Morning came, the sunlight filtering down between the trees. Michael woke with sunlight streaming down onto his face. The night had been warm so he chose to sleep outside with Hazel. Getting up he set about preparing breakfast, lighting the fire with a fiery Wizard Arrow, he cut strips of Manglethrunt meat to approximate bacon and paired them with some Vitruvian eggs, something that looked exactly like chicken eggs but with pink yolks.

Taking out his frying pan he started frying everything, applying a few spices he had bought from the System Store. He was halfway through cooking when Olivia came out of her tent, already dressed in her Mage robes. "That smells good."

Michael smiled. "Thanks. Bacon from an ugly as sin creature called a Manglethrunt and eggs from a Vitruvian. Looks kinda weird but very tasty. My cooking skill is only at level 7 and this stuff still bives decent buffs."

Olivia packed up her tent as Michael finished cooking. Taking a plate and some cutlery, things he'd sorely missed during his Tutorial, he dished up a portion for Olivia. Hazel wandered into the campsite, face bloody from her own breakfast. Quickly tapping hear with a clean, courtesy of his Cleansing Soap, Michael got a plate of food and settled down to eat. Breakfast was simple but plentiful, a necessity with the life he led. Olivia hadn't had a breakfast this big in a while, days of bureaucratic nonsense not making for an active lifestyle, but she filled herself as much as possible, the day was likely to be an active one. She'd already told Michael that she would rather travel with him than force him to wait in one spot for the portal to come off cooldown.

Secretly, she was hoping for an adventure. Her life had included far too many meetings recently and she was itching for a bit of action.

After they finished breakfast Michael deconstructed the camp and they moved out. Michael introduced Olivia to the joys of tree-running, playing games of treetop tag to help her increase her skill (lowercase s). They occasionally fought some Monsters but didn't go out of their way to look for them. Olivia ay have wanted some action but she wouldn't endanger their lives because she was bored.

The several rather peaceful hours they spent together, trekking through the woods, proved the silliness of humans. Olivia wanted action but didn't want to endanger Michael, Michael needed to kill hundreds of Monsters but didn't want to drag Olivia into a kill Quest against her wishes. If either had spoken honestly to each other they could have gone on a happy little murderous rampage but instead they had what amounted to a pleasant walk through the woods, leaving both feeling frustrated. Hazel walked along behind them, watching the two curiously. She was aware of their frustration as well as their desire to hunt, she could smell it in their scents, yet neither of them acted. She was thoroughly confused by this so she continued to watch in silence, hoping to understand the meaning behind it. There was much of the human culture that she did not understand, despite being born of a humans soul.

The timer on the Portal eventually came to an end and Michael and Hazel said goodbye to Olivia. Anne popped through the portal, both to help Michael resupply on a few essentials and to give Hazel a hug. Michael was a bit put out that everyone seemed to like Hazel more than him but on careful reflection he couldn't help but find the idea of an adorable magic bear more appealing than a half-cheating semi-idiotic man.

With Anne there Michael decided it was probably the best time for Hazel to drink the Potion of the Elements, especially as Anne had an Aura skill that, amongst other things, increased Pain Resistance. With Anne's Aura set up Hazel drank the potion. At first there seemed to be no effect, Michael starting to wonder if the potion simply didn't work on Nyo Bears, then Hazel suddenly roared in pain and collapsed to the ground. Michael immediately rushed to her side but stopped as his Mana Sight self activated. This had happened a few times when he moved into an area with a sudden increase in Mana density and that held true now. Hazel was currently shrouded by four different types of Mana: the solid brown of Earth, the vibrant red of Fire, the glacial blue of Ice and the wispy green of Wind.

Michael felt a bit worried about the Mana potentially attracting predators so he activated his Amulet of the Wolf Pack, summoning three wolves, and had them patrol the surrounding area. The wolves wouldn't last long but it should be enough, they'd warn him if anything got close. As an added precaution he also changed his Ring of the Elements over to Earth; he'd be ready to pull up an Earthen Wall if anything attacked.

