Edan’s fears proved correct. He spent most of the night walking back and forth across the attic floor, his only breaks coming when he paused to throw the knives or when he needed to sit down and cultivate to recharge his depleting Vitalis. He didn’t mind the cultivation so much, it was a good sign he was making progress in advancing a skill. The System nnergy getting used up to create it.

  The moonlight that filtered through the small window had drifted across the room, the shadows shifting and lengthening as the night wore on. The pale beams had faded to a weak grey light as the sun began to rise.

  Some time in the middle of the night the two cubs had fallen asleep. They’d curled up against each other, using the old clothes as a nest. The occasional snort could be heard from one as they dreamt, their little paws batting at nothing.

  Edan held the dagger up before his face and focused. Thin, almost imperceptible streaks of lightning danced across the blade, sparking and hissing softly. Focusing hard enough to crease his brow, Edan turned and threw in one fluid movement.

  The blade streaked across the room. A dark blur. It struck the same post he had been using all night. The familiar thunk sounded out but other than that, nothing. Edan let out a defeated sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.

  Walking over he retrieved his knife and picked at the splinters and divots now covering the post. He’d mention it to Harvey later.

  For now, he was hungry.

  Collecting the cubs was easy. They seemed resigned to their fate and followed after him as he left the attic. They even waited patiently at the top of the ladder as he climbed down and grabbed first one, then the other. The growl from the male cub was a faint imitation of its aggressive nature from last night, and the female cub even nuzzled his hand softly.

  Walking through the empty house, Edan walked downstairs with both of them hot on his heels. They had a bit of trouble with the steps and rolled, more than walked, down them.

  Harvey was sitting in the kitchen, a stack of communication crystals next to his elbow. He would pull one out of the pile, stare at it, then place it carefully off to the side.

  Sanik manned the stove and the smell of eggs and bacon filled the air. He noticed Edan out of the corner of his eye and waved an oily spatula at him.

  The bear cubs wandered off to sniff at things. The open floor plan gave them more than enough space to explore. The male started to pee on the floor and Harvey looked over with a raised eyebrow. The floor seemed to absorb the liquid and Edan held his hand up in apology.

  “Sorry. They aren’t house trained but I couldn’t leave them outside.”

  “Completely understandable, lad.” Harvey’s aged voice remained cheery as he reached for another crystal.

  “Apparently bears don't only shit in the woods,” Sanik said, using his chin to point at the female bear that was squatting behind a table.

  Harvey gave Sanik a thin smile, not amused with his joke. He did handle the situation though and the female bear looked confused when her mess vanished.

  Edan slid into a seat next to Harvey and drummed his finger on the island top. “No word from Mum yet?” he asked.

  “She got back a few minutes ago,” Sanik said over his shoulder, sliding eggs from the plate. He grabbed a slice of bacon and tore it in two before tossing it towards the bears.

  “Smelling rather strongly of fish,” Harvey added, sounding amused. “I gather there were complications during her dealings, but she seemed in a good mood while heading into the shower.”

  “That could have been more to do with the fact that Edan’s here.” Sanik pointed out. Trying to feed another slice of bacon to the bears by hand. They glared at him, using the corner of the island as cover.

  “Did Dad tell you I wanted to talk to you all?” Edan asked Harvey quietly.

  Bright blue eyes looked at Edan from under bushy white eyebrows as Harvey nodded slowly. “A most serious matter?” He asked, his tone grave.

  Edan nodded and Harvey gave a brief nod before picking up another communication crystal. He frowned and picked up one from the listened-too pile, before putting them both off to the side. Edan didn’t know what he was doing, but it looked stressful.

  The smell of Vanilla and Appleberries filled the air as Reema appeared. Her hair was tied in a messy bun on top of her head. Loose strands fell around her face, the tips curling and bouncing as she walked. Her eyes turned into crescents, almost swallowed by her cheeks, as she saw Edan and smiled. She rushed to give him a hug.

  The bear cubs growled as she hugged him, the sound both cute and alarmingly powerful considering their still small size. Reema pulled back, confused, and looked around for the source of the sound. Her eyes went wide when she saw them and the bear cubs took off running when she tried to catch them.

  “So cute!” she squealed, chasing them around the kitchen island. The two cubs slid on the smooth floor and had to use their furry butts as counterweights to keep from falling over.

  “Believe it or not but she used to chase me around like that,” Sanik said, sounding nostalgic. He grunted as Reema jabbed his ribs when she passed.

