Owin stood with his eyes closed, letting the sunlight warm his skin. He took a deep breath, immediately noticing the lack of salt.

  “You’re back,” someone said.

  Owin flinched and immediately reached for his knife, but Vondaire’s hand tapped his shoulder, calming him.

  “You’re still here?” Vondaire asked.

  Owin looked over the men sitting around a table, each with a glass raised.

  “In Kriergow, we learned to keep still until our glasses are empty.”

  The others cheered and took a drink.

  “Why is there a table here?” Owin asked.

  Vondaire simply nodded in their direction, then pivoted. “It’s complicated.”

  “You must be famous,” one of the seated men said. “A giant held the ferry for you.”

  “A giant?” Owin looked past the small line of heroes waiting to enter, to the end of the sandbar where the ferry bobbed in the water. Chorsay sat on the edge and casually waved.

  “Somehow, this is what I expected,” Myrsvai said. “Of course, Chorsay would be waiting.”

  “You’re that goblin folk everyone is talking about,” one of the men at the table said.

  “Yeah.” Owin tapped a finger on his helmet, which had mostly regrown. “Isn’t it obvious with the green skin?”

  “It is.”

  “Okay.” Owin grabbed Shade’s hand and dragged him across the sandbar. The others followed while Vondaire positioned himself directly between Owin and the line of heroes waiting to enter the dungeon.

  “How long have you been waiting?” Vondaire asked as they neared the ferry.

  “A few hours. They told me you had just gone in the exit not long before I arrived.” Chorsay stood and gestured onto the ferry. “We have a lot to discuss.”

  “I thought we would be celebrating,” Vondaire said. He vanished and reappeared on the deck of the ferry. “Oh, we have company.”

  Owin wrapped his hand around the lich bone handle as he jumped on deck. As soon as he spotted the gold-clad man, he relaxed and smiled. “Arkasti.”

  “Ah, the goblin boy!”

  As soon as everyone was aboard, the ferry started moving, leaving the sandbar. Owin sat near Arkasti and stared at the swirling void nexus leading into the Ocean. He didn’t even know how long he had just spent inside, but it felt like forever.

  Chorsay sat on the deck, directly across from Owin. Myrsvai settled beside him, while Suta eyed Arkasti suspiciously. Vondaire also lingered, standing near the prow. Shade looked between all the new, unfamiliar people, then awkwardly shuffled over to Vonadaire.

  “Arkasti and I ran into one another while I was retrieving your hammer from Atrevaar,” Chorsay said. “I have quite the story.” The old man looked at Owin’s arm and smiled softly. “I imagine you each have your own stories as well.”

  “We do,” Myrsvai said. “If Owin does not mind, I would prefer you start. I am starving for information about the outside world.”

  “I will, as soon as you introduce your friend, Owin,” Chorsay said.

  “Shade,” Owin called.

  The skeleton poked Vondaire before walking over and standing quietly behind Owin.

  “Shade, this is Arkasti, a Shard Hero I met during my first time in the Ocean, and Chorsay, the leader of the Nimble Hogs. Everyone else, this is the Withered Shade, who we just call Shade. He’s my familiar, and the only reason I survived to the end.”

  Chorsay smiled at Shade. “Nice to meet you, Shade. I look forward to getting to know you better. Would you join us? When Owin shares his story, you can add any relevant information.”

  “Good luck keeping it relevant,” Myrsvai said.

  “Yes, absolutely. I can do that.” Shade sat on the deck beside Owin. “I can add so many details you will be able to taste the story.”

  Suta shook his head.

  Vondaire finally joined them, sitting silently beside Myrsvai. His index was open and his yellow eyes flicked between each person. Just as Chorsay was about to start talking, Vondaire loudly cleared his throat. “Arkasti. I noticed you wear the regal attire of a Bull, but I can’t help but notice you are an unaffiliated hero.”

  “Aye, that’s right. Once a Golden Bull, always a Golden Bull.”

  “That’s how we can start our story, I suppose,” Chorsay said. “Cix was training at the Fortress . . .” His voice immediately drifted off. “Many of you are unfamiliar with Cixilo. She is a talented Nimble Hog umbra.”

  Vondaire rolled his eyes.

  “While she was traveling home, she ran into Andres Orben, leader of the Golden Bulls.” Chorsay scratched his neck. “I’m not much of a storyteller. Andres Orben came to Atrevaar and threatened the Hogs. I killed him.”

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  “Self defense,” Arkasti added. “You say it like it was murder.”

  “It might as well have been.”

  “He was a 3 Shard Hero,” Vondaire said. The umbra fidgeted with a spectral kunai with his index still raised. “Are you hiding something?”

  “No. Andres was a hunter who got too close,” Chorsay said. “A smart hero would have kept their distance.”

  Owin noted for the first time that Chorsay had Artivan’s old winged sword sheathed on his hip.

  “I traveled to Atrevaar after getting my second shard to find you,” Arkasti said to Owin. “When I arrived, the Nimble Hog building was destroyed and the military thought I was there to finish the job.”

  Vondaire lowered his index. “So, you left the Bulls? What, out of principle? The goodness of your heart?”

  “Selfish reasons, I suppose.” Arkasti ran his hand over the flat side of his claymore. “I had no friendship with Andres. I barely knew the man. Attacking weaker heroes is an unforgivable act. My goal is to acquire all seven shards, and associating with the Golden Bulls was suddenly proving to be a questionable decision. Miss Alegarra suggested I leave, so I did.”

  “That’s the other thing,” Chorsay said. “We will be heading straight to Vraxridge, to Althowin Alegarra’s compound. Miya, Sanem, and Raif are there waiting for us.”

