~~~Stanley~~~

Why are you so happy? Stanley thought while he studied the bat queen's diminished soul through the lair wall. She'd basically given her children away to humans—two of them—at a major personal cost to her, and that made her happy. But why? What did she gain? Was it for protection? Was she afraid that someone like Stanley might wipe her out and so she was looking for allies... or friends? What was it the bat had said to the boy? Something about friends, right?

He didn't have to look to know that the kids and their new soul-bonded companions were all as happy as the queen, if not more so. All four of them whispered, chirped, squeaked, and laughed, respectively, as they communicated back and forth. From what he picked up, it sounded like the kids could only understand their own bats, even though the bats could talk to each other as well. Likely something to do with the original taming ability, since Lucy had understood the baby bat before it soul-bonded with her.

Stanley also didn't need to look to feel the mix of impatience, fear, and annoyance from his other passengers. Some of them clearly didn't enjoy sitting in the sky like this, even though he'd provided a comfortable place for them to sit. It was actually rather peaceful up here, and they had a decent view all the way out to the ocean. Even the bats had stopped swarming and gone back to guarding their lair more closely, leaving the sky to Stanley.

As all things should.

The lack of birds in the area wasn't a new development, and Stanley was perfectly fine not seeing pigeons or seagulls. He wasn't sure if his early days of bird slaughtering had permanently reshaped the local populations or if it was something else, and he didn't care. The crow was here... though it was strange that there was only ever the single bird. Or was it more than one crow? He never really got any good long looks at its soul... Could it be that there was a whole lair of crows somewhere out there and they were taking turns trolling him?

No, Caffeine would notice. Wouldn't he? Unless... he'd made friends with all of them? Far-fetched, but well within the realm of possibilities for the pug.

The bolder passengers behind him were clearly eager to get to the fighting, but no one said anything outright. It didn't feel like they were too afraid of him to speak up, not exactly. There was definitely some nervous energy, but it felt more like they were willing to let him sit and brood if he wanted to. At least for now.

Of course, Martha wasn't eager. She just felt confused about everything that had happened. Stanley didn't blame her for that, and he also hadn't forgotten how she tried to comfort the kids before. Though her caring concern held far less weight when she was literally weaker than the kids she'd wanted to protect. Hell, the baby bat could probably kick her ass...

He took a breath and reminded himself that her weakness probably wasn't her own fault. She would get her chance to prove how much she cared soon enough. Of course, he was only delaying that eventuality by sitting here and wasting time.

Well, it wasn't a complete waste. Stanley canceled his Soul Sight and smiled at the happy pug that was sprawled in his lap to receive some well-deserved belly rubs. Good boy. Whatever you did, however you did it, you’re a good boy.

The tower wasn't far and Stanley had already caught a few glimpses of Daryl's training program at work from here. It was a new addition that didn't involve the ants. This one involved most of the nearby hunting groups either luring monsters outside before killing them or dragging them outside after they were dead. There, other groups lured the resulting zombies toward the tower, where the newbies could fight them in a safer environment.

They left the bats alone. Probably because they exploded when they died and therefore couldn't become zombies, but also because the bats would kill any zombies that even got close to their lair.

Stanley started moving again and felt a lightening from the souls at his back. It was as if a collective sigh of relief went through them. He wasn't that bad... and without him, they'd be walking to the tower. Well, maybe a gravity wizard could fly them in? But who wanted to rely on magic when they had something so obviously better?

He glanced northwest, toward the wizards' enclave, and considered if he should give them another visit. Sam's teleport was magic. They might have a way to block teleportation... but no. Nate knew the deal. He’d find out what they had.

There was another minor worry that he was trying not to think about as he flew down the street. Minor for him, but maybe not for... them. The kids. Lucy and... He listened more closely to their happy chattering. Ken? Who the hell names their kid Ken? Whatever. Nate had suggested he could help, and he sort of had. Well, Caffeine had. The question now was how much help they'd actually provided.

"Lucy, Ken," he called without turning around. "Can either of you tame another animal?" Stanley knew the answer before they replied, and it was exactly what he'd worried about. Those bats might do well against a few zombies, but they were tiny, with the baby being ridiculously small. How were they going to keep the kids safe? He should've gone looking for the bear... Hell, even a wolf would've been better than the bats.