He would have prepared for the battle more thoroughly, if not for the pain he was feeling. The feeling didn't originate from himself, but from his bond with Hazel. She couldn't even form words, the pain was simply too much. So Michael did something he had theorized was possible but had never tried before. Sitting down and closing his eyes, he reached down with his mind and immersed his mind in the bond. Immediately the pain he felt skyrocketed, the link seemingly widening under the combined onslaught of his mind and Hazels pain. Gritting his teeth Michael swam through the current of pain, his mind delving deeper through the link. He moved through a ocean of pain, the constant hammering on his mind threatening to drown him, until he found her. Surprisingly, Hazels inner representation was not of her furry form, but of a small girl. If he had met the girl in the real world he would have dismissed her, but here in the realm of the mind Michael recognized Hazel immediately.

Hazel was currently curled on the floor, or the mental representation of the floor, in the fetal position. Michael moved to her side and touched her. The touch wasn't enough to wake her from the trance she was in so he picked her up and sat with her in his arms, comforting her with his presence. Together the two shared the burden of the pain until what felt like years later, but was in reality barely a minute, the pain started to subside. The Hazel in Michaels arms didn't wake from the trance but instead fell into a natural sleep, exhausted by the ordeal. With his job done, Michael gently placed Hazel on to the floor and retreated back to his body. Opening his eyes he immediately closed them again as a natural response to getting slapped. His arm snapped up and he caught the next slap before it reached him. Looking to the origin of the slap he said "You really need to learn a better way of waking someone up."

Anne huffed. "It's not my fault you went to sleep when your companion was in agony."

Michael smiled. "You're right, how silly of me."

Anne looked at him with suspicion."What are you hiding? Were you actually sleeping? What's going on?"

Michael shrugged. "Don't worry about it."

Anne continued to stare at him suspiciously for a few moments before tossing her hair and walking towards the portal saying "I don't need this ____." Just before she entered the portal she stopped. Without looking back she said "I'm glad you're safe idiot." and then she was gone.

Michael's eyebrows raised, he hadn't expected that. Shrugging, he walked over to Hazels side and sat down leaning against her. He then pulled up his notifications. He'd heard the soft dings of them coming in but had been too distracted to pay attention to what they said.

Skill Increase!

Beginner Taming lvl 5 -> lvl 10

Enhanced Bond lvl 3 -> lvl 10

Skill Merge!

Beginner Taming (Tier 1) and Enhanced Bond (Tier 2) has merged and evolved into the skill Soul Bond (Tier 3)!

Achievement Earned!

The ability to gain a skill beyond your Tier is rare and rarer still for those below the fourth Tier. By dong so you have gained the achievement Overskilled.

Overskilled - Skill evolutions become easier.

Michael was shocked. No, he was beyond shocked. He'd expected an increase in his Enhanced Bond and possibly his Beginner Taming thanks to his actions but he had never expected to max one of them out, never mind both. The merge and evolution, that literally blew his socks off. (A/N Mana can be quite responsive to excessive emotions.) He pulled up the information for Soul Bond.

Soul Bond

Tier 3, Level 1, Soul Companion Skill, Rare

-10 Mana Regen

Connect with your companion in both Mind and Soul. Additional effects unlocked at milestone levels.

Milestones:

level 1 - Instinctual communication

Level 5 - Sense sharing

Level 10 - Mana sharing

Level 15 - Spell sharing

Level 20 - Skill sharing

Level 25 - Two as One

Michael was no longer shocked, which worried him. It seemed as if the Soul Bond skill description had completely broken his ability to be shocked. It had also destroyed his socks, and he had only just put them back on. Putting a new pair on Michael pondered the implications of the skill. The most obvious that he'd truly been an idiot. He had thought himself amazing, his skills being stronger than most, but that had been an arrogant assumption. The skill description showed that, as strong as his skills were, none were even past the most common qualities.

To most, the realisation of their own ignorance would be a mood dampener but to Michael it was an excitement. He'd known about Skill Tiers but not Skill Qualities. In hindsight, his upgraded skills did hint at the possibility, if they didn't outright show it. he wasn't sure what the skill rarities were, if Rare as equivalent to the Rare Quality or if it was equivalent to the Uncommon Quality. To put it simply, it showed a whole wealth of knowledge ready for him to explore. He was actually hoping that he'd never run into something or someone with the knowledge just so that he could explore it all himself.

