Chapter 34 - Turning Every Head - The Unforgettables: A ZeroYear litRPG

  Although bodies may be promptly healed, the wounds of the soul take time. A peculiar sense of uncertainty mingled with the group's newfound cohesion and tranquility, and survival became an opportunity to prepare for the unknown storm.

  As the days go by, Frank and Petra split their time between intensive training in the dojo and learning with the Vabala at night on the ship's bridge. As part of their routine, they had brought pieces of their magic monoliths to study following the workout. After a particularly productive night of learning and excited by their apparent progress, they were up early, discussing plans over breakfast.

  "Well, same thing with me, I've nearly finished with the foundational training for transport magics. In a matter of weeks, I'll start the creation school. We need a solid plan," Petra commented to Frank, finishing her stretching routine.

  "I am almost done with magics, and as soon as everyone's ready today, I'm going to take a peek at Rocatrista. With all channels down and no real idea of what to expect, I'm thinking of postponing my training in a second school for a bit," Frank concluded.

  "You know, that might be a good idea for you, Frank! What if we took the day to revisit all our old spots using our magic?" Petra reflected, remembering she had portals scattered all along their path.

  "What spots do you have in mind? Besides, suppose I start learning another magic school from Vabala. In that case, I can begin with different spells than yours so that we can cover all possibilities," Frank mused, then continued, "That's exactly why I wanted to ask Ramirez."

  "Ramirez, or anyone else for that matter, never answered my messages. And that was years before communications with the City of the Dead went down, as Laetilia mentioned an explosion so strong that it reached Metropolis. I've got a bad feeling about this silence. As for the spots, I have active portals to Mosh's and Vaud's, and to Cernutos," Petra replied, now sitting at the restored table in the mess hall, hearing Liora and Laetilia chatting animatedly on the bridge next door, which now, thanks to Silas' miracles, had fresh new doors.

  "Ah, yes, I just remembered. I managed to enchant the entrance to your fire universe with my remote vision magic, the place where we meet the fire wyrm. My plan back then was to see how the Golems would react when they passed over there. I was hoping they'd try to enter and have a warm welcoming, but it seems they just ignored it, sad," Frank said, somewhat perplexed.

  "Maybe sad, but maybe good if they could not enter such portals. Liora and Laetilia are on the bridge as always. How about we join them?" Petra proposed.

  Frank nodded, refilled his mug with more coffee, and headed to the bridge with Petra. They all gathered, waiting for Silas, who had left a pile of terminals abandoned in a corner of the bridge a few days ago.

  Laetilia welcomed the humans with a smile, in an even lighter mood."Hello, guys, up early again today? Are we all heading to the dojo for training? I was thinking of maybe focusing on training with you for a few days, but I would be more of a hindrance than a help."

  "You can train whenever you want, really. We have a long series of training drills we've developed as our powers progress, so be prepared, your path will be quite long. But today, Frank had wilder ideas," Petra remarked, thumb-pointing to her colleague.

  "Indeed, the magic training is going full steam ahead as well, and we'll have new things to test very soon," Frank began, continuing after a brief pause, "I postponed it a few days to clear our heads, but today I was thinking of checking on Rocatrista, to talk with a more experienced mage before we decide which path to take in our training, but also to catch a glimpse of what′s happening in the city."

  "Checking Rocatrista is an excellent idea, but we might run into trouble. I'll call Silas; he's awake, but completely absorbed in a big project," Liora said while sending messages through her comlink.

  "Laetilia, any idea what to expect in Rocatrista?" Frank ventured.

  "No idea. I only know they survived, and so did Paradiso, but I don't know the details, because the explosion went right through both cities," Laetilia recalled. "When Beni and I passed through that tiny new city in the far North... Called Permaheat, if I remember well, we were in a great hurry and weren't expecting to stumble upon civilization. There we met the King's people and some other settlers from the south, mostly schrogae. Strangely, they didn't try to kill us on sight as we expected. They just said everything was fine where they came from, and this was years after the explosions."

  "We still get some images from the camera system in Northern Valley, sporadically coming through our precarious private network. At least there, nothing seems to have happened, but now we only get a few static pictures of that place." Liora remembers as she shares all images using her comlink.

  Just then, Silas arrived from the dojo through the dimensional portal, noticing the pile of abandoned terminals as he said, "Morning, everyone! Wow, sorry, I completely forgot about this mess over there." As the ebex tidied up the space, he continued, "So, Rocatrista today, then?"

