Second Skin Omnibus

by M Damon Baker

  The effort was almost completely draining, and when I came back to myself, I was exhausted from the strain. Ella had not been spared either, and the toll on her had been even greater. Unlike when I had delved into Tási, Ella was overcome by the process, and had fallen into a deep sleep. I checked over her carefully, and only once I was certain that she was indeed only asleep and not in some other, more dire, condition, did I leave her to her rest.

  As I wandered down the path towards the Garrison, I pondered just what I had done. Healing such a deep, almost indelible wound was an amazing thing, and despite how tired I was from the effort, I was filled with a sense of accomplishment and joy, but my sense of pride was dampened by the cost. Not in the exertion that had been required of me, or even Ella, but the price that my healing had taken on Tási. She didn’t know the specifics of course, and never would, but she wasn’t completely oblivious either. If I could have done what I did for Ella without the more romantic components, I absolutely would have, but the deep connection that I was required to forge between us to reach her damaged core inexorably drew us towards that end. There was simply no way to delve inside her so intimately without the emotional complications, and once those connections had been made, they could not simply be abandoned. Despite what I had said to Ella before, I knew that we would always remain linked together by those bonds, even if she didn’t need me to heal her. Our fates had been bound together, beyond her need to be cured.

  My tour that day was half-hearted, and I returned home early after skipping several of my last stops. We had our weekly meeting scheduled for the next morning, so even if there were any issues that needed my attention, they would not be neglected for long. After I spent an awkwardly silent evening with my companions, I retired early, lying to them very poorly about being tired as I went upstairs. Tási followed me almost immediately and joined me as I got into bed.

  “Something happened today,” Tási commented as we settled in. “I know I said I don’t want to know about these things, but whatever it is, its bothering you, so if you need to talk, I’m here for you. All I ask is that you leave out the details.”

  “I found her core,” I blurted out.

  “It took longer than it should have,” I continued, leaving out the reason why. “But I finally reached it and was able to begin truly healing her today.”

  There was more to my story, and Tási knew it, so she simply nodded for me to continue with my explanation.

  “I thought that would be the end of it,” I confessed to her. “I mean, I’m not done yet, but I always thought that once I fixed what was broken inside her, that I could let her go and that would be it. I realized today that it’s not that simple—delving inside her created a link between us, nothing like the bond that you and I share, but it’s still a powerful connection—one that I probably cannot break.”

  “No, you probably can’t,” Tási’s reply surprised me. “And I understand your need to help Ella. Just remember this in the future. Remember the cost you must pay, the cost we must pay when you choose to heal someone in this manner. Make sure it’s truly worth it for the both of us before you consider doing this for anyone else.”

  Her words were not filled with anger or jealousy, only compassion and understanding. It reminded me of her precaution after our battle with the Black Hand orcs. She had told me then, in words that I still remembered vividly, that the dead heal no one, a precaution meant to remind me that, before I acted, I needed to consider the consequences I would suffer, not only the results I was trying to achieve. Ignoring pain that I might be able to alleviate would not be an easy thing for me to do, but perhaps, if I followed Tási’s advice and also considered the pain I might inflict, it might be a little less difficult.

  There was nothing left to say after that, so I simply folded myself around her and tried to clear my mind of all its confused and conflicted thoughts. The task proved nearly impossible, but eventually, the exhaustion of the day won out, and I drifted off to sleep.

  16

  After breakfast the next morning, my companions and I left to attend one of our weekly meetings. For the most part, these had been rather routine affairs, and all our projects, from the continued construction of more housing in anticipation of new arrivals to the development of our military, were proceeding well. So well in fact, that Evans felt we were ready to open up our outpost along the main trading road and was already considering several candidates for command of the facility. So, the revelation of that morning’s conference took me by surprise.

  “We’ve found silver in the mines,” Broda declared almost before everyone was in their seats.

  The room fell silent as everyone absorbed the impact of her statement. We all knew that word of our new realm was being spread, and that the news might cause some of the more established Kingdoms to move against us, but if word of this discovery got out, the likelihood of one of them seeking to take us over would rise to a near certainty.

  “Which mine, and who knows about this?” I asked her as my mind wrestled with the implications.

  “Both of them,” Broda replied. “There are thick veins in both mines. As for who knows, the miners of course, but I’ve managed to keep it limited to just them. They understand what this could mean just as well as you do.”

  “Where have you been keeping the ore?” Stel asked.

  “Most of it’s still in the rock,” she said. “They’ve uncovered quite a bit but haven’t extracted much of it yet. I thought it would be best for us to figure out where we’re going to put it, before we pulled it out.”

  “We already have too much of our treasure in the Garrison’s vault,” Stel replied. “Has Ridge completed the Palace depositories yet?”

  There were rather extensive secure storage facilities planned within the Palace, and fortunately, Ridge had already built them during the many weeks he and his assistant had been working on the construction there.

