There weren’t any other difficult lessons like the one on taming ethics, so Hodi and Lucus felt free to have a few more near-battles as the training period continued. Hodi backed out of some, Gregory broke up a few others, and Astrid even stepped in once to knock them both on the head. Already getting a bit annoyed with her decision to stick around for my sake, she had clearly had enough of their childish bickering.

  Overall, I found this calm period extremely helpful. Not only did I feel closer to Frey, Astrid, and everyone in the guild, but I felt more comfortable in this world. I hadn’t needed to unleash my true form since the battle with Leif, and I appreciated the time to get adjusted to my powers more. I could use to stay up most nights reading, flipping through pages of tomes from the guild’s library with my tail and filling my Almanac with entries I could call upon at any time. I learned a lot more about Olympia, the country Artemis was in. How it was famous for its monster tamers, and how the guilds were so renowned that they acted as a better conflict deterrent than the entire Olympian military. Not that they had any hostile neighbors. Olympia had mostly friendly relations with the nearby fairy, elf, and satyr nations, and were even allied with the gnomes and giants. There were wars and conflicts in other countries, but none that involved Olympia. The Ariholl Theocracy to the north was the one that the guild leaders had been wary of. The one that they feared was sending secret agents throughout the world. But on paper, they weren’t our enemy. Yet.

  I also learned more about what it meant to be a deity monster. It didn’t just mean I was a very strong monster. Deity monsters popped up only every few generations, if that. They held within them the power of all that they ruled over. In my case, that meant I had the potential to learn any skill that an Earth monster could learn. If I was the Water or Sky Deity, it would be the same but for the monsters within their type.

  The main thing I wished I could have learned more about was what Astrid and Meebur had discussed: the Prophecy of Hoardsholt. Especially how it connected to my reincarnation. The Almanac entry for it, even after all of my research, was a very basic description: “Created by the first Seer of Styx millennia ago, the Prophecy of Hoardsholt warns of the arrival of three specific Great Beasts, the Deities of Earth, Sky, and Water, from beyond this world’s bridge. Together, these monstrosities will bring about a cataclysm to end the world as we know it.”

  Nothing in the guild’s library had anything more about it, and every time I tried to discuss it with Astrid, she brushed it off. And Meebur was in and out of the guild so often I was lucky if I spent a meal with him, let alone a deep conversation about how my presence put the fear of god into every guild leader who knew about it. It felt odd being so far from him, but as his monster, I could always sense that he was alright. Perhaps a bit distressed and overworked, but not in any danger. At least, not that I could sense.

  No one else in the guild seemed concerned with how often Meebur was away. Violet mentioned she hadn’t seen him for almost a month before, so spending a few days on trips here and there was nothing to everyone. Being one of the strongest guild leaders in the country must have meant he spent a lot of time meeting with other leaders, coordinating and providing advice to Olympian nobles and generals, and clearing dungeons or saving villages from encroaching monsters. I wished I could be out helping him, but it meant a great deal to have this time to properly adjust to this new world.

  After all of the time spent training, learning and growing together, once Meebur returned from his most recent excursion (apparently to check in on Astrid’s guild to ensure they were doing alright while she was helping me), it was time for the recruit’s next step. He intended to hand out the mark of the beast to the new recruits who would be given full membership to the guild. Several lined up by the training grounds. There was Hodi, Lucus, Jewel, Cherry, and a few others, with Frey standing amongst them.

  I was actually quite proud of him for being granted membership. And I was also very curious what kind of monster he would hatch first.

  A part of me hopes it’s a bunny…

  Meebur stepped forward, placing his massive hand atop the recruit’s chests one by one. Each one felt the warmth of tamer magic flow into them, a mark appearing on their dominant hand. When he approached both Hodi and Lucus, Meebur paused. He didn’t say anything, but soon performed the same action to them both. Despite already having marks of their own, their marks changed from Meebur’s touch. It was subtle, which was why I hadn’t noticed before, but their marks had looked slightly different to those of Meebur, Gregory, Violet and other Artemis tamers.

  Does each guild have their own unique version of the mark of the beast?

  That is correct.

