221-230

Chapter 221

The tower was farther away than it looked and for a moment I actually considered the fact that it might be a mirage, but I wasn't suffering from any sort of heatstroke or problem with the heat since there wasn't any heat. The air was cold, as was the sand, which only added to the sinister feeling of the place. There was nothing but the tower in sight, but after what we'd discovered on the last floor, I wasn't going to make any assumptions. Who knew, maybe this floor had an underground area or something else that would pop out, though that would have to wait until we'd dealt with the twin horn. Zirani had said there was no way we were going to waste this floor's resources, not that I could see any, if we didn't need to.

It was a lot harder to run through the floor mainly because of the odd way the sand shifted, which hadn't been too apparent at first, but after an hour, every now and then, I'd take a step and my leg would just sink in a few feet. The first time I'd panicked and assumed it was some sort of aether beast that had grabbed me, but I calmed down after I'd sensed nothing.

"These sandpits are really starting to annoy me," Sandra cursed as she fell knee-deep into another just seconds after the last. She glanced over at the blonde with an envious look.

Unlike me or Sandra, Misty didn't seem to have any problem as her sheer speed and agility allied her to step off any pits the moment her leg began to fall, so while Sandra and I had to deal with constant, Misty and Zirani had no problems.

Zirani seemed to be using some sort of technique similar to green pulse, but far more complex, and after the tenth time I'd fallen, Zirnai began to guide me, warning me when I was about to step into one of the pits, which grew more and more frequent as we neared the tower.

"Do you think it a something he did?" I asked Zirani.

"Maybe." She shrugged. "I don't see why though. It's annoying but it hasn't done much but stall us for a few seconds, and I have a feeling it has something to do with the overall floor, though I can't tell what just yet."

I kept an eye as we moved, trying to find anything else apart from the red sand, but an hour passed and it began to seem that we wouldn't be running in anything before we got to the tower, at least that was until we stepped on a particularly large dune, or what we thought was a dune. It began with shaking followed by an odd rumbling sound. I sensed the beast underneath us a moment later as whatever had been masking its presence and aether vanished.

I glanced over to Zirani who looked both amused and excited. "Get off the dune!"

We quickly ran back down and watched as the beast that we had thought had been the dune, shook the red sand off its body as it rose onto its four massive legs, its long neck stretching up into the air. Its skin was a thick reddish hide and overall it looked as big as a house

with legs that were around ten feet tall and a neck that was at least twenty feet tall. I began to pull aether from my core but stopped when Zirani placed a hand on my shoulder with a shake of her head.

"It's not hostile," She said, turning back to the beast with a fond smile. "It's a Ferneck or a variant of Ferneck."

She approached the beast and I felt worry course through me, but the feeling subsides as its eyes held no malice as it moved its head down towards Zirani. Its mouth opened to reveal dull and blunt teeth as it let out a rumbling sound. I watched in surprise as Zirani placed a hand on its head and slowly began to rub the beast whose eyes closed in joy at the touch.

I'd seen docile beasts before but nothing of this size or this friendly.

"Come on, don't be shy." Zirani smiled and gestured for me to approach. I took a calming breath and hesitantly approached, the beast's eyes turning to regard me as I did. I waited for any form of attack or sign of aggression but nothing came. Instead, all it did was let out another rumbling noise as I hesitantly petted it.

"Ermm Zirani, I'm happy for you? But shouldn't we get going." Sandra looked less shocked than I did but was still clearly wary of the beasts, which wasn't surprising. It was very large, and by the way, its hide felt and the power I could feel, this thing could crush us if it wanted to. Misty just looked intrigued.

"We will, but not alone." A wide smile appeared on Zirani's face and when she opened her mouth, my jaw fell open. A similar humbling sound to dinosaur left her mouth, just as loud. The beast's eyes snapped to Zirani with clear intent.

"She can speak its language?" Sandra muttered just loud enough for me to hear over the rumbling.

"She's over four hundred years old," Misty answered. "I bet she can speak a lot of languages. I mean I can speak a bit of southern common."

Southern common being the old world language known as Spanish. A few people in West Vale spoke it, and the academy even offered lessons. It was one of the languages that had survived the calamity better than many others, which most assumed was because a lot of people had spoken it before the calamity.

Zirani and the beast went back and forth for a few minutes before Zirani turned to use with a huge grin on her face. "We've just found ourselves allies."

I was confused for only a second then I quirked an eyebrow as I glanced over at the beast. "You mean the beast?"

She nodded proudly. "Not just this one, either. I informed him of just what the twin horn have been doing, and he told me that they've been butchering his kind."

"Isn't that what arcanists do?" Sandra said. "We hunt beasts."

"Not all of them," Misty interjected. "We tame some, and there are others we use a livestock or leave alone."

Misty turned to Zirnai. "I assume this is a similar situation?"

"It is, at least in most places beyond the great scar," Zirani explained. "Fernecks are docile beasts but that's not the main reason they aren't hunted. You see their dung is one of the most popular fertilizers used when growing herbs and plants, especially if you feed then a specific diet."

"There shit is valuable?" I asked in disbelief, and Zirani chuckled at my expression. "It is, and not just as fertilizer but that's a topic for another time. He's agreed to gather his herd and help us stop the twin horn."

Zirani's anger washed through our bond. "They've already killed five of them."

I sent calming thoughts through our bond, and reassurance that we'd stop them soon enough. She turned a brilliant smile my way, and the beast made another rumbling sound which made Zirnai blush for some reason. I wasn't sure, but it seemed like there was a glimmer of amusement in its large round eyes.

"How long will it take?" Sandra asked. "The gathering I mean. You said it yourself, we shouldn't be wasting time."

Zirani's blush vanished in an instant and she nodded at Sandra seriously. "You're right, I got caught up in the moment. It will take him less than an hour to gather his herd."

"You sure?" I looked at the beast's thick legs. "It doesn't seem like he would particularly fast."

"Hmm? Oh, you don't have to worry about that." Zirani turned to the beast and made a long rumbling sound, which the beast replied to with a few shorter bursts. "Fernecks are of the earth affinity, they use it to move, just watch."

The beast raised its neck and let out a loud rumbling roar which shook the ground. No, the ground was shaking due to the aether it was releasing. An innate technique. The sand rose up in a wave and lifted the beast up before carrying him away.

"A giant surfing beast." I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. "What should we do now?"

"They will meet us near the tower," Zirani said. "So we need to get going, and fast."

I watched the beast fade away into the distance as we continued our trek towards the tower, now pushing ourselves to go as fast as we could. If Zirani was right and the best was telling the truth then it would definitely be a great help. That Ferneck had been a three-core beast and was large enough that it could cause some serious damage, not to mention that it could have other innate techniques. I could imagine a herd of them battering against the tower with their necks, using them as clubs, or sinking the structure into the sand. Even if that was a stretch, their sheer size and the increase in numbers would be a big help. It would be four against an entire sect, or what was left of a sect.

"Say your prays twin horn," I muttered.. "Here we come."

Chapter 222

"How much longer are they going to be?" Sandra asked as we sprinted up another dune. It had been around half an hour and we'd neared the tower, but there hadn't been any sign of fernecks.

"They will come," Zirani promised. "Even if we don't make it to the meeting point on time, they will find us."

"How can you be so sure?" Misty questioned.

"Because fernecks are not malicious creatures." she glanced back at us. "They don't lie or go out of their way to fight. It's not that they cant, but they don't understand the concept. They don't get saying one thing and then doing another."

A sad expression marred her beautiful face for a moment. "It led to problems for them in some places. It's easy to take advantage of someone who doesn't understand lying."

Her words eased my worries somewhat, but I still found myself glancing around for any sign of them, however, what alerted us to their presence wasn't any physical sign of them, but the sand shaking.

The rumbling didn't start until we were just a mile away from the tower, and at first, I mistook it for an earthquake or sandquake or whatever it was called, but I quickly realized it was the same sound the fernecks made, and moments after that realization, over six of the beasts burst out from the underneath the red sand, only a few feet away, which sent sand raining down on us.

"Oh come on," Sandra grumbled as she created a small dome of darkness above her head like an umbrella. It startled me for a moment how quickly she'd formed and created the technique, but after a closer look, I saw that it wasn't that complex, especially not after everything we'd learned. I could from my wood in different shapes easily enough, though I had a hunch Zinrai still had much more to teach me on that front.

Misty created a small shimmering wall of death above her head, and when the sand hit, it vanished, or decayed? I wasn't sure, but it got the job done. As for myself, well I formed a circular shield of wood and raised it overhead.

Once the raining sand had died down, I lowered and dispersed my shield to see Zirnai walking up to what I assumed was the ferneck from earlier. I honesty could really tell the difference between them, though one did have scarring on its left side, which looked to have been inflicted by a blade, then again it could have been a beast. It's not like the beasts couldn't have blade-like appendages or claws.

The three of us watched as Zirani began to speak with the beasts, every now and then stopping to let one of them say something. At one point it got heated as the one with the scars let out a deep rumble and its eyes narrowed at Zirani who shook her head glared right back at him? Or was it a her? Thank god I wasn't speaking to them as I would no doubt make a few blunders.

"That doesn't look good," Sandra noted, taking a few steps back.

"She can handle it," I assured. "It's Zirani we're talking about here."

