by Jez Cajiao
“Please, everyone; I meant what I said. You don’t have to do this at all, and if you do choose to help me with it, please, don’t drain yourself. If you feel weak, if you feel a headache coming on, stop. That is both an order from me, and the Goddess Jenae’s direct command.” With that, the majority of my people finished their prayers and stood, but a handful stayed as they were.
Notably, the helmsman knelt for so long, I started to think he was going to pass out, but after another minute, his friends helped him to his feet, and he stood shakily. He laughed and hugged one of the men closest to him, and they all started talking, pointing at each other, and joking. I couldn’t help but smile, thinking back to simpler times with friends, with Tommy.
“Okay, people, thank you for your help. Now I suggest you get back to whatever you’re supposed to be doing!” I clapped my hands together once, and turned away from the group, walking into the Tower.
“Where are we going, Jax?” Oracle asked me quietly, and I closed my eyes for a second, taking a deep breath.
“No idea, Oracle. I wanted to get out of people’s way while Cai and Oren directed them, and now I’ve realized I should have gone to the captain’s cabin on the ship. I’ll look bloody stupid turning around now, though, so we’re going this way!” I whispered to her, getting a low laugh in return.
“How about we go to the Hall of Memories?” she asked after a minute, throwing it out in such a casual way that immediately made me suspect an ulterior motive.
“Okay…and why are we going there?” I asked looking up to my shoulder where she sat, my eyes being drawn to her obvious assets.
“Behave. You’re not forgiven yet,” she said, smacking me lightly on the top of my head, but I saw the smile at the same time, and I grinned as I set off toward the floor we needed.
Bob clanked along behind me, and as I glanced over, I could see Oren explaining to Cai about the two men that hadn’t sworn loyalty to me. I trusted that he’d get them somewhere to eat and rest.
“Soooo, why are we going to the Hall, then?” I asked again, and this time Oracle answered seriously.
“We need to discuss the skills and spells that are available. You can’t make a decision about who gets what until you know what we actually have.” We reached the Hall and began what can only be considered the second most boring few hours in my life, because I once had to spend a day filling out government tax forms.
After three hours of being told again and again about how great a particular spell or memory-gifted skill was, but that I couldn’t use it, I was done. My head was absolutely fucked, but at least now I had a rough idea of everything we had.
It seemed that we had pretty much one of everything for a lot of skills, which was both awesome and terrible, as the majority of them were around the Expert level. I sat considering things for a while before asking Oracle about it to make sure I had it right.
“So, if I gave, say…Oren that Memory stone on Woodworking, what would happen?” I said, getting a smile in return.
“You know this, Jax. He’s worked with wood on repairs to his ship frequently over the years, so he’s got the basic skill already."
"If you gave it to him, he’d jump two whole levels in knowledge, straight to Journeyman if he were a Novice, but he’d still have to physically level the skill the old-fashioned way to gain the bonuses a true Woodworker would get. If he’d never worked with wood at all, he’d gain the skill, but he’d retain very little of the knowledge, and unless he used it and started to work on wood straight away? He’d start forgetting bits of what he did gain, until eventually, he’d just have vague feelings about how he should do things, but no real clue.”
“And if he was already skilled with it? Like an Apprentice or Journeyman Woodworker?”
“Then he’d probably learn the entire memory, and he’d end up with the knowledge to make anything the creator of the stone knew.” she said, smiling patiently. I sat there for a long time, looking at the memories and trying to not feel cheated again. After a while, I burst out in irritation and got to my feet, grabbing my head in my hands.
“Then it’s all a head-fuck! I mean, come on! I have an entire library of knowledge that can hugely help us, but if we use it, it’s wasted! That one there, the one about magical siege weapons!” I said, gesturing to one that twinkled merrily at the end of the second row. “That could be given to one of the Engineers, and they’d be awesome with it, overhaul the ship’s weapons, and make some really cool shit, but I need the Engineers working on the ship! If I gave it to someone that’s unskilled, someone I can afford to have use it, they’d have a rough idea of how to make a catapult, and that’d be it!”
