Chapter 69: Race to the Finish

**Ding! Skill Merged! Mana Manipulation obtained!**

Upon receiving the system notification that he had successfully merged his next legacy skill, Kaius collapsed. Falling backwards in relief. He opened his eyes, only to find Porkchop staring at him in curiosity.

“Is your nose supposed to be bleeding? That never happened to me.” Porkchop asked.

Kaius sighed, pushing his friend’s head out of his personal space. “I mean, it’s happened pretty much every single time, and I’m not dead yet.”

“But you’re done though? You’re ready to work on your magic?” His friend asked excitedly. It was clear it wasn’t just the prospect of moving on that prompted his energy, though Kaius had no doubt that it was part of it. No, his friend was sincerely happy for him, happy that he had finally reached a goal that he had set his sights on for so long.

Just like his father would have been.

He should be here.

Claws of grief set themselves upon Kaius’s throat, choking off his response. It wasn’t supposed to be his achievement, it was theirs. He never would have reached this point without Hastur, never would have even dared to try to forge a new path. Not without his fathers encouragement. His insistence that it was a worthy goal, something that showed he was a true Unterstern. He threw an arm over his face, stifling a sob.

“…Kaius? What’s wrong?” Porkchop said, nudging him with his wet nose.

He didn’t respond.

Now that he was there, at the precipice of one of the defining moments of his life, all he could think of was how much he had lost. He could see it clear as day. Father’s wide smile, celebrating with him as he finally bound the formation to his flesh. Hear his calm advice as he wove mana through his skin, stamping it into position.

How was he even going to do it without him? Kaius might have the formation memorised, but Father was always supposed to be there, guiding him through the process. Bloody hells, body formations were the providence of masters, not the unclassed!

Instead poor luck had turned that to ash. His father was gone. It had been far too long. There was no way Father wouldn’t have been able to find the portal. It wasn’t hidden and it wouldn’t have been too hard to track him to the edge of the cliff, to search the bottom of the falls.

A heavy weight settled on his lap, warm fur enveloping him.

“I’m here. You’re not alone.” Porkchop’s voice was soft. Understanding. Ready to wait as long as he needed.

Kaius sat up, hands wrapping around his friend as he pulled Porkchop into a hug. Holding him tight.

After a moment he pulled back, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

“Your father?”

“Yeah.” Kaius nodded. “He should be here. Should see me when I finish the formation. Be there to help me do it. But he’s not.” He sighed, burying his face in Porkchop’s ruff.

“I just wish I knew why. He should have had those bandits handedly. Should have been able to find the entrance we fell through, even if it took him a couple of weeks. They had to have been looking for us, but why? Why were we hiding in the forest? Were people looking for us? Did they find us? What happened to our family? Where are our holds?” Kaius said, his voice raising as he got more and more incensed.

“So many FUCKING questions.”

Porkchop flicked his ears back as Kaius all but shouted in his ear.

“Sorry.” He mumbled, drawing back out of their embrace.

“It’s okay. We’ll find him Kaius. Find out what happened. As soon as we get out of here we can look for him. Try to find records of your family. You’re always saying that people like to write everything down right? We can go to cities, look up the Unterstern name. Then, when we are strong, we can hunt those who once hunted us. Hear their cries as we force their secrets from them. Deny their pleas for mercy as we crush them.” Porkchop’s tone grew dark, a promise of violence on his lips.

Kaius nodded. His friend was right. If they had been searching for his father, and had found them despite living in the Arboreal Sea, they had to be accomplished, renowned for their skills. If his father was gone, he would have his pound of flesh.

“Thank you.” Kaius said quietly, looking Porkchop in the eyes.

“You are ridiculous. We are denmates. Brothers. A wound against you is a wound of my own. We will get our justice. You might have lost something irreplaceable, but I am here. I will always be here. This is not a bond of survival. This is -” What flowed across their link was not a word, but pure meaning, the language of greater beasts. A sacred bond of brotherhood, forged in blood and fire. Unbreakable. An oath of companionship, a partner in the hunt, a guard on the darkest nights, and a claw bared against those that brought strife.

Porkchop nudged him before stepping off to sit by his side. ”Now stop dilly dallying, we have Champions to kill. I will be here with you when you forge your mark.”

Kaius breathed. Sitting up as he allowed emotion to wash through him. Feeling them, but letting them flow on. His father was gone, but he wasn’t alone. Not anymore. Not ever.

Reaching for the insistent blaring of the notification in his mind, Kaius pulled up the description for his latest legacy skill.

Mana Manipulation:

Level 1

Unusual

Raw and unrefined, the seed of the arcane is mutable potential made manifest. Seize it, and shape your destiny.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

This skill enables mental control of pure mana. Aspected mana can be controlled with vastly increased difficulty.

Each level moderately increases control over mana.

Each level minutely increases control over aspected mana.

Merged from: Air Manipulation, Fire Manipulation, Water Manipulation, Earth Manipulation