. And he needed to think about what was going on. First Ms. Tara and now Sheela.


    Sheela, he could understand but Ms. Tara?


    ~~~


    Lang


    ¡°I wish to invite the Royal disciple to witness my advancement, Princess,¡± he said, rising from his meditative pose. They had pitched their tents inside the void world to give them some privacy.


    ¡°That¡¯s dangerous, Lang. What if he gets¡­ scared and attacks you.¡±


    Lang gave her a pointed look.


    The Princess shrugged. ¡°People can do stupid things when they are scared and confused.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can ever imagine Jerome as ¡®scared¡¯ and ¡®confused¡¯,¡± he replied. The image he conjured only brought mirth to his heart. He chuckled. ¡°There is a reason why this is necessary, Princess. I owe him a life debt. This can¡¯t redeem that debt but it¡¯ll go a long way to soften his heart toward the clan, toward me.¡± He hated admitting that.


    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t matter when you become a Spirit Realm artist. He¡¯d have no other choice to bow to your strength¡ª¡±


    Lang slapped his chest. ¡°Zatirah knows my heart, Princess! And it is the heart of a warrior ¡ª a loyal warrior; the heart of a champion who accepts humility when he is humble, the heart of a man who wouldn¡¯t go against his words!¡±


    Princess Lin sighed. ¡°You know, sometimes I wish you were a little like me; flexible and not so¡­¡± she gestured with her arms. ¡°Urgh!¡±


    Lang smiled. ¡°If I was flexible, you wouldn¡¯t trust me. The Matriarch wouldn¡¯t trust you with me.¡±


    He walked up to the tent flap, called one of his teammates, and had him run an errand.


    ¡°He will be here soon. Please Princess, show some courtesy,¡± he pleaded.


    Princess Lin glared at him but nodded curtly. She sat properly in her chair, crossing her legs. At that moment she looked so much like her mother, he couldn¡¯t help but smile.


    Moments passed in silence as they waited. Soon, Jerome arrived.


    ¡°I¡¯m here,¡± he said, opening the tent flap and entering.


    ¡°You are welcome, Jerome,¡± Lang said from his meditative position on a floor pillow. ¡°I called for you to extend a gesture of respect and appreciation.¡±


    His guest slowly sat opposite him on another pillow, the action almost methodical and¡­ sensual. Lang did a double-take at his guest. He watched the young Sprout closely after that.


    ¡°It is customary to serve tea to guests where I¡¯m from,¡± he said with a wave of his hand. A small ancient-looking ¡®chabudai¡¯ appeared between them already set with a tea set. ¡°I¡¯m impressed. On seeing this for the first time, one would flinch and prepare to attack.¡±


    His guest shrugged saying nothing. Lang smiled, pouring them both tea. They drank. His guest watched his every move like a hawk while he closed his eyes to appreciate the tea.


    ¡°It¡¯s delicious,¡± Jerome said. ¡°With a hint of mint.¡±


    His voice was deeper than he remembered. Something important was happening with Jerome and it was not the kind of change he¡¯d seen before. He¡¯d heard rumors of such changes, but only that they happened during Mhen Agrh¡¯ur.


    ¡°You¡¯re staring,¡± Jerome said, breaking him out of his thoughts. ¡°Both of you.¡±


    Princess Lin shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Her face was flushed and her eyes were tracking Jerome¡¯s every move. Lang knew that expression.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, Princess. Please give us some privacy,¡± Lang said.


    ¡°Wha¡ª¡±


    Lang glared at her. If she wasn¡¯t seeing what Jerome was doing to her, she was better off not being close to him. She huffed and left the tent in annoyance.


    He looked back at his guest who was in thought. After a while, he coughed to get Jerome¡¯s attention.


    ¡°Sorry about that,¡± Jerome said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you like you told me, Jerome,¡± Lang said, looking him in the eye. ¡°You¡¯re different.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± came Jerome¡¯s answer.


    ¡°You know?!¡± Lang was surprised at that. He wanted to ask some more questions but Jerome spoke first.


    ¡°I would prefer it if you don¡¯t speak about this to anyone. And I don¡¯t believe this was the reason you asked to see me.¡±


    Lang relaxed in thought. This was good. Not great for a bargain but good as a favor. ¡°I would speak nothing of it. And yes, that wasn¡¯t why I wanted to speak with you.¡±


    He refilled their cups.


    ¡°Have you ever witnessed the birth of a Spirit Realm artist, Jerome?¡±


    If Jerome was surprised at the question, he did a very good job at masking it.


    ¡°So you would like me to witness yours,¡± his guest said, picking up his tea cup.


    It wasn¡¯t the question it should have sounded like. Lang recognized the subtle play of power between them as they both tried to appear as the one with authority.


    ¡°I would like you to attend mine,¡± he said with a nod. ¡°The Alignment would be the best time for it.¡±


    Jerome paused, teacup halfway to his mouth. Both their gazes remained fixed on one another and Lang could have sworn everything around him thrummed with life and stilled in the same instance. He forced himself not to look away but smiled instead.


    Jerome looked away and drank. Victory¡­ small though it may be.


    ¡°That¡¯s actually very smart,¡± Jerome said. ¡°The immense energy of the Alignment to draw from and a prepared soul¡­ you might as well become the most powerful Spirit Realm artist Vorthe has ever known. I do sense the wisdom of the Matriarch in this.¡±


    It was Lang¡¯s turn to still. There was no commanding presence to his pause though. And Jerome went about drinking his tea.


    Lang observed his guest for any sign of malice. He found none. But their discussion wasn¡¯t going the way he expected. Jerome¡¯s words pointed at him knowing more than a mere Sprout about the Spirit Realm.


    ¡°That¡¯s very astute of you. I want to say that maybe you could learn a thing or two about the Spirit Realm when you witness my advancement but it seems you may know a lot more than I do.¡±


    ¡°Not at all. Congratulations by the way,¡± Jerome said with a smile.


    How clever.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Lang said with a smile of his own, masking his disappointment. That would have been a very good way to find out how much Jerome knew. ¡°And thank you for accepting my invitation. I still owe you, Jerome. I will always remember that. Until such time that I can pay back my debt to you.¡±


    Jerome frowned. ¡°Well, I guess I owe you too. I would deal with my situation. And don¡¯t worry about me getting involved with the women. I will restrain myself.¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡± Lang stood and his guest followed suit. He escorted Jerome outside before going back to meditate. His mind wanted to worry about what Jerome¡¯s ¡®appeal¡¯ might mean and the effects it would have on his teammates.


    Lang forced the worry away. If anything, Jerome had given his word. And words were a man¡¯s currency of trust. He would trust the young Sprout. If he broke that trust, he¡¯d deal with him. And this time, he wouldn¡¯t underestimate him. But he wondered.


    How in Zatirah¡¯s name am I going to be able to defeat such a monster?

 139. Melee

    ¡°Would you rather kill yourself under that waterfall, or would you come kill some enemies?¡±


    Jerome looked up. It had been five days since he last saw her. ¡°Nyx. Where have you been?¡±


    She raised an eyebrow at him. Jerome looked away. It wasn¡¯t his place to question her about what she did with her time. He wasn¡¯t her boss or master.


    ¡°Come,¡± Nyx said, turning midair. ¡°Your enemies are almost to the edge of the dark forest. I¡¯d like them to enter the forest but there seems to be a conflict of interests amongst them.¡±


    Expectation rose in him. Jerome rose into the air. Finally, he had something to do. Somewhere to put all the energy bubbling inside him. They shot towards the exit and out into the dark forest. Within a short time, they were within half a dozen miles to the edges of the dark forest.


    Jerome couldn¡¯t stretch his senses far enough so he activated the pod of Hezvar inside him. His senses expanded covering a large area. He looked at Nyx to see if she noticed but she was busy eyeing his enemies. At least that was what it looked like.


    Jerome stretched his senses ¡ª with the aid of the pod of Hezvar ¡ª beyond the dark forest. He found that they were vastly outnumbered. Different races he¡¯d never seen before, from orcs to strange beastkin, stood at the edge of the dark forest arguing and fighting, some going as far as killing others.


    The sad thing was, they were all males. More than three hundred giant brutes, the lot of them. All clamoring to enter the forest and hunt him down. Half a mile behind them were females of every race he could think of. They had either come to watch the show or join in. But from what he could see, many of them were in heat. Glazed eyes and rosy cheeks came into view as he zoomed in on them. Some were even dripping wet between their thighs.


    They were starved for masculine flesh.


    At a time when Terra Praeta needed the males of the different species, Muna had compelled these to their deaths. She must have known something like this wouldn¡¯t go unnoticed. If he fought out in the open and killed these males, Terra Praetans may never forgive him for such a massacre. But the situation could be salvaged. If they managed to draw them into the forest, he and Nyx could subdue them without harming them too much.


    ¡°Nyx,¡± he said. ¡°These beings are under compulsion to kill me and Csala. But we don¡¯t have to kill them.¡±


    Nyx turned to him with a feral glint in her eyes, one he had only seen when she was still in her dragon form. ¡°You¡¯re not serious, are you? If you don¡¯t kill them, they will kill you.¡±


    ¡°Believe me, I want to kill them,¡± Jerome said. ¡°But knowing what I know now about the imbalance in the ratio of males to females on Terra Praeta, I don¡¯t want to skew that balance more than it already is.¡±


    Nyx snorted. ¡°Don¡¯t concern yourself with things like that, love. That is for Mother Nature to deal with.¡±


    That only strengthened his conviction as her words brought his oath to Mother Nature to the forefront of his mind. ¡°And you¡¯ve seen me commune with Mother Nature,¡± he said. ¡°You should at least assume I¡¯d care for her concerns.¡±


    Nyx¡¯s only reaction to that was a slight frown on her brows.


    ¡°Try not to kill if you don¡¯t need to.¡±


    Nyx scowled at him and Jerome held her gaze. The forest around them suddenly stilled, as if it hadn¡¯t been silent a moment ago. Jerome refused to look away. But she must have seen something in his eyes ¡ª defiance, he was sure, and finality. He wasn¡¯t going to argue with her. He couldn¡¯t stop her either. But then he wouldn¡¯t trust her anymore.


    He saw in her eyes the moment she realized she couldn¡¯t convince him otherwise. Nyx looked away with a cute pout.


    ¡°Suit yourself,¡± she muttered.


    The mob of different races split into three groups and began entering the forest from three different points. Their grunts as the darkness of the forest suppressed their essence reached him from the dozen-mile distance between them. Jerome knew what they were feeling now; the heaviness that overcame him when he stepped into the darkness, the sluggishness and numbness of his digits. He was amazed at the capabilities of the Hezvar, though. He didn¡¯t miss any detail of everything they did, even as dark as their surroundings were.


    Nyx vanished into the darkness. Jerome moved forward as well, muffling his steps with psychic energy. He took off his long coat so he could move around more freely. There was still a lot of distance between him and the closest monster. Monster because it acted nothing like a sapient being entering unknown territory for the first time ¡ª like it was being urged on by its bestial instincts. It had the skeletal frame of a man down to its toes, almost. From the way it moved, Jerome reckoned it had the gait of an ape. And its limbs were a touch longer than normal. Long red hair framed its skull, lower face, neck, and chest region ¡ª like a lion¡¯s mane. But that was where the similarities ended. Its skin was a red-orange color and was covered in protruding bone-like armor. It also had giant tusks protruding out of the sides of its lower jaw.


    Ogre¡­


    The name came from his memory. Jerome couldn¡¯t help but take another look at the strange bone-like covering. From his memory, ogres had strange abilities that helped them a great deal in the regenerative department. No. Their regenerative abilities helped them acquire strange abilities. It wouldn¡¯t be too much of a stretch to think the ogre grew this bone armor out of its own bones!


    That revelation shook him a bit. It would mean he was going to be dealing with a creature that was next to impossible to kill due to its powerful regenerative abilities.


    The ogre moved fast, crashing through the forest with no care in the world. It was quite agile and completely ripped with muscles in the few openings Jerome could see in the bone armor.  A gigantic centipede dove out of the ground to attack the ogre. It was fast. But Jerome watched as a blade made out of pink bone grew out of the top of the ogre¡¯s fist, starting from its wrist. The ogre sliced the centipede in two with a wide swing of the bone blade.


    Jerome watched as the centipede¡¯s chitin began to melt from the point of contact with the blade.


    Poison¡­ figures.


    He shot forward, covering the distance in less than five seconds. The ogre wasn¡¯t ready when he zoomed past it, slicing through its forearm ¡ª skin, muscle, and bone. It was hard! The creature was tougher than he had imagined. And standing closer to it, he found it was at least five times his height. One of its fists was the girth of his waist. Its body felt¡­ ¡®dense¡¯ to his senses; just like how Nyx felt to his senses ¡ª even if she was a lot more compact. He was only able to put it in context now that he had another being to compare to her.


    ¡°You missed,¡± Nyx¡¯s voice reached him. He resisted the urge to look around, standing several feet behind the ogre.


    The ogre roared as pain flooded its senses a moment too late ¡ª a hellish, monstrous roar that shook the forest, stirring the different creatures that lived in the forest.


    ¡°I¡¯m experimenting,¡± Jerome responded normally. He chucked the forearm into his void space.


    Chaos ensued the next moment. Jerome wasted no time. He donned his armor, limiting the cycling of essence inside it to just beneath the surface. Insectoid monsters tried to overrun him but he sliced through them all with Suzie.


    The ogre sensed him and turned around with quick reflexes, ignoring the monsters clamoring to take a bite of him and scattering them everywhere. It launched itself at him. Even as it moved through the air to reach him, snarling with its wide open maw filled with sharp fangs, the dripping blood from the cut stopped and its hand grew¡­ right before Jerome¡¯s very eyes.


    They both punched each other in the face¡­ the force of their punches sent them both careening in opposite directions. Jerome¡¯s had come with a flash of light.


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    Thankfully, his armor had helped to absorb the kinetic energy from the punch. He only felt a slight sting on his face. The ogre on the other had received the full force of a non-physical but equally powerful punch. Jerome¡¯s punch wouldn¡¯t have reached it otherwise, given that it was too large and had the advantage in reach. The ogre lay on the ground, groaning as it clutched its head. One of the many horns on its head was cracked and broken in places.


    As Jerome walked toward it, he saw the horn repair itself. The ogre stood on shaky legs angrier than ever before. It huffed out a breath as it turned to face him. Jerome saw intelligence in its eyes. It was mad that such a puny human could match it.


    Its eyes suddenly turned red and heat poured off it in waves¡­ which was quickly swallowed by the darkness.


    ¡°Yeah, you walked into that one,¡± Jerome said with a shrug. He didn¡¯t know if the ogre understood its situation, but judging by the befuddled look it spotted, it had an idea. But that only enraged it more.


    The ogre shot toward him with another bone-like claw, much like the one he had used on Hedon a while back. It couldn¡¯t hurt to use it again. Suzie formed a claw similar to the ogre¡¯s on his fist ¡ª albeit tiny compared to the size of the ogre¡¯s ¡ª and they both met claw to claw. He sliced through the bone claw like it was lard. Jerome followed up with another slice to its thigh.


    Though the ogre was fast, he was faster. He ran circles around it slicing through skin and bone at every opportunity. Their clash destroyed the forest around them. The ogre fought like it was possessed ¡ª no tactic or skill, just raw strength. Jerome matched it. Other monsters were approaching and soon he¡¯d have his hands full. Best to get this over with.


    With a flick of his wrist, Suzie wrapped around the ogre¡¯s neck. It tried to grasp the thin wire but that was impossible with its large claws ¡ª claws that were as thick as they were sharp.


    The ogre ran at him. Determine to run him through. Jerome moved away from its path and tightened the string around its neck. Blood flow to its brain was quickly cut off and it stumbled and fell. Jerome threw it into his void plane, leaving the string taut around its neck. One could never be too careful with a monster that could regenerate from almost anything.


    He turned to face the incoming tide of monsters that wanted to kill him. He needed to leave the forest so he could connect with Achilles. He had questions about how to set them free from their bonds. Even though he knew no way to do it.


    Jerome rushed forward plowing through different monsters. He didn¡¯t wait to fight them, just barreled through them as they came at him. Soon they turned around and chased after him as they noticed he didn¡¯t stay. But they were too much. The tide they created with their charge stopped him dead in his tracks.


    He let Suzie lose the next instance and seven two-feet long blades whirled through the mass of monsters, cutting a path for him. But even that was not enough and he could feel the suppression of the darkness setting in.


    A giant fist came at him and he punched the owner into a tree, which cracked on impact. Claws and more fists came next. Jerome dodged and weaved through them, settling into a rhythm. His flying blades whirled back and forth and he used them for both offense and defense.


    A troll caught two of the blades. He commanded the blades caught by the troll to melt away from its fist and hold it captive, taking the monster temporarily out of the fight. Jerome lashed out with a whip at a group of monsters. The tip of the whip sizzled with essence but the essence was consumed by the darkness a moment later. He sighed. His body and senses had settled into ¡®battle mode¡¯ that he had acted on impulse, forgetting what happened to other forms of essence in the darkness. He¡¯d have to do without essence.


    No pressure.


    But the monsters pressured him intensely. Loud bangs shook the forest from a distance and he could hear roars. At least Nyx was doing better than he was. He caught a giant fist, stunning the monster who punched at him. It was a bearkin, or at least that¡¯s what it looked like. The male was at least nine feet tall and as wide as a tree, with a beer gut and more muscles than he might ever be able to gain throughout his life. He was hairy but not to the point of being ¡®furry¡¯ ¡ª if that made sense. And although he mostly looked human ¡ª except for the bearlike ears on his head ¡ª he still had facial features that made him look like a bear. And a lot of facial hair.


    Jerome punched him in the gut, sending him sailing through the air and knocking over half a dozen monsters.


    That gave him a reprieve in one direction so he moved, unleashing his whips and using them to grab, throw, and lash the monsters here and there, sending some crashing into trees and the dirt. It would have been comical to watch if he wasn¡¯t in the dark forest.


    Jerome took to the trees and the monsters pursued. He cut them down one at a time making sure to leave them as intact as he could. Some weren¡¯t so lucky though. A monster that resembled the feline version of the unbound came at him. It was slender and tall, with a graceful body covered in dark gray fur. It swiped at him with three-inch claws. It was fast but Jerome dodged. Then he threw a punch at it which it dodged, and went around and under the branch they were standing on like a snake. It was so fast. It came at him from behind but Jerome expected the move.


    He moved and the creature didn¡¯t expect him to match it in speed. It burst upon impact with his fist. There was a whole pack of them standing back and watching but as soon as the dominant male died by his hand, they rushed him, frothing at the mouth as they witnessed the horrific death of one of their kind.


    Jerome took off. He zoomed past more monsters. But the feline-looking unbound were just as fast in the trees as they were on land. They tackled him out of the trees and he fell gracelessly, crashing through thick branches as he went. The felines, however, moved like they were in their element, landing on branches with otherworldly grace and shooting downward in pursuit of him.


    Jerome extended Suzie like a whip to stop his fall. The felines attacked but he swung away, sending his blades to stop them¡­ or at least slow them down. They scattered, trying to shake off the blades. That would keep them busy for a while. But the rest of the monsters had caught up by now.


    The troll from before ¡ª still wrapped in living steel ¡ª barreled into his much smaller frame midair and the impact jarred his bones. Jerome grunted, pushing the slight pain aside as he sailed through the air. The bearkin caught him in a bear hug before he could slow his momentum.


    Seriously?! The bear of a male squeezed, wanting to pop him like a watermelon. He sliced through the bearkin¡¯s arms, almost severing them. That forced him to let go. Jerome was frustrated but he didn¡¯t want to kill unnecessarily. He kicked the bearkin in the nuts, bowling him over ¡ª low blow, but it was effective.


    The felines were waiting for him. Six of them stood on bipedal, digit-grade legs, blocking his path out of the dark forest. He could see the rage in their eyes.


    He called forth his blades ¡ª which had somehow been embedded into trees and couldn¡¯t set themselves free. How that had happened, he didn¡¯t know. They shot out of the bushes to hover around him as the monsters surrounded him.


    Nobody attacked. Some used the break to rest on the trees around, trying to catch their breaths. Others seemed to be glancing at the bearkin and troll from time to time, who were both healing and trying to get rid of his constraints respectively. They were waiting for them to give the order to attack, he realized. Jerome scanned the crowd. Beside the troll and bearkin with their impossibly tough skins and strength, only the felines were much of a threat to him ¡ª as a pride. And that was because of the darkness in the forest.


    The felines looked like they couldn¡¯t wait any longer. Their disheveled gray fur stood on end with every breath they took. They clenched and unclenched their fist, growling continuously with rage-filled eyes. A few breaths of the stalemate was all they could bear. One of them unleashed its claws and roared. The rest followed suit and they attacked together.


    ¡°Fucking great,¡± Jerome muttered. His hovering blades went to work. The rest of the monsters attacked as well. He knew if he let them, they¡¯d overwhelm him. But Jerome let them. The felines got to him first, clawing and kicking. They were fast, and they dodged around his attacks.


    Jerome built up a surge of light in his armor. As the pressure built up, so did the intensity of light. An orc roared and swung a huge stone axe diagonally at him. Its eyes had gone completely black and Jerome could see veins of black protruding from its skin. He looked around as he dodged to see the same phenomenon happening to many of the monsters.


    The darkness had begun affecting them.


    He caught the orc¡¯s arm and shouldered it as he pulled on its arm. The orc tumbled over his shoulder and he swung the monster around him like a weapon as it lost its footing. The felines went over and under the swinging monster with impressive agility. They clawed at Jerome every which way but his armor absorbed all the impact. He tried to grab some of them but failed. He expected that.


    The felines were fast, agile, and flexible. Where he lacked flexibility, he had strength. And they knew it. Hence why they did their best not to take a hit from him or all that would remain of them would be pulp.


    Something hit him in the back, taking him off balance. The impact was so great that Jerome was knocked face-first into a tree. The thing hit him in the back of the head again and again, cracking the tree after the third strike. Was that a club? Splinters flew everywhere as Jerome turned around. He pushed off the tree to face his assailants. A huge club came at him and was near to his face already. Jerome ducked and ran under the club. Another orc was at the haft end of it. He sliced into its neck as the felines took him off balance.


    As Jerome hit the ground, his light technique activated, pushing the monsters and the darkness away. It also temporarily blinding the monsters. He was shining like a dying star. With the temporary absence of the darkness, his runes were able to work effectively again.


    He teleported away. Appearing three hundred feet close to the exit of the dark forest. Jerome shot out of the forest and onto the snow-covered ground. He breathed the air of the North where he lay, enjoying the momentary reprieve. It was cold but unlike the stifling air of the dark forest, it was refreshing.


    Achilles, he called. Achilles, can you hear me?


    ¡°Busy,¡± came the AI¡¯s answer.


    The next moment he felt Achilles touch his mind and new information flowed into him. Shit! Achilles was in trouble!

 140. My Name Is Tialana

    Jerome stood up quickly, his brain starting to think of how he could help. Achilles was in trouble. From what he glimpsed, Dashani, or whatever the creature he saw through Achilles¡¯s mind was¡­ consuming him!


    The monsters poured out of the dark forest snarling ferociously as they came. They had become too much trouble now, he stopped caring whether he hurt or killed any of them. Achilles needed him more than anything right now.


    It¡¯s a mental battle, isn¡¯t it, Achilles? That much, I can sense.


    He heard Achilles groan in his mind.


    Guide her to me, Achilles. Remember how you can¡¯t read my mind at certain times? Well, the Sovereign of Vorthe can¡¯t read my mind as well. That means I can stop her ¡ª whatever it is that she¡¯s doing to you. And if I¡¯m right, even hurt her psychically.


    ¡°Too dangerous,¡± Achilles replied.


    Dashani wants me, Achilles. There was no way you could have protected me from her for long. But trust me, I can get her to back off for now.


    The monsters were close now and the ground shook as they charged toward him. Jerome shot into the sky. They stopped to watch him hovering over them. Some jumped to catch him but they couldn¡¯t jump high enough.


    So none of you can fly, he thought. That was good. He kindled a flame in his hand and projected his voice. ¡°Listen, all of you. Muna is dead. The one who held you captive and bound you to herself has been defeated. Whatever impulse is urging you to take my head, can you not resist it?¡±


    A monster roared from below. ¡°Probably didn¡¯t understand a word I said,¡± he muttered. But he understood what the monster was trying to communicate. It was a challenge ¡ª a challenge to come down and fight them.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have time to deal with this,¡± he said. He was already wasting time as it were. The glow from the ball of flame intensified for a split second. Jerome stretched his arm toward the monsters, palm facing the mob. Recognition flashed in some of their eyes and he saw those with quick reflexes dash away a moment before a blue laser tore through the mob of monsters.


    The felines did something creative. They grouped themselves in twos and one in each group flung the other into the air in his direction.


    He snorted. ¡°If you can¡¯t fly, you¡¯re just as harmless as pigeons in the air.¡±


    He felt the need to teach them a lesson. Jerome flew toward the nearest. With a punch, he sent it sailing downward. He made sure not to punch too hard so as not to kill it in an instant. He shot downward and caught it, before hurling it into another. They both panicked. They were on a foreign battlefield now and had no footing.


    Jerome shot after the last. It had already passed in an arc through the point he was hovering in the air before. He caught it and smacked it on the head. The feline passed out from the blow. The remaining two were struggling to untangle themselves as they raced toward the ground. They made some very comical noises as they struggled with each other.


    Just before they hit the ground, Jerome hurled the one in his hand at them. It crashed into them and they hit the snow-covered ground with more force than they should have.


    Another group ran out of the forest from his right, the fear seeping out of their pores was almost overbearing. They were running away. Nyx shot out into the sky and torched them with a single breath of fire. The day turned to night for a split second as she did that. Her huge dragon body filled the sky and blocked out the evening sun.


    Jerome watched in awe, his own battle forgotten, as she flapped her giant wings and gathered black flame in her jaws to fire again. The ball of flame left her open jaws, surprising him ¡ª black as the night, it blackened the sky with a flash of darkness as it left her jaws. And burnt up everything it touched in an instant. His pursuers that were still left didn¡¯t have the time to scream before they were vaporized. The heat bathed him but did nothing to him.


    One thing came to mind as he watched the destruction below him. Noir¡¯s Black Flames. He¡¯d heard that phrase twice and now was seeing a living manifestation of black flames!


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome!¡± she shouted excitedly. Her voice, though deeper with a little more guttural tone, still sounded softer than the image of the dragon she portrayed¡­ and the carnage she wrought. She noticed his concentration and flew towards him. ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Achilles is in trouble. I need to concentrate to help him.¡±


    She looked at him like he had grown another head. ¡°If he can¡¯t solve his problems then you have no hope in solving them for him Jerome.¡±


    In the light of day, her dragon form was even more¡­ more. It was the image of a true apex predator. Nyx gave off a very oppressive aura that was hard to ignore.


    Which was what he most definitely did; he ignored her. He closed his eyes to calm his mind as he hovered in midair. He could only hope that none of his assailants could fly. It wouldn¡¯t be pleasant to take a beating while he was vulnerable. At least he still had his full armor on.


    All around him, the battle continued. Nyx¡¯s laughter and the blaze of her flames were all he heard. The essence in the air had turned chaotic, chasing away their on-lookers.


    If he could only find a way to connect to Achilles. Achilles was the one always connecting to him. Now was the time he needed the mind-calming stone to work some of those mysterious miracles. He hoped he could get it to do so. His concentration slowly bore fruit and little by little, the noise of the battle receded to the background.


    Jerome felt everything drop away and all that remained was his thoughts about the mind-calming stone. Its presence stirred in his mind like a giant waking up from deep slumber. He sensed a shift in its¡­ he had no words to describe what he sensed. Its presence grew in his mind. It was almost suffocating to feel. It wasn¡¯t overpowering him, just¡­ smothering him.


    All of a sudden, Jerome felt his mind sharpen, becoming crystal clear. The sounds of the battle that had receded to the back of his mind poured in again. His mind felt like it twisted around him and¡­ lifted? He had no way to describe the sensations he felt. All he knew was that he had clarity of thought and perception.


    He could sense Nyx. She was like a blazing bonfire in his mind ¡ª or more like a nuclear bomb. Others were shutting down or¡­ winking out before his senses.


    These are souls! He exclaimed to himself. He was sensing souls! Though he could see nothing, only pitch black.


    ¡°You are in the realm of the mind, Xerae¡­¡± Achilles¡¯ voice reached him like an echo. As if he was hearing the AI from inside a long tunnel. ¡°It¡¯s like your mind plane¡­ only it¡¯s on a global scale and contains all minds¡­¡±


    Achilles! Boy, am I glad to hear your voice!


    ¡°You should not be here, Xerae¡­ It¡¯s too dangerous and I wouldn¡¯t be able to protect you¡­¡± His voice sounded closer this time around.


    I have protection.


    ¡°Then open your mind¡¯s eye if you can and see¡­!¡±


    Jerome felt the weight of Authority in that last word! Suddenly, it was like scales fell off his eyes and the world shone brightly around him. No, not the world. This place was¡­ he looked around, trying to see if he recognized his surroundings. The ground was like darkness given substance and the sky?! It was a vast space filled with myriads of colors swirling and twisting together ¡ª not just blue!


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    The dark ground rose and fell in some places like hills. It formed towers that were high up in the air, some even breaking through the colorful clouds into the space beyond his sight. Jerome turned to take in the vastness of his surroundings.


    Everything moving in his view was either glowing or shining with energy ¡ª strange contraptions, monsters the likes he¡¯d never seen before, even the people, many of them fae, though they were too far away and too busy fighting to notice him. There were more beings in the distant sky doing battle. Their battle shook the sky ¡ª if one could call it the sky. It was a colorful storm of chaos.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have come here, Xerae.¡± Jerome turned at the sultry voice. A beautiful woman stood before him wearing the strangest armor he¡¯d ever seen. She was glowing just like her armor, which shifted around her continually.


    And she had called him ¡®Xerae¡¯.


    Jerome stared ¡ª gawked, really. She was drop-dead gorgeous. Tall and dark-skinned, with long, inky black flowing hair like the darkness beneath his feet. Her pouty upturned lips drew his eyes but the rest of her body was just as beautiful. Impossibly large, perky breasts embraced by her breastplate, slightly toned stomach, and curves that went on for days. Her long legs were full and her thighs thick and sexy.


    Jerome shook himself free of his stupor. He remembered when he first made contact with Achilles. It was a sultry, yet robotic female voice that greeted him before it deepened into the voice Achilles used now. A voice he was certain sounded like this one. There was no way this could be¡ª


    ¡°Yes, I am, Xerae,¡± she said with a sigh.


    ¡°Achilles?¡± he asked in unbelief. She nodded. ¡°How is it you look like a succubus?¡±


    ~~~


    Csala


    Sleeping off in the dark forest was the greatest mistake she had ever made. She¡¯d thought capturing Jerome was her biggest mistake but no. She did something even worse. She tried to console herself with the fact that the strange sleep had come over her all of a sudden and for some reason, she couldn¡¯t hold back. Someone¡­ or something must have caused it.


    Now she was trapped in her own mind, unable to leave. Csala could sense the psychic workings of her prison. It was unlike anything she had ever seen or experienced. It was woven too tight, and with dream aura that was on par with Muna¡¯s.


    She panicked. Maybe Muna had found her! Jerome said something about her Spirit still in existence! Csala tried to move but found movement impossible. She pushed her psychic energy to its limit but her prison didn¡¯t budge. She was cocooned inside some sort of spherical pod ¡ª or at least that was how it felt. But it only felt so because she couldn¡¯t feel her body. She felt immaterial.


    She kept pushing, trying new things that might work. Nothing worked. When she got tired, she stopped to rest her psychic energy for a while. This went on for a long time. She exhausted herself trying to find a way out more times than she could count. She passed out from exhaustion so many times that time lost its meaning.


    After so long, so many attempts without success, she wanted to give up. Frustration set in. All her life she had never suffered to this extent. Why was all this happening to her?


    Csala screamed.


    Suddenly she heard a voice. ¡°Csala¡­¡± it said. The voice was an echo of the real thing. Like it reached her from afar, through a tunnel. Feminine. ¡°Do not give up, Csala¡­¡±


    ¡°Who are you?¡± she called. ¡°Why am I here?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good¡­ keep talking...¡± it sounded closer. ¡°The more you speak, the better I can sense you to free you¡­¡±


    Csala clamped her mouth shut. Fear took over her again. Whatever this entity was, she wasn¡¯t going to blindly believe it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be like that, Csala. I¡¯m here to help. And Jerome needs your help too. Please, speak.¡±


    The voice was so much closer now, searching for her. If she made a peep it would find her. She heard it sigh.


    ¡°I know you can¡¯t see. Everywhere must be dark around you.¡± It took a deep breath. ¡°See¡­¡± it said.


    Csala felt so much power behind those words, she had no idea a being could wield power like that. But the next moment, it was like the darkness around her was peeled off her eyes like a cloth.


    She saw¡­ a battle going on in the sky! Myriads of armored beings, the likes of which she had never seen before clashed above her, shaking everything around her. Even the very air vibrated like it was exploding in her ears. She clamped her hands over her ears and groaned.


    ¡°There you are. You just had to make a sound to manifest fully, was all.¡±


    Csala looked up at the being. A dark-skinned succubus smiled down at her. She was tall. Almost as tall as Jerome. And the rest of her¡­ Csala frowned, looking away. She wasn¡¯t the jealous type but this succubus was a lot more beautiful than she felt. Like a goddess. A goddess in armor, fighting a war. Strange, glowing, shifting armor.


    The succubus chuckled. ¡°Do you know where you are?¡±


    She looked around but didn¡¯t recognize the landscape ¡ª the ground was darkness given substance ¡ª or the strange sky for that matter. It was the strangest place she¡¯d ever been ¡ª and she¡¯d been to strange places.


    ¡°Is this another void world?¡± she asked. Everything was strange to her senses too.


    ¡°No. This is the realm of the mind. We call it the First Heaven. It is where souls come to be purified after death. Well, that location is still higher up and completely on lockdown.¡±


    Csala gulped. ¡°Am¡­ am I¡­ dead?¡±


    The succubus laughed. ¡°No, you¡¯re not. But your body isn¡¯t really a body. It¡¯s the avatar of your mind. Muna has been working for someone very powerful and very dangerous. After Achilles, who¡¯s over there,¡± she pointed into the distance, ¡°destroyed her body and banished her soul here. Her spirit sought refuge in Dashani¡¯s embrace.¡±


    ¡°Achilles; I think I¡¯ve heard Jerome mention him. But Dashani? Who¡¯s Dashani?¡±


    ¡°You must have heard about the Mother, right? Devourer of males? Slaughterer of infants?... no? Nothing?¡±


    Csala shook her head.


    ¡°Why do you think there are so few males on Terra Praeta?¡±


    Csala nodded in comprehension. However, she still didn¡¯t know who this person was. And she hoped never to meet them.


    ¡°She¡¯s after Jerome.¡±


    Csala¡¯s heart stilled.


    ¡°Calm down, Csala. He¡¯s safe,¡± the succubus said. ¡°For now.¡±


    ¡°Then he¡¯s not safe,¡± she shot back. ¡°Is he here?¡±


    Csala took in her surroundings once more. She resisted the urge to cover her ears against the din of the battle going on above them. It did things to her senses that she had never felt before.


    ¡°You need to leave this place. I can send you back to your body. It¡¯s tucked away somewhere safe inside the dark forest.¡±


    The darkness covered everything she saw on land, rising in some portions of the land like hills and mountains, and dipping in others.


    ¡°Are you listening to me?¡± the succubus asked.


    ¡°What is your¡ª¡±


    Something crashed into the side of the hill they were standing on. Csala jerked, clenching her hands into fists to grip her swords. She gripped empty air. Shit. her swords should have appeared in her hands. She looked down at her fingers in panic. There was no storage ring on her.


    A simple-looking sword materialized in the succubus¡¯ hand and with a flick of her wrist, the¡­ creature?... was destroyed and turned into motes of prismatic light.


    ¡°We should find somewhere a little more private to talk,¡± her savior said. She watched as the sword in her hand turned into motes of light as well but were absorbed into her hand. ¡°I have a lot to tell you.¡±


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± Csala asked dumbfounded. The succubus had no storage ring on her as well. She took another look at the succubus again as if seeing her for the first time.


    The dark-skinned succubus only smiled at her and walked her a little distance away.


    ¡°What is your name? Are you¡­ are you dead? You sound like you¡¯ve been here a long time.¡±


    The world suddenly muted. Csala jerked away in fear, noticing the sudden silence that enveloped her. The succubus looked at her with a smile. Then she drew her close and hugged her. The succubus¡¯ bigger bust size smothered her. She was warm and felt motherly. Safe.


    Csala unintentionally embraced her back.


    ¡°The barrier is to make sure some people don¡¯t hear my true name,¡± the succubus said. ¡°Here, true names have so much power and hold over the fate of a soul. It is considered forbidden among the Ouranai to give out one¡¯s true name. But there are ways around these things so I would not be breaking any grave rules by giving you my true name. And it¡¯s fine to use my name in the material plane but here, it could become an existential crisis for me¡­¡±


    The succubus¡¯ gaze seemed to sharpen like a dagger piercing into her soul. ¡°I do not give you this gift lightly, little Csala¡­ You must swear to me by the heavens of Terra Praeta that you would not speak it here.¡±


    Csala gazed into her eyes as the weight of what the succubus said settled on her. Golden orbs of swirling light met her eyes, unblinkingly. She swallowed. ¡°I swear to you by the heavens of Terra Praeta that I will not use your true name here.¡±


    Bands of colorful light descended upon her the next moment, tightening around her, and were absorbed into her. Csala panicked a little but settled down.


    ¡°My name is Tialana.¡±

 141. The First Heaven

    Jerome stood there stunned. This truly was Achilles?! ¡°Uhm,¡± he said to focus his thoughts. ¡°I thought you were in trouble.¡±


    ¡°Nothing I can¡¯t fix, Xerae, so hurry along.¡± she shooed him.


    He narrowed his eyes on her. ¡°Dashani was consuming you, Achilles. Light! I have to give you a new name.¡±


    Achilles looked away. Then she pointed at the moving mass of bodies in the sky. ¡°There. That¡¯s where the avatar of my nexus is. This body with you now is just a copy. In a few more hours, Dashani would have completely consumed what I am. But there¡¯s no need to fret. I have already backed up my data in Sanctum.¡±


    ¡°And what if she used what she consumes from you to access Sanctum?¡±


    Achilles went silent. That told him all he needed to know.


    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s get to work, shall we?¡±


    The battle going on in the distance didn¡¯t look like it would be winding down anytime soon. There were so many explosions occurring in the distance that he feared he¡¯d be caught up in them and lose his¡­ soul. Apparently, this was an avatar of his soul.


    He didn¡¯t feel any different though. Except he had no core here. No essence.


    ¡°Fuck!¡± he said as realization hit him. ¡°I have no core in this form.¡±


    ¡°You have to leave, Xerae. I¡¯m protecting you as best as I can. But it wouldn¡¯t be long before she finds you.¡±


    Jerome turned around, bringing thoughts of the mind-calming stone to the forefront of his mind. He wasn¡¯t going anywhere until he saved Achilles. Warmth spread throughout his body. A warmth that stayed just underneath his skin. He looked at his hands, noticing that he was glowing mutely for the first time ¡ª a white glow.


    Achilles gasped in surprise and he smirked. He gave himself a once over. His avatar was putting on a black leather long coat, leather vest, pants, and thigh high boots. It made sense. This was one of his favorite get up. But unfortunately, none of it was enchanted.


    ¡°I came here to help you, Achilles. And that¡¯s what I¡¯ll do. Question though; if I get hit, do I die? I mean I¡¯m a soul, right? I don¡¯t have the protection of my body right now.¡±


    Achilles sighed. He needed to give her another name.


    ¡°What you are right now is an avatar of your soul, Xerae. And this place, like I said, is the realm of the mind. From your perception, it may look and feel close to the reality you know. That¡¯s because it¡¯s a reflection of what you know¡­ as is your body. But we don¡¯t have time¡ª¡±


    Something bulldozed into her ¡ª a glowing mammoth of a creature that appeared out of nowhere. It glowed with a dark purple light like black light. More of them came after him and Jerome leapt out of the way. The warmth inside him spread to the surface of his skin and the glow he was giving off intensified ¡ª white, with a blue hue. Just like Achilles had shown him when he was ramming Csala. He quickly turned his thoughts away from that event.


    His leap carried him far and he discovered he couldn¡¯t fly here. But the energy thrumming inside him could support his leaps or was it the gravity that was different here? Was there even gravity? Jerome shot after one of the glowing, mammoth creatures. A small one, smaller than the rest in the group but at least ten times his size.


    He punched it with a fist and felt his whole avatar nearly shatter. Jerome groaned in pain, pain that reached deep inside him. To a place, he could only call his core. But he made sure to keep his eyes open. The creature he punched was separated from the group. It wailed in pain as well and he noticed the point where his fist contacted the creature was turning into prismatic light. The rest went after Achilles, probably deeming her a greater threat.


    Jerome tried to understand the strange energy thrumming through his body. He felt like he recognized it but couldn¡¯t place a finger on it. He tried to take hold of it and direct it like he would essence.


    Nothing happened.


    Jerome dumped the idea. He didn¡¯t have the time to practice right now. At least the strange energy was still present inside him. He shot toward the wounded creature, which tried to escape. Jerome was having none of that.


    Clenching his right fist, he imagined channeling the strange energy to it ¡ª which never happened ¡ª as he took running leaps toward the creature. Its movement seemed weak and Jerome was gaining on it. Just before he punched it again, something intangible hit him, blasting him sideways.


    Jerome tried to look up but his eyes hurt. Purple energy washed over him in such great intensity that he couldn¡¯t even lift himself. Suddenly, it dawned on him where he had felt this strange energy. The mystic kin. Theirs were not as powerful as this though.


    But he was losing parts of himself. Jerome could feel it. And see it. Motes of white light were leaving his avatar!


    ¡°Xerae! Hold on!¡± Achilles screamed. ¡°Whatever you do, do not use your psychic energy!¡±


    Too late.


    He swirled his psychic energy around him, pushing the energy away. The white energy had receded below the surface of his form but it stirred again, filling him with warmth. Jerome imagined it as a cocoon to protect himself. But he knew it was his psychic energy protecting him. All was in the bid to take control of the energy. He began pushing back the purple energy.


    He sensed the creature he had wanted to punch flying toward him. It flew like it was swimming through the air ¡ª its gigantic frame twisting every which way, which slowed it down considerably. The thing was as big as a great white. Jerome waited, timing its arrival. Just before it barreled into him, he threw another punch at it. The creature burst into purple goo and splattered the dark ground. The goo was quickly absorbed as though the stain was never there.


    Achilles was beside him the next moment. ¡°How do you have access to this energy?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. And I also can¡¯t control it,¡± he said. ¡°But it reminds me of the arcane energy the mystic kin wield.¡±


    ¡°That it does.¡± She handed him a spear. ¡°That is a mental construct. If there was time, I would have taught you how to manipulate your dream aura to construct one.¡±


    ¡°I can now use my dream aura?¡±


    Achilles glared at him. ¡°Every living being potentially can, Xerae. Without access though, that¡¯s impossible. Some are at the level where they can access it but you, Xerae, are not! Which is one of the reasons why you shouldn¡¯t be here!¡±


    ¡°Access. Yes. Thanks. Sorry,¡± he said apologetically, caressing the spear. He¡¯d never seen Achilles angry like this before. Or he¡¯d never seen Achilles, period. The weapon felt light in his hand. Not what he was used to but it would do for now.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have used your psychic energy. Dashani would have picked up your psychic signature by now¡­ or even worse.¡±


    The creatures attacked.


    ~~~


    Csala


    ¡°Your imagination and will are key to using your dream aura to construct anything, Csala,¡± Tialana said as she combed through her red tresses. Her ministrations were so soothing that Csala wanted to just curl up in her embrace and sleep.


    They were sitting in a small hole in the ground. Or at least that was what it looked like. The ground was as dark as midnight and she couldn¡¯t figure out what it felt like. A barrier, maybe, but even the texture was alien to her senses.


    She had tried to construct a blade but she was too distracted. She leaned against Tialana¡¯s bosom, wanting to remain there forever.


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    ¡°You can create illusions, right?¡± Tialana asked and she hummed in reply. ¡°Well, the process is the same, only more intensive.¡±


    Csala sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t concentrate. Tell me about yourself, please.¡±


    ¡°Oh, where do I start? Have you ever heard the story of Ilyrrah, the fae?¡±


    Csala shook her head.


    ¡°What about the rumbling?¡±


    ¡°That, I¡¯ve heard of. It is said two enemies fought and their battle created the continents of Terra Praeta.¡±


    ¡°One of them was Ilyrrah,¡± Tialana said.


    Csala could hear the longing in her voice, which surprised her. ¡°I thought they were fae.¡±


    ¡°Yes, they were,¡± Tialana said. ¡°And I fell in love with one of them. He¡¯s the reason you have Jerome now.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Csala raised herself so she could see Tialana as she spoke.


    ¡°I see the cycle repeating itself again,¡± Tialana said. ¡°Ilyrrah once was the emissary of Mother Nature. He was tasked with stopping the Fae from destroying the world. Even if it meant the extinction of their species. I was beside him nearly the whole time. We loved each other.¡±


    Csala couldn¡¯t believe what she was hearing. ¡°Succubi mustn¡¯t¡ª¡±


    ¡°Succubi must not lie with men, else they lose their free will. Yes. I know the laws.¡± Tialana rolled her eyes.


