“Are you sure this creature is even in the area?” Corbin sighed from his perch in a tree across from Liliana.

The late fall foliage was poor camouflage, but Corbin managed to almost disappear in the shadows of the tree. His dark clothes and hair helped him melt into the shadows. Liliana pulled her dappled cloak tighter around her. The camouflage of it helped her to vanish into her surroundings.

“Unless that information is faulty too, but it shouldn’t be as we got it from a professor before it was made into an assignment,” Liliana responded, eyes moving quickly as she looked over the river they were hiding above.

On the banks were the cooling corpses of the Greater Caiman that had more teeth than sense. If nothing else, Liliana would be making some coin off of the materials they’d ripped from the bodies of the beasts that had called the river home. At least the trip wouldn’t be entirely for nought, even if she didn’t find what she was looking for. But the thought of returning without a tame itched her.

She’d heard other tamers talk about it, the urge, the almost undeniable need, to find and tame more creatures. It seemed to afflict those who commonly tamed weaker creatures the worst. Liliana hadn’t felt the urge much herself until more recently. But it could also be her urge to always seek out more power, rather than some odd tamer superstition.

“Maybe the professors are in on the conspiracy.” Corbin shrugged as he cleaned his flute, a leg dangling carelessly. Not that he had much to fear in the surrounding area any longer, Lilliana had handily cleared anything she had sensed that could be a danger or nuisance out.

“You’ve been spending too much time around Emyr, talking about conspiracies.” Liliana sighed when she saw no new movement. Yet another bust then. She tugged out a map from her storage and marked it down.

They’d been out here for days, checking different bodies of water in search of an elusive creature that was little more than a rumor. No one who had reported encountering the creature had gotten a clear view of it, so all they had were wisps of fables to run after. The most frustrating part was that there was no consistency with where the beast appeared. Liliana had narrowed down the territory for the beast, but it was still a large area to comb over manually.

The beast was making a name for itself, locals calling it the Spirit of The Water, if they were kind. Water Demon was another one. Liliana had opinions, none of them complimentary, about the locals’ naming prowess. The tales of it varied as well. Some saying they had been saved by the creature and healed, others saying they had been chased by a great monster made of water and death.

Liliana wasn’t much concerned with the stories. Those so often grew and twisted so quickly they hardly resembled their origins. What she cared about was that this creature was strong, and rare enough that others couldn’t easily figure out what it was. And based on the bits and pieces she had put together of it, it would fill several holes in her own build. Namely, it had the potential to be a healer. One class she didn’t have easy coverage of in her own bonds.

She had Marianne as a friend, but the princess could not always be at her side in a fight, and Liliana would need to be sure she could be self sufficient. To achieve all the plans she had. And to keep the promise she’d made to Marianne.

“Lili? Could I talk to you?” Marianne was shifting her weight, looking nervous in a way that didn’t fit the mental image Liliana always had of her friend.

“Yeah, I can talk.” Liliana set down her weapons and turned off the training dummies she’d been fighting against. They were mostly alone in the class S personal training room. Polaris was napping to the side, or ‘supervising’ as he’d call it. The only thing he was supervising were his own dreams.

“Do you know why my mother agreed to send me to the Academy?” Marianne asked after they’d sat down. Liliana blinked at her friend, unsure of the reason for the question.

“I assume the same reason any of our parents send us here, for the prestige and the power.” Liliana hazarded a guess. Marianne shook her head with a small, humorless smile.

“No. No, mother doesn’t care for prestige. And if it was simply power she wanted me to have, she’d keep me in the castle, training with the knights.” Marianne picked at her sleeves as she explained, eyes still downcast.

“Then for political advantages? To make connections and alliances?” Liliana tried another common option and Marianne let out a small, dry, humorless laugh.

“No. Mother didn’t send me here for those reasons, either,” Marianne denied and Liliana sighed.

“Then I don’t know, Mari. Why did she agree to send you here?” Liliana repeated her friend’s question with a frustrated huff.

“You know. My mother has a favorite saying: a commander is only as strong as their soldiers. Or a queen is only as strong as her Knights.” Marianne switched the subject again, fast enough to give Liliana whiplash.

“The reason mother would never send me here for the purpose of me gaining power is: no matter how strong I become, it won’t matter if my people are weak. A Rank 1 queen is useless to a country full of helpless children. An army of sufficient size would destroy it, no matter the strength of the one who bears the crown.” Marianne’s hands were trembling as she gripped onto the fabric of her uniform. Liliana wanted to reach out and comfort her friend, but she wasn’t sure if her gesture would be appreciated.

“Alliances are only worth it if both sides have enough power that the other wouldn’t try to break them. Prestige is useless on the battlefield. A beautiful castle falls the same to cannons as an ugly one. In this world, there is only one thing that matters at the heart of it. Power. But when you’re a queen, it’s not your own power you need to care about, it’s the power of your entire country.” Marianne closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. Liliana felt her own heart speeding up, a sense of foreboding filling her.

