Second Skin Omnibus

by M Damon Baker

  Bane’s message hadn’t prepared me for just how many people Stel had managed to recruit. I watched in astonishment as dozens of wagons rumbled by, accompanied by scores of people walking alongside them. As with the original settlers that had come to the valley, there were many lone individuals among the newcomers, but in contrast to that first wave of citizens, this group had more young couples and families than I anticipated. Life in a remote location like this tended to be harsh, and it took a great leap of faith for those with so much on the line to venture out and join a new community like ours. I knew that I would need to consider their needs closely in the coming days and ensure that they were well taken care of.

  I took Tási by the hand and we strolled over to greet some of the new settlers as they arrived. We had only spoken to a few of them when a wagon came to a halt in front of me.

  “I’m glad to see that you are alive, Dreya. I almost didn’t believe him when Stel told us you had founded your own Realm,” Georl called down to me from the driver’s seat.

  I looked up at my old half-orc friend in shock and had almost managed to recover when Marli poked her head out from behind him.

  “I, for one, never doubted you,” she countered his skepticism before her eyes went wide.

  “What is that you’re wearing?” Marli exclaimed.

  “Gifts,” I smiled back at her. “From some… friends.”

  “Those are no mere gifts, girl,” she said as she climbed down from the wagon. Georl joined her and the two of them simply gawked at me for a moment.

  “How long are we going to stand here?” I finally asked them.

  “It’s all well beyond my ability to identify,” Georl confessed. “And the quality is far superior to anything I’ve seen before.”

  “That is something of an understatement, my friend,” Marli added. “Tell me what these items are. Surely they are artifacts from some long-lost trove you’ve discovered.”

  “No,” I replied with a smile. “They are brand-new, actually. But, if you’ll allow me, I’d like to introduce you to someone first.”

  “This is Tási.” I said, as I wrapped my arm around her. “She’s also been blessed with a similar gift.”

  I thought Marli’s eyes were going to fall out of her head when she noticed that Tási wore robes of a similar quality to my gear. The sight of so many artifacts with so much power almost threatened to overwhelm her composure.

  “My companion Venna has a suit of chain from the same source,” I added just to see what would happen. Then, as an afterthought, I played my final card on her.

  “You have to tell me,” Marli almost whimpered. “Where did you get these things?”

  Just as she asked, my ace flew in, and Bane landed by my side.

  You needed me, Sintári?

  ‘Just be you for a moment. You’ll catch on.’

  “Oh, look who’s here,” I commented offhandedly. “Marli, this is Bane, my Rhastoren companion. Bane, meet Marli and Georl.”

  Marli’s jaw moved, but no words came out. Georl was shocked as well, so I flashed him a quick wink to alleviate his distress. He seemed to catch on and relaxed slightly as Marli slowly regained herself. Time to drop the hammer.

  “The Armor is a gift from Melía, and the Cloak comes from Set, while my Quiver is a gift from Rhiza, Chel, Halyna, and Sargo, along with Nentai,” I casually named the Gods of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water.

  “Tási’s Robes came to her from Kalla and Finnus,” I continued nonchalantly, “and Bane also received a gift from Set, but you won’t be able to see it. You have yet to meet Stel’s wife, Venna. The Armor she wears was a gift from Thassa.”

  While the two of them stared at me dumbstruck, another voice spoke to me from beside them.

  “I knew there was something special about you, but I never thought it was anything like this.”

  The voice sounded familiar, but when I turned to face the speaker, I couldn’t place her at first. The young woman wore heavy leather armor and held a long spear in her hand. The armor and weapons threw me off, and it took a moment for her features to finally register.

  “Ella?”

  Before the word had even left my lips, I knew that my guess had been right, and I dashed over and hugged her tightly.

  “How are you? What are you doing here? Why are you dressed like that?” The questions gushed out as soon as I let her go.

  “Fine. Exploring. I’ve taken up adventuring,” Ella smiled as she answered all of my questions in turn.

  “Hello, Ella,” Tási said as she offered her hand. “I’m Tási.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” I recovered. “I should have introduced you two.”