I meant my words, but I had to admit I was also a bit worried. If they wouldn't fight with us it would be a shame as we'd wasted time on them, but if they turned against us then we would be screwed.

They went back on forth for a few more minutes before the sacred ferneck finally seemed to relent, and Zirani walked back over to us with an annoyed look on her face. "We had a hold-up."

"Why?" Misty asked, glancing over at the fernecks who were forming patterns for the sand wave the first ferneck had used earlier.

"She wasn't sure about this," Zirnai replied and her annoyance turned into sympathy as she glanced back at the beast in question. "She lost one of her sons to the twin horn, and the ferneck we spoke to earlier is her other son."

"Oh." Sandra sounded a lot less worried now, and she looked over with a sad expression on her face.

I didn't have a mother, but I did have my aunt, and I could only imagine how she'd feel if she lost me, not to mention that

this mother had more to lose in the form of another son, who was about to head into a battle for us.

"We will avenge her son," I said, anger clear in my voice. The twin horn really was a damn scourge to everything they came across.

To my surprise, Zirani didn't have us begin our spring again, instead, she informed us that we would be riding on the ferneck's backs as they could travel far faster than us. I was hesitant at first, but a look at the scarred ferneck, and her resolve pushed me on. I climbed atop the first ferneck's back with Sandra and Misty while Zinrai rode on the mother ferneck, patting it gently and speaking low rumbling notes, which I assume was to comfort the sacred ferneck.

When we were settled, Zirami let out a long rumbling note that the fernecks echoed before their techniques formed and we shot towards the tower.

Wind whipped through my hair and the occasional bit of sand lashed at my face, but at my level, it was just an annoyance and nothing more.

"Zirani," I said mentally, getting her attention. "So do we just rush in when we get there?"

"There's isn't much else we could do," She replied. "Though we will wait for the fernecks to draw some attention first."

That seemed as good of a plan as we were going to get.

I felt my heart rate increase and my blood practically began to boil as the tower became clearer and clearer. It was nowhere as large as an aether tower, but it still rose into the sky at around sixty feet, with dour spikes at its top, angled towards the center of the top floor, most likely where the ritual would be talking palace.

"Here they come," Zirani shouted. "Get ready!"

Figures became visible as we cleared the last hundred feet to the tower. Twin horn arcanists began to rain down techniques upon us, but they did little damage to the fernecks thick hide, and I already had my bark armor and shield formed to give me and the ladies protection. Balls of flame, boulders of sandstone, and even bolts of lightning struck us, but the fernecks kept on going, waves of crimson sand pushing them onwards towards the tower.

There must have been at least two dozen of them outside the tower, and from what I could tell none were beyond their first core, which either meant they had no elders left or they were all inside the tower. Whatever the reason, the twin horn arcanist realized too late just how futile their efforts were as the fernecks, swung their long necks around and begin to use them as clubs to smash the enemy all while the waves of sand engulfed them.

"Jump!" I roared as the fernecks crashed into the tower.

I landed on the sand as the fernecks let our rumbling roars of anger, and wrath, at least that's what it sounded like. Shouts and screams sounded from around me, though not from my allies, but the enemy.

"Door to the let." Misty's voice sounded in my head, greater than it had the first time we'd communicated mentally.

I glanced over to see her pointing towards an opening in the tower, guarded by a group of four twin horn arcanists, who were looking around at the chaos with terror

"Let's go!" Sandra yelled over the din of battle

I formed four impact seeds, and let them fly at the same time, dagger of darkness and a slash of death launched from Sandra and Misty. The twin horns arcanists didn't stand a chance under the onslaught and the one that had managed to dodge was quickly taken care of by a ferneck who leaned over and grabbed him using its mouth. I watched in morbid fascination as it bit down, breaking the arcanist in half and then swinging its head around to launch the corpse at another enemy.

"Damn," I muttered as we entered the tower. "Not so docile after all."

The tower was only a single large room with an ascending circular staircase. The tower seemed to be made up of sandstone and was pretty barren for the most part.

"For the twin horn!"

I glanced over at the stairs just in time to see a twin horn disciple appear and charge at me, a sword raised to strike. A spear of darkness flew by and impaled him on the wall before I could even raise a fist.

"Thanks," I said to Sandra before turning my attention to everyone. "Let's go. Be on your guard because there's bound to be more."

Sandra's cloak and tendrils had formed around her and MIsyt death claws looked longer than ever. Zirani had no techniques formed, but I knew she could handle herself far better than any of us. I felt pride and joy that I had these three by my side and as I marched up the stairs, my allies at my back, I couldn't help but feel a bit of pity for the twin horn. We may have lost against that elder, but I was going to take Zirani's advice and words to heart, and not let it get me down. I would try my hardest and Zirani needed to take over then so be it, but I wouldn't let that happen until I was bleeding and surely out for the count.

Two arcanists waited for us on the second floor of the tower, and before they could even ready their techniques, I formed two thorn vines and sent them to wrap around their throats, then I willed my vines to tighten and untighten, the sharp thorns tearing their throats and necks apart. Blood sprayed and both toppled to the ground as I dispersed my vines.

"Is this all they have guarding the tower, first core disciples?" I shook my head.

"The elders are most likely near the top, or taking part in the ritual," Zirani suggested. "So let's not waste any time."

The next three floors were filled with more first core disciples that fell easily to us, and when we arrived on the sixth it was to no challenge, which was odd, to say the least. Nevertheless, we kept moving and as we climbed the tower, I couldn't help but start to feel tinges of worry. By the time we were on the second to last floor, my worry had turned to confusion. Was there another trap like the elder had been, something lying in wait for us?

I took a deep breath and pushed the thoughts away, in favor of focusing on the upcoming confrontation, because there would undoubtedly be a confrantaion. Their lost king knew we were coming and just as Zirani had said, the strongest the twin horn had at their disposal would most likely be at the top, guarding or taking part in the ritual.

"This is it," I said as I glanced over at the stairs that led to the roof. I could feel enormous amounts of aether gathering above us, along with the sound of chanting voices, and whistling wind.

"Remember, disrupting the ritual is our main goal," Zirani said. "If they have guards then try and get past them and aim for those taking part in the ritual."

We nodded and I took a deep breath as we began to walk towards the stairs. I stopped when I felt a hand grasp my shoulder, and I turned to see Zirani giving me a look that conveyed a number of emotions from love to fear and more.

"Do you remember what we spoke about?" Zirani asked nervously.

I nodded with a small smile and tried to convey my feelings through our bond. "I'm fine with it Zirani, but only after I've tried my damndest."

She smirked, looking relieved. "I can agree to that."

Her smile morphed into a vicious grin, the beast showing itself, as she turned to consider all of us. "Now let's end this, shall we?"

Chapter 223

The roof was a lot larger than I'd expected, in fact, it seemed too large compared to the size of the rooms below, either there was some sort of spatial effect accruing or it just looked that way. I didn't much of a chance to think on it as my attention was immediately drawn to the blueish dome at the center of the room, and the two second-core arcanists guarding it

Within the dome I could see an arcane circle like the type Zirani had drawn for mine and Sandra's bonding ritual, except this one was far larger and more complex, not to mention there were items scattered about certain parts of it. Cores, some odd-looking dust, and most importantly, the flesh abominations, though unlike those we'd seen, these were just still mounds of flesh, no movement or life to them. Four-second arcanists stood in circles that were outside the main part of the design yet still attached, and each was chanting some sort of phrase in a language that sounded completely foreign to my ears. It didn't sound human, the guttural and rough sounds that came out of their mouths.

"Aiden."

Zirani's voice snapped my attention away from the dome and just in time as a whip of water lashed out at me from one of the arcanists. I managed to get my shield up in time, but the force still sent me staggering back a few feet, though luckily without injury.

"Zirani what do we do?" Sandra asked as she took a position to my left while Misty stalked over to my right, her eyes on the second arcanists. Both of the enemies wore hoods, and were eerily silent, unlike most twin horn members. I'd expected them to have started mocking us by now and calling us fools for trying to defy their master, but these just stood there, aether surging around them.

"We need to take the dome down." Zirani frowned as she glanced at the two guards. "But we need to take care of them first. They'd interrupt anything I tired."

Misty shot my aether beasts a nervous glance. "Can we take them, the three of us weren't able to beat the elder?"

"They're not as strong," I interjected. Neither had the same feeling of power the other town horn elder had and felt more like the steel heart elders, simply second-core arcanists, though the silence and perfect stillness was definitely not normal.

"How can you be so sur—"

Sandra's words tailored off as a powerful gust of wind blew past us, and the defender's hoods away to reveal something entirely unexpected.

"What the fuck!"

Where there should have been eyes, nose and mouth was nothing but smooth skin. Neither had any features whatsoever, just skin, not even the outline of features. No wonder they hadn't been able to talk, they literally couldn't, but then how were they even able to tell we were here?

"We can't just stand around and wait," Zirani said. "We need to take care of them before the ritual is complete."

"Why aren't they attacking?" Sandra questioned her cloak oddly still in the harsh wind.

I shrugged. The only attack had been the water whip and I had a guess that it was because I'd gotten in range of dome. "I think they're more like sentries than proper guards. Sandra and I will take the one of the left."

I turned to Misty. "And you and Zirani can take the one on the right. Don't try anything fancy, just end it as quickly as you can."

