The team was in a small town in Slovakia. The seekers had been briefed by personnel from the local Foundation headquarters. At that moment, they needed to familiarize themselves with the situation on the ground. Their primary objective was to rescue enslaved agents. Everything else was secondary. The team, led by Lok Lambert, walked down one of the narrow streets.

"I wouldn't be surprised if Soril decided to conquer Slovakia with his new titan. It's terrifying." Cathy remarked.

"A better question is why he suddenly got interested in a Foundation headquarters. And why this specific one." Sophie pondered aloud.

They were already close to the intersection.

"The headquarters is just around the corner." Lok informed them.

The friends discreetly peeked around the corner of the street and looked towards the Foundation building. Two Spiral warriors stood guard at the gate. The building itself looked untouched.

"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Den asked, uncertain.

"Absolutely." Lok replied.

Fears' doubts were not unfounded. The outpost looked nothing like the one in Venice. It was an extraordinary two-story house with a faded yellow facade. A chimney protruded from the side of the building, and the roof was covered with tiles in a deep red hue.

"We need to attack by surprise." Lambert announced.

The seekers retreated a few meters from the intersection. The leader presented his plan to flush out the enemies. The others suggested a few small changes. Eventually, they divided their roles and proceeded with the action.

Den accompanied by Cursed Archer and Harrison with Hitokiri moved towards the two Spiral warriors. The boys' task was to distract them so that the rest could infiltrate the building. Lok and the others bypassed the Fears team, making their way onto the outpost grounds. They opened the double front doors.

Contrary to the exterior appearance of the building, the interior seemed to have been renovated at least a few years ago. The corridor walls were covered with red-orange striped wallpaper. A long beige rug with brown trim lay on the floor, extending to the end of the hallway. The area was dimly lit by two solitary light bulbs, evidently lacking the funds to encase them in decorative shades. At the very end of the hall, there was an L-shaped staircase (rotated 90 degrees to the right) leading to the upper floor.

The seekers moved down the hallway. In a room to the left, they noticed Soril, who was talking with two of his subordinates. Each of them was holding some papers.

At that moment, Cathy and Malia separated from Sophie, Lok, and Cherit. They headed upstairs via the wooden staircase.

"Surprise!" Lambert fired Raypulse at the man.

Soril dodged the attack, and the orange energy burned a hole in the wall.

"I didn't think we'd see each other again so soon." Soril replied, putting the stack of papers on a table.

One of the Spiral warriors tried to summon Apinata, but a precise Sophie's spell knocked the amulet out of his hand. She then moved in to attack.

"I'll handle Soril, and you grab those papers. There might be something interesting there." Lok whispered to his small friend.

The titan nodded, observing the unfolding situation and waiting for the moment when everyone would be fully engaged in the fight.

The leader ran towards the head of the enemy group, trying to pull him out of the room. Lok dodged attacks until they were both in the hallway. He then went on the offensive, throwing a series of punches, which Soril blocked. At the right moment, the man summoned Inugami. In response, Lambert summoned Raijin the Thunderbolt. Initially, he considered summoning Baselaird but decided that the room was too small for him.

Sophie, with Sabriel's assistance, quickly defeated the two Spiral warriors.

"I have misgivings about them" she muttered to herself.

To avoid getting between Soril and her boyfriend, she decided to jump out the window, with her titan companion following closely. As Casterwill reached the Fears brothers, she realized her intuition had been correct.

Den and Harrison were in a tight spot. They had swiftly defeated the first Spiral warriors, but soon more locals joined the fray. The younger Fears summoned Jericho to handle three Apinatas. The other boy had already used Vigilante and Cursed Archer. He didn't feel up to summoning another titan. Casterwill entered the battle, striking a Spiral warrior with Kindlestike. Sabriel moved to assist Jericho.

"Finally, some support. Did you manage to free them?" the elder Fears asked.

"The girls are probably handling it. If not, Lok will help them. We need to deal with this lot." she replied, attacking another Spiral warrior.