  “What about everyone else?” Owin asked.

  Arkasti let out a deep belly laugh.

  “I don’t think I like that response,” Owin whispered.

  “I don’t know what any of these words mean, so I’m just nodding a lot like I understand,” Shade whispered loudly. “You’re all saying a lot of names like I know any of them, and let me tell you, I don’t know any of them. I don’t really know anything, apparently.”

  “I’ll explain it again later.”

  Shade nodded. “Okay, I’ll keep pretending like I am following along so nobody feels bad for leaving me out.”

  Everyone stared at Shade, who was whispering far too loudly to keep anything a secret.

  “Is he always like this?” Arkasti asked.

  “Yes,” Myrsvai said quickly.

  “Everyone else has joined a new hero company for the moment so they could form a party to get their shards together.” Chorsay watched Owin for a moment. “That party includes Po, Cix, and Lera from the Hogs, Siora and Sylmare from Void Nexus, and Kat and Ernie.”

  Owin stared blankly.

  “That is . . . quite the party,” Myrsvai said.

  “It is.” Chorsay waited a moment, looking Owin, Myrsvai, Suta, and Vondaire up and down. “You all succeeded, even if it was challenging. You are all Shard Heroes now.”

  “Considering everyone sitting here is a Shard Hero, this might be the most powerful group in the world,” Vondaire said. He tossed his knife into the air and caught it.

  “If that was true, we wouldn’t be on our way to Althowin’s,” Chorsay said. “After Andres attacked, she invited all Hogs to live in Vraxridge. The Golden Bulls are the least of our concerns.”

  Arkasti nodded. “The Three Headed Hero Company.”

  “And Magna Regum,” Vondaire added. “I had a meeting with Egnatia.”

  “A meeting?” Chorsay raised an eyebrow.

  “Over dinner. And drinks. Perhaps some flirting.” Vondaire diverted his gaze. “It was an odd evening.”

  “Flirting from you or the Demon Killer?” Arkasti asked.

  “I have yet to figure that out.”

  Arkasti chuckled.

  “What do they all want?” Owin asked.

  Shade put his hand on Owin’s shoulder.

  “You,” Chorsay said.

  ***

  Siora had never seen a party take so long to actually approach a dungeon. They found just about every reason in existence to stall. Food, drinks, even sightseeing. Foolish.

  Sylmare stuck to Veph’s side like the weird lapdog she was, but everyone else was relaxed and having fun. Everyone but Siora.

  They were still in Ryh Thalor with plans to enter the Subterranean within the next couple days. It was so unspecific that Siora wanted to tear her hair out and shove it down Potilia’s throat. The damn berserker was constantly panicking, spilling drinks and food, or tripping over things so easily avoidable. How was she going to become a Shard Hero when she couldn’t walk up a flight of stairs?

  Veph had found a tower on the edge of Ryh Thalor that let one look deep into the mountains from the top. There were rooms to stay inside the tower with a restaurant on the lower level. They even boasted about a sauna somewhere, using natural heat from underground.

  Nobody would even have to worry about the cold if they just went into the damn dungeon.

  Veph insisted they stay there for a few days to finish their preparations. What other preparations could she need to make? What could any of them do?

  Ernie took the opportunity to immediately hide in his room to work on some projects, and the others went to eat or find the sauna, leaving only Siora and Katalin on the top floor, looking out over the mountains of Kriergow.

  “Think about it this way,” Katalin said. “You are getting to do all these things you normally wouldn’t do, and Althowin is paying for it all.”

  “Isn’t that just your normal life?”

  “Eh. Sure.” Katalin leaned on the railing, looking down to the snow-covered paths below. “Being impatient doesn’t make things happen faster.”

  “We need an actual party leader. Veph can do what she wants. She won’t be going in with us anyway. We’d all die.” Siora looked back down the stairs, then rolled her eyes and joined Katalin at the railing. “Someone needs to make decisions.”

  “You and Lera have the most experience, but getting the Hogs to listen to you is, well, it’s unlikely. Ernie and I are the neutral party, I guess, but we’re not tactical. I have no interest in being in charge of any of you.” Katalin pulled a bottle from her bag and started swirling the mixture inside.

  Siora watched Katalin mess with the bottle for a few quiet moments. The mixture inside changed colors and shifted differently as Katalin’s palm glowed. Watching an alchemist work was fascinating, but it was impossible to follow. She shifted her attention back to the mountains. The snow-covered peaks looked so close, but she couldn’t be tricked. The hike to the top would be difficult, though not as dangerous as the one underneath. “Lera hasn’t said a word to me,” Siora finally said, breaking the silence.

  “And you haven’t said a word to her.”

  Siora grunted.

  “The Hogs aren’t going to get over Artivan’s death anytime soon, but if you try to be friendly, it’ll be easier. You do what you want, but brooding and only talking to me isn’t going to get you anywhere.” Katalin stashed the bottle. “They’re all enjoying some food or a sauna right now, and we’re up here looking out at some fucking mountains.” Katalin thrust her arm out toward the range. “Nothing is changing out there. Nobody gives a shit about a mountain. But down there, they’re becoming closer friends.”

  “Then why is your boyfriend locking himself in a room alone?”

  “To build something to keep the two of us safe. If you get on his good side, he might try to keep you safe too.”

  “I made him jump into the ocean to save Owin.”

  Katalin nodded slowly as she took a few steps back toward the stairs. “You have a lot of ground to make up. With everyone. Are you going to do it up here?”

  Siora groaned. “Where are we going?”

  “I don’t think you’re ready for a sauna. We’ll see who is getting some food.” Katalin grabbed Siora’s hand and nearly dragged her down the stairs.