Adon had created his semi-humanoid form without a particular human model in mind.

  He had allowed his imagination to run away with him a bit, made himself conventionally attractive, but kept some inhuman traits. He had given himself pointed ears, for instance, because he thought that was appropriate for a nonhuman in a fantastical world.

  And he had the option of having or not having wings in his humanoid form.

  So, when he began thinking about how best to counter an extremely hot environment that caused passive damage to his butterfly body just by passing through it—even if he shielded himself with mana!—the natural idea had been to sculpt a custom animal to survive the heat.

  He had considered and rejected various real animal types, from camels to lava lizards and various desert-dwelling birds. Then Adon thought: Why not mix and match?

  His mind was a powerful tool. Impeccable Memory had given him supernatural gifts of memory, which could support some incredible creativity, if he applied his focus carefully.

  So the form that stood before the group represented his best ideas, forcefully combined with all the grace and beauty of the duck-billed platypus.

  What do you guys think? Adon sent. I combined many animals that were good at enduring extreme heat to devise this form.

  He had the layers of fur and fat-filled humps of camels, beneath the fur he possessed heat-resistant scales, and finally, he retained wings, so that he would hopefully never need to set down on a hot surface while he was exploring the third level.

  All three of these major changes would hopefully make him less vulnerable to being incinerated.

  He looked like a bat with camel skin and camel humps, with the occasional glint of the underlying scales where the fur was thin.

  “What sort of animal is it?” Rosslyn asked.

  “There is no way this is a real creature,” William muttered. “Unless he encountered it in a dungeon.”

  Rosslyn’s eyes darted to the side slightly as William spoke. She was clearly surprised at what he had said.

  I told him and Frederick a little about my previous incarnations while you were out, Adon sent to quickly fill her in.

  Rosslyn gave him a subtle nod, while the reactions from the others continued at their previous pace.

  This isn’t anything I’ve ever seen in my life, Samson sent.

  Is it an animal you encountered while you were hunting alone? Goldie sent.

  “Are you a sort of bird?” William asked.

  Adon shook his head.

  A bat would be closer, he sent.

  I thought it looked a little like a bat, Samson sent, blatantly lying.

  I cannot believe I did not think of a bat, Goldie thought.

  “What about the scales?” Rosslyn asked. “I can see them around the edges of the wings and peeking through from beneath the fur in a few places.” She pointed at the reddish scales. “Bats do not have scales, right? Because they are mammals…?”

  I think it is like a desert horse, Frederick thought cautiously, unwilling to speak his strange phrasing aloud. Adon could see the image the young lord had in mind was of a picture from a book he had studied as a child, and it was actually an image of a camel from a distant land. Ironically, Frederick, though unwilling to speculate, had actually gotten closer to the correct answer than anyone else.

  Well, almost anyone.

  “It is either something you encountered in one of your previous incarnations,” William said. He hesitated to finish the sentence.

  “Or?” Rosslyn prompted.

  “Or he made himself into some sort of hybrid creature.” The young lord looked uneasy at the thought.

  In which case he could probably turn into almost anything or anyone that he wanted, William thought.

  I can see how that would creep him out, Adon thought.

  The butterfly hated to confirm William’s suspicion, but leaving the conversation hanging seemed more likely to add fuel to the fire than to reassure him. And absence would only make Adon seem more sinister.

  This form is a hybrid creature, yes, Adon sent. A cross between a desert-dwelling mammal, a lizard that lives near active volcanoes, and birds generally. He consciously tried to communicate in simple, practical language and a reassuring tone, and at least Adon did not feel that William’s feathers had been ruffled any further.

  “Can you turn into any shape you like?” the young lord asked after a moment.

  Adon shook his head.

  There are limits, he sent. Limits in size and probably other limits that I have not fully explored yet.

  Adon kept it vague, but William seemed a little reassured. At least the emotional waves coming off the young man calmed slightly.

  Anyway, there is no one more prepared than me to enter the next level, Adon sent. I’m the only one who can scout it without having to fight. He explained about the monster poised within the magma just beside the entrance.