When they nodded in agreement, I prepared three impact seeds in each hand and waited as two spears of darkness formed in Sandra's hands. Our bond was not strong enough yet that we could speak to one another mentally, but we could send impressions and ideas over. My plan was simple. We would hit our target with a barrage of attacks whole swooping in and striking at the same time, the idea being to overwhelm him.

"Now!" My seeds shot and only a second behind were Sandra's spears. The twin horn arcanists moved with inhuman grace but not quickly enough to dodge ao of the attacks. One of the spears grazed his side while two impact seeds struck. No blood seeped from his wounds, in fact, as we moved into close range, I noticed

that Sandra's spear had revealed it was just flesh underneath the skin and not much else. Were these things like the abominations or had they been made like this?

The twin horn arcanist formed a whip for water and lashed out a Sandra who nimbly ducked the strike and cut the whip with a dark dagger. I took the chance to rush in from his right, a bark spike formed on my left gauntlet. He was fast with his reaction and a torrent of water in a beam-like shape shot towards me, and though I dodged most of the attack, some of the water still clipped me and sent me staggering back. It had been going at a very fast speed and the force had been great, but that wasn't the end of it. Just as I was reorienting myself to charge back in, lighting began to spark around him.

"Oh, fu—"

I leapt into the air as a bolt of lightning struck the position I'd been in only seconds ago. I sent two more impact seeds at him as my feet struck the ground. He dodged both but wasn't fat enough to dodge Sandra's spear which impaled him from behind. This arcanist would have been a challenge for any of us alone, but together we could take it. It didn't possess the same speed or strength the first elder we'd fought had.

Even though it was impaled through the chest, Sandra and I didn't let our guard down. We waited with techniques ready as the arcanist twitched sporadically

"Is it going to—"

Sandra's words were drowned out by the loud bang that sounded when the twin horn arcanists body imploded into itself and then outwards, sending chunks of flesh everywhere. I gagged as a piece hit me in the cheek.

"Nasty." I grimaced and wiped the bits of me. I needn't have bothered as only seconds later, the flesh turned into white ash, confirming my suspicions that this thing, who might have been a person once, was similar to the flesh abominations.

"We're done here!" Zirani called over and I turned to see her and Misty stood around a clump of white ash.

"Did he cause you much trouble?" I asked as I walked over to her.

She shook her head. "He was definitely a cut above the rest, save the other elder of course, but it seemed to lack thought. It moved in very predictable patterns, not to mention that it stopped attacks when we got out of range."

"Why would someone design them like that?"

"I tried to do my best," A familiar voice sounded, though I had no clue where I knew it from. "But they came out far less… together than I hoped."

Zirnai's voice morphed into a cold expression as we all turned to the dome, and now floating humanoid shape at the center of the circle. It looked to be made of pure white energy, and Zirnai gasped at the sight.

"That's not possible." She staggered back and I grasped her shoulder with a hand to help steady her as I felt worry blossom in my chest.

"So much power," Misty muttered, her eyes a blazing bright crimson and her fangs full extended. I checked out bond and stumbled at the sheer amount of hunger within her, and the fact that the beast was docile, almost frightened yet still full of aggression, like a fight or flight instinct had been triggered.

"What is it?" I tried to focus on the being, and the moment I did, I knew what they meant. Never before had I felt overwhelmed when using my aether sense, but this time, my entire body froze at the sheer power that was on display. My hands shook as I glanced over at Zirani whose eyes were wide open in shock.

"Zirani." Sandra's voice sounded softer than ever, but the worry was clear. "What is that?"

"Ki," She whispered. "It's ki."

I opened my mouth to reply but stopped when two of the chanting arcanists raised their hands, and a large bag that I hadn't noticed earlier, rose into the air. My eyes grew wider when a large beast was taken out of the bag and placed at the center of the circle just below the glowing white being.

"Such lovely reactions," The white being said gleefully, and his head shifted towards me. "And there you are, my prize. I was getting worried that I would have to resort to using this waste of flesh."

He gestured to the beast below him, who was undoubtedly an aether beast, similar to Ziraini in that it held a humanoid shape, though this was far more inhuman than human, and looked to be some sort of crustacean. It was unmoving and seemed dead, or at least that's what my arcane sense told me. It was hard since the ambient ether was being overwhelmed by this new power.

"Zirnai what do we do?" I asked mentally.

"Nothing," the being who I assumed was the lost king, replied, and I felt shock ripple through. Had he just read my mind?

"You shouldn't leave it wide open if you don't want it to be read,' The lost king said with a chuckle. "Now if you would kindly step into the ring, just below me."

It didn't have a face, but I guessed it was smiling.

"Zirani!" I hissed loudly.

She finally snapped out of her stupor and turned to me with a grim look on her face. Worry and fear coursed through our bond, but so did determination to get through this. Her being like this was in some way more worrying than the lost king. I'd never seen her this sacred before, or this shocked.

"Into the circle," The lost king said, this time with a far less cheery voice. "I won't ask again, and I'd prefer if I didn't have to drag you in."

"I'm going to need your body Aiden," Zirani said, ignoring the command just as I did.

I nodded without hesitation and closed my eyes in preparation for the takeover. She'd told me a bit about it earlier, and I needed to be relaxed and as willing as possible for it to work with the technique she was using.

The smooth fake voice sighed. "Very well, if you wish to try and deny me even after my gracious offer then I will revert to a far more effective method, force."

I ignored the voice and waited for Zirani to take over, but after a long tense moment nothing happened, and I opened my eyes to see her gone, no, not gone, but back in my core.

"Ziran—"

My words were cut off as I was pulled off my feet by an unknown and unseen force, my whole body stilling just as I began to try and move.

"Aiden!" Sandra and Misty rushed to me, but both fell face-first into the ground before they could reach me as if a sudden weight had pushed them down.

"I don't think so," The lost king said, his jovial tone back. "I will not allow you or that jungle bitch to interfere. I have waited far too long for this."

I tried to move my body, but everything refused to budge. It was like I was frozen. I watched in horror, terror settling in as I floated closer and closer to the arcane circle. I tried to message Zirani but it was as though a wall had been erected between my mine and hers, and I could feel it shaking as Zirani banged at the other side while I was unable to do anything. It wasn't just my body that I was unable to control but my aether as well. No matter how hard I tried, I was unable to pull even a minuscule amount of aether from my core.

All I could do was watch as I was drawn closer to whatever dark purpose this thing had in store for me.

Chapter 224

"Stop Struggling, this will go much smoother for the both of us if you just accept it."

I ignored the voice and continued to struggle as I was pulled closer and closer to the center of the circle, not that I could do much. With my aether and body locked down by invisible restraints, all I could do was try and tug at them, but it was like I was a child trying to break out of steel chains, no matter how hard I tried, how much effort I put into it, nothing budge.. My heart was beating a mile a minute, and for the first time in a while, I was feeling true fear, the type that sent chills down one's spine. It didn't help at all, that I was unable to feel Zirani. A wall stood in between our bond and I could feel her trying to smash it down, with no luck.

As I drew closer to the figure, my struggles died down as my restraints seemed to tighten. I was lowered to just next to the humanoid beast, but I didn't care much about that or getting a better look as I was too busy trying to figure out what I could do. I didn't have Zirani with me this time, and Sandra and Misty were out for the count.

"Now, remain silent while I prepare you for the transition," The lost king said gleefully, his voice smug with satisfaction. I had no doubt he was enjoying every second of this, and I wanted no more than to strike him down, not that I could in my current position.

My body was turned until I was lying on my back, spread eagle, and then four string of energy with needle tip points formed around the figure, and shot down towards me. I braced for impact, but it didn't help as they pierced into my body.

Bruning agony coursed through me as ki was forced into my body. My bones, blood, core, and everything else were soaked in power and I might have been appreciative if not for the fact that I knew deep down I couldn't handle it, that raw ki was not meant to be used by someone at my level. Zirani had said as much and from the way my body was tearing itself apart, it was obvious it was breaking me down.

I'd felt pain before, but nothing like this. It stopped my thoughts in their tracks, and all I could think of was the pain, so much pain. If I'd been able to make a sound, I would have been screaming. It was like every part of my body had been lit on fire while it was slowly tearing apart. Bones broke and shattered, organs ruptured and muscles tore themself apart. Why hadn't I passed out yet? Why wasn't I dead? Surely this much pain and damage should have killed me by now or at least put me out?

"Almost."

The voice sounded relaxed as it commented on my torment. For what felt like an eternity but was probably only a few minutes, I burned and broke all while Zirani smashed against the wall that had been erected, her blows far greater now as despite the wall, she was probably getting some hint of what was happening.

When the pain died down I did not sigh in relief, and not just because I couldn't. My mind felt numb, and my thoughts traveled at a snail's pace. I was almost certainly in shock.

"Now, time for your souls." The voice giggled. "If you thought that was bad then this next part will shock you."

The voice guffawed at its own words, and before I could even muster a shred of concentration to think on them, I felt a few more of the needle pierce me, but not into my body. I shuddered and felt my fear and pain increase to levels I hadn't known were possible. It was attacking my soul.

had little strength of body or mind left to muster, but even so, I tried to struggle tried to do anything to stop this as new pain, like lighting flowing through my veins, hit me. I'm not sure if it was because my nerves were destroyed or I'd gone through so much pain already, but the lighting did not feel as bad.

