“The entire place was abandoned? No other light mages survived to keep things running?” Fenix hit Pax with a flurry of questions after he’d finished reporting on his adventures.

Fenix’s head kept turning in distress before returning to glare at where Pax and Rin sat like the bad news was somehow their fault. Pax just nodded and gave the ancient mage a helpless shrug.

It seemed Fenix had been pinning his hopes on the chance that Pax would find other living light mages, some kind of hidden enclave that had survived over the generations. The news that the headquarters had been a beast-riddled ruin had hit him much harder than Pax expected, and he needed some time to adjust to the news.

At least he hadn’t reacted badly to Pax’s new level and gaining a different copy of Ghostlight Illumination to use. In fact, he’d been pleased not to have to part with another of his precious scrolls.

The next part would be harder, though. Pax needed to figure out how to bring up the other Fenix and two Solanis. He’d held back that information after seeing how hard his first news of an abandoned ruin had hit Fenix. Would he be excited about others like him or sink into a depression that they’d been abandoned for generations, just like him?

Plus, Pax guessed that as soon as he brought Solani 2-nine out and they discussed moving to join the rebels, he’d have no chance to discuss the magic theory needed to help his friends unlock their secondary elements.

We need a distraction, so I can bring up the secondary elements, he sent to Rin, hoping she had an idea.

I have the perfect thing.

Without giving any indication she was having a private conversation with Pax, Rin dipped a hand and pulled a small book out of her inventory. “Oh, before I forget, Magesecond Fenix?”

Her query distracted Fenix enough to look over at her and stop his muttered ranting.

“Mage Dahni wanted to apologize for taking so long to follow through on his promise to bring you a book of the empire’s history.” Rin held up the small leather-bound book.

Fenix stared at her, expression puzzled for a long moment before his entire face brightened, and his head zoomed close to the book Rin held out. “Oh, that’s going to be a treat to read. Put it on the mana block on my desk.”

Rin stood up from her chair and moved to the desk before aiming a questioning look at Fenix. He seemed to suddenly remember his grouchy mood. “It sure took you long enough to bring it. There, on the glowing block, so I can turn the pages myself.”

Pax saw a rectangle built into the top of the desk emit a soft glow. Rin carefully set the book down, stepping back as Fenix zoomed in close and could somehow open the book and send the pages flipping for a scan from start to finish.

He looked up, disappointed. “This doesn’t go back to the Cataclysm you said changed the world, much less back to my time.”

“Sorry,” Rin said with a shrug. “Historians think the Cataclysm was so disruptive, followed by the waves of beasts from the wells that survival came first. No one kept records for a long time. The years and neglect destroyed any from before.”

Fenix harrumphed and plopped down next to the book. “Well, I guess this is better than nothing.”

Rin gave Pax a pointed look.

He cleared his voice. “Magesecond Fenix, would you mind waiting to read that for a few minutes? We have two important matters that we could use your esteemed advice on. If you could help us first? Then we’ll leave you to read all you’d like.”

“Fine.” Fenix looked back up at them, looking a bit mollified by the praise. “What’s your first question?”

Pax pulled out his light manual and quickly flipped to the chapter on combining elements. “My friends all have their minor mana elements unlocked with spells slotted. Now I need to help them unlock their secondary elements. The manual only says that a light mage can help with that, but doesn’t give any specific details. It also says I need to have my secondary elements leveled up to 2. Is there any way around that?”

Fenix let out a huff and shook his head. “Why do you always have to push the boundaries into dangerous territory? You know you’re messing with the very core of your friends’ mana, right?”

Pax didn’t flinch, holding Fenix’s gaze. “And we just saw the bodies of fellow students who didn’t survive the Purge. We’re at war now. We have to do everything we can to grow stronger if we’re going to survive what’s coming, understand?”

Fenix looked between Pax and Rin before letting out a sigh of concession. “Fine. You’ve convinced me that the empire is falling down around us and you need my help to survive. First, remember your manual is written for beginning light mages who are young and reckless, thus, all the very conservative warnings to keep them from doing stupid things.”

Rin stifled a snort.

“And while it would be best that you advance your understanding of your secondary elements before helping another mage combine theirs, it isn’t required.”

Rin leaned forward. “You mean he can help me unlock my ice mana? How?”

“By doing the same thing all light mages do, help with control and manipulation until the other mage can do it themselves. The basic technique is simple. Pax helps guide you to better control and manipulate your two mana types. When you’ve gained enough skill to keep them under tight control, then he threads his light mana around the two and convinces them to play nice together.”

Pax made careful mental notes, hoping it would work as easily as described.