  “You do not need to convince me, Adon,” William said, smiling sweetly. “I already endorsed this plan, remember?”

  Adon did a quick sweep of William’s mind and heard what William was thinking just below the surface.

  Hopefully he gathers some useful intelligence. And if he happens to fall into a pit full of lava instead, such a shame…

  All right, that’s typical, Adon thought. Who cares what he thinks?

  Frederick simply nodded along, agreeing with his brother’s verbally expressed sentiment.

  “Good luck, Adon,” Rosslyn said, her brow furrowed slightly.

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  Adon could feel some resistance from her to the idea of him going, but she did not want to express it. Without digging into her thoughts, Adon guessed it was about avoiding an argument with William.

  You can do it, bro, Samson sent.

  Do not do anything reckless, Goldie added.

  Adon nodded.

  I’m going before I start to wear myself out, he sent. Lots of exploring to be done.

  William was loudly thinking to himself about what Adon had just let slip.

  So, the ability has a cost in resources consumed, William thought. That means a time limit.

  Adon tried to ignore the fact that William was assessing him for weaknesses. It wasn’t important right now. The butterfly flapped his new, slightly ungainly wings, and he awkwardly took off. Adon would need to get used to this new form’s weight and less aerodynamic body, but he would have to do it on the go. His time was already ticking down, and he did not know how long this form would actually last.

  He flew up and away from the group, not bothering with a final backward glance, and he darted through the opening to level three.

  The air hit him like a wall of fire as he passed over the threshold, and Adon had to narrow his eyes—the atmosphere made them tear up instantly—but he seemed to have gauged the capacity of this new body correctly.

  It could endure the environmental forces that would probably have caused his normal body to combust.

  And he retained the speed that he’d had when he was a butterfly. The wings, ungainly though they were, carried him forward swiftly, past the magma pools and into the dungeon proper. He telepathically felt the creatures in the magma pools move, but they were sluggish. They did not rise from the molten liquid in time to intercept Adon before he glided dozens of feet past them and into the main body of the dungeon.

  The dungeon core had clearly not designed those creatures with speed in mind.

  By contrast, Adon rushed along, flying like a bat out of Hell—though he was crazy enough to be going in deeper instead of zipping the other way.

  There was something majestic about flight, and there always would be for Adon. The open skies were a setting for adventure, hope, and endless exploration.

  But even flying through this oven, in relatively tight quarters and with constant focus on maintaining his Transformation and reinforcing his body with mana, had its charms. The constraints of the space forced rapid decision-making and repeatedly tested his reflexes. When he had entered the main part of the dungeon, he had come to a fork almost immediately and simply chosen his path randomly—the left fork—and he was subsequently forced to make such decisions repeatedly.

  This place, as it turned out, was not merely an oven. It was also a maze.

  Wishing for the simplest possible return path, Adon chose the left fork every single time, until it led him to a dead end. Then he retraced his flight path and tried again.

  Along the way, he encountered only one type of creature—if “encounter” was even the right word. They were large lizards—almost the size of alligators—that rested lazily on the ground and simply watched Adon as he flew by.

  The fact that they behaved as if Adon was not a threat would have been annoying if it were not also a relief. Identify gave him their species name.

  Giant Lava Monitor (Male).

  Is that like a giant version of a lava lizard? Adon wondered. The creature looked far more apex predator-like to him. Like it could easily eat him in one bite, without chewing.

  But, fortunately, the monitors just flicked their tongues at the air when he flew overhead and did not bother with him.

  Adon was pleased, because although he believed he could probably win, he needed all the resources he could spare just to continue exploring. Devoting time to figuring out his way through the defenses of the monitors, which appeared to have thick, leathery scale armor covering every inch of their bodies, would have been too much.

  As it was, Adon was able to try five different routes through the level before he had to return to the entrance.

  As he collapsed beside the opening, panting, his body reverted back to its normal form suddenly, like he had snapped a rubber band.

