“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” said Frederick as he stroked his Leonite’s mane. It had been half a year since he had shown up at the ranch to help catch Sagittarius and Libra, but it was a clear memory for both Aurin and Luna.

“What are you doing here, Leo?” asked Luna.

“I don’t know who you’re talking about,” said the Zodiac member nonchalantly. “My name is Frederick and nothing else.”

“You can cut the innocent act,” said Aurin as his own Leonite let out a deep, resonating growl of anger as he stared at Frederick’s Minakai. “There’s nobody else here, so it shouldn’t matter what we call you.”

Frederick frowned. “You think you would be a little bit nicer considering the last time we met I was such a big help to you. Libra is behind bars and Sagittarius is…well, he’s elsewhere. Who knows where?”

Aurin didn’t notice anything, but Luna couldn’t help but think how sinister the last thing Frederick had said was. It sounded exactly like he knew why Sagittarius hadn’t shown up again, and it didn’t give her the impression it was because he had simply decided to let his grudge against the young tamers go.

“Why is it that you’re here then?” asked Aurin.

“I’m here for the tournament. An esteemed trainer like me couldn’t miss the national championships. It wouldn’t be a good look, so I’ve managed to buy myself a little time away from my duties.”

“I didn’t know you were competing,” asked Aurin.

“Sadly, I have had to sit it out this year,” said Frederick. “However, I will be rooting for you from the crowd. It’s only right that I support my friend as he strives to become the national champion…you will lose of course.”

“So tell me then, what is it that the Zodiac Squad are up to now?” asked Aurin. “It’s not like you all to be so quiet considering the havoc you’ve wreaked in Hazelton for so long.”

“Well, I can’t speak for them, but perhaps it’s because they’ve now got other priorities. Petty thievery was unbecoming, and I would imagine that they finally listened to one of their most formidable members over a small faction of rebels.”

“Does that mean you’ve managed to use that Roche Berry on Ethruki?” asked Aurin.

Frederick raised an eyebrow. “A Roche Berry on an Ethruki? I wouldn’t know what you’re talking about. How did that idea get into that silly head of yours, Aurin? You really are quite the imagineer, aren’t you?”

“You really want to know, do you?” asked Aurin.

“I’m curious,” said Frederick. “Indulge me.”

Luna nudged Aurin in the side, sensing that he was getting too close to mentioning Conrad and Klaus as his source.

Aurin caught himself before he stumbled. “A few folks in town spoke about fighting against a tamed Ethruki in Harmony Tower. We’ve both seen a wild one first hand, but a tamed one is most unusual, no?”

Frederick closed his eyes and nodded, a thin smile forming on his face. “I dare say that is unusual. It seems as though somebody must have found a lucky egg on a high floor somewhere. Wild Ethruki are incredibly rare on low floors, but they have been witnessed around the twentieth floor on occasions. An Ethruki egg? Well, that’s something that you’ll never seen below floor forty. It must have been a really powerful—and might I add, lucky—tamer to have gotten his hands on an egg like that.”

Aurin wasn’t buying any of Frederick’s rambling. “Why are you being so evasive? Tell us the truth.”

“It’s none of my business what you believe or don’t believe. It’s also none of my business if another tamer has an Ethruki. What I can assure you of is that I certainly don’t. I don’t need one. There’s another Minakai I’m much more interested in rediscovering.”

“And what’s that?” asked Luna.

Frederick turned around and walked out the door, his Leonite following him closely. “Good luck with the tournament, Aurin. I’m sure you’ll win at least one battle before somebody much more competent takes you out.”

“Frederick!” called Aurin, watching his rival leave. He dared not chase, knowing that Frederick was no pushover, even with both him and Luna taking on the Zodiac member together.

Aurin and Luna stood in silence, thinking about what Frederick has said. “What Minakai is he seeking?” asked Luna.

“I don’t know,” replied Aurin, still deep in thought.

Luna shook her head. “If their first target has been captured, then surely that means they’re seeking others?”

“They must be, but I don’t know the first thing about cosmic elementals. I couldn’t name another one outside of Ethruki. I don’t even know the name of the one that Microbot can evolve into…Cosmicbot? Spacebot? Psychobot?”

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“I don’t know much about them either, but maybe we can speak to Kyle about it? Or even Hunter?”

“Yes, we can worry about it when we’re out of here. Let’s focus on finishing this run.”

“Why does trouble always seem to follow us?” pondered Luna.

“Mr Zodiac wasn’t causing much trouble for us now, which makes a nice change.”

“True,” admitted Luna, “but you know he will eventually. He can’t help himself, neither can the rest of them.”

Aurin sighed and nodded in agreement. He patted Leonite on the head and led the way further into the tower. The rest of the seventh floor passed with a few battles, but nothing too troubling. However, on the eighth floor Luna’s Dogember was defeated by a particularly powerful Arium whose telekinetically controlled fists delivered a heavy beatdown on the fiery dog.

On the tenth floor, Aurin’s Leonite was knocked into an explosive trap by a Thunding, who seized the chance to stab the lion with its electrically charged spear. Things had certainly taken a turn for the worse for the two tamers, but they marched on with Dolissile and Spritzard by their sides.