  "Yep! But I don't want to interrupt for long. You're on a new project? What about the old one?" Frank asked, positioning himself in the middle of everyone to cast the spell while sharing all his senses.

  "The old project about this ship′s memories is stalled without a reliable network connection. About the new, it's still a ways off, but I think it'll be great protection for all of us. Especially after that last battle." Silas reflected.

  "Music to my ears!" Petra smiled.

  "Great! Let's get to it. Tommy must be missing me already." With a snap of his fingers, Frank turned on his magic and was instantly transported, finding the ghost-form himself in the middle of an unknown street during what seemed to be morning. He recognized nothing around him; a few people glanced his way, but for now, no one seemed to care much.

  "Well, at least I'm somewhere, but there's no sign of the bar!" Frank thought, as the group could see the place through his eyes, Laetilia added, "Uh-oh! Looks like the bar is now history." Petra jumped in, asking, "Can′t you move around? How does this magic of yours work, anyway?"

  Frank started walking, but after just a few steps, he burned all his mana just to distance himself a few steps from his starting point. He began to move slowly and with great difficulty, recasting his spell many times as he regenerates, and responding mentally, "I've done this in mid-air once during my freefall tests. I can walk, but it's a miserable crawl, slug-mode, because I need magic energy for almost every step. So, Petra... would you kindly move your ass and lend a boost?"

  Petra wildly unleashed her mana, flooding Frank with energy, even burning through both of their reserves despite their regeneration being extreme. Frank's walk through the city was much slower than that of a normal human, and he noticed an intense firework light show all around him that would make Gandalf proud. Every face was now turned toward him.

  "Guys, this is tough, and I'm magic-glowing brighter than the city's sun generator," Frank commented mentally as he dragged himself through the city with all the subtlety of a barbarian invasion on dragonback. Now, he was drawing everyone's attention from afar, even from inside the houses, as windows opened to see what the commotion was all about.

  One of the schrogae guards rushed towards him, speaking with authority, "Hey! You! What the hell is this mess?" He stopped short at Frank upon realizing who it was.

  Frank vaguely recognized the guard as an old patron of the bar but had never spoken to him directly; however, he realized the guard recognized him. He cut the mana flow for a moment and replied, "Hey there. Everything good? It's been a while since I've been in town. Wasn't the Triple-T right back there?"

  "It was! We changed everything in the city after the explosion. You're looking for Tommy's bar, right? It's just up ahead. I'll walk you there!" the guard offered.

  "Thanks! It'll take me a bit to get there," Frank noted, already spotting a small entrance just a few steps away. He then asked, "An explosion, you say? I'm looking for Ramirez. Or Tommy."

  "Yeah, I remember your face. Frank, right?" the guard commented, noticing his difficulty moving but powerless to help a ghost. "It's been a long time since we've seen sumas around these parts. Good to know you still exist. About Ramirez, everyone's been looking for him since the explosion, and Tommy never leaves the bar."

  Frank considered explaining he wasn't actually a suma, but instead replied, "Yeah, well, I only got back a few days ago. So, Ramirez isn't here? Any idea, buddy?"

  "I am pretty sure that no one here, nor in Paradiso, has a clue about him... They even made a bust of him last year in front of the hotel where he used to sleep," the guard said, snorting and shrugging. "Turned out like crap, actually, nothing like his face. But that doesn't matter. If you have news of Ramirez, people here will be happy to hear it."

  Now at the bar's door, which wasn't yet open to the public, Frank bid the guard farewell. "Thanks! I'll see if I can find him. What was your name again?"

  "Sagot. Hope you have news for us. If you stick around for the night, I'll check you at the bar," the guard said, taking his leave.

  As Frank literally walked through the door, Silas commented mentally, "Again, way better than our first time here, Frank." Petra added, "The city looks much improved, look at that," and upon entering triple-T, Frank said, "Well, the bar's still pretty grimy, but at least it has less of a patina now." He noticed Tommy heading his way as he saw the light show starting early inside his tavern.

  "So you're still alive, huh? Or, well, I guess you are," Tommy asked with a smile.

  "Still alive, yeah, barely made it back this time. How are things around here?" Frank asked, looking for a place to sit and recast his spell to a new enchanting point.

  "Pick any spot, Frank! We had to rebuild everything. You see, with the revolution in Metropolis, they stopped bothering us, so things improved considerably. Any news from Ramirez?" Tommy asked eagerly.

