It was pleasant stepping back outside. The breeze felt great as it tousled my hair. Athena looked around, apparently for Wisham, as she stepped out. She locked her gaze on him, obviously excited to see him, and ran over.
"Uncle Wisham!"
Wisham turned towards her, and a smile bloomed on his face as well. "Hello Athena!" He responded as he wrapped her in a hug. "It's so nice to see you again! It's been 3 years, is Martin treating you well?"
She backed up a step or two, brushing herself off and putting up a front. "He is, but he won't let me join any adventuring teams. He has me running the shop instead."
"Well that's good to hear... OW! Don't smack me! Your parents are the one that asked Martin to take you on instead of going to those Ghalliger nobles." Wisham rubbed at his arm where Athena had hit him.
I was stunned for a moment. "You two are actually related?" I shook my head. "Why doesn't she travel with you then Wisham?"
"My niece, yep," Wisham answered with a frown. "I've told her for the last 8 years and I'll tell you too. Traveling without a slave collar is difficult and I can get into a lot of fights. It's hard enough to keep my own ass safe, I can't watch over someone else too."
"So then why are you spending time with him?" Athena pointed her thumb over her shoulder at me without even looking.
"I'm training him in basic combat and Wind Manipulation. He's a hero, Athena. Like from the stories we used to tell you."
She spun so fast to look at me that I thought she would fall over. "Really?" Her face held a mixture of awe and disbelief. It kind of hurt actually.
"I can definitely confirm that. His skill growth has been insane. Not to mention the white hair." Wisham grinned at Athena. "Can't let him get a big head though. He nearly died to a Skuld."
I felt my face flush. "It was an Alpha Skuld, and you left me alone in the woods with no idea how to actually fight! You just gave me a weapon."
Athena smacked Wisham in the arm again. "Really? You're not only training him but taking him out of the city to fight monsters? If I can't travel with you can't you at least take me for training too? Maybe then someone could actually teach Jak instead of trying to get him killed."
"You know how to fight?" I asked Athena.
"Sure do, started learning when I turned 5, getting the skills during my Age of Skill was easy. I have skills in Swords Arts, Shield Arts, Spear Arts, and Dagger Arts. My father even taught me tactics. Though I don't have any magical ability of my own which is odd for a Kitsune." She said the last bit a little hesitantly.
It was incredibly impressive, she looked to be my age and was incredibly talented. But this is what you get when you grow up here. I've got a long way to go to catch up.
Suddenly, two animals ran into the courtyard where we had dumped the bodies of the Skulds. One was definitely a cat. Well, it was larger than an ordinary housecat. Actually, it was the size of the average dog. It had long ears that sat back along its neck as it chased it's prey around.
[Roane - Felisian, Level 4]
The other thing running around was ACTUALLY the size of an ordinary house cat. It was long like a ferret but with the face of a kitten and had a long furry tail.
[Pictis, Level 1]
"What's going on?!" I yelled over the noise the two animals were making.
"That's Roane, he's the pet of a family that lives nearby," Athena answered loud enough for me to hear over the hissing and yowling. "He chases down all kinds of dirty rodents. And that's a Pictis he's chasing, which is even better. Pictis like to steal anything that they find interesting."
The Pictis was brown with black stripes down its back. It reminded me of Einstein, the stray cat I named while in one of the children's homes I lived in during middle school. I watched, saddened to have that memory pop up in my head. I didn't have many friends, but that cat was one I could almost count on to be around as I got home from school. I sighed.
The Pictis was almost out of space to run. Roane had managed to corner it and was lying low to the ground, ready to pounce. I quickly shuffled over, putting myself between the Pictis and Roane. The pictis used this opportunity to run past, but Roane must have predicted it and jumped to pounce. The Felisian was going to land right on target, I couldn't let it.
I pushed at my mana hard. I managed to connect to the air and pack it in tight using the mana I had managed to recover. I flung it at the Pictis, pushing it through the courtyard and out into the alley without any damage. Then I yelled at Roane all in the time the oversized cat was in the air. As it landed, the Felisian glared at me and hissed. With its attention taken off the creature, the Pictis managed to run down the alley somewhere out of sight.
Once Roane was sure I wasn't going to attack him, it looked around for the Pictis again. It wandered around to the corner the quarry had disappeared in then turned back to me and yowled before sulking off into the alley.
I walked back over to Wisham and Athena, who were both staring at me. "What?" I asked as I tilted my head slightly.
"Well I have two questions," Athena said with her hands on her hips and a small scowl.
"You go first," Wisham said with one of his smirks I was guessing was signature for him.
"Why did you save that rodent? And how did you nearly die to a slow Skuld if you can move that fast?"