“The reason this is much harder than unlocking a minor element is that you’re essentially creating a new element, which requires both of you to have a decent understanding of it. If you don’t, it’ll be like building a chair without really knowing what one is. Make sense?”

“And what’s the best way to boost that understanding?” Pax asked.

“For you? Get hit with a lot of that type of elemental attack, which is why we would usually have training rooms for that kind of thing. You’re pretty lucky that you got some of those rooms up and working back at headquarters. That’s the best place to do this. Your other choice is to be hit by the natural elements, like a lightning strike, or an attack from a mage or beast of that element, but from what you’ve said, there aren’t many of those.”

Pax let out a glum sigh, wishing they’d had more time in the elemental training rooms back at the headquarters. They planned to head there as soon as they finished with their goals here in Salman, but he chafed at another delay in helping his friends grow stronger.

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“So, ice and nature would be the easiest to train naturally, right?” Rin asked. “Getting hit by lightning or touching a natural source of magma both seem close to impossible, not to mention dangerous.”

“Yes, your friend is clever and correct. Find places to freeze yourself down or ones stuffed full of growing, healthy plants and you can make a bit of progress with those two elements.”

Pax could see both eagerness and calculation spinning in Rin’s eyes. You know Amil is going to be ticked off if you get ice before he gets lightning.

She just grinned, her competitive nature obviously coming to the fore.

“And you mentioned the new appearance of lightning beasts?”

Pax nodded, not sure where Fenix was going with it.

“To exist, I’d expect them to need a source of pure lightning. Unless there’s a constant storm zapping an area all the time, I can’t see how you’d ever have lightning-based beasts. And to suddenly see multiple kinds of them? I’d guess that the mana pools you’ve told me about are growing and spreading until they run into their neighbors on either side. If I’m correct, you may see beasts based on the other secondary elements appearing soon, too. More than anything you’ve told me, this might truly mean the empire’s downfall.”

“Why didn’t we think of that?” Pax asked, eyes wide at the logical leap Fenix had made. He turned to Rin. “Now that news of the lightning beasts had broken past the quashing, have you heard anything about other types?”

She shook her head, but her gaze was full of thoughts about the implications. “The Tower Ring has to have seen them. And the smaller towns out that far are going to be the hardest hit.”

“It also means the empire’s troops will be stretched even thinner than they currently are,” Fenix said solemnly. “That is bad for civilians, but good for your rebellion.”

A grim silence fell over the three of them for a few long moments before Fenix glanced over at the history book waiting for him. “You said you had two things you needed my advice on?”

“Oh.” Pax jarred himself free of his thoughts, suddenly anxious about how Fenix would take Solani’s existence. “Remember how I said there were no surviving light mages at the headquarters ruin?”

“Yes.” Fenix drew out the word, eyes narrowing.

Pax licked his lips and said it all in a rush. “Well, there were a few mage copies, just like you, that had barely enough power to revive and help us. By the time we left, we had met two copies of a Mage Solani and one more of your founder, Mage Fenix. We brought Magetwentyninth Solani to meet you so she could help you prepare to leave the academy and come with us back to the headquarters to work with the rebels.” Pax finished and sucked in a breath, holding it while he waited to see Fenix’s reaction.

His expression had frozen halfway through the explanation, his mouth dropping open in stunned disbelief. Then he just stayed that way, nothing moving as he stared at Pax.

“Fenix?” Pax finally asked after the better part of a minute had gone by without Fenix even twitching.

I hope you didn’t break him, Rin sent over her Echo.

“Me, too,” Pax said under his breath as he pulled Solani 2-nine’s crystal out. It was the only thing he could think of to do.

Rin helped him clear a spot on the desk, but when Pax saw there was enough room on Fenix’s mana block, he set the crystal there. Still holding the block of crystal, Pax felt a steady stream of mana flow up into it, which would help the cores he’d slotted into it last longer. Following the directions they’d given him back in the ruins, he placed fingers into the activating slots on opposite sides of the crystal and sent the gentlest bit of light mana into them.

A shimmer and then the bright and happy head of Solani 2-nine popped into existence above the block. “Hello, Pax and Rin! We actually made it? We’re in Salman, the new capital of the empire? Is this Magesecond Fenix’s workshop?” She twirled in a circle, her expression delighted as her eyes took everything in, jumping from the desks to the bookshelves and scrolls. Then she saw Fenix, still frozen and staring at where Pax had been seated. “Oh.”

“Yes, to all your questions.” Pax gave her a sheepish shrug. “And Fenix was handling everything fine until we told him about you and the others back at the headquarters. Now, he’s kind of stuck. Maybe in shock?”

