The naiad stared at the human with a cold expression. Taran swallowed, but when he dared to lift his leg, he found that it was caught up in tendrils of water, coiling around his feet and planting him firmly to that spot.

  Coldly, the Naiad continued, “You’re right. Those two only come when I shouldn’t let a human past my bridge. As you must know, for a bridge to be built on top of a river belonging to one of my kind, an agreement must first be made between the humans and the naiad. I decide who gets to cross this bridge… and you, Taran, will not cross my river.”

  Taran gasped in disbelief, then raised the gold coin in his hands up and yelled, “I BROUGHT YOU PAYMENT!”

  The naiad’s cold expression devolved into indifference. She stared at him and said in the old tongue, “Me schnoslo schpeh wurst no menn. lie wü fr?l frigaten sighdt.”

  “Fear brings out the worst in men. I had almost forgotten how abhorrent they can be.”

  As everyone stood watching in silence, Alaric walked forward. A hand rested on his shoulder, halting him, “Only merchants and experienced travellers know how to negotiate with the Naiads. One wrong move and you’ll end up at the bottom of the creek.”

  The boy nodded and whispered, “I know. It’s most likely what’s going to happen to Taran if we just keep watching.”

  Alaric stared the man in the eye and searched for the moment when he’d relent… and when it almost looked like he wouldn’t, he did, “Be careful, boy. We’ll protect you if something happens. I can’t say the same for Taran.”

  Alaric nodded, then proceeded, approaching just a few feet behind Taran. The naiad noticed his arrival and furrowed her brows with what looked like… annoyance.

  The beautiful women swimming beside the naiad chuckled to themselves, voicing in the Old Tongue, “The humans have a saying: ‘Two heads are better than one.’ Perhaps this one can help Taran lie better.”

  Alaric didn’t like the way these two whispered into the Naiad’s ear. But he knew more than anyone that he’d have to win their trust as well.

  It reminded him a lot of how his relationship with Darla and Finn worked. If they disagreed, then so did he.

  The boy’s voice thundered in the Old Tongue, “This place has not been tainted with lies yet. Taran speaks the truth. We were chased here running from a Tainted One… but what he forgot to mention was that the rest of us are done running.”

  The lesser naiads at the Water Nymph’s lost the chummy air about them and recoiled at Alaric’s words.

  “A Human speaking the Old Tongue… Shape Shifter… Silver-Tongued… Beast Tamer… Anomaly… “Their voices screeched like broken records as the water around them rose like protective domes.

  “You speculate,” Alaric said, silencing them.

  “And yet you do not deny any of it,” the watery Naiad cut him off. Unlike the lesser naiads who feared him, the Water Nymph looked at him with curiosity. Oddly enough, she spoke in the human language, “Curious to find a human that can speak the Old Tongue so fluently.”

  “I only speak it to rid my words of the lies you’re doubtful of. Child of Liquidium, you remember the first roots that drank from you. The sapling that broke stone. The wind that carved the cliff. The power that raised the mountains from which you flow. You are friend with Mother Nature.”

  “Silver-tongued indeed,” the Naiad’s voice rumbled.

  “I speak only that which the world reveals to me. Memories buried deep in my blood… deeper than I can ever hope to fathom… and yet, I long to understand them. One cannot lie in the Old Tongue,” the boy replied calmly.

  “The tales of old rest deep in the bones of this world, waiting for the return of the Great Protector,” the Naiad growled, agitated by the words coming from Alaric’s mouth. “Let those tales rest and wither in the hollow promise of the Protector’s coming.”

  Alaric felt his heart skip a beat at the naiad’s words. Even more than that, he was shocked by what had just come over him. It wasn’t a new experience… but it was one he’d never experienced for this long.

  The naiad snapped him out of his reverie, “You’re not the one being punished for bringing the Dark One here. My mind’s made up. What makes you think that stepping up to defend this man will spare him from his fate?” the naiad asked, stumping Alaric’s hope in the process.

  He wanted to speak, but his words were now stuck. ‘She’s aware of the wrongness of her actions… yet she won’t change her mind. Water nymphs can be this stubborn?’