  “Cassie?” Edan asked.

  “Asleep,” Harvey answered, sliding the rest of the crystals away from him and stretching. “And not likely to be awake soon. You are free to discuss these matters with us now, or wait till we have eaten.”

  “What's this?” Reema asked, pulling up short. She’d almost caught one of the cubs.

  “Edan, honey, he has something important he wants to tell us,” Sanik explained slowly. He pulled another piece of bacon from the pan and offered it to the cubs. The male took a step forward before backing up into his sister. “Damn, almost had them!”

  “And perhaps an update on your evening?” Harvey prodded lightly.

  “Oh right! Sorry!” Reema tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled at Edan again. “It’s really good to see you sweety and I have really really good news.”

  “You’ve found us a way out of here?” Sanik guessed.

  “Yes!” Reema beamed before snagging the piece of bacon Sanik had been offering to the bears. She crouched down and waved it towards them as if the smell alone could overcome their survival instinct.

  “Honey,” Sanik said patiently, sliding the plate of bacon and eggs onto the island for everyone to dig into. “Fight against the cuteness and join your family for breakfast, won't you. Your son, who you haven’t seen in weeks, is here, remember?”

  Reema popped up and gave Sanik a kiss on the cheek before nibbling on the piece of bacon. She grabbed a seat next to Edan and rubbed his back gently while filling his plate with eggs.

  “Why don’t you tell us what you want to, and I’ll go after? Then you can tell us about your time in the wilds with Tali. I hope she treated you well.” she said.

  Edan nodded. It was probably easier if he went first. He wasn’t sure how they would react to the bombs he was about to drop. A small part worried they wouldn’t believe him. Another part worried they would, and that they wouldn’t know what to do.

  “Ok. So…I should probably start with Kiba.” Edan said slowly.

  –

  Tali looked across at Marcus, her amber eyes half-lidded as she tried to control her temper. As so often happened nowadays when she met with him, her conversations with Marcus devolved into arguments.

  “I’m not saying you did the wrong thing,” Marcus growled, his red mane of hair seemed to swell around him, making his office look even smaller. “All I’m saying is that it was foolish to break your oath to the academy for this child.”

  “We have had this discussion before.” Tali reminded him. “When I first told you of my banishment. Why bring it up again?”

  “Because now they’re trying to send Bootang back. You were meant to provide aid to the next generation of the Sect disciples with the support of the Academy. Your banishment means you can’t follow through with that part of the agreement, so now the Sects are wondering ‘Why should we?’” Marcus rubbed the bridge of his nose and let out a huff. “We are so close Tali! So close to finding K…To finishing this! And you throw it away for some kid.”

  Tali’s voice was a soft whisper but her anger cut through Marcus’s volume like a knife.

  “The only beginning to a story that ends with my people surviving involves him.”

  If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

  Marcus growled and glared at the wall above Tali’s head, his face stony. Finally, with a huff, he leaned back in his chair. It tipped alarmingly but Marcus had perfect balance and it rocked gently back and forth.

  “I’m sorry,” He said at last, the words sounded sincere, even if they were said begrudgingly. “The Academy knows we’re looking for something and they know you’re sponsored by the guild. They likely thought you broke into the dungeon to investigate their source of power on our behalf. That's why they're all in a tizzy.”

  “A tizzy?” Tali sounded confused as she tried to figure out the meaning of the word.

  “Excited.” Marcus elaborated. “They’re all excited and pulling in resources and cultivators to help find you.”

  “And those I was with,” Tali added.

  “And in reality, you lot just went to rescue a kid who got lost in one of the levels,” Marcus said with a defeated shake of his head.

  “He was not lost,” Tali said, feeling oddly defensive of Edan. “He had ended up on the bottom floor of the dungeon.”

  “What, but the saturation!” Marcus barked and then laughed. “All this time I thought he was ungraded. What level is he? High hundred? No, wait! I’ve met him. He was ungraded!”

  “At the time, he had yet to birth his system,” Tali admitted and had the satisfaction of seeing Marcus’s slitted eyes almost pop from his head. “Though that changed while he was down there.”

  “How did he survive the saturation? Did he-no that wouldn’t have made sense. Maybe…” Marcus began muttering to himself. Urgently he asked Tali “You mentioned a pool on the last floor?”

  “Yes. High concentration of Life Vitalis. There was also the snake.”

  “But the pool. You said Life Vitalis, correct?” Tali nodded and Marcus snapped his fingers, his eyes going distant. “Maybe that helped him. I wonder...It’s possible…” he muttered.

