In the distance, they saw a blue plume erupt from a red mountain. “What is that?” asked Vlux.

“That is the tempest breath of our nest beast, the Great Dragon Tial-Meh. It’s rare to see her activity on the surface. She normally remains in her domain,” said Thramuny.

“What’s tempest breath? Is it better than fire breath?”

“Most wyverns breathe fire. Tial-Meh is unique among dragons. Her tempest breath is a perfect blend of lighting and fire.”

“That’s amazing! Can you take me to see her someday?”

“Unfortunately no, only a select few may approach the base of that mountain.”

“Bummer, look I think Drumya is coming around.”

“Thramuny, I’m sorry,” said Drumya wearily.

“It’s alright Drumya, I’m just glad we found you.”

“You were away so long, and now you’re finally back, I couldn’t stand to see you leave. I didn’t mean to get caught. I didn’t mean to be a burden to you.”

“Drumya, no one means to get captured,” said Vlux. “It’s a good thing you’re soul bonded to Pukoo, he told me right away when you were in danger. He’s real loyal to you. Did a good job hiding the fact that you were following us?”

“Yes, I am lucky to have found a true soulmate in Pukoo.” Drumya abruptly lost consciousness as Vlux clutched her skull, crumpled over and rolled off the side. Thramuny narrowly caught her and instructed Pukoo to land.

“Vlux are you alright, what’s wrong?” asked Thramuny.

“I don’t know, the forest is screaming, the land is screaming, everything is screaming.”

Thramuny propped Vlux against a tree. As soon as Vlux made contact the tree, the forest screamed through her. A horrid sound, a cry of loss, a cry of agony, a cry of death. Thramuny pulled her away and noticed that Kiliyi had created a patch of silk on the ground and motioned for Thramuny to place her there.

“What happened to your friend?” asked Azurumene as he emerged from behind a tree with his late chiefs tiger in tow.

“You’ve been following us? I don’t know what is happening to her. Drumya isn’t doing well either,” said Thramuny.

“I was bored being stuck at home. And unexpected things always happen around you pukuta. Like a flock of mad birds suddenly coming down on the whole tribe. Tigers have trouble dealing with flying enemies. That’s why things are better when our people work together. I saw your wyvern take off. Euyene here came straight to me and told me what happened. I assume they’ll name me one of the prime suspects, so I figured it best to turn tiger and follow you. Good thing I did. Here let me have a look at your friend. Hmm, is she an Elucidator?”

“Yes.”

“So she’s sensitive to changes in the ether, something terrible has happened. Here, place your hand on this tree and listen closely.” Thramuny placed her hand on the tree and closed her eyes. She could faintly hear a muffled cry ring through her head.

“I can hear it, do you know what has happened?”

“No, I’m a druid not an Elucidator, I can only speak fluently to felines and my own kind. The best thing may be to take them to see our nest beast, the mother cat Lun-Fenren. Her den is not far from here. Whatever is happening she should know, she might also know what we can do for Drumya. Flying is probably a bad idea. We’ll travel on foot. Euyene likes Vlux, you can secure her on her back.”

Vlux was sweating and shaking violently as Thramuny wrapped the silk around her like a cocoon and picked her up. It seemed to provide some comfort. She stopped shaking but still breathed heavily. She strapped Vlux to the tiger Euyene’s back, as Kiliyi secured Drumya on Pukoo’s back. Azurumene assumed his exceptionally large gray Saberfang form, and motioned for Thramuny to climb on, she did so and off they went toward the mother tiger’s den.

“Where did all those birds come from?” Asked Azurumene, his voice resonating in Thramuny’s head.

“Vlux fed them twice, Kiliyi did the cooking, and they followed us.”

“Those birds don’t forget the hand that feeds them. They’ll probably continue to follow you.”

“I’m fine with that. I never got the chance to ask you, what do you know about the Triphu tribe?”

“They’re a large and powerful tribe from the far eastern side of Kyxichen. They’ve started conquering their neighboring tribes and over the past few years have greatly expanded their territory. They use a different method to create companions. Where our tribes practice soul mating, they practice soul leashing.”

