Hours later, Cane stood beside Fergis, both of them flanked by their shadow wolves. Overhead, Sophie and Tor circled on gryphon-back, wings cutting smooth arcs through the clouds.
"It's a race?" Fergis asked, scratching behind Tazi's ears to hype her up. "We should be able to beat those little gryphs."
Cane laughed, not bothering to explain that those "little gryphs" could probably make a snack out of both wolves if provoked. Instead, he gave a casual wave to the riders overhead—and the race began.
Separate rifts formed in front of each wolf. Without hesitation, Moxie and Tazi padded through, their human partners following a beat later.
Four hundred meters ahead, Fergis and Tazi emerged mid-stride, already a pace ahead of the gryphons above.
Moxie's rift carried Cane even farther—nearly double the distance—and gave them a slim lead. Tazi let out a competitive howl and blinked through another rift, vanishing with a renewed sense of purpose. Her first jump had been cautious, but now she understood.
It was a race.
Cane grinned, falling into rhythm as Moxie created another rift. He followed her through without breaking stride, wind brushing past as if he were flying.
Overhead, Sophie clung low to her gryphon's neck, her eyes wide with surprise. "They're fast," she breathed.
"We're not going to beat them," Tor said with a laugh. "I trained those wolves. They can leap a few miles at a time. They'd reach the capital in a few hours, maybe less."
Below, the race became a playful blur of motion—tongues lolling, fur and hair streaming behind. Cane began to edge ahead, not because of Moxie, but because he was simply the better runner between the two humans. In the end, the people were the weak link.
Their agreed finish line loomed in the distance: a towering rock outcropping used by caravans as a rest point on the way to the capital.
Cane and Moxie arrived first.
Camp guards stirred at the sudden appearance, startled by the blur of movement. Cane waved a tired hand, bracing himself on his knees, catching his breath. Moxie nudged him playfully, clearly questioning why he'd stopped.
"Hey... I don't have four legs," he muttered, ruffling the thick fur behind her ears.
About fifteen minutes later, another rift shimmered into existence. Tazi trotted through, followed by a red-faced but grinning Fergis.
"Well... I beat the gryphon," he panted.
Cane tossed him a canteen. "We should be able to see them soon."
Fergis took a long drink, still catching his breath. "This kind of travel... it could change how we fight. Hit and vanish before reinforcements even react."
Cane nodded. "We'll keep training. Moxie and Tazi are more than ready."
Another fifteen minutes passed before two dark shapes appeared in the sky—Tor and Sophie descending. Though gryphons could travel faster over long distances, this stretch only covered half the journey to the capital.
Just then, a voice echoed in Cane's head.
"Having fun?"
Gadira.
Cane sighed. "Until now..."
Fergis blinked. "Until what?"
"Gadira. She's in my head again."
Fergis laughed. "You realize how crazy that sounds?"
"I know. But she keeps doing it."
"I'm making dinner," Gadira added, tone amused. "Invite your friends—they're welcome."
Cane rolled his eyes. "I'll ask."
Though he had complete control over the ringworld, he still couldn't physically enter it himself. Something he intended to ask Philas about—once his grandfather decided to speak to him again.
Sophie swooped down, dismounting in a fluid motion. Her cheeks were pink from the ride, her eyes bright. She pulled Cane into a warm embrace and kissed his cheek. Behind her, the gryphon landed with a disgruntled warble, clearly offended by the cheating wolves and their two-legged companions.
"You think it knows we were racing?" Fergis chuckled.
"Oh, it knows," Sophie said with a grin. "Careful—gryphons don't lose gracefully."
Tor landed and clapped his hands. "Well done!" He moved to the wolves, checking their pads and limbs before giving each a fond hug. "You two were brilliant."
Cane cleared his throat. "Gadira invited everyone to dinner... if you're interested."
He kept the annoyance from his voice, though the mind-voice thing was starting to wear on him.
"What about you?" Sophie asked.
"I'll head back with Moxie. The rest of you can hang out in the ringworld until I get back to the academy."
Fergis rubbed his hands together. "Now that's traveling in style. Bring us in, brother."
Sophie cupped Cane's face and kissed him. "I'll bring you a plate of whatever she's making."
"Deal," Cane said, smiling as he transported the others into the ringworld, leaving only himself and Moxie behind.
The shadow wolf whined and bumped his side with her head.
"Right? Totally unfair." He scratched her jaw affectionately. "Guess that's the penalty for winning."
He drained the last of his canteen and tucked it away.
"Well... let's get going."
HOOACH
Pudding swooped into the rift, her wings slicing the air just ahead of Moxie and Cane. The three companions traveled at an easy pace, two of them unbothered by the effort—while Cane, though practiced, felt the weight of each jump in his bones.
As they moved, Cane turned his thoughts to the merfolk artifact. At first glance, it seemed simple—a curled piece of coral sealed within a glass vessel, suspended in ancient water. But after further reflection, and a quiet exchange with Gadira, he began to suspect it was something far more important: a fragment of the coral gate used during the merfolk's mass exodus. If true, it could be the key to Neri's search for her people.
Years ago, Neri had refused the call that her kind felt instinctively—a deep tug of magic and memory. She had no regrets about staying behind to honor her promises, but Cane could see the longing in her whenever she spoke of the ocean, of family, of home.
There was something he was missing—something just beyond reach. The feeling nagged at him. Obvious in hindsight, maybe, but for now, it danced just out of focus.
Moxie's final rift opened next to Seven Tower, spilling them into the soft orange light of a fading sunset. Cane breathed in the cooler air, summoning the others from the ringworld with a thought—everyone but Gadira.
True to her word, Sophie held a plate of leftovers and met him at the base of the tower. She smiled, holding it in both hands as she disappeared up the stairs toward his dorm room, humming to herself.
A little while later, Cane followed. He moved slowly, the stairs dragging at his limbs. He showered and changed, savoring the quiet before stepping into his room.
"I bet you're hungry," Sophie said from his desk, her voice light and familiar. She was jotting notes, a pen tucked behind one ear. "Careful with the plate—Fergis put a heat rune on it to keep it warm."
He chuckled, accepting the dish and easing onto his bed. "Anything new from Gadira?"
"She said there's something lingering at the edge of your Living Zone," Sophie replied, thoughtful. "Latent energy. An unknown element."
He slowed his chewing. The Living Zone, created with the red core at the base of his three aspects, had always been unstable—raw, potential-heavy. Maybe it was finally ready for a small expansion. That could explain why Philas hadn't contacted him lately. Could the energy be interfering?
He wasn't surprised that Gadira couldn't identify the element. Creation magic was nearly extinct in this rise of man—what lingered wasn't easily named.
As he finished eating, the lights dimmed on their own—twilight shadows settling in. He glanced up.
Sophie stood by the bed, her hands already at the hem of her blouse. She didn't ask him to look away. She pulled back the covers, her cheeks tinged pink with warmth.
"Joining me?" she asked softly.
The invitation was clear. Not rushed. Not brash. Just open and full of meaning—quiet passion layered over months of friendship, laughter, danger, and deepening trust.
Cane met her gaze and nodded.
The rest of the night slipped away, quiet as moonlight.