Kaden Birch drank in the roaring heat, the smell of sulfur, the buzzing of a colony of [Dagger Wasps] who would strip the flesh from his bones if he made a mistake. Beside him, a [Druid] in a loincloth urged him forward. “Quickly, the Queen accepts your presence, but only for now.”

The Nest hung overhead, a wide disk of cups, most containing eggs, but some held dagger wasp grubbs the size of his fist, or pupae who would emerge as foot-long wasps with black and yellow stripes and stingers that jutted from their abdomens.

Kaden continued to [Soul Bind] individual wasps and release them. Releasing them didn’t turn them hostile, but the wasps weren’t friendly to start. They woke up angry, they went to sleep angry, and in-between they flew around stabbing things with their butt-knife.

In the center of the nest, a hollow spot waited, chewed out by the Queen. Kaden drew a paper cup from Inventory, six times the size of any of the others. The egg inside glowed bright red and pulsed as it drank in heat. Kaden slipped the cup into place and held it there long enough for the sticky paste to grasp it.

It was everything he could do. From a few feet away, the [Dagger Wasp Queen] watched, hanging upside down from the comb. Kaden backed away, still binding them all. “Tell them to relax. It’s not like their venom hurts me.”

“That would not make them relax.” The Druid [Tamer] had selected this colony to raise the [Burning Dream Queen], the first (or last) of a new species of boss monster. [Dagger Dreams] were the boss monster version of [Dagger Wasps] and [Burning Dreams] were the fire-infused bosses.

Together, the two retreated until they could turn and run, then raced out of the volcanic underground.

You have failed a Hidden Quest: I am the Decider - End the Burning Dream Species.

You have completed a Hidden Quest: My Little Monster - Save the Burning Dream Species. You have chosen to believe there is a path and place for every species. [Guardian of Life] is upgraded.

Kaden hadn’t expected that. Quest Master, his talent, hadn’t doubled the rewards, but perhaps these rewards couldn’t be doubled. He checked the title description again.

[Confirmed Guardian of Life]

Life Energy surrounds you and nurtures those protected by your presence. Status Effects expire sooner and wounds begin healing immediately, even wounds that would not normally heal. Skills grow faster in your presence, and all XP rewards are increased. In your presence, death is forestalled. Life that develops in your care reaches its maximum potential. Follow your Destiny.

A group of [Druids] waited near the farportal they used to reach the cave network. The head of the Grove, a woman named Alina, waited anxiously. “Gerard, was the Queen accepting?”

Gerard, Loin-Cloth-Druid put his hands together and bowed. “Yes. Nature approves. That nest will die. It will take all their energy to raise their new daughter, but when she hatches, she will be ready to assume her place.”

Kaden shared the quest logs. “I wasn’t aware a title could be upgraded.”

“It’s uncommon but hardly unheard of,” Alina said. “Will you be staying a night or two with us? I got your request, Bliss and Zill both have [Shape Shift]. You can ask them anything.”

Kaden looked to the man and woman. “I have a skill called [Beast Form]. I got stuck the first time I shifted, Kanli from our local grove had to help me shift back. I learned from her for a few weeks. Lately…I can’t.”

“Shapeshift skills are slow,” the man said. “And a bad shift happens to everyone, usually the first or second time. It puts a barrier in your mind. You’re subconsciously trying to protect yourself.”

“Can you start the shift?” The woman asked.

Kaden nodded. “My target form is a Minotaur. I can change my feet to hooves. About the time my knees break, the process stops.”

Both seemed relieved. They exchanged glances, and the man spoke. “As long as you can start the transformation, don’t worry about it. You’re trying to rush. Shift in moments. I’d bet it takes you hours, or it did when you did it successfully.”

“Two hours, the first time. Four hours to change back the first time I did it intentionally. I had both down to about two hours with Kanli’s guidance.” Kaden couldn’t help with the frustration. “What do I need to do?”

Bliss, who seemed to be the woman, reached out and took his hand. “Oh, I can feel the skill. Your expectations are all wrong. It takes [Druids] ten years to get good shift control. Second, you’re rushing. If it takes you twenty four hours, it takes twenty four hours.”

“Start the shift and when you get stuck, just wait,” Zill added. “You could go months without starving to death. Stay there. Sleep like that. Drink like that. Your mental barriers literally can’t stay up forever and when they go down, the process will complete. Every time after that gets easier.”

That sinking feeling in Kaden’s gut was acceptance there wasn’t a better way around the block. “Thank you. Can you let me know how the colony progresses?

“Of course!” The druids allowed him to take first trip on the [Far Portal].

