Sweat was flung from Justus’s hair as he ran a hand through it. His legs were sore from the hour of sprinting laps around the park. He didn’t like running here. The wooden streets and paths didn’t feel right; dirt and grass felt much more natural to him. Maybe he’d substitute his next cardio workout with swimming at the beach. They called it the South Beach, but it was really just a small pier and a few hundred yards of ocean, netted off with buoys. He’d have to see what times it was open.

  Justus’s plans for future workout routines were interrupted by a long system message that appeared in front of him. He read through it, then read it again. A prickling excitement he hadn’t felt in over two cycles danced under his skin.

  Spirit Threshold Achieved

  New Rank Progression Achieved: Peak

  New [Prudence] Skill: [Purview]

  [Purview]: Accelerate your perception of time.

  Energy Skill

  Energy: 15/15

  Skill [Evolutions]

  [Movement] Skills:

  [Blink]

  Evolved

  [Gate of Rates]

  No Evolution

  [Prudence] Skills:

  [Ultimate Awareness]

  Evolved

  [Purview]

  No Evolution

  [Dissolution] Skills:

  [Decay]

  Evolved

  You are now eligible to advance to Rank: Sapphire.

  Justus opened the skill menu, studying his new skill closer. As it was a new skill, there was little information his system had for him, but it did have a bit more than the quick explanation. Each energy point doubled his sense of perception and lasted for one objective second. It took two seconds for a tick of energy to replenish. That was all.

  It was a decent skill. A great one in a fight, and it had all kinds of uses for utility. It reminded him of how time seemed to slow whenever he interacted with his guidestone’s system. He’d always wished he could use that in a fight, but the feature didn’t work when the guidestones switched to their combat systems, which was necessary to optimize skill use.

  Justus had a lot of testing to do with the new skill. Could he use more than one energy tick at a time? If he did, would the doubling be additive, or would it be exponential? If it was exponential, and he was able to burn all fifteen energy at once, he could turn one second into… He mentally performed the calculations. Maybe it was better never to do that. If the growth really was exponential, using all fifteen would make one second feel like nine hours. He didn’t imagine that ever being useful. It sounded like torture.

  He checked his other skills. His Ultimate Awareness skill had gained more range, which was useful, but nothing too exciting. Decay could affect a larger area and was more effective. He’d been hoping he’d finally have a big evolution with that one. The skill being limited to touch was a big downside he’d hoped to solve with an evolution.

  Blink was a bit more exciting. It had undergone a much more powerful evolution.

  Blink:

  Evolved

  Evolution: [Blink] can now be used to transport up to two times [User]’s mass without additional cost.

  That was a big change. Not the massive kind that often came with a true rank up, but still the kind of evolution that could make the difference between life and death. He’d have to visit the local guild to get his mass measured again, and he might as well make Katherine and Simon join him. Twice his mass was definitely enough to cover both of theirs and more. He wished he’d had that evolution a couple quarters ago when they had to haul those heavy crates to the docks. He’d have been able to save them hours of work.

  The skill and evolutions were secondary to what Justus really looked forward to upon reaching peak Jade. With every advancement, there were slight physical enhancements, but each rank had a particular attribute that grew far more potent than others. For Jade, it was durability. At high Jade, he’d been able to survive hits that would have broken bones with nothing more than light bruising. At Peak, he’d be far more durable, able to shrug off attacks that would be lethal to an unranked. Even falling at terminal velocity would only be uncomfortable now. That durability was why Jades, especially peak Jades, had the lowest casualty rate for adventures. As long as he didn’t face anything with Sapphire-level strength, he’d be nearly invulnerable to physical attacks.

  That didn’t make him invincible, though. Any Spirit-saturated material would counter his durability and could possibly negate it entirely, depending on how saturated it was and the rank of the Spirit. It was what made Spirit weapons effective killing tools against Spirit beasts and Artists.

  Justus cut off his solo training early. He wanted to test out his new abilities. Katherine was his first choice. Her Pyromancy and Deflection were perfect. At Opal, her Spirit wouldn’t be powerful enough to overcome his enhanced durability.

  Rather than walking, Justus Blinked across rooftops, covering the mile-long walk in less than a minute. He Blinked onto the balcony of the inn and made for their room. In his eagerness, he tried walking right in and slammed his face into the door when it didn’t budge. He didn’t feel anything remotely close to pain but was annoyed all the same. Grumbling, he pulled the key out of his inventory and unlocked the door.

  “Hold on!” Katherine’s voice called, muffled by the wooden door.

  “For what? What are you doing?” Justus said, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

  There was a long pause.

  “Katherine?”

  “I’m changing.”

  Justus frowned. The inn had a community bath for residents, separated by sex. There weren’t any bathrooms or showers in the cheaper rooms. If she’d taken a bath, she’d have changed there.