  “Yes, well, that’s alright dear,” Tási replied flatly. “I know that you sometimes need to focus on other people.”

  Oh, shit. Was she thinking what I thought she was thinking? I knew that I would have to explain the situation to her, so she understood that my relationship with Ella wasn’t like that—at least I was pretty sure that it wasn’t.

  “Sorry to interrupt, Dreya Sintári,” a young elf said as he came running over. “Broda is looking for you. She says she’s got some people you need to meet.”

  “Go on, Dreya Sintári,” Tási subtly mocked. “I’ll see to your… friends. We really should get to know each other better if they’re going to be around for a while. Bane can come with us.”

  “So, tell me about yourself, Ella,” I heard Tási ask as she led them away. “Where did you meet Dreya?”

  “Did you call her Sintári?” Marli’s voice chimed in just as they wandered out of earshot.

  Ding!

  I had no idea what that could have been, but I didn’t have time to look at anything at that moment, so I simply I followed the elf through the growing crowd. People were everywhere, and Broda had obviously let the taps flow, because food and ale were being shared feely as introduction were made and the festivities began in earnest. I grabbed a cup of my own from one of the dwarves who was passing them out and took a deep swig in anticipation of the next round of introductions when I stopped dead in my tracks.

  “Evans?!” I asked when I saw the Drill Master standing with a group of soldiers. “What brings you here?”

  “Dreya! I was told that there was a Kingdom being built,” he replied. “Seemed like an interesting opportunity, so I took a few of my best lads and joined up with the caravan. I should have known someone as resourceful as you would take advantage of the prospect as well.”

  “I hear that there’s a woman in charge,” he whispered to me conspiratorially. “They say she’s quite a badass. Do you think you can introduce me to her?”

  “I think that can be arranged,” I smiled at him.

  “I’m sorry, Dreya Sintári,” my guide interrupted. “But Broda is still waiting for you.”

  “You’ll have to forgive me, Evans,” I continued to smile as I let the elf lead me away, “but running a place like this keep me very busy.”

  The look on his face was priceless. I would have sworn that the Drill Master even blushed just a little.

  When we finally wound our way through the crowd, I found Broda alongside Khorim talking to a group of four people. The newcomers had their backs to me as I approached, but Broda saw me coming and called out.

  “These fine people want to open an inn,” she told me. “Sounds like a great idea to me, but we need to run it past you, of course.”

  “I like it,” I began. “But there’s not one on the plans, we’ll have to find a good—”

  The words died on my lips as the four turned to face me and I recognized each of them. Travis and Annia were holding hands, and next to them stood Jessah and Irisse.

  “Dreya?” Jessah said in disbelief. “You’re the one in charge here?”

  “I am.” I replied as a wave of comprehension came over me.

  Almost every person I had met in my travels had now joined my fledgling Realm. I wasn’t sure whether I had met them before because they were destined to com
e to me, or if my prior interactions with them were the threads that had pulled them to me yet again. Whatever the mechanics of our interactions were, these were the people who my Realm needed, and they had been brought to me.

  “Once you’re settled in, I’d love to spend some time catching up with each of you,” I said to the four of them as the unease faded away and my confidence returned. “We’ve got plenty of shelters for you, and I’ll figure out where to put your inn as soon as I can.”

  “Thank you!” Travis replied gratefully. “The ‘Tale burnt down, and we didn’t know what to do. Khorim told us he would find a place for us here. I wasn’t sure we could believe him, but we had nothing. It was our only chance.”

  “I will see that you and Annia have a new inn here, Travis,” I assured him. “And I assume that you intend to hire Jessah and Irisse to work for you?”

  “That was our plan,” Annia added as she wiped a stray tear from her eye. “At least that was what we hoped to do. I wasn’t certain it would really happen until just now.”

  “I will take care of it for you,” I promised as I looked to each of them in turn. “It may take some time to build, and I’ll have Ilvain’s people speak to you once we’ve chosen a location. But for today, let’s celebrate. There’s plenty of food, and the ale’s not bad.”

