Fear, unknown to the little boy until a few hours ago. He was being hunted by savages, monsters disguised as men who only took solace in corrupting those he loved. He wouldn’t know if the monster to kill him would be a familiar face or not, at least that was a small mercy from running in the complete dark. He heard noises from behind and tried pumping as much energy into his legs, all to run that little bit faster. The thing caught up, its hot breath on his back. It reached in, and he tensed against the thought of death. It never came, as the monstrous wolf ducked its head between the boy’s legs, having him land on its back. The kid suddenly flew from this hell, flew away from it all as he gripped the wolf’s sides with all his strength. As the wolf bounded away from the carnage a single thought came to the boy’s head. “So this was what true strength meant.”

“I’m back, how are my two favorite stude… oh gods dammit all. Tiffany, you didn’t kill him did you?” Derb’s teacher returned later that night, exhausted at the task given to him. If he hadn’t promised the boy the damn mount he wouldn’t have gone to the trouble. He left the house to process the materials for the brat, only for him to instantly get in trouble. Tiffany was angry, “Why do you think I did anything!? Hannah’s the one with anger problems!” Hannah gave a glare, “But you actually did it this time, Tiff… any.” Hannah wasn’t about to use that stupid nickname that unconscious idiot seemed to prefer. “Besides, I only get mad at him, most other people have some common sense. Speaking of common sense, when were you going to tell us about his freakish control, teacher?!” Hannah and Tiffany both waited for the answer, was it a big secret? Did Derb screw up? The old man sheepishly scratched his chin. “Oh, about that. I guess I just Didn’t want to make you both feel like you’re worth less than the boy.” Both the girl’s jaws dropped, such a big secret was kept to “spare their feelings?” He might as well have said he forgot, what was their teacher thinking? “Teacher! Don’t you think this should be a bit more secret?! Wouldn’t he bring disaster?” Hannah was also worried, she knew about the enemies the divine emperor made for being so talented. They were fairy tales she adored after all. “Relax, child, I’ve only told you two and my old friend Deitre, I would never hurt us like that.” Tiffany relaxed at this, only for Hannah to fire another question. “Then why did you ask us to practice near him? There must have been a reason you wanted us to figure it out by the dense mana around him.” The teacher’s face instantly stopped smiling. “The what now, child?” Tiffany stepped in Hannah’s stead “He has mana sense, he can also control it, I think. I don’t know if there’s another way to make mana that dense.” The old man gasped, he looked thoughtfully at Derb for a second, before shouting. “Wake up, you godforsaken fool.”

And he awoke

“AAGH! WHERE AM I? TEACHER? HANNAH WANTS TO KILL ME PLEASE EXPLAIN IT TO HEr wait a second where are all the vines?” He looked down at his shirt and saw nothing wrong, he wondered there was really no problem then. “Um, that wasn’t a dream, right? I have this thing where I used to get nightmares-” “Shut up, you used mana control in front of people?! Even you should know how stupid that is.” Derb was shaken, cursing this weird mana shout thing. “What?! I thought that’s what you meant by meditating?! What’s the matter?!” This only got the man angrier “Wait… you mean to tell me your meditation has actually been cultivation all this time? Boy, tell me you’re lying before I blow a hole bigger than your head in your chest.” Derb dramatically got on his knees, bowing up and down. “I apologize for my transgression oh mighty lightning god, please don’t just kill me right now…” All he heard was a laugh, not mana infused this time. He then felt Someone embrace him in a deep and strong hug. “YOU WILL BECOME PEERLESS, I WILL MAKE YOU A GOD!” Derb was getting a full blast from the shout at this point, so he begged to be let go. “Oh god, I think I busted my ears… Tiff, could you be a doll and heal me?” He turned to see Tiff and Hannah hidden from direct line of sight, completely pale and looking sick. “Tiff!? What’s happened to them!” He didn’t get an answer, as the teacher started cursing incoherently and rushing towards them. They attempted to scramble away but he was faster and stronger.

“Mental rush.” A blue light came and sprinkled over their bodies, and Derb could see their faces already calming down. “What the heck was that? You can’t tell me they haven’t seen you angry before right?” No response, the teacher only gently laid them on the couch, where they fell unconscious. He sat on the floor, still cursing. Since the teacher was still looking depressed Derb came to his side and sat next to him. “They’ll get used to it I’m sure, I was also scared to the point of wetting myself when I saw you like that.” This got a laugh, to Derb’s relief. “That’s not what happened, boy. When you infuse too much mana into your voice those with a weak mana aura can get hurt in the crossfire. you’re an exemption to the rule, and I got so used to scolding you and Deitre that I seemed to have gotten carried away.”

