Bonded Summoner

Jake sat between Ophelia and Fhesiah, and received another Auril Beast skewer from Ophelia, who had grabbed more. Fhesiah had finished her errands, and was ready to watch.

He looked over and saw that Bloodberri had gathered quite a following. At some point, she had taken over defending the circle against the kids. Instead of merely defending, she started capturing them like some sort of villain that had to be defeated, entangling several of the children in her tail and raising them into the air. A few of them were attacked with the tickling end of her tail.

“Quick! Stop the evil Naga!”

“Give back my sister!”

To most enemies Jake faced, Bloodberri was a towering menace. To the children, she was an enormous monstrosity. Bloodberri laughed evilly, her voice deep, “Mwahahaha! There will be nothing left of your sister after I have tickled the life out of her! You’ll have to defeat me, if you want to save her.”

The beastkin children of all ages all came after her with their sticks, and she fended them off with padded sticks of her own, looking like small batons to her. She was now covered in a rainbow of color, kids climbing all over her, trying to release her captives. Her tail swirled around her with kids trying to reach her, and she flung kids off left and right, and they rolled to the ground laughing, enjoying the insurmountable challenge.

Fhesiah said, “She really is good with them. I haven’t seen one kid get any of that healing paste since she started, nor one of the children get turned into paste from her prodigious weight.”

Ophelia added, “I like watching the parents. It’s like they want to join in, but they are a little scared. Perhaps it’s because they would look the same as the children, even if they seriously tried to stop her and free her captives.”

Jake agreed, him feeling Bloodberri’s emotions through their bond. They were enjoying themselves, and Jake couldn’t help but feel the two combined would make an excellent mother. While Berri was having fun making the kids smile and laugh, Blood was attempting to train or teach the kids. She enjoyed helping the kids improving at making their attacks, to make the feisty children even more vicious. When she hit the kids with her batons, she was doing what she could to destabilize their momentum, and pointing out flaws in their movements. But most of all, both were having fun.

The play was about to begin, and so the skirmish came to an end. Bloodberri and the kids headed over to the other side of the stage from where Jake was sitting, onto a hill where many of the families with children had gathered. She coiled her tail around in a spiral, and many of the kids climbed up onto the makeshift couch that she had created. There were at least a dozen kids gathered around, two sitting up near the top where Bloodberri’s humanoid body ‘sat.’

Jake realized this was really the optimal place for her to watch, as she would definitely get in the way of other people viewing if she sat with him and her sisters, being as large as she was.

The play was taking place on a large stage, and Jake could tell many large props were lined up in the back behind the curtain. He couldn’t help but be reminded of some plays he saw when going to school as a kid. The people were gathered around their families to watch, the mood festive. Many were chatting and eating, even as the curtains opened.

The narrator set the scene, a story that began around a thousand years ago. The world was more full of vitality than it was now, and beastkin and beasts alike would grow even more powerful. The people lived in harmony with nature, even living in the valleys and forests. Most of the people lived alone, or with their kind only, not sharing any features with one another. The play was called ‘The First Tyrants.’

Jake was surprised at the audio accompaniment. There was a small pit orchestra, that added a musical score, and the families quieted down once these began to play, but the atmosphere was still festive, with families still talking quietly amongst themselves. From what Jake could see and hear, there were a number of both wind and string instruments.

Ophelia said, “Sound is really a big thing for the beastkin, it appears. When there were those drums beating in the plaza, even their steps were kind of in-sync with them.”

A wolf person walked out, in the form of a beastkin with heavy beast blood. They were wearing a mask or hat that turned their face into that of a wolf, and otherwise an outfit that covered their entire body with fur, making them an anthropomorphic wolf. They started to speak, and it sounded like a woman trying to speak with a deeper voice, like that of a man’s. He also felt like the voice was a bit over the top, attempting to sound overly heroic.

Jake thought the voice sounded familiar. Really, the voice just sounded funny to him, and he was amused, smiling at the oddity. He thought he might be imagining it, but the actress seemed offended that he was so amused, as she scoffed as she delivered her next line, looking right at him.

