“What do we do?” Kalli asked, staring down at the cat. “Do we have to walk there?”

Orpheus shook his head. “No. I can transport us. Melvin, you said that you’d like to take guards with you? I can transport a maximum of five people, including myself. That means the two of you and two more to guard you.”

Two guards were significantly less than I originally wanted.

Should we just walk there?

Kalli flashed me a concerned look. Do we have a week to travel there?

Shaking my head, I began to debate who the best two people to take with us would be. The only people I had on hand from our group were Wendy and Crypian. The prophet was useless and Joe would kill me if I put Wendy in danger again.

I needed the two strongest people in my empire but also people I knew and trusted. After thinking about it, I made my suggestion.

How about we take Esha and Boombrix?

Kalli shrugged. That sounds good to me. I’m just excited to see the castle. Do you think I could have been born there?

It’s possible. You did end up here when I cast warp on you. The cat has a point. Somewhere deep down, you think this is your home. Not the monastery.

Even though Kalli smiled, I could feel her nerves as she thought about the cat’s offer. Taking her hand, I informed Orpheus. “We will be right back.”

And then we were off.

The first stop was the Thief’s Corridor. We appeared in front of the army, causing Nolgrit to stop in his tracks and nearly get trampled by a line of ogres that marched behind him.

He quickly collected himself. “Welcome, my lord. Why are you here? Do you need something?”

Scanning the row of troops, I called out, “Boombrix? I’m looking for the goblin Boombrix.”

A murmur spread through the ranks as my request made its way down the line. Suddenly a shrill voice in the distance spoke. “Boombrix is here.”

The ranks parted and soon I saw a small group of goblins rushing over. When she arrived, I explained, “I need you to come with us for a mission.”

She knelt in front of me and replied, “Boombrix and her sisters will serve. Just tell us what to do.”

Shaking my head, I said, “I can only take you.”

Once we collected Boombrix, a quick trip over to the City Under the Mountain brought us to Esha, who was all too happy to join us.

Orpheus spent several minutes inspecting my two recruits when we got back. After sniffing Boombrix to his satisfaction, he tried to do the same to Esha and wound up hacking and wheezing for a full minute. “My lord, what is that stench.”

Esha winked at the cat. “Grade A troll. As a cat, you should appreciate a good natural scent.”

Orpheus spluttered a few more times for good measure. “I’ll have to remember that the next time I inspect a troll.”

His words made me wonder if he somehow pulled up system menus using his nose. After taking a few seconds to compose himself, he padded back over to us. “These are the two you wish to take with you?”

Kalli grinned and replied, “Yes.”

Sensing her excitement, Orpheus asked, “Are you ready to see where you were born? Your home?”

“Yes!” She repeated, more excited than ever.

Her enthusiasm was creeping into me through our bond and I found myself shaking with an intensity that made me giddy. Orpheus stood in the middle of us and said, “Brace yourselves. We are off.”

The next thing I knew, we were walking through the void. It felt strange accompanying someone else when I was used to teleporting on my own. Then we were there. Half-crumbled walls stood in a field of rubble that stretched out for miles in all directions.

“What happened here?” Kalli asked with tears of sadness welling in her eyes. “You didn’t tell me that it was in ruins.”

Orpheus looked sadly up at her and said, “Mages. This is the power of magic. Without the queen’s protection, we stood defenseless before them.”

“The queen’s protection?” Kalli echoed the words in a weak voice.

The cat nodded. “Come, I will show you.”

We followed Orpheus on an intricate path through the ruins. Esha, by far the largest of us, struggled to keep up as she constantly had to turn sideways to shimmy through some of the narrow openings. We stopped when she got stuck on a particularly jagged outcropping.

DELETE

She gasped as I removed the obstacle and stumbled forward a few steps. “Ah! Oh, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” I replied, turning to catch up with Orpheus who had gotten ahead with Kalli and Boombrix. “How are trolls so nimble underground yet so clumsy topside?”

Esha’s face drooped as she trudged along behind me. “Troll claws are made for the soft earth in the caves. This is not soft.”