  “Good,” Stel responded when I told him so. “Then we will transfer it to the Palace vaults. Secretly, of course, at least for now. Perhaps disguised as construction material for Ridge?

  “I can do that,” Broda offered. “We can cover it with some rock dust while we bring it over. No one should be the wiser, even if they get a good look.”

  “What then?” Venna asked.

  “Why, we start minting our own coins, my love,” Stel grinned. “Every Realm needs at least one source of income. I think we’ve just found our first.”

  That was yet another momentous step for our Realm, one that would mark us both as a nation, and as a target. I only hoped that we could maintain our undiscovered status long enough for us to gain enough strength to withstand the inevitable challenges we would face.

  “We need to start paying the miners,” I broke in after I had a moment to ponder. “They’ve essentially been working for little more than room and board, but that’s simply not sufficient anymore. They’re employees of the Realm, just like the soldiers are, and we need to treat them accordingly.”

  “What do you suggest?” Broda inquired.

  “I have no experience with such things,” I replied candidly. “So, I will leave that up to you and Stel, but whatever you decide, make it retroactive to the day we started paying our military. It’s only fair.”

  A few eyebrows were raised at my suggestion, but no objections were made, so with the matter settled, at least for a while, we moved on to other things.

  “I thought that I had the best news of the day,” Venna pouted, “but I guess not. The inn is finished, and Travis and the others are negotiating with the herdsmen and farmers for provisions and have already secured a contract for a steady supply of ale from Shelt. They assure me that they should be ready to open for business within a week.”

  Shelt was Khorim’s friend, the brewer. Having his unique product on tap would be a key to the inn’s success, so it was no surprise that his services were the first they had secured. And despite Broda’s more weighty disclosure, Venna’s news was greeted wi
th a great deal of enthusiasm. The valley had been without any real place for people to go to relax or have a meal that they didn’t have to prepare for themselves. The respite that the inn offered would be a much-needed addition to our community.

  Fortunately, there were no additional revelations that morning, and the meeting broke up shortly thereafter. I decided to forgo my rounds again in order to take a serious tour of the Palace, especially its depository facilities. Evans promised to let Ella know that I would be skipping our sparring for the day, so with that taken care of, I headed off to seek out Ridge and to inspect the Palace grounds.

  Ridge and his assistant had long ago completed the wall across the canyon that provided the first line of defense for the fortress around the Palace. It was a near twin of the Garrison’s wall, save that it was even larger and more heavily fortified. Behind it stood a second wall and three gates. The most heavily protected of these led inside the fortress, and ultimately on towards the Palace itself, while the others skirted the fortress’s interior and only allowed passage into the valley beyond. Ridge had completed most of the outer walls first before moving on to the Palace, providing at least basic security for what would eventually be a very critical facility.

  The Palace itself had been the main focus of his efforts for many weeks, and his steadfast efforts had yielded remarkable results. Although his work was rough and the stonemasons lagged far behind, the sheer scale and majesty of what would eventually be built was becoming more evident with each passing day.

  Tall outer walls towered over even the impressive heights of the defensive fortifications. While the Palace was nowhere near complete, it already rose many stories above the perimeter walls. Its high vantage provided an excellent overview of the canyon approach, and the obvious defensive advantage that provided had not been overlooked. So, even though the Palace’s primary function was to house the necessary machinery of state, multiple firing positions had been carved out along its outer walls, but none of those were the reason for my visit that day, so as soon as I located Ridge, I had him take me on a quick tour of the Palace’s depository.

  In addition to armory vaults for the Palace guard that were located elsewhere, the Palace had a treasury that encompassed several massive rooms with heavy stone doors. Ridge had imparted the stone portals with earth magic, and they could only be opened with small keystones that he gave to me then, each one attuned to a separate vault. But there was also one additional vault that he had yet to attune to any stone.

  “This one is for you alone, Sintári,” Ridge’s grating voice informed me.

  “How do I open it?” I asked him as I looked at the smooth sphere of stone in the center of the door where the keystones would fit on the other portals.

  “Press the Amulet to its surface. That will be your key.”

  That would certainly make for a very secure key—as a soul-bound item, no one could take it away from me, let alone use it, making it foolproof—at least as far as I could tell.

  I did as Ridge instructed, and the flat stone surface yielded slightly, forming itself around the contours of the Amulet before solidifying into a perfect impression of the Artifact. As the rock finished its transformation, the portal slid open, revealing the empty room beyond. Save for its unique key, the room was identical to the other vaults; cavernous and as yet, empty. I thanked Ridge for his hard work as I always did, and in return, he simply offered me a nod as he left to resume his efforts once more.

  With the storage for our new-found wealth secured, I decided to take yet another tour, and left the Palace compound by one of the gates that led into the valley, making my way to the soon-to-be opened inn.

  Travis and Annia were busy arranging things inside as I walked through the door. Jessah was polishing some of the mugs and plates, making them ready for use, but Irisse didn’t seem to be around.