“The reason my mother sent me here, Liliana, wasn’t to become powerful on my own. She agreed to send me here because a queen is nothing without her Knights. Without a strong foundation, the queen and queendom will fall.” Marianne opened her eyes and met Liliana’s. Ruby red eyes were sharp as swords as they pierced into her. At that moment, Liliana wasn’t talking to her best friend, Mari. She was talking to the future queen, Marianne Summerwarden.

“So I ask you, not as your friend, but as the heir to the queendom of Cista, to the person who has the potential to become the strongest person in this queendom. Will you be my first Knight, Liliana Rosengarde? Will you stand beside me and swear your life to this queendom? To defend the future of our country with everything you have?” Marianne’s voice was solemn, and Liliana could almost see the image of a crown on her head and a scepter in her hands.

Liliana knew what it must have taken for Marianne to ask her. To ask her friend, her first and closest friend, if she was prepared to make an oath that would demand she lay down her life if there was a need. To give her life over to Marianne. It went beyond friendship; it asked for loyalty, devotion. You could love a friend, but you had to obey a monarch.

She couldn’t say she had never wondered if Marianne would ask her to become her Knight. It seemed like the natural progression in their relationship. A clean and tidy solution to many of her problems. Knights could have no ties to their families of birth, discarding the family names they were given in exchange for becoming the voice and hands of the queen.

Her father would have no further hold on her if she were to become a Knight. She would no longer be his daughter. For all intents and purposes, Liliana Rosengarde would die the day she took her oath as a Knight.

However, there was a not so small issue that stopped Liliana from giving her agreement easily.

The soul bond that came with the oath of a Knight. It wouldn’t be like the ones she had with her own bonds, where it was an equal partnership. Marianne would give nothing in the exchange, but Liliana would give a portion of herself to Marianne. There was the potential that the bond would give her friend unfettered access to her mind. And if the need was great enough and Marianne, or the queendom, was in enough danger, then Marianne would have access to her power as well. It was not often that it was necessary for a queen of Cista to sacrifice her Knights to draw their strength into herself to overcome some enemy, but it had happened before.

And sometimes, the queen would ask for everything a Knight had to give, including their very life.

Liliana wouldn’t mind that on its own. If Marianne was in danger so devastating she had to take Liliana’s strength, she would offer it gladly. But there were secrets she still held deep within her mind that she was not eager to have revealed. The knowledge of a previous life, of the fact that she had stolen the body she resided in now. These things would be laid bare before Marianne if they shared a soul bond, for there were no secrets between souls. Liliana knew that well from her own bonds.

“No.” Liliana finally spoke, the word falling from numb lips. Marianne’s look of relief mixed with dejection was a physical strike to Liliana’s heart.

Marianne was relieved that she would never have to ask her closest friend to pay the greatest price, but saddened that the person she most wanted to be her Knight was declining the offer. It was written over her face, so easy for Liliana to read after knowing Marianne for so many years.

“There are things, secrets, that I have that I can’t afford to have anyone know yet, Marianne.” Liliana forced herself to keep speaking, to try to banish the look on Marianne’s face.

“And as I am now, I’m not strong enough to be worthy of that title. Because I’m still too much of a coward to tell those closest to me all of my secrets, and because there are still things out there that I can’t protect you from.” Liliana continued, Marianne straightening from her slouched posture as hope filled her eyes.

“Ask me again, at the end of our fourth year. I hope by that time I’m finally someone who deserves to be called a Knight.” Liliana finished, trying for a smile and falling short, but it was enough. Marianne’s scarlet eyes filled with tears as she launched herself at Liliana, wrapping thin arms around her neck.

“Thank you, Lili. I wouldn’t have anyone else as my first Knight than you. I won’t accept anyone else until you’re ready.” Marianne promised her, and Liliana chuckled. The solemn spell that had held them bound broke as her arms wrapped around Marianne and she gripped her friend as tightly as she dared.

Liliana didn’t care much for the queendom of Cista, or for the people who lived in it. She did, however, care deeply for the girl who would one day rule this queendom. Silently, Liliana added Marianne to her reasons for gaining strength, so she could one day become worthy of being her friend’s Knight. So she could stand at her side and protect her. If she survived long enough to see the day Marianne took the throne.

She hoped she did.

If Liliana wanted to become Marianne’s Knight one day, she would need to become a one woman army. She knew by now she did not have to fight alone. Her friends had made that clear time and again. But if she was to be a Knight one day, she would need to have the power on her own to rival any who would dare to strike against Marianne. And those who would strike against Marianne would not come alone, for to strike against Marianne would be to strike against Cista.

They’d come with their armies, with their warriors, and if Liliana was to stop them, she’d need to be able to hold the line against whatever army stepped foot on their land.

There was a closer goal than that, though. If she had any hope of fighting whatever being it was Vita was so scared of she’d need every advantage, trick and cheat she could pull. A healer on her side could very easily be the difference between defeat and victory.

