Before this point, each of his totems had been able to communicate in limited ways, sometimes empathic feelings, othering simple words that were more strong emotion. This was on a wholly different level. He stared around at his bonded friends. Gulli trotted up and about pushed him over with a friendly snout. “Brother! Thanks for the evolution fruit.” Came the gravelly but high and excited voice of Gulli.

“Yiss, You have my thanks.” Said Noodle, his sibilant tone a whisper.

“Mine too!” Shrieked Tag, her piercing call going across the valley to echo the telepathic words in his head.

Neferu’s voice sounded like Darth Vader gargling marbles, “Our brother. We are greatly improved by your gift. First the Ancestor Truffle and now these evolution fruits.” As the glow finally faded from each beast, Wali felt the pull on his mana drop significantly. It was a bare trickle compared to what he had needed to maintain a single one prior to this.

He grinned and hugged the snout of Neferu. He felt Noogle slide across his legs, and Gulli pushed against his back. Tag flew around in a tight circle above them. He felt the bond with each of them grow stronger. What once had been iron was now titanium.

“What are you doing to my lawn?” Called an amused Marsai from behind him.

Wali pushed free of the clustered beasts, “Marsai, I’d like to present my newly evolved totems to you. This is Neferu, Gulli, and Noodle. That’s Tag there.” He said, unable to stop smiling.

She looked at each totem in turn, “Blessed Ones, you are welcome in my land and my home. Please do not stray into the gardens nor hunt the herds. Please be free within the bounds of the crater.” She said graciously.

Neferu turned and lumbered off without another word. She slid down the hill towards the lake at the crater’s center. Noodle followed her. Tag flew off into the sky. Each of them going off to enjoy some of reality. Wali could feel their pleasure and joy at being corporeal. He also knew that he could recall them as spirits instantly and reform them almost as quickly.

Gulli just plopped down where he was and was about to start rolling around before Marsai pointed a finger at him. “You can make a mud pit on the far side of the lake. But you better not drag any mud back here!” She said firmly.

“What, really? Whoohoo! Mud pit!” Shouted Gulli with a thunderous squeal as he ran off.

Marsai stood watching them with Wali for a moment. “Where did the evolution fruits come from?” She asked.

He looked at her, not even questioning how she knew. “From the elven king.”

“Next time, save me the seeds so I can grow a tree for them.” She said. “I’ve been trying to steal some of those fruits for a long time.”

Wali looked at her, “Why steal?”

“They don’t give those away for anything; they are reserved for the royal family’s pets and any spirits they bond. They only ripen once every decade, but preservation magics will keep them fresh forever. You just fed your squad forty years of a single tree’s production.”

Wali gaped and looked down the hill to see Neferu slide into the lake. He felt a wave of pleasure from here, and Noodle as the water moccasin followed her into the river.

Wali looked over at Marsai, “You get anything good?”

She scoffed, “The deed to the crater and everything in a ten-mile radius.” She shook her head, “He’s always hated me, ever since they founded their city there. I warned them that no good would come from that. Oh, well. Go find your friends. We need to talk.”

Wali nodded and headed into the house behind Marsai, she turned to the study, and he went upstairs to find Yacob, Vinny, and Sas’cha.

Sas’cha’s room was first. He knocked and heard her call him in. he opened the door to find her dressing and quickly turned around. She hissed at him, “Fool, you have seen me without clothing many times. Now come here and button this dress.”

Wali chuckled and went over to help the catwoman button the sides of the dress up. He felt the fabric slide and resize itself to her. The dress was fabulous, with vertical panels of ivory and silver silk that hugged her figure to her waist before spreading out at the hips.

She slid her hands down the sides and grinned, “This is amazing. I haven't had something this nice to wear in centuries.” The silver web necklace had resized to be a wide choker and accented the dress perfectly against Sas’cha’s black fur. The sleeveless dress left her shapely shoulders and muscular arms free. Sas’cha walked across the room and glanced at a pair of ivory shoes that had come with the dress. “Dress, yess, shoes, no.” She turned to Wali, “Now, my dear, don’t you just want to rip this dress off me and have your way with me?” She said, flirtatious as ever.

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He smiled, “Not now, my dear. Marsai is looking to talk to all of us.”

Her face turned into a pout, and she took his hand. “You will hold my hand then.” Shaking his head at her antics, he went to the next room in the line. He knocked and heard a grunt from Yacob.

Wali opened the door and saw the man wiping sleep from his eyes, “Uh, yeah, what’s going on?” Yacob said sleepily. The chest was open to the side of the bed and looked like it had been rummaged, but not much more.

“Marsai wants to talk to us downstairs. Meet you down there in a few, okay?” Wali said as he closed the door. He heard Yacob grunt an agreement, and the bed creaked under him as he shifted.

