by Sean Oswald
“Certainly, and I give my thanks to the Moon Elf Throne,” Dave said as he gave a deep bow before continuing, “Now by your leave, may I end this spell and hurry home?”
Yua sat back down and the Archdruid took center stage again. “Of course. Please ask this human ranger and Druid Fumihiro to wait in Nakan’na until we can arrange for quick transport. Keep in mind that we are under threat of invasion, so even with the best of intentions, it may take some time.”
Dave heard his words and internally grinned. So the queen had been the public face playing nice, and the Archdruid was the firm voice of political limitations. Both acting so as to leave the king free of making a decision. Then again, Dave wondered if it was Yua that ruled first or Konoe or if they were truly a pair as he liked to think that Emily and he were.
Being released then, Dave immediately ended the Perceptive Sending spell and found himself rushing through the intangible ether between places for the briefest of moments before coming to full awareness back in his body. As much as it had been difficult to adapt to not having any physical sensations beyond sight and sound in that form, it was equally odd for the first few seconds to feel everything in his flesh again. Even the sensation of his heart beating seemed odd at first, but he quickly adapted back to it given that this was his normal state of being. It did make him wonder a bit about what incorporeal beings must feel like or if they even felt anything. He had to quickly file that random thought away though as one of those questions for another day.
Dave updated his companions about the situation, even filling in the town Jito. He spoke quickly as he felt an intangible sense of urgency from Emily’s request. He assumed that they had gone to the Tomb of David Nelson dungeon. He hadn’t expected Emily to want to work on leveling up, so he was a bit perplexed. It didn’t really worry him that much because from what he had seen of the dungeon before, he trusted that Daichi, Jaselm, and Mira would be able to tear the place up. Despite still feeling an urge to go to the dungeon to make sure they were okay, it was a moot point as his Gate spell would only bring him back to the town square of Eris’ Rise, so he headed there first to check on Sara.
His brief conversation with Fumihiro and Raddick concluded, and Dave cast his first teleportation magic. He had teleported before, but it had been under the power of a spell cast from a scroll, and he had never been the one controlling the magic. This time it was a rush. The spell only took a single tick to cast, and yet he could feel the magic forming, creating a connection between himself and his bind spot, the one he had chosen when memorizing the spell.
It was different from his Perceptive Sending spell. In that case he had felt the threads of mana crossing the distance and had perceived his mind traveling along the path even though it was almost instantaneous. With the Gate, he opened up a small doorway, four feet high and two feet wide. Somehow, he instinctively knew that the portal would collapse if any person but himself touched it. The spell form was attuned only to him. Then as he stepped through, instead of a sense of movement across hundreds of miles, it was as though he simply took a single step. The next instant he was there in the town that had become his home, and something wasn’t right.
Chapter Nine
Life is rarely simple and neither are dungeon runs. In the early days I made so many mistakes that it makes me blush now. — Private Journal of Miranda Nelson, 2nd Baroness of Murkwood
Dungeon: Tomb of David Nelson - Emily and Mira Nelson
Emily’s party was busy making their way down past the sloped pit trap that had caught them before. Rak’kak jumped and landed with a thunderous force which cracked the floor of the dungeon. More impressively, he did it while carrying the two halves of Sir Tradon. Emily was unwilling to leave his body behind, and while the minotaur and elf advised against it, neither resisted much and Jaselm supported her decision. Daichi was able to leap down while Emily and Jaselm climbed down a rope they secured to one of the dead beast bodies. Emily went first and Jaselm insisted on being last. Mira had it the easiest. Her Airwalker Trait allowed her to glide on half a dozen steps through the air itself.
Once they were all down, both Daichi and Mira started to speak at the same time, the old elf deferring to the daughter of his Lady. “So can we take a moment to level up? I’m pretty sure that I have enough XP to get to Tier 3.”
Again Daichi started to speak but found Emily speaking over him. “Mira, I don’t want to hear any talk about leveling up now. I know all the arguments, but this misguided quest cost us a man’s life and beyond that, can’t you hear the screeching from whatever is coming for us?”
“It only takes a sec …” Mira began.
Emily slammed the edge of one hand into the other in her classic signal to stop talking. “No, and I don’t want to hear any more about it until we reach home.”
Mira opened her mouth but then shut it. Daichi took the opportunity to speak up. “I don’t mean any disrespect to Sir Tradon’s memory, and given that he died trying to free me, I will certainly make the proper honor offering to his family, but I believe your husband gave you the bag of holding, Lady Emiri.”
“Yes, what of it,” Emily snapped, clearly still agitated by her spat with Mira.
“It would free up Rak’kar’s arms if we placed his remains in the bag, and they will be preserved much better due to the time dilation,” the elf said respectfully.
“Um how can it fit? I know the bag has some kind of special dimension or something inside, but the mouth to the bag is still only about as wide as a dinner plate. And to be clear, we are going to try to force his remains inside?” Emily asked, clearly concerned.
“I would never suggest that My Lady. Trust me, the mouth of the bag will accommodate anything which can fit inside,” the monk said solemnly.
