Gray found himself back in the place of water of stars, but the shack seemed much farther away. He knew he was dreaming, but he still felt weak, like he had before he went to bed. He shook off the feeling. He’d spent his entire life feeling exhausted, but everything had changed. He was going to choose to feel good.

  He frowned. “Why am I so far away from the shack? I was so close last time. Did I do something wrong?” His voice seemed so small as it drifted over the water.

  Oma was there to answer. “Oh, my little dreamer, you didn’t. But where you are isn’t where you should be, and I think you know that. This First Field place has its uses, certainly, but there are better places to live. You schemed your way into your own room in the arena. I’m sure you could do that again.”

  “Maybe.” Inhaling, all he could smell was Rynn’s perfume.

  “She is a lovely girl,” Oma said. “You two make a charming couple. Bonding with a rich girl would certainly have its benefits. I’m sure you’ve thought about it.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “Because you are a young man, healthy and vital, and she is very pretty. But is she too fragile?”

  He was torn on how to answer. “I would’ve said yes when I first met her. Yet, I’ve fought her. She might be innocent, but she’s not fragile. I think helping me with the cup game disturbed her. Would I want to shatter that innocence?”

  “Do you feel bad for swindling people.”

  He shrugged. “They were playing a game with some random person in the marketplace. It’s not my responsibility to help foolish people be less foolish. I’m more worried about this Testing business. Do I even want to follow this path?”

  “I think being a manamancer in a Kill Squad would be better than being an arena servant, don’t you think?”

  He started walking toward the shack, but every step seemed to push the dim light in the distance farther away. Again, he sniffed the air, wanting those breakfast spells. Instead, all he could smell was the elf girl under him in her bunk bed.

  “Why does it feel like serving one of the Watchfire families might just be a different kind of servitude? I want to be my own man. Now I can be.”

  “I’m glad to hear you say that, little dreamer. Your destiny is far grander than being a kill squad core warrior…another name for a manamancer. You get to choose what path you walk, and some paths will lead you closer to my home, and others? Others will take you farther away. You have lived your life alone up until now, and you could choose to stay that way. If you want to go quick, go alone. If you want to go far, go with friends. Perhaps this innocent elf girl will help you go far.”

  “But she serves her family. She’s going to become powerful, so she can find the right connections for her family to open a clothing shop in Envy City. I’d rather be a Kill Squad manamancers than a shopkeeper, I think. To be honest, neither seem that appealing.”

  He stopped and thought. “I’m in servitude again, aren’t I? I’m Captain Sette Sevanya’s power source for her kill squad. What if I left? I could make my own way. I don’t need her.”

  Oma’s voice was soft and thoughtful. “But she needs you, and she still has much to teach you. You owe her still. We both know that. What is it that you want?”

  He thought for a moment. The answer came rather easily. “Self-mastery. If I can master myself, I can master life.”

  “You’ve learned Blind John’s lessons well. Can you do that on your own?”

  He knew the truth. He needed teachers to perfect his magic. He was becoming stronger and better every day because of Settie’s guidance, and now, he could also learn from Rynn. First Field had any number of lessons to teach him as did the Testing, the Training, the Hunting.

  “I can’t do it on my own.” He sighed. “But I want to do it my own way.”

  “I would expect nothing less from you, my little dreamer. Wake and be kind to the girl, for she has not known your same sorrows. Yet, like all people, she has sorrows all of her own. Poor little creatures, walking across the world as the universe spins and spins, and spins.”

  The stars began to whirl above him, and he grew dizzy, as the waters turned to rain, and he felt himself falling into the stars.

  *

  He jerked awake, sweating, and so thirsty. His stomach still hurt, and he wasn’t sure why. His body ached, and he didn’t want to move, and he heated when he woke up tired, as if he’d never slept at all. Other than when he’d been dreaming, it felt like he’d not slept at all. All night long he’d thought of the scorpions that might try and crawl into his bed.

  He tried to rest more in the peaceful morning, however ovenish. For once, the barracks were silent. He listened for birds, like he’d heard outside of his window in Ruin Manor, but there weren’t any. The air seemed to get even hotter.

  Ruin Manor would be a hundred thousand more comfortable. He needed to see if he could get past Captain’s Settie’s wards.

