《Overgrowth》 1 - A leviathan, a shipwreck, and the find of a lifetime. I never thought I''d be killed by butterflies. But here I am. They floated before me like lethal snowflakes, sky-blue and as wide as two hands. I could feel waves of cold roll off them, twisting the air, heat-mirages rippling and distorting the shattered landscape. I shuddered and edged closer to the caldera. The heat rising off the lava below scorched my back, even as the swarm swirled closer, moving like smoke on the wind. I saw them hesitate as they felt the heat, and for a moment, I hoped they would fear it. I could see the jungle past them, lush greenery rolling down the slopes of the mountain, eventually ending in blinding white sand that slipped below vivid azure ocean. The lagoon sparkled beautifully, and I could even make out the wreck of my ship, smashed to splinters by last night''s storm, lying dark under thirty feet of crystal water. A sense of disconnect filled me, a strange confusion on what had happened over the past night and day to land me in this predicament. Yesterday, the weather had been pleasant. I''d set a steady course, and everything was looking right for rounding the Cape of Thorns by the end of the month. And then, everything went to shit. The storm had risen with shocking, tropical swiftness. One moment, I had been sailing under a calm wind, and the next, the glass was dropping and the sky turned lead, the waves rose and rain came crashing down. At first, I didn''t worry, but as the night drew on, and the storm grew worse, my nerves began fraying. And then I saw the fin. It wasn''t a shark. I didn''t really need to be afraid of them, not even alone in a twenty-foot boat. Sure, my boat was built mostly for speed and stealth, given its¡­ particular¡­ type of cargo, but its not like a shark would find teak-and-tar tasty, or even realize I was a meaty treat sitting inside. Monsters, though¡­ monsters were another matter. As soon as I saw the fin, ten feet tall and laced with glowing scales, I realized I''d been blown farther off-course than I''d ever guessed, and was in deep, deep trouble. This was obviously a monster zone, and this particular monster had the strength to sink me. Not that I could really do anything. I''d held my course, watched the fin circle, tried to hold myself together, until finally, a flash of lightning revealed a jagged silhouette against the sky. Normally, I''d have steered clear. My good ship Eigengrau could weather any but the very worst storm, and in a monster zone, shore would likely be even more dangerous than water. After all, most ocean monsters stayed in the ocean. But there was the fin, circling ever closer. Whatever base instinct drove monsters to hunt humans was drawing it near my boat, and I needed to escape before curiosity overcame wariness. I set course for the island. I had hoped for shallow water, where the predator circling my boat wouldn''t be able to swim. Someplace I could drop anchor, maybe in the lee of the land, to wrap up in my oilcloth and sleep for a few hours until sunrise. As long as I didn''t run into Innismen, or the place wasn''t a wyrmhaunt, I could snatch some rest and take my bearings, and plan an escape before I got into deeper trouble. Instead, I found jagged, boat-shattering rocks. Running aground is a particularly awful experience, especially in a deep-sea boat that''s never meant to touch dirt. It wasn''t my first wreck, but it was fast and nasty. I was scudding through the storm, headed for the mouth of the lagoon in the half-light of my running-lamps and actinic flashes of rain-smeared lighting. It might have been low-tide; there might have been underwater boulders, invisible in the blackness. Either way, I thought I''d made it - when everything came to a juddering, lurching halt as the keel hit bottom, followed by a deep, thumping crunch as the hull caved in, followed by a ringingsnap as the keel broke. With its back broken, the boat sank in moments. I dove overboard as soon as I heard water rushing in, swimming free of the wreck. The waves practically threw my boat after me, and the mast came down with a slap not more than an armslength from my head. At least I was in the lagoon by then. Reaching shore was exhausting, but the closer I got, the smaller the waves were. The worst of the wind was cut off by the mountain, and even under the rain, I was warm. The tropics may be festering, steaming, biting hellholes when it comes to plants, insects and monsters, but at least you never have to worry about freezing. I swear, even as I found a rocky overhang to curl up under, at the edge of the beach, I could still see the blue glow of that waiting fin, cruising along the edge of the lagoon. I woke at dawn as the clouds broke, barely rested and desperately thirsty. I cast one long, bitter look at the ocean, still as a mirror in the sunrise, the violence of last night''s storm wiped away as if it never happened. I patted my pockets, looked up and down the beach, and set out in search of water. Instead, I found monsters. Of course. I was in a monster zone; that shouldn''t have surprised me. What got me instead, was the variety and rarity of the monsters I''d run up against. If I hadn''t been hungry, thirsty, and stranded, I''d have been salivating at the thought of how much untapped wealth this island held. Crystal ants sell for three silver a carapace. Velvet python skin is worth its weight in cinnamon, in the right ports. I even found a singing nautilus shell!Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Unfortunately, the local wildlife was as dangerous as it was valuable. It didn''t take long before I was slinking through the underbrush, darting from shadow to shadow, barely daring to breathe. I''d never been much of a woodsman, but I''d done my fair share of lurking in alleys and skulking around windows, and I managed to stay fairly low-key, if I do say so myself. I eventually found a still pool, and was going down on one knee for a long drink, when they found me. The butterflies. I''d never seen a monster like them. That was hardly surprising. But I''d never even heard of a monster like them, and that was a little more interesting. It''s my business to know about monsters, especially magical, rare, and interesting ones. These were all three, and I couldn''t stop myself from feeling interested when they swirled out of the jungle, even as I brought my hands to my lips and slurped down a double-gulp of crisp, cold water. I think it was the cold that was the problem, really. I should have realized as soon as my hands touched the pool. In the tropics, running water is far from rare. Still water, on the other hand, is vanishingly scarce, unless someone - or something - has taken the time to dig a pool. I have no idea if those butterflies had dug this one or not. But they obviously considered it theirs. As soon as I slurped that water down, their attitude changed. Instead of simply flitting and floating in the breeze, they turned towards me like a loadstone finds north. I blinked at the sudden shift, and slowly stood. They flapped their wings, false-eyes blinking and staring in turn, and skimmed towards me. Where they passed, frost crackled across the ground, the pool icing over with audible snaps. A chill ran up my spine, and it wasn''t from the sudden drop in temperature. I spun and darted into the underbrush. At first I expected them to be easy enough to outrun. And maybe if I had been on familiar ground, I could have distanced myself from them. But even though they weren''t fast, they were stubborn; they floated on the breeze, light as fluff, and wafted their way through the trees. I scrambled over roots, dodged past trunks, dived past tangles of vines. They soared through waving branches, swirled overhead, and pressed after me with unnerring accuracy. I fell more times than I can count. I startled dozens of monsters and animals, half-seen flashes of color or sounds barely caught at the edge of hearing. I don''t think the depth of my predicament really settled in, though, until I startled a sapphire Astrapia and watched in shock as it flew off in a flurry of feathers, leaving its nest behind. I''d never heard of anything that could scare an Astrapia off its nest. Their innate wind magic could repel tigers. On the upside, I thought, as I panted for breath, I had no idea what other sorts of monsters my pursuers had scared off as I stumbled through the jungle. Chances are, I''d escaped similar deaths several times, and simply didn''t know it. I gritted my teeth and forced my legs to move. I glanced up, and the plume of volcanic ash rising skywards sparked a stupid, desperate idea in my head. And so here I was. My legs were burning from the climb, my eyes were watering from the smoke, and my lungs were raspy with whatever noxious gasses the volcano was emitting. The island was spread out below me, green and lush, and behind me, a steep caldera led down to glowing red lava. I had never thought I''d be killed by butterflies. I glanced downwards as the swarm moved in. I had no idea what they planned to do to me, but given how anything that two or three of them landed on froze solid, I didn''t imagine I''d be able to survive it. For a moment I stood on the edge of the cliff, sharp black stone dropping away just behind my heels. Then I got on my knees, felt for handholds, and stuck my foot over the edge. Standing on the lip of the volcano wasn''t far