  That was harder than I even expected, he thought. And I still haven’t discovered the actual exit to this place!

  Then the others were surrounding him, and Adon, who had barely kept Telepathy active, was inundated with their thoughts and concerns, both verbal and nonverbal.

  How was the level?

  Are you all right?

  I am glad you returned in one piece.

  Well, the worm was not cooked. But perhaps he learned something of value in the journey.

  So, what is level three like?

  Adon mustered the focus to avoid answering the question that had not actually been addressed to him directly—from one of the two people who did not know how pervasive and powerful his Telepathy was—and instead responded to the first two questions.

  No one needs to worry about me, he sent quickly. His head was starting to hurt. He would need to switch off Telepathy soon. The level is a bit of a maze, which could be a problem, but I am ruling out paths that do not work. I will need to go silent for a while to rest and recover. Then I intend to go back in again. I saw two types of monsters—well, I observed two. One of them is a sort of giant predatory lizard. Those didn’t bother me. The others, I just sensed whenever I flew over a pool of magma. Those are scattered periodically on the sides of each path. Something is sleeping in just about every magma puddle in the level. I didn’t see what it was, but unlike the big lizards, whatever was in the magma was waiting for something to get close. Lying in wait. Dormant.

  “That diminishes the challenges we are likely to face in the dungeon,” Rosslyn said, chewing over her words slowly.

  “Did you not see a third type of creature, Adon?” William asked in a respectful tone.

  No, Adon replied.

  “You probably will,” Frederick explained. “The typical pattern in dungeons is that the variety of monsters increases by one on each subsequent floor. The first just had those lizard creatures. The second had the griffins and the strixes—the little green creatures were just there as a food supply, which is why they never attacked us. The third should have the big lizards you mentioned, the magma dwellers, and something else. Since you seem to be able to do such a phenomenal job of scouting for us, I think we need to wait for you to identify that third creature before we enter.”

  If you feel comfortable with that, Adon, Goldie interjected, tilting her head to give Frederick a side-eyed look. If not, we will not endanger you to protect our own skins.

  “I object to sending Adon in alone again at all,” Rosslyn said, her hand gripping the pommel of her sword. “It does not look well of us to send a lone warrior into harm’s way while we sit on our hands here—we who are in line to inherit leadership, along with our elite knights.”

  Adon was slightly surprised to sense that the feeling of dishonor with which Rosslyn had peppered her words was entirely feigned. Her eyes had darted back and forth between the brothers as she spoke, but as she finished, they fell on Adon, and her lips quirked in a rapidly corrected half-smile.

  You don’t need to do that, Adon sent to her only.

  Are you certain? Rosslyn thought, not making eye contact. I truly despise allowing you to risk your life while we sit here safely. You should at least allow me to come with you. We could cover more ground together. You needed to shield yourself from the heat to survive, but if you simply perched on my body, I could handle that aspect.

  I’m sure, Adon replied. I just need recovery time. As long as you’re all right with waiting for me to get back up to power, there is no downside to me going in alone. By myself, I don’t provoke the monsters to attack. They see a small animal, not a target.

  Rosslyn gave him a subtle nod.

  As the Princess and the butterfly had this exchange, William was arguing for letting Adon go.

  The arguments were not particularly powerful—“It is his choice, and this is his way of protecting your country”—but after a decent back and forth, Rosslyn now gracefully allowed him to win.

  “Let us just feed Adon, then,” Rosslyn said with a faux chill to her voice. “So that he can recover his strength more quickly and get back to doing our work for us.”

  William did not even mind her tone, Adon observed. He counted it a victory that the butterfly would enter the inferno level again and risk being incinerated. It made Adon wonder if he really was making the right call.

  It was too late, of course. He would look like an absolute wimp if he backed out now.

  Well, perhaps not to everyone—but probably to the Princess.

  They brought the butterfly a strix haunch that someone still had left over from the previous floor, then politely looked away while he liquefied and drained a section of it.

  And that did speed his recovery.

  By the time he was done, he felt ready.

  Once more into the breach…