I pulled the orb from my satchel and looked at it, activating some unknown mechanism that gave me a system prompt.

  Ancestral Orb of the Badger – Do you wish to activate?

  I sent along a simple ‘yes’ and the world faded to black then flickered into a hazy image. It took time to come back into focus before resolving into an elderly kin sitting in a rickety rocking chair. Long white hair streamed from his head, tangled and dishevelled. It looked like some of it was even tangled in his crumb filled and wine stained beard. His eyes drooped and his breathing was shallow. I could tell he was dying. I thought he might be one of the goat-folk at first but the more I looked at him, the more I was sure he wasn’t any of the kin races that I knew of.

  “Humanity is dying,” the elder said, struggling for breath. “In our hubris, we tread where only the gods were meant to walk. Now, a disease, or curse, probably both, has claimed most of the populace. War for the limited remaining resources took the rest. Now, only I and a few other elder technomancers, biomancers, and chemismancers remain. We are all that is left of humanity.”

  The elder . . . he was a human. I could hardly believe it. He looked so much like one of the kin . . . just lacking horns, tusks, fangs, whiskers or fur. I felt strange looking at this being. What was his boon? His curse? Did he even have those things?

  The elder coughed and wiped at his mouth, a streak of red smearing on his face. “It won’t be long before even us, the greatest technomancers of the age will have perished as well. But ours is not a pointless death. Ours is one of sacrifice. Together, myself and the others will cast a grand working. Humanity may die, but a small part of us will live on.”

  “This disease, curse, whatever you may call it, has targeted a specific base pairing unique to the human genome. Some of my colleagues are trying other solutions and other experiments. But I’m a realist and to be frank, we’re finished as a species. But it is our hope that if we can create a mix between human and animal that bypasses this issue and that given enough time, the animals that populate this world will become something more. They will be primitive at first, but with time they will grow and repopulate this planet. I do not know how they will develop but I believe that with the little bit of humanity they inherit from us, they will grow as we did,” the elderly human said, pausing to cough again and wipe away more blood.

  “I want for you to be better than we were. I am sure you will still fight wars. You will kill to survive. But you will also create art and beauty. You will explore the great mysteries of magic and delve into the system that rules our world, just as we did. And maybe, someday, you will surpass us.” The man stopped to pick up a cup from the table next to him. He drank long and deep from the cup and sighed in relief.

  “Forgive the interruptions, as I said, I am dying and that potion is the only thing keeping me alive long enough to finish my task,” he said, sounding slightly more alive than he was just moments earlier. “Now, on to you oh mighty and fearless badger.”

  The world faded from view again and instead I was looking at a small hole in the ground. There was grass and trees all around the hole, a forest. I barely registered all of that when the elder’s voice filled my ears.

  “The badger, or meles meles in the old tongue, has a rather short, wide body, with short limbs made for digging. They have elongated, flat heads with small ears, but don’t let those small ears fool you. Badgers have incredible sense of hearing, smell, and taste, some can even feel magic. Though their eyesight is poor, it magnifies the other senses. We have no proof of it, but we believe they utilise a form synesthesia allowing them to smell and hear in colour,” the old man said, but I was barely listening as the beast the old man described emerged from the hole in the ground. It looked like me. Its colouring, its straining of its eyes, the way it smelled at the air for scents. The fur colouring and the telltale stripes of white on otherwise black fur, reminiscent of my own hair. Was this what my folk once were? Were we beasts?

  The old man’s voice continued, “Take note of its claws and sharp teeth, this animal, while cute, is not cuddly. The badger is omnivorous though it mostly eats meat and in large quantities. While the badger does not hibernate, it does store a great deal of nutrients and fat in its body. This allows it to better survive in harsh winter environments where it will enter a torpor and sleep for roughly 29 hours before emerging to find more nutrients. This allows the badger to survive with little food if necessary. The badger will use this same torpor to sleep through injury and allow its body to heal, somehow tapping into the ambient mana of the world.”