Fhesiah laughed. “Can’t you tell, husband? That’s Tanda. It appears she is playing her distant ancestor, if I had to guess. Almost half the whole city is here, so this play is a big deal. Overhearing some talk, it seems she’s emulating her father, who used to do the play.”

They watched as they chowed down on more Auril Beast skewers, as the tale unfolded. It started with some reptile people assaulting wolf people villages, and it appeared their goal was enslavement, as they chained their captives. The hero fought them back, until only one remained, pinned to the ground.

The hero said, “Why do you try to enslave my clan?”

The lizard person replied, “Why? Because our gods need food. You will serve them, in the end. You might be strong, but our gods are above all.”

“Gods?”

“Yes. Our gods are beyond powerful. Their might shakes mountains, their very breath changes reality. You are a beastkin too, don’t you understand? They are the strongest, so it is only their right for us to serve them, for them to rule over us. You cannot defy a god!”

“Strength doesn’t give right to rule. It gives responsibility to protect. I will free our families of this tyranny, and restore the balance.”

The hero killed the lizard man, and went off on a journey of freeing the beastkin. He realized that they had to work together, in order to defeat the reptile beastkin that were enslaving the different races. He saved others, and they joined him in his journey. What surprised Jake, was even large creatures, namely a giant lion, boar, hound, and stag, joined. All of them talked, but only spoke simple sentences.

Fhesiah said, “Very interesting. I wonder if Auril beasts can become like my ancestors, the cultivating beasts, or demons? I suppose it might explain why these people call their bloodlines beast parentage. Still, we haven’t seen any like this around yet.”

The hero got closer to their quarry, and they met the first of these so-called ‘gods’ in a large battle. Some of the hero’s friends died, but the hero was eventually victorious. But what they fought was a giant lizard with horns, that breathed fire. The fights matched the music, each attack landing with notes of the songs. Much of it looked like a choreographed dance, and Jake thought it was quite exciting to watch.

Fhesiah was shocked. “Those are…dragons? But that looks more like a simple earth or land dragon, a descendant of something that mated with the real deal. I suppose…were those bones from the Necromancer from Highlands?”

The hero lost many friends, but was joined by new ones, including a raven woman. They traveled the land, spending months upon months on this major task. They got closer to the one known as the death god, the one that ruled over everything. The raven woman spoke.

“Only the large beasts have been slain, and the balance of the land is all wrong. There are mudslides, as there is nothing to prey on the herbivores, eating and tearing up all the greenery. The river diverted, and geography itself is changing due to the god’s tyranny in the area. They… they have even killed all the Treants! The land is dying, something sucking up all the auril in the area, besides.”

The hero was saddened. “The Treants… They’re all gone? It also appears they have destroyed our idols and shrines! Balance must be restored. This death god is plundering all the resources in the area for themselves, using our brethren. But for what purpose? Can’t the so-called god hunt for its own prey?”

The lion spoke, “Death God….wicked.”

The stag added, “Must punish.”

The heroes army fought more dragons, and eventually built a critical mass of people, the races united as one. They banded together, to force this death god into a final confrontation. They killed the reptile beastkin people, that stood in their way.

The many reptile beastkin were united, and now, all the avian and mammalian beastkin were, too. But the reptile beastkin were aided by the lesser dragons, and many on the side of the heroes died. At their time of need, a large force of creatures of the world itself arrived to fight, allowing the heroes to push ahead and face the final enemy.

The stage was re-set, with what looked like the giant mountain that Jake had seen that the avian beastkin all stayed, only there was a difference in that there was only one. The heroes party of the four heroic beasts and the raven and wolf heroes fought, and a booming voice came across the plaza. The voice was deep, and their song came out in a growl.

“So it was you. Killing my progeny, interrupting my meal. Don’t you know what it is you have done?”

From behind the stage, a giant creature lumbered in, the combination of several people guiding some construction. Jake recognized the figure: it looked like a giant black western dragon, complete with wings.

