***Tirnanog, Mount Aerie***

***Magnus***

Both of my companions were studying the documents Sienna had given us.

I waited until the carriage was well on its way before I asked the question which was bugging me since the doctor had mentioned it. “So, symbionts are a thing here?”

Ivona was the first to react to my question. “Why didn’t you ask earlier? It looked like Sienna was extremely well versed in anything that relates to health and mutations. You really should have asked her.”

“I was already tired when the matter came up,” I admitted. “And quite honestly, I am also becoming numb to all the shit I encountered since I came to this world. From a tree trying to stake me, down to fluffballs with claws as long as my arm. I stopped giving a shit if you excuse the expression.”

Ivona bit her lower lip in concern. “We have to sit down and talk more about what happened to you since we were separated.”

Then my little sister grinned and leaned back in her seat opposite from me. “To answer your question: Yes, symbionts are a thing. Several animals in this world live in symbiosis with each other. If you know how, a human can butt in and replace one of the parties.”

“Though,” Astra interjected from her seat next to me. “It is very rare for people to do that. There aren’t many symbionts which can be usurped easily.”

“Okay,” I sighed. “The question is moot anyway. I am not going to allow some slime or mould to grow on my privates.”

“Yeah, no.” My partner affirmed. “Sienna went kind of extreme with those. Most people who accept symbionts find themselves some animal that can assist them with poison, enhancing drugs, or fight at their side. Which is a little hard in our case. We would have to be constantly on the lookout not to electrocute it.”

She drew out a sheet of paper and held it so I could take a look. “It would be a different topic if we find ourselves a bloodmantle. They are known to be highly protective of their host and their resistance to electricity is noted here.”

I looked at a drawn picture of a creature that had similarities with our filaments. The monster was a flying stingray that had an unholy intermingling with several snakes.

“Not only do they enter a symbiotic relationship by cleansing their partner’s blood, but their blood also enhances their partner with various effects. Like better oxygen transport and resistance to various diseases. Bloodmantle riders are known for their superhuman endurance and ability to survive at elevated heights,” Astra explained.

“Riders?” I asked. “That thing is large enough to ride on it?”

“Yes!” Astra put the paper back in its place inside the folder. “The older specimens are noted to have a wingspan of thirty metres or more, but I think we would do well with catching a baby to start with.”

“Sure…” I shook my head. “Why don’t we catch a dragon to make things easy? That was sarcasm, just so you know. Please say there are no dragons on this world.”

“There are no dragons on this world,” Astra affirmed with a smile. “Just creatures who look like them.”

I groaned.

“Oh! I’ve already mentioned it, but you probably didn’t comprehend it fully from just talking about it. You have to see the Lloyds’ bestiary farm! It’s more like an airport to be honest because they tamed a sizeable flock of avians.” Astra’s eyes wandered off into the distance. “I should probably take you on a tour to all the families so you can see their proficiencies for yourself.”

I held up both hands to stop her. “I think you mentioned something about the Lloyds being the best animal tamers around. Why don’t we do that tomorrow? I am beaten.”

Astra nodded. “We would need an appointment anyway. I will take care of it tomorrow.”

Thankfully, the carriage stopped at that moment. We had reached the estate. I wasn't ready to call it home, but I hoped it would be.

I exited first and then tried myself at being a gentleman by first helping my sister and then Astra. Not that either of them needed the help. It was just a nice gesture.

Astra showed my sister to her new rooms before she linked arms with me and guided me down a hallway to her quarters.

Though, I quickly found that she had more than enough space for herself to rival a house. Her rooms included a swimming pool with permanently running water and several dome-shaped rooms which almost felt empty, given the high ceiling.

“This is a little more than just private quarters, Astra. I guess architecture isn’t constricted when you just have to carve out the space you want,” I commented while I surveyed the living room. “Someone didn’t like flat surfaces – except for the floor.”

“Thank you!” Astra replied. “I designed my quarters myself. When I was between eighteen and nineteen.”

I fought not to laugh. “Just admit you didn’t want to measure out the area and just carved away what you wanted.”

She pouted. “That’s not the case. But I do admit that the smoothing touches were done by professionals. My mother said she couldn’t have her daughter live in a cave.”

I finally lost it and laughed despite my tiredness.

Astra left my side and went over to a round alcove in the wall. “Besides, the shape of these rooms is best to transmit sound and to have it resound properly. I did a lot of measuring before I copied the shape from some old tomes in the library.”

I followed her to the alcove where Astra had stored a sorted collection of old devices. She fiddled with an ancient-looking music player that she had hooked up to a damaged television soundbar.

Then the room was filled with violin music and a grinning Astra twirled around like a ballerina. She gave me a little show before she swooped back into my arms. We hugged and swayed with the slowly flowing music while we simply enjoyed being in each other’s arms. I sighed and rested my chin on her head, simply relaxing in her warmth.