"These pesky seals," The lost king muttered, and I felt him probing my soul, attempting to get rid of something I'd never noticed before. Most likely because I'd rarely had a look at my own soul. The only times I had been during bonding.

A dozen layers of intricate patterns wove around my soul, or a part of it that pulse lightly with golden light. The needles and power that had entered struck and slowly began to destroy and wear down the patterns which fought back ferociously as though they were living things.

"Pesky seals." The voice sounded annoyed.

For a moment I let myself hope that these seals I hadn't been aware of could hold this thing back, but they were shattered as more ki was flung against the seals, and though they lasted for a long while, eventually they broke down under the sheer amount of power being used against them.

"Finally, now I can—"

The lost king did not get to finish his words as the seals which had been holding back something I hadn't been aware of broke, and golden light surged from within me and outwards. I felt the ki attempt to batter it down, but every single bit of foreign power was pushed out, and I convulsed as something began to build up within me.

"No, no, no!" The lost king screeched, the power that had been masking its voice, distorting with its anger. "You were meant to remain still. No matter, I will force you to bend!"

More needles of ki attempted to pierce me, but all were pushed back and some even dispersed by the golden light that was flooding my body. I let out a loud scream as golden light burst from me, tearing my restraints apart and turning them into dust. The wall between me and Zirnai shattered as the lost king screamed, not in anger, but in pain.

"Aiden, what are doing!" Zirani sounded panicked.

I grit my teeth. "I don't know but— Aaah."

I let out another scream as a burning sensation filled my body, though not as bad as the last, and not harmful. The golden light, whatever it was, had started to repair my body. Bones reformed, and torn muscles and tendons knitted themself back together, stronger than before, bathed in this power I hadn't known existed within me.

"Nooo!"

The voice screeched and now with my body free, I was able to turn my head towards the figure of light. Orbs of light had formed around it and they shot down towards my prone body, but I raised a trembling hand and focused willing this new power to act. My eyes widened as a wave of golden light exploded from my hand, intercepting the incoming projectiles and pushing them back. It seemed that this golden power was stronger than the ki the lost king was using, but not by too much as neither form of power seemed to be able to destroy the other, only push them back.

"Aiden, that power, h-how?" Zirani asked in awe.

"I'm not sure," I replied mentally, my voice strained. "But I could use some help."

"My core is changing, growing, I c-can't." The last word was a grunt, and I felt her mind going dormant. "Aiden, i.."

I cursed and turned my attention back to the lost king, trying to think of what to do. Firstly, I got to my feet and somehow ended up jumping several feet into the air.

"What the—"

All I'd meant to do was stand, but it seemed like the boost had been greater than I thought, not that I had a lot of time to think on it as the glowing white being sent a wave of ki at me. I raised a hand and a wave of golden light met his ki, pushing it back once again and dispersing it, but failing to do any sort of lasting damage, or any damage at all for that matter.

I glanced over at Sandra and Misty who had gotten to their feet. It seemed that my power had broken their restraints too or the lost king had released them by accident when I'd broken free. Whatever the case it didn't matter.

"Any plans?" I shouted toward them over the sound of whistling wind. When had that popped up? I looked around and blinked as I noticed the sandstorm we were in. Either my mind had fully healed yet or I'd been too busy with the king to notice.

"The circle!" Sandra shouted poting down at the arcane circle. "The elders are gone, it's the circle!"

I frowned and with a glance at my surroundings, confirmed that the elders had vanished, either they'd run away or been destroyed in my clash with their master. Sandra was right, the circle was probably what was keeping him here since the entire plan had been to get him a body. He still didn't have one so if the circle was destroyed then he would be sent back to wherever he came from.

I forced and brought up the golden light, but the king had not been idle nor was dumb enough that he hadn't realized what I was trying to do. Just as I shot out a wave of golden light around me at the circle, the glowing white figure shot towards me, its hand latching onto my neck.

"You're mine, mine, mine, mine!" It screamed in a childish tone like it was having a tantrum.

"I'm nobodies, but theirs," I said, meaning Zirani and my lovers, just as they were mine. "Now get. The. Fuck. Off me!"

Its hand pulsed with light just as mine did, but it was too late for him as my light had broken the circle, and the figure shimmered, screeching and screaming obscenities as he did. I began to relax as he grew fainter and fainter, but I staggered back as the human figure turned into white light and tried to enter me. I tried to push it back with golden light, but it kept on moving down.

Its voice, no longer masked, echoed in my head. "I will tear your soul apart!"

It was grating but sounded far more feminine than I'd expected.

I tried to calm myself and build up as much of my power as I could, and just as he was about to attack my soul, I pushed it all out. Instead of him being pushed back as I expected, I felt something entirely unexpected happen.

Glowing white light was surrounded by golden light and by some unseen force, began to form into the shape of a core. His or her voice began to fade as a glowing orb of brilliant white light settled down next to my first.

I looked over at Sandra and Misty one last time, words trying to escape my lips but failing as I fell.. The last thing I saw before my darkness engulfed me was golden light surge out of my body one last time, towards the two ladies.

Chapter 225

"Aiden?"

I felt something soft and warm pressing against my face and I blearily blinked open my eyes to look up into Misty's crimson eyes, relief washing through them me as they met my own.

"Thank heavens." She sighed and turned her away to address someone. "He's awake."

She turned back to me with a soft smile. "You really need to stop ending up like this."

I snorted and slowly sat up. My mind felt sluggish, but as I turned to watch Zirnai approaching, memories of what had occurred became clear and my eyes widened as I quickly glanced at our surroundings, only to find that we were no longer on the tower or the floor at all. In fact, it seemed like we were outside the tower, at the twin horn camp we'd looted when we'd first arrived. The tower also looked different, smaller, and while it was still grey, it no longer held a multitude of clours, only an azure blue and orange drifted on its surface.

"I'm guessing we won?" I asked, turning to Zirani who nodded with a hesitant smile.

"We did, but…" Her words trailed off and I felt nervous wash through our bond, and worry.

It was then that I noticed it, the new object within me, the second core, a mix of golden and white light, right next to my first which also looked different. Patches of gold marked its shell and it was somewhote larger, deeper. However none of those revelations made me panic, it was the fact that the second core was filled that made me panic, especially when I recognized the presence within.

Almost as if my sensing had awakened it, a loud screeching came through a new bond that I hadn't noticed, and almost instantly I cut it off and subdued the entity that was inside the core.

"You're kidding me," I said as I looked over at Zirani. There was no wat the lost king or queen I guessed was my second core, my second bonded beast. I waited for Zirani to shark her head and assure me it was not, but it never came, instead, she smiled shakily, looking somewhat angry herself.

"I'm afraid so Aiden." She sighed heavily. "I'm not sure how it happened since I was asleep at the time, but the twin's horn great master, or mistress more aptly, is your second bonded beast.'

I just stared in shock, unable and not wanting to comprehend what had happened. I'd been looking forward to getting a second core, but now that was gone, and I was stuck with whatever the hell that thing was. I couldn't even sense an affinity from it, at least not one that I recognized.

"What do we do?" I asked hopefully. Surely Zirani would know of some way to get rid of a core.

"Nothing."

I blinked. "Excuse me."

"Aiden, I think it's best if we go over what happened first before we speak further on your core," Zirani suggested, and though I really wanted to ask what she mean when she said nothing, I nodded.

Sandra had walked over by now, and stood next to Misty, both waiting for Zirnai to explain.

"I had a look at your memories while you were asleep," Zirani began. "And as far as I can tell, the

only reason any of us are still alive is your bloodline, your second bloodline. I'm not sure what its power is exactly but it held back the lost queen and fixed your body."

The memory of burning agony and tearing made me shudder, but I continued to listen.

"She was trying to remake your body in her image, but when she broke the seals your bloodline reacted and well, you saw what happened. What you didn't see was what it did to all of us. I'm sure you've noticed the changes to my core, but it's not just my core, but also your body."

She motioned to the others. "And thiers.'

I looked over and gasped as I noticed that their cores also looked similar to Zirani's, and as I checked my bonds, I found that both looked stronger as though a lot of time had passed.

"You gave me a boost to all my vampiric abilities and traits," Misty said.

"And my bloodline is stronger," Sandra added with a smile.

"You increased the power of all your cores, bodies, and anything else." Zirani looked happy and frighten. "Each of you is above your level in power."

"H-how?"

She shrugged. "To be honest, I'm not sure. Your bloodline is dormant now, and I can't even sense it. This is undoudbetedly a good thing, Aiden, a shock to be sure, but a good thing."

I would have been just as happy and excited, except my mind was still partially on the topic of my second core. "And her?"

Zirani knew who I was refreshing to. "Her is a problem, but one that we can't solve right now, and I'm not sure we should."

She raised a hand before I could protest her words. "Aiden you have a core of ki, pure ki, surrounded and kept in check by your bloodline. By all laws that exist in this world, it should be possible, ki is not meant for low-level arcanists because it's too powerful and unwieldy, but you solved that issue, or your bloodline has. Whatever your bloodline is, it's keeping the ki contained, and if we can get you to tap into even a small fraction of that power, then, well, you will be the first arcanist to wield ki at your level."

I pushed down my rising excitement. "But what about her!"