  “Hurry up! I need your help with something.”

  Justus walked towards the railing of the balcony, ready to pace back and forth. To his surprise, the lock clicked only a few seconds after he walked away. He huffed and opened the door. Katherine backed away, looking disheveled and concerned. She was in her Solidusk robes, which the system had awarded him with. They fit her much better than the spare robes he’d lent her when they arrived on the planet. They were a dark earthy green, with golden trim. Much nicer than anything he’d be willing to purchase. The robes weren’t properly tied, and one sleeve was folded in on itself.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Wrong? Nothing’s wrong. I want to spar.”

  The concern burned off Katherine’s face. “Seriously?” she said, her voice sharp. She brushed some of her messy hair back behind her shoulder. “You freaked me out! I thought something terrible happened again.”

  Justus noticed her hair, which was dry.

  “What were you doing?”

  “I told you, I was changing.”

  “In the middle of the quarter? Your hair's not wet.”

  “Does it matter?”

  Justus squinted his eyes. “Have you been blowing your money buying stupid dresses or something?”

  Katherine’s mouth gaped.

  “And why would you assume I’ve been buying dresses? I haven’t even worn that dress from whatever kingdom you gave me.”

  “Not in front of us. I don’t know what you do for fun when you're alone."

  “So you assume I spend my personal time doing what? Playing dress-up with pretty clothes? Painting my nails, doing my hair?”

  Justus shrugged. He didn’t see why she was getting worked up. “I don’t know, and I don’t really care as long as it’s nothing stupid, and spending money on clothes you can’t afford falls under stupid.”

  Katherine shook her head. “Yeah, you seem like you know a lot about stupid. Look, I haven’t spent any more than the budget you so graciously outlined for us. So stop being a jerk.”

  “How am I—Never mind. Come spar with me.”

  “Why do you want to spar all of a sudden? Simon’s been spending half the quarter training at the park lately; why don’t you ask him?”

  “I need your skills. I just reached peak Jade, and I want to get a feel for my enhanced durability. Simon doesn’t have the kind of offense you do.”

  “Seriously? Peak Jade? I thought you said people advance during life-or-death situations. You haven’t had any of those since we left the swamp.”

  “That’s how you advance fastest. If that were the only way, there would be far fewer Jades in the world.”

  Now that she mentioned it, though, he had hit Peak quicker than expected. He hadn’t anticipated reaching Peak Jade for another phase or two. He pulled up his notification history for the quest. He’d been awarded something called Spirit Refinement. That had been just before Simon and Katherine had advanced, and so far the quest rewards seemed to benefit all three of them. Was it possible that the quest was helping them advance? He’d never heard of anything like that, but ever since his visit to Earth, he’d seen a lot he’d assumed was impossible. It was something to keep an eye on, for sure.

  “What did you get for advancing? Most people get their fifth skill at Peak Jade, right? Or is it the sixth?”

  “Fifth. The conflux skill you get when reaching Jade doesn’t count as a normal skill. I got a skill called Perview. It lets me speed up my perception of time.”

  “Really? What kind of skill is it? That’d be your Prudence affinity?”

  “It’s an energy skill. I’ll need to experiment with it, but I’m more focused on getting a handle on my new physical limits. Are you ready to get moving?”

  Katherine pulled her robes tighter. “Can you give me a minute? I didn’t have time to put on any real clothes.”

  “What are you wearing that you can’t go out in, anyway? You’re not naked under that, are you?” Traditional Solidusk robes came with undergarments, which were still modest without the robes.

  Katherine’s cheeks turned pink. “Of course I’m not!” Katherine bit her lip, hesitating, and then she pulled open her robe. Underneath, she was wearing a red two-piece bathing suit that had long frills on the edges that faded to pink. Only a bit of her stomach showed, and the bottom frills reached to her mid-thighs. It was leaning on the side of modest, as far as women’s swimwear went. He didn’t see why she looked so embarrassed.

  “I was thinking of asking Simon if he wanted to visit that swimming area downtown sometime."

  That was why. Justus tried not to show the disappointment and exasperation he felt at hearing that.

  “I thought you’d moved on from that.”

  “I have. Friends can go swimming together, too.”

  “Which is why you weren’t planning on inviting me? And before you say I’m not your friend, you know what I mean.”

  “Fine, I haven’t moved on completely,” Katherine said, covering herself back up with her robes. “But I’m not trying to push anything.”

  “Right, you’re just trying to seduce him.”

  “That’s not—It isn’t—I’m not trying to do that! God, if you weren’t so… you, I’d swear you really were a pervert. I just thought maybe if he noticed me more, he might reconsider, is all.”

  Justus didn’t see how that was any different from what he said, but he didn’t feel like arguing the point. He sighed.

  “I won’t stop you, but I will remind you, relationships aren’t a good idea in a normal team. For us, it’s even more risky. If things don’t work out, you two can't go your separate ways at this point. We’re in this mess together.”