With no more Notifications to pull up Michael pulled up Hazels Status.

Soul Companion Status Name Hazel Age You should never ask a Lady Level 5 Experience 310 / 800 Race Nyo Bear Tier 2 Health 160 / 160 Mana 240 / 240 Health Regen 8 per min Mana Regen 12 per min Attributes Strength 15 Agility 16 Vitality 16 Dexterity 13 Perception 18 Magic 24 Skills General Earth Armor lvl 8 Stone Spikes lvl 6 Regrowth lvl 7 Thorny Retribution lvl 6 Buffeting Roar lvl 1 Fiery Armor lvl 1 Glacial Barricade lvl 1 Elemental Protection lvl 1 Affinities Earth 44% Nature 28% Wind 15% Fire 15% Ice 15% Life 8% Innate Abilities Barrier of Pure Protection

Michael smiled, happy to see how much progress Hazel had made in a relatively short time, and that she got several decent sounding skills out of the potion. Glacial Barricade sounded like an icy version of Earthen Wall and Fiery Armor sounded like the fire version of Hazels Earth Armor. Other than that Michael had no real idea of what the new skills did. Unfortunately even though Mihael could look at Hazels Status whenever he wanted he couldn't actually access it, so he couldn't look up what the skills did. Only Hazel could do that, and only when she was conscious.

So Michael waited.

Hazel woke up the next morning to the smell of meat coming off of the slab in front of her. She was half way through the slab when she woke up enough to remember what had happened. She quickly finished off the meat, no sense in letting good food spoil, and looked around. Michael was sitting down on a log a few feet from her, watching her with a smile on his face. [Hey Dad]

[Morning. Slept well?] Michael asked, doing that funny thing where he still moved his lips a little when he spoke telepathically. He probably didn't even know he was doing it which made it even funnier.

Hazel stretched, working some of the soreness out of her muscles. [Yeah, I actually did. Do you know what happened? I remember drinking the potion and then feeling a LOT of pain, then there was this comforting feeling despite the pain, and then I think I fell asleep.]

Michaels smile stayed but Hazel thought she caught some emotion flashing across his face. [Well, a bunch of things happened but basically, I used our bond to help you with the pain and levelled it in the process. The bond, not the pain. And now I have a new skill that makes our bond much better.]

Hazel was happy. A better bond would mean she would understand more of the humans world. She pulled up her Status with a thought and looked to see what was different. Most of the changes, the Affinities and the skills, were expected but she was curious about her new skills, especially the last one. Looking through the skill descriptions she found most of them to be simple. Buffeting Roar knocked back enemies around her, the skill increasing in radius and power with each level. Fiery Armor was like a mix of Earth Armor and Thorny Retribution which seemed a bit redundant but if they could stack then her tanking ability would be even better. Glacial Barricade was a skill similar to Earthen Wall but better because it was hers. The Elemental Protection was an interesting skill as it was the only skill she knew of that was both active and passive. The skill allowed her to increase an allies Earth, Fire, Wind and Ice resistances by ten percent, for 100 Mana, and the passive aspect increased her resistances by five percent.

After she finished checking everything over she relayed all the information to Michael.

Michael was happy that Hazel was okay, and a little glad she didn't remember his intrusion into her mind. Even if they were linked mind and soul, and wasn't that a weird thing to say, he was pretty sure Hazel would have found the experience to be embarrassing.

After Hazel had her breakfast, and Michael had a nap, he fired off his Treasure Scan II skill. He detected only one treasure, an Uncommon Loot Box about three hundred meters to his north. He was once again thankful for the upgrade of the skill that gave him basic information on the treasure it picked up. The first time he had seen it, having just gotten to level 5 of the Profession, he hadn't been sure it was worth it. He took it anyways, and was glad that he did. Not all Treasures were obvious, such as a tree he had to cut down in order to get the 500g core of Tier 2 Rare Quality wood. If he hadn't known that it was a core of wood he might have search for hours and not found anything.

