By the time he left Zezog’s farm, it had been more than a full day. Time had gone fast during training, and it had dragged when they were cleaning up afterward. Althowin insisted they eat some food and bathe before heading back to Vraxridge. She had looked fine, but Owin was covered in blood and dirt, which was apparently not how one should walk into town.

  He was eager to get back.

  “There is no situation in which you can say his name. You are now one of two people, other than him, who knows where he lives.” Althowin stopped, crouched and stared into Owin’s eyes. “Do you understand?”

  “Kind of. I won’t say anything. But . . . why?”

  “It’s complicated. Maybe you can ask him someday. For now, give him his privacy. He already helped us out a lot more than he needed to.”

  “Okay.

  The walk back was less eventful than their initial journey out of Vraxridge. That wasn’t a surprise. Owin was happy to see the compound towers appear in the distance. All he could think of was lying face down on a bed and letting his body sink into the mattress for as long as the others would let him.

  To his surprise, Althowin actually stopped at the end of the line waiting outside her front door. It wasn’t the longest he had seen, but it would likely grow longer throughout the day.

  “What are you looking for?” Althowin casually asked a confused hero. The slow recognition was clear on the woman’s face.

  “I, uh, wow. I need . . .” She lifted a twisted, crippled forearm. It looked like something had crushed and twisted the bone and skin. From what Owin could see, it wasn’t a new injury, but that didn’t make it look any less painful.

  “A prosthetic?” Althowin looked down at Owin. “Can I use one of those mana batteries?”

  “Sure.”

  “Come with me.” Althowin gently placed her hand on the woman’s shoulder and guided her past the rest of the line, who stayed at bay after Althowin cast a glare.

  As they walked into the lobby, Althowin gestured toward the quarters for Owin while she spoke with Indulf and the woman about the prosthetic process.

  Owin had already seen the process and understood it enough that he wasn’t driven by curiosity. Especially while his body still ached. He walked through the halls and stopped suddenly when a gray skeleton appeared.

  “I’m tired, Shade.”

  “I’m Shade, Tired.”

  Owin held out the Thunderstrike Maul, but Shade didn’t take it.

  “Have you seen anyone else?”

  Owin shook his head.

  “Vondaire was attacked.”

  Owin’s eyes widened. “By who? Where is he?”

  Shade stepped behind, grabbed Owin’s shoulders, and guided him forward, through the winding halls. When they reached the sleeping quarters, Shade immediately knocked on a closed door.

  “He’s going to be angry if you wake him up,” Owin said.

  Vondaire opened the door. “I’m angry. Not at the Withered Shade.”

  “For now,” Shade said.

  “Hm.” Vondaire’s black eyes narrowed. “Where have you been?”

  “Training with Althowin. Who attacked you?”

  “One of the Three Heads, Egnatia, a rat, and Voolyn.” Vondaire adjusted a glove and pushed past Owin. He started walking away without a word.

  “A rat?”

  “A 3 Shard Hero named Sofia,” Vondaire said over his shoulder.

  “You fought four different Shard Heroes?”

  Vondaire paused part way down the hall. “Yes.”

  “Are you okay?”

  Vondaire stopped at the end of the hall. Even in the dim light, the yellow ring of his eyes glowed. “I am not interested in dying because of you.”

  “I don’t want you to die because of me.”

  “We’re all part of this war now. Everyone you know is at risk.”

  Owin just stared. Vondaire was right. If other heroes wanted to kill him, being friends was going to put them in danger.

  “You should go somewhere else next. They’re waiting for you in Nagyati.”

  “Althowin said it has to be the Fortress.”

  “Nobody has to control you, Owin. You can make your own decisions, as I am making mine. I will not stay to protect you. Not right now. I’ve done my part.”

  “Where are you going?”

  “The Desert.” Vondaire ran his gloved hands over his head, smoothing out his hair. “Stay safe. Don’t fight Shard Heroes. Not yet.”

  “Will you come back here?”

  Vondaire smiled and vanished in a puff of spectral smoke. Wisps blew in a spiral before dissipating, leaving Owin and Shade alone in the dim hallway.

  “Did I do a good job being quiet?” Shade asked.

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  Owin took a deep breath. “What am I doing?”

  “Standing at the moment. If you mean that in a more philosophical sense, then I am not sure I am the right one to ask. My decision making has been a little more than questionable, apparently, so maybe we both need to ask someone else.”

  It took Owin a while to find the others. They had all gathered in a kitchen, making some elaborate meal. There were all sorts of scents that assaulted Owin as he entered. Chorsay was carefully peeling a vegetable of some kind, Arkasti was grilling some meat while humming loudly, Myrsvai was stirring a pot, Sanem was beside Chorsay with her own pile of vegetables, while Raif and Miya were placing sliced fruit on some type of cake.

  Suta was the only one not helping, and he looked angry at a table on his own.

  The whole scene was a lot to take in.

  Instead of announcing himself, Owin walked straight to the table and sat across from Suta. The familiar immediately perked up as soon as he saw Owin.

  “Twin.”

  “Hi, Suta. Why aren’t you helping?”

  Suta pointed to a red stain on the wall. “Spilled.”

  “On the wall?”

  “Threw food.”

  “Oh.”

  Suta nodded excitedly. “Stronger?”

  “No, but I know a little bit more about fighting.” Owin looked past Suta at the chaos of the kitchen. While it was tempting to sit and talk, or to try to sleep, even if it wasn’t possible, doing something was going to be better. The Fortress was going to wear him down, probably even more than the Ocean had. He needed to be ready.

  “Can you teach me some martial arts?”

  Suta nodded quickly and immediately jumped off his chair. Myrsvai glanced over his shoulder, only giving Owin a quick, subtle nod, before turning back to his pot.

