Foxbond Chapter 2

The journey back to the village was significantly shorter than the one they took to find the manticore’s lair, but they still didn’t return to Talsmark until well after dark. High in the sky, the full moon hung in front of a breathtaking backdrop of stars with not a cloud to be seen. If it weren’t for the bad news they were returning with, it could have been the perfect night.

Ill tidings or not, Baern followed behind his partner as they got closer to the lights of the town. They went out of their way to cross a bridge over the Tuano River to enter Talsmark. There were a few residents and farmers who lived on the side they came from, but that wasn’t where they needed to be.

On the outskirts of town was an inn and a stable. When the pair first arrived, the burly, dark-haired wagoner they had hired to get them to the city of Hewspara, Dante, wanted to give his horses a day of rest. They had come a long way and were still four days away from their destination.

The sign above the wooden building labeled it as the Spring Breeze Inn. Kurix sat patiently next to the door, which was lit up by an oil lamp. The wagoner’s two horses were still in the stable along with a few others, and his wagon was parked to the side. Baern put his hand on the door handle and took a breath.

Didn’t expect to have to relay such news this early into our journey.

<You should just come out and say it, Cal,> Kurix said. He couldn’t understand Baern’s thoughts, not while they still only had a red mana core, but he could feel his bond’s emotions. <I’m sure they’re expecting it.>

“Easier said than done, Kurix,” Baern replied, giving him a look as he slid a black glove over his Carded tattoo.

<Ugh, must I?>

“You must.”

With a huff, the fox shook his body. The ethereal purple tendrils dissipated into the night as his colors changed. His faint glow dimmed to nothing, and the fur around his chest and on the tip of his tail turned white. Kurix’s illusion was seamless, and Baern was satisfied when he opened the door.

The rustic inn smelled of cheap wine and stew that was heavy on both spice and garlic. They didn’t even have a Transmission Glass to catch events because they were so far from the bigger cities. They had a Playback Crystal to watch what most others got to see live, but that was standard for places so out of the way in the Lowlands. 

Aside from the lack of mana tools, the place was somewhat cozy. A few handcrafted tables and chairs had been set up haphazardly around the large room, doubling as a makeshift dining room for the tenants here, though only two people were here this late at night.

One was a woman sitting at a table near the door. It was immediately clear that the smell of wine was coming from her. She had the sun-kissed skin of someone who worked outside their whole life, and had her face down on the table with her hand still around a half-empty bottle. Their entrance didn’t even register to her.

“She’s a widow now, isn’t she,” the elderly man behind the bar said as he stood up. It wasn’t a question.

Baern gave the wrinkled innkeeper a grim nod as he closed the door behind him. Roan had been the one to ask them to go out and find out any information they could on the missing Carded. They had been missing for a few days at that point, far longer than their usual monster hunting excursions, and most of the town had been worried.

The innkeeper sighed and lowered his head. “What happened to the monster?” he asked. Even though he wasn’t taking care to keep his voice down, the drunk woman didn’t stir. “Did you scout out where its lair was? Or just find them out in the forest?”

“The monster has been taken care of,” Baern reported. “And the bodies are still there. I’ll give you directions to find its lair when you’re ready.”

He reached for the back of his hand and ran his fingers along where his tattoo would be. When he pulled away, a card was in his hand. Wordlessly, Baern set it down on the bar. It showed an image of the Giant Stone Quilled Manticore pouncing in midair, its face contorted in howling anger. The only thing that wasn’t grayed out was the tail with its green and black quills.

Stone Quilled Manticore

Orange Core Monster

Exp: 0/100

Evolution: Tail.

Mana Cost: Medium.

Primary Attributes: Ranged quill attack, tail defense up.

Secondary Attributes: balance up.

Spells: Poison Dart.

<Curse my inviolable rules on which cards can and cannot be used,> Kurix huffed as he jumped onto the stool to glare at it.

Roan grimaced as he stared at the card. “A manticore, then. I suppose that would do it. Most of the monsters we see around these parts are small and tend to flee before they get into a confrontation. We knew this one was big, but not like this. The most dangerous thing before this was still easily taken care of. Seems the world is becoming a harder place to live in with every passing day.”

Baern nodded. Considering the second most dangerous thing he and Kurix had fought in the area was an ornery, surprisingly aggressive Boulder Hare, what the innkeeper said made sense. This area wasn’t well known for monsters that were powerful enough to drop cards and eat people.

The expression on Roan’s face became complicated as he continued to stare at the picture of the monster. Baern wasn’t sure how close he was to those who had died, but it didn’t matter. They gave their lives protecting this small town, and that was no small thing. He could give a little more, knowing that a little empathy could go a long way in small settlements like this.

“It was a lot more than even some professionals could handle,” the Carded offered, pulling the manticore card back into his deck. Roan shook his head as he was pulled out of his thoughts. “They did well, for what it’s worth. We might not have been able to kill it if it weren’t for the wounds they inflicted before they died.”

