Jake kept his poker face firm. If it slipped, even for a moment, he might never get it back.

When he’d needed his father? Abandoned. The moment he was free, the moment he dug himself out of the shit life had dealt him? Abducted. Ripped away on the brink of success to rescue the same man who’d abandoned him.

Fuck. That.

His heartbeat pounded in his ears. He didn’t have to do it. He could say no. He could find his way home and leave this world to deal with its own shit. That was an option. Technically.

His chest boiled, indignant heat spreading through every limb. That was the worst part. He didn’t get a choice about it, about any of it. Not really. No matter how much he hated it, he couldn’t abandon an entire world. He had to keep smiling, keep going on, keep doing the right fucking thing when no one else ever did.

The quest sat at the back of his awareness, taking up space with its smug certainty that he’d carry it out. If only there was a way to smash it into a million little pieces and leave it behind.

He snorted. At least he didn’t have a clue where his father was. Couldn’t rescue him without that. The Divine Empire lead was at least thirteen years out of date. Who knew where he was now?

That was a problem for the future. Right now, he had other issues. He gave Reltan a much-deserved smile. It wasn’t his fault. “Thank you. That’s been most… illuminating.”

Reltan bowed in his seat. “I am always happy to have such an attentive learner, Jake of Earth.” He looked up and forced out a wider smile. His voice quietened. “Not everyone is so happy to sit and learn.”

There was Cara, sneaking through the room. Her gaze jumped around the room, like a mouse on the lookout for a cat. How was she even more ill at ease amidst here than him? He waved to her. “Over here.”

She dipped her head back at him, approached, and crossed her arms. “Did he behave?”

Reltan’s smile warmed. “He is a most admirable learner, though I fear none of the crafts here are a good fit for him.”

Her expression softened and she relaxed a little. It didn’t last. She stiffened back up, her regal poise plastering over the cracks. She cocked her head and stared at Jake, her gaze piercing into him.

The tingling ripple was absent, but she wasn’t being subtle. “You’re Identifying me, aren’t you?”

“What?” She shook her head and broke off the stare. “Why would you even suggest something like that?”

Why indeed. He raised an eyebrow. “That’s not a no.”

Her lips pursed, but she said nothing. She glanced around the room, her hands coming together and idly fidgeting.

“It’s okay.” Jake stood and smiled as warmly as he could muster. It had been a long, hard day. “I’m just curious why I didn’t feel it.”

Her gaze snapped back to his, her emerald green eyes wide. Her head cocked, her mouth opened, and no words came out.

Jake froze. He’d said something wrong, hadn’t he? She stiffened up even further. The silence between them grew. Awkward, uncomfortable, and no end in sight.

She wasn’t going to answer, was she?

He dropped his gaze and sighed. “Never mind. Forget I mentioned it.”

“No!” A pained expression flashed across her face. “It’s not that, it’s just… Haven’t I mentioned perks to you?”

He blinked. Perks? A kid in a candy store, he focused inwards. Perks, perks, there had to be something about perks. A deluge of information flooded out. There was a lot about perks.

“Have you even hit level one in Identify? I’ll go over it.” She nodded to Reltan. “Thank you for keeping an eye on him.”

He bowed his head. “The pleasure all belongs to me. He has been a very appreciative audience, something, alas, the youth are not always.”

“Come.” She beckoned Jake with a sharp hand motion. “It’s getting late.”

Jake thanked Reltan again and followed. Despite his longer legs, he had to jog to match her pace through the treetop passages. “What are perks? I—” He paused. What was the inner sense called? “—looked inwards, and I swear my brain nearly drowned in how much I got back.”

“Each level of a skill, you get a perk point, same as getting an attribute point for your level.”

“I get attribute points?” A query revealed 2 attribute points waiting to be assigned. He could make himself stronger, or smarter, for that matter. He frowned. Would being smarter change who he was? Would he really care if it did?

Cara’s glance once again had that increasingly familiar disbelief, but at least she slowed to a normal walking pace. “Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Intelligence, Willpower, Personality. Those are the six core attributes you can level, either through life experiences or by spending points from leveling.”

“So I could train and get myself stronger, or smarter?”