  "That's exactly who I came here looking for. Besides, I know almost nothing. I'm a long way from here and have absolutely no other communication channels," Frank commented.

  "Only the local network for the Northern cities is working; just said that, it rarely works if you are lucky. Where should I start?" Tommy asked, sitting down across from Frank in the completely empty bar.

  "Start from the last thing you know about Ramirez, or his apprentices," Frank asked.

  "Well, so, let me start from that shattering day long ago. In the middle of the night, Ramirez woke the whole city up, completely shaken and in pajamas. He told us to get down the south ramp immediately. We evacuated the place in a hurry, the whole town, and right after, an explosion as we had never seen before consumed the city, but we all survived, not a single live was lost that night. During the explosion, Ramirez vanished. We found a trail of blood drops and footprints in the snow that might have been his, given the size. The trail led south, alongside the main vein, until it completely disappeared in the middle of nowhere. After that, no sign of him or any of his apprentices. You're the first one to reappear after all this time," Tommy commented with some sadness. "But there was Grandpa…"

  "Grandpa?" Frank asked.

  "Yeah, that was his nickname. He was a human Ramirez revived on that same night; he was left unconscious with the folks at the hotel. He was a journalism student when he died on Earth, from your time, Frank. His name was..." Tommy struggled to remember since they always called him by his nickname. He prepared to get up from his chair to check his notes at the counter, but his memory returned before he could: "If I remember correctly, Carlos Aleixo. He went to Metropolis years ago to join the revolution. Maybe you'll find him there, but I don't think he has any idea what happened to Ramirez. He stayed here in the city for a while, but couldn't remember a bit about how he got there. Before he left, we learned that there are no records of him on real Earth, so the chances are that he came from the same place you did, Frank."

  After a while, confirming that no one had any info about Grandpa, not even inside the Seneca database, Frank continued, "Not so sure this guy came from the same place as me and Petra, Thanks for the hint anyway, so, supposing if I were to go to Metropolis now, it would have to be in ghost mode, which would be tricky. But has anyone else shown up in the meantime? And how does this revolution fit into all that?

  "Well, the explosion that day killed Kuj and part of his entourage. After that, Biggus lost the primaries and reacted brutally, maybe not in that order. They say he completely lost his sanity when the ballots dropped, destroying part of Metropolis with his magic, to the point that even the MBSI took a stand against him when people started dying," Tommy commented somberly.

  "Did they stop Biggus? And the Alphas?" Frank asked, concerned.

  "The Alphas defended Biggus at first, but they eventually abandoned him when they realized he had become unpredictable. The people managed to drive him out of the city, but the cost was high; many were lost in the process. Chester was among them; he was killed right at the start of the clashes," he commented, holding back his emotions.

  "So Biggus’ still alive, then?" Frank asked, aghast, after holding his ghostly head while hearing only his breath in a mourning mental silence.

  "No one knows for sure, but, for me, Biggus is alive, lurking somewhere. After being missing for over a year, the cursed bastard destroyed the entire city of spirits with his magic as revenge. Everyone who was there is gone forever," Tommy vented.

  "All the sumas died? I mean, died forever?" Frank asked in outrage, to everyone's surprise. Even Laetilia didn't know the full extent of what had happened.

  "I'm no expert on this, Frank, but from what I understand, that's right. Only the very few who weren't in the city of spirits survived," Tommy lamented.

  Frank paused for a moment for a mental conference. "What now, guys?" Silas was the first to respond, "We've lost all contact through technology; we have no way of knowing what happened to our friends from here. I suggest a better-planned alternative. See if Tommy knows anything about that Permaheat city Laetilia was talking about the moment I came to the bridge this morning. Because even though we're prevented from returning to Rocatrista by the curse, we can dump tons of our stored energy cells there to help rebuild the Northern region and re-establish some kind of network, information seems to be a bottleneck." Laetilia added, "That's an excellent idea, Silas! But Frank, please, asks what's happening in Metropolis today. Beni must be there helping a friend, and there's no easy way to contact him."

  Frank nodded reflectively and spoke again after another pause to breath, "Tommy, by any chance, do you know anything about a new city to the north? I think it's called Permaheat."

  "Yes, Frank, I have friends there. But with no veins connecting us, there is no simple trip without aerolitos. It's only accessible via transport ships, which makes everything quite dangerous," Tommy commented with some surprise.

