Kaden stepped through the FarPortal and struggled to breath. The hot, humid air refused to enter his lungs, and the bitterly cold edges of his armor gathered moisture that turned briefly to frost until Kaden stored his armor in Inventory. He’d arrived in a shaded grove of wide-leafed palms whose tops joined together, and the FarPortal’s crystal slab sat in rich, dark earth that smelled of rotting leaves and worms.
“Where have you been? You’re dressed for the polar vortex.” Ydra asked. She lounged in the arms of a literal giant, a man who had to be nine feet tall, and most of his attribute points were in [Beard], which wasn’t an attribute on anyone else, but on this man, it had to be. It was longer than Eve’s hair, wild and bushy. Mana birds had probably attempted to nest in it and been devoured. His skin was the bronze that came from working in the sun, his pants heavy chaps of leather.
She’d mentioned her boyfriend being a large man and left a little out.
“Kaden, meet Marcus. He’s a druid of the southern enclave who learned to love the jungle a little more than the forest.” Ydra patted Marcus’s thigh.
Marcus, despite his size, moved with a gentle grace that said he could and would use all that strength if needed, but stomping around just to show he had large feet was a waste. “I hear you can communicate with Beasts that can’t speak.”
Kaden nodded and explained about [Beast Soul]. “I can only pick up what they send. I want to help but if they don’t know or have a way to tell me, I’m not going to do any better than you.”
“Try, that’s all I’m asking.” Marcus took Ydra’s hand and started into the jungle.
Not until Trinity emerged from nearby brush did Kaden follow. “This is better, isn’t it, girl?”
Trinity’s three heads brushed the bottom of the canopy as she walked, but she exuded pride, and comfort in the dense tropical heat.
If Marcus was surprised by the TriTerror, he didn’t show it, but as they walked, he talked about his guardianship of the [Crystal Capuchin] colony. Every Druid, at level fifty, formed a bond with a species. His choice had been these monkeys made of living crystal who lived their entire lives in a tropical forest. The heat didn’t bother him, the humidity was nothing, but what did was simple. “There’s fewer and fewer and at some point, there won’t be enough to keep the species going. I’m afraid it’s my [Nemesis] and I’m afraid it’s not. We have no idea.”
“He’s too young to worry about a [Nemesis],” Ydra scolded Marcus. “Just help us find out what is taking them. They don’t bleed, but we haven’t found body parts, so we think they’re being abducted whole.”
“Stay here.” They’d reached a clearing where shorter fruit trees mixed in with the taller canopy.
Ydra shocked Kaden by heading straight to Trinity and bowing. “Mother of Monsters. I’m doing my best to care for your children. They’re not easy. Some have killed each other. Some have fallen to other beasts. Very few lost to poachers.”
Trinity lowered her blind head to touch Ydra on the top of hers and rumbled, [Beast Soul] translating it as *As long as they died angry and with their mouths full of flesh.*
“She says you’re doing great,” Kaden added.
“I chose them. I chose the TriTerrors to bond with. They don’t like me. They don’t listen, they certainly don’t obey, but I’ll make sure they grow,” Ydra said.
Trinity’s emotions tended toward the harsh end of the spectrum. There was little she thought or felt that couldn’t be expressed in blood, but this Kaden understood. “She’s grateful. Also, they didn’t listen to or respect her, and she literally laid the eggs they came from.”
“Thank you!” Ydra gave Kaden a hug—then lurched into him as Trinity pushed him.
“No.” Kaden let go and faced Trinity. “She’s level fifty and I have Trella.”
Trinity’s serpentine head squealed, in essence *Back there. Right here you have this one. Never hurts to have a spare mate. Be quick, you could be done by the time the big one comes back.*
Kaden declined to translate. “I’m sorry. Trinity has her own set of ideas.”
“They’re beasts. They accept nature’s way and expect us to,” Ydra said. “Look, Marcus has three capuchins.”
The monkeys would have fit in Kaden’s hand, easily, and seeing the trio scamper over Markus, climbing up and down his beard almost made Kaden laugh.
Marcus kneeled down and held out one.
The creature’s flesh wasn’t transformed into crystal, more the monkey itself had been arranged from crystals. Small ones formed chains to make its tail, the beard was thousands of crystal spines, the eyes each singular crystals. They didn’t so much flicker with mana as absorb surrounding mana and reflect it back.
[Crystaline Capuchin]
Once, tiny monkeys roamed the trees in grand groups, making the trees gleam alive with the movement of entire hordes, and ringing their crystaline cries across the jungle. Now, they live in fear of a call they cannot resist, a demand they can only obey that will take mother and brother. Every dawn is quieter, every moonrise darker. This one knows safety with its larger friend but also that its time will come.