    ¡°It is said that you held your daughter in your arms as you migrated south. Your daughter was this¡­ Ilyrrah¡¯s?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Csala. And from her I have you as a descendant,¡± Tialana said, giving her a motherly smile.


    Csala was too stunned to speak after that.


    ¡°That¡¯s why Muna was out to get your body at all cost. You are the only living succubus whose body was compatible with her soul¡­ because you both came from me. She lost her way. But you found Terra Praeta¡¯s new emissary. Just like I found Ilyrrah all those eons ago.


    ¡°Listen, Csala. We¡¯ve been deceived and lied to since the beginning. Succubi can have love in their lives. The god who named the planet was the one who created all this mess. For in the working of his power, he doomed us to never wield essence, to be bound like slaves to males ¡ª or females in the case of the incubi.


    ¡°But there is a way to change all of it.¡±


    Csala searched her eyes, waiting for her to continue. When Tialana said nothing, she asked, ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°Jerome would need to rename the planet.¡±


    ¡°That would kill him!¡±


    ¡°When he is stronger, Csala. For now, you have to do all you can to have him rename you ¡ª when he enters the Spirit Realm. It would be good practice for him. I now have a chance to speak with him. And I¡¯ll do right by you. For now, this is all I can tell you. Come. Form your weapon. It¡¯s time to meet up with Jerome.¡±


    ~~~


    They fought their way out of the group of creatures. The demons had tried to surround them and wear them down but together they were able to defeat every last one of them.


    ¡°What were those things anyway?¡± Jerome asked Achilles as they raced toward the battlefield in the distance. Not that he¡¯d be able to fight; the battle was going on high in the sky, and he couldn¡¯t fly. It would take a miracle to participate in it.


    But somewhere up there was Achilles¡¯ real avatar going through hell, probably.


    ¡°Dreams, if you¡¯d believe. They are the color of dream aura to your senses, right?¡± she replied.


    Jerome nodded. Achilles kept her gaze on him as they raced toward the battle.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Her gaze seemed to bore into him. ¡°What are you going to do when we get there, Jerome? How are you going to reach the battle? As you can see, it¡¯s happening in the sky¡­ and you can¡¯t fly here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll figure something out. I got myself here, didn¡¯t I?¡±


    Achilles said nothing after that. Uncomfortable silence took over the atmosphere. She flew next to him as he took running leaps. It was fast, but not as fast as flying.


    The battlefield approached slowly ¡ª or at least, underneath it. Achilles rose in altitude, away from him. Leaving him to find his own way. He was glad she hadn¡¯t attempted to help him out. It showed she trusted he was competent enough to get himself there. Plus¡­ his ego would¡¯ve taken a hit if she had.


    But now he was left alone to ponder what to do next. Jerome didn¡¯t bother thinking much about it. He applied his psychic energy, using it to power his next jump. He shot into the air like a shell from an artillery, approaching the battle with a single jump.


    Jerome¡¯s skull pounded the moment he got close. The chaos of the battle shook the world around him, he felt like his avatar was going to shatter again. His vision blurred as some of the warriors in the air moved faster than he could track; their clash with the army of monsters resulted in vast amounts of energy being displaced. Lightning crackled everywhere around him and explosions rippled across the battlefield, making him concussed.


    He shot over the battle, his eyes taking in the scene and Jerome felt his non-existent heart still. With his psychic energy, he changed direction, coming at the creature holding Achilles bound; an octopus-looking creature had its tentacles wrapped around Achilles. If the creatures they had fought were dreams, this was a nightmare! It was hideous to look at; a kraken from myths come alive! One of its giant eyes sighted him and the monsters which had been ignoring him pounced.


    The first to reach him was as thin as a blade. Seriously, its limbs and hair were shiny metal blades that cut into his avatar before he knew what was going on. The creature grinned wickedly at him. Jerome reached up with his spear but the blade in his arm was gone, with half his arm with it.


    He roared, pushing his psychic energy. The monster burst into prismatic light as he plummeted to the ground. His spear hit him in the face and he quickly grabbed a hold of it. Monsters were fighting off a Fae army who were trying to stop whatever the octopus was doing. Jerome sliced through an unsuspecting monster on his way down.


    He was plummeting fast. And the rest of his arm was diffusing, breaking away into motes of white light. Jerome held onto his stomp, his spear to his chest as he raced toward the darkness that was the ground. He didn¡¯t feel pain but he knew he had to do something or he was finished. The strange energy inside him was pulsing in him and spreading warmth so he concentrated on it, closing his eyes.


    Jerome heard the screech of a creature that dove down toward him. He kept his eyes closed but his psychic energy active. He tried to reach for the strange energy inside him again to no avail. The creature was close; he could sense it. But this one was different. Denser. Stronger.


    He swirled his psychic energy around him, aiming, preparing. He couldn¡¯t miss. With a pulse, he shot it at the creature after him. It left him like a laser, shooting far faster than anything he¡¯d ever shot.


    The creature dodged ¡ª too bad. Jerome felt himself jerked downward from the kickback of the shot. He opened his eyes in surprise. He missed but he learned something new. The creature pushed off nothing, the space behind it warping slightly as it shot downward faster. Jerome noticed it was like the previous one he destroyed ¡ª body, sleek and blade-like. Its limbs were actual blades. A version 2.0, maybe.


    He was closer to the ground now, he could sense it. Enough battle had trained him to use his perception on everything around him, every time. Just before it barreled into him, he pushed his psychic energy sideways, moving out of the way. The creature followed as though it could predict his every move. Jerome pushed again, dancing around. He needed to master it¡­ make it like flying. As it was now, he was clumsy in the air. Fast, but clumsy.


    Suddenly, the creature pushed off the air again. It was upon him in an instant. Jerome spun his spear, deflecting the bladed arm of the creature. Now that he saw it clearly, it reminded him of the Children of the Mother. Classic.


    The spinning of his blade helped to delay the inevitable as he fell ¡ª for now. But for how long? He was running out of time. He needed to think; to be creative. He shot a psychic blast at the creature again. It spun in the air, the invisible energy grazing the back of its arm.


    Success. Small, though it may be. Dream aura bled off the point of contact. The creature ¡ª demon really ¡ª roared in rage. That was what he was going to call them. Jerome pushed off the air toward it, impaling it with his spear before it could move out of the way.


    They fell. And bounced off the ground, hard. Jerome used the demon to break his fall. But it was a hardy bastard. Even the spear impaling it did little to slow it down. It clawed at him, pulling and trying to bash his head into the ground with its bladed arms. Jerome pulled his spear out of it as they bounced off the ground again. They rolled down a hill as they fought. But with only one hand it was hard to keep a demon with four blades at bay. And it was fast as hell.


    The demon impaled him and Jerome felt his insides begin to melt. It hurt like hell. There was no pain compared to it.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± he screamed. He spun his spear to deflect one of the bladed arms but a lower limb stabbed him in the thigh, pinning him to the ground.


    ¡°How foolish you are, boy!¡± it hissed at him in a loud whisper. The voice was feminine, raspy, and filled with contempt.


    ¡°Dashani?¡±


    The demon was taken aback at the mention of the name. Jerome had figured it was a clone of the Mother or she was talking through it. He sliced through the limb pinning him down but the creature grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up as its limb fell away.


    ¡°I should thank you,¡± Dashani said. ¡°For delivering yourself to me.¡±


    She slammed him on the ground and Jerome felt the core of his being convulse. He was bleeding light from many different wounds now. His vision was starting to swirl.


    ¡°Fuck you,¡± he croaked out.


    Her right bladed arm transformed into a hand and grabbed him by the lapel of his long coat. ¡°With pleasure.¡±


    Her left bladed arm stabbed him in the heart. Pain, unlike anything he¡¯d ever felt, radiated through him. Jerome screamed. He held onto the blade arm wanting to push it out. With his waning strength, all he could do was hang on to it.


    Jerome felt the warmth in his core recede to his heart. Or where his heart should be. Where he was stabbed. There was no heartbeat. But there was pain. So much pain. Warmth too, but that was around his heart ¡ª his soul, perhaps. The rest of him was going cold; going stiff. He felt so exhausted. He tried to keep his eyelids open to no avail.


    ¡°Welcome to the First Heaven, human,¡± Dashani said. ¡°Your graveyard. You should be honored.¡±

 142. Lucky Bastard

    City Of Alva. South Of Vorthe.


    Nolan Alvric


    ¡°Are you possessed, Nolan?¡±


    Nolan Alvric raised an eyebrow at the sudden question ¡ª and insult ¡ª from the Matriarch he was trying to convince to join him in bringing down Vorthe. Fei Jia would be an asset when they went to war with Vorthe.


    ¡°No, I am not, Jia,¡± he replied. ¡°I merely want to rid myself of Vorthe once and for all.¡±


    She shook her head with an expression of pity, her long black locks moving with every motion. ¡°You should have known that you¡¯d be fighting a losing war. I will not help you, Nolan.¡±


    Nolan narrowed his eyes at her as if he could pressure her into submitting to him through the projection on the wall. He couldn¡¯t risk meeting her in person, so the only other option was through a transmission crystal.


    ¡°No, Jia. This time things are different. Vorthe wouldn¡¯t survive Alvric. I only extend a hand out of courtesy. With or without your help, I would bring down Vorthe; mark my words!¡±


    ¡°Then do whatever suits you, Nolan. I¡¯m not interested in your war.¡±


    He noticed she didn¡¯t mention joining Vorthe¡¯s side. But that didn¡¯t mean if they called, she wouldn¡¯t rally her men to fight against him.


    ¡°Then remember this day, Jia,¡± he spoke with all the authority of the Patriarch, he was. ¡°For it will not come again. And when I¡¯m done getting rid of Vorthe, I will be coming for you.¡±


    A slow, mocking smile spread across her face but he ignored it.


    ¡°A word of caution though. Vorthe has a nightmare of a creature in their keeping. Caged. Yet, they let it loose from time to time¡­ to sow chaos and destruction in the kingdom¡ª¡±


    ¡°Empire, Nolan,¡± Jia corrected. There was a smugness to her words that grated on his nerves but he held back any retort.


    ¡°I planned to find this monster. To kill it, or tame it if possible. I had been planning this for decades. Such a creature, if tamed, would be a great addition to one¡¯s force¡­


    ¡°Only to find out that Vorthe sent him with our children to Terra Praeta.¡±


    Jia¡¯s expression remained calm, tranquil like a lake. But he knew that on the inside, she was anything but. He had chosen his words carefully and he knew she recognized who he was talking about. After all, he had said ¡®he¡¯ and not¡­ ¡®it¡¯.


    ¡°That is quite the accusation, Nolan.¡±


    Nolan didn¡¯t respond. He held her gaze as Jia held his. The silent communication between them went beyond words. He didn¡¯t have to say anything to prove his accusations. She could either take it and do her due diligence, or risk getting caught off guard.


    ¡°Good eve, Jia.¡±


    Nolan cut the transmission. She was too relaxed. There was no reason for her to be, especially with the Argonaut on Alvric¡¯s side. Except she had something that was just as powerful as the Argonaut on her side. Because at the end of the day, power was all that mattered.


    Nolan chuckled to himself. What was he thinking? If Fei had something that could compare to the Argonaut, they would have broken away from Vorthe ages ago. The Fei that used to look so big in his eyes were now like pests. Power truly was everything. He could convince his father to implore the Argonaut to wreak havoc in her lands in the East. Maybe then she¡¯ll be willing to talk.


    Nolan stood up from the high backed chair in the transmission room. He glanced around at the red tapestries on the four walls shimmering with silencing scripts to help keep his conversations a secret. He couldn¡¯t be too careful. Vorthe might be listening.


    As he left the transmission room his spirit stirred inside him with a warning, like an impression of bad things to come. Whatever it was, he couldn¡¯t decipher. Nolan was a shrewd man and his recent meeting with his father, the Ancient One, had driven home the fact that he needed to be more careful in whom he dealt with. Right now the number of people he could trust even in his own household was less than a handful.


    The ornate halls of Castle Alvric echoed with his footsteps as he reinforced the scripts on his robes, scanning the whole building for trouble, yet he found none. He kept himself alert and on edge should he happen on an incident that could cause chaos or put a dent in all their plans.


    ¡°Hedon,¡± he said aloud, speaking into the transmission bracelet on his wrist. ¡°Meet me in my chambers.¡±


    His message will be passed to his son. The Ancient One had ordered that he listen to his side of things. That little child he attacked at Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon some years ago was the devil he was looking for. He¡¯d been a blind fool all along.


    ¡°Never again,¡± he grunted. He¡¯d never be caught with his pants down again. The next step would be to plan how to trap the devil. They already know where he is after all. And he will be coming back soon.


    His transmission bracelet vibrated the next moment, and he scanned it to reply to his son.


    ¡°Meeting in the war room. Now!¡± the Ancient One¡¯s mental voice boomed in his mind. ¡°The Church has responded. The Judges have arrived!¡±


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta. The Northern Hemisphere.


    Nyx


    There was little she disliked more than unpredictable people. And Jerome was placing himself into that category right now. Why would he think helping Achilles was a good idea? Achilles was more powerful than anything she had ever encountered, the thought of facing him again didn¡¯t sit well with her.


    ¡°You better stay alive, Jerome. You hear me?¡± she said to his meditating body. Nyx knew he couldn¡¯t hear her. She had sensed his soul leaving his body ¡ª how he achieved that was beyond her. But maybe that¡¯s why Ilyrrah chose him; why Mother Nature chose him¡­ why Aether chose him. She still couldn¡¯t believe her luck in being the one to find him.


    Nyx had only looked at the prophecy of Ilyrrah¡¯s Chosen as something far off that had nothing to do with her. But here she was, bound to him until he led her to The Beginning ¡ª her Beginning. Nyx shook off the nostalgia that had come over her. Now was not the time to appreciate fate and its dramatic twists that made bastard dragons lucky.


    She knew where Jerome would be since he wasn¡¯t dead. And it was most likely a dangerous place to be. She looked around at the still-burning masses of flesh and bones. The carnage she¡¯d wrought today wouldn¡¯t be forgotten ¡ª ever. She smiled. This was the best way to earn respect. The denizens of the North had forgotten there was a terror in the dark forest. And now they had paid the price for entering her territory.


    Her eyes settled on Jerome¡¯s form which sat midair in a meditative pose. She frowned. She should join him there; there was no other way to keep this stubborn Sprout alive. But dragons weren¡¯t known for their mental or psychic acuity.


    Nyx plucked him from the air and shot toward the void world at the center of the dark forest. She cloaked them both from the eyes and senses of the Sprouts as she raced into the void world and straight for the pool beneath the hovering mountain.


    When she reached the bottom, she created a bubble of air for them to breathe. She settled into a meditative position opposite Jerome. Now it was time to try. At least she could find out how talented she was at elevating her mind.


    ¡°This better be worth it, Jerome. Or I¡¯ll tan your hide,¡± she said, scowling at his soulless body.


    With a deep breath, she calmed her heartbeat to a crawl, centering her mind so she could prepare her soul to enter The First Heaven.


    ~~~


    Terra Praeta. The First Heaven.


    Warmth pulsed through Jerome. His avatar soaked up the energy. Dashani kept talking. About the things she was going to do to the denizens of Terra Praeta.


    ¡°First. I would take the elves and the faen; those ungrateful descendants of mine. They live in the eastern realm, far away from me; enjoying life without war, without struggle. War would be upon them soon. Very soon.¡±


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    ¡°You will¡­ do no such¡­ thing,¡± Jerome struggled to speak.


    ¡°Oh?¡± She leaned in closer to his face, twisting the blade in his chest and causing him more pain. ¡°And what¡­ can you do about it, little cur? You die today.¡±


    The warmth pulsed in him again. This time stronger. Strength filled him. Filled his arms. He gripped the blade in his chest and heaved, pushing it out. Dashani ¡ª or her demon ¡ª looked down in surprise. But that didn¡¯t last. She pushed her blade in and Jerome felt it bite into his palms, bleeding him of more light. Palms? He noticed his other hand had regenerated back. But the warmth inside him pulsed faster now, increasing his strength. Soon he was glowing with white light again. He pushed out the blade and twisted it away from his chest. The blade broke and the creature screeched in pain.


    Jerome snatched up his spear and faced his enemy with renewed vigor. The severed bladed arm in his hand quickly turned into motes of purple light and disappeared, blown away by some non-existent wind. The creature charged him, fast. It was a blur to his senses.


    But somehow, it slowed. The mind-calming stone pulsed inside him, its energy rising in him, filling him with more strength. Jerome felt like it wanted to tell him something. He listened to it, for whatever it was trying to speak to him.


    Breathe¡­


    The word came to him unbidden, deep within his soul. Jerome didn¡¯t question it. Even with the demon speedster almost to his position, slow though it was now, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath of¡­ not air.


    Out¡­


    He pushed out the ¡®air¡¯ in his lungs and a cloud of purple dream aura enveloped the demon. It screeched in pain. The dream aura remained in position, swirling and twisting around the demon. Its screams reached him but Jerome couldn¡¯t see what was going on inside the fog of dream aura.


    Soon the demon¡¯s screeches weakened. Now in its death throes, the fog of dream aura lifted off the ground a little. Jerome saw the demon disintegrating. Weak and begging for death with its squeals. A few breaths later there was nothing remaining of it. All of its aura was absorbed by the dream aura he breathed out.


    ¡°Now, what are you?¡± Jerome muttered in contemplation.


    The dream aura collapsed in on itself just as a loud bang resounded behind him. Jerome rolled out of the way on instinct. He hadn¡¯t sensed the incoming enemy, even with his perception still active. Something shot out of the fog of dream aura toward the newcomer.


    A spear!


    He scrambled for his own spear now. Jerome looked up to see Charybdis spinning about and holding back another demon. He couldn¡¯t help but grin at the turn of events.


    ¡°Ah ah!¡± he rejoiced and quickly joined the battle. This was getting better and better! Together, they worked as a team and put pressure on the demon. It was on the back foot throughout their fight. Charybdis was ruthless; with every cut, it siphoned some of the demon¡¯s dream aura. The demon, frustrated after a long battle with no result, roared into the air.


    Jerome felt his phantom body pulse with trepidation. Charybdis impaled the demon, destroying it completely.


    ¡°I think more are coming,¡± he said and the spear hummed in accent.


    The cloud of dream aura gathered around them and Charybdis hummed again, transmitting a message to him. Jerome turned his gaze from the swirling dream aura to the spear.


    ¡°You¡¯re not really Charybdis, are you?¡±


    It hummed again. Jerome nodded. It didn¡¯t matter. If it came from the mind-calming stone, all the better. The mind-calming stone was a mysterious artifact that even Achilles, with all her computing powers, couldn¡¯t detect.


    Jerome was reminded again that he had to get Achilles a new name.


    He held onto the spear and used it to lift himself off the ground. The spear twisted, wrapping around his arm and moving onto his body to form a makeshift breastplate. The remaining dream aura was sucked into the breastplate and it twisted some more to make room for more metal. Or at least it looked and felt like armor. Jerome couldn¡¯t tell the difference. He took a deep breath and imagined more dream aura forming in the depths of his mind. He may need some soon.


    More than a dozen demons broke away from the battle above him, heading his way. Jerome took another deep breath to calm himself.


    ¡°This is it¡­ all or nothing,¡± he muttered to himself.


    He didn¡¯t try to convince himself that he could take them on alone. He knew each one was stronger than him. But he wasn¡¯t going to back down. That wasn¡¯t him. He didn¡¯t come all this way only to lose a trusted companion. Besides, Dashani would wrought hell on Terra Praeta if she ever took control of Sanctum. That was all what this was all about: a way to move between continents with her army of Children. He would never let that happen!


    The warmth in his soul began to build up again, pulsing throughout his body. The demon in the lead shrieked. It pushed off the space behind it, increasing its speed exponentially. The others did the same. Jerome took a long look at them all. Twenty-two. How the fuck was he going to fight them all?! As quickly as the thought came, he shut it down. He¡¯ll find a way¡­ or die trying.


    The demon in the lead got within twenty feet when a beam of pink light knocked it off its trajectory.


    ¡°Jerome!¡±


    Was that¡­ he took a chance, turning around to see her, hoping it truly was her. ¡°Csala¡­¡±


    She crashed into him with a hug. ¡°Oh, Jerome. I thought I would never see you again.¡±


    Jerome hugged her back, expecting her hug to be crushing ¡ª it wasn¡¯t. Maybe being just souls, they didn¡¯t have the strength they would¡¯ve had had they been in their fleshly forms. But that idea was defeated by the fact that he had punched a shark-sized monster a while ago.


    ¡°I missed you too, Csala,¡± he said, hugging her back.


    ¡°Hey, we don¡¯t have time for sentiments right now,¡± Achilles said from behind him, fighting off the demons.


    ¡°Achilles?¡± He turned to see her fighting the demons a few feet above him. Something was different about her. Sure, she looked the same and had the same voice but this voice was¡­ more. It had a sultry undertone that Achilles¡¯ lacked and the sight of this Achilles¡ª.


    ¡°I am not Achilles,¡± she announced, slicing through another demon. She shot the pink beam of light out of her hand hitting another, twirled beautifully in the air, and slammed another downward with a kick.


    Jerome shot upward and sliced it in half before it regained its balance. He continued on so he could aid the strange succubus ¡ª or at least he assumed she was a succubus.


    ¡°Csala, keep up!¡±


    Csla flew up to meet him. How the hell could she fly here and he couldn¡¯t? She seemed to catch him studying her and asked, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°How is it you can fly here?¡±


    Csala shrugged as they joined the succubus. The demons surrounded them, causing them to take up a phalanx formation, even with just the three of them.


    ¡°Jerome. Guess who she is,¡± Csala said, her excitement practically dripping off her. Jerome had never seen her so excited about someone.


    He glanced at the other succubus who just shrugged with a smile at him.


    ¡°You both aren¡¯t taking our situation very seriously, you know?¡± he said. Then to the new succubus, he added, ¡°no offense.¡±


    ¡°None taken,¡± she said. ¡°She¡¯s just excited to see me and I¡¯m excited to see Ilyrrah¡¯s successor!¡±


    ¡°Successor?¡± Jerome gave her a once-over to make sure he was seeing her for the first time. ¡°Who are you?¡±


    ¡°Guess, Jerome. Guess!¡± This was unlike Csala. She wasn¡¯t the type to be so excited about someone.


    The demons attacked ¡ª all at once. Their movements were so coordinated that Jerome worried they were a hivemind. On the other hand, the three of them were the opposite of coordination. But their defenses held.


    ¡°I can¡¯t guess someone¡¯s name in the middle of a battle, Csala. Who is she?!¡± he screamed in frustration.


    Csala grumbled, swiping her twin blades at a demon. Jerome watched as her blades multiplied to dozens like after images and she fought off the demon¡¯s attacks.


    ¡°Ok, how did you do that?¡±


    ¡°With dream aura,¡± she replied. ¡°See. It¡¯s easy to talk during battle. Your turn.¡±


    Jerome snorted. If he could use dream aura like that, he¡¯d have gotten rid of all these demons before they accosted him. But wait. ¡°You can use dream aura?¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡± she said. ¡°Now, guess!¡± Her voice took on its excitement again.


    Of course. The Sovereign had said dream aura was not essence ¡ª or not like essence. Since succubi couldn¡¯t wield essence, he had concluded that such impairment had included all types of energies. With this, he wondered what else he didn¡¯t know about the different energies he¡¯d witnessed. They just kept popping up everywhere.


    ¡°Fine. Your mother!¡±


    Csala laughed ¡ª a happy throaty laugh. She fought like the battle was unconcerning to her. He really was stomped by the fact she took it very lightly. The new succubus must have seen his thoughts written on his face though.


    ¡°Succubi have a great affinity with everything that has to do with the mind. So here in the First Heaven, we are like predators,¡± she said with a smile.


    The fight continued for a few more breaths before the last of the demons were destroyed. Jerome looked over at the succubus now. He could sense she was ancient. There was just something about her that gave him vibes of an ¡®ancient¡¯ being. Csala¡¯s mother couldn¡¯t be so ancient, could she? There was only one other succubus Csala had ever talked about. He recalled the reverence in her voice when she spoke about her, the sacredness she had communicated when she shut him down for asking.


    The succubus smiled as realization dawned on him. One moment she was a few feet away. The next, she was hovering close to him with a finger against his lips.


    ¡°Shhhh. Names have more power here than you realized,¡± she said.


    Jerome looked at Csala for confirmation and she beamed up at him with the brightest smile he¡¯d ever seen on her.


    ¡°How are you¡­? How is Achilles¡­?¡± he asked, befuddled, unable to get whole sentences out of his mouth.


    ¡°It¡¯s a long story, Jerome. But I¡¯m glad to see you¡¯re doing better than I expected; better than Ilyrrah expected.¡±


    Jerome frowned, not understanding her point. ¡°You sound like you knew him; like you were close to him, even.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I knew him.¡± She gave him a knowing smirk. ¡°I was one of his lovers ¡ª just like Csala is one of yours.¡±


    If Jerome could blush he would have turned red as a beet. He was thankful for the fact he was in this realm of the mind right now. What had Tialana called it again: The First Heaven?  But he was thinking off-topic.


    ¡°How so? I thought the ubus and the Fae were enemies.¡±


    ¡°True. but there¡¯s something called forbidden love, is there not?¡± She chuckled, her eyes distant. But she quickly regained herself. ¡°Oh, but I must say,¡± ¡ª she caught another demon that shot toward him from the sky, pulverizing it with that strange, pink beam of energy ¡ª ¡°you are one lucky bastard to cross paths with me so young. Ilyrrah never had anyone to guide him.¡±


    ¡°What¡­?¡± Jerome felt like they were entering deeper waters and he¡¯d lose himself to the conversation if he wasn¡¯t careful.


    Tialana grinned at him. ¡°Ilyrrah was born like you were ¡ª a reincarnator, with all the memories of a past life intact.¡±

 143. Dashani

    Jerome¡¯s head spun at Tialana¡¯s words. His mind was racing a mile a minute, trying to store away and figure out much of what she revealed. If Ilyrrah was a reincarnator, did that mean he came from Earth like him? He realized now more than ever that there was a deeper meaning to him being reincarnated; a deeper purpose, even. What that was, he¡¯d have to figure out himself because he doubted Tialana knew it. As soon as his gaze landed on her again, she held up a hand, as if knowing his intent.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask¡­ I don¡¯t know why you were reincarnated with memories of your past life. Ilyrrah didn¡¯t know either. But he assumed it was for a greater purpose. You should assume the same too,¡± she said, looking pointedly at him. ¡°Come.¡±


    She flew upward toward the battle. ¡°We have to stop whatever it is Dashani is doing.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s consuming Achilles¡­ Achilleia,¡± he corrected.


    ¡°What?!¡± Tialana exclaimed, looking back at him in shock. She shot forward,  increasing her speed. Jerome had to push himself to catch up with her. He looked to his side to see Csala following with less of a struggle. But she struggled nonetheless.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that, I¡¯m struggling to keep up with her too,¡± she said with a cute grunt.


    Jerome focused his attention on the goddess-looking succubus. From his point of view, her ass was directly ¡ª if at a distance ¡ª in front of him. He was grateful he wasn¡¯t in his body, else he¡¯d probably be getting a hard-on. He snorted, shaking the thought away.


    ¡°It¡¯s that bad, isn¡¯t it?¡± he called out to Tialana.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s bad,¡± she responded, not looking back. ¡°Very bad. What she¡¯s consuming is not Achilles ¡ª you called her Achilleia? What Dashani¡¯s consuming is her Authority. And with it she could control Sanctum!¡±


    ¡°Shit!¡± Jerome pushed himself even harder. But flying here wasn¡¯t as easy as it was in the material plane. Space seemed to push back oppressively the higher he went. The pressure was much more powerful than in the material plane.


    ¡°What¡¯s Sanctum?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s the mountain,¡± he said, struggling to go even faster. The dream aura that formed the breastplate he was wearing right now didn¡¯t give him as much control and speed as he wanted.


    As if hearing his thoughts and intent, the breastplate glowed a bright purple and Jerome shot forward, leaving both of them both in the dust. He reached the battle in no time and shot through a little opening he was sure the demons had created themselves to trap him.


    It didn¡¯t matter. All that mattered right now was getting Achilles ¡ª Achilleia, he reminded himself ¡ª out of there. He had expected to feel that same disorienting feeling he felt when he was near the battle the first time but he didn¡¯t.


    His breastplate hummed, sending him its intent.


    ¡°Much appreciated,¡± he said, taking a second to observe himself. A purple aural barrier clung to him like a cloak, protecting him from the dangerous concussive energies.


    Jerome sighted the Kraken-looking monster and took a deep breath. He felt his insides expand ¡ª the depth, farther than was normal. The white warmth of energy pulsed inside him and he felt its warmth begin to spread. Its heat began to intensify and Jerome felt hope at being able to confront the Eldritch-looking entity.


    The Kraken whipped out a tentacle in his direction. Jerome took a deep breath in the same instant. The strange energy blossomed in his throat, a warmth that put a slight pressure on him but was harmless nonetheless. He spat it as the tentacle got within twenty feet of him. A white flash of light encompassed the world for a split moment and Jerome swerved to the side as the white hot energy collided with the tentacle.


    The world exploded before him and the shockwave of the explosion knocked him backward. He heard the space around him vibrate as if electromagnetic pulses were interfering with sound equipment ¡ª it sounded very techno. Which shouldn¡¯t be but he couldn¡¯t concern himself with such a paradox right now. He was trying to keep his avatar from falling apart and there was only so much he could do to keep himself from nearly shattering to pieces.


    Someone broke his momentum for which he was thankful. Motes of white light left his body and he shuddered, weakening. What had left him was no small amount of energy.


    ¡°That was incredible,¡± Tialana¡¯s voice reached him. ¡°But you need to be careful Jerome, or your soul could take too much damage.¡±


    ¡°You have my thanks, Tialana. I can call you Tialana, right?¡± he said, looking back into her pretty face.


    She scowled at him. And cursed. ¡°I¡¯m not Tialana,¡± she growled.


    ¡°Ah!¡± Jerome couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°You have a whole lot to spill, Achilles ¡ª no. ¡®Achilleia¡¯. That¡¯s your new¡ª¡±


    ¡°Incoming,¡± she interrupted him¡­ and threw him into the air. Jerome had to fight the instinct to panic.


    The world exploded a second time and he found himself fighting with space to regain his balance. Jerome groaned. Whatever it was these people did to fly with the dexterity of a dragonfly in this place, he would love to know.


    After a long while he regained his balance and shot after Achilles ¡ª Achilleia¡¯s copy. He drew in his breath again, timing it with the tentacle he was sure the Kraken was about to lash out at Achilleia. He could see Csala in the periphery of his vision, attacking its flank. Somehow, the Kraken paid her no heed, which was surprising.


    A beam of pink energy burst through the air, hitting the Kraken in the jaw¡­ or mouth. He couldn¡¯t say. But the Kraken let go of the orb containing Achilleia¡¯s true avatar.


    Jerome shot forward. A tentacle lashed out from the Kraken to catch the falling, transparent orb. He wouldn¡¯t be able to reach it before it does. Jerome willed his intent into his breastplate. A whip stretched forth in his right hand and he spat the white flame at the tentacle.


    The shockwave that ensued was even larger than the first. He forced himself through the turbulence of the explosion, feeling his face practically melt away. The pain was next to unbearable but he pushed on. He heard Csala groan in pain from a distance. His ears rang and he felt like his body was going to shatter.


    His legs gave way, shattering before his eyes and turning into motes of white light and diffusing into space.


    Jerome pushed on. In no time, he reached the orb. But so did another tentacle. Jerome was ready this time. He imagined the white energy gathering at the tip of the whip and the mind-calming stone reacted, flooding his whip with the white warmth. He whipped it out at the tentacle ¡ª at the girth that was still a ways away because the tip of it was almost to his head. The tip of the tentacle opened up in a gory display of thorn-like fangs and slime but before it could attack, Jerome¡¯s whip cut it off from the Kraken.


    The Kraken roared!


    An unholy sound, the likes he¡¯d never heard before. It was a terrifying thing, the roar. Filled with pain and rage¡­ and oppression! He felt his awareness slip for a moment.


    ¡°Shit!¡± he heard Tialana curse and fly in the direction of Csala. Jerome saw Csala drop from the sky, unconscious. He panicked. He wanted to go after her but the Kraken seemed to focus its rage on him. Fear gripped him, paralyzing him. Achilleia¡¯s orb fell from his embrace. He remained still in the air as the Kraken unwound its many tentacles, shifting towards him with an eerie slowness. Jerome tried to move but found he couldn¡¯t even twitch. He was powerless even to escape.


    ¡°Little bug,¡± a female voice spoke up from the Kraken. The voice had an underlying growling tone ¡ª as if a wild beast was speaking in the human tongue. Its jaws didn¡¯t move so it looked like it was communicating telepathically. ¡°Why do you concern yourself with a battle far beyond your capabilities?¡±


    ¡°Go fuck yourself,¡± Jerome said. His bravado was only a facade though; the Kraken scared the shit out of him. He would have spat at her but his mouth suddenly couldn¡¯t move anymore.


    Figures, he thought. She had briefly allowed him the chance to speak ¡ª to show off her complete control over him, most likely.


    ¡°You are but an insignificant mote of dust in the grand scheme of things.¡±


    Its tentacles grabbed him, wrapping around him like a snake, but also spinning him slowly to face away from itself. Jerome¡¯s hackles rose. What was she going to do, eat him alive? But he quickly realized this was also just a scare tactic. Before the slimy tentacle could completely wrap around him, a strange sensation took over him. From deep down inside him he felt something open up. It overwhelmed him with its intent to kill ¡ª which was sharp as a blade that could utterly destroy him.


    Jerome lost himself to the presence. This ¡®presence¡¯ must be the mind-calming stone, he thought.


    He had guessed his artifact was very powerful. But now he didn¡¯t know what to think of it. Somewhere along the line, he had started noticing it had a personality of its own. But here¡­ in this strange realm of the mind¡­ the mind-calming stone showed its true powers.


    Jerome came to the realization that what he picked up all those years ago was beyond what one could call an artifact. It was an entity of unimaginable potential and power! He could feel it. And from the looks of things Dashani could feel it too as her tentacled-monster immediately unwrapped him and put a distance between them.


    Jerome saw something in the eyes of the monster he¡¯d never seen before.


    Fear.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± she asked, her voice feminine, yet growly, but also laced with fear.


    Jerome watched the Kraken watch him. But he could tell it wasn¡¯t speaking to him but the mind-calming stone. But how? How did she sense it? Maybe the mind-calming stone wanted her to sense it. He didn¡¯t know; couldn¡¯t make any assumptions.


    The might of the mind-calming stone seemed to grow even more, threatening to blow him up.


    ¡°Jerome!¡± he heard Csala call out to him. Her voice sounded far away. He opened his eyes at the sound of her voice only to squint from the bright light he was emanating. So bright was the light, that all he could see was white.


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    Just when he thought he was going to literally explode from the intense power, the world around them suddenly thrummed with the sound of electromagnetic energy and stilled. The battle below ceased and the combatants looked stunned. A pulse of invisible power shot out of him and the world shuddered.


    The Kraken roared.


    Jerome recognized that sound. It was the sound of a dying animal. He watched with bated breath as its flesh imploded. The mass of flesh shrunk to the size of a car-sized boulder before warping into human shape.


    ¡°Stand back, Jerome,¡± Tialana said from behind him. He knew it was her because Achilleia always called him Xerae.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening to her?¡± he asked.


    The succubus hefted a passed out Csala on her shoulders as she observed the phenomenon going on.


    ¡°Dashani has always been a mystery to all. A very powerful mystery no one wants to mess with.¡± She turned to him. ¡°So you¡¯d do well to stand back. You¡¯ve done admirably well already ¡ª which makes you another mystery the Ouranai have come across now.¡±


    So in other words, she had no idea what was happening with the Kraken. Jerome raised an eyebrow at her and she gestured with a tilt of her head for him to look behind. He gasped as he looked back. An innumerable army of fae decked in glittering armor stood hovering in the air ¡ª well, space ¡ª behind him. Dashani¡¯s army of demons were nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°Where are¡­¡± he began to ask.


    ¡°They were destroyed when you did¡­ whatever that was you did. You look awful though,¡± she eyed him up and down, noticing his missing lower body. ¡°Not exactly confidence-inspiring.¡±


    Jerome didn¡¯t like the look in her eyes. She was looking at him like an interesting piece of specimen she wanted to dissect in a lab. He cleared the throat to ease the awkwardness. Dashani burst out of her cocoon just before he spoke, saving him from answering. She had her eyes closed as if in meditation.


    Dashani was beautiful. Well endowed in the chest and hips, but stick thin everywhere else ¡ª and tall. Very tall. At least for an avatar. Jerome had known fae were tall but not how tall they could grow. She was easily seven feet and more. She had a harsh kind of beauty; held her head high with a noble and disciplined countenance. She reminded him of the whip in an overseer¡¯s hand, waiting to bring its wrath on any found wanting. Funnily enough, he expected to see a tiara on her head.


    But then his gaze traveled down her body.


    ¡°And this¡­ is her?¡± Jerome asked, open-mouthed.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Tialana said.


    ¡°She looks like¡­¡± he babbled. ¡°Am I right to say that she looks like¡­?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome, she looks like a chimera,¡± Achilleia said, flying close to stand on the other side of him.


    ¡°Who¡¯s she?¡± Csala asked, looking between the both of them. Well, three of them as Achilleia rose to join them. She¡¯d woken up without his knowledge and was hovering close-by. Csala¡¯s gaze was now switching between the two Tialana¡¯s she was seeing.


    ¡°Are you twins?¡± she asked, befuddled.


    ¡°She¡¯s Dashani ¡ª the one we¡¯re battling, I mean,¡± Jerome replied, answering her earlier question. He didn¡¯t bother to explain the ¡®twins¡¯ ¡ª didn¡¯t understand their situation himself. ¡°And I¡¯m guessing she¡¯s dabbling in Solon¡¯s creation¡­ probably why they¡¯ve begun reproducing asexually.¡±


    ¡°You hit the nail on the head, Jerome,¡± Tialana said, eyeing the Fae fearfully. He was still getting used to seeing her and Achilles¡­ Achilleia close together. They really looked like identical twins.


    ¡°Who¡¯s Solon?¡± Csala asked again.


    ¡°Fae from the past,¡± Jerome said, studying the many crab-like legs that were moving like a centipede¡¯s in her lower half underneath her dress. She was wearing a long, black ballroom gown with a low v-neck to show off the valley between her gigantic tits. The gown should¡¯ve flowed down past her legs but it couldn¡¯t conceal the myriad of appendages she apparently had below.


    ¡°Built a phallus-looking tower on the western continent. The same continent she occupies,¡± Tialana said, gesturing with her chin at Dashani.


    ¡°Phallus-looking?¡± Jerome muttered. ¡°Very apt. But all towers look like phalluses ¡ª maybe.¡±


    Dashani hissed¡­ or growled ¡ª or maybe it was a mixture of both. It sounded like a cross between the sound of a reptile and a big cat. She opened her eyes and the bright gems of purple she had for irises twinkled brightly like stars on a dark night.


    ¡°You are one to talk, ¡®Dark One¡¯,¡± she hissed.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes bulged in shock as he heard those words. How did she even know that?


    ¡°Do you think you¡¯re any different from me?,¡± she sneered. ¡°What is that I sense in you? Is it the soul of a human?... a fae? Feels a lot like an incubus¡¯ soul to me. Oh, I sense a beastkin¡¯s too.¡±


    ¡°That¡­ puts a lot of recent happenings into perspective,¡± he said thoughtfully, unprovoked.


    Dashani growled. He didn¡¯t know what she was expecting but it definitely seemed like she wasn¡¯t happy with his response to her goading ¡ª or lack thereof.


    ¡°I will rip your soul into shreds after I¡¯m done passing you around to my children. They¡¯ve hungered for¡­¡± she took a moment to study him in detail, ¡°flesh as fine as yours.¡±


    He was sure she was talking about another kind of hunger. Jerome had expected someone with some ¡®grand vision¡¯ for this world when he heard of Dashani. Now that he¡¯d seen her and heard her speak, he couldn¡¯t help but think she was just bitter¡­ and petty¡­ shallow. Only wanting to stroke her over-inflated ego as best she could. He scrutinized her from head to toe.


    Of course, he said none of his thoughts out loud. But Dashani glared at him with a deathly stare. If eyes could consume one¡¯s soul, hers would consume his in an instance. Her glare let him know that his facial expression couldn¡¯t have been more clear.


    ¡°You insolent bug!¡± she snarled at him. ¡°You dare think little of me!¡±


    Jerome opened his mouth to speak but words failed him. He realized at that moment that the ominous evil that had haunted Terra Praeta for eons was just a mentally ill, demented psychopath who should be locked away in the depths of the ocean¡­ or put down for good.


    Jerome looked at Tialana and twirled his right index finger beside his temple. ¡°I don¡¯t think she¡¯s right in the head,¡± he mouthed.


    Dashani shot toward him with speed that defied everything he had come to understand about this place. The army behind him shot forward immediately, stopping her advance. But they dropped like flies as they got closer to her. They swarmed her, trying to overwhelm her but she blasted them aside. Those at the forefront were most unfortunate as they turned into motes of multicolored light the next moment. A second wave arrived but she flew around them so fast it was like they were standing still.


    ¡°You have to get out of here!¡± Tialana said.


    Jerome grabbed Csala and Achilleia. It was a bit difficult moving with just his upper body but he managed. He could tell his pelvis was already growing back. He shot downward as he asked, ¡°Is this your original avatar, Achilleia?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can get used to the name change that easily,¡± she snorted.


    ¡°Quit being a snark and answer!¡± Jerome increased his speed.


    Csala tried to cover his mouth to keep him from speaking disrespectfully to the AI but he was having none of it.


    Achilleia pouted. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m the real avatar.¡±


    ¡°Then how the fuck do we get how of here!¡±


    ¡°You need to relax, Jerome. That way your soul can calm itself so it can¡­ take the plunge.¡±


    ¡°¡®Plunge¡¯?¡±


    ¡°Yes, plunge.¡±


    He had a feeling there was more to that single word than he understood but he got the idea. But that wasn¡¯t their problem; their problem was actually finding a place to hide so their souls can relax.


    Csala cleared her throat. ¡°Sorry for the interruption esteemed¡­¡±


    ¡°Achilleia is just fine.¡± Achilleia smiled at her. Jerome snorted.


    Csala was quiet for a moment as if gathering her thoughts. But Jerome could almost sense her fear ¡ª which surprisingly he couldn¡¯t, here. Perhaps his senses weren¡¯t as sharp in this plane as they are in the material plane.


    ¡°There is a depression in the ground a few miles away. Right in that direction.¡± She pointed.


    Jerome shot forward, increasing his speed. He was technically just sending his intentions to the breastplate he wore but it was nice to think he was doing the flying himself. He couldn¡¯t wait to leave this damned place.


    ¡°Xerae, faster¡ª!¡±


    The world stilled even before Achilleia completed her sentence. Jerome turned around to see the swarm of fae soldiers frozen midair, drifting in all directions like they were in space. He also couldn¡¯t move a limb ¡ª compounded with the fact he only had two. Achilleia grunted, trying to pull out of his arms; trying to get rid of whatever spell Dashani had used against all of them. Her grunt was the only thing she could manage though.


    Jerome was in a daze, seeing the scope and might of Dashani¡¯s working. He suspected an Authority was at work here. Muna had had the ability to imprison her victims like this, but it was not in this scope. This was millions of souls drifting around in the mind realm ¡ª the First Heaven, like Tialana called it.


    Dashani calmly moved toward them. Everyone in her path was pushed aside by an invisible force. Jerome noticed he had stopped drifting and was facing her as she flew his way. Csala and Achilleia were pulled out of his arms and he could do nothing to stop it.


    Dashani took her time studying him. And he studied her as well. She smiled at him ¡ª a sickly sweet smile that didn¡¯t reach her eyes which was set in a scowl. She stopped a few feet away from him. Close. So close and so oppressive. He felt his consciousness begin to slip. A few dozen feet away, she wasn¡¯t spreading her aura around her but chose to do it now? What was her end game?


    ¡°Enough!¡± Tialana screamed. A small pulse of power pushed out of her but only freed her. Every other person was still imprisoned in Dashani¡¯s working.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes opened a fraction but a splitting headache assaulted his senses. His head drooped and he saw his legless body hovering midair.


    ¡°Stop me then,¡± Dashani¡¯s voice reached him and Jerome tried all he could to hold on to consciousness. She was closer. ¡°You can¡¯t¡­ because you are weak. Your chosen dies here today, Tialana.¡±


    He felt slender fingers wrap around his throat in a choking grip. The mind-calming stone stirred inside him. Warmth spread in his soul and began to intensify. He felt the intent of the mind-calming stone sharpen again like an assassin¡¯s gaze.


    It was waiting. Patiently. Under the surface. Ready to strike at a moment¡¯s notice.


    ¡°You should have chosen me,¡± Dashani spoke again. Then closer to his ear, she whispered, ¡°There will be no more lives for you to live¡­ ¡®Malakai!¡¯.¡±


    An invisible force blasted out of Jerome¡¯s avatar, warping space as it exited his body. Dashani¡¯s head snapped back like she¡¯d been shot in the head. The world shook and the working of her power broke. Her grip on his neck loosened and Jerome took in a deep breath like he¡¯d been struggling for air. She still held on to him though.