  “Badgers have very few natural enemies and are more often the predator than the prey,” the old man said, causing the scene to change abruptly that of a sandy desert. A badger, different from the one in the forest, was baring its teeth at another beast. This badger was smaller and leaner, the beast facing it was scaly and long. It had no legs or hands. It rose up above the badger, its neck puffing out wide, like it was trying to threaten the badger. But the badger didn’t care. It saw food in the beast before it. “Badgers were widely known for their immunity to venom, often killing and eating venomous snakes and scorpions.”

  That thing was a snake? That was the origin of the snake-folk? Before I could think about it more, the snake struck, its fangs biting into the badger, but the badger shook it off. It used the snake’s closeness to attack. The badger’s sharp teeth bit into the snake, holding it in place while its sharp claws cut through the snake’s scales, making it bleed out in moments.

  “That bite would have killed any other animal in seconds, but not the fearless badger,” the old man said, as the scene faded out then back in again, this time a snow-covered field where the badger faced off against a larger four-legged opponent. This one was covered in fur with a longer face with bigger and more teeth than the badger.

  “The coyote is larger and faster than a badger, but the badger’s thick, loose fur, and tough skin makes it hard to hurt,” the old man narrated as the coyote charged in, its mouth opened wide. The badger sank low to the ground as the coyote bit into the fur and tried to pull the badger, but the badger dug in its sharp claws, preventing the coyote from being able to move the smaller animal no matter how hard it pulled or wrenched its head side to side. Eventually, the coyote released its bite and tried to move to get a better grip, that was when the badger struck. The smaller animal bit into the coyote’s front leg, eliciting a yelp of pain from the coyote as it tried to pull away, but the badger didn’t budge. Its sharp claws had a solid grip on the ground and was able to pull the coyote down using its strong neck and shoulder muscles. The coyote struggled mightily, biting at the badger’s neck and fur, drawing blood and making shallow cuts but not doing enough damage. And once the coyote was on the ground, it was all over for it. Those sharp claws that helped the badger keep its grip on the ground, easily cut through the fur and flesh of the coyote. Then the badger made a meal of it.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  “Badgers control their environment. They chose when to endure and when to strike back. These were not ambush predators but neither were they aggressive unless they were protecting their young,” the old man’s narration continued before the scene changed again.

  This time it showed another coyote and badger, but now the two were playing together. Then the scene changed again and showed another coyote and badger working together to take down a larger beast that looked similar to the coyote. The badger acted almost like it was bait, letting the creature bite into the tough hide and try to drag it away. While it did that, the coyote struck at the larger creature’s hind legs, forcing it to let go of the badger to chase after the coyote. That was when the badger struck, biting into the closest limb and using its low centre of gravity to pull the beast down.

  As the beasts . . . animals worked together, the narration continued, “While badgers and coyotes have been known to fight to the death, they have also been seen playing and hunting together, especially when a larger predator, like this wolf, invades a shared territory.”

  It reminded me of the way I grappled with an opponent. Pulling them to the ground and then going to work on them with my fists. But the way the badger fought with its claws and teeth gave me ideas, not so much about the teeth, but claws. Could my Shadow Blade skill be used to create claws? And if not, was there a shadow skill that could give me claws? Also, the badger’s thick skin that acted almost as armour where my skin was easily cut, maybe there was a skill for that as well. And that healing ability, the torpor, was there a skill for that? Venom resistance?

  My mind raced with new possibilities and ideas that could be pursued. As I went over everything I’d just learned, it struck me. I had always been ashamed of my purported "curses" and had never considered them to be of any use. But now, in this moment, I realised that they weren’t curses but rather prerequisites for the ways I was meant to utilise my skills and abilities. Torpor wouldn't work without the stored up nutrients from Husky. Synesthesia wouldn’t work without Myopia or a similar impairment. On the one hand, I felt a wave of relief and joy crashing within me. On the other hand, I felt sadness for all the years of embarrassment and shame that I had suffered for no fault of mine.

  The scene changed again, I was back with the dying old man and his office. “Not all animals will successfully make the change. Those that don’t will be mutated into something new, though I cannot say what they will become.”

  The man sighed tiredly, “I am afraid our time is up. I have many more recordings to make. I hope this has helped in some small way. Good luck!”

  The world faded away and I awoke with a start, sitting up on a . . . couch. It took me a moment to remember I was in the dean’s office. Dean Weber sat in an armchair near my head. Her eyes were closed but her breathing didn’t suggest she was asleep. Slowly, she opened her eyes and smiled, “Well, that surely was something special.”