  “I know that. You think I haven’t thought about it?”

  “No, I don’t. I think you’re hung up on a silly little crush and aren’t thinking about the big picture.”

  “Screw off. It’s not a little crush. He’s a good person.”

  “And? Is that all it takes for you to go chasing after someone?”

  “It’s more than that. I respect him. More than I respect you, that’s for sure.”

  Justus rolled his eyes at her insult. Why was it that Simon made her so irrational? She wouldn’t be convinced it was a bad idea. Katherine was usually pretty smart and level-headed, but when it came to this, it reminded Justus how different people on Earth were. How cozy were their lives that they cared this much about something as silly as relationships? It wasn’t just her. Back in Sho’s village, where the women didn’t wear any tops, Justus had to smack Simon a few times for ogling. He had no idea how that was even on the list of their priorities given their circumstances. But maybe it wasn’t them who was the oddity. Justus had never seen the appeal of romance or even sex. It wasn’t that he didn’t see the appeal in those things; they just seemed to carry more risk than reward to go chasing after.

  “Just be careful. Like I said, I won’t stop you. I’m not your guys’ babysitter. Get changed, then. I’ll be waiting outside.”

  Justus reached for the door.

  “Hey,” Katherine said, her voice softer than before. Justus paused and glanced back. She was blushing again. “Does it look okay? The swimsuit? It doesn’t look silly on me?”

  “It looks fine. And make sure not to slack on your training while we’re here. You’ve put on a bit of muscle. Don’t lose it.”

  Katherine nodded, and Justus went outside. He saw movement by the window, and Lyka flitted over to him as he leaned on the railing.

  “Where have you been? I told you not to go running off anymore.”

  “I wasn’t running off. I was waiting outside. Kate didn’t want me in there when she was trying on the swimsuit.”

  “Were you out here the whole time?” Justus asked. He hadn’t seen her when he Blinked onto the balcony, but he hadn’t taken the time to look, either.

  "Uh-huh. I heard everything.” Lyka glanced at the closed door of the room, then leaned forward and whispered, “I peeked. I think it looks adorable on her.”

  “Don’t watch people when they’re getting dressed. It’s creepy.”

  “I didn’t peek while she was changing. I’m not that rude. I just thought it was unfair that she let you see but not me. Why does she care so much about what Simon thinks of her anyway? I know she likes him, but she likes me, and you too, even if she acts like she doesn’t most of the time. What makes him different?”

  “I’m not having that conversation with you. You should ask Katherine sometime.” Justus cracked a smile, imagining Katherine attempting to explain the birds and the bees to the small spirit.

  Lyka pouted, then sat down on the rail next to him.

  When Katherine finished changing, having put on her usual shirt and pants, Justus offered her a hand. She looked down at it skeptically.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Taking us to the park. It'll be quicker to Blink over there. Besides, I want to test it out. It evolved to let me take extra mass. No more extra-long cooldowns if I need to drag you two out of danger.”

  “I don’t mind walking,” Katherine said, folding her arms.

  “We’ve already wasted enough time. We’re burning daylight.”

  Katherine frowned. “Burning daylight?” She gestured up at the large red sun in the sky. “It doesn’t move, and there are no days. How does that expression even work here?”

  “Localized translations,” Justus guessed. He gestured impatiently with his still-offered hand. “Stop being stubborn and get over here. It should only take a single Blink. I can see the edge of the park from here.”

  Katherine looked away but stepped closer. Justus put a hand on her shoulder and pulled her close. He’d have to see how volume would affect the skill now, but for now he would try to minimize it like normal. As he channeled the skill, he focused on the park a few blocks away.

  In a flash, the world blurred around them, and then they were standing on the sidewalk just outside the park. The smell of the ocean was overpowered by the nearby food stalls. The aroma of grilled fish and vegetables reminded Justus that he hadn’t eaten since the small breakfast he had after waking up. He could eat after testing his new abilities.

  He looked at the cooldown of his Blink. They’d traveled nearly two hundred and fifty meters. Before, even Katherine’s small mass would have dramatically increased the cooldown. Now, it was much closer to what it would have been if he had Blinked alone: only seven seconds.

  “You can let me go now,” Katherine said, drawing his attention away from his system screen. He let go of her shoulder. As she pulled away, Lyka flew out of her chest, laughing.

  “That was fun! Can we do it again?”

  “Not now. Come on, let’s find a spot to spar.”

  Katherine nodded and followed behind him.

  “What is your conflux skill? You’ve mentioned them a couple times.”

  “You’ve seen me use it once,” Justus said.

  Justus turned to head into the park. The planks beneath them creaked quietly, barely audible over the sound of the gulls cawing above.

  “When?”

  Justus held out his hand, gesturing. “Bring out your guidestone real quick.”