    ¡°How¡­? My connection¡­¡± Dashani muttered, hysteria evident in her voice. ¡°What did you do?¡±


    Her pupils were dilated and unfocused. She began pulling at her long, wild hair with her other hand, not letting go of him ¡ª as if some deeper part of her knew not to. Space around her seemed to bend and warp with every movement she made. Jerome¡¯s avatar contorted; his shoulders were crushed under the onslaught of her power while she kept rambling. She was losing control of her powers in her hysteric state.


    Jerome didn¡¯t want to wait to hear what she had to say. He powered through the pain and fatigue he was feeling to push her hand away from his neck. It was just a long, slender hand but he felt like he was trying to push away the world! She was immoveable!


    Tialana grabbed him, pulling him away ¡ª or was that Achilleia? He couldn¡¯t tell. One of them was carrying Csala again. They shot downward once again, leaving Dashani to her madness.


    ¡°Heavens only know what she will do when she regains her senses,¡± one of the look-alikes said.


    Jerome could feel the strength leave him. He wanted to stay awake but couldn¡¯t find the will to lift his eyelids. He was already leaning against Achilleia or Tialana as it were. Soon darkness took him and he felt his body no more.

 144. Everyone Has Their Secrets

    Jerome woke up slowly. He tried blinking the blurriness out of his eyes without much success.


    Where am I? He thought.


    The air was damp and cool. And everywhere was dark. He tried sitting up but couldn¡¯t get his arms to cooperate. They felt like jelly and his nerves twitched as pain assaulted his whole body. He groaned.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake,¡± Nyx said beside him. ¡°You must be extremely tired.¡±


    ¡°I am,¡± he said. His voice was deep and hoarse, sounding very strange to him. Like he had aged a century. He cleared his throat to smoothen his voice some.


    ¡°Wow,¡± Nyx said. He could hear the slight surprise in her voice.


    ¡°What is it?¡± he asked.


    ¡°You sound¡­ don¡¯t worry about it,¡± she said.


    Jerome heard her shuffling to stand up and walk closer. Maybe she wasn¡¯t sitting that close to him to start with. He raised his hand to wipe the cobwebs out of his eyes so he could see better. That slight movement felt like he was trying to lift a mountain. Jerome groaned again in frustration.


    ¡°Let me take a look at you,¡± Nyx said, sounding strangely motherly.


    She was closer now. Her voice sounded very close to his ears but from what he could sense from her posture she was only leaning slightly over him.


    Her voice shouldn¡¯t have sounded so close. He could smell her scent now; natural and spicy, with a hint of the wilds to it. He¡¯d never perceived that before.


    Nyx hesitated. He knew this because he heard her breathing hitch a little.


    ¡°You can smell me?¡± she asked. Jerome nodded. ¡°Damn it! I went to great lengths to make sure no one could smell me.¡±


    Jerome hoped he didn¡¯t look as dumbfounded as he felt. ¡°Why would you go to such great lengths for something like that?¡± he asked. His voice sounded better now ¡ª less hoarse; silky even.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like the idea that someone can track me,¡± she responded.


    ¡°Still, that¡¯s way too much effort for something so trivial.¡±


    ¡°To you maybe, but not to me. Magic beasts survive with all of their senses. Being sensed might just be the difference between hunger and satisfaction, or life and death.¡±


    ¡°Point taken.¡± Jerome blinked. His sight slowly became clearer and soon he could see Nyx¡¯s beautiful face leaning over his.


    ¡°How do you feel?¡±


    Jerome groaned again and pushed himself up with much effort. ¡°Like I ran around Terra Praeta carrying a whole damned continent.¡±


    Nyx ignored his complaint. ¡°So the First Heaven wasn¡¯t so great after all,¡± she muttered to herself.


    Those words brought back everything that had happened to the forefront of his mind.


    ¡°Csala!¡± He stood up quickly to go look for her but his muscles cramped and he fell face-first into the dirt.


    Nyx chuckled. ¡°I found her so you don¡¯t have to worry about her.¡±


    Jerome tried to turn around but only succeeded in turning his head to face her.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± he said. ¡°But how did you know to go search for her?¡±


    She smiled mockingly at him. ¡°You kept calling her name in your unconscious state. It was extremely annoying to listen to. She¡¯s over there.¡± She gestured to the other side of him and Jerome had to turn his head again.


    Csala was sleeping peacefully a few feet away from him. He could sense the tiredness emanating from her pores though. In this state, she was so vulnerable. He wanted to go closer and wrap her in his arms but his body was too weak for such a simple act.


    ¡°How long was I out?¡± he asked, turning to face Nyx.


    ¡°Days, Jerome. Your pursuers have all been destroyed.¡±


    He sighed. Guess he shouldn¡¯t have expected less.


    ¡°And you have just five more days in Terra Praeta.¡±


    He successfully turned to lie on his back and looked around. They were inside a large bubble of air underwater ¡ª the pool inside the void world, he was sure.


    ¡°You should rest¡ª¡± Nyx was saying but Jerome sat up again. This time with less effort. But the pain remained.


    He held his hands in front of him, flexing his fingers to get his blood flowing into them. He caught Nyx staring at him ¡ª and smiling. It was an unusual kind of stare and he felt a little freaked out.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I like your eyes.¡±


    He raised an eyebrow at her. Was Nyx flirting with him?


    ¡°They¡¯re pretty,¡± she said with a shrug, still smiling.


    With a flick of her tail, a few drops of water dropped into the bubble but hovered in front of him. The drops fused together and flattened, turning into ice. Her tail was tucked away as quickly as it came.


    A mirror was facing him the next moment. Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped as he saw his eyes. Liquid silver gazed back at him. It was like his irises were bled of its melanin and Suzie was shoved into them. They were eerily pretty. Even his pupils had lost their black color. They blended together with his irises creating swirling silver eyes.


    Jerome touched his jaw, noticing for the first time the beginnings of facial hair. He chuckled.


    I¡¯ve got a five o¡¯ clock shadow. It looked nice.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that those who elevate their minds into the First Heaven without being ready for such a tasking journey usually return blind with their irises losing all color,¡± Nyx said.


    Jerome¡¯s heart skipped. ¡°I can see quite well, thank you very much,¡± he quipped.


    ¡°And why is that?¡±


    Jerome shrugged, refusing to answer. He suspected the mind-calming stone at work. If he was supposed to go blind then it ¡ª she ¡ª must have helped him remain whole.


    ¡°And these people who return blind, do they get to see again?¡±


    Nyx shook her head ominously, the smile wiped off her face and her piercing, golden gaze never leaving his. At least she had dark pupils. His looked to be the same color as his irises.


    Jerome looked at his reflection again, faintly hoping to see his eyes returned to their normal dark color. They remained the same.


    ¡°And why is that?¡± he asked.


    ¡°I have not the slightest inkling.¡± She looked away, eyes turning distant. ¡°Maybe their souls couldn¡¯t keep up with the drain on their perception and dream aura in the First Heaven ¡ª that¡¯s one of the theories that have been around for ages. The most sensible one.¡±


    Jerome could sense no lies or deception in her tone or body language. Her pulse was also stable so he was sure she wasn¡¯t lying. He took a moment to appreciate that near ¡®British¡¯ lilt to her voice ¡ª not that it was British, it just sounded so to him.


    ¡°Vortheans have unique eyes, you know?¡± he said. ¡°Human irises aren¡¯t usually black but a dark chestnut so dark they look black from afar, or with less light in them. A closer look always reveals the dark brown of said iris.


    ¡°A Vortheans though is completely black. Even if we¡¯re staring into the light the black doesn¡¯t recede to show another color. It just separates the pupil and iris by reflecting the light back¡­¡±


    ¡°But the iris would still be black,¡± Nyx finished for him.


    Jerome sighed and nodded. This was one of the few things he¡¯d noticed but never thought about. Especially because there was a lack of mirrors around him in Vorthe, or he just had other priorities. Survival made one to rearrange priorities.


    ¡°How do I hide this now? People would notice; I can¡¯t exactly explain by saying, ¡®I went to the First Heaven and had my eye color changed.¡¯¡±


    ¡°I would have come to help¡­ if I could,¡± Nyx said, looking away.


    Jerome shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s okay; it wouldn¡¯t have mattered anyway. Dashani was too powerful¡ª¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Nyx said in unbelief. ¡°You fought Dashani? ¡­ The Devourer?¡±


    ¡°Devourer?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°She¡¯s the last Fae; the Devourer of Men and Slaughterer of Children.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°In my world, she¡¯s known as the ¡®Mother¡¯.¡±


    Nyx snorted. ¡°She does have children; I¡¯ll give you that.¡±


    Jerome sighed. He didn¡¯t have the strength to discuss Dashani right now. ¡°I need to rest to regain my strength.¡± He lay down again, feeling exhausted.


    ¡°You do that,¡± Nyx said, standing up. ¡°I¡¯ll let your friends know you are fine. They¡¯ve been asking of you.¡±


    Jerome nodded. He wanted to tell her about Achilleia but held himself back. Nyx was the only one he had discussed Achilleia with ¡ª Achilles, back when he thought the AI was male. But he didn¡¯t trust her yet, not fully. She was still hiding things from him.


    Nyx stood there as if waiting for something. Silence stretched and grew uncomfortable between them. Neither of them spoke; each of them waiting for the other to speak their mind. Jerome knew what was on her mind and he was sure she knew what was on his, too.


    If he trusted her enough to let her into his mind.


    The only issue there was trust. Jerome couldn¡¯t be sure what would happen if he let her in. He suspected she was using him to get to something and she knew that he knew it. Her demur attitude toward him was not enough to make him trust her.


    ¡°Did you¡­ speak with him?¡± Nyx asked at last.


    ¡°There was no time to speak, Nyx. We were fighting for our lives.¡± He didn¡¯t bother informing her that ¡®he¡¯, was in fact, a ¡®she¡¯ now ¡ª a comical revelation to him.


    There was silence again for a while. Jerome sighed. He sat up again to see her gazing at him with hope. She didn¡¯t look like the fierce, dominant dragoness he had come to know.


    ¡°I understand what you want, Nyx. But I can¡¯t just let you into my mind.¡±


    ¡°Because you don¡¯t trust me,¡± she said.


    ¡°Not yet.¡±


    Nyx took a deep breath and exhaled. ¡°We dragons have a prophecy about the Chosen of Ilyrrah. It is said that he would lead us to The Beginning.¡±


    Jerome was surprised by the admission. He never expected Nyx to tell him a secret of her race. Or maybe it wasn¡¯t a secret.


    ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Because without a dragon¡¯s aid, you can¡¯t find The Beginning.¡±¡¯


    ¡°And what is this ¡®beginning¡¯?¡±


    She smiled helplessly at him. ¡°If I knew that I wouldn¡¯t be here. I¡¯d be out there searching for it. But the prophecy specifically mentioned that the Chosen of Ilyrrah would lead a dragon to The Beginning. What I do know is that you can¡¯t do it without the aid of a dragon.¡±


    ¡°Your last two sentences contradict themselves. Why would I need a dragon¡¯s help to lead a dragon to this¡­ beginning?¡±


    ¡°Because only a dragon can identify it¡­¡± Nyx jumped out of the bubble, swimming upwards. He watched as her image disappeared, wondering what he should do about her.


    Jerome thought about Dashani. She had called him ¡®Malakai¡¯... After subtly telling him she knew he was a reincarnator. He was sure the name, Malakai, meant something different to the Greek meaning he knew.


    Malachai: Messenger of God¡­


    He needed to find out what it all meant; how everything connected to him. If only Ilyrrah was around to ask. He had just surmised that Ilyrrah had either ascended or died. Meeting Tialana, and now thinking back to what she revealed, was making him think that just maybe he still could meet with his¡­ predecessor, apparently.


    And then there was Achilleia. What had become of her? His last memory of the First Heaven was of Tialana or Achilleia herself, flying him and Csala away from Dashani. He would have loved to believe she was at full strength, but every fiber of his being told him that was a lie.


    There were tough times ahead for the denizens of Terra Praeta, because there¡¯s a high probability that Dashani had gotten what she wanted ¡ª or partly gotten it. Even if she hadn¡¯t, a weakened Achilleia meant a weakened Sanctum. Which spelt danger for all.


    For Sanctum was what restricted Dashani and her legion to the Western continent.


    ~~~


    Jerome woke up feeling a lot better. In fact, Csala¡¯s supple flesh was wrapped in his arms and hugging him. Though the ground was cold and hard, he felt better than he had when he first woke up. Her scent tickled his nose as he breathed it in.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake,¡± she murmured.


    ¡°Hmmm.¡± He rubbed her back with his right hand committing her to memory. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you.¡±


    ¡°And I you,¡± she said before reaching up to give him a deep kiss. Csala looked surprised at the sight of his eyes. ¡°Should I be concerned?¡±


    He shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    Jerome would¡¯ve loved to spend time cuddling in peace but he had to check up on Achilleia. And to do that he needed to leave the void world. He also had some questions for Csala concerning Tialana but that could come later.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± he asked after they broke their kiss. Neither of them needed to take a breath even though they had been kissing for a long while ¡ª benefits of being a sacred artist and a succubus.


    ¡°Better than I did when I first woke up.¡± She smiled at him, raking her fingers through his long hair as he raked his fingers through hers. ¡°You cut your hair.¡±


    Jerome smiled, gazing into her monochromatic red eyes. Nyx¡¯s words echoed in his mind again and his eyes turned serious. He remembered Csala¡¯s concern a moment ago.


    ¡°Thank goodness your eyes are okay. I honestly forgot just now that my eyes have changed color.¡±


    ¡°You wondered if I was blind?¡±


    Jerome nodded.


    ¡°Tialana helped. Would you still want me if I was blind though?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d still want you even if you were bald¡­ or lame.¡±


    She smacked him playfully on the chest. ¡°Be thankful you¡¯re a sight worth seeing.¡±


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Seriously though, I¡¯d still want you no matter what. As long as you don¡¯t betray me.¡± His voice took on a more serious tone and he pinned her with his gaze. ¡°And you remain loyal to me. Only me.¡±


    Csala hugged him. ¡°You¡¯re a territorial one, aren¡¯t you? The beastkin wouldn¡¯t be happy.¡± She tried to defuse the tense atmosphere.


    But Jerome wanted her to commit. ¡°I¡¯m talking about you, Csala.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Jerome, I will be loyal. Succubi can¡¯t help but be loyal. But you know what comes with such loyalty, right?¡±


    ¡°I do,¡± Jerome said, nodding. ¡°And as I have sworn, your will is your own. I don¡¯t own it. I never will.¡±


    ¡°Then you wouldn¡¯t mind doing something for me, would you?¡±


    Jerome studied her for a moment. ¡°Name it. If it is within my power, I will provide it.¡±


    Csala smiled up at him. She bit the side of her lower lip, drawing his gaze. Jerome felt his cock begin to harden from the sight alone. Csala blushed in arousal as she felt the evidence of his press against her stomach.


    ¡°When you speak like that, it¡¯s kind of hard to resist you. Coupled with your new eyes¡­ you¡¯re irresistible.¡±


    Her voice was tinged with lust but Jerome restrained himself and set her beside him, preventing her from reaching his hardening member.


    ¡°So?¡±


    She pouted cutely. ¡°I would like you to¡­ I guess, ¡®rename¡¯ me.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that.


    ¡°Tialana explained that renaming me when you get to the Spirit Realm would break a lot of my limitations¡ª¡±


    ¡°Like your inability to use essence!¡± Jerome interrupted. A lot of things clicked in his head right at that moment. It always came back to names and words in this universe, didn¡¯t it?!


    ¡°Hold on,¡± Csala shook him out of his ecstatic state. ¡°She said it¡¯s a delicate and dangerous thing to do.¡±


    ¡°Have you seen Nyx?¡± he asked, smirking at her.


    ¡°No, who¡¯s that?¡± She asked.


    He kissed her again and levitated them into a standing position.


    ¡°I need to check up on Achilleia.¡± He looked up, observing the bubble. It was too dark to see far beyond it but he could sense the distance between the bubble¡¯s barrier and the surface of the water which wasn¡¯t too far. ¡°Nyx should definitely still be out there. Meeting her will make things a lot easier to explain. You don¡¯t have a problem holding your breath for long, do you?¡±


    Csala looked up at him with a smirk. ¡°You know I have my powers back right. Time for you to continue your training, Itmayeela.¡±


    ¡°Show me what you¡¯ve got then,¡± he replied, smiling at her.


    Csala held him close and flew upward, out of the bubble. Like Nyx, she took a piece of it with them so they were protected from the water as they left the pool.


    ¡°That¡¯s crazy awesome,¡± he said appreciatively.


    They landed a few dozen feet away from the pool where Ms. Tara and Sheela sat with Selene and Nia.


    ¡°Ye deemed us peasants worthy of yer presence now yer highness?¡± Nia swooned mockingly at him. Then she noticed his eyes and her jaw dropped, confusion blooming on her features.


    ¡°Ehn. Sorry about that. How¡¯s everyone been doing?¡±


    Ms. Tara rushed him with a hug, holding him tight. Jerome felt his heart swell with love.


    Selene smiled thinly at him, her expression half confused and half happy. ¡°How¡­ What happened to you?¡±


    Jerome sat down with them in the valley of flowers they had occupied. The various scents from many beautiful flowers tickled his nostrils, but they also caused him to relax a bit. Sheela left her position to sit in his lap, uncaring what others thought or said. Jerome looked over to Csala to see her reaction but she just smiled at him.


    This harem thing was going to take some getting used to.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been in meditation for quite some time. I¡¯ve been studying some strange mental techniques. I guess this is a side effect of it.¡± He actually came up with that on the spot.


    Selene gave him a pointed look that said, ¡®do you really expect me to believe that?¡¯ But she didn¡¯t pursue it. He would have ignored her even if she did. Everyone has their secrets, his were just¡­ unique.


    ¡°I love them,¡± Sheela smiled up at him. ¡°And the beard. They fit you well.¡±


    Ms. Tara studied his eyes curiously as the other ladies caught up with Csala. They hadn¡¯t seen her in a while so he guessed they needed some time with her.


    ¡°I¡¯m looking for Nyx?¡± he asked Sheela and Ms. Tara but his voice was loud enough for the others to hear.


    ¡°The scary lady?¡± Nia asked. ¡°Good luck with that. She left like a day¡­ maybe two days ago. She hasn¡¯t returned since.¡±


    She looked up in the direction of the sun as it began dipping into the horizon and shook her head. ¡°Light! I don¡¯t even know what day it is anymore!¡±


    ¡°I think it¡¯s been a day and a half,¡± Ms. Tara said from beside him.


    Jerome wrapped an arm around her drawing her close. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you. How have you been?¡±


    ¡°Awwn! Look at you three,¡± Nia said with a gush. Ms. Tara flinched in his arms, her cheeks reddening.


    Jerome held her close, rubbing her stomach lightly. He didn¡¯t care that she was a mother figure in his life some years ago, he was going to pursue intimacy with her as well, if she was interested. He had nearly died in the First Heaven ¡ª that could make a man rethink his values and what mattered most in his life.


    Ms. Tara leaned into him and relaxed to his touch which made him glad.


    ¡°I need to go find Nyx.¡±


    ¡°How do you stand moving through that forest¡­ too creepy for my liking,¡± Sheela said.


    ¡°I guess I¡¯m used to it.¡± He stood up and set Sheela down even as she protested. He found it cute but didn¡¯t want to encourage such behavior so he tapped her slightly on the head.


    ¡°Stop being childish,¡± he said. That did nothing but encourage her more.


    Jerome snorted and flew into the air. Csala followed and within moments they were flying through the dark forest. Jerome¡¯s heart beat with anticipation and fear of what he might find. He only hoped that Achilleia was alright.

 145. Old Friend; New Lover

    The moment Jerome stepped twenty feet away from the threshold of the dark forest, Achilleia stirred in his mind. He smiled, finding the sensation comforting. Just a few feet away was Nyx, standing with a cold gaze. She looked to have been waiting for them.


    ¡°She¡¯s been out here for a while now,¡± Achilleia said. Her feminine voice was a breath of fresh air, even though he was still getting used to it.


    Are you okay? Jerome asked hesitantly. Did you¡­


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, Xerae; not at full strength but fine nonetheless. It will take a very long time for me to regain the power I lost though.¡±


    The power you lost? Did she take your Authority?


    ¡°A piece of it.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s heartbeat turned frantic for a second.


    ¡°Whatever you did though, destroyed the piece she took of my nexus¡­ and apparently destroyed her connection to whatever gave her the power to consume Authorities.¡±


    Jerome jumbled her words through his mind for a while. He remembered Dashani saying ¡®My connection.¡¯ If there was something out there, most likely an artifact on the Western continent that gave her the ability to consume Authority, they were more or less fucked. What¡¯s to stop her from establishing said connection once again to her artifact?


    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of such an artifact, Xerae. And even if there was one, I don¡¯t think she can just establish a connection to such a powerful artifact. It may take a long while before we see her again. Plus, she was close to losing her mind when we left.¡±


    We ran away with our tails tucked between our legs, Achilleia; that doesn¡¯t exactly inspire confidence; or for me to think I have somehow managed to cause irreparable damage to her.


    But then again, the mind-calming stone did the heavy-hitting. But he didn¡¯t want to hope for some miraculous outcome. Such thoughts could be destructive, leading him to believe he could take things easy. No. It was better to assume the mind-calming stone didn¡¯t hurt her as much as he¡¯d like to believe.


    ¡°You¡¯re doing it again, Xerae¡­ blocking me out.¡±


    Jerome sighed. I¡¯m not blocking you out, Achilleia. I actually have another being occupying a fraction of my mind, so to speak.


    Achilleia was quiet for a long time, processing his words. Jerome took the time to observe Nyx. She had come closer to him but her face still held that look of haughty determination.


    ¡°Why is this so important?¡± he asked her.


    Csala stood by his side, fear oozing out of her pores like it was the fourth of July. She stood rigid, not making a sound. In fact, it seemed she wanted to make herself as small as possible.


    Nyx stepped a little closer and Csala gripped his arm, her fingers tight like a clamp. ¡°I¡¯ve seen this day.¡±


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped a fraction at the revelation. He searched the dragoness¡¯ eyes for some sort of pretense but found none. Putting his hand on Csala¡¯s, he tried to soothe her as much as he could.


    ¡°And it¡¯s a crossroads for me,¡± Nyx continued. ¡°If I can¡¯t gain your trust, Jerome, I cannot fulfill my destiny.¡±


    ¡°Sounds too epic for the likes of me,¡± he said looking into the distance behind Nyx. ¡°I¡¯m not that important.¡±


    Are those¡­?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae, they are. They must have sensed the fight you had the day before.¡±


    How did they get here so fast? He zoomed his eyesight into the distance to see four mystic kin hovering in the air. They must have been about ten miles away from their position.


    Eleven and a half miles, he corrected, with the aid of his nanites.


    These mystic kin were a lot more advanced in years than the ones he met before ¡ª not because they looked aged. No; because of their eyes.


    Their faces and bodies looked youthful and beautiful ¡ª with their bodies covered in little more than a chest and waist wrap ¡ª but each pair of eyes held a cunning to them that told of decades ¡ª maybe centuries ¡ª of intelligence, battle, and strategy.


    A horse kin, two felines and one with very sharp eyes that sensed it the moment he looked at them. He couldn¡¯t determine the race of the last one. She looked quite human, with long, chestnut-colored hair and dark brown eyes. Her ears were hidden by her long brown hair. So he couldn¡¯t tell if they would be pointed at the tip or round. She could pass for a human if it was the latter.


    Like the two mystic kin he¡¯d met with before, the other three had features that made them easily identifiable: pointy, horse ears at the top of the head of the horse kin who also had long, dark, chestnut-colored hair, the felines also had their ears ¡ª rounded like that of felines ¡ª at the top of their heads and their tresses were platinum.


    He saw the one without bestial features mouth the words, ¡®he sees us.¡¯ Her eyes widened a fraction in surprise and then, with less movements from her lips, she mouthed, ¡®he read my lips.¡¯


    Jerome smirked at her. From such a great distance he shouldn¡¯t have been able to track the movement of her lips but that was possible because of the nanites in his brain. She on the other hand was way more impressive to be capable of noticing his gaze ¡ª tracking his eye movement even ¡ª from eleven and a half miles away! And without any support ¡ª technological or otherwise. Except she had an artifact he didn¡¯t know about.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t. And she¡¯s an avian ¡ª a peregrine. So she doesn¡¯t just have superb eyesight, she¡¯s extremely fast.¡±


    Well isn¡¯t that awesome. Jerome drawled.


    ¡°You seem to have caught her eye,¡± Achilleia said playfully.


    ¡°Ignore them,¡± Nyx said. ¡°They won¡¯t come near you as long as I¡¯m here.¡±


    Jerome focused on her. With a wave of his hand, a mini cyclone formed around them, obscuring them from view. That should keep the peregrine from reading his lips. The swirling storm of ice and rocks should also create vibrations to distort sound ¡ª just in case.


    Watch them in case they try something, he said and Achilleia gave him a slight mental nod.


    ¡°You know them?¡± he asked Nyx.


    Nyx shrugged. ¡°I know of them. They never come near me though.¡±


    Jerome nodded in thought.


    ¡°Do you know what you did when you named her?¡± Achilleia asked but didn¡¯t wait for an answer. ¡°You bound her to you.¡±


    What?!


    ¡°It¡¯s a bond that enables her to hide the entire essence of her being. This way she can masquerade as a human whenever she wants. And because she¡¯s more powerful than you are, you cannot control her through the bond. Although, she would find it hard to keep things from you, to tell you lies and half truths ¡ª doesn¡¯t mean she won¡¯t try. She can also destroy the bond if she so wishes. You have to be careful with her, Xerae.¡±


    Do you know what she wants? What does she get out of all this?


    ¡°What she told you so far is all I know as well. It would be up to you to trust her or not. But if you choose to go through with whatever it is she wants, I can ensure she doesn¡¯t betray you.¡±


    Appreciated, Achilleia, he said. Jerome felt her joy at his words blossom through their connection for a moment before it passed.


    She talked about teaching me how to communicate with me telepathically. How is she going to achieve that?


    Achilleia snorted. ¡°I see she¡¯s quite good at obscuring facts. It¡¯s not that she¡¯s going to ¡®teach¡¯ you, she¡¯ll entangle your mind with hers, possibly granting her more control over the bond you already have.¡±


    Security in obscurity.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. But she¡¯s desperate. Most likely because she¡¯s running out of time since you have only three days left before leaving Terra Praeta. And partly because of me.¡±


    Jerome felt the mind-calming stone stir at Achilleia¡¯s words. He felt its intent ¡ª her intent. She didn¡¯t want such a bond. She wanted to control it; subdue the dragoness and make her subservient to him. Jerome didn¡¯t know what to think of that. That the mind-calming stone was becoming more active was welcoming but also¡­ scary. Achilleia didn¡¯t complain about not being able to read him so the mind-calming stone was just lurking, waiting for the right time to dig her claws into Nyx¡¯s mind. Scary¡­


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    ¡°Ready whenever you are, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome blinked, focusing his gaze on Nyx. The scowl on her face was evidence that she was beginning to get impatient with him. He ignored it. She was the one who wanted something from him; she¡¯d have to get on board with his time.


    ¡°How do we go about this thing, then. You wanted to teach me how to communicate telepathically with you.¡±


    Her eyes relaxed but she maintained her rigid posture and expression. ¡°Thank you, Jerome,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t say that lightly.¡±


    Jerome nodded but remained silent.


    ¡°Just close your eyes and relax,¡± Nyx said, closing her eyes as well. ¡°Let me guide your mind to mine.¡±


    He felt a tug somewhere deep within him ¡ª an uncomfortable tug. Jerome tightened his abdominal muscles, a reflex that kept him from groaning at the strange sensation.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± she said indifferently. ¡°Dragons are not known for subtlety.¡±


    Jerome glared at her. That felt like payback for his refusal to do this the first time. Or she was just being a bitch. She tugged again but with much less force. It was still uncomfortable though, especially as the tug became a continuous pull ¡ª a pull on something he could neither locate nor see inside him. He only knew that it existed. Deep inside his soul.


    After a few more minutes of feeling the same sensation, Jerome noticed a change in what he felt. He couldn¡¯t describe it but it was still a pull. But he didn¡¯t want to open his eyes ¡ª that could damage the whole ritual.


    Nyx grunted a little and at the same moment, he sensed Achilleia lash onto the pull he was feeling. The mind-calming stone was a fraction of a second behind her. Nyx crumbled to the ground in front of him. Jerome opened his eyes, thinking she was in pain. On the contrary, she was experiencing immense pleasure.


    Achilles?¡­ ah. This will take some getting used to. Achilleia? What¡¯s happening?


    There was no answer. All he could feel was a growing tightness somewhere deep inside him. It twisted and turned and shrunk, only to swell again and begin the process anew. After a few more minutes, the sensation eased but now he felt something attached to him.


    ¡°Someone,¡± Achilleia corrected. ¡°That¡­ was a humbling experience. Is that the being you said occupies a fraction of your mind?¡±


    Yes, I guess. That¡¯s how it feels.


    ¡°That¡¯s impressive, Xerae. You¡¯re already starting to get a feeling of the presence of your soul.¡±


    Really? Because I don¡¯t feel my soul, only the being that occupies¡­ my mind, I guess. Is the soul not different from the mind?


    ¡°First off, you ¡®are¡¯ getting a feeling for your soul. Because you can passively feel her, without her stirring inside you.¡±


    How do you know that? And how do you know it¡¯s a she?


    ¡°She shared her experience inside your mind with me¡­ along with threats of what will happen to me if I ever betrayed you.¡±


    Jerome could hear the mirth in her voice. Achilleia, she can be very terrifying. You need to take her seriously. She was the one who did everything I did in the First Heaven.


    ¡°Ah. Tialana must have mentioned that to you. I choose to call it ¡®The Prime Nexus¡¯. Sounds more meaningful¡­¡±


    Of course you do, he retorted.


    ¡°Like I was saying, you are starting to get a feeling of the presence of your soul. It''s like trying to sense ¡ª or feel ¡ª space. You can only feel the things which occupy it. But the soul is metaphysical, existing both in this realm and in the Prime Nexus at the same time.


    ¡°Therefore, everything that dwells in it or is attached to it should be metaphysical too. So you shouldn¡¯t be able to ¡®feel¡¯ the things attached to, or that dwell in your soul¡­ yet you do. Since when have you been able to sense her passively, if I might ask?¡±


    Uhm¡­ Jerome couldn¡¯t point out a particular time. It felt like it was just yesterday. Yet it also felt like it had been happening for ages. He knew there was once a time he couldn¡¯t sense her at all though ¡ª perhaps only when she stirred. When was that, then? When did he start sensing her?


    Maybe it was after coming to Terra Praeta. But that felt wrong. He felt like he had always been able to sense her before then. Or maybe it was after Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon. That also felt wrong. He felt deep down, he¡¯d been sensing her before then too. But he also felt he had only just started sensing her presence recently.


    Jerome caressed the mind-calming stone with his intent ¡ª a fluke of an action, as he didn¡¯t know how he did it. She purred in his mind with pleasure. She felt like an old friend and a new lover. Or an old lover but a new friend. The duality of his experience with her was confusing as fuck.


    ¡°It¡¯s probably a good thing that you can¡¯t figure that out yet. If not I would be scared you were growing too fast. That could have adverse effects on your foundation. The realm of the mind isn¡¯t under the dominion of time. The imagination can create whole worlds in seconds ¡ª with their own histories, peoples, cultures, and many more, and destroy them in but a fraction of the time it took to create them.¡±


    That¡¯s¡­ understandable. So are you saying I feel her as a part of me? As though she¡¯s always been there even though she only recently took up residence in my mind?


    ¡°Simple way to put it, but yes. When you awaken to the presence of your soul, it wouldn¡¯t be so confusing anymore. And most likely, you¡¯d be able to pinpoint when you started sensing her passively. Only those who have reached the Spirit Realm are capable of awakening to the presence of th¡ª¡±


    Whole lot of words just to say, ¡®you can now feel your soul.¡¯


    ¡°I didn¡¯t create the literature, Xerae. I only report it.¡±


    Jerome picked up Nyx in a princess carry and she moaned into his neck, nuzzling him. Her body was so hot and the smell of her arousal hammered at him, urging him to take her right there. He let go of the essence he used to create the cyclone that shielded them from the eyes and ears of the mystic kin in the distance. Once it cleared, he noticed they were gone.


    So? He asked Achilleia. What about my second question? Is the mind not different from the soul?


    ¡°Once again, an impressive observation, Xerae. Vorthe would explain it like this, ¡®the mind is an extension of the soul as the soul is an extension of the spirit¡¯. Quite impressive, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Hm-hm. And how would you explain it?


    He took off into the dark forest with Csala by his side. She hadn¡¯t spoken a word since they met up with Nyx. He glanced her way and she gave him a knowing smile. She was still a bit weary of Nyx though.


    ¡°It goes a bit deeper than that, Xerae. The soul is the seat and foundation of conscious thought, the subconscious, logic, emotion, and instinct. And like Csala said, it is the currency with which you have access to residency in the material plane ¡ª in a physical body, that is.¡±


    So it is the foundation of the mind; the building blocks of consciousness and everything in between, Jerome thought, processing Achilleia¡¯s words. The first meaning now sounded flimsy in the face of the second one. But Vorthe¡¯s meaning connects the mind, soul, and spirit together. What about yours?


    ¡°True. The spirit is the inner being ¡ª a sapient being, capable of emotion and communication. The Fae called it the ¡®all-powerful¡¯ self, the ¡®undying¡¯ self. The one that keeps giving.¡±


    ¡®Undying?¡¯ Come on, Achilleia, Jerome said in unbelief. The Fae were too full of themselves. That was the height of arrogance.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t agree with them either¡± ¡ª that was new ¡ª ¡°See, those who penned the literature about the inner being were at the height of power in their time. Their arrogance knew no bounds because they were very powerful and they gauged the world through subjective lenses.


    ¡°I call the inner being the ¡®prime self¡¯. Partly because it is the most powerful self of a person; it holds within it the potential to become more powerful than your most powerful physical self. The prime self has no gender ¡ª at least in an unmanifested state.¡±


    ¡®Unmanifested¡¯ state? You would have to clarify that later, Jerome said. Achilleia was throwing a lot of words around that he unconsciously attached the term, ¡®spirit man¡¯, to the prime self she mentioned.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do that,¡± Achilleia said.


    What?


    ¡°Don¡¯t change the terms and names I come up with. What¡¯s ¡®spirit man¡¯? It sounds to me like you think only ¡®man¡¯ is worthy of this. There are other races, Xerae, and they don¡¯t identify as men.¡± She sounded pretty hurt.


    Sorry about that. It was reflexive. Yeah, he wasn¡¯t thinking when he did that. But he also realized that Achilleia was somehow different from the Achilles he used to know.


    ¡°Apology accepted. And yes, I have changed. The former guardian is a persona I wore in remembrance of my maker. And I don¡¯t wish to speak about him, Xerae.¡± Achilleia continued as if she didn¡¯t just drop a bomb on him. ¡°The spirit is also the altar that enshrines the soul¡ª¡±


    Damn, Achilleia. Ease up on the rhetoric.


    She chuckled. ¡°As I was saying, the prime self enshrines the soul. It¡¯s not, however, a placeholder for the soul.¡± She stopped abruptly.


    Is that all? Jerome asked after some time.


    ¡°No. But you should take some time to digest all that before imbibing more.¡±


    Good. He¡¯d have been disappointed if that was all.


    They got to the edge of the void world and Jerome put Nyx inside his void plane. He didn¡¯t want anyone to see her like this ¡ª weak and horny. She¡¯d throw a tantrum if she ever found out, and probably destroy half the void world.


    Achilleia tittered a little.


    What? Jerome asked.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you noticed that I¡¯m communicating with you¡­ in the dark forest?¡±


    It dawned on him and he was stunned silent for a moment.


    How?... Jerome asked with wide eyes. He and Csala walked through the threshold of the void world.


    ¡°Your ¡®mind-calming stone¡¯. Now I won¡¯t just be connected to you; like her, I¡¯ve taken up residence in your soul. She didn¡¯t like coming to save my ass at the last minute so¡­¡± Achilleia gave a mental shrug. ¡°You should stop calling her that, by the way. She¡¯s not a stone. And she probably hates it.¡±


    This is good. I didn¡¯t like not being able to communicate with you. You¡¯re still with me right.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going anywhere, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome breathed in the air of the void world. It carried the strong scent of wood and flowers. The change in atmosphere helped him relax a bit, the sun¡¯s rays warm and welcoming.


    Thanks for the tip, by the way, he said. But I don¡¯t know what else to call her. I found her as a stone and she helped calm my mind during a rough time.


    ¡°Well, we can think of something together. Just make sure to be careful. Naming a being like that could kill you. Which brings me to my next discussion with you.


    ¡°Why the hell did you rename a dragon?!¡±

 146. The Ascended Elements

    They dropped Nyx off inside her air bubble under the pool. Jerome had to explain that he had no other choice but to name the dragoness. It was either that, or she ate two of their group members ¡ª one belonging to the Itakars and the other, the Feis.


    ¡°Naming a being isn¡¯t something to be taken lightly, Xerae. When you rename Csala, she¡¯ll also be bound to you. But in her case you have to be even more careful. Because unlike the dragoness who just needed to pass for human, she would need to become capable of wielding essence! You¡¯d need to put a whole lot more into consideration, like her essence channels, which for a being that¡¯s more complex than you, will be quite different.¡±


    I imagine it would be similar to the Fae¡¯s, or at least almost similar, Jerome said.


    Achilleia sighed in frustration. Did he say something wrong?


    ¡°Just don¡¯t name anyone before becoming a Spirit Realm artist first.¡±


    Jerome turned to Csala as they strolled toward Ms. Tara¡¯s and Sheela¡¯s tent.


    ¡°Sorry I¡¯ve been ignoring you.¡± He smiled apologetically at her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± She smiled back at him. ¡°I understand you''re having a discussion with Achilleia.¡±


    Jerome held her close, enjoying the moment of peace. ¡°We talked about you¡­ renaming you that is.¡±


    She perked up at his words with hope-filled eyes. ¡°What did she say?¡±


    ¡°That I should wait till I¡¯m a Spirit Realm expert ¡ª that will be a while though.¡±


    ¡°Not a problem, Jerome. I can wait.¡±


    Ms. Tara and Sheela were in meditation just outside their tent. When was the last time he meditated? They still had three days so he had better make good use of them. After all, he had quite a lot to do.


    ¡°For the first time in a while, I feel like I have quite some time on my hands,¡± he said and Csala nodded in agreement. ¡°We¡¯ve been running around for quite some time now that this feels surreal.¡±


    ¡°Not to me,¡± she said. ¡°You should meditate. I¡¯ll go for a swim.¡±


    He took in her red overcoat, noticing the dirt and grime on it. ¡°Yeah, you need a good scrub.¡±


    Csala giggled and stalked off.


    He found a spot behind their tent. With a lot more time on his hands, he took his time crafting another binding. He reached into the ground with his perception and to his surprise, found it mineral-rich. Veins of essence crystal stones criss-crossed throughout the ground. He was pretty sure there were a lot of ores too.


    He stood up looking into the distance. The void world gave a sense of expansiveness. Like it was so massive as to be an independent world on its own. But it wasn¡¯t. Of that, he was sure. But this wasn¡¯t the time to explore.


    He reached into the ground and stirred the minerals, pulling carbon-rich minerals to the surface and molding them to the shape he wanted. He made sure to make the end product as small as possible so as to fit in the palm of his hand ¡ª a small, blue convex disk.


    A blue diamond. It was the finest he had made so far.


    ¡°Congratulations, Xerae. Have you been to the bottom of the pool?¡± Jerome sensed her sift through his memories. ¡°Of course you have. I¡¯m amazed you were able to get three of them. Ilyrrah only got one.¡±


    That¡¯s¡­ he had no idea what to say to that. What are they for?


    ¡°They¡¯re keys of sorts. When every human leaves Terra Praeta, the keys would reset themselves and bond to you. Knowing how artifacts bond to you, I¡¯m confident they¡¯ll be safe with you.¡±


    Jerome thought back to how he had bonded every artifact he had received from Achilleia. He smiled. But a question tickled the back of his mind. A question he wasn¡¯t sure he was ready to ask. If the orbs were keys, then they were keys to what¡­?


    ¡°Bring out one of them,¡± Achilleia said.


    One of the melon-sized orbs appeared in his hand. The white-blue glow of it was barely discernible now but he could sense the energy coming off it. And it reminded him of the mystic kin. Were they tied to this as well?


    ¡°That is yet to be seen,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°Touch your blue diamond to the surface of the orb.¡±


    He did so and for a moment, felt the transfer of energy from the orb to the crystal.


    ¡°Wow,¡± he said out loud. What just happened?


    ¡°Exactly what you sensed. Your diamond is now magically more durable and capable of holding immense amounts of essence. You should begin carving your runes on it, Xerae. And listen as you work. There¡¯s a lot I need to tell you.¡±


    Jerome did as she said. Achilleia had him repeat the process of creating gemstones, this time she guided him to create sapphires, rubies, amethysts, emeralds, and many more gems. But she instructed him to make them grain-sized so he could fit them on the outer surfaces of rings, or just big enough to be the size of a pebble.


    ¡°You¡¯ve learned about the different forms of energies in the world: the natural essences and the forces. There are others, as you¡¯ve witnessed, that are beyond this world ¡ª the material plane ¡ª but can function in it.¡±


    Jerome nodded.


    ¡°I also only just unlocked a part of my nexus that had a whole library on the subject so don¡¯t think I was holding out on you.¡±


    What?


    ¡°Ilyrrah designed me this way so you wouldn¡¯t have access to knowledge you weren¡¯t ready for.¡±


    Makes sense, Jerome thought. Honestly, he had thought Achilleia was holding back information, but even then, he knew it was for a good reason.


    ¡°Well,¡± she continued. ¡°This new energy creates a plethora of elements called the ¡®ascended elements¡¯. The Church of the Light in your world calls them the ¡®divine elements¡¯.¡±


    Did they invade Vorthe? Jerome asked. Has war begun?


    ¡°Calm down, Xerae. There have been a few battles with the Alvrics. But not all-out war. The Church hasn¡¯t played their hand yet. The Avrics are planning to trap you though ¡ª all of you, but you in particular.¡±


    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Why me?


    ¡°Remember Blade¡¯s Edge Canyon? Apparently, Nolan Alvric has been searching for Vorthe¡¯s ¡®monster¡¯, and now he not only has confirmation that you exist, he knows where you are.


    ¡°With help from the Church, Alvric plans to hijack the portal that¡¯ll get you all back and bend the Houses and Clans to their will. It won¡¯t work though. At least not for those from the Great Clans and 2nd tier Clans ¡ª these clans already have safety protocols in place to counter such a thing if they ever occur. Those from the 3rd tier Houses like Sheela¡¯s might be in a bind, but the Royal Family is working to save them too¡­


    ¡°I know what you might want to ask, ¡®What about me?¡¯ ¡­ They won¡¯t save you, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome could choose to be angry at that but what was the use? Anger was a choice. There was no need for wasted energy right now. Instead, he had to work out his own salvation. Vorthe owed him nothing after all.


    ¡°That¡¯s a great mindset to have, Xerae. Because you¡¯re going to need it. Alvric isn¡¯t directly a threat to you ¡ª at least not yet. The Church and its soldiers, however, they¡¯re the real threat.¡±


    Because they wield the divine elements?


    ¡°Because they have a system in place to enable them wield the divine elements. Sacred artists have an advantage when it comes to investing in their strength for the long term, but you¡¯re still young. They on the other hand have the advantage when it comes to short-term strength. In battle¡­ in a war, they can be very deadly.


    ¡°The Church doesn¡¯t raise sacred artists; they don¡¯t have the structures in place. In fact, it is considered heresy in their land to cycle and create a core of your own.¡±


    But I remember Rihal saying they¡¯re light-wielders.


    ¡°That¡¯s the illusion they create when they wield ascended elements. But light itself can be said to be an ascended element ¡ª darkness too. In fact, all the forces are. It¡¯s just¡ª¡±


    Really? So I can¡ª


    ¡°No, you can¡¯t, Xerae. It¡¯s a lot more complicated than just wielding a light technique. Even absorbing the darkness in the Northern mountain range of your world isn¡¯t going to magically make you capable of wielding darkness as an ascended element.¡±


    So it would be like giving a loaded gun to an infant, Jerome said. I¡¯d just be banging it around like a blunt weapon.


    ¡°Every nightmare you¡¯ve ever had of the darkness and those who wield it pales in comparison to what you can actually do with it, when you use it right,¡± Achilleia said in response. ¡°The Church takes a different approach to using these elements: they create super soldiers. Powerful humans who are capable of wiping out entire armies ¡ª be they sacred armies or human armies. Only the best of the best can stand up to them.¡±


    So I¡¯m at a disadvantage¡­ Jerome said.


    ¡°Yes. And that¡¯s why I taught you spell frames ¡ª which you haven¡¯t been practicing!¡±


    Jerome flinched.


