“I apologize, however I am still not sure I understand,” Vector said, not for the first time.

  Xain could feel night getting close, and while he had wanted to spend his last evening on the ship sharing a drink with the Jotun as he had promised, at the moment it felt far more important to speak with the three… beings that were seated across from him, Fen, and Vector. Still, important or not, he was disappointed to miss out on possibly his last chance for a long time to just relax.

  Tomorrow he would leave the ship, reject Niflheim’s offer of taking root, and to cap it off, meet with Lilith.

  The thought still sent shivers down his spine. He told himself it was in the past. That it had been years since she terrorized him as she found joy in turning his newly acquired sentience into a nightmare of distorted children' s games and constant provocation.

  She has to have grown up too, right?

  Either way, if Vector and Tryst were still planning a way to fake their deaths, Lilith would be key.

  Thankfully, they had left Xain out of it. He was not naive enough to think they had just forgotten to tell him the details, but imagined instead that the two knew when it came to such deceit, Xain’s lack of experience in the art would prove too large a liability.

  Besides, this was part of what it meant to be a pack. He had to trust Vector knew what he was doing. However, since it seemed that within their group, Vector’s plethora of skills were far more useful than his own, Xain was more than a little satisfied to finally have found one area where he could be of use.

  “It’s called the Storyteller Array,” Xain said, pulling knowledge from the necklace with surprising ease. While he still had no idea how to actually use the thing, it seemed the design had anticipated such ignorance. Xain suspected there was far more knowledge hidden within than he could currently access, but the small amount it made available was like a precious trove.

  “Well, until the 15th rune at least. Then it becomes a bit more specialized, with templates reaching up to 22 runes. I am not clear on the exact details, though from the names, I think we can make a guess,” Xain continued, trying and failing to hide his smirk at Vector’s surprise.

  Hel’s Rooted listened without contradicting or expanding, and with their oddly expressionless faces it was hard to judge how they felt about him telling Vector so much, but Xain got the sense they were nearly as interested as his friend.

  “Novelist, Biographer, Director, Flash Fiction, Oral Tradition, and Children’s Author are the most accessible. Or, at least they don’t require any of Yid’s runes until the 22nd position.”

  “From what I understand,” Xain explained, almost giddy as the information flowed through the necklace into his mind, “the array requires the user to carry a sort of grimoire, or tome, to direct the power. Through that, the rune holder is able to bring a target into a story of their own creation.”

  “Impossible,” Vector whispered, however Xain could see it wasn't a denial so much as difficulty accepting there were such large gaps in his own knowledge.

  “It’s Scholar focused, right?” Xain asked, turning to Maziken for confirmation.

  Maziken didn't answer; only looked back with her wide round eyes which were set into an equally round face, and stroked her book.

  This was how it had been throughout the entire afternoon. After they had thanked the Rooted, and received the same response as before; they were merely acting upon orders from their mistress, Xain had waited for them to take their leave.

  When several minutes of uncomfortable silence had passed and they had not moved, Xain unpacked the food they had brought, filled several mugs with ale, and invited them to stay. They had refused the food, but wordlessly accepted the mugs, and awkwardly found seats.

  He had taken this to mean they wished to speak further, but aside from a few single word responses, the Rooted had done little more than sit silently, sip from their mugs, and observe Xain with unblinking stares.

  “How do you…” Vector huffed. “I just… Asgard’s House library contains some of the most complete information on arrays in the Ten Realms. While I admit to not reading them all, I find it difficult to understand how you obtained such knowledge.”

  Sore spot, eh?

  Xain had nearly just killed the man though, so it might not be the best time to flaunt something he himself had just discovered. Especially since the knowledge of how to do so came from a Norn.

  “My dad was… thorough,” Xain said, hoping Vector would accept that for now.

  He narrowed his eyes at Xain, but nodded his head once, and turned back to the Rooted.

  “It is… amazing. Thank you.” Vector said to Maziken.

  “I am… embarrassed. I have never before lost myself so fully. The dragons vary in strength, which is why I only draw from Stone and Ice. I can not remember what happened, nor how Asgard's Dragon was released, though that is no excuse.”

  Xain felt a pang of guilt as Vector spoke, but was not ready to voice his own theory. At least not yet. Additionally, while knowledge of Maziken's array came easily, when it came to Vector’s, the necklace had been silent.

  As it happened though, there was no need.

  “Master Xain pulled it forth,” Tim, the third Rooted said.