Derb was feeling conflicted, he was using such a dangerous thing on him all the time? “Um, there’s no lasting effects, right?” The old man shook his head “Not after the care I gave them, fortunately enough.” That didn’t answer if it affected Derb though… Either way, he seemed more relaxed now, so Derb finally felt fine to continue. “It’s an honest mistake, I’m guessing I’ve been throwing all common sense out the window.” The old man laughed, “If that was the case I’d have been more accustomed, it’s almost like you fit in too well… it makes me forget that you aren’t normal. I thought I’d have to beat into your head to not be arrogant, to not become someone who views people weaker than him as under him.” Derb couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You do realize that I’m getting my butt handed to me by two little girls at any given moment of the day? It doesn’t do much to boost my ego, honestly.”

The old man gave an indignant glare, as if calling his students anything but angels was heresy. “Those two can’t be considered normal either, they’re years above the current curriculum. Those two could be seen as adolescent tigers. You are like a glass baby dragon, just asking to break but filled with potential.” He saw the man reach into his robe and pull out what seemed to be a smoke pipe and lit it. It was the first time he saw the old man using one in the three months he was here. Speaking of which… “Didn’t you use that shout when we first met? Why hadn’t anyone gotten affected by it? Even some guards were there...” After a puff of the pipe, Gerald answered, “Too much mana this time, back then it was mostly just to scare you. This was before I knew you had a pure mana core, couldn’t kill you now, right?.”

He took another drag on the pipe. It seemed his teacher was a heavy user, why hadn’t he seen it before then? “Since when have you smoked? I haven’t seen you do that anywhere. It’s a bit surprising honestly.” Derb said, hoping to change the subject to lighten the mood. The old man looked at the pipe, almost surprised, and stood up, helping Derb do the same. “Let’s go outside, I’ve gotten everything prepared for the ritual. It’s a bit late but a little darkness never hurt anyone.” it seemed Gerald didn’t want to talk about it...

“Are you sure that’s really an ok thing?” Derb hesitantly said, not wanting to deny his teacher’s orders. He knew the teacher just wanted to take his mind off what just happened, but he didn’t know if that was the best time to do it. “Summoning requires a certain mentality… you might not be in the best state right now, because of the sisters and all that.” Derb might as well have shot him in the heart, he looked ready to keel over. “Ah… I guess you’re right, it really was silly of me to say all that...” Derb felt terrible, why’d he say that? He knew he screwed up, how could he remedy this situation? After a second of hesitation, he decided. “You know what? Let’s do it. Tiff and Hannah weren’t hurt either way so there isn’t any reason to feel guilty about it. We can’t just go to sleep in this mood! Let me take the two upstairs and we’ll be ready to go, yeah?” “Boy...” Before the old man could get a word in, Derb was already heading towards the sisters. He reached under the backs of both and hauled them both like sacks of potatoes, gently of course.

Hurrying up the stairs Derb felt the excitement of what was about to happen. He was going to get an awesome summon! It was so exciting he almost tripped a couple of times, these girls were heavy!. By the time he’d laid both the poor-looking girls in bed and went down the old man seemed rejuvenated again. “You excited, old man? I thought you said you wanted to wait until tomorrow?” Derb said with a sly grin. The old man grinned back. “It’s not every day a man can see a summoning happen boy. This one is especially powerful. It’s a higher-scale one that requires most of my mana. Much more than that paltry demon you own.” He stretched his back, looking even more excited now. “I’ve never seen such a high-scaled summoning take place before, only ever the results. Your types are rare and useful, they’re usually caged like rare animals.” Derb froze at the last statement, and so did his teacher. “Not that I’d use you like one, I’d never want to do that… or ever need to.” Derb stepped back… he was sure the old man wouldn’t, but could he have worded that in a worse way? “What did you mean by that? How do they treat ‘summoners’ in this world?”