<First you say they weren’t running away, now you say they helped before they died?> Kurix asked, looking away from his partner towards the stew. It was in a cauldron hanging over the fire. The smell of it made him lick his lips. <You’re always spinning tales, but I guess it doesn’t matter what lies you spread so long as you might come out ahead, does it?>

Baern ignored him.

Roan put on a grim smile. “If that’s what you say, then that’s what I’ll pass on,” the innkeeper said softly, though he didn’t sound like he believed it.

The moment he noticed Kurix staring at the stew, he backed away from the bar and got two bowls. Roan put a spoon into the first and gave it to Baern with a mug of spiced ale before giving the fox the second.

“Please, eat.”

Kurix complied immediately. It wasn’t strictly required since his form was completely made out of Baern’s mana. He got all of his sustenance from the Carded’s core, but many Soul Beasts ate and drank because of instinct, pleasure, social etiquette, or any other myriad of reasons. Kurix did it simply because he liked to.

“Thank you,” Baern said out of habit as he took his spoon and began to eat.

It had a tangy, spicy flavor that was nearly overwhelmed by the garlic, but it was edible. Kurix had no problems, at least. Once he had a mouthful, he reached into his belt pouch and retrieved the cards he had gotten from the dead townsfolk.

Setting them down, he made sure to put them in three distinct piles. The tallest stack was only four cards and had belonged to the oldest man in the party. Next was the woman’s deck with two, and the younger man with only one.

The top cards of each were almost completely blacked out, showing only an outline of the Soul Beasts that belonged to them. Two Boulder Hares and the long, thick Gluttonpede. All three were dormant. No one would be able to bond with them until they recovered enough ambient mana from the world to become stable again. The time that would take varied wildly, but even the weakest of them rarely took less than a month to reach that stage.

There were factors other than just Soul Beast strength as well. Such as how long they had been bonded to their Carded, if the ambient magic in the area was compatible with the creature, and more. There were so many variables that accurately guessing how long it would take for any one card to become ready to start a deck was nearly impossible.

From under the bar, Roan grabbed a set of ten coins on a string and placed it in front of Baern. Half of them were gold with a circular hole in the middle, and the other half were silver with a diamond shape. The Carded stuck them in his pouch as the innkeeper took the cards.

<Good. I was going to be mad if we didn't get paid for it,> Kurix said. Baern reached over and rested his hand on the fox’s head. The Soul Beast’s ears went straight up at the touch before he relaxed, continuing to lap at the stew.

As the pair ate, Roan sat back down and picked up a straight stick and whittling knife. A dour silence fell over the inn as the pair ate and the innkeeper worked. It looked like he was making some kind of flute. He held it up, looked it over, and then blew the shavings off of the tube before continuing.

“How would you two like to stay here for a little while?” Roan suddenly asked, putting an end to the mood.

Baern looked up, his mouth full of stew, and quickly swallowed it down. “Excuse me?” he asked before taking another spoonful.

“Stay here in Talsmark, I mean,” the innkeeper clarified, looking at where he stored the cards. “I won’t beat around the bush. With… all that's happened, we’re short on manpower when it comes to protection. I’ll make sure you have a room and all you can eat, as well as steady pay. I’m guessing it would be easy work for a diligent duo such as yourself.”

<His granddaughter is also really into you,> Kurix snickered. Baern nearly choked on his food, and the fox laughed mischievously. <What? She couldn’t keep her eyes off you when she served breakfast. Why do you think I was being extra cute and adorable around her?>

“I can’t talk to you right now,” the Carded said to the fox, beating his chest as he coughed. He reached for the spiced ale and took a few swigs.

<I’m just saying. You could probably easily invite her to your room. Little wine, some battle stories. Then, when she’s ready, take her—>

“Let me rephrase that, I refuse to talk to you right now,” Baern said more forcefully, reaching out to flick the fox in the ear. Kurix dodged out of the way and playfully snapped back, boundless mirth flowing through their telepathic bond. He shook his head and returned his attention to the innkeeper. “As nice as that sounds, Roan, I’m going to have to decline. We don’t have a lot of time left to get to Hewspara.”

“Hewspara,” Roan repeated, setting down his knife to stroke his short white beard. “As strong and young as you are, I’m guessing you’re going to compete. Aiming for the Western Junior Invitational?”

“That’s right,” the Carded confirmed. “We only just got our competitor's card sorted out a few weeks ago, and we’re trying to participate in the preliminaries taking place at Hews Arena to win our way into it.”

The innkeeper let out a low whistle. “Lofty goals for such a young man,” he said. “Do you know what your path looks like?”

“I’ve traveled and watched several events, including the last two World Tournaments. Not only that, but I keep up with the various tournaments that are happening on this side of the empire. I’m very familiar with the circuit,” Baern assured with a smile. “It’s rough out there, I know, but Kurix and I are committed to climbing the ladder and competing as best we can.”

