The next few fights were much the same as the first. The only difference was Ta, Snowbelle, and Rex joining the other Familiars and Summons in the chaotic fight of fur, feathers, and scales. With their overwhelming numbers, they were able to dominate the few packs of Crystal Caste monsters they encountered.

  Most Summoning abilities were on an hour-long cooldown and would st about half that, but between the groups’ plethora of abilities and the monsters often being spread out, this wasn’t much of an issue. Their earthen golems smashed, packs of snolves hunted, various birds scouted and dive-bombed, and a wide variety of pnt-like creatures attempted to lock down enemies, divide any groups, and heal up the others. It made the presence of the Adventurers themselves mostly irrelevant in the spattering of battles fought as they traversed the rather barren mountains.

  Rayna eventually voiced her dislike of leaving most of the work to the summons and joined the Familiars in the fray; the voxen tails and ears not entirely standing out from the various avals the others provided. The bard seemed to create her own fun by weaving through the summons, using some that were big enough as temporary mounts, or practically hopping from aval to monster to nd surprise attacks from above.

  Phoenix surprisingly didn’t mind staying out of the mayhem as much as she thought she would. She had been trying to get used to the fact that she was the Supporter for the rest of her party, and now the others were getting a taste of that in turn. Plus, she found herself actually enjoying the time spent between fights talking with Polissa, Moha, and Simmon. Tanner had stayed mostly silent and his st name was one that Phoenix had definitely recognized in connection with Arktis Neired, who had murdered her and been killed by her party in return.

  The runeforged man made it obvious that he disliked her, and she could only assume it was because of her part in the downfall of the noble family that his own was a branch of. Despite the obvious betrayal on their part, she could at least understand why he didn’t want to be friendly with her, so she didn’t try to push the issue.

  Completely opposite of Tanner, however, was the cinderen woman who was strong yet kind, showing a gentle hand with both Phoenix and Simmon. The younger cinderen boy was quiet but sweet, and often smiled at the conversation the others held. Polissa and Simmon were both exceptional in the fact that neither hesitated in battle and followed the commands of their leader precisely.

  The Garrison Overseer’s Aspect combination of Golem, Covenant, Mountain, and Barrier helped the woman be a strong presence on the battlefield, and Phoenix found herself asking curiously, “No offense to Mister Neired, but why aren’t you leading your party, Po?”

  “I despise paperwork,” she responded abruptly, and the simple expnation caused Phoenix to burst out ughing.

  “I mean, I can understand that. Dazien makes it seem like nothing, but I feel drowned by it,” Phoenix crified as she managed to collect herself, “I guess if Tanner just does better at the more official side of things, then that makes sense to leave it to him.”

  “He’s also a more experienced Sapphire Caster, which helps me get away with letting a non-noble lead my party,” Po added, considering the question a bit more, “I’m honestly surprised that Lord Waynd allowed Mister Smithson to lead your party when he has neither position nor Caste to justify it. Despite my dislike of paperwork, I don’t think my dads would have allowed me to give the position to Tan without the Caste difference.”

  Phoenix gnced between Dazien, who was chatting animatedly with the others, and Tanner, who was silently walking with Simmon ahead of them. Tanner’s Aspect combination of Sivatherium, Snolf, Gate, and Myriad definitely put him in more of the Striker role of their group of summoners, and it really was only the higher Caste that put him above the others. Apparently, the runeforged had been an Adventurer for quite a few years now and was already about two-thirds through Sapphire.

  He hadn’t been bad in giving orders, at least in her opinion, especially when considering how easily they destroyed each threat they came across, but each encounter had seemed almost too easy. Perhaps that was just the result of his good choices, though. She’d have to ask Dazien ter what he thought about the leadership skills since she felt like she was a rather poor judge of the overwhelming tactics they used.

  Her attention returned to the conversation she was in, and she admitted, “Daze is a better leader than I am. I’ve only known monsters existed for about six or seven months now, let alone know the best tactics for taking them down as a group. Plus, I’m kinda terrible at dealing with, um, other people. Unlike me, he seems to shine in the spotlight.”

  “Well, that’s probably because of his [Shiny] talent,” Moha spoke up with a chuckle from the other side of Po, “Some gemites are blessed with it, like how many dryads have [Soft Petals], like me, or [Hard Bark]. It creates a weird dynamic within the species, but he obviously has the desirable trait.”

  “Actually, I think I remember reading that on his profile, but he didn’t seem to want me to pry more at the time,” she specuted, trying to remember the glimpse she had gotten long ago. Then she shrugged and added, “I figured if it was important to know, he’d tell me.”

  “It’s not important, really,” Moha admitted, “Not from a party cohesion or combat perspective, at least. What did you mean by ‘profile,’ though?”

  Phoenix conjured her [Guide Book] and expined more by showing, “This is one of my Talents that gives me information. Just touch it and think of that talent you mentioned having.”

  Natural Talent: Soft Petals

  The texture of yourself and the pnts you cultivate are softened and the resistance to physical bludgeoning damage is increased.Pnts you cultivate have an increased growth rate and generate more blossoms when avaible.

  “That’s a useful information Talent,” Polissa commented.

  “Yeah. The profile shows the whole list of Talents and abilities. I don’t think Moha’s Talent is what Dazien has, though,” she ughed, picturing him with a crown of flowers and thinking it might actually suit the gemite.

  Moha giggled, “No, but it changes how we look outwardly to others within our same species.” Then she made Phoenix’s face go crimson from embarrassment as the cheerful dryad called over to her party leader, “Oi! Shiny boy! Come show Phoenix your Talent!”

  Dazien raised a brow and shook his head as the others ughed at the moniker. He humored them and walked over to look at the book as he connected the dots to the request, “Ah, expining those odd little Talents to her?”