  Katherine looked around.

  “I have up my Awareness, no one is nearby, as far as I can tell. This won’t take long.” Silently, he was proud of her hesitation, even alone in a pretty remote area like this. He’d stressed to her not to go flaunting the stone carelessly.

  When she brought out her stone, Justus brought out his own and held it up to hers. He brought up his System and a pop-up appeared.

  “Accept that,” he said.

  A second later, the pop-up flashed green and disappeared. He brought up his quick menu.

  User: Justus Fahren

  Rank: Peak Jade

  Affinities: Movement II, Prudence, Dissolution

  Movement II Skills:

  Blink

  Channel your Spirit to map out a path to a point in space you can see. Once activated, the space around you will be shifted to that location.

  Variable Cooldown Skill

  Gate of Rates

  Warp space in a small area to greatly affect the acceleration of mass that passes through.

  Charge Skill

  Charges: 6

  Charge Cooldown: 45 seconds

  Prudence Skills:

  Perfect Awareness

  Become acutely aware of your surroundings in a spherical radius around you.

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  Focus Skill

  Purview

  Accelerate your perception of time.

  Energy Skill

  Energy: 15

  Dissolution Skills:

  Decay

  Imbue your Spirit into an object to weaken its integrity dramatically.

  Channel Skill

  Conflux Skill

  Loot

  Instantly disassemble inorganic or dead organic matter into its constituent elements.

  Variable Cooldown Skill

  He mentally flicked the screen to Katherine’s System.

  “There. Read that. You can put your stone away.”

  “What is this?” Katherine asked, scanning the air in front of her.

  “One of the perks of that new guidestone. That’s a Skill sheet. It’s a quick summary of my skills. Not very in-depth, but enough that if I needed to work with a team, the leader would be able to get a feel for my kit and designate a role to me and work my skills into strategies. I’ve never used it before. You should only share that with someone you’d trust with your life.”

  “Yeah, no kidding. Even if you hadn’t drilled us for hours about the power of information, I wouldn’t be dumb enough to give away my skill set lightly. I’m not as paranoid as you, but I lived in a big city. I have some street smarts.

  “I think I remember you using that conflux skill now. That’s what you did to the Spirit beast in the swamp, right? I thought they just did that here or something. Wait, so that means those things you picked up were a monster corpse?”

  “More like the material making up the corpse, but pretty much, yes.”

  “Ew. That’s disgusting.”

  “Not really. I could use it on a gallon of blood and get perfectly sterile iron.”

  “That’s still gross. You haven’t actually done that before, have you?”

  “No, but it would work. It works on liquids. I once used it on a barrel of wine to get enough alcohol to make a fire bottle before. Same concept.”

  “A fire bottle? Like a molotov? What the hell did you need that for?”

  Justus shrugged. “It was more useful to me than a few gallons of wine. A bar owner gave it to me after I completed an urgent job request for him.”

  Katherine chuckled. “Why didn’t you just sell it? Your first thought was to turn it into a weapon?”

  “No, selling it was my first idea. But I’d just gotten to Jade a couple orbits before, and I wanted to see how the skill would work if I used it on a liquid. I didn’t really think it through. Most of the alcohol spilled on the floor. I had to soak and wring it out with a rag. The guy who gave it to me was pretty upset."

  “You did it in front of him?” Katherine asked.

  Justus ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, well, I was really interested to see how it would work. I still don’t know why he got so angry. I told him I didn’t drink before he gave it to me, and the fire bottle I made sold for more than the wine would have.”

  At that, Katherine laughed harder than he’d ever heard before.

  “What? What’s so funny?” He was a little concerned.

  Katherine didn’t answer. She only laughed harder, leaning on the nearby rail. When she was done, she wiped at her eyes and took a deep breath.

  “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

  “Whatever. Come on, there’s a grove up ahead we can spar in.”

  Katherine, still giggling under her breath on occasion, followed him down the path. Her laughing stopped when they heard a familiar voice yell nearby.

  It was Simon. His distant voice came from a nearby grove, but the tall wall of bushes, small trees, and flowers kept him from sight, and Justus couldn’t make out his words. He sounded frustrated.

  “Huh, he really has been spending his free time training alone,” Justus said. “I thought he was lying and was slacking off.”

  “Maybe he’s gotten an idea for a breakthrough. He’s been complaining a lot about his skill set ever since we started training. Let’s go see what he’s up to.”

  Before Justus could suggest they leave him alone, Katherine had turned down a narrow path toward Simon’s voice.

  Katherine was ahead of Justus, so he noticed how she stopped in place a few steps into the grove’s clearing. When Justus caught up, he saw the reason for her abrupt halt immediately.

  Simon did indeed seem to be training, but he wasn’t alone. He was sitting cross-legged, facing away from the entrance. His clone was nearby, looking at the person sitting a few feet in front of Simon.

