"You are not going to regret this decision Cypher! That much I can promise you!" Began Alvin, a look of pure joy spreading across his face. "Ohh this is so exciting! The ruin is quite old and who knows what other treasures we might find inside. I'll begin the preparations right away!"

Cypher smiled and began to head back towards the Slingate. He had told Alvin of his intentions to join him on this expedition a few days after the events in the Sanctum. Although, there were a few things he needed to grab before returning here and heading back to his old quarters.

Alvin stopped him and asked, "Ah, do you mind if I ask a favor?" Cypher turned and shrugged his shoulders.

"Go ahead, I'm already going on this trip with you so might as well ask as many favors as you like.

"I was wondering… would it be alright if I brought a few assistants with me? They were eager to join me after learning about my desire to explore this ruin at the end of one of my classes last semester. They are almost complete Rank-One Conductors, but their insight is valuable and could help us."

Cypher sighed and nodded, "Well, I don't agree with bringing students with us, but if they can handle themselves properly I don't see why it would be an issue. They can come along, just remember though I'm not going to babysit them."

Alvin smiled and thanked Cypher before he headed off toward his office. Cypher quickly returned to Seven City and rushed to his hidden home. There were still a few hours before the gates closed and he didn't feel the need to rush too much.

Elaine was nowhere to be seen, and no matter how hard he searched, he couldn't find her. His conversation with her would have to be put off for now, but it would happen. That much he was sure of.

Since he couldn't find her, he agreed to join Alvin. That is how he found himself returning home after almost a week away.

Once he stepped inside, Spark pounced on him and started licking him in the face. Cypher laughed and pushed his companion away playfully before he tackled him, and started roughhousing back. Spark growled and kicked Cypher off, then rushed to pick up his favorite toy. It was a thick and durable sack filled with hay that was shaped like a bean with legs. It looked a little suspicious, but it was probably an alright toy.

"Oh now come on buddy, we don't have time for this we need to get ready to go!" Cypher said, his hands on his hips as he stared playfully at Spark. Spark tilted his head and sent a questioning jolt through their mental link.

"We'll be going away for a little while and I don't want to leave you here alone. Last time I did that you nearly tore up the entire couch and it took me weeks to learn how to sew it back together." Spark only growled and shook the toy still locked in his jaws.

Cypher smiled and reached for one of the legs. Once he had a firm grip on it, Spark pulled and tried to rip it from Cypher's grip, but Cypher held on tightly. Cypher then pulled himself, and Spark growled playfully and tugged back. After a moment Cypher was able to rip it free from the jaws of the Ceraunus and it barked loudly before lunging at him.

Cypher dodged and chuckled as he ran off towards one of the larger training rooms with Spark hot on his heels. Once inside, he hurled the toy across the room, which was the length and width of several acres, as hard as he could. It was a training room designed to teach one how to use various terrains to their advantage. It had many different settings and Cypher had left it on a rocky, craggy area the last time he had used it.

Spark dashed in after his stuffed bean, and Cypher smiled as the Ceraunus caught it midair before it could even touch the ground. Spark threw it up again and jumped up to catch it, shaking it violently in his jaws when he did. He trotted back to Cypher, dropping the bean at his feet, and Cypher reached out to scratch at Spark's lower jaw.

Cypher used his mental energy to grab the toy bean and pulled it into his hand, which excited Spark again. Cypher spent the next few minutes throwing the toy and each time Spark would bring it back. After some time Cypher sat down against a boulder in the area and Spark came up and laid down next to him, gnawing on the toy bean.

It was quite durable but Cypher had been forced to get it fixed several times before he had learned to sew, and each time he would have to spend a few hours replacing the enchantments upon it. If he didn't it wouldn't last more than a day. Cypher didn't mind though, it kept Spark occupied and he had loved it ever since Cypher had given it to him when he was still a tiny puppy.