enough? Fine. Let''s see if they could follow me into the caldera itself. I inched my way downwards, coughing and choking in the ash and soot. I pulled the collar of my shirt over my mouth, and strained the air as best I could. The heat increased with each meter I crept, first like a sunburn on my neck, then like an open fire, until I finally stopped, scared my clothes would burst into flame. I looked upwards, and my heart sank. The butterflies were grouping together, pulling into a tiny wirlwind of blue and white wings. They swirled tighter and tighter, and as they did, I could see their icy magic sweeping aside the ash, forming a small pool of cold, clean air around themselves. Then they slowly began to follow. I groaned and bit my tongue, tasting blood in my frustration. I glanced around, frantically searching for an escape, some way to retreat. A crevice to my right caught my eye. Honestly, it probably wouldn''t take me anywhere useful. But another foot from death was another foot from death. I inched my way towards it. By now my fingers were scraped raw, and my legs - already burning from the climb - were beginning to shake. I edged my way into a shallow cave, creeping to the back and seating myself against the warm stone. I sat there for a while, just shaking and trying to get myself back under control, as I wracked my brain for solutions. Finally, I stood and started weakly gathering fragments of rock, stacking them into the entrance one at a time. In a few minutes, I had a sizeable pile. In a quarter of an hour, I''d actually managed plug nearly half of the narrow slit I''d crawled through. By the time my barricade was chest-height, I actually began to hope. Then I saw the glow. For a moment, I thought it was a trick of the light. My wall of rocks was haphazardly jammed into the crevice, and dots of light slipped through every nook and cranny. The sullen glow of the lava below competed with the scintilating tropical sun above, throwing a confusion of speckles onto the walls and floor of my hideaway. At first, I thought the blue flickering was simply another facet of that. A moment later, though, I realized that couldn''t be right. I could see my shadow - thin though it was - on the stacked stones in front of me. There was light coming from¡­ behind? Was the smoke causing me to halucinate? I turned around slowly, rubbing ash from my eyes. There, at the top of a pile of loose scree, was the brightest magic crystal I had ever seen. The sight drove the butterflies out of my mind. It was as large as my thumbnail, and glowed so sharply I couldn''t bear to fix my eyes on it. I blinked, and even through my eyelids my pupils ached. I moved for it without even thinking. I scrambled absently up the stones, steadying myself against the cave wall as they shifted underfoot, and scooped the gem up in my bloody fingers. It was probably the blood that did it, really. Touching it felt like a bolt from the blue, a magical boot to the head, as if the north wind itself stabbed straight through my temple, wrapped itself icy and fierce around my brain, and rushed downwards until it poured out my feet. There was a loud noise, and everything went white. "Welcome, Lord of the Land..." 2 - A title, a conquest, and a door. "Welcome, Lord of the Land¡­" "Pause!" I groaned, instinctively. The voice died away. I blinked, coming back to myself, and realized I was laying on the floor, aching all over. I took a few deep breaths, trying to center myself, and nearly ended up hacking my lungs out. I struggled back to my feet and glanced around for the gem, only to realized it was still clutched in my hand. I scrubbed at my aching forehead for a long moment, before tucking it into a pocket and reaching down for another rock. Strangely enough, even though it felt like finishing the barricade took hours, I was feeling better at the end. I finally had something that would stop butterflies, even if I wasn''t entirely certain how it would fare against magic butterflies. My headache was beginning to fade, and although my hands still ached, the scrapes and cuts weren''t stinging quite as sharply. I sat down cross-legged at the back of the crevice, and fished the gem out of my pocket. Wonder what I picked up here¡­? First things first, though. "Voice of the world, visual mode." "Visual mode confirmed." Audible mode was much more convenient when sailing, or during action. Can''t have blue boxes cluttering your vision in a gunfight! But if you needed to inspect something carefully, visual mode was simply better - as long as you could read. Thankfully, I''d managed to pick up more education than the average streetrat over the course of my checkered career. "Unpause."
Welcome, Lord of the Land.
You have bonded the Heart of Metzli. A privileged class has been granted. Your dominion is currently ''tiny''. Your archive is ''small''. Your power is currently ''personal'' and ''inconsequential''. Your rank is ''Knight-errant''. As a new ruler, be sure to activate your privileges soon. Investing your power will unlock benefits and growth, by the Will of the World.
Huh. I stared at that for a long moment, pondering it. Finally, I turned my attention to the stone. "Assess." There were some benefits from picking up the ''trader'' class. A limited analysis ability was one of the best. It had nothing on an investigator class, or even a mage or scholar, but¡­ the time needed to spec into those was ridiculous.
Heart of Metzli: Dominion Core, Class 7
A gemstone of unfathomable power, formed by the will of the world; this crystal anchors the very existence of the Island of Metzli. Whoever possesses and controls the Heart is acknowledged by the land itself, and can hold rightful dominance.
Hooooh boy. I waved away the boxes and carefully folded the gem in my handkerchief before tucking it into my pocket. I scrunched up my eyes and pressed my face into my hands, trying to cudgel my exhausted brain into functioning. I wasn''t entirely sure what I''d picked up, but one thing was becoming increasing clear: This was the sort of chance you only get once in your life. This was heavy-duty magic. Earth magic. World magic. The sort of sorcery arch-mages would fight to have, kingdoms would mobilize their armies for, heroes and dragons would clash over. After doing my best to quell the waves of uncertainty sloshing through me, I calmed myself and mumbled: "Show classes."
Classes
Name Level
Beggar: Out of practice
Thief: Passable
Gunner: Excellent
Explorer: Mediocre
Administrator: Below Average
Sailor: Daring
Trader: Vicious
Navigator: Passable
Lord of the Land: New
I absently ran a finger down the list, pondering. None of these would really help me get out of this cave. I paused on Gunner, and it expanded for a moment.
Gunner
Skills
Aim: Deadly
Reload: Deft
Maintenance: Passable
Abilities
Reflexive Dueling: Exceptional
Sharpshooting: Accurate
I closed it with a sigh, wishing for my pistol. It was probably still hanging from the tiller, at the bottom of the lagoon¡­ I continued down to my new class.
Lord of the Land
Title: Knight-Errant
SkillsThis story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Akashic Magic New
Dominion Magic New
Abilities
Mark New
Summon New
Archive New
Incarnate New
Hum. To be honest, I hadn''t expected to learn much just from this. Most class descriptions were pretty sparse. Mage, for instance, came with exactly one skill, ''(some type of) magic'', and no abilities. But then, mages could use simple magic with just their voice and hands. Gunner started with three skills because guns were complex and essential to the job. It had taken me years of training to turn sharpshooting into an ability, and reflexive dueling¡­ well, I''d had more than one brush with death in order to acquire that little gem. Back when I''d ruled the slums in Lavaille, I''d had more than enough opportunities for that. Moving on, I touched each word, drawing up a description.
Lord of the Land
One who possesses and controls a dominion core. The magic of the world itself will support them.
Knight-Errant
Beholden to none, either for protection or aid. Your land is unmarked, your qualities unproven.
Akashic Magic
The magic of remembrance and understanding. As the archive grows, so does its power. Grants the abilities Archive and Incarnate. Grants the Magic statistic.
Dominion Magic
The magic of control and command. Whatsoever you mark belongs to you, and ''ware the one who takes it. Grants the abilities Mark and Summon. Grants the Magic statistic.
Hmm-hmm. Well, I didn''t have anyone or anything to rule right now, so ''Knight-errant'' made some sort of sense¡­ it was landless nobility, I guess? Both fields of magic seemed extremely powerful in their own right, but, unfortunately, I had absolutely no idea on how to use them. At least they came with abilities¡­
Mark: Active
Claim your territory and subordinates as yours. Everything under your dominion contributes to your growth; every time you grow, claim more and more as your own. Costs Magic for scale and rank. Current marks: 0
Summon: Active
That which is yours obeys your call. Costs magic over distance and dimensions.
Archive: Passive
The things near and dear to your heart will be forever preserved. Draws in the memories of the world and turns them into your power.
Incarnate: Active
Nothing is truly dead until it is forgotten. As long as you can recall it, it can be called back into the world. Costs Magic for complexity and understanding.
