The Beast Kin Hierophant was waiting for me at the entrance to the Order’s Hall, and I tried not to let my bubbling anxiety show. My first night in an empty classroom had been cold, uncomfortable, and plagued with dreams of the little shitting imp dancing around the room. I’d have thought it nothing but my mind cataloging my worries, but when I awoke, I’d found a cold, stinking pile of demon spoor ten centimeters from my face. The little bastard had it in for me in particular, I could feel it. I’d eavesdropped on as many people as I could as I sat alone and friendless at morning mess, and no one had said a word about demons harassing them in the Halls. No, they’d been talking about the crazy couplings and throuplings they’d enjoyed all night while I tossed and turned on a stone floor by myself and a vengeful imp ate the leftovers I’d taken with me.

And now I had to make a good impression on the Elder in charge of the Beast Kin and figure out if this was where I belonged. My eyes felt grainy and my stomach was clenching, but I pasted on my brightest smile and approached the man. He was toweringly tall, of course, and whip-thin in a way that spoke of lean, corded muscle, lightning reflexes, and a predator instinct. The eagle-eye aura I’d seen when he spoke to me at the Scrying Pool shimmered over his head, and I heard the cry of a hawk as if it were soaring overhead.

I bowed to hide my mounting worry. “Elder, I wish to attend today’s lessons for the Beast Kin, as we discussed.”

He was silent for an uncomfortable stretch, long enough to make me peek up at his face. As soon as I locked eyes with him, he swooped down and enfolded me in a tight embrace. “Welcome to the Den. I’m glad you’re here.”

Rigid with shock, it was all I could do to pat the man on the back before he disengaged. He crouched so his face was level with mine. His eyes shone a lambent yellow-green, and I was sure that if I saw him in the dark they would glint like a cat’s. He was deeply tanned, his blonde hair highlighted with forest-green streaks and held back from his face with a leather clasp. He looked earnest and open, like he was trying to see into my soul.

“Maphen, you know your own heart better than anyone, but I feel it reaching out, and that is the core of being Beast-Kin. Here we look to the Union, and It looks back on us. Can’t you feel it?”

“Uh…yeah,” I stammered. I didn’t feel anything but confused. “Absolutely.”

He smiled, taking on the beatific look that only holy men and simpletons knew how to make. “I am Hestus, the Hierophant in charge of this Order. Outside the Den you must call me Elder – the rest of them expect it – but here you use my name. In the green places of the world, we are all kin. Come in.”

I wanted nothing more, but I paused in the wide entryway. “I was told I wasn’t allowed in any of the Halls until I rank in the next Melee. My father…”

“Yes, I heard all about that,” Hestus said, waving a hand as if swatting away flies. “Gared doesn’t run this Hall; I do. If he wants to get upset, he can come speak to me about it.” He gestured for me to enter. When I still hesitated, he rolled his eyes. “He won’t hear a word of it, I promise. As soon as today’s lesson is over, off you go. Don’t worry – this is a safe place.”

Heartened by his total unconcern, I stepped over the threshold and immediately gasped as I took it all in. From the hallway, the wide entryway had looked as if it led into a nondescript stone room, but as soon as I came through, the empty stone facade disappeared and I saw the space for what it really was: a forest glade surrounded by mighty trees towering seventy meters in the air and more. Sunlight shone down, filtering through the canopy of green overhead, and the clean, lively smell of grass and wildflowers filled my nose. If I didn’t know the incredible things the Tower could do, I’d have thought we’d been transported to the countryside far beyond Misfell.

Each of the trees had natural nooks and rooms hollowed out of the trunk at different heights, with winding wooden staircases or rope ladders leading to those higher up. A handful of green-haired faces peered curiously out of those alcoves, and a group of green-tunicked Neophytes gathered around a roaring fire in the center of the glade, chatting and joking together. Orm was with them. Everyone seemed to be touching someone, whether it was an arm over a shoulder, sitting close enough to rub sides, or clasping hands. All the sounds of conversation were gentle and happy. A handful of birds of prey circled overhead, and as I walked I saw a hare lope easily across the clearing to nestle between the feet of a black-haired girl who reached down to stroke it. None of the hawks swooped down to snatch it, so I could only assume these were all bond beasts. The whole place felt…idyllic. The perfect place to relax. My anxiety came down by several notches.

“It’s beautiful,” I said.