On the plus side, they might gain the ability to tame more beasts as they leveled. Hopefully. Until then, he might have screwed them over by stopping at the bat lair. Unless... "Did you get any skills from the bats?"

"Um... I don't think so?" Lucy said.

"It says we can share health and mana!" Ken added.

"That's... something." If the bats could supplement the kids' mana pools with their mana drain, then it would still make them more powerful. He'd just have to keep an eye out for some strong and, ideally, ranged skill shards. Or... any of the skills he'd seen Sam use. Those were all plenty powerful... All he had to do was kill her.

Stanley put those thoughts out of his mind as he carried his passengers into the small-scale and frankly far too peaceful battlefield that was the entire ground floor of the tower. It was a single massive room past the wide doors, broken up only by scattered pillars. A handful of four and five-man groups fought in the room, each of them with their own little area where they faced off with a lone zombie or ant in a sad little parody of combat.

Strangely, the crow vanished an instant before he passed the threshold. Was it because of Walter? Stanley could feel the line where Walter's soul became ever present... Maybe he really could block teleporting? Also, he really needed to get Daryl and Princess together with the crow, assuming Princess could talk to a bird... Damn it! He should have asked the kids to talk to the crow. What if it knew something about the invaders?

His train of thought was interrupted by the group of humans nearest the door who didn't have a zombie or ant to fight and seemed to be waiting for something to come in. One of them was also an idiot who attacked the moment Stanley flew inside. A weak idiot who tried to punch him. From twenty feet away...

Stanley caught the fist coming for his head with his bare hand. It was that weak. Then he stopped and stared at the arm stretching from the man below all the way up to his platform. That was just wrong! He quickly let go of the disgusting limb and wiped his hand on his pants. Stanley also dropped the dirt platform, and some of it may have accidentally rained down on the man as he passed overhead...

He carried his passengers to the glowing crowd at the center of the room. A crowd of Daryls and Princesses were all standing around a massive bonfire that burned without fuel on the bare cement floor. "Got some new recruits for you, Daryl."

Daryl's gaze immediately landed on the two kids, and Stanley wasn't sure if he was more upset about their age or the bats on their shoulders that were eyeing his copies hungrily. "What are those doing in... No, don't tell me. They tamed the bats?"

"We soul bonded them!" Ken exclaimed right as both bats stopped staring hungrily and launched themselves at the nearest copy of Daryl.

They immediately destroyed the illusion by inhaling the magic, only to slam to a halt when the real Daryl grabbed one in each hand. The larger bat he took around the throat, and the smaller one almost vanished inside his grasping fist. He squeezed until the blue glow vanished from their mouths and both bonded children cried out in a mix of pain and shock.

"Ow!"

"You're hurting her!"

Daryl let up his grip but didn't release the creatures. Instead, he glared at them. "What were you thinking?" he asked both animals and children while stalking closer. He held up the captive bats, both of them squeaking angrily at him. "Rule one of a bond class is that you protect your bond! Always! Is that clear!?"

Both kids wilted before him, but they nodded in agreement. "Yes, sir."

"Good." Daryl let the angry and frightened bats crawl back onto their bonded humans. "I'm in charge here," Daryl continued, now addressing the whole group of newbies. "You follow my orders, or you don't get to fight. If any of you have an issue with that, then there's the..." His gaze stopped roving over the small crowd when it landed on Martha, and he turned to Stanley. "Where did you find F-grades?"

"That's Martha, and there are thousands more where she came from." Stanley shook his head with a fresh twinge of bitterness at the memory. "Want me to grab some cores for them?"

Daryl shook his head with a thoughtful feeling in his soul. "No. In fact, I think she should stay in F-grade for a while."

"Why?" Was he punishing her?

Instead of answering, Daryl turned to Martha. "I'm assuming you aren't a combat class?"

"N... no."

"Now, I can't say for sure, but you'll probably get a better E-grade evolution if we first get you some levels in whatever combat skill you wind up learning."

"I... if you think that's the best way..."

"Are you good, then?" Stanley interrupted. "If you don't need any cores, I'm gonna head to my room and..."

"Actually," Daryl said. "I have another idea I want to try. Can you give me a sec before you go?"

Stanley knew Daryl wasn't his biggest fan; his soul betrayed that much every time they met, but Daryl had helped him when he needed it most. Between him, Adrian, and Walter, they had sheltered and protected him at his weakest. Not to mention everything they'd done for him since. Daryl had earned plenty of leeway. "Sure, I'll wait."

"Walter," Daryl said to the empty air. "How are we doing on boar spears?"