    ¡°These gems you¡¯re making, by the way, are going to help you mimic spell frames the way they should function if you were capable of using them properly.¡±


    Oh¡­


    ¡°Oh, he says.¡± Achilleia snorted. ¡°The ascended elements are quite different from anything you¡¯ve ever experienced, Xerae. The mystic kin aren¡¯t good at wielding it¡­ yet; they¡¯ve been groping in the dark for millennia as it were. The Church is a different matter. They¡¯ve perfected the ascended arts that they can now churn out  Judges every dozen years.¡±


    The ¡®ascended arts¡¯, Jerome said absently as he spun another gem into existence.


    ¡°That¡¯s all you got from all I said?¡± Achilleia ground out.


    Oh, I heard everything you said, he replied. The Judges sound ominous. Who are they?


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara called out a few feet away. Jerome looked over at her. ¡°Could you please dampen the heat and pressure you¡¯re working with; it¡¯s becoming too much to bear.¡±


    Jerome took in her appearance noticing she was sweating profusely. He looked around and noticed his work was producing a lot of heat. The surrounding air was hazy and extremely hot.


    ¡°Sorry about that,¡± he apologized. He took a deep breath and cycled, sucking in the heat into his core.


    ¡°What are you working on?¡± She came closer as soon as the temperature dropped to normal levels. ¡°You aren¡¯t even hot. And your clothes are fine,¡± she said, touching his overcoat. She sat down beside him.


    ¡°I¡¯m working on these.¡± He showed her some of the tiny gems.


    ¡°Wow¡­¡± she cooed. ¡°They are beautiful.¡±


    The gems sparkled in the light of the sun, producing a beautiful array of colors.


    ¡°Do you want to become a crafter?¡± she asked.


    ¡°No.¡± He chuckled. ¡°These are for¡­ weapons, I guess. I believe there¡¯s trouble in Vorthe and I¡¯m trying to prepare for it as best as I can.¡±


    ¡°And these gems can help you?¡±


    Jerome sighed and pulled her close. ¡°Yes¡­ Ms. Tara.¡±


    ¡°You almost called me Tara, didn¡¯t you?¡± She smiled up at him.


    ¡°I can¡¯t bring myself to do that, Ms. Tara. It sounds disrespectful.¡±


    She leaned into him and breathed in his scent. ¡°I¡¯ll leave you to your work then.¡± She stood up to leave but leaned down and gave him a peck on the cheek.


    Ms. Tara¡¯s cheeks burned bright red and she hurried away. Jerome smiled at her retreating form. He had work to do so he focused his thoughts once again.


    So, who are the Judges, Achilleia?


    ¡°The Church of the Light possesses a legion called the Order of the Judges ¡ª their most powerful force. It is said that they commune with the Light which they worship to gain their abilities through sacred rituals.¡±


    It is ¡®said¡¯? Jerome asked. He was sure there was a lot more to it than that.


    ¡°Remember, I said it¡¯s the illusion they create. Mortals are taken in by the Church ¡ª those who have found favor in their sight, orphans who have no one to go home to, the destitute, the hungry, the helpless¡­ They do this with the guise of charity. Only to brainwash them with their ideology and turn them into weapons.


    ¡°Those who become Judges are children of those in the top echelons of the Church. Those who are taken in, become ¡®Messengers¡¯. They¡¯re also very powerful and their job is to do the bidding of their Judge.


    ¡°The Judges are the ones capable of wielding the ascended elements. But those who are experienced enough¡­ and generous enough, can give their Messengers access to wield the ascended elements.¡± Achilleia stopped to give him time to process all of it.


    So the ascended elements, he said after a while. What makes them so special?


    ¡°They are special because they have a devastating effect on the world. Have you ever seen fire that consumes everything in its path, even other fires?¡±


    Nyx¡¯s black flames did just that, Jerome said.


    ¡°And do you think you have any defense against that?¡± He shook his head. ¡°What about water that can heal any wound or eat through anything as though it were acidic?¡±


    Hmm. I think vital aura can do that though.


    ¡°Not like this, Xerae. The effects of ascended elements far outstrip that of the natural energies. That¡¯s because they come from planes beyond ours; planes that are far more evolved than ours.¡±


    Jerome nodded in understanding.


    ¡°Finish up, Xerae. Runing the tinier gems will take more from you than you know. You need to rest a while.¡±


    One last question, Jerome said. Can sacred artists wield the ascended elements? If so, at what Realm is this possible?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. But from records, even the Fae stumbled upon it. But there is no factual data to instruct one who might desire to wield the ascended elements from said records. I have no concrete data to back up this claim, but advancing to the Saint Realm might be what grants you that ability. But who knows, maybe you could prove me wrong.¡±


    Oh I would, Jerome said. I was told I couldn¡¯t create an Epos until I became a Sage, but I created a mantra that rivals the Epos of Sages. If it takes getting to the Saint Realm to wield ascended elements, I¡¯ll do it in the Spirit Realm.

 147. Let’s Make History

    Sheela and Csala were cuddling with him when he woke up. He had his arms wrapped around their sleeping forms inside their tent. From his estimation, he had slept for six hours. He listened for Ms. Tara and heard the sound of her heartbeat outside the tent discussing with Nyx. her heartbeat was frantic. She was nervous in the presence of the dragoness.


    Nyx¡¯s gaze seemed to pierce through the tent, reaching him. He could almost feel her eyes on him. It was a weird feeling, like she was so close, yet at a distance from him at the same time. Was it the bond? Of course it was the bond.


    You¡¯re awake, her voice sounded inside his mind. She sounded guarded, hesitant¡­ scared.


    That feels¡­ he wanted to say weird, but didn¡¯t want to sound offensive. He could sense a new channel open up in his mind and connect to Nyx, strengthening itself in the process. The sensation made him notice other channels in his mind ¡ª Achilleia¡¯s and the mind-calming stone¡¯s.


    Achilleia¡¯s, like Nyx¡¯s, felt like a tunnel leading into the distance. But it also had a depth and a strength to it that Nyx¡¯s didn¡¯t have ¡ª like it was a part of him; or an extension of himself. The mind-calming stone¡¯s channel on the other hand led no were. It was set in his mind like a part of its foundation, solid and unshakeable ¡ª like bones that had ossified.


    He focused on Nyx¡¯s channel and sent his thoughts through. How are you feeling?


    I¡¯m well. Jerome¡­? she hesitated to ask but she couldn¡¯t stop her emotions from spilling through their connection. It was a torrent of fear and elation at establishing a connection with him; he could sense her gratitude but also her dread toward the being that had taken hold of the bonding process and morphed it into something more complex than she¡¯d ever known.


    Wait a minute. These were Nyx¡¯s thoughts. But they weren¡¯t being transmitted through words.


    Communication with the mind can go beyond words, Jerome, she said through their bond, using actual words this time. So she sent all that through their bond intentionally then. Achilles may not be able to do this with you because he isn¡¯t sapient.


    ¡°I can actually,¡± Achilleia butted in.


    Jerome felt nausea hit him and his eyes rolled into his head. Thankfully, he was still lying down.


    You fool! Nyx screamed at Achilleia, causing his head to swirl even more. He can¡¯t bear the presence of both of us yet!


    A headache assaulted him the next moment and he groaned in pain. But he could also feel another channel opening up in his mind to accommodate both of them ¡ª like a central channel.


    A nexus of sorts¡­


    Achilleia was silent, but he could sense her confidence in him. It was unwavering, unshakeable. It made him swell with pride; gave him the strength to push through the pain and come out on top.


    Jerome unconsciously stirred the vital aura in the ground and soon, Sheela woke up, sensing the aura in the air.


    ¡°Wow!¡± Her voice broke him out of his concentration and he opened his eyes. A green mist blanketed the whole space inside the tent.


    ¡°Tara!¡± Sheela screamed with barely contained excitement. ¡°Come see this! Quickly!¡±


    Jerome stood up to excuse himself. He made sure not to disturb Csala as he did so. Ms. Tara rushed into the tent and stopped near the entrance. She was stunned still by the sight that greeted her. Jerome moved round her so he could leave them to use the vital aura as they pleased. Once outside, he stretched and headed behind the tent to continue his work.


    Nyx followed him. ¡°How did you do that?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I did anything, Nyx. You and Achilleia did.¡±


    ¡°Achilleia? Is that what he¡¯s called now? And why does he sound feminine?¡±


    ¡°Achilleia has always been female,¡± he said. ¡°She created a male version of herself to honor her creator¡­ her words, not mine.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s stupid. Why be something else when you can be yourself?¡±


    ¡°You know she can hear you, right?¡±


    Nyx scoffed.


    Jerome carved scripts for a barrier around the place he wanted to use to work and created the barrier after burying his new binding in the exact center of the scripted circle. This new binding was orders of magnitudes better than the previous ones, and he had made sure to include certain runes that¡¯ll make the barrier more¡­ fun.


    Nyx watched him work, smiling to herself. He had no idea what was going on in her mind but he also didn¡¯t want to know. At least that was what he told himself. When the barrier was activated, she looked around.


    ¡°Impressive,¡± she said. ¡°Though a dragon can do all this with the flick of a tail.¡±


    There was that arrogance again.


    ¡°Sure you can,¡± he replied. ¡°So? What was it I accidentally did back there¡­ in my mind.¡±


    ¡°My people ¡ª and the phoenixes ¡ª call it the Common Path. It is established when the head of a bloodline takes his place and establishes his dominion over others.¡±


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    ¡°Your people can communicate telepathically¡­? Like the succubi?¡± Jerome asked, looking at her. His curiosity was piqued.


    ¡°Oh, no!¡± She chuckled. ¡°The ubus¡¯ psychic powers pale in comparison to that of dragons and phoenixes. Probably because they have no Alpha to establish dominion through an Authority.¡±


    ¡°Authority? It takes Authority to establish this connection?¡±


    Nyx looked at him with mild shock. ¡°How did you know about Authority?¡±


    Csala entered the barrier, carefully so she didn¡¯t hurt herself. She needn¡¯t have bothered. Jerome had programmed it so everyone in his close circle could enter. But those that were friends but not in his close circle would need permission.


    ¡°Is there a different meaning to authority than the usual? Because Tialana mentioned it. At the time we were in battle so I didn¡¯t ask,¡± she said.


    Csala gasped in shock when she saw Nyx inside the barrier and bowed. The gesture was so smooth and stealthy that Jerome would have missed it if he wasn¡¯t looking at her. She almost raced to his side to avoid Nyx.


    Nyx grinned at her ¡ª like a predator who had found easy prey. Jerome gave the dragoness a pointed look to disway her. That did absolutely nothing. He shook his head and looked away, not wanting to have a stare down with a dragon. He¡¯d lose woefully.


    He focused on the space inside the barrier and snapped his fingers. The earth rumbled and bubbled upward. It formed high back chairs made out of rocks around a large, round table. The chairs were soon covered with a soft cushion of green moss on the seat and backrest parts.


    ¡°Domain,¡± Nyx said appreciatively, looking at the display of power.


    ¡°Oh, so you know about this,¡± Jerome said. He already expected her to, though. Then he turned to Csala and said, ¡°In here, I can change the shape and form of every material thing.¡±


    ¡°Like I said,¡± Nyx flicked her tail behind her to communicate her meaning. Jerome shrugged.


    ¡°An Authority, Csala,¡± Jerome said, ¡°can be likened to a governing law of the universe ¡ª a universal principle if you might; a truth or a decree, because it is a creation of a being of power. Such beings could say ¡®down is up¡¯ and ¡®up is down¡¯, and everything and everyone on the surface of the planet would ¡®fall¡¯ into space.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not possible. How can that be possible?¡± Csala said, bewildered.


    Nyx laughed. ¡°A tiny succubus with a tiny brain you are, it seems.¡±


    ¡°Stop that,¡± Jerome spoke sternly to her, looking her dead in the eyes. ¡°Just because she doesn¡¯t know of such things doesn¡¯t mean she lacks intelligence. I won¡¯t condone such behavior around me or to those I care about.¡±


    Ironically, the moment reminded him of his time with the beastkin and Csala. Nyx stormed out of the barrier the next moment, in anger.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have done that, Jerome ¡ª ooh. This is so soft,¡± Csala said as she took a seat beside him. She tested the integrity of the moss. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s soft and cushiony but strong.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s Nyx. She¡¯s a dragon.¡±


    Csala froze.


    Jerome chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about her too much. I named her, just so you know.¡±


    ¡°Jerome, why in Odin¡¯s name would you name a dragon! They¡¯re destructive creatures!¡±


    ¡°Well, I see the both of you will get along just fine.¡± He gave her a pointed look.


    ¡°I need to find her; to apologize ¡ª yes. That¡¯s what I need to do.¡± She rushed out of the barrier as well.


    Jerome shook his head. Women. They always were worked-up about almost every situation.


    ¡°And you¡¯d have a host of them hovering over you sooner than you think,¡± Achilleia chimed in.


    I¡¯d rather not think about that right now, he thought with a chuckle. With everyone else gone, he changed the setup of the space; the round table morphed into a crescent table and all the other chairs collapsed to the earth except for one.


    Jerome dove into runecrafting. He carved out a fairly large rune on the table ¡ª his new work station. This new rune would enable him to view his work with a different lens and from different angles. The most common way to use it was to use it on oneself but that was something he had never tried before, so he was improvising.


    The rune lit up as he transmitted a little essence to it. He quickly carved a circle around it and began drawing a levitation rune on the circumference of the circle. The levitation rune had to be placed at the four cardinal points. With that done, he started working on a very important tool he¡¯d need.


    To carve runes on gemstones as small as he wanted to work with, he needed a certain level of precision. Like the kind of precision in precision cameras that are used to make maps on Earth. The first rune was precisely that, in a way.


    A precision rune.


    This rune would help him carve out other runes precisely. But first, he wanted to use it, together with a light technique, to create a laser cutting technique, whose width would be less than that of a strand of hair. He was aware of the probability that the laser cutter would not be visible to the eye, existing below the visible spectrum of light.


    But if it worked, it could¡ª.


    ¡°¡®Would¡¯, Xerae,¡± Achilleia corrected. ¡°It would revolutionize artifact production and runecrafting.¡±


    No pressure.


    He took a deep breath to steady himself. According to Achilleia, the soul of a sapient being will always have more effect in the process of artifact-making than the caricature of a soul Ilyrrah had given her. He didn¡¯t understand it yet, but apparently, the term ¡®poured out my soul to make something¡¯ wasn¡¯t just talk.


    Achilleia had no soul to pour into her creations. Only a sapient being could do that. And if he succeeded in what he envisioned here. He¡¯d what¡­ be the first to do it in this world? That was huge!


    He could feel the active precision rune creating an energy field around itself. He brought his fingers closer and the field pulled him in. His fingers hovered over the precision rune, stable and unmoving. He planted his wrists on the table just in case.


    Then he created a spell frame around his left index finger. He willed the circular frame to shrink nearly to the circumference of the second knuckle. The circle of golden light shrunk accordingly and hovered above his skin.


    That was easier than I thought it would be.


    ¡°Focus, Xerae. The precision rune makes it possible. Don¡¯t forget what happens when you lose control of a spell frame.¡±


    Yeah, I lose a finger. Got it.


    ¡°Well, ¡®fingers¡¯, Xerae.¡±


    Jerome snorted. Her warnings didn¡¯t dampen his excitement though. He created a second spell frame around his first knuckle and willed it to do the same thing as the first. Step by step he was able to get all the first and second knuckles on each hand encircled with a frame.


    This was where Achilleia came into play. Since Jerome wasn¡¯t able to fill the spell frames with spells, Achilleia helped him with that part. As each spell frame filled up with a spell, his fingers became heavier and heavier. Thanks to the levitation rune, he was able to keep them steady. The precision rune wouldn¡¯t have been capable of keeping his fingers still if they were too heavy to be held up in the first place.


    Jerome took a deep breath after the last of the frames was filled.


    Are you ready, Xerae.¡±


    Yes, Achilleia. Let¡¯s make history.

 148. The Alignment

    Lang


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask,¡± Jerome said to him.


    He studied the young Sprout¡¯s irises again. By all that is sacred to Zatirah, how did this boy live his life!? What dark rituals did he partake in?


    The Sprout in question brushed past his team to stand in front of the group of Sprouts beside him. ¡°Make sure to be prepared for anything when we portal out of Terra Praeta,¡± he said.


    They both stood side by side, talking under their breaths, and looking for all the world as if they were chatting about the weather.


    Lang nodded. ¡°Is that why you¡¯re dressed for war?¡± He scanned Jerome¡¯s robes ¡ª the same overflowing, sleeved cloak he wore during their duel ¡ª or was it another one? It felt comfortable to his senses ¡ª a deception, as he¡¯d seen the cloak stop a powerful wave of sword force. Appearances could be deceiving. The swirling silver eyes was just another addition to the slew of deceptive arsenal this Sprout had. But at least he had on a more traditional breastplate now.


    ¡°Love the beard by the way,¡± Lang said to ruffle him a bit. Can¡¯t have him feeling too comfortable. The boy had a mountain of a presence ¡ª and coupled with his height ¡ª that just pulled everyone along¡­ which was evident by the looks he was getting from the female members of his team.


    He scowled at them and they looked away.


    ¡°Not you too, Lang.¡±


    ¡°Seriously though, we¡¯d be celebrated for surviving Terra Praeta,¡± Lang said. ¡°There¡¯s nothing to worry about. Even if Alvric starts a war ¡ª which I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be too scared to start ¡ª they couldn¡¯t win against Vorthe.¡±


    ¡°Just be careful.¡±


    They stood together side by side for a few more breaths. But Lang felt a little intimidated standing close to him. The boy was so tall, as tall as the Baelors  ¡ª almost two heads taller than him. But people with such heights didn¡¯t have the kind of build that he had at such a young age. He hadn¡¯t quite filled out his body with much needed muscles but he was already on his way there. His gait was also near-perfect ¡ª almost like he was super confident in his own skin¡­ and walked like it.


    Lang wouldn¡¯t like to be as tall as Jerome. It was too much. He¡¯d be seen by everyone from a mile away, including people he didn¡¯t want to be seen by ¡ª enemies for instance. He shook off the thought to focus on the ladies giving Jerome side looks once again.


    The two teams were eager to leave and he could see their excitement practically oozing off them. Selene came for Jerome and he left with her. Lang called Fei Lin as he watched their retreating backs.


    ¡°Princess. You should stay by my side when the Alignment begins.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ¡®father¡¯ me around, Lang. I know the royal cur is up to something¡­ or knows something. Still wish we could have gotten rid of him though.¡±


    ¡°He has done more for us here than we could ever do for ourselves. Let¡¯s not think of how things would have turned out and focus on how to take advantage of the hand we are dealt by fate. He is weary of something. Perhaps something that¡¯ll likely happen when we arrive Vorthe.


    ¡°Prudence is the offspring of wisdom, Princess. Let us heed it.¡±


    The Princess nodded and stalked off. Lang called some others and instructed them to stay alert with their weapons on the ready when they get to Vorthe.


    ~~~


    ¡°Are you sure of this, Jerome?¡± Selene asked as he entered the Itakars tent. She gestured for him to take a seat at a table  in the center of the room.


    ¡°Nice place you¡¯ve got here,¡± he said, looking around. There was a big bed ¡ª Csala¡¯s bed ¡ª nestled in the right corner of the tent. Was she moving it around? A few odds and ends were also here and there. ¡°Yes, Selene. I sense there¡¯ll be more than a little scuffle between Vorthe and Alvric, maybe a new player will enter the game, who knows. Just be prepared.¡±


    Both Itakars had cleaned up nicely. There was a shine and warmth to their ice blue eyes that revealed their excitement at the prospects of going home. Their silver white hair looked groomed and they wore new armor with more than enough trinkets to buy an expensive house in Farryn.


    ¡°And you know this how?¡± Ajax asked. He was sitting at the far left corner of the tent. He wasn¡¯t asking to disprove him, Jerome could hear the vulnerability in his voice. Something else was going on.


    ¡°A Transcendent left Terra Praeta for Vorthe, Ajax. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s something the leaders of the world would overlook. That¡¯s a potential threat.¡±


    There was silence for a while as they processed his words.


    ¡°Well, if you put it like that,¡± Selene said. ¡°Truth is, we met with the heads of team Fei and they tried to disprove you, since they had no evidence of such happening. But we still wanted to leave a door open for if it turned out to be true. That¡¯s just one of the reasons we wanted to speak with you, Jerome.¡±


    Jerome looked at both of them, wondering what the issue might be.


    ¡°I told you about our father, remember?¡± Selene said hesitantly.


    Jerome nodded. ¡°Yes. he¡¯s a Saint but¡­¡± he didn¡¯t want to sound insulting by saying he was weak and dying.


    ¡°He advanced many years ago but didn¡¯t do it right. He¡¯s weak and dying right now. But he¡¯s also the type of person to rush into battle for the glory of Vorthe. He has written many books and in many of them I could practically feel his enthusiasm to die a hero¡¯s death; to die in battle.¡±


    She looked at Jerome with pleading eyes.


    ¡°Selene, I don¡¯t understand how I can be of help here. I understand you don¡¯t want to lose him but¡­¡± he left the rest of his words unsaid. She would understand he could do nothing to help ¡ª or could he?


    ¡°I spoke with Nyx.¡± She laughed. ¡°That was terrifying.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s commendable,¡± Jerome said, smiling. ¡°Nyx is terrifying.¡±


    ¡°Oh, she is. Well, I asked if she¡¯d be coming along to our world.  She said yes ¡ª Csala¡¯s coming too, isn¡¯t she?¡±


    That question felt like a trap. Most likely, she already knew if Csala would be coming along or not. He hadn¡¯t had the time to ask since he had been working non-stop for three days ¡ª six by his world¡¯s standard of time.


    ¡°That would be up to her,¡± he said, and Selene smiled. Jerome restrained himself from sighing. He had just dodged a bullet. There was no need to make her know that he suspected her question was a test.


    ¡°So I asked Nyx if she could come North with me to see my father.¡±


    Jerome perked up at that. ¡°I don¡¯t think Nyx is a¡­ healer of any sort. You know she¡¯s not human, right?¡±


    ¡°I suspected as much.¡±


    Ajax stirred uncomfortably in his corner but Jerome ignored him. They must not be used to being around non-humans who could pass as humans. And he couldn¡¯t hide that fact for long. It was best to let the people he had some level of trust in, know about it than have it all turned around and be accused of harboring non-humans.


    ¡°So? What was her response?¡± he asked.


    Selene smiled. ¡°She just smiled at me?¡± Then she looked him in the eyes. ¡°She said you can help. In her own words, ¡®You should ask Jerome, love,¡¯¡± ¡ª she tried to do Nyx¡¯s accent ¡ª ¡°¡®There¡¯s very little he won¡¯t do to help his friends out.¡¯¡±


    ¡°Ookaay?¡± Jerome said. He realized Nyx hadn¡¯t called him ¡®love¡¯ since the bonding ritual. ¡°Why do I feel like there¡¯s more to that?¡±


    ¡°Because there is. I¡¯m pretty sure she¡¯s a seer!¡± Her voice became heated as she began to speak again. ¡°I could smell it on her the moment she started speaking! Her eyes lit up in the same way my father¡¯s does ¡ª like she¡¯s privy to something no one else knows.¡±


    Jerome was sure this was a topic of much frustration to her. He smiled. ¡°So your father¡¯s a seer? I appreciate you trusting me with that information.¡±


    Selene wanted to say more but clamped her mouth shut as she caught herself. Jerome had intentionally put that out there to help her bridle her tongue. This way she didn¡¯t end up saying something she shouldn¡¯t ¡ª which was weird. Why was she all of a sudden, blurring out secrets?


    The air became stiflingly awkward for a moment before Jerome spoke up again.


    ¡°I think there¡¯s something I might be able to do but don¡¯t count on it. Your father¡¯s a Saint and I¡¯m just a Sprout. But I¡¯ll come North with you to give it a try. Hopefully it¡¯ll work.¡±


    Jerome stood up to leave.


    ¡°Promise?¡± Selene asked. Her ice blue eyes were filled with so much hope.


    ¡°Promise,¡± he said. He was in fact, heading North when he got home ¡ª for a ritual he didn¡¯t want to partake in. Nothing he could do about that one.


    ¡°Love the beard by the way,¡± Selene said as she walked him out. Jerome sighed, shaking his head, and Selene laughed at his obvious discomfort at the mention of his beard.


    He went back to Sheela¡¯s tent and called for them all. Nyx, Csala, Sheela, and Ms. Tara walked with him into the domed barrier he had set up. He had told them to leave their tent up so as to hide the dome behind it for a while longer.


    ¡°Wow, Jerome. This place looks great.¡± Ms. Tara looked around the spacious domed room. It was wider on the inside than it looked on the outside.


    ¡°I took the liberty to make it more spacious on the inside. We have some important things to discuss though.¡±


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    He sat down by a round stone table in the center of the room. The high-backed, moss-cushioned chairs were back ¡ª five of them. And everyone took a seat. Jerome passed around three rings each to them all.


    ¡°Put one on and keep the rest in your storage ring. Nyx, you don¡¯t have¡ª¡± Nyx swallowed the remaining two rings, startling everyone.


    I have a storage space of my own, she transmitted through their personal psychic pathway.


    Jerome nodded at her.


    ¡°They are beautiful, Jerome,¡± Sheela said.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve been meaning to ask. What happens to your storage ring when you shift?¡± He had a pretty good idea but wanted to hear it from her.


    ¡°It shifts with me. But it wouldn¡¯t be seen because my fur covers it. The pack receives special batches of storage rings from the Royal Family. In turn, we protect their resources in the redwood forest. Amongst other things.¡±


    ¡°Then it¡¯s a good thing I put that into consideration. These rings will shift with you too, and wouldn¡¯t be seen with the naked eyes.¡±


    ¡°How did you carve runes in gemstones as small as these?!¡± Nyx asked with mild shock as she studied the one she was about to wear. She slid it on the index finger of her right hand and the ring shrunk in size to fit her slender finger. The many tiny gems packed on the surface of the ring glittered.


    ¡°Was wondering how it would fit,¡± Csala muttered. The rings were at least two sizes too big for their slender fingers.


    ¡°The jade is to counter ascended elements, am I right?¡± Nyx asked.


    Jerome¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°How did you¡­?¡±


    ¡°I can tell something bad is going to happen, Jerome,¡± she smiled at him. ¡°And jade is a gem of many mysteries.¡±


    Ms. Tara, who was sitting beside him, nudged him in the rib. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen?¡±


    Jerome exhaled a nervous breath and looked around the table. ¡°We¡¯re all going to be walking into a trap when we arrive in our world. The portal that would take us home has already been tampered with by the Argonaut ¡ª with some help from an outside force, the Church of the Light.¡±


    ¡°The Church of the Light?¡± Sheela asked. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about them.¡±


    ¡°The Church has soldiers that wield very¡­ esoteric energies ¡ª energies that come from beyond our plane of existence.¡±


    ¡°Which are these ¡®ascended elements¡¯?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± Jerome nodded at her. ¡°Vorthe is already preparing to counter them. So they most likely will be able to save the teams from the Great Clans and 2nd tier Clans.¡±


    ¡°And those of us from 3rd tier Clans?¡± Sheela asked, her voice tight and full of fear.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know yet. They may yet succeed in saving everyone. But I don¡¯t want to count on it. See, the Great Clans and 2nd tier Clans have security and safety measures set up for such a situation as this. I¡¯m not so sure about the 3rd tier Clans.¡±


    ¡°How do you know all of these, Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara asked with a confused gaze.


    ¡°Because he¡¯s meant to.¡± Nyx beat him to it. She reached across the table to hold Ms. Tara¡¯s hand in hers. ¡°Trust him. He¡¯s Vorthe¡¯s salvation.¡±


    The air inside the dome became so heavy, so fast, it felt like he could take a knife and cut a slice of it. Jerome coughed to clear the stifling moment. He would need to have a discussion with Nyx about making cryptic declarations like that.


    ¡°The jades in your rings have been designed to counter that ¡ª hopefully.¡±


    ¡°Hopefully?¡± Nyx asked with a raised eyebrow. There was a tone to her voice he didn¡¯t like; like she was stating his incompetence.


    Jerome sat back and held her gaze before answering. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of mysteries around the ascended elements that even you don¡¯t know, Nyx. However, the Church of the Light has been doing this for forever.


    ¡°I won¡¯t strut around in pride of my skills knowing fully well they¡¯ve been doing this for much, much longer than anyone on the continent we¡¯re headed for.¡±


    Nyx pouted, looking away. Success. He had held her gaze throughout his cryptic speech, making sure to communicate the gravity of their situation. He had no time to deal with a rebellious dragon and she was bound to him ¡ª not the other way around. She¡¯d best get it through her thick skull. Plus, she hadn¡¯t refuted the fact that he mentioned, about her not knowing all there was to know about the ascended elements.


    Nyx seemed almost childlike at times¡­ and overly mature at other times. It was worrisome.


    ¡°The rubies would help manipulate fire essence and lightning,¡± he continued. ¡°The sapphires, water and ice. Emeralds manipulate vital aura ¡ª just in case. The diamonds make you as tough as a diamond and can channel Sword Force. The opals help to manipulate earth.


    ¡°The amethysts ¡ª and I hope some of us wouldn¡¯t need to use them ¡ª can manipulate dream aura outside of your mind and body. But it can¡¯t manipulate other people¡¯s dream aura, and those of us who are still Sprout have it in limited amounts. With the right amount of practice though, you can use the gem to speed up your thought process ¡ª which is still a function of dream aura, the gem just helps you access it. Something we normally wouldn¡¯t be able to do as Sprouts. And that is safer than trying to manipulate it outside your mind and body.¡±


    He turned to Csala. ¡°I¡¯m betting you can access your dream aura, can¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Mine and that of others.¡± She smirked at him. ¡°I¡¯m still going to use these though.¡±


    Jerome smiled at her.


    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t you want us manipulating dream aura?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous, Tara,¡± Sheela said. ¡°If you do it too much, it could lead to severe health issues.¡±


    ¡°Dream aura is a product of the subconscious mind,¡± Jerome said. ¡°It¡¯s not a natural aura of the world. It collects in your mind over time and when you get to the Spirit Realm, you can access it. I have seen a Sprout access her dream aura before, but I¡¯m sure she had an artifact to assist her with it.


    ¡°She helped me heal during a rough period and would look as pale as death after every session with me. It was hard to watch, especially knowing I was the reason she had to go through such torment.¡±


    Jerome promised to make it up to her. Layla had truly helped him back then. He wasn¡¯t sure he would¡¯ve been able to get back on his feet on his own. He took a breath and cleared his head.


    ¡°This is a whole arsenal on a ring, Jerome.¡± Nyx looked up from her ring. ¡°Thank you.¡±


    She meant it. But he knew she didn¡¯t need the ring. Still, it was good she was appreciative. Maybe she was taking steps to change. Nyx had a lot of ego, which would make their relationship tumultuous. If she wanted to work with him, she would have to let go of that ego.


    Your black flame is an ascended element, right? He asked and she nodded. Jerome thought about Noir¡¯s black flame. That too must be an ascended element. Why else could it have such significance throughout history? That must be why there was constant war in Pathuma.


    ¡°Do you see the clear crystals scattered in between the others I just mentioned?¡± They all nodded. ¡°That¡¯s quartz. Amethyst is a colored quartz itself. The quartz will create a balance in the usage of the different energies of the other gemstones ¡ª it¡¯s a harmonizer and stabilizer.¡±


    ¡°So we don¡¯t end up destroying our rings?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Or worse,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Losing your fingers. It would also help us communicate with one another.¡±


    ¡°Only one rock can do all that?¡± Sheela asked.


    ¡°Some artificers call it the ¡®Universal Crystal¡¯,¡± Jerome said with a shrug. ¡°I guess the name makes sense now.¡±


    ¡°What will the communication be like?¡± Nyx asked. ¡°Vocal or¡­?¡±


    ¡°Vocal,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Unfortunately I¡¯m not yet skilled enough to craft mental transmission runes. There are a lot of things which could go wrong with that.¡±


    Everyone nodded gravely in understanding ¡ª even Nyx. The mind was not something just anyone could tinker with.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara said, drawing his attention. ¡°I tried scanning the ring but something¡¯s blocking me out.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the binding.¡± He had used the many microprocessors Achilleia had created when they were in Sanctum to form the bindings of the rings. He still had a lot left though. ¡°You would have to bond with the rings because they are effectively artifacts.¡± Computational artifacts, he thought to himself with a smile.


    Everyone poked their fingers and touched a drop of blood to the ring. They watched as the blood spread unnaturally around the crevices in between gemstones in the ring. The gemstones lit up brilliantly, absorbing a fraction of the blood that passed by in a mesmerizing display of colors. After the blood completed a revolution around the ring, it was absorbed into it, completing the bond. They did the same with the remaining two as well.


    ¡°That was mesmerizing to watch,¡± Sheela said, shaking off the feeling.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of the effects of having so many different gemstones work together. It creates an out-of-world sensation,¡± Jerome explained. He had felt it so many times when he was working with the gems that he was effectively numb to the sensation already.


    They all thanked him for the rings ¡ª Csala and Sheela really thanked him. Ms. Tara had to drag Sheela out to go watch the light show of the Alignment ¡ª not that it was starting anytime soon. Jerome held Csala back to speak to her privately as they all left.


    ¡°I told you I would find a way to help you wield essence, right?¡± He set her down in his lap. Csala immediately started to grind against his bulge with her glorious derriere.


    ¡°You were able to do it?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not a permanent solution. That will happen when I rename you.¡±


    He held up a set of waist chains for her to see ¡ª six of them. There were quartz crystals interspersed in the links of the chains. ¡°Quartz is also a very good medium for channeling different energies. With these, you can act the part of a sacred artist. Have you ever thought about what element or force you¡¯d like to wield if you could?¡±


    ¡°A lot,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯d like to wield everything. But maybe I should start with¡­¡±


    ¡°Pure essence,¡± Jerome chose for her. ¡°It¡¯s unique. At least you can get a feel for essence with it before you use the rings. And it¡¯s not as easily detectable as attributed essence ¡ª at least to the less experienced.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± she asked, voice filled with surprise.


    ¡°Hm-hm.¡± He nodded.


    ¡°Why waist chains, though?¡±


    Jerome chuckled and whispered into her ear. ¡°Because I want to see you wear them; to appreciate them when I peel all that clothing off of you.¡±


    Csala giggled. ¡°I¡¯ll go put them on. But first¡­¡± She turned around in his lap so she was facing him, pushing her large bust against his chest. Jerome wrapped his hand around her supple waist. ¡°You didn¡¯t ask if I¡¯d like to go with you to your world. Did you think I would just follow you?¡±


    Her angry demeanor wasn¡¯t fooling anyone. He smiled at her. ¡°I guess I should have asked. Sorry about that. But I didn¡¯t expect you would just follow. I don¡¯t own you Csala. You can come if you want to.¡±


    She snorted ¡ª very unlady-like ¡ª making him laugh. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m coming. Who¡¯s going to give you mind-blowing sex to keep you satisfied?¡±


    ¡°Speaking of sex.¡± He looked behind her to check if any one was coming in. When his eyes met hers, the hunger he saw in them mirrored his own.


    Csala kissed him passionately before standing up and racing out of the dome.  ¡°I¡¯ll go put these on,¡± she called out as she left.


    ¡°You can put them on here,¡± Jerome insisted, the caveman part of his brain trying to keep her here.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the fun in that?¡± her voice reached him psychically.


    Jerome chuckled at her antics, anticipating a lovely time before he left Terra Praeta.


    But it was not meant to be.


    Essence spiked in the air and the void world sucked up all the ambient essence around him. Jerome rushed out of the dome to see the sky turn dark. Something eclipsed the sun and partial darkness enveloped them all. Then the Northern lights appeared, a beautiful aurora that stretched on for miles. It  was as if the barrier of the void world was erased and the rest of the world became visible from their point of view.


    Everyone rushed out of their tents and started packing up. Sheela and Ms. Tara quickly began to dismantle their tent. With a wave of his hand, Jerome made the domed barrier invisible to the naked eye.


    ¡°I guess we won¡¯t be having fun yet, will we?¡± Csala asked as she came up to him in her overcoat. She flashed him, revealing a skimpy red outfit that made his mouth water.


    Jerome sighed. ¡°Maybe next time.¡±


    Csala walked away to go change again.


    Achilleia, Jerome called out. What¡¯s happening? The Alignment shouldn¡¯t be for another six hours¡­


    ¡°This is the Sovereign¡¯s doing, Xerae. He probably doesn¡¯t want to give Alvric more time to change things.


    Very well then.

 149. The Alignment 2

    ¡°This feels¡­ weird,¡± Nyx said as she walked up to him. She stood beside him, gazing up at the aurora that bathed the field of flowers in green. ¡°Powerful. Beautiful, even¡­ but weird.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± Jerome asked. He didn¡¯t feel what she was feeling.


    ¡°It means you were right. The portal has been tampered with. It¡¯ll separate us the moment we enter it.¡±


    ¡°... And that¡¯s not supposed to happen, is it?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± She looked his way. ¡°Csala would be able to take care of herself in your world. But what about Tara and Sheela?¡±


    Jerome felt Achilleia stir in his mind to focus on the conversation. He could keep both women in question inside his void space where it was safe. But then what? Was that his goal? Was that what they would want? Was it optimal for their growth in strength?


    ¡°Of course not,¡± Achilleia answered in his mind.


    ¡°They need to test their strength against stronger adversaries,¡± he said. ¡°This will help them. And if they encounter someone or something too strong for them, I¡¯ll step in.¡±


    Nyx smiled at him. ¡°I knew it was the right choice to stick with you.¡±


    Ms. Tara and Sheela joined them after stashing away their tent.


    ¡°We will be separated when we go through the portal,¡± Jerome said to them. He looked at both of them to see how they would react to his words. But they were both calm and collected.


    Preparations to leave were happening all across the void world. Ms. Tara and Sheela hadn¡¯t had much to pack up so they had taken very little time. The aurora seemed to intensify all of a sudden, drawing everyone¡¯s attention.


    Jerome saw Lang rise into the air. The older Sprout looked briefly at him and they exchanged nods.


    ¡°What was that?¡± Nyx asked. ¡°Oooh! Tricky little Sprout he is, isn¡¯t he?¡±


    Jerome chuckled. Nyx was smart and she had been the one to let them all know that Lang was ready to advance.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be back,¡± he said before rising into the air to meet up with the older sprout. As he rose, he did a little breathing exercise to keep from showing his excitement about seeing the advancement of a Sprout to the Spirit Realm. ¡°So¡­ what now?¡±


    Do you know what causes the alignment?¡± Lang asked.


    Jerome looked at the display of different lights; yellow, blue, red, orange, green¡­ green being the most prominent of all. He watched as the lights shifted gently and changed shapes like a curtain in the sky.


    He shook his head. ¡°No idea,¡± he said. No need to bring attention to himself with knowledge he ¡®shouldn¡¯t¡¯ know.


    ¡°Every fifteen thousand years the alignment happens,¡± Lang said as they continued to fly upward. ¡°The planes align in such a way that interplanetary travel becomes possible between the two worlds ¡ª my tutor once hinted at there being other worlds it can happen with.¡±


    Oh? That was new. He¡¯d have to look that up.


    ¡°But Vorthe found a way to send Sprouts over before the time, and it takes a lot of essence to do so as you must have seen before we came here.¡±


    Well, there were other things like the warping of space-time involved but¡­ Jerome shrugged inwardly.


    ¡°And in turn,¡± Lang continued, ¡°The Alignment produces a lot of essence as well. It¡¯s the greatest source of energy a Sprout like me could ever ask for.¡±


    ¡°I guess you¡¯re about to make history,¡± Jerome said.


    Lang chuckled and inhaled. Jerome could almost see the pride in his eyes and the puffing of his chest even though he wasn¡¯t looking.


    ¡°Do you know why the Spirit Realm is called so?¡± Lang asked.


    ¡°Because the sacred artist becomes aware of his soul and by extension his spirit?¡±


    Lang nodded. ¡°Yes, but shouldn¡¯t it then be called the Soul Realm?¡±


    ¡°Well, you tell me,¡± Jerome said. They could both sense the essence of the aurora now, and it was¡­ vast! Even from far away!


    ¡°It¡¯s because when one reaches the Spirit Realm they gain the ability to draw power from their spirits. And such a power Jerome¡­ nothing compares to it!¡± Lang rose higher, going ahead of him a little. ¡°Spirit Realm artists are called Pillars.¡±


    ¡°Pillars?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°Yes, Jerome. Pillars. Those in the Essence-Gathering Realm are called Drudges. The Essence-Forming Realm? Blanks. The Core Formation Realm? Sprouts¡­¡±


    ¡°And those in the Spirit Realm are Pillars,¡± Jerome finished for him. ¡°But why Pillars?¡± It had no¡­ flair to it, he supposed.


    ¡°Because that is where they form their bloodline roots ¡ª the ¡®Pillars¡¯ upon which a stronger foundation is built. Magic beasts are born with their bloodline roots. Humans are not. But it gives one an edge in life¡­ in battle. Essence becomes easier to wield because there is something else besides willpower and imagination backing up one¡¯s intent.


    ¡°You could say it becomes like the magic of old that the fae races wielded. A spray of essence could become a mighty avalanche of power! Power unlike anything, Jerome!¡±


    Jerome studied him for a second, to make sure he didn¡¯t have a screw loose. He¡¯d never seen Lang speak so passionately before. ¡°That¡¯d be wonderful,¡± he said, more to flow with the conversation than anything.


    Lang stopped after a while and Jerome, a few feet below him.


    ¡°It¡¯s time,¡± he said. ¡°You may want to step back, Jerome. Advancement to the Spirit Realm can be¡­ chaotic.¡±


    Jerome nodded and dropped a bit more in altitude. The wind whipped around his overcoat and pushed his hair into his face ¡ª which he was only noticing now. Lang took a lotus pose midair and Jerome sensed him begin to relax. The man was taking a huge risk doing this with him just a few feet below.


    At the same time he was communicating his trust in him. For that, Jerome was grateful. Plus he was sure if things went south, he was the only one who could help.


    ¡°You should focus on what¡¯s before you, Xerae,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°You might be needing the knowledge sooner than you know.¡±


    I thought you said I still have a decade, more or less, before I advance to the Spirit Realm, Jerome said.


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°I said that, didn¡¯t I?¡± Achilleia said. Her voice sounded almost broody. His gut told him he was missing something. Achilleia was never one to lack a certain level of certainty when it came to her claims.


    He remembered the day she had told him he still had a decade more before becoming¡­ Pillar? Is that how it¡¯s said? Sounded bland.


    What changed? He asked.


    Achilleia didn¡¯t answer. He could sense her processing her thoughts so he left her to it. He¡¯d find out sooner or later. He focused on the meditating Sprout above him to see what wonders he was going to perform to advance to the next Realm.


    ¡°Now is as best a time to do this,¡± Achilleia said.


    Do what?


    ¡°The barrier between worlds is thin enough to weave some of the pods of Hezvar into the fabric of the void world¡¯s space-time.¡±


    How will you do that? Jerome asked curiously.


    ¡°Focus on the pods, Xerae.¡± Achilleia dropped a few pods inside his void space. ¡°Now push them out.¡±


    It felt like sitting on a toilet seat and trying to push shit out of himself. The pods weighed nothing yet it felt like pushing the world.


    Achilleia helped, weaving psychic energy around his. The air rippled around him and the pods turned invisible as they exited one by one. With time he pushed all eight pods out of his void plane.


    Can I take some with me to my world? Jerome asked. It would help if I could use them to search for my family.


    ¡°You realize that the Transcendents of your world wouldn¡¯t allow that, right?¡± Achilleia sad. ¡°Their senses vastly outperforms that of beings like Muna. And yet Muna could sense my pods. Transcendents ¡ª territorial beings that they are ¡ª would come after you.¡±


    So no such luck there. Guess he¡¯d have to do things the old fashioned way. He focused his attention back on Lang. The older Sprout had begun cycling and he was not absorbing the essence in the air. Which could only mean one thing. He was cycling the essence from the  aurora high in the sky. How he was doing that was a mystery to him.


    ¡°You remember when you cycled outside that cave you made? After the battle with the unbound?¡± Achilleia asked.


    Oh, so it¡¯s like that, Jerome realized.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. You have begun to sense the impurities your body filters out when you cycle. He on the other hand can cycle specific attributes of essences amongst the available ones, and more. It¡¯s one of the perks of being an older Sprout¡­ doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s as powerful as you though.¡±


    Jerome nodded as he watched Lang cycle. If he had tried to do what the older Sprout was doing, he¡¯d cycle every type of essence available. Maybe because he was not yet experienced enough to filter out the attributed essences he didn¡¯t want. But now that he knew of it, he sure would try.


    Lang continued to cycle for much longer than he expected. The essence from the aurora in the sky kept getting denser and it soon became slightly uncomfortable to remain in the air. It had a harshness to it that he could only attribute to radiation as it reacted slightly with the surface of his skin ¡ª like one of the forces. But it wasn¡¯t one of the forces, or at least to his perception, it felt like essence.


    Lang was unperturbed about it, though, and so was he. The older Sprout began to cycle faster and Jerome felt his presence swell. Lang¡¯s psychic energy washed over him multiple times, as if trying to pierce through something ¡ª him maybe. Sprouts had the ability to scan things with depth so he wasn¡¯t sure what Lang was trying to do that he couldn¡¯t already do.