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“Isn’t it?” Hestus said, beaming. “Today is the perfect day to join us; I’d hoped you’d come here instead of going to one of the others. Today, you see, the Neophytes join with their bond beasts. It’s a singular experience; it will mark you for the rest of your days. Today you learn what animal resides in your soul.”

My heart leapt. “I get to bond an animal? I thought I’d have to wait for that.”

He laughed, gesturing widely to the wild space all around us. “We like to jump in the deep end. Learn by doing. That’s the way nature does it, and we’re all just animals in the end, aren’t we?”

“I suppose.” I’d never thought of myself that way. Everything the Elder said made me stop and reconsider my assumptions from a different perspective. It wasn’t a bad thing, but it was starting to make my head ache. “But what if I don’t end up staying with the Beast Kin? What if I do poorly at the Melee and they throw me out?”

He dropped a hand on my shoulder. “The beast that manifests as a part of today’s ceremony will be a part of you. If you turn to other paths, it will still be with you always.”

My mind spun at his words. Could I end up with the Warriors and still keep my beast? Think of what I could accomplish if I combined two Orders. Can I do that? “I can’t imagine the other Elders would like it if one of the cleaning staff had a bear following them around.”

He giggled, stopped, and then was overcome by a fit of laughing. He’s not like the other Elders. It’s almost like he’s a big child. I wasn’t sure whether Hestus’s lack of guile and seriousness was appealing or appalling.

“It’s not like that,” he said in between spasms before finally mastering himself. “Everyone has a beast inside them.” He paused, winced, and waffled a hand. “It’s more complicated than that, but that’ll do for the moment. It’s true enough that only one of our Order can manifest their bond beast. If, for whatever reason, you don’t join the Beast Kin – I’m sure you will, but as a ‘what if’ – the animal that manifests in the ceremony will simply stop having physical form. It takes time exploring the bond for the beast to have a physical life independent of its human.” He winced again. “Not that it will die if you join a different Order. Don’t worry about that. It simply returns to the state it holds for you now: a latent construct. An idea. You see?”

Damn it. I nodded enthusiastically, hiding the thought. I’d already been dreaming of climbing the Tower as a Summoner or a Warrior, but with a massive beast at my side. Worry less about that and more about getting through the next Melee. Having a fighting cat or a wolf with you could make all the difference. “What will my beast be?”

He gave another glorious, unfocused smile. “Come join the ceremony and let’s find out.”

* * *

Rhythmic fluting sounded on all sides from the Acolytes and their wood instruments, the group forming the outer ring to the inner circle I sat in. All of us Neophytes were stripped down to a loincloth, even the girls. I felt like too much of an outsider to stare, but there was a very impressive girl directly across from me, and another of an entirely different but equally attractive type two spots to my left. She was the one who looked uncannily like Orm, but she was pretty and lithe enough that I didn’t want to think about that too hard. Neither of them wanted to make eye contact with me, regardless. My status as a problem child on the verge of disgrace did not encourage others to be friendly.

Honestly, I was more concerned with who’d worn this loincloth before me. It had been handed to me out of a barrel and had obviously seen prior use. I hoped they’d been thoroughly deloused. Having crawlies in my nethers would be more than I could bear at this point. Was that an itch I felt? No, it was just nerves. I was keyed up enough I could hardly tell the difference. I need a strong, fierce beast. Wolf. I have a wolf inside me. Or a panther. Isn’t that what I saw in the Scrying Pool? That’ll be what I get, no doubt of it. Why else would the pool show me that vision? Unless it was just a general sense of who I could be. I was torturing myself. I wished we could get on with it already.

Hestus danced to the music in the center, bowing and leaping over the fire that we sat around, waving a huge fan of fern fronds in one hand. He’d stripped down to a loincloth too, and he looked like a statue of male perfection brought to life, bronzed skin and wild hair catching both sun and firelight. Again and again, when the players would converge on the same high note, he would turn and throw a handful of herbs onto the fire, where they sparked and gave off a lavender smoke. He had a pouch hanging from one wrist, and he must have emptied the whole thing into the fire a handful at a time. Then, one by one, he stood in front of the seated Neophytes, still moving to the winding rhythm, and waved the fan of fronds over the fire and into their faces as he whispered something to them. Pale purple smoke billowed, and one after another the Beast Kin Neophytes fell still, their eyes blank and calm.

I was the very last one he reached. Just like the others, he waved smoke into my face. It smelled of sharp spice and pond rot. It must be some kind of dream herb, I thought. Let’s do this.

“Know yourself,” Hestus said into my ear, and the world slid away from me into hazy, multicolored nothingness.