"We'll deal with her together," Zirnai said. "She is at your mercy now and under your control, you don't have to worry about her doing anything, and I'll always be there to make sure of that. It's not what any of us expected to happen, but this is a rare opportunity."

"I think she's right Aiden," Misty added. "Anything that could help us that much is something we need, especially since now we'll be heading over to the border cities."

I turned to Zirnai with a raised eyebrow. "That true?'

"The tower is gone, and we're more powerful than I could have hoped for." She pulled me to my feet. "We'll head back to your town and pay them a visit, then head to the border, but first we need to let the steel hear know of our departure."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Sandra asked. "There's going to be a lot of questions."

She laughed. "With this power increase, I'm positive I can disguise our true power. We'll come up with a story, and leave. There is still some training left to be done but we can finish that on our way to the border, in fact, there's a stop in-between there and here that I want us to take if we have enough time."

I was somewhat calmer now, but as Zirani went about drawing a simple array on all of our wrists, I couldn't help but turn my attention to my second core. She had calmed down and I could sense she was no longer screaming, but anger, fury, and sorrow were still clear to me, even though I'd shut off our connection, I could still sense what she was feeling. I really hoped Zirani was right about her being unable to do anything because she was certainly pissed off enough.

"Hold on, what happened to the twin horn?" I asked abruptly, remembering that had been our main reason for going into the tower.

"Gone," Sandra said with a shrug. "None of them showed up with us."

"They're most likely all dead," Zirani said as she began on the last array of Misty's left wrist. "They were all connected to the lost queen and when Aiden captured her, the connection was cut off, and since it was a soul connection and quite deep, well."

Zirani made a scissoring motion with her hand. "I don't think any of them met a peaceful end."

"So it's over then?" I didn't feel as fulfilled as I'd expected, though I certainly felt happy at their demise.

"For the most part yes," Zirani replied, finishing with her work. "The steel hear and Orton have to clean up on their part, but our work is done, now I want you all to feed a bit of aether into the array, and then we should head back to the steel heart, the riding beasts are still here so we can use them."

My aether felt a lot stronger than before, and I had a lot more for it. I fed a minuscule amount into the array and it pulsed with a faint blue light once and then the array faded altogether. "Was it meant to do that?"

Zirani nodded. "Yes, now let's get moving."

Zirani moved back into our core as the three of us approached the riding beasts. It had probably been a few days or less for them, but for us, it had been months since we'd last seen them. It felt refreshing to be back in our world.. The tower had been interesting, to say the least, and definitely helpful, but I was glad we were out of it.

Chapter 226

Things felt too peaceful as we traveled the path back to the steel heart camp or more likely to intercept them as they had said they would be traveling to the tower. I just hope they hadn't been close enough to see it change as that would raise questions that none of us wanted to answer.

The land around was a contrast to what we'd seen in the tower and I kept waiting for something to pop out at us, but nothing ever did. We saw the occasional beasts but a single flare of aether from any of us sent it scurrying. Only months before we would have had trouble with such beasts, but now, I doubted there was a beast strong enough in this part of the plains to challenge us. The moss troll that we'd fought would be no problem now, in fact, I was certain I could take a few of them on, especially with this latest boost in power.

Because of our increases in power, we didn't stop riding when night fell. We didn't need to be worried about any of the beasts in this area, and all of us wanted to get back to some semblance of civilization as quickly as possible, although not so much for Zirani as she would be forced to head back into her core when we arrived. It would be refreshing to have her walking about with us when we reached the lands beyond the great scar or even as we traveled through the great scar.

"I doubt that," Zirani said having read my thoughts. "They will be those who look at you in jealousy if they knew you possessed me, not to mention others who would seek to tear your core from you."

"That's possible," I said in shock. "I thought you couldn't take a core from a human?"

In the academy, we'd learned that it had been tired many times, but never once had it worked. A core simply couldn't be taken from a person.

"Not through normal means, no," Zirani replied. "But there are ways to do so. If they got my core then they could sell me as a slave or to an arcanist who was looking for a high-level beast. You need the arch vein bloodline to bind all parts of a beast to a core, but you don't need it to use the core."

"So I take it we won't be telling anyone about my bloodline, ever?" I asked mentally.

"Not ever," She replied. "Once we get to my mother's domain, we will be safe, though I'm not sure what her reaction will be to me having been bonded."

The image of her mother pulling her core out suddenly appeared in my mind, and Zirani laughed. "She would never do such a thing, perhaps my aunt would, but not my mother, not unless she thought you were unworthy or treating me poorly, which you are not."

I sighed in relief but still felt nervous at the prospect of meeting her mother. Zirani was an amazingly powerful and knowledgeable aether beast, so I could only imagine what her mother would be like.

"Stop!" Misty called out a few hours later at sunrise. "I think they're up ahead."

The steel heart had set up camp in a flat area just below a hill and were packing up when we arrived. For some reason, I expected shock and questions, but I kept forgetting that it hadn't been much time for them. It had probably only been a few days since we'd gone. Even so, plenty of people did recognize us as we passed by and I happily waved back to them, and gave our greetings, enjoying the refreshing feeling of other people that weren't our enemies.

"Aiden?"

Kara put down a crate she was carrying and snapped an order to a nearby disciple before jogging over, a bright smile on her face. "You made it back."

"That we did," I replied, dismounting my beast. "Is elder Hyphen nearby?'

She nodded. "Yes, and I imagine he wants to speak with you. It'll take a few more minutes to pack up and nobody will go without the elder's permission."

Kara asked a multitude of questions as she led us over to the elders from what had happened, how the tower had been, what had become of the twin horn, and half a dozen more. I answered most using the story Zirani and I had created, but thank goodness we made it to the elders before she could ask any more.

"Elder Hyphen, they've returned." Kara gestured to us and we all stepped forward before she left with a quick bow.

Edler Hyphen looked exactly the same as I remembered him, though in a far greater mood as did Elder Kaylin who had been in conversation with him.

"Ah, the returning heroes!" Elder Kaylin bellowed with a smile, catching the attention of a few nearby arcanists who took a quick glance and then quickly got back to whatever they were doing. "I take it all went well?"

I risked a glance over at Sandra who nodded minutely.

"As well as they could," I answered.

During our ride towards the steel heart, we'd come up with a story to use about what had occurred in the ower. Part truth and lie since we couldn't tell them the true story. The steel heart seemed like an honest and fair sect, but it would be a lot harder to leave if they knew what had truly happened and how much we'd grown, not to mention I had no desire to fight any of them.

Hyphen and Kaylin's faces went through a number of different emotions as we told our story, but the greatest reaction was when we told them of our desire to leave.

"You cannot leave," Kaylin said. "You are some of the best disciples we've had in a long time. We need you, the steel heart needs you."

Hyphen did not seem as shocked. "Was it the war or the tower?'

"A bit of both," I replied as seriously as I could. I kept myself calm and my aether in check. Aether could act up when an arcanist got emotional and though it was rare in the plains, some could tell when someone was laying but looking at their aether.

Kaylin's head snapped towards Hyphen. "You can't be seriously considering letting them go?"

"We are not the twin horn," Hyphen replied with a firm look at Kaylin. "We do not force anyone to do anything. If they wish to leave then we cannot stop them, and friend, this is not the end. with the twin horn dead, we will see a time of peace and growth for our sect. More will come and we will all see bountiful growth in not just ourselves but our sect."

He turned to us and for the first time, with a genuine smile on his harsh face. "Thanks to them. I will not try to talk you out of it, but know should you ever wish to return then we will be waiting."

Kaylin still look conflicted but then he nodded reluctantly. "I'm not happy with it, but I guess I should be grateful for all you've done."

In a show of respect and thanks I hadn't expected, the elders bowed, which caught all of us off guard.

"Ignore the fees and other requirements," Hyphen said. "You three may leave for free."

After a sincere thanks for everything, the three of us left the elders, surprised and happy that things had gone over so well. I felt bad as we walked over to Kara who had waiting nearby. I truly enjoyed being with the steel heart. They were a king and fair sect, especially compared to what most sects were meant to be, not that I planned on joining another sect anytime soon or ever if could help it.

"Kara we—"

My words were cut off as Kara raised a hand. "You're leaving."

I blinked. "How did you—"

"I could tell from the moment you arrived." She smiled sadly. "There's no way I can talk you into staying?"

I shook my head apologetically. "I'm afraid not."

She sighed, but then perked up, plastering an obviously fake smile on her face. "Well then, thanks."

She leaned in and wrapped the three of us in a tight hug before she pulled back with a grin. "Don't forget about me, ay?"

Before I could reply she walked away, her shoulders shaking slightly. Great, now I really felt like a piece of shit.

"I'm going to miss this sect," Sandra said, her eyes watery. "I wasn't here for long, but it was the closest thing I had to family after… well you know."

Her unshed tears faded as she turned to us. "Now I have you guys."

I smiled and together the three of us left the steel heart behind, walking in the opposite direction as they headed towards the tower.

"Where to now?" Sandra asked as the steel heart slowly vanished from sight.

I smiled widely.. "Home."

Chapter 227

The trip back to West Vale took slightly longer without the riding beasts, but we made much better time than we would have before our time in the tower. We didn't have to worry about any beasts, and didn't need to stop for food or as many breaks. At our level, we could last more than a week without sleep, not that doing so would be ideal.

