Cronix let go of the crow and looked at Lapsa, "Are you ready for your training."

Lapsa nodded.

"Good, we don't have much time." Cronix took out another book from his magic bag and handed it to Lapsa.

Lapsa looked at the title, "The ice wraith method."

"Yeah, you don't need to read the whole thing, only a specific part, as it turns out pretty much nothing about this technique is safe as long as it's incomplete." Cronix grabbed the book back and flipped to a page with the title, 'Cognitive Gathering'.

"Follow these instructions, and you should feel the mental energy flowing within you in no time." Cronix said, although he was paying more attention to the teleportation array.

Lapsa read through the technique, "Is this how you got the feel for mental energy?"

"Nope, I'm kinda self taught, I had to train myself using the formation book." Cronix casually said.

Lapsa frowned and looked at Cronix, "So, you don't actually know how well this would help me sense mental energy?"

Cronix waved him off, "It should work, just try and if you really need help, then just ask."

Lapsa nodded, and looked back at the technique, but before he could immerse himself, he suddenly remembered something, "Oh, here are some scraps from breakfast."

Lapsa placed the scraps of food on Cronix's bed, right by Cayden's side, before he leaned against the bed, getting comfortable and closed his eyes.

The crow flew up on Lapsa's head eyeing the scraps. Cayden grabbed one of the scraps, which was a waffle, and handed it to the crow.

The crow pecked it from Cayden's hand and dropped it on Lapsa's head, pecking at it.

"Cronix, what's her name?" Cayden asked, gesturing at the crow.

Cronix turned around, and with a frown said, "Her name... Wait, it's a her?"

Lapsa's eyes fluttered open, "You didn't even know she was a she?"

"I'm sorry, but all crows look the same to me, how am I supposed to tell the difference? And you are supposed to be practicing." Cronix didn't know how to properly defend himself.

"Whatever," Lapsa said while shaking his head, "Do you at least have a name for her?"

Cronix shrugged, "She's as smart as any one of us, don't you think she can name herself?"

Cayden smiled, "Sure she can, but until she reaches the Magical Being stage, we should give her a temporary name."

Cronix frowned, "Well, I don't think you should be asking me, ask her."

The crow wasn't even paying attention to the other three, she was still busy eating the pieces of waffle, but she stopped when she felt eyes staring at her.

"Yeah, I'm not naming her." Cronix looked back at the teleportation array.

Cayden stared at her for a bit before leaning back down, continuing to stare at the roof, "Not my problem."

"Lapsa, it's up to you, unless you're also going to give up?" Cronix asked, his tone implied that if Lapsa refused, Cronix wouldn't leave him alone.

Lapsa waved him off and said, "Don't worry, I'm on it. Just wait till I'm done" Before he closed his eyes, and focused on his breathing.

He breathed in for five seconds, and out for eight seconds. He repeated this step for several minutes.

Cronix looked up from the teleportation array and glanced at Lapsa, "How are you feeling?"

"I feel the same." Lapsa mumbled.

Cronix frowned, "You don't feel anything strange going on within your body?"

"No." Lapsa said while shaking his head.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Cronix thought on this for a while, stopping his work on the teleportation array, "Okay, let's try this." A strand of mental energy came from his mental expanse,"Pass me your hand."

Lapsa listened and passed Cronix his hand, Cronix wrapped his mental energy around Lapsa's hand, "Feel the mental energy, and try to make it appear inside you."

Lapsa nodded, and closed his eyes again, he studied the weird feeling he felt on his hand, and he searched his body for something similar.

At some unknown point, he unconsciously started using the cognitive gathering technique.

It took awhile, but Lapsa eventually felt a strange sensation in certain areas of his body, like there was a force there, and thanks to the mental energy around his hand, he knew what it was, "I feel it!"

Cronix smiled, and asked, "Can you control it?"

Lapsa felt the strange sensation, there was an unusual connection to it that allowed him to move it like it was part of him, like there was no difference between the energy and his body, "Like an arm."

"Good, now circle it around your body, and keep practicing the cognitive gathering technique, but don't take it out of your body until I tell you too." Cronix said before going back to the teleportation array.

Lapsa listened, and continued practicing the technique.

A few minutes later Cronix frowned, and looked at Cayden, "Do you think it's possible to go back to Party Mansion?"