  “Did you sense any powerful Fire attuned Vitalis?” Marcus asked hopefully, though his shoulders had already slumped.

  “Not powerful.”

  “Dammit.” Marcus leaned back in his seat heavily, looking defeated, before he looked at Tali oddly. “You said ‘not powerful’. So there was some?”

  “There were traces. Pure, if in small amounts.” Tali shifted in her seat under the unwavering gaze of her friend.

  “And you didn’t mention it to me before?” Marcus growled.

  “You were busy yelling at me for embarrassing you and breaking my oath.” Tali reminded him mildly. “Much like now.”

  —

  Edan finished his story and sat back feeling oddly exhausted. He hadn’t realized the toll hiding something so important from those around him had taken until he had been relieved of it.

  Sanik and Reema had tried to interrupt multiple times throughout the retelling. Surprisingly it had been Harvey that had stopped them. His piercing blue eyes had never waivered from Edan’s and his usually kind face had become a hard mask of concentration.

  Even now, Sanik and Reema were arguing with each other. Reema, true to Edan’s expectations was more concerned with a foreign presence in the SoulScape of her son than the sect trying to destroy the world. Sanik was trying to calm her.

  Edan knew anything he said at this point would just set them off so he settled back in his chair and let them work it out. Harvey still hadn’t spoken.

  “What are you thinking?” Edan finally asked.

  “I’m cautious by nature, lad,” Harvey said with a soft laugh. “And so much of this doesn’t sit right with me.”

  “You don’t believe me?” Edan asked, his heart sinking.

  Sanik and Reema stopped their bickering to listen in.

  “You are brash, over-eager, dismissive, and young.” Harvey smiled to take any sting out of his words. “But I have never known you to be dishonest. No. I believe you. There have always been rumors surrounding the Sects and their motives. Too many loose ends and unanswered questions. If what you believe to be true is accurate, a great deal begins to make sense.”

  Scratching his chin and nodded along with Harvey, Sanik said “I’ve heard a few dishonored spoutings similar warnings.”

  Edan remembered the dishonored he had seen standing on the box down the road a couple of weeks ago with a scar twisting his face. He couldn’t remember the words the man had said but he wondered if he had known.

  “Not just that, though I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to follow that avenue, should the opportunity arise. Perhaps the dishonored have more to offer than we originally thought.” Harvey ran a thin finger across the countertop as his eyes grew distant. “But no, I was meaning my own assumptions. A large part of my duties lies in sifting through information and connecting dots that do not wish to be joined. One that has floated unconnected to anything is the reason behind the sect's involvement. Seeming selfish organizations committing selfless acts. It does make you question them. Besides, there has always been gossip, but gossip has to start somewhere.”

  “So what do we do?” Edan asked eagerly.

  “For now, nothing,” Sanik said before Harvey could say anything. “Stratta is crawling with disciples and elders. The last thing we want is to draw more attention to ourselves.”

  “I will begin whispering in a few ears,” Harvey admitted. “Only those I know will listen. Something such as this should not be kept hidden, nor should it be spread wildly. Fear or confusion will aid us little when the Sects are so well entrenched. They’ve had nearly two hundred years to narrate a tale we need to destroy in a few short years.”

  “That doesn’t sound too hard,” Sanik said sarcastically.

  “I’m going to make a crack in their narrative during the tournament.” Edan’s lips twisted up into a cold smile.

  “That would be a good first move,” Harvey said, a hint of approval making his eyes twinkle. “Remove the illusion of invincibility. Of inevitability. Show they can be beaten and that theirs is not the only path to strength and others will be willing to fight.”

  “And none of that matters at the moment!” Reema butted in, her eyes turning to Edan. “Honey, you have to know how unsafe it is having another sentient being in your SoulScape.”

  “Very,” Edan admitted. “But I made a promise, Mum, and Kiba has had weeks to try to possess me and he hasn’t”

  “Maybe he isn’t strong enough yet,” Reema said. “Maybe he’s just biding his time. You have to get rid of him!”

  “That is likely not the case,” Harvey muttered. When Reema turned on him with a scowl he held up his hands for peace. “You said he was a primordial, lad?”

  “Well, more of a slice of a primordial,” Edan admitted after a second of thought. “He said he’s an avatar of the original. I think it’s sort of like a slice from a cake.”

  Sanik stopped stroking Reema’s back and looked over at Edan. “Now I want cake,” he said.