  He shifted in his bed and then saw that Rynn was awake. Still in her nightgown, she sat on a metal chair in the corner with her hands resting on her knees. As she meditated, he saw her core glow and dim, glow and dim, matching her breathing.

  She looked so serene, but different. What had changed?

  Then he saw it. She’d shaved her head. must’ve been why she’d left the room when he’d been having trouble sleeping. Her pointed ears were even more prominent against the stubble on her scalp.

  Her eyes flickered open, and she smiled. Even without hair, she was still so beautiful. “You’re up. How was your dream?”

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “How did you know I was dreaming?” He climbed down to the floor.

  “I could feel the mana in the room, and I knew it wasn’t coming from me. It was coming from you. Definitely. Dreams can sometimes activate our mana, especially when, uh, lust is involved. Sorry to embarrass you.”

  “I’m not embarrassed that easy. What time is it?”

  “Just past seven. I’ve been awake for about an hour. The air is so hot and dry, I’m a little frightened of turning into a lizard.”

  “Are there lizard people?”

  She gave him a quizzical smile. “No. Beastkin are all mammals, of varying degrees, feline or canine, mostly, though there are ursine as well like the two on Froggy’s squad. I had a bearkin friend in the Crown. Her name was Laura, and she was very nice, very gentle. She was not a good fighter, however. Her parents had high hopes for her. Alas, it was not meant to be.” She paused. “You really don’t know much about there world outside of the Null Breaks.”

  “I really don’t. I need someone to teach me. Would you want that job?”

  “What’s in it for me?”

  “Shekels?” he offered.

  “I’m already very rich, but I accept. Would you like to go to breakfast with a strange bald girl I know? People say she has angel blood, but that’s just a rumor. She was born in the Belly and lived here all of her life.”

  He echoed her. “I accept.”

  Breakfast was surprisingly good. They even had a new type of ironbite, a dense yellow cake with a citrus flavor. Inside were a million seeds making it even more dense. It was tasty, but he could only eat a little.

  They had a thick spicy gravy in one vat and flaky buttery biscuits in another. Bowls of perfectly ripe fruit sat next to the metal pitchers of swampy water. A few other recruits were there, but no one they had met yet. The staff was surprised to see anyone there, and it showed. They seemed surprised that they had to work.

  Gray and Rynn ate at their same seat next to the window. As always, the ironbite was hard to process. He only took one bite, and it was enough to make him hurt. He did what he always did to process it—focus on his breath and think of the place of water and stars. As his body absorbed the mana muffin, he felt the strange pain his belly get a little better, and he felt stronger, but still a little dizzy. Working out was going to take some serious amounts of self-discipline that day.

  Rynn worried over him, but he insisted he was okay.

  Despite how Gray felt, the two planned their day, which followed the same schedule that Gray had followed before. Run. Weights. Meditation. Lunch. Meditation. Run. Sparring. They would go back to the market to shop for the ruby bracelet and dinner at Gargonzola’s Counter.

  Also, he had something he wanted to try in the market, but he wasn’t sure how Rynn would feel about it.

  Their morning passed quickly, and after meditation and exercise, they suffered through another miserable lunch of watery lentil soup and hard, tasteless bread. The pair had more ironbites, but these were the same bricks that they’d served the day before. They returned to the training field and were happy to see Mama Cinders again. The old dragon commented on surprised she was that so few of the recruits that summer were taking advantage of the exercise equipment.

  It was probably because of the heat. Their run and their sparring left them soaked in sweat. They showered quickly and then left First Field and returned to the Pit Market. Gray kept his stick, just in case they had another run-in with the Froggy’s squad.

  He led Rynn down through the stalls, vendors, and carts, until they came to the smelly alley near the wall. The alley was deserted, which was odd, until Rynn stopped in her tracks. “Wait. Gray. This place is warded. We shouldn’t go any farther. We might get hurt.”

  “How do you know?”

  She sighed. “It’s a feeling. You don’t feel it?”

  He shook his head. “No, but I’ve been here before. Settie …Captain Sevanya…set the wards. Maybe she gave me special permission to pass through them.”

  “Maybe, but that would be powerful magic.”

  “Stay there, Miss Yes, while I go see about my dog.”