Hurgh. Not a lot of help here. I stood, shoved my hands in my pockets, and started pacing. Whatever I''d picked up, it was obviously powerful; these skills seemed straight-up broken, and the abilities - beginning abilities, no less - felt more than a little overpowered. Unfortunately, I had no idea how to actually use any of it. More than that, I''d never even heard of any of this before. That¡­ was more than a little worrying. This sort of class, even if it only appeared once in a thousand years, seemed like it should be the subject of myths and legends, not to mention rumors. But¡­ Lord of the Land? I''d met lords, if not kings, and they had nothing on this. It was a dominion supported by the Voice of the World itself, not some measly dictatorship or what. On the other hand, what if there were people out there who had this class, and hadn''t ever told anyone? I mean, I''m pretty sure that if ¡ª no, when ¡ª I made it back to civilization, I''d do my very best to keep my newfound power under wraps. If anyone knew what this little gem could do¡­ I shuddered, and absently ran a finger over the bulge in my pocket. My mind whirled in long circles. Were there traps to this class? Could I afford to use it? Could I afford to not use it? How could I even know, until I tried it? Finally, I calmed down and returned to the problem at hand. I was stuck in a cave, in a slumbering volcano, on a wild and desolate island, deep in a monster-filled ocean. Being chased by butterflies. ¡­alright, maybe I wasn''t so calm. I drew a deep breath, gritted my teeth, and decided I needed to do something, anything, before I ended up in deeper trouble. Abilities first, I guess? I concentrated my intent, reaching for my new Actives. The World had said I should invest my power as soon as possible, and only one ability made sense for that. I firmed my resolve, and called out "Mark!" There was a flash. I blinked, then staggered as I felt something, that same cold sharp harsh something that had poured through me when I picked up the Heart, rush out of me. Magic? I watched as it streamed around me, icy white and glowing, and began to form symbols. They were entirely inscrutable at first, but oddly enough, the longer I looked, the more I felt like I had some idea what they were saying. Control¡­ command¡­ subjugate¡­ transfer¡­ Wait, hold on¡­ I squinted, pushing away my strange comprehension as I realized I''d seen them before. This is a¡­ dungeon circle? I frowned at that, dredging through my memories. I''d never made a habit of dungeon diving, but there''s a point in most everyone''s life where they need a bit of extra money and they''re willing to put their health on the line for it. For me, it had been a soujourn in the dungeon of the Marglades. It had basically been an endless swamp. I''d struggled to keep my pistols from rusting to scrap, even as I tried to keep my party from falling apart whenever we found anything at all worth looting - usually after I tried to keep them from running away once we came up against anything worth fighting. I''d been happy to see the back of that, especially since I didn''t actually have to shoot anyone for betraying me. However, between rooms and areas, there had been transfer circles. Small arrays of strange magic that could move you forwards or backwards. I looked down at the power surrounding me, comparing them in my mind. Maybe it wasn''t exactly the same as what I''d seen in the Marglades, but it was suspiciously close. The power was slowing now, changing from a rush to a trickle. It still pulled on me, dragging strength from my already wobbly legs, but I could see it beginning to work now, settling into the floor of the crevice and etching itself into the stone. I heard gentle grinding noises, and the floor flattened and began to spread. But, dungeon, huh? Dungeon lord? Was that a thing? I frowned, as half-remembered snippets floated up in my brain. Dungeon from ''donjon'', from ''domino'', which also gives ''dominion''¡­. Hrm. Dominion lord and dungeon lord¡­ Was this something the Voice of the World did, or was the bastardization on the human end? I''d heard of ''Dungeon Bosses'', of course, the malevolent monsters that guarded the labyrinths. But I''d never heard of a ''dungeon lord'', in sense that someone controlled the things. Was it simply a well-kept secret? Dungeons were often regarded as strategic assets, and for good reason. The sorts of materials, classes, and magic that came out of dungeons was simply astounding. If it was possible for a single person to control that¡­ that was the sort of information many countries would do their utmost to keep out of their enemies hands, even as they did their best to use it for their own gain. Sure, I''d never been strong enough to do more than peer through the windows of the halls of power, but I''d have at least heard rumors of that sort of thing.
Conquest complete!
By expanding your territory, your title has changed from Knight-Errant to Knight of Metzli. Congratulations on establishing your dominion!
  • As a landed Lord, your Sanctum is Fixed. Now, above all else, guard your Heart.
  • Your dominion is now Miniscule.
I shoved the thoughts out of my mind as the ability finished with a crack and a fizzle. I stood there panting for a long moment, assessing what had changed. Creeeeak¡­ I spun at the noise, and then stared in shock. There was a door behind me. It was a simple wood door, set directly into the basalt walls of the crevice as if it belonged there. It stood slightly ajar, and warm light poured out of it. I stepped forwards hesitantly, but strengthened my resolve as I grasped the handle. This was something my Ability had created; it should be safe. As long as I didn''t forget caution. I swung the door wide and stepped through. Was this my Sanctum? A small circle of grass hung in a white void. I looked back, and saw that the door I''d come through was framed in rough timber, standing free in space. I reached towards the edge, but my fingers simply pressed up against the boundary, as if it was bordered in perfectly transparent glass. It ran directly through the doorframe; no matter how I tried, I couldn''t look behind the door. A stone walkway lead away from the door, meandering into the grass, eventually winding its way up a small hill, to where a modest cabin and a spreading tree stood, right in the center of the Sanctum. But just as I was about to step forwards¡ª
Warning, invasion!
Your domain is being threatened! Protect it, or risk losing your influence!
I felt a draft on my neck and turned back. At the entrance to the crevice, chill light was flashing through the chinks in my rock barrier. I could hear the whisper of wings, and my heart sank. The damn butterflies still hadn''t given up. I clenched my teeth, and for a moment, considered simply closing the door and ignoring them. But.¡­I still didn''t know enough about this new class. What if that simply destroyed the Sanctum when they took my cave, and it dumped me out right there? I couldn''t risk that. No, I needed to fight here. I had new abilities, and if I used them right... there was a chance I could pull through. I strengthened my resolve and drew a deep breath, reaching for another Active. I''d only read the description, but if this worked like I hoped¡­ I pulled up an image in my mind, holding it firm; the weapon I knew best, inside and out. It was burned into my memory. I scraped together the dregs of my magic, and said: "Incarnate!" The pistol landed in my hand with a reassuring thunk. I grinned as my practiced fingers danced across the mechanism, checking the magazine, checking the chamber, flipping the safety to ''off'', racking a round. "Alright," I mumbled. "At least I have a fighting chance." 3 - A fight, a nap, and a new ...friend? "Hoooo¡­" I let out a breath and raised my pistol. In a flash, my mind cleared and my hands steadied. Part of it was my Gunner class coming into play, but part of it was also the fact that I''d been running and hiding and scrambling to survive for a day and a night, and actually being able to lay my sights on a problem was an incredible relief. If I could pull through this, I could get some real sleep, and maybe reverse this downwards spiral. "Voice of the World, audible, pause." "Acknowledged." No blue boxes messing up my firing lines. I took aim and squeezed the trigger. BLAM-crack! The report was deafening in the enclosed space. There was a flare of powder and a plume of dust, and a stone fell out of my barricade. Something blue flashed past the hole, and I fired again. BLAM-crack! I felt the tingle of pneuma in my lungs, soul-fragments streaming into me from my kill, and grinned. Score one. BLAM-BLAM-BLAM! The tingle grew as I fired again and again. Each bullet threaded the hole in the barricade, each bullet hit a butterfly. Not every shot got a kill, but the tingle in my chest grew stronger as I fought. I was doing some sort of damage. The questions was¡ª Click. Did I have more bullets than butterflies? "Damn." I flung my pistol towards the hole as a blue shape darted through. "Incarnate!" Magic swirled, and the fizz in my chest subsided. If I was drawing power straight from accumulated pneuma, I must be really low on magic. Or maybe that''s how magic worked¡­? I''d never used it before, or heard more than the bare basics from mages. A pistol materialized out of thin air. I snatched it up and leveled it. BLAM-ZING-ZING-ZIIIIIP-THOK! The bullet halved the invading butterfly and zipped around the inside of the crevice - before ricocheting into my barricade, knocking another hole. "Damn damn damn!" I raised my left hand. "Incarnate!" For a moment, the icy pull of magic stole my breath and left my head spinning. I snatched the new pistol as it fell and firmed my aim, trying to split my attention between the two entrances. I was obviously low on magic; I couldn''t afford to do that again. Dual-weilding wasn''t really my style. Splitting my attention between two hands and two targets never seemed as good to me as simply doing everything twice as fast. Still, I''d done it before, and I was probably better at it than most. I continued squeezing off rounds, and butterflies continued dropping. There was a scattering of them on the floor now, like fallen leaves. Click. Empty. I dropped my right-hand gun and swapped for my left. I lined the barrel up with unsteady hands, and wished with all my strength that this one bullet would be enough; I didn''t have it in me to incarnate another. Slowly, the chill subsided. "...Unpause." "Congratulations on repelling your first invasion." The Voice of the World was calm and flat, and I nearly fell over in relief. "Your class, Lord of the Land, has advanced from ''new'' to ''inexperienced''. Lepidoptera cryogenica, ''Queen Snow Moth'', has been added to your Archive. Your body is on the verge of collapse. Find a place to rest soon, or risk permanently injuring yourself.'' I picked up the pistols I''d created with shaking hands, gathered my spent brass, and stumbled through the door, back into my Sanctuary. For a moment, I hesitated on whether to lock myself in. Finally, with a shrug, I closed the door after me. It shut easily, and vanished in a flare of light. I blinked, wondering if I should be worried, but something in the back of my mind told me it would be okay. Probably my new class. I turned and headed for the hut. The inside of the Sanctuary was calming. By the time I''d reached the top of the stone steps, the adrenaline was subsiding and I was starting to feel achingly hollow. I''d scraped up everything I had for that last stand, and although I''d pulled through, I was well and truly spent. I paused for a moment at the door and looked around. The cabin was small and neat, wood beams with stone walls, built in the style of my hometown. I''d hoped to live in one like it, when I was small. Thinking back, that dream had been childishly shortsighted. Looking at it now, it was quaint and rustic. I swung open the door. Inside, it was warm and neat, with golden wood and glowing sunbeams. I dropped my guns on the table and collapsed in a nearby chair, simply letting the tension drain out of me as I reveled in not being at sea, not being chased, not breathing smoke or running for my life. It was good. Finally, the aftereffects of the adrenaline subsided, and I fell asleep.