The hero shouted heroically once more. “We’ve come to restore the balance. Your tyranny ends today!”

The dragon scoffed. “It’s bad enough for me to be stranded on this tiny world, but you would stand against your better? I must have sustenance if I’m ever to both complete my task, and escape this mud ball. Your people have a place, if you stay under me. If you stand in my way, your people will just be my food, instead.”

The dragon now stood in front of the mountain, though it was nearly the same size, Jake guessed due to limitations of the play rather than that the dragon was the size of a mountain.

They all fought as drums beat and the string and wind instruments increased in volume. The four heroic beasts shielded the raven and wolf heroes, as they landed blows against the large, lumbering creature. Each heroic beast used some kind of special attack, a manifestation of their spirit.

The boar, a fiery attack, along with the stag using some kind of plant spears. Then, the Lion used a beam of light. The stag then used some vines filled with death, and then the hound used an ice attack. In between, the wolf and raven aided with their own attacks, the heroic beasts providing them openings.

The song started as a sort of chaotic mess, if Jake was being honest. But he eventually realized, as each heroic beast were showcased at a louder volume as that beast made actions, that five different songs were being played. One for each of the animals, and if Jake understood it, the hero and the raven woman combined.

The songs began to match their beat and tune somewhat, and Jake saw a bunch of colored smoke or vapor being fanned together.

The raven woman said, “We must defeat him, here and now. The heart of the world is beneath this very mountain, he is draining it!”

The stag said, “Balance must be…restored.”

The raven woman landed a powerful blow against the dragon, and it reared back. The dragon spoke, its voice angry. “I have had enough of this. You are all lesser beings, you cannot stand against my might.”

Smoke began to gather around the dragon, of a black color. They were charging some sort of magical attack, Jake guessed. The music had reached its peak, and Jake was amazed at how everything combined for this entire presentation. He felt like if he closed his eyes, he could still imagine everything that was happening. The five songs now beat in tune with each other, the music reaching a grand crescendo in volume. Together forming a moving symphony, filled with emotions. He felt like the entire song represented nature, of the cycle of life and death.

The hero said, “The world itself rejects you, death god! Our hearts beat in harmony, singing the song of the world. We will protect it! Auril, come to my aid! We will protect the balance!”

Golden smoke rose around the Lion, Stag, Boar, Hound, and Hero, and it was fanned from all around the stage, increasing its amount to both match and exceed the large amount of smoke gathering around the dragon. Some even floated from the mountain itself towards the hero. The dragon began to breathe the smoke at the hero and his party.

The hero raised his crescent moon spear, swinging it down like an axe. When his swing reached the bottom, a large golden pole arm from beneath the stage snapped forward, released by some sort of mechanism. It swung through the smoke and hit the dragon, and the mountain behind them parted, split into two. The hero yelled in pain, and the heroic beasts roared, as they were all still damaged by the dragon’s attack.

The music then shifted into something much more ominous, despite the day having been won.

The dragon fell down, wailing in defeat. It looked like the hero won, but the dragon’s eyes lit up, and dark smoke began gathering in the crevice between the two mountains, and the hero.

“You defeated me here today, but your world paid a price for stopping me from getting what I wanted. I curse you, and I curse the world. Your people’s spirits will now be tainted. Your people will now fight against those not of their kind, forever unable to band together once more. Then, your hatred and greed will taint the world even further. The world’s heart is now weak, the abundance of life forever damaged. You have not won, you have only caused your world more harm!”

The four heroic beasts stood up, and a gold energy entered the heart of the mountain, from them. Three beasts laid down, entering a deep slumber.

The stag glowed and spoke, sounding wiser than the simplistic mind having spoken before. “If beastkin will fight those different from them, then they must be reborn and transform! The beastkin must find the balance with both the world and each other, if the world will ever truly heal.” The stag then walked and faded away, disappearing.

The hero wailed in pain, and the raven woman joined him, grasping onto his body.