“What is soul leashing?”

“Soul leashing is extracting one’s soul and tethering it to the body with a strong ethereal cord, crafted using the umbilical cord. Then they place the soul into an incubator, and over the course of the individuals first year in life, it turns into their spirit companion.”

“So their souls live outside the body and protect them. That sounds risky, what if the cord gets severed?”

“Exactly, there are a few risks with using that method. For one, the soul cannot move far away from the body or it will retract into the cord, leaving them vulnerable. If you can detect and copy the exact elemental composition of the cord, you can cut it quite easily, killing both. Also, having the soul outside the living body can cause defects in one’s mental state and leaves them more susceptible to manipulation.”

“You think something is manipulating the Triphu into acting this way?”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“Oh, most certainly. We’ve always known they were rather barbaric, but they have been perfectly content roaming and hunting the vast eastern plains and swamps for centuries, and just now they decide to cross the Prism Peaks, and attack our neighboring tribes. Something has definitely changed.”

“Do you have any idea who could be pulling the strings?”

“I haven't been receiving much information from my spies lately, but there has been a war going on for a while in an archipelago just off the southeastern coast. I suspect that conflict may have spread to the mainland, starting in the east.”

“Do other methods of creating companions exist?”

“Pukuta they didn’t teach you any of this?”

“No, my tribe stays focused on fighting and being like a dragon. We only learn what is necessary for survival. I have never seen the lands over the Prism Peaks, nor did anyone talk about them.”

“You were always hungry for knowledge. That’s why you clung to me when you were little, after I gave you that story book.”

“Yes, I followed you back to your hut with Eio’s abilities. I remember how I screamed when you snuck up behind me in your half tiger form,” giggled Thramuny.

“Pukuta you surprised me. I only knew you were following when we were almost at the door to my house. I’m proud of how you’ve improved.”

“You were a great teacher. Now tell me about the other methods.”

“Most of the islanders to the south practice soul symbiosis. Similar to soul leashing, the main difference is that the soul doesn’t actually leave the body but becomes a semi-sentient being that lives just under the skin. Obviously, the range of the companion is extremely limited, but at least there is no risk of getting the cord cut, and their mental state remains intact. The last method I know of is soul sealing. That involves sealing another’s soul into an artificial body or recently vacant body, then tethering that soul and body to you with a cord, like in soul leashing. The cord is much longer but more easily severed; however, severing only results in deactivation of the companion, and can be easily reconnected.”

“Has anyone tried using a combination of these methods?”

“Many have tried, and all have died. Each of these methods tampers with the soul, which is always risky. Though soulmating involves the least amount of risk, you have to trust your soulmate, others can manipulate you through them. Where is Eio by the way?”

“He has been searching for another friend of mine. That’s odd, I can’t seem to make a clear connection with him, something is interfering.”

“It’s probably related to whatever is affecting your friend and the jungle. We may get some answers soon, we're here.” They came to a large cavernous opening in the side of a gray mountain covered with vegetation. Two men and tigers stood guard at the entrance with unwelcoming looks. “Let me talk to them. I’m a doctor and a druid they’ll let us pass.” He turned back into his normal form and walked with elegance and broad gestures toward the men. “Good evening, how is everyone? I’m sure you all know who I am.”

“Doctor Azurumene, you’re supposed to remain within your hut, you’re under suspicion of spying.” Said the taller man, with the gray tiger.

“Pukuto I have eyes and ears everywhere. Someone needs to be in on all the gossip. I do it for us. Now please, I need to get in there and see Lun-Fenren, I hear she isn’t producing as many kittens.”

“Another step and we’ll have to cut you down.” Said the shorter man with the brown tiger, he drew his long twin daggers.