Cypher leaned back and started talking to his companion, "Look Spark, we're probably going into a dangerous area. It's mostly an exploration-type deal, but I don't want to be too careful you know?" Spark was listening but he only half understood the details of what his human was saying.

"I need you to come with me, but I can't have you hanging out in the open. Not everyone is happy to see a large Zightbeast roaming about and that means you're going to have to go in the ball," Spark growled seriously this time and stood up, his eyes glaring down at Cypher and a single mental message tinged with anger rang inside his head, "NO!"

Cypher chuckled and scratched Spark's jaw again, "I know you hate the ball, trust me, I would too. But can you please just get in it for this one errand? I promise when we get home I'll give you double the treats and I'll even throw in a whole Shimmering Deer," Spark considered the offer and turned its head up, its dichromatic eyes closed in defiance.

This was shocking since Shimmering Deer were not only somewhat rare in this area, but also Spark's favorite meal. They were of the wind element and could become ethereal on command, and while they weren't easy to kill or find, they always filled Spark up and satisfied him.

"Okay, okay," Cypher replied, chuckling again, "How about two Shimmering Deer?" Spark opened an eye and stared down at Cypher who returned the gaze and only smiled.

"Alright this is my final offer, three Shimmering Deer, extra treats, and we'll play with your bean until you get tired. How about it? Will you do it?" Spark considered the offer carefully and scratched behind its ear with its hind leg. It shook, shuddered, and pawed the ground before snorting its agreement. Cypher reached up and petted Spark again.

"I'm sorry I gotta do this buddy, but don't worry it should only be a short little outing, a week tops okay?" Cypher then pulled a small crystal orb from within his dimensional pocket and pointed it at Spark. The proud Ceraunus let loose a roar that vibrated Cypher's bones and as it did, its body started to glow with white light.

After a moment the light slowly faded away and Cypher looked down at the crystal orb to see his companion crystalized inside it. Spark was indistinguishable from the crystal itself and looked like it had been masterfully carved from the inside out.

The orb was a curious magickal item that members of his family had used for generations to transport their Ceraunus companions in secret. It was small, unbreakable, and best of all could be stored in dimensional pockets with no adverse effects on the Ceraunus inside. If anyone even looked at it they would only see it as a mild curiosity or a work of art.

As a bonus, the beast inside could be summoned at any moment and instantly ejected from the dimensional pocket. This meant that Cypher had a powerful surprise attack waiting if things got too intense. It was extremely handy, but the downside was that the Ceraunus kept inside would be technically dead for the duration of its containment.

This was a bit jarring for them since once they materialized, they would gain awareness of the entire time spent inside the orb. If that time was only hours or a few days it wouldn't be that big a deal. It was annoying but manageable, and Spark didn't like it much.

It was for that reason that he had to broker such a deal with Spark just to get him to agree. Cypher moved on after pocketing Spark and began to load up on various supplies and other things he would need for the expedition. He came at last to the vault and opened a safe. Inside sat several dozen unactivated Arks, and Cypher now understood why his father had kept so many.

He grabbed one for himself and one for Alvin. Cypher quickly put on his new Ark, and it connected with his Orrium, aligning itself with the Null element. After that, he pocketed the other, and quickly departed for the Slingate, his tasks complete.

You'll notice a clear lack of messages in the author's notes. That's because I need your help. I'm facing an emergency and if you can help it would mean the world to me. I won't go into details here but I will leave this link https://gofund.me/3eeb6afa If you can't help directly, sharing the link around is just as helpful. I absolutely hate doing this but the dire situation calls for dire action.

Given the circumstances, I won't have access to my PC for what might be quite a while. During this time I won't be able to upload chapters as regularly or possibly even at all. As such, when I return I'll be dumping a lot of chapters to make up for the lost time, so I hope you guys don't mind the wait. I have chapters lined up for the next week. I'm hoping that by then things will be clearing up for me IRL but if not we'll go from there.