  "We have a mountain of energy cells in stock that might be useful for the city, and we were thinking of setting up some kind of communication network. By the way, what's the situation in Metropolis today?" Frank added.

  "Hmm…" Tommy reflected for a few moments, then continued, "Yes, Frank. Our communication is compromised because energy is limited, and Metropolis is a complete mess. No single force has managed to restore order as far as I know. The closest is the MBSI allied with what's left of the armed forces and internal security, but the rejection of Biggus's former allies is huge and not just a local thing. Biggus's Metropolis made more enemies than allies over the years, and now there's a lot of interference from external interests. Anyway, if you send a significant amount of energy cells to Permaheat, it might be worth risking a transport," Tommy concluded.

  "Tommy, there's one thing I haven't tested yet, but I think it works. I can remotely enchant you with my telepathy, and then we could talk whenever you want. The communication channels are controlled like a usual communicator; you think it's worth a try?" Frank asked.

  Tommy thought for a moment and shook his head no. "I don't know, Frank. Alphas are rarer now, but they still show up at the bar from time to time, always passing through. If one of them notices your trick with his mental powers, that could be a problem, right?"

  Petra interjected mentally: "Remember the Vabala, and Ramirez. Magic isn't so easy to disguise. It's a big risk painting Tommy with magic." Silas, however, had another idea: "I can build a warp communicator and use the tip of our private network that monitors the Golems as a makeshift relay. It won't be perfect and will take some time. But maybe better than nothing," Liora remembered: "Hey, everyone! Adarian has one of those on his ship; after all, he used to talk to Mose. We can teleport back there and grab it." Laetilia confirmed: "The Golems passed Cernutos the same day we left and completely ignored the place, so nothing is stopping us from going back and pilage the ship."

  Frank responded as the mental conference concluded: "You're right, Tommy. Without Ramirez or other mages around, it would be too risky to use any magic. But we'll try a technological option. In the meantime, I'll come back to talk with you every 10 days in the morning. Sound good?"

  "That's perfect, Frank. I'm glad to know you're alive. And how are your friends?" Tommy asked, more relieved, leaning back in his chair.

  "They're all safe and sound here by my side, and relieved to find you well. I'm going to head out now. If anything happens on our end in the meantime, I'll pop in for an extra drink," Frank said in farewell, getting up from his chair in both forms.

  "Right, Frank. In the meantime, I'll contact a pilot patron who's living in Rocatrista, as Metropolis no longer prohibits ships. Next time, I'll bring him here to meet you. Who knows, he might have some information about where you're headed. Godspeed, Frank." Tommy bid farewell with a wave of his upper arms while his lower arms remained crossed. Frank nodded, relocated his magic target to his new personal bar throne, and ended the spell, vanishing from Tommy′s sight.

  Despite the news and its implications, a tense air still lingered on the bridge, but Frank broke the silence, "Alright, next up is Permaheat, and then I suggest we check on Cernutos. What do you all think?"

  Petra nodded in agreement, eager for some action, but Silas chimed in, "Frank, we need to hurry, but not rush. Permaheat is a good idea, but Cernutos... I don't know. Are you suggesting we go there for real, I mean, using one of Petra's portals?"

  Frank replied, "Exactly, Silas. We must focus on the problem ahead, and the sooner we receive information, the better. But why? Are you thinking of preparing something for Cernutos?"

  Silas scratched his chin as he answered, "Precisely. I've improved all of our protectors, especially Petra's and Laetilia's, who can use them effectively thanks to their training."

  Petra broke into a smile. "So that's the big new project? But is it ready for tomorrow?" Petra turned off one of her terminals and looked at Frank. "Before we move forward, I found a new piece of information about Grandpa's true name. We knew there was no exact match on the Seneca′s project list by his name and background, though it’s a common Portuguese name over the years. Maybe Maria knows more, as it could refer to any of several people." Frank just narrowed his eyes, wondering.

  Silas smiled back after a while, replying, "Interesting to know that, Petra, thanks. About the new devices, the improvements are almost ready, but that is not all. The big new project I refer to will take a long time. I'm thinking of making a technological version of Adarian's protective aura for all of us." At this, everyone's eyes widened in amazement.

  Laetilia winked and commented, "How cool, Silas! But wasn't his power psionic? I wouldn't even imagine how to do that with technology."

