They emerged in a city on fast forward. Everywhere, wagons on rails rolled, some full of people, some stacked with cargo. Ghosty afterimages of horses hauled the wagons in pefect time with each other, stopping to let tracks switch and others go, then contiunuing on. Everywhere, the creak and rattle of rolling wheels filled the air.

  “Istris. Trade capital of the world. The King of Marduk, which rules Verona, came from here. At least, his family line did. The official story is that the youngest son set off to bring civilization to another continent. The story carved in the palace marble say the third prince had an unhealthy relationship with a [Bastion Iguana] and was sent away.” Captain Blanco said. “Follow me.”

  They took a stairwell down underground, and now Kaden truly appreciated the wonder - for as far as he could see, the ground was hollow. Looking up, the tracks lay above, but the people of Istris moved underneath their railways.

  “One for the guard,” Captain Blanco said to a man, then led the way through markets and craft halls, what were clearly houses, and even more clearly, city government buildings. The woman at the front of one building wore crystalline white armor like Captain Blanco’s, and rushed to clasp her arms around him. “Daddy! Please, please say you didn’t bring another date.”

  Captain Blanco laughed. “He’s not one of ours. That’s Verona’s [Beast Master.] Got an a [Assassin] who tried to kill one of your citizens.”

  “We don’t tolerate that. I’m Miranda Blanco, I’m a deputy of the guard here in Istris.” She looked to the [Assassin] hanging over Kaden’s shoulder. Then the knife sticking out of his ribs. “That’s a secondary charge. Biff, Bud, come take custody of a prisoner.”

  She drew a golden scroll and scanned it. “Oh, yeah, he killed one of ours. The assault on Mr. Birch is not so easy. He’s not one of our citizens.”

  “Do what you can.” Captain Blanco helped the two guards who rushed up chain the [Assassin].

  “What will happen to him?” Kaden asked.

  Miranda watched until the doors closed behind her. “He’ll be tried. Since the System Logs record it, he’ll be convicted of killing unlawfully and sentenced to a decade dead. Then we’ll see if he’s changed or if he needs a century dead.”

  “I’ll be right back,” Captain Blanco said. “I promised Kaden I’d teach him something.”

  He lumbered off into the crowd, leaving an awkward silence.

  “Sorry,” Kaden said. “He really didn’t tell me. And I’m happily in a relationship.”

  Miranda pulled a battle axe from her inventory. “Dad says you use one of these. He also says you have a bad habit of killing criminals yourself. Don’t worry, lots of Adventurers start out like that. Did he give you good reasons not to, or just say it wasn’t right?”

  “They weren’t good reasons.”

  “That you know of,” Miranda said. “There’s immense value to society in seeing justice is fair and inescapable. More than the value of some experience and a title. I can see hidden titles. Most Deputies can. Who was the Queen?”

  “Deidra Pear,” Kaden said, tensing. “Who put me under a mind compulsion and tried to make me kill our party healer.”

  Miranda winced. “That’s…that is a harder call. It would have been right to bring her to justice. But even Dad knows there are difficult situations. It doesn’t change what’s right. It does mean I understand.”

  A few moments later, Captain Blanco returned. “You’re going to need this in the future, and you’ll need it faster than growing your [Leadership] skill normally takes. Those Adventurers didn’t hesitate to follow you because they’ve heard of what you’re capable of. Now there will be stories.”

  Kaden accepted the scroll. “Advanced Leadership? I don’t need this.”

  “It will work with [Negotiations] to show you what the motives of people in power are. It’ll work with [Party Tactics] to show you options for combining skill effects. Trust me, it will help.” Captain Blanco nodded to the scroll.

  Absorbing it was easy.

  [Advanced Leadership]

  It’s not just about getting people to follow your orders, but about understanding the motivations behind orders and how to encourage people to follow them. An advanced leader isn’t just thinking about the next attack, but the next battle, or how to avoid it.

  “I’m grateful. But also worried about debts,” Kaden said. “Also, I really don’t like leading.”

  “Get over it,” Miranda answered. “You’re level thirty one. How fast was your first level?”

  Technically Kaden had gained nine at a time. But the first after that? “Easy. Almost immediate.”

  “Right. And how long have you been level thirty one? [Leadership] and leading parties like that give you a constant stream of XP from the party. Over time, it adds up. It definitely adds up. Or you can risk going after bigger and bigger prey. Eventually you’ll wipe. And then continue to wipe.” Miranda pointed to the other guards. “Leadership is the key to later levels. Run a business. Lead raid parties. Learn to lead and I’ll see you when you’re level fifty and panicked about your Nemesis.”

  That was a subject Kaden had questions about. “I’d like to start panicking early. Exactly what am I up against, how do I deal with it?”

  “Not yet.” Captain Blanco clapped his hand on Kaden’s shoulder. “Bunny, I’ll come by for dinner. Kaden’s party is probably wondering where he is. The best kind of leading is the kind where you enable people to do what you want, and they think it was their own idea.”

  That would take skill Kaden didn’t have yet. “Thank you.”

