“This is so fascinating…” Sage blurted out as she sat between Trigger and Zac.

  They were both in a trance-like state, as glowing aquamarine lines intertwined in front of them. They had been traveling for some time and had a ways to go. However, Trigger had requested that Lumi, the basilisk, slow her traveling so that he could digest everything he had just learned from Lunara.

  With Lumi's reduced speed, Sage and the Twins could now properly move around on Lumi’s head. Lunara also, as a demonstration, activated a system to reduce the wind pressure they felt.

  “So you’re telling me this isn’t magic?” Zidane said as he walked around Zac and Trigger looking at the wind flowing around them like a dome.

  “It’s not magic, no, not really. It’s no different than your programs. Only more deliberate, and we don’t need to inject ourselves with… things.” Luna explained.

  “So this energy they’re manipulating right now, what exactly is it?” Sage asked.

  When Luna described the process to Zac and Trigger, he didn’t say anything at all. He said, “Reach out to the feeling in your mind.” The next moment they were sat down with lights floating around them.

  “It’s… hmm. It’s the source of creation. Vaylora or The Spirit of life.” Luna explained.

  “Oh yeah, not magic at all... Mhmm.” Roisin commented while folding her arms.

  “Hahaha…that’s just what we call it. You humans know it as well. In more scientific terms, I believe you refer to it as quintessence, God particle, or Higgs Boson, if you will.” Luna explained.

  “Quintessence and Higgs Boson are very different things.” Sage countered.

  “You are correct, but Vaylora encompasses both and much more. But your current science doesn’t have names for them or even a rudimentary understanding. So, explaining it to you would be like explaining light-speed travel to a monkey. No offense.”

  “ Right…” Sage pondered for a moment before saying,

  “If I understand correctly…Vaylora is essentially a force, energy. One we can’t see or even perceive, that holds everything together. That makes everything… what it is?”

  “You’re mostly correct. You can perceive it, Chasers just don’t pay attention or can't.” Lunara responded.

  “What do you mean?” Zidan asked.

  “Using systems to manipulate Vaylora is no different than when you use your Programs. Our way is just more deliberate, flexible, and safer.”

  “Safer?” Roisin butted in.

  “I’m sure you heard from his eminence Cefketa.”

  “Oh, please just call him Zac. He doesn’t need a bigger head.”

  “Yeah, it’s fat enough as is.” The Twins cut off Lunara, who chuckled.

  “I’m sure you heard from Zac that to commune with Vaylora, you need the know-how, you need the right, and you need to pay a price. Becoming conscious of it gives you the right, and learning how to speak gives you the know-how. The price usually comes from the body.” Lunara explained.

  Sage nodded her head in understanding. Using their Programs puts a noticeable strain on their bodies. Even with the Nanites constantly healing them, overusing their abilities they would need time to recover. She always found it odd that she could run for miles without losing her breath, but extended use of her abilities could exhaust her.

  “The system handles both speaking with the Vaylora, and the system takes the brunt of the price. Which is why one must perfect their systems or…” The system Trigger was forming burst in front of him. He cursed under his breath and began again.

  “Or it will crumble under the weight of said price.”

  “I see…” Sage sat there in contemplation and looked over at Trigger. It was no wonder he was in such a rush to learn this system approach. For Zac it was just a passing curiosity; Gteju had no need for systems, they could just speak directly to this Vaylora.

  However, Trigger, for a Gteju his body was far too underdeveloped, to handle the strain of paying “the price”, so utilization of the system could help him bridge the gap until his body caught up to his understanding.

  “So while we are limited in what we can do, you… what should I call you?”

  “Monsters are fine, we don't really care.” Lunara waved his hand dismissively.

  “You Monsters can do anything, as long as you know the system?” Sage asked.

  Lunara began to laugh until his sides hurt. He wiped a tear from his eye and then sighed,

  “You humans really know nothing… I was more foolish than I imagined, for fearing your growth. It’s the opposite.”

  “What do you mean?” Zidane asked.

  “Technically, we can do just about anything with enough study and know-how. In reality, each species has a natural talent or inclination towards a specific field of knowledge. We call it a Bent. For instance, Werewolves have a Bent in the field of air manipulation. It comes naturally to us. Making systems in this field easy to use for us. It’s rare for someone to be able to properly make use of systems that are too far removed from their Bent.”

  “So your Bent is like a Program. For instance, my Program at base is controlling plants, but I can also control earth and water to a certain extent. But I can’t form metal, or control blood, for example.” Sage reasoned.

  “Exactly! We can work systems that align with our natural talents.”

  “So are basilisk space manipulators?” Roisin asked.

  “No, someone else created that system and engraved it into the guard's scales. They just need to channel the system.”