The pair took the short detour to pick up the box, getting 30 Profession xp, before they continued on their journey. Unlike before, they were no longer focused on making distance, but on the hunt.

Three Days Later

Michael had never really had an appreciation for flowers, pre-apocalypse, but he since developed one. A lot of the herbs his Herbology skill highlighted were beautiful flowers, Natural Mana apparently saving all the beauty it took from Monsters for the herbs. Plants in general were more interesting and beautiful now, Mana allowing for things that would not normally be possible. The forest he had just left, for instance, would simply not have been capable of reaching the height they had without Mana strengthening their roots and trunks.

The Foggy Dawn flower is a particularly dazzling example of how beautiful plants could become under the influence of Mana. The Flower is an Ice aspect Natural treasure capable of increasing the Ice Affinity of whoever eats it by as much as 5%, though it was also an ingredient for some rather powerful potions. Despite the amazing uses the flower is actually prized for more for it's appearance rather than its effects. The flower surrounds itself in a small patch of icy fog an yet, despite its icy nature, the flower itself is an amazing shade of amber that actually glows, as if containing the very essence of the sun itself. The effect is similar to seeing the sun rise on foggy morning, hence the name.

As awe inspiring as the flower was, Michael didn't really think it was worth almost dying to a Tier 3 Gelidreynard. The Monster, in name and in power, looked like a Giant fox made from ice. You might wonder what a Gelidreynard, a decidedly wintery creature, was doing in the middle of the Us in the middle of Summer (Technically the start but Middle sounded better). The answer is simple, winter had become permanent, at least for the hundred or so miles surrounding the Vitr Heimr Dungeon, a Tier 3 Dungeon with severe ice (and Nordic) aspects. Michael hadn't yet found it but simply being in it's aura let him access the Dungeon information. The entire thing had thoroughly surprised Michael, he hadn't even known Dungeons had aura's.

Dungeons with Aura's were indeed an unusual occurrence, at least in Tier 3 Dungeons. It became more common in Tier 4 and above, as the Dungeons power started to leak out and actively alter the landscape around it. In the case of the Vitr Heimr Dungeon, the extreme ice aspect overcame the usul Dungeon boundaries, semi-permanently turning a small part of Wyoming into a Winter Wonderland. The transformation of the area is actually one of the more sought out aspects of higher Tier Dungeons as the saturation of a specific type of Mana increases the likelihood of Natural Treasures, such as the Foggy Dawn flower, to occur. The fact that such a Dungeon existed here, especially a Tier 3 Dungeon, was practically a Treasure in of itself.

None of that would have been useful to Michael though, as he was currently fending off the attacks of an extremely powerful Monster. The Gelidreynard was powerful for two reasons. Firstly, it was an Ice based Monster currently in an Ice based environment, which enhanced its magical attacks as well as its Magic Regen. This led to the second reason, it was a rare Magical Monster. All Monsters were at least partly Mana based, but most actually had few Magic spells or abilities, relying instead on physical power and skills as their mainstay. Magical Monsters like the Gelidreynard were almost entirely Magic based, relying on spells to deal the damage. Up close they were far easier to kill but the tended to dominate long ranged fighting. Which was quite unfortunate for Michael, who relied almost exclusively on long range fighting.

Hazel had naturally tried to close the distance, but the Gelidreynard had plenty of control abilities and had managed to lock Hazel down pretty early. Michael was really wishing he hadn't changed his ring to Fire a few hours ago. He'd thought a Fireball would be the perfect weapon for the icy Monsters but he'd been massively wrong. In reality, Ice and Fire tended to cancel each other out, and that was only when the two were evenly matched. Attacking a Tier three monster with a Tier 2 Fire spell was about as useful as trying to empty the ocean with a bucket. Michael had started the Fight with a Fireball infused arrow, which actually did manage to do some damage, and spent the rest of the fight dodging Ice Lances and Hailstorms.