"Slow Skuld?! That thing moved twice as fast as me! Not to mention, I was level 2 and had only picked up a weapon that morning. I've not even been in this place a week!"
Athena turned and glared at Wisham again for a few seconds before turning back to me. "So then why did you save the Pictis?"
"It reminds me of a pet, or the closest thing I had to one back home." I didn't miss much from home. But the few things I did miss, hit hard.
Athena must have seen the change on my face. She dropped her hands to her sides and lost her scowl too. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry."
"It's fine. Wisham and I already had this discussion about the Skuld. He said he would train me more in tactics and help me work on my movement in battle."
She whirled on Wisham. "And you are going to do this? Dad said it took you YEARS to get to the skill level you're at now. Wind Manipulation I can see, you're the highest level wind manipulator in our family. Do I need to tell Martin about this? Or Lena and Arterian?"
Wisham slumped. "Fine. I'll talk to Martin about taking you on, and you can help train Jak. You've got the mind and skill for it anyway, you battle maniac."
She stuck her tongue out at Wisham but quickly had a massive grin on her face that she couldn't hide. I chuckled and smiled too. She got what she wanted.
"I'm wondering though. If Wisham is over 500 years old, he's got to have a ton of levels in Tactics, and all kinds of skills for fighting. Right? Why wouldn't he be able to teach me?"
Wisham finally had a genuinely aghast look on his face, while Athena just burst into laughter. "He's had those years to slowly build them up. He should have had them much higher if he was a natural at it—no offense, uncle Wisham."
Wisham Jumped in, "And Athena is a natural at nearly all things battle-related. Her father trained her with everything she knew starting when she was 5, and she proved to be a natural. She managed to get to tier two in more fighting skills than I did before I turned 50."
Athena's face was turning red from embarrassment, but Wisham continued. "When she turned 15, her father sent her to Martin when a noble family tried to take her as a slave."
"And I've been stuck here ever since. Father never took me out hunting. I never got to do more than fight against training dummies or sparring partners that father brought in." Athena sounded sad, but she looked excited again. "I can finally get out of this city and use my skills! I'm going to take the Lancer class when I hit level 10. I don't get jobs to fulfill at the shop, so I can finally start leveling in earnest."
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
--
Getting the Alpha taken care of didn't take long. Athena commissioned me a leather vest, some gloves, and bracers to match. The End took the meat and other body parts that could be used for crafting, except for the liver that was apparently useful in Alchemy. She let me take that to use back in the workshop with Lena.
I had a good laugh while watching Athena march Wisham back to Martin's office to get permission. Shortly after taking Wisham to the back, she came back to the front where I was waiting. I looked at her questioningly, and she just shrugged. "Martin asked me to leave. Not quite sure what that's about. But they were already talking about my training when I walked out so I'm pleased."
"That's great! What do lancers do? I'm assuming it's a lance or spear related class?" I probed. I was going to hit level 10 soon too, and I wanted to figure out what my options looked like.
"Right. It's a reasonably versatile class. I like using the short spear along with a bouche. A small shield with a ridge I can use to hold the spear." She answered my unasked question seeing it on my face. She walked around behind the counter and grabbed her own short spear and bouche to demonstrate with.
She showed me a few forms. Moving low to aim high, standing tall to poke the spear over top of an imaginary shield, and a jump attack that would use the spear and the bouche in tandem to help take down a target. It was all fluid and fast. She definitely had a lot of practice.
I clapped for her, and she gave a sweeping mock bow at me. "Do you know what you're going to pick as your class?" She returned the question.
"I don't know any classes other than Alchemist, Physicker, and now Lancer," I answered.
"What did Wisham have you learning." She stressed the end with obvious sarcasm.
"He gave me these," I pulled out the Skyblades. I started to explain them to her. "They are called Skyblades and they let me connect to the stone to form a blade." I did just that, forming short, angled, razor-thin blades out of both weapons at the same time. "I can change the form of the blade to whatever I want them to be as long as I can picture it."
I closed my eyes to focus. I wanted to at least prove I had been working hard with Wisham. He had left me alone, but he had also taught me a lot in a single night. I kept up the thinness from before but had the mana blade curve forward and around the arc of the metal portion of the Skyblades. When I opened my eyes, I could see that I had effectively made my own short axe.
I looked up to see Athena sitting on the ground in a stupor. I watched her for a moment until she peppered me with questions. "Wisham gave you those?! And you've been using them for less than a week?! How are you so good at manipulating them already?! So you are learning to be a spellblade?!"
She finally ran out of breath and looked up at me from the blades themselves. I took that as my chance to answer. "Uhh, yeah. Wisham gave these to me last night." That didn't help her mood as her eyes glossed over. "I spent all night practicing, and I've never heard of the Spellblade class."