As I hurried to catch up, I noticed that Kalli was speaking to Orpheus. “What happened to all of the people that used to live here?”

The cat plodded ahead as he answered.“Many died. Others scattered. I believe the villagers that joined Melvin’s empire are likely survivors of old Celestea.”

“Is there a chance that the thing you are looking for was destroyed?” Kalli asked.

Orpheus shook his head. “Never. The artifact beneath this place is ancient magic and nigh-indestructible.”

As we continued into the bowels of the ruins, the half-collapsed walls threw shadows that danced in the corner of my vision. I hurried to catch up with the cat. “Is this place really abandoned?”

“Some say it’s haunted.” Orpheus laughed as he rounded a corner. “A lot of people were crushed when the walls fell.”

“Your wife?” Kalli asked nervously.

Orpheus cleared his throat several times before answering. “No. Not her. She died trying to help the people escape. I found her in the tunnels with one of those… things standing over her.”

“What things?” I asked, glancing into the darkness.

“Minions of the dark one.” Orpheus spat, hissing at the shadows. “Evil creations of dark wizards with no free will of their own. They exist only to do the will of their master.”

Staring into the darkness made me see movement that I was starting to suspect was just a figment of my imagination. I saw it all over the place after Orpheus told me there had been monsters.

Seeing only the cat’s tail as he continued behind a pile of rubble, I asked, “Could any of them still be here?”

Orpheus didn’t sound sure of himself when he explained, “That’s impossible. The host would have to be close by. Why would they waste their time out here in an abandoned ruin?”

“What about this ancient magic we're looking for?” I asked, starting to think we were walking into a trap.

The cat’s voice began to echo as he descended a staircase that was partially obstructed by rubble. “No. It would be useless to anyone but the heir. The magic is blood locked to she who would be queen.”

I jogged to catch up, taking Kalli by the arm. “Isn’t it a bad idea to take Kalli here like this if she’s the heir? Are you sure this isn’t a trap?”

Kalli clutched my arm and turned to look at me. Do you really think it’s a trap?

I shrugged, looking over my shoulder one last time as we made our way into the under-castle. Up ahead, Orpheus explained, “Nobody knows we are here so there is no point in laying a trap. These ruins have been abandoned for twelve years. I would know.”

“How would you know?” I asked, keeping a wary eye on the shadows.

Kalli gave me a little shove. It wasn’t enough for anyone else to see and it didn’t have any malice to it. She whispered, “His wife is buried here. Of course, he visits.”

We walked in silence for a while, following Orpheus as he padded down the dusty hall. Esha and Boombrix chatted quietly as they followed close behind.

“It’s just around this…” Orpheus suddenly stopped speaking just as he disappeared around a corner.

Hastening to follow, we rounded the corner and immediately retreated when we saw a pair of shadows with bright red glowing eyes. A raspy voice hissed from the darkness. “You cannot hide down here. Not from us.”

What should we do? Escape?

Kalli called out. “Orpheus? Are you safe in there?”

There was no answer. A sudden scream and a flash behind us caused Kalli and me to dive back through the doorway into the room. The explosion that followed shook the walls of the catacombs.

“Boom, are you okay?” I screamed as I pulled Kalli to her feet just in time to dodge a shadowy claw.

The voice hissed. “You cannot escape. Our master is approaching.”

Beside me, Kalli burst into flame, driving back all of the shadows and the monsters within. The creatures shrieked as they were repulsed by the bright flames. I scanned the room, looking for any sign of Orpheus.

Where is that cat?

Kalli sent a wall of flame into the corner, driving the shadow creatures further away from us. You don’t think they got him, do you?

I don’t think so. We would see his body somewhere.

Kalli and I shifted positions so she could get the other half of the room with her magic as she asked, What if they ate him?

I cringed at the thought as I called out again, “Orpheus. Say something if you’re alive.”

The only reply was an angry hiss. “He draws near.”

More explosions rattled the walls. It was obvious that Boombrix and Esha were fighting back. I suddenly remembered that I could communicate with them in guild chat.