“Any sign of trouble and I’m going to use the Orb of Return to get us out of here, alright?” said Aurin.

“I really wanted to find an egg too,” lamented Luna.

“There’s still a chance of that, and if you don’t, we’ll come back here again soon. We have plenty of time in Ludonia, so don’t let a bad run bring you down.”

Luna smiled. “I want to handle the next fight, alright? I feel like I need a good win today.”

Aurin agreed without issue. Any time Luna wanted to push herself, he was all for it. It had been happening more and more lately, and she was already a better tamer for it.

As though the tower was answering her request for a battle, a winged serpent flew down the corridor towards her and Spritzard; it was a Quetzel. The air snake was sleek bodied, of a golden yellow, with red feathers streaming from the back of its head. It had a fierce-look on its face as though it would love nothing more than to sink its fangs into your flesh and drain everything from you before tossing aside your remains.

“Tidal charge!” ordered Luna without missing a beat. Spritzard reacted immediately and conjured a wave of water that threw her forwards at the charging opponent.

The Quetzel reacted with a wind-propelled charge of its own and the two Minakai collided in the air. They both backed off and hurled powerful elemental attacks at each other. Spritzard shot jets and waves of water, while Quetzel cast them aside and retaliated with razor-sharp shockwaves that cut into Spritzard’s gelatinous body.

Luna’s Minakai was of similar strength to the Quetzel, but the elemental disadvantage that Spritzard had was weakening her much quicker than her wild opponent.

“Use a crystal,” urged Aurin.

Luna reached into her bag for a fire crystal she had found, but when she looked up, Spritzard was already disappearing in a glow of blue light. “I’ll see you outside,” she said, before being ejected from the tower.

“Dolissile!” shouted Aurin vengefully and his Minakai burst forwards without the need of a direct command. The cyborg knew exactly what to do.

His fins glowed brightly as he powered through he mighty wind conjured by the Quetzel. He aimed for just beneath his opponent, who was badly sliced along its underside. It let out an echoing hiss of pain, before vanishing in a flash of yellow.

“That’s enough for today,” said Aurin to his Minakai, and he used the magic of the orb to teleport outside.

He appeared in the afternoon sun, where the queue of people trying to enter the tower was notably longer than it had been before. Luna was walking off to the side before she suddenly realised Aurin and Dolissile had followed her right out.

“You aren’t going to keep pushing ahead?” he asked.

“Back home, I might,” he said, “but it’s more fun if we can do things together while we’re here. It’s the whole reason I brought you on this trip.”

Luna smiled appreciatively. “Shall we find somewhere to hatch that egg you found?” she asked, not overly upset by her defeat.

“Yes, we shall. And I know just the place.”

The two departed from the crowded tower base and headed for the nearest underground station. They took a train all the way to the Bosworth Station and climbed back up to daylight. A few streets away was a large building that looked somewhere between a library and a hospital.

“The Socrates Laboratory,” said Luna, reading the plaque on the gate at the front of the building.

“I doubt he remembers me, but let’s find out,” said Aurin, walking straight through the front doors.

The main lobby was adorned with bookshelves and various odd computers and contraptions that whizzed and whirred. Sitting at a desk, pouring over notes was a bald man with a thick white beard and a pair of dark glasses.

“If you’re here to use the incubator, please leave five coins in the box,” said the old man without looking up.

“No problem,” said Aurin, but the man looked up when he heard Aurin’s voice.

“A Shamtile around two years ago, am I right?” he asked.

Luna’s jaw dropped and Aurin laughed. “You’ve got a great memory, Professor Socrates,” he said.

“I would not be such a renowned Minakai expert if I didn’t,” he said before looking at Dolissile hovering alongside Aurin. “You’re still in the game then?”

“I am. This will be my ninth Minakai, not counting the various evolutions my others have undergone.”

The professor smiled. “You must be here for the national championships then. A competitor, I presume?” Aurin confirmed and the professor let out a chuckle. “Well, I wish you the best of luck. Perhaps this new Minakai can further your endeavours. If you need anything, just let me know.”

Aurin and Luna thanked him and headed over to the incubator. It looked much more robust than Kyle’s, but functionally would be the exact same. Aurin placed the egg inside and pressed the button. The usual forcefield surrounded the Minakai and it began to hatch, emitting a silvery glow as the monster inside revealed itself.

The light faded and a purple, bipedal ant stood on the floor. It wore dark grey plate-like armour that grew from its body and at the end of its arms, it had scissor-like pincers instead of hands. Aurin was now the proud owner of a Snippet.

“Look at this,” said Luna, pointing to the machine beside the incubator. “Fifty five pounds in weight and two feet, two inches tall.”

“That’s not even the half of it,” said Aurin, running his finger alongside the different readings of his new Minakai, who snipped its pincers playfully at Dolissile who stared at it emotionlessly. “I forgot it did all this; I’m so used to Kyle’s incubator.”

Aurin slotted five silver coins into the box, as requested by the professor. The duo said their farewells and departed.

“What now?” asked Luna, looking up and down the moderately busy street. “I don’t know what else there is here, should we take the train again?”

Aurin picked up his Snippet and set the purple ant on his shoulders. “There’s something important we have to do,” he said. “I need to find a ranch to attune this one to until we’re back home.”