*Beast Knowledge: They’re vicious, every last stinking one of them and we should’ve burned down their forest. We hate them and will give ‘em the finger when our finger grows back. Hope the artificers kill every last one.
Kaden rarely disagreed with Beast Knowledge, but given that it was formed of the knowledge of previous [Beast Masters], it couldn’t be absolutely correct. He carefully held out a hand, then [Soul Bound] the monkeys one by one. “First off, they’re terrified.”
“You’d be terrified too, if more of your party were lost every night.” Marcus waited as the three Kaden had bound climbed onto his shoulders.
“Go get more. They’re individual beasts, but there’s definitely a social entity, and I think it’s the whole that is intelligent. I’ll try to communicate with these but we may need more.” He began to send questions over the Soul Binding. What was hunting them? When did it come? What did they see?
Each one tried to answer. The problem was these were just barely beasts and just barely capable of individual thought. Night-time, the rustle of underbrush, a spike of terror through the entire troup. Over the course of hours, Marcus brought more and more. Kaden released the first ones and quizzed the newcomers. “I don’t think it’s a poacher. They have a term for people and what I’m sensing is more like a predator.”
Marcus and Ydra began to debate. “The problem is, they’re not edible. You could break all your teeth and not take a bite from one.”
Kaden didn’t answer. With each moment he grew closer to understanding. “Definitely a hunter. And they feel like they can’t resist when it calls. They have to go.”
If the monkeys truly were vicious, Kaden would be missing all his skin, as the troup crawled over him. Different combinations of capuchins gave him different fragments of thoughts, like the arrangement of the troup affected its ability to recall.
The sun was dropping low when Marcus brought the last eight. “This is the last of them. They have to be back in the tree by moonrise or they can’t absorb enough moon mana.”
Kaden continued to work. Bind, listen, release.
Then he went back to one. Asking again. “It’s—I can see it. They can see it. They just can’t do anything about it. The image is right there and they’re trying to share it. It’s definitely a Beast.”
The trees lit by moonlight.
The pleasure of drinking it in.
The crystal chimes of capuchins grooming and sharding and among that, an answering chime that sent a longing through the troop. Kaden shook his head, losing contact with the monkeys but gaining the ability to think. “I don’t think this is working. Their thoughts are images, and the moment I break the link with them, I can’t see it any more than an individual monkey can.”
“I have an idea,” Ydra said. “You’ve used [Beast Form]. Your mind isn’t ever the same afterwards. Maybe Marcus and I can use our skills to talk to you while you talk to them. Just focus on what they’re telling you and let us coax it out of you.”
Kaden restablished the link to the capuchins, an easy task, then to the troup, which required being less himself and more them. Recalled their moment and the glimpse. The brush of another mind against his felt like static shocks down his spine.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
*Show us.* The voice wasn’t either Ydra or Marcus, but a blend of the two. Kaden brought back the moment, the moonlight, the call that resonated in crystal bodies. The fear that the tone was theirs, the combination of desire and panic.
From others came similar memories of slightly different notes and a glimpse in the moonlight—
“Gods damnit!” Marcus roared. “I know what it is. I know and I should have known and I should have found it a year ago.” He leaped up, scattering the troop. “Yrdra, it’s going to take both of us. Kaden, the dizziness will pass, it’s a common side effect. Keep the troop here. It’s a [Reflactory]. It can eat them because it becomes attuned to its prey. And it’s been eating them so long it’s perfect. Calls out a chime that matches each one, and the capuchins can’t help answering. Then it swallows them whole and goes back to sleep.”
Ydra scowled as she summoned weapons from Inventory. “The key to fighting one is to make it choose. Strong against one is weak against another. Will you hold the troop while we hunt?”
“I can probably do that.” Kaden sent the Falcrow to Sara, explaining that a quick Quest had turned long. “Also, why do I feel like I got sucker punched?”
“Our skills are different than yours. You become more like them. We force them to become more like us, and the animals we talk with are usually dazed and weak for an hour afterwards.” Ydra held a bow and a maul, Markus a chain and spear.
“What’s the odds this thing will skip you and head straight for me and the rest of the troop?” Kaden asked.
“It’s not used to having to move. It calls, they come. But yes, in between it and you will be us.” Marcus bowed. “This is a third tier beast, and we’re treating it with the fear and respect it deserves. Its actual form will depend on what it’s eaten, and I’ve called for assistance from every [Battle Druid]. This is the preservation of a species at stake.”
“They’re coming. I’ll bring them here.” Ydra sprinted off, while Trinity groaned in annoyance as [Crystal Capuchins] continued to treat her like a violent, angry tree.
Moments later, the patter of feet and hooves accompanied the arrival of a swarm of druids, most with animals as companions.
