Harper crept towards the mound of rocks, wary of spiderwebs. Vayuhn waited further back, bow at the ready. She studied the space between trees, eventually picking out a distortion in between most of them. The spider must have set up more traps.

  The spider’s location was not apparent. It had to be somewhere here, though. Hopefully, just the one. She wasn’t too worried about there being more; the Governor had a list of known threats in the area. She had matched the mottled description and quality of the web with a certain species. The type of spider she fought was a known quantity; they were a solitary breed, virtually never living near another creature. They were known as occult spiders, infamous for their nearly invisible webs.

  One of the rangers’ duties were to regularly sweep the paths and the area around them for such webs. They were successful; few of these spiders ambushed those along the path. They were one of the easier single Domain creatures to kill in the area, so long as one was prepared for them.

  Fortunately, they were not a venomous species. A bite in a non-vital area wouldn’t kill, or even seriously injure. Harper was still wary. A broken or lacerated limb may not be fatal, but it would tip the fight in the spider’s favor and set her back in her long-term goals. Also, it would hurt.

  Harper circled around the rocks, trying to find the spider before it found her. She circled the mound a few times, only the cleft being unchecked. Throwing rocks inside elicited no response. The young woman took a deep breath and readied her sword.

  Careful steps and a glance around the corner revealed the hidden... nothing. Where is this damn thing? She walked back around the mound. “Vayuhn! It’s not here!”

  A camouflaged figure lying in wait stood up and made his way over. Keeping the arrow on its string. He spoke once he got closer. “It has to be somewhere around here. They’re ambush predators; they don’t go hunting. When prey stops wandering in their area, they set up shop somewhere else. I’ve hunted a handful of these over the years, not once did I find the webs but not the spider.”

  Harper gestured around. “There’s nowhere else for it to hide. It’s not here. You're welcome to look.”

  Vayuhn nodded, walking past her and studying the mound. He was so intent on it that he didn’t notice the shadow hurtling across the ground. Harper moved instinctually, shoving him out of the way and using the momentum to leap backwards. She may have shoved too hard, still not used to her new strength. He slammed against a nearby tree.

  The spider landed right where he had been. The arachnid didn’t hesitate to attack him, winded as he was. Harper took the opportunity to land a decisive blow, slicing off one of its back legs. It recoiled, rearing back.

  Vayuhn used the time to roll back up, still trying to catch the breath knocked out of him. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a mace. A mace? Hardly a ranger’s weapon. It will be effective against the spider though, Harper noted absently.

  The fight didn’t last long after that. It was two against one. Whenever it turned its back to one of them, the other would dash in and land a hit. In that way, they crippled its legs and landed blows on its body. Finally, the spider collapsed, and Harper used the point of her rapier to thrust into the spider’s head, finishing it off.

  They both stood with their hands on their knees, catching their breath. Neither had sustained any wounds, the worst of it being some scrapes and bruises Vayuhn got when Harper pushed him into the tree. It was a resounding success. Once the spider’s ambush had been foiled, it stood no chance.

  Harper just wished they hadn’t gotten so close to disaster. If the initial attack had disabled or killed her companion, she wasn't positive that she would have been able to defeat the creature on her own.

  Once they caught their breath, Vayuhn showed her the most efficient way to disable the spider and collect its core. Digging through monster guts was hardly an alluring task, but she did it without complaint.

  As they agreed, Vayuhn claimed the core and he would take the carcass, giving her half of what it was worth. The chitin like substance that made up the spider’s exoskeleton was hardly the most in demand of aethereal materials, but they should get a decent amount for it. Its flesh and blood weren’t worth much and would be more trouble than they were worth to collect and haul back.

  The greatest prizes, other than the core, were its eyes and spinneret glands. The first was a common potion ingredient. The latter could be made into a tool that produced webs similar to what the spider spun in life or used for raw parts. The organ had a high compatibility with the Umbral Domain. If it was a venomous spider, they would have been able to loot its venom glands, but that was not the case here.

  Harper didn’t begrudge him taking that first core too much. From the sound of it, he managed to acquire one on his own most of the time, and occasionally get another to act as a reserve. With her help, he would be able to take slightly riskier hunts, securing more cores. For now, she was content with the coin from selling the spider parts.

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  He even agreed to look especially for a creature of the Aquatic Domain fitting her specifications. The young labuntan man had a few ideas and would investigate in his free time. His master didn’t let him roam completely independently, even with him providing a core a week. He still had various tasks that needed to be taken care of.

  The walk to the mound and the subsequent fight with the spider had taken the greater part of the morning, but they still had the rest of the day and the next before Harper was back on courier runs. It was an ideal time to start Vayuhn’s education. Vayuhn had a few spots in mind, places that were relatively comfortable and secluded, but she had a better idea.