Meanwhile, Cathy and Malia, accompanied by Freelancer and Lisinder, managed to overpower the guards in black-and-white uniforms. They untied the ropes binding the wrists of the Foundation agents, who then removed the gags from their mouths. The agents began thanking the girls for their rescue.

"I hope you'll help us drive these scoundrels out?" Malia asked.

"Of course." one of the freed agents replied.

Soril and Lok appeared slightly fatigued from their fight. Inugami and Raijin were evenly matched. At a crucial moment, the dog titan knocked Raijin to the ground and tore him apart, sending him back to his amulet. Soril's titan ran towards Lok. Unexpectedly, Cherit appeared behind Inugami and finished him off with his fiery breath. The small gargoyle then collapsed, dropping the stolen stack of papers.

Suddenly, Soril was hit by Augerfrost from behind. Cathy, Malia, and the Slovak agents had come down from the upper floor to help their teammates. The leader of the enemy group used his purple aura to push everyone back. Hastily and sloppily, he gathered the papers and ran out of the building. He noticed his subordinates were struggling and summoned Thornmir to assist them.

The remaining seekers rushed out of the headquarters. Lok summoned the Blade of Will, followed by Pendragon. The powerbonded dragon used its sword energy to send the enemy titans back to their amulets. The leader of the enemy group ordered a retreat. The Spiral warriors fled, and Thornmir was soon sent back to his amulet by legendary titan.

"Thank you, Pendragon. Return." Lok raised the sword to send the titan back to its amulet.

"It's frightening to think what would have happened if we were already on our way to Italy." Den remarked.

"How did they manage to attack you?" Sophie asked.

"It all happened so fast, I don't really know." one of the Slovaks replied.

Cathy suggested that the local agents check if anything important was missing following the attack on the headquarters. Meanwhile, the team gathered in a guest room, chatting and sipping lemonade. Sophie wanted a moment alone and climbed onto the roof to gaze at a blue star. Malia soon joined her.

"Are you nervous about the family meeting?" Malia asked, sitting beside her.

"A little." Sophie replied.

"We'll be there with you. You have nothing to worry about." Malia reassured her, placing a hand on Sophie's shoulder.

Sophie's lips curved into a slight smile. She thanked Malia for the encouragement.

"I think my family won't resist seeking the Foundation's help again. What worries me more is Focauld refusing to talk. Or worse, no one in the family knowing anything about resealing the Spiral Mark." Sophie said, hugging her knees and resting her chin on them.

"Your family is probably very large. Surely, someone must know something about it." Lyssa comforted her.

"Changing the subject, why did Soril and then Lok's father ask if you were a Nordwill?" Sophie asked.

Malia pondered for a moment on how to respond.

"As you heard from Soril, he's responsible for my father's death. Our family became a target for the Spiral after yours went into hiding, making it impossible for them to track you down. And Mr. Lambert might have asked out of simple curiosity. The Nordwills mainly work in the medical units of the Foundation." Malia explained.

"Why did they target you? Are the Nordwills also a clan of seekers, like my family?" Sophie asked, looking at her friend with mild astonishment.

— Unfortunately, I still don't know why. And yes, the Nordwills are a multi-generational clan of medical hunters, with some deviations — Malia replied.

Lyssa decided it was best not to reveal what she had learned from her uncle. She wasn't sure how much the Casterwills knew about her family. Judging by the conversation with Teien, the descendants of Lord Casterwill might have very limited knowledge about the Nordwills. This fact puzzled her, considering that both families' origins could be traced back to the same time, possibly even the same day.

"Do you also have family gatherings like this?" Sophie asked.

Malia shook her head.

"I don't even know how many of us there are. Especially those who are hiding under different names, like I am" she replied.

Suddenly, Cherit appeared between the girls.

"Is something wrong?" Casterwill asked.

"Lok sent me to find you, thinking you went somewhere." Cherit explained.