  “What’s a dog?”

  Gray’s mouth dopped open. “Wait. You don’t know—”

  She laughed a little. “It’s a joke. I know what a dog is, Gray. Why keep your dog down this terrible alley? It smells like urine.”

  “It’s where I lived with Captain Settie before you came. Be right back.”

  “You didn’t live in this alley, did you? And I still can’t believe you call her Settie. That seems like courting death.”

  “Just wait there.”

  He hurried down the alley but only took about a half dozen steps before he felt the pressure starting. A buzzing started in his ears and it got louder as he went. The thrum of the mana in the air felt like when Rynn had vented her core.

  He pushed forward, but with each step, the air seemed to get heavier and heavier. He might’ve thought he was battling hurricane winds but there wasn’t even a breeze. He remembered how Froggy had gotten a bloody nose the night before. She’d have woken up to a bad bruise on her leg. Good. She deserved it.

  He suddenly saw the source of mana storm. There, at the end of the alley, were bright yellow runes inscribed on the wall where the secret doorway was hidden. The closer he got it, the brighter they glowed. The magical pressure was coming from those symbol.

  Taking a single step took everything out of him. Breathing became impossible. He might as well have been trying to walk through an ocean made of liquid iron.

  He spun and ran back to where Rynn stood. Every step felt better and better until the pressure was gone. Turning, he saw the alley was the exact same as it had been before. There was no hint of mana or the runes.

  Before he knew it, he slumped to the ground. He licked his lips and tasted blood. The pain in his belly was back with a vengeance.

  Rynn knelt next to him, dabbing his face with a cloth. “You look like Froggy from last night. What does this alley have to do with you and Captain Sevanya?”

  “Me and Settie, we lived in a manor on the other side of the Hellbinder Barrier in Old Town. There’s this dog, Yellow, who is the best…smart, gentle, kind. I’m worried about him. I know, he’s just a dog, but…”

  Rynn sighed. “My Aunt Florence would say there are only three priceless things in the world—a good bond with a trustworthy partner, one’s health, and the love of a good dog. We had a dog in the Crown, and he was wonderful.”

  “I grew up watching orphans throw rocks at stray dogs for sport.” Gray winced.

  Rynn sat back, frowning. “You might have a good dog over there, but you don’t have your health. What’s wrong? And don’t lie to me. I won every fight when we sparred, and you had to push yourself during our run. You said I couldn’t trust you, but I want to trust you.”

  “I want you to trust me.” He swallowed. “I have this pain, in my stomach, and I feel weak. I think I just slept poorly. I’ll feel better tomorrow.”

  “Did the poppyseed ironbite help?”

  He shrugged. “A little. But trying to get past that ward took everything I had out of me. It feels like I just swallowed one of our scorpion friends.”

  Rynn touched his head. “You need mana. You gave me too much of your mana last night during the transfer. I was worried about that. Most of the time, the other person can use their resonances to refill themselves, but you…but in your case. Well, it’s more complicated.”

  “We can talk about my lack of resonances,” he said.

  “That would be very rude of me. Resonances are a very personal, very private matter. Come on. Let’s get to Gorgonzola’s Counter, and we talk more. I’m sorry about your dog. I would’ve liked to meet him.”

  “You’re going to meet him, Miss Yes. We’re going to figure out a way passed Captain Settie’s ward, and we’re going to live in Old Town. We don’t need to sleep in the barracks to use the training fields.”

  Th elf girl blinked. “No. Captain Sevanya bought our room in the barracks. We have to live there.”

  “You’re Miss Yes. You should say yes to this idea.”

  “No, and I’ll change my name if I have to.” She stood up, arms crossed. “I’m not going to die in Old Town, Grayson Fade. I’m not.”

  Gray tried to get to his feet but ended up back on the ground against the hot wall. “I was going to say we’re having our first argument, but you win. I’m too tired to fight.”

  Rynn furrowed her brow as she knelt next to him. She looked sad but still so adorable with a frown. “You need mana. I could try giving you some.”

  “How?” he asked.

  She looked conflicted, and then sighed. “You suggested it last night. With a kiss.”

  “No.” He grinned at her surprise. “At least I’m living up to my name.”