By morning...
The Raid Cave looked considerably different.
The enormous chamber where the Vixens had fought the Frost Giant was almost unrecognizable.
Not because of the battle.
Because nearly a thousand shadows were systematically stripping it bare.
Frost Giants carried enormous chunks of blue crystal across the cavern.
Shadow Knights formed organized lines through the tunnels.
Mages inspected exposed veins of magical ore before marking them for removal.
Smaller creatures crawled into spaces the giants couldn't reach.
And overseeing all of it—
Warden.
The armored knight stood in the center of the operation like a foreman commanding the most terrifying mining crew in existence.
"Anything interesting?" Jax asked.
Warden turned.
"My liege."
He gestured toward several enormous piles.
"Yes."
Jax nodded.
"Keep it coming."
"Understood, my liege."
Jax turned away.
There were some advantages to having an army that didn't require sleep.
Or wages.
Or lunch breaks.
Especially lunch breaks.
Because Jax had other plans for lunch.
Outside the Raid Cave, smoke drifted lazily into the afternoon sky.
Jax stood beside the caravan tending a large grill he'd assembled near the entrance.
Several thick cuts of meat sizzled over the flames.
Fresh herbs.
Garlic.
Butter.
A little salt.
A little pepper.
Nothing complicated.
The meat was fresh enough that complicated would have been a crime.
Behind him, Shadow Frost Giants continuously emerged from the Raid Cave carrying crystals.
Some were small enough to fit beneath one arm.
Others were larger than Jax.
Each disappeared through the rear entrance of the caravan and into the dimensional warehouse.
The warehouse was beginning to glow.
Literally.
Thousands of blue crystals now rested on reinforced shelves.
Others had been stacked carefully across the floor.
Magical light reflected from every surface.
Jax flipped one of the steaks.
Behind him—
Four women sat comfortably around an outdoor table.
They had emerged from the caravan considerably later than Jax.
And considerably happier.
Nyxian stretched lazily.
"I've decided I like Raid Caves."
Zee immediately looked at her.
"The Raid Cave had nothing to do with that."
Nyxian smiled.
"Didn't it?"
Zee's cheeks turned pink.
Aurabelle rested her chin against one hand.
"I liked the Raid Cave."
Llandra sipped her drink.
"We noticed."
Aurabelle smiled proudly.
"I killed the boss."
"You crushed its skull."
"Exactly."
She pointed toward the shadow giant.
"And now he works for us."
Jax glanced toward the enormous shadow standing near the cave entrance.
Loki towered above nearly everything around him.
His massive club rested against one shoulder.
"Technically, he works for me."
Aurabelle waved dismissively.
"Community property."
Jax laughed.
"Food's ready."
That ended the discussion immediately.
Plates appeared.
Jax placed a steak on each.
Then potatoes.
Fresh vegetables.
Butter melted across the meat.
The first bites brought silence.
Complete silence.
Jax sat down.
Nyxian closed her eyes.
"Okay."
She chewed slowly.
"This might be better than last night."
Zee nearly choked.
Llandra calmly cut another piece.
"Last night was a masterpiece, but tonight..."
Nyxian looked toward her.
Llandra ate it.
"WOW."
Aurabelle nodded.
"Definitely, so good."
"How fresh is this?"
Jax stared at all four of them.
"This is Loki. Probably a few hours old."
"It is so good," Nyxian said.
Loki, the shadow beast was standing at the edge of carriage. Listening to every word they said.
Jax made eye contact.
Something in Jax said he approved of the way he was being cooked. There was almost a smile of arrogance in the way he heard the women talk.
They ate beneath the afternoon sun while an army of shadows dismantled a legendary Raid Cave behind them.
It was...
Surprisingly peaceful.
By evening, the cavern had begun to change.
Crystalline formations disappeared.
Valuable ore had been extracted.
Weapons and armor abandoned by previous adventurers had been recovered.
Anything potentially useful went into storage.
Anything Jax didn't recognize went into storage anyway.
He could figure it out later.
The following morning, the Raid Cave finally reacted.
Zee noticed first.
She stopped near the entrance.
"Jax."
He felt it moments later.
The magic was changing.
The enormous magical structure that sustained the dungeon was beginning to collapse inward.
Not destructively.
Resetting.
Jax recalled every shadow still inside.