Wisham was perfectly timed with the expected smirk. "That should take care of it. Athena, you'll be training with us starting in a week." Martin walked out, nodding in agreement with an expression on his face I couldn't quite place.
"He's a monster! He learned to use the Skyblades in a single night?! I guess I can see how you thought he had some skill that would have allowed him to beat the Skulds." Athena nearly shouted the first part.
"I expect he'll learn from you extremely quick, Athena. He only learned his Wind Manipulation last night too. We'll use the week to shore up his Mana Blade skill, which I assume you have?" He looked at me, to which I nodded. "And also his Wind Manipulation skill will need a bump. We'll try to get perks in both skills before you start learning tactics from Athena."
--
Athena was still putting herself back together as Wisham sent me home. He told me to get a good meal before I pass out tonight.
I stepped out into the evening air, it wasn't quite dark yet, but I knew it would be soon. I decided to detour towards the market to pick up some food with the coins I got for the extra parts from the Skuld. I stopped by the bakery near The End and grabbed three small loaves of bread that smelled sweet. They were usually a copper each, but since it was the end of the day, the friendly shopkeeper gave them to me for a copper total.
I started chewing on the bread as I walked out. It was the most wonderful bread I have ever eaten. It tasted like it was covered in butter and honey. It didn't take long before I felt like I was being watched. I looked around casually but couldn't see anything, so I kept walking. I could partially defend myself, but I didn't really know what to expect.
The feeling kept up as I neared Bruises and Brews. Once, I caught sight of something in the shadows—the glint of small catlike eyes. I stayed vigilant the whole way home and walked through the tall gate into Lena and Arterian's Garden. It was nice to be back at the house again. I stepped into the light of the garden, and the feeling got stronger.
I turned around and saw the Pictis. Or at least I assumed it was the same one. It was seated on its haunches and had its head tilted at me. I stood there for a second as we watched each other. I started to crouch down, too fast for the Pictis as it stood up and started to run away before stopping and looking back at me. I slowed my descent and sat down. The Pictis too sat down, we were just over 15 feet apart.
I was immediately reminded of Einstein again. He was skittish around me at first, not sure if he could trust me. Athena called it a rodent, and I know they tend to scavenge. I pulled the loaf I hadn't yet eaten out and broke off a piece. I held it out to the Pictis and watched it lift its head and sniff the air. I tossed it as close as I could and watched it run a quick circle to grab the piece of bread and back to its previous location. I watched as the small creature stuffed the crumb into its mouth while watching me the whole time.
I laughed as it started sniffing again. So you want more, eh? You'll have to come closer. I tore off a piece twice as large and tossed it much closer to me. Only 8 feet away this time. As still as I could, I sat there while the Pictis worked its way up to coming close enough to grab the food. It scooted back a few more feet instead of running all the way back. This time it took it more than one bite to eat the whole piece, but it still didn't take long to pack it away.
"Do you have a name?" I startled the small thing. It stood up as it heard my voice looking like it was preparing to run. I spoke more softly, "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you. You remind me of a friend from back home. His name was Einstein, he was a cat that looked a lot like you."
Amazingly, the Pictis sat back down and looked to have calmed down significantly. I tossed more bread, even closer this time. The small thing slowly walked over and started gnawing on the piece.
"Einstein was the only one to greet me when I got home from school. You see, I never met my parents. When I was born, I was alone. I grew up alone until I met Einstein." The memories made my eyes water. When you lived with 30 or more other boys, if you didn't get along quickly, you were left out. If I wasn't reading inside, I usually read outside with Einstein on my lap or next to me. It wasn't until chemistry in high school that I found another hobby.
"Could I pet you?" The Pictis looked up at me. It just stared at me and waited. I held out the rest of the loaf of bread. I blinked as I saw what appeared to be the barest of nods. I chuckled silently. "Quite the bargainer, aren't you. I could swear you understand me though." Another nod. The Pictis walked over to me, sat just outside my crossed legs, and started eating the bread while I held it.
I slowly reached out and stroked it's back. It was so soft. "You aren't like a ferret at all. Your fur is like a mink's coat!" I exclaimed softly. The Pictis looked up at me. "It's very pretty and soft. Do you have a name?" No response this time from the pretty thing. "Can I call you Tesla?" I asked while stroking the soft fur. "Named for one of the smartest people back home?" Tesla began purring.
I felt a change. It was like a magnetic pull in my head that came from the Pictis. I pulled up my Stratum to look.