She made a sympathetic cooing sound as she moved closer to Fenix’s frozen head. “This happens sometimes when life gets too overwhelming and our mental copy is forced to deal with too many unexpected things.”

“Can you help him?” Rin asked.

“Of course.” Solani 2-nine’s tone changed to a more official one. “Magesecond Fenix? Assistance is here. Please report, and I will help.”

Fenix’s eyes shot open, and he turned to Solani and began speaking.

Pax exchanged a surprised look with Rin as Fenix poured out everything he’d been told with no emotion in his voice, leaving out any unnecessary details Pax had added to the story.

“—leaving another copy of Mage Fenix and two copies of Mage Solani still functional at the light headquarters ruin. One is to assist me in leaving the academy and returning to headquarters to help the rebellion so the empire and all its citizens aren’t lost forever.”

“Thank you for your report,” Solani said.

Fenix’s eyes blinked, and finally animation returned to his expression. “You’re Solani 2-nine? The one sent to help me leave this place?”

She nodded. “But we still have time. Our student mages have a lot of work to do here before they can leave. If it’s alright with you, I’d like to stay here and help. I can answer questions, though I was shut down for an unknown number of years, but perhaps we have some memories in common from the time before the Cataclysm.”

Interest lit up in Fenix’s eyes, making Pax hope this would go well.

“And I can help you organize your things, so it’ll be easy to replicate your workshop when we get back to headquarters.”

“Replicate my workshop? One at headquarters? They never offered me a spot at headquarters.” Fenix looked stunned with a hint of excitement before his expression fell again. “But Pax said it’s a ruin. This place has been protected and served me well for a very long time.”

“Oh, there are still a lot of workshops to choose from, many that just need power restored and a bit of dusting. You could pick one bigger than this with a full laboratory section for research and experimenting. Though I’m sure we can find one of the same size if this is what you’re used to.”

“No. No,” Fenix shook his head. “I think it would be better if I waited until I arrived to evaluate the best workshop to fit my needs.”

“Well, I know we will all be very excited to have such a senior and renowned mage join us. Did Pax tell you how excited Magethirtyfirst Fenix was to hear that you were still functioning?”

“No, he didn’t.” Fenix aimed a disgruntled look at Pax before turning an eager smile back at Solani 2-nine. “Why don’t you tell me everything instead? You’re welcome to stay with me while the students finish their work. I’d love your input on what the most important items I should bring and how to best pack them in the inventory boxes I have back there in storage. Oh, and I have a brand-new history book that we can read together to figure out exactly what’s been happening in the world outside for so many years.”

“That all sounds wonderful,” Solani said, before giving them a cheery tip of her head that was obviously a dismissal.

Grinning at each other, they turned and walked back down the stairs to exit the workshop. After they stepped into the sewage tunnel, Pax used the runes to shut the door again.

“That turned out a lot better than it started,” Pax said, running a hand across his forehead to remove the sweat.

“Completely.” Rin let out a relieved breath. “Solani had him eating out of her hand by the end.”

“And we got more information about everyone’s new elements, even if it’s looking like we need the training rooms at headquarters to make much progress.”

She shrugged. “We’ll all keep practicing. The more we level our Mana Sight and Manipulation, the better we’ll do later. And Amil isn’t wrong, even with what it did to his leg. The other elements aren’t as dangerous as lightning. You should hit all of us with your mana every few days, so we can get a better feel for exactly what we’re trying to create.”

He aimed a wry look her way. “We can’t just be satisfied with leveling our Identify and Taming?”

“You leveled them?” Rin gave him an excited look.

“Just Identify today, but Taming should be soon.” He gave her a grin, realizing with her interest in money matters and her own new Evaluate skill, she was the perfect one to share the news with. “I can Identify people and beasts up to level 6 now, plus get health information on them if I pump more mana into the skill. It also gave me another boost to distance like I got with level 3. Then, it should get me more information on items, too. Though it’ll be harder to level it again with the lower-level beasts and stuff not giving many‌ points now.”

Rin scoffed. “I’m pretty sure we’ll be running into plenty of powerful enemies you can Identify in the future.” Then she smiled. “And hopefully just as much awesome loot.”

“Vitur willing,” he said, hoping she was right as they walked back through the tunnels.

“Oh, and I’ll check with Mistress Nymeli for good places for you to freeze and then immerse yourself in nature.” She gave him a mischievous smile. “We can’t manage lightning and magma here, but those two shouldn’t be hard.”

He groaned, still aching from the war games. “There’s no rush on that, alright?”