“Kaden Birch, it’s good to see you.” Kanli, the [Druid] who taught him control of [Beast Form] spoke softly. “I did see that quest go out, I figured you’d have a way to talk to the [Crystal Capuchins]. Shapeshift lately?”
Kaden shook his head. It was hard to remain linked to the troup and yet speak. “Been busy.”
“We’ll talk.” Kanli turned and faced the others. “It’s a third tier beast, so that means I can’t help. What I can do is offer containment and guidance. There’s never a wrong reason to disengage in a battle with a [Reflactory]. Picked bad weapons? Pick again and start over. Don’t like your approach? Back off. One of you is dead and the other mortally wounded? Good time to run and keep running. Everyone else will spread out around you. Fend it back to the center, this is their war.”
Kanli spoke quietly to Marcus and Ydra.
And Kaden took his turn, drawing potions from Inventory. “These are [Bleed]. These are venom from ice wasps that will inflict [Slow]. I’d love to take one of these on but I get the impression it’s out of my range.”
Marcus studied the potions and then applied them to each weapon, while Ydra opted only for [Bleed]. “This is my land. It’s part of me and I’m part of it. These are my beasts. My life, my responsibility. You’ve done everything I needed. Your quest is fulfilled.”
Quest Master is active.
Quest Completed: Monkey Business.
You have gained 2x Naturi Faction Token
You have gained Faction Favor (Naturi)
You have a pending reward (Marcus, Druid).
That’s right, the quest promised him his own [Crystal Capuchin]. Which seemed like an odd reward, since the species was fighting for its survival. “I’ll still stay and convince the troop to remain out of the way.”
“This won’t be a long battle. It dies or we do. The longer we let it survive the more dangerous it becomes. No matter what, that Beast won’t be killing any more of these [Crystal Capuchins].” Marcus gave him a slap on the back.
Kaden was still thinking. “If it’s a Beast, I could bind it. I could make it hold still while you kill it.”
“No, that’s not how [Druids] deal with nature. We meet it on its own terms.” Ydra sounded disappointed in him.
It was definitely how [Beast Masters] dealt with nature. “I’ll be here.”
“A fast attack has the best chance of succeeding,” Kanli said. “It’ll adapt quickly. Do not underestimate it. I’m a centurion and you never hear me say ‘Let’s go borrow trouble.’”
One last option Kaden could offer. “Trinity’s willing to go with you. On the plus side, she’s like three level twenty five adventurers. On the downside, if it adapts to Trinity, it’ll definitely kill you.”
Marcus glanced to the TriTerror. “Using Beasts against each other is not only allowed, it’s the [Druid] way. Mine aren’t battlers, as you can see. I can’t guarantee her safety.”
“TriTerrors aren’t concerned with safety,” Ydra answered. “One day, your spawn will fight alongside me. It would be an honor for you to battle with us now. It is not a crime for the eater to eat, but destroying a species?”
Trinity’s serpentine head whistled. *It’s not like they taste good.*
“She’s delighted to help,” Kaden added.
Marcus kneeled and touched his hand to the ground, and Ydra did the same.
[Split Second] activated as they sprinted away, with Trinity stomping as fast as she could, all necks outstretched as she roared a battle cry.
Trinity has used [Predator’s Challenge]. Trinity’s damage is increased.
Kaden focused on the troop and enforcing the idea that none of them wanted to go up in the trees. Injecting fear through [Beast Soul] felt wrong, but was definitely the right move.
Searing pain lanced through him as the [Soul Bond] let him feel what Trinity felt. Her roar echoed through the jungle, louder—and louder, along with the bloodlust that drove her to battle. Every cry shook the trees a bit more.
“They’re taking too long,” Kanli said, almost a whisper. “By now it’s already adapting.”
Trees cracked and crashed, and a woman screamed in pain.
The troop bristled with rage.
Kaden hated using [Beast Command] on such peaceful creatures, but fear alone didn’t overcome their desire to help Marcus. “Stop!” He focused on the leaders, one by one, repeating the command over and over as the troop pleaded desperately to let them go. Let them help. Even let them die, if only so the [Druid] bonded to their species didn’t die alone.
With a crack and a snap, the soul bond told him Trinity was dead. The last echos of her emotions held clear and clean. Triumph. Then a low, rumbling wail of agony rose louder and louder and cut off.
“It’s done,” Kanli said. “Nature says the [Reflactory] is dead. Your TriTerror went down swinging. Marcus is dead, too, but a level for killing something like that is an even trade.”
“I need the corpse. Trinity will come back sooner that way.” Kaden released the troop, who swarmed up the trees, spreading out in the night to wait for the coming moon. Then he followed the connection between him and Trinity, all the way to warzone. Smashed tree trunks, craters in the soil, three dead leopards.
