“So…tired…” Aurin said as he walked along the path to Maple Ranch with a grey monster egg under one arm and a sleeping Sunny under the other. The tired little Minakai had fallen asleep when they passed through the town, so spent was she from her rapid attempts to heal and then having to carry Aurin out of the rift.
“There you are!” called Luna, walking towards him with a skipping Innogon following her. Her face fell when she saw that he was returning with only one Minakai. “What in the world happened, Aurin?”
“Our adventure into the rift got a little out of hand,” he replied, holding up his egg—the grey one, not the snoring one—at which Luna’s jaw dropped. “I didn’t return empty-handed at the very least.”
“You found an egg in the rift?”
“Did I hear that right?” asked Evan approaching. He leapt over his fence and walked over to the others. “Not a bad find at all! It’s difficult to get those things out of there considering how dangerous it is.”
“So I learned,” said Aurin, nodding to Sunny.
Evan raised an eyebrow. “How many monsters did you bring?”
“Five, including her. Shamtile, Steambot, Chopchop, and Glacibot didn’t make it through the run. Sunny had to float me back to the surface.”
“And you didn’t call in reinforcements?” asked Luna.
“No,” said Aurin. “It was a challenge to see how far I could get with the Minakai I brought with me.”
Luna slapped him on the arm. “You could have died!” she scolded him. “That was incredibly reckless of you, Aurin.”
“I’m alive to tell the tale,” he said with a shrug.
“Don’t do that again,” said Luna, folding her arms and frowning at him. “If I knew your full plan, I would have come with you so that we’d at least be a stronger force.”
“I suspect the rift grows in power the more humans that pass through it,” said Evan. “I can’t substantiate it with any hard data, but I think its magic reacts the same way the tower does. The larger the group, the more Minakai that spawn and the tougher they are.”
“See?” Aurin told Luna. “It wouldn’t have helped.”
“I’m just theorising,” said Evan, holding up his hands. “Now, before I start a big fight, I’m going to go get my incubator for you.”
“Promise me that you’ll be more sensible in the future,” said Luna to Aurin as Evan ran off.
“I promise,” said Aurin, knowing that she was right. “Next time I’m in a pinch, I’ll bring summon backup.”
“Zeera, Gorunze, Spikruption, whoever. A big and powerful monster that can keep you covered and then Skrow can help you dart out of there safely.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I’m not planning on going back into the rift anytime soon. I saw what I needed to see for the time being.”
“And what was that?”
“Tower tiles,” said Aurin with an intriguing grin.
Luna furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”
“There were tower tiles bleeding through into the rift. My best guess is that it’s somehow linked to Maple Tower, not another Minakai dimension.”
“Got it!” called Evan, running back over with the incubator in his hands.
“Evan,” said Aurin. “Have you ever seen any tiles from the tower in the rift?”
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“Eh?” asked the rancher in confusion. “No, I can’t say that I have. And I’ve explored that rift thoroughly across many runs.”
“You’ve seen the cavern with the waterfall.”
“The waterfall that falls into the pool that never overflows? Oh yes, I know it. There were tiles there?”
“Yes, Shamtile spotted them.”
“Huh,” said Evan, looking perplexed. “That’s…new? I’ll take a look the next time I’m down there. I remember the way to that cavern, so it shouldn’t take too long.”
Aurin looked to the incubator and spun the egg around in his hands. “Alright, let’s see who’s the latest addition to the team.”
Evan set the incubator on the ground and Aurin placed the egg within. With a press of a button, the egg was concealed within a forcefield and the hatching began. The egg glowed red, signifying the fire element, and a fireball-like shape was revealed. Aurin noticed two thin legs that ended in talons sticking out from the bottom of the fireball. As the light faded, the Minakai was revealed as a Flowl.
The little flame-engulfed chick looked up at Aurin with his face concealed by the fire, save for his beak and eyes. He let out a squeaking squawk and then hopped from foot to foot.
“Another fire elemental added to the roster,” said Aurin, pumping his fist. “Let’s hope Spikruption doesn’t get jealous.”