“Yes, and no. Almost all your points from life experiences come while growing up. Adults only get minor stat points for free, and even then, only from major achievements. Whatever stats you have now, you’re mostly stuck with, plus points from leveling. Ah, here we are.”

She pulled open the door to a small yet cozy, if rather messy, room set within a tree. On Earth, it would have been an enormous tree, yet here, it was positively modest compared to the others.

“This your place?” There had to be a more charitable word than messy, but he couldn’t think of one. A collection of random objects littered the floor, ranging from half-finished bows to potted plants, most but not all upright at least. A few lay on their sides, their dirt spilling out onto the smooth bark floor.

A small creature darted forward and jumped effortlessly up an equally disorganized set of shelves. It leaped through the air, landed on Cara’s shoulder, and nuzzled against her earlobe.

“Hey there, Nibbles,” she said, her silky soft voice laden with affection. “I missed you too.”

The creature lived up to its name, nibbling gently upon her ear. It most resembled a large mouse, except with oversized legs and a hyperactive tail.

“Nibbles, this is Jake. Jake, this is Nibbles.”

The moment she finished talking, the creature darted across Cara’s shoulders and leaped onto his. Its damp nose pressed against his face, sniffing frantically, while its thin tail batted surprisingly hard against his shoulder.

Whatever it was, it was a fearless little thing. “Boy or girl?”

“Girl.” A smile lit up Cara’s face. “She stays in my room a lot more than I’d like. It’s too dangerous out in the Forest, and most people don’t appreciate her… well…”

“Unrepentant curiosity?”

“That, and her penchant for chaos.” She sighed, kneeled in front of the toppled plants, and set about carefully repotting them.

Tiny teeth nibbled at his ear, driving the point home. “How does the nibbling go down?”

Cara spun up and around, with a potted plant in hand and a wide-eyed stare. “She’s nibbling you?” A few rapid blinks, and a smile snuck across her lips. “Huh. Guess she likes you.”

He reached up and stroked Nibbles, ready to back away at the first sign of trouble. She nuzzled her silky soft fur against his fingers. “I guess so.”

“That, or she’s just glad that you aren’t shooing her away.”

“Who could shoo away something as cute as this?” A lot of people.

He petted the loudly purring Nibbles and watched Cara work. Sorting out the mess Nibbles had made of her plants, she was slow and methodical, paying attention to every detail. The moment she finished with that, she switched to frantically moving the clutter into a precarious pile on one side of the circular room.

“There.” She smiled, but her gaze cast down rather than meet his. “This is my place. You’ll be staying here until…” She floundered and looked around the room, as if it would somehow provide a less awkward conclusion.

Her discomfort had a certain appeal. She was, after all, his jailer. A twist in his gut reminded him otherwise. Without her, he’d still be walking the forest floor, or worse. No point beating around the bush. “Until they’ve decided whether or not to throw me to the wolves?”

After a moment’s thought, she nodded. “They wouldn’t put it like that.”

“It’s fine.” He shrugged. Mistrust wasn’t anything new. Usually, though, the cold shoulder on the horizon was rather less deadly. “You can have the bed.”

“You should take it. The tree-song’s soothing.”

The tree could sing? Jake raised his eyebrows and stared until she elaborated.

“Oh, right. While touching the Great Forest, we can connect and share its song. It’s… it’s hard to explain to anyone who has never felt it.”

“That’s a wood elf thing, isn’t it?” His heart sank at her nod. Not that he’d ever want to. Being connected to all those minds? How could anyone ever want that? “Is that why you’re all barefoot?”

Her eyebrows raised, but differently from usual. Less like she was wondering how he could be so damned ignorant. “Mostly.”

Almost like he wasn’t completely useless. “Can you communicate that way?”

“Yes, and no. It’s not words, more of a swirling cloud of feelings and concepts. We do, somewhat, communicate across the Forest with it, but it can take a while and isn’t all that clear, especially for anything complicated.”

Jake nodded. It tugged at his heart, almost like he should try it. All those people, all those minds—even long life wouldn’t be worth that. “I’ll take the bed then. So, perks?”

She breathed deeply and plucked at her bottom lip. “Perks. Yes. Your Identify is still level 0, isn’t it?”