Kaden headed straight to Verona, where his Party would be, and emerged in the chaos and joy of the Guild. Down below, Adventurers were celebrating with someone who had apparently slain their first demon. The floor shook as people stomped their feet and chanted, “What do we do when Demons invade? We send them home in pieces!”

Kaden bypassed the crafters floor, and almost made it out of the guild before a Quest Broker ran him down. “Hey, you. Guild Administrator’s been looking for you.”

“Pretty sure he hasn’t.” Kaden said. “I’ll send a bird. I”m a little busy.”

“And I’ve got eleven Faction dispatches for your Party leader,” the broker said.

Kaden shrugged. “Take it up with Sara. I’m just the muscle.”

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“Your name is on ten of these. Kaden Birch. I had a creepy guy from the Thieve’s Guild hanging around for two days last week, waiting for you.” The Broker’s tone said Kaden should be apologizing.

“I can’t accept quests. I can only advise Sara, and Sara has been really busy.” Sara had been really busy, mostly on projects benefiting the Party directly. “I’ll talk to her today.”

“She’s in the City Council meeting hall,” the broker said. “Please? I can only hold ten. I have to return one of these today.”

Kaden headed out into the city—away from the City Council. He had an agreed stop to make, and that was at a two story building with white stone walls and glass doors large enough to let a full grown quillophant through. Dervish’s Summoning Services.

James Dervish stood inside, illuminated by the golden display lights that lit up his beasts, and he saw Kaden coming. The man was almost seven feet tall, with white scars covering what little skin showed, and one missing eye that was replaced with a glowing green crystal. His white silk suit didn’t dare have a wrinkle, and his cane—what most people would call a war hammer, stood as tall as Kaden’s shoulders. “Thanks for stopping by.”

Kaden shook his hand. “Got something you need me to check out? Or generating summons?”

“Little of both, but that ain’t the reason.” The Summoning Saint drew something from a suit pocket—a pocket linked to his Inventory. The simple wooden whistle had been a prized possession of a Queen Kaden killed. “You certain you’re not going to use it?”

[Dog Whistle]

Summon a [Marauder] to do your bidding with the word of your choice. You do not need to blow on the dog whistle, your summoning word will communicate in a way they can hear. The type of [Maurader] you can summon will increase as you level your bond with this item.

“Fairly sure.” Kaden had leant it to Mistress Scylla. “It just summons a [Marauder]. Right?”

“One that don’t leave.” Mr. Dervish summoned a [milk spider] the size of his fist. Then a second one. The first faded away as the second appeared. “Don’t judge it by how it is. Think about what it could be.”

One of the nearby displays shook as an [Ice Drake] blasted the mana barier with ice. Kaden had never been a huge fan of Summoning because a summoned beast was just one instance of the entity bound to their soul. Summoners could and would use their Beasts as disposable warriors. “It doesn’t really match my style. I named a [Match Lizard]. What do you have in mind?”

“‘Summoning Saint.’ It’s in my name. I train new summoners, and I got one I’d like to train. Now, nothing gets you nothing, but I got a trade, if you’re interested.”

The first lesson Kaden had ever learned. “I’m listening.”

“Stop listening, start reading.” Mr. Dervish handed Kaden a scroll. Not a skill scroll. A bill of sale.

Kaden read it and couldn’t help smiling. “You most definitely have a deal. I don’t really control it, but if it shows up, you know where to find me.”

“I do. It’s down at Beast Control right now, which is where I’m going. You ever think about learning to make Skill Scrolls?”

Kaden shook his head. “[Mana Dart] isn’t in high demand.”

“[Backsmash] might be. Or [Stealth Aura].” Together they stalked through the streets of Verona. Spring wouldn’t come for months. This far north, Spring would be like a Priest, often talked about but mostly seen from a distance, then disappearing.

Beast Control was built into Verona’s city walls, literally. The wide bays of the intake entrance stood closed against the winter cold, but Mr. Dervish lifted a door ten times his size with ease, and let Kaden duck under.

The night shift workers leaped up.

“Lay back down, I got no problem with rest,” Mr. Dervish said as he passed through into the back hallways. Each was coded with colors that indicated what Beasts could be found in what direction.

“Sir?” Okit Von Czerk, a tall, thin woman with shiny white hair that changed to blue at her shoulders, stood with a clipboard. “We are ready for your surprise inspection.”

“I thought you were working at the big house,” Kaden said.

Okit looked to him with a grimace. “There was a small incident.”