It felt so natural that I hardly noticed the time passing before the music came to a gradual stop.

Astra sighed. “I want to do that again. Tomorrow. And you need dancing lessons.”

“I am in,” I affirmed and raised her chin with a finger until I could kiss her.

The morning came faster than expected.

I wormed my way out of Astra’s embrace and got washed and dressed before I left our quarters with the firm intention to get myself familiarized with the estate.

Right outside her rooms, I encountered two guards who didn’t stop me when I strolled past them. I leisurely walked along the central hallway while peeking into all the unlocked rooms.

Among them, I found a training hall, a library, the living area which I already knew, and what looked like several offices.

By that point, I realized the estate was huge.

An hour into my exploration activities, I found the office of the accountant who had brought Teresa my documents. She was a gaunt-looking woman whose filaments were almost brittle compared to all the other Frosts I had seen so far. Introducing myself by asking about her age probably wasn’t the best idea.

“Hi!” I opened the conversation with a grin.

She looked up from whatever she was doing on her desk and squinted her grey eyes at me as if she had to focus. “What do you want?” came the brisk reply.

“I was just looking around,” I continued with what I hoped to be a charming smile. “Getting myself familiarized with the people. My name is Magnus.”

“I know that.” She pursed her lips while she studied me like I was some curiosity.

My demeanour didn’t falter. “Normally, people respond with an introduction when someone gives his name.”

“My name is Mary Frost,” she replied. “I am the family’s head manager.”

I entered the office and sat down across from her. “Manage what? Astra mentioned the family is very involved with hunting in the depths?”

Mary nodded but looked like she wasn’t pleased by me wasting her time. “The Frosts are accomplished hunters. A sizeable part of the family is risking their lives in the natural caverns at all times. We hunt beasts that the other families couldn’t hope to get their hands upon. I manage these hunting expeditions and see to it that the requests from the other families are fulfilled in a timely fashion.”

“How many people do you normally have outside at any given time?” I asked.

She tilted her head. “Do forgive me, but I wasn’t informed which role you will play as the mistress’s consort. Giving you this information is a bit…”

“I get it,” I waved a hand to dismiss the matter as unimportant. “Could I get a guide?”

“A guide?” The woman looked confused.

“I would like to explore the central cavern. Get to know the people. See how they live,” I clarified. “Is there someone who can show me around?”

It took a little more prodding, but eventually, Mary set me up with a clansman named Winston to act as my babysitter. Likely more so to get me out of her filaments than to be helpful.

We left the estate and Winston took me on a trip through the central cavern. It felt a little like being a tourist as I allowed myself to be guided through public living quarters, markets, and entertainment-oriented businesses.

The Aerie had a real city beneath the mountain.

On our way out of a market, a vendor caught my eye. He had several huge, organ-shaped stones on display. They ranged from the size of a head to small boulders that I would have trouble lifting alone.

“What are those?” I asked.

“Monster cores,” Winston replied without a second look. “The larger beasts grow them throughout their bodies instead of hearts. They are different from beast to beast, but they are almost biomechanical in nature. The craftsmen value them for their materials. Many are rich in metals or other important elements.”

“Really?” I turned and regarded the stones with more interest. “Is it possible to get them to work outside a monster?”

My guide shrugged. “Not to my knowledge. But if you are interested, you just have to check the warehouses back at the estate. We are the main suppliers of the things.”

I made a mental note to do that and gestured for Winston to lead the way.

When we walked past a gate with an advertisement that was unmistakable throughout all of humanity’s history, I found myself perplexed to find it here, so I peppered Winston with another question. “How does that even work?”

Winston followed my eyes and coughed, visibly embarrassed.

“Oh, come on!” I urged him on. “We are both adults!”

He looked mortified as he explained, “Well, you know, things only get ‘dire’ when you stick it in the ‘correct’ place. As long as you follow that rule, you can allow them to give you a handjob. Or a blowjob. Or just strip for you.”

“So anal works too?” I asked, unable to stop myself from torturing the prude.

“Yes.” He looked like I had shot the pope.

I rolled my eyes and we continued the tour – with me being one experience richer.

The central cavern was a fantastic place with its winding streets and stairways, but once the uniqueness wore off, I realized it was just like any other city populated by humans.

But there were too many stairs! If I ever wanted to torture someone, I would just have to give him the task to count every stair in Aerie. The few elevators here and there just couldn’t manage the transport requirements of the citizens. So most of it fell to the inclining streets and stairs.

The upper sections of the cavern were reserved for government purposes and the larger families with power. There were dedicated living areas in the middle. Commerce, and production were restricted to the lower levels. And furthest down were the areas for the poor. The setup reflected the various strata which Astra had mentioned.

