Everyone kept casting nervous glances down the hall where the Glitterflare Hive loomed at the end of the encroaching comb. But nothing moved, the previous busy movements of guardians and fighters just gone.

No one objected, taking the offered time to heal up and recover their mana. Dahni was the new favorite of Titus’ crew, with the ability of his Cleansing Sanctuary to heal and remove debuffs. Neptid was a close second.

“Any chance there are more mustelids out here, so I could tame one?” Crissim turned to ask Dahni from his Meditation position.

Hearing them speaking, Pax cast a worried glance down the hallway again. When nothing stirred, he didn’t object to the quiet conversation.

“Sorry, but you’re a flame mage.” Dahni kept his voice soft and gave Crissim an apologetic look. “That limits you to flame-based beasts and, with a bit more effort, air and earth. We’ve never had anyone successfully Tame a beast of the opposite primary element.”

Pax cleared his throat, and Dahni blushed.

“Well, except for Pax, who can Tame whatever he wants.”

That got quiet chuckles from Pax’s crew and appraising looks from Titus’.

“What about one of us?” Girrec, the spear-wielding warrior next to Crissim, leaned in close to ask. He glanced over at the two stonepaws next to Bryn and Tasar. “You can help warriors Tame companions, right? Could one of us get a healing guy like yours?”

Dahni gave Pax a questioning look, and he shrugged. “The warrior Taming is still new. What’s different is that their pets got two abilities, like the mages’ pets, but one was active while the other was internal, focused on improving their pets somehow. So, if we could track down some mustelids or other beasts with innate healing abilities, that active ability slot might have something that could heal those around them.”

Despite the way Pax hedged on his answer, Girrec gave his crewmates an excited grin before looking back at Pax and his friends. “This could change everything for crews like us that are mostly warriors. Only the more favored crews get more than one mage assigned and then it’s usually a fighting mage, not one who has a Heal Others type spell. No offense intended, Crissim.” He gave his friend an apologetic look.

“None taken. I’ve been saying we should have a second mage, a support one, in the lower fighting crews for years now. But you know how well anyone listens to us.”

“Had listened to you.” Pax held their gaze, his voice firm. “We’re listening to you now. And together we’re going to surpass all the flicks who oppressed us and thought they were better than us.”

Crissim’s eyes rose in surprise. Something like tentative hope flitted in his gaze. “What if we could find a beast for me that isn’t water-based and has healing abilities? Would that give me a chance for a Heal Others spell?”

Pax grinned and nodded. “We’re just barely learning about all the possibilities. Plus, we’re Taming adult beasts now, so they should be stronger and have even more abilities to choose from. Though, it might end up being better to raise them from babies and guide their growth, like Neptid here as a support companion. But that takes too much time with the war progressing so fast.”

Crissim looked thoughtful, considering the information. “Sounds like we have a lot of homework to do when we get back today. We need to research the bestiaries and quiz the rebels about the local beasts they’ve seen out here.”

Seeing how interested Titus’ friends were in a Tamed companion who could heal made Pax realize how spoiled they’d been by the set of skills Dahni and Neptid had. They’d hardly needed healing potions, making the low-level ones provided regularly to all academy students more than adequate.

No wonder the indentured warriors could never make much progress in paying off their debt. It wasn’t just food and lodging expenses, but expensive potions to ensure they survived that wore their finances down. Pax’s resolve hardened further to do everything he could to help Titus and his crew grow in power alongside his own.

With the addition of Titus’ warrior friends, Pax needed to dedicate more time to understanding exactly how abilities and mana worked for them. Surely, they had some individual healing abilities, even if they didn’t have any in the Heal Others class. Could he help strengthen those with his own knowledge of healing? Or maybe even help them unlock new ones?

And if he and Tyrodon could make progress on uncovering runes for the new secondary elements, would they be able to create better protection and weapons? His mind swam with ideas and possibilities that felt limitless. If only he had the time to explore them all.

The urgency of the hive looming at the end of the hallway pulled Pax’s thoughts back to the coming battle. Pax knew they couldn’t keep operating as separate crews, especially if they wanted to fight through the comb and hive entrance ahead of them.

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“Titus, Bryn, what’s the best formation to break through obstacles while still keeping us squishy students safe?”

Titus and Bryn exchanged a thoughtful look.

“V-formation?” Bryn looked at Titus to see what he thought.

He nodded. “Exactly what I was thinking. Though it will have to be pretty narrow and might not work as the comb gets thicker and we try to fit through that narrow hive entrance.” He glanced back over his shoulder, evaluating their path.

“Unless we smash through.” Tasar reached out and pried a piece of comb from the wall with a gauntleted hand. He easily squeezed it into a ball. “See? Some kind of wax and paper combination. Not very strong.”

“Makes sense.” Rin nodded. “Insects rarely build their nests to withstand much damage. Instead, they swarm anything that threatens them and build inside something protective, like a tree or the ground.”

“Or an ancient ruin.” Amil motioned around them.