She couldn’t expect Marianne to be with her whenever she faced down the ‘great evil’ Vita had set her after. In the game, she might have been one of the five heroes, but in this world she was a princess, the only princess of their queendom. She was not someone who could be risked in such a fight.

So whoever ended up at her side in that fight, Marianne could not be one of them. And they’d need a healer to keep them up and fighting until they took the being down.

Having a healer could very well be the only thing that would stop Marianne from forcing herself into that fight. If she knew her friends couldn’t win without her, there would be no force on this planet that could keep Marianne away from the fight. Duty and queendom be damned.

“Off to the next one?” Corbin asked as Liliana stood on her branch, stretching out her cramped muscles.

“We’ll have to. It’s not here.” Liliana rolled her shoulders as the heavy weight of wings settled on them.

The feathers made of light felt comfortably warm, like metal heated in the morning sun. It was perhaps one of her favorite skills, [Wings Of Radiance], gained from long days of painstaking work and leveled through weeks and months of effort.

“Your Sylphs find anything?” Liliana asked as her wings beat behind her slowly.

Corbin summoned Lysander from a stone, the black pegasus appearing in a burst of darkness and feathers. Corbin didn’t hesitate to jump from his perch, knowing instinctively that his bond would catch him. Liliana crouched and jumped from her branch, wings heaving as she broke quickly through the canopy and into the air above the thick forest.

“Nothing, but we expected that. Lelantos or Polaris find anything?” Corbin asked as Lysander followed Liliana’s path to the sky.

“Like I’d ask them to find a creature I want to bond.” Liliana snorted as she paused in the air, circling slowly to decide on a direction. “Lelantos would try to kill it, just to prove I don’t need another bond. Polaris would want to play with it, and could potentially kill it as a result.” Liliana sighed as she banked in the air and chose a direction they hadn’t been in yet.

“So little control,” Corbin tsked as Lysander tried to keep pace, Corbin resting lazily on his back, his flute out as he tried to play a few testing notes, the sounds ripped away by the harsh wind of their flight.

“You want to try to control a Kitsune?” Liliana shot back.

“There’s a reason I never tried to tame one,” Corbin was practically shouting over the wind and Liliana snorted quietly. She had a small barrier of air around herself that stopped the effects of the wind from affecting her at such speeds, but other than [Telepathy] she’d yet to find a way to make communication while flying any easier.

Liliana slowed as they approached a new body of water, a pond that was attempting to be called a lake. This high up, it looked so small, like a forgotten gemstone discarded in the dirt. Liliana could hardly see much more than the glimmer of water as she swung herself in circles above it.

“Think this will be lucky number thirteen?” Corbin asked, and Liliana huffed out a laugh.

“Knowing my brand of luck, I’ll end up grievously wounded.” She responded, giving Corbin a grin when he squawked in surprise, sounding rather bird like.

“Excuse me, can you give some explanation for that?” Corbin demanded, finally sitting up straight on Lysander’s back.

“You’ve met my bonds. You think I got them to agree to a contract by asking nicely?” Liliana didn’t give Corbin time to answer as she dived, wings pressed tight against her back.

There was one thing Liliana knew about all beasts. They didn’t like intruders, threats, in their territory. This only got worse the higher their Rank. One of the fastest ways to get a beast to show themselves was to make them think they needed to defend their home. They wouldn’t attack if they thought the intruder was too strong for them, but Liliana was hoping that this beast wouldn’t see her as a dangerous enough threat to flee from.

If she was stronger than it, then it wouldn’t be worth bonding in the first place. Liliana had only ever bonded creatures stronger than her, to add their power to her own.

It was a dangerous strategy, and a risky one. Something the majority of tamers wouldn’t dare attempt, because the risk of death was too high for the reward. But Liliana was well used to facing off against stronger enemies by now, and she had yet to fail.

“Come out, come out, little beastie,” Liliana muttered as her wings snapped out with a crack and her dive turned into a swoop.

Her body skimmed the surface of the large pond, which she could see now was covered in floating waterlilies and lily pads. A rippling under the surface of the water, disturbing the tranquil stillness, was the only warning Liliana got before a form covered in glowing water erupted under her.

“Gotcha.” Liliana grinned as she rolled through the air, barely avoiding the attack.

Liliana pulled back into the air, gaining distance as the beast dropped back under the water before Liliana could get a good look at it. She could see some of its body moving under the water and plants, a glowing form that had adrenaline pumping into her veins. It was far larger than she’d thought it would be.

“Fuck. Guess we found it.” Corbin called from a safe distance above her, his flute already in hand.

“You ready?” Liliana called out as her swords appeared in the air around her, her naginata forming in her hand with its comforting weight.

“You sure we can’t do this by talking?” Corbin asked, voice bordering on a whine.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Liliana asked him, eyes locked on the moving form in the water.

It had been far too long since she’d tamed a beast. She had to wonder what price in blood she’d have to pay for this one.