  Silas replied with encouraging conviction, "Ours will be even better. A technological force field, much like that metamorphosed spider we faced in Cernutos, when Frank was stopped mid-air in his jump, and I had to hit the deck to send Petra in time. This field will combine spatial distortion with energy-charged thrusters. I'll show you the design later, Laetilia, especially since I just started thinking about it a couple of days ago while reviewing our old logs. For now, it's just an idea."

  "Well, guys, I'm going to try for Permaheat now!" Frank said on a roll, already preparing his magic.

  "Let's do it, Frank. I have a portal at the King's Mountain observatory nearby; we can use it depending on what you find," Petra commented.

  Frank prepared his magic and, to his surprise, found himself on the shore of a vast lake, illuminated by a powerful tower of light far to the south, resembling a lighthouse acting as a sun, but nearly impossible to reach using his magic safely.

  "I'm in the middle of nowhere. At least it's much less cold than I imagined," Frank commented.

  "Looks like there's a city near that tower! And maybe even trees!" Petra noted, seeing faint lights blinking on the horizon through Frank's eyes.

  "They built the city on the other side of the lake. If I go at a turtle's pace, it'll take forever!" Frank concluded.

  "Can't you try casting that magic of yours again, Frank? I bet there is a bar in that city!" Petra suggested.

  "I haven't trained this in a long time, so I'm out of new free locations. If I try for a new spot, this one by the lake will disappear. Maybe it's better if I train to raise the potential of this magic a bit first," Frank replied, remembering how his magic works.

  "No, wait. What if I open a portal and we go near Permaheat directly? The Golems have already passed there, so it is safe, right?" Petra suggests.

  "Well, Petra, these Golems are smart. I've been analyzing their reactions along the whole path," Laetilia took the lead, continuing, "First, let me share some intel about the creator of those Golems; the things I've learned about the Lady of Tempus are far from complete, but it′s something. The being that we call a ghost is a shard of someone from a past multiverse who had an artifact that allowed her to manipulate time and space. Whoever possesses that artifact is nicknamed the Lady of Tempus, or Helostar in the ancient language, and those Golems are like an extension of her." Laetilia continues after thinking, "They are coming towards us following our path, as if they're tracking our past, and that's probably a time-space effect. I noticed that when those Golens reach a place where we entered Petra′s portals, they seem to hesitate and think about what to do. For now, their behavior is to follow the ship's path, even when we're inside the Dojo, so I think they would just ignore us if we visit Permaheat as they do with other portals, but I'm not 100% sure."

  "So, should I try to open the portal now, guys?" Petra asked eagerly.

  "Let's try it already!" Laetilia replied.

  "Wouldn't it be better to wait a day for the protectors?" Silas suggested cautiously, and Liora seemed to agree.

  "Could be. Or we could just send a probe there today. Who knows, maybe there's something left in the area," Petra reflected.

  "Seems good. Let's prep the probes! Everything will be ready in less than an hour," Silas announced, rising from his chair and heading to the lower deck, with everyone following, excitedly discussing possible alternatives.

  In a matter of minutes, a set of probes was ready, jury-rigged onto the ship's service drones. Silas called everyone over to the deck, saying, "Alright, here's what we'll do: Petra opens the portal, and we send in the sensors. She keeps the portal open while we try to figure out what's going on. In the meantime, Laetilia will keep an eye on the Golems to see if they react in any way. If things go wrong, we close the portal. What do you think?"

  "Sounds good to me! Can I start?" Petra asked, and everyone nodded in confirmation. She took her first and oldest stone, the light green one, and began to open her portal.

  "Attention, everyone, something's wrong!" Petra warned seconds before the portal opened, and as it was her fast magic, the effect was immediate. They expect the soft green colors of the magic to be shaped into a flat, circular plane, but the portal twisted into a purple, wavy vortex, distorting its entire edge into a spiral. The magic made a terrible noise, as if scratching the very walls of reality, but other than its appearance, absolutely nothing else happened.

  "What the hell is that?" Frank exclaimed.

  "I have no idea, and I'm not sensing anything on the other side, if there even is another side," Petra explained, trying to perceive something.

  "My sensors aren't picking up anything either. No readings that make any sense," Liora reported, continuing to try and detect anything.

  "Well, the Golems did not react," Laetilia added.

  "So? Are we sending the sensors in?" Silas asked.

  "I guess so. The portal's open. Any ideas, Petra?" Frank asked, observing the sinister movement of the portal before him.