“Exactly.”

Pax’s Strategist skill finished evaluating the options and helped him form a decent plan. “Alright, here’s what we’re going to do. We hit them hard before whatever they have planned.” Pax leaned in so everyone could hear him as he laid it out. “Titus, your crew makes a narrow V- formation, breaking up the comb and then through the entrance to whatever is inside. Bryn, Tasar and the stonepaws will take the second rank to help with killing blows or fill a spot if someone gets wounded.

Nods of agreement all around greeted his words, and he glanced at his own crew.

“The rest of us will fall in behind and hit any available targets with magic or devices. We’ll call out warnings for anything big we’re casting. Dahni and Neptid will keep health and mana boosted, along with fixing any debuffs. Horrid will counter any scent attacks and use some of her own when possible. Rin and my companions will continue scouting and stealth attacks on any powerful opponents who are vulnerable. Anything I missed?”

His friends looked thoughtful, but didn’t offer any suggestions. Amil and some of Titus’ warriors looked impatient to get going.

Titus gave him an approving nod. “We won’t really know enough for more detailed instructions until we get inside, so it’s a good plan. And I’m gaining an appreciation of how versatile and powerful a bunch of mages and companions can be.” He shook his head with a rueful smile. “I’m getting pretty jealous of my little brother.”

“Don’t worry.” Pax clapped him on the arm. “We’ll get all of you powered up in no time.”

A soft buzzing, almost unnoticeable, tickled at his senses. Pax spun to look at the hive, but couldn’t see anything changing yet.

We’ve got movement up here. Rin’s warning came a moment later. Inside the hive. Nothing coming out yet.

Everyone reacted in an instant, on their feet, shields, weapons and mana ready. Titus’ warriors were in a tight V-formation a moment later, with Pax’s crew taking their assigned spots, almost as if they’d practiced it beforehand. Pax sent a quick flurry of messages to Rin and his companions to let them in on the plan.

Got it. We’ll stealth and see if we can sneak in just ahead of you. Rin sounded eager.

Pax gave the formation a last glance, making sure everyone, including their companions, was in position and ready before giving the order. Forward. Let’s bust this thing wide open and catch them flatfooted.

Titus didn’t bother replying. His crew surged forward a heartbeat later, kicking through the bodies of the fighters still in piles around them. Pax and his friends stuck close behind them.

As the hallway narrowed, the warriors in the outer positions braced their shields at an angle, smashing big chunks of the comb from the walls. A mix of strange liquids spilled out and splashed over shields and warriors.

Thankfully, a quick head shake from Dahni told Pax it wasn’t immediately dangerous. Still, it made their footing treacherous as the viscous stuff spread in from both sides of the floor.

Titus and his crew picked up speed as they neared the hive entrance. Now that they were closer, Pax could see it was a hybrid of ancient architecture and insectile engineering. The remnants of an old stone archway framed the entry, now interwoven with the waxy, paper-like material of the Glitterflare beasts. Hopefully, it was more comb than stone, so they could break through easily.

Dahni. We need a Seismic Pulse directly ahead to loosen up the entrance. Hit it as soon as you’re in range.

My front guys are activating their shield bashes, too, Titus said. We shouldn’t have problems breaking through.

Pax’s breath came fast as their boots pounded down the hall with what felt like unstoppable power. He pushed his Sphere forward to scout the entrance. He wasn’t worried about attracting the attention of the beasts anymore. They had to know they were coming.

He grinned when he sensed that the strange comb material made up most of the entrance. The stone remnants of the doorway hadn’t weathered the centuries well. Well, not very much of it.

Aim slightly to the left of the entrance. There’s a stone column still intact from floor to ceiling on the right. Watch out for Dahni shaking the ground.

Titus’ crew responded an instant later, veering off of center, their momentum slowed by the thick comb almost filling the hallway now.

So close.

We’re going in with the slippery lady. Me and Talpa will protect her and you, Pax. Whisk’s cheerful words made Pax’s grin widen.

Ahead of them, he glimpsed a flicker of mist and movement slipping into the narrow opening ahead of them. A moment later, a flare of earth mana from Dahni hit the ground and shot through the few feet left in front of them with a rumble.

The shaking destabilized the encroaching comb and the entrance ahead, sending jagged cracks through the intricate structure. Pax’s Sphere, focused on the stone underneath, saw it tremble under the earth magic’s force.

With five strides left, Titus unleashed his warriors’ abilities. “Charge!” His order, low and commanding, was loud enough for everyone to hear.

Their force surged forward. Pax lurched forward, fighting to keep up with the sudden increase in the speed of the warriors ahead of them. Remembering his resolve to learn more about warriors’ abilities, he reached out with his mana senses to learn what he could. A wave of powerful, but colorless mana surged through the leading warriors, boosting their charge and shields.

Pax watched the amazing amount of power with awe as the warriors unleashed it simultaneously. Then their formation hit the entrance like a battering ram.