Thinking about Identify didn’t bring up any information. He hadn’t noticed any notification, but that didn’t rule out having missed one. “I can’t tell.”

“That would be a yes, then.” She squared up to him and swallowed. Her foot tapped against the floor. At last, she looked up and met his gaze. “Stare at me, really hard. Try to see who I am, what I am.”

He remembered the piercing stares he’d received all evening. A burden best ignored became a blueprint, though a poor one. Did it simply happen, or did he have to focus in a particular way?

She’d said to see who she was, what she was. Anything and everything could be important. He studied her—the chestnut pixie cut, those emerald green eyes that kept wandering away, the tensed, slightly reddened face that tapered away to a slender chin.

Her hands refused to stay still for more than a moment, fidgeting constantly. The leather armor fit snugly, not restricting her motions at all.

Still nothing from that inner sense. What was he missing?

Tightness spread through his chest. It wasn’t comfortable for either of them, but Identify would be worth it. Better to learn it with a friendly face. Staring at Reltan for this long would have been worse. At least she was cute.

Those were knives at her belt that she was idly fidgeting with. How much longer were they going to do this? “I’m not getting anything.”

Cara breathed deeply but didn’t look away. “It might take some time. I’m a lot higher level, you’re skill level 0, and…”

Her eyes closed. Another deep breath. Almost immediately, his inner awareness finally did its job.

Cara Tolabar So’aroaska

Level: 12

Identify skill increased 0 → 1!

“There it is.” A rush of dopamine shattered the awkwardness. “Pleasure to meet you, Cara Tolabar So’aroaska.”

She held on for barely a second before bursting into laughter. Nibbles joined in with hurried squeaking.

“What?” The laughter was contagious. He couldn’t stop it. “What?” he asked again, between fits of laughter. Each time he repeated the question, Cara laughed harder. He gave up asking; it wasn’t like she was in a state to answer.

He doubled over, giving in to the laughter. He was safe, at least for the moment. Tension drained away, held so long he’d forgotten it was even there. When had he last relaxed like this?

Eventually, Cara brought her fits of laughter under enough control to answer. “That pronunciation? Just… no. It’s meant to be lyrical, not…”

“… Not like a cat being drowned?”

“Your words, not mine. Second, that’s not my name. Well, okay, technically it is, if you’re writing a contract or Jeremy and he’s really, really mad at me, but otherwise, it’s just Cara, okay?”

Still catching his breath, Jake nodded. “Cara it is. What does the rest mean?”

“Tolabar is the name of this village, my home. So’aroaska means ‘she-who-hunts-and-kills’. When you name me like that, you’re saying I’m the ranger from Tolabar who is called Cara.”

“Got it. Guess that’s a bit formal and impersonal, huh?”

“Little bit, yeah. But it’s okay.” She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, composing herself. When her eyes opened again, she once more had that graceful poise that all wood elves seemed to have. “Identify leveled, right?”

“Yeah. Level one now.” Thinking about Identify perks triggered a rush of information. Still a lot, but manageable. He skimmed through it. “I see it now—I have a perk point and a bunch of options. Fast, Stealth, Thorough, Distant, Piercing—hey, what’s Piercing do?”

“Piercing helps cut through Deception. Pretty much useless in the Forest, that’s for guards in a city or inquisitors. Put your first point into Stealth Identify.”

“That’ll let me Identify without people realizing?” The earlier incident, and Cara’s reaction, came to mind too late. He should have worded it better.

She winced but carried on. “Yeah, if you don’t stare like a dolt. There are extra levels of the perk, but don’t bother with them. One level’s enough, at least for all the creatures I’ve come across, and I’ve never known anyone spend perks just to know someone’s Identifying them.”

All too easily, he could imagine Identifying a creature to see if it was too dangerous to hunt, but without the perk. The way it would notice him, turn its way too high-level teeth toward him, and charge.

The perk point went straight into Stealth Identify. There would be other benefits—like not having to remember the names everyone Reltan had introduced him to—but not getting eaten by monsters outweighed pretty much anything else.

“Thank you.” Remembering Reltan’s mannerisms, he bowed his head.

Cara rolled her eyes. “What are you, eight-hundred? Anyway, tomorrow, I’m hunting again—and you’re coming with me.”