The old man was sweating, taking his sweet time answering. The tension got to the point where Derb was already half plotting escape. Before he bolted in his genuisely thought-out “Run for your life against a dude with lightning.” plan, Gerald finally spoke. “It’s not exactly summoner’s that people are scared of, it’s the dark attribute required that some people don’t feel good about.” Oh, Derb could guess why that is. “Is some church going to kill me or something for it?” He was starting to panic “Then why did you make me train it. I had four other attributes to choose from!” The fear was noticed, and with wide eyes, the teacher explained. “No! Those types of practices were disowned decades ago! Kid, I wanted you to use this power to its full potential! It’s a rare and popular ability, to the point where I’d pay tooth and nail for a student like you.” The old man explained things carefully, slowly calming his poor student. He understood the fear of death, the exhaustion of being chased down. Derb took in a deep breath. “Oh, my heart, why’d you have to word it like that? I take it the cage part was a metaphor or something?” Derb was calmer now that he knew he wasn’t about to be burned at the stake. Honestly, what a misunde- “No, those are definitely prisoners. For good reason, however.”

Derb didn’t even react, was his teacher toying with him? “What do you mean ‘good reason’? This is stressing me out more than the mana baths...” The old man grinned, at least his student was calm enough to joke around. “I’ve told you before, a person’s attributes largely affect who they are as people, and vice versa. Fire makes a fiery person, ice makes an icy person, and so on. Darkness is… tricky to understand in that aspect. Many traits can lead to it, and many traits can come from it. but... there is one major trait that appears in a lot of Darkness users” His smile widened, looking even more wicked on his old face. “Care to guess?” Derb gulped, there was only one thing he could associate with summoning hellish demons. “Evil...” Derb was solemn… was he going to become a monster? He could barely keep himself in check now, how could he- “BAHAHAHA, I KNEW YOU WOULDN’T DISAPPOINT!” The old man was hunched over, laughing at Derb’s expense. It was quite loud for so late at night. “IT’S NOT EVIL, YOU IDIOT, BAHAHA! IT’S… erm. “ He straightened himself, calming the laughter. ”It's recklessness. Who in their right minds would think right or wrong was a trait? Is a wolf evil because we scare little children with their stories?”

Derb was getting red, he knew he’d been duped. “It’s not my fault you worded it like that! I was legitimately getting depressed!” Derb shouted, trying to save even the smallest bit of face. The teacher didn’t let up, however. “That’s because even the smallest children know that there’s no such thing as a good or bad attribute! It’s how I scared Hannah when she was little, though Tiffany was too smart to fall for it.” Derb sulked, it wasn’t that far-fetched, was it? If they believed it in the past there had to be some evidence to support darkness and evil correspondan- what the hell was he thinking? This was a good thing! “Whatever, at least I know I won’t turn on my fellow man or something.” “Oh, I wouldn’t say that, your lack of control is already very noticeable now. Once you get more powerful you might have lost all semblance of law.” The teacher said this with a calm smile on his face, as if it wasn’t a big deal. “Why do you seem so calm about that? I thought laws were placed there for a reason.” Derb was curious, there had to be a reason the old man told him all this…

Gerald laughed, “It’d have been a problem if not for your ritual attribute, you’ve been keeping yourself in check with it. As you grow both will balance each other out, though because of how strongly your darkness attribute overshadows the rest I'd still expect a little brattiness.” He spoke with certainty, and a bit of pride. “Ritual magic is incredibly useful, no matter the combination. It’s sought out with darkness, of course, but just the attribute is incredibly popular.” Derb could almost see his nose grow longer, at least he had the power to back it up… “So, all in all, I’m not in any trouble in the future?” “I wouldn’t say that” Godammit. “Your attribute is high enough where you really can’t be left unchecked for long, you only see what’s in front of you and hold little thought for punishments. The world has gotten better regarding hierarchies but it still won’t you if you keep acting this way.” The old man straightened up. “Though that’s why you're lucky to have me. I own quite some power in this world, enough for you to even brag, though I won’t allow such arrogance! Hahaha!”

Derb rolled his eyes, if he had to hear the old fart continue bragging he’d faint from boredom. “As interesting as that is, I’d love to hear more about the mount. You know, the thing we came all the way out here for?”