“So long as you know, then,” Roan said before leaning forward. “However, I would be remiss to warn you that the people running Hews Arena don’t exactly play fair. It’s a hard place to win for an outsider, and I wouldn’t want you to feel like you’ve done something wrong by going there.”

“I’m well aware of the reputation of the organizers there. And it won’t be my first time; before we came here, we were the runner up for the preliminaries at Geor,” he said before frowning. “That was a wake up call if I ever had one.”

<We shouldn’t have been second place,> Kurix snorted angrily, and he began eating more aggressively. <If you hadn't fallen for that snake’s trick before the finals, we’d have stomped him so hard they'd need to call in a dedicated mining team to dig him out of the ground.>

Baern shook his head at the memory, but kept eating. There was no changing the past now.

“I haven’t heard anything bad out of Geor, but just because I haven’t heard it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen,” Roan admitted, looking at Baern and Kurix in an entirely new light. “Either way, second place in any of the Western Junior Invitational preliminaries is quite the accomplishment. Hewspara has its own method of messing with outsiders, and because it’s considered tradition there’s no getting around it.”

“Yeah. Their system is decided with two brackets,” Baern stated, sitting up and becoming more animated. “The first one is for people like me: the outsider bracket. After that is the one held for those who live in the city, so they have time to prepare for whichever out of towner won. The finalists of both compete for the invitation. This basically ensures that someone from Hewspara has a shot to make it through the preliminaries to compete for the city.”

“That’s right.”

“On one hand, I understand it,” Baern continued, waving his empty spoon. “You want to send your own people to compete. The outsiders aren’t loyal to you and their inclusion means they beat your best, but the preliminaries are supposed to be open to everyone. That’s royal decree, and Hewspara is the only one that does dual brackets like this. Seeding so they don’t fight against each their neighbors in the first round is fine, I believe in seeding, but everyone should be given a fair shot.”

Kurix lifted his head out of the bowl he was licking clean. <Clearly, you feel very strongly about this.>

“You’ve got passion at least, young man,” Roan said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. “I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”

“That’s the hope,” Baern replied, moving the spoon through his stew though he was no longer eating. “I’m confident, but a lot could go wrong. There will still be one more opportunity if we don’t win this one. The last preliminary will be held in Aust, but it’s a special tag team event that’s very much outside of what's normal. From what I hear, there’s always people looking for partners all the way up to when it starts, but they’re alone for a reason. I’d rather not have to fall back on that.”

“I’ve got to hand it to you, this is a fairly well thought out plan,” the innkeeper said as he picked up his knife and began whittling again. “I can see it was naive of me to think I could keep you here.”

Baern smiled apologetically. “Sorry, Roan.”

“No need to apologize, young man,” he said with a shake of his head. “All I can do is wish you luck and ask you for a different favor.”

“Depends on what it is,” the Carded responded. “We’ve already spent a lot of time here. I’m going to need to pay Dante extra to push his horses to make sure we get there in time to sign up, I think.”

“If I write a letter, would you be willing to take it to the monster hunting guild in Hewspara?” Roan asked. “I’m worried about some new big monster coming in, and they’re usually more than happy to send someone out for a fee.”

He thought about this for a moment before nodding. They had to go there anyway to offload some of the more lucrative monster parts, so it wouldn’t take them out of their way. 

“That’s no trouble at all, but you should have some time before something else shows up,” Baern said as he pushed the mostly empty bowl away from himself, signaling that he was done. “The manticore is known to watch over a large territory. That’s a pretty good deterrent. Any monsters that might want to move in after it, should they exist at all, probably won’t find Talsmark for a long time. They’ll be cautious about checking out the area. Based on what I know, you’re probably safe for at least three weeks, possibly even as long as a month.”

“And that’s even if they exist at all,” Roan repeated with a slight shake of his head. “Were you a scholar before you came here, Baern?”

He shrugged as he stood up. Kurix jumped off of his stool and started heading towards the stairs. “Of a sorts.”

“Don’t see too many scholars in the tournament circuit,” the innkeeper stated.

“Sometimes you need to get out there and do what you have to,” Baern replied.

“Have to, eh? And what are you fighting for?”

The Carded smile. “Same thing as everyone else. Fame, fortune, woman. Someday, the Emperor himself will know my name.”

Roan’s smile was a little tight at the vain answer, but he nodded. “I suppose one is entitled to enjoy their youth. I wish you luck, young man.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it,” Baern said earnestly. “How much do I owe you for the meal and the room?”

“Please,” Roan scoffed, holding up a hand. “You don’t owe me a thing. Feel free to take the same room you did when you first got here.”

That brought a smile to Baern’s face as he followed Kurix up the stairs to their room. “Thanks, Roan. We’ll see you in the morning.”

A bit of empathy wasn't a bad price for coins, free meals, and a place to stay.