  It was a girl. Justus could tell at once that she lived on the streets. The clothing gave her away, though he did notice that her hair seemed pretty clean for someone who was homeless. She looked past Simon, and her dark eyes looked from Katherine to Justus. Her eyes went wide. Simon turned and saw them, then hopped up.

  “Hey,” he said, “What are you two doing here? Everything alright?”

  “Who is that?” Katherine asked, still staring at the young woman who was getting up off the ground and dusting off her pants.

  “Oh, right. This is Kella. She’s been giving me some tips and helping me train. Kella, this is Justus and Katherine, the team I told you about.”

  “Hi,” Kella said, waving. She looked nervous, which made Justus’s suspicions about her grow. He deftly pushed out with his Spirit, brushing against hers. It wasn’t nearly enough to learn anything, but it told him she was Jade or had a skill that could dampen her Spirit signature. Uncommon, but not rare enough to make him drop his guard.

  “We actually came here to talk to our teammate. Alone,” Katherine said. Her voice was much colder than it had been just minutes before. Justus had a feeling he knew why, but under the circumstances, he wasn’t going to complain.

  “Oh,” Kella said, looking disappointed. Her eyes flickered to Justus, as if she expected him to interject. When she didn’t, she looked down. “Um, alright. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then, Simon?”

  “Yeah, I’ll see you then. Thanks,” Simon said.

  Kella approached them, heading for the only path leading out of the grove. Justus moved to let her pass. Katherine didn’t move at all and stared as Kella left.

  Simon started to speak, but Justus held out a hand for him to be quiet. He activated his Absolute Awareness. One of the features of the skill that hadn’t been on his quick skill sheet was that the skill alerted him to anyone in its range who were aware of his presence. He pushed the skill to its limit, which was a few meters wider than the last time he’d used it.

  He dropped his hand once the skill suggested the girl had really left.

  “What the hell are you doing?” he hissed.

  “I’m doing exactly what I said I’ve been doing. I’ve been training.”

  “Why are you training with her?”

  “She saw my clone a few quarters ago and gave me some advice. I offered her some food as thanks and asked if she could help some more. I think she’s homeless, but she’s pretty cool. Smart too. I think she might know more about Spirit Arts than even you do. What’s the problem?” Simon asked, looking between the two of them.

  “So you’ve been sneaking off here the last few days to… to train with some tramp you met?” Katherine asked.

  “Hey, cool it. She’s not a tramp; don’t be a dick. And it isn’t like that. We haven’t done anything but train and talk about Spirit Arts.”

  “That’s not the point. You—” Justus was cut off as Katherine continued, raising her voice over his.

  “If all you’ve been doing is training, then why haven’t you mentioned her before?”

  Simon looked up at the sky. When he looked back at Katherine, his expression didn’t have any of his usual carefree attitude on it. Justus knew that whatever Simon was about to say would make things worse, but he had already decided not to intervene. The sooner they ripped off this bandage, the sooner they could dress the wound.

  “Maybe I knew if you found out I made friends with a girl who wasn’t you, you’d probably go back to sulking around for the next month.”

  Justus brought a hand up and rubbed his eyelids. There were a few moments before Katherine responded, her voice shaking with barely contained emotion.

  “Fuck you, Simon.”

  He felt her turn on her heels and briskly walk away, every detail fed to him by his still active skill. He also felt Simon’s anger subsiding, his fists relaxing, and his rapid heart rate slightly falling. Justus turned the skill off.

  “I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have. And she shouldn’t have been offended by you spending time with someone.”

  “Aren’t you pissed too?”

  “You know why I’m upset.”

  Simon sighed and walked over to a small round table, taking a seat. He sat facing away from the table, leaning back against it with his arms behind his head.

  “Yeah. You don’t trust her, and I’m stupid because I do. You might be surprised, but I actually did listen to all those lectures you gave us back in gator-town. Kella is cool, though. Like I said, she’s a good person. I can tell. It’s not like I just saw her and started spilling all the details about my skills. She has a clone skill too, sort of. She’s told me as much about her skill as I’ve shared with her about mine, and she hasn’t asked me once about my other skills.”

  “It’s still not a good idea. Sometimes gangs will use techniques like that to drop your guard. Then they use the information to find your weaknesses and rob you.”

  “Or maybe she’s just friendly. Do you really think everyone around you is trying to fuck you over?”

  “Of course I don’t, but I act like it because some people are, and you won’t know who those people are until it’s too late.”

  “Sounds like a great way to die alone. Look, if she’s some kind of thief, then she sucks at it. I offered to pay her, but she didn’t want anything. I even had to convince her to let me buy her some food as a thank you.”

  “Fine. It’s your risk. Just don’t tell her anything about me or Katherine, or anything involving our quest.”