"Only two remain, sir," Walter said, appearing without warning. "Shall I request additional constructions?" He held a spear in each hand, both with a large crossguard below the spearhead, and the weapons looked like they were all one solid piece of... bone?

All the newcomers flinched away from the butler with varying degrees of surprise, but Daryl took the spears. "Don't bother, Walter. Keep him working on the armor. I'll graduate a few of the others and spread their spears around."

"Very good, sir," Walter said, vanishing once again.

Daryl held the spears out to the kids as two copies of himself appeared behind them. One copy said, "Take these over there, and do what I show you until I tell you to stop."

They both flinched, wide-eyed at seeing more copies of him behind them. They also looked disappointedly at the empty corner he'd directed them toward before glancing longingly toward the actual monsters. It was obvious they wanted to leap right into the fighting, and it was equally obvious they weren't ready.

Stanley watched as Daryl talked to the kids and took them through some stabbing maneuvers while also talking to the rest of the group. It was an impressive ability if he could hold two separate conversations at the same time... It also looked like he was keeping a close eye on every fighting group down here. Or was Princess helping him pull it off? Her soul felt very focused, and her gaze never stopped moving around the room.

"If you do something stupid and get hurt," the real Daryl said, eyeing each of them one at a time before pointing at the bonfire. "This is where you come. This is phoenix fire, and it will heal you."

The skepticism felt stronger than it should have. They were living in a magical world, about to learn how to fight against monsters, and they thought fire couldn't heal?

Daryl seemed to expect the reaction because he pulled a knife and grinned evilly. "So, who wants to try it first?"

No one volunteered, and Stanley was a heartbeat from helping things along when he hesitated. He drifted closer and held out a hand instead of taking off someone else's. "You can..."

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"Not you," Daryl said immediately, with a touch of fear in his soul. Unfounded fear. He'd volunteered, and the man was still afraid of him!? Did he think Stanley was that much of a...

"Fine, I'll go first," Daryl said quickly before Stanley could do or say anything and he dragged the knife across his palm. Except he didn't. Stanley was close enough for his domain to touch the man, and he saw the knife completely miss his hand. Even the blood that welled up wasn't real... Then Daryl stuck his hand into the fire.

Flames licked at the fake wound with a sizzling hiss, but instead of burning him, the flames appeared to burn away the wound and leave unblemished flesh behind. The bonfire also shrank to less than half its original size in the process.

Daryl pulled his hand out and let them all get a good look. "Each of you is going to do the same." He pointed the knife at one man, who took a worried step back. "I won't have any of you dying on me because you're afraid of the fire. Come. This is your first order."

No one stepped forward. A bunch of fucking cowards that were afraid of a little...

"Y—yes, sir." Martha took a step closer and held out a trembling hand. Daryl smiled and took her hand gently. She stared at the blade with wide eyes but didn't pull her hand away even as it approached her flesh.

"Look at me," Daryl said, and then flicked the blade across her palm when she met his gaze. He'd actually cut her, unlike what he did to himself. She flinched, but still didn't pull away. "Good. Now put it in the flames."

She did as instructed, even though her fear climbed higher the closer her hand got to the fire. Then the fear faded and awe replaced it as her hand healed almost instantly.

"See? Not so..." Daryl twitched at the same time that Stanley felt Walter's soul appear briefly on the far side of the floor and disappear again. Then Daryl's voice echoed from the same location. "What the hell was that!? Are you trying to die!?"

More voices sounded as someone replied, but the Daryl in front of Stanley talked over them as he pointed at another newbie. "Your turn."

"We all saw it already. Why do we..."

"This is your first order," Daryl interrupted, his smile long gone. "If you won't do what I say, then you're done. I won't have your blood on my hands!" From the tone of his voice and the feeling in his soul, it sounded like he was speaking from experience. An experience that still haunted him...

"I'm not carrying any of you back if you're too chickenshit to do this," Stanley said, his voice a low growl. "In fact, if you refuse, I'll cut off your fucking hands and let you heal from..."

"Thanks," Daryl said dryly. "But I'd rather you didn't make me waste that much mana. This fire isn't free, you know?" As he spoke, golden flames bloomed in his hand. Then he tossed those flames into the bonfire, expanding it back to a much more impressive size.

Whether it was his threat or Daryl's, no one else protested as each one of them took turns bleeding and healing. Martha's daughter even walked fully inside the flames, much to her mother's alarm. "Jean!"