Trinity’s corpse lay split in two, her body literally torn along the spine, two heads on one side, the serpentine head on the other. Kaden drew it into his soul, where she dissolved.
Kanli pointed to the leopards. “You’re welcome to anything here. Letting them rot is a crime worse than taking them.”
Kaden worked with [Reap Materials] while Kanli worked to comfort Ydra.
She cradled her lover’s body, stabbed through with hooked barbs that had broken off. Kanli kneeled and put her hands on both. “I’ve got a healer on the way to resurrect him. This was the kind of sacrifice that is sometimes required. I’m proud of you both.”
“I never—I never saw anything like it,” Ydra said. “It evolved during the battle to have no blood. It couldn’t remove the slow, so it developed spear tendrils that fired at us.”
“It’s a third tier Beast even Centurions avoid,” Kanli said. “Kaden, you can go. I’ll stay until there’s a resurrection.”
With Trinity reforming and the Quest complete, Kaden was ready to head north. “Ydra, I’ll see you some other time. Hopefully a happier time.”
One of her eyes had exploded, but she wiped away blood and tears. “The Quest says you get a [Crystal Capuchin]. Marcus had picked one out for you but you’ll need to wait for him to resurrect and recover.”
“I don’t recall the Quest saying when. Right now, I think we need all of them here, making little [Crystal Capuchins.] But they’re beautiful.” Beasts were great. More Beasts were greater. But there was definitely a time and place. “How many years do you think it’ll take the population to recover?”
“Not long. Maybe a decade?” She didn’t move, and Kaden didn’t mind. Ydra had the right priorities.
“I’ve got to get back to my Quest. I left a bunch of Beserkers waiting for Trella and I’m worried about what will happen to them. Take care of my TriTerrors.” Kaden headed toward the FarPortal, and dispatched the FalCrow to notify a Portal Mage.
“Beast Man!” Kanli called. “You forget something?”
He didn’t think so. Trinity. Yeah, that was the list.
She carried something with both hands, the bloody head of a beast that was already losing its shape. “You’re the one with the crafter’s harvesting skill. Most of the body was destroyed, since that’s about the only way to kill one. Enjoy, it doesn’t mean much to centurions, and the only thing that’s going to matter to those two are each other.”
Kaden accepted it and activated [Reap Materials]. Three of the material trees remained grayed out because of the condition of the corpse. His only option was an ‘Naturi Skill Orb’ made from the collapsed skull. Kaden harvested it. “What am I supposed to do with this?”
“Reflactories are living weapons, I expected some kind of weapon crafting material,” Kanli said. “Naturi means for beasts. It’s a skill orb for one of your beasts. You might technically be the only class that could use them, too, but if it grants you the [Reflactory’s] reflective skin, you might need a lot of points in Charisma before a woman will come near you.”
Kaden quickly dressed in his [Ulfen Armor]. “Where’s the healer?”
“I won’t allow just anyone to resurrect him. I called in a favor from a Centurion Priest. You still upset you weren’t allowed to fight it?”
He couldn’t deny his disappointment. “If Trinity could do it, I could.”
“You need to get comfortable with owning your role. Your role was to keep Marcus’s capuchins safe and every last one is fine. You found the [Reflactory]. Marcus’s death here will bind him to the land even more.” She put a hand on his shoulder. “How’s the [Beast Form] going?”
“Sticking to one form. I changed a few months ago. It takes so long, I don’t have many opportunities, and Minotaurs on snow and ice aren’t the worst, but it’s not the same.” Kaden clasped the [Ulfen Cloak] and felt the set bonus take hold.
“Maybe it’s time to branch out. If you get stuck, don’t panic. It’s never as bad with the second form. Lizards are hard, birds are worse than lizards, fish are easy to shift to and even easier to drown as. I shifted into a [Giant Mantis] once and almost didn’t make it back. I was a hundred and seventy years old at the time, don’t risk it.”
Kaden thought of Trinity. “TriTerrors—”
“No. Not even I would try that. If the part of your mind that can think and the part of your mind that can shift wind up in different heads, I’m not sure how we’d ever bring you back.”
It was time.
Kaden knew exactly what he’d shift to. “See you around. Tell Marcus I’ll see him in a decade. The capuchin is still mine, I’m just lending it to the troop.” With that, he stepped through the FarPortal. The cold sank into him, chilling his bones and his breath.
No surprise, Trella, Sara, and Eve were arguing.
No surprise, they were arguing over [Fire Soul] potions.
But when Kaden pushed his way through the Resyr, it was his turn to be shocked.
Trella stood face to face with Kai Fen.