"Just girl talk. You'd be bored to death." Malia responded.

Both girls laughed.

***

Evening had fallen. Cathy and Den left the house under the pretext of shopping for the next day. They crossed beyond the walls separating the yard from the sidewalk.

"What did you want to tell me by Eye fo the Sea?" Den asked.

"After what you confessed to me... I couldn't make sense of anything. You should have seen how many pages I filled during that time."

"In that black notebook you rarely part with when we go on missions?"

"Yes. It's the only time I can write down a lot of things and thoughts. Not just from the "seeker's world" category, but also what's happening around us as ordinary people."

"Did you write down the answer to how you feel about me?"

"I did. It was a great battle."

She paused. She had to gather what she wanted to say next. They walked a few steps, and then she spoke again.

"Earlier, I treated you like a younger brother and maybe also somewhat as a role model. In the sphere of being a seeker, of course. You are intelligent, caring, but... it doesn't make sense. There's an age gap between us. You're sixteen, and I'm twenty. Tell me: how would that look? I might even be accused of..." she cleared her throat "...you know what."

"And what does it change that there's this age gap? The whole world doesn't need to know what kind of relationship we have." he stated.

"Maybe so, but... I can't do that."

She stopped. Den stood in front of her.

"Just say you prefer older guys" he said.

"It's not even about that." she shook her head. Her eyes glistened with tears. "It's just better for us to stay friends. Let everything be the same as before. Let's go to the headquarters together, train together. I thought you had as much fun with me as I did with you." she said, initially controlling her emotions, but the last words came out as if forced by some higher power.

She was close to tears. The words that came out of her mouth were not the ones resonating from her heart. Cathy had to choose the better option for both of them. Deep down, she felt the opposite of what her mind tied her down. Reason won over her feelings and buried them at the bottom of her heart, locked behind six padlocks and wrapped in an equal number of chains. To make sure they wouldn't escape too soon.

Den turned his gaze to the gondola that had just passed under the bridge where the couple had stopped.

"I guessed it would end like this" he thought.

Some time had passed since his confession. At first, he strongly believed that she would return his feelings. When he waited too long, thoughts started to form in his head that it wouldn't end the way he wished. He prepared himself to hear the painful words of rejection. That's why he took this blow to the heart strongly. On the other hand, he was glad that he finally had a longer conversation with her, even though the topic wasn't the most pleasant. Suddenly, Cathy started to sob quietly. The boy looked at the girl.

"Wait. Is she crying? She probably didn't want to tell me this so she wouldn't hurt me. I didn't know she'd take it so hard." he thought.

Without hesitation, Den hugged his friend. He no longer cared if she would push him away or embrace him back.

"I understand your decision. Just please, don't cry." he replied.

Cathy hugged him back.

"I'm so sorry." she said softly.

Fears felt drops on his sweater. The girl pulled away from him and wiped her tears. She took a few deep breaths and calmed herself down.

"I'll always be here for you, no matter what. Friends or more, it doesn't change how I feel about you."

Cathy managed a weak smile, appreciating his maturity and understanding. They stood in silence for a moment. The weight of their unspoken emotions hanging between them lost in their own thoughts.

"Let's go" she said.

Some time later

The two returned home with a bag full of groceries. They placed them in the kitchen and began to unpack the items from the bags. After putting away all the items, Cathy opened the oven door. She checked if her bake had cooled down. After a moment, she took the baking dish out of the oven onto the counter. She began to cut the cake into smaller pieces.

"Apple pie?" Den asked.

"Yes. I wanted to make it earlier, but you know how it goes" Lambert said.

The girl handed him a piece of cake on a white plate. Fears thanked her and immediately began to eat.

"Wow" he said after the first bite. "Better than your mom's!"

Unexpectedly, Lok and Sophie appeared next to their friends.

"What's better than my mom's? Oh, apple pie. Nothing beats that, Den" the leader said.

"Try it yourself" Cathy said, extending the snow-white plates towards her brother and his girlfriend.

