After checking Sara half a dozen times, Kaden woke Trinity, then pulled her into his soul. Vanya was engaged in an intense listening discussion with the [Dragon] who apparently owned the guide service. How the dragon was communicating without growls or hisses or grumbles, but the moment Vanya stood up, a teen approached with a leather arm guard. Suridev leaped to her shoulder and settled down, closing his eyes. Small wisps of solar mana emanated from his nostrils.

Kaden quietly explained what had happened to Sara. “Do you feel anything?”

“Honestly, I don’t remember anything from the moment I drank the first sip until you asked what happened. It was more what I felt. It reminded me of warm summers, playing in the fields outside Verona with Mr. Dervish watching me. Of slaughtering my first feral wolf. Of the night my mom set fire to an assassin trapped in our Beast Control apartment. Like every happy memory distilled into liquid.” Sara smiled at him.

The tea had given him a happy memory. An actual dragon. His skin still tingled where the dragon’s claws had pressed. So much mana condensed into a Beast, even the [FalCrow] didn’t have that kind of power.

For now, he’d have to trust Sara’s self-assessment. “I don’t know enough about the Brokers to know who we should go with, but I do know we need to deal with another. I don’t like risking everything on Diggus—even if he’s the sanest.”

“Guests!” Vanya said, approaching. “The Master has considered your position. Diggus, you already have an introduction to. Oberix is the best option, but he feels it would be like sending bloody meat to a [Bearserker]. He suggests you choose either Bluderyn The Red and his Tapestry of Murder or Syntera Fleshseeker and her Symphony of Pleasure. Both are dangerous in different ways.”

“Fleshseeker,” Sara and Kaden said together. Then looked at each other.

“Bluderyn? The Red? You just know he gets off on violence,” Kaden said. “Fleshseeker. Pffft. ‘Oh, I’m so sexy. Oh, I have delights you can’t imagine. Look at my naked women. So delightful.’”

“Or men,” Sara said. “Statistically, I like the range of demands someone who calls themself ‘Syntera’ might come up with. We’re there to make a deal and get the spellbook or information on who bought it. There are safer places for what Syntera offers.”

“Like, a bearzerker den,” Kaden said. “Or a verdant viper nest. A Torrod breeding corral. A Formicidean Butchery.”

“Exactly.” Sara looked to Vanya. “We’ll sell the Mana Dust to Syntera.”

Vanya bowed low. “Excellent. First, the goods. You’ll need to place your goods in the Exchange Box. Then you will be credited. You board a sky-skiff to the Broker’s island and deliver it, and receive your money. At the same time, you can ask the Broker about your spell book. It never hurts to have more powerful people looking.”

Kaden had an absolutely amazing idea. “Can I have a moment with Sara, alone?”

“Of course. But Suridev will observe. It won’t do to have you sully his reputation.” Vanya backed out, and a moment later, the Solar Dragon pranced into the room, clicking his claws.

“Do you have paper and ink?” Kaden asked.

“What kind of Party Leader would I be if I didn’t?” Sara produced them from inventory. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking, you write what we’re looking for on the paper. We wrap it around the mana dust and put it in the box. You and I go back to the Necrosium and teach them to play checkers.” Kaden looked to Suridev. “Your honor is completely intact so long as we keep our end of the bargain. And we will.”

The dragon seemed to be choking, though if it was rage or laughter, Kaden couldn’t tell.

Sara spent several minutes writing in her flowing cursive, then wrapped the paper around the tube and put it in the box. “There we go, a clear description plus our contact information. Let’s get out of here.”

Suridev began to convulse, clawing the wood floor, then righted itself—and roared. The roar shook the floor, rattled the tent, and make Kaden’s skin burn with Solar Mana

Beast Soul translated it as *Oh, you two. You two, I just…*

Suridev coughed, setting the floor ablaze. Then shook himself from tail-tip to nose, and let out a short bark that brought Vanya running.

The old man stared into the Dragon’s eyes. “But they’ll miss out on the feast of pleasures! And there’s always a twist! A backstabbing! A secret deal they don’t want to make but must! A thousand years of tradition demand—” Vanya stopped, backing away. “Of course, my lord.”

Suridev slithered between Vanya’s feet to approach Sara, then, tapped on the ground. Kaden didn’t even need [Beast Soul] to tell him to kneel down, but he did need it to transfer the clicks and rumbles.

*This is some quality entertainment. I’d love for you to stick around and see the chaos. No one chooses not to meet with a Broker. I mean, you could, but no one does.*

Kaden relayed to Sara.

“First, I need assurances,” Sara said. “Is this some clever ploy to get us to sell you our souls?”

“Or will you secretly turn out to be an old man in a dragon suit?” Kaden asked. “What? It could happen. I bet it’s happened a lot.”