  “Wait, you thought that was all? I haven’t forgotten. During the surge, you brought me four lance tips from Flexivod legs. I killed a [VolKraken] with one. Come with me. Bunny, dinner.”

  “I’m a grown woman. Third tier!” Miranda shouted as they headed into the crowd, then across to a book store.

  The owner stood behind the front desk, surrounded by fairies the size of Kaden’s pinky. He looked at Kaden, then warmly smiled. “Dominic! Young man, it’s been a decade!”

  “I need one of my books,” he answered. “Party Tactics.”

  “Oh, I thought it was one of the good ones.” The owner turned and brushed a bookcase—which split in half, revealing a room that definitely didn’t exist in this space. He stepped in—and out in the same motion, clutching a heavy leather book. “Once, Skill scrolls didn’t exist, there were only books. Today’s books are a pale immitation. They impart a point of the skill. Four Cataclysms ago, there were these.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Kaden accepted the book. Advanced Techniques for Parties

  “The longer you study that, the more your skill will grow. You need combat skills, true. You need your third tier ones, and that’s a real problem. But this will make your entire party more effective. Jackie’s girl has Party Tactics, too, and the skill cooperates to produce better strategies.”

  Finally, some gear Kaden could use. “So. Is this a good time to talk about the relics in Verona?”

  The way the Knight Captain’s jaw fell said Mr. Dervish had kept his mouth shut. “What. Relics.”

  “Mr. Dervish said you run a network. One that moves relics of gods around. So, what you need to know, is that Trella and I were on our way to the sea, when we happened across a trial.” The story flowed on from there, about Yarrow’s trial, and how they’d taken relics from Yarrow, god of the harvest, and a spring goddess. “Mr. Dervish is keeping them safe for me. I’ve been busy.”

  “Relics like this are killed for. Wars are fought for them. Empires traded, weddings arranged, ransoms paid.”

  “No, thanks. Not interested in dying or fighting wars, I don’t want the ‘kingdom’ I have right now, I definitely don’t want an empire, wedding, or ransom.” Kaden thought about it. “It won’t even help Faust, Faust is a mining town. They don’t need faster crops or fuller harvests. At least Verona has dozens of farms and can benefit.”

  “Some of what you were told is right. There is a network. It does move relics like these. I don’t run it, but I know people who do. It’s not easy to get in contact, but I’ll let you know. There are…benefits, but they’re really for people in at least third tier, better fourth.”

  That was a worry for future Kaden. “Thank you. I’ll be studying Party Tactics.”

  “Good. The more it levels, the more effective you’re going to be. Now, I was serious, your Party is probably thinking I killed you. Or inducted you into the Justari. I’ll see you around. And I love the dragon.”

  Kaden headed across the under-rail city, catching a FarPortal to the Holding, where he could unleash all his Beasts. Verona lay under a heavy blanket of rain that swept in waves, and Dominion said most of his Party had gathered in the Farmhouse.

  Trella was down in her lab in the old servant’s quarters.

  Ashi was in her tower, with Garm.

  Trinity headed straight into FangWood, while Vip headed for the Farmhouse, where Eve waited, and perched on top of the farmhouse turret…a [Drake]. “Hi!”

  *Lonely.* The Drake swept down on wide wings to lower its head.

  “You’re lonely. Birchhome isn’t treating you right?” If it wasn’t, Kaden could fix that.

  The feeling that swept back across the Soul Bond was one Kaden had been familiar with during the time that Trella was dead. One he definitely could not help with. “You’re going to have to take care of that on your own. You’re welcome to go. Find a charming lady [Drake] and drake it up with her. When you’re ready, you’re welcome here.”

  It sailed off into the horizon with an optimism he could only hope was justified.

  Sara sat by the fire, her planning book open, a quill in hand. The Horror’s psuedopods tossed a Crawling Horror back and forth. The grub squeaked each time jaws clamped down on it, but seemed moderately unharmed. “How does it feel to succeed in a personal Quest Centurions said was impossible?”

  “That part feels good. The dread of knowing there’s probably a thousand requests coming tomorrow is less good.”

  “Lose that dread. The thousand requests are already here.” She held up a golden scroll. “I’m not sure they even waited for me to hit the FarPortal before sending.”

  Kaden took the scroll and looked through it. “Didn’t the Quest reward from Mercari say choice of Vendor? I chose [Blacksmith].”

  “I’ve already contacted my Mercari representatives. I was not polite.”

  He reviewed the rest of the list. “Guards, we need volunteers for and Captain Blanco will train them. Priest. Didn’t you have plan for one?”

  “I do, but I didn’t have time. I’ve sent birds and will follow up. The key here is not to panic about the costs. Restoring the mana ore processing will allow the miners, the mine, and the town to begin turning a profit.” Sara shifted nervously. “I knew you’d hear it better from Trella. She did speak to you, didn’t she?”

  “About?” Kaden asked.

  Sara looked away for a moment, and the Horror missed its catch. The Crawling Horror hit the floor with a wet splat before a pseudopod picked it up and nervously tossed it in the air. “Simply put, your presence might change the arc of the town. [Leader of the Pack] changes every aspect of life in your area of effect. Perhaps we could find a caretaker for Fangwood.”