A knot formed in his stomach. They’d barely escape the snake with their lives. If her arrow had glanced off, if it hadn’t been stunned, if he’d missed… Tension flooded back into his arms and shoulders.

He hadn’t missed. They’d won. He’d walked away with another level and improved skills. Hiding away wouldn’t accomplish anything. It was a risk, but a worthwhile one, especially with Cara to teach him.

He damned well wasn’t going to sit around doing nothing, anyway. Hunting had to be better than going back to Reltan with his tail between his legs and signing up to be a mediocre crafter for the rest of his life. “Happy to help. What else can you teach me?”

***

Thankfully, his HP healed much faster overnight. He didn’t plan on any more broken bones, or worse, but it was good to know that healing wasn’t quite as slow as his sheet suggested.

The next week passed quickly, full to the brim with activity. The days blurred together in a comfortable routine. In the mornings, he ate breakfast with Cara and the other elves. Well, mostly Cara. The others kept their distance. The few who came over to make conversation didn’t stay long, no matter how warmly he greeted them.

The food was somewhat bland, though reassuringly wholesome. Berries, nuts, and mushrooms were a constant fixture, accompanied by whatever meat was available. Definitely a lot healthier and tastier than rice and beans.

During the days, Cara took him down to the forest floor for a balance of hunting and training. Despite her tendency to throw her arms up and declare it hopeless, her boundless energy and playfulness made learning fun. Hap hazard and disorganized, but enjoyable.

Even the teasing wasn’t so bad, so long as he remembered that she didn’t really mean it. Well, mostly didn’t mean it. Despite gaining levels quickly in Stealth, standing still the way she could continued to elude him. Judging from how she couldn’t stop moving most of the time, she’d probably had to work a very long time to master that. If she could, he could too.

They even let him have a bow on the forest floor, so long as he handed it in before ascending to the village. Given he was the only one on the forest floor for whom a wolf was anything but easy lunch, they had little to worry about there.

The bow provided was almost comically short, designed for the elven equivalent of young teens. Even that took all his strength to draw. Apparently, 9 Strength was far from ideal for archery. He’d just have to work twice as hard to make up for it. Getting up close and personal with his physical stats was an even worse idea, and teaching him magic was a step too far.

Despite having a perk for it, accuracy seemed just as much about technique as stats. Each extra skill level made it easier, no doubt about that, but not as much as taking Cara’s advice to heart. Shoulder width stance. Cradle the bow. Follow through. When it came to archery, she knew her stuff.

Hunting was a lot harder than target practice. Between being heard, spotted, and missing, the first few attempts were better not spoken of, no matter what Cara said. His first kill was a torric unlucky enough to have been upwind of him, and possibly a little deaf. The cheer from the other hunters when he brought it home made it all worth it.

In the evenings, he worked on his Wood Elvish, either studying with the aid of their extensive library or practicing with Cara. Occasionally, he slipped and referred to it simply as Elvish. Her rebukes were never unkind, but always swift.

When Jake studied from the old tomes, he lounged on the bed, grateful for a Common-Wood Elvish dictionary. Cara liked to sit with her back against the wall, working on some craft or other. Some nights, it would be a single bow or a piece of leather armor all evening. Others, she flittered between her potter plants and carving wooden figures.

“Aren’t your profession skills Bowyer and Leatherworker?” Jake asked one evening, while reading Cara’s favorite children’s book and idling stroking Nibbles.

She glared up at him, a scowl marring what had been a pleasant evening. Her pause dragged out a little too long. “… Yes.”

How best to ask? He rested the book on the bed. A quiver in his stomach warned him to be careful. He was clearly walking into a minefield, but it made little sense. This wasn’t his world, and whatever he could learn about it, the better. She’d understand. “So how are you gaining levels in wood carving?”

“I’m not.” She returned to her task, glowering as she worked.

Nibbles darted off the bed, bounded across the room, and leaped up onto Cara’s shoulder. The adorable little creature brushed up against Cara’s ear and nibbled gently at it, draining away some of the anger in her motions.

So much dedication poured into a skill that she’d never be properly recognized for. No matter how hard she tried, she’d never be as good as even a novice who had it as a skill. How many others had asked her why she did it?

