When Toz woke up, Scrael had already left the bed. At least the other cats were still there. Toz rose, mostly recovered from the previous day's fatigue. The cats stirred and followed Toz out of the house to go check in on the others and look for the blue cat. Nil and Mindle walked next to him while Lucy continued sleeping on his head.
They found Stitches sleeping on the floor next to Joan and Joshua's bed. Joshua had a better complexion than last night, and while Joan's eyes looked puffy from all the crying, she also looked more stable. Since all three of them were resting, Toz didn't interrupt their sleep. Instead, he went to the front of the island where the blue cat had gone to sleep.
While walking, Toz noticed a minute difference in the atmosphere on the island. Joshua had used a lot of the mana on the island to power the barrier. The trees usually kept an even and consistent amount of mana on the island by pulling in the mana from the Void. After Joshua's stunt, the mana density had lowered, which proved how much mana he had used for his magic. Considering Joshua's inefficient use of mana in his magic, Toz wasn't surprised he needed so much to strengthen the barrier bubble.
However, Toz's observations weren't about the mana's density. That had quickly recovered while everyone was sleeping. Toz felt like the trees had grown more vibrant and that the density was increasing to levels greater than before.
Considering what had happened with the trees, Toz didn't need to think too hard before realizing it must be a side effect of the connection between Taienra and the island.
Toz quickly arrived at the edge of the island, where he found Asilean looking into the Void.
Asilean noticed their arrival and turned around to greet them. At the same time, Toz and the cats also heard a voice transmitted through mana. It was Taienra. She found it easier to communicate that way since her physical voice was loud and sometimes cumbersome to listen to during conversations.
Toz didn't think it was that shocking. The only way Toz and the other cats understood Mindle was through his inclination at first. She still couldn't talk to others using her physical voice since everyone who heard it only heard crackling fire. So Mindle had also learned how to talk using mana instead.
Toz and the cats returned Asilean's and Taienra's greetings with their own before asking how Taienra felt.
Taienra pondered in silence for a while before answering.
"It feels weird. I can feel the roots digging into my flesh when I move around, but it isn't uncomfortable. And I can also sense the mana moving through the trees, both into me and out of me. As if I have and the trees have become one."
"I'm sorry we couldn't help you any other way."
"Don't be. It's not your fault that we asked you for help. Help we are very grateful for, even if I am now part forest."
Toz was happy knowing that Taienra didn't seem too upset about having fused with trees.
"So, do you two have any plans for the future that were disrupted due to this whole situation?"
Asilean looked at the top of Taienra's head before answering.
"Not really. We have always been traveling through the Void, enjoying our time together without thinking much about the future. Maybe that's why we got caught."
Due to Asilean's self-reprimanding tone, Taienra interjected.
"It's not your fault I got captured."
Toz could tell that there was more to the story than what Asilean mentioned, but since neither of them seemed eager to talk about it, Toz didn't probe about it.
"Then you wouldn't mind joining us?"
"'Join you?"
Asilean and Tainera answered in tandem at Toz's seemingly out-of-the-blue suggestion.
"Yeah. Now that this island is fused with Taienra's back, we are bound together as long as we stay on here. Even if we want to leave, there's nowhere for us to go. We have a couple of boats, but we can't navigate through the Void on our own."
"That's true. Although it was your idea to use the island to save me, it isn't fair if we just take your home and leave you stranded in the Void. Especially not after you all saved our lives."
"There's something else, isn't there?"
Unlike Taienra's almost instant approval, Asilean was a little more suspicious.
"When we fled through the Void, it wasn't only the island I sensed. I felt something else coax me here. And that something was you, Toz. What's up with that? I won't be able to give you my response without a clear answer."
Asilean could feel a judging presence in Taienra's direction, but he didn't budge as he stared at Toz, waiting for an answer.
"How much do you know about human inclinations?"
Since Asilean and Taienra were from the Void, they might not have interacted with humans enough to get a good grasp on what an inclination was.
Asilean furrowed his brows.
"Not enough for that to be your answer."
pαndα`noνɐ1--сoМ "I'll take it from the beginning, then.
"Generally, inclinations are what allows humans to use mana and magic. It is also what decides how they use magic. You saw Joshua last night, right? His inclination allows him to create and manipulate bubbles."
Toz wasn't sure about exposing Joshua's inclination to strangers, but Asilean had already seen Joshua in action, and it would be easier to tell him about inclinations using an example.
"Joshua has a unique type inclination, so you probably won't see someone with a similar one for a very long time. I have a beast type inclination. As you can tell from the name, it's related to beasts."
Toz held up his hand, showing the outline of a cat's paw with ink-like patterns about to fill up the area inside the outline, before continuing,
"More specifically, cats. I can establish a bond with cat type spirit beasts. The bond shares and amplifies the talent for mana and magic for me and all the cats I am bonded with. I also get access to the same attributes as the cats."
Toz looked expectantly at Asilean. He had pitched his idea, and now he only had to wait for the response.
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