Tale of the Mythical Beast Tamer

**Chapter 3: Trial of the Unseen Path**

The village council chamber reeked of smoke and suspicion. Kai stood at the center of the room, his Azure Songbird perched on his shoulder and Vyr's massive form crouched protectively at his side. The elders' beasts—a Thornsnake, a Ironclad Owl, and Elder Vorn's Stonehide Boar—glared from the shadows, their hostility palpable.

"A Moonlit Silverback does not bond with *children*," snapped Councilwoman Hela, her voice sharp as the Thornsnake coiled around her arm. "Elite beasts are cunning. What pact have you forged with it, boy? Blood magic? Soul theft?"

Kai kept his gaze steady, his fingers brushing the bone dagger hidden in his sleeve. *Bondability*, his talent whispered as he focused on Hela's serpent:

**[Thornsnake (Elite) – Bondability: 30% (Distrustful. Craves dominance over weak Tamers.)]**

"The wolf chose me," Kai said carefully. "I offered it a partnership, not chains."

Elder Vorn leaned forward, his boar snorting. "Partnership? You've had no training. No mentor. How did you even survive the Mistveil?"

Kai hesitated. The truth—his Beast Insight—would mark him as either a liar or a threat. But then, a flicker of text appeared above the Ironclad Owl perched behind Councilman Renn:

**[Ironclad Owl (Rare) – Evolution Path: Shadowveil Owl (Epic). Requires: Umbral Feather (1), Nightshade Berries (5). Warning: Current Tamer's lifeforce insufficient for evolution. Risk of backlash: 87%]**

Kai's pulse quickened. *I can use this.*

"Councilman Renn," he said, turning to the frail elder. "Your owl… it's been refusing meals, hasn't it? Its feathers dull by midnight?"

Renn stiffened. "How could you—?"

"It's preparing to evolve. But you're forcing it down the wrong path." Kai stepped closer, the Songbird trilling softly. "Nightshade Berries would poison it in its state. You need Starlight Moss to stabilize its core first."

The chamber fell silent. Renn's owl hooted, a sound almost like relief.

"Preposterous!" Hela hissed, but Vorn raised a hand.

"Explain," the elder demanded.

Kai swallowed. "I see… imbalances. In beasts. It's my talent—Beast Insight." A half-truth, but enough.

**[Stonehide Boar (Elite) – Bondability: 45% (Curious. Respects strength.)]**

Vorn's eyes narrowed. "Prove it. Diagnose my boar."

Kai focused. The boar's evolution paths flooded his vision:

**[Stonehide Boar → Lavabeast Boar (Mythic). Requirements: Magma Core (1), Earthblood (3). Flaw: Left tusk fractured. Vulnerability: Ice attacks.]**

"Its left tusk is cracked," Kai said. "It's why it hesitates when charging. And it's allergic to frost ivy—that's why you banned the herb from the village stores last winter."

Vorn's stern facade faltered. The boar grunted, nudging Kai's hand with its snout.

**[Bondability: 60%]**

"Enough!" Hela slammed her fist on the table. "This proves nothing! The wolf could be manipulating him. Elite beasts are known to ensnare human minds!"

Vyr growled, fangs bared, but Kai silenced him with a thought. *Patience.*

"Then test me," Kai said, staring Hela down. "Let the council set a challenge. If I fail, exile me. If I succeed, you acknowledge my place as a true Tamer."

The elders exchanged glances. Greed flickered in Hela's eyes.

"Very well," Vorn said. "Retrieve a Stormheart Crystal shard from the Lightning Fields. No Tamer under fifteen has ever survived the journey. Bring one back, and the council will… reconsider."

Kai's chest tightened. *Stormheart Crystal—the first material for Vyr's Mythic evolution.* The trial was a death sentence… and the perfect opportunity.

"I accept."

---

**The Cloaked Shadow**

That night, Kai packed supplies under the light of the Azure Songbird's glowing feathers. Vyr lay by the door, ears twitching.

*"The fields reek of human blood,"* the wolf warned. *"Many Tamers have died seeking Stormhearts."*

"I know," Kai muttered, stuffing dried meat into a satchel. "But it's the only way to shut the council up *and* get what we need. Plus—"

A floorboard creaked.

Kai froze. The Songbird dimmed its glow, plunging the room into darkness. Vyr vanished into the shadows, as silent as moonlight.