“Or a smoking hot prince with abdominal muscles Trinity could cook steak on who can’t possibly love a human but can’t resist the way she smiles?” Sara didn’t sound as upset about that one as Kaden would have expected.

Suridev’s long, rattling growl ended their questions. *Seriously? A dragon suit? But I do have excellent belly muscles. Yes, I do. Keep your souls. Have you seen what he stores in Inventory?*

Vanya rushed to translate. “The Lord would have no interest in your souls. He simply wishes you to stay and observe evening festivities. By wishes, I mean you will.” Vanya bowed again, and backed out of the room.

The Dragon barked three time, *Humans. You spend the first three years teaching them not to shit on the floor and the next three hundred not to shit on the business. He tries. Stay. I’ll make it worth your while.*

“I actually understood that. Why would Vanya hit on the business?” Sara asked, looking at Kaden. “He’ll make me snort your smile.”

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“Worth our while. No soul stealing, not a hot dragon prince—though he truly is magnificent—We were coming back tomorrow to meet with Diggus, this just makes it easier. I’ll stay.” Kaden nodded.

“And I as well, your scaliness. But we don’t want to be any trouble. If there’s someplace less vital to the business, Kaden and I…” Sara trailed off as Suridev began to glow brighter. A portal formed next to him, and the Dragon whipped through, then turned look back to make sure they were coming.

He emerged on a cloud. Or what might have been a cloud. The ground beneath him was covered in shifting white mist, mist that boiled and poured over the edge of forever. Above him pulsed brilliant orange lava, and below—far, far below—lay the patterns of the Market. From here, the shadowy shapes he’d seen were in fact ships.

Ashi would be amazed. These were six times the size of Kaden’s ship and clearly never made for water. Wide sails spread out like oars from the sides, and kites sailed the sky ahead of them, pulling them in a gentle circle miles wide above.

As Kaden watched, a man leaped from the deck of one ship, plumeting through the air until he passed the island where Kaden stood.

Kaden leaned close to the edge and watched as a bubble of bright blue mana formed, slowing his descent into the Market.

“Get back from the edge!” Sara pulled at him until Kaden retreated up the edge and more to the center. Suridev had a literal jungle. Thick trees surrounded a shallow pond with white sand and fish that swam through the water.

*Hungy?* Suridev sent.

The word felt weird, like it had given [Beast Soul] the slip and worked itse way into his brain, and what he was hearing was intention rather than translation. The dragon pointed with its tail to the pond.

Kaden summoned Trinity. “Don’t fall off the edge.”

Rarely did he feel like the mutant hydra liked anyone better than Kaden, probably because Trinity didn’t really like anyone. But now, he watched her follow the dragon around like a puppy.

To be fair, Kaden would have followed Suridev around as well. As a [Beast Master], it was his duty to experience great beasts. To learn as much as he could about them. To admire their majesty and maybe try to [Tame] them. Maybe not tame them, but think a lot about taming them.

Sara stood on the edge of the lake and activated [Shocking Grasp], then waded out to seize a pair of stunned fish.

*Clever. I approve,* Suridev said.

As much as Kaden loved the time with the Dragon, not everything made sense. “What do you get out of this? You don’t need the gold. You have magic. You could probably be a Broker if you wanted.”

*Entertainment.* Suridev sent it with a thousand images of him as a golden lizard the length of a man’s hand, crawling along walls between tents and listening. As an almost legless lizard swimming through rivers to follow explorers. As a giant golden dragon that could challenge Oceanus and probably only barely lose.

“We’re like…pets.” Sara said.

*Everything has a place in the system. My place is to be magnificent and powerful. Your place is to admire me. Worship me. Desire everything that I am and understand you can never reach it.*

Suridev didn’t say it in a cruel manner. The feelings he sent reminded Kaden of how he felt about Vip. Except that Vip was so much more than a pet. “Why did you say ‘you’re not getting a scale?’ Why would I want a dragon scale? Is that a normal thing to ask? I’ve never asked the Tempus dragon or Oceanus for a scale.”

Trinity’s low growl [Beast Speech] translated as *You miss all the kill-shots you never take.*

*Later.* Suridev climberd to the top of a palm and lay itself out, basking in the red light that made it deep orange. *Rest.*

One thing about being an Adventurer, when the opportunity for sleep came, Kaden took it. When the need to stay up presented itself, that, too, Kade just did. The increased constitution made him resilient to the lack of sleep, but not immune to it.

Sara lit an actual fire while Kaden gutted fish, and then they sat beside the water watching the sky skiffs soar upward and then dive downward like falcons. Kaden couldn’t help feeling like he was getting closer.