  “Or me!” Lyka said, poking her head out of Justus's shoulder. Only a lifetime of training kept him from jumping at her sudden appearance.

  “Yes, or her. How long have you been with me? I thought you were staying with Katherine?” he asked the spirit, looking down at her as she sat on his shoulder.

  “I hopped out after she saw that girl. She was really angry. I hate the taste of anger.”

  “The… taste? You can taste our emotions when you’re in our Spirit?”

  “Yep.”

  “How much can you tell? Can you taste deception or intent? And can you use it on people without them knowing?” he asked. His mind was already thinking of what they could use a skill like that for.

  The spirit shook her head. “Just emotions, and they’re not that strong. Kate’s almost always a little angry, but I ignore it. It’s only strong emotions that get sticky. I guess I could do it to someone without them knowing, but I have to be in their Spirit, which means they’d be able to see me, and you said that I’m not allowed to let anyone but you three know about me.”

  Justus grunted. “We’ll have to see if there’s a workaround for that. I’ve been thinking about exploring your abilities anyway.”

  “What abilities? All she does is fly about and make faces,” Simon said. Lyka leaned forward and stuck out her tongue at him. Simon mimicked the childish insult. Justus ignored them both.

  “Which is why she needs to start training. When I first found her, she was able to fix my guidestone, and she’s the only thing I’ve heard of that’s able to slip past a Spirit’s defenses.”

  “Hey, I’m not a thing!” The spirit said, crossing her arms. “I have emotions and feelings. More than you, in fact. I would know. I’ve tasted you, and you’re very bland.”

  Simon chuckled.

  “Don’t say it like that,” Justus told her. “But fair enough. Either way, starting tomorrow, you’re going to start training too.”

  Lyka threw her arms up and let out a whoop. Justus looked back at Simon.

  “You should probably stay away from the inn for a few hours. I’ll try to calm Katherine down.”

  “Don’t have to tell me. I’m not trying to turn into the Human Torch.”

  Justus ignored the comment and looked up. He Blinked, and was suddenly a thousand feet in the sky. Lyka let out another shout of joy. Before gravity began to pull him back down, he activated his Gate of Rates skill. A shimmering circle appeared around his waist and held him up. The moving space of the Gate was subtle and felt like a gentle moving pressure across his body.

  “Wow! We’re really high! What are we doing? Hi birds!”

  A few gulls flew nearby, making an angry honking noise as if they were upset a human was in their territory. Justus had to swipe at one as it attempted to nip at his robes. Once they’d moved on, he shifted his sight to the city below. He could see nearly all of it from this height.

  “We’re going to have a little chat with someone,” Justus told Lyka. He focused on the edge of the city, near the western docks they had arrived at.

  In a flash, he was back on his feet. A nearby older man jumped in surprise as Justus appeared in front of him. The man shouted an insult. Using skills in public wasn’t necessarily illegal in any kingdom, but it was considered rude. Justus had never had any qualms about being rude. He ignored the man and walked over to a narrow stairwell.

  Justus had learned of the Bilge Warrens the first day they’d arrived in the city but hadn’t visited. According to the one who gave him the information, the Warrens were where most of the city's homeless lived. The maze of platforms, tunnels, and rooms were technically off-limits to the general public, but the Bigle Warrens had been occupied by vagrants for decacycles. Justus knew why. Unlike his hometown Talon, Tide Blessed was a city that prided itself in its clean and maintained streets. If the unsavory members of the city holed themselves away out of sight, the city wouldn’t be keen on kicking them back onto the streets above. It was the same logic as the dirtroads of Talon. The inner city was for proper and polite society, so as long as crime and poverty were kept in the dirt where they belonged, the city officials and enforcers didn’t care to intervene often.

  If his hunch was right, Kella would be down here somewhere.

  The waves below drowned out the sounds of the city as he descended the stairs. The thick wood of the city streets above seemed to press down on him, reminding him of the cave they’d had to climb through for old man Goffner’s job. He didn’t have a fear of tight spaces like Simon, but he also didn’t like them. His fighting style worked best in open areas, and he liked having every advantage he could in a fight.

  He made his way through the small corridors, mentally mapping the route he was taking. Another perk of growing up in Talon’s dirtroads was that he’d had to get very good at navigating mazes. The dirtroads had almost no permanent buildings and were made up of ever-shifting huts, tents, and shacks.

  The platforms of the underbelly were suspended with a mix of chains, ropes, and beams. The wood that made up the platforms was noticeably less solid than the thick wood of the city’s main structure. It creaked and gave slightly underneath him, and the ones without structural beams swayed, creating occasional gaps between the segmented corridors and rooms that gave glimpses of the churning seawater below. The sounds of the city were completely gone now, but occasionally the wood groaned loudly, and every now and then the low rumble of one of the city trolleys could be heard passing above.