  “We should be seeing the cairn anytime now. It’s supposed to be just a couple miles from that bend in the road.”

  “Is this really necessary.” Vayuhn complained. “If this is a known site, there’s a much bigger chance someone will find us. There are places I know that are so much more coinvent and only I know about. You could at least tell me what exactly is so important.”

  They crested a rise and got a good view of the surrounding area. The labuntan pointed out the cairn, heading towards it. It was small and far enough that Harper could barely make it out. Labuntans were blessed with not only natural dark lenses that could be lifted and lowered to protect their eyes from the sun, but they also had superb eyesight.

  Harper responded. “It's not that far, and the man in the cartography store told me no one has bought the list of these locations in years. Besides, it could provide inspiration towards earning Domains.” Mostly, Harper just found them interesting, but she didn’t say so out loud.

  Vayuhn rolled his eyes and continued walking. They passed the cairn and saw their destination between the trees. “Oh, it’s one of these,” murmured Vayuhn absently. She wasn’t focused on him though; she was focused on the statue. It was a large, ivory, barrel-chested creature. It had textured fur, clawed paws, and a small tail.

  It represented an Ursa, a terrifying Potentate famed for its strength and ferocity. It took the form of a massive bear. At least, it had. There was no head attached to its body, only chunks of bone half buried in the ground in front of it. The statue had been defaced.

  Harper looked at it in disappointment. She didn’t know or even care overly much about the cultural significance these had for the efferans, but she thought the statues themselves were magnificent. Why destroy them? Why desecrate a trophy of victory?

  Vayuhn looked over, seeing her expression. “I’ve found a handful of these over the last few years; around a third of them have been vandalized in some way. They do make comfortable spots, but I still think it's tempting fate to hang around a known area. We’ll stay here today, but I know of one that I don’t think anyone but myself has found yet.”

  She nodded her assent, and they walked under the large stone bear, resting against one of its forelegs. “I didn’t bring the study supplies I’ve prepared for teaching you to read and write; we’ll start with Domain techniques. What do you already have? When did you get it? And what do you want to focus on?”

  She didn’t really need to know what he had, but she was curious. “I manifested the Aerial Domain a little over two years ago. I want to learn about the Solar Domain.”

  Harper raised a brow. “How old are you?”

  “I’m not completely sure. My master couldn’t be bothered to keep track of my exact age. All I know is that I’m around eighteen, maybe a bit younger.”

  Another damn prodigy. In Sky too, to add insult to injury. He nearly rivaled her brother, maybe even equaled or surpassed him when considering that her brother had consumed a couple Sun cores and benefited from technique training. Vayuhn could easily turn it into an Apex Domain. That he hadn’t managed to gain a second was little solace.

  The young man had guessed some of what she was thinking. “Yup, I’m supposedly very talented. In Sky anyways. Its earned the personal attention of my master. He paid a hefty price for me and my brother. Not too much of a price though, a strong slave can be a liability,” he added bitterly.

  Harper understood. Without being taught techniques and often being kept busy, slaves rarely gained their first Domain before they were well past adulthood. The vast majority didn’t gain a second in their lifetime. Vayuhn was on track to earn three in his lifetime, without advanced education on Domains that was. The majority of those with extreme talent in one Domain tended to have at least a moderate amount in several more.

  Most people who were taught techniques were able to manifest three Domains in their lifetime; they were called Squires. For the richer, those who consumed cores, the average was five, known as Masters. It was expected that her brother would be capable of reaching six or seven, in ideal circumstances. Those circumstances being a long life and a steady diet of cores.

  “Has he taught you any techniques? What’s his plan for you?” She asked. After all, someone didn’t provide a labuntan with equipment and relative freedom for no reason. She would be surprised if his master hadn’t taught him anything; he currently wasn’t any stronger than an older labuntan with an integrated core, it was what he could be that mattered.

  “He set me on course to manifest the Lunar Domain. I... have no talent for it. I want to learn the Solar Domain. He has not bothered to discuss his plans with me. I have my guesses, but it doesn’t matter.”

  She wondered what the strange slave’s intentions were. He was taking a considerable risk learning what is forbidden to him. When she first inquired, he claimed that he just didn’t like being told what not to do. She thought there was more to it.

  Harper had moved past it because the deal was so beneficial, but she hoped she wasn’t responsible for the next slave uprising in this area. His master had a tight grip on him though, between the collar and possession of his brother. I’ll keep an eye on him. And if he has some plan for personal freedom, I won’t stand in his way, so long as it doesn’t tie back to me.