    ¡°Just wait and see, Xerae,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°Not many Sprouts can do this on their first trial but I have a feeling this Sprout can.¡±


    And this¡­ ¡®this¡¯, is what exactly? He asked.


    ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡±


    Jerome focused back on Lang. he sensed some Sprouts flying toward him but they struggled to get to his position. He looked back to warn them off but he shouldn¡¯t have bothered. Fei Lin, who was in the lead, plummeted back to the ground when she reached a certain altitude, as did every other Fei behind her.


    ¡°Without the completion of the Alignment, you should remain grounded¡­ for safety reasons,¡± he said, making sure to project his voice far enough to reach the Sprouts on the ground.


    Lang¡¯s psychic energy washed over him again and the mind-calming stone stirred.


    ¡°I knew she would be interested,¡± Achilleia said with barely contained excitement. ¡°Do you sense what the Sprout is doing, Xerae?¡±


    Jerome shook his head. He felt like he was groping in the dark here. But Achilleia was excited about something so that most likely means he wasn¡¯t in any danger.


    Lang¡¯s psychic wave came again, this time with¡­ something else. It was hard to put a finger on it but for a split second, Jerome felt he sensed intent. That should be natural as everyone who could use psychic energy used it with their intent and others could sense that when they use it.


    But this felt¡­ different.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. It is different. Care to guess?¡±


    Jerome held his tongue¡­ for now. If Lang did it again ¡ª which he was sure the older Sprout would ¡ª he¡¯d glean more information from the experience. He was patient. Until the Alignment was complete they were going nowhere.


    Lang did it again. This time Jerome sensed the older Sprout¡¯s psychic wave before it washed over him. It tickled him at the edges of his senses and that intent flowed through again. No. not just intent, but a consciousness.


    Jerome¡¯s eyes opened in shock as it dawned on him ¡ª or at least he hoped he was witnessing what he thought was the exact thing happening.


    ¡°Is he elevating his mind?¡± he asked out loud.


    ¡°Use your inside voice, Xerae,¡± Achilleia warned. ¡°He may be focused right now but his senses are hyperactive. He may have even heard you speak.¡±


    Makes sense, he thought. He realized he wasn¡¯t just sensing Lang¡¯s psychic wave but the rise of his mind, so to speak.


    ¡°He¡¯s now functioning on a mental wavelength that¡¯s higher than yours. In this state, he can sense all minds in a radius of about thirty feet around him. In this state he wouldn¡¯t need to use his psychic energy to find someone in close proximity to him. He can also sense the intents of the minds he senses if they are in lower Realms than he is. Or if they are less experienced than he is. This way, he leans more toward stealth and self preservation.¡±


    Jerome sighed and shook his head. The life of the sacred arts just keeps getting more and more complex.


    ¡°Your life took a new turn when you started creating your core, Xerae. You¡¯re becoming less human the more you advance. The evolving binding you call your core is evidence enough.¡±


    Jerome humphed. Leave it to you to call a core a binding.


    Achilleia had a very interesting take on things. He had never once thought of his core as a binding. A natural binding. How a human being could survive with a crystal inside them was beyond him. But he didn¡¯t question the rules of the universe he found himself in.


    A tiny shockwave pulsed out of Lang and his body shook slightly. His aura climbed again, his presence seeming to swell more and more. Sword Force began to whip around him and Jerome¡¯s overcoat automatically put up an invisible barrier against it.


    Lang laughed. His voice was loud and boisterous. His presence was more powerful than it was just moments ago. To Jerome¡¯s senses, he felt denser; tougher. More durable. If they had another duel, with Lang as a Spirit Realm artist, it wouldn¡¯t go as easy as it did the last time, Jerome was sure of that.


    But beyond the changes witnessed during his advancement, Lang didn¡¯t really change. He still looked the same. His presence might have grown but it still wasn¡¯t enough to be oppressive ¡ª at least not to Jerome.


    Maybe he had expected to see some form of sign that a Spirit Realm artist had been born ¡ª an acknowledgement from the world around them, maybe. But nothing. Besides the swirling Sword Force around him, that is. The Alignment sure didn¡¯t give two fucks about Lang¡¯s advancement.


    He was tempted to ask for another duel but the wind picked up, pulling him with as much force as the cyclone he battled in a few days ago. The sky swirled into a gigantic cyclone! The lights from the aurora merged together with the cyclone, creating an otherworldly display of lights and magic.


    Jerome felt the sky pull him upwards and sideways before an otherworldly green light bathed him and Lang. He resisted the pull. Lang turned back and smiled at him before vanishing in a green cloud. Jerome fought against the pull for longer ¡ª long enough to gaze back and see the many Sprouts he had fought alongside, vanish into a cloud of green aura.


    He stopped fighting the portal and blacked out a moment later.

 150. Interlude

    Outskirts of Alvion. Southern Hemisphere.


    ¡°Move it, you old mule!¡± He heard the sound of the taskmaster¡¯s whip and braced himself right before it struck his back. Stinging pain coursed through his veins and he clenched his teeth to keep from making a sound. That would just spur the pudgy cunt on.


    They were closer to Alvion now. He could see the famous towers of the city in the distance. The trees of the forest were not tall enough to hinder the view. The House of Masonry outdid themselves in this regard, evident in the landmarks that could guide those even outside their city.


    It had taken them five days of trekking from Alva to get to this point and he was exhausted. He wished he could get a sip of water, only a sip. His muscles ached relentlessly and his fingers were already numb from the lack of blood flow. He had had to wrap his forearms, wrists, palms and fingers in rolls of and strips of torn clothes to keep them safe from bruising. His palms were already heavily calloused though, so there was no need to worry about bruising there.


    The cart he was pulling was large ¡ª larger and heavier than the standard cart ¡ª and was loaded with weapons and chests filled with gold and other precious metals. Seven men sat shoulder to shoulder on both sides of the cart facing each other. An eight sat in the rider¡¯s seat, whom he knew so well by the sound of the whip in his hand. The others were alien to him ¡ª strangers from a different land. He had heard whispers of the forces of The Church of the Light.


    Were these them?


    The men were bigger and taller than anyone he had ever seen ¡ª even the Baelors. Not that he could truly recognize them as they wore long flowing black cloaks and skull-shaped masks to cover their faces. Every inch of their skin was covered from view. Their weight was supposedly the reason why he was using such a large, heavy cart to transport them. Their masks were especially meant to intimidate with the scary glare they all spotted. And what was that metal tube behind their heads that connected their heads to their backs?


    There was a presence to them. An oddness that he couldn¡¯t quite put words to. It was¡­ uncomfortable¡­ unnerving. Maybe that was why they chose to travel in the cart instead of the draft horses they brought along with them ¡ª seven giant horses, the sizes of which he had never seen before that trundled alongside their cart. The matching troops gave them a wide berth. Other carts were ahead of him as the giants¡¯ weight was not so easy to pull.


    He tsked in annoyance at the injustice, but there was nothing he could do. Predator¡¯s didn¡¯t care for the opinions or comfort of cattle.


    Thankfully they couldn¡¯t pick up on his use of mental energy ¡ª for whatever reason that was. His senses told him they weren¡¯t sacred artists. Yet, the same senses were very alert to every movement they made. On an instinctual level, he could tell they were very dangerous. Even the Blanks, Drudges, and mortals marching alongside the cart were weary of them.


    The taskmaster couldn¡¯t also pick up on his use of mental energy as he was merely a Drudge, and a weak one at that; a dirty, sweaty, fat slob of a man. The taskmaster couldn¡¯t have been more than fifty but he, who was over two hundred years old with his white hair already falling out, was fitter than he was. He swore to himself that when he laid hands on the cunt, he would make him suffer! He would listen to his cries of pain and suffering and he would do nothing!


    He carefully scanned one of the boxes ¡ª a highly guarded one at the back of the cart, far away from his position. Even with his weak mental energy, he could tell what it contained. Skysails. The thick leather belts were bound tightly in rolls and the crystals in them clinked together from time to time, or when he hit a pothole in the road.


    The temptation to reach for them was strong, but he held himself back. He had children who needed him, and becoming an enemy of Alvric would spell their doom. Besides, the sails were of an older model. Anyone who had been in the employ of Vorthe¡¯s armed forces could tell. It would take him a lot more essence, that he didn¡¯t have by the way, to fly with one of the damned things ¡ª a lot more to even bond with it. Simply put, it would be a bad idea to try to escape, no matter how tempting it was.


    He only needed to exercise patience. In all his two hundred years and more, he had never felt so empty in his core; so starved of essence. The Alvrics didn¡¯t bother shackling his core since they always left him near death every day. But they also needed a mule to transport resources for the war effort. Since he was worth less than an actual mule to them, it became his job to pull carts across the vast forest separating Alva and Alvion which was to the north.


    Thankfully and fortunately, Vorthe had built roads across their lands many, many years ago. If not, he would be trudging through the forest and any journey would take more time and energy to complete. Unfortunately, the road went around a mountain separating both cities, making the journey a little longer.


    Alvion was Vorthe¡¯s stronghold right now but Alvric wanted it. They claimed it was on their land and was built by one of the ancestors who married into the House of Masonry, House Ullysius. And rumors had it that they were winning against Vorthe. Since the aliens entered the fray, things had turned against Vorthe. The once giants of the continent were being pushed back by Alvric and their cohorts. That alone told him of the power these aliens wielded.


    He was a simple man. At least he was until the Alvric heir showed up on the doorstep of his home. How long ago was that again? Four¡­ five years? He had stopped counting the days ever since he washed up in the south with six unhealthy little orphans who looked to him to protect and provide for them. But he had gotten carried away; gotten into trouble trying to take revenge all by himself.


    The psychopath had been right there, right in front of him in the City Square of Alva. Only ten paces or more and he would¡¯ve gutted him to death. He had fumbled¡­ failed to hide the poisoned blade in his grip. And now he was a slave to his enemies.


    The taskmaster¡¯s whip struck him on the bare skin of his back, causing him to arch in pain.


    ¡°Faster, you old mule!¡± the cunt squealed like a pig. ¡°We¡¯re losing daylight!¡±


    He sucked in air through his teeth, gritting his jaws. That stung! But what could he do? He gripped the handles of the cart tighter and increased his pace, even while his thighs burned.


    Your time will come, cunt! He thought to himself.


    The journey continued in relative silence and the heat of the day subsided, giving way to the cool of the evening. Mosquitoes will be out soon. And he would begin another struggle for comfort and rest.


    ~~~


    They stopped at a small clearing by the road to make camp a good distance away from the City of Alvion. From this distance he could clearly see the towers rising like fingers wanting to touch the sky.


    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    Alvion stood like a massive fortress in the distance. Its six towers were like a beacon. He felt he was being watched; that anyone who stood up there could see their every move. Though they were surrounded by forests, the trees shouldn¡¯t be able to limit sight for those in Alvion.


    Vorthe had chosen strategically. If they decided to attack from there, their camp would be turned to a smoldering mess in less time than it would take for one to take a shit. But Vorthe wouldn¡¯t ¡ª he almost wished they would though. The rules regarding war held them bound. Only Sprouts and those in the Realms below were permitted for such a battle. And Sprouts couldn¡¯t hit them from such a distance ¡ª not even Spirit Realm artists could.


    The cold of the evening was starting to set in and he quickly unbound the wrap piece tied to his waist. He found a tree to settle against and sat down to take a quick nap.


    ¡°Get back here, you old mule,¡± the taskmaster squealed. ¡°Who do you think will make the fire for you?¡±


    He heard the sound of the tip of the whip scraping the soil and quickly rose. ¡°I¡¯m coming, I¡¯m coming,¡± he harshed out. Damn! He didn¡¯t even know the sound of his own voice anymore.


    There was a small pit in the center of the clearing, evidence of other travelers using the clearing once upon a time. He cleared it of ash and sooth before heading into the forest to gather wood for fuel. The moon was out now. A small half moon in the distance that provided little to no light. He had no essence to spare, if not he would have transmitted a little to the back of his eyes to see better.


    He wandered through the darkness reaching down for anything remotely big enough to his senses to be a fallen branch. All he groped were roots though. It was springtime so there weren¡¯t going to be many fallen branches or twigs. Worse of all, everything was wet. Without an existing flame, he would not be able to make fire, or he¡¯d have to use up more energy rubbing sticks together.


    Something snatched him up with incredible speed. His heart beat against his ribs so hard he thought it would explode. Was this it? Was this how he would die? Eaten by a magical beast? No. He clenched his fists ready to rain punches on the thing with his withered old hands.


    ¡°Stay your hands old man,¡± a female voice reached him. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t want to lose them.¡±


    He stilled. The voice was so calm even as they moved through the air, but there was a threat to it he had heard several times from the Alvrics. They broke through the forest canopy and continued flying north. The cool wind hit his bare body, causing him to relax the tension in his shoulders and back. The light from the moon helped his vision a little. The woman was holding him with a whip around his waist.


    Perfect. Another slaver.


    ¡°I am no one,¡± he said, but the wind rushing by him took away the sound of his voice.


    ¡°That¡¯s for me to decide,¡± his captors voice reached his ears, unbidden.


    He shivered in fear. This was one powerful sacred artist. He couldn¡¯t even sense her. He hadn¡¯t sensed her in the forest and he couldn¡¯t, even now. He closed his eyes and extended his perception ¡ª weak it may be but it still helped him when he needed it. He scanned her and the result of his scan scared him even more.


    ¡°Are you a ghost?¡± he asked. He couldn¡¯t hear his own voice clearly but he was sure she could.


    She tittered, lowering them to the ground. They landed in a clearing, still inside the forest. A small hut stood among the foliage, obscured from the sky. Hold on. He hadn¡¯t even noticed the clearing from the sky. The whole place was a hideout for slavers!


    Brilliant. No one would be able to find him again. He would disappear into the night and the Alvrics would set his children in shackles, turning them to slaves and whores. There had to be a way to get away from this ghost of a woman.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a ghost old man,¡± she said. ¡°Here.¡± She gave him a hand to help him up. Her smaller frame pulled him up with surprising ease. She wasn¡¯t a ghost, alright.


    ¡°My lady, I have people depending on me. If the Alvrics find out I¡¯m missing, they¡¯ll think I escaped.¡±


    She was quiet for a moment but nodded. ¡°They won¡¯t find out. All I need is for you to help me with something, and I¡¯ll help you in return.¡±


    ¡°You need me to spy on them,¡± he said with realization.


    ¡°You catch on fast.¡± she said with a smile. At least he thought she smiled, her voice was cheerier. He couldn¡¯t see her very clearly with the hooded cloak she wore. She was tiny ¡ª at least compared to him. But he knew she was strong enough to beat him to a pulp even if he was in his prime ¡ª and he was not. Far from it, even.


    ¡°Why should I trust you?¡± he asked, taking a step back. And then another. ¡°For all I know, you are just another slaver; no different from the Alvrics and their alien partners.¡±


    ¡°Now those are the ones I wish to know about ¡ª those alien partners,¡± she said. She didn¡¯t make any attempt to stop him. ¡°I¡¯m not a slaver, just so you know. I came to do Vorthe¡¯s bidding.¡±


    He stopped. ¡°You¡¯re one of Vorthe¡¯s?¡±


    ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°How do I know you¡¯re not lying?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t,¡± she said. From behind him. He turned around to see her standing very close to him. Instincts kicked in, and he raised his hands to defend himself.


    Nothing happened. No whipping, no punching¡­ nothing.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to hurt an elderly man who¡¯s old enough to be my father,¡± she said, walking by him. ¡°Come. We have very little time.¡±


    He followed her toward the hut at the edge of the clearing. He made sure to stay a pace or two behind her. Any sudden movement and he would run. Well, not that it would do him any good.


    ¡°Tell me about yourself, old man,¡± she said.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what you want to know ¡ª about the aliens. I¡¯m not telling you about myself,¡± he said.


    ¡°Very well. I¡¯m ¡®Two¡¯, a disciple of Vorthe,¡± she said. ¡°Sadly, that¡¯s all I can tell you since I¡¯m on a mission.¡±


    A disciple of Vorthe? He once had a boy who was a disciple of Vorthe. Fell in with the wrong crowd and brought trouble home. He sighed. On most days, the memories were too much to bear. Knowing he had six children to take care of was what kept him going; kept him pushing through the pain of losing so much.


    Jerome had had such a bright future ahead of him. If only he had not attracted the attention of the wrong people. He knew Jerome was one to always push for more. And nobles hated such spirit from peasants.


    They got to the hut and Two raised a flap made out of vines to enter. He followed her in. The place was warm and comfortable. Better than anywhere he had stayed for a long while now. There was a warm glow coming from a crystal at the top center of the ceiling of the hut.


    ¡°Welcome,¡± someone ¡ª another female ¡ª said from a corner. He turned to look at her and his jaw dropped. Was he seeing correctly?


    ¡°You can pick your jaw up, old man. You look like you¡¯ve seen a ghost,¡± his captor said with a chuckle. ¡°Funny you called me a ghost not too long ago.¡±


    The girl who had welcomed them stood up and walked toward him. She was just as shocked to see him as he was to see her.


    ¡°I know you,¡± he croaked out. His voice was tight and his throat hurt.


    Tears ran down her eyes and she nodded vigorously. ¡°I know you too,¡± she said.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± his captor, Two, asked as she glanced between them.


    ¡°It¡¯s you, isn¡¯t it?¡± he asked. ¡°Ash¡ª¡± his captor reared back as she heard him call out the name. ¡°¡ªit¡¯s you, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    They hugged each other. Ash was a grown woman now. She was taller than Tara was when they were all still in the slums of Farryn ¡ª almost as tall as he was now. He released Ash and faced his captor, clearing his throat.


    ¡°I was a guard once, in Farryn. Happy to serve.¡± He puffed his skinny chest out and stood straight.


    ¡°Ooh,¡± Two cooed. ¡°Did you have a name officer¡­ or a number?¡±


    He hadn¡¯t spoken his name to anyone since arriving in Alva. But now he was proud to say it. Ash had given him something he thought he had lost years ago.


    Hope.


    ¡°The name¡¯s Wen, my lady. My children call me Old Wen.¡±


    End of book Three.

 151. Messengers Of Light

    Bloodlines: Dark One ¡ª Book 4


    Jerome woke up in the air. He was falling. The wind raced in his ears, tufts of clouds passed him by and he fell through some of them. He turned midair to face the coming earth and the melon-sized gems he had dug up from the pool¡¯s depths in the void world popped out of his void space to revolve around him.


    What? Achilleia, what the hell is going on? He asked.


    ¡°I told you they reset when everyone leaves Terra Praeta. They¡¯re keys, Xerae.¡±


    The supposed keys were shining mutely ¡ª thankfully. He wouldn¡¯t want to be seen from miles away. He was probably more than two thousand feet above sea level. And the sun looked like it was rising¡­ or was it setting?


    ¡°It¡¯s rising, Xerae. And you¡¯re five thousand feet above sea level.¡±


    Damn, he¡¯d never been so high before, even in Terra Praeta. The landmass below him was a great mass of beautiful greens and blues; ponds and small lakes dotted the landscape in a few areas. He smiled to himself. He didn¡¯t bother slowing down his fall as he was still a ways away from the ground. And the keys revolving around him stuck to him like there was a magnetic field controlling them, of which he was the center.


    Where was he even? Probably in the south.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. You¡¯re in the south,¡± Achilleia¡¯s voice sounded in his head. ¡°Above the jungle west of Alvric¡¯s capital city. Do you see the mountains in the distance?¡±


    Mm-hm.


    ¡°That¡¯s a landmark between Alva and Alvion, House Ullysius¡¯ city.¡±


    Perfect. To Hedon then, he teased.


    ¡°Slow down, Xerae. There are much more pressing matters to attend to. Such as the force of gravity about to pull you down faster toward the earth.¡±


    He began falling faster. A cry reached him from afar and he knew someone else must have been pulled into the field of magic created to ground everyone coming from Terra Praeta.


    You did that on purpose, didn¡¯t you? Waited till the last moment to tell me about the field of magical pull.


    Achilleia gave him a mental shrug. ¡°You might want to tone down the use of Terra Praetan words like ¡®magic¡¯ and ¡®psychic energy¡¯ here, Xerae. You¡¯re back in your homeworld after all.¡±


    Jerome scoffed but he understood. People would ask questions if they heard him speaking strange words ¡ª questions he wasn¡¯t sure he was ready to answer yet.


    The mind-calming stone stirred inside him and the next moment the keys were sucked back into him. She purred in satisfaction.


    Err, Achilleia? What the fuck just happened.


    ¡°Eh, don¡¯t look to me for answers. I¡¯m just as confused as you are.¡±


    Did she just¡­ eat them?


    ¡°Seems like it, Xerae¡­ seems like it.¡± Achilleia sounded helpless; defeated. Jerome could tell that everything happening was beyond her scope of understanding.


    But what ¡®should¡¯ have happened just now?


    He activated the pod of Hezvar inside him and his perception expanded, covering an impossibly vast area. With a few scans, he located one of the sources of the magical field. It was more apt to call it a suppression field, really. Plenty of bindings were scattered across the land which was just too vast to scan at once ¡ª even with his pod.


    ¡°The keys are¡­¡± she sighed. ¡°You were supposed to bond with them. With them, you could go back and forth between your world and Terra Praeta.¡±


    He had guessed it would be used that way. But the mind-calming stone stirred within him again. Information passed from her to him and he suddenly knew there was more to the keys. He put their discussion on hold for a minute.


    Jerome changed direction, shooting toward the binding. He sensed a few people guarding it ¡ª ten of them. Humans, but not quite. His senses told of the raw power hiding in their frames. Two of them were large, far larger than was humanly possible. On closer inspection, he noticed that one was actually human but the other was a magical beast ¡ª a bear. A normal bear, since it had no core of its own. But it still was on the level of danger as the other humans, maybe even more so.


    Jerome didn¡¯t bother about pleasantries. He came in hot, shooting toward the binding from above like a missile. The air exploded behind him like thunder as he broke the sound barrier.


    They sensed him too late. The ground exploded outward and plumes of dirt and rocks were sent flying every which way. The binding didn¡¯t stand a chance. Huge crystals and metal gears and parts exploded on impact. The suppression field surrounding about three miles was canceled immediately.


    Jerome stood from his crouch, noticing he had formed a crater in the ground where he had crashed. Gravity was lighter; much lighter than he was used to. He had gotten so used to the gravity on Terra Praeta that he felt like he was on the moon. He bounced on the balls of his feet to get used to the feeling, before jumping out of the crater to face the Church¡¯s Messengers¡­ Judges? Whichever one was protecting the binding.


    ¡°Messengers, Xerae. Luckily, they are underestimating all of you.¡±


    Crushed crystals and metal parts littered the ground here and there ¡ª remains of their binding and whatever machine supported it most likely.


    ¡®She¡¯ says the keys are actually seeds, Jerome transmitted to Achilleia not wanting to say the ¡®mind-calming stone¡¯.


    ¡°Oh, so you can talk to her now ¡ª like, really talk?¡±


    Jerome shook his head with a smile. Not¡­ exactly. It¡¯s¡­ she told me without using words ¡ª if that makes sense.


    ¡°Oh, like how Nyx spoke to you before.¡±


    More like it.


    The air was thick with dust and soot from the explosion. But he could still see very clearly as though nothing hindered his sight. A dozen feet in front of him was a man in coveralls ¡ª a strange garment to see on a battlefield. It was made out of canvas and looked thick enough to stop a breeze and maybe pebbles. But an arrow would put the man down in an instant.


    ¡°That¡¯s maintenance for the binding, Xerae. The rest of them are fighters.¡±


    He looked to his left and right and sure enough, others had on armor. Interestingly, they were putting on steel armor. And they were covered from head to boots ¡ª even their boots were made of steel. Their horses snorted and stomped their hooves in discomfort a good distance away.


    ¡°Impressive,¡± he said out loud. ¡°Even Vorthe, as advanced as we are, lack enough ores to use on metal armor.¡±


    ¡°You are in the presence of the Messengers of Light,¡± the giant man rumbled as he stood up from his crouch. He had an accent he couldn¡¯t place. But it made his voice sound guttural, with tough-sounding consonants ¡ª even the ¡®r¡¯s weren¡¯t silent where they should be. He was a heavy man. And his voice was as deep and scary as he looked. ¡°Lay down your arms and we shall show mercy.¡±


    The others groaned as they stood, readying their weapons.


    ¡°You must think we Vortheans are stupid to believe such a lie,¡± Jerome said. His own voice was deep as well, but nothing compared to the giant¡¯s.  Such a voice could make people weak in the knees. He envied the guy a tad bit. Just a tad bit.


    ¡°Standard protocol,¡± the giant rumbled again. He hefted a giant shield and picked up a great axe in his right hand.


    ¡°Just a tad bit, Xerae?¡± Achilleia tittered in his head. Jerome ignored her.


    He knew they could see him ¡ª or at least his silhouette. He raised his forearms a little and gestured in a wave with both hands. With a pulse of psychic energy, the dust was blown away, revealing everything and everyone around. Just to give them a taste of his powers.


    ¡°So we¡¯re waving our dicks around now, eh?¡± Achilleia said, sarcasm dripping from her voice.


    You don¡¯t have a dick, Achilleia.


    The bear went down on all fours and growled. Jerome expected it to charge ¡ª wanted it to in fact. But it did the opposite. It backed up.


    Everyone stilled.


    A woman in fancy-looking, shiny armor who was dragging the maintenance guy away from the battle stilled as well, eyeing the beast. As did the maintenance guy, who had no helmet on. The shock on all their faces was easy to read. Even though they hid behind their masked helmets.


    ¡°Why is it doing that?¡± someone asked to his left. He had on busted-up armor like he had fought a creature too powerful for him and barely survived.


    ¡°If I were you, I¡¯d do the same.¡± Jerome took a step forward and the big bear took some more back. It was almost comical watching such a huge and terrifying-looking creature back up in fear against another much smaller, and less terrifying than it.


    But monsters had better instincts than humans, so Jerome didn¡¯t blame it. He understood. The creature also, on an instinctual level, understood the draconian laws of the jungle. These humans, on the other hand, seemed like they did not. They all turned to face him. Some of them reared back when they saw his eyes.


    He unnerved them¡­


    Good.


    He turned in a circle to take them all in even as they sized him up. The giant man, who seemed to be their leader, seemed to find his nerve first. He tensed.


    ¡°Attack,¡± he rumbled and shot forward. He was fast, but compared to Jerome he was moving in slow motion. Jerome took a moment to check on the others, scanning his new ring.


    Ms. Tara was doing okay. She hadn¡¯t met up with any of these Messengers. Sheela was being herded toward her by Csala. Smart girl. He smiled, letting out a breath he didn¡¯t know he was holding. Together, Ms. Tara and Sheela would be nigh invincible to anyone below the Spirit Realm.


    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Nyx was¡­ Jerome sighed. She was basking in the cool breeze in a tree; without a care in the world. Jerome shook his head. The giant was nearly to his position so he got ready to deal with him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t use essence, Xerae,¡± Achilleia warned.


    Jerome was halfway through commanding the essence in the air, though sparse it was. He dropped his intent and caught the sharp edge of the great axe, shocking them all. The head of the axe was nearly the size of his torso and probably weighed ten times more than he did. But he sensed no enchantment on it.


    But then, what was that ringing in his ears?


    He¡¯d read of the song of active runes in Terra Praeta. The memory stones in Sanctum were quite vivid in that department. They weren¡¯t physical sounds so to speak. Only those who worked closely with runes could hear the faint singing ¡ª tunes like a song. That was most definitely what he was hearing!


    Jerome would have laughed out in joy if he wasn¡¯t in a battle.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Achilleia muttered, surprise evident in her voice. ¡°I¡¯ve only ever read about those.¡±


    We¡¯ll talk about that later, Achilleia.


    The giant braced himself to jerk his axe out of Jerome¡¯s hand. It was all happening so slowly that Jerome felt he could actually speak to Achilleia while fighting. But there was no need to tempt fate.


    If he couldn¡¯t use essence though, what about psychic energy?


    He tightened his grip a little, feeling his fingers dent the steel of the axe. At the same time, he bound the hand of the axe wielder to the haft of his axe with his psychic energy. Then he spun the axe in the air.


    The giant of a man left the earth and spun in the air with his axe.


    ~~~


    Yaslov


    It happened too fast. Dmitrii¡¯s axe was stopped by the heathen ¡ª a feat he had never seen anyone accomplish ¡ª and before he could even think to react, Dmitrii spun through the air like a top. Such a show of power shouldn¡¯t have been possible for someone so small in comparison to Dmitrii!


    The rest of the team shot forward. Yaslov¡¯s hopes were raised as they converged on the heathen, only for it to fall back down as he batted them away like flies. The force of his blows was tremendous despite the casual way he flung his arms.


    Fear rose in him like never before. The kind of fear he felt around the Judges. He began to back away from the fight, trembling like a drowned rabbit, his overalls scraping the wet soil as he went. He nearly pissed himself as someone crashed near him.


    He looked. Big mistake. Anya¡¯s crushed face stared back at him with dead eyes. One of her eyeballs was hanging by a strand of tissue. Yaslov retched, unable to hold back the meal he last ate.


    When he came up for air, the fight had ended ¡ª just as quickly as it began. The heathen was crouching above him, looking down at him with curious red irises.


    Red irises!?


    ¡°Demon!¡± he screamed, backing away. He staggered to his feet to run but slipped and fell into a large pool of blood and entrails ¡ª Bo¡¯s blood and entrails. The big bear¡¯s lifeless eyes were frozen in terror. It never stood a chance against such a vile creature. No wonder it was scared of the demon.


    Yaslov heard the demon approach and screamed, ¡°Don¡¯t come near me, you vile spawn of the netherworld! Holy Light of my soul! Bless me with your protection!¡±


    ¡°Are you praying?¡± the demon asked. His voice was deep and almost soothing ¡ª almost. But Yaslov wouldn¡¯t be fooled. His eyes were back to that eerie silver ¡ª cold and metallic like steel.


    Yaslov continued his prayer, whispering now so the demon didn¡¯t hear his words. He settled into a fetal position, more to protect himself. Words were powerful. And demons were known to steal the blessings they granted.


    The demon yanked him up. ¡°Listen to me you dimwit. I don¡¯t have time for your nonsense.¡±


    The demon slapped him across the cheek. It didn¡¯t feel like a human hand slapped him ¡ª more like corded steel molded into a hand. His ear rang; his mouth bled. That was the most painful slap he¡¯d ever received. But it made him alert.


    ¡°How many of these bindings are out here?¡± The demon gestured to the crater he had left behind.


    ¡°I will tell you nothing, demon!¡± Yaslov hissed, resolve building in him. ¡°You spawn of the bride of Madru! You will burn forever in the fires of the Great Cleansing!¡±


    Something shot out of the demon and attached itself to him. Yaslov felt it burrow into his skin. He screamed in pain. The thing reached for the first rune carved onto his bones, in his wrist.


    ¡°No!¡± he screamed. ¡°No, no, no, no¡­¡±


    If it was powered by essence, the rune ought to have consumed the essence but¡­ he sensed the rune lose its efficacy the next moment. His jaw dropped, even as pain assaulted him. He fell back to the ground convulsing in pain.


    The demon frowned at him. His eyes were red again. ¡°That¡¯s a very powerful rune you got there. So powerful that I have no way to deal with it without killing you. And since you¡¯re not being cooperative, I can¡¯t let you live.¡±


    Those were the last words Yaslov heard. Strength left his body but the pain didn¡¯t stop. He slumped to the ground as darkness took him.


    ~~~


    Jerome looked around him at the massacre of people he didn¡¯t know. By his hands. People who were probably just following orders. They were fanatics, yes. Hell-bent on subduing anyone not of their ilk. But they were people nonetheless.


    He looked at his hands. And back at them. The snorting of the horses in the distance was the only sound he could hear. But even that was not enough to ease the discomfort he felt at killing these people.


    ¡°Are his words getting to you, Xerae?¡± Achilleia asked.


    Jerome sighed, shaking off the negative feeling. He called me a demon. I thought that word only existed as ¡®daimon¡¯. Oh, wait, blood demon bats. He remembered the tiny bloodsuckers in the western continent of Terra Praeta. They also inhabited the dark forest of the northern continent.


    The Sovereign corrected me once on it. Bram from Selene¡¯s team also called me daimon¡­ So both words exist, they just mean different things¡­


    ¡°Say it, Xerae,¡± Achilleia urged him.


    They didn¡¯t look at me the way he did when they called me Daimon. He on the other hand¡­


    The look the man had given him was one someone would give a truly vile, evil creature¡­ a ¡®demon¡¯, just like he had called him. Jerome had taken his displeasure out on him at the end, but he felt irritated at his own behavior, though, and promised himself never to do that again. It was a petty thing to do.


    ¡°Don¡¯t beat yourself up about it, Xerae. You¡¯ll learn to live with it in time. Not everyone would accept you for what you are. But those that do, will accept you for who you are.¡±


    Jerome looked around once more. It would be a bad idea to waste perfectly good metal, even if some were bent out of shape. He could always reshape them ¡ª one of the benefits of being a Shaper. The giant had on his person, a storage bag containing supplies for the team ¡ª a stash of arrows, bows and other weapons, whetstones, some food, and sleeping tents and bags. All practically useless to him but hey, he was robbing the dead. He couldn¡¯t complain.


    One of the runes on a dead man sang as he stripped him of his armor, almost like it was still active even after the death of its wielder.


    ¡°They can do that sometimes,¡± Achilleia said.


    It was a good thing Suzie could disarm the runes ¡ª which was a technicality. He had watched as his evolved living steel drained the iron in the maintenance guy¡¯s blood. The fortunate side effect was that the runes were closely linked to his life force and were disarmed as a result ¡ª thanks to the fact he didn¡¯t use essence to control Suzie.


    I best warn the others about the Messengers runes. If I was going to be beset by a couple of strange mortals who could siphon essence from my attacks I¡¯d like to get a heads up about them.


    ¡°Already done, Xerae.¡±


    What? How?


    ¡°Because I¡¯m connected to you I can also use your ring to communicate with them.¡±


    Smart. Do they know you¡¯re¡­ ¡®you¡¯?


    Achilleia snorted. ¡°Only Csala and Nyx do. But I¡¯ve introduced myself ¡ª though they only see me as a sort of ¡®voice interface¡¯ I suppose. I¡¯m the ace up your sleeve, Xerae. Remember that.¡±


    Jerome smiled. He stood dusting off himself and stashing the metal into his void plane. Right on top of the ogre he had fought in the dark forest. He had totally forgotten about it. He entered his void world to check on the ogre. It was dead. Very, very dead. There was no regeneration from the dead for it.


    ¡°Its bones still carry enough vitality to create a few healing potions, Xerae. Let me work on it.¡±


    He shrugged. He wasn¡¯t in the least bit interested in making potions. Maybe in the future, he¡¯d find interest. He left his void space and looked around. He shouldn¡¯t leave the dead out in the open. But the beasts of the forest would be drawn to them so he didn¡¯t need to worry about them. They belonged to the forest now. But then again, if the Church had a way to check up on their Messengers, he¡¯d like to know when such happened ¡ª if it happened.


    ¡°Err, what do we do about the horses?¡± He asked. There were nine of them; nine massive, sturdy stallions. They looked like draft horses, what the hell!? But these guys weren¡¯t pulling any carts or contraptions, why would they need draft horses? ¡°How did they even get them out here? The whole place is a jungle.¡±


    ¡°Put them in your void plane, Xerae. You never know when you might have a need for horses.¡±


    He snorted. As if¡­


    But he did as she said and even gathered up some grasses and leaves. Just in case. He left a sliver of Suzie around as surveillance. Someone from the Church would come looking for these guys, he was almost certain of it. There¡¯d also most likely be a change of shifts or something. Why didn¡¯t he think of that before? He leaped into the air, flying toward his girls.


    His girls¡­ that felt right.


    About the song of the runes. How come you can¡¯t hear it? He asked.


    Achilleia glowered at him. At least that was the sensation he thought he was getting from her. She didn¡¯t respond, probably sulking from her supposed lack of ability to sense what he now could. Jerome wisely didn¡¯t say anything, choosing to focus solely on the forest around him. But then he thought about the mind-calming stone and what she had said the keys were: seeds.


    But seeds for what?


    She gave no further information beyond that.


    ¡°I can¡¯t hear the song of the runes because I¡¯m not a living soul, but a caricature of one.¡±


    Achilleia¡­ Jerome said but struggled to find words to say. I¡¯m sure we can find a way around that. Which brishovellingnd a question. I hope you don¡¯t mind me asking.


    ¡°Ask away, Xerae.¡±


    Okay. So, you said you aren¡¯t a living soul but a caricature of one. He stopped to process those words for a moment. Is that why in the Prime Nexus, you looked like a copy of Tialana, or was it Tialana that looked like you?


    Achilleia sighed. ¡°You know you didn¡¯t have to add that last part, Xerae. I can read your mind, and I know you are a hundred percent certain I¡¯m the one who looks like Tialana. And you would be correct¡­¡±


    You don¡¯t have to talk about it if you don¡¯t want to, he said.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay,¡± she replied. ¡°Tialana was one of Ilyrrah¡¯s lovers ¡ª his first, actually. Just like Csala is to you. My first nexus was a logic engine, designed by him to solve problems. But there was a problem with that. He needed me to be more.¡±


    More? Jerome asked.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae. ¡®More¡¯¡­¡± Achilleia emphasized.


    I see.


    ¡°Tialana was the one who inspired him to build a newer version of me. An emotion engine¡­ but that was an utter disaster!¡±


    Jerome laughed at that. Let me guess. He combined both engines, which resulted in what you are now. A super sapient artificial being who has become the closest thing I have to a true friend. Ilyrrah was sounding more like a human from his previous world.


    ¡°More or less¡­ Thanks, Xerae.¡±


    You¡¯re not less than the fae or anyone else to me, Achilleia. You¡¯re Achilleia¡­ my friend. Jerome could sense her brim in delight inside of him.


    ¡°Thanks again, Xerae.¡±


    You¡¯re welcome.


    ¡°How does it feel to hear the song of the runes by the way?¡±


    He went on to describe the sensation deep inside him.


    He intended to find all the bindings creating the suppression field he could and deal with these aliens in his homeland.

 152. Messengers Of Light 2

    Csala


    Jerome¡¯s world was just as green as hers. Somehow, she had expected to see something she had never seen before. The flora was a bit less dense. Okay, a lot less dense than on Terra Praeta, but it was still the same green ¡ª not that she knew much about plants.


    The essence in the air was another thing. How did humans survive on such meager essence? It was so thin that for once, she was grateful she didn¡¯t have to scrounge and scrape up whatever she could of the essence to fill up a nonexistent core. Maybe that¡¯s why the humans who came to Terra Praeta were so weak in comparison to Terra Praetans, except for Jerome. Csala pouted as she remembered their earliest encounter. Then she smiled. It still worked out for good.


    She opened her palm in front of her as she flew and thought about essence gathering over it. She had to clear her mind so her thoughts could carry her intent over to her waist chain. Her waist chain responded and she felt it channel essence toward her palm. A mass of shapeless blue-white essence formed and writhed above her palm. Csala was not satisfied with the result, or even the effort it took to get it.


    She tried to force it to reshape itself into a perfect sphere but it remained the same. She tried using her psychic energy to shape it and it took the shape, but she was effectively holding it up in that shape with her psychic energy like a container. It was frustrating. Nothing she did could keep it in that shape.


    In annoyance, she threw the shapeless mass of pure essence away¡­ or at least she tried. It clung to her ¡ª with a finger¡¯s width of space between her palm and itself. And it moved everywhere with her hand. She even flapped back and forth to get rid of it but it didn¡¯t budge. It was like an annoying fly following shit that was stuck to her.


    ¡°Urgh!¡± She activated her ring to communicate with Jerome. ¡°How do I get rid of this blob of essence that¡¯s attached to me!?¡±


    Achilleia answered instead, chuckling. ¡°Use your psychic energy to pull on it toward your palm like a bow is used to pull on an arrow. Then release it in the direction you want.¡±


    The mirth in her voice was annoying but Csala was afraid of snapping at the spirit. Who knows what could go wrong if she did something like that. She did as Achilleia said and the blob of essence shot into the forest, bursting through everything in its path. At least it had some power to it.


    Csala concentrated on the journey before her and the Midnight Panther she was leading. After a while of traveling in silence and frustration, they were close.


    ¡°You¡¯re almost to her,¡± she informed the panthergirl racing toward her friend, Tara. The giant panther stood out among the local flora as it raced. It growled in response. ¡°Huh¡­ can¡¯t you speak in that form?¡±


    The panther looked up at her with a scowl. Csala shrugged. ¡°If you can make human expressions, you can speak.¡± She looked away. She was still frustrated at her inability to use essence like she wanted. The panther growled in frustration as well but also looked away, concentrating on the path she was taking. Csala took a moment to observe her beautiful black fur that reminded her of dusk; her powerful but graceful strides as she pawed the earth in her path.


    The panther sniffed the air and growled again, this time with aggression. Csala extended her senses. The panther pushed ahead of her and Csala sensed what had her bothered. Humans. Coreless humans but with strange auras. She shot out into a clearing containing a strange contraption she had never seen before. Giant blue crystals protruded out of the ground in a circle around a cylindrical metal contraption with circular¡­ were those teeth? The contraption¡¯s teeth were rotating inside it. The crystals were all glowing mutely and she could sense the essence in them; essence that felt¡­ different.


    ¡°Do not use essence against them?¡± Achileia¡¯s voice reached her. ¡°You¡¯ll only end up empowering them.¡±


    Tara startled at the voice, she was sure. There was a bit of communication between them Csala didn¡¯t hear but she could tell it was Tara¡¯s first time hearing the spirit¡¯s voice. Csala extended her senses to look for the panther as she hovered midair. The panther had stopped moments before they reached the edge of the clearing and now she was slinking around the edge of the clearing, out of sight.


    ¡°Csala!¡± Tara called out to her excitedly, looking her way. She was facing down ten humans, nine of them, covered from head to boots in metal armor ¡ª something she had never seen humans wear, except maybe Jerome. The last one was wearing strange one-piece clothing she had never seen before. Tara either didn¡¯t know the danger she was in or didn¡¯t feel she was in any danger at all. There was quite a distance between them that Csala was comfortable with.


    That was until a female armor-clad warrior shot toward Tara. She was so fast that Csala was left bewildered, doubting if she had scanned them for cores before. She was about to defend Tara when Achilleia¡¯s voice rang in her ears.


    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± the spirit said. ¡°Let her.¡±


    Csala still had no idea what to make of Tialana¡¯s look-alike. Thankfully, she had a name.


    The female armor-clad warrior reached Tara in no time. But Tara was ready for her. She blocked the warrior¡¯s sword slash with a fingerless gauntlet and punched her in the stomach. Those gauntlets covered the whole of her forearms. The punch hurled the warrior out of the clearing entirely. Just as soon, an arrow reached her and she dodged to the side. Then another came at her, and another.


    Tar dodged as many as she could but they became too numerous. The three archers firing at her had deadly accuracy and team work as they tried to overwhelm her. But Tara¡¯s ring glowed and her skin and leather clothing took on a glossy sheen. She stopped moving and the next volley of arrows hit her¡­ and bounced off.


    ¡°This is so awesome!¡± she squealed in excitement, even as arrow after arrow hit her with incredible force. She just stood there and took them all without any discomfort. Many of them broke on contact and some were deflected.


    The Messengers saw that their arrows had no effect on her and decided to change tactics. Another warrior shot toward Tara but she didn¡¯t wait for him to reach her. Tara zoomed toward him, holding up her clenched fist as she went. A sharp, pointy curved blade jutted out of the top of her gauntleted right fist like a claw. Before the male warrior could raise his sword to parry, she stabbed him in the heart.


    The sound of metal tearing metal made Csala¡¯s ears ring a little. The metal of his armor tore away like it was made of lard. Tara¡¯s speed carried her forward and her claw-like blade sliced the human in two. Seeing the gore that came out of her victim, Tara bent over and began to retch, trying to throw up nonexistent food in her stomach.


    Csala covered her face in embarrassment. ¡°That really doesn¡¯t inspire confidence, Achilleia,¡± she muttered. Puking at the sight of gore, and during a battle no less, was the height of inexperience. She should have at least held it back!


    The spirit¡¯s only response was a snort.


    A giant of a man, who sat back on a tree stump and watched the whole fight, gestured with his head. Another armor-clad warrior grabbed his sword, ready to enter the fray. The moment he moved, Sheela attacked from behind him like a formless, bladed shadow. She was gone before the man¡¯s lifeless body touched the soil.


    The team of humans became alert, standing up all at once. The leader ¡ª who she guessed was the giant man ¡ª had been eyeing her for quite some time. She didn¡¯t stare back at him but she could sense his gaze. She refused to look his way, keeping the mystery of her strength. Her ignoring him would play to her advantage.


    Another armor-clad woman drew twin blades ¡ª short blades, like Csala¡¯s ¡ª and stepped in her direction. Tara addressed her as she stood up and wiped her mouth.


    ¡°Err¡­ you may want to defeat me first before facing her.¡±


    The female warrior stopped, nonplussed. The already high tension in the air seemed to rise even higher. Now they were all looking at her, the eyes of the men most especially kept flitting between her curves and the space between her and the ground. Have they never seen someone flying before? Well, what mattered most was that they were aware she was very dangerous.