I woke cramped and thirsty. The sun was in exactly the same position as when I''d closed my eyes. I stood and stretched, feeling my muscles complain. Unsure of what my next steps were, I wandered around, opening cupboards and peering through doors. The cabin was a simple place, with three rooms: bedroom, kitchen, and study. There was an outhouse out back, and the tree, spreading behind the house, had apples growing on it. I picked one and munched it as I stared into the void. It was white. White like paper, or clouds, or newfallen snow. There was no feeling of depth to it; it was almost as if the Sanctuary was wrapped in wax, or someone had turned a snow-globe inside out. I paced along the edges, until I found the stone walkway that led to the exit. A wave of my hand and a twitch of some innate power resummoned the door; I left it closed and headed back to the cabin. Inside, I sat down again and organized my thoughts. Firstly, I turned my attention to the pneuma I''d gathered from killing the¡­ what had the Voice called them? "Queen Snow Moths"? It swirled in my chest, knotting together in a vivid ball of life. A lot of it had been absorbed by my battered and bruised physique, but there was enough left to use. It had been a while since I gathered this much pneuma; smuggling paid well, but it wasn''t exactly rife with monster-slaughter. Part of why I''d chosen it, really. "Voice, visual, basic status."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Edmon Valli
Smuggler
Attributes
Strength: Passable
Constitution: Tough
Dexterity: Rough
Intelligence: Sharp
Wisdom: Sly
Charisma: Nondescript
Statistics
Health: Stable
Stamina: Recovering
Magic: Acclimating
Active Title:
Knight of Metzli
I touched the last one.
Knight of Metzli
Lord of the Sanctum of Metzli.
Hmmm. I pondered that for a moment, looking around. If my title and my Sanctuary were tied together, and my title changed based on what I did¡­ I shelved the idea for later investigation, and returned to the pneuma. I studied my status for a while, trying to make my decisions. I had magic now, which was new. My stamina should recover naturally, given time. My health as well, especially since my body had absorbed a fair amount of pneuma already. The real choice was¡­ should I channel this energy into an attribute, or into my magic stat? Status improvements were an excellent way to power up fast, but quickly hit diminishing returns if the corresponding attribute wasn''t raised. Attribute gain, however, was a long and slow process. I tended to dump into Constitution, personally; I had enough strength to deal with my daily life, enough dexterity I could tie knots for sailing, enough intelligence to manage my books as a trader, enough wisdom to know when to fight or flee, and as for charisma¡­ in my line of work, no-one cared what you looked like, as long as you were fast on the draw and your gold was yellow. Constitution, however, meant I didn''t get sick, I could work hard on four hours of sleep, and I might even live a few years longer. Who wouldn''t dump into Con? The real question was, though¡­ what was my magic at? If I could raise it easily, I needed to pump it up. But if the stat was at or near my cap¡­ throwing all this energy into it would be a waste. Still, it''s not like I had much choice. I had to experiment with magic sometime, unless I happed across a mage on this island. I brushed away my doubts and began. My magic was easy to find. It glowed in my head like a warm coal, a light pressure just behind my eyes. It had been a long, long time since I generated a stat¡­ I think I''d gotten my first class at six? I couldn''t recall what ''health'' or ''stamina'' had felt like when they first appeared, but feeling magic for the first time was interesting. I touched the pneuma with a gentle thought. It unspooled at my guiding, a warm thread of power that curled up my spine, rising high into my head and slowly wrapping around my magic. For a moment I tasted honey and blackberries, and then, with a flash, they melded together. After the rush, I felt¡­ better, I guess? I frowned, uncertain, than sighed. Getting used to new skills and abilities didn''t happen overnight. As long as I kept using my magic, I''d eventually get a handle on how it worked. At least it felt like it had gone up, which was a good sign; as long as I could tell it was increasing, I probably hadn''t wasted the pneuma. I stood, stretched, and considered my next options. I gathered the incarnated guns on the table, and looked at them. Three pistols. Three pistols absolutely identical to the one that was probably still at the bottom of the lagoon, a thaumic-steel handcannon with an extended magazine. I''d had it custom made by one of the best gunsmiths in Lavaille, and it had burned up a considerable chunk of my - then very large - total liquid capital. It was absolutely a beautiful gun, and one that I''d relied on for years. I''d have been sad to lose it¡­ but now I had three. I sorted the magazines, too. Three of them, exactly the same, down to the gunsmiths'' inscription on the bottom. I wondered what sort of a stir this would make if I put them up on the market. I picked up one of the spent shells and examined it. The brass was blackened, but if I had bullets and powder and primers and tools, I could reload it. Or¡­ I waved my hand, and thought incarnate. A half-dozen loaded bullets fell to the table in front of me. "Ooof." The drain was much less drastic than creating a whole pistol had been. Still, this obviously wasn''t a light-weight ability, and I probably shouldn''t be throwing it around as much as I did. My magic would recharge over time¡­ Right? Suddenly, I was unsure. How did magic recharge? I''d always assumed it was like stamina, where it just returned with some rest. Was it more like health, that took food and sleep and days of peace? I''d seen magic potions before; the mages I''d worked with in the past guzzled the things. Why would they do that if magic simply came back on its own? I frowned. Once again, I had no real idea what my new limits were. That being said, I had no real options here. I needed a weapon to defend myself, and if I didn''t make it like this, I really had no other way to do it. No, well, I probably did, I just didn''t know what that was yet. Blergh. I brushed the thoughts aside, and stripped down the pistols. None of them seemed to have taken any severe damage during the fight, so I put one of them back together, and loaded my half-dozen shells in the magazine. Alright, weapon secured. Onto experiment two. This one needed to be done outside. Pistol in hand, I walked back to the exit, and slipped out the door. I raised a hand, concentrated on an image, and¡ª Whoosh. ¡ªSpun around when something landed in the mouth of the cave. For a moment I saw yellow eyes, wide in shock, long, shapely legs, and a glittering crown of horns. I had a split second to realize this island was, in fact, a wyrmhaunt, before I chose the only logical response to being accosted by a draconian¡ª I opened fire. 4 - A negotiation, an inspection, and a meal. They ricochetted, of course. The point really wasn''t to kill her. But faced with a pouncing draconian, force was the only choice. Showing weakness meant death. Three rounds between the eyes, neat as you please, and all they did was leave dull streaks of lead on her scales¡ª And she was at my throat. "Warning, you are being invaded¡ª" I slammed into the wall, hard, her cool fingers on my neck the only thing keeping me from bouncing. "Hurghk," I said, trying for eloquence, and jammed the pistol up under the soft scales on her chin. Draconians have exquisite dangersense. She froze. I didn''t pull the trigger. "Glurk," I said. Her fingers slowly loosened. "Thank¡ª" I coughed. "Thank you. Sorry about that, really. Any chance¡­" I wiggled my neck, and her grip slackened some more. I carefully pulled my gun back, and she lowered her arm. She stepped back, and I let my gun sag, pointing at the floor. "You are not prey." Her voice was cool and smooth, like a snake on the forest floor. "I''m glad we''ve established that." I stepped forwards, wincing at the new bruises I''d gathered in our lightning negotiation, and she stepped further back. She was short for a draconian, a little shorter than me. She had amber scales with ash mottling, the sort of fallen-leaves pattern I''d seen on boas and such, running up and down her arms. Her clothes were leather, but meticulously cut and trimmed; almost tailored. Her eyes were shockingly yellow, and her wings fanned off her shoulders in leathery folds. A pair of horns, yellow as old ivory, twisted around her temples like a crown. She was staring at my gun. "A weapon?" Her eyes tracked my movements as I carefully tucked the pistol back into my belt, wishing I had a proper holster but not willing to spend magic on one. "Indeed." I hesitated. "It shoots metal pellets." She touched her forehead, fingers coming away gray with powdered metal. "Impressive." "Thank you." We stood in awkward silence for a long moment. "I apologize." She put her arms at her sides and made a short bow. "No, no, it''s fine." I waved her off. "You were hunting, that''s how it goes." Antagonizing her would get me nowhere. I had her respect as an adversary, now, and as long as I kept it, she was unlikely to try pouncing on me again. It