087, 2/2

Jane angrily sent, ‘Fuck her! I can’t believe you promised to give Delia world class schooling and— No.’ There was a long pause. Jane’s voice came back softer, ‘Ugh. I was such a little shit when I was her age, but… I don’t know, Dad. Maybe her response is the proper one? You did renege on your deal and she is technically an adult, but she’s so young still and I’m wholly against child soldiers but… I don’t know. That’s a mess. There was probably no right way to handle that. Ask Kiri. She’s closer to that age.’

Erick went to ask Kiri, inside her ‘office’ on the third floor, next to the large classroom-type room. He had barely ever been in this room, but Kiri certainly had. The sunroom-sized space was full of shelves and books and doodaads and trinkets and chalkboards and notes and magic circles and piles of metal ingots. There was even a whole crate of rough diamonds. It was like Erick’s Mage tower, but better organized and much more lived in.

Kiri was currently working on mastering her lightmasks, to be able to enchant her own diamonds. But what Erick saw, was not Kiri hunched over a ball of blue or red or purple air, but over a green lightmask. A good twenty other lightmasks hung in the air over her work bench, each a slightly different shade of green. There was no ‘green’ to Strength, Vitality, Willpower, or Focus, so she had to be working on deciphering the new Stats.

She saw him come in, so she turned and asked, “Have you tried to make new Stat gems?”

“No. I haven’t, actually.” He said, “You can’t make something that is already— Huh. Well. I was going to say that ‘Already having what you want is necessary to being able to work with what you want’. But. I’m making new basic spells all the time and the Remake Quests exist.”

“The Law of Equivalent Magic is barely a law according to everything I’ve seen these days.” Kiri said, “You should try figuring out the new Stats. We can compare notes.”

He walked closer to her desk. “How do you even know green is the color of a new Stat? What are you pouring into that lightmask? Undifferentiated mana?”

“Green is already my color, so yeah.” Kiri said, “Your color is white. You could try to make a true All-Stat gem.”

Erick smiled. “Maybe I will.” He said, “But I came in here to ask you something.”

“What can I help you with?”

“You know Delia and that whole situation, right?”

Kiri frowned. “Yeah?”

“What’s your honest opinion?”

Kiri breathed deeply, then said, “You offered her a fantastic opportunity with Oceanside enrollment, but she is too young and far too hurt to understand what she’s doing right now. I didn’t think she was that stupid, but with how I saw her act after you offered her that opportunity, I know that she’s going to get herself killed. If you would have given her gear, that gear would likely be in the hands of others by now. But now? Now, she’s probably off crying somewhere, working up the courage to do something stupid, or smart, and only time will tell which option she picks. Or, she could have already done her stupid or smart thing. I don’t know.

“But… What she wants is not wrong. Hunters are just as monstrous as monsters, but Hunters live among us, and they take the bodies of friends and loved ones in order to strike when our guards are down. There’s loads of stories out there about strong adventurers who come home to see their mothers or fathers and instead get a knife to the neck and everything stolen from them.” She added, “You’ve been the target of hunters at least twice, now, right? Or is it three times? I heard from Jane that you were targeted well before I came along. People assaulted the Sewerhouse, or something.

“If Delia comes back and she doesn’t bring a whirlwind down on us… Give her a second chance, along with heavy demands. Demand she go to Oceanside and train to become an Elite, because finding and killing Hunters is not an easy profession. Every single organization that builds itself up to stand as a group against them usually ends up infiltrated and torn apart, or they end up killing someone they shouldn’t have and are thus torn apart by whatever nearby government or power they offended. But at Oceanside, if she doesn’t wash out, she might make something of herself in five years.” She quickly added, “But just her! You don’t know her friends. Promising anything to people you don’t know, when the link between you is a 16 year old kid? That was too much.”

Erick said, “You’ve thought about this a lot, haven’t you.”

“A little.” Kiri said, “My problems before I ran away from them and came to Spur were nobles and threats. If they would have actually done something… I would have done something stupid, too, and promptly gotten killed for my actions. What Delia pulled in this house? Stealing your rings? In the Republic, she would have had a bounty on her head, at the least.” She added, “Probably more.”

After a moment of thought, Erick decided, “… Then that’ll be the plan. If she shows, I’ll help her to get into Oceanside.” Erick added, “And that reminds me: I have to deliver another thousand of the lower ranked rings to Liquid, but I can do that part with Ophiel. What I want to do in person, is to go see Mog, to see how her rings and such are working out. Want to come? And Oh! You got your clearance to kill the bigger monsters, right? I haven’t gotten any of those requests in a while, now that I think of it.”

Kiri dismissed her green orbs, and said, “I got my clearance a while ago, actually.” She added, “I’ve been busy, too.” She smirked, as she patted Sunny on her shoulder. “I’m technically a 9-star Adventurer, but it feels like I’m cheating.”

Erick smiled. “It does, doesn’t it!”

 

– – – –

 

Ophiel delivered stone boxes filled with rings to Thom in the Quartermaster’s Offices. 2500 rings, to be precise. The weaker ones did not need so much precision, so Erick was able to carve them rather quickly and enchant dozens of them at a time.