“Bah, you have no respect for your elders, boy. Just a little further ahead and we’ll reach the materials.” He pointed towards where they were walking, as if Derb could see anything. “Um… I don’t know if the light attribute can help you see better but I can barely follow your back in this light.” The old man smacked his head “Why didn’t you say so already?! How forgetful of me, Guiding Orb.“ His teacher’s raised his palm, summoning a cute little ball of light. It floated near Derb, showing everything within thirty feet of the two. “Tiffany and Hannah can also use this spell, so don’t hesitate to ask them for help.” Derb shoulders sagged. “Those two can also see in the dark? Man, you guys and your light attribute are way too powerful...” A smack to his head and a short walk later they made it to their destination. A small field with chests littered in a group. “Quick, grab the black one, we’ll start this off simple.” Complying, Derb went and picked up the chest, being lighter than he imagined. “What’s in them, herbs or something?

It’s pretty light…” Derb shook it a bit, trying to get a feel for what's inside. “Watch it, you idiot, that’s the wolf.” Oh, guess that’s why it sounded soft. “We got the wolf, so what’s the rest for?” The old man was on his knees, creating the star which Derb used for summoning. He was using salts and some speckled gold-looking bits, really looking like a summoning circle. “It’s the rest of the materia- did you even read the book I gave you?” Derb nodded hurriedly, but still received a suspicious glare from his teacher. Derb sighed, deciding to explain the process “So these are the other wolves huh, ugh… I’m going to have to touch all this huh… what do you say we get this over with already?” His teacher sighed at his student’s nonchalance. He muttered a few words under his breath, strange symbols appearing all around him. He put his hands towards the ground, a trail of blue light reaching the circle. The circle started glowing brightly, Derb’s cue.

“Remember, first you picture, then imagine, and then you cut.” Derb rolled his eyes. “I said I read it already, no need to have so little faith.” He opened the other three boxes, gagging at the smell of the one with flesh. It was sickening to think he was going to have to shove his hands into this. Dragging the chests into the circle he positioned them so he’d be able to grab all of them from one position. He sat down and began meditating, picturing the pentagram in his head. He pumped it full of the surrounding mana, making sure to have it as bright as possible. His control and mana size had gotten better than before, making the circle noticeably brighter than before. He breathed in the dense air around him, almost choking on the electrical mana.

He pictured the epitome of a wolf, strong, proud, defiant. Not a pet, but a companion, an equal. Wolves were smart and tricky, but cared for their pack. His wolf stood in his hood, looking him in the eyes. One did not seek praise or acceptance, a wolf commanded... “respect...” His words were heard, pumping the circle with both his and his teacher’s mana. Derb slit his palms and shoved both of them into the chests with the flesh and bone sludge. Instantly the contents started to throb, squirming out of the box and making their way towards the wolf carcass on the floor. Luckily Derb was too focused to pay attention, gathering as much mana as he could. His teacher was doing the heavy lifting but he still had to leave the mark. The wolf would soon be his companion, after all. The mana around started pulling in leaves and dirt. Surrounding the pentagram with a small tornado.

The wolf carcass ripped open from its chest and split apart, rising in the air like a monstrous magic carpet. The flesh and bone slowly nudged forwards, reaching towards the wolf. Derb could feel the presence of the demon invading the wolf. It seemed repulsed by what was happening, not wanting to form the heart to be summoned. Derb knew this, reaching for the final material, the wolf’s heart. He pumped it with as much dark mana as he could, calling the presence towards it instead. The demon formed around it, only to realize what would happen next. The wolf carcass came forward, enveloping the heart and the contents. Derb kept pumping mana into it, knowing it would soon be over. The wolf, looking like an overstuffed turkey, spasmed and flailed. It was monstrous to look at, but it eventually died down.

The final act was about to take place, Derb cut his arms in a different place, his hands feeling numb and barely dropping any blood. He reached over the star, dropping the blood carefully inside. The bloated wolf greedily took it in, growing and molding into something strong. Its fur became silky gray, and the eyes started glowing a deep black. Derb and Gerald watched on in fascination as the wolf grew twice, and then three times its original size. Its mane was spiky, wild. Its eyes, closed in an angry expression, finally opened.

It stood, shaky legs trying to move with utter determination. Derb walked towards it, was this how it was supposed to happen? This wasn’t okay, in the last summons he thought he was merely summoning soulless demons. This looked too… real. Like a child who was just born. He could see the emotions in the wolf’s eyes, angry, confused, scared. It backed away from him, snarling threateningly. Derb knew how it felt, he reached his hand towards it, ignoring his teacher’s yells. He smiled, this wolf would be his companion, his-

And then it bit his goddamn hand.