Well, lightning seems to have an effect, but it also does damage, I comment to Nicholas.

  More or less than fire did? Nicholas asks. I consider the question.

  Hard to say, I admit. They both leave burns behind on your Core space which isn’t great since I suspect that’s your soul.

  We’re back in Nicholas’ Core space and he’s been showing me the effects of the different elements he has access to through his Bonded. Unlike me, he actually has a Skill for that, though he was impressed that my Bonded are able to access each other’s abilities through a ranking effect of Tame.

  Of course, the Skill doesn’t just let him use his Bonded’s magical Abilities without limits. Apparently they started off as very inefficient and mana-hungry, and only ranking the Skill up has made them more practical. Additionally, he still has to learn how to use them – beasts gain a sort of instinctive understanding of their new abilities upon Evolution, but those instincts don’t pass over. So there’s still a lot of trial and error involved, especially when using them in such a new context as this.

  I can see that Nicholas has put a lot of time into practising with the elements in his Core space, but his manipulation remains clumsy and inefficient. Still, that he’s able to use them at all gives him significantly more chance of dealing with his curse than otherwise.

  A priest should be able to heal that affliction if necessary, Nicholas dismisses, but I agree that it’s better if I do not have to engage their services. They were unable to do anything about the curse so I cannot be certain that they will be more effective in this matter.

  Especially not if you don’t have to, I agree. Water seems to be the most effective element so far. It takes longer to work, but it’s more gentle as it separates the curse from your Core space.

  I can then use fire or lightning to destroy the curse without damaging myself in the process, muses Nicholas. Yes, that is a feasible approach.

  Exactly, I agree, then hesitate for a moment. Do you…would you like me to release the Dominate Bond when I exit this space? It seems like you’ve got an idea that should work now.

  I sense Nicholas fervently wants to agree, but reluctantly, he sends a negation.

  Better to keep it for now, he replies with a hint of dissatisfaction. I wish you to oversee my first attempts so we can be sure that this will work. There is no point in releasing the Bond only to have to repeat this farce later if it turns out I am not making the progress I expect.

  You make a good point, I admit. Alright, we’ll keep it for now. Let me know how your exploration comes along.

  I pull out of Nicholas’ Core space, settling back into my physical body. I haven’t been ‘away’ from it for so long this time so it doesn’t feel quite so ill-fitting.

  “My lord?” Mathis’ voice half-scares me out of my skin. I jump, then jerk around to face him.

  “Mathis?” I half-gasp, controlling my breaths and sending a wave of magic through my body to calm its automatic responses to a perceived threat. As the adrenaline leaves my system and my heart stops beating frantically, I feel calm return to me. “What is it?”

  “A unit of scouts has joined us. They wish to report to Lord Nicholas but he doesn’t seem to be responding,” Mathis replies cautiously.

  “Alright, I’ll let him know,” I tell Mathis. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

  “A few flames,” he admits. “I couldn’t rouse you either, nor could any of your Bonded. Lord Nicholas would not respond either,” he adds, sounding concerned.

  “No. That’s not surprising,” I confess a little sheepishly. I’d better make sure Nicholas is aware of just how vulnerable he is in that state. “One moment.”

  I dive back into Nicholas Core space – now I know the ‘route’, it’s easy enough.

  You’re back? Nicholas asks in surprise. It hasn’t been long enough that we must set off again, has it?

  Not at all, I deny. Mathis is here. Apparently a scout unit wishes to give you a report. But this deep into your Core space, only your Bonded will be able to rouse you. And, it appears, that when I’m in your Core space, even my Bonded can’t get through to me.

  That is concerning, Nicholas communicates, sounding troubled. Thank you for telling me. Come. Let us see what report the scouts have for us.

  We both quickly withdraw. I’m faster than Nicholas from sheer practice, so I see Mathis’ expression soften slightly in relief as Nicholas begins moving again.

  I suppose I should feel grateful that it’s Mathis who came to tell us – he’s spent enough time with me to not immediately jump to the conclusion that I’m doing something nefarious to his lord. I admit that it probably doesn’t look good.

  “Mathis, Markus indicates that a unit of scouts wishes to make a report.”

  “Yes, my lord,” the guard confirms.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Lead us to them,” Nicholas orders. The guard bows and then leads the way as Nicholas and I step out of the wagon, landing lightly on the ground. Most of my Bonded are asleep but a shadow joins me. I was expecting Bastet but this time I’m surprised to see Ninja.

  Don’t you want to sleep with the others right now? I ask. She spent most of the day running alongside the wagon, pushing herself to her limits with dogged determination.

  Her response is a firm negative, and she follows it up with determination to make sure that the pack is safe. I nod, understanding – she wishes to know whether these scouts will have information that will put the pack in danger. Fair enough.

  Alright. You can come, I allow, then smile when I receive her response – the emotional equivalent of ‘of course I’m coming – that’s what I told you’. Her thoughts are becoming clearer – I wonder how close she is to Evolution.

  A quick look at my Bound tab makes my eyebrows lift slightly. Actually, she isn’t far – she’s over eighty percent to Evolution, I note. It’s surprising considering how young she is, and comparing her with the other raptorcats her age indicate that she’s an outlier – Trouble is the highest otherwise at thirty-two percent. I wonder what has allowed her to progress so much more than the others. Far from giving me clarity, Nicholas has indicated that even they don’t know much more than I do about what allows some beasts to Evolve quickly and others to never do so.

  Mathis leads us to the tent that’s been set up for Nicholas. I’ve been sleeping in the same wagon as I’ve been travelling in – if I sleep at all and don’t just meditate – but Nicholas is clearly accustomed to finer things in life.

