Kaelen and Elana were standing just outside the inn and facing the open road.
He had on a new pair of clothes and his body was properly clean for the first time since his unfortunate rebirth.
'At least my body has a bit of strength now. Not enough to smite a human but enough to defend myself, perhaps even kill one.'
Kaelen smiled to himself before glancing at Elana.
She raised her hand and hauled down a carriage being pulled by two muscular horses.
"True Spirit Spire." Her words were concise and direct. Before long, they were on the road.
Elana turned to face him, "Listen… I'm only doing this so that I can drop you off at an academy where you will be trained." She sighed.
"I have spent quite a lot on you and I hope you'll do well enough to pay me back. I have high expectations, don't disappoint, okay?"
Kaelen stared at her in silence, 'Ha! She thinks I care about her efforts. I only needed someone to take me out of this dump.'
"Oh, I understand. I promise that I won't disappoint you." He actually said, his voice soft and sincere.
She smiled before turning away and letting silence wash over them.
Kaelen tried to remember all the information he could about summons and their relationship with humans but failed. There was none.
'How did something as seemingly important in this world as summons escape our knowledge?' He pondered.
'Granted, our archives are outdated by a couple of thousand years, but still, that shouldn't be enough for there to be no trace.' His eyes darkened.
If there was one thing he didn't like, it was knowledge being hidden from him.
Before he could resume his thought train, the carriage came to a halt.
They both disembarked the carriage and stood in front of what could only be called a divine piece of architecture.
The True Spirit Spire, as Elana had called it, was made out of white marble with gold trimmings and patterns.
It was like a temple yet was tall enough to pierce the skies.
Yet despite the splendor, Kaelen felt something in the air that nauseated him.
A strong static that went against the very fibre of his soul.
"I can tell from your expression that you feel that pleasant energy." Elana chimed in.
'Pleasant? Humans call this pleasant?!' He hissed in his mind as he fought back the repulsion.
He smiled softly, "I definitely feel it in its entirety." He said chuckling.
"Well, that's the energy of our realm. The spires gather and amplify it." She mentioned before walking towards it.
Following closely behind, Kaelen was lost in thought.
'The energy of their realm? Their realm has energy? That wasn't mentioned. But then again, so weren't the summons.' He silently cursed the serious lack of information.
'But that definitely explains the repulsion. My soul can't stand this thing.' He continued to deduce.
Elana stopped short of a pair of thick marble doors.
She turned around and waved Kaelen over. He walked and stopped beside her.
"Just open these doors and walk straight ahead and don't stop until you get to a large open space with lots of glowing circles on the floor." Elana filled him in.
"Enter one and reach out with your will and ideals. Don't force it and all will be fine. I can't enter because I already have but I trust you." She gave him a thumbs up before shooing him off.
Kaelen pushed open the heavy doors and entered.
He passed the hallway, walking down until the scenery expanded to a large open space with a fair dozen others inside.
The other people gave him only a passing glance before focusing on their business.
'I need to just enter one of these. A familiar will be useful. I have no powers or influence for now and those are crucial.'
He walked into one of the circles etched into the floor.
Its intricate lines started to take on a bright turquoise glow. The color filled his vision, cutting him off from the outside world.
Kaelen closed his eyes and focused on his will. He knew that with such will-required processes, deceit would be foolish.
He focused and strengthened his will yet nothing happened.
Clenching his fists, he focused harder on his will yet nothing still happened.
All his plans, his ideals, his ambitions would be ruled null because of a faulty system?! He couldn't have that.
"I swear I'll destroy you!" He screamed in his native tongue and tried to summon void energy and failed but something changed.
The turquoise glow darkened with black lines running through it like an infection. Void energy.
Threads made of both energies weaved together a figure into existence before Kaelen.
It was a fox with pitch black fur spotting faint turquoise highlights that pulsed rhythmically.
The creature landed on the floor and its tail flickered, dropping what looked like a black glass shard.
Kaelen picked it up and turned it over, trying to understand what it was to no success.
A sharp burning sensation spread on Kaelen's right forearm yet he didn't flinch or wince.
He looked at it and saw a symbol burning itself into existence. His skin quickly scarred, leaving only the symbol.
The fox dissipated into pure energy and entered the symbol, leaving behind a cool sensation.
The turquoise slowly faded and he could finally see the outside world.
"It appears no one saw what happened." He muttered before delving into his thoughts.
His hands placed the shard into his pocket, 'Why did void energy suddenly enter this realm?'
'Or better yet, how did it enter?' There were many strange things that he didn't understand which only infuriated him more.
Kaelen walked out of The True Spirit Spire and saw Elana waiting eagerly.
'Tch. Typical.' He tutted in his mind before raising his right forearm to show her the symbol.
She smiled, "Nice rune. The lines are thick so that shows a good connection."
Her hands pulled back her hair, revealing a 'rune' on her neck.
The scarred tissue glowed slightly and an owl the size of an adult's torso appeared mid-air and landed neatly on her head.
Kaelen looked at it with a vague intensity, 'So I'll be able to summon that fox like that? I can't wait to use it.'