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Damian had also been disappearing with surprising frequency. One minute he would be there, and the next, he'd vanish.

At first, Cisco and Dunstan had thought that would be advantageous for making their escape, but they'd attempted it five times already, and Damian had always caught them without fail. One or both of them would suddenly stop moving. Or their reapers would come floating up out of the ground, seemingly paralyzed after trying to flee on their own.

And then the old bastard would insist on another sparring session and beat the daylights out of them both.

Damian never seemed to get angry about their attempts to flee, though. If anything, it looked like he found them amusing. And he never stopped giving them tips, either, even while smashing their faces in.

"All tuckered out?" came the old man's voice again. "Ready for bed?"

Cisco groaned and rolled over. He saw Dunstan a couple meters away, also struggling to get up again. Their respective reapers, Dennex and Rezamaar, were suspended in midair behind the old man.

"Have you thought about making a break for it when I'm asleep?" said Damian, sounding genuinely curious somehow.

Rezamaar answered him. 'Well, yeah, but Feromas will sense us and wake you up immediately.' She couldn't move, but she could still speak, apparently. She didn't sound terribly upset about the situation, either, come to think of it.

"True." Damian paused for a chuckle. "What if I make him promise not to wake me up, then?"

'Why would you do that?' said Reza.

"Why wouldn't I? Could be fun."

'Don't let him bait you,' said Feromas. 'Even if I agreed to that, it wouldn't work. He can sense you in his sleep.'

"Aw, don't tell them that! It was gonna be a surprise!"

'Try being more subtle next time, then.'