“No pukuto, I’m not getting cut, but you’re getting scratched.” As he said this, his nails became long sparkling claws. The gray tiger lunged at him, but Azurumene crouched down, and shallowly scratched the tiger's neck. The short man barely noticed when Azurumene reached his side. He parried his claws with his daggers, but Azurumene side stepped and spun scratching the man on the arm. The brown tiger lunged, continuing his spin he easily dodged the Saberfang and scratched its side. Finally, the tall man drew his daggers, but he was much too slow, as Azurumene scratched the back of his neck, he collapsed.

“That was awesome! What’d you do to them?”

“Vlux! You’re fine now.” Said a surprised Thramuny.

“Yeah, Kiliyi cut me loose. Sorry about what happened.”

“It’s alright, I’m just glad you’re well now.”

“If you’re up, then the jungle must have stopped sobbing. It’s nice to finally meet you in person Vlux, I’m Azurumene. I would greet you properly, but I don’t want to risk scratching you. I coated my claws with Moondust Gloss, a little scratch and it puts them right to sleep.”

“Yes, that awful noise in my head has stopped, it’s like everything is back to normal, and none of these trees want to tell me what happened.”

“Well, how fortunate? One problem has solved itself, we still need to fix Drumya somehow,” said Azurumene.

“He’s still unconscious, let’s hurry and ask the mother cat for aid,” said Thramuny. They walked through the entrance into a vast cave dimly lit by stones embedded in the ceiling, casting a pale glow. Statues of tigers with twin dagger wielding warriors lined the walls, along with many runes, and engravings. They could hear deep and menacing growls coming from the darkness. Gradually they came into view, a large pack of saberfang tigers, teeth bared. Azurumene assumed his larger and more imposing tiger form. He roared, and the tigers sheathed their fangs and walked back into the den. He turned and beckoned for them to follow into the mother tigers chamber. She was large as a whale, with white fur that gave off an inner light, small dark spots blotted her body. A few kittens lie around her, and the tigers that greeted them earlier lay along the edges of the space. Slowly she lifted her head and turned to her guests. She looked directly at Azurumene and through an imperceivable transaction they discussed the current state of affairs. After a few moments, he changed back and turned to his friends.

“She has a funny way of talking, but basically she said that one of her kind has departed, but another has taken her place. So everything is good for now.”

“No offense but, why would the death of a tiger cause the whole jungle to sob?” asked Vlux.

“When Lun-Fenren says one of her kind, I think she is referring to her status as a Zan-Weia, or Mother of Nature. They are powerful creatures that have grown close to the land. They’re like guardians and balance keepers, with great influence over their domains. We use them as nest beasts, because they are exceptionally fertile, and produce strong offspring.”

“What about Drumya, does she know how we can fix him?” said Thramuny.

Azurumene looked solemnly at Drumya. “His condition is deteriorating he will need a compatible soul transplant to survive.”

“Then I will volunteer,” said Thramuny.

“Then you will both die,” said Azurumene.

“I must do something. Drumya was my only friend when everyone else shunned me for not having a wyvern. I probably would’ve willingly thrown myself into the Great Barrier were it not for him. I realize now that I have taken him for granted.”

“Pukuta, the only individuals that would be compatible for this would be a parent, a sibling, or a child, and if what I’ve heard is correct. I don’t think he has any of those.”

“Wait Pukoo, what are you saying,” said Vlux. “You.. you’re willing to do that for him, but you know what that means for you, right?”

“Someone he’s soul mated with will probably also work. If you’re sure about it, Lun-Fenren can assist me with the procedure,” without hesitation Pukoo stepped forward with Drumya strapped to his back, ready to give himself body and soul to save his true soulmate.

Vlux stood next to Thramuny. “You know, Pukoo isn’t his real name. Those two bonded over their shared admiration and respect for whom they consider, and look up to, as the greatest warrior they’ve ever known. They were embarrassed to say it, so they just went with Pukoo, but his real name is Vyranya.”

Thramuny walked to the wyvern, as Azurumene prepared the runes with Lun-Fenren’s instruction. She gently took the wyverns face in her hands and tenderly kissed his snout. With glossy eyes she looked up at him and said. “Thank you, Breeze.”