Thom received them well, telling Ophiel, “Thank you, Archmage Flatt.”

“Just trying to help!”

 

– – – –

 

Mog sat at her table near the railing of the fourth floor of the main room of the Adventurer’s Guildhouse. This was her new ‘office’, and it oversaw a great deal of the original three floors. She welcomed Erick with a smile and an invitation to sit, then answered his question, “They’re pretty damn amazing, Erick.” She put down her beer and tapped the silver torus on a finger. “Plus 30 to All Stats. If I wasn’t wearing it, I wouldn’t believe it.” She added, “You know, you can [Teleport] here if you want. You have clearance from me. I’ve said that before, haven’t I?”

The day was nearing noon by the time Erick got through the crowds to reach the Guildhouse. The place was packed. But it had also been expanded. The three-floor room of the main building had been expanded into another floor, while the bottom floor had been transformed completely into a bar and restaurant area. Actual questing and turn ins had been moved to the second floor, to a much larger and much more active counter. The third floor had become an extension of the first floor, while the fourth floor had been added to house an elite-level restaurant and a higher ranked quest board, along with a trio of busy receptionists wearing nice uniforms behind busy counters. This fourth floor wasn’t that busy, but there were certainly people all around.

Mogarithag Moggargal, or just ‘Mog’ for short, even wore better clothes than normal; pale brown leathers with blue trim, like normal, but with a sharper cut. It was an eye-catching fashion statement, if anything. She noticed Erick noticing her clothes, too, and gave him a smirk. She was a truly beautiful woman, who happened to be very muscular, with pale green skin and short black hair. Erick even liked her height.

Erick sat across the table from her, feeling better that he wasn’t such an old man, anymore. He asked, “Where should I blip in?”

“Heh. ‘Blip’.” Mog teased, “I could show you where my quarters are?”

Erick smiled wide, and decided to keep it professional, for now. “Maybe maybe.”

Mog chuckled. “Maybe maybe.” She offered, “You could blip on to this floor. Just [Scry] over there, first, to find a space.” She lifted her head towards the side of the room, where alcoves had been made out of wood and walls, separate from the rest of the open floor design. “Make sure you’re not blipping into someone else.”

“I like walking, but after that crowd, maybe I’ll do less of that.”

Mog nodded. “Anyway: The rings. We could use more. I already handed out all of yours to people I trust with my life and who I know would do good for Spur.”

“Oh? Anyone I know?” Erick said, “But yeah. I got more rings that I can give you right now, if you want.”

“We’ll take them. Just deliver them to any of the people behind the counter over there. But… Hmm.” Mog looked around at the people on the fourth floor as she spoke. “I can introduce… Hmm.” She lifted her head. A few tendrils of thought snaked out, into the manasphere. After a moment, she turned to Erick, and said, “Want to meet a pair of mages? One Waterglow, the other a Riftcaster.”

Erick smiled. “I have only the vaguest idea of what those are! So: Absolutely. Yes, I want to meet them. But I wanted to ask you after Delia Greentalon, too.”

Mog looked to the air for a moment, as a tendril of thought flickered. She turned to Erick, asking, “I heard there was some sort of altercation. She ran around for an hour or something, after seeing you, burning every part of her life to the ground. You want to put out a quest for her?”

“… I can do that?” Erick quickly added, “I just want to make sure she’s okay. I promised her help that I should never have promised her, and she went a bit… rough, there, before she took off.”

Mog nodded. “Best not involve adventurers, then. People tend to get a bit rowdy for that sort of thing, and if you’re not mad, then we’re not mad.” She added, “I’ll let her know she’s not in trouble if she should ever show again.”

Erick deftly ignored the implication that he could order a hit on someone who wronged him. Hopefully he had read that wrong.

“That’s fine. Thank you.” He asked, “So what’s a Riftcaster?”

Mog looked to the left, and Erick followed her gaze to the alcoves from before. A pair of pale green orcol men walked toward Erick and Mog from that direction, navigating the tables and other people nearby. The one on the left had blue eyes and blond hair, while the one on the right was of a slightly darker countenance. They both wore the same sort of light brown hunting leathers. They could have been brothers.

And they looked amazing.

Damn orcols always looked amazing.

Erick barely noticed the rings on their fingers, but he did notice them. They were Erick’s rings, alright, and the full silver tori versions, too. The two men stopped a step away from the table.

Mog gestured as she said, “Archmage Erick Flatt, these are the brothers Uluthar and Dargogh Leanbough. Waterglow and Riftcaster.”

Uluthar and Dargogh bowed, briefly. They had small smiles on their faces, and tiny glints in their eyes.

Mog continued, “They’re responsible for over a hundred five star and above kills, with their highest being a seven star Cloud Giant rager a few years back.”

Erick honestly said, “Pardon my ignorance, but I have the barest idea of what that all represents.”

Uluthar’s smile brightened, as Dargogh chuckled; maybe nervously, maybe not. Erick couldn’t truly tell.

Mog said, “Suffice it to say, they’re powerful adventurers.” She said to the guys, “Want to show Archmage Flatt a little of what you can do?”