“Jax, I know why you’re upset, but you have to remember, these are a treasure trove, if you use them right. If you’re offered a free horse, there’s no point in complaining you don’t like the color,” she said, crossing her arms and staring at me in disapproval, and I narrowed my eyes at her.
“Did you just tell me to quit being a whiny bitch?” I asked, and she shrugged, gesturing at all the books and stones around her.
“Jax, just take the time and think, okay? If you get people to start the skills off, learn them for themselves, then you can use the books and memories to make them into amazingly skilled citizens. If you waste them, well… it’s your choice.”
“Fuck. When did you get so wise?” I asked her rhetorically, sitting back down and sighing.
“I didn’t; I’ve been in charge of the magical knowledge here for hundreds of years. I get excited. I don’t know much else about the world is true, but in here? Here, I do know things, and I can give you advice and support.” Oracle said, moving across to join me on a long sofa-like thing. She shifted to full size as she sat beside me and took my hand in hers, giving me a gentle nudge with her shoulder.
I took the hint and moved over, giving her some room, and we sat in silence for a moment while I thought. Oracle seemed content just to sit, and I noticed my mana hadn’t dipped that much when she assumed her full size, so I asked her about it.
“I’m bonded to you, but I also have a link to the Tower still. As you’re the formal master of the Tower now, I can access the mana it draws in."
"I just slipped a little aside for my transformation and maintaining my form at this size, that’s all. Do you like it?” She regarded me with a throaty little chuckle, raising one eyebrow, and I swallowed hard as I looked her over, my eyes roaming downwards from her perfect features…to her other perfect features…
“Oh god, yes…” I whispered, and she smiled, leaning in for a kiss. It seemed to go on forever, and yet ended far too soon. When we finally broke apart, it wasn’t long before our lips met again. Her breath tasted of strawberries, a small fuzzy part of my mind noted as we kissed again, mouths opening and tongues reaching out, our arms going around each other…
“Jax! Ye in there, laddie?” a voice shouted through the sealed crystal doorway, muffled, but still clearly Oren, and I groaned as we broke apart. I saw Oracle forcibly push down a look of irritation and disappointment as we both stood a little regretfully, the buttons of her top undone and hair all tousled. I didn’t remember undoing any buttons, I thought, then blinked as my brain reengaged when I heard Oren’s voice again.
“Jax! Can ye hear me, laddie? Seneschal, are ye sure ‘e be here?” I couldn’t hear anything from Seneschal, but I certainly could hear some growled swearing under Oracle’s breath as she began to mutter about what she was going to do to him for interrupting.
I coughed and turned back to the door, both glad and extremely regretful that we’d been interrupted. Glad, because I really needed to sort my head out about Oracle, and I didn’t want to feel like I was taking advantage of her. This whole aspect of having her bonded to me was a bit weird, after all.
The other side of it was… hell, I was a guy, and she was insanely hot and really, really up for it. The little head did NOT want to hear it from the big head that she wasn’t to be played with.
&n
bsp; I concentrated and commanded the Tower to open the door, watching as Oren jumped and backed away as the crystal doorway dissolved into mist. He paused at finding both myself and Oracle inside, then stomped through the entrance, gazing about the large, lushly appointed room.
It had mostly survived the decimation of time, being as well sealed as it had been. Not even air had moved inside, and the natural entropy of centuries had been held at bay, which meant that, aside from the soft furnishings being a bit weird and hard, the rest of the room looked as it had when the Tower had been completed. Its walls were still covered in tapestries, the furniture was still far and away better than anything we’d found in the rest of the Tower.
What really got his attention, though, were the hundreds of memory stones and Spellbooks. He stared transfixed around the chamber and completely missed the first things I said to him.
“OREN!” I shouted, making him jump in shock and finally focus in on me again.