“Please, stay with me hero, we’ve won! You…you can’t leave your child behind!”

“My…my child?”

The raven woman nodded. “Yes, I’m with child. You have to stay alive!”

The hero’s eyes looked sad, and he shook his head. But he said both seriously, and heroically, “I’m not going to make it. If it’s a son, name him… Timmy.”

Jake was shocked, and he snorted before frowning in confusion. It took him completely off-guard, the situation so serious, and even the music was somber. But why Timmy? Up to now, Jake had heard various names of the beastkin, and they had various origins. Still, the name choice of Timmy was an odd one to him.

The raven woman wailed in tears, as the hero died.

Jake could somehow feel a glare boring right into his skull through the hero’s costume, and Fhesiah had an amused smile. Ophelia was in actual tears. Jake knew she absolutely loved hero stories, but this was a sad ending.

The narrator added that while balance was restored, Highlands was never the same again. The lifeblood of the world had been forever harmed, and beastkin would be tainted, enhancing their hatred and greed, if their people forsook harmony and peace with the environment and each other. Future children became more human-like, becoming more like what they were today. This allowed them to mingle with one another, to not see themselves as different.

Ophelia said to Fhesiah, “Dragons are kind of dicks, you know. This ‘death god’ probably could have worked something out if he just wanted to leave, or something.”

Fhesiah gave an awkward laugh. “Yes, well, Jake is well aware my kind is not one that likes to be told ‘not tonight’ or ‘slow down.’ Anyway, that last attack was quite impressive! I wonder, could it be that this world was Tier 2 instead, almost Tier 3? That last attack certainly qualified, I don’t think I could have shattered an entire massive mountain like that at my peak without much preparation, after all.”

Jake did find the play quite interesting, as he understood this was a retelling of their history. He wondered if some knowledge or what actually happened that day was lost to time, as while he sort of saw people with idols or decorations of the four heroic beasts, there were no shrines. Still, it left him with many more questions. He had yet to see any of this ‘taint,’ let alone people behaving like this dragon. The people certainly looked more human than they did in the play, today.

Fhesiah sighed. “Well, that was fascinating for many reasons, huh? I have to get back to work, husband, and I just know that you are just itching to play with your stones. Then after that, you need to build a wall or something? Toodles.”

She floated away towards the Alliance HQ to head back to her Alchemy Lab, as Jake groaned.

Jake said, “I guess we do need to get to work. Did you get your fill of meat?”

Ophelia said, “I thought we agreed to you making it up to me later?” She laughed. “Just kidding. Yeah, I got plenty of auril beast meat. I would have some more, but the people here are roughing it.”

Jake nodded, there were in fact many refugees, judging by their bedraggled appearance, streaming into the plaza and eating. Of course, Jake hadn’t supplied any Auril Beast meat, so not all the food was exactly what they had been expecting, having much lower vitality than they would usually have at this victory feast. Still, it filled their stomachs, and kept them stronger than having nothing at all, Jake guessed.

Jake and Ophelia went over to Bloodberri, where she was saying goodbye to the kids, and handed a parent a sleeping child.

“Goodbye, everyone! We’ll play again, sometime. Next time, we’ll play my game!”

The kids made sounds of agreement, and they all headed back to their families.

“Saying goodbye, Bloodberri? You could have played more if you wanted. You’re still helping out thanks to [Energy Vacuum].”

“It was fun, but I know we all have work to do, and it should be their bedtime soon!” She blushed, “Plus, the sooner you are satisfied with the work you wanted to be completed…”

Jake chuckled. “Did you enjoy the play?”

“It was great! They really had a talking dog. I didn’t think we would find one so soon, their voice was so silly! I wanna see it again!”

Ophelia said, “Hey, Tanda! Great job playing the Hero! We all really enjoyed it.”

Jake turned around, seeing Tanda there in black tribal clothes, a little more conservative than what the girls chose, with her mouth agape. “T-Talking dog? Silly voice?”