  “So… if we take the time to learn a system and engrave it, we’ll be able to use abilities outside our Program's scope.” Zidane smiled.

  “Correct. But exploring Systems outside of your Bent… is a daunting task. Most have no success, and even more don’t even try.” Lunara smiled back.

  “That’s them, we’re us.” Roisin cockily responded.

  “Yes, and you don’t even know how to perceive Vaylora.” Lunara chuckled, and Roisin and Zidane’s shoulders slumped.

  “You compared Programs to Bents. However, you said each species has a specific Bent, while there are too many Programs to list in one sitting, most of which have no connection. Why is that?” Sage asked.

  “That's why I said you humans don’t know your potential. We Monsters are limited in what we can do, but we can hyper-specialize, but limited nonetheless. For the Gteju, everything flows into them. They can learn and grow without limitations. You humans, as much as we hate to admit, are just a different side of the same coin.” Lunara sighed.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  “While Gteju essentially ARE EVERYTHING! You humans can BE ANYTHING! Gteju are limitless, humans have unlimited potential.” Lunara chuckled softly to himself.

  “That is why we admire your kind to a certain extent and would fear you if not for your fatal flaw as a species.”

  “What flaw is that?” Sage inquired.

  “You’re too impatient. You have powers beyond your comprehension, and instead of taking the time to fully understand that power, to give yourself the chance to connect to Vaylora, you seek more power. In your haste for greater strength as a species, you walked past the thing you were looking for.” Lunara sighed as if it was a good thing for his people, but it was still a tragedy to see such potential being wasted.

  “Why are you telling us all this?” Roisin asked. They were here for Zac at the moment, but nothing was stopping them from turning on them after getting what they wanted.

  “Well, these two would have figured it out on their own, eventually.” Lunara pointed at Trigger and Zac, both still in deep focus.

  “Besides, you three don’t strike me as particularly interested in the world of humans or what happened to it. Plus, knowing this won’t help you much, you’ll still need a teacher of your specific school of knowledge to guide you on your first step.” Lunara chuckled.

  Sage narrowed her eyes at Lunara. If that was the case did they first learn how to commune with Vaylora? Sage’s eyes widened as she looked over at Zac and Trigger. The Monsters looked at the Gteju as something akin to gods. Beings only looked to such things for two reasons, fear or gratitude.

  If Lunara represented the way all Monsters felt, there was a level of fear, but there was a deep respect more than anything. Lunara clicked his teeth as he saw the look in Sage’s eyes. This girl was far too sharp… Sage was a rather apt moniker for her. He could see why a Gteju like Cefketa was so fond of her.

  “Yes, Gteju taught the first of us, or at least that’s what our legends tell us. However, Keta and Myth are too new to teach you, at the moment.”

  “We can wait…” Sage smiled knowingly at Lunara, who sighed. His being difficult wasn’t going to do anything for him in the long run. In fact, the two Gteju seemed to have great affection for these three humans. If anything, it might put a strain on the coming relationship.

  “Fine! Fine!... You said you control plants? When we get to the Citadel, I suggest you find an Elf to teach you.”

  “An Elf?! Elves are real?!” Sage exclaimed. Before she could ask more, the Twins pushed her aside.

  “What about us?!” The Twins then went on to describe what their Program was. Lunara had a surprised look on his face. What the Twins described was far outside of anything he had heard. He contemplated for a couple of minutes before he thought of something.

  “The closest I can think of are the Dwarves. They work with metal, but their systems have evolved more than anyone else's over the centuries. It started as metal manipulation and has turned into a mixture of electromagnetism and technopathy to a certain extent. They would be your best bet.”

  After listening to Lunara the Twins got visibly giddy and began to brainstorm systems to etch into weapons.

  “OOOOOO, what if we add this to GRAMPS?!” Roisin blurted out.

  “You’re so right!!!” Zidane responded, in one of the few times the Twins seemed to be in harmony.

  Lumi was still speeding down the waterway as it led all the way to the citadel. Sage continued to catch herself staring at the building and life here. She hoped that in the future she would have the time to thoroughly explore the wonders of this place. She also found herself wondering if the Monsters were able to make something so prosperous and were willing to live with humans,

  “What’s the point?” She thought to herself. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

  These Monsters were civil and advanced, but there were plenty who were wild and savage. As she wrestled with these thoughts, Lumi began to slow down, not just Lumi everything around them seemed to slow to a crawl. The Twins and Luna noticed as well.

  The 4 of them turned their attention to Trigger holding a “system” over the palm of his hand. He still had that trance-like stare, and Sage turned her focus to the system itself. The system looked exactly like a magic or alchemic circle, with symbols that looked like runes intertwined throughout. At first, she thought they might be Nordic, but those runes had smoother edges and they all flowed together naturally. It must be the Mytherian language that they kept speaking of.

