The biting air of the high altitude was a minor inconvenience for Tom. The benefit of being a Level 5, though things weren't as lush as they seemed. Being a "human essence" Level 5, as they called people who had levelled up before the outbreaks, had become a curse. If Tom levelled up now, solely with rift essence, he would be much stronger. Discounting maxed-out attributes, he would have 6 points more in each attribute. This wasn't the worst. With each level, the difference was only going to grow, becoming over 20 points in difference at Level 10.

That many points were a chasm. The old generation of High Level ascenders was going to be de-throned very soon and Tom didn’t want to find himself on the losing side. He had to find ways to get stronger. He considered Chris’s idea of returning to Zimmermann’s employment. From what they had heard, Zimmermann's company was a giant that was quickly overshadowing any other organisation on the planet. Even the current iteration of the World Government didn’t feel like a competitor.

Strange times, Tom mused. It was hard to imagine any business taking off like Untainted Paradise. The World Government had always had a tight grip on power and it took Freeman only a few mistakes to lose it.

Tom inhaled the cold air, sitting on a rock overlooking a monastery, two hundred metres away. This was the last stop on their journey to find Daiyu Fen.

He shouldn’t forget about Keynes Kid's unfair Talent. Being able to open rifts exclusively was insane. No wonder Untainted Paradise threw money around. They were the only source of Level 4 items and materials.

Should I go back to Geneva and try to get in touch with Keynes?

On paper, it seemed like a no-brainer. Chris was convinced that Zimmermann wouldn't have any issues if they asked him to take them back. But Tom didn't feel it. He'd spent years working for Freeman's secret organisation, Hidden Hand, and had grown to dislike being close to politics and power. He'd rather make his own way in the world. He had the tools to do so. His Talent would make others, as long as they were weaker than him, forget about his existence.

The only issue was that even though the outbreaks had changed the world, it hadn't really changed that much. In the past, ascenders had only three paths for levelling up: military or governmental positions, wealth and connections, or going rogue. The last option was a short-term solution. After the World Government was founded, it quickly put its foot down and created a register of levelled ascenders. There was only one sentence for being levelled and not on the register - death penalty. This led to the creation of the most sophisticated criminal organisation in the solar system - Death Dealers. They were the reason the rich levelled up legally. Tom didn't know how this had been possible, but the point was that the current world was very much the same. Delving rifts cost money, and a cheaper but less profitable way was killing monsters in the hunting grounds. They were allowed to harvest monster body parts, but the whole thing was set up like a free-for-all despite the assurances of no violence between hunting ascenders. There was also the free alternative, but hunting dominion monsters was unreliable and more dangerous.

In other words, to level up, an ascender needed a lot of wealth. Annoyingly, this issue had led to the creation of many fanatical groups, with the White Masks being the most prominent and well-known. They wanted to give every ascender an equal chance to level up, but their methods were too cruel to be seen as anything other than a terrorist organisation.

Deep down, Tom understood the futility of the White Mask's goal. There were over a hundred billion people on Earth and only a few thousand rifts. He didn't know the exact number, but why would the exact number matter? It wasn't possible to give an equal chance to all ascenders. Hell, it wasn't enough to give the chance even to 1% of the population and likely would never be. The dilemma weighed on him, making it hard to choose. His heart was out there in the wild, but his mind knew the truth. He was going to be pragmatic and join Untainted Paradise with Chris.

Ren was another story. His mission to save Daiyu Fen had turned into an obsession, and nothing could persuade him to change his mind. Tom shook his head, clearing his thoughts. It was time to get back to the monastery. The complex of several buildings carved into the mountain was an obscure waypoint for adventurers. It had taken Tom quite a long time to figure out why such a remote place was in use at all. There were uncleared rifts somewhere out there. How they had found them in the middle of the highest mountain range, Tom had no idea. It was better to not ask questions with so many paranoid ascenders around. The monastery hosted over a hundred people.

When Tom returned to their shared room, which they had rented for a day, Chris checked the door then beckoned Tom closer. Ren wasn't in the room.

"Something happened in the sub-boss dominion," he said.

"What do you mean?"

"Apparently, big names had a confrontation. No details though. Everyone's looking over their shoulder."

***

Ren sat outside their room, his back against the frigid cold wall. On his right was the main yard of the monastery, on his left the path that led to their room. This place was a ruined maze though it offered a roof over one's head, food and water.

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As the night drew closer and the chill stronger, Ren considered returning to their room where closed space offered a semblance of warmth and comfort. But then, his attention was caught by a movement outside of the monastery. Other buildings and rocks didn't allow him to get a better look.

