By the time we finish brushing Tempest and start tacking him up, I’m almost reluctant to leave this little bubble of calm – so unexpectedly found in this stable which smells of sweet hay and less fragrant manure and horse. For the first time since stepping through the portal to the palace, my breathing comes more easily.

  We step out of the stable – Nicholas leading Tempest by the bridle – and the pressure drops back on my shoulders, guilt tagging along for pushing it aside at all. I sigh and try to force my shoulders to loosen again.

  Nicholas looks at me with a knowing look.

  “Do you see now why I like to take a little time with my mount before starting the journey? And, when time permits, after finishing it too.”

  “I do, I admit. “It’s surprisingly relaxing.”

  Nicholas nods, looking forward with a faraway expression on his face.

  “Looking after others and seeing appreciation is satisfying, isn’t it? Almost as satisfying as watching them grow far beyond where they began.”

  I hadn’t thought of myself as a nurturer, but the warmth that floods me watching my companions grow and thrive indicates otherwise. There’s nothing better in life than sitting in the sun, a tangle of contented, trusting bodies pressed against me.

  And, I suppose, looking back, maybe that was a reason I was never satisfied in my old job. I thought it was because I didn’t have enough responsibility and authority – that I would be happy if I took the head of department role. But maybe it’s because I somehow knew that I wasn’t making the difference I wanted to in the lives of those I worked with.

  The realisation makes my determination to find my kidnapped companions burn even more fiercely inside me – they’re relying on me, they need me. And without me, they will be lost. How much more of an impact on someone’s life can I want to have?

  “It is,” I tell Nicholas in a belated response to his question. “You’ve known Tempest a long time, then?” I ask curiously as we walk through the courtyard.

  “I was there when he was born,” Nicholas reminisces. “I helped pull him out of his mother and rubbed down his coat with straw to dry him. I looked after him when his mother was too ill to feed him. And I’m the one who taught him to take a rider – long before I Bound him.”

  I suppose it’s not so surprising that there would be such affection between them then, if Nicholas has been so involved in the horse’s life. Which begs a follow-up question.

  “The stablemaster seemed to think that you were going to…break the Bond between you and him? Is that because of the goddess’ requirement?” Hopefully my own obligation has been filled by Binding and then releasing Valence. But who knows – perhaps this whole matter will end with one or more new Bonds in place. I certainly don’t have any moral objections to Binding Torrent after everything he has done – especially considering the threat he will continue to pose to us until he’s properly dealt with.

  Nicholas looks at me sharply and the horse responds to his mood, arching his neck a little.

  “Beacon sometimes has annoyingly loose lips. Yes, I’m going to break the Bond between us. And no, it’s not purely because of the goddess’ price for her blessing.”

  “Why then?” I ask frowning. “Clearly you like him and he likes you – why do you need to break the Bond?”

  Nicholas sighs and doesn’t answer for a long moment.

  “You’ve felt Bonded die, haven’t you?” I nod. “Then you know how painful it is. Releasing Bonds is far less painful.”

  “Unless you do a load at once,” I wince, rubbing at my chest where I can still feel the ache of all the Bonds I broke to separate myself from the other world. It’s been getting better, and to be honest, I’ve been so distracted by everything in this new world that I’ve barely felt the ache. But now that I’m thinking about it, I can tell that it’s still there. Nicholas looks at me with curiosity.

  “I’ve never released so many Bonds at once that I’ve felt what you describe. But in this case, Tempest has never managed to Evolve; he’s getting on in years. He still has a few more natural years left as a stud, but he will die eventually.” A hint of sorrow passes across Nicholas’ face. “I have no desire to be connected to him when that day comes.”

  “I see,” I respond quietly, thinking about Bastet – what will I do if she never Evolves to Tier three? Her lifespan is limited to thirty-six years, whether that’s an exact figure or an approximation. But thirty-six years is nothing, especially since my own life is likely to be lengthened past human norms thanks to my Class. Will I one day have to face the same dilemma Nicholas is now?

  And is there any way I can help him?

  I push that thought to the back of my mind for later – my companions are waiting impatiently to be gone, and honestly, my own impatience is bubbling under the surface. The last quarter hour has been a distraction; now we need to get going.

  “Nicholas said everyone else should be on the driveway,” I tell my companions, probably needlessly as they might have picked it up from me earlier anyway.

  They are there, Kalanthia rumbles, and when I see Nicholas startle slightly, I realise that she must have projected the thought to him too. Is this the first time she’s spoken to him? Quite possibly. I’m not sure what it’s a testament to – her guilt, her increasing sense of relaxation around the other Tamer, or her impatience to be on the road – but it feels significant.

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

  “Thank you for letting me know,” Nicholas responds to her politely with a slight nod towards her. Not an equal, but respect nonetheless, I interpret, then shake my head with sardonic amusement that apparently the etiquette he’s been teaching me has sunk in deeply enough that I’m automatically analysing it now.

  We open up our stride again, following the wide gravelled route to join the main driveway. Sure enough, there’s a collection of five horses and five human figures.

  “Your Bonded are staying on your skin?” I check with Nicholas.

  “I’ll send a couple of them out to be scouts for us, but yes, few of them would be able to keep up with our speeds.” He eyes my own group of Bonded. “Will yours manage?” he asks delicately, as if not wishing to offend any of us.

  “We’ve got plans to ensure we all keep up,” I assure him. He nods shortly.

  “I would like you to offer me that Tame Bond again,” he says briskly, changing the subject. “There is much to impart to you, and we might as well make use of the time we are going to spend on the road to do so.”