  I blinked away tears of joy. Special didn’t even begin to describe what I just experienced. I wiped at my tears before Al saw and teased me for it. “Did you see?”

  The Dean’s smile widened as she nodded, “I was able to watch as you formed the memories of that experience. It really was something special. Profound even.” The old goatwoman stretched and shifted a little in her seat, which made me think she’d been sitting like that for a while.

  “How long was I out?” I asked.

  “About six hours,” Al answered helpfully from a chair next to the bookshelves. He had a book open in his lap but it didn’t look like he’d gotten very far with it. “So, was it worth it?”

  I nodded, “I think so.” I looked to the dean, “If you watched all of that, then would you say it was worth it?”

  “Worth so much more than you know,” Dean Weber said.

  “Tell me about it,” Al insisted, “What am I walking into? Was it dangerous?”

  I bristled at the demand, but Dean Weber stepped in, speaking in a soft, soothing tone, “Please, tell me what you experienced from your point of view. I may have watched second hand but I am certain you gleaned more from it than I did.”

  I gave Al a pointed look but told them what I witnessed. He was awed by the fact that Humans were both real and that they created the Kin. He found the described experience of witnessing so many aspects of badger, the animal, not the kin, life to be very interesting.

  I finished my tale and Al quickly ushered me from the couch and laid down to experience it for himself. As soon as his orb crumbled to dust and his eyes rolled up into his head, the dean addressed me again, “Now that you’ve seen it, do you know what skill stones you want?”

  I nodded, “I think so. But you’ll have to tell me if they even exist.”

  The dean smiled. “Ask and I’ll answer as promised.”

  “Okay,” I started carefully, “Torpor, do you have something like that?”

  The dean laughed, “I have the skill stone for Torpor. It’s one we never knew had a purpose before now. We have several in fact. Mancer is going to turn a tidy profit off this information.”

  I didn’t like that Mancer was going to benefit financially and I wasn’t. “I’ll get a share, yes?”

  The dean laughed, “Very well, ten percent, after all, you only got the orb from running one of our lairs.”

  I could have pushed for more, but that would be enough. I would need to set up some kind of account for her to pay me. “I accept. Is there a skill for something like Shadow Claws?”

  “If there is, I will find it. If there isn’t, we have the personnel to help you create it,” the dean answered. It wasn’t the perfect solution but it would do for now.

  “How about something for tough skin or something like that?” I asked.

  “Thick Hide,” the dean answered, “And yes, we have it. Usually, defenders want to get their hands on the uncommon skill, which makes it artificially rare and expensive. Still, a deal is a deal, it is yours if you want it.”

  “I do,” I answered. “How about Venom Resistance?”

  The dean hummed in apparent appreciation, “Hmm, very nice choice. It will work well with your Disease and Poison Resistances. Anything else?”

  I thought about it for a moment and shrugged. “Not that I can think of.”

  “If I might make a suggestion then,” the dean offered.

  “Please,” I said, eager to hear what she had in mind.

  The dean smiled and answered, “I would also get Natural Weapons Fighting. It will let you better use those claws. Another rare skill, though naturally scarce. I would also suggest that once you do gain a Light Attunement and learn Light Manipulation that you would find or create claws for that as well.”

  I nodded eagerly. I was glad for the advice.

  “And the other skills we discussed in our deal, do you still want those?” the dean asked.

  “Of course, I do,” I answered. Getting those cooking subskills was a major boon to me. It was doubtful I would ever learn those skills without taking a Cooking based Job. With skill stones that wouldn’t ever be necessary. Those plus the Mind skills and a shadow and light skill would give me quite the edge in the future. It looked like coming to Mancer might have been the best thing for me.

  The dean laughed again. “Alright, I’ll collect them as soon as Mister Romano is finished as I will no doubt have to get his as well. Any that are not immediately available will be delivered within two or three months at the longest. Any longer than that and I would say it is unavailable. In which case, we can discuss giving you something else, agreed?”

  I nodded again. I was eager to get started. But first, I needed Al to wake up. Six hours was a long wait.