My tour was interrupted when I came across a gathering of people. The interesting part was that it didn’t seem related to trade or another business. Instead, the people were listening to a guy in a green ceremonial garb as he preached about something.

I turned to my guide.

He sighed. “That’s a priest of Gaia. You can walk past the mob and take a look into the church.”

“Publicly practised religion? Seriously?” I asked.

Earth’s government had ended all publicly exercised religions centuries ago, seeing them as just one more excuse which Earth’s multitudes used for warfare. Which didn’t mean religion wasn’t still practised in private.

I wasn’t sure how I felt on the matter. In my mind, idiots would always find a reason to fight each other. If it wasn’t their belief, then it was the colour of their skin. During the 31st century, the South Americans had somehow managed to start a war over eye colour.

Okay, maybe Earth’s government had a point in shutting down anything which had the potential for causing unrest.

I went around the gathering, barely listening to the preacher. It wasn’t like he was talking about something interesting. The main topic of his speech was the power of nature and how people should revere the gifts and opportunities this world was offering them.

Once I was past the crowd, I entered the church through the flamboyant doors which rivalled the entrance to the Frost’s estate.

The walls had a stained glass mosaic which showed off Tirnanog’s flora and fauna. I recognized some of the creatures from our trek between the Old Camp and Mount Aerie.

The ceiling was cone-shaped and seemingly rose to infinity above the central altar at the back of the room. I assumed it was some kind of ventilation shaft.

Above the altar rose a statue of an indistinct female figure in flowing robes. It wasn’t a sexualized display, but one of reverence that I felt inexplicably drawn to. I wasn’t sure what it was about this place, but I felt the need to acknowledge there was something greater than I.

Slowly, I walked further into the room, following the red carpet that separated two rows of heavy, stone benches.

I massaged my chin while I tried to explore this feeling when someone touched my shoulder.

It was a priestess who had snuck up on me while I had been smitten by the scene.

“Are you here to join the church of Gaia?” the woman asked with a smile on her lips. “Our door stands open for anyone who needs help.”

“What kind of help are you offering?” I found myself asking.

“Help of any kind,” the woman replied and slid her hand down my shoulder until she met my hand. “We employ the unemployed and offer help to those who suffer ailments of the mind. We also search for suitable partners within the general population. Gaia’s will is for all people to flourish in this new world.”

“I see,” I replied, still focused on the strange feeling as it rose in intensity. I felt the desire to kneel and spill all my worries to this priestess. It wasn’t so overbearing as to override conscious thought, but it was distracting.

Normally, I wouldn’t have given a second thought to an emotion, but I had never been a religious person before. I had visited historic churches back on Earth and none of them had incited this need for worship within me.

As a highly logical person, I never had given in to something like religion. If there was something greater than I, then it was so. If there wasn’t, then there wasn’t. Why would I waste my time worshipping something which likely would never affect me?

I frowned when I realized my thoughts were slipping.

“You seem highly troubled,” the strange priestess kept speaking. “Why don’t you share your worries? Things are a lot easier to endure when you know you aren’t bearing the weight alone.”

Then I suddenly remembered why this strange sensation of reverence felt so familiar. I had felt it before, only to a much lesser degree when I had been with Thalia.

I grabbed the priestess’s hand back so she couldn’t escape and charged my muscles, quickly fluctuating the current.

The woman stuttered and dropped like a puppet who had its strings cut.

I stopped and let go of her hand, then examined the room once more.

Suddenly, this was just some church. The artworks and the artistry were nice, but it was just a thing, something made by human hands to look pretty on the eye. Whatever had caused the religious experience was gone and there was little doubt in my mind regarding the cause.

I couldn’t prevent my lips from curling in disgust when I looked down at the unconscious woman to my feet.

Then I remembered where I was and quickly looked around. Thankfully, I didn’t see anyone screaming and pointing fingers at me. All the people were in front of the church to listen to their preacher.

It took me only a few seconds to think before I bent down and grabbed the woman by her robes. Quickly, I dragged her unconscious body between two of the stone benches so she wouldn’t be seen immediately.

Then I straightened and made sure my attire was sitting correctly.

With a jovial smile, I strolled out of the church and found my guide leaning against a wall. He was disinterestedly listening to the preacher who still had the crowd’s undivided attention.

“Seen anything noteworthy?” Winston asked once I joined up with him. “Decided to join the congregation?”

I forced myself to smile. “Not anytime soon, though I’ve learned something interesting. How about we return to the estate. I think Astra must be awake by now. There is a lot we have to talk about.”

“As you wish, sir,” Winston turned to lead the way with a sudden skip in his step. It was quite apparent he hadn’t been thrilled to play the guide.