"Let's see" Lambert boy muttered.

The two tasted the apple pie.

"Tasty, but I've eaten better ones" Sophie said.

"Quite good, but mom still makes a better one" Lok remarked.

"Speaking of which, I wonder what's happening with her. Foundation spies still haven't found out anything?" Cathy asked.

"If they had, they would have informed us immediately" the boy replied.

Den was about to go for a second slice of cake.

"Don't eat too much. Leave some for Harrison and Malia" she said, amused.

"What can I say? I love apple pie. Besides, Harrison can't stand apples. I'll gladly eat his portion" Den replied.

"What if he does want to give it a try after all?"

"Then you'll bake another apple pie" Den replied.

Everyone laughed.

Malia sat and watched her mentor. The woman demonstrated the use of one of the spells on two puppets.

"It seems to be very difficult" the girl remarked.

"Like everything, my dear. Until you practice properly, it will still give you trouble" the woman replied.

It was Lyssa's turn to perform the exercise.

"Remember to do it slowly" her mentor reminded her.

The girl simply nodded and closed her eyes for a moment. When she gathered her thoughts and focused, she opened her eyelids. She grabbed the hands of both puppets. Both of her hands lit up yellow.

"I can feel the energy flowing through my hands. Strange, yet funny feeling" she stated after a moment.

"You're becoming a kind of transmitter. That's why it's perfectly normal. You'll get used to it" the woman replied.

Someone entered the room without knocking. Lyssa got cold feet and lost focus. She instinctively pulled her hands away from the puppets. She looked towards the door. It turned out to be the supervisor of the Venetian medical unit.

"Don't get distracted, dear. Continue" the person spoke up.

"Stop scaring me, please" she muttered, then turned back.

The man stopped by the teacher's side. They whispered something to each other. The woman was amused and giggled as quietly as possible not to distract her student.

Learning some medical spells required mastering a very stable flow of power. Today's spell was one of those. As her mentor had told her "Transferring energy from one seeker to another is one of the hardest things to do. The flow of transfer should be the same. Otherwise, you could harm the person by taking too much power from them or transferring too much to them."

Lyssa took a few deep breaths to calm herself down and began the exercise again. Her power was slightly unstable, but not enough for anything bad to happen. Internally, she was stressed about the visit from her future examiner. She tried to ignore the whispers behind her, but the thoughts gained strength. On one hand, it didn't make her learning any easier. On the other hand, she could practice focus in unfavorable conditions to maintain the same level of power. It was much easier to concentrate in silence.

The concept of transferring energy from one seeker to another was something worth learning but rarely practiced by Foundation medics. This spell was seldom used, but it was still included in the medical seeker training course. Lyssa figured her parents might have gone through the same curriculum. That indicated someone from above should take care of it and make some changes. Surely, more useful spells had appeared over time.

"When will you finish? Maybe we could go for coffee?" the man asked.

"We can and we'll leave soon. Malia is a hardworking girl. I hope you will be very nice for her during her final exam." the woman replied, chuckling lightly.

Lyssa's heart beat faster when she heard a normal tone of conversation instead of a whisper. She continued to control the flow of power between the two mannequins. When the man spoke, the girl inadvertently increased the power when transmitting energy. The mannequin squealed. It meant that the balance of power had been disturbed too much. Quickly, she pulled her hands away from the mannequins.

"Are they doing this on purpose?" she wondered silently.

She resumed the exercise.

"Are you feeling stressed?" he asked.

"I was more scared" she replied.

"In addition to perfect control of power, you need to master the art of total focus. You must be able to detach yourself so that no one can distract you, while still being aware of what is happening around you. You mentioned recently that you're going to meet the Casterwill family. That will be the perfect opportunity for practice" the woman said.

"Ms. Meyer is right. Loud conversations and arguments are very good conditions for training" the man agreed.

"Do the Casterwills really argue and shout that much?" crossed her mind.