    ¡°Demon!¡± one of them whispered. Csala turned to look at them for the first time. They were now looking at her eyes. Even though most of them wore helmets that covered their faces and eyes, she could feel their gazes on her. And they were scared. Far more than they were before their attention was drawn to her eyes.


    ¡°Your red eyes remind them of other beings who are enemies to them, Csala,¡± Achilleia said to her.


    Csala ignored them. Looking back at Tara, she asked, ¡°Are you alright, Tara?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± Tara said with a smile, trying to cover her own embarrassment. Csala smiled at her and nodded encouragingly.


    Tara reminded her of a time when she was just as innocent. Her own innocence had been worn down little by little over decades as guile took over. Tara looked like hers was ripped out of her in an instant ¡ª by a terrifying incident nonetheless, and she was trying to hold onto the remains of it.


    The big giant suddenly radiated anger and malice, probably because she was ignoring them as a threat. He stood up and hefted his heavy axe and shield.


    ¡°You stand in the presence of the Messengers of Light, demon,¡± the giant rumbled, addressing her. He had a strange accent and a deep voice. And the way he said ¡®demon¡¯ was condescending. It made her hackles rise. ¡°Lay down your arms and we shall show mercy.¡±


    Csala scoffed as he walked with heavy footfalls to the front of the group. ¡°And what were you hoping would come of those words? That I would surrender?¡± she asked, touching down to the ground with booted feet.


    ¡°Standard protocol,¡± he rumbled again. His stride increased and the ground thumped loudly as he crossed the distance between them. He was still slow though.


    Sheela took another of his team members but he had already committed to fighting her. Csala made a show of cleaning her nails as she waited for him to reach her. The moment he stepped within ten paces of her, she moved behind him, startling him. To his eyes, she must have just teleported.


    Before he could turn around, she snapped a kick at his knee with her booted foot. Metal armor bent and bones fractured. His knee bent into an unnatural shape and blood began seeping out of it. He grunted in pain as he went down his other knee. Even at that, he was still taller than she was.


    The rest of the giant¡¯s team moved as he engaged her. But she was sure the two Sprouts could hold their own against them. These people were stronger than normal humans should be, but not as strong as Sprouts who just returned from Terra Praeta.


    The giant whipped his axe around in a wide swing to cleave her in half but she dodged the bladed axe. She dove into his personal space and caught his arm near his shoulder. He was so slow in his movements that it wasn¡¯t a fight at all. With a jerk, she snapped his arm off his body. The giant roared in pain. Csala ignored him and threw the arm with the axe at his team. They reacted in time, scattering away from its path ¡ª with good reason. The axe would have cleaved any one of them in two.


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    Sheela took another one, and then another. She was like a goddess of death on the battlefield. Csala was beginning to like her.


    There were four of them left ¡ª three hurdled in a circle to protect each other¡¯s backs with their weapons ready. Their leader was huffing and puffing as he bled out on the floor. Csala decided to challenge Tara. If she wanted to stand by Jerome, she had to rise to the challenge.


    ¡°There were ten of them, Tara,¡± she began. Tara gave her a confused look. ¡°Sheela has killed five¡­¡± she let the moment draw out for a while. ¡°You¡­ have only killed one.¡±


    The giant¡¯s head rolled in Tara¡¯s direction and stopped at her feet.


    ¡°Six to one,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°Urgh! This is not a game, Csala,¡± Tara complained.


    She shrugged. ¡°Might as well be.¡±


    ¡°Who the fuck are you people!¡± one of the remaining three Messengers screamed. The three of them tried to walk away from the clearing, in a direction Sheela hadn¡¯t attacked from. Smart, but someone walked out of the forest toward them and they stopped in their tracks.


    Nyx.


    Even Csala felt a jolt of fear for a moment but then she noticed the dragoness¡¯ powerful aura wasn¡¯t present. In fact, she felt like a normal human ¡ª well, a Sprout. How was that possible? Csala resisted the temptation to scan her. That would be inappropriate.


    ¡°Leave the one in the strange apparel alive,¡± the dragoness drawled lazily, not bothering with the fight, as she walked toward the center of the clearing, toward the strange contraption.


    The clearing was deathly silent. Only Nyx¡¯s light footsteps could be heard. And the rustling of leaves. Why wasn¡¯t she putting on boots?... Well, that wasn¡¯t her concern, as long as she didn¡¯t get eaten by the dragoness. Csala was sure succubi would taste delectable to the dragoness.


    Csala bowed slightly, drawing the attention of the Messengers. ¡°Of course¡­¡±


    ¡°Nyx is fine,¡± the dragoness said, squatting beside the strange contraption. It was at most two feet in height from the ground.


    ¡°Yes, Lady Nyx,¡± Csala said. There was no way she was going to call such a terrifying creature by name.


    Tara shot toward the Messengers and two heads rolled off shoulders. ¡°Ah!¡± she exclaimed in excitement. ¡°Two at once! Can you beat that Sheela?¡±


    The Sprout in question peeled herself away from the shadows of the forest and walked toward her friend, smiling. ¡°You did good, Tara.¡± She smiled sweetly at her, cocking her hip to the side. ¡°But it¡¯s seven to three. So I win.¡±


    The last man fell on his butt and started muttering in hysteria.


    ~~~


    ¡°Are these guys clones, Achilleia?¡± Jerome asked as he looked around. The ground was littered with the bodies of Messengers he had just slain. The group was an exact mirror of the one he previously slew with the exception of the bear. This group was all humans ¡ª ten of them, with one giant who wielded a great axe and shield. Their maintenance guy was also the same person he killed not quite long ago.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a pretty decent explanation for this, Xerae. The Church has never worked to clone people before.¡±


    Jerome stripped their bodies of their gear and gathered them into his void space. No need to waste perfectly good steel. So this is new then. They must have sent a whole army of clones to fight this war. Ah! The scale of the war seemed to expand before him and the consequences of losing became even more dire.


    ¡°An inexhaustible army of clones, probably. We should assume as such,¡± Achilleia said and he felt her presence recede. She seemed to be processing her thoughts or searching her nexus or something.


    Jerome squatted down beside the contraption creating the suppression field to study it. A bunch of large crystal stones were stuck in the earth around a cylindrical device that was only two feet tall from the ground up. Metal gears kept turning inside it, operated somehow by the crystals protruding out of the ground.


    The first weird thing Jerome noticed was that the crystal stones held their essence firmly. Normal crystal stones dissipated in the air but these didn¡¯t. And he could find no evidence of runes or scripts on them that were meant to preserve essence. Only Vorthe¡¯s ajanai were capable of doing that from all he knew. He scanned the blue crystals and was shocked at what he found.


    ¡°Achilleia,¡± he called. ¡°What do you think of this?¡±


    ¡°Your guess is as good as mine, Xerae. It¡¯s not natural essence. But it¡¯s also not a form of mutated essence. At least not one I¡¯m aware of.¡±


    They were quiet for a while, pondering the crystals.


    Is it accurate to call it ascended essence? He asked. Achilleia gave him a mental shrug.


    Jerome reached for one and touched it. Nothing seemed to happen at first. The crystal felt natural to the touch ¡ª like any other crystal stone. Then it started pulling on his essence. The pull was strong. Stronger than he anticipated.


    ¡°Xerae,¡± Achilleia cautioned.


    He concentrated harder, fighting the crystal for control. The crystals began to flash with white light one after the other and the pull on his essence increased. The air around them gave off sustained vibrations in time with the flashes. The more crystals flashed, the greater the pull. And there were several of them!


    ¡°Xerae!¡±


    Jerome took his hand off the crystal and the flashing lights calmed. He watched as the color of the crystals turned from their natural deep-blue color ¡ª the color of pure essence ¡ª to pure white. They now had an iridescence to them, and depending on the angle, a myriad of colors swirled around them.


    Just like his core.


    ¡°Incredible!¡± Jerome whispered.


    ¡°No, Xerae,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°Not incredible. Those things can suck you dry in minutes.¡±


    What do you think will happen if we take it apart? Will the crystals still behave in such a way? I see no wards on this thing.


    ¡°We can give it a shot.¡±


    Jerome coated his hands in leather gloves. The leather gloves were enchanted with protection runes. He pulled on the first crystal and uprooted it from the ground with little effort. It was huge! Only about a third of it was above ground. The moment the crystal left the ground, the other crystals dimmed and the suppression field weakened. He left them as they were for now.


    ¡°There you are.¡± There were glowing scripts buried in the ground under the crystals. ¡°Vision,¡± Jerome said, and his X-ray vision took the forefront of his eyes. The world around him seemed to peel back in layers of opacity, becoming less opaque so he could see what was underneath it all.


    A scripted circle surrounded the contraption underground, drawing power from the crystals while powering the strange cylinder with gears. Jerome¡¯s nanite went to work, overlaying reality with virtual lines of golden light that helped him see a pattern in the workings of the many gears.


    The gears were helping to support the outer structure of the cylinder, keeping it from imploding ¡ª which didn¡¯t make sense to him.


    ¡°Xerae, space is super compressed inside that thing!¡±


    What!?  He reared back.


    ¡°Nyx just dismantled one and there is a dark bead inside. A tiny thing she almost missed. You need to finish up here and go help her deal with it.¡±


    So it¡¯s dangerous then. Is it still safe to keep dismantling this thing?


    ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll guide you, Xerae.¡±


    You sound like this is a good thing.


    ¡°Oh, it is. This is a chance to study something from beyond our plane of existence. Because trust me, the Church didn¡¯t create these beads. They had to have been gifted them.¡±


    A thought occurred to him but before he could test it Achilleia spoke again, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare, Xerae! The jade in your ring can counter ascended elements but this is the handiwork of someone more skilled, and far more powerful than we know.¡±


    And you know that, how?


    ¡°Not just anyone can do something like that, Xerae. It feels like an independent void space, not tethered to anything!¡±


    Very well. Jerome nodded in understanding, seeing the importance of the beads ¡ª void beads. The Church had a Patron ¡ª maybe a god of light or something, from beyond this plane. Such a being would be able to hand out compressed space like it was candy. The maintenance guy had mentioned someone from before, a ¡®Madru¡¯ and his bride. Sounded like a bad guy. The name even sounded dark.


    ¡°You read my mind, Xerae.¡± Achilleia chuckled at the irony of her words. She was the one always reading his mind. ¡°The Church does have a Patron God. After all, they worship him. Madru is¡­ forget Madru for now. And ¡®void bead¡¯ is apt.¡±


    Jerome took apart the cylindrical contraption with the deftness of his psychic energy. Its parts were put together using a variety of hinges that seemed complex at first but were quite simple after a few tries. It was like solving a puzzle. But the Church hadn¡¯t put much thought into crafting the cylindrical body, he was sure. The void bead inside it was the main attraction.


    If he was on his own, finding the bead would have been impossible. Because no matter how much he was assisted by his nanites, he just wasn¡¯t able to sense space that was folded in on itself into a sphere.


    ¡°If you had mistakenly touched it, Xerae, it would have probably swallowed you whole¡­ depending on how big the space inside it is and its gravitational pull¡­ or torn off your arm.¡±


    Jerome shivered slightly. That was humbling¡­ very humbling. The contraption came apart and its parts hovered midair, slowly circling what he supposed was the center.


    ¡°Wrong, Xerae. The void bead is below the point you¡¯re observing. A few inches down.¡±


    Question, though. What happened to the first contraption I destroyed? There must have been a void bead inside it, yes?


    ¡°Sure, Xerae. If you hadn¡¯t charged in like a missile, we might have been able to recover it.¡±


    Are you saying I destroyed it? That sounds impressive¡­


    Achilleia scowled at him. ¡°Don¡¯t get a big head. We don¡¯t know what might have happened to the bead. I suggest we go back and find out¡­ Use Charybdis.¡±


    Jerome materialized the spear and pointed its tip at the air, a few inches away from the point Achilleia noted. The air in front of Jerome warped before shrinking in circumference into the shape of a tiny sphere. The sphere fought against him for a split second but was sucked into Charybdis, which began to vibrate noiselessly in his hand.


    And just like that, he dealt with something that would have been impossible even for a Spirit Realm artist. It paid to have a highly advanced AI as a partner.


    Jerome sensed a shift in the flow of essence in the air at once.


    ¡°This thing was siphoning essence from the air.¡± He felt Charybdis stretch somewhat in his hands ¡ª not physically, but a sensation. The vibrations from earlier slowed and it finally calmed.


    He stood, closing his eyes for a moment to better sense the flow of ambient essence. Surely, there was a difference. The rest of the crystal stones were still in the ground but taking the void bead had cut the flow of essence. The crystals merely dimmed some more so he uprooted them by manipulating the earth around them and threw them into his void space.


    Something to study later. These Messengers also had horses tied up a distance away ¡ª ten of them ¡ª showing that the different companies of Messengers scattered across the jungle were definitely not isolated from one another. That didn¡¯t bode well for him and his team if he wanted to pick them off one at a time. But one problem at a time. How they got here using just horses was another matter. These horses must have trained to push through terrains like these.


    With so many of the contraptions scattered across the landscape, this place could become barren of essence in a short while. He needed to destroy them all.

 153. Gravisar

    City of Alva. Southern Hemisphere.


    Seven


    ¡°How is that possible!?¡± the Judge roared in his face with a mechanical voice he never wanted to get used to hearing. He swore his very soul shook at its foundation from that roar. The voice was deep and unsettling. ¡°How can we lose three gravisars in a third of a quarter!¡±


    ¡°No idea, Commander,¡± he held himself upright, right hand on his chest in salute, and kept his voice as steady as possible. The material of his collar was itchy and he was tempted to reach up to scratch the itch. That would be a sign of disrespect to a Judge, and a good reason to receive a beating. He stayed his hand. Damn the stupid itchy uniform. ¡°We are only sure of the integrity of our sensors. If¡ª¡± The Judge leveled a piercing gaze at him. Eerie deep blue orbs of light glowed in the eye sockets of his skull-shaped, metal mask.


    Runner Seven panicked and took a step back, eyes down. ¡°If we could¡­¡± he swallowed hard, ¡°could get the scrying crystals¡ª¡±


    ¡°Vorthe intercepts those. We cannot risk it. Have the Judges we sent to Alvion arrived?¡±


    ¡°Not yet, Commander,¡± he replied.


    The Judge groaned ¡ª a low rumble that seemed to go on forever. A sign that he was in thought and didn¡¯t like the conclusions he was coming to. ¡°Vorthe is up to something. We¡¯ve been here for almost a season, with our gravisars intact. People start falling from the sky and we lose three? It is time we play a new hand in the game.¡±


    The Judge turned and walked to the giant map of the sand table behind him, clearing up his view. Judges were so tall that they blocked out everything in view when standing before you. Their long flowing cloaks also added to the effect. The war room was a large affair. Alvric spared no effort in providing them with the best resources.


    The sand table sat at the center of the room taking up more than half the entire room. Many small cylinders were fixed to the four edges of the table used to control the sand. How that worked, Seven didn¡¯t know ¡ª couldn¡¯t even know if he wanted to.


    He was from the lowest rung of society. And no one would sponsor a commoner to the Holy Academy. The little training he had received as a runner on how to read, write, do sums, and communicate was all he would ever know. Many would kill to be in his position right now so he sucked up his dissatisfaction.


    Another Judge ¡ª this one, an elite due to the fact he was unmasked ¡ª sat comfortably by the sand table with his legs up and his eyes closed, without a care for what was going on around him. He wasn¡¯t as tall as the one who confronted him. But he was still tall by human standards. Judges became more¡­ human-looking, he supposed, the more powerful they became. And he was putting on the signature long, deep blue coat of the elite Judges.


    Seven eyed the lapel of the elite Judge¡¯s coat with envy. That was a sign of high status in society ¡ª not a formal one but a standard of fashion. Becoming a Judge was out of the question for him but a Templar? He could still hope.


    Female slave attendants served him wine and berries, some massaging his shoulders, another combed through his long blonde hair. They all moved slowly and sensually, trained from when they were infants to serve. Other slaves stood back by the walls decorated with thick red curtains. Thick red carpet rugs decorated the floor of the war room, giving the place a closed-in atmosphere. Even with a window open, hardly any sound came into the chamber.


    Seven sighted a long cylinder in a corner of the war room ¡ª a silencer. Well, that was what the commoners called it. The suits had another name for it which he was ignorant of. Its glowing top meant it was active. And its range most likely covered the entire building.


    Vorthe had no hope of spying on them here.


    One of the many cylinders on the edges of the table sunk into the table with a hiss and the sand moved on the surface, shifting three of the tokens that signified their Judges near Alvion to the locations of the bizarre incident. The Judge hadn¡¯t touched anything. But Seven knew the power of the Judges; of their terrifying ability to move things with their minds!


    ¡°Send an encrypted message through a transference paper to inform them of their new tasks,¡± the Commander said, not looking back at him.


    Seven wanted to ask if that was wise but held his tongue. Even Svol, the deity of Light, wouldn¡¯t be able to save him from the wrath of the Commander if he questioned his actions.


    ¡°Do you think it wise to do such a thing?¡± another voice asked the question in his mind, a voice so filled with allure and softness.


    To his right, on a loveseat, was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen; a woman whose beauty filled the room with warmth he never knew he was missing ¡ª a sacred artist, he was sure. Her long golden locks and green eyes held an ethereal beauty a man could only conjure in the dark fantasies of his heart. The wind from the window behind her lifted her hair, which only served to add to her allure. Her exposed neckline drew his gaze and he swallowed, wishing he could taste and smell her skin.


    Seven had been taught about these sacred artists. Abominations who take into themselves the essence of the world so they can live longer, become more beautiful, become more powerful, become gods! The allure of such power was indescribable. If he had such power in his grasp, would this otherworldly beauty gaze upon him? Would she smile at him? Would she let him kiss her hand? Or go further?


    Sacred artists didn¡¯t seem so abominable now. Such beauty and grace couldn¡¯t have been but the handiwork of Svol himself.


    Seven caught himself in his infatuation and quickly hardened his heart.


    The Judge who had been quiet for a while shifted to face the sacred beauty. ¡°Do not presume that you are here to give me counsel. I accommodate you because I have to, not because I want to.¡±


    Seven¡¯s gaze flitted to the elite Judge for a moment. He was sure the elite was the one truly in charge here.


    The sacred beauty smiled¡­ Seven¡¯s jaws dropped. He would die a happy man if she only looked his way.


    ¡°And what are you still doing here, boy!?¡± the Commander barked at him. ¡°Back to your duty post!¡±


    Seven scrambled out of the war room as fast as he could. The moment he got to the stairs leading down to the lower floors, another runner stumbled into him. He stepped out of the way and slowed down on the stairs to hear the information the new runner came to deliver.


    The runner saluted. ¡°Runner Eight at your service, Commander! Our sensors detect the destruction of another gravisar within the last thirty breaths. Oomph¡ª¡± Runner Eight was thrown out of the war room.


    Before Seven could get out of the way, Runner Eight crashed into him and they both tumbled down the stairs. Seven picked himself up carefully all the while groaning in pain. Eight did the same.


    ¡°You idiot!¡± Seven hissed at Eight. ¡°You couldn¡¯t wait to read the room!? You don¡¯t just blurt out whatever in front of a Judge!¡±


    Eight bowed his head in shame. A junior runner never talked back when being scolded by his senior. Seven tsked in irritation and walked into their makeshift control room. The poorly lit room was barely enough for its twenty occupants, ten of which were analysts, directly in charge of monitoring the grid of five hundred gravisars scattered around the southern rain forests.


    Four of those gravisars were down already. The cost of those things was astronomical, as had been drilled into them all. An alarm blared from the front of the room, directly in front of the image of the grid being projected on the wall ¡ª a highly complex encryption that was near impossible to understand. Only the analysts could analyze the grid. Another blared, and then another.


    ¡°By the gods, how are they doing that!?¡± The lead analyst stood up from his cubicle in anger. ¡°How the fuck are they¡ª¡± he stopped abruptly, looking intently at the grid and then back at his cubicle. He was reading something Seven couldn¡¯t. All Seven could see were flickering lights, numbers, and unknown symbols on the grid wall.


    The other analysts began standing up one by one as if they were catching up.


    ¡°It is as if they are different teams,¡± one said.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing four,¡± another said.


    ¡°And they¡¯re not being impeded by the weight forced on them by the gravisars!¡± another said.


    The alarm blared again after he spoke. The lead analyst cursed and ran out of the control room. There was only one place he was going to which was a relief because none of the runners hanging back by the wall wanted to face the wrath of the Judge upstairs again.


    Seven quickly remembered the Judge¡¯s errand and shot toward a table with a small stack of hand-sized pieces of white transference paper. Their transference papers were in short supply and they had to be rationed. But there was nothing to be done. He had an encrypted message to send.


    ~~~


    Jerome dropped out of the sky with a thump. He surveyed the battle scene and then his girls before nodding in satisfaction. He smiled at Ms. Tara and she gave him a beautiful smile in return before racing into his arms. Sheela poked him in the side, pouting as she waited for her own hug. He pulled her into a three-way hug and she squealed, surprised at the speed of his reflex.


    ¡°That¡¯s a terrifying reflex you¡¯ve got, Jerome,¡± Csala said as she walked towards him.


    ¡°I missed you all,¡± he said, letting go of both ladies. He drew Csala in for a hug as well.


    ¡°And what have you got there, Nyx?¡± he asked, letting go of the succubus.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Nyx squatted in front of the shallow hole where the gravity contraption once was. The parts of it, including the crystal stones all orbited space a feet away from her. ¡°I can sense it ¡ª the warping of space,¡± she said. ¡°Achilleia said you¡¯d deal with it.¡±


    Jerome was startled at her words. He had thought Nyx would be able to do something about it. Her psychic energy had felt more powerful than Muna¡¯s in Terra Praeta, yet Muna would have dealt with this without a second thought he was sure.


    ¡°What?¡± Nyx asked.


    Jerome came out of his musings. ¡°Thought you¡¯d be able to deal with it,¡± he said, holding her gaze.


    He felt her anger begin to rise from their shared telepathic pathway but she calmed herself. ¡°That sounded genuine; like you really did expect me to do something about this.¡± She pointed at the space where the bead should be floating. ¡°I thought you were gloating at first, though. I¡¯m glad you think highly of me.¡±


    ¡°I have no reason to do that, Nyx. It¡¯ll be childish of me. It¡¯s just¡­¡± He thought about how to say what he wanted to say without sounding condescending. ¡°I fought someone once in Terra Praeta ¡ª a succubus. Her psychic energy wasn¡¯t as powerful as yours but she could manipulate space.¡±


    ¡°Muna has lived far more lives than any other being in Terra Praeta,¡± Achilleia said through their rings, startling them both. ¡°She used to change succubi bodies like it was her personal wardrobe. All that process led her to become far more powerful than the average succubus. She was an exception, Jerome, not the rule.¡±


    Jerome rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. He had forgotten about that fact. He looked Nyx in the eye and apologized, ¡°Sorry about that.¡±


    She rolled her eyes at him and looked away with a pout. She had a complicated expression he didn¡¯t want to start deciphering so he changed topics.


    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with this right away. We¡¯re calling them void beads. Please, step aside,¡± he said. She gave him a side glance but did as he said, still pouting. The others gathered around to see what he wanted to do.


    Jerome materialized Charybdis with a flourish. Just as with the previous void bead, he absorbed this one as well with his spear. He sucked the crystal stones hovering in the air into his void world and commenced to strip the dead Messengers of their armor.


    ¡°Ooh,¡± Csala exclaimed. ¡°I feel so light.¡± She jumped ¡ª almost twenty feet in the air ¡ª and floated downward with a girly giggle. It was cute.


    ¡°That thing¡ª¡± he thumbed the site of the contraption, ¡°¡ªwas making¡­¡± Should he use the term ¡®gravity¡¯? ¡°It was making us and the air heavier.¡±


    ¡°You could have just said gravity,¡± Nyx said with a knowing smirk. ¡°Or didn¡¯t you know what that is?¡±


    Jerome was truly shocked this time that she knew the term, gravity. That was not a word he¡¯d heard from any other person in this lifetime. He¡¯d always looked past Nyx¡¯s knowledge as he expected it of her as a dragon who inherited memories from some past ancestor.


    This shouldn¡¯t have phased him but it did, letting him know that she might have knowledge of the physics and chemistry of the world around, even though it¡¯s just the basics. But something told him she would know more than just the basics.


    He schooled his features but too late, Nyx was grinning at him like she just won a tournament. ¡°Yeah, well. That¡¯s an uncommon ¡ª and I dare say unknown ¡ª term in Vorthe, probably this world,¡± he said.


    She frowned. Whether at the fact he knew what gravity was or the fact no one else knew but he did, he didn¡¯t know. And honestly he couldn¡¯t deal with her competitiveness right now.


    Every other person was looking between them like they were speaking some alien language.


    ¡°Help me strip them of their armor,¡± Jerome said, changing the subject. ¡°Can¡¯t let good armor go to waste.¡±


    Sheela gave him a look that said ¡®We¡¯re not done discussing what that was¡¯ and said, ¡°Leave it. What do you need all that useless armor for?¡±


    Jerome smiled. He had an idea what this was about. ¡°Well, have you seen anyone wearing metal armor in Vorthe before?¡±


    Sheela chuckled. ¡°No, but with good reason. They aren¡¯t durable.¡± She pointed at what was left of a Messenger who had died a particularly brutal death ¡ª cleaved in half by what he supposed was a large blade. ¡°Tara¡¯s claw blade tore through them like they were cotton.¡±


    ¡°¡®Claw blade¡¯?¡± he asked, looking at Ms. Tara.


    She shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s a nice name. You should also come up with a name for your spear.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Csala said, rubbing her palm. ¡°It¡¯s a terrifying artifact.¡±


    Ghost pains could be traumatic. Jerome looked at her with concern but she waved him off.


    ¡°It has a name. ¡®Charybdis¡¯. But back on topic. You¡¯re wrong, Sheela,¡± he said, startling her. ¡°Your leathers have wards woven into them. Imagine what it¡¯ll be to have the same wards ¡ª with a little tweak, though ¡ª woven into metal armor. Vorthe makes and uses leather armor not because metal is a poor substitute, but because we lack the metal to make such armor in large quantities.


    ¡°Metal is expensive in this part of the world because we have very few mines where we can extract the ores for it. And I suspect the world as a whole is facing this predicament.¡±


    ¡°Then where did they get the ores to make all this?¡± she asked.


    ¡°A greater plane of existence.¡±


    Silence breezed through the clearing in an instant. Jerome watched the different emotions play through their faces ¡ª all except for Nyx ¡ª as they slowly processed his words.


    ¡°I plan on taking everything useful from them,¡± he said, breaking them out of their stupor. ¡°If they¡¯re receiving help from some Divine Patron, who knows what we might find on them ¡ª especially those higher up in the chain of command.¡±


    If they¡¯d be able to take them on and win, that is. He was sure the Judges would fit into that category. Would they be able to absorb essence and become stronger as the Messengers did? On top of being able to wield ascended elements? Now that would just be overkill. Jerome half expected Achilleia to weigh in on his thoughts but she was silent. Probably busy.


    ¡°Busy, yes,¡± she said in his mind.


    Everyone went to work, stripping the dead Messengers of their armor.


    ¡°Err¡­ what do we do about him?¡± Sheela asked, thumbing in the direction of a Messenger ¡ª the one with the maintenance coveralls. He looked catatonic. His eyes were glazed over and spittle ran down the side of his face uncontrollably.


    ¡°Huh.¡± Jerome looked around confused. ¡°What happened to him?¡±


    Csala gave Nyx a sidelong look, suggesting to him that whatever was done to the maintenance guy was done by her. Nyx snapped her fingers and the maintenance guy burst into black flames. Jerome glared at her.


    ¡°I¡¯ll need you to hold off using your flames for now, Nyx,¡± he said and the flames went out. She looked at him in confusion. ¡°We should assume they can trace evidence of ascended elements.¡±


    ¡°Black flames!¡± Sheela whispered in fear. She took a step away from Nyx.


    ¡°That was an ascended element?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    Jerome caught the slight frown on the dragoness¡¯ face before she could school her features.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep that between ourselves for now. Like a secret weapon.¡± He turned to Nyx. ¡°Use the ring next time.¡±


    ¡°About the ring,¡± Csala said. ¡°How do I get the essence to take the shape I want?¡±


    Jerome smiled at her. ¡°If you could wield essence naturally, you¡¯d be able to change its shape as you go.¡± He knelt beside the burnt corpse of the maintenance Messenger. It was little more than a charred, black skeleton now. He absorbed it ¡ª including the surrounding soil that got burnt ¡ª into his void space. All in the bid to cover up the fact that an ascended element had been used here.


    ¡°But,¡± he continued, materializing Charybdis and stomping the butt of the spear on the ground. The ground vibrated and shifted, settling into itself as if nothing was ever amiss. ¡°Since you¡¯re using an artifact, you¡¯d have to visualize what you want the essence to look like and how it should function before summoning it. You can¡¯t change it after it¡¯s been summoned.¡±


    Csala scoffed in frustration.


    ¡°A suggestion though,¡± Jerome said and she focused back on him again. ¡°Make it as solid as possible next time. The more essence you gather into a point, the more mass it contains.¡±


    ¡°Mass?¡± Sheela and Ms. Tara asked.


    Jerome tilted his head, giving them both a questioning look. ¡°What would you like to know?¡±


    ¡°This¡­ ¡®mass¡¯. It makes essence solid?¡± Ms. Tara asked. Jerome saw curiosity burning in her eyes. Her question implied that mass was something different that could be added to essence.


    Jerome held open his palm and a blue flame kindled upon it, hovering an inch over his hand. ¡°The more essence I funnel into it, the more mass its core contains, and the stronger the flame.¡± He molded it into a sphere and compressed it. The sphere shrunk in size. ¡°The smaller the radius, the heavier the core as I keep pumping essence into it, and the more damage it can do.¡±


    He continued to funnel essence into the tiny sphere. Suddenly the concentration of essence in the air around them spiked. Heat began to pour out of the tiny sphere in waves. It pulsed¡­ and turned white-blue, twinkling like a star in the night sky!


    ¡°Jerome!¡± Sheela and Ms. Tara cautioned.


    Jerome stopped pumping essence into the sphere and absorbed it into himself. ¡°It¡¯s the way the cores in our bodies take form as well. It starts out gaseous and becomes solid over time. Because it gains enough mass to do so. The more you cycle and the more impurities you purge from your channels, the denser your core. But you also have to ¡®squeeze¡¯ it as you meditate.


    ¡°A piece of rock weighing a pound will do more damage than a pound of cotton if used as a weapon.¡±


    ¡°Huh? You can¡¯t just compare a ball of cotton to a piece of rock. I mean¡­ it¡¯s rock.¡±


    ¡°And why is that?¡± Jerome asked. ¡°Why can¡¯t I compare them? They both weigh the same.¡± He shrugged.


    Csala said, ¡°Well, the rock is stronger¡­ tougher?¡±


    ¡°And why is it tougher?¡± Jerome countered. ¡°What does it mean for something to be tough¡­ dense¡­?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s beginning to make a lot of sense,¡± Sheela said. She held her hands in front of her, fingers curled inward like claws and squeezed an invisible something only she was able to visualize. ¡°I never thought of it that way.¡±


    Jerome nodded. ¡°You don¡¯t have the words for it. That¡¯s partly because of Vorthe¡¯s educational system.¡± The other part was something he didn¡¯t want to say out loud; that maybe words didn¡¯t exist for these things yet. ¡°Density is the word you¡¯re looking for. It means the mass of the rock is tightly packed into its size. A ball of cotton is not the same thing. Its mass is loosely packed in its size.


    ¡°That¡¯s why I said you also have to squeeze your core as you meditate. Don¡¯t work on making it bigger. No; work on making it as small as possible, as tightly packed as possible. Because the term, ¡®size matters¡¯ doesn¡¯t apply to your core. Its depth can surpass that of a person with a bigger-looking core.¡± That was a spatial thing but he didn¡¯t want to get into it as he didn¡¯t understand it quite well himself.


    ¡°Oh,¡± Ms. Tara muttered. The look on her and Sheela¡¯s faces was all he needed to know that they¡¯d been doing the opposite of what he just said.


    ¡°Well, glad I could provide you with some insights.¡± That was overstating it on his part. He only gave them a tidbit of the matter. At least he gave a definition they would be able to understand and hopefully use when next they cycled.


    Before long they set out to the clearing where he destroyed the first gravity contraption. Jerome found the invisible void bead with the help of Achilleia and absorbed it into Charybdis. He was still flummoxed with how the void bead didn¡¯t react to him when he destroyed the contraption.


    Even Nyx said he must have passed straight through it as he shot down from the sky. But no one had any reasonable theory as to how it must have happened. They didn¡¯t spend any time dwelling on the matter, though. There were Messengers to get rid of and his family to find.


    ¡°Anybody know how to ride a horse?¡± he asked, looking at the horses tied up ahead of them. Silence and the shake of heads met his question. ¡°I guess we¡¯re all walking then.¡±


    He swallowed the horses with his psychic energy and pulled them into his void plane, causing Ms. Tara and Sheela to gape in shock.


    ¡°Your jaws are on the floor,¡± Csala whispered to them.


    ¡°Wait, how did you do that Jerome?¡± Sheela asked. ¡°Storage rings can¡¯t hold living things.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡± What should he tell her now? ¡°I have an artifact.¡± It wasn¡¯t necessarily a lie.


    They headed east toward the mountain in the distance, destroying every gravity contraption and Messengers they found along the way.

 154. Forging Thunder

    Ash


    ¡°We¡¯re only a few days away from Alvion but the Judges have split up. Three of them moved west this morning,¡± Old Wen explained. He was so thin and frail that Ash was finding it hard to compare him to the bulky warrior she used to know him as. He still had his height though and he wasn¡¯t hunching.


    ¡°So there are four left in your troop,¡± Crystal said in thought before focusing again. ¡°Thanks, old-timer. Your intel has been of much help.¡±


    Ash hugged him again and put an earth-attribute crystal in his hand. He had requested it specifically. The moment he held it in his grasp, he sat down on the floor of the hut and she felt him begin to cycle. It was weak, which broke her heart all over again. It took him more time than necessary to completely absorb the crystal stone even with it being low grade. All the while he grunted in pain from the exertion.


    Something was terribly wrong with his essence channels. But with no knowledge of healing or a physician nearby, there was nothing they could do. She barely felt the weight of his presence like she would other Sprouts who were considered weak. When he was done, Crystal carried him back to the enemy¡¯s camp.


    ¡°We¡¯ll find a way to help him, Ash¡­ soon,¡± Uncle Rihal said from behind her. She jumped in fright.


    ¡°Uncle Rihal stop doing that!¡± She sighed. ¡°Can we take him to Farryn?¡±


    ¡°We will. But he has to maintain his cover.¡± Uncle Rihal embraced her and she leaned into him. She loved to pretend she was leaning into Jerome anytime Uncle Rihal embraced her like this. ¡°And you heard him say he has six children from the orphanage to look after.¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s go rescue them!¡±


    ¡°Inside Alva? That¡¯s not going to be possible, Ash. There¡¯s a Transcendent there. One who¡¯s mad we nabbed three Sages right from under his nose.¡±


    Ash sighed. ¡°Are the Transcendents that powerful? You talk about them like they are gods.¡±


    ¡°To us, they might as well be.¡± Uncle Rihal let go of her. ¡°Ash, I need to get to the battlefront. Vorthe is taking too much damage. And even though I can¡¯t fight openly, I can support the war effort from the shadows.¡±


    ¡°What sort of stupid rule was made to prevent the best warriors from fighting during battle anyway?¡± Ash complained. War shouldn¡¯t be this complicated but humans made everything complicated.


    ¡°Those rules are a part of the Accords. They help prevent the spread of tyranny.¡±


    ¡°The Church broke the Accords,¡± she pointed out.


    ¡°Only the one part.¡± He held up a finger. ¡°They are politicking¡­ as all sovereign states do.¡±


    A thump sounded outside the hut and Crystal walked in.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be heading to Alvion soon,¡± Uncle Rihal said to her. Crystal¡¯s face nearly fell but she quickly schooled her features. ¡°The Messengers are too numerous for an army of average Sprouts and Blanks. Especially since they can¡¯t depend on essence to fight, new orders might come for us though, so get yourself ready. I¡¯m pretty sure Vorthe wouldn¡¯t want those Judges anywhere near the battlefront.¡±


    Crystal nodded. ¡°And the returnees from Terra Praeta?¡±


    Uncle Rihal sighed. Ash looked between the two of them, not understanding what was going on. Uncle Rihal sneaked a glance at her and she frowned.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? What happened to the ¡®returnees from Terra Praeta¡¯?¡±


    Uncle Rihal glared at Crystal and she pouted. Some unspoken communication was passing between them that they didn¡¯t want her to know. Rain began to fall outside their little hut. Thankfully, the hut was fortified with enchantments.


    ¡°They should slowly make their way toward the mountain in the distance, and then to Alvion. I just hope¡­¡± he sighed, running a hand down his face. ¡°I hope Jerome won¡¯t fall into the Judge¡¯s hands.¡±


    ¡°He won¡¯t,¡± Ash ground out, clenching her fists. Her heart began to race a mile away. ¡°He¡¯s a lot stronger than the average Sprout. You said it yourself, Uncle Rihal.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s hope so, sweetie.¡± Crystal rubbed her arm to comfort her.


    ¡°Would you like to come with me to Alvion, Ash?¡± Uncle Rihal asked.


    ¡°No!¡± She walked away in anger.


    Uncle Rihal cursed and said something about the returnees to Crystal. But Ash¡¯s mind was on something else already. She wasn¡¯t going to run away to safety when her family was still out there. Who knows, she just might meet Jerome out here. But the jungle was too vast. The chances of them meeting each other were very slim.


    ~~~


    ¡°It¡¯s not like you can¡¯t use essence against them,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°You just have to overwhelm their runes enough to kill them.¡±


    ¡°Just like with Jerome¡¯s fire bead?¡± Sheela asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s a stupid name, Sheela,¡± Ms. Tara said, making a face.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Achilleia said. ¡°Just like Jerome¡¯s¡­ we¡¯ll find a better name for it. The both of you can also do it. But you would need some time to gather enough essence for such a powerful strike. But then there¡¯s the issue of holding and sustaining such a powerful technique in the palm of your hand. Would you have the strength of will to do so?¡±


    Ms. Tara and Sheela looked at one another for a moment. Silence reigned before Csala broke it.


    ¡°I think they would both do perfectly well,¡± she said. ¡°Just do as Jerome has taught you. Squeeze as much essence as you can into a point.¡±


    Jerome chuckled but kept silent as he continued what he was working on. He felt Csala was talking to herself as much as she was talking to them.


    The night was young and they were resting in the last clearing they had assaulted Messengers in. A fire burned in the middle of the clearing and a domed barrier shimmered from the light rain around them. They were as protected as best as they could be, but if Messengers stumbled upon their camp ¡ª that is if they went on patrols ¡ª their runes would be capable of destroying the barrier since it functioned using essence.


    There was an illusion of the forest around the barrier and whatever sound they made inside was absorbed by the barrier and converted to energy.


    But many things still could go wrong. If the Messengers stumbled into the illusory forest, there was nothing to keep them away from the barrier. And if they weren¡¯t prepared to fight these Church fanatics without essence, they could lose their lives. It would have been easier if there weren¡¯t lots of them. Achilleia had confirmed as much.


    Just to be on the safe side, he sent some hair-thin strands of Suzie into the soil and around the perimeter.


    ¡°What did you say you were working on again, Jerome?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°A projectile weapon like Ms. Tara¡¯s repeater crossbow,¡± Jerome replied, not looking up. A rifle, really. Achilleia would have provided him with mythril to build it if the mind-calming stone hadn¡¯t eaten the keys, or seeds, as she called them. They were worlds away from Terra Praeta now and there was nothing he could do about it but improvise.


    And improvise he did. He Shaped the steel from the Messengers¡¯ armor, making sure to temper it under high temperatures below its melting point. He wanted to craft something akin to a hand canon.


    Jerome never knew much about guns in his old world. Not their specific names or sizes. He knew there were different types of guns like rifles, shotguns, pistols like the nine millimeter, and so on but weapons never interested him during his previous life.


    Why create something that could end life when so many people struggled to hold on to theirs?


    How wrong he had been. Weapons were built to protect, even though that purpose would be corrupted sooner or later. After all, he was crafting this weapon so he could better protect those he cared for by killing those who wished them harm.


    The irony.


    Jerome shook his head to get rid of the negative thoughts. This was a world with draconian rules and those who adapted better, survived, just like Darwin said. Some of the movies he¡¯d seen provided him with something to base his creation on and that¡¯s what he was visualizing. But also, something with a little futuristic and fantasy look.


    ¡°Why is it so long?¡± Ms. Tara asked, breaking him out of his musings.


    ¡°I want something with a pretty long barrel to help stabilize projectiles,¡± Jerome said, not looking up as he compressed more steel in his hands to the desired shape he wanted. ¡°The projectiles will go through the barrel. This way, they have more precision. I just need¡­¡± He trailed off in thought.


    What were some of the things he remembered about guns? A barrel, cartridges, trigger, bullets, propellant, firing pin, action spring, primer¡­


    ¡°Wow!¡± someone whispered, breaking him out of his thoughts. ¡°It¡¯s like you¡¯re Shaping while deep in thought!¡±


    Jerome looked down at his hands. Everything he was thinking about was laid on the grass in front of him. He gasped, unaware he had been Shaping while thinking of them. Unfortunately, the sizes were out of proportion to what he wanted.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    He first took apart the magazine and added a spring to help feed cartridges into the rifle¡¯s chamber. The action spring in the rear of the gun needed to be bigger to hold the firing pin. Jerome sighed. He felt like he was way in over his head. He didn¡¯t know the first thing about making a gun.


    You can¡¯t give up, Jerome, Nyx transmitted to him. She also transmitted her trust in him through their shared Path.


    Jerome took a deep breath. He could do this. Even if he didn¡¯t get all the parts right, he could always shore it up with something else¡­ for now. He needed a working gun that wouldn¡¯t use essence and could take out Messengers from a distance.


    He dove back into it as Ms. Tara and Sheela began to cycle in meditation. Only the action spring, firing pin, barrel, and trigger looked good. He was missing something he knew but couldn¡¯t quite figure it out. He needed something to put tension on the firing pin before it hit the primer in the cartridge. What was it?


    He Shaped something of his own to fit into the compartment of the action to push the firing pin when the trigger is pulled. Then the handle came together around the trigger. But a problem arose. The rifle wouldn¡¯t have the balance he wanted as every important component was at the rear end. He had to distribute them along the length of the gun to make for a more balanced rifle.


    He reshaped the whole thing again, moving the trigger and handle forward on the barrel ¡ª like the bigger rifles he remembered, the automatic ones. The rifle was an ugly lengthy thing that didn¡¯t give him any joy to work with but he wasn¡¯t going to complain. He had to create other components for it. Visualizing what he had in mind was simple, bringing it to bear was difficult. He went ahead to make the bullets and cartridges. From memory, he knew cartridge shells were made from brass due to a number of things. But magic could help with such things.


    He made his shells using steel and lined them on the inside with scripts set to explode when the firing pin hit the¡­ he needed a primer. And what about what to use as propellant?


    ¡°The fire essence crystals,¡± Achilleia reminded him. He had been paid with fire essence crystals for a mine of living steel he uncovered in the south before going to Terra Praeta.


    Jerome brought out a few fire essence crystals and ground them to powder inside a containment ward so the essence in them would not escape. He packed them into the shells and used bigger grains from the fire essence crystals that didn¡¯t ground completely to form his primer. He fit the bullets into the shells when he was done. He had to reshape his magazine again to fit the new magazine well. Yeah, that¡¯s what it was called. And then reshape the cartridges and bullets again to fit into the magazine. Frustration took over and Achilleia demanded he go to sleep.


    But he didn¡¯t really sleep. Not in the manner he expected. The moment his mind relaxed and he felt himself falling into the embrace of sleep, he noticed he was standing on his feet, instead of lying on the ground. Cold winds blew against him and the rustling of falling leaves filled his hearing.


    Jerome opened his eyes to find himself inside Autumn, his mind plane. He hadn¡¯t been here in a very long time. The mind plane had a vastness to it, unlike the last time he was here. He looked down at himself. He was putting on his long black coat and fingerless gauntlets, a leather cuirass, and pants. His black thigh-high boots felt like it was an extension of his feet.


    ¡°How did I¡­?¡± he said.


    ¡°Amazing, isn¡¯t it!?¡±


    He whipped around at the voice. Achilleia¡¯s voice, he reminded himself as his racing mind recognized it. Tialana sat on a loveseat a few feet away from him with her feet up. She was clad in a string bikini that had her enormous bust almost spilling out. Jerome gulped, his eyes roving over her bronze skin. He had to force himself to look away from her. Thankfully, he couldn¡¯t get a boner here.


    ¡°Achilleia, please put something modest on,¡± he said, walking toward her.


    ¡°How do you know I¡¯m Achilleia? I¡¯ve been in your mind plane since we met in the First Heaven. I just didn¡¯t reveal myself,¡± she said, donning a sunhat and matching dust-colored shades. Jerome looked pointedly at her clothes ¡ª or lack thereof ¡ª and back at her. Achilleia rolled her eyes behind her shades and stood up. She gave him a peck on the cheek before dragging him toward the trees. ¡°Way to kill the mood.¡±


    ¡°Why am I here, Achilleia?¡± She must have pulled his mind here, somehow.