A few beasts had attacked, ignoring our power, but we'd made short work of them. A simple impact seed or dark dagger took care of them, and I took great joy on the second day as a group of gale wolves stumbled upon us. They attacked, probably thinking their superior numbers would help them, but it hadn't, and I'd torn into them with a savage glee, I rarely showed. I had to thank them for chasing me to Zirani, and I did, by ending their lives quickly rather than making them suffer.

"You feel better now?" Sandra asked.

"Much," I replied. "Should we camp for the night or keep going?"

"We don't really need to sleep," Misty added. "So we would just keep going."

Despite everything that had happened, ZIrani did not let us waste this time of ours. She had us continue our set training, with plans to teach use how to change aether and advanced techniques on our way to Bullrock, which was what Zirnai had been talking about when she'd said there was a stop she wanted to take before reaching the border. At first, I'd been confused as to what reason she could have for wanting to go to the underground city until I realized that it had an aether labyrinth.

Aether labyrinths were similar to aether towers in only one way, both gave arcanists the potential for great growth, but an aether labyrinth was far riskier. It was similar to the great scar in that it was an amalgamation, apparently of pieces from different worlds, not to mention that it had no structure. You could come across a beast that outclassed you in the first hour or become trapped. It was high risk, potentially high reward. There were tales of sects and great houses being formed by those who'd received power in the labyrinths or found an artifact of great power.

It would also be a great place to find essence for Misty and Sandra. Misty would need to drain beasts of their essence to fill her next core while it was much simple for Sandra. Neither had yet decided what exactly they wanted their next affinity to be, not that I blamed them. I'd still be deciding it she hadn't become my next core.

Just the thought of her made me shudder. I'd experimentally released the block on her to try and see how she'd react, and to my dismay, she'd started screaming curses at me, and other nonsense I could not understand. I'd put the block back up, and waited for her to quiet down, before trying a more silent examination of what she was. For some reason, I had the distinct feeling she wasn't an aether beast, there was something about her that felt off, not in a bad way, but she was most definitely not like anything I'd ever come across

before.

Zirani's words on tapping into the power were great and all, but I didn't know how exactly we were going to do that. I didn't risk trying it on my own out of fear something disastrous would happen, but Zirani's core was different. She and I spent much of our time, testing her limits, or she had. She demonstrated a number of different techniques which made me glad I'd gone with nature. The conclusion was what she'd already predicted and said, our core was far beyond what it should be as was everything else.

"I don't know how we're ever going to be able to do anything with her," I said to Zirani after another attempt at communication on the fourth day.

"Give it some time," Zirani replied. 'She's dealing with a lot and is very, very angry. Eventually, she will calm down, I hope so at least, and then we can approach her. It's not like we need her permission to use her power."

"Wouldn't that be like slavery?" I questioned. I didn't care much for this lost queen, not after everything she'd done, but that didn't mean I wanted her as a slave.

"No, we won't be forcing her to do anything," Zirnai explained. "Just using her power…"

She frowned. "I can see why you'd think that. Nevertheless, let's wait before we approach it. How about you two, have you decided what affinities you want?"

"I'm trying to decide between metal and wind," Sandra said. "Wind would increase my already existing capabilities while metal would allow me both great defense and offense, especially if I continue to improve with my bloodline, and it is stronger now."

"Good choices, both," Zirani said turning to Misty. "And you?"

"I want something more utility-based," Misty said. "I have death for offense and causing damage, but I have nothing for sensing, movement, or anything else."

"There are death techniques that can help you with those, but I understand where you're coming from." Zirani nodded. "We need to tap into the full power of your core and not just its death aspect before we choose your second."

On the fifth day of travel just as the sun was rising, we arrived at the town of West Vale. It looked exactly how I remembered it, its low walls, and patrolling guards. I took in the sight for a long moment before I sprinted up to the gate, Misty and Sandra close behind me. Zirani had grumbled about it, but she had returned to her core. I knew she'd been very pleased when we finally made it to her home and she didn't have to hide every time we came across someone, not in our group.

The rising sun lit up the land in a golden glow and the swaths of wheat-colored grass looked beautiful compared to their usual dullness. Wind blew the grass and foliage in a gentle breeze as small animals broke the morning silence with calls. I'd never realized just how serene West Vale was, but after having seen the outside world, I would not take this time for granted.

"Hold, what business do— Aiden?"

I recognized the guard who held out a hand to stop me and I gave him a friendly nod as I passed through the gate. Misty and Sandra followed behind, and none of us were stopped. Unsirsping, since I was the son of the only arcane healer in town and the arrays Zirani had made for us had faded, which meant our full power was on display. The guards were mid-level first core arcanists at the first level of infusion while the three of us were at the third level with two cores, one at the iron stage. Even if they'd wanted to stop us, they wouldn't have been able to.

As we headed towards my aunt's house, we got a fair amount of looks both surprised, and unfortunately fearful, that was until they recognized me, then I received a fair amount of greeting and was approached by many who asked a multitude of questions from how I'd grown so strong to the beautiful ladies trailed me. I replied with short answers before increasing my pace to my aunt's home. It was still early morning so there weren't too many people up and above, and hopefully, my aunt would still be home. She tended to leave quite early for her clinic. Maybe I'd catch her on her way out.

A wave of nostalgia hit me as I walked up the path to my house, and knocked on the door thrice. Eveyhritng was so peaceful and normal compared to the last few weeks. It was not a change of scenery and pace.

"Coming!"

A bright smile lit up my face at the sound of my aunts voice.

"Who is it this early in the morning…"

My aunt's words trailed off as she opened the door, and stared at me. It took her a moment to realize who I was, but when she did, I found myself wrapped up in a tight embrace, which I eagerly returned.

"You're back." Her voice was shaky, and I patted her soothingly on the back.

"Yes, I wanted to see you once more before I headed across the scar," I said, pulling back to look her in the eyes.

"The great scar?" She parroted. "Isn't too early, you were only—"

She stopped and her eyes narrowed for a moment before widening. "Aiden! H-how are you already at your second core?"

"Zirani," I answered with a grin. "And a few other things, but can we speak inside? I think the neighbours are watching."

She smiled and ushered the three of us inside, giving me a wide-eyed stare ad Misty and Sandra entered. She mouthed the word, 'two' in shock.

I raised three fingers and mouthed back, 'three' which seemed to confuse her until she remembered Zirani. She shook her head in disbelief and walked after the two ladies.

It was good to be back home, even if only for a short time.

Chapter 228

Jenna's shock at the two ladies increased when she realized who Misty was. The difference in hair, eyes, and body had confused her, but Jenna had seen the old Misty enough times to recognize her even with all the changes, though it had taken a few seconds.

"What happened to your hair and eyes?" Jenna asked, glancing over to me as though I had an answer.

I did and we'd already decided that we would tell her a bit, but if she pushed then we'd tell her everything. She was my aunt and the person I trusted more than anyone. Besides I knew she wouldn't see Misty as some sort of monster, in fact, she'd probably be curious or who knew, maybe she already knew of aether vampires.

"I went through a bit of a change," Misty said sheepishly.

"I can see that." My aunt chuckled then turned to Sandra. "And who are you?'

Sandra bowed nervously which got a raised eyebrow from my aunt. "I'm Sandra, a close friend of Aiden."

"Close huh?" My aunt shot me a look. "I bet."

I held back a blush and coughed politely. "Aunty, do you mind if we stay here for today and tomorrow. As I said I wanted to return before we headed to the border cites."

"Of course, you can stay here," She replied with a smile. "This is and will always be your home. Now, I want the full story then I can go and cook something up.."

"Don't you have work at the clinic?" I asked, not that I wouldn't mind her staying home for a full day.

"Oh, that's right I haven't told you, two of your classmates chose to become healers." She let out a sigh. "It's so much nicer having people to help, and I am sure they can surivev without me for a day."

So as we all settled in, I told her everything, leaving absolutely nothing out. I told her of the war, to which she showed clear anger at the fact I'd been a part of it, but also pride when she found out what I'd been fighting for. I told her of our missions for the sect and the tower. She listened intently as I explained our training, and she reached out and placed a hand on mine when I recounted the flesh abominations and what had occurred on the last floor.

I hadn't spoken or even thought of it because phantom pain would always strike if I did. I would start to shake and the memories of the pain would surface. I was lucky to have come out of that sane. I knew most certainly wouldn't.

"It seems like you've been through a lot," My aunt said with a sad smile. She leaned in and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. I sighed at her warmth and tender touch, allowing for just a few moments to let everything go and to stop my mind from thinking of the next step in my journey. Ever since I'd left it had been one thing after the other, and even in times of relaxation, I'd always think of the next thing. The only true time I'd relaxed was in the throes of passion.

Next to my aunt, I allowed myself to just relax and do nothing else for a long moment.

I'm unsure of how much time passed, but I was woken by a hand gently shaking me, and as I opened my eyes, I realized I must have fallen asleep

Sandra smiled down at me. "Your aunt's gone out to get a few groceries."

I yawned and sat up. "How long was out?"

"Only a few minutes," Misty said, on her seat across from me, one

of my aunt's books in her hands. It was one of my aunt's fantasy novels, something about rings and a lord.