  But that would subject the commoners to the same stresses as any other large city. The constant fear they’d displease Kaden—or his beasts. “There has to be a middle ground.”

  A messenger bird landed on Sara’s arm, and she sighed. “And there it is. There’s an issue with the mine. We’ll have to go tomorrow.”

  “Did we miss a monster?” Kaden didn’t think they had. But it was a real possibility. “If we did, cleaning it up won’t require an entire army of Adventurers.”

  The farmhouse door blew open and shadows surged in as Trella [Shadow Stepped]. “Is he here? Hey, Kaden. Why don’t we go in the bedroom and cuddle and talk after we cuddle?”

  “She already told me,” Kaden said.

  The evil glare Sara was handing out said this had not been the plan.

  “Oh! Suridev answered me!” Sara said, desperate to change the subject. “He said, ‘Tell the kid to eat the hatchling before it gains too much mana. Or, I’ll pay a gold piece per point if you bring it to me. But I tell ya, the kid’s not gonna do it, and that’s fine. I can always eat it in a few hundred years. Dragons eat dragons. Other than that, we don’t eat. Though I do like tea.”

  That was not comforting.

  Then Kaden recalled exactly what Suridev had said. That it wasn’t him, but a suicidal sun lizard who wanted to be a hatchling. Knowing that Suridev would devour him. He lifted the dragon off his shoulder and held it to his chest. “No one is eating this guy.”

  “Suridev was right.” Sara yawned and closed her book. “I’m going to sleep, we’ll discuss tomorrow.”

  Kaden turned on Trella. “You wanted to talk. Let’s talk.”

  “First, let’s figure out where the dragon sleeps. He’s small. How about on the headboard?” Trella took the dragon carried it like a kitten to the top of the bed.

  [Beast Soul] said it considered the position a throne. The best hatchling got the highest point on the rock, and this was the highest point, and therefore, it was the best. Case settled.

  “You love this place.” Trella spoke quietly. “You love Verona, but this is a good place to start. A fine place to return to. Maybe we’re outgrowing it.”

  Was that true?

  Kaden wasn’t sure. “What’s the point of creating a haven for commoners if I’m the thing they’re afraid of? I could definitely move to Faust. There’s plenty of room. But I have a literal TriTerror. A drake out looking for love. A Destruction Wyvern, eventually. An undead monster who gets larger with every rebuild.”

  “True. But this farmhouse? We’re bursting at the seams as it is. You know you’re going to keep collecting Beasts. That dragon is small now but will grow. Trinity barely fits through the door, even with the Assistant constantly improving it.”

  Trella wasn’t wrong. “I’ll think about it. Maybe we stay in Faust to get things started. I won’t leave Trinity or Vip. Rocky would be happier if I never removed him from my soul.”

  “And your dragon and your match lizard. Your frog colony stays here, but it’s right near the Dungeon. Eclipse will follow my shadow anywhere.” Trella truly had thought about it.

  “Contact the Sisters. Tell them I’m going to auction the Darkling’s Fangs. The price isn’t gold, it’s professionals. Merchants. Teachers. Tailors, Cobblers. Reign of Tears we keep. [Huntress] is a subclass of Ranger, which means you might one day be able to use it.” The moment he made the decision, Kaden felt lighter.

  “Sara’s list?” Trella asked.

  He nodded. “Far as I’m concerned, I want them all. Every last one for at least ten years. I’d prefer it if they were family of Sisters.”

  “Why would you prefer that?” Trella asked. “That just means they’ll keep a closer eye…oh. Clever. Are you certain?”

  “Absolutely.” Kaden relaxed. Gear was important when it let you accomplish goals. Everyone else saw a thousand problems and he saw the emptiness of the cult town bustling with life, eventually. A sore on the world bandaged and healing. “Make the contact. Tell them.”

  Trella summoned her messenger crow and sent it with a short whispered message. “No need to go into gory details, but I wouldn’t bother trying to sleep. I know if I were Senior Sister, I’d have someone here before you could get in bed.”

  A moment later, a trio of birds landed to speak to Trella, one at a time. She looked lovely when she smiled, and she was smiling now. “You know how I always say you don’t ask for enough? This time, you asked for enough. The fact that they’re wanting to bargain says you asked right.”

  “This is not a [Negotiation],” Kaden answered. “Get a list from Sara. All of them, at minimum ten years, preferrably family of other Sisters. I know you appreciate them for being a family.”

  “I have a family.” Trella kissed him. “And you should know, Senior Sister herself is coming to claim them.”

  Dominion alerted him to the presence at the Holding front gate. “How the hell did they get there so fast?”

  “Night. [Shadow Blades]. Centurions.” Trella drew back the illusion that covered the black swords. “Do they talk to you? They talk to me. Constantly. Always talking about how great I will be if I pick them up.”

  Kaden took them from the wall. “Not a word. And if they’re smart, they’ll keep it that way.”

  It was time to make a deal with the most powerful [Shadow Blade] in existence.