  I flagged down Hilgreth, who happened to be passing by with an armload of mugs and hijacked her delivery. She grumbled a bit but handed over the tankards without too much of a fuss. Once I secured the ale, I passed one to each of them and toasted to their arrival.

  “To new beginnings,” I offered as I raised my mug.

  Khorim, Broda, and the rest echoed my toast and we each took a deep sip of ale. Once the toast was made, I left them to continue their discussions and wandered away to find Stel. I still hadn’t welcomed him home, and I began searching for him among the crowd.

  It took far longer to find them than I thought it should have, but I finally located Venna and Stel. Strangely, the two seemed like they were only just arriving at the feast and were approaching the gathering as if they had just left Venna’s infirmary. A light went on in my head as they drew closer, and I had to suppress the giggles that threatened to burst out as I greeted them.

  “Welcome back, Stel,” I smiled as the two drew near. “I was going to offer you a hug, but I think that my greeting would be underwhelming, considering the circumstances.”

  As I spoke, I sidled up to Venna and adjusted her off-kilter tabard and crooked belt.

  “That’s much better,” I said as I appraised her. “You might want to get a mirror for your infirmary if you intend for it to serve more than one function.”

  They both flushed the brightest shade of red, but as I held Venna’s gaze, the laughter finally spewed out of me, and we both fell into a fit of irrepressible giggling.

  “I assume the two of you could use an ale right about now?” I finally said as our laughter faded.

  “I should say so,” Venna replied as her cheeks flushed again.

  “I’m sorry, Sintári, we should not have–” Stel began before I cut him off.

  “Stel,” I turned and faced him. “Don’t tell me you were about to apologize to me for loving your wife. Don’t you dare tell me that. I don’t ever want to hear you say that.”

  “But I–”

  “Stel?”

  “Yes, Sintári?”

  “You’re a smart boy, aren’t you?”

  “I have heard this before,” he lamented.

  “Good,” I said as I held his gaze firmly. “Then I don’t have to tell you what comes next.”

  “No, you do not.”

  “Stel,” I said as I took his hands in mine. “I love her dearly, but she’s your wife. Don’t ever put me before her again.”

  “I didn’t realize that I was doing that,” Stel apologized. “I am sorry, to you both.”

  I let go of one of Stel’s hands but grasped the other firmly as I led him back to the feast. As we walked, I sent him a tiny thread that held the essence of my respect and admiration for him. I fed him my love and the true reverence I felt for his union with Venna. I sent him these feelings in their truest, most honest forms, so that he would understand what I meant, more deeply than any words would ever have been able to communicate.

  When we reached the crowds, I finally let go of him to place a mug in his hand. I raised my own mug back at him as I stared into his bright, silver eyes, and he simply nodded his head back at me as we drank.

  “I will not make that mistake again.” Stel said as he set the mug down.

  “Don’t feel too bad,” I smiled as I glanced at Venna sideways. “I had to have the same conversation with her as well.”

  “Oh, really?” Stel perked up.

  “I don’t want to talk about that!” Venna blushed again.

  “Oh my, is that Tási calling me?” I feigned. “I’ll just leave you two alone for a while and go find her.”

  “No, don’t leave now!” Venna called to me as I hurried away.

  “Do tell me about this conversation you had, wife.”

  I tried but failed to suppress my grin as Stel’s words carried to me.

  Tási was with Broda and Khorim when I finally tracked her down. The three of them were still talking about building the new inn with Annia, Travis, Jessah, and Irisse, so I settled into the chair next to Tási and listened in on the conversation.

  “Imagine my surprise when I learned that you are… familiar with that pretty little one over there,” Tási whispered to me. “What an interesting day it’s been. Tell me, did you meet any other old friends while you were wandering around without me?”

  “Oh, shut up already,” I whispered back as I took her hand. “One more word and I’ll start feeding you something you’ll find interesting.”

  I punctuated my threat with a tiny jolt of passion that made Tási jump in her seat. She stared at me in surprise and then took a quick sip of ale to cover her reddened cheeks.

