“Does Jarberry just pay you a retainer to look out for me?” Kyle asked, half-jokingly.

The ogre towered over him, and though he wore a fierce smile, Kyle could see the tension in Ghork’s stance.  “Let’s get through this alive before we have a full discussion, shall we?”

Kyle nodded, allowing Genesis Engine to deactivate while beneath the protective Aegis of Ghork’s defensive skill.  His control with Heart of Creation was getting better, though the longer he leaned on it, the longer the cooldown before he could activate the affected skills again.  He wanted that timer as short as possible.  The golden glow began to fade from around him, though the stick clasped in his right hand only dimmed.

Ghork turned his head to the sky, shouting loud enough to shake the air itself.  “Hey!  I don’t know who you are, but you should know that there’s a live recording being streamed right now, and Collective forces are on their way.  So either get down here and put up a proper fight, or turn tail and run.  Either way, we’re putting an end to this.”

With his last words, Ghork flared his aura, and Kyle had to catch his breath as he felt all the mana nearby get drawn into the ogre.  His own cultivation was impacted, with mana struggling to continue its flow as it was drawn toward the ogre.  At the same time, he felt something stirring deep within the World Tree Seed, though he couldn’t place a hand on it.  Ger’Sinh went limp in the vines, unable to stay conscious against the full display of power.

A roar that Kyle felt more than heard rippled across the area, and a few moments later he felt Ghork relax as his aura lessened, the pressure on Kyle’s mana cultivation disappearing.  “Sorry about that,” The ogre said with a snort.  “Had to show that I was serious, and my control isn’t good enough yet to flex my new power without impacting you.”

“No apology necessary,” Kyle gasped, taking another stabilizing breath.  “You saved my hide.  Congratulations on reaching B Grade, by the way.  Jarberry said you were close, but I didn’t realize you were at the peak already.”

“I still had a little bit to go when we first met, but thanks nonetheless.”  His dark eyes scanned the sky with a faraway look, and Kyle didn’t miss his hand clenching around his shortsword.  “Still, I didn’t expect my first assignment after my evolution to put me against another early B Grade.  That almost got dicey.”

“Speaking of, what exactly did Jarberry send you to do?” Kyle asked.

[AND, PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANTLY, DO YOU HAVE A MEANS TO CONTACT HIM DIRECTLY?] C.H.A.D.D. added helpfully.  Now that he thought about it, Kyle had to agree with the drone’s take.  Their lack of communication with the outside was frustrating, and it just went to prove how valuable Suierrillax was.  If Kyle had known that Ghork was around, he could have planned around it.  Or, if they’d known that a B Grade was backing Ger’Sinh, Kyle could have taken a more conservative approach.

Ghork smiled broadly at the questions, tusks on full display.  “He hired me to provide security and make sure nobody tried anything stupid with the planet.  Even hired out a B Grade stealth vessel, with another old friend on board.  Not sure how he knew things were going to go sideways, but ol’ Jarberry’s always had a nose for trouble.”

“Wait, a stealth vessel?” Kyle asked.

“Yep.  Drandor picked up some subtle spatial energies, which they suspected was the result of higher-grade interference.  We watched you beat up the poor D Grade stuck in your vines, then intervened directly when we felt the B Grade getting serious.”

“I see,” Kyle said, putting the pieces together.  “They didn’t want to risk getting caught in a fight against two other B Grades, much less other Collective reinforcements.”

“I actually think they were more concerned about the live stream,” Ghork corrected.  “Drandor is still on the stealth vessel, and only in the middle of C Grade.  Also not much of a fighter.  No, I don’t think they wanted to get spotted and outed to the Collective.  Unfortunately for them, Drandor managed to get a good snapshot.”

At the words, an image popped up on Ghork’s nav bracelet, showing what Kyle could only describe as an oversized axolotl with wings.  Its skin was an oily black, a sheen of slime barely visible on the projection.  As he watched, space around it rippled, and the beast was gone.

“What was that?” Kyle asked in a whisper.

“’Who,’” Ghork corrected.  “And I have no idea.  What I do know is that they’re going to be in for a very bad time.  Most dragons are fairly unique existences, especially when they reach B Grade.  The Archdrake Supremacy will have a good sense of who they’re dealing with, and I wouldn’t want to be on the side getting hunted down by the other B Grade dragons.  There are plenty of powerhouses who would be happy to further their paths with a chance to fight another mid-tier B Grade.”

Thinking about the few B Grades Kyle had heard of, he had to agree with Ghork’s assessment.  B Grade conflicts were rare, and many would jump at the chance to have a truly sanctioned hunt.  Looking up at Ghork, Kyle grinned.  “Are you planning on joining in the hunt?”

The ogre snorted.  “Of course not.  I’m not saying I didn’t have a chance, but my odds weren’t nearly good enough on my own.  If it stayed to fight, I would have bought us time, and little else.”  Ghork glanced down at the glowing stick in Kyle’s right hand, giving it an appraising look.  “Though from the looks of things, you were about ready to join in.”

Kyle just smiled.  “When it’s the only option available, second-guessing doesn’t do a lot of good.”

“True enough!” Ghork boomed out with a belly laugh.  “And I almost forgot your companion’s question.  I do have a means to communicate with Jarberry, and there’s no way in hell I’m leaving you here after we saw a B Grade try and snatch you away.  You’re coming back with me.  The Mercenary’s Guild will handle the paperwork.”

[THAT WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED,] C.H.A.D.D. replied, and Kyle could feel the excitement from both the drone and Phaegos.  Not that he wasn’t also thrilled to finally be leaving Kertan Six.

Kyle gestured toward Ger’Sinh, who was still wrapped in vines, unconscious.  “Can you watch him for just a little bit before we go?  I have a few things to wrap up really quickly, and then I’ll be ready.”