The last Frost Giant emerged carrying a massive crystal formation.
Then the entrance dimmed.
The unnatural cold disappeared.
The magical pressure vanished.
And the legendary Raid Cave went dormant.
Aurabelle stared at it.
"So that's it?"
"For now," Jax said.
Zee studied the remaining magic.
"It isn't dead."
"No."
Jax could feel that much himself.
Eventually...
The cave would return.
The creatures would regenerate.
The tunnels would refill.
The treasure would probably reform.
But not immediately.
"Months?" Llandra asked.
"Probably."
Jax looked toward Loki.
The giant stood silently behind them.
"The boss might take longer."
Nyxian glanced upward.
"Assuming it makes another one."
Jax nodded.
That was another possibility.
Raid Caves followed rules.
Unfortunately, nobody had ever written those rules down.
At least not accurately.
Jax looked toward the entrance.
Then smiled.
"I still need to make that sign."
The journey back to Burrowlane was considerably easier.
Mostly because everyone knew they had won.
Grim and Steed pulled the caravan along the rough country roads while the Vixens relaxed inside.
Two days later...
Burrowlane appeared over the hills.
Aurabelle was already standing near the front window.
Her ears lifted.
"Home."
The caravan hadn't even reached the Rowan farm before someone recognized it.
Children ran alongside.
Farmers stopped working.
Word traveled ahead of them.
By the time Grim and Steed stopped outside the house...
Half the family was already waiting.
Arial came through the door first.
"Aurabelle!"
Aurabelle barely made it down the steps.
Her mother wrapped both arms around her.
"Belle."
"I'm fine, Mom."
Arial pulled back.
Looked her over.
Then hugged her again anyway.
Jonathon approached more calmly.
But the relief on his face was obvious.
"You made it."
Aurabelle smiled.
"We told you we would."
Auron appeared behind their father.
He folded his arms.
"Four days."
Aurabelle looked toward him.
"What?"
"You were gone four days."
"Five."
"Travel doesn't count."
"It absolutely counts."
Auron shook his head.
"Nobody clears that cave in two days."
Aurabelle stared at him.
"We did."
"Sure."
"We did!"
Auron smiled.
"Belle, people have been disappearing into that place for generations."
"They weren't disappearing."
Auron paused.
"What?"
Jax stepped down from the caravan.
"Turns out the exit was sending survivors to a mountain on the other side of the continent."
Silence.
Auron blinked.
"...What?"
"Long story."
Aurabelle pointed proudly toward the caravan.
"But we beat it."
Auron still looked unconvinced.
"Two days."
Aurabelle's eyes narrowed.
"You don't believe me."
"I believe you believe you beat it."
"Oh, you're asking for it."
Auron grinned.
"Where's the proof?"
Aurabelle smiled.
Slowly.
Jax recognized that smile.
So did Nyxian.
"Oh," Nyxian whispered.
"He's screwed."
Aurabelle walked toward the rear of the caravan.
Auron followed.
So did Jonathon.
Arial.
Brothers.
Sisters.
Cousins.
Children.
Within moments, nearly everyone had gathered around.
Aurabelle grabbed the rear door.
"Proof?"
Auron nodded.
"Proof."
She opened it.
Blue light spilled across the yard.
Nobody spoke.
Beyond the doorway was not the interior of a wagon.
It was a warehouse.
A massive dimensional warehouse.
And nearly every visible shelf—
Glowed.
Thousands upon thousands of magical ice crystals filled the space.
Some were small.
Others enormous.
Crates of recovered weapons sat stacked along one wall.
Magical ore filled another section.
Armor.
Monster parts.
Unknown artifacts.
Materials recovered from generations of failed expeditions.
The entire warehouse shimmered blue.
Auron's mouth slowly opened.
Aurabelle folded her arms.
"Two days."
Auron stared.
Then looked at his sister.
Then back into the warehouse.
"...Okay."
Aurabelle smiled.
"Say it."
"No."
"Say it."
"Absolutely not."
"Auron."
He sighed.
"My little sister cleared the Raid Cave."
Aurabelle leaned closer.
"In two days."
Auron glared at her.
"...In two days."
She smiled triumphantly.
Arial looked inside the warehouse.
Then toward Jax.
"Is all of that valuable?"
Jax considered the question.
"Yes."
"How valuable?"