  Kid, did you just compare an avatar of a primordial to a slice of cake?

  Shhhh Edan sent back to silence Kiba.

  “Do you know what a primordial is?” Edan asked Harvey.

  “You know how the Four Star Sect likes to limit knowledge on anything that could be seen as stronger than their Founders, but from what I can gather, Primordials are to gods what gods are to us.”

  “So…gods…gods?” Sanik asked, frowning.

  “There are a few references here and there that make them seem old. Very old. Likely around the creation of the system. With age comes power, at least that's the general idea.” Harvey raised his shoulders in a half-shrug. “I wouldn’t be able to say more with any sense of certainty.”

  Damn, you are old! Edan sent to Kiba.

  The response, when it finally came, was rich with amusement. Kid, we’re from a time before the system. Before the concept of time was created. Old is an understatement.

  Edan’s eyes went wide and he shared what Kiba said with Harvey. Even Harvey seemed shaken by the news and Reema started suggesting removal again.

  Harvey held up his hand. “As…alarming as that is, it just goes to prove my point from earlier. If Kiba wished to possess Edan, he would have. Someone as old or as powerful as he, has little need to ‘bide their time’.”

  “I don’t care,” Edan said when Reema opened her mouth to argue further. “It’s not happening, Mum. I’m not going back on my word.”

  And if Edan was being honest, he kinda liked Kiba.

  “Now,” Edan continued. “Why don’t you tell us about your evening, mum?”

  Reema didn’t seem too happy with Edan but she knew how stubborn her son could be.

  “I finally managed to get hold of Lem and Gem…” she said, beginning her tale.

  —

  “I need to meet him.” Marcus insisted, his nails biting into the wooden surface of the desk as he leaned forward and glared at Tali.

  “You will not integrate him,” Tali replied.

  “I’ll need to ask him questions though. Tali, please, we were so sure ki-the person we’re looking for, is tied to the power source of the Academy. Edan might know something. Even if it doesn’t turn out to be what I want to hear, it at least allows us to rule that place out.”

  Marcus’s slitted eyes burned with passion. Tali was shocked at the desperation her old friend was showing. She almost agreed, if for no other reason than to appease him, but she stopped herself. Tali knew Marcus. He was single-minded. He would approach Edan with all the tact of a charging Gru’ruga in a pottery store. Tali had seen Edan stand up to her aura. He would have little difficulty with Marcus. Still…maybe there was something she could do to make it worth Edan's time.

  “He has mentioned nothing to me of another person in the dungeon and I saw little evidence to support that, other than the obvious lab. Could that have been set up by your mysterious individual?”

  Marcus actually thought about it for a second. “It could be, though I doubt it.” he finally admitted.

  “And I assume he is not the giant, maggot-infested, snake I mentioned earlier?”

  “No…”

  “Then it is very likely Edan will not be able to help you.” Tali finished, crossing her arms over her broad chest. Acting as if a thought had suddenly struck her, she smiled. “Of course, if you were to approach as a friend, then maybe Edan would be willing to tell you this himself.”

  “I am not looking to hurt the pup,” Marcus replied, his tone indignant. “I simply wish to ask him questions.”

  “And you will grow frustrated when he does not provide them. Your anger is rarely hidden and your aura is even more rarely contained. This can affect him, he is barely graded.”

  “So I approach as a friend of a friend?” Marcus asked dubiously.

  Tali inclined her head. “Yes, a friend of a friend who comes baring gifts.”

  “Baring gifts?” Marcus asked confused, before he chuckeled darkly and sat back with a sigh. Rolling his eyes, he asked. “Has your whole reluctance been a ploy to get me to get a present for your ward?”

  Tali simply smiled.

  “Fine, what should I get him?”

  —

  Vraga floated high above Stratta, the morning sun burning his back with a comforting warmth. He hated it, but he also didn’t want to return to the Sect just yet. The Titan had separated from the small man to stay in the Traders Guild. Normally this would have been fine. Vraga was nothing if not patient and he was more than willing to wait and watch. It would often take years or decades for his experiments to bear fruit. Vraga was used to waiting.

  What frustrated him was the small man took his bears and Vraga found himself torn between the two. The allure of a Titan to experiment on was too strong though and in the end, Vraga found himself floating above the Traders Guild.

  Hunching deeper in his cloak to avoid the sun's rays, Vraga felt the strings connecting him to his pets and smiled. Two were near, and the rest were already in Stratta. He would need to act soon to ensure no one else caught the Titan before him.