Jake added, “We did really enjoy the play, it was interesting to learn about the beastkin’s history. Berri is just… well, there’s a story behind that.”

Tanda pointed at Jake, looking upset. “And you! You looked so amused, was my people’s history funny to you? Then, it looked like you thought Timmy’s glorious name was weird!”

“W-Well, it’s just the name… It surprised me. I hadn’t meant to mock or ridicule your people, I only found the name odd, as where I’m from, the name is… The furthest thing from heroic, special, or I guess manly, it’s more of a child’s nickname? The amusement was mostly from the voice, it was odd to me. I’m sorry if I offended you, I truly did enjoy the play and found your history special.”

That appeared to mollify Tanda a little, and Ophelia added, “Your voice was a little over the top, Tanda. It reminded me of the boys pretending to play hero outside when they thought nobody was watching.”

Berri said, “So what if it sounded silly, the kids loved it! A lot of them copied your lines. I thought it was cute, you should make a movie!”

Tanda was now blushing. “R-Really? The kids did enjoy it? What– What’s a movie? The framework has kind of told me it’s a recording or series of images and sound… ”

“Yup! Many of them asked their parents for a spear thingy that you have, to be just like the ancestor. You have a lot of fans now! A movie is like a play that you can watch over and over. Like the balloon movie!”

Jake groaned. It wasn’t healthy how many times she watched that thing.

Tanda looked a little happy and interested now, so Jake asked, “You like to do plays? I was surprised a Chieftess would act in one.”

Tanda looked a little sad, with her ears drooped down. “My father… He’d always do the play, acting out his ancestor. My people are ones that often spread the news, sing songs and share stories. We connect families across the land, so the arts are always important to us.”

Jake nodded. “I think it’s special that you have continued with your father’s tradition. What brought you over? We were about to head to build some walls, did you want to come?”

Tanda frowned. “Build walls?”

Berri got out her backpack, sensing what Jake wanted, and he hopped in. She began to head to the outskirts of town to the east, where the Necromancer’s army had attacked. Tanda fluttered through the air, following them in confusion.

Ophelia sent to Jake over their bond, [The fact that she was watching your reaction during her performance itself is interesting, isn’t it?]

He knew that his presence was sort of magnetic now, thanks to his supernatural attributes. This would draw the eyes of others in a crowd, making him easy to spot. Jake smiled, and shouted to Tanda, needing to raise his voice due to their speed, “I got permission to start building a stone wall to help protect the city. It may never get used if things go well, but I’d rather have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. It could save lives, so I’ll work on it.”

“You, build a wall? Just you three? With what?”

Jake just smiled at her, and she scoffed as she kept up with them in the air, along with Ophelia.

They arrived in just a few minutes to an edge of the palisade, and Jake leaped out of the basket, landing on the ground. He drew a handful of rods out, handing three over to Ophelia. She inspected them, noting their usage.

Jake gave one over to Bloodberri and said, “This one is for leveling and compacting the ground. If you just wave it back and forth while channeling mana into it, it will even things out a bit and make them more solid. It’s not perfect, but it should make the base quite stable for us to place the wall. I want you to go ahead of Ophelia and I, taking a few passes over each section.”

Bloodberri nodded, and she started. Even small rocks were slowly broken up and pushed into the ground, flattening out the ground as she went. After she got a dozen feet in one direction, Jake and Ophelia started. Stone was conjured from the ground, rapidly growing a stone slab. Tanda gasped.

“Where’s the stone coming from? I saw adventurers use some earth magic once, but they didn’t really build anything. I suppose they could have?”

“They could have, probably. Some earth magic is different, though, making temporary constructs that will disappear once the mana dissipates into the air. This is calling it from the void, so it will remain without a problem. Stone is abundant in the multiverse, and so the cost to call this resource is cheap.”

Tanda said, “So, it’s like, taking it from somewhere?” Jake saw her tail was now wagging, she was becoming very interested in this magic.

Jake laughed. “Something like that.” He kept growing sections of the wall, going for about as high as he could reach, which was about three meters high, and three meters deep.

