As they prepared to head off, Five -- she was called that so often that she rarely even thought of herself as Celia -- considered the drastic swing of the past couple of days. She had originally feared this strange young man, but fear became intrigue, and intrigue became interest before she knew it.

It wasn't quite what she thought of as love, but it was a mutual attraction, something she had indulged in with other men before. If anything confirmed for Five that River was the age he seemed, it was in his love-making, although she felt there was a certain charm to his earnestness and enthusiasm that made up for lack of experience.

She still wasn't sure where her feelings ultimately fell in all this, though. Her grandpa had ordered that she find ways to bind the Devil of Flowing Water to the Dragonslayers, and he knew exactly what he was asking, but she didn't expect to be in turn bound to the young man. It was a knot she'd have to untangle, but that was a problem for another time.

"We're going to head due northwest from here, River," she told him as she dashed in that direction.

The devilish young man caught up with her almost instantly, leaping over the fields of grass with ease. "Uh, Celia."

"Yes?" She did her best to hide the small thrill she felt when he said her real name.

"Would you mind if I helped us along a little faster and you could just point out the way to go?" he asked with a sheepish grin.

Five had a hard time remembering why she ever thought this young man was forceful and full of guile and subtlety with her, even though it was but a day's difference now. It was now clear to her that years of his experiences in Flowing Water had made him as accommodating as a doormat, and those tendencies still shone through whenever it came to decision-making. That self-effacement contended in her mind with the image of the man who could suck the life out of a Meridian Circulation in an instant without regret or hesitation.

"Am I that much slower than you, River?" she asked in a tone tinged in mock exasperation.

"Well," he replied, that earnestness shining through, "after last night I had a bit of a breakthrough and--"

Five laughed. "It's fine, dear. What will I do, though, ride on your back?"

"I was thinking of something more like this," he announced and circled his arm around her waist, pulling her along with him as he accelerated, each leap extending over twice the distance as before but in the same amount of time.

She looked up into his face -- had those blood-red eyes truly been so scary before? -- and smiled. "What do you practice that makes you go so fast? I can't feel even a trickle of essence when you're doing this." She decided to indulge her curiosity.

"Truthfully," he explained, "it's because my cultivation is more invested in my physique rather than in my Meridian Circulation. My, uh, unique ability lends itself well to continued tempering, and so I'm more advanced into the Earth Realm than most reach."

"Wow. So what you're telling me is that I can be even rougher than I already am, then?"

River's cheeks flushed at the commentary, almost enough to match those eyes of his. Five laughed; she so enjoyed being able to have that effect on him!

"Don't worry, dear, you don't have to answer," she let him off this time, patting his chest and finding herself resisting the urge to trace a finger down along that cleft. This fur cloak of his was very dashing, but boy did it present so much temptation!

"So about how far are we talking here?" River asked, changing the subject.

"If I were going alone, I'd say a good eight hours, so maybe three hours now?" Five did her best to make a guess. "Sustaining this pace, we should get there around noon."

"Okay, I can handle that," he replied.

Together, man and woman, they skimmed the surface of the grasslands on the way to their destination.

--------

Unseen but very much present with the couple, Dirge was pleased with the recent developments brought on by this girl. She was no novice, that was for sure, but it only took subtle touches to erode that fear, enhance that awe, and nudge them together in a rapport. There was a certain amusement in the immortal murderer playing the part of matchmaker, but he had his reasons.

With the doubt and distrust stewing in the young man, the problem of switching his cultivation technique would have taken a great deal more effort to approach. Because of his newfound attachment to the woman, though, he had made the request himself, playing right into the ancient assassin's requirements. Attraction could be such a useful lever to move people; that was a painful lesson Dirge had experienced himself in the past.

Passion Sublimation in the hands of a neophyte with poor self-control like the boy was a technique that always spiraled out of control. For Dirge's purposes and arrangements, waiting for that to occur naturally could introduce troublesome factors. Now, having given the boy the ticking time bomb that was Passion Amplification the guaranteed quality of the finished product would be superior.

Having wholly consumed the soul of the Flowing Water clan chief, Dirge now knew that the final process of consolidating a complete soul would take some time, perhaps even years. Before the final step that required the kid's soul, he would need for the kid to not get himself killed doing something stupid.

Thankfully the girl and the circumstances of the boy's rise to power had created the perfect storm; the disembodied soul would have marveled at such coincidence if he didn't already know better. With the kid having advanced to the third-grade Earth Realm, he now had the qualification to battle an initial Foundation Building expert and more, as long as Dirge was there to provide backup. Five's ragtag band could provide a distraction to keep some of the bandits off his back, and they could also come in handy in other creative ways.

The ghostly killer's plans for the girl didn't end there, of course. Having observed the phenomenon with Blue Ripple's destiny, Dirge had decided to embark on another experiment, one that the girl was necessary for. Even now he scanned her body and soul with his sense, smiling to himself in satisfaction at her state. A few more days and he would be confident of achieving his initial aim there.

It was only a bit of a pity that it was far too soon for him to try and reassume corporeality, or he might have taken this opportunity. On the bright side, the raw materials weren't all that exceptional anyway.

--------

A goodly distance to the north, at the Dragon's Den itself, a problem was unfolding in the throne room.

"My lord," the kneeling functionary reported, "the Balar already have a quasi-Palace expert in place at Aureate Hill. If you do not go forth--"

"Why would I go forth?" Brave Dragon frowned, turning his head to regard his majordomo. "Specs, the Balar are those people with the gigantic trading company, aren't they?"

"Yes, my lord," Specs pushed his eponymous spectacles up his nose as he answered. "Besides their prime patriarch attuning his Path, there's rumors about their ancestor still being around..."

"Well there's no way I want to offend them, then," Brave Dragon replied, returning his gaze to the reporting subordinate. "Since the Balar want to maintain the peace there, we might as well let them."

"B-but, sir, if I may be so bold, what about your sect?" the functionary asked.

Brave Dragon snorted. "I already used that favor I traded for when I re-did my foundation. Unless you're hiding another talent out there I can refer, they aren't going to budge a finger. Even then, they won't offend a Path Attunement fellow over pitiful has-been with cracked meridians like me. Write Aureate Hill off, forget about it. Consider it an in to grow closer to the trading company if you want, even." He waved a hand dramatically; he found the men loved these kinds of sweeping gestures even though he personally thought they looked dumb. "Dismissed."

"As you wish, my lord." The man glanced down at the stone floor as he rose and then turned on a heel and left.

"Hey, Specs."

"Yes, my lord?" The majordomo perked up.

"Any news on that Devilwhatsit?" Brave Dragon asked, "Y'know, the guy who made the ruckus with them Balar in the first place?"

"Ah, no, my lord," Specs replied apologetically. "We've issued bounties throughout the region, but there's been little time to hear anything back as of yet. We believe as of now that he may approach one of the clan villages for refuge, though."

Brave Dragon frowned. He hadn't had a good fight in a long time, and from all reports, this Devil of Flooding Whatever was a strong opponent, which instantly made him worthy of the bandit chieftain's attention. "Put the squeeze on them then, and see if we can find this guy."

"Of course, my lord," Specs noted and began to scribble on his tablet.

"And no wrecking the whole place this time, you got it?" Brave Dragon didn't think he needed to make such an order explicitly, but after the last outing the boys had, he decided he might as well do so. He hoped those villagers at least were being kept warm somewhere while rebuilding their village. "I want this guy intact so I can handle him myself."

"As you will it, my lord." Specs gave a slight bow, making a mental note only to maim and not outright kill the villagers this time. He knew the lord was concerned about getting the information more than reprisal and appreciated the reminder.