  Waiting outside are three men and a woman. I realise that I actually recognise one of them – Sulir the tracker is there. I nod at him and he gives a small smile and a deeper bow of his head.

  “Come on in,” Nicholas instructs, disappearing through the tent flap. Inside, there is a low table surrounded by cushions. Nicholas sits at the head and motions to me to sit at the foot. The four scouts fill in the sides.

  “I’ll have the cooks send some refreshments, my lords,” Mathis tells us as he leaves. I suspect that such a task would usually be Sarran’s, but since the manservant is holding down the fort in Azaarde, others are having to take over his usual duties.

  Nicholas glances at me.

  “This is Scout Unit Dragon, one of the five similar units that are currently roaming this area in search of the rift.” he informs me briskly. “You already know Sulir. He’s responsible for tracking the traces of the intruding beasts back to the rift. Sorya,” the woman bows slightly to me, “is a plant Mage who is also capable of some spatial magic. She is able to detect the rift from a distance, and is also the one who will close it down once they find it. Thiar and Nurisoth,” both bow to me, slightly deeper than Sorya did, “are Warrior Classes and ensure that Sorya reaches wherever she needs to go.”

  “Nice to meet you all,” I greet them slightly awkwardly, nodding at each scout.

  “As you should know, this is my Heir, Lord Markus Titanbend,” Nicholas continues. “Now, what report do you have for me?”

  “There is something odd happening here, my lords,” Sorya tells him immediately, her tone business-like. “The rift is harder to detect than any other I’ve encountered. Were the rest of the evidence not so clear, I might think there was no rift at all.”

  “You’re certain that there is?” Nicholas questions.

  “Yes,” Sulir replies firmly. “Though the local beasts have been agitated and many are joining in the beast wave assailing Zlona, there are too many non-native beasts present for it to be anything other than a rift. The problem is that tracking the traces of the non-native beasts is getting us nowhere.”

  Nicholas looks troubled.

  “Could the rift be open in the air somewhere?” I ask. From what little I know of rifts, they can be anywhere within the atmosphere – and for all I know, they might open outside the atmosphere too.

  Sulir shrugs.

  “Certainly, but even so, there would be traces of the beasts that had exited it unless all the intruders were airborne – and that, they’re not.”

  “What are your conclusions?” asks Nicholas brusquely.

  “The rift must be being hidden,” Sorya answers immediately.

  Nicholas sends her a sharp look.

  “Sabotage?”

  The mage hesitates.

  “Possibly,” she allows. “Or possibly there are powerful beasts involved who wish to keep the rift’s location a secret even as their brethren attack Zlona. There are only two types of beast we’ve seen so far, and they seem to work together. The presence of a Beast Lord is likely. A Beast King is possible, but we have not seen any Beast Lords cooperating as part of the forces.”

  A Beast King? That sounds like a Tier four, I think to myself worriedly. I sneak a glance at Nicholas. He has a line between his eyebrows, but his expression is calm.

  Nicholas nods.

  “A Beast Lord would be capable of hiding a rift if it is magic-focussed. That is troublesome.” He sends me a searching look. “How confident do you feel about your task with this information?” It feels like he’s reading my mind.

  “A Tier three shouldn’t pose too much trouble,” I hedge, thinking about how we took down the fellapodil. Sure, we made sure the battle was tilted in our favour, but we’ve done a lot of training since – my companions have been winning more often than not against Nicholas’ Tier threes when the numbers are in our favour. And with the support of two Warriors, a Mage, and Sulir…it should be fine. Especially if Kalanthia is willing to join. “A Tier four…that would be more difficult.” And that’s an understatement.

  I haven’t seen a Tier four yet, but I’ve heard fragments about them from my trainers and Nicholas. They’re as far above Tier three as Tier three is above Tier two, which makes facing one a scary prospect – where Tier threes are known to destroy villages, Tier fours are known to destroy cities. And that’s only partly because they usually bring armies with them.

  “I agree that, unless it is an excellent match for you, the chances of you winning against a Beast King at present are poor. However, if you can distract it long enough that Sorya is able to enter and shut down the rift and then escape from it, that would be sufficient,” Nicholas states, his gaze calculating.

  I consider it, then nod slowly. I’ll have to trust his interpretation. Though I definitely want Kalanthia with me in that case – and no Tier ones. They will be too vulnerable.

  Looks like we need to stick to the plan to send the Tier ones with Maxen and the recruits to face the wave attacking Zlona. Those, by all accounts, are Tier ones and Tier twos, so more than feasible for beasts like the raptorcat lying next to me, her ears pricked alertly.

  “We should be able to do that,” I confirm. “Though I’ll need to speak to Kalanthia and check she’s willing to join me.”

  Nicholas sends me a hard look.

  “If she is not willing, you will need to find a way to convince her. Having a Tier three on your side may be essential.”

  He doesn’t need to tell me that.

  “I’ll do my best,” is all I can say.

  Nicholas nods briskly.

  “Good. Now, Sulir, have you made a record of the areas you’ve searched and where the tracks of the beasts appear to be leading? If we can determine the likely area of the rift entrance, even if we cannot pinpoint it, that will give Markus and your team an idea of where to start.”

  “I have, my lord,” Sulir responds, pulling a large scroll out of a pocket that looks far too small to contain it. Unrolling it, I see what is obviously a map of the area, annotated with many different signs.

  Bending our heads over it, we try to work out where a hidden rift might be.

  here!

  here!

  here!

  here!

  here