"Relax," Daryl said, catching her arm and then dragging the smiling girl from the flames with his other hand. "And stop wasting time."

"I want to try the fire, too!" Stanley turned and saw Ken facing off with Daryl's copy while he and Lucy looked longingly toward the flames.

"No," the copy said. "I suspect you two and your companions are more likely to eat the magic than to get healed by it. Also, I want to see if you can heal by draining mana from a zombie."

They both liked that idea and leapt at the chance, obviously already tired of the spear practice. "Can we..."

Daryl shot down their dreams. "You won't get near a zombie until you prove to me you can hold it back with those spears."

Meanwhile, the real Daryl had the others tell him their skills and classes, after which he sent them to join the kids. "I'll have a few more spears soon enough. For now, you'll take turns." He only kept Martha back and started pulling out skill shards for her to look over. "Don't accept anything, but look at the adaptability cost of adapting yourself to each one. That will give us the best idea of where your strongest affinity..."

"Daryl?" Stanley finally interrupted. This sounded like it was going to take a while. "You wanted to talk? I can come back later." He'd done his part already and he could work on his soul wound, if nothing else.

"Check them," Daryl said, handing Martha the entire bag. Then he stepped away and stopped beside Stanley. He spared a small smile and a head scratch for Caffeine before finally meeting his gaze. "Stanley, I want... Could you do your... thing down here? Instead of in the room, I mean."

Stanley frowned. "My thing? You mean the soul repair?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind..."

"I can't shield while I work," Stanley said while eyeing the surrounding weaklings dubiously. "Even if the wound has gotten better than it used to be, it's still going to be unpleasant for... or is that what you want? You want to make it harder for them to..." He paused at what Daryl's soul was telling him. "No, you want to unlock their soul attributes, don't you?"

Daryl nodded. "We've had some time now, enough that we're almost certain that having it unlocked makes a very real difference in what evolutions people will get offered."

"You want this?" Stanley dropped his Soul Shield and felt the dozens of flinches echo back to him from everyone in the room at the same time as it felt like he'd turned up the volume on all of their souls. It was annoying. "You know there's no guarantee it will unlock anyone's soul?"

"I know," Daryl said hesitantly. "I also know you like to be alone, but if it works... this could change..."

"It'd probably be more effective if I just glare at them with soul sight turned all the way up..." Stanley did just that, funneling soul energy into his eyes until they started burning.

Daryl flinched back and held up a hand. "I know! But... please don't."

"Isn't it better to just get it over with rather than a long, drawn-out torture!?" Stanley canceled the skill with only a little bitterness about his fucked-up soul. Hell, it might even be his fucked soul that was responsible for unlocking other people’s attributes. They should be grateful.

"Actually," Daryl said with a wince. "The slow way might be better. It's at least worth a shot, I think. Your method works, but..." He looked away. "Some people have had... lingering side effects to the... more violent exposures."

Side effects? "Who?" Stanley demanded. "Was it Zeke!?" That might explain why Eve hated him so much? Zeke hadn't said anything... and why wouldn't Eve just tell him if that was the case? "Who was it? Tell me!?"

"Woah!" Daryl said while taking a half step back. "I don't know anything about Zeke. It was... Look, don't worry about it. They're stronger for it and have nothing to complain about, but if we can get the same result another way..."

Stanley looked down and met the big brown eyes staring up at him. He took a deep, cleansing breath. "Fine," he said without taking his gaze from Caffeine's. "I can work down here. Any spot in particular that you want me to sit?"

"Here's fine," Daryl said softly. "And... thanks."

"Don't thank me," Stanley said as a smile crept onto his face. "Thank Princess."

"Princess?" Daryl said. "What does she..."

Daryl's voice vanished when Stanley dropped into his meditation and got to work. Between his meditation and the focus of working on the wound, it didn't take long for him to calm down. Which had the expected result, and he felt Caffeine's excitement rising in step with his own cooling mood. Then the pug vanished from his lap and shot toward the suddenly alarmed fox like a furry missile. You asked for it.

Stanley focused on the happy pug and reluctant fox in an attempt to ignore all the other souls. It worked somewhat, and he felt Caffeine sprint outside of the building a short time later. Then come back. Then run out again.

Back and forth, Caffeine ran, and he loved every second of it.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but Caffeine suddenly stopped enjoying himself somewhere outside. Instead, Caffeine got angry. Furious!

Stanley let the emotion drag him out of the calm darkness. He let it empower him. Then he moved.

Whatever had made Caffeine upset would die.