  Now I’m curious what kind of mark that elven tamer Leif had, as well as Lucus and Hodi’s…

  While I tried and failed to recall what those other marks had looked like, Meebur approached Frey. The young recruit looked nervous and afraid, like when he was running from an adorable bunny the day we met him.

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  “It is a guild leader’s honor to hand out the mark of the beast to those who have earned it. I am proud to do so for you, Frey. Use it to connect with the monsters of our world. To learn about them, understand them, and live life fully as one.”

  Frey nodded, a tear in his eye saying that if he tried to speak, he would likely only sob. This meant a lot to him. To follow in the footsteps of his parents.

  As the bright glow of the tamer mark was burned into his hand, his nervous expression disappeared. Though all of the recruits were happy, Frey seemed like a completely new person. Refreshed and reborn almost as much as I had been only a short while ago!

  Watching Frey move forward with his dreams, taking a major step right before my eyes, I decided I needed to take a step as well. But not forward. I needed to go back. There was so much about my former life I had yet to uncover. While I felt confident I could find great happiness in my new life, even as a terrifying snake monster, I wanted to know where I came from.

  What were my parents like? Did I even have any?

  After the ceremony ended, and the newest members of the Artemis Guild prepared to celebrate their new marks, I signaled Astrid to join Meebur and I. With her help, I expressed my desire to my tamer. To learn more about who I was.

  “He says that he wants to better understand himself too.” Astrid said to Meebur for me, while I looked longingly at the recruits. They were all so happy, each one congratulating each other and showing off their new marks. Even Hodi and Lucus were excited enough to not argue with each other for once.

  Meebur knelt down to look at me in my cute form, and smiled his warm, genuine smile at me. He didn’t have to say anything, as I could sense his joy at hearing my request.

  Both he and Astrid were more than happy to help me learn more about who I was.

  Beyond being a potential harbinger of doom…

  * * * *

  Meebur, Astrid, and I spent the next week trying to unlock more of my memories.

  And failed to do so, even once.

  My inability to remember more of myself, as well as the difficulties I had communicating slowly through Astrid, made Meebur very emotional. We tried all kinds of things, and it was clear he was putting every hour he could into helping me. Every hour he wasn’t spent away working on all the things a guild leader had to do.

  “I want all of my monsters to find happiness, whether with me or not.” He told me after a day spent trying a bunch of different foods hoping some may spark a memory in me. I ate them normally, I ate them with my eyes closed, I ate them after activating a skill called that allowed me to consume basically any living matter without getting sick. But nothing worked.

  It wasn’t easy forcing more of my memories out. Up until this point, they simply appeared when triggered by something around me. A familiar scent or taste, or a strong emotion. Considering how comfortable life in the guild had become, I wasn’t surprised I recalled more random memories in the forest of death. It was obvious I needed to get out and experience life if I was to remember my last life.

  And my need to get out and explore gave Meebur an idea. An idea on how to help someone else struggling too.

  It had taken the other new recruits only a day to utilize their mark to make their first hatchling egg. The tamer skill of was supposed to be quite easy, after all. And every single one of them had envisioned hatching and raising their first monster their whole lives, and couldn’t wait to make it happen.

  Frey took a different approach.

  He didn’t do anything.

  Despite having the mark and just as much motivation as everyone else, he wasn’t able to manifest any of the usual tamer skills. He couldn’t erect a monster arena, tame a wild monster, or create his own hatchling egg.

  “It’s like I’m not a tamer at all…”

  Meebur was watching Frey alongside the other new recruits. Most were already caring for eggs, creating custom nests and deciding upon which biome to raise them in. It was tough for me to see how far ahead everyone was compared to Frey. And Meebur clearly felt the same. Astrid stood beside us, and she didn’t need to read Meebur’s mind to know he was about to take action.

  Meebur, with me on his shoulder, stepped forward and approached Frey. I could tell the young tamer was worried he was about to be kicked out. That Meebur and Gregory had made a mistake with him. But I knew my tamer better than that. He didn’t abandon those he cared about.

  “I think I know how to help you, Frey. And to help you, little guy.” He said to both of us. “But you’re not going to like it.” Meebur said with a smile that scared Frey and I more than failing ever could.