James reappeared in the tavern. When James arrived, Xander stood up and held his hands, "I am sorry, James. I didn't realize my gift would cause you so much consternation."

  James blinked at the big 25-cent word but then shrugged, "I like your gift and the spirit it was intended with, but I don't know if I would use it because of the loss of Experience."

  Xander nodded knowingly, "I know. I saw how fragile your mind is already with you talking to yourself like that. You must be right on the cusp of a nervous breakdown."

  James frowned, "I have a guide."

  Xander smiled, "Of course you do. I have one too. I call him George."

  James wasn't sure if he was being teased but decided just to let it drop. The two of them sat at the same table as before, but James waved off the bartender when he appeared with tankards of ale.

  Xander sat down with him, "Normally, as a Dungeon Core, we don't give a shit about the treasure you earn or what you do with it. But most Dungeons will try to cater the reward to the person winning it: no sense giving plate mail to an archer or a bow to a mage. That being said, I am only doing this because the reward I gave you was specifically from me. So, I am invested in ensuring it is something you want."

  James tried to protest, "I like the item."

  Xander cut him off, "James. I want to give you something you will use, not something that will sit on your bedside table as a keepsake." Xander held out his hand, "Can I have the Token back, please."

  James shrugged and returned the Enchanted item. As soon as it was in Xander's hands, it disappeared. In its place appeared a small statue. Xander handed the Figurine to James to Analyze.

  James smiled, "Thank you."

  Xander nodded, "The perfect companion. I understand how important they are. The nice thing about this item is that it is classified as a Summons. But because of its Rarity and starting level, it lasts thirty hours. If you resummon the dog before the duration expires, you will get the same dog back. Instead of a new dog. For experience, it doesn't count as a Pet or Familiar; instead, it is bonded to you."

  James raised an eyebrow, "Bonded? Is that important?"

  "Absolutely. A bonded creature or item takes on an aspect of your Soul. It can go through portals with you."

  James nodded and lowered his voice, "What does modified mean?"

  Xander smiled and leaned forward to whisper. Before speaking, he sat up and looked around quickly before leaning in again, "It means I modified it so that it would be a lower Rarity. It was supposed to be Ultra Rare, but I reduced the creature's level Summoned to level 1 instead of level 10."

  James mouthed 'Okay' before sitting back up. "I didn't know that Dungeons could do that."

  Xander shook his head slightly, "They can't. I picked up a special Ability when I killed my second Champion. It allows me to make minor changes to Enchanted Items that I create. But only by making them worse."

  James smiled and nodded, he wasn't sure what that meant, but he was sure Rocko would be interested. "Thank you again. But I should be going."

  "Can you Summon it here? I want to ensure you Bond with it correctly before you go." Xander said, standing up.

  "Afraid I will sell it?" James joked.

  Xander chuckled, "Yes."

  James paused and looked at the item. He suddenly realized he had no idea how to Summon the dog.

  Xander grinned, "That was the other reason. You must put a little blood on it to bind it to yourself. Once that is done, you can never lose it."

  James narrowed his eyes at Xander, not sure if he was pulling his leg or not. When Xander just shrugged, James pulled out his dagger and cut the back of his hand. While he was doing this, he was communicating with Rocko mentally.

  'Yes. Oh yes, bond with the dog!' Rocko shouted to him. 'A bonded item is Ultra Rare and can be a family heirloom in some places.'

  James nicked the back of his hand and put the dagger away. Nicking himself wasn't easy as he had to stab downward into his hand with half his strength, thanks to the Power Harden Skin II. Once a spot of blood had risen to the surface of his skin, he smeared it across the Figurine of the dog.

  James paused. Typically, one doesn't get warnings when good things are about to happen.

  'Rocko, why am I getting a warning about Bonding,' James asked.

  'When you Bond with something, the Bond can only be broken by death,' Rocko explained.

  James selected YES, and another box appeared.

  Before he could finish reading it the second time, the message disappeared, and James could not find it in his list of notifications. James just smiled at Xander and shook his hand, "Thank you. It is the perfect gift."

  Xander smiled back at him and waved at the Figurine, "Now give the Figurine a light squeeze, and it will disappear, and the Onyx Dog will appear."

  James followed the instructions, and another blue box appeared.

  James selected YES, and the Figurine disappeared. A medium-sized black Labrador Retriever appeared sitting before him. It sat looking at him with its tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth. As soon as it appeared, its tail started swooshing back and forth. Xander had to step back to avoid being hit. James kneeled to pet the dog, and it began to lick his hand. When James leaned in closer, it tried to lick his face. James smiled and then laughed. The dog sensed his excitement, jumped up and started licking James' face.

  "I am glad your gift likes you," Xander said with a laugh. "You should make it a wonderful friend."

  "Thanks again. I should be going." Standing up, the dog dropped down and stood beside him. "Let's go, Onyx. I have some friends I want to introduce you to."

  Onyx barked once and then padded around James to stand on his left side. Once there, she sat down again. James noticed it was, in fact, a she. James turned back to the portal and started walking away. He didn't need to look to know she was on his heel. When he stepped through the portal, Onyx followed on his left.

  James and Onyx arrived at the Reward Room a second time. He checked the Reward Chest to make sure it was empty. Rocko appeared a moment later and looked at Onyx sitting beside James.

  "This is your Bonded item?" he asked.

  "This is Onyx, yes." James corrected.

  James was surprised that Onyx could see Rocko. She watched him as he walked around her. When Rocko got behind her, her head snapped to the other side, and she watched him as he continued his walk.

  Rocko nodded, "Well, once we are out of the Dungeon, we should probably head back to Glezda and drop off the items you collected here. Then to Ash Rumbo to drop off the items you collected from Glezda. Then call it a night."

  "Is it still nighttime?" James asked, strapping on his shield and drawing his sword.

  Rocko shrugged, "It is somewhere."

  James laughed and walked through the portal with Onyx at his heel.

  James and Onyx appeared in a small alleyway near the docks. The area was bare of everything, including garbage, but James scanned the alley carefully. Sword and shield at the ready. The space was about three meters by three meters and had tall walls on each side. Moving up to the street side, he could see an image of a barrier between him and the street. It was almost like a mirage or illusion.

  Rocko appeared beside him, "You should have three new notifications."

  James looked down at his little rock buddy and nodded, 'I think we are in a secret space near the docks. Do you think it is safe?'

  Rocko looked around, "Should be. Onyx will warn you if anyone appears."

  James nodded and opened the first of his three notifications.

  The last notification had been blinking and reported his new level.

  * Modified by an Enchanted Item (+3)

  ** Modified by an Enchanted Item (+5)

  "Didn't have much of a chance to improve any Skills since the last time I levelled." James groaned. With that, he opened an Astral Door, and he and Onyx stepped through.