Name: Jak Rollins
Level: 4
Race: Human
Class: None
Strength: 12
Dexterity: 18
Intellect: 17
Wisdom: 14
Blessings:
Identify
Skills:
Alchemy - Level 21 - [Perfect Measurement]
Bonded Companion [Tesla] - Level 2
Cooking - Level 3
Jumping - Level 5
Mana Blades - Level 12
Running - Level 3
Wind Manipulation - Level 16
"We are bonded?" I said aloud. I stared at the Pictis and saw another Stratum.
Name: Tesla
Level: 1
Race: Pictis(Mimic Slime Variant)
Strength: 3
Dexterity: 7
Intellect: 12
Wisdom: 6
Skills:
Bonded Companion - Level 1
Camoflage - Level 1
Jumping - Level 4
Running - Level 6
Shapeshifting - Level 1
Storage - Level 1
Thievery - Level 1
I just sat there, unsure of what to do. I watched as Tesla grabbed the small bit of bread that was left and stuffed it into a pouch on its stomach, much like a Kangaroo. I would have sworn it would have bulged slightly since it was still a large enough piece, but I couldn't tell it was there at all.
The front door to Lena and Arterian's house opened up. Lena stepped out and looked at me. "Arterian said you've been out here for a while. Are you going to come in and tell us what all happened yesterday and today?"
Lena's appearance startled Tesla, and he, or she, climbed up onto me. I'll have to find that out later. Tesla was peering over my shoulder at Lena. "Sorry, Lena, I had a bit of a stalker on my trip home. Turns out I have a bonded companion now." I turned around and walked towards the door where Lena was standing.
I watched as Lena's face went from stern to surprise to revulsion, all in a matter of seconds. "Why do you have a Pictis on your shoulder?" Her voice was shrill.
"Lena, this is Tesla, my Bonded Companion. I just got the skill a few minutes ago."
"Jak, Pictis are rodents and thieves. They aren't even fighters and are unable to bond with anyone. You can't have bonded with it."
Arterian took this chance to step outside too. "Who is that, Jak?"
"This is Tesla, my Bonded Companion." At least I don't have to introduce Tesla to anyone else tonight.
"Amazing," Arterian walked closer but looked back at Lena. "Lena, he's telling the truth. I can even feel her mind, much like any other person." He turned to me once he stood right in front of me. "Jak, did you say Bonded Companion? Like, the skill is called Bonded Companion and not Animal Companion, or something else?"
"Right," I answered. I looked at Lena, and she still hadn't come closer. I looked back at Arterian. "You said it's a she? Well, Tesla has a Stratum too."
Arterian turned back to Lena, and they stared at each other for a few seconds, both with a look of shock splayed across their faces. "Let's go inside and continue this conversation."
Once we all got inside and sat down at the table, they both turned on me. Lena spoke up first. "We can come back to... Tesla you said?" I nodded, "We can come back to Tesla later. What happened to you yesterday? We got a message from Martin that you were going to start your training?"
I dove into the explanation, they didn't know who Wisham was, but they trusted Martin enough to leave it alone until I told them about the trip outside the city. Lena was furious when I explained what happened.
"He could have gotten you killed!" She glared at Arterian, “I’m going to have a talk with Martin tomorrow.”
I smiled. It was nice to have someone looking out for me. “Thank you, you are welcome to do so, but Athena, who is related to Wisham, is going to start training me for combat while Wisham sticks to Wind Manipulation. She wasn’t happy with Wisham either.”
I continued by telling them about the trip back and how I rescued Tesla from the Roane, the Felisian. "That makes sense, I didn't think you would just find a random creature and bond them," Arterian said. He kept switching back and forth between Tesla and myself. Tesla had laid down across my shoulders and was sleeping there. Her warmth was making me tired, and I yawned.
Lena seemed to realize I was back and that it was late. She jumped up and grabbed some stew that they had made earlier.
"Jak, I don't think you realize how unique Tesla is," Arterian began. "Most companions don't have Stratum. And the handlers can't do more than give them commands that must be carried out. The ones that do have Stratum are extremely intelligent. And I don't just mean their stats, though I do wonder what her intelligence stat is?"
"It's 12 and she is level 1."
Both of them stopped to stare at Tesla and me. "Remarkable. I don't know everything about Bonded Companions, but Martin might know someone to ask. Lena, you won't have a problem, will you? I know you don't like Pictis."
She sighed, "I'll be fine."
--
After eating and saying goodnight amid my own yawns, I headed into my room. Tesla woke up as I picked her up and set her on the bed. I changed my clothes and slipped under my covers next to Tesla. She immediately climbed up near my shoulders and curled up. I laid my head down and yawned while looking at her. She blinked at me as I felt a sense of amusement coming from her. I scratched her behind her ears and passed out.