“Ah! I’m sorry Jax, I jus’… I mean, I didna expect…” He gestured around; his hands visibly trembling. I shook my head and put one hand on his shoulder.
“Well, I’ve good news and bad with all this, my friend. First of all, airships didn’t exist then, not like they are today, so there are no memories that’ll help you with that."
"On the other side, though, when the time comes, if we can find something that’s appropriate to you, I’ll give you a stone. Or a spell if that’s your preference. You and Cai both will have earned it ten times over by the time we have the Tower fixed up.”
“Thank ye, laddie, I mean it,” he whispered, shaking his head as he gawked around again. “I jus’ never...”
“I know,” I said simply. As annoyed as I was with the way things were—I’d had hopes for a Tower full of experts—I also realized just how goddamn lucky I’d been. I could have been stuck in the middle of nowhere with a collapsed tower, after all, or dead. Or underwater, for all I knew.
“Come on, then, mate; what did you want?” I asked, heading for the door, and dragging him along with me as he tried to look everywhere in the Hall.
“Ah… oh yeah, wit’ th’ engineers an’ shipyard types all sworn in, th’ ship do be lookin’ okay now. The main thing tha’ was wrong wit’ her was the engines bein’ fucked. The lad’s replaced two wit’ spares and did some magic wit’ the others, so she’s ready t’ fly again. Won’t be great, but she’ll get us to Decin an’ back, safe enough.”
“And to the village?” I asked, and he nodded quickly.
“Aye, we can reach th’ village. I been told where it be, but even wit’ the engines replaced, it’d still be a full two days there and back.” I swore under my breath at that, thinking about timescales, and what we could and couldn’t afford.
“Okay, how long to get to Himnel from here?” I asked, guiding Oren for the stairs with me even as I ‘felt’ Oracle close the door behind us.
She buzzed past us, her wings blurring as she disappeared around the bend and out of sight.
“Well, it depends, laddie. If we hammer th’ engines, we could be there afore three full days o’ flyin’. Go steady an’ careful-like, closer to five. If we’re headin’ straight there, I’d be saying give repairs another day. Th’ lads could replace t’other damaged engines and fix a bit more. We’d be there at nearly th’ same time from today, but wit’ a faster ship.”
“You mean it’d take five days as it is, or if we give them another day, they could do more to the engines, and it’d be four days’ flight time instead of five… if we’re going slow and careful. Okay, makes sense. How long to Decin?” I asked, pulling out my map and showing him where I’d observed the ship’s landing. Oren counted off distances with his fingers and thought for a second, nodding to himself.
“Tha’ be aboot four, mebbe five hours’ flight, as bad as th’ ship is right now.”
“Then get the ship ready. We’ll fly light, nothing that’s not needed aboard, and we’ll need a little security force, as well. Not Barrett, though; we need him here to look after things, just in case.” Oren nodded and grinned at me. “What’re you grinning at, you mad bastard?” I asked.
“Just one wee thing, afore we join t’others downstairs… Oh great an' powerful Lord Jax...” he hedged, and I nodded impatiently. “Well, ye might want to tie yer troos properly…” He cackled as he kept walking. I frowned before realizing what he meant and looked down.
Sure enough, my pants were undone slightly, and I hadn’t even realized, between all the armor and bits, as my belt was still done.
“Oh, for…” I groaned and did myself back up, resolving to get my hands on Oracle later…and I had no clue which way round I intended to do that…
Chapter Six
When I got back to the ship, it had changed dramatically from its gory, battered condition early that morning. Instead of the aftermath of battle, with bodies and blood still strewn liberally about, the ship looked clean and in fairly good repair. There were still scorch marks across the deck in places, and chunks cut from the railings, stains in the wood, and even the occasional bang and clank coming from below decks, but the majority of the main deck and the upper deck were clean and well laid out.
I headed toward the ship quickly, calling out to Barrett as I saw him standing with six of his team members.
“Yes, Lord!” he answered, jogging over, and saluting as he came to a halt.