    ¡°Do you know how vast your mind plane is now, Xerae? It¡¯s ginormous! You should come here more often to practice using dream aura. You can also build models of things you want to use in real life here.¡±


    Jerome stopped. He had never thought to do that before. ¡°I can build a model of my rifle here.¡±


    She pulled him along again. ¡°Urgh. This is too exhausting. Get us to the edge of your mind plane, Xerae.¡±


    With a thought, they stood at the edge of a clearing ¡ª another clearing ¡ª in his mind plane.


    ¡°That¡¯s creepy. Didn¡¯t even sense the teleportation. You just bent reality to fit what you want. Had to see if we could make it to the edge, but no such luck, eh?¡±


    ¡°Hmm. that¡¯s how it works.¡± He smiled. ¡°In here, I¡¯m god.¡±


    Achilleia ignored his comment and quickly put him to work. He started from scratch, building his rifle once more. When he got stuck, she had him sit down in meditation so he could call up faint memories of guns and movies from his past life from his subconscious. The memories would invade the mind plane like wraiths, and they would watch them like a movie. Some memories were blurry and incomplete but with Achilleia¡¯s help, he was able to sharpen his focus on them.


    He woke up early in the morning before the sun came up, ready to tackle his ongoing project again. His time in his mind plane had helped him generate some new ideas that were now floating around his head.


    His mag well needed a receiver so the bullets could be loaded, fired correctly, and spent rounds ejected without a hitch. A bolt would hold the round as it is chambered into the receiver and fired. That bolt would be pulled back into a cocked position with a handle, ready to fire. That should have been the compartment of the gun he worked on first.


    So he started over again. Thankfully, he didn¡¯t waste steel, even though there was a lot from robbing the dead Messengers. Being able to Shape metal made him incredibly efficient. He just wished he could use magnetism; pull metal from the ground or all around, create magnetic fields and all that shit. That was something that eluded him, perhaps because it was some type of ascended art. He had no idea.


    It took him a few hours by his estimation but he got something great going.


    ¡°You know you don¡¯t need a new weapon, right?¡± Ms. Tara said from her cross-legged position.


    Jerome smiled at her. ¡°Good morning. How was your meditation?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a lot harder to compress my core than I thought it would be. I feel so sore.¡± She stretched where she sat before standing up and tidying up her bedroll.


    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t assume that the Messengers would always wait for us to attack,¡± he said, answering her previous question as he continued his work. ¡°I dare say they would be setting up an ambush for us. There¡¯s no way they haven¡¯t noticed all the damage and destruction we¡¯ve meted out. Or they might just send a legion of themselves after us. They¡¯re clones after all.


    ¡°Besides, I might end up not using the rifle at all.¡±


    ¡°The what?¡± she asked.


    Jerome held up his strange weapon ¡ª strange to her, that is. ¡°I call it a ¡®rifle¡¯. And maybe you¡¯d be the one to use it. We¡¯ll never know.¡± He preferred close-quarters combat and this was a long-range weapon.


    Ms. Tara sat down near him to watch him work. ¡°No, thank you. I like my crossbow just fine.¡±


    We¡¯ll see how long that lasts, he thought to himself.


    They slipped into comfortable silence and only the sound of metal clicking into place or folding into each other was audible. Soon the sun came out and Csala woke up. At some point before dawn, Sheela had sneaked away. Nyx turned to face away from the sun, frowning. She covered herself with a blanket woven out of vines.


    Jerome remembered she followed him to this world with nothing. He decided to get her clothes and other stuff, whatever she might need.


    ¡°Not a morning person, are you?¡± he chuckled. She grumbled and went back to sleep.


    His work continued. Slowly but surely his gun was coming together. He had to do some trial runs to ascertain that the quality of his work was good ¡ª or at least okay. He worked on safety catches to prevent the gun from firing at unexpected times and several knobs to lock the bolt in place when firing. At long last, the result of his hard work began showing fruits.


    Achilleia helped him to design mechanisms that would help make the rifle more efficient. With his knowledge and skill in Shaping and runing artifacts, he was able to bring her design to fruition ¡ª two interconnected mechanisms whose functions would help his rifle operate optimally. They were shaped in such a way that they made the barrel and handguard look like a sleek slab of metal ¡ª the first of which was the silencer at the muzzle of the rifle which muffled the sound of the shots. The other extricated resultant hot gases to prevent overheating. He also had to rifle the inner walls of the barrel so the bullets exiting it would rotate out.


    With all that done, it was time for testing. Jerome scanned the forest in a three-mile radius around him ¡ª an impossible feat for a Sprout. Nyx gasped and shot up from her sleeping position.


    ¡°Jerome was that you!?¡± she asked.


    Huh. He had forgotten to use the pod of Hezvar. Nyx had never witnessed him use his psychic energy nakedly before as the pod shielded it and made his scans intangible to her senses.


    ¡°Yeah, that was me.¡±


    ¡°That was powerful. You¡¯ve been keeping the strength of your psy ¡ª your mental energy a secret all this while?¡±


    He could just barely notice Achilleia¡¯s interference in her words. Can we talk about this later? I¡¯m kind of busy now, he said to her. She frowned but didn¡¯t ask any more questions.


    He stood, hefting the rifle on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m going to take a short walk to test out this bad boy.¡±


    Ms. Tara tittered at him.


    ¡°What?¡±


    She smiled up at him. ¡°Boys will always be boys. You all love your toys more than you care to admit. Look how you¡¯re caressing it like it¡¯s a treasure.¡±


    Jerome stopped. He didn¡¯t know he¡¯d been doing that. He cleared his throat and walked away from the ladies as they giggled mockingly at him.


    The forests of southern Vorthe were dense and humid. But they didn¡¯t hold a candle to Terra Praeta¡¯s jungles. He found a tree that was thick enough to take a few bullets from his rifle and set about clearing a path to make a shooting range. When he was done, he held up his rifle and aimed at the tree from forty feet away.


    The first muffled shot pulverized the tree bark, piercing the tree in an instant. The rifle kicked back against his shoulder, the force jerking him backward. Jerome whistled in appreciation.


    ¡°Now that¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about. With steel bullets as tough as diamonds, I¡¯ll be able to blow up heads like melons.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm,¡± Achilleia said.


    What?


    ¡°If you reduce the silencer¡¯s grip on the muzzle by a notch, you could increase the velocity of the bullet by ten point six percent¡­ more if you deactivate it completely.¡±


    Yeah, that¡¯s a given. We¡¯ll tweak it as we go, Achilleia. Thanks for all the tips. This is just the beginning though. I plan on making a handgun next.


    ¡°Sorry about this, Xerae. If I hadn¡¯t fallen into Dashani¡¯s clutches, I¡¯d still be able to look into the river of time. There would have been no way for the Church to take us unawares like this.¡±


    Huh. Didn¡¯t know you could see the future. If she hadn¡¯t said a word about it, he wouldn¡¯t have known. But anyway, don¡¯t worry about it. Besides, not knowing what¡¯s gonna happen can be quite an adventure too.


    He thought through what he needed next to support his rifle. He¡¯d have to make a scope and a rifle stock to mount the rifle on for long-range shots. He decided to test the range of the shots, moving farther away from the tree to double the previous distance.


    ¡°Jerome,¡± Csala¡¯s voice sounded in his ear. ¡°We¡¯ve got company.¡± From the coldness of her tone, he could tell what kind of company they had.


    ¡°Took them long enough,¡± he responded. ¡°Guess shooting practice will have to wait.¡±


    An idea suddenly came to him. ¡°...or maybe not.¡±

 155. Sun’s Kiss

    Boris


    Due to Vorthe¡¯s interference, they were blind in the control room. Millions of charged gold coins and endless preparations were invested into this war only for Vorthe to render their sensors and projectors useless. The things cost too damn much to be useless at a time like this. How Vorthe blocked their transmissions was beyond him. He couldn¡¯t even begin to understand how such primitive low-lives got hold of technology powerful enough to blind the Holy Church.


    He tsked in irritation. ¡°Have they made contact?¡± His voice boomed inside the control room. Everyone stood at attention.


    ¡°Teams one, one, seven, three through one, one, eight, three are standing by for more instructions, Commander,¡± the lead analyst responded.


    Boris nodded. ¡°Tell them to engage with force and brutality. The heathens have no place in Svol¡¯s Light.¡±


    A runner had to scribble down his words on transference paper which irritated him even more. Was this what Vorthe had reduced their forces to? They couldn¡¯t even send instant vocal instructions through their normal transmission channels.


    ¡°Damned be the lot of you, Vortheans!¡± he hissed in annoyance as he watched the runner flap the paper rapidly in his hand so the ink could transfer to an entangled paper miles away in the jungle. The very place where Messengers were waiting for his order to attack.


    Transference papers were slow and unreliable. Inkblots were something they had to be wary of. They could mar or obscure messages being conferred. Intent could also easily be misinterpreted through written means. Their only saving grace was the fact that they were untraceable.


    It took a very small fraction of a breath for messages to pass through their transmission channels to the bracelets on each soldier¡¯s arm. Transference papers on the other hand could take anywhere between five to fifty breaths ¡ª more time than it would take to wipe out a company of a hundred Messengers.


    No matter. They still had more Messengers than Vorthe had grains ¡ª an inexhaustible legion of them! The more they killed, the more they would have to contend with. And no man, not even a sacred artist, could fight forever without rest.


    ¡°Message delivered, Commander!¡± the runner replied.


    ¡°Now we wait. Protocol demands we wait fifty breaths before sending another encrypted message.¡± He trundled out of the tiny room with heavy steps. ¡°Inform me when you do. I want to hear the report myself. If you get nothing in the next fifty breaths, send in another company.¡±


    ~~~


    Jerome appeared over their campsite. He hovered almost a hundred feet in the air and scanned the area using the pod of Hezvar. Multiple enemies stood in a circle around their camp. There were a hundred of them in total. And many of them were enormous tamed predators.


    He noticed Sheela still wasn¡¯t back so he reached out to her through his ring.


    ¡°Hey, Sheela. Where are you?¡±


    ¡°Watching the Messengers surround our camp. You were thinking I had been captured, weren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°No, no, no. I trust you can take good care of yourself.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, right.¡± She didn¡¯t sound convinced. ¡°They¡¯re ready to make their move.¡±


    Jerome aimed his rifle at one of the monsters the Messengers had with them ¡ª a massive wolf the size of the big bear from before. The foliage hid its bulk and helped it slink stealthily towards their camp as the Messengers began to move in. They had more monsters in their company than he¡¯d ever seen in one place in this world.


    He deactivated the silencer on his rifle and cocked back the charging handle. A loud boom shattered the silence in the air and the massive wolf¡¯s head exploded in a fountain of blood and gore. The sound was like the crack of thunder and it scared away myriads of birds in the distance. The Messengers stopped, unsure of what just happened. Those around the dead wolf looked between each other.


    Jerome cocked and loaded his rifle for a second shot before taking aim at another beast ¡ª a massive bear.


    ¡°Attack!¡± A giant of a man rumbled in a deep voice. They had decided to forgo sneaking forward, evident in the fact that they had lost the element of stealth. The messengers shot forward.


    Jerome pulled back the trigger and another boom resounded, killing the bear instantly. ¡°Okay, shooting this way is not my thing. I prefer to fight up close.¡±


    ¡°Then, release a fraction of your mythril x living steel, Xerae. Let me take over sniping.¡±


    You sound overly excited to shoot, Achilleia, Jerome teased just as the Messengers broke out of the trees and into the clearing.


    A huge chunk of his evolved living steel bled out of his back and he instinctively Shaped it into human form. Achilleia cast an ajanai, a network of runes and scripts on it in an instant and Jerome held out the rifle to the metal golem being controlled by his AI partner.


    The metal warrior took the gun and pulled the charging handle. It held the gun with a stiffness that reminded him of the British Royal Guard. Jerome shook his head. Before joining the battle, he communicated his intent through the common telepathic path he shared with Achilleia, Nyx, and the mind-calming stone.


    ¡°Brace yourselves,¡± Achilleia announced through the shared connection of their rings.


    Jerome shot toward the earth like a missile. He hit the ground with an earth-shattering boom and the mind-calming stone stirred. He felt her intent pass through him into the earth and the soil shifted and rolled like the waves of the ocean away from him in all directions, throwing everything and everyone not bracing themselves of balance.


    Csala shot forward like lightning. Her twin blades were in her hands the next moment, slicing through foes that were still flailing midair from their sudden lurch. He caught a shadow in the periphery of his vision, moving between Messengers like a blur. She cut them down like a farmer would harvest wheat, with sharp one-inch claws at the ends of her fingers that could probably rip a tree to shreds with the amount of Sword Force pouring off them. Sheela.


    ¡°Huh? Wait what¡­?¡± Ms. Tara spluttered in confusion.


    ¡°Protect yourself, Ms. Tara,¡± Jerome transmitted to her with a psychic whisper. She regained her wit and entered the fray too.


    The first person to reach him took a spear to the neck. The booming sound of his rifle resounded like thunder in the air and he was sure another Messenger somewhere around had popped like a watermelon.


    The Messengers regained themselves and rushed them in a stampede. Arrows came at them from everywhere but did little more than become an annoyance. Csala cursed in frustration from somewhere. In the heat of battle, he shouldn¡¯t have heard her but her words came through the rings.


    ¡°These Messengers can absorb essence even from a distance,¡± she said as she cut down Messengers with practiced swings. Jerome could sense the essence she had gathered bleed away into the world, or into a Messenger to be precise.


    ¡°At what distance?¡± Nyx asked. Her words were accompanied by grunts of pain ¡ª not hers ¡ª and whooshing winds.


    Jerome sliced through the handle of an axe coming at his head and tripped the wielder with his psychic energy. Sheela took the Messenger¡¯s head instantly.


    ¡°Three feet,¡± he said, preparing a fire bead¡­ No way he was going to call it that. ¡°Don¡¯t let them get into your personal space, else they suck up the core of the essence you gather.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± Nyx said.


    The moment the compressed bead of fire in his hand sparkled white like a shining star, heat poured off it in waves. Energy crackled around his palm like tiny lightning, barely controlled. The technique worked like a charm, drawing the attention of the Messengers.


    ¡°Take cover,¡± Jerome whispered. The ladies dashed away from him as the Messengers converged on him and he let loose the essence inside the tiny bead of flame. White flame bathed the world and colored his vision. The area of effect was about twenty feet from end to end all around him.


    When the world cleared, there were no corpses around him. Only ash, molten metal, and slags remained. The remaining Messengers stopped, stood around to stare in unbelief. There were still a lot of them, all bloodied and breathing hard from exertion. The same could be said for him and the ladies too, except for the breathing hard from exertion. They had barely just begun.


    ¡°Jerome, that was¡­ incredible!¡± Ms. Tara said excitedly. She was covered in someone¡¯s guts but didn¡¯t even know it. ¡°That thing should not be called a fire bead. Hmm-hmm,¡± ¡ª she shook her head for effect ¡ª ¡°not after what I just witnessed.¡±


    ¡°Give up!¡± A giant armored warrior boomed as he walked out of the crowd of warriors. He was heads and shoulders above everyone. ¡°You are completely surrounded and you can¡¯t take us all. You will run out of charge before the last of us drops dead. And when you do run out, there¡¯ll be a thousand more of us to defeat.¡±


    ¡°Charge?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s the known vocabulary for the term ¡®essence¡¯ in the Holy Principality of Light,¡± Achilleia explained. ¡°They craft and ¡®charge¡¯ every contraption with essence that it just seems correct to say that sacred artists ¡®charge¡¯ themselves. Or that the essence in your cores and channels are charges.¡±


    Jerome opened his palm and kindled another ball of flame. ¡°Question,¡± he said out loud and looked the Messenger dead in the eye. The giant¡¯s helmet was missing, and the mystery he cloaked himself in with it. ¡°How much of my ¡®charge¡¯ can you absorb before I turn you into¡­¡± he gestured with his second hand to his immediate surroundings. ¡°This¡­?¡±


    For the first time, Jerome saw fear in his eyes. Real fear. He had felt like a veteran who had been blooded through numerous wars, but now¡­?


    The tiny bead of flame in his hand suddenly sparkled like a white star. The Messengers knew what was coming next and dashed for the trees. Jerome aimed it at the giant, but Sheela beat him to killing the bastard. She blurred past him like a shadow and his head rolled off his shoulder, spouting blood like a fountain. He felt a concentration of essence spike in the air and looked to Ms. Tara who was holding a ball of orange flame in complete concentration. She was covered from head to boots in blood and her hair was matted to her skull. Even at that, she still looked adorable in her concentration.


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    The ball of flame in her hand was larger, yet not as deadly as his, but deadly still.


    ¡°Squeeze it even more,¡± Nyx said from behind her. She towered over Ms. Tara with her six feet plus frame. Jerome nodded at her before rushing after the fleeing Messengers.


    Csala shot after him. Sheela as well but she was a shadow he didn¡¯t bother trying to find. He didn¡¯t want to raze the forest to the ground and told the ladies as much. They picked off the Messengers one at a time and even Ms. Tara joined them. She shot her compressed ball of flame at at least six Messengers, overloading their runes with essence each time, and causing them to burn from the inside out.


    Csala and Sheela were like angels of death on the battlefield. They carved a path of blood and death through the Messenger¡¯s ranks. Nyx didn¡¯t bother fighting anymore after the initial showdown, something about scared prey ruining the fun of the battle. Jerome, having the bird¡¯s eye view, took the lay of the land and chose not to engage directly anymore. He walled in the Messengers, cutting off every escape route, and became a one-man Testudo: the tortoise formation. A circle of death.


    The killing zone tightened slowly but gradually and soon they slayed the last of the Messengers.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± Ms. Tara tapped her lower lip in thought.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Sheela asked as she cleaned up the blood and gore from her skin and clothes. ¡°Jerome, help us build a bath!¡±


    ¡°You know you can just summon water with the sapphires in your ring, right?¡±


    She pouted. Jerome sighed and made her a large floating bubble of water anyway. Sheela shrieked in excitement and jumped into the floating bubble as he cast a levitation ward beneath it. His ring was a bit different from theirs as he had designed it to cast wards and barriers instantly, something he couldn¡¯t do himself until he was a Spirit Realm artist and could use spell frames on his own.


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel a drain on my core,¡± Ms. Tara said.


    ¡°Oh!¡± Sheela realized too, still splashing around in the bubble of water. ¡°That¡¯s true. I¡¯ve been drawing from the ring and it just¡­ well, it¡¯s like it¡¯s a never-ending fountain of essence.¡±


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Ms. Tara looked at him for an explanation. She quickly summoned some water herself and washed away the gore coating her from head to boots.


    He sighed, taking off his coat, which was heavy from being blood-soaked. He cleaned himself up as he answered, ¡°The rings are connected to a source of power that is¡­ well, vast.¡±


    Too vast for them to put a dent into. For now. They were connected to the keys ¡ª or seeds ¡ª the mind-calming stone ate, but who was he going to complain about that to?


    The Messenger¡¯s words from before came back to him again and he worried about resources. He needed to get back to Terra Praeta or find a way to get the resources he needed to make more weapons from here. And they¡¯d be in limited supply here.


    Jerome realized he¡¯d always worked from the standpoint of abundance. He¡¯d been living in a metaphorical bubble ever since Achilleia ¡ª then, Achilles ¡ª declared him the Chosen of Ilyrrah. Now he had to work with scarcity in mind. No pressure.


    With a few muttered syllables, he cast a spell to retrieve the Messengers gear and armor scattered everywhere on the battlefield. Nothing happened.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Csala asked, noticing his confusion.


    Jerome blinked. ¡°Err¡­ nothing. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±


    Achilleia!? He screamed in his mind. What the fuck is happening!?


    He heard her sigh in frustration. ¡°Why do you think you can cast spells in Terra Praeta, Xerae?¡±


    Jerome thought about her words. The only reasons he could come up with were because he was first chosen by Ilyrrah and secondly, he was taught those spells through various memory stones.


    ¡°And also because the world, Terra Praeta, recognizes you as a mage. Here on the other hand, you don¡¯t have such liberties. You can¡¯t affect the world the way you desire. Care to share why you think that is?¡±


    Jerome started peeling armor and storage bags off the dead. This was going to take a lot more time than he liked. But he also thought of Achilleia¡¯s words as he worked. He could use his ring to create the same effect as his earlier spell but that would be a huge waste of essence. Their battle had covered a lot of ground. The others joined him but they could sense he wasn¡¯t in a good mood so they left him to his thoughts.


    If Terra Praeta recognizes me as a mage, then it should be factual to say that this world hasn¡¯t recognized me as one. I can¡¯t cast spells here because my ability to do so is tied to the world¡¯s recognition of me as a mage?


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s the bare bones of it. But there is a way around it¡­¡±


    I¡¯m listening.


    Achilleia went ahead to share with him mysteries, some of which the Sovereign of Vorthe had explained before, such as how both worlds compared in terms of sentience, awareness, natural laws, evolution and much more. Terra Praeta was more ¡®alive¡¯ so to speak and actively involved in the preservation of her species. She had to, when there was a mad woman on her western continent wanting to wipe out all living things and turn them into her puppet children.


    This world on the other hand wasn¡¯t on the verge of collapse. It probably had gone into stasis. And it might take some extreme measures by Jerome to ¡®wake¡¯ it up. As such its natural laws were lacking in quality, muted. However, the world was still dying. Slowly but surely. It could take a million years but its resources will dry up and it will one day fall to ruin if it is not named.


    So how does this help me cast spells here? Don¡¯t get me wrong, I¡¯m okay with using only essence to do the needful but you said there¡¯s a way around it, Jerome said as they wandered back to their camp. They found that Nyx had rid the place of corpses and all the gore. She had gathered the salvageable resources from the dead and put them in a pile.


    He was sure she had done it with magic. Of course, dragons would have no problem using magic in a world alien to them.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be jealous, Xerae. And you sound desperate for a quick fix.¡±


    Does that mean this would take longer to solve than I think?


    ¡°...possibly¡­¡±


    Jerome sighed. I¡¯m sorry I¡¯m being such a jerk, Achilleia. I guess I¡¯m so used to the convenience of spells even though I haven¡¯t been using them for long. It feels like I¡¯ve had them my whole life.


    ¡°I won¡¯t pretend to know what it¡¯s like, Xerae, but I can empathize. I don¡¯t think I would be this calm if I found out I didn¡¯t have access to my nexus anymore. But back to the matter at hand. You¡¯d have to commune with the world. Just like you¡¯ve been doing. Then we will see where we go from there.¡±


    That¡¯s all?


    ¡°Yes, Xerae.¡±


    Well, that¡¯s easy. I¡¯ve been doing it forever.


    Achilleia chuckled darkly. ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±


    That didn¡¯t bode well.


    Jerome sucked the pile into his void space but held onto some storage bags. One bag in particular gave him a strange feeling when he touched it. It was like fingers caressed the back of his hand when he touched the pouch. Jerome touched it again and the same sensation washed over him.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± he said as he opened it up.


    ¡°What is?¡± Csala said, drawing everyone else¡¯s attention, even Nyx who was looking bored.


    ¡°This bag gives me a strange sensation when I touch it. There must be something inside that separates it from the others.¡± He found the same effects all the other pouches usually carried but this time, there was a stack of hand-sized, rectangular pieces of yellow paper and other writing materials in the folded space of the storage bag.


    ¡°Transference paper,¡± Sheela said, smiling sheepishly to herself. ¡°Vorthe uses it to send encrypted messages.¡±


    Ms. Tara eyed her suspiciously. ¡°That smile of yours, and that look in your eyes. It reminds me of Jerome when he was little and up to no good.¡±


    Jerome reared back in surprise at that. How come the discussion turned to him all of a sudden?


    ¡°Spit it out, Sheela,¡± Ms. Tara said.


    Sheela¡¯s smile turned into a grin. ¡°We used to steal it from papa¡¯s chambers to play spy when I was little. The paper was actually a large piece of vellum ¡ª we called it paper because we didn¡¯t know better at the time. It has an entanglement enchantment, and warded against wear and tear. And then it¡¯s cut into rectangular pieces.¡± She took one from Jerome. ¡°But it seems this one is just paper.¡±


    ¡°How does it work?¡± Jerome asked.


    ¡°You write in one piece and flap it in the wind until the ink recedes into the paper. That means your message has been sent. Those were good times.¡± She smiled at the memory. ¡°At least one of them should still have traces of an encrypted message. You transmit essence to your eyes to see the message on it ¡ª doesn¡¯t mean we¡¯ll understand it though.¡±


    ¡°Like this?¡± He held up a paper with invisible ink. The encryption on it was a bunch of dots, a variety of short and long dashes, and crosses.


    Sheela took a moment to transmit essence to her eyes. ¡°Yes, like that. Now we have to decrypt it.¡± She rubbed her hands together in anticipation.


    Jerome gave her a knowing smile and she blushed. It was cute seeing the child in her. He turned back to the paper with red eyes, scanning it. His nanites activated and deciphered it in five seconds. ¡°Attack. Send confirmation when done.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Sheela said.


    ¡°That was quick,¡± Nyx said, snatching the transference paper from his grip.


    She scanned it for a few seconds before handing it back with a pout but her emotions bled through their connection and he poked her mentally. She glared at him and massaged her temple. When did you learn to do that?


    ¡°Now¡¯s not the time to be offended,¡± he said, ignoring her mental question. ¡°We need to use this to our advantage. Achilleia?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve analyzed the system of coding used,¡± Achilleia began. ¡°It¡¯s crude. With a little bit of ink we can enter a conversation with their superiors.¡±


    ¡°And wreak havoc among their ranks,¡± Sheela said with a bright grin.


    ¡°Have you always loved being a spy this much?¡± Jerome asked her.


    She raised an eyebrow, giving him a pointed look. ¡°The Midnight Panther is proof enough, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡± He couldn¡¯t argue with that. Jerome produced a quill and an inkwell from the same pouch. Achilleia took control of the writing materials and on a new piece of transference paper, wrote down her own message.


    ¡°What does it read?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    ¡°Mission complete. Awaiting further instructions,¡± Jerome read aloud. ¡°I hope that doesn¡¯t give us away, Achilleia.¡±


    ¡°It won¡¯t.¡±


    Sheela clung to him, vibrating with excitement. ¡°Flap it! Quick!¡± she said. Jerome held it out to her and she snatched the paper from him. She began flapping it back and forth with rapid movement of her wrist until the ink vanished into the piece of paper.


    After gathering all they needed from the pile of junk Nyx had gathered, they set out toward the mountain in the distance once again. They could have flown there, but they were wary of being attacked from below. It was still morning and the sun was out. Anything bigger than a bird that was caught flying would most likely be shot down. Who knew if the Messengers had siege engines that could help them bring down a flying sacred artist.


    Nyx stopped all of a sudden and looked around.


    Csala sighed. ¡°At least I get to practice shooting fire beads at them a second time,¡± she said.


    He didn¡¯t need to check with his perception to know they were being surrounded again. ¡°Let¡¯s not call it ¡®fire bead¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Ooh, do you have a better name then?¡± Sheela asked.


    Jerome nodded. ¡°Sun¡¯s Kiss.¡±

 156. The Fool’s Wisdom

    Seven


    ¡®Mission complete. Awaiting further instructions.¡¯ The message read but ¡­


    He looked to the head analyst, hoping he could figure out what to do. Another one hundred Messengers were already at the site of the battle, ready for action.


    The head analyst took the monocle in his hand and held it to his left eye to read the transference paper. The magic device was a convenience that helped them to read the invisible ink on the transference paper.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± he said. ¡°That was quick. Sacred artists don¡¯t go down easily though. This feels like a trap. Alert team two to send a reconnaissance team ¡ª a sub-team of no less than three.¡± The head analyst looked him dead in the eyes. ¡°And alert the Judge of the new development.¡±


    Seven wanted to curse him to an eternity of suffering in Madru¡¯s vile dungeons. Why did it have to be him going up there again? ¡°Of course, captain,¡± he saluted and walked towards the table with a stack of transference paper.


    The alarm at the front of the control room blared again signifying that another gravisar had been taken out. The head analyst cursed out loud.


    If you will frustrate me, Vorthe will frustrate you in turn, he thought to himself, enjoying the captain¡¯s frustration.


    Heading upstairs felt like heading to his doom. One never knew how a Judge would react so he had to be extra cautious. He knocked and saluted. ¡°A new development has unfolded, Commander!¡±


    ¡°Enter,¡± came the booming voice of the Judge.


    Seven stepped in and handed him the encrypted message he had received moments ago. The Judge grumbled.


    ¡°This team, whoever they are, they¡¯re good. But we have been warring with creatures of the nether realms for thousands of years. Any word from the Judges heading towards them?¡±


    ¡°Not a word, Commander.¡±


    ¡°Have the next company attacked?¡±


    ¡°The captain instructed that we send scouts, with not less than three Messengers.¡±


    ¡°Change of instructions¡­ Attack.¡±


    Seven saluted. ¡°Yes, Commander!¡± He turned around and marched out of the war room immediately. That went way better than he expected.


    ~~~


    ¡°Are they stupid or what?¡± Nyx asked. ¡°They do know what sacred artists are capable of, right? Especially those who already took down a hundred of them.¡±


    Jerome gave her a look. The hoofbeats of a hundred horses shook the ground around them as the Messengers circled their group.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked defensively.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re not a sacred arti¡ª¡±


    Her tail smacked him in the back of the head. Jerome glared at her but she huffed and looked away triumphantly. The other ladies tittered around them. If they had seen the tail, they made no mention of it. Or did they know what she was? He looked back at Ms. Tara and Sheela but their laughter only intensified.


    ¡°It would have been better for them if they had come at us head-on, but circling?¡± Nyx clicked her tongue and folded her hands under her bust emphasizing their size. Jerome looked away.


    ¡°Well, clearly you don¡¯t know much about barbarian scare tactics,¡± he said. ¡°They hope to create fear and weaken our morale with the hoofbeats that sound like the drums of death, and the neighing and snorting of their horses.¡±


    Nyx glared at him. He got her there. Serves her right. ¡°Well, ¡®clearly¡¯ it¡¯s a stupid tactic.¡±


    She was right there though and he acknowledged it with a nod. Against normal humans, this was a great tactic but sacred artists weren¡¯t easily scared. They had literal psychic powers to sense everything going on around them. And they got over things quite easily due to the fact they could literally calm their hearts, nerves, anxiety, you name it¡­ and focus on one thing.


    Killing.


    But maybe they¡¯d tried this against other sacred artists and had succeeded. Jerome looked around at the ladies in his team. These weren¡¯t normal sacred artists. Nyx was a freaking mythological creature posing as a sacred artist; she even felt like a Sprout now. Csala was a succubus; even without all the artifacts he gave her, she¡¯d still kick ass. He was pretty sure Achilleia improved Ms. Tara¡¯s physiology when he sent her to Sanctum after the chimera swallowed her whole in Terra Praeta. Sheela¡¯s Midnight Panther abilities made her nigh untouchable. To top it off, they all had a fountain of essence to draw from without exhausting themselves.


    The Messengers would never stand a chance against them. They were just too overpowered. Jerome told them his thoughts and they agreed.


    ¡°They might not know what it¡¯s like to be sacred artists but they can observe,¡± Ms. Tara said. ¡°And they would use that information to their advantage.¡±


    ¡°Only they are now dealing with a team that¡¯s¡­ what¡¯s the best word to use there?¡± Csala said.


    ¡°Overkill,¡± Nyx said. Jerome gave her a knowing smirk and she looked away with a scoff. He grinned.


    ¡°I wanted to say overpowered but¡­¡± Csala shrugged. ¡°That works too.¡± She eyed the dragoness warily for a moment before looking away.


    ¡°Should we start taking heads or¡­?¡± Sheela asked, looking between him and Nyx. She was vibrating in place and trying hard to hide it.


    ¡°We wait,¡± they both said together. Nyx glared at him and he made a face at her. Ms. Tara giggled at both their antics.


    ¡°They are tightening the circle,¡± Csala said, readying her twin blades. They shined with Sword Force and sang with every little movement she made with her wrists. Jerome smiled at her. She was really enjoying using essence.


    ¡°Attack!¡± a deep rumbling voice sounded from among the hundred-man company of Messengers. Jerome would recognize the voice of the giant, axe-wielding Messenger anywhere.


    The Messengers rushed them but just as before, they were completely brutalized. Jerome recognized what they were trying to achieve. Or what the Judges, who were their superiors, were trying to achieve. This was a battle of attrition ¡ª or to be more specific, they were using ¡®Fabian Tactics¡¯, named after the Roman general Quintus Fabius Maximus, who used this strategy against Hannibal during the Second Punic War.


    Not that the Messengers would know who Fabius was. But he could bet there was another company of soldiers waiting for these to perish and take their place. And then another, and another.


    It would be a chore to just keep dealing with Messengers though. He wouldn¡¯t want them wasting his time like this. But for now, he concentrated on the battle before him.


    ¡°Try not to hit their horses,¡± he said to the ladies. ¡°They are damned good horses. It would be a waste to kill such beautiful beasts.¡±


    ¡°I would like to learn how to ride a horse,¡± Ms. Tara said as she sliced through Messenger after Messenger with her claw blades. ¡°They truly are beautiful creatures.¡±


    The Messengers didn¡¯t give her the chance to form a fireball to shoot at them and from the look of things, she was trying to create space as she ran around in circles, bursting through walls of steel and bodies like they weren¡¯t there. Her ring was twinkling like a silvery star as she zoomed around the clearing, a sign she had the diamonds active to give her body their hardness and her blades the sharpness of Sword Force.


    Sheela snorted. ¡°I hate horses. Tried to ride one once and it ran away from me. It was a wild one though.¡±


    Jerome noticed that Sheela didn¡¯t bother with stealth this time around and just carved a path of death through the Messengers. As fast as Ms. Tara was, Sheela was faster ¡ª and more ruthless. Her agility as a Shifter gave her an advantage normal humans lacked and she used it well to her advantage. Csala on the other hand was having the best time among them all. She threw fireballs at everyone she could reach, howling in excitement whenever she took off a head with a shot. What a target to set for oneself.


    ¡°Well, you¡¯re a predator. Of course, it was scared of you,¡± Ms. Tara replied.


    Sheela grumbled over the connection. ¡°Did you have to say it like that?¡±


    ¡°Oh. Sorry.¡±


    ¡°Ladies,¡± Jerome called out as he broke out of the wall the Messengers who were trying to form around them. ¡°You know we can all hear you, right?¡±


    He¡¯d had to be careful so as not to destroy the horses. Their riders on the other hand were free game. He started picking them off one at a time.


    The battle took more time than the previous one as they were trying not to kill the horses. All the ladies, besides Nyx, were just using the battle to train their skills. There were no real stakes as the Messengers became less of a challenge the more they faced them. But they noticed they weren¡¯t harming the horses and started using them as shields instead.


    ¡°You barbaric monsters. Leave the horses out of this!¡± Sheela shouted.


    ¡°I thought you said you hated horses,¡± Jerome teased.


    She sputtered. Ms. Tara laughed.


    Nyx didn¡¯t bother fighting after showing the Messengers she was not one they wanted to mess with. She had taken a guy, ripped off his helmet, and peeled his face off his skull. It must have been horrible to watch.


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    ¡°Remind me not to mess with you in the future,¡± Jerome said to her when he saw the result of it after the battle. He hadn¡¯t seen it happen. But he¡¯d heard the man¡¯s screams.


    Nyx smirked at him. ¡°Don¡¯t mess with me, then. But I¡¯ll mess with you however I like.¡±


    Jerome raised an eyebrow at that. What had gotten into her? He had no come-back though, so he let her be.


    They cleared up the battlefield and gathered the horses ¡ª including the horses of the previous company they had massacred. Some were injured during the tussle and Jerome had to heal them.  For that reason alone, the horses became comfortable around him. Ms. Tara and Csala took advantage of their proximity to him to pet them. Sheela stayed away, glowering at them. With a little coaxing, he got the horses to settle inside his void space. He gathered up as much grass and plants for them ¡ª water too. Which reminded him that they needed to wash up. Again.


    ¡°How many horses have you put away now?¡± Sheela asked. ¡°Are you going to sell them? Oh! You¡¯re going to sell them, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Calm down. Yes, I am going to sell them ¡ª well, not all of them,¡± he said. Selling them could net in a lot of gains. But their saddles were made using substandard materials. That wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem though. ¡°I think they¡¯re about three hundred now?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lot.¡± She looked at him with a calculating gaze.


    ¡°And I can see the greed in your eyes.¡± Jerome gave her a pointed look.


    She pouted.


    ¡°We¡¯ll have to get to a city first to sell them, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Sheela perked up again. ¡°Now that I think about it, three hundred isn¡¯t a lot. Let¡¯s wait for the next group of Messengers. We can take their the horses and¡ª¡±


    Jerome dropped his hand on her head, causing her to flinch from the weight of it. ¡°Oh! What a brilliant idea,¡± he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. ¡°We can also send them back to gather as many riders as they can so we can kill them all and take their horses, hmm?¡±


    ¡°If you say it that way¡­¡± She looked away with a pout. ¡°Clearly you see that my idea is sound, right?¡±


    Jerome sighed. What is it with everybody saying ¡®clearly¡¯ today? ¡°We best not waste our time here, Sheela. And I¡¯m sure that¡¯s what they¡¯re trying to do.¡±


    ¡°Waste our time until help arrives,¡± Nyx said. At once, the rest of the ladies caught on. ¡°Help that can really take us on.¡±


    ¡°Gather around,¡± Jerome said. ¡°I¡¯m going to teleport us closer to the mountain.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you forgetting something, Xerae?¡± Achilleia asked.


    ¡°Xerae?¡± Ms. Tara asked,  giving him a questioning look.


    ¡°I¡¯ll explain later,¡± he said. ¡°What is that, Achilleia?¡±


    ¡°This group should have transference papers tucked somewhere too.¡±


    ~~~


    Rihal


    Ash pulled her sword at the sight of the two people who appeared out of nowhere. The forest turned quiet all of a sudden in their presence.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Ash,¡± Rihal said, standing up from his meditative position on the floor of their little hut. ¡°They¡¯re with us.¡±


    Ash stood in front of the hut ready to guard him if anyone disturbed his meditation. She put her sword away still eyeing the Sage and Spirit Realm artist. He had no pleasure seeing the latter right now as he hated his guts.


    He bowed with his fist to his chest. ¡°Father,¡± he said before rising and nodding to Idrel.


    ¡°Father?¡± Ash muttered in part shock, part unbelief.


    His father looked at her with a smile. ¡°You must be Ash? I¡¯m Ivar, Rihal¡¯s father.¡± He took her hand and kissed the back of it.


    Ash looked between the two of them in shock. He understood her dilemma. Anyone seeing both of them together for the first time always had this reaction. They looked so much alike that they didn¡¯t look like father and son.


    ¡°Have you never seen identical twins before?¡± Idrel taunted. He leered at her and she glared at him. She was about to give a retort but Rihal put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.


    ¡°He¡¯s not worth the effort. Leave it,¡± he said.


    ¡°Now, now,¡± his father said, diffusing the situation. ¡°I¡¯m still here, aren¡¯t I?¡±


    Crystal came out of their hut, carrying a wooden bowl of water. ¡°Oh! Uncle Ivar. Uh¡­¡± she looked around, nonplussed. ¡°Welcome.¡±


    His father greeted her back and excused her. ¡°May we go in? There¡¯s much to discuss.¡±


    They trooped into the small hut and Crystal joined them later. His father looked around, noticing the divide that split the hut into two rooms. Rihal provided a stool for him to sit on. There wasn¡¯t much comfort they could provide on such short notice.


    ¡°Does she have to be here?¡± the viper asked, gesturing toward Ash.


    ¡°She¡¯s a part of the team, Idrel,¡± Crystal defended, voice as cold as steel.


    Idrel sneered at her but said nothing. Rihal¡¯s father gave the viper a look that said ¡®I¡¯m just about fed up with your nonsense¡¯. That shut him up for good.


    ¡°I will get straight to the point. Rihal, your disciple is here and has drawn the attention of the Judges.¡±


    Ash jumped up in excitement. ¡°Jerome¡¯s here!?¡±


    Crystal picked her up and deposited her in her lap. It was almost comical to look at, as Ash was a full head taller than she was. But the strength of a Blank could not be compared to that of a Spirit Realm artist.


    His father cleared his throat, smiling. ¡°As I said, he has attracted the attention of the Judges. Three Judges were sent toward him, our Sprouts, the Itakars, and the Feis. Just so you know, Jerome is far more powerful than he was a few years ago¡± ¡ª Rihal smiled at that ¡ª ¡°and it seems he has a team of his own now. Two of them are unknown but the remaining two are from the Shifter packs in the west.¡±


    Really?  He always took Jerome for someone who went his own way and did his own things alone. A lone wolf so to speak.


    His father looked at Ash and smiled again. ¡°One of those from the Shifter packs is someone from your orphanage. Tara, I believe you call her.¡±


    Ash slumped against Crystal who caressed her back as she cried silently. Rihal felt relief wash over him. ¡°He was right¡­¡± he said. His voice felt so small and vulnerable to his own ears but he didn¡¯t care. ¡°He¡¯s been right all along.¡±


    His father gave them both a moment to calm down and continued after a few breaths. ¡°Well, there¡¯s more. I said Jerome is far more powerful than he was before and so are a few others. The Feis are usually more powerful when they get back from Terra Praeta. The surprising ones are the Itakars.¡±


    That was a surprise indeed.


    ¡°The way their strength shot up in two years was so astonishing that we had to contact them.¡± He looked them all in the eyes before continuing. ¡°They revealed they were able to go somewhere in Terra Praeta where they found the source of their new strength¡­ with Jerome¡¯s help.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Idrel asked ¡ª growled, really. ¡°That little thing?¡±


    Rihal glared at him before facing his dad and asking, ¡°So where do we come in father?¡±


    ¡°Whatever gave them their strength, they said Fei knows of it, and has been exploiting it for millennia. But they could never bring it back home, though, only partake of it in Terra Praeta. Not until Jerome.¡± He held up a hand. ¡°Before you ask, they never revealed it. They said it was up to Jerome to do so.¡±


    Crystal barked a laugh but quickly caught herself and apologized. She cleared her throat before saying, ¡°They are protecting him.¡±


    ¡°In their own way, yes,¡± the Sage said. ¡°If only we could reach him as easily as we did them.¡±


    Rihal was thankful they couldn¡¯t, but he kept that thought to himself. He had briefly debated handing Jerome a transmission bracelet two years ago but decided against it. It wouldn¡¯t have been useful throughout his time in Terra Praeta.


    ¡°You will go south with Idrel, Rihal, and intercept the Judges. We are not to directly interfere in the ongoing battles between the Messengers and the Sprouts but we can stop them from interfering.¡±


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t they know not to interfere?¡± Ash asked. Idrel gave her a condescending scoff and she glared at him.


    ¡°We blinded them so they will make this exact mistake, Ash,¡± his father said.


    Ruthless, but necessary. If they break another rule in the accords, the transoceanic community will view the Church as untrustworthy. It wouldn¡¯t matter if they were acting blind. Excuses were for the weak.


    ¡°Whichever way though, they¡¯ll break the rules.¡± ¡ª he turned to Rihal ¡ª ¡°Because you are not going to stop them completely. We just need at least one of them to confront your disciple.¡±


    ¡°Father, Jerome is still Sprout¡ª¡±


    ¡°And he will grow all the more stronger with this encounter.¡±


    Rihal gritted his teeth but kept shut. This was politics all over again¡­ with his disciple¡¯s life on the line. Not that Jerome could die by the hand of mere mortals but still¡­


    ¡°Will Jerome be okay?¡± Ash asked. Rihal could see the anger and fear simmering beneath the surface. Crystal had to hug her tightly, preventing her from doing something stupid.


    ¡°He will be.¡± His father turned to Idrel. ¡°No funny business. Underestimate the Sprout at your own peril.¡±


    Idrel squirmed under the Sage¡¯s gaze. Rihal frowned at his father¡¯s words. In what world would a Sprout ever be a threat to a Spirit Realm artist? His father stood up and walked outside the tent before vanishing.


    ¡°Not even a goodbye,¡± Ash said. ¡°That¡¯s cold. Reminds me of someone¡­¡±


    Rihal sighed. He knew who his father reminded her of. Someone he had rescued from Alva but wanted nothing more than to go back into the fighting pits. Moss had ignored Ash when she introduced herself to him and blatantly told him to take him back.


    Rihal didn¡¯t even want to begin to understand what was going on in the Sprout¡¯s mind. He was in a very dark place, that was for sure. Be that as it may, he had dropped him off in Farryn. His master would know what to do with him. There was a war going on and he couldn¡¯t babysit a full-grown Sprout.


    ¡°My father has his moments. But he¡¯s the Sage here, who amongst us can chastise him?¡±


    Idrel snorted. Rihal chose to ignore him.


    ¡°So when do we go?¡± Ash asked.


    ¡°¡®We¡¯ are not going anywhere.¡± Rihal gesture between them. ¡°But you are going to stay here and wait for my arrival.¡± She pouted.


    ¡°Judges are dangerous, Ash. you can¡¯t be around them,¡± Crystal said to her.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with,¡± Idrel said, standing up himself. Rihal could sense the rage pouring off him from his aura. He felt like a volcano ready to erupt.