Just more ascenders coming here. For a remote location with seemingly no point of interest, the monastery saw quite a bit of traffic. Ren twitched when he realised what he was seeing. A procession of people. At least ten... or more.

It wasn't what alarmed him though. It was the direction they were coming from.

The eastern pass.

He'd need to talk to the newcomers as he and others had to take the same pass to leave the mountainside and get closer to their destination. But he didn't move as they entered the yard. They all wore dark coats with deep hoods hiding their faces. Not that there was much to see in darkness. Even his heightened Perception wouldn’t be enough.

As the procession moved through the yard, one of its members glanced up. Their hood reclined slightly, but not giving Ren a chance to peek underneath. They entered one of the side buildings of the monastery, vanishing from sight and leaving an undisturbed night in their wake.

Something is telling me that asking them about their way here isn’t the best idea. There was something about them that chilled him. In the end, it didn't really matter. Ren's Talent would take care of obstacles. Since he had levelled up to Level 4, his portal had a better range with a range/cooldown ratio much improved.

Though he rarely thought about himself in terms of how his Talent shaped his life after he had fled the World Government's rift cluster in Scotland, he was aware that with the right combination of Talents, a group of ascenders could be unstoppable. That was why he was considering leaving Tom Ventura and Christopher Wolf.

In fact, he no longer understood them. Why did they follow him? Neither of them cared about Daiyu Fen. That much was plain to him. He balled his fists a few times, restarting circulation in his hands. The cold wasn't enough to damage him. Though the innate damage reduction had vanished with the appearance of Vitality, the new attribute on its own was enough to keep Ren healthy, although it did little to fend off the sensation of his body turning into a block of ice. He remembered Keynes doing silly things to train his resistances in the Scottish... I am going off tangent again, he shook his head.

Tom and Christopher. What should I do about them? Leaving them without a word would feel like—he froze. His spiritual aura alarmed him when someone appeared next to him—no, not appeared, but came out of the wall. I know of only one person with such a Talent.

"Open a portal a kilometre from here but be discreet," a voice whispered into his ear. He almost called out Daiyu Fen's name but then realised where they were. Besides, she moved back into the wall.

Opening a portal in the open was out of the question, so the only other place was their room. He crushed the moment of hesitation. Tom and Christopher were on his side. He swiftly returned to the room, making as little noise as possible. Neither Tom nor Christopher slept, but they didn't ask any questions, seemingly enjoying the silence.

Without warning, Ren used his Talent and opened a portal over a kilometre away to a small and inaccessible plateau he'd eyed since their arrival.

Both men sat up, but Ren put a finger to his mouth. They waited.

Daiyu Fen stepped out of the wall and entered the cut in the fabric of space. Ren followed her; Tom and Christopher went after them.

"What the hell?" Tom was the first to speak out. If not for the heightened Perception, his words would be drowned by the strong wind. The plateau lay much higher than the monastery. "What is going on?"

"I don't have much time," Daiyu Fen replied. "If you're after me or Tulli, forget it. Windsor Freeman and Moonbane are with us."

Ren's heart sank as he started realising what would have happened if they reached that base with Freeman inside.

"Not Freeman again," Tom complained.

"I don't understand," Ren said. "Why haven't you taken Tulli with you? I could have portal us much further away. Freeman can be as strong as he wants, but he wouldn't find us. Unless they implanted you with another chip."

"That's not it." She shook her head, her shoulder-length hair fluttering around her head. "Tulli... they've turned her to their side. I can't leave her with Freeman."

Ren wanted to argue, but Tom asked the important question.

"You know her Talent, don't you?"

"Yes," Daiyu Fen replied. "I have to make her see the truth before she reaches Level 5. Otherwise..."

"What's her Talent?" Tom asked.

Daiyu Fen shook her head. "I have to get back before others notice my absence. Moonbane doesn't trust me yet. Don't follow us."

She stepped back into the portal, leaving the three men alone on the windy plateau.

"What was that?" Tom asked, his voice colder than the air. Ren eyed his portal wondering if they should get back to the monastery. With Freeman around and Tulli compromised, there was risk. "What's this Tulli's Talent?"

"We haven't been told," Christopher said. "But she was among the grade 10 Talents. Whatever it is, it is dangerous."

"Kill the portal," Tom snapped, no longer projecting the relaxed appearance. Ren hesitated. "Once you are off the cooldown, take us as far as you can from the monastery. We aren't equipped to face Freeman."

"What's the plan?" Christopher asked, eyeing the still opened portal.

"There's no plan," Tom replied. "This mission's over. Kill the damn portal."

Not for Ren. He wasn't going to leave Fen alone.

Sorry, Ren thought as he stepped into the portal, at the same time closing it.