  Tim was different from the other two. While Phayte and Maziken were both slightly odd in appearance to Xain, a judgment he attributed to ignorance born from the fact that, aside from Lilith, he had never met someone who belonged to Hel’s House, Tim was something else entirely.

  Xain was unsure if gender could be applied to the beings before him, and since the process of procreation within Hel was one of many mysteries which surrounded the Realm, understood it may not even be a concept they employed. Still, in their short time together, he had subconsciously attributed Phayte with having masculine characteristics, and Maziken with feminine ones.

  With Tim though, Xain was not able to determine if they were even corporeal in being, let alone something as irrelevant as gender.

  While their form shared some similarities with the other two, such as large round eyes, bald head, and round face, they appeared to be in a sort of constant phase between solid and an ethereal mist.

  He was aware of the existence of Wraiths, and knew before a Husk fully materialized that their features were quite akin to the spirits which wandered Hel’s realm, but his knowledge had been limited to the books within Bow’s library.

  Can I just ask?

  Aside from what he was beginning to understand as a woefully inadequate understanding of the Nine Realms as a whole, his knowledge of interrealm etiquette could not even be considered passable.

  “What?” Vector asked, his voice pulling Xain back to the conversation.

  “Tim,” Maziken and Phayte chided in unison.

  “Yes?” Tim replied, their expression unchanged.

  “Should they not be made aware of the danger such a conflict poses? Was it not Master Xain who was forced to subdue the dragon?”

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Enough!” Phayte barked, the first true emotion Xain had seen flitting across his face.

  “As you say,” Tim said, and shrugged their nearly transparent shoulders.

  “You are not to speak again,” Maziken said, her voice cold.

  “How did you know that?” Xain asked, ignoring Vector’s gaze as he focused on the Rooted.

  “We were charged with your protection,” Phayte said, as if this should explain everything.

  “You were watching us,” Vector said, obviously surprised he was just now able to put that together.

  When they did not respond, Xain asked “Why do you call me Master Xain?”

  “We abide by the will of our Mistress,” Maziken said.

  What the fuck?

  “Lilith?” Vector guessed.

  At her name, the three bowed their heads in unison, and placed their foreheads on the ground in what was an obvious show of reverence.

  “She wanted you to protect Xain? Why?”

  “We are not to question the will of the Mistress,” Phayte and Maziken said as one. Tim remained silent, though Xain sensed a sort of rebellious air from them, despite their prostrated form.

  “Then…” Xain started, curious how far such orders would go, “it would better help in those efforts if we understood how you were able to observe us.”

  They knew the ship was essentially all visible to the crew, or at least the captain, but Vector had been relatively certain the sigils in Fen’s playroom would prevent other Seeds from looking in on their session.

  While Phayte and Maziken both remained as they were, not moving so much as a muscle, Tim sat up, their half transparent face revealing a slight smile of triumph as they raised one outstretched arm, palm up, and formed a fist.

  Xain’s necklace burned as he sensed Tim tap their array, and brought the template it designated as Wraith Tamer into his mind. At the same time, Xain heard Vector softly curse, as wraith after wraith separated from the trees surrounding them, and floated in place a foot or two above the ground.

  “Tim!” Maziken shrieked as she and Phayte sat up straight, her pitch so high he wasn't at all surprised when Fen shoved his head under one of Xain’s arms, and draped it protectively over his ears.

  Tim, to their credit, didn't even flinch, but merely turned to Xain and nodded once.

  “How long?” Vector asked, his voice flat, and edged with danger.

  “The Mistress commanded,” Phayte started, but Vector cut him off, as he growled “I don’t give a fuck about your Mistress or her commands. How long have you been watching?”

  “Since you and Master Xain confronted the Asgardians,” Tim said, not showing an ounce of shame.

  “Tim,” Phayte said, turning to face them and continued, “the Mistress will be informed of your actions.”

  “It is only possible within the common areas,” Tim continued, ignoring Phayte entirely.

  “Lilith,” Vector said, using her name like a curse.

  “Had we not,” Tim said, “it is unlikely you would have avoided Asgard’s blade.”

  “What?” Xain blurted, as Fen let out a deep growl.

  “There have so far been three attempts on your lives. I believe one was directed at you Master Xain, while the other two seemed to target Vector.”

  Xain was still processing this when Vector, wearing an almost rueful smile mused “I had been curious about that…”

  “Well,” he continued, turning his attention back to the Rooted. Phayte and Maziken both looked as if they wanted to either attack their companion, or flee the room, but Tim continued to sit unperturbed.

  “It appears I owe you a debt of gratitude.”