While before it had taken him a few seconds per cubic foot, he had managed to improve this to a little over a cubic foot per second. A three-meter-high by three-meter-deep and three meter long section took him and Ophelia about ten minutes. He was going to need to do what he could to improve this further.

Tanda said, “Wow, this is really neat! It’s all rough and jagged, though? While you two are doing a lot, this is going to take a long time. It’s at least 400 meters to cover this front palisade section.”

Jake said, “The roughness is one of the downsides, though I think I can probably make a specialized tool to smooth the stone a little better, maybe even the tool Bloodberri has might work slightly. I’m sure it will take us more than a week to equal what you guys have there now, but we should really go twice as high. We’re probably only going to be able to work on this a few hours per night.”

“Can I use this tool?”

“I don’t know. Here, take this one, it’s a simple effect of conjuring water. Take your Auril and try to fill the runes: the lettering here.”

She moved around her black auril, but Jake could tell that none could enter the steel spell-rod.

“I may be able to try making one out of that wood you beastkin use, but it still might not work. I’ll make one the next time I’m at my enchanting table.”

Jake moved to keep conjuring stone while they talked.

“You don’t have to do that… I was just curious.”

Jake smiled at her. “I’m curious too. If beastkin can use runes with auril, then there are a lot of things that they can do. They’ll be able to enchant their own equipment, and be even more amazing in a fight. All beastkin people will be able to benefit.”

“All beastkin, not just your tribe?”

Ophelia laughed. “Jake wouldn’t do that. He’d want all beastkin to benefit, both to defeat Tartarus on this world and beyond. He’s building this wall, isn’t he? Would he do that if all he cared about was his Tribe? We plan on taking back another Alliance HQ, we could all just move there.”

That made Tanda thoughtful, but she said to Jake, “You said we were amazing, but I heard you easily beat Oman.”

Jake said, “It’s not really fair to compare me to a Tier 0 anything, I’d imagine. Level per level, I think the beastkin are quite strong. There are races that might be stronger, but I think they wouldn’t be as ubiquitous as your people are. My race is human, and I would bet my coin on a beastkin against any human I’ve met in a fight, if they’re the same level. My level is currently level 17, so Oman being level 5 is not a very fair comparison. I might not be an Auril Hero, but I’m a Champion of a Goddess. Level per level, there shouldn’t be much stronger than me. But when it comes to how the Framework measures level, things should be relatively close. Would you think Oman had a chance against an Auril Hero?”

Tanda frowned and shook her head, looking thoughtful. “It’s just, the adventurers all talked about their level, and they were still weak. They even talked about their stats being much higher, but their skill was poor. Oman defeated around a level 17 already, I’m pretty sure.”

Jake sort of knew that auril allowed the beastkin to effectively almost double their stats, or better, with manifestation. If they had forsaken weapons, armor, or magic for the fight, the adventurer would be at a severe disadvantage. For example, Jake did think that Oman would have wiped the floor with Antonius unarmed, but with armor and shield and spear? He doubted this, but Antonius was a cut above the rest despite not having special resources. Jake decided to change the subject.

“Our new guild members did some testing, to remove the blight. It looks like for just a few thousand T0 credits, the blight can be removed, it just takes time. That’s [Hearthtribe]’s project, besides training and getting ready for their own incursions, for now.”

Tanda looked a little moved. She looked back to the town, and to the moon.

“I had originally come over to ask you, would you be able to help out with procuring some tents? There are a lot of refugees on the west side of town, and many are still sleeping under the stars. I managed to purchase some with my funds, but I was limited in how much I could purchase. Because we swarmed the rift with such a large flock, the Framework said our reward was heavily reduced. Then, the node wouldn’t allow us to sell the loot for the full amount, either. While each of us got thousands of credits, even me who got the most contribution for dealing the most damage was only allowed 21,000 T0 credits, despite selling all the T1 materials I could carry. Others were not able to get much at all, but it was something.”