  “Spooky…” Lyka murmured. “Who would want to hang around down here? It’s dark and smells like wet fish.”

  “Wet fish? As opposed to what?”

  “Dry fish, obviously.”

  “Obviously. We’re going to find that girl Simon has been training with.”

  “Ahh…” Lyka said. After a few seconds of silence, she asked, “Why are we doing that?”

  “Because I’m not as easy to fool as he is.”

  “Sure you are. You still haven’t figured out I’ve been moving your shoes while you’re asleep.”

  Justus glanced at the spirit. He had noticed that, but he’d thought it was Simon playing some strange prank. For the past orbit, he’d been waking up to find his shoes had been moved an inch or two from where he’d left them before going to bed.

  “How is that fooling me? That’s just being annoying.”

  “It’s called having fun. You should try it sometime.”

  “How is moving—”

  Justus cut himself off after taking a turn. A dim flickering light was coming from a room ahead. He raised his finger, signaling Lyka to remain silent.

  “They can’t hear me anyway…” she muttered but didn’t say more than that.

  Justus kept an ear out for voices or movement but heard none. He turned on his Absolute Awareness as he got closer. It didn’t help with his nerves to have a perfect sense of the wooden structure he was walking on, but he was able to sense the people in the room. There were two, one much smaller than the other; both were male, and both were wearing tattered clothing.

  He looked into the room. There was a middle-aged man and a young boy. The man looked dazed and was picking at his nails. He didn’t even look up when Justus spoke.

  “Hello? I’m looking for the nearest station. Do either of you know the way?”

  The young boy looked up. He’d been playing some sort of dice game by himself. The boy only shook his head, then went back to playing.

  “Creepy…” Lyka whispered.

  Justus moved on, leaving the two behind. He turned off his skill after turning another corner.

  “Are they okay?” The spirit asked, looking back.

  “Don’t know. None of our business. The guy looked like a stoner.”

  “Which is?”

  “Someone addicted to using their guidestone’s mental manipulation. It’s meant to regulate emotions to help counter mental Spirit Beasts, but if used manually, it can be addictive and dangerous. It can numb the mind over time and leave you a drained husk without emotions. Barely even human. The only time they feel is when they use their stone, and they need more and more over time, until their Spirit can’t give them enough for the whole day. That’s when they become like that man in there.”

  “That’s awful.”

  “Yeah, it is.”

  “Can we do anything to help him?”

  “It’s none of our business.”

  Lyka looked back again, then went quiet.

  After half an hour of exploring and mentally mapping the underbelly, Justus finally came across the station he was looking for. It was around the size of a city block, and the wooden platform was much thicker. This was the place where the maintenance crews that did upkeep on the city’s subsurface structures would set up their equipment, but right now it was an encampment for people with nowhere better to go.

  The space was filled with tents and hastily made shacks. There were even a few vendors, trading what were likely stolen goods. Justus figured that was a good place to get information, and he had plenty of items he’d collected specifically to trade to these kinds of merchants.

  He walked over to one of the nicer vending shacks, one that seemed like the owner hadn’t completely abandoned the concept of presentation. It was an older woman, though there was a group of three children nearby. Justus knew this setup. The woman would probably lowball him if he tried selling, and then the kids would offer a better deal if he left. Then the kids would give whatever they got to the woman, and she’d give them some food or a few bits. It was a common tactic in Talon. He probably didn’t need to worry about them. He wasn’t here for typical business.

  The woman grinned, flashing a smile with a few missing teeth.

  “I haven’t seen you here before. Not many of your type find their way to the Warrens.”

  “I’m looking for someone,” Justus said.

  The woman looked delighted at the news. Justus was obviously not the typical urchin or vagrant, so she likely thought she’d be able to scam him.

  “Of course. My business is quite thriving down here. All kinds of faces that come and go, but the Warrens, well, they’re always moving, you know. Shifting around like silt on a seabed. Takes a good eye to remember who's gone where. Good thing you came to me. No one else who knows more about who is who in the underbelly.”

  “Good to hear.”

  “Yes, yes, very good.” The woman leaned forward on the creaky wooden counter. She lowered her voice. “But very dangerous. One of the rules of the Warrens: stay outta sight, stay outta trouble. Not many willing to break those rules, but why else were they made, if you ask me. It will cost you, though. Sticking out my neck—that's what you’re asking me to do, you know? Wanna know something ‘bout someone? You’ll need to show some red.”

  Red. That was a crimson set, worth eight hundred bits. That was a full quarter’s wages for many people. It was a ridiculous offer, more than even he’d expected her to start with.

  “I’ll ask someone else,” he said, turning.

  “Wait!” The woman hissed. “Fine, fine, a red is a little expensive. The usual rate, mind you, but you seem a nice enough fella. I can drop down to ten chips. You won’t find a better deal than that, if you can even find someone willing to talk. Like I said, we have rules here.”

