The Grand Weave

Eraztis disappeared, and I snuggled into the couch while a fluffy blanket floated down and covered me. Áine found a spot underneath my chin and wormed herself into a comfortable position.

The god had taken his monster, along with the divinity. Surprisingly, the extraction process was no worse than some awkward stomach cramping as I threw up the marble.

He also extracted the memory of the bomb I made. Apparently, science was good for something, though the memory was gone for 'the safety of the world.' I thought it was ridiculous, considering there were beings who could level cities, but oh well.

The comfort drew me in, but I pushed through and opened my eyes. Cal watched me with a lazy smile.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked.

"It feels good to relax." I answered. "I know the world is fucking me over and whatnot, but it could ease the throttle."

"Do you ever regret-"

"Nope. Not for a second."

"You sure? It's not going to get easy."

"We've had a conversation like this before. Easy or not, I'll just have to get to a point where it is. That's the beauty of power, right?"

"Not for someone like you," he sighed.

"Meh."

"Fine. Are you going to look at your new skills? Do you want to know what they were originally called?"

I shrugged. "Not really. Doesn't matter what they used to be. And besides. Right now I'm relaxing while I can and I'm going to enjoy it."

To punctuate my point I briefly pulled up my status sheet before closing it after taking in the new names.

STATUS

Name: Cyrus

Race: Reborn (Felkin)

Age: ??

Tier: 0

Active Skills:

(T:0 R:9) Summon Familiar: Verdant Healer: (Áine)

(T:0 R:9) Summon Familiar: Resplendent Inferno: (Zharia)

(T:0 R:9) Racial Skill: Dimensional Storage: (Chomperz)

(T:0 R:9) Spirit Lord's Invocation

(T:0 R:9) Summon Familiar: The Dead Will Provide (Erebus)

(T:0 R:9) Summon Familiar: Reflective Coat of the Mirror Beast (Magnus)

(T:0 R:9) Summon Familiar: Storm King's Tempest (Sturmrorex)

(T:0 R:0) Summon Familiar: Shroud of the Astral Archon (N/A)

Passive Skills:

(T:0 R:9) Etherious Blood

(T:0 R:9) Sovereign-Threaded Soul

(T:0 R:9) Chaotic Resonance

(T:0 R:9) Spirit's Lord's Echo

(T:0 R:0) Split-Mind Cultivation

Perks:

Legacy of the Obsidian Crown

Scion of Calstrax

Demonic Blood

Child of Mana

Dread Guardian's Apology

Crystal Synthesis

Devourer of the Deep

Whisper of the Tempest

False Dungeon Core

Unleashed Soul

Cal smiled annoyingly and pointed to the door. "You do know a certain guildmaster is locked outside and conscious. She might think you're dead. Not to mention the others waiting for you."

I sighed and turned around, planting my face into the soft cushions. "Whatever. They'll live."

"I see..." Cal chuckled. Then, in a more serious tone, Cal spoke softly: "Cyrus. May I make a suggestion?"

"Mhmm."

"When you get out of here, the kingdom will want to present you with a reward. I suggest keeping your involvement hidden and have the Lightcrests handle it. Teddy's parents can weasel just about anything from the king right now. And I have some advice regarding the reward."

I closed my eyes and imagined the crowd of people and their ever-growing list of questions. Cal was right. I didn't want that at all, and I knew Broken Tower would keep its silence. The same would be true for Sereza and Elanor's people if she ordered it.

Bleeding the king for a reward sounds funny. Too bad I'm not a sycophant. I'm sure my popularity would climb to the top of the list.

"Noted. Thank you. What's the suggestion?"

"Out of all your summons, Magnus is the only defensive one. That is fine, for now. You should have another defensive summon."

"Another defensive summon? Are you sure?"

Cal groaned. "Cyrus, your Legacy is crazy. But Zharia, Sturmrorex, and even Erebus can be your damage dealers. Magnus is your ultimate defense, and Áine is the support. A bruiser tank will round out that role. That and I suggest you look for a support type skill to support your familiars. There are several aura skills that can accomplish the job."

"Got it."

"Good. I have to go, which means I'm taking the couch. But you can have your beanbag back?"

Despite my body protesting, I slowly stood up and cradled Áine in my hood. I nodded, and the couch disappeared, replaced by the familiar beanbag with little wizards casting spells.

Before I sat down, I stepped closer to Cal and wrapped him in a blanket-covered hug. He hugged me back and squeezed my shoulders.

"I hope you do something cool with those favors," I whispered.

"I will, I promise," he whispered back.

"Hopefully, the next time I see you, I'll have my own tail."

He laughed and swished his bushy foxtail. "Hopefully, you won't be suffering. I saw the picture in your memories, Cyrus. You can't keep it locked up forever."

I gave a defeated smile. "You're right. But that's future-me problems. Right now? A nice nap."

Cal laughed, and as I blinked, he was gone. I plopped onto the beanbag and settled into the impossibly cozy chair.

Too many thoughts whirled inside my mind, and I didn't have a solution for any of them. Instead of napping right away, I stared at the demolished pyramid and the empty pedestal where Weldrammornorpelus resided before Eraztis teleported him out.