  The boy found himself chuckling. His chest hummed, and his gut grew warm. Despite the situation, he felt comfortable.

  The boy bowed his head and said in a warm tone, “You’re right, Child of Liquidium. It was quite overconfident and selfish of me to think that way. For that, I apologise. What would be a worthy compromise if you don’t mind me asking?”

  Silence washed over the two groups. It was an open negotiation, something that was difficult to pass up. The Naiad might have been stubborn… but he wasn’t putting a limit on how much she could ask of him.

  And yet…

  “The right compensation?” The Naiad’s eyes flashed with mild fury, “Who do you think you are?”

  “I am just a boy who won’t stand watching an innocent man die a worthless death. Especially one from a being as grand and noble as you. Sihrel-thae norah nael (The world does not forget its guardians.)” he yelled out the last part, unaware as to why it came out of him. This went beyond simple guessing of an Aether Beast’s name. This was older… and much more instinctual.

  For a brief moment, there was light in the Naiad’s eyes. She bent closer to Alaric and looked him in the eye. There was a hint of desperation in her eyes before it vanished, like it had never been there.

  Pulling back, the naiad sighed, “Your words stir echoes I thought long drowned.”

  In the human tongue, she added, “Five gold.”

  Taran looked up with a shocked expression, “You… You’re serious?”

  “Hurry up, Taran. Before I change my mind again,” the Naiad put her hand out begrudgingly. Taran's legs were released from the water restraints. He rushed to his pack and fished out four extra gold coins that he swiftly placed in the Naiad’s water hand.

  “I don’t know what you did, kid, but thank you… Thank you very much. I owe you one… Really, if you ever need a ride or whatever, I can do it for you? Just mention it,” with that, Taran jumped onto his ride and was gone.

  Alaric saw the man ride off in happiness. He couldn’t help but think he’d managed to get one person out of the mess they were in. When the coachman was gone, he bowed to the Naiad and spoke in the Old Tongue, “Thank you… Really.”

  “You speak with the strength and might of a prince… and yet you sound like you’ve abandoned all hope,” the naiad spoke in the Old Tongue.

  The boy sighed, “This… Tainted One. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”

  “And yet you would fight it,” the naiad asked.

  Alaric shrugged his shoulders. He honestly didn’t know if they were ready to face the demon they’d been running from. Perhaps if they put all their effort together, they’d be able to beat the thing… but who was to know if their synergy was enough to work for them?

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Sometimes a team was worse than their individual parts… and yet, together, it was possible to achieve more than any one of them was capable of alone.

  The paradox gnawed on Alaric’s mind. They hadn’t done well on their way here… Who was to say that would change?

  “I’m not ready to die… but I’m not ready to lose someone either. I want all of us to make it out of here alive…”

  “Why?” the naiad wondered, “It’s not like you’re the reason they are all here.”

  The boy remained silent long enough to convey his answer. The Naiad’s voice went up a few octaves, “My my! An honest human. How interesting! The more I speak to you, the more I’m convinced you’re not an ordinary boy.”

  “I’ve heard that a few times before… but I don’t consider myself special. I eat, sleep, laugh and cry… just like everyone else,” Alaric responded gently, with a tinge of sadness. Why was everything trying to prove to him that he wasn’t your average fifteen-year-old? “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to return to the others so we can start preparing.”

  The Naiad nodded, “Bah, they’ll be fine planning without you. But you’re right. Finish your mission and don’t die… Child Loved by the World.”

  Alaric had turned completely when she said that, stunning him in the process. By the time he turned to ask what that meant, the water had gone still and lost its bright shimmer. The Naiads were nowhere to be seen.

  ‘Child Loved by the World! Isn’t that part of the description the Emperor’s Men were given about the boy they are looking for?’ Alaric wondered.

  His guardian facepalmed, [ Don’t tell me you’ve only noticed now that they were talking about you. ]

  [ How was I supposed to know that was me? What does it even mean to be ‘Loved by the World’? ] he mentally screamed.