“Very well, I trust you.” With that, Emily handed the bag to Daichi who went to stand by the minotaur, and between the two of them, they held the remains over the bag. As if by magic the remains seemed to shrink down till they fit in perfectly.
“Now, I suggest we start running,” the paladin said before he started to trail off looking around for Mira. She wasn’t standing near any of them.
Emily wanted to pull her hair out. “Where did she get to?” she asked as they all started calling out for the teen.
“I’m down here,” echoed out of a small side tunnel that none of them had noticed before.
Emily walked over to it pushing past her three sworn guardians, and when she got to the tunnel, she discovered why they hadn’t seen it before. There was a stone door which fit perfectly into wall. Inside the room behind the door, she found Mira petting some little animals that were being kept in a pen. They were about the size of Chihuahuas and had vaguely dog-shaped bodies with narrowed snouts and small white teeth with long canines. The nose at the end of the snout looked far more like a pig than a dog. The ears were furry and stuck up like little triangles reminding Emily of a wolf cub. On its upper half, the fur extended down to puppy-like feet that were too big for the body. The back half of the body was different, possessing no fur and a pinkish smoothness akin to a piglet. The rear legs ended in cloven hooves like a pig. The oddest part of all in Emily’s mind was the long curly tail. Each tail was far thicker than a pig’s tail, and they all seemed to be wagging back and forth in excitement.
“What are you doing Mira? We have to hurry.”
“I know, but I got bored while you were talking and just started looking around. I noticed the door in the wall of the tunnel and came in here,” Mira said as she picked up one of the one of the creatures under its front legs and held it up. “Aren’t they just the cutest? I wonder why they had these in the pen here.”
Rak’kar said, “They were likely raising them for food.”
“What? They are like dogs!” Mira said.
The minotaur shrugged his massive shoulders.
Jaselm added, “Well, they are like half dog or wolf and half pig, so maybe they are raised as guard dogs, or maybe they are raised as food. It cou
ld be both.”
“Well I’m taking them with us,” Mira said.
“You are doing no such thing,” Emily said even while Mira had taken out her cape and was wrapping up three of the creatures in it.
“I think that I’ll call them puplets. Get it? Half puppy and half pig.” She didn’t bother to look at her mother but picked up the makeshift bag. “So aren’t we in a hurry?”
Emily started to say something, but then they all heard the screeching roar again. It was much closer. She ran back out into the tunnel where Jaselm had erected his golden shield. A mere thirty feet away and up in the area where they had fought the drake hounds was a creature out of storybooks.
Emily knew it was a dragon. It seemed rather small, not much larger than a horse. But as she was watching, its body expanded before her, surging and swelling like Dave’s did when he cast that one spell. It had now grown to at least thirty feet from snout to tail–a tail equipped with stark white bone spikes jutting out of either side. The creature's scales were dull green like the color of grass that is starting to fade.
If the creature’s appearance hadn’t been shocking enough, the words that came out of its mouth were almost enough to stop Emily’s heart. “Intruders, I will scour you from my home.”
The next sound was a giant sucking as the creature forcefully breathed in. Emily didn’t get to see anymore though because Daichi picked her up and yelled at Rak’kar to grab Mira. Both women were soon being carried down the hallway at a full run. She struggled to look back, but all she could hear was a popping and sizzling sound.
Chapter Ten
War gives rise to so much suffering but within the chaos sometime pleasant surprises occur. – Lord Isan Romero of Miromar upon meeting his wife in battle.
Eris’ Rise - Sara and Dave Nelson
Gabriella was busy trying to heal Sara, who had collapsed from the contact with the poison, and help the druids who arrived with Balayria and the elven monk, whose name Sara finally learned was Isaka. She heard the name as she drifted in and out of consciousness. Gabriella’s magic hadn’t been able to purge the poison from her system and was barely able to keep up with the damage it was causing her organs.
The other assassin, who had been held by the sepia field, was freed and shackled by a pair of Mishpat’s paladins. He had been led out of the room, and Sara no longer knew where he was, but every time she regained consciousness and opened her eyes there were more people in the room. Now, a full cluster of druids, the priests from all of the churches, and Gabriella and several paladins were there. If she had been alert enough, she would have been worried about everyone focusing on her. And if she had seen the many wounded out in the town square, she would have wanted them to also receive healing. But true to the hierarchy of Eloria, all the resources were going to her, not because she was powerful herself but because she was the child of those in power.
For the next few minutes, the occupants of that partially collapsed room held a collective breath and time dragged on. In the end though, the virulent poison was unable to cope with the combined healing power of nearly a dozen priests and druids. Everyone human and elf alike gave soft cheers when Sara sat up.
Duke Holstein likely would never know the great boon that his attack had created in Eris’ Rise. Sara’s natural childish charm augmented by the boost to her Charisma score, which she had gotten from her first friendship bond, made her a darling with most of the town. Now she had been the victim of an assassin's attack, an act most heinous in the mind of the Albian humans because elven children were so rare. Sara had survived to become a symbol of life. This made her the linchpin of unity for the town, something everyone could rally around and provided a significant boost to the town’s morale.
As she sat up, the first words out of Sara’s mouth were, “Where’s Jackson?”