    ¡°Do not take the Sage¡¯s warning with a grain of salt, Idrel.¡±


    ¡°What? That a Sprout can stand head to head with me?¡± he snorted. ¡°Clearly, your father just wants to make me scared in front of his son.¡±


    Rihal chose not to be angry at that. ¡°Suit yourself, viper. You shall face the consequences if you try anything stupid.¡±


    Idrel grinned, coming closer to stand toe to toe with him. The tension in the air seemed to climb and Crystal ushered Ash out of the hut. ¡°Is that a threat? Because if it is, it¡¯s game on. I heard you won over five thousand mids against Dunn Itakar a few years ago. That¡¯s a big win. Care to take a bet against me?¡±


    ¡°To what end?¡± Rihal glared at him. ¡°Do you wish to go up against my disciple? You¡¯ll become the laughingstock of the Royal family whether you win or lose.¡±


    The viper chuckled coldly. ¡°That¡¯s beneath me. He¡¯ll battle Forester again. One on one.¡±


    Rihal already knew this was where he was going. The Royal Sprouts still had the Sovereign¡¯s aura protecting them. Jerome would be at a disadvantage against a force like that. But he remembered his father¡¯s words again. Surely the Sage must have known this would happen. Rihal smiled. He remembered an excerpt from an ancient script written by a previous Sovereign millennia ago.


    ¡®Many are intelligent but few are wise. Intelligence chases aspirations, wisdom flees pitfalls. The fool trusts in his own wisdom, but the wise knows where to find it, for true wisdom is found in the actions of others.¡¯


    The script went on to preach about having both wisdom and intelligence, for having one and not the other makes one powerful. But having both makes one nigh invincible. Rihal decided to trust in the wisdom of his father.


    ¡°Very well. What are the odds?¡±


    ¡°Seven to one.¡± Idrel grinned. ¡°Highs only.¡±


    Guess it was time to wipe the fool¡¯s purse clean.

 157. Thunderstick

    Selene


    It looked damned impossible to get away from the zealots assaulting them. An assault was too light a word for what they were experiencing. A stampede was more like it. As far as her eyes could see, Messengers were pushing towards them with a fervor that bordered on madness.


    ¡°If only we could fly out of here,¡± Nia said from beside her before taking the head off a Messenger with an excellent shot from her bow. Their skills had improved so much since the Waters of Irithiya that many of them had unknowingly snapped their bowstrings due to their unprecedented strength when they confronted the Messengers. Now only a few of them had bows.


    ¡°If we can get to those contraptions creating the suppression field, we could fly out,¡± Selene said.


    As if the Messengers heard their plans, they wheeled in two more of the same contraption into the clearing they occupied, forming a triangle with the one present already. All three contraptions seem to sense each other and vibrate in sympathy.


    The suppression field multiplied and every one of them grunted from the impact.


    ¡°Fucking Messengers,¡± Bram cursed. ¡°They¡¯re not even affected.¡±


    ¡°How the fuck do they get their horses through this terrain, anyway?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re draft horses,¡± Ajax said. ¡°They¡¯re trained for this.¡±


    A Messenger shot towards her but Trudhorn intercepted him. They parried each other¡¯s blows for a breath before Trudhorn gained the upper hand. He stabbed the Messenger in the neck and a fountain of blood burst out of the stab wound.


    The Messengers kicked their horses into a trot, having tested out their strength and speed against her teammates.


    ¡°You¡¯re slower, Trudhorn,¡± Ajax said. ¡°They can sense it.¡±


    ¡°The damned field¡¯s holding me back,¡± he spat.


    ¡°We can¡¯t fight them all,¡± Selene said as the Messengers circled them. ¡°I¡¯ll create cover. Pick them off one at a time but don¡¯t put yourselves in danger.¡±


    ¡°And don¡¯t push yourself too much,¡± Trudhorn said.


    She nodded and took a deep breath before cycling, holding it in. When she let out the breath, the whole area around them fogged over. The fog rolled outward covering everything for almost fifty yards away from her in all directions. The temperature dropped and dew formed in the air.


    Her teammates moved ¡ª silently, so the Messengers wouldn¡¯t sense them until it was too late. They slowly stabbed their way through the horde of Messengers whose grunts of pain were all that punctuated the silence in the air.


    Using their transmission bracelets to communicate, they were able to spread out and do a lot more damage without isolating themselves.


    ¡°Nia, you¡¯re straying too far away. Move left,¡± Selene transmitted to her friend. Nia quickly delivered a killing blow to the Messenger she had in a chokehold and raced to join the team.


    They moved forward slowly toward one of the contraptions but the Messengers were too much. It didn¡¯t take long for more Messengers to converge on them, trying to bury them in a mountain of armored bodies. They all cycled, sending essence to their limbs to make them faster and stronger.


    The battle turned brutal as they fought for their lives. Selene kept the fog up, obscuring the sight of the Messengers so that her team could maintain their advantage. But that advantage was shrinking with every breath she took. If they couldn¡¯t get out of the mass of bodies trying to crush them, they would truly be in trouble.


    Bram grunted a few feet away from her. She felt something suck the air away from beside her; that was a sign her brother, Ajax, had teleported away. Her blade bit into a Messenger¡¯s armor and then another and another.


    At this point, she couldn¡¯t even remember how many Messengers she had killed. Her team started slowing down as essence fatigue set in. Selene felt like a sponge that was wrung of all its moisture. She felt so sore.


    ¡°Fuck! There¡¯s nowhere to fall back to,¡± Nia transmitted. ¡°Selene, Bram has lost a hand!¡±


    What!?


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Bram transmitted, still fighting, even though they were losing combat space fast. ¡°Ye should focus on yer fight.¡±


    Something hit her in the head. She had lost concentration, damn it! She staggered into metal armor on the ground and almost fell.


    ¡°Selene!¡± Trudhorn shouted.


    Something pulled her the next moment. It was like the ground was pulled out from underneath her feet. She had no way to describe the sensation except that it was a pulling sensation or a sucking sensation. She shut her eyes due to the intensity of the experience. Her stomach flipped itself and she felt bile rising to her throat.


    The next moment, she was standing on solid ground again. She retched. Thankfully, she hadn¡¯t eaten in a while.


    ¡°Selene, are you okay?¡±


    That can¡¯t be right. That voice¡­


    ¡°Csala?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s me,¡± the redhead beauty said, smiling down at her.


    ¡°When did you¡­ where am I?¡± She looked around and just barely caught Bram pop into existence.


    ¡°Oh, fuck¡ª¡± he was saying but threw up the next instance.


    Nia laughed at him, holding him to herself. ¡°That¡¯ll teach yer not ta eat every strange nut n¡¯ fruit ye see in the jungle.¡±


    ¡°The jungle hates me, I tell ye,¡± the man in question said, holding his hand. No, his bleeding stump.


    ¡°Oh, Bram. I¡¯m so sorry!¡± Selene said, feeling bad he had lost a hand.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have it fixed in no time,¡± Jerome said.


    She looked around. All fifteen of her teammates were there. They hugged each other with smiles and gratitude. Trudhorn reached for her and held her tight like he never wanted to let go. His warmth filled her with peace. Her teammates gasped in surprise and she had to break up their embrace to find out what was happening.


    She saw Jerome squatting beside Bram with his hands around Bram¡¯s stump. The bleeding had stopped and the flesh was wiggling and knitting together, or was it regenerating?


    There was green light pouring out of the ground and into Jerome ¡ª vital aura, she recognized. It intensified all of a sudden and Bram¡¯s stump began moving. Bone began to grow, followed by pink flesh and skin.


    It took a while, but soon, Bram had a brand new hand. Everyone stood shocked at the result.


    ¡°The hand is still very new, the skin soft, and blood vessels weak,¡± Jerome said, breaking them out of their stupor. ¡°Don¡¯t work it too much for the rest of the day. Transmit bits of essence to it every few breaths and it should be as good as the previous one by tomorrow.¡±


    Selene couldn¡¯t help but stare at the silver-eyed daimon in front of her like he was an ancient relic of some kind.


    Boom!!! Something shattered the silence with the crack of thunder, bringing them all out of their stupor. Again.


    ¡°The Messengers have found us,¡± Csala said.


    She did something Selene had never seen her do before ¡ª use essence. That told her that the Messengers were a bigger threat than the wolf-looking monsters that preyed on them in the frozen north of Terra Praeta. Csala never used essence against them.


    She swallowed. She was tired. Her teammates were tired. But the Messengers wouldn¡¯t wait for them to rest before coming for their heads.


    ¡°You guys rest, let¡¯s take care of this,¡± Jerome said to her. Did she hear that right?


    ¡°Jerome, there are too many of them.¡± Trudhorn tried to reason with him.


    ¡°About a thousand of them, yes¡ª¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± She didn¡¯t know that.


    Another booming sound shattered the air. Then another and another. The sound became a continuous cracking of thunder in her ears. It was very distracting. But Jerome seemed not to worry about it.


    ¡°Yes, more than we¡¯ve dealt with but at this point, their numbers don¡¯t matter anymore. Plus, I need their horses¡­¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re damn fine horses, I tell ye,¡± Bram said, eyes in the sky, looking for the source of the thunderous sound. Every other person stood around them to defend them.


    ¡°Here they come,¡± Ms. Tara said. There was something different about her. A confidence that she hadn¡¯t sensed in her before.


    Ms. Tara was the first to shoot forward, followed by¡­ a shadow? Selene shook her head to clear it. She must be seeing things. Csala and Nyx strolled into the trees as if it was just another day out on a walk in Farryn. Where was Sheela ¡ª oh, the shadow¡­


    ¡°What do ye need their horses¡­ ha!¡± Nia said, realization hitting her suddenly. ¡°Do we get a share of ¡®em?¡±


    Her teammates laughed at her.


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    Jerome shrugged. ¡°Well, how good of a rider are you?¡±


    Selene frowned. The Messengers weren¡¯t coming close. As if four sacred artists were enough to hold them at bay. Just as she thought so, a few broke through the trees and headed for them. A wave of heat washed over her and white light twinkled on Jerome¡¯s palm.


    The fireball in his palm was so tiny, it looked like a pebble. She didn¡¯t think such a technique would do anything. Selene panicked, but before her eyes, Jerome raised his hand and the tiny bead of fire shot forward and exploded amid the group of Messengers before they closed on her team. They were all turned to ash in less than a breath, their armor becoming molten slag.


    Silence reigned for a moment.


    ¡°I thought they said they absorb essence to make themselves stronger?¡± Ajax muttered.


    ¡°Yes, but there¡¯s a limit to how much essence they can absorb,¡± Jerome replied. ¡°Too much and they overload. Fire essence will incinerate them from the inside out.¡±


    ¡°How much essence was that then?¡± one of her teammates asked the question in their minds.


    ¡°A lot,¡± was Jerome¡¯s answer.


    Nia tsked. ¡°Now I kinda feel sorry for ¡®em.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± Jerome said. ¡°They¡¯re clones.¡±


    ¡°What!?¡± Everyone asked, shocked.


    ¡°You know what clones are, right? Copies of an original¡­?¡±


    ¡°We know what clones are, Jerome.¡± Their scout, Tega, shoved his way toward Jerome. ¡°I encounter monster clones way too often in the frozen north.¡±


    ¡°What!?¡± Jerome exclaimed. Selene was surprised he didn¡¯t know about that.


    ¡°If you know they¡¯re clones, then surely you must know we have to kill their originals to get rid of them completely,¡± Tega said.


    ¡°I¡¯ve¡­ not thought that far ahead to be honest. My thoughts are more on facing the Judges that control them.¡±


    More Messengers came out of the forest and Jerome incinerated them too.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re thinking far ahead than all of us combined,¡± Selene said. ¡°If you can deal with the Messengers with such ease it makes sense that you¡¯re not considering them a threat.¡±


    Trudhorn pointed east. ¡°I think we need to get to that mountain as fast as possible. That¡¯s the¡ª¡±


    ¡°The city of Alvion is behind it,¡± Jerome said, nodding. ¡°I know. And that¡¯s probably where we¡¯d find them. But first, how well do you guys ride horses?¡±


    Selene gave him a smug look. ¡°We¡¯ve been riding before we were able to take our first steps, Jerome. Horses are the best means of transportation in the frozen north. Without a horse, you freeze to death in the middle of nowhere.¡±


    Jerome smiled bashfully ¡ª a look she never thought she¡¯d see on him. He rubbed at his blossoming facial hair with his index finger, hesitating to say what was on his mind. Was that a nervous tick she just noticed on the Almighty Jerome?


    ¡°Well, spit it out,¡± Nia said.


    He coughed, giving her a second look and smiled. ¡°The short locks suit you. I like it.¡±


    Nia blushed up a storm and Selene held a hand to mouth, muffling her laughter. Nia glared at her. Every other Itakar was laughing, why was she the one being glared at?


    ¡°Well, a Messenger pulled on it and I had to cut it. Don¡¯t change the subject, though.¡± She pointed accusingly at him.


    Jerome looked away with another bashful smile. ¡°Can you teach us¡­ how to ride?¡±


    Selene should have seen that coming from a mile away. Finally, something Jerome didn¡¯t know how to do. She tried not to smile but couldn¡¯t hold back the smirk she knew she was spotting.


    ~~~


    ¡°So I take it the Royal family screwed you guys over, huh?¡± Jerome said. When he saw they didn¡¯t understand, he explained. ¡°By that I mean, they dropped you in a war you didn¡¯t expect.¡±


    Selene screwed up her face in a cute pout. He chuckled.


    ¡°It was a bold move. Don¡¯t blame them,¡± he said. ¡°Alvric wouldn¡¯t have expected them to do this.¡±


    ¡°True, but still,¡± she said. ¡°It would have been nice to know where we were getting dropped. Many of us almost died. And I wonder how many others have. My mother contacted me as quickly as she could though.¡±


    Jerome nodded. He understood, but there was no reward without risks, especially in a war. From what he could remember, Vorthe hadn¡¯t gone to war in millennia. Now they¡¯re being forced to battle it out on two fronts. He hoped Blanks wouldn¡¯t be a part of the war. If he ever found out the Royal family let Ash into a war zone¡­ He sighed, correcting his thought process. Ash would be considered a child warrior in a way; perhaps used to move equipment and weapons but never participating in the war.


    ¡°What about your sacred beasts though?¡± He feared the worst might have happened to them.


    As if reading his expression, Selene smiled up at him. ¡°They are only as powerful as Blanks, remember? Mother couldn¡¯t risk new members of the family in a battle they weren¡¯t powerful enough to be in so she arranged for them to be teleported to Iss Valor.¡±


    Jerome relaxed at that. ¡°Iss Valor, is that¡­¡±


    ¡°The city of Ice and stone, Jerome,¡± Ajax said. ¡°Our homeland in the frozen north.¡±


    Jerome nodded at him in understanding. Ajax had a pride in him that brought a light to his eyes as he told of his home.


    ¡°Let me join my team,¡± he said to Selene. ¡°Take some time to rest.¡± He could sense their fatigue already.


    Jerome flew into the air, shooting toward the battle. He didn¡¯t want to waste time anymore on the Messengers as he had a deep feeling inside him that the more time he wasted on them, the closer the Judges got. And if he wasn¡¯t ready for them, they¡¯d tear him and his teammates apart. Nyx could probably survive them but she¡¯d be too preoccupied, ¡®surviving¡¯, to help out the rest of them.


    Within two hours by his estimation, they had cleared out the legion of Messengers.


    ¡°Okay, gather around everyone,¡± he called them all together. The gore and filth on them all stunk excessively but he couldn¡¯t complain. ¡°I can make one more jump closer to the mountain today, but I can only travel three miles.¡±


    Ajax whistled, impressed. ¡°I can only do fifty feet.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m using an artifact that¡¯s more powerful.¡± Jerome shrugged. ¡°We should take turns to watch the perimeter while we rest. I¡¯ll take the first watch.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m with Jerome,¡± Ms. Tara said.


    They divided their responsibilities and cleared up a spot for themselves to rest and regain their essence. It was still daytime but the Itakars were all exhausted. They needed rest; the kind of rest where you let down your guard and don¡¯t have to use your perception to check on your surroundings for an enemy.


    Jerome installed his barrier with its new illusory feature before he settled in and started pulling out the metal armor of the dead Messengers to make more guns. He had so much metal at this point that he surmised he could make at least a hundred rifles. Ms. Tara sat beside him watching him work. He was sure she was interested in his ¡®thunderstick¡¯ ¡ª not that he expected her to call it that.


    ¡°This rifle of yours, can I try it out?¡± she asked. Jerome smiled and gave her the rifle.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± she said, hefting it with little effort. The rifle should have been too heavy for her to carry but Ms. Tara wasn¡¯t a mere mortal. Sacred artists were powerful beyond comparison to mere mortals. ¡°It¡¯s lighter than I thought it would be. How do I use it?¡±


    Jerome explained, teaching her how to turn the safety on and off, and how to hold the rifle, bracing it against her shoulder. She aimed into the sky at an angle and pulled the trigger with the muffler on to test it out. Smart. Safety first before anything.


    With a muffled sound of air and a kickback from the rifle, a bullet fired off into the distance.


    ¡°I want to make one that functions like your repeater crossbow.¡±


    ¡°As in?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll fire multiple shots at a time, and very rapidly.¡±


    ¡°Ooh.¡± She smiled. ¡°Can I have that one when you¡¯re done with it?¡±


    ¡°Of course. I¡¯ll also make small ones you can shoot with just one hand.¡±


    ¡°Oh, short rifles,¡± she said excitedly.


    Jerome laughed. ¡°Handguns, but that¡¯s not too bad.¡±


    ¡°I would have gone with ¡®thunderstick¡¯ if you hadn¡¯t told me it was called a rifle. Rifle doesn¡¯t fit.¡±


    Jerome laughed again. Harder this time.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t,¡± she said again, trying to make him see her point.


    ¡°No problem, Ms. Tara. Did I tell you Ash was in the Royal Estate with me in Farryn?¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Ms. Tara moved closer to him and held him close. ¡°How is she, Jerome? Did they take good care of her?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s doing fine, Ms. Tara. She¡¯s Blank now.¡± Jerome held onto her too. ¡°I just hope the Royal Family doesn¡¯t send her anywhere near this war. But I have a feeling they would. There¡¯s a lot at stake here.¡±


    They sat together for a while hugging each other and talking about his time with Ash in the Royal Estate. Their discussion took a turn towards her time with the Shifters but Ms. Tara let go of him and stood, not wanting to talk about it.


    ¡°You should continue with your ¡®thunderstick¡¯. I¡¯ll take a walk around the perimeter.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t leave the barrier,¡± he said in understanding.


    ¡°Of course,¡± she said. ¡°And I¡¯m taking your thunderstick with me.¡±


    ¡°Oh, he¡¯ll give you his ¡®thunderstick¡¯ alright, that¡¯s for sure,¡± Sheela said, walking towards him.


    Ms. Tara turned red almost instantly. She walked away as quickly as possible leaving his new companion to take the seat she vacated.


    Jerome shook his head at Sheela¡¯s antics. He continued with his work since Sheela said nothing after that. They still had daylight. But time was rushing by like crazy. He had gotten so used to Terra Praeta¡¯s longer cycle that it was a bit foreign seeing the sun begin to cross its zenith to the west. He had under six hours of light left to work before they moved. He had to make today count.


    ¡°Jerome?¡± Sheela called him. Her voice sounded distant, soft, vulnerable¡­


    ¡°Hm-hmm,¡± he responded.


    ¡°What do you think the Judges will be like?¡±


    Jerome stopped his work to get a feel of her. Sheela had never acted vulnerable around him. He drew her close and held her to himself. ¡°They are strong from what I can tell. But we would be okay. To be honest, I¡¯m scared too.¡±


    ¡°You are?¡± She looked up at him with big, dark, lovely eyes.


    Jerome caressed her full lips and drew closer. Her lips parted for him and he kissed her. It was a chaste kiss, but he hoped to communicate his heart to her¡­ that he wouldn¡¯t let anything bad happen to her. He was still getting to know Sheela but he could tell she was all in with him.


    ¡°I am,¡± he said when their lips parted. ¡°I might not look it, but I¡¯m scared of what might happen if we encounter them and can¡¯t overpower them. Will they be as numerous as these Messengers? Are they being cloned too? Yeah, those questions make me scared. But one thing I¡¯m sure about is that we¡¯ll get through this and become stronger for it.¡±


    Sheela relaxed into his arms with a sigh. ¡°You know I can talk big and act tough, but that¡¯s just the training of the pack: act tough when you¡¯re overwhelmed and bark the loudest¡­ be the fiercest. But that¡¯s hard to do in the face of an enemy whose only mission is to cleanse you from the face of the world. But thanks for this. I feel better already.¡± She hugged him tighter.


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome, Sheela¡­ you¡¯re welcome.¡±


    ¡°Will you make me some blades? A few that I can throw to give me some range in a fight.¡±


    Jerome smiled. ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll make you a lot more than a few. You¡¯ll love them.¡± He had some ideas. Throwing knives were crafted from a single piece of durable steel alloy to make them last longer. And with the ability of a Shaper, he¡¯d run wild with his designs.


    ¡°I think Vorthe¡¯s interfering with the Messenger¡¯s signals,¡± Sheela said. She brought out a bracelet from her storage ring. ¡°This is used by teams to communicate. I and Tara took ours off after our team betrayed us. The Messengers should have one each on them but they don¡¯t. Which means they can¡¯t use it, or Vorthe¡ª¡±


    ¡°Vorthe¡¯s jamming their signals.¡± Jerome took the bracelet from her, studying it. The sleek looking metal was well made with a pair of joints on each side of the dial to help it wrap around the wrist. The dial was sure to contain a gem. He could hear the song of runes from inside it. The runework was impeccable. ¡°How does it work?¡±


    ¡°With mental energy. It¡¯s faster and easier¡­ and provides privacy compared to...¡± She held up her hand with the ring. He nodded slowly in understanding.


    ¡°So this was how Selene¡¯s mother contacted her. I had wondered¡­ Can I study it later?¡± he asked, handing it back to her. He was very interested in it. If he had something like this before, he may have been able to copy something from it so his rings could do mental communication.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Sheela said, smiling up at him.


    The beautiful Shifter left not long after and Jerome continued with his work. He had all he needed, he just needed to craft at least ten handguns and a lot of bullets before nightfall. That target might seem small but he knew if he lingered, he¡¯d miss it.

 158. Sanctuary

    Rihal


    They hid behind some trees at the edge of a clearing, waiting for the Judges to pass through. Thankfully, they weren¡¯t separating. All the Sprouts they were going after were on the same route. Fortunately, the Judges were traveling by horses. If they had access to teleportation devices like Vorthe¡¯s void bridges, they¡¯d be more trouble than two Spirit Realm artists could handle.


    The clopping of hooved feet joined the tweeting of birds in the air, but the birds soon stopped at the Judge¡¯s approach. Something about the Judges just scared the whole of nature away. Sacred artists were like that too but not to the extent that Judges were. Sacred artists could still blend in with nature, Judges couldn¡¯t. They always stood out mysteriously.


    Rihal and Idrel looked at each other. They nodded before teleporting to the clearing. The massive horses the Judges were riding reared back on their hind legs, at their sudden appearance.


    ¡°And where do you three think you¡¯re going?¡± Idrel asked.


    ¡°The war is that way.¡± Rihal gestured with his head toward the direction they were coming from.


    Two of the Judges dismounted as quickly as they could, their massive limbs taking too much time and effort just to climb down their horses. Even the horses had to brace themselves so they didn¡¯t fall ¡ª thankfully, the Judges weren¡¯t elites. Even the Baelors were limber than they were. They stood in front of their horses as the remaining Judge, still mounted, held onto the reins of all three horses.


    ¡°Heathens of Vorthe,¡± one of them said in a deep, mechanical, booming voice. ¡°You dare obstruct our path!¡±


    He held out his hand and Rihal knew what was coming next. A telekinetic blast obliterated the patch of grass he stood on moments ago ¡ª he had teleported away. With his mental energy, he pushed the Judge sideways. It took a lot of effort as these monsters were very dense. The Judge staggered, exposing the pipe-like artifact behind his head. Rihal threw a blade at the artifact, an artifact Vorthe knew very little about.


    This artifact was one of the things that kept these Judges whole and sane. Destroying it would make them go berserk. So they protected it with all their being. If another wasn¡¯t attached on time, they die. The time frame from berserker to death varied by how young the Judge was. The younger they were, the quicker they died.


    Rihal¡¯s blade was knocked off course, but he expected that ¡ª plus it was an artifact itself; A Returning Blade. It would continue to aim for the artifact behind the Judge¡¯s head until it hit it.


    It was better for the Judge to be focused on guarding his blind spots than shooting telekinetic blasts at him. Another blade joined the first and the Judge growled in frustration for the first time. He rushed Rihal, even as two blades whirled toward him in the air, aiming to destroy his lifeline. Rihal teleported away. He wasn¡¯t about to get into a brawl with a creature that was physically more powerful than he was.


    He let the Judge get close enough sometimes, Just to hit him with a mental attack. It didn¡¯t work on him as effectively as it would if he wasn¡¯t putting on that damn skull-shaped helmet. But he¡¯d take what he got. Killing him would be a challenge but he could do it. That wasn¡¯t his directive though.


    Rihal took a glance at Idrel, noticing he was holding back as well. They weren¡¯t supposed to go all out. Judges didn¡¯t know what sacred artists were truly capable of due to the fact Spirit Realm artists held back against them ¡ª with good reason. It kept them guessing and groping in the dark. They only knew what Sprouts were capable of.


    In a rage, the Judge let loose a blast of light, obliterating a section of the forest in an instant. Idrel whistled in awe and appreciation.


    ¡°That¡¯s powerful,¡± he said. ¡°You should try to take one of that, Rihal? You know, fresh sunshine from a young Judge.¡±


    ¡°You should take your own advice, viper.¡± Rihal dodged another blast and shifted the soil beneath the Judge¡¯s feet. The Judge did an unintentional split and roared in pain. It was a comical sight to behold.


    He quickly covered his whole body in light, deflecting Rihal¡¯s blade as they reached the back of his neck. Everything thirty feet or more around the Judge was obliterated in an instant. The air crackled with a powerful aura of the Force of Light ¡ª divine energy, as the Church called it. But Rihal knew it was just the Force of Light ¡ª albeit Light with more power behind it.


    ¡°Have we gotten to the serious part of the fight?¡± he asked from a hundred feet away on a tree.


    The Judge aimed both hands at him and shot a powerful beam of golden light. The beam shot at him at an upward angle, obliterating the forest in its path for more than a mile. The shockwave from the blast cleared the sky of clouds and the rest of the forest it didn¡¯t touch was leveled completely. The ground trembled violently as it absorbed the shockwave. Rihal was sure it would all be seen and felt from miles away. That was an awful lot of power for just one shot.


    ¡°You Judges have no control¡­¡± Rihal said accusatorily, approaching the Judge from behind. ¡°...only raw power. Tell me, how has this devastating power helped you?¡±


    ¡°Enough!¡± The Judge who hadn¡¯t joined the fight roared a good distance away. Their fight had taken them a few dozen paces from their starting point. ¡°They¡¯re wasting our time. End this.¡±


    The Judges turned serious. Their fists glowed with a blinding golden light, so bright that it was hard to focus on. They raised one fist each into the air and the blinding light intensified, looking like small suns.


    ¡°This is bad,¡± Rihal said. ¡°We have to stop them.¡±


    ¡°Already ahead of you.¡± Idrel shot forward.


    ¡°You imbecile! There¡¯s no way to get near them like this!¡±


    Idrel was almost to one of the Judges when said Judge unclenched and clenched his second fist ¡ª the one not raised. A massive force blasted out of it sending Idrel sailing backwards like a leaf in a storm. He hit his head on a tree which cracked from the impact. If not for his sturdy physique, Idrel would have cracked his skull as well.


    Rihal braced himself for the attack. He was over a hundred feet away from the Judges but the devastation they could unleash knew no limits.


    ¡°Idrel get up!¡± He shouted. Idrel groaned in pain from a few dozen paces away. ¡°They¡¯re about to unleash¡ª¡±


    The Judges brought their fists down to the earth with a punch. Rihal teleported to Idrel and teleported them five hundred feet into the air. The world shook with a thunderous roar. The golden light from their technique blinded him even from so far away. The blast kept expanding and expanding, getting closer to his position in the sky. It had already covered a vast distance and it kept spreading still.


    Idrel groaned again, waking up slowly. ¡°What happened?¡± he asked.


    ¡°You were an idiot and decided to test fate, that¡¯s what happened.¡±


    ¡°Woah!¡± the viper exclaimed when he saw the blast. He extricated himself from Rihal¡¯s arms with a grimace. Rihal snorted. ¡°Did they do this?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but the amount of energy and willpower it would¡¯ve taken to use such a technique should keep them exhausted for a few days,¡± Rihal said in thought. ¡°Only one of them is capable of fighting now.¡±


    ¡°We should go after them¡ª¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not soldiers, Idrel, or have you forgotten your training¡­ our mission?¡± Rihal knew what the viper¡¯s problem was but reminding him of their mission was enough to get him to back down. ¡°They are long gone by now. The bastards are immune to friendly fire.¡± Rihal wished the same could be said for sacred artists but that was wishful thinking.


    ¡°Yes, they call it Sanctuary. I was taught about it too, remember? No need to throw the knowledge in my face,¡± Idrel said. His voice had a bite to it. Could he at least be less obvious with the envy?


    The momentum of the blast died down before reaching them but they had to use their cloaks to cover themselves as dust and debris washed over them. Such a powerful blast could transfer energy to surrounding materials that could be harmful if breathed in. As Spirit Realm artists, they could rid themselves of such contamination but it would be a chore. It was best to prevent such things from happening altogether.


    Rihal¡¯s ears rang silently as they descended. The whole atmosphere took on that strange energy from the blast. A giant scar was all he could see on the face of the earth. Everything for at least three miles was scorched to ash.


    Rihal shook his head at the devastation. Nature would recover, but was all this necessary in the first place?


    ¡°I hope you haven¡¯t forgotten our bet so soon, Rihal,¡± Idrel said. ¡°I will guide Forester toward your bastard. You guide him toward¡ª¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the challenger, Idrel. Do as you please.¡± Rihal didn¡¯t want to waste his time on insults. He furrowed his brows in thought as something occurred to him.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Idrel asked and Rihal raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°You have that look on you. The one that lets me know you¡¯re puzzling over some detail of the Judges.¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡± He nodded absently. ¡°The Judge in the center ¡ª the one who didn¡¯t join the fight. Did he look a little smaller than the other two to you?¡±


    ~~~


    A strong gale beat against him right before tremors shook the ground for a few seconds. Jerome opened his eyes, confused.


    ¡°Did you feel that?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    He nodded. ¡°It came from the east.¡± His thoughts went to the one thing that had been on his mind ever since finding out the Messengers he¡¯d been fighting were clones: Judges. But it could be something else.


    The Itakars slept through the disturbance like logs of wood. Csala and Nyx were on watch duty and fortunately for him, he had completed all ten handguns, a plentiful amount of bullets, cartridges, and propellants. He had even made two more automatic rifles that looked more like what he¡¯d seen in movies than the slab of solid steel straight out of a sci-fi movie he first made.


    Sheela¡¯s knives were also complete. He¡¯d made her twenty-four blades in total, twelve throwing knives, six wicked-looking daggers for stabbing, and two sets of twin short swords. He also made three sets of twin short swords for Csala, which he knew she¡¯d love.


    ¡°It¡¯s best to get back to meditating before the sun sets completely.¡±


    Ms. Tara nodded at his words and shut her eyes. All three of them were sitting in a circle and in cross-legged positions as they cycled. Since Jerome had taught them a very good breathing technique to use in cycling, they had been doing it at every opportunity they got. It was an uncomfortable experience for them but a necessary one if they wanted to differentiate themselves from normal Sprouts.


    Night slowly fell and before long, the Itakars began to rise. Nyx and Csala came back from their patrol of the perimeter as everyone was packing up their bedrolls.


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°Okay gather around, everyone,¡± Jerome called out. ¡°And prepare yourself because this would be a very uncomfortable experience.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about us, Jerome. We Itakars have very strong bellies,¡± Ajax said. Some of them nodded, tapping their bellies for effect.


    ¡°Yes, Jerome,¡± Bram said. ¡°I hear teleportation takes a toll. But nothing of the sort can happen to we Itakars. We¡¯re made of sterner stuff, aye? I more than others.¡± He held his arms out in a pose with his fingers pointing back at himself. That just riled up the rest of his teammates.


    The rest of the Itakars sneered at him. ¡°Ye blasted son of a monkey! Ye puked yer guts the first time ye were teleported,¡± one of their teammates said.


    ¡°If anyone would handle it better, it¡¯d be Ajax, ye piss licker!¡± another said.


    ¡°Piss licker. That¡¯s a new one,¡± someone else said.


    Ouch. Jerome felt that one. He couldn¡¯t help but smile, thinking he would never get bored around the Itakars. Selene was shaking her head in shame next to him. He nudged her to do something about the cussing contest before it got out of hand.


    ¡°Terry, ye prancing rabbit!¡± Bram lashed out at him. ¡°Yer empty brain¡¯s filled with nothing but fluff. Do ye still carry around that nude painting of a rabbit girl?¡± ¡ª everyone oohed at that and Terry turned red in embarrassment ¡ª ¡°Ye have no right ta¡¯ talk when yer betters are talkin¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Alright that¡¯s enough,¡± Selene clapped her hands loudly. ¡°Gather around everyone.¡± They grumbled as they gathered around Jerome.


    ¡°Terry¡¯s right, you know?¡± Ajax said to Bram who shrugged. ¡°I can handle teleportation better.¡± He made a pose of his own to mock Bram¡¯s earlier pose.


    ¡°Easy for you to say,¡± Trudhorn replied. ¡°You¡¯ve been jumping everywhere since you got that void bridge.¡±


    ¡°Only makes sense to use it, don¡¯t you think,¡± Jerome said. ¡°Anyway, here we go¡­¡± he bent down in the center of the group and placed his ringed fist on the ground. With the aid of the pod of Hezvar, he expanded his senses to span three miles all around.


    Only birds and small creatures were there to notice. No large animals, which made him wonder, did the Messengers kill everything they came across? He activated a portal formation using his ring as the base. A golden runic circle widened to encompass the crowd and the Itakars exclaimed in awe. The ringing sound deep inside him reminded him again of the fact that he could now hear the singing of runes. The portal sucked them all up and they winked out of existence.


    They appeared three miles closer to the mountain in the distance but to Jerome¡¯s eyes it only looked like he took a few steps. Nothing seemed to have changed. The Itakars dropped to their knees as they puked, some of them emptying their bowels. Ajax was the only one less affected as he only stumbled for a moment before righting himself. Jerome¡¯s team was protected from the effects as they all had rings like his to protect them.


    ¡°You all look like you could use some rest,¡± Jerome said, trying hard not to sound smug but failing. ¡°Want some water?¡±


    Selene threw a clump of dirt at him. Jerome dodged it, chuckling. Nia surprised him, standing up first. Her legs shook as she stood but she soon steadied herself.


    ¡°Quite the experience,¡± she said. ¡°Are we closer¡­? Fucking mountain¡¯s still too far, Jerome.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because we¡¯re very far away from it,¡± Ms. Tara said. ¡°Jerome?¡±


    Jerome wasn¡¯t paying attention to them anymore as Achilleia transmitted what she was sensing to him. Judges¡­ from a few miles away. The images she was transmitting to him were like satellite images. Which meant she was taking a peek at them from Terra Praeta. That must have been exhausting for her, giving that she had just lost a piece of her nexus.


    Calling the Judges ¡®powerful¡¯ would be an understatement. From the data he was receiving through the nanites in his brain from Achilleia, he could tell these weren¡¯t beings he could take lightly. They weren¡¯t even hiding their auras.


    ¡°They can¡¯t, Xerae, not until they¡¯re elites. Their power is an abomination to nature¡ª¡±


    So there are those even more powerful than these? He asked in frustration.


    ¡°Yes, Xerae¡­¡±


    ¡°Spread out,¡± he growled ominously. Everyone stopped to look at him.


    ¡°Jerome, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Selene asked.


    ¡°I can sense some very powerful auras coming toward us.¡± He clenched and unclenched his fist. ¡°They¡¯re still a ways away, but they¡¯ll reach us in at least a quarter at the speed they¡¯re riding. Their horses are not just trained for terrain like this, they¡¯re built for it.¡± It was almost like watching a living tank bulldoze its way through the jungle.


    ¡°A quarter away is miles away. You can extend your perception that far?¡± Trudhorn asked in disbelief.


    Jerome grunted in answer. ¡°I¡¯ll go ahead with Nyx and Csala to draw their attention. The rest of you should go around them.¡±


    ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re giving the orders now, huh?¡± Selene folded her arms, trying to look him down.


    ¡°I want us to survive, Selene.¡± His gaze bore into hers and she looked away.


    They all split up but Ms. Tara and Sheela stuck with him. Jerome turned to look at them both. He could smell their fears but also their determination. Nyx left him to deal with them, moving forward to intercept the Judes.


    Join me when you¡¯re done babysitting, she said.


    Csala stood beside him, waiting for him to speak.


    ¡°You know I care about you both, right?¡± he said to them. ¡°And I¡¯m very aware of how far you both have come. You are more powerful than you were two years ago.¡±


    ¡°Two years ago?¡± Ms. Tara asked, confused.


    ¡°A year in Terra Praeta is two here,¡± Jerome said. Csala looked at him in confusion but said nothing. ¡°As I was saying, you¡¯ve grown stronger. Far stronger than most Sprouts would ever be. But these Judges are a few steps above even the most powerful Sprouts. And they¡¯re not going to hold back.¡±


    ¡®We can fight them, Jerome. Our rings can protect us against them,¡± Sheela said.


    Jerome nodded. ¡°Yes, Sheela. But we don¡¯t know much about them¡ª¡±


    ¡°And what about you, Jerome? You¡¯re Sprout too,¡± Ms. Tara said with a shaky voice. He took her in his arms and hugged her tightly.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never said this to anyone, Ms. Tara, but I¡¯m different. I¡¯ll be alright.¡±


    ¡°I know you¡¯re different, Jerome,¡± she said, still hugging him tightly. ¡°I¡¯ve known since you were very little.¡±


    He smiled bashfully. ¡°Let¡¯s not bring that up right¡ª¡± Sheela put a finger against his lips to shush him before hugging him too.


    ¡°And we¡¯ll be alright too, Jerome,¡± she said. ¡°Trust us. Any sign of danger and I¡¯ll get us out of there.¡±


    Jerome sighed.


    ¡°This is nice and all but, can we get going¡­?¡± Csala asked.


    Jerome drew her into the group hug too. He held them close for a moment before letting them go. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s move. Any sign of being overwhelmed and you hightail it out of there, understand?¡±


    ¡°Hightail, got it.¡± Sheela mock-saluted with her left fist. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t pretend to know what that means but I get the context.¡±


    They raced after Nyx, flying the rest of the way to meet up with her. The Judges were still far away but if they could get close enough, they could use the element of surprise to take them down. And he sincerely hoped that would be enough.


    They got within six miles of the Judges but they seemed not to have noticed them. Jerome stopped to form a plan in his head. They knew next to nothing about the Judges, except that they used the ascended arts.


    Wait, Achilleia, you said something about their powers being an abomination to nature.


    ¡°Oh, now you¡¯re interested in listening.¡±


    Jerome sighed. I¡¯m sorry, Achilleia. I¡¯m just frustrated.


    ¡°I¡¯m frustrated too, Xerae. But you don¡¯t see me going off the rails¡­¡±


    Got it. Keep a cool head. He nodded to himself.


    ¡°I watched them fight Rihal and Idrel. The one in the center should be the only threat among them right now. The other two are wasted, don¡¯t focus on them. Although they may still have some juice left.¡±


    Achilleia showed him the fight and his jaw dropped at the scenes he saw.


    These Judges are a terror! He closed his eyes to concentrate.


    ¡°What are you trying to do, Xerae?¡±


    Want to send the memory of the fight to Nyx. She needs to know what she¡¯s getting into.


    Gathering the memory and sending it like a package proved a challenge. He didn¡¯t succeed and Achilleia had to do it for him.


    ¡°You just need practice, Xerae. Right now you¡¯re under a lot of stress.¡±


    He took a deep breath to settle his nerves. Nyx looked at him with horror in her eyes but it was soon replaced with determination.


    ¡°Still wanna push onwards?¡± Jerome asked her.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she said through gritted teeth.


    ¡°From what Achilleia glimpsed, two of them are exhausted. They used a lot of their¡­ powers? Hmm. I can¡¯t really say these Judges learn to wield essence like us. It felt like seeing someone shoot a rifle.¡±


    ¡°You watched them fight?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    ¡°Achilleia watched them fight. They fought with Rihal and one other Spirit Realm artist.¡± His brows drew together as he recalled the viper.


    ¡°Oh. I remember Rihal.¡± Ms. Tara nodded. ¡°But you said these Judges fight like they are wielding rifles? What does that mean?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps their powers are gained and not learned,¡± Sheela said. ¡°There are nasty potions people take to increase their strength a hundred fold. When that happens, such people wouldn¡¯t be able to control their strength for a while, unlike we who grow from strength to strength and know just how strong we are, when to hold back and when to let loose.¡±


    Everyone looked at her like she had grown a second head.


    ¡°That¡¯s eerily insightful of you, Sheela,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°I¡¯m not dumb¡­¡± she said, offended.


    ¡°I think you¡¯re right, Sheela.¡± Jerome took over the conversation. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t take away from the fact that their shots are a lot more powerful than the average sacred artist¡¯s attack. Plus they can shoot telekinetic blasts too.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Ms. Tara asked.


    ¡°Something akin to moving things with your mind,¡± he said. ¡°Tell me, how good are you with mental energy?¡±


    Ms. Tara and Sheela looked away.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a problem, but you¡¯d have to use your mental energy quite a bit for this. These Judges use light beams and they have a very long range.¡±


    ¡°How long?¡± Csala asked.


    ¡°Very long,¡± Nyx said. ¡°Let¡¯s say, half a mile long.¡±


    ¡°Half a mile is accurate.¡± Jerome nodded. ¡°But they have to prepare for that attack, I think.¡± The Judge didn¡¯t use that attack at the start and he took a while before he shot it. Almost five seconds. ¡°Even at that they have an almost impenetrable defense. Rihal¡¯s partner, Idrel, tried to attack while they were preparing the attack that shook the ground a while ago¡ª¡±


    ¡°That was them? All the way from here¡­ there?¡± Sheela asked, shocked.


    ¡°Yes. Idrel was thrown back, should I say.¡±


    ¡°More like flung back like a ragdoll,¡± Nyx said. Jerome gave her a pointed look and she shrugged. ¡°I can tell you hate him.¡±


    Damn. She could probably read him like he could read her.


    ¡°That¡¯s fixable,¡± Achilleia chipped in.


    Jerome shook the thought away. ¡°Back to the point. They have a mechanism at the back of their heads, a coupling of metals that make up a pipe that connects the backs of their heads to their spines. Rihal and Idrel were trying to hit the pipes with flying daggers. That¡¯s where we start from. We go around them and hit them fast and hard.


    ¡°I take the first shot at the middle Judge. If I miss,¡± he turned to Nyx, ¡°Light them up. Csala, dream aura. If you can make them sleep, or weak, that¡¯s good.¡±


    ¡°I should be able to slow them down by fogging their minds,¡± Csala said.


    ¡°That¡¯s good. They¡¯re already slow but slower is better for us. And remember, they are incredibly strong. And dense.¡± Everyone knew what he was talking about as he had explained density. ¡°Ms. Tar and Sheela, you¡¯ll be supporting us¡­ from afar.¡± He gave Sheela a pointed look


    ¡°Can¡¯t we just fight them from the sky?¡± Ms. Tara asked. ¡°Or just go around them and not fight them. I¡¯m not scared or anything, I¡¯m just¡­ If we can prevent a fight with them I think we should.¡±


    ¡°Something tells me we can¡¯t,¡± Nyx said. It was night but Jerome could see her golden irises looking into the distance as if she was tracking something. ¡°We¡¯re not the only powerful ones that came from Terra Praeta, but we¡¯re the ones attracting them.¡±


    ¡°Nyx is right, Ms. Tara. We may not have a choice but to fight.¡± He squeezed her shoulder to reassure her. ¡°And we can always take to the skies if they¡¯re too tough for us.¡±


    They began moving again but gave the Judges a wide berth as they circled around. No one knew how far they could extend their senses. There was no need to take the chances.

 A/N

    I feel like I''m doing this a lot lately. And I''m really sorry if I''m making you guys lose interest in the story; it''s not my intention. A lot has been going on lately that I just have to slow down and get myself in that writing headspace again.


    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    I¡¯ll be taking a one-month ¡ª maybe slightly longer ¡ª break so I can continue to provide you guys with the best I can. Please bear with me in this.


    See you in a few guys. Cheers ??

 🎄? Happy Holidays, everyone! ?🎄

    As the year winds down, I just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a season filled with warmth, joy, and lots of magic! Whether you''re celebrating with family, friends, or taking time to relax and recharge ¡ª this is me presently, I hope these holidays bring you happiness and peace.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Thank you for all the love and support you''ve shown my story, even while it''s been on hiatus. I¡¯ve been hard at work behind the scenes, crafting and polishing what¡¯s to come. Your patience means the world to me, and I can¡¯t wait to dive back into this journey with you in the new year!


    Stay safe, stay cozy, and may your days be filled with laughter. Here¡¯s to a bright and exciting 2025 ahead! ????