~~~Caffeine~~~

"Fire Dog!" Caffeine barked. "Chase!"

"That is not my name! I am Princess!" Fire Dog always said that, even though she was always on fire! "Besides, you can't play here. Daryl is teaching..."

Caffeine dropped lower, his legs ready to run very fast, and barked again. "Chase!"

"Ugh. Fine." Fire Dog said the thing she always said before chasing. Then she turned into a bunch of Not Fire Dogs, and Caffeine ran!

The new Not Fire Dogs didn't smell exactly the same, and they turned into sparkles if he crashed into them, but they were very good chasers! The Not Fire Dogs chased him outside the big house, and Caffeine had to run his fastest to stay ahead of them. Until they all disappeared! They always did that if he ran too far and too fast.

So he ran back, and more Not Fire Dogs ran out of the tall house before he got inside! Caffeine had to swerve very hard to not get caught! Twice! Then he was running away while the Not Fire Dogs tried to bite him. They always did that. Just like Fire Dog always did! It made the chasing more fun!

Caffeine wasn't sure how many times he ran back and forth, but it didn't matter. Dearest Human didn't try to sneak away and only did his very hard thinking inside the house. Which meant Caffeine could play chase as long as he wanted!

It would have been even more fun if his other Friends were here. Also, the outside here was a little stinky. But it was okay. He still got to see some of his Friends while playing!

"Hi, Caff!" Cold Rock Human called him while he was running around another tall house, and Caffeine ran to see her when the Not Fire Dogs disappeared again. She was a good human, and she never got upset when he chewed on her cold rocks. They were very cold and very crunchy! The best for chewing!

He found even more Friends in the big house with Cold Rock! Caffeine gave them all very good hello sniffs and some licks as well. He said hello to Stick Thrower with her Very Much Not For Chewing Stick. Then he licked Strange Light, who sometimes made things unchewable with his lights. He was a good Not Dearest Human, but his lights were not good.

Strange Light did give the best ear scratches, though. Almost as good as Dearest Human!

"Stanley must be at the tower," Strange Light said something while smelling like laughing. "This is my chance to go make him mad at me!"

"Shut up, Sven." Stick Thrower hit Strange Light with her Not For Chewing Stick. "I never should have told you about that!" But it was a gentle hit, and she only smelled a little like upset while mostly like friendly.

"I'm glad you told us, Kira." Cold Rock gave Stick Thrower a snuggle. "Though I'm not sure if it made me more or less afraid of him..."

She smelled a little afraid, so Caffeine gave her some extra licks to feel better and barked some of the magic words, too. "You are a Good Boy, Cold Rock!"

"I know, Caff. You are a good boy, so Stanley can't be that bad, can he?" She said the magic words too! She really was the best human!