  “I’m surprised you didn’t expin it to her earlier. She probably thinks all gemite are super pretty and sparkle all over the pce,” the adorable dryad said with a grin, “You should have told her you’re extra sparkly.”

  Dazien surprised her by grimacing, “It’s not a Talent I’m particurly proud of. If anything, it just made High Priestess Deserin even more stringent in checking out potential parents who might have sought to adopt me at the temple while growing up.”

  Both of the women next to Phoenix bnched at that comment, and Moha almost seemed to wilt, “Sorry, I didn’t think about that. Shiny gemites are what? Like half of your species?”

  “Closer to a third according to the Priestess,” Dazien corrected.

  “I don’t understand what the problem is?” Phoenix voiced in confusion, “So you have a rare Talent that makes your hair shinier or something?”

  He gave a sigh and touched the book to dispy the information.

  Natural Talent: Shiny

  Your appearance conforms more closely to most species, and your own, ideal traits. Your looks, words, and deeds have greater appeal.Your eyes shine with an inner light increasing charisma and enhancing sight in darkness.

  “Huh,” Phoenix replied as she read over it, “That expins so much… All those people who know you and like you and…”

  “And get obsessed about possessing me?” Dazien pointed out, and her mouth snapped shut at the reminder of the particur noble willing to kill Phoenix because they thought she was trying to steal him.

  “It might seem like a blessing at first gnce, but it comes with a cost,” he said, “Don’t get me wrong, it’s not strong enough of an effect to make people behave completely outside their character, but it will nudge them to look upon me more favorably.”

  “But why would that make it harder to find parents? Wouldn’t there be more people that would find themselves caring about you?”

  He gave her a crooked smile that felt somewhat like pity for some reason as he expined, “Patricia mentioned back at the Cultivator’s Citadel that gemites are one of the younger species on Makera, which means that there’s just less of us around in general, but she didn’t mention that there are rather… unsavory people that want to either use us as potential sves or harvest us for… parts.”

  The thought of a parent choosing to adopt a child just to ensve or murder them left a horrified look on her face, and she viscerally felt the little piece of her innocence that still trusted people fracture a bit more. How did Dazien trust anyone’s intentions with a Talent like that?

  “That’s not just gemites,” Polissa interjected, “My father told me some horror stories about other desirable parts on the illegal underground magical markets; voxen tails, draconid wings, siren scales, faeforged dust farms…” The woman gave a noticeable shiver, “Nightmare fuel of the degenerate acts some of the most evil beings will stoop to.”

  The others in Phoenix’s team had made their way over, seeming curious about the conversation and Saiya’s insistence that she needed to hold Dazien’s hand now as she sidled up to squeeze his hand in a show of support and comfort.

  He returned the Healer’s gentle smile and stated softly, “I’m fine. It’s just hard to fathom sometimes how greedy and cruel people can be.”

  Saiya nodded and added quietly, “Easier to just pce them in the category of monsters and know we need to stand against them.”

  Dazien then tilted his head towards Moha as he added, “I’m sure a pretty petal like you can understand that the world isn’t always a safe pce for people like us; for the soft and shiny.”

  The dryad nodded in acknowledgment, “I got lucky when Po found me. She didn’t want me for my [Soft Petals] Talent, but was looking for others with the Talent for becoming summoning specialists. When she came across my family near one of the outer vilges, she offered me a spot in her party after talking for a few days.”

  Phoenix perked up at that, “Oh? Do you all have a Talent like my Aura one that lets you have more Familiars or something?”

  Both women ughed at that, and Polissa admitted, “I wish. Being any kind of Limit Breaker is extremely rare. I would have loved to be a Keeper or even find one to join my team. Here’s the Talent that I was actually looking for,” she added while reaching out to touch the book as well.

  Natural Talent: Summon Disposition

  Increased likelihood of unlocking Summon abilities. Summon abilities have reduced cost and cooldown.

  “Oh, nice,” Phoenix remarked, then asked, “What’s a Keeper?”

  “Someone who can have more than one Cultivating Familiar ability. The kind that can be summoned,” Dazien answered for her.

  “A Tamer is someone that can have more than one bonded Familiar, like I have,” Moha added, giving the little ice bird that had moved to a branch poking out of the dryad’s shoulder a gentle pat.

  “A One Upper could have two Familiars,” Polissa added thoughtfully, “They get one more of each limited type, and I’m sure there are other versions of Limit Breaking I haven’t heard of.”

  “I’ve heard the theory of Curators, but don’t know of any actual examples,” Uriel mentioned, “They would have unlimited Passive and Cultivating Familiars.”

  “That would be incredible,” Po said in slight awe, “Fifteen Familiars really would be a one-person party.”

  “I’m not sure I’d want to forgo an Aura or Perception power for two more Familiars,” the dryad admitted, “I love my Familiar and Summons, but I think a Caster would be at a serious disadvantage without those.”

  Polissa gave a sad sigh, “You’re right. I guess I’ll just have to keep my eyes and ears open for a Keeper or Tamer to add to our roster instead.”

  Phoenix chuckled, “You want even more Summons and Familiars in your party?”

  “Of course! An army party that will go down in history as an unstoppable legend! Defending the tundra from all who dare to threaten it!”

  She ughed again, finding herself admiring the bold woman. Why the driven cinderen seemed to admire her, however, she hadn’t quite figured out. They all continued talking for the rest of the day, learning more about everyone between the fairly easy monster fights.

  When the sun threatened to set below the horizon, Phoenix portaled them all back to the rendezvous point, which took about ten minutes to get the three Sapphire Casters through. Once they all arrived, their party leaders both reported to Officer Wysmont, and none of the other groups reported having found anything of particur concern either. Uriel set up his [Fortress of Solitude] for their party, and they all retired for the morning after some group meditation.