  “How are things going, Travis?” I asked him as I stepped up to the bar.

  “Very well, thank you!” He replied enthusiastically. “We’ve got a few of our potential suppliers stopping by later, and as soon as we can work out the details and get the goods we need, we’ll be opening right up.”

  “Excellent,” I smiled back at his genuine cheerfulness. “I’m looking forward to having some of the fine food you serve.”

  We exchanged a few more pleasantries before I left them to their work. I would have liked to have also spoken with Irisse, but Jessah told me that she wasn’t feeling well and had stayed home for the day.

  With my visit to the inn complete, my duties for the day were done, and I decided to wander over to my little spot by the lake for a while before I went back home. I hadn’t been able to visit my secret sanctuary in some time, and when I got there, I stripped off my boots, soaked my feet in the cool water, and laid back on the soft moss-covered rock in utter contentment. As the clouds passed by over my head, I simply watched them as I let every single care that I had drift away for a while. It had been some time since I let my mind empty itself of its worries, and the freedom I felt when I released their shackles was a great relief. I knew I would only have to take up their burden once again when I left my little hideaway, but even the short reprieve helped me refocus myself, so when it grew late and came time for me to leave, I found that it was easier to take up my responsibilities. Even though my burdens were exactly the same as before, I had a better grasp of them, and their weight didn’t feel quite as oppressive as before. Unfortunately, my lighter mood was disrupted when I came home to find my companions kneeling on the floor in front of Nentai and Set.

  “It’s about time that you arrived,” Set commented absently as I stepped inside.

  “I told you she would be here soon enough, dear sister,” Nentai replied with the slightest hint of annoyance as she gestured towards the chest that sat on top of the table yet again.

  I didn’t need any more prompting, and immediately strode over to open the mystical container. Inside was a suit of chain similar to Venna’s, but also quite different. The links were not of silver Khelduin but were forged from Dwarven Steel that had somehow been treated to shine with a deep, dark luster. Broda was the only one of my companions who had yet to receive a gift from the Gods, so I knew it was intended for her as I lifted the links from the chest.

  Dark Heart – God-Forged Artifact – This set of chain was crafted for Dreya Sintári by Kelto, God of Love. While this Armor is irrevocably bound to the Sintári, it is intended to be worn by one of her companions. The mail 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.

  This Armor provides enhanced protection against physical attack and shields the wearer from almost any movement-restricting effects. This Artifact is self-repairing and has a reduced effect on Encumbrance.

  “It’s not widely known, but my brother has quite the talent for crafting things,” Nentai remarked as I read the description. “He insisted on making this himself and refused to let anyone else take part in the process.”

  “Please thank him for me,” I said before I turned to walk towards where Broda still knelt on the floor. Unlike the others who had been hesitant, Broda rose immediately once I was in front of her.

  “Beyond any doubt, this was made for you, Broda,” I whispered to her before I handed the Artifact over. “Take note of who crafted it. I think you’ll find it significant.”

  Broda took the links from me when I passed them to her, and her eyes lit up immediately as the item’s description, and more importantly, its maker, became known to her. Broda’s eyes welled up with tears, and I pulled her into a hug as the significance of the revelation threatened to overwhelm her. It only took her a minute to recover however, and when she pulled away from me, Broda simply acknowledged the weighty implications with a quick nod as she blinked away her tears, and I returned the gesture as I went back to Nentai and her chest of Artifacts.<
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  “There’s more, as usual,” Nentai said as I approached, and when I peered inside the box, a silver ring with a red crystal stone set in its center sat at the bottom of the container. The band looked oddly plain, and the red stone appeared almost identical to the common healing crystals, save that it was a deeper shade of red than any I had ever seen, a fact that suddenly made sense to me once I picked it up.

  Mender’s Band – God-Forged Artifact – This ring was crafted for Dreya Sintári by Myrra, Goddess of Healing and Albrek, God of Learning. While the Ring is irrevocably bound to the Sintári, it is intended to be used by one of her companions. The Ring 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 Ring, it will return to Dreya Sintári’s possession.

  The Mender’s Band increases the effect of its wearer’s healing Abilities and decreases the cost of any healing Abilities used.

  Shit, that was a tough one—both Tási and Venna were powerful healers, and no matter which of them I decided to give the ring to, the other might be resentful in some way. But ultimately, I felt that I had to do the more practical thing. Tási’s healing was quite strong, but her primary function in battle was to deal out damage, where Venna was our main healer. So, with a sense of both conviction and dread, I strode over to Venna and beckoned for her to rise.

  She stood before me slightly confused, obviously not expecting to receive a second God-forged item. I almost slipped the ring on her finger but stopped in time to save myself from Tási’s certain wrath at the unintentional, but overly symbolic gesture. Instead, I placed the band in the palm of Venna’s hand and let her take in its power.