  “Five chips,” Justus said, staring the woman down. People often said he looked like he was angry or scowling, but it was just his neutral expression. In situations like these, he felt grateful to be born with a naturally intimidating look, as the woman seemed torn between rejecting his offer and taking the deal.

  “Seven chips and thirty bits.”

  “Two chips,” Justus said. He held up his hand and took out an item from his inventory. The small bag appeared in his palm, and he set it on the counter. “And this: two ounces of haze powder.”

  The woman eyed the bag, her eyes flashing wide for a moment, before she played it cool. She reached out tentatively, looking at Justus with a much shrewder look.

  “May I?” She asked. He nodded. Her wrinkled long fingers pulled at the bag’s tied top, and she peered inside. She took a pinch of the white powder inside and sniffed it before taking a small taste. Her eyes narrowed.

  “And two chips?”

  Justus pulled out the verdant rhombus-shaped coins and set them next to the pouch. The woman took them and bent down. He heard something open, then shut and click. She came back up.

  “What do they look like?" She asked in a completely different tone. She’d switched from a kind merchant woman to all business. It might have also been the affect of the haze powder.

  “Younger woman, maybe seventeen or eighteen cycles, twenty at most. Black hair, straight, pretty well kept, down to just past her ears, bangs down to her brows. Brown eyes, longish face, small nose and lips. She was wearing a beige shirt and black pants, a bit rough, but not as bad as most of the ones here. I’d bet she’s only been on the streets for a phase or two. Her name is Kella. Or at least that’s what she said it was. She was on the tall side, slender, but a bit blessed in the chest area. Tiny scar on the inner side of her left wrist.”

  “Hmm. I think I know who you’re talking about. You’re right; she hasn’t been here long. Came a little bit after we set up here, maybe four or five orbits ago. She’s taken up a room to the south, that way,” she pointed, “just a short walk from the station. From what I heard, it's a room missing a wall panel. Her marker is a little stuffed dolphin. Old grungy-looking thing.”

  “Appreciated.”

  “Did you want to buy something as well, dear? Much cheaper than you’ll find topside, I promise you.” The old lady asked, going back to her cheery mercantile personality.

  “Maybe later,” Justus said. He was honestly tempted. It was true that you could often find things cheaper in underground markets, though the cheap prices came with the good chance the items were hot.

  The woman looked annoyed but nodded. “Then scram. You got a look of law about you. Bad for business, you understand. And don’t mention what I told you now.”

  Justice gave a curt nod, then left. The old woman didn’t need to tell him to keep quiet about who gave him the information. Anyone who worked with informants knew to keep sources confidential, unless they wanted every informant in the city to refuse to work with them again. Informants talked for a living, and they talked to each other more than anyone else, despite what they’d have others believe.

  He made his way to the south side. There were a few exits, so he’d have to do a bit more exploring.

  “What was that bag you gave the lady?” Lyka asked. He looked. Lyka was lying on top of his head, looking down at his face like she was peeking down off a cliff.

  “Get down,” he told her. She flitted off to land back on his shoulder. She sat in a prim manner that was discordant with her immature attitude.

  “Well? What was it?”

  “Haze dust, crystal crush, snap powder. There are different names for it depending on where you are. It’s a powerful stimulant. Highly addictive, highly illegal. It’s cheap to make but expensive because of how dangerous it is to sell. I figured she’d either take it without question or tell me to get lost the second she saw it. It was too good of a deal to ignore, though. That was easily worth as much as her starting price.”

  “You sold her drugs?” Lyka said in disbelief. “That’s not good, Justus! That’s against the law.”

  “So are you,” he retorted.

  “That’s different. I’m useful, pretty, and intelligent. Drugs make people the opposite of all of those things. And if it was worth that much, why give her all of it and money?”

  “Because I don’t have a use for it. I stole it anyways.”

  “Stole it? I thought you were an adventurer, not a thief.”

  “I thought you didn’t like drugs? If I stole it, it means I took it from someone who was a criminal. That makes it okay.”

  “Does not!”

  Justus shrugged. “Not really. I was only hoping you’d agree and shut up.”

  “Maybe Kate is right about you. You are a jerk. I should have left you in that ship.”

  “I’m practical. I’m also the one who got you out, by the way.”

  “Actually, you only got out because you had your skills, and you wouldn’t have had those if I didn’t fix your stupid stone.”

  "Shh."

  “Don’t shush me.”

  “Shh!” Justus pointed. There was a turn up ahead, and the orangish-yellow color of sunlight was pouring out of it. A room with a wall missing. To the spirit’s credit, she stopped talking once she noticed. She turned into mist that sank into his shoulder, and he felt the familiar pleasant warmth of her presence in his Spirit.

  It was time to learn more about Simon’s new friend.

  Whose perspective do you want to see more of in the main story?