The golem seemed to tip the balance among the bulk of the committee members who’d still been eyeing him with suspicion and irritation. The nine-foot tall giant standing guard just behind Pax, and obviously ready to obey his orders, hammered home the reality that he was, in fact, the commander of their new base.

  Nightblade looked like he’d swallowed something bitter and choked on it. There were still a few who had similar expressions, but Pax saw more resignation than not.

  Knowing they would need some privacy to discuss everything he’d just dumped in their laps, Pax gave them a solemn nod. “I’m sure you have as much work to get done as we do, so we’ll take our leave. Please send a message when you’re ready for me to join the committee and discuss the rebellion’s plans.”

  Nightblade scoffed, face twisting with emotion as he banged a fist on the table in front of him. “You think we’re going to run everything by an upstart student like you? In what fantasy did you think you’d be in charge of the entire rebellion?”

  “Of course not.” Pax managed a mildly affronted expression. His new point in Charisma made it simple to maintain his calm. He hoped it also made Nightblade look like the one who was out of control and unhinged.

  Nightblade almost choked on his surprise at Pax’s response, obviously expecting more of a fight.

  Pax kept his victorious smile suppressed to enjoy later. “I’m obviously still a student. And while I’ve accumulated plenty of battle experience over the last few months, it’s all at the crew and team level. I’m not arrogant or stupid enough to think that qualifies me to manage all the complications of base logistics, troop tactics and our battle plans to topple the empire.”

  Nightblade gawked at him, looking bewildered at Pax’s unexpected rational words.

  “What I do have”—Pax injected a pulse of power and strength into his words—“are multiple innovative types of magic that will boost the rebellion’s strength in ways no one has seen before. My friends and I have tested these in the heat of battle and risked our lives. We’re the closest you’re going to find to experts in the matter. If you want the rebellion to explode with strength and make as few missteps as possible, then we’re your solution.”

  Nightblade’s head was shaking slowly in denial and shock. But Pax was watching the other committee members, the ones who hadn’t spoken while they watched everything unfold with keen gazes. The few nods he saw among them made both his Charisma and Strategist skill swell with approval. He’d come a long way from needing Rin to handle all interactions with authority figures.

  “I’m not demanding a spot on the committee for selfish reasons, unless you count wanting to do everything possible to topple the empire a selfish reason. I need to be there to help incorporate these new methods into our plans. That’s all. I’m sure as experienced leaders, you’ve learned to let your experts do what they do best, right? Like I give ideas to our crafter and then stand back to see what he comes up with.” Pax waved an acknowledging hand and smiled at Tyrodon.

  “Think of me like that, an expert advisor on how to supercharge all of your plans with more power and magic. That’s what we bring to the rebellion. For example, did you know having mana skills significantly increases the odds of a successful Taming? Or that beasts have multiple active and passive abilities that make them stronger than their physical aspects alone?

  “What about the fact that every mage has a small reservoir of another minor magic? It’s just hidden too deeply to access without years of work to unlock or at least a few weeks if you know exactly what you’re doing. A light mage like me can unlock it in minutes. That’s just a taste of what we can do to strengthen every rebel under your command.” Pax let his gaze travel from one side of the seated committee to the other, doing his best to convey his knowledge but also respect in his gaze before he returned to meet General Draven’s gaze. He tipped his head in acknowledgment. “Let me join you and help the entire rebellion thrive in strength and new abilities. Thank you for giving us this audience and listening.”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  Then he turned on his heel and led his friends out of the room without giving them further opportunities to question or harass them. The two guards they’d encountered watched with wide eyes as they left the way they’d come.

  As they retraced their steps down the hallway, Pax suddenly didn’t know where to go next. Now that Taming and unlocking minor magics are off the board. I’m open for suggestions on what part of our crazy to-do list we should tackle next.

  We’ve got another few hours before bedtime. Tyrodon responded instantly. Let’s head to our crafting workshop and split up tasks there. It’ll be a good chance to go over any gains from today’s work and then divide up jobs.

  Good idea. Rin gave her approval. We’ve made progress on the quest and just because we’re pausing some of our work for the rebels doesn’t mean we can’t get busy with our team, Titus’ crew and your Vipers. A break from working for the rebels might be just what we need to power up our friends first.

  Sounds good to me. We’ll join you and make some plans before heading to bed.

  Pax nodded, suddenly cheered by the idea of making sure his friends got head starts over the other rebels in the base. Titus already had Astra and getting the rest of Titus’ friends Tamed companions, too, would be perfect.

  Plus, if he could push his secondary elements over the next hump, he could add Crissim in with his crew mages to help get their own secondary elements up and running, too.

  Then he thought of the rest of his friends, Turgan and all of Team Tribal. He felt a weight slide from his shoulders as he realized he could finally come clean about his magic to all of them. That meant he could give every mage on the team their second element and new spell slot. And filling those slots wouldn’t be a problem either, now that he was the new base commander. He was the ultimate authority on how to allocate any ancient spell and skill scroll they recovered, which included the stash of beginner scrolls they’d been keeping on behalf of Fenix 3-one.

  Pax grinned as he visualized chatting with the bossy vault guardian again, but as his boss instead of a student underling to order around. That was going to be a fun conversation. A gentle nudge from both his Charisma and Strategist encouraged him to show respect to the ancient manager so as not to sabotage their future working relationship.

  Pax sighed in disappointment. Having worked under plenty of arrogant superiors, he knew better than to copy their poor examples. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t have a little fun too, right?

  He was pulled from his thoughts as Amil pushed open the double doors leading into the large communal crafting area they needed to traverse to get to their workshop. It was still just as crowded with shelves and stacks of various supplies.

  But this time, there were a lot more people than the last time they’d been there. As they trooped in with their large group along with their many beast companions, those who first caught sight of them stilled and stared.

  When Pax looked around, he realized it was actually the stone golem that had drawn all their attention. He waved at the golem to move up closer to him, gratified to see eyes widen in surprise as it did as directed. As they moved across the space, reactions rippled through the crafters and workers in the large space until everyone had ceased their work to watch their procession.

  Confidence and smiles, people. We want to give a good impression so people won’t balk when they hear we’re the new bosses here.

  Dahni’s voice came back, suddenly serious and with a bit of awe. Did we finally do it? Are we really the bosses of our own lives now? No one can tell us what to do anymore?

  Pax slowed and turned to see that Dahni wasn’t the only one who had stopped. He wore a familiar expression on his face, one full of both hope and the dread that every street kid felt when things went their way. They all knew that someone could always snatch anything good that came their way without warning.

  Pax nodded, knowing there was no going back now that he held the reins to the ancient base and its treasures. We hold enough cards now that no one can ever force us to do something we don’t want to do again.

  Dahni’s head started shaking in a mix of awe and disbelief.

  Pax reached out and clapped him on the shoulder. “From here on out, we’re going to have a lot more fun.”

  If you read fast . . . I’ve got a binge-worthy chunk of chapters on.

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