“Everybody almost burns it down at least once,” Mr. Dervish said. “And this ain’t an inspection. Kaden’s here to bind that Drake with an obedience binding. And I’m here to start you on a road.”

Mr. Dervish cupped his hands tightly around the wooden whistle. “Learned to make Skill Scrolls a hundred years ago. If I wasn’t the Summoning Saint, this probably wouldn’t work. But I am.”

Mana rushed inward toward Mr. Dervish—then popped in a way that left Kaden’s ears ringing. When he opened his hands, broken pieces of wood sat with a pristine scroll. “This will make you a Summoner, if you want. If you don’t, you won’t offend me.”

Okit gingerly took the scroll, as though he’d clamp down his fist. She read it, and it collapsed to nothing beneath her fingers. “How—oh—that is how. Abris!”

From just around the corner, a scraggly [Marauder] limped. This one was so much weaker than what Mistress Scylla had summoned. Its ribs showed, and it dropped the stick it held with a clatter and pissed itself as Mr. Dervish looked at it. “Yep, that’s a starter summons. Feed ‘em, give it a bath. I’ll work with ya on dismissal tomorrow.”

Okit seemed terrified to touch her own Summons. “In Den Tolten, to receive a Class was to owe twenty years of service.”

“We ain’t doing that.” Mr. Dervish pointed on down the hallway. “Kaiden, your drake’s waiting. Hope you can handle it better than we have.”

Kaden didn’t wait. He headed straight to the War Beast containment section of Beast Control. A pair of [Railadras] fought against the barriers that kept them contained. A crossbreed of scorpions and goats, they featured the worst parts of each, but at least didn’t have wings.

[Beast Soul] let him project calm until they went back to chewing on their food, which was chunks of meat mixed with thorny vines.

In the far corner, a great black [Drake] perched, his wings closed tight, his long black tail coiled around his body.

“Hey.” Kaden stepped up and punched in the code for the mana barrier. “Remember me? I told you you could go to Fangwood.”

*Cold. Dark. Lonely.* The Drake’s words were punctuated with emotion. Most Drakes were enlightened, meaning they had actual thoughts, opinions, and desires. This was the first one Kaden had seen unhappy about being alone. In the wild, they were solitary, meeting only to mate. Still, Kaden had ideas. He summoned the FalCrow and sent to with a message, then held up the purple binding Mr. Dervish gave him. “If you accept this, there’s somewhere you can go. If you don’t, you need to head to Fangwood, or stay here.”

Along with the words, he sent the image of BirchHaven, and the Drake perching atop a building, watching people come and go. Of keepers who would shovel wheelbarrows filled with food. Centurions marveling at his majesty—or at least choosing not to attack, as long as the drake did the same.

It slowly lowered its head and opened violet eyes to stare, then flicked its tongue to touch the binding. [Soul Binding] had already done its work. What formed between then was the weakest Obedience binding on earth. Kaden couldn’t see it, but he could feel it. It was less obedience and more suggestion.

“Come on.” Kaden led the beast to the front doors and shuddered as cold wind struck. “They’re expecting you. If you go now, there could still be dinner. Why do you even want to be around people?”

The Drake stopped, and Kaden grew very aware of how much larger it was as the long neck bent so it could look at him. What come out was a feeling. *Bored.*

“Fair enough.” Kaden checked, he’d borrowed [Wrath of the Furnace], but [Flight] wasn’t available. Would you mind giving me a lift to the City Council? It’s not far from Birchhome. And I’ve always wanted to fly.”

The Drake opened its mouth and let out a crackling roar that [Beast Soul] translated as *Flying IS the best.*

Okit stood near a food bin, letting her [Marauder] gorge itself on anything it wanted. Kaden wasn’t sure how that would work. If the marauders all arrived starving and sick, how would she ever gain power as a summoner?

Behind her, Mr. Dervish stood, instructing her on how to guide it. How to care for it. How to please give it a bath because it smelled like death.

The howling wind said a storm was moving in, and Kaden donned a stolen coat. It belonged to the druids of the closest grove, but enchanted with fire mana, it let him ignore the cold and scramble up onto the back of the Drake. Mara, a [Ranger] friend had ridden this drake, so it knew how—It lunged straight upward on powerful wingbeats, heading straight toward clouds of snow.

This was so much better than riding a winged scorpion. The powerful way the Drake flew, the supple motion of its body as it almost swam through the air. The lack of scorpion venom or being stung over and over.

Without warning, they broke through the cloud cover and moonlight shone down on an ocean of gray. Kaden couldn’t help the fear that made him clutch the Drake’s wing-knobs—then gravity took over as it folded its wings and plummeted downward.