Jake nodded. “That’s still a decent amount for your level, I’d imagine, but I think I can probably get something. I’ll work on this some more, then try to get some tents before it gets too late.”

Tanda looked conflicted, but said, “I… Thanks, Jake. I’m really glad you’re here to help. Things were really starting to get bad, and the burden was enormous. My people were suffering, and I wasn't sure what to do. When you came in and seemingly tried to push aside our traditions like those adventurers, I…got angry. I see it wasn’t like that now, that you are just trying to save my people, just like me.”

Jake smiled at Tanda. “You’re welcome, Tanda. Our battle has only just begun, and I’m in it to win this fight. Strength gives responsibility to protect, doesn’t it? We’re on the same team. Let’s beat back the outsiders together.” Jake offered her his hand.

Tanda looked at his hand, and frowned. Jake chuckled and said,

“My people tend to shake hands when they meet, or when they make an agreement. Let’s do both. We got off on the wrong foot, so let’s start over. I’m Jake Hart, Champion of Hestia. Let’s work together to rid the world of Tartarus, and restore the balance of the world.”

Tanda blushed for a moment, but her expression changed to a more resolute one. She shook Jake’s hand, and he did his best not to change his expression as he felt the soft fur on her hands. He had expected it to be wiry like a wolf’s fur, but it turned out to be soft.

“I’m Tanda, daughter of Timon and Dahlia, Chieftess of the Ravenwolf Tribe. I will give that effort my all.”

Ophelia said, “Can I get in on this? I’m Ophelia Hart, wife of Jake, Valkyrie of Hestia. Let’s take back your villages!”

Berri joined in, “And I’m Berri! Nice to meet you, Tanda! You were so cool in the play.”

Blood said, “And I’m Blood. I, too, found the play to be quite interesting, and it is nice to meet you. How much of the play would you say is historically accurate?”

Tanda frowned in confusion. “Huh?”

Ophelia laughed. “This is Bloodberri, and there are two women’s souls and mind in there in truth, the Framework itself recognizing it.”

Tanda said, “Their voice and songs are very distinct, so I do believe it, I was just surprised.”

She shook her head and laughed, then shook each of their hands. “It’s nice to meet you, Bloodberri, and you again, Ophelia.”

“As for the historical accuracy of the story, much of it was passed on by the raven wife. But even she did not record all the words that were said that day. Then, we lost much of the knowledge and history in the coming years, as they were filled with strife. We faced the tainted and tyrants, along with a few packs of the remaining reptile beastkin that sided with the death god. For a few hundred years, my people struggled to find the balance once more.”

Blood nodded and smiled. “Thank you for that, Tanda.”

She turned to Jake. “I’ll make an earnest effort to recruit, I promise. I see someone must have told you about our speech, Jake, though you have a long way to go. Your mates are already so good at it, it’s surprising. You should keep in mind the beastkin greeting in case you meet any other chieftains or awakened heads of clans.”

“The beastkin greeting?”

“That’s right. Usually, the foreign one arriving would say: ‘My heart beats in anticipation of our meeting, I am honored to be in your presence. May we find harmony in our dealings.’ Then the response should be: ‘Our hearts welcome you. We are humbled and grateful for your presence among us. May the harmony of our hearts guide and protect us all.’ It helps if your song is in tune with your heart beat, though I realize it might be hard for you since you don’t have an auril heart.”

Ophelia said, “It’s one thing to know it, but what does it mean?”

Tanda smiled, and said, “Our people are always seeking balance with our surrounding environment, so for an outsider to come is a disturbance of that. The visitor lets the chief know that they seek to meet his people and tribe, or clan, and that they earnestly seek to find harmony with them. The response is an acceptance of those desires, a hope that balance or harmony is improved with their presence, and to welcome those with good intentions. It dates back all the way to when we were all completely different.”

Jake and Ophelia nodded, and he did his best to commit the greeting to memory. Jake realized he needed to learn more about these types of things sooner rather than later.

They said their goodbyes, and Jake went back to work. He had a long night ahead of him.