  “Yeah…” Xain agreed, trying to figure out how one should act upon finding out they had been the target of an assassination attempt.

  “The Mistress commands,” Tim said, bowing his head slightly toward Vector.

  Suddenly Xain went rigid as a thought occurred.

  If they were watching, do they know about Dagaz too?

  It was impossible to tell. But even if they didn't know the rune itself, they would know something.

  I am really bad at this.

  Within a couple days, he had already given away half the secrets Bow had been so adamant remained concealed. Sure, he had meant to tell Vector, but only now was he beginning to understand the severity of Bow’s warning that the House’s eyes were everywhere.

  Better Hel than the others, I suppose.

  He held little hope that Lilith was ignorant of his situation. Bow had been the one to bring her to their home, after all. And if, as he suspected, she was to aid in concealing them, he would soon need to place a great deal of trust in her. If they were lucky, such a thing could be extended to these three as well.

  “It would be wise for you to retire now,” Tim said suddenly, his head turning toward the door that led to the rest of Deck 3.

  “Tim?” Phayte asked, his previous anger falling away as he followed his companions gaze.

  Xain did the same, and noticed how every wraith seemed to be turned in the same direction.

  “One,” Tim said, standing. “Though I sense a relic. One which has not yet been employed.”

  “I will make the door,” Phayte said, rising in a fluid motion, and tapping his array.

  As he did, Xain’s necklace burned once more, and a single word came to his mind. Nomad.

  Without waiting for their reply, Maziken stood, opened her book, and began to silently read.

  “Vector?” Xain asked, not resisting as Fen pushed him to his feet.

  “I…” Vector replied, looking toward the door. Xain could see the desire to fight on his face, but at Fen’s nudge, it resolved into reluctant acceptance.

  Xain didn't want to back out either, but after their match, neither of them were in any shape to fight. He had not tried to tap his rune since waking, and knew Vector was even worse off.

  “Come,” Phayte said, as a dark metal door took shape before him.

  Xain was about to ask where it would take them, but as Phayte reached out, grabbed a large black metal ring on the door, and pulled it open, the question died.

  The observation deck? How?

  This was different from what Bow had done, though he wasn't exactly sure how. It didn't matter. There would be time to check the necklace later.

  “Go,” Phayte said, waving him, Fen, and Vector through.

  “I would not suggest you linger on deck,” he continued, as Fen rushed forward and leapt through the door, his paws sliding as he landed on the main deck's wooden planks.

  “Thank you,” Xain said, as he followed Fen through the door.

  “As the Mistress commands,” Phayte replied, his voice already fading as he pushed the door closed behind Vector, who had stepped through just after Xain.

  “Will you,” Xain began to ask, but before he could finish, saw the door close, and vanish from view.

  “Nomad,” Vector said, scanning the deck.

  “They are far more capable than I had thought,” he continued.

  “I-” Xain started, but his words were cut off as an explosion shook through the massive ship.

  Xain and Vector both stumbled, and soon found themselves laying across Fen’s back, the wolf perfectly sturdy as he held both their weight.

  It was impossible to tell where the blast had originated, but as Xain met Vector’s eyes, he could see his friend had come to the same conclusion.

  The room which had been designed for Fen. Where they had just left. Where Hel’s Rooted had remained behind.

  “Shit,” Xain cursed, pushing off of Fen, and moving toward the door which would take them back into the lower decks.

  He didn't need to look to know that Vector and Fen were following behind, but just as he reached out to open the door, his movement slowed, as if he was suddenly moving through thick sap.

  The effect continued to grow until no matter how hard he tried, Xain was unable to move his body more than a fraction of an inch.

  He tried to turn his head, to call out to Fen, to see if he and Vector were similarly debilitated, but soon found that even that was out of his reach.

  “This is your captain speaking,” a voice rang out, booming through Xain with such force he felt every word vibrate through his bones.

  “I regret to inform you, there has been an incident on Deck 3. Suppression measures have been enacted, and I am able to confirm the problem is now contained. However, we have experienced several casualties as a result. I am activating safety protocols to ensure no further complications in this matter. You will all now be transferred back to your rooms, where you will remain until we have docked in Niflheim.”

  “Upon our arrival, all Seeds will be subject to interviews by our crew. No Seed shall be granted leave from the ship until our investigation has been completed. Should you think to venture from your quarters, the crew will not hesitate to treat such an occurrence as a hostile act directed toward the Heimdall Company, and respond with extreme prejudice.”

  “That is all.”