  “This is exciting,” Shade said. “I’ve always wanted to learn martial arts.”

  “I don’t think you have.”

  “You don’t know what I want, which is a shame because I also don’t know what I want. If we don’t know, who does? Who knows, Owin?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “This is what I’m saying. I’m glad we could agree. I was worried there might be some disconnect between us after being apart for so long.”

  “Shade.”

  “I would promise to be quiet, but we both know I only like to lie when you least expect it.”

  They followed Suta through a few halls until they reached a domed room layered in huge concrete tiles. It reminded Owin of the practice arena in the back of the Nimble Hogs’ headquarters, but on a much larger scale.

  Suta immediately activated a shard.

  “Let’s start without one. It’s better to practice in our normal forms before we practice stronger.”

  Suta looked unsure, but nodded and shifted into a fighting stance.

  “Can you show me that?”

  “Stance?”

  “All of it. We can start from that.” Owin walked into the center of the practice arena and stood beside Suta. “Why do you stand like that to fight?”

  “Power. Speed.” Suta kicked once, barely shifting the weight of his body. As soon as his foot touched the ground, he jabbed. “Balance.”

  Owin shifted his feet into some semblance of what Suta was doing. “Now what?”

  Suta moved to stand in front of him. The familiar pointed a finger over, then looked at Shade.

  “What?”

  “Stand.”

  “I was joking, you know. I have no interest in punching things.”

  “Kicking too,” Suta said.

  “I’m not interested in that either.”

  Suta pointed his finger again. “Stand.”

  “You’re going to be fighting now that we know your abilities,” Owin said. “We need to practice with all that.” He pointed to his side. “Listen to Suta.”

  Shade narrowed his eye sockets. “I will participate, but only because I think it will help in the future.”

  “Uh, okay.” Owin tried not to think about it too hard. Shade was probably trying to confuse him, which was no surprise.

  Suta looked over them both, tapping their feet a few times to make them adjust their stances. He shoved Shade, causing the skeleton to collapse dramatically.

  “Firm and loose,” Suta said.

  “Those are opposites.” Shade sat up, pulled his head off, spun it around, and placed it back on. “You are being difficult on purpose.”

  Suta pushed Owin. He was surprised at just how easily he collapsed. Owin was back on his feet in his stance before Shade even finished standing up. The skeleton wasn’t necessarily trying to hurry.

  “Stay on feet,” Suta said.

  “What about all the punching and kicking?” Shade asked. He tried to mimic one of Suta’s punches, but a quick shove from the familiar caused the skeleton to collapse again.

  ***

  “He’s anxious,” Myrsvai said.

  “I know.” Chorsay carefully placed some chopped vegetables into the stew. “Suta will help. He knows more about dealing with nerves than either of us.”

  It was true. Suta had trained for years to protect Myrsvai and to overcome his anxieties. They were sharing sight so Myrsvai could see the training discreetly. The pride Suta was feeling as he embarrassed Owin and Shade was palpable. Finally, all the training was worth it.

  “Why didn’t he say anything?” Raif asked. He took a seat while Miya placed the final berry on top of the cake. “I didn’t realize he was back.”

  “Vondaire left,” Myrsvai said.

  Chorsay washed his hands and joined Raif at the table. “Did he say why?”

  “Owin said he thinks Vondaire is getting stronger before he has to fight other Shard Heroes again. He’s not sure, but he knows it’s his fault.” Myrsvai blinked, helping him readjust to his own vision. “He’s going to struggle.”

  “He will have to until he learns to accept the circumstances. Artivan didn’t leave us an easy job, but we will see it through,” Chorsay said.

  Mumbled agreements sounded around the room.

  “I don’t know the lad, but I’m here to help,” Arkasti said. “Our ancestors didn’t fight for peace for it to collapse because of a green man.”

  “You make it sound like it’s Owin’s fault,” Sanem said.

  “It is, but I don’t hold it against him.” Arkasti never seemed to take off his armor. It was odd seeing him still wear the golden armor even after he had left the Golden Bulls. He looked ready for battle even as he chewed on a piece of bacon. “The Shard Heroes are also to blame and they are choosing to do this. Owin has no choice.”

  Chorsay grunted his agreement.

  A black shadow spread through the room before condensing into a little globe on the counter. “Greetings,” Basolia said. “Mistress Althowin has pushed up the timeline. You will leave in the morning for Nagyati as a personal guard for the goblin.” Basolia turned to regard Sanem, Raif, and Miya. “With the exception of the weaklings.”

  “Alright,” Sanem said, annoyed.

  Myrsvai watched the specter analyze the current situation. It turned to him even before he started to speak. “Are you aware that—”

  “Vondaire has left and is heading to Barcaen in Prouvaria with the intent to proceed to the Desert Dungeon. Mistress Althowin has already approached Vondaire, provided him with supplies, and wished him well. They came to an agreement with money exchanged, based on his exploits in Nagyati yesterday and with a discussion about a favor in the morning. I am aware of everything happening within my territory.”

  “Ew,” Miya said.

  Everyone stopped and looked at her.

  “I’m not going to explain myself.” She sat down and pulled her goggles over her eyes.

  “Will she be accompanying us to Nagyati?”

  “No,” Basolia said. The specter collapsed into a puddle of shadow, then spread across the room and vanished completely.

  “Are we enough to protect him?” Myrsvai asked.

  They had Chorsay and Arkasi with two shards each, and him and Suta with one. That was hardly protection when there were four Shard Heroes waiting for Owin’s arrival. After Vondaire’s encounter, there could be even more.

  “We will have to be,” Chorsay said.

  Myrsvai continued stirring the stew. His appetite was long gone, but what could he do? He had to eat. He was heading to the Fortress in the morning.