Jax looked back into the glowing warehouse.
He honestly didn't know yet.
But even conservative estimates were absurd.
"Millions."
Several heads turned.
Jax reconsidered.
"Probably many millions after what I plan to do with them."
Auron stared into the warehouse again.
"You know..."
He pointed toward Jax.
"That five-year promise is starting to sound considerably more believable."
Jax smiled.
"Good."
He clapped Auron on the shoulder.
"Because we have farms to build."
Dinner that night became another celebration.
Not quite the wedding.
Burrowlane couldn't sustain that level of celebration every week.
Probably.
But close.
Stories of the Raid Cave spread around the table.
Aurabelle demonstrated how large the Frost Giant had been by standing on a chair and holding her hands above her head, and then saying to multiply that by 5.
It wasn't remotely accurate.
Children asked questions faster than anyone could answer.
Nyxian exaggerated several parts.
Llandra corrected her.
Nyxian exaggerated them again.
By the end of dinner, one version of the story had Aurabelle fighting fifty Frost Giants by herself while Jax watched from a chair.
Aurabelle didn't correct that version.
Eventually...
The family went to bed.
The Vixens returned to the caravan.
And the following morning...
They said goodbye again.
This time—
Burrowlane watched them leave knowing something it hadn't known before.
Aurabelle hadn't simply become an adventurer.
She had become one of the best in the world.
Solmere welcomed them home with considerably less fanfare.
Which Jax appreciated.
They had work to do.
Their first stop was Grathok.
The Troll merchant stood inside one of his processing warehouses when Jax arrived.
Workers moved around enormous tables sorting monster parts from recent shipments.
Grathok saw him.
Then saw the wagons behind him.
Then saw the first carcass.
He closed his eyes.
"No."
Jax smiled.
"Hello, Grathok."
"No."
"You don't even know what I brought."
"I know you."
Jax laughed.
"We cleared a Raid Cave."
Grathok opened his eyes.
"What rank?"
"A."
Grathok looked toward the wagons again.
"How many?"
Jax considered it.
"A lot."
Grathok rubbed both hands across his face.
"Of course."
The unloading began.
Ice creatures.
Cave predators.
Frost beasts.
Grathok watched the pile grow.
Then grow.
Then grow some more.
Finally he looked toward Jax.
"You are going to keep my people busy for three months."
"You're welcome."
Grathok pointed at him.
"I don't negotiate with you anymore."
Jax smiled.
"I've noticed."
"You ruined negotiating."
"I taught you negotiating."
"You taught me that negotiating with you is pointless."
Jax considered that.
"Sounds like you learned something."
Grathok grumbled.
But he was smiling.
He would make an obscene amount of money from the haul.
Jax knew it.
Grathok knew Jax knew it.
At this point—
That was simply business.
Brannic reacted differently.
The dwarf stood beside Merriweather as Jax laid several recovered items across a reinforced table.
Claws.
Fangs.
Crystalline organs.
Pieces of armor.
Fragments from magical creatures.
Jax described each monster as best he could.
How it attacked.
What magic it used.
What happened when it died.
Brannic listened.
Merriweather took notes.
Then Jax brought out the club.
The room went quiet.
Loki's weapon hit the reinforced floor with a heavy—
THOOM.
Frost immediately spread beneath it.
Brannic stared.
Merriweather stopped writing.
Jax smiled.
"This is the interesting one."
"No kidding," Brannic muttered.
Jax explained what it did.
Whatever the club struck could be frozen almost completely.
Stone.
Metal.
Living tissue.
Another strike could shatter the frozen target.
Merriweather slowly approached.
She didn't touch it.
"Is the enchantment in the weapon?"
"I think so."
Brannic crouched beside it.
"Not all of it."
Jax raised an eyebrow.
The dwarf pointed toward several runes along the club.
"Some of this is channeling."
Merriweather's eyes widened.
"From the wielder."
Brannic nodded.
Jax smiled.
There it was.
That look.
The same look both of them got whenever he brought them something they didn't understand.
Merriweather glanced toward him.
"You want us to reproduce it."
"I want you to see if you can."
Brannic stood.
"Using transmutation."
"That's my thought."
The dwarf looked back toward the club.
"Freeze an enemy's weapon."
Merriweather continued.
"Armor."
"Shields."
Jax nodded.
"Or anything else we can figure out."