was difficult to make friends with a draconian, but as long as they didn''t think you were weak, it was possible. "You are¡­ not worldborn?" "Ah. Um." I blinked at the question, "No, I''m¡­ not a monster. I''m human. We''re more like a type of animal." I touched my chest. "No core." Her brows furrowed in confusion at that. "Animal, but not prey." "Strange, I know." I shrugged. "We do hear the Voice of the World, in our own way. Although it''s not the same as for you¡ª or so I''ve been told." "Curious." She looked me up and down. "Never seen a ''human'' before." "Ah, well." I gave a bitter grin. "I suppose it was too much to hope." Looked like this really was a deserted island after all. "Came with the storm?" She glanced over her shoulder, looking into the sky. "Yeah, it smashed my ship and threw me ashore." I gave her a long glance. "You might see the wreckage in the lagoon." She nodded. Silence. "Well, uh¡­" I shuffled awkwardly. "You have traveled far?" Her question caught me off guard; more with the sudden wistfulness of her tone than the actual content. For a moment, I saw curiosity, yearning, and innocence in her face. "¡­Yeah." "Tell me?" And for a moment, it seemed her scales and horns and wings fell away and she was just another lonely person, curious about the wonders that lay outside their town, yearning to go and see, caught by the same wandering itch that caught me when I was twelve and catapulted me out of the backwoods and into the depths of Lavaille''s underworld. "¡­Certainly." I nodded. "But, I''m going to need food. I have no idea what I can eat in this jungle, and I''m not sure I''m even strong enough to leave this cave yet." "I can bring you food." "Then I''ll be happy to tell you stories." I gave a firm nod. She returned the nod and immediately spun and dove from the cliff. Her wings snapped out behind her, and I felt the air move as her innate magic snatched her aloft on the rising thermals. "For repelling an invading monster with diplomacy, you gain experience in your job Lord of the Land." I let out a shaky breath as she vanished, and shook my head. I needed¡­ I glanced around at the tiny cave and sighed. Something. Better defenses, for certain. More territory, maybe? Would placing a mark farther out give me more warning? The Voice of the World had tried to warn me... right as her fingers closed on my neck. Thankfully I had some idea how to deal with draconians, so I hadn''t tried to de-escalate without a show of force. Still, I''d have liked more than a split-second to prepare. I pushed the matter aside. I''d come out here to experiment, and despite the interruption, I still intended to do so. "Incarnate." I focused my mind, pulling up a memory. The Voice had sad ''Lepidoptera cryogenica has been added to your Archive.'' If I could truly create anything in there, then hopefully¡­If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Ow ow ow!" The magic ripped from my body in an icy storm, leaving me shivering and cold. I wobbled against the wall, feeling nearly as spent as I had yesterday, after incarnating three pistols. A headache set in with fierce vigor, and I groaned at the sudden stabbing pain. My power swirled together, curling in the air before me. As I watched, a speck of light coalesced in the middle of the flows, growing rapidly in size as it absorbed the power around it. I waited until it began solidifying, the wings taking shape like frost creeping across glass, and put the second half of my plan into action. I shoved one hand into the middle of that ball of magic and yelled "Mark!" This time, the rush of power was less distracting. It still hurt, but I didn''t go woozy. I felt cautiously for the bead of magic in my head. It was there, but it was thin and soft. I didn''t have much magic left, but it must have recharged some last night while I slept. Unfortunately, I still had very little idea what my capacity was, how much any of these skills cost, or how long I''d take to fully recharge. "Need to learn my limits." I rubbed my head while both skills finished. The swirling light coalesced completely, forming a single small butterfly, maybe the size of my hand, with an ornate ring of glyphs traced across its wings. "Congratulations on creating your first dominion-bound monster." "By acquiring a subordinate, your title changes from Knight of Metzli to Chieftain of Metzli. Your Sanctum is enhanced, as befits your station." "You may now enter the Road of Dreams. Caveat Emptor!" "You gain experience as a Lord of the Land." Ahah! I knew I''d been on the right track! Mark could claim ''territory and subordinates''. I now had¡­ ¡­What, exactly? I watched the butterfly ¡ª no, wait, moth ¡ª float in lazy circles around the cavern. It didn''t seem bothered by me, but neither did it seem interested. "Guard?" I tried a simple command. Nothing. "Attack?" No response. "Wait?" Nada. "Eh." I shrugged, and turned back to my Sanctum. I had new things to investigate. Stepping back through the door, I immediately noticed that the island had expanded. It hadn''t been particularly tiny before, but it was now easily triple that. The house had grown as well, from a small village hut to a modest countryside manor, with two stories, whitewashed walls, and a walled-in courtyard with a glittering fountain. The ''landing'' area had increased too. Instead of being just a door on a stone path, there was now a paved circle. A new door had also appeared, immediately adjacent to the cave exit. I remembered what the Voice had said about the ''Road of Dreams'', and looked it over. It was nearly the same as the one I''d come in through; a frame of rough timber with a simple oak door, but there was a symbol engraved on it, of a double curve filled with stars. It opened easily. I stood there for a moment, composing myself. The Voice had said ''Caveat Emptor'', an ancient phrase that meant something like ''buyer beware'' and ''all sales final'' mixed together. Was there a market behind here? A store? Some place to barter? I swung it wide, and found... Nothing? It looked like more white void. I frowned and stepped in, and everything changed. It started with a quiet fizzle, like a struck match. A crinkled, glowing line appeared, like fire creeping across paper, which swept across the void like a curtain being lifted, replacing the bright flatness with dark depths. A narrow, round room appeared, the floor paved in stone and the walls lit with flickering crystals. A ledge curved along the wall with four wooden stands resting atop it, each with a velvet pennon and holding a curio. Maybe it was some sort of store. I walked over to the nearest stand. It was a mahogany lectern, holding a thin folio bound in birchwood with an illegible name scrawled across the cover. "Assess." As a Trader, I had some idea how to buy carefully. "This is journal of the former Prince of Metzli. It contains his reflections on the Dominion, the Heart, the Sanctum, and the Convocation. It may represent Wisdom, Knowledge, Memory, or Tradition." Hum. Convocation? That was new. And there had been a Prince before me? Very interesting. This sure looked useful. I reached out to touch the book, but stopped. I didn''t know what the buyer needed to ''beware'' yet, but... I should probably finish looking first. I moved on to the next. It was a teak box as long as my arm, and inside, a ring of blue steel rested on a jewelers mandrel. Assess. "This is the False Ring of Gyges, an ancient artifact of monstrous power. It grants the active ability Time Walk, but shatters after a single use. It may represent Regret, Vengeance, Betrayal or Forethought." I gaped. Then I shoved my hands in my pockets and seized the lining, forcibly quelling my impulse to snatch it up. Ancient artifact? Time walk!? Even with just one use, a time-based ability should be beyond broken. I''d heard stories about them, but I''d never expected to actually see one. Even without knowing what the ring did, I was certain the ''monstrous'' in the description wasn''t just for show. "N-next." I tore my eyes away and moved on. At first, the third looked like a sword on a stand, pommel up and blade down, unadorned, made from a strange, dull orange metal. Closer inspection, however, revealed that the blade had no edge and the tip had no point. Assess. "This is the Glorfyn Mace, a potent weapon that deals extra damage against those with fear-based abilities. It grants the skill ''composure'' at the level ''phlegmatic''. It may represent Victory, Patience, Sovereignty, or Rest." A skill, huh? I''d never heard of ''composure'', but I''d never studied classes extensively. Skills were always useful, and a calm and collected mindset helped in just about everything, but I didn''t particularly think the extra damage against fear-based abilities would help me much. Besides, I liked my pistols. It was odd, though. Assess was giving me a lot more information than I''d have expected. It was a fairly mediocre ability by itself, even though I''d trained it to some extent. The descriptions I was getting, though, were moderately complete. Usually, the best I could hope for was one or two useful words. Most days, if it could distinguish gems from paste or pick good wine from sour I''d be happy. Here, I was getting a veritable synopsis. Not to mention these ''it may represent'' bits. That was entirely