“He’s very territorial and proud, so I think it’s unavoidable,” remarked Luna.
“Welcome aboard, Flowl,” said Aurin, squatting beside his Minakai. “I can’t send you to Hazelton to be with the rest of the team right now, but I’m sure Evan won’t mind you staying here temporarily.”
“Free of charge,” said Evan with a smile. “But lunch is on you.”
“Deal,” said Aurin. “In fact, I’ll pay for Elodie too if I can keep my Tuptup here. He’s probably lonely in Newfort.”
“Done.”
Aurin reached into his bag and pulled out the purple summoning stone that linked him to his formerly newest Minakai. He focused his mind on it and called Tuptup to his side.
“Alright, you two,” he said. “You’re the two newbies, so you can stick together. I’ll keep Sunny here with you for the rest of the day and you can get acquainted when she wakes up. We’ll catch up in an hour or two after we’ve eaten.”
Tuptup and Flowl ran circles around the sleeping Sunny, making Aurin and Luna laugh. Evan took the incubator back to his barn and returned a minute later with his sister.
“There’s talk of a free lunch?” she asked giddily.
“You sure you don’t want to sleep?” Evan asked Aurin. “You look like you’re on the verge of collapse.”
“Nah,” said the young man. “I’m like the Minakai. Give me some food and I’ll be fully recharged.”
“It’s true,” said Luna, nodding. “One time, after a tower run, he was half-conscious on the ground until I waved a scone in front of his face. It didn’t even need to touch his tongue and he was back to full alertness.”
“I won’t argue with that,” said Evan, leading the way down the path and beckoning the others to follow him.
He led the way into Maplewood and everyone took seats at Rhys’s Café. Within seconds, Roxanne came to greet them with menus, and the four made their orders.
“So where are you heading to next on your whirlwind tour of Bretonia?” Elodie asked Aurin and Luna as Roxanne headed back inside.
“Kicking us out already?” asked Aurin and Luna nudged him in the ribs. “It was a joke!”
“Skyburrough,” said Luna. “It’ll be our first stop in one of the major cities.”
“Ah,” said Evan. “You’re in for a treat then. I’ve never seen a city so passionate about Minakai…and half the people there don’t have any of their own.”
“What do you mean?” asked Aurin.
“Well, they prefer their Minakai to be digital. I’ll say no more and let you see for yourself when you get there. It’s a weird place, but the people are nice enough.”
“Alright, I’m curious,” said Aurin. “Tell me more.”
“Nope.”
“Why not?”
“Just trust me. It’s one of those places best seen for itself.”
Elodie nodded. “And make sure you visit the Domino District. That’s where all the action happens.”
“Do you have any idea what they’re talking about?” Aurin asked Luna, who shook her head.
“It’s the handiest city on our route. I don’t know a single thing about the place.”
As Aurin continued to probe Evan and Elodie for more information about Skyburrough, a man across the square was sitting on a park bench and pretending to not have noticed the four. He was wearing a brown jacket and a pair of sunglasses, and held a mobile phone to his ear.
“Yes, boss, I’m looking at him right now,” said the man. “He’s still with the girl, but there are two others that I’ve never seen before; locals, presumably. He doesn’t have any of his Minakai with him, but he’s wearing his tamer glove and it’s filled with stones. I can’t make out the colours clearly from a distance.”
“Good,” came a voice from the other end. “That means he doesn’t always have his monsters by his side when he’s travelling. This bodes well for us.”
“Do you want me to take any action, sir?” asked the man.
“Not right now. All you need to do is track his movements for a while. I won’t deploy the others right now, so make sure that you follow him until I say otherwise. Is that understood, Jackson?”
“Understood, boss,” said Jackson, “but I assure you that I can bring back the prize you’re looking for solo. Deploying the others won’t be necessary.”
“This is too precarious a situation to handle alone. If he gets spooked and summons too many monsters, things could fall apart quickly and our chance will be lost. He won’t lower his guard again. No, we need to play this sensibly.”
“Whatever you say, sir. I’ll keep an eye on things from a distance.”
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