“Thanks, Barrett,” I said, nodding in response to the salute, and he relaxed. “We’re going to go to find Decin, see if we can recruit him and his people, and then we’re heading back. I need a team to fight alongside me if things don’t go well.”
“Yes, Lord,” Barrett repeated, gesturing to the group he’d left behind. I looked them over and recognized them all. Lydia stood in the middle, a mace in one hand and a large heater shield resting against her legs. Her appropriated armor from the guards she’d looted suited her, and although she looked skinny, she was fit and strong. Stephanos was off to one side, testing his bowstring. I’d caught his name, but didn’t know much more about him, aside from the fact he was one of the hunter wannabes. Next to him, cradling an identical bow, was Miren, the tiny blonde girl that had some training to hunt already under her belt. Arrin stood next to her, a small firebolt balanced in one hand as he winked at Caron, who was trying to hide nearby. I pretended not to see Caron, and instead moved straight on to Jian. I had hardly seen him since the fight, and not at all last night, as near as I could remember, but he looked…well, he looked great, actually. He looked healthy, not just because he had been near skeletal as I had first met him, but he’d filled out and appeared full of vitality.
I’d heard that most of the fighters had gained at least one level, but in his case, he’d gone from barely being able to hold the twin swords he insisted on using, to now looking like he’d been born with them. He’d cut the sleeves from his tunic and stood with his arms crossed, solid if wiry muscle covering them, and he stared at me as I appraised him. I nodded in respect, guessing that he’d piled most of his points into his strength and constitution stats, from what I could see.
The last of the team was Cam, a tall elf that had lost his family just before being sold as a slave. He stood there with the same thousand-mile stare he’d worn since I met him, a large wood axe leaning against his hip. He wore no armor, and his dark hair was cut short, but he nodded to me, ready to fight.
“They’ll go with you, Lord Jax, and protect you and the ship.” Barrett said, looking them over proudly. I smiled at them, speaking up quickly.
“Sounds good to me. Thank you, Barrett; I’m glad to know I’ve got this lot watching my back!” I addressed the team next, walking over to stand before them. “Is there anything you need to get? I want us to take off within the hour, so there’s still time.” All six stood straighter and stayed silent, so I gestured them onto the ship with one hand. “Okay, then, get yourselves and your gear aboard.” I turned to Barrett. “You’re in charge of security when I’m gone. Err on the si
de of caution; if there’s something you don’t like, and you think it’s a risk to my people or my Tower, stamp on it hard with both feet, okay?” I said, and he nodded firmly.
I dismissed him and strode across to Oren, who had come to a halt, talking to Cai.
“Cai, Oren, how’s the ship looking? How soon can we leave?” I asked, receiving a nod from them both. Cai spoke first.
“We’ve almost finished unloading her. We’ve gotten several tons of foodstuffs, and a considerable amount of armor and weapons that are being moved into the armory. The goods that the ship had in its hold are more… unusual… now that I’ve had the chance to look them over.”
“Go on…” I said, shifting to lean against the side of the ship and considering him with interest.
“Well, I’ve spoken with Isabella, and some of the items in the hold definitely did not come from her village.
There are a lot of strange items aboard for a warship, bundles of cloth, a few small totems, and a large frieze that appears to have been broken in two when loading. There are at least a dozen magelights, from what I’ve seen so far…” He stopped at my look of confusion. “Magelights are, well… lights made by mages, I guess. Never really thought about the name before.” He shook himself and went on quickly. “They are charged with mana, and they provide light throughout the night. They’re not particularly expensive, but candles are far cheaper, so they’re unlikely to have come from another small village. I suspect the ship found a traveling merchant and robbed him. The crew members seemed to think the ship was collecting taxes for the city. I believe they were collecting wealth for the captain, judging from the conversations I’ve had.”
“So, we had a captain that was using his ship to go pirating?” I asked, grinning, and Oren jumped in as well.