  [ I can’t deal with this. Can we focus on the demon that wants to kill you? ]

  [ About that… I was thinking. Can’t I just cast an S-grade Concealment Barrier? We have time to do that, don’t we? ]

  Alia, who’d been lounging in the In-Between, opened her eyes at the mention of getting some action. [ What about revealing your identity? ]

  [ I pretty much did that when I controlled the woods. Besides… We’re not returning to Melbourne. After this mission, we’re moving on… Although I haven’t figured out what to do next. Perhaps we’ll start our quest to find an Evo-Sword. So we’ll probably be hunting for information for a while as I figure out a way to increase my Temper Rank. ]

  Alaric was resolved to continue on his hunt for power… but at the back of his mind, he kept one thought.

  Not everything went according to plan. His very stay in Melbourne was proof of that. So as he made plans to find an Evo Sword, he reserved the right to adapt to changes in the plan should the need arise.

  The plan now, however, was simple: Summon Alia.

  Alaric returned to the others after talking to the Naiads. Sariah stood to the side with Leon, listening in on the conversation Byron was having with the others.

  He managed to catch a few words as he came to join them, “I’m telling you. The boy is weird and that’s an understatement. He speaks the Old Tongue like a demi-human and has too much aether for a boy his age… not to mention the Dark—”

  Everything went silent when Byron noticed his approach. He zipped his mouth and turned away from the group, muttering curses under his breath for not noticing the boy’s approach.

  Maple and Bumi turned to see the boy reach them, curious expressions on their faces.

  Still, they said nothing when he regarded them. The atmosphere was odd and almost no one would look him in the face except for Scarlett and LionHeart.

  The red-haired former assassin had a tired look in her eye, but it told Alaric more than he wanted to know. Suspicions had gone as far as they could.

  “You know my hearing isn’t bad either…”

  Byron turned to the boy, then walked up to him till he was looking down at him. Their height difference wasn’t much by Byron was still taller and bigger. The man scoffed, “Oh yeah! Did you hear the part where we planned to feed you to the demon?”

  “BYRON!” Sariah yelled at the guard.

  “Shut it, Sariah! Something’s wrong with this quest and you know. I reckon it has something to do with this kid. You watched that thing gut your guardian and you think everything’s normal. Demons like that don’t just wander around aimlessly,” the man stood his ground.

  “Perhaps it wouldn’t be going so bad if you helped,” Sariah countered, “All you’ve done on this quest is run your mouth.”

  The man’s form radiated an intimidating aura that rolled off a neutral-faced Alaric. He grabbed the boy by the shirt and lifted him off the ground, locking eyes with him, “What did you do, boy? Did you steal something…? Kill someone? What did you do to have every monster around hunting you?”

  “Byron, it’s not his fault that all of this is happening,” Scarlett said.

  “LIKE HELL IT IS,” Byron yelled back. The atmosphere grew even more oppressive in the man’s presence. It became more apparent as Alaric watched that Byron was indeed the strongest one here.

  He was the strongest one… and yet he’d done nothing yet. He didn’t even have a bead of sweat. Compared to the others who were covered in sweat and shaken from the horrors of the battle, Byron looked like a prince.

  The sight made the boy’s stomach turn with rage, “You just sat there… and watched.”

  “This is a gold-ranked mission. I didn’t need to raise my finger on a gold-ranked mission when four gold-ranked adventurers and two silver ranks were around,” the man growled.

  Alaric looked him in the eyes and found confusion, rage… but no malice. ‘He’s terrible at threatening,’ the boy thought to himself.

  A defeated sigh escaped his lips as his hand went up to his face. Aether flowed into his palm and disengaged the Face Mask on his face.

  The shift was instantaneous.

  Aether all around them hummed and everything about the boy began to vibrate as significant changes overtook his very frame.

  The black armour swirled with white, a cloak appeared from nowhere, billowing behind him with the symbol of an inkpot and a quill, all before his hand brought a leather mask off his face.

  The air stirred, and clouds gathered in the sky. The instant Byron’s hazel-brown eyes locked with Alaric’s green, he dropped the boy and leapt back, most likely having listened to his guardian.

  Alaric landed lightly but remained still, taking in a deep breath. ‘My aether!’ he thought to himself.