Too bad, too; a chat with the guy sounded interesting. But in the end, I was happy that he and Xena were back together. And if what Eraztis said was true, the pair would have some interesting new things to add to their dungeon.

I hope she doesn't somehow recreate me. People getting pissed off at fighting clone versions of me sounds like a bad idea.

Too many thoughts, too little time. I closed my eyes and made sure Áine was comfortable. According to Eraztis, I had at least another two hours before the dungeon would kick me out.

Out of everything I thought possible, an adventurer-be-gone feature was not on the list.

Bang!

I groaned and didn't even need to turn around.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The doors slammed open, and a tempest tugged at my clothes. My beanbag stayed, and a small barrier appeared that blocked out the noise and wind.

Panasia crashed to the ground. Her eyes were mad as she whipped her head around and searched for the enemy. When she saw me, I waved and summoned the crate of Bera's brew. I cracked it open with my foot and gestured for her to sit.

It wasn't surprising that a fluffy pillow large enough for two of Igas appeared. She used the wind to pick up a bottle and snap it to her opened palm. Without looking, she sliced the top off and took a swig.

"Aaaagh! By the gods! It really is Viper's Kiss."

"Try not to get too drunk. We have two hours before we leave," I warned.

She took another swig and set the bottle down before burning her gaze through my head. "There are so many questions."

"I'll answer what I'm allowed, but I want a nap, so you'll have to make it quick."

She eyed the bottle by her feet, a frown creasing her cheeks. "Only if I can have another bottle to keep. Bera hasn't sold these in years."

"Fine. What's your first question?"

Panasia switched position so that she lay down with one arm supporting her head. She took another sip before speaking.

"Did we win?"

A chuckle rang through the silent room, and I closed my eyes.

"We did."

------

While Panasia was the first to go, I cracked open an eye and poked my skin. Mushy static covered my limbs, and I quickly stored the crate and beanbag.

I sensed them before they appeared, and I turned around and waved at the floating fairy and dungeon core. Xena's wings and eyes were back to normal, and the horns and crown were gone, too. But a hint of red spun inside her eyes.

The golden dungeon core floated below her, holding Xena up as she dangled her feet off its edge.

"One final goodbye?"

"Yes. I wanted to thank you for the help, even if your plan was insane! Eraztis himself erased my memories! That's not normal," Xena complained.

"It is for the best... Thank you again, Cyrus. I am glad to live another day," came a new voice.

"No problem. I hope you enjoy the upgrade. Just promise no clones. No matter what!"

"We promise!" they said together.

Xena grinned and opened her mouth to most likely say something snide, but Áine popped her head out of my hood and hopped onto my shoulders.

Weldrammornorpelus floated forward after an enthusiastic slap from his companion.

Áine hopped on, and the two fairies stared. Xena flapped her wings, and Áine did the same.

Eventually, Áine booped her nose and hopped back onto my shoulder while the dungeon core backed away.

"You have chosen a good master. Keep him alive," Xena nodded at my shoulder.

Áine grasped onto my hair, and I shook my head.

"Goodbye, you two. Have fun cleaning up the place."

The golden light inside Weldrammornorpelus flashed brilliantly, and my vision turned black. My body stretched in four directions before I touched the floor and found myself inside the temple.

Everyone else was already there, including a massive crowd. Elanor and her guards yelled for order while Broken Tower and Sereza approached.

I held up my hands. "Not talking now. Let's get back to the carriage."

"But-" Celanae started.

"Nope! To the carriage."

"What about-" Isaac tried.

I pointed to Panasia, who waved, and I started pushing through the crowd. There were a lot of people, so it took a while, but I broke through and stopped next to Elanor, who stared at me with saucer plates.

A quick whisper in her ear rewarded me with a nod, and I walked down the hallway. The others followed, and I stepped into the light and smelled the fresh air.

If only people weren't screaming.

For lack of better words, people were freaking out. Several calmer individuals tried to rally together, but apparently, enough individuals realized something was wrong.

I didn't envy them, but I also didn't care.

I marched out of the city with the others in tow. They followed me toward the giant carriage pulled by mega-ostriches.

The driver stared and looked down when I waved.

"You have returned... Is there news?"

"How about you let us inside, and we'll explain along the way," I countered.

They nodded, and I stepped into the carriage. I threw myself into the corner and summoned the beanbag.

I settled in and waved goodbye to Áine while people filled the cabin. The back slid open, and Arturous shambled through. Once everyone was inside, Celanae tapped the walls and turned to face me.

She already had a new notebook, marked with big red ink on the cover spelling out the word 'Danger.'

"Uh, Celanae?" I asked and pointed to the notebook. "Why does it say that?"

She pointed her pen like a knife and waved it around. "Do I really need to explain that?"

"Guess not. But you know there's not much to tell."

"Cyrus, I. Will. Cut. You!" Isaac said as he brandished his daggers.

"Fine. Sit down, take some food, and shut up for a bit. There will be no questions until the end, and yes, that means you, Celenae."

Her eyes narrowed to points, but she reluctantly nodded as I began summoning pouches of steaming fries. Isaac glared, and I rolled my eyes, then pulled out a crate of alcohol—sans Viper's Kiss.

"So. It all started with a kind old dude with some pretty interesting tattoos."