out-of-the-norm. Was it some sort of ''dominion lord'' thing, or was it a property of this¡­ Road of Dreams shop-thing? I frowned and pulled out my pistol. "Assess." "Edmon Valli''s pistol. Crafted from thaumic steel by the master gunsmith Vash Kilen. A finely crafted, reliable and potent weapon." That was a lot, but it was also all information I''d already known. I''d forgotten the name of the gunsmith, though. Interestingly, it didn''t tell me it was a copy. I looked at the countertop. "Assess." "A rosewood countertop." And that''s more what I expected from Assess; it could roughly refine my knowledge and guesses. I''d known it was a wooden countertop. I''d thought it was mahogany, but it''s not like rosewood was a huge jump. I shook my head, and moved on to the last curio. It was a crystal vial, twisted and gnarled, resting in crumpled linen and filled with glassy teardrops tinged with ash. Assess. "These are the Tears of Tonalzinti. Consuming them grants the statistic Spirit. They may represent Union, Balance, Fertility, or Fire." A stat? From a consumable? Intriguing. But I''d never heard of Spirit before. That wasn''t really surprising, given that most stats were a bear to generate, but more than that¡­ I didn''t have any skills that used Spirit. While Spirit might be wildly useful, if it needed skills I''d find it absolutely pointless. With my exploration done, I walked back to the center of the room and started pacing in small circles, trying to think. Was this place a shop? Could I¡­ should I try and take something? What was the cost? Could I pay it? Would there be consequences if I couldn''t? Caveat Emptor suggested the possibility was there, but it also suggested some sort of trap. Which, to be honest, I wasn''t particularly thrilled about. On the other hand, each and every one of these things was fantastically powerful in their own way. And the Road of Dreams, whatever it was, was connected to my Sanctum. It obviously tied into this whole Lord of the Land thing, which was endlessly intriguing and potentially my best bet for surviving on this island. I frowned. Chances were, making a choice here was the simplest ''next step'' in my class development, like how Incarnate had followed Mark, which had in turn followed Incarnate. If so, the downsides and the upsides ought to weigh out fairly¡­ fairly. The Voice of the World wasn''t big on straight-up screwing people over. Human civilization was built on that fact, and the monsters flourished because of it as well. That being said, there were obviously other ways to advance my class. I hadn''t even tested out Summon yet, and I''d like to try claiming more territory. Maybe I should¡ª "Warning, you are being invaded." "Ah, shit." I spun and dashed for the door. "Subordinates have been mobilized to repel invaders." I skidded out of the ''shop'' and dashed into the crevice. "All subordinates have been defeated." I watched, bemused, as two white butterfly¡ª moth wings floated to the ground. The draconian I''d met a few hours ago gave me a puzzled look, one arm filled with colorful plants and leaves, the other raised, claws bared. "I have brought you food." She grinned. "Thanks." I smiled weakly. "I think." 5 - A tale, an expansion, and a project begins. "So." The draconian held out an armful of fruit to me. "Eat?" "Uh, sure." I kicked a few rocks aside and sat down on the stone. She unceremoniously dumped her gatherings in front of me, and plopped down as well. I selected something recognizable, a plump mango, and began awkwardly peeling it. "What would you like to hear?" "Name?" "Ah, yes. I''m Edmon Valli." I wiped my hand awkwardly on my shirt and held it out to her. She stared at it for a moment. "It''s a greeting," I explained. "Clasping hands." She reached out hesitantly and wrapped her fingers around mine. Her scales were cool and dry, but her grip was strong. I gently shook her hand. "I am Ankh Algon." She crossed her arms and gave me a serious nod. "Tell me about where you came from." "Where I''m from." I mused for a moment. "Well, that''s a bit complicated, so how about I start with where I set sail¡­?" Two months ago, I left the floating city of Armada. It''s made from hundreds of boats, anchored in the shallows of the Sanretto Sea, and it''s owned and run by pirates. It just so happened that I''d made a, um, questionable deal with one of these pirates, someone who stupidly thought they could double-cross me and hang me out to dry. I didn''t take too kindly to that, so I betrayed him first." I grinned. "Unfortunately, that meant I needed to get out of Armada pretty fast, which is surprisingly difficult in a city that''s basically made out of boats¡­" I let the story unroll slowly as I finished the mango and poked through the rest of the fruit. I''d eaten a few bananas, a couple of lychee, and was just starting into a pineapple by the time I''d finished the yarn, wrapping up with my sail set, a cache of ivory and gems tucked into a cleverly disguised container belowdecks, and a stiff wind at my back. "¡­and I was able to outrun the rest easily enough. My Eigengrau is one of the fastest ships out there, despite being no more than twenty feet prow-to-stern." I looked up as I finished my slice of pineapple. Ankh had sat in silence the whole time, listening intently. "Thank you." She stood, and gave another half-bow. "May I come again?" "If you like." I nodded. "But, um, please be careful." I gave a pensive frown. "I don''t really want a lot of draconians visiting me, so I''d appreciate it if you came alone, and didn''t mention that I was here." She nodded. "Then, later?" I waved. "¡­Later." She waved back, awkwardly, then spun and dived off the cliff. "Haaaah." I finished the pineapple slice slowly, and rubbed my eyes. I guess that was dealt with, for now? I really hoped she didn''t go tell everyone about me. Even putting aside that draconians were difficult to get along with at the best of times, the last thing I needed was anyone with even a hint of greed or ambition prying into my business. Ankh seemed like a straightforward person, and trying to outright drive her away would likely be counterproductive¡­ besides. I looked at the pile of fruit. I could use her help. Still, I hoped she could keep her mouth shut. I finished up by licking my fingers. Then I gathered up the fruit I hadn''t eaten, and carried it into Sanctuary. The house was noticeably larger now. Stepping in through the high double doors, I found myself in a long gallery, lit by tall windows and ending in sweeping stairs. I took a side door and found myself in what looked like a kitchen, where I piled the fruit. On my way back out, I washed my hands in the fountain and drank my fill. I was glad I didn''t need to worry about clean water, at least. Still, I''d like some sort of meat. I made my way to the cave entrance, and cautiously peered out. The volcano''s caldera was still choked with ash. At the bottom, a dull red glow reminded me that this really wasn''t the safest place I''d ever been. I leaned out and grabbed a handhold, before gingerly leaving the cleft and climbing upwards at a careful pace. When I finally crawled over the edge of the cliff, the sight of the island was a wonderful thing. My first breath of clean air, warm and damp from the jungle with just a hint of salt tang, washed away the weariness of the climb and refreshed my soul. I sighed deeply, stretched, and found a boulder to sit against. And then, for at least an hour, I simply sat and gazed out to sea. As I did, my mind cleared and tension I hadn''t even realized I''d had melted out of my body. I''d really hit rock-bottom yesterday, facing down those damn Snow Moths. I''d scrabbled my way through, but sitting here in the tropical sunlight, feeling the breeze on my face, reminded me why I''d fought tooth and nail for survival. There were a lot of good things in life, and although I''d definitely tasted some of them, I wasn''t ready to give up yet.