Brannic grinned.
"Leave it."
Jax didn't need to be asked twice.
The ice crystals went somewhere else.
Crystalshire.
Jax didn't bring everyone.
Aurabelle wanted to visit some of the shops in Solmere.
Nyxian had business at the Neon Moon.
Llandra had several messages waiting from her father.
So Zee accompanied him.
The dimensional warehouse in Crystalshire was already used to unusual deliveries from Jax.
This one still attracted attention.
Workers opened the rear storage doors.
Blue light filled the loading area.
Eldrich arrived less than ten minutes later.
He stopped.
His eyes widened.
Jax smiled.
"Hello."
Eldrich ignored him.
He walked directly toward the nearest crystal.
Zee smiled.
"Hello, Eldrich."
Nothing.
Eldrich crouched.
He examined the crystal.
Moved around it.
Touched it.
Pulled his hand away.
Touched it again.
Then looked toward Jax.
"Where?"
"Raid Cave."
"What type?"
"Frost."
"What rank?"
"A."
"Stable?"
"I was hoping you'd tell me."
Eldrich looked offended.
"Obviously I can tell you."
"Good."
"Eventually."
Jax smiled.
There was the Eldrich he knew.
The scientist examined another crystal.
Then another.
Jax waited.
Finally—
"I have an idea."
Eldrich looked up.
"Of course you do."
Jax ignored that.
"Refrigeration."
Eldrich stopped.
"Explain."
Jax did.
Cold storage.
Food preservation.
Warehouses capable of keeping meat fresh.
Transportation systems that could move produce farther without spoilage.
Then—
Temperature-controlled buildings.
Cooling systems.
Air conditioning.
Eldrich's expression changed with every sentence.
By the time Jax finished...
The scientist looked almost offended that these things didn't already exist.
"That's possible."
Jax smiled.
"I thought it might be."
"No."
Eldrich pointed toward the crystals.
"Not might."
He began pacing.
"If the thermal absorption can be regulated..."
His voice trailed off.
He turned.
"How many crystals?"
Jax gestured toward the warehouse.
Eldrich looked inside.
Stopped.
Then slowly smiled.
"Oh."
Jax knew that smile.
It was dangerous.
"I don't need one device," Jax said.
Eldrich waved dismissively.
"I know."
"We need something reproducible."
"I know."
"Then mass production."
"I know."
"Affordable."
Eldrich turned toward him.
"Do you want to solve it?"
Jax smiled.
"No."
"Then stop talking."
Zee covered her mouth.
Jax nodded.
"Fair."
Eldrich was already walking toward the warehouse.
He shouted for assistants.
Three came running.
Then five more.
Within minutes, equipment appeared.
Tables were cleared.
Crystals were moved.
Measurements began.
Jax watched the chaos unfold.
This was why he liked Eldrich.
Jax could walk into Crystalshire with an impossible wish...
And half the solution.
Eldrich didn't ask why.
He asked how.
And once he had a puzzle—
The rest of the world ceased to exist.
Jax looked toward Zee.
"Think we're done here."
She smiled.
"I think we stopped existing five minutes ago."
"Probably."
They left Eldrich to his newest obsession.
By evening...
Jax was finally home.
The Compound had become the unofficial name for the enormous property shared by Jax and the Vixens.
Part home.
Part fortress.
Part warehouse.
Part meeting place.
And apparently—
Part intelligence headquarters.
Because Jax had barely finished dinner when a familiar Elf appeared at the door.
Vaelrith Moonshadow.
The Elven spymaster didn't visit without reason.
And he certainly didn't arrive unannounced without one.
Llandra immediately noticed his expression.
The humor disappeared from hers.
"Vaelrith?"
He stepped inside.
His eyes moved across the room.
Jax.
Llandra.
Aurabelle.
Zee.
Nyxian.
Everyone was home.
Good.
Vaelrith closed the door behind him.
"I've spent the last several days confirming reports."
Jax leaned back slightly.
"Reports about what?"
Vaelrith looked directly at him.
"Alexandria."
The room grew quiet.
Jax's expression changed.
Vaelrith continued.
"Have you heard what's coming out of the Empire?"
Jax shook his head.
"No."
Vaelrith's face hardened.
"Then we need to talk."
He stepped farther into the room.
"Because Alexandria has made its next move."