“I’m not babysitting your D Grade prisoner,” Ghork said.  “That’s pushing the boundaries of propriety a little too much for my taste, particularly given I already knocked him out.  I’ll tag along with you, but if you want to keep him alive, that’s your prerogative.”

“Why do you all care so much about that?” Kyle asked, thinking back to Adminstrator Gamma’s rebuke of Zierlan, and his conversation with Jarberry that followed.  He wasn’t going to argue, but was genuinely curious.  He felt a similar curiosity from C.H.A.D.D., which meant that there wasn’t a lot clearly documented on the topics.

The ogre looked contemplative for a minute, as they moved through the forest, then shrugged.  “I suppose you’ll probably learn soon enough at the rate you’re going.  The more powerful you get, the more restrictions start to get put on that power.  For most B Grades and higher, we aren’t allowed to directly interfere with the affairs of lower grades, unless it’s to balance the scales against somebody else’s actions.  The backlash can get pretty bad.”

“That makes sense,” Kyle said, thinking about Zierlan.  “I assume there are some loopholes, given that the dragon that directly attacked Ger’Sinh and I was B Grade.”

“Certainly.  Even so, there’s always risk.  And it doesn’t have to be for negative intervention, either.  B Grades that go too far out of the way to directly help the lower grades progress have also gotten into trouble before.”

By now, the group had arrived back at the lake, where a large group of chaddlings was milling about.  He relayed an order through C.H.A.D.D., and the acorn-like creations walked up to him one by one as they were reabsorbed into the World Tree Seed.  Just as the last of them entered in, Kyle felt the air above them get displaced through Synaptic Barbs, just as C.H.A.D.D. sent a gentle nudge through Pack Leader’s Instinct.  A moment later, the empty air shimmered as a stealth field was undone, revealing the vessel making its landing.

It was slightly larger than the shuttles Corthian Mining used, though the sleek build of the ship was far more appealing than the boxy vehicles.  Two small cannons were present on the front of the ship, and even with its stealth field down it barely gave off any mana at all.  One side opened up as a ramp came down, and a squat C Grade just over a meter tall with a flaming red mohawk and a beard to match appeared on the inside.

“Oy!  Enough lollygagging, get your behinds back on the ship so we can get out of here.  You lot keep standing around you’re like as not to get us all killed!”

Ghork grinned, patting Kyle on the back with a weighty hand.  “Drandor, this is Kyle.  Kyle, Drandor.”

“I didn’t ask for no damn introductions!  I asked you to get on the blasted ship!” Drandor shouted from the top of the ramp.

With a shrug, Kyle made his way up to the ramp, still carrying the bound Ger’Sinh.  “Drandor, is there somewhere I can put this guy?  I want to make sure he’s secured when he wakes up.”

“Of course you’re bringing excess baggage,” the shorter man grumbled.  “Just tie him up to one of the chairs.  We’ve got enough juice left to get back to the Hub in a bit over a day, so that’ll just have to work.”

Kyle nodded, stepping inside the shuttle as Drandor grumbled at Ghork behind him.  Finding a seat near the cargo storage, Kyle used Cultivate, causing more vines to grow directly from the World Tree Seed, further binding Ger’Sinh to the sturdy metal chair.  For good measure, he also absorbed what little mana the other man had been able to passively recover; limiting his ability to cause problems when he awoke.

The moment Ghork stepped inside, the ramp folded up, and the ship began to move.  Drandor moved back toward the front, where Kyle assumed the cockpit was, and the ogre met Kyle’s eyes.  “I’ve got some reports to make, and a stream of questions from the Supremacy to answer.  Take some time to settle in, we’ll get a chance to talk more once I get these problems resolved and hear from Jarberry.  But Kyle, just a fair warning, I expect things will be pretty busy for you when you’re back at the Hub.  Just a fair warning.”

Kyle nodded to Ghork.  “I appreciate.  Thank you, for everything.”

“Just doing my job,” Ghork replied, though the twinkle in his dark eyes betrayed his real opinion.  He’s a good person,

Kyle thought, settling in to meditate.  Phaegos, can you keep Ger’Sinh’s mana depleted?

Of course I can.  But I want a real snack after this.

Kyle smiled as his eyes closed, and he entered his Center.

KYLE MAYHEW.  UNION SYMBIOTE. UNBROKEN SURVIVOR.  LEVEL 6 (C)

SECOND CLASS: WORLD TREE TENDER.  LEVEL 23 (E)

PATH SYNERGY: 97%

DEVOURER’S ANATOMY – ENHANCED CARAPACE (FERRIC AUGMENTATION), AURIC PERCEPTION (SYNAPTIC BARBS), EXOSKELETAL STRENGTH (MUSCULAR COMPRESSION), CEASELESS VITALITY (TENACIOUS VIGOR), INSTINCTIVE INTELLIGENCE (PACK LEADER’S INSTINCT), COVERT DEXTERITY (REFLEXIVE EVASION), UNBREAKABLE WILL (HEART OF CREATION)

VITALITY: 1928

ENDURANCE: 2580

STRENGTH: 793

DEXTERITY: 1488

WILLPOWER: 3022

INTELLIGENCE: 2652

PERCEPTION: 1983

FREE ATTRIBUTES: 100

Another level, he thought with a smile.  He felt the telltale surge of power when he managed to block the forced teleportation with the Heart of Creation infused Storm Shelter, and was pleased to see it come through.  There were no additional levels to his World Tree Tender class, though that was to be expected.  If the Unbroken Survivor progressed through overcoming adversity, the World Tree Tender progressed more with creation.

He allocated his free attributes, and then took some time in his Center to reflect on the dual nature of his path.  If Ghork was right, quiet moments of reflection would be few and far between in the days ahead.