Uluthar immediately held his hand forward, palm up, and spoke, “Water like light, banish all fright.”

A ball of glowing water shifted out of the air and into Uluthar’s hand. It hovered there, glittering and glowing, like looking up from the depths at the surface of a pool. Watching the shifting light, Erick felt warmer and yet cooler at the same time. It was a good feeling. Uluthar closed his fist, popping the water globe like it was a simple soap bubble.

Erick was slightly confused. What was that supposed to be?

Seeing Erick’s confusion, Uluthar turned a little obviously confused, too, and Dargogh smiled wider as he silently chuckled. Oh yeah. That was a nervous chuckle. Erick could definitely tell, this time.

Mog explained, “If you were a Scion of Strength, you might have felt more from that, but for most people in our profession, that little globe of water heals everyone nearby for over 25,000 Health while also curing all minor physical injuries.”

“Oh!” Erick said, “That’s pretty good then! Pardon my ignorance.”

Uluthar brightened.

Poi spoke up, “There’s also a minor bolstering effect.” He had hard eyes for Uluthar, as he added, “Which I prevented.”

Mog said, “It’s a good effect, Poi.”

Poi just hummed in disapproval, and said nothing more.

Erick didn’t really care about the healing, though it did seem massive. He asked, “Was that an incantation?”

“Ye—!” Uluthar’s voice cracked, but he recovered, “Yes, sir, archmage, sir. The spell does quite a lot, but an incantation helps to focus it in one direction or the other. I could use the same spell as a damaging beacon against all fire and shadow aligned monsters, too.”

Erick had no idea that was possible. “I heard a bit about incantations at Oceanside, but mostly they were kept to the Esoteric Magic classroom, and not many people put much stock in them.” He asked, “Where did you learn your methods?”

“Learned it from the Songstresses of the Songli Highlands, all the way over in Nelboor.” He added, “They use incantations for everything they do, though the larger effects are only possible when you align yourself with an element.” He said, “I got my [Orb of Waterlight] from a complicated combination of [Healing Beacon], [Treat Wounds], and [Greater Inflict Wounds]. On the battlefield, I use [Water Body] as a conduit to mold the spell one way or the other.”

“Huh.” Erick said, “That’s… pretty interesting. I should try that sometime.” On a whim, he added, “I hope you’re enjoying the rings. I’m working on more, all the time, but those stronger versions will remain for those who prove themselves against the darkness.”

Uluthar smiled, and then took a small step back, clearing the way for his brother to speak.

Dargogh stayed where he was. After a moment of Erick looking at him, the man spoke, “All my demonstrations are destructive, but I can tell you what they do.”

“I have no idea what a Riftcaster is, so this is all very enlightening to me.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“I basically summon pure elemental rifts and supercharge the battlefield for my magic-infused weapons and armors.” He added, “And my magic, too, but not much. [Flare Bolt], and stuff. I prefer getting into melee and, uh, slicing and crushing. So your rings have been really, really, good for me. Thank you, sir.”

Supercharging the battlefield, eh? Erick was intrigued, but he needed to know more.

“They’ve been great for me too,” Uluthar said. “We usually have to step down to the lower level threats to buy the supplies necessary to fight the bigger stuff.”

Dargogh held up his hand. The silver band shone dully in the ambient light of the Guildhouse. He said, “These solve a lot of problems. We can fight the really dangerous monsters every week, instead of every month.”

Erick asked, “Are you a Scion of Balance?”

Uluthar looked a bit concerned.

But Dargogh instantly said, “Yes.”

“My daughter is a Scion of Balance, too. It’s pretty good. I bet those rings are rather good for you.” Erick asked, “So rifts? Are they just [Prime Area] attuned to… What?”

Dargogh said, “[Prime Area] done up with a mutated [Force Platform] and the various Mana Alters. It creates a helper that follows you around and constantly soaks the area with elemental influence, or, your influence. You know. You can make a version that won’t follow you around if you use [Force Wall], instead. And then you just… do what you do. But at twice the power, or more. For me, that involves strength of arms. Uh. [Conjure Weapon]… And stuff.”

Erick felt like someone showed him the sunrise for the first time. He said, “I’m going to have to share that with my daughter. I hope you don’t mind. It sounds amazing.”

Dargogh smiled wide, chuckling for a moment. And then he shut down his face and his laughter. He bowed a little, then said, “I will be glad if my technique could help you and yours as much as your rings have helped us. Thank you, sir.”

Uluthar bowed a little, too, as he said, “Thank you, sir.”

“Thanks for coming. It’s nice to meet those who I’m helping, and who are helping others.”

Mog nodded. The two men turned and walked away. Erick briefly watched them go, then turned his attention back to Mog, who was smirking.

Erick said, “Thank you, Mog. That was very nice.” He glanced over, across the mostly empty fourth floor, to see the two men blip away; one blue, the other cyan. He turned back to Mog, keeping his voice quiet as he leaned in to ask, “But what the heck does 5 star actually mean? Old wyrms, right? I think I’ve killed a few of those, haven’t I? I’ve lost track of that star system.”