"Your aunt had quite the collection of books." Misty shut the book and glanced over to the bookshelf in the living room. "Especially history. I didn't even know there were wars before the calamity, let alone world wars."

"That's just the books she keeps out here," I said. "She has a storage drive upstairs full of hundreds if not thousands of books."

I'd read many of them, mostly the fantasy stuff. The history didn't interest me as much since aether and the arcane arts hadn't existed before the calamity.

"Hey Aiden, do you mind if I check out your room?" Sandra asked.

I shrugged. "Sure."

My room was pretty bare, and it wasn't like I had anything to hide. The time I'd had away from the academy was mostly spent with Leyton and Thomas, goofing around, or at the academy library, reading up on the arcane. Thinking about it now, it was a waste of time, considering that most of my knowledge was lacking or just false.

"It was not a waste of time," Zirani interjected, coming out of the kitchen. "Your dedication to the arcane is commendable and is something all those who wish to grow should have, though for most it's just the power the arcane arts grant. Now, I know I said I wanted to do some training, but for these two days, I think we can all relax. We've been through… a lot to say the least."

As Sandra headed upstairs to my room, I stood and made my way towards the door. "I'm going to see if I can find Leyton and Thomas, you wanna tag along Misty?"

"Definitely not," She replied. "I do not want to have to put up with Leyton's gawking or jokes."

I opened my mouth to say he wasn't that bad but faltered as she shot a blank look my way. I changed my words. "Fair enough."

"Not oigng to ivite me?" Zirani asked, with a mock look of hurt.

"If you wanna come along then fine, but I'm not explaining things when people start asking questions," I replied with mock severity.

She rolled her eyes. "Be back in an hour to two. You wouldn't want to miss your aunt's cooking now would you?"

"Definitely not."

My aunt's cooking was the best, and though the fired beast meat had been fine, it had lacked the flavor my aunt's cooking had, not to mention it wasn't actually chicken, just the closest meat we could find to chicken.

The town was lively now that the sun had fully risen and many people stopped to greet me and ask questions, most of which I answered, but a few were either inappropriate or would have taken far too long to answer. For those, I gave short answers or just refused to answer at all. At another time that might have pissed people off, but my cores and level were clear for all to see, which a lot of questions had been about. I gave vague answers like dedication and hard work, the usual.

When I finally made it to Leyton's home, on the edge of the market, I found him standing outside with his father. He looked gruffer than I'd last seen her, which I acquainted to the fact he had stubble on his chin and had let his brown hair grow out more into a wild mane.

He was going over a map with his father, who looked just like him, but with black hair, and far more muscle than his lanky son.

I coughed loudly, which failed to get their attention as they seemed engrossed on the map so I walked over and peered down at it, holding back a laugh when neither turned to face me.

"Interesting map," I commented, waiting for a reaction but all I got was a, "Hmmm," from Pell, Leyton's father.

"I drew it up myself," Leyton said proudly. "It's a…"

His words trailed off as he frowned and turned to face me. His eyes widened. "Aiden?"

"Huh?" His father glanced up and the same expression appeared on his face. "Jenna's boy?"

Leyton gripped me in a hug, which I returned, nodding to his father as I did.

"Oh shit! When did you get back and h-how are you so strong?" Leystons eyes widened even further as he no doubt sensed my power.

"Leyton Jones!" A loud fiend voice came from inside his home. "What did I say about cursing?"

Leyton winced. "Sorry ma, it's just, Aidens back!"

No reply came, but the door banged open and Georgia Jones, bustled out, a smile on her face as she spotted me.

"Oh, Aiden, it's been so long." She hugged me tightly in a motherly embrace as though I was a lost son come back. She'd always been so nice to me and was very grateful to my aunt who'd stopped her from having a miscarriage and helped deliver Leyton's sister.

"Hi Mrs. Jones," I greeted and she pouted. "What have I said about calling me, Mrs. Jones. Just call me aunty Jones or aunty Georgia."

"Sorry, aunty." She's always been so sympathetic to the fact I had no parents, even though I'd come to terms with it long ago, and I hadn't really cared since I had my aunt, but she meant well so I wasn't going to say anything. The main reason for wanting to find my real parents wasn't simply for some heartfelt reunion, but for answers as to why they'd left me, and if those answers weren't good enough then there sure as hell wouldn't be a relationship.

"Come in, come in, I've baked ginger cookies," Mrs. Jones said.

"Dear we have hunting to do," Pell said gently, though his wife still glared. "We can take Aiden with us, and come back later. We'll only be gone an hour, there's some beast sighted near the farmlands and mayor wants me to take a look."

"You boys and your hunting, fine, but stay safe."

"I'll keep them safe, Mrs- Aunty," I said.

"Thank you, dear." With that, she bustled back into the house, leaving the three of us to all sigh in relief. Mrs. Jones was like a motherly force of nature.

"So, hunting?"

Pell nodded. 'Yeah, first I need to collect some arrows from Tanner."

Tanner was the town's arcane smith, and a damn good one, for the plains at least, and he was also Thomas's father, and since Thomas spent a lot of time in the forge, I'd no doubt be seeing him soon.

"Well then, what are we waiting for, lets go."

Chapter 229

"Aiden?"

Thomas looked exactly the same as the last time I'd seen him, the only difference was his clothes and the hammer he held in one of his hands. His much burly father stood beside him a bundle of arrows in hand.

"When did you get back?" Thomas asked.

"Just this morning," I replied, looking over the open forge. Pieces of metal, tools and other equipment lay about everywhere in what looked like some sort of organization, though I couldn't be sure.

The heat coming off the forge might have bothered a normal person, but everyone here was at least at the first level.

"Second core?" Tanner, Thomas's father, asked, shock clear in his voice and he almost dropped the bundle he held before hanging it over to Pell.

"It's a long story," I said. "Anyways I'll come by later today or tomorrow, I've got some hunting to do with these lot."

"It'll be more of a slaughter if you go." Tanner chuckled. "There's not a beast around here strong enough to take you on."

"I'll just be watching," I said, giving Leyton a pat on the back. "And keeping this idiot out of trouble."

Leyton shrugged my arm off and gave me a mock glare.

We left the smithy and headed towards the southern gate. I glance over at the bundle of arrows that Pell placed in his quiver. For a moment I was confused as to why he'd need them when he had his aether, but then I remembered that he was only first core, and techniques were rare. I'd forgotten that because I had Zirani and well, I could now make my own. For someone like Pell, he'd be lucky to have one or two. Most of the time he'd just be using his ether to boost himself or attacks, using the most basic of patterns, techniques that couldn't really even be considered techniques.

"Ever hunted before?" Pell asked me as we walked through the gate and towards the tree line.

"I have," I replied, remembering all the hunting I'd done in the tower and the tracking and tips Zirnai had taught me. She of course was a master hunter and tracker, and trapper and a dozen more things. She'd learned a ton over her four hundred years.

Both men unslung thor bows as we crossed the treeline and all three of us began to walk silently, surveying the forest. It didn't take long to find the tracks we were looking for and after following those for an hour we came across a half-eaten corpse.

"He's close by," I said, sensing the lingering aether in the air. It was earth aether, and a decent amount, most likely from a two-core beast.

Pell nodded, having sensed it as well. Leyton had always bragged about his father being the best hunter in town and he wasn't wrong. Pell did have the best arcane senses in town, save for me of course.

We continued to follow the trail until we finally came upon the beast, sleeping the crook of a tree's root. It was a grendel, one of the larger variants, and instead of its usually furry skin, it had rocky scales.

"You think an arrow can take it?" I asked Pell who nodded and drew two.

"If I hit it in the head then yes." He

nocked the arrow, then raised his bow, taking a deep breath to steady himself as he pulled back the string. Aether rose in him and towards his hand in one of the crudest forms I'd ever seen. I had to wince. It did the job and the wind began to swirl around the around, picking up speed until a light breeze blew around Pell.

The forest seemed to still just before Pell loosed the arrow. It was a clean shot and directly on target, piercing the grendel's left eye and lodging itself into the beast's head. It was comical how the beast opened the other eyes and stared silently for a long moment before it let out a half scream before finally going limp.

"Nice shot." It had been a clean hit, but as Leyton and his fighter approached the corpse to start taking it apart to its core and other valuable resources, I couldn't help but think of how easy it would be to teach Pell a better technique, in fact, I could teach him a few. I may not have been of the wind affinity, but with everything Zirnai had taught me, I knew I could create a few techniques for it. Zirani had shown use affinity sets for other affinities just in case we got any ideas from them. Even without that knowledge, I could have shown Pell a better way to empower his arrow rather than just pushing aether onto.

"Pell, do you mind coming here for a second."

The hunter looked up with a questioning look, but I just motioned him closer. He handed the knife over to Layton who got to work quickly.

"What is it?" He asked.

I raised a hand. "I want you to pay attention to my aether, ok. I'm going to form a technique pattern, a very simple one, and I want you to watch and to try and recreate it."

He seemed very confused but nodded. "I don't see how I could learn a nature technique, but sure."

I smiled smugly and began to form a simple, but extremely improved version of the wind technique he'd used on his arrow. It took less than a minute to come up with the idea and form it, and the entire time, Pell looked on in awe and shock.

Without waiting for me to say anything he took the second arrow he'd had prepared and knocked it onto his bow. He raised it and began to try and form the technique, I'd just shown him. It took him a couple of tries, which confused me at first, but I realized I had to stop comparing myself to them. I had Zirani and a ton of training and practice.

