Beastforged Bond

Merlin knew about the Elemental Phoenix. There was no doubt about it. There was a spark – one that clarified just how fucked up I was, if that hadn’t been obvious by now.

His towering figure appeared even larger before me, his gaze burning into mine as if he could see the things I wanted to keep hidden the most. Cold sweat poured down my back, soaking my shirt, while I struggled–almost desperately–to suppress the panic attack bubbling beneath my skin.

How does he know? There’s no way. What did I do wrong?

Maybe Merlin had been suspicious from the beginning. The Ruler of Fire had been doubtful too, or he would never have visited me in the dorms after the Rulers broke the Pact and attacked Volca’s Voice, when the initial plan had been to negotiate with the Caldera. That entire incident had been far more chaotic than it should have been, leading to the deaths of two Rulers and the loss of the Elemental Phoenix.

Volix, the phoenix, had sacrificed himself in a twist of fate and bound himself to my World. I was still trying to understand how he’d managed it, but I was no longer frustrated by the Elemental Phoenix’s actions. If anything, I was glad to have Volix by my side. He was odd at times, but his experience and knowledge were invaluable to my growth. The same was true for the Blazing Gates that had formed through my bond with him.

Before his death, Volix had been an Emperor beast. He possessed the potential needed to grant me the strength to surpass those who endangered me. But I needed time – decades, if possible. A century would have been even better.

Fate, however, didn’t seem inclined to grant me that luxury. Not after I had survived a fall from several thousand meters, nor after convincing a human-hating tree to gift me a sapling marked by her Essence. For the record, that sapling belonged to a World Tree. Whether it ate humans or not was irrelevant. Its power rivaled that of the Spirits–and those surpassed even Emperor beasts.

None of that mattered right now.

I was grasping at distraction, hoping Merlin would laugh it all off as a joke and we’d go our separate ways. Never see each other again, if possible. Alas, after sharing yet another look with him, I was certain he knew for sure.

What now?

Was I supposed to flee and live in the wild? The latter wasn’t the issue–my ribs still ached, several bones were broken, and my soulshares were strained from the sparring match with Daniel’s sister. Lea Zerog’s last strike had taken me by surprise, and it had hurt badly.

Mom and Dad are here.

I could use Mirage, turn myself into a flashbang, grab my parents, and run. Or I could take Daniel or his parents hostage to force an escape–but neither option was pleasant. Worse, neither was guaranteed to work. Merlin was far faster and stronger than Lea. There was no guarantee he wouldn’t reach me before I could make my move.

Merlin’s lips parted into a bright, unsettling smile.

“You look like you’re overthinking,” he said. “How about you relax a little? Calm down for a minute.”

Calm down? There was no way I could calm down in a situation like this.

He waved dismissively. “Let me make one thing clear: I don’t give two shits about what you have. You’re a lucky fucker, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous. But I’m not going to endanger my family by exposing you. Everything bound to you is your responsibility to protect.”

That was…nice to hear. It didn’t stop the cold sweat from gathering at my back, but Merlin Zerog sounded genuine.

“What exactly is going on here, uncle?” Lea asked, her hostility aimed squarely at me.

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“Adam has some things other people want,” Merlin answered vaguely. He winked at me before adding, “Quite a lot of things, actually.”

Lea Zerog – what in the Rul…what was wrong with her? – clicked her tongue, frustration flashing in her eyes.

“Of course,” she said. “Adam here, Adam there. And naturally, he has everything everyone could possibly want. What else could it have been?”

Lea flicked her long hair back, her ocean-blue eyes shimmering in the light of the Zerog’s underground training room. At first glance, Daniel’s sister appeared delicate, almost like a doll, with a quiet, flawless kind of beauty. In reality, she was nasty… to me.

Daniel emerged beside me, an arm draped over my shoulder, his eyes bulging as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.

“The sapling?” he mouthed, which probably should have set off more alarms. Instead, his sudden realization annoyed me.

So he believes me… now?

It hadn’t been long since I told Daniel the truth about how I survived in the wild: how I’d grown stronger when I should have struggled just to make it through the trek across several Forbidden Zones. I did, in fact, mention the Elemental Phoenix during that talk, but my best friend failed to notice anything off about it. He’d been too distracted, acting all annoyed because he didn’t believe my summary of how I ended up in the World Tree’s domicile.

He doesn’t know about Volix.

I shook my head. Daniel thought his uncle had been talking about the World Tree’s sapling. But if there was one thing Merlin definitely did not know about, it was the World Tree itself. Still, Daniel believed otherwise.

Merlin’s eyes moved from me to Daniel and back again before he cleared his throat and pointed to the onyx ring.

“It was only for a short time, but Ruler Kazriel appointed Adam as his Scion. Hence, upon death, Adam inherited his master’s belongings. And he takes them everywhere, for everyone to see. Easy to grab; one ‘incident’ near the frontlines, and the ring will change owners.”

Lea didn’t look convinced, but nobody cared about her opinion. I was far more concerned about what my parents thought of the implications Merlin had just stated so utterly nonchalantly.

Mom had already been pale before. Watching me spar with Lea may not have been the best decision. Now, however, she looked properly aghast–like a faint breeze might knock her out cold.

“Y-You think someone will a-attack my baby if he goes out there? P-Please t-tell me you’re lying, Mr. Zerog…” she stuttered, her voice weak and trembling.

Lea stepped forward, clearly unhappy about being ignored. She looked angry, but there was doubt there too–confusion. She cleared her throat and spoke before her uncle could answer my mother.

“That doesn’t make any sense. I mean, you mentioned the Ruler of Fire earlier. Why would he care about Kazriel’s inheritance? Didn’t he give that idiot the ring in the first place?”

This time, it was my turn to stare at her, stupefied.

“What?” she hissed back at me. “Either you’re totally out of your mind, or you really didn’t realize how much my parents fawn over your achievements. Between them and your parents, I’ve probably heard your stories about the Grand Camp three to four times already.” Her voice cut the air, but the edge didn’t reach her eyes this time. “I know Kazriel accepted you as his Scion, and–and as much as I hate saying this–you’ve grown fast enough to validate his decision.”

It almost looked like speaking those words physically hurt Lea, as if each one tasted of potent poison.

She turned her attention back to her uncle, ignoring my existence once more.

“Back to the topic – Why would the Ruler of Fire care?”

“Adam should have died in the phoenix fire. At least, that was Raffael Torch’s train of thought.” Merlin shrugged lightly. “Since he did not die, he must have assumed our young friend here somehow managed to tame an Emperor beast. And bind it.”

Lea scoffed in disbelief. “Ridiculous.”

I didn’t feel ridiculous. Neither did Merlin Zerog, as he looked at me knowingly.

“So that’s why he visited us in the dorms,” Daniel murmured, finally putting the pieces together.

“And he did not find anything,” Merlin added, his voice taking on a teasing note.

I hated it. A lot.

Still, if hinting at my bond with the Elemental Phoenix was all Merlin Zerog intended to do to antagonize me, so be it. I could live with that. It was certainly better than being exposed outright.

I’d have to come up with a few contingency plans in case more opportunistic people learned about Volix, but I had other issues to deal with first: a few broken bones, a mishmash of secrets now known by the Zerog family, and worried parents.

And… well… there was also that part about getting conscripted to fight the Outsiders.

It wasn’t like I didn’t already have more than enough to deal with. Why not join the army as well...right?