  “You want me to offer you the Bond? You don’t want to offer me the Bond this time?” I ask him, curious about what it feels like the other way around.

  “No. Your Bond allows your other Bonded to listen in if you allow them to – some of our discussions will be relevant to them too, particularly the one about appropriate actions during this upcoming rescue.”

  I don’t like the sound of that.

  “Torrent has had my companions kidnapped,” I snap at Nicholas, my eyes narrowed. “I will go as far as I need to in order to get them back.”

  “Exactly what I thought you’d say,” Nicholas sighs, stopping in place. I pause my own movement, crossing my arms. “Markus, I completely understand your need to retrieve them – many of my own Bonded are valuable to me too, even if I wouldn’t consider them ‘family’ in the way you do yours. But the law has a different point of view. I am not against you enacting vengeance for this trespass – on the contrary, it will help establish you as someone not to cross – but with Torrent’s hand in this matter, you would do well to operate within the limits of the law as much as you can. But we will speak more on this when we are travelling. Will you offer me the Bond?”

  I hesitate for a moment, and then extend it to him, this time leaving it as indefinite but breakable from both sides. Since the other terms of the contract are the same as last time – equal rights to limit communication or emotional overflow – Nicholas doesn’t make any changes, and accepts straight away.

  With that, he strides away from me, heading to speak to the group of guards coming with us. I’m left with clenched fists and a sense of dread – I’m not going to like this conversation, am I?

  But it’s a good idea to reestablish the Tame Bond – I have much to learn about this world.

  We’re going to rescue our pack members, though, aren’t we? Lathani asks, sounding uncertain.

  Yes, we are, I tell her firmly – tell all of them even as I make sure that the connection between us and Nicholas is squeezed almost shut for now. I’ll listen to what Nicholas has to say, but if it comes to a choice between saving our family or losing them, I don’t care what the law says, I promise. There might be consequences to doing so, but I’d rather bear those consequences than live knowing I didn’t do everything I absolutely could to save those I care about.

  Good, Kalanthia rumbles in firm agreement, then she rubs her chin gently on my head.

  I reach up to stroke her for a moment, touched by her silent support, and then pull my hand away.

  “We need to go and introduce ourselves. Kalanthia, are you ready?”

  I need the equipment you made, but otherwise, yes.

  Good point. I pull the mess of straps out of my Inventory. That was the first thing I made yesterday – a harness to allow us to ride on Kalanthia without discomforting either her or ourselves. Giant leopards, after all, aren’t exactly normal riding animals. Her back is too wide for me to comfortably put my legs around – Lathani is more my size, but she’s not strong enough to carry me for this distance. Kalanthia, twice her height and a Tier above her Evolution, will barely even notice my presence.

  Or that of Ninja and Fenrir since they’ll be joining me ‘on board’. Bastet will run as much as possible, but we anticipate that she will need to join from time to time. Lathani possibly too, but we’ll see – her own endurance is pretty good and she can use the shadows to help reduce the distance she actually needs to run.

  So, to give us all something to cling onto which doesn’t require pulling Kalanthia’s fur out by the roots, I’ve created a harness. I was expecting it to be another fight to get Kalanthia to accept it, but as it turned out, she doesn’t want her fur being pulled out either.

  We tested the harness a couple of times last night, so getting it on Kalanthia now is simple enough. The straps on the back for me and our other companions are connected loosely around her neck to a breastplate which in turn is connected via straps that go underneath her forelegs. A single strap goes along her back and loops around the base of her tail. Anchor points and claw-holds are spaced out along the length for all of us to attach ourselves to.

  Boosting Fenrir up, he sets his teeth into one of the loops and his back feet into another. Fortunately, he can lock his jaw in a way which means he doesn’t need to use muscles to keep clenching, and his teeth are deeply set into his jawbone so they’re not going to tear loose. As I experienced with the other lizog long ago, breaking his jaw would be the only way of getting him to let go if he doesn’t want to.

  Ninja also leaps onto Kalanthia’s back and digs her talons into four different claw-holds. If that becomes too tiring for her, we’ll strap her in.

  Sirocco is already in the air, and Ivor and Noir are waiting on the ground for us to get going.

  “If you’re getting too tired, let me know,” I remind them. “We can figure out a way of carrying you, I’m sure.”

  Ivor sends me confidence which borders on arrogance. In contrast, Noir’s own confidence is far more quiet, but still there. I remind myself that they traveled with their father down into the valley and back – that probably wasn’t much less of a journey. It could even have been further.

  After briefly introducing myself to the two new guards, and greeting Mathis, Laeman, and Sulir, the tracker who I worked with in the forest, I climb up on top of Kalanthia. I’m also wearing a harness, this one designed to hook into Kalanthia’s – even though I’m in an odd sort of spread-legged half-kneel on her back, I shouldn’t go anywhere I don’t want to. I do send my mana into the straps binding me in – that way, if I need to quickly get out of them, I can Shape myself free.

  Nicholas sends a look around the group, then nods with clear satisfaction.

  “Our heir’s Bonded were stolen. An attack on Titanbend is an attack on the House. Let’s make sure the thieves understand the cost!”

  There are no cheers, but I see several of the guards’ hands tighten on their reins and the horses bridle a little below them.

  No one speaks as we set out, but the weight of resolve hangs heavy in the air. As we pass the gates, I make a silent vow not to return until I have my family back. All of them. Or their killers’ heads instead.

  here!

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