When Pell finally got the hang of it, his arrow now held a mini whirling around the shaft, while the arrow held a blade of wind in the shape of the arrowhead, like a coating surrounding it. Leyton had stopped his work to watch his father and when the arrow was loosed it struck a nearby tree with a loud crack, tearing straight through it, and the one behind it, before embedding in a third. The coating at the arrowhead had two layers for increased and lasting penetration.

"H-how?"

I just shrugged. "As I said, it's a long story, but I think we should finish up here. I need to head home."

"Can you teach me?" Leyton asked.

"Sure, but tomorrow," I replied.

Pell and Leyton were silent as we walked back to the town, and Pell kept taking glances at me as we walked. I could tell he wanted to ask how but was holding back. As for KLeyton, well he was just muttering to himself about a lighting bolt technique and super speed. I smiled inwardly to myself. I'd think of a few things for.

"You look like you've been busy?" Misty raised an eyebrow at the bits of dirt on my robes.

"Hunting," I said before heading upstairs to take a shower.

I walked past my room as I did and found Sandra passed out on my bed, a magazine in her hand. I frowned and then curse myself as I realized what she held in her hand. It was one of the dirty magazines I'd used for private reasons. I hadn't even realized it had still been there. She must have had a light about that, and no doubt I'd hear about it when she woke, which was minutes after I'd gotten out of the shower and dressed.

She grinned at me and placed the magazine down. "Didn't know you were into those types of things."

I gave her ass a firm smack as she walked by, which earned me a playful yelp and glare. "You know damn well I do."

She giggled as we headed downstairs and the sound was like music to my ears. It felt so good to be able to just relax. My aunt was in the kitchen when we arrived downstairs and after helping her with the cooking, we all sat down to a hearty meal, enjoying each other's company, and telling lighter stories of things that had happened. Zirani's were obviously the best and I could tell that Misty and Sandra were getting more excited to finally cross the great scar.

When we were done, Zirai cleaned the dishes with a flick of a finger, using an odd technique I'd never seen before, but I wasn't going to complain. I was about to ask about sleeping arrangements when all three of my women followed me into my room.

Sandra smiled seductively as all three got undressed.

"It's been a while since we've been together," Sandra purred.

"And it looks like you backed up?" Zirani added as she walked over and began to undress me.

"I can–"

She pushed my hands away. "Let me."

I relaxed and let her slowly undress me, my lower region reacting accordingly as the two other ladies approached, their naked bodies of full display.

"Damn I'm lucky."

Chapter 230

I woke the next day feeling refreshed and slightly worn out. I'd taken each of the ladies multiple times and then they'd started to double team me, and at one point had even tried to see who could make me blow the fastest. I was very thankful Zirani had soundproofed the room somewhat with a technique. My aunt did not need to hear that.

"You look like you had a busy night?" My aunt asked as I walked past her on my way to the bathroom.

I rolled my eyes at her question which earned me a chuckle. My aunt still enjoyed teasing me it seemed, not that I cared. I was going to enjoy this day to its fullest because afterward, I doubted I'd see my aunt for a very long time.

The expedition only came once every few years and Zirani had made it clear the only way we were coming back was if we ourselves were strong enough to make it through the scar or via the expedition. Even though I'd been gone from home for a few months, I'd still known that it was never too far away, but after the crossing, they'd been no way back home easily or anytime soon. I'd come to terms with that though.

After a quick shower, I made my way downstairs, following the scent of cooking bacon. My stomach grumbled loudly, alerting my aunt who waved me towards the dining table.

"Sit down, I'll be done in a few."

I felt a feeling of nostalgia and melancholy wash over me as I sat down at the dining table for the first time in months, and for what would be the last time for an even longer while. I had many fond memories of meals with my aunt, times she'd tried to teach me and I'd ended up ruining dinner so we'd eaten out. The time Leyton and I had gotten into a mock fight over the last piece of chicken only to have Thomas snatch it while we weren't paying attention. Simpler times, and precious memories.

The others filled in one by one as my aunt finished up breakfast, and soon all five of us were enjoying another meal together.

"So, what's your plan for today?" My aunt asked. "Going to be teaching more techniques?"

I coughed and almost did a spit-take. "How did you find out about that?'

"After you four went to bed, the new mayor came to visit."

"New mayor." I frowned. "Since when?"

"Since it was found out the old mayor had been sneaking money for himself," My aunt replied, disgusted. "He didn't even have the decency to admit it, instead he just ran out of town spouting something about a deal with the twin horn."

I snorted. "I don't think he'll have any success with them."

"Whose the new mayor?" Misty asked.

Jenna smiled. "Someone you know quite well. Professor Luten, or just Luten now. He doesn't teach at the academy any longer."

"Luten!"

That was a surprise. I'd never taken him for someone who cared about a managing position, not that it was a bad thing. He'd been a great teacher and friend to all his students, helping in any way he could. He'd been like an older

brother or uncle to everyone.

"His core was fractured wasn't it?" I questioned. "Is that why he left?"

"Partially," My aunt replied. "But the town couldn't think of anyone more suited. He's liked by everyone and has taught multiple generations. He came here yesterday to ask if you'd be willing to teach some of the townsfolk. Apparently, Leyton per usual couldn't stop his big mouth from running."

Misty shot me an 'i told you so,' look.

That did sound just like Leyton. He'd probably bragged about it to everyone. I remembered quite a few times we would have gotten away with pranks if Leyton had just kept his mouth shut and not bragged about it.

"How many?" I asked. I could teach a few basic techniques that most could learn, but there was no way I had time to teach unique techniques to everyone in the town. Like most places, everyone got at least one core for the extended life span and other benefits, and the population of West Vale was a few hundred.

A thoughtful appeared on Zirani's face and she turned to my aunt. "Do you have cores per chance?"

"A few, why?" My aunt questioned.

"I can create a few ability cores and they can just learn from them," Zirani explained as though it was the most normal thing in the world to be able to create a core that could teach techniques.

"You can do that?" My aunt looked shocked.

"I'll make a few techniques, basic of course, for each affinity, and the mayor can hand them out as he wishes," Zirani said, her face becoming serious. "But he should be very careful that people don't find out. As far as I can tell, ability cores don't exist in the plains. I'll try to mask them as best I can, but if some townfolks go flapping about it to outsiders, you're going to have problems."

"He'll have to deal with that," My aunt said.

We finished up our breakfast and Zirani got to work on the cores. To my surprise, my aunt had taken today off as well as it was the last day she'd seen me for a while. I'd been planning to go hand out with Thomas and Lyeton, but decided I'd spend this time with my aunt. I also wasn't sure I wouldn't be mobbed if I left in the middle of the day. I fit had truly spread to the point the mayor knew, then no doubt most of the town knew.

It wasn't that I didn't think I could handle it, but I didn't particularly even want to get involved in the first place and I didn't want to have to use aether to run away from a crowd, especially not a crowd of people from West Vale. I didn't want there to be any animosity towards me from them.

My aunt and I spent the first part of the day just relaxing and speaking with one another, mostly about past events and stories. Misty had decided she wanted to have a look around the town market and had taken Sandra with her. Zirani said in the corner, listening in with a smile as she worked. I took a few glanced everyone now and then, but she assured me she'd teach me and explain later. I'd asked why she wasn't using the cores we'd got from the tower, but she explained there was no point in using those cores for basic techniques when Jenna had weaker cores.

Hours passed and eventually, Zirani finished with her work, leaving the bundle of cores to my aunt who said she would hand it to the mayor tomorrow, after we left, so no questions would be raised that they'd have to answers. Misty and Sandra came back with a few bundles of clothing and other items. It must have cost quite a bit, but we weren't really talking about funds. We'd looted plenty of coin and crystal from the twin horn, not to mention everything else. I'd spoken about making some money before we left for the crossing, but Zirani had explained that coin and crystals from the plains would be near worthless beyond the scar. The crystals were too low quality and coins weren't a form of trade beyond the scar. It was just different types of aether crystals.

When evening came, my aunt and I both cooked the meal together. Not just fried chicken, but mash potatoes with gravy, a delicious beef stew, and a whole roasted chicken with plenty of sides dishes. It was quite the feast and we all dug in with gusto. After the main course, came the dessert, a vanilla, and caramel cake. It must have cost quite a bit to get the caramel since it wasn't cheap, and since I wasn't aware of anyone in the town who sold it, she must have bought it from a merchant and been saving it.

The cake was finished in minutes and while the other three begged off to sleep, I spent the majority of the night with my aunt, speaking, and just trying to make this time last.

My aunt yawned loudly. "I think it's time I headed to sleep."

I nodded, even though I didn't feel tired at all. "Five more minutes?"

She shook her head and leaned in to give me a hug. "We still have tomorrow morning, Aiden. You're not just going to vanish on me are you?"

I chuckled and my voice sounded shaky. "Never."

The three ladies were sleeping silently when I made my way into bed. It took a long while or me to fall asleep as my mind kept drifting back to the future and what lay ahead. I'd spent yesterday and today pushing it away and just relaxing, but now that it was over, all those thoughts came rushing back in.. I was pretty sure I fell asleep that night due to mental fatigue and my mind running in circles.

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