"Good boy!" Caffeine barked and then ran in an excited circle around his best friends!

"Here, Caff," Stick Thrower said his name and held up a different stick. A For Throwing Stick! "I know what you want. You want the stick, right?"

Caffeine stood very still and very ready as he watched the stick move back. Then it flew very fast, and he ran! Stick Thrower was the best at throwing sticks! She could throw them very far!

He tried to bring the stick back for more throwing, but only chewed up little sticks fell out of his mouth when he dropped it in front of Stick Thrower. Caffeine whined sadly. It was so hard not to chew on a good stick...

"Aw, do you want some ice cubes, Caff?" Cold Rock said something. "Look, I can make them bigger now!" Cold Rock was the best human because she made him a cold stick to chew on and it was the best kind of cold and crunchy!

Caffeine followed his Friends as they walked between the big houses. They were nice and made all the Stinky Not Humans stop being alive whenever they came out. It was very nice because Caffeine didn't have to bite the Stinky Not Humans. They tasted very bad!

He didn't follow them when they went inside a big house because another Friend came to play with him. Here There!

"Caffeine!"

Here There said Caffeine's name when he appeared, and Caffeine chased him with a friendly bark. "Here There!"

He was the very best at playing chase because he was the very best at not getting caught! Every time Caffeine thought he would catch him, Here There would suddenly be somewhere else. He was also the very best at catching, because Here There could be suddenly here!

They played chase for a long time in and around all the big houses. It was the best chasing ever! Caffeine ran and ran so fast!

He never stopped until Here There suddenly had a big piece of Chicken! Then Caffeine immediately stopped and did his very best sitting in front of Here There.

"Are you hungry, Caff?" Here There said something about Hungry! Caffeine knew that word! Hungry was a good word! It meant eating time!

"Hungry!" Caffeine barked, and Here There was a Best Human because he shared the Chicken! Chicken was the best, and Here There gave him so many good bites!

Caffeine stopped eating when he suddenly smelled the VERY BAD Stinky Not Humans. He looked quickly and saw it hiding on top of a big house while watching them eat. It was after his Chicken! Or even worse, it was after Here There!

"I won't let you hurt him!" Caffeine growled at it and jumped his hardest and angriest jump. The BAD Stinky Not Humans tasted terrible, but he would still bite it! He would bite it over and over until it stopped being alive!

Unfortunately, the BAD Stinky Not Human became not there before he could bite it... and then Dearest Human was outside with him! "What is... how the hell did you get all the way up here, Caff?"

Dearest Human smelled like angry and upset as he looked around with his extra Dearest Human eyes, so Caffeine jumped into his lap and woofed his best comforting woof. "I won't let the BAD Not Human hurt you!" He barked and then threw in some of the magic words, too. Those always made him feel better. "You are a Good Boy, Dearest Human!"

Here There became suddenly here, and Dearest Human smelled like frightened when he appeared, but not for very long. Instead, he sighed and gave Caffeine some ear scratches while saying something to Here There. "Sorry, Adam. I'm not mad at you. You just startled me, and... What are you doing way out here? Did something attack you? Is that why Caff was upset?"

Caffeine gave Dearest Human another lick before jumping down to comfort Here There. He knew Dearest Human didn't mean to make him upset, but Here There still sometimes got upset when Dearest Human or even Not Dearest Humans talked to him.

"You are a Good Boy too, Here There!" Caffeine barked, and Here There smelled like happy again.

"I really wish you could talk, Adam. But it's fine. He really enjoys playing with you, and that's enough." Dearest Human was a little happy when he said something, but he was also still a little upset as he looked around. He must have seen the BAD Stinky Not Human. That was a good reason to be upset.

"God damn it!" Dearest Human suddenly said an angry thing that he'd said a lot of times back in the rumbly place. "I forgot to ask Daryl if he can talk to birds... and I'm an idiot." Dearest Human shook his head and looked at Caffeine. "Wanna go find Adrian with me, or do you want to keep playing with Adam?"

Caffeine didn't know what Dearest Human was saying, but he smelled happy again. That was good, so Caffeine barked his agreement, "Yes!"