His break came when Hazel managed to block a control skill with a well timed Glacial Barricade and get close enough to threaten the Gelidreynard. When the Monster switched focus Michael prepared a Thunder Shot. The effect on his bow only took a second to charge but it required him to stay still and keep his aim steady. As soon as the effect was charged it released, the thunder crack half deafening Michael as the arrow slammed into the Monster. The Gelidreynard was sent flying but was not killed. It may have had a weak Vitality but it was still a Tier 3 Monster that was literally in its element. It was stunned though, the first effect of Endless Storm activating and stunning the Gelidreynard for 3 seconds. It would have been 6, but the Tier difference was not so easily overcome.

Still, three seconds was more than enough. Nocking an arrow as smoothly as drawing a breath, Michael first infused it with Poison Spores before activating his Power Shot. The stun and the skill counted down together but the stun came off first. It didn't matter much though, as the skill released just a half-second afterwards, the spell infused arrow booming towards the Gelidreynard.

Half a second is a lot to a Tier three. Even Michael, a Tier 2 with tier 3 equivalent Attributes, could do a lot in a half-second. As for the Gelidreynard, a genuine Tier 3 Magical Monster in its element, a half-second was almost too much. Before the arrow could arrive it activated an instant-cast spell, Glacial Tomb. The name was something of a misnomer as the function of Glacial Tomb was not to hold the dead but to save the living. Almost instantly the ice sped across the foxy creature, the arrow arriving almost immediately after to shatter harmlessly against the ice covered Monster.

Michael was shocked but quickly recovered, nocking another arrow and again imbuing it with a Poison Spore spell. Drawing the bowstring Michael kept his aim on the entombed Gelidreynard, ready for the moment the skill would release.

He would wait a long time though, the Glacial Tomb was one of the very spells in Tier 3 with a duration over an hour. Specifically, it could last three hours, easily the longest lasting spell within Tier three and worth being called the ultimate life saving skill. For Mages at least. Mages lower than Tier 4. So ... maybe not quite ultimate, but very impressive nonetheless.

Michael was not impressed. He had held the arrow drawn for over 10 minutes now and he was starting to get tired. He was starting to get exasperated, he'd never seen a spell lasting over 10 minutes without any sign of stopping. He was trying to think of a way to kill the Gelidreynard when Hazel suggested a plan. The idea was so good Michael almost let the arrow slip. Sending Hazel a mental confirmation he slowly let down his arrow, keeping the spell imbued but otherwise releasing any hint of aggression he had toward the Monster. Slowly approaching the Monster he made sure he had its attention as he approached. This was the most dangerous part of the plan, if the Gelidreynard realised Hazel was going to retrieve the Foggy Dawn it might break the spell and attack.

Despite the risk Michael managed to approach the Gelidreynard and got within arms length of the creature, staring into its eyes the entire Time. The Gelidreynard had been watching him the entire time but its gaze shifted when Hazel appeared with the Foggy Dawn. Michael saw its eyes sharpen, the need and desperation clearly showing. Michael smiled, happy with the Gelidreynards intense desire for the flower. The more desperate it was the more Hazels plan was likely to work. He gently took the flower from Hazel and, the Gelidreynards eyes following his every movement, held the flower gently in one hand, the other coming up and touching the icy barrier encasing the Monster. The Monsters eyes met his and in that moment Michael activated his Soul Bond skill.

Soul Bond had mentioned nothing about taming and seemed to be just for the bond between Hazel and himself. Michael could sense a lot more from the skill, though, including that it had kept the previous uses of the two skills it had merged. When he had used the Taming skill on Hazel the connection between them had formed instantly due t the already established connection between them. With the Gelidreynard it was obviously different, both due to the difference in targets and the difference in skills. At the moment the skill activated Michaels surroundings disappeared and he appeared in a black void, the Gelidreynard appearing opposite him. The Gelidreynard both hated and feared this intruder who had come into its territory and taken the treasure it had been nurturing just as it finished maturing. Michael simply wanted its help in the dungeon and would give it the flower in return. Both sides understood each other in an instant despite no communication being given. The Gelidreynard gave it some thought, its desire for the flower warring with its hatred of the intruder. In the end though, it made the only choice it could make. It could not defeat Michael, so it must join him.