As Kaden lay back, a Portal opened. “Sir!” One of Vanya’s children called. “We have a emergency request from the Caldonians.”

*I’m entertaining. You don’t abandon guests.*, Suridev responded.

“It’s the Emperor himself.”

Suridev hesitated a moment before he glided from the treetop down to meet the boy and tromped through the portal. A few moments later, a team of servants emerged. “Lord Suridev appologizes for his absence. Do you need anything? This is the Underground Market. If you’ve ever dreamed of an treatment legal or otherwise, it’s probably available. It would be my pleasure to arrange this.”

“What would you recommend?” Kaden asked. “And why would a treatment be illegal?”

The servant fell quiet. “There are many options that will make you more powerful. Stronger. Faster. More mana. All of them have to be repeated yearly, ensuring a constant stream of business. You know of hidden stats?”

At this, Sara perked up. “Constitution.”

“Willpower, as well, and Stamina. All proven to exist, but not directly accessible. Unless you have an individual from an older revision of the System to help. Constitution contributes to the likelyhood of resisting something. Stamina makes you regenerate faster and increases health and mana. Willpower is thought to be something between Intelligence and Soul.” He fidgeted.

“What would affect a [Binding] skill?” Kaden asked. “I have a spare attribute point from my last level.”

Sara, too, was now invested. “Even a minor Stamnia increase might help me keep up with Kaden. I wasn’t offered the same talents as him.”

Now the servant truly seemed happy. “Lord Suridev will be so pleased. I’ll make arrangements.”

Kaden had time. “We’ll be here.”

Not three hours later, Kaden lay on a flat leather table while a truly ancient woman prodded his chest. He’d seen old people. The Mage Master in Vichor no longer registered a presence with the current System. This woman did, and she was deeply frustrated by the metal embedded in Kaden’s chest.

“[Mechanid] Class enhancements, what a waste,” she said, “And [Beast Master] as well. I thought they were going to get rid of that Class. Roll over. The WillPower pressure points can still be reached.”

“Good,” Kaden said. “What’s your class?”

“[Extremist Mutator],” she answered. “Not many of those around anymore. All right, you have your spare point. In a moment, you’re going to get a prompt. It’s vital you choose yes. It’s going to be hard to remember, but do so.”

“Yes. Got it.” Kaden said. “Why is it hard to remember?”

“Because you’ll be screaming.” Something stabbed him in the back. Deep in the back, tearing, ripping deeper and deeper.

[Fortress of Stone] made it manageable but still painful, and Kaiden waited.

Apply Attribute point to Q@#$$__________//?[Y/N]

Kaden selected yes.

If Constitution had changed the density of his flesh, WillPower did the same for Kaden’s mind. His decisions felt more concrete, more absolute. “Very nice.”

“You did it?” she asked. “Ah, so you did. And your Constitution isn’t default. The bleeding will stop, the damage to your lungs will fade. And you didn’t scream at all. Impressive!”

Sara seemed less ready. “You had your fist rammed through his rib cage.”

“WillPower is supposed to be accessed from the front but those metal ribs make it impossible. Stamina is right….here.” She tapped a point right beneath Sara’s belly button.

“It worked!” Sara said. “How on earth did you do that?”

“My Class had to build armies of mindless drones to do my bidding. Consider us an early Summoner. Oh, don’t look like that. Once you take the points out of intelligence, you have plenty to make them big and strong. And they don’t even know they’re being turned into mindless drones!” She patted each of them on the shoulder. “Save those points. Come back and see me! Your version of the System is so broken it’s for babies, but I’ll make you strong. Very strong.”

Kaden waited for her to leave, then sat there, trying to adjust. Everything felt different. “Can you feel it?”

“No, and it worries me. Could you tell a different when you chose [Vigorous]?”

“Not until I was in a battle.” Kaden stretched. “Hey, something’s going on with the skiffs. There’s a bunch of them rising right now.

“Look at the emblem on the sails! That’s a golden dragon. That’s ours,” Sara said, pointing to one that was rising close to the Island.

That’s when Kaden recognized the difference. The other skiffs were full of people. People who couldn’t wait to meet a broker and hopefully get the chance to buy their treasure. “Wave to Vanya. I’m guessing he got stuck making our delivery.”

Sara did.

From fifty feet below, the old man spotted them and waved vigorously.

And everything froze.

Heavy block text printed.

PATTERN OF FATE DETECTED. BOARD/BYPASS SKY SKIFF [BYPASS]

Kaden read it over. This was [Twist of Fate]’s work, and instinctively he grasped that the fated path—the normal path—had him staying on the island and watching. Momentary glimpses of vision showed Vanya being gutted by a brute and tossed off the side.

The world resumed.

Kaden yanked Trinity into his soul, ran and leaped off side of the island, falling away.