  “Are you alright, Tási?” Broda asked from across the table.

  “Fine. I’m fine,” Tási hurriedly assured her.

  “It’ll be worse next time,” I warned her.

  “You win,” she relented quickly. “I’ll stop.”

  Tási was true to her word and didn’t say another word about the two new arrivals for the rest of the night. I did, however, catch her eyeing both of them, and gave her hand a gentle squeeze as a reminder each time I did.

  The God-forged gear had a tremendous impact on the new arrivals. As Venna, Tási, and I meandered among the newcomers, they never failed to notice the Artifacts. The reactions became even more pronounced as word spread through the crowd of just who had given us the incredible equipment. The realization that they had joined a settlement that had been so richly blessed by the Gods washed over them, and I could almost see the change in their attitudes.

  Bane also caused quite the commotion himself. None of them had ever seen anything like him before, and he drew a great deal of attention as he followed Tási and I around. But the most important thing that happened that night had nothing to do with us or our equipment. It was the slow transformation that came over our newest citizens as they came to realize just what sort of place they had found themselves in.

  Some had come to us with hope, a few with aspirations, but most of the newcomers had come to us in desperation. Like Travis, many simply had no other option, and starting over was the only choice left to them. When they learned that their desperate gamble had brought them to a place that seemed destined for greatness, the combination of gratitude and relief that came over them was truly an amazing thing to observe.

  Finally, as it grew late, we found places for everyone to spend the night, and promised to put them each in appropriate homes the next day. Dividing up the available housing didn’t seem like it would be much of an issue for us. Between Ilvain’s carpenters and the dwarven miners, there were plenty of places ready to be occupied. It would only be a matter of matching t
he families and individuals to the most suitable homes.

  When we finally got the last of them secured for the night, Stel, Venna, Khorim, Broda, Tási, and Bane walked together with me back to our home. We had not been together in several weeks, and the sounds of our raucous laughter echoed through the canyon, and then into the valley beyond as we wandered slowly along.

  Between our deliberately slow pace, and frequent bouts of laughter, it took us quite a while to make it to our front door. But when we did, I froze on the porch before my hand wrapped around the doorknob.

  “Fuck,” I swore. “They’re here.”

  “Who?” Stel responded in alarm as he started to draw his sword.

  “Nentai and Set,” I replied. “I can feel them waiting for us.”

  “You can what?” Venna asked incredulously.

  “Look, we can’t keep them waiting,” I ignored her. “Just be prepared for what’s inside.”

  I couldn’t explain how I knew the Goddesses were inside, and in truth, I didn’t want to think about it. So, I simply turned the doorknob and walked inside the common room to see Nentai and Set sitting at our scruffy table as if they lived there with us.

  “It’s about time you got back,” Set complained.

  “Now sister, it’s been a rather big day for them,” Nentai soothed.

  “Oh, very well, let’s just get on with it,” Set said impatiently.

  It seemed obvious that the Goddess of Nature was far less interested in the whole process now that she was no longer dispensing her own creations, and I couldn’t help but wonder why she even came since she had felt free to let Nentai come alone once before.

  “Come, Dreya,” Nentai beckoned me. “You will enjoy handing out our gifts tonight.”

  The chest that Nentai had summoned before was once again on our table, and I lifted its lid without the Goddess prompting me. Once I pried open the ornate cover, I could see a bundle of folded leather tied with a knotted cord. Knowing who had yet to receive their gifts, I was fairly certain for whom it was intended, and when I lifted it out of the chest, my instinct was proven correct.

  Nightwalker’s Leather – God-Forged Artifact – This finely made set of armor was crafted for Dreya Sintári by Noxyl, Goddess of Thieves. While this item is irrevocably bound to the Sintári, it is intended to be worn by one of her companions. The Armor will temporarily bind itself to whomever she bestows it upon for life, unless the Sintári revokes its use. Upon the death of the wearer, or if the Sintári chooses to reclaim the Armor, it will return to Dreya Sintári’s possession.