Cayden thought about it for a little bit, "I don't know, after what happened yesterday, they'll probably be restricting demi-humans from leaving the residence, but I'll talk to Riley tomorrow." Cayden then laid the opposite way of everyone else.

Cronix nodded, he planned on continuing to work on the teleportation array, but he realized he was at his limit, and he didn't have any more mental energy to support himself, "Damn it..." Was all he managed to say before he crashed.

Lapsa opened his eyes, only to see Cronix laying right next to the teleportation array. Lapsa had gathered quite a bit of mental energy, but he didn't know whether to release it or not.

"Forget it, I'll find out what to do after he wakes up." Lapsa made up his mind, and just before he starting to stand up, he remembered about the weight on his head,

I completely forgot about the crow.

Lapsa looked up, while the crow was standing, her breathing was slow, she was no doubt asleep. Lapsa's face scrunched up, then he sighed, and leaned his head back, closing his eyes.

...

Cayden sat next to his older brother as he watched his father file two pieces of metal in a way that hid it from the two boys.

"Where's your mother?" Their father asked, as he made precise movements with whatever he was doing.

Cayden's older brother answered, "With uncle Carlo's, doing you know what."

"Okay." Their father's reaction was neither positive nor negative.

Cayden's older brother frowned, "Father, how are you okay with this...?"

His father cut him off, "Yantar, You're starting to sound like a human."

Yantar was about to argue when Cayden elbowed his stomach. Yantar sighed, and said, "FIne, I'll accept your life choices father, but let me tell you, when I get older I am not marrying a badger, and Cayden you shouldn't either."

Their father sighed, "Do what you want, you only have one year till you leave the setts anyway, but please do me a favor and be careful around humans."

Yantar nodded and said, "I promise!" Before turning to Cayden, "You have two years before you leave, but you should definitely come with me when I leave, it'll be better than living underground that's for sure."

"You two are going to leave me all by myself, I feel kinda hurt." Their father playfully said.

Yantar frowned, "You are okay with our cousins also being our half-siblings, but this hurts you? Father, you're a very confusing badger."

Their father chuckled, "You're the weird one for seeing that as a problem, most badgers are fine with that."

"Well, it's not right." Yantar muttered.

"What's right is based on the majority." Their father told him as he grabbed the items he was working on, and held them behind his back,"Both of you extend your hands."

Both boys listened, and extended their hands. Their father brought his hands back from behind him and presented the items to them.

One of the rings was black with an intricate white pattern and gem, and the other was identical, but it had an inverse color scheme.

"Here, these are my gifts to you." The two boys looked at the rings presented to them, Yantar was the first to act, taking the white ring.

Cayden took the black ring and slipped it on, Yantar said something, but Cayden couldn't make it out, all his surroundings started getting muddy and dark.

When Cayden came too, he was looking at a wooden roof. Cayden sighed and lifted his right hand above his face, and his left hand stretching for the roof.

That's a dream I haven't had in a while...

He looked at his black and white rings, before his arms collapsed back down, judging from how little light there was, and the lack of bird sounds, it was still night.

Cayden sat up, everyone else was asleep, except for the crow, who was now awake, staring at Cayden before it started picking at the remaining scraps of food.

It's probably because of those two...

Cayden sighed again, he buried his lingering feelings, before crossing his legs, and closing his eyes again. He drew the magical energy from the air and focused on recreating his fifth star.

Two hours passed before the birds started tweeting, and Cronix began to stir, his eyes fluttered open, and his body felt weak.

Lapsa also began waking up, he personally never felt more awake. The crow flew off of Lapsa's head and landed on Cronix's shoulder, pecking at his horns.

"You know, that was cute when you were small, but now that you're big, not so much, besides you have to stay undercover." Cronix said, taking the crow off his shoulder, then he gestured at Lapsa, "And you see this kid? He's been given the mission of naming you if you don't mind."

The bird cawed, and flew on top of Lapsa's shoulder, and pecked at his ear, which caused him to wince.

"Okay guys, enough fooling around, start getting ready." Cayden got everyone back on track, "That reminds me, Cronix, I need to know why you want to go back to Party Mansion in case Riley asks."

Cronix nodded, "Tell him I need to memorize their teleportation array, that way I don't have to create another teleportation array in the city."