The next door was Vinny’s, but he did not answer. Wali and Sas’cha headed down the stairs and into the alchemy lab. There they found Vinny with a spread of dried herbs, roots, lumps of amber, and dried pitch. Powders and pots were spread around him. He had a quill and paper in front of him, and the signet lay next to the paper. He was writing a letter. Wali waited till he was noticed, but Sas’cha couldn’t help but be curious as she sniffed and touched things.

Vinny didn’t even look up from the script flowing from the pen, “There’s a reason you aren’t supposed to be down here, Sas’cha. That one is poisonous.”

She paused as she was about to lick a dried pink flower. She hastily put it back before re-attaching herself to Wali. She grinned brazenly at Wali, and he chuckled.

“What can I do for you two troublemakers?” Vinny asked sardonically, looking up from the letter.

“Marsai wants to talk to us. She’s waiting.” Wali said with a smile.

“One moment.” He blobbed some wax onto the corner next to his signature and pressed the signet into it. A pulse of magic and the seal was placed. Vinny carefully rolled the letter into a tube of horn and capped it. He pocketed the letter and got up to follow Wali and Sas’cha.

“Who’s the letter for?” Wali asked.

“Oh, um, my sister. Since I’m now royalty, so is she. As part of the king’s gift, I get apartments in the palace. I’m going to relocate her there until I can make the potion to cure the poison.”

Wali brightened, “That’s great. I hope she likes it.”

Vinny shrugged, “It kind of puts her in a hard spot, though.”

“Why is that?” Wali asked as they moved up the stairs.

“Royal Court life will not be easy for a street kid like her. She’s bed-bound, so there’s only so much trouble she can get into.”

“Oof hadn’t thought of that. I hope she adjusts quickly.” Wali replied.

“She’ll survive. She’s a tough one.” Vinny said ruefully.

They arrived at the study once again. Yacob was there waiting for them, drinking a cup of dark tea. Marsai sat in her chair with another cup of tea. She set it down and waited for them to sit. The times of formality within the house were mostly gone, but this was still her house, and they were her guests.

They all sat, and she cleared her throat, “The letter from the elven king spoke highly of your actions. Congratulations to you for surviving and for being victorious.” She paused and looked at each of them. “We have much work to do still. One herald out of twenty-seven is a drop in the bucket. The Demon Lords themselves were more than a match for all three of their heralds combined. We have a long way to go if our goals are to be achieved.”

“The Skintaker was one of the weak and stupid ones if I remember correctly. He was defeated for the first time very early in the war. His master Gavo is bound in the current kingdom of Krull. His other two heralds are in the Imperial Throne and far to the south by the sea. My sister Jenal keeps an eye on Gavo and another of the Demon Lords south of there. Six heralds are bound into stone between those two Demon Lords,” She continued.

“Later this week, we will work on how to bind these heralds and how to keep them from escaping. For now, take the next few days to relax and recuperate. We will not be attending the celebration in the elven capital. You get rewarded with a few days off, then more hard work for your hard work.” She smiled grimly.

“The Demon Lords are stirring. I can feel it in the ley lines. Skintaker will move to regenerate and free his brethren, then free his master. There are four other unaccounted-for heralds, we do not know what they are up to, but I am sure they can sense their master’s bonds loosening.” With that, she waved them away. Each was silent. The devastation and damage one herald had wrought was terrifying. Four others were free, and each was more powerful than Rags chilled them to the bone.

As they stepped out of the room, Vinny asked Wali, “How are we going to do this?”

Wali could only clasp him on the shoulder, “One step at a time, my friend. Get stronger, get smarter and do what we can. You get your sister safe and cured. Get better at alchemy. You do that so you can fight with a clear head. That’s your part.” he said to Vinny seriously.

Vinny nodded and swallowed back grim anxiety. He took a deep breath, “Yeah, one thing at a time. Better not to take tomorrow's troubles on today.”

Wali smiled, “That’s right.”

Yacob walked over to Vinny and hugged him, “I’m sorry your sister is sick. We’ll ensure you are safe so you can make sure she is safe.”

Vinny’s eyes glistened with tears as he turned away, thanking Yacob. Yacob patted him on the back and said, “My job today is sleep.” He rumbled and headed up to his room.

Wali laughed at Yacob and nodded to Vinny, who retreated to the alchemy rooms below.

Sas’cha pulled on Wali’s hand. “You come with me. Now.”

Wali raised an eyebrow but followed her upstairs, where she led them into his room. She closed and locked the door. She grinned at him, “There is only one way to say this. You. Are. MINE.” She said as she pulled Wali into a deep and passionate kiss. Her strong arms held him in place. “Now unbutton me, and let me show you what that means to me.”