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. When I stood, I felt noticeably stronger. Curious, I checked my Magic, concentrating on where it slept, right behind my eyes. "Huh." It felt fuller. Status, Magic. "Your magic level is moderate." That hour in the sun had done more for recharging my magic power than a night''s sleep and a good meal. Interesting. That was good, though. I''d come up here to continue experimenting with my abilities. Firstly, I concentrated on the surrounding area. "Mark!" Again, the magic spread out in a rush. As the ability expanded, I felt my magic reserves dropping sharply. Yesterday, I''d thought this ability took less magic than Incarnate, but as the area I was claiming rushed outwards, the consumption jumped up and up. After a moment, I forcibly pulled back on the boundary, trying to keep the ability from draining all of my newly acquired magic. I limited it to a blob that was about fifty feet across, running along the edge of the cliff and down the mountain a short ways. The expansion slowed, and then stopped. "The territory you are trying to Mark has already been claimed." Uh-oh. "Defeat or subjugate the current owners to assert your dominance." I immediately hopped onto the boulder I''d been sitting against before and scanned the area. This situation wasn''t exactly unexpected, but I thought I''d picked an empty piece of land. I concentrated, and a filled magazine dropped into my hand, wiping out the last of the magic I''d carefully preserved. I swapped it for the nearly-empty one in my pistol, and took up a firing stance. Aaaaaand¡­ nothing. I frowned and scanned the area again, more carefully. This time, a slight movement caught my eye. I focused and saw a rock that was crawling oh-so-slowly across the rubble. Huh. I picked up a stick and walked over. A quick poke upended the thing, and I saw it was a hermit crab the size of my fist, lodged into a piece of pumice. Did this thing count as a monster? I frowned, and watched it work to laboriously right itself. As soon as it did, I picked it up and heaved it down the mountain. "Territory claimed!" I grinned. The magic coalesced into a new Mark, smaller and less ornate than my first one, clearing the rubble off a small area and settling into the stone. "You have expanded your dominion. You have repelled invasions peacefully and by force. You have created subordinate monsters and watched them die for you. Your experience as a Lord of the Land increases your level from ''inexperienced'' to ''raw''. The Heart of Metzli begins to acknowledge you. Your control over your domain deepens." Interesting. I sat back down and fished around in my breast pocket, pulling out the handkerchief I''d folded the Heart up in. Tipping it out on my palm, I took a good look at it for the first time under the brilliant tropical sun. It glittered like a star, and glowed like the moon on ice. It was easily eight carats, and clear as running water. It was warm to the touch. I rolled it around on my palm, wondering if that acknowledgement had any sort of tangible benefit, but after a moment, I wrapped it up tucked it back into my pocket. But deeper control over my domain, huh? Wonder what that meant. I carefully canvassed my mind and body, feeling for a change. Sure enough, something felt different. It was the same sort of feeling I''d used when I''d called or dismissed the door to the Sanctum. I focused on it, concentrating. Maybe I could¡­ The door blinked into existence, directly over my new Mark. Now we''re getting somewhere! I definitely wasn''t looking forwards to climbing back down that cliff. I let the door disappear again. Now that I could call it to me, I didn''t feel like I needed to keep it out in the open. No-one could get to it, right? Maybe I should test that. I walked down the mountain a bit, scanning the ground. After a few hundred feet, I found a familiar-looking piece of pumice and flipped it over. Sure enough, it was my friend the hermit crab. I picked him up and carried him back into my territory. "You are being invaded!" Man, I needed to figure out some way to make that message stop. There ought to be more to how this dominion thing worked than just rushing out to fight everyone who wandered in. Maybe in areas with less monsters it wasn''t as much of a hassle? Maybe I needed to think about boss monsters, or just make more minions or something. If only I could figure out how the subordinate system worked. Ankh had killed my Snow Moth, but I should make another one. I set the hermit crab down. After a minute, it cautiously uncurled and ambled off. I tried to summon the door. Nothing. Hmm. Well, not exactly unexpected, but a bit annoying. I picked up the hermit crab and wound up my arm, before pitching it straight upwards as hard as I could. After it got about twenty feet up¡ª "You have repelled the invasion!" I summoned the door and slipped through, just as the poor crab began to slow and fall back. "You are being invaded!" Ah, now this was interesting. The door was still there, but when I cracked it open, it opened onto the crevice. No matter how I tried, I couldn''t get it to re-open on top of the cliff. After a few moments of opening and closing the door, I clicked my tongue and resolved myself to make the climb again. At least going up was less nerve-wracking than going down. When I pulled myself over the top of the cliff again, the crab was right next to my Mark, wandering in wobbly circles. I picked him up and studied the small monster. "Mark!" "You have subordinated a monster. Alpine Pagurus (Mountain Hermit) has been added to your Archive." The magic swirled over him, before settling into his scavenged shell in intricate glyphs. I inspected them, wondering. I''d never seen anything like that when I''d been in the Marglades dungeon, but¡­ maybe other people couldn''t see them? I shrugged and pushed the matter aside. I waved my hand, and the door reappeared. So, when I was being invaded I couldn''t summon the door in the affected territory, unless it was my first one. Well, it might be more complicated than that, but that was enough for now. My other discovery was far more intriguing. I could Mark monsters I hadn''t created from Archive. I turned and stared out over the sea of trees, a jungle that I''d personally verified was filled with rare, expensive, and dangerous monsters. A slow smile spread across my face. "Well then." I fingered my pistol. "Not sure if it''ll be useful right away, but¡­ maybe I should start a collection?" 6 - A new job, a walk, and a relic of the past. Collection had begun; I had captured a vicious beast. Not a dangerous beast, mind, but a vicious one. The tiny lizard was no longer than my finger. I cupped it between my hands as I carried it back to my territory. It squirmed and tried to gnaw off my fingers, but its wimpy bites didn''t even sting. I was kind of surprised this tiny thing even qualified as a monster, actually. But ''assess'' had assured me it was, so I probably wasn''t wrong. Well, it was larger than a Crystal Ant, I guess. And even dragons had to start somewhere. I brushed my musing aside as I reached my territory. I had one more experiment I wanted to try before I got serious about exploring the jungle. As I stepped in, I got the expected warning: "You are being invaded!" I stood there, hands cupped, waiting. I watched my hermit crab''s rock. He didn''t move. "Your subordinates are unable to attack." Huh. He didn''t even try. Was it because he was defense-oriented? Or because I was holding the lizard? A moment''s concentration summoned the door. Well, that still worked. I dropped the lizard near the crab. The crab ignored it, and the lizard scooted under a rock and was gone. So there were more complexities to this system than just invasion/not-invasion. Good to know. For now, I was happy enough that Mr. Crab could keep my door open as long as he was in my territory. "A stalemate has been reached." I thought about that as I double-checked my pistol and riffled through my pockets. Was there anything else I needed to check before I began an expedition? I mulled over my stats, and realized I should probably adjust my job. Most people couldn''t just adjust their job on the fly. They either waited for an occupation to form naturally once they were using enough classes, or they went and found an Administrator. I, however, had spent enough time dabbling in business that I picked up the ''Administrator'' class myself. That whole episode of my life had been a bit of a clusterfuck, but, well, it had its uses. "Job Change: Edmon Valli," I said, activating the one ability from Administrator I was actually glad I''d learned.
Edmon Valli
Active classes:
  • Thief
  • Sailor
  • [empty]
Job: Smuggler. For some, crimes does pay! Large bonuses against betrayal and searches. Small bonuses to subterfuge and sailing. Large negatives to reputation and approachability. Small negatives to trustworthiness and conduct.
Oh-hoh, an empty slot! I''d totally forgotten that Lord of the Land bumped me up to nine classes, which meant I could take a third-level job! Just for kicks, I slotted ''Gunner'' into the mix.
Edmon Valli
Active Classes:
  • Thief
  • Sailor
  • Gunner
Job: Pirate. Spit on your palms, hoist the black flag, and start cutting throats. Large bonuses to intimidation, charm, and against mutiny. Small bonuses to cooking, sailing, and critical hits. Large negatives to honor, peaceful negotiation, and thriftiness. Small negatives to personal hygiene, approachability, and peaceful rest. Unencumbered by prosthetics.
Hah. Interesting, but no thanks. Third-level jobs were definitely powerful, but none of the bonuses would help me here, even if none of the negatives would hurt me too much either. The trick to picking a good job was specialization; choose classes that were useful in the moment and synergized well. As long as the situation made use of the jobs strengths and minimized its weaknesses, jobs were very powerful. In the wrong situation, though, the weaknesses would be a huge drag and the strengths wouldn''t help anything. Lesse, clear all this out¡­ alright. First class? I mulled it over for a minute. The first class added to the job would steer the whole thing. For example, if I used Sailor-Gunner-Thief, I''d probably end up with a stealth-spec Marine instead of Pirate. In the end, though, there was one I definitely had to try: Lord of the Land. Secondly, I chose Explorer. It was a class I hadn''t really used a lot recently, but I could definitely use its bonuses when trying to survive a trackless jungle. And for third, I eventually went with Navigator. Explorer would get me out there, but I needed to get back as well. Hopefully the emphasis on travel would keep me safe.