She smiled as he pushed through the ring of people standing over her to kneel next to her. “I’m so glad that you are okay.” Sara could see the streaks on his face where he had tried to wipe away tears, and her heart nearly burst open. So often her older brother had just ignored her, but to see the look on his face made her feel loved.
The next question out of Sara’s mouth while Jackson helped her to her feet was, “Are the bad men gone?”
“For now, Miss Sara,” answered one man. She thought he was from the temple of Mishpat. His shiny armor always drew her eye whenever he was walking around town, but she couldn’t remember him having spoken to her before then.
A second later she heard a commanding voice ordering everyone to leave the room. There was a lot of talking, some with raised voices, and Sara couldn’t make all of it out. When the conversation ended, an older man and a boy about Jackson’s age stood in front of her. “Hello Sara, my name is Steffen Eikhorn. Can you tell me where your parents are?”
Sara wasn’t sure if she should talk to this man. Her parents had told her even before coming to Eloria that she should never talk to strangers, but Jackson nodded his head indicating that it was okay. “Umm … daddy is gone to see the elves. He had to tell them about the tree sappers. And mommy went with uncles Daichi and Jaselm to get stronger in the dungee?”
“Do you mean a dungeon?” Steffen asked.
“Uh yes, I think that’s what she called it. She said that bad men would be coming and that she needed to get stronger,” Sara said.
“How did she know that bad men were coming?” Steffen asked, surprise showing on his face.
“Daddy sent her a message. He said the goblins were in the elves' forest.” Sara looked nervously over at Krinnk as she spoke, painfully aware that she couldn’t protect him if the man decided to try to hurt her friend. Balayria, who was hurt badly, and her elf protector, Isaka, had both been carried out of the room.
Before any more questions could be asked of her, a tall elf–Mira’s teacher–entered the room. Steffen turned and had a quiet discussion with the elf, Hiroto, she thought was his name, that took a couple of minutes. Eventually though, the man was allowed to walk up to her.
“Sara, I have a gift for you.” He then pulled from a pocket in his robes a pretty yellow ribbon turned into a bracelet with a small silver rectangle dangling from it. When she touched it, she felt a slight shock but only enough to make her pull her finger back. It was pretty and drew her eye.
“I’m sorry this is a hastily made enchantment, so it may have a bit of static build up, but I wanted to be able to do something to protect you, sweet child.” He reminded her of her papa, the way he smiled and spoke so seriously.
Sara looked at the little metal plate hanging from the ribbon. There were swirls etched into it in a pretty pattern. “This is for me?”
Hiroto answered, “Yes. It will help keep you safe. If you say the word ‘poof,’ then it will make you disappear. No one will be able to see you.”
After that he explained how to use the jewelry. Then the five of them walked out of the house. Sara was heartbroken when she saw some of the houses smoking from fires which had been put out and groups of people laying in the town square waiting to be healed.
Just as Sara ran over to where Emmaline was sitting on the ground cradling one of her sons, there was another round of shouting from the main gate. She couldn’t make out much of what she heard, but one word kept coming through, “Incoming!”
Lost in the chaos which ensued from the elven attack at the gate, a small magical portal opened in the town square, and the lord of Eris’ Rise stepped out into his home. Dave’s senses were assaulted as soon as he stepped through. He heard cries and his mind sent him back to another battle on another world, but he shook it off to focus on what was in front of him. His nose took in the scent of smoke and blood common to a battlefield. Most importantly, his eyes found Sara.
She was standing next to one of the many injured that were laid out in rows. Was that Emmaline? No time to worry about that now. Beyond the influx of sensory data there was the simple fact that he suddenly felt the huge burst of power which came with being back
in Murkwood. His stats all jumped 20% giving him more clarity and physical power. It was an intoxicating feeling.
Most shocking of all was that behind his daughter was Jackson. Wow, in that instant he took in the image of his son. Jackson had grown, filled out with more muscle and was wearing some sort of Albian leather armor rather than the elven leather wrap he had arrived in Eloria with. Dave had no idea how Jackson had gotten here, but he was glad to find his two youngest children together even in the midst of what sounded like a battle. Dave’s heart soared with pride as he saw Jackson hovering protectively beside his sister with one arm around her while the other arm held the magical mace he had been gifted. It was one of the things they talked about during their rare father-son times: a man was responsible for protecting those weaker than himself, and that began with his younger sister.
As Dave’s awareness expanded, he saw another boy next to Jackson. Wait, was that the boy from the capital? Dave’s mind raced. Tabor was the boy’s name. Tabor Eikhorn. And behind both boys was a distinguished older gentleman with a full set of armor, a combination of chainmail and leather with a breastplate to boot.
The symbol on the breastplate was that of the Albian army, and upon the left corner of the breastplate was a small symbol which Dave remembered from his review of the noble crests of Albia. Next to that man was the elven enchanter, Hiroto, and a mountain of a man in military armor who was clearly a bodyguard of some kind.
A second later, both Dave’s kids saw him and started running toward him. He embraced them for a moment before his eyes met the older man.
“General Nelson, I assume?” queried Steffen.
“Yes, and you must be General Eikhorn, or do you prefer Baron?” Dave said.
