We stayed one more night in our hidey hole. I still didn’t know if I could trust Ersabet, and Val definitely didn’t trust her, but it felt like a great weight had been lifted from my shoulders now that I could speak to someone and not have to lie about who or what I was.

I had picked her brain as much as possible throughout our time in the cave, and she readily shared information with me. I had to pretend I was more ignorant than I really was, but I couldn’t risk Ersabet asking questions about how I knew so much about the Triarchy. It was best I didn’t even mention the word ‘triarchy’ for now. This was less about self-preservation and more about not wanting to piss Val off.

Ersabet was level ten, and she surmised that Prajio was at least level fifteen. While his teleportation ability seemed like magic, Ersabet said he had no magical affinity, which meant it was just a regular skill like my Devastating Strike.

On the other hand, Ersabet had a high affinity for magic, allowing her to cast spells like the light she had summoned so we could see in the dark. When I asked her what else she could do, she told me that question was inappropriate to ask another Player and that I’d see for myself eventually.

Tara had asked me a few more questions, and I did my best to answer within the spirit of the truth. Unfortunately, her NPC mind had been so thoroughly altered that I feared she would be unable to grasp the technological concept behind the game. Regardless, I shared what I could, and my answers seemed to mollify her.

When we woke the next morning, Ersabet deduced that if Prajio had not found us by now, it meant we had successfully obscured our trail. Prajio would have given up the pursuit by now and would have assumed we had run away deep into the mountains or made our way to Danver to hide among the masses.

I was more than ready to see the sun after so long in the dark, so Ersabet, Tara, and I made our way to the surface. When Tara emerged from our hidey hole and the sun hit her face, she smiled and basked in the warmth. It was a small thing, but the smile on her face was contagious, and I was glad she could feel good for a moment.

She seemed to be doing well on the outside, but when I looked into her eyes, I could see the fear and confusion beneath her tough exterior. I wished there was more that I could do to help her get through this.

Maybe there was. ‘Val, is there any chance you can do for Tara what you did for me? Free her mind, I mean. Hearing the truth is different than actually knowing it.’

“Perhaps if I was at my full power, but I cannot alter much of anything right now. Once we find the Voxal controller, I may be able to help the girl.”

Ever since Ersabet had told me she could use magic, an idea that could potentially help with Val’s power issue had been percolating in my mind.

‘What about Ersabet? Can she do something to charge you up?’

“There’s only one way to find out. Hold still while I pop out of your skull.”

‘That’s not what I mean! I was wondering if she could do something to charge me up with magic. Like transfer her magic to me. Or channel her magic through me for you to harvest.”

“That is the most ridiculous idea I’ve ev…”

Val went silent, and I grew concerned.

‘Val? Are you okay?’

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‘I can’t believe it,” Val said. “Your mushy human brain came up with an idea so stupid that it was smart.”

I raised my eyebrows, then quickly looked around to ensure none of the women were looking at me. They weren’t, thankfully. ‘Spit it out, Val.’

“Ersabet cannot funnel magic through you. That would be ridiculous. However, there is an object that can. If used on a non-magic user, it would surely kill them, but with me harvesting the energy, there’s a chance it could work. It wouldn’t be able to bring me to full power, but it would be better than running on fumes, so to speak.”

‘Is this object easier to acquire than a Voxal controller?’

“It is rare, but I have no doubt we can find a way to acquire it. Of course, I would still need the Voxal controller to find your wife. Let me think about this. For now, get yourself and these women safely back to Danver. If I detect Prajio, I will notify you immediately.”

I led our small group through the wilds toward Danver, staying off the roads just in case Prajio or another Kurskin was on patrol.

The terrain was rugged near the boulder field, but soon, the rocky ground softened and the terrain flattened, making it easier for trees to grow. We were still at elevation, and we always had Danver in our sights, so getting lost was an impossibility.

Despite my fear of Prajio, I felt strangely at peace. I had never realized how heavy of a burden a secret could be, how secrets could hold you back from being yourself. Now that the secret was out, I felt like I had taken a step closer to being the man I was before the game. I’d never truly be that person again, but at least I could be mostly honest with someone other than a bitchy AI.

My peaceful thoughts were interrupted when I heard a screech in the sky above. We all looked up at the same time and saw a single hawk circling our group. It screeched again and slowly descended toward us until it landed on a tree branch ten yards away.

“John, I think that hawk is looking at you,” Ersabet said.

I nodded. It was staring directly at me.

I cocked my head, and it mimicked the motion. Then it fluttered its wings and turned around, facing the mountains.

After a moment, it turned back, again staring at me.

That’s when I realized it was trying to communicate with me. Birds couldn’t do that, even on Erda, which could only mean one thing.

It was Kitz.

I rubbed at my face, unsure of what to do about this. Offloading Tara with her father was my top priority, but if Kitz was in danger, I had to help. I had told him I would stop the Hunters from coming after him, but I had yet to make any moves to complete that quest. My intent had been to grow in power before taking on his quest, but clearly it was more urgent than I had realized.

I had assumed the kid could survive on his own for a while as I sorted myself out in Danver. If I was wrong… well, I didn’t want to think about that.

If I wasn’t crazy and this hawk really was sent by Kitz, I had to do something about it.

“Ladies, I’m sorry, but we can’t go to Danver yet.”

Ersabet’s brow furrowed. “Why?”

“Because a friend of mine needs help.”

Ersabet looked to the hawk and back to me. “Please don’t tell me this friend of yours is a bird.”

I crossed my arms. “He’s not a bird.”

She pointed. “That is a bird.”

“Hawk,” I said. “It’s a hawk, and I’m not friends with it. I’m friends with the warg who controls it.”

Tara let out a quiet gasp. Apparently, I didn’t fully grasp just how much prejudice there was against his kind. The Master Control had really screwed me over when it made me into an ignorant farmer from the middle of nowhere.

“If it wasn’t staring at you, I might think you were crazy,” Ersabet said. “But I’ve never seen a bird behave in such a manner before.”

“I think he wants us to follow the hawk. That’s why it keeps looking back toward the mountains.”

“Why would we help a warg?” Tara asked. “They’re monsters.”

“There’s nothing monstrous about him.”

“Wargs are technically classified as monsters,” Ersabet said. “If one lives long enough, its animalistic soul consumes it until no human parts are left.”

“His name is Kitz,” I said. “And he’s a child.”

Her face changed, and the color of her blue cheeks deepened.

Was that embarrassment?

“You should have led with that,” she said. “While you may not believe me, I find the use of children in this game to be one of my people’s greatest sins.”

“So, I take it you’ll help me then?”

“Yes, I will help.”

“Tara?” I asked. “What about you?”

She looked at the ground. “I didn’t know it was a kid.” Her eyes darted up to mine. “I’m in.”

I met the hawk’s sharp eyes and nodded. “We’re coming, Kitz.”

The hawk unfurled its wings and flew about fifty yards to the north before landing on another tree branch.

“I guess we go that way,” I said.

Ersabet gestured mockingly with her arm. “After you.”