Esha, are you two okay?

Boombrix’s voice replied. Boombrix is making big booms. She brings down the roof on unwary spooks.

Esha quickly followed up. These things aren’t that smart. We can handle them. Wait, he is here. I see him.

Who is here? What are you talking about?

There was no answer. The walls continued to shake and dust drifted down from the ceiling as explosions continued to rattle off somewhere in the distance. Kalli sprayed the room with a sheet of flames, keeping the shadows at bay as they spat and hissed but were unable to get any closer to the pyromancer.

Her voice in my ear sounded panicked as she asked, Should we teleport to safety?

Part of me wanted to grab Kalli and do just that but I was tired of abandoning my friends. As for the cat, I wasn’t entirely convinced that Orpheus hadn’t found a way to betray us. I decided to stand my ground.

Kalli, I have an idea. Can you buy me some time?

She was weary but determined. Don’t worry about me, Mel. Do what you need to.

ENTERING WORLD EDITOR MODE

The first thing I noticed when I floated above the catacomb was that it was a maze that led to a central room. The room Kalli and I were in. From the top-down view, I could tell that there was something in the middle of the room.

Kalli, can you move forward a few feet?

She responded by taking a few tentative steps, continuing to bathe the room in flames as she walked. Then she stopped, asking, Okay, now what?

Do you see anything?

I could see a tiny Kalli with flames shooting out of her from my perch in World Editor Mode. I’m a little busy down here. What am I looking for?

Deciding to deal with the shadow problem first, I made four walls around Kalli, creating a room within the room. She yelped when her flame hit the wall and washed back over her. Eep! A little warning next time, Melvin!

Sorry.

I dropped out of World Editor mode to find Kalli standing next to me looking down at something on the floor. My first thought was to examine it.

Item:

??? of ??? Queen

Components

????, ???, ???, ?????

Item Rank:

S

Item Level:

1

Item Owner:

Celestea

We both knelt at the same time as Kalli reached out for it. Do you think it’s safe?

I shrugged and placed a hand on Kalli’s shoulder, hoping that alone would protect her.

I don’t know but it looks like it’s what we came down here for. Do you think we can really trust that cat?

She looked hopeful. He made the vow, didn’t he?

Then she picked it up. The effect was immediate. A jolt that started in Kalli pierced my core and radiated out through my entire body. We both grunted as a well of mana erupted from somewhere deep below the ruins, flowed into our bodies and encapsulated itself in our cores.

Green mana that matched the Gaian sky swirled into our bodies as though it were circling the drain in a bathtub. When the mana was gone, we found ourselves sprawled on the floor in the tiny space I had walled us into. Kalli looked down at her empty hands and asked, Where did it go?

When I looked over at Kalli, I noticed a strange silver band clamped securely to her upper arm.

It’s there. I think it bound itself to you like the artifacts I own.

Kalli looked down at her arm with a frown before looking at me and giggling. You have one too.

I glanced down at my arm and noticed a duplicate band.

Item:

??? of the bonded

Components

?????, ??, ???, ????

Item Rank:

S

Item Level:

1

Item Owner:

Murphy

Looking up at me, Kalli asked, Now what?

The system answered for her.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO RESTORE CASTLE CELESTEA? Y/N?

We exchanged a glance and nodded to each other. YES. The wall I had painstakingly built disintegrated as the world around us reshuffled itself. The shadow monsters cried out in agony as something latched onto them and dragged them out of the room.

A loud rumbling sound shook the world around us as Kalli and I clung to each other on the floor. Having an idea, I reentered World Editor Mode and we both rose higher and higher until we were looking down on the ruins.

Only there were no longer any ruins. The Celestea below us was a magnificent castle that towered over a city that stretched out as far as we could see in every direction.

Kalli whistled as she looked at the castle that was likely her birthplace. Wow, this is incredible.

It really is.

The next thing that happened was even more surprising. We both got the message at the same time.

NEW TRAIT ACQUIRED: [BLOODLINE: CELESTEA]