Jason’s cloud ship sailed north from Greenstone. He stood oop deck, leaning on the rail as the fresh o wind washed over him. Nik stood beside him, only the head and shoulders of the diminutive rabbit man reag above the railing.

  “How was it, being ba Greenstone?” Jason asked him. “You kind of vanished on arrival, and we didn’t see you much. I didn’t even see you at the festival.”

  “It was strange,” Nik said. “I lived there for lohan you did, when I was training. But so many of the people I knew are gone, or older. It was like the world assing me by while I was stu pce.”

  “That’s how it’s going to be, sometimes. Especially in pces like Greenstone, where even the adventurers are mostly low rank. People will get old, live out their lives. It’s pces like Vitesse and Rimaros that have more people who age slowly or not at all.”

  “You spend a lot of time around powerful people, don’t you?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Are you worried about losing touch with regur people? Growing apart from them as everyone you know stays the same, decade after decade?”

  “I am,” Jason said. “That’s one of the reasons I went back to Greenstone. Meeting people I knew back then was nice. When you’re an adventurer, you are ofteing people on the worst day of their life. I went to a vilge I st saw as rubble. People are happily living their lives, now. It was twenty years ago, so only the older people remember what happened as anything but a story. There’s a man there who, back then, told me about his hopes for his granddaughter. This time, he told me about how those hopes had been fulfilled. It's good to remember what we fight for.”

  “But we aren’t a part of their world anymore, are we?”

  “No. It’s important that we visit, to remind ourselves what it’s all about, but we don’t belong there. We have our own unity to be a part of. Vitesse should be a good pce for that.”

  “Yeah, it’s a y.”

  “Wait, even you’ve been there? I’ve been trying to get to Vitesse for twenty years. I didn’t even know.”

  “Dad, you created me out of thin air like you were starting your own bible, seo violence b school and then vanished for a decade and a half. With parenting skills like those, are you really surprised you missed a few things?”

  Jason winced.

  “I haven’t done as well by you as I would have liked. I ’t make more of your kind, turn you into a species proper, until I reach the fullness of my power. But we’ll be oh soon. You don’t know them, but you have family there.”

  “Do they know about me?”

  “I told my sister, and my grandmother. It’s kind of hard to expin that you made your own universe and created a guy. That has otations, ba Earth. You know, I could try making a female lehenik. I get one of your ribs, real quick?”

  “Don’t be a tool, Dad. Als to make a woman for your son is creepy. You’re not leaving her a lot of room fency, there. Also, she’d be my sister. And my e, maybe? Yeah, I don’t think creepy really encapsutes how gross that is.”

  “Okay, that was a bad idea. In fairness, anuy did it first. I didn’t love his book, but there’s not a lot of refereerial for this stuff.”

  “See, this is why I didn’t introduce you to my friends iohey all think you’re this awesome adventurer, and I don’t want to ruin it for them.”

  A gri across Jason’s face.

  “Your friends think I’m cool?”

  “Calm down, Dad. I didn’t say cool. No one said cool.”

  “You said awesome. That’s like the better version of cool.”

  “No, that just means things explode around you a lot.”

  “How is that not cool?”

  Jason ughed as Nik shook his head. The smile slid off Jason’s face, repced with a ptive expression.

  “I don’t know what I’m doing most of the time,” he admitted. “I meant it when I said that I want to do better by you. I hope you’ll give me some time to figure that out. Trying to expin you — and me for that matter — to our family ba Earth. I don’t think it’s going to work until we’re there. Emi is not going to stop hugging you for the first week.”

  “I’m not a stuffed toy.”

  Jason put a hand on his shoulder.

  “I know, buddy. Sometimes there are things about ourselves we just have to live with. There are worse things than being crazy adorable.”

  Nik looked up awkwardly at Jason.

  “You know,” he said hesitantly. “You could hug me. If you wanted.”

  Jason looked down at him with a warm smile, then dropped to one knee and gathered him into a hug.

  ***

  Boko had been a coastal city. When the se of crater closest to the o had colpsed, the water spilling had tur into a harbour. An i led into what could have been a goon if it wasn’t se and deep. Isnds dotting the water were oemples, shielded from the city’s destru by their gods.

  The cloud ship was anchored offshore from the ihe shores of the new harbour were swarmed with essence users and ritual magis. They were w to stabilise the area, making it safe and ready for a new city to be structed.

  A skimmer set out from the cloud ship, passing over the water of the i aering the harbour. Jason and Danielle rode in bd dark grey shades of luxury as the vehicle steered itself.

  “Boko was he port city that Greenstone is,” Danielle said. “her had a natural harbour, which is part of why Greenstone’s artificial isnd was structed.”