  Those runes or symbols began to vibrate as the surroundings slowed more until just for a moment everything around them came to a complete stop. The system then burst forcing Trigger out of his trance-like state.

  “Damn, I almost had it… what am I missing?” He then began to think, being off in his own world.

  On the other hand, Lunara was in a cold sweat. That “incomplete” system that Trigger was fiddling with already had one of the most terrifying effects. It didn’t affect the group, but it affected Lumi and everything else around them. Yet no one outside of the system noticed. Even if that held for just a moment, with the physical abilities of Monsters and Chasers alike, it could instantly turn the tide of battle.

  Their attention was again drawn towards Zac, and Lunara’s eyes nearly popped out of his skull. Several different systems were floating in front of Zac. None of them were functional, but Lunara had worked with Systems for centuries and knew that was not their purpose. Zac was exploring the System itself. He was testing its limits, expanding upon principles that some of their scholars struggled with.

  “Hmm… I get it. So if I say this..” Zac mumbled to himself.

  Lunara could only shake his head. He finally understood what Zac was doing. It seemed he was more of a visual learner, so giving his thoughts physical form was more beneficial to understanding his abilities. While Trigger worked with the system to reduce the stress on his body and had already gone far beyond what was necessary to achieve that, Zac was using the system as a visual learning tool.

  Concepts that many dedicated their very long lives to became the plaything of two Gteju children. Lun didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He just hoped that these two were the blessings that he believed them to be.

  “What the hell is that?” Roisin said as she looked ahead to see a massive structure in the distance.

  “That’s the Citadel,” Lun said with a smile

  “I was expecting a city… not…”

  “The Tower of Babel…” Sage finished Zidane’s statement as she was still in shock.

  “Well, that’s where we got the idea.” Lun chuckled.

  The Twins and Sage just stared at the massive structure that wasn’t in view until now. With its size, it should have been visible hours ago. Sage could only surmise that there was another system that obscured the Citadel. And their… systems surely accounted for why it could retain such a size.

  “How? Why?” Sage asked.

  “Our numbers may not equal the human population, but there are a lot of us. Everything you saw until now was created to let our people explore at least a little, and not be bound within the Citadel. As for how.” Lun then went on to explain the construction of the Citadel.

  The structure was massive beyond reason. Its peak rises beyond the clouds, piercing the heavens with its shimmering, living metal crafted by Dwarven hands. It was a colossal structure that defied gravity, its foundation coiled like the roots of an ancient tree, embedded deep within the planet’s core, drawing energy from the molten heart of the world itself. Where the Dwarves and more subterranean species made their home.

  It was constructed of countless floors. Each one is the size of a metropolis. The lower levels are an ecosystem unto themselves—lush jungles and forests of bio-luminescent vines spiraling up crystalline support beams, their leaves humming with stored solar energy. Waterfalls cascade from terrace to terrace, feeding emerald pools where wildlife roam freely. There were underground waterways that extended out towards the sea, where the more seafaring species entered and exited.

  Higher floors were more akin to cities, their architecture, a seamless blend of glass, living steel, and bio-synthetic stone. Homes breathe, their walls pulsing with veins of aquamarine light, adjusting temperature and texture to their dwellers’ needs. Walkways ripple like liquid underfoot, adjusting with every step, to accommodate all walks of life. Sky trains slither like mechanical serpents outside the Citadel traveling in between the layers, acting as transportation between the floors.

  At the very top, where the sky and the void meet, lies the Nexus: a place where the countless systems that keep the Citadel standing and kept the nation of Monsters hidden are stored. It spreads the needed systems like a dome over Firmatha Sanguar.

  “I don’t understand.” Sage was at a loss for words.

  “What?” Lun asked,

  “You have all of this tech and power. How did you fail to take out Heka in the past?” Sage asked.

  “Heka itself isn’t the problem.” Lun let out a sigh.

  At that moment both Zac and Trigger exited their trance-like state and spoke,

  “It looks like we’re here.”

  “Damn, I almost had it.” Trigger responded,

  “We will be arriving in 30 minutes. I have already secured Sky-Train tickets for you. And the Seats are gathering for your arrival.” Lumi communicated with the group.

  Sage took a deep breath as she felt herself begin to tense up. Zac on the other hand turned his attention to Trigger.

  “Show me the system you were working on. Let’s see if we can fix it before we get there.”

  “Alright.” Trigger didn’t hesitate as Aquamarine light floated above his palm and began to take the shape of a system. As soon as it was formed Zac began to make suggestions and edits. From Lun’s point of view, it was clear that Trigger had a better command of Vaylora from how he moved the System, but Zac had a much higher understanding of Systems.