A cloaked figure slipped through the window, their smoke-scaled serpent slithering behind them. The intruder's hood fell back, revealing a woman with eyes like smoldering coals and a scar carved into her cheek—a rune Kai recognized from Elias Thorn's journal. *The mark of a banned Tamer sect.*

"Clever trick with the council," she said, her voice velvet and venomous. "But you'll never survive the Lightning Fields alone."

Kai gripped his dagger. "Who are you?"

"A friend. Or a foe. Depends on your next move." She tossed a leather pouch onto his bed. Inside glinted a shard of raw lightning—a Stormheart Crystal fragment. "I've been watching you, Kai of Windspire. A boy who sees evolution paths… and doesn't realize he's walking one himself."

**[Human (Tamer) – Evolution Path: ???

Requirements: ???

Warning: Incomplete data. Proceed with caution.]**

Kai recoiled. *Human evolution paths?*

The woman smirked. "The crystals you seek are guarded by a Thunder Sovereign—a Mythic beast even I can't tame. But *you* might. Especially with this." She flicked a parchment at him. It depicted a ritual circle, notes scrawled in Elias Thorn's handwriting. *"Lightning Absorption Array—survive the storm's wrath and steal its heart."*

"Why help me?" Kai demanded.

"Let's call it… an investment. Evolve that wolf, and you'll draw the attention of *real* players in this game. I'll be there to reap the rewards." Her serpent hissed, dissolving into smoke. "Oh, and Kai? Don't trust the council. Hela's Thornsnake has been whispering secrets to a certain blacksmith's son…"

She vanished, leaving the scent of burnt ozone.

---

**A Traitor's Gambit**

At dawn, Kai slipped out of Windspire, Vyr and the Songbird at his heels. But as they reached the forest's edge, Lian emerged from the trees, his Flame Lynix sparking with manic energy.

"Going somewhere, freak?" Lian sneered. His eyes glinted unnaturally—pupils slit like a serpent's.

**[Human (Tamer) – Status: Beast Possession (Partial). Host: Flame Lynix (Corrupted).]**

Kai's blood ran cold. *Hela's Thornsnake.* The councilwoman had fused part of her serpent's essence with Lian's lynix.

"You shouldn't have shown off," Lian hissed, his voice overlapping with a reptilian rasp. "Now Hela wants your talent *extracted*."

The corrupted lynix lunged, flames roaring. Vyr intercepted it, frost clashing against fire. The Songbird unleashed a Sonic Screech, shattering trees, but Lian dodged, his movements too agile for a human.

"You're just a beast wearing a boy's skin!" Kai shouted, ducking a fireball.

"And you're *prey*!" Lian pulled a jagged dagger—frost-forged steel, lethal to wolves.

Vyr yelped as the blade grazed his flank. Kai's vision blurred with rage. *He's using Hela's tricks? Then I'll use hers.*

Focusing on the corrupted lynix, Kai activated Beast Insight:

**[Flame Lynix (Corrupted) – Evolution Path: ERROR.

Flaw: Soul instability.

Vulnerability: Disrupt the Thornsnake's link.]**

"The necklace!" Kai yelled. A thorn-shaped pendant glowed on Lian's chest. "Break it!"

The Songbird dive-bombed, talons raking the pendant. It shattered, and Lian screamed as the lynix's flames turned blue—purifying itself in a burst of agony.

Hela's distant shriek echoed through the forest.

Lian collapsed, sobbing. "I didn't—I didn't want this…"

Kai knelt, pity warring with fury. "Tell Hela her game's over."

---

**The Storm's Threshold**

Three days later, Kai stood at the edge of the Lightning Fields. The sky churned with black clouds, thunder shaking the earth.

Vyr bristled. *"The Sovereign knows we're here."*

"Then let's introduce ourselves," Kai said, unrolling the absorption array.

As the first bolt struck, the Songbird's cry mingled with the storm's roar—and deep within the maelstrom, a pair of lightning-wreathed eyes opened.

---

**End of Chapter 3**

**Author's Note:** Kai's journey spirals beyond mere beast taming into a web of political intrigue and existential threats. With the council's corruption exposed and a mysterious ally/enemy pulling strings, the line between human and beast blurs further. Next chapter: The Thunder Sovereign's trial, the cost of absorbing lightning, and the first glimpse of Kai's *own* evolution path…