  “I don’t like being back here,” Jason said. “It reminds me of what happen if I lose trol.”

  “You didn’t lose trol. You were attacked.”

  “I know. But what we know and what we feel be very different things.”

  “Yes,” Danielle agreed. “They .”

  “It doesn’t help that we have this st bit of unpleasant business on the way out of the region. We’ve been here for well over a month now, and the idea was to stay for a week. I’m thinking that we put aside the sightseeing and make a beeline for Estercost. Round up as mahlings as we and maybe just portal straight to Rimaros. I’ve got forever to sightsee ter.”

  “I think the group will be open to that. You’re the only one who has never seeercost. Why Rimaros for the bridge to Earth, though?”

  “It’s not Rimaros itself we’re going for. I don’t know what kind of side effects may e from pleting this dimensional bridge. I was advised to anchor it somewhere remote, and the people that were sucked through from the other end demonstrated the value of that advice. There’s an uninhabited isnd iorm Kingdom. The Builder installed astral magifrastructure there to ensure I arrived at that location. It’s already attuo the liween worlds and it’s robust enough to meet our needs.”

  “Why did the Builder want you to nd in Rimaros?”

  “The Builder’s prime vessel overstepped. The Builder was forced into limiting who he would send to kill me. He made another deal with Disguise, who everyoill thought urity, to try a around the first agreement. Sophie’s mother was one of fake Purity’s brainwashed ckeys and the idea was to use her to use Sophie to lure me into a trap and kill me.”

  “That sounds so voluted that I ’t believe ahought it would work.”

  “I knht? I think the Builder was transitioning prime vessels at the time. He didn’t have his regur guy to do his mortal-level thinking for him. In fairness, it did almost work. Only because Princess Liara realised the Builder was after me and used me as bait, though.”

  “She used you as bait?”

  “She bailed me out, in the end. I did force her hand a little, but I’m pretty sure she would have do anyway. Eventually. But Melody’s i in me eripheral. Ohe god let Melody’s daughter matter to her through the brainwashing, she became obsessed with getting Sophie back. Carlos and Arabelle think that’s a itive key they use to smooth the mental strain of purging her dition.”

  “When will you be doing that?”

  “Whenever Carlos and Melody are ready. Probably in the few days. But the point is, the Builder had some serious dimensional magifrastructure put in p the isnd. Farrah and Clive think we use it as a foundation to anchor the dimensional bridge.”

  “They want to use something the Builder left behind?”

  “They think it’s safe. And who would you get in for a sed opinion?”

  “That’s true. We should che with the Adventure Society ti here.”

  “Good idea. No point having them interrupt us if we avoid it.”

  The skimmer turowards a group of stone-shaped buildings on the shore.

  ***

  Jason had avoided naming the city in his astral kingdom after Boko. Given its nature as an oasis, he decided to New Water. Iy’s administrative tre, the Duke of Boko was holding a ma meeting.

  “Over the week, I will be finalisiments and assigning sub-ma roles to…”

  He trailed off as a portal opened in the room and Jason stepped out.

  “Lord Asano,” the duke said iing.

  “Still not a lord, Duke Boko,” Jason replied, his tone curt. “e with me.”

  Jaso back through the portal without cheg if the duke would follow. The Duke didn’t hesitate, not even pausing to instruct his subordinates.

  “Do you think I’m meant to follow?” the Duke’s assistant asked, then the portal closed.

  “I suppose not,” she said.

  ***

  Of the various fas involved in studying the aftermath and preparing for the step, the officials from the Boko gover were the rgest ti. They were mostly senior executives from the old Boko gover, along with an administrative staff and a team of experts from various departments. Their mandate was to assess the viability of restru and begin preliminary pnning. When the Duke emerged from a portal in the middle of their camp, they swarmed him, firing off questions.

  “Please,” the duke said, holding up his hands for calm. “I know that there is a lot you want my input on, and I know that you have not had access to me while I have been in New Water. That city must be the priority now, and my focus must be leading our people as they settle into a new home. Anything you feel you need me to decide, simply use your best judgement. Now, if you’ll excuse me, Lord Asano and I have matters of import to discuss. Perhaps a walk along the shore as the sus, Lord Asano.”

  The duke immediately started walking off towards the shoreline, leaving an array of fused and frustrated people behind. Jason watched the dispy with a frown, then moved to the leader of the gover ti.

  “Some people are ing to get things anised,” Jason quietly promised. “For now, let your people take a break. Let them go see their families.”

  A wide portal arch rose from the floor.

  “That will take you to a public square in the main residential district. I’ll leave it open for the moment, so your people e and go.”

  “Thank you, Lord Asano.”

  “I’m not a lord. You call me Mr Asano or, eveer, Jason.”