  [ I noticed that, too. You can’t freely control your aether with that thing on your face. ]

  Alaric nodded lightly. His eyes darted about, registering the shocked expressions on his faces of his comrades with a neutral expression.

  Bumi and Maple were shocked, along with Byron. Lucy and Scarlett, however, held a tinge of another emotion in their eyes.

  Anger? Fear? Betrayal …or was it a mix of all three? Alaric didn’t have time to think about it…

  He looked back at the frozen road and started chanting a spell in the Old Tongue. He needed something to distract himself from the influx of emotions flowing through him… and this spell was perfect for that very purpose.

  Alaric’s aether reserves roared to life and the aether in the air roared with him. The Shimmering Creek shimmered once more, announcing the arrival of a familiar Naiad.

  Alaric’s presence had attracted the creature’s attention and this time. As the boy chanted, a translucent barrier began to appear all around them, weaving itself from translucent webs of aether.

  In the distance, Alaric heard the sound of nails scratching against ice, digging into it with each footfall. Then, he caught a glimpse of a black demon heading for them. Its body was covered in patches of ice from the fog… but it looked pristine.

  ‘He’s a tough one.’

  Alaric’s gut twisted and his heart sank. He stopped chanting and let out a hopeless scoff, “It’s not going to work.”

  [ What do you mean it won’t work? ] This time, Alia’s voice echoed from his shadow, stunning everyone around but LionHeart.

  “That demon has the ability to mess with the barrier. I don’t know how. Either it’s something as specific as that or something more general. One thing’s for sure. My S-grade Concealment Barrier won’t hold,” Alaric announced as he summoned a weapon from his copper bracelet.

  A chain of bone with a sword at one end rolled out of the bracelet and settled in the boy’s hands… but that wasn’t enough.

  It couldn’t be. The Bone Tiger’s tail was perhaps Alaric’s strongest weapon… and yet he wasn’t sure it was enough.

  The demon didn’t look the least bit damaged by all the attacks they’d dealt it. [ My basic spells won’t work on this one, Alia. I need something more powerful. ]

  [ You can’t cast something you’ve never cast before. Do you want me to remind you of what happened earlier? ] the guardian replied.

  The guardian was right… Attempting a spell of a higher calibre was a suicide attempt. It was still an option though.

  The second option was to try and use Thomper’s power to trap the beast… but that made no sense when dealing with a frozen forest.

  The third was to use SwiftWind’s sonic blast… but even that was limited to creatures that weren’t as durable. It was a wide area attack that Alaric had seen much weaker demons survive.

  Alaric would have considered one of these options if it wasn’t for the fact that a new idea bloomed inside his head… He froze as he pondered the thought… ‘Could it work?’

  RARRR went the terrifying screech of the lumbering demon. The demon slid, tumbled and got up, losing its composure when it saw its prey waiting at the end of the frozen road.

  Alaric was in front of Maple in a second. “Maple, can I borrow TidalWave?”

  “Tidal…” The woman had just started speaking when her eyes went wide in horror. She turned to the staff in her hands with a shocked expression, then turned to Alaric and handed the boy the staff.

  The boy walked back with the staff in hand, “I’ll attempt to weaken the enemy but I’ll need help finishing it off…”

  “Why don’t you just summon your guardian?” Byron growled.

  “I can’t… The demon has an ability that keeps me from summoning my guardian,” Alaric responded.

  Byron shook his head, then approached the boy and placed a hand on his shoulder, “Then stand down, Bronze rank. This demon is far below your capabilities.”

  “But I can…”

  “I’ve heard enough from you. You think you’re some kind of hotshot, then protect Lucy and Maple,” the man cut him off.

  Alaric clenched his fists, careful not to cause TidalWave discomfort, before walking off and returning the staff to her owner.

  The chain of command had been invoked. All he could do now was watch. His mind was already working on contingencies in the event that Byron failed to beat the demon.

  Was Byron powerful? Yes. Yes, he was.

  He was powerful enough for everyone to understand that they were the ones holding him back… and yet, Alaric could feel his gut twist even more, “Maple, defensive magic. Get ready… I have a bad feeling about this.”