He closed the book and went to her. “Hey, I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Like what?”

Jake’s chest tightened. “Like that you shouldn’t do it.”

She slowly raised her chin, her face still scrunched up.

“I think it’s cool.” He slumped down beside her and looked properly at the carving in her hand. “It’s Nibbles, isn’t it?”

She put down her tool and tentatively held up the carving. “Maybe.”

Nibbles sniffed it, squeaked a few times, and rubbed her face against it. Cara and Jake both burst out laughing, washing away the tension in the air.

As the laughter faded away, Cara sighed. “In your world, there are no levels, right?”

The question had become a familiar one, but this felt different. Usually, it was incredulous, with maybe a side helping of pity. This was more curious, sprinkled with envy. “Right.”

“So people can get better at whatever they want? Have more than two professions without being super amazing geniuses?”

Her eyes gleamed. Interest was a welcome change, but she deserved to know it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. “Yes, and no. Yes, there’s no strict limit like that, but it takes a lot of time to get good at something, and when you stop, you start to forget what you know. Most people specialize in one profession, to be honest.”

“That makes sense, I suppose.” She slumped against the wall, her usual posture abandoned. “What was your profession?”

“I was still a student, but it was computer science. I don’t suppose you have computers, though? Machines capable of doing massive amounts of calculations.”

She shook her head. “Supposedly, they have magic like that in the big cities. What made you pick that?”

It was the smart choice. It had great job prospects. It was a good fit for an analytical brain. All good reasons. A warm tingling flushed through him. It certainly had nothing to do with his father being a computer programmer.

“I—I’m not sure.”

“I always knew I wanted to be a ranger. I just wish I could be a dozen other things as well.”

Jake sat up straighter, his chest pounds lighter for the change of subject. “What are the Rangers?”

Her chin rose, and a satisfied smile spread across her face. “We keep people safe. For now, I’m a Lookout, the eyes of the Rangers. I hunt while I patrol. It’s a great way to be useful and keep my skills up.”

“Sounds like an important job.”

“It is. You should join! It would suit you.”

More responsibility, and more danger. No, he wasn’t insane. Well, hopefully he wasn’t that insane. “Thanks, but if there’s danger, I’d rather be running away than towards it.”

Cara shrugged. “Trouble has a habit of finding you, anyway. Besides, this is one of the least dangerous parts of the Forest. It’s a great training ground.” Her smile soured. “At least, it was.”

He’d barely survived a half-dead wolf. If he hadn’t found Cara, he’d almost certainly have died long ago. Safe for her, maybe. “Doesn’t mean I need to go looking for trouble.” He sighed. The idea refused to stop squatting in his head that easily. “I’ll think about it. Maybe it’ll make more sense when I’ve leveled more.”

Cara glanced out the window at the last rays of the dying light. “And on that note, get some sleep. I don’t want you tired and grumpy for training again, not when I’m taking you deeper into the Forest.”

“I wasn’t grumpy! All I wondered was, don’t you guys have weekends or something?”

She stared at him and, completely deadpan, asked, “Do you eat all week?”

He rolled his eyes and headed for bed. “Fine, fine, I get it. Hurry up and cast the alarm spell around me. Wouldn’t want me getting up for a piss in the night without you knowing.”

She groaned. “Do I really have to?”

“Would you trust me if I said no?”

She stared, her head cocked, with hopefully mock suspicion in her eyes. “That’s exactly what an evil shapeshifter would say.”

“Precisely.” The first night, he hadn’t even noticed. He’d fallen asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. Now, her intricate motions invoking the alarm spell were a part of his bedtime routine. “Me? I’m always happy to see more magic.”

Her eyes narrowed. She probably didn’t believe him, but she knew he was right. It was her duty, and if there was one thing Cara took seriously, it was duty. She’d regret shirking it even if it worked out fine.

“Fine, fine.” She pulled herself to her feet and rolled her eyes. “If it’ll make you happy. Where’s my hairbrush?”

“Between those two plants, same as last time you asked.”

It was worth the glare. Her face scrunched up as she tried and failed to think of a good comeback. “Maybe you are an evil shapeshifter,” she growled. “Sleep well. You’ve got a big day ahead of you tomorrow.”