  “Thank you, Mr Asano.”

  Jason nodded and followed the duke who was slowly strolling along a path by the shore. Remnants of ritual magid stone shaping marked the emba, along with hardy desert spear grass that had been po stabilise the slope. It was te in the day and the sun dipped close to the o, soon to drop out of sight.

  “What I do for you, Lord Asano?” the duke asked as Jason caught up to his meandering pad matched it.

  The duke was a silver-ranker, courtesy of monster cores, which was the norm for political leaders. He was a dark-skinned human, typical for Boko’s popution, with long hair bound into thick strands by ornate gold csps. His physique was essence-user lean, but there was a softness in how he carried himself. He had none of the sharp energy of an adventurer, always watg for threats.

  “Duke Boko, I told you that you ask me to ect you to your people here at any time. You have, thus far, only availed yourself of this twice. The st time was almost two weeks ago.”

  “Matters in New Water warrant my attention. The vast majority of my people are there. Not only do I have to pn for their wellbeing, but I must also look ahead as the first city leader on airely new world. Your astral kingdom—”

  “Duke Boko,” Jason cut him off.

  “Lord Asano, you may call me Kar.”

  “I call you Duke Boko because that is both who and what you are.”

  “Actually, I was thinking that people should start calling me—”

  “You are not Duke New Water. You are Duke Boko, and that…”

  He poi the water.

  “…is Boko. That is what you rule. The full extent of what you rule. Your attention, Duke, should be here. This is a tragedy, but also an opportunity. To build a city from nothing. To pn out that which, befrew up in a tangle over turies. To make use of a harbour you never had before. To heal the wounds of what happened here, both in the hearts of the people and iire regional ey.”

  Jason stopped, turning to look out over the water.

  “This time is critical, Duke Boko. I know this is hard, no doubt harder than I uand, not being in your position. But you o remember where you are from instead of looking to make something new. You o yourself with your people, not your desire to be the first ruler on a new world.”

  “My lord Asano, I—”

  “I know everything that happens in my astral kingdom, Duke. Every word you say. Every ambition you whisper to your pet songbird. Privacy ss don’t hide you from me.”

  “Lord Asano, New Water is a city inhabited only by my people. They trust me. Respect me. You need a steady hand iimes of turbulence.”

  “On that, we agree.”

  “We do?” the duke asked, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Jason pointed out at the water where three dark skimmers were approag the shore from the dire of the temple isnds. It was hard to spot them uhe darkening sky. They moved onto the nd aled into the grass.

  The people disembarking all wore the garb of clergy. The first group had robes of crimson with gold trim. Their sigil was a hand gripping a phe symbol of Dominion. The group had pin robes of undyed linen, followed by a group wearing muted blue.

  “Thank you all for ing,” Jason said. “If you follow the path back that way, you’ll find the portal amongst those stone-shaped buildings.”

  He turned back to the duke, who was staring in fusion.

  “I have asked some of the gods to help me assess and mahe situation in New Water,” Jason expined. “Dominion will help me struct a framework for leadership. I have given them general parameters fovernance framework. Beyond that, they will be sulting with the new residents as to how best to lead the popud admihe city. The final say is mine, of course, but I think the people who live there should have a voi how it should be run.”

  “But—”

  “The priests of Hearth and e will be anising the people. Who wants to settle permaly, who wants to find a new home, and who wants to wait for the restru of Boko.”

  “I know the archbishops for all of those churches. I —”

  “I didn’t ask the archbishops, Duke. I asked their gods. I also asked Dominion to take a look at how you’re managing the affairs of your fallen city. As your city state is now uer, there is some question as to whether you will tio enjoy his endorsement. My reendation is that you go back to your people and work very hard to demonstrate your value in leading them.”

  The Duke stared at Jason.

  “Why are you doing this to me? You ’t do this to me!”

  “Duke, you and your people have been through a lot, so I am doing my best to be gentle. But I say again that I know everything you have done while in my kingdom, and you have butted against the limits of my gentility. You will never enter New Water again.”

  “The noble houses won’t stand for that.”

  “The noble houses of Boko are free to leave. New Water has no aristocracy, which is one of my parameters for the Dominion priests to work with. Anyone who stays will not have any le reised.”

  “They won’t tolerate those ditions.”

  “I have her the time nor the io listen to you gh the denial stage, Duke Boko. I’m going to pick up my friend from the Adventure Society camp and leave. I imagine we will meet again, to discuss matters regarding the popution. I hope you give matters some clearheaded sideration before that time.”

  Jason headed for the closest skimmer as the other two dissolved into clouds of darkhat vanished into his shadow. The skimmer took off as the su oill water that was ohe city of Boko.