  "Well, I had enchanted the observatory door, but I don't know what happened there. Laetilia, are there any records of the Golems' passage?" Petra asked, trying to make sense of it.

  "The King intercepted the Golems; they didn't go to the mountain. And when I met Stanwund in Permaheat, he said that Mosh and Vaud had already left for their city. I'm going to guess they took their observatory to the world of the dead, and this must have been even before Biggus supposedly destroyed the city," Laetilia ventured.

  "Ah! Okay, but if there is no more Spirits City, then where is this portal leading? There's nothing in the Vabala that mentions anything like this," Petra grumbled.

  After some time passed with everyone staring perplexed at the purple energy vortex emitting the sound of the abyss, Liora said, deactivating her ocular sensors, "Well, I've run every test I know. Both the light and the sound are severely shifted in the human perceptual spectrum, but it's a completely chaotic emission. There are no patterns beyond a more or less limited amplitude range." Liora huffed and concluded, "It was about time the magic started acting up. It′s a mess! Why am I not surprised?"

  "Alright, everyone, I'm sending the probes in and programming the bot to return after a few seconds. This portal is two-way, right, Petra?" Silas asked.

  "Yes, Silas, I can change the portal's properties, but there's nothing but sound and light coming from the portal itself at the moment. And the air on our side is already entering the portal with nothing coming back. Even if I close the one-way flow to prevent our air from going in, nothing happens," Petra said, scratching her head.

  With some care, Silas sent half a probe through a stick, but there were no readings, and the probe sustained no damage when he pulled it back. After that, he became confident and sent the full set of probes on the improvised drone, which passed the portal normally without apparent damage, but without any data until it was completely on the other side. As soon as the probe crossed the portal's threshold, all the metadata it was sending vanished, even more abruptly than when they tried something similar in Petra's fire universe. Time passed, and no signs of the probe returning. Silas crossed his arms and muttered an ebex curse.

  "Look on the bright side, guys. We have a one-way portal to nowhere. We can use it to send industrial waste from the factories in the Dojo, helping to preserve the environment in Gate," Frank joked.

  Petra facepalmed and didn't bother replying, because Laetilia couldn't stop laughing. Frank and Silas joined in, but somewhere between the laughs, their eyes met in fear, a brief exchange that said more than words could.

  "Well, it's best to close this thing, get some rest, and prepare for Cernutos with more calm. God knows what we'll find," Liora concluded, turning back to the piloting terminals.

  As Petra closed the portal, Silas spoke, "Let's take it easy. I suggest you guys train without rushing. What do you think?"

  Petra, relieved to see that nothing strange happened when she closed her portal magic, commented, "Well, I think Frank and I are going to learn some new magic. I'll start the last school of Vabala, but it'll still be a while before I get any new creation school spells. According to the Vabala, it's considered one of the most complex schools of magic!"

  Frank also made plans: "In my case, I intend to stop with further magics after ending the communication school basics and start knight training with Laetilia."

  The others' eyes went wide, but Laetilia shot first, "Yay! I'll have an apprentice already! But Frank, even though I think you'll learn quickly, it takes quite a while. A year or more before you can do anything, I am not sure. There's a whole series of fundamental things to explain about Gate, and I can't just pass on my memories. Still want to try?"

  "Of course! Let's do it! When do we start?" Frank smiled back.

  "How long do you need to finish your magic?" Laetilia asked.

  "A week. Not even," Frank replied, buzzing with excitement.

  "That′s perfect!" Laetilia smiled back.

  While everyone is returning to the bridge, Liora thought out loud through the group telepathy, "Who would have thought I'd one day be apprehensive about someone setting aside the path of magic?"

  Laetilia replied lightly, "Don't worry. It will be months at the safe zone spent on meditation; only after that will he decide on the techniques. I only know one, but it's quite useful against mental and physical domination powers, and it'll be great to have someone else among us who knows these things."

  After a few moments, a smile spread across Liora's face at her piloting terminal. She realized how easily Laetilia had convinced her again, and with reason, that this was a good idea after all. The days that followed fell into a hectic routine. The daytime was spent training in the Dojo with everyone together, except for Silas, and afterward, each went their separate way. Silas remained completely focused on his projects; Laetilia and Frank spent their time meditating and conversing; Petra adventured through new pages of the Vabala; and Liora put in extra hours at the dojo, perfecting her physical training.