Edmon Valli
Active Classes:
  • Lord of the Land
  • Explorer
  • Navigator
Job: Conquistador. Sometimes, fighting bureaucracy is worse than armies. Large bonuses to survivalist skills, looting, divide-and-conquer. Small bonuses to negotiation, supply chain, and logistics. Large negatives to legitimacy, quarantine, and archeology. Small negatives to efficiency, communication, and honor. Rumors of your exploits give both fame and infamy.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
¡­Eh. Not exactly what I wanted; too much focus on dealing with people and not monsters. Was it treating Lord of the Land like a normal ''ruler'' type class because the only part I''d advanced any amount was the title? Maybe I should cut it¡­ I frowned, and started swapping out classes. After a while, I found a job I liked:
Edmon Valli
Active Classes:
  • Navigator
  • Trader
  • Sailor
Job: Voyageur. There is no life so happy¡­ or exhausting. Large bonuses to carrying capacity, survivalist skills, and dealing in animal commodities. Small bonuses to singing, camping, and portage. Large negatives to fidelity, saving money, and settling down. Small negatives to avoiding overwork, injury resistance, and dealing with paperwork. Promotes a sunny disposition.
This was much better. The positives were more in-line with what I needed, and the negatives would have very little impact on what I was currently doing. As long as I made sure to stay well-rested, I should get a lot of utility out of this Job without having to worry about it dragging me down. I cracked my knuckles and stood, dismissing the screen with a wave and heading for the forest. Collection begin!
"Mark!" "Eciton corundis (Crystal Ant (worker)) added to Archive." Ah, I could Mark creatures outside my territory. Good. ¡­. "Mark!" "Strelitza reginae (Fire-of-heaven flower) added to Archive. And plants, too. Good, good. Well, Archive and Mark didn''t seem to have any restrictions on what they could target; I''d been able to create my pistol, after all, and it was only magical in a very rough sense. ¡­ "Mark!" "Oonops insularis (Goblin Spider) added to Archive." Ick, spiders. Good thing I''d marked it before I realized what it was. "Voice, simple names only, please." ¡­ "Mark!" "Witchmoss added to Archive." ¡­ I was probably three hours hike from my Dominion now, and I''d come to a fairly obvious conclusion: jungle creatures were really good at running away. While I had managed a few good finds, like the Crystal Ant, I wasn''t at all sure they would be useful, except possibly for trading. "Common lowlands banana added to Archive." I paused at that and inspected the half-eaten fruit. I hadn''t even Marked this. But then, Archive was a passive, and I had eaten a few of them earlier. Oh, right, I''d also gotten the Snow Moth from killing a bunch of them. Maybe there were better ways to do this than trying to manually Mark each creature? Not to mention, I was beginning to wonder if Marking a bunch of things outside my territory would have some sort of negative effect on my development. I propped my chin on my palm and considered that for a bit. I was sitting on a mossy boulder, next to a small waterfall. Looking down into the stream, I saw blue fish, as long as my hand, swimming lazily in the pool beneath the pounding flow. Ah, a chance to experiment, and a chance to eat some meat. "Incarnate." A length of twine and a steel hook didn''t take much magic at all. I waited until a not-venomous-looking insect landed next to me, before clapping my hand over it and carefully piercing the hook through its abdomen. Plop. The ripples of the hook were immediately swallowed by the waves from the waterfall. I wound one end of the twine around my finger, and settled in to wait. ¡­ "Assess." "The Azurefin is a weak monster that lives in warm, fast-moving fresh water." Even these were considered monsters? I looked the fish over as I worked the hook out of its lip. I slipped the other end of the twine through a gill, adding it to the six on my stringer. After a few minutes its struggles grew weaker, and I felt a wisp of pneuma coil through my lungs. "Azurefin added to Archive." So, killing things could add them to my Archive. Well, I''d already known that, but now I knew it took about seven. Or did it have to do with the amount of pneuma I gathered from them? Then again, I didn''t get pneuma from bananas. Then again again, I had eaten the bananas. I shook my head and pushed the matter aside. Hopefully things would become clearer as I continued investigating. I stood and stretched, before deciding to head upstream. I''d ford the creek and travel up the mountain until I left the jungle, so I could walk along the edge of the trees to get back to my Dominion. I''d be giving up opportunities to add to my collection, but trekking through the underbrush was hot and dirty work, and I''d had about enough of it for one day. I could grill the fish I''d caught, and search my Sanctum for a proper bed to sleep in. After a few minutes scramble, I found a place where the stream narrowed in a cut between two boulders. I hopped across easily. "You have entered a Marked area." I froze. After a few moments of nothing happening, I slowly scooted over to a nearby tree and stood with my back to it, scanning my surroundings. Nothing seemed any different here than it did on the neutral side of the stream. I cautiously hopped away. "You have left a Marked area." And back. "You have entered a Marked area." And forth. "You have left¡­" I stood on the unclaimed side of the stream, pondering. Then I looked into the opposing jungle and let my eyes unfocus. I tried to spread my perception of the opposite side as wide as possible, trying to encompass the idea of ''over there'' in my thoughts as clearly as I could. "Assess." "The territory of the Prince of Metzli." Oh-ho. In the Road of Dreams, I''d seen a book labeled ''the journal of the former Prince of Metzli.'' So this was his territory? Or rather, his former territory? Interesting. Was this¡­ a dungeon? I frowned at that. I had no idea how dungeons really worked, to be honest. I mean, I know how humans used them, but that''s a far cry from really understanding them. I used fire on a daily basis, but I had no real idea how it worked. A quiet noise pulled my attention back to the jungle. ¡­shhhhhshhhshhhh¡­ At first, I thought it was wind in the treetops. ¡­ShhhhShhhhShhh¡­. But... the air was still. ¡­SHhhSHhhhSHhhh¡­ Suddenly, a flock of birds was startled into the sky somewhere down the mountain, and my eyes went wide as I realized I was hearing something moving. Something big. I needed to leave. Now. "Mark!" I yelled. "Pleaseworkpleaseworkpleasework¡­" "You are unable to Mark this territory." ¡­SHHHHSHHHSHHH¡­ "Fuck!" Too far from my Dominion? Not enough magic? Didn''t matter. I flattened myself against a tree, and tried my very best to look unthreatening. For a moment, I considered running, but dismissed the idea as stupid even before I felt the ground tremble. The noise was nearly on top of me now. It sounded like an avalanche, but it was coming up the mountain. When I saw the monster, I had to clench my fists to stop my knees from shaking. I''d known, in an abstract way, that deep in the monster zones lived Behemoths, Leviathans, and Dragons, kings of land, sea, and sky. I had just really, really hoped I''d never actually see one. It looked something like a snake - if a snake had eyes as tall as me. Its scales were multicolored, a dazzling pattern of blue, green and purple, touched with red. They had gentle fringes at the edges, fuzzing its outline and shredding anything it brushed past. I couldn''t see much of it, comparatively; its gigantic body receded into the gloom of the jungle, quickly cut off from view. It stopped directly in front of me, turning its head to fix one ice-blue eye directly on me. My breastpocket felt scorching hot. "Interesssting." Its voice filled the air. I could feel those silibant words in the pit of my stomach. "I sssee the Heart has been found." Oh, thank goodness. It wanted to talk. 7 - A Behemoth, a ride, and a dagger. "Oh, um, hello." I tried not to quake. "Hello." The - calling it a snake seemed wrong - the monster''s voice had a touch of¡­ amusement in it? "Little Lord. And not even a wyrmling." "Yes, I am human. My name is Edmon Valli." I straightened up and took a few deep breaths, letting some of the adrenaline drain out of my system. It left me a bit wobbly, but as I stamped down on my fight-or-flight instincts, my head began to clear. I gave a firm bow, trying for polite without being obsequious. "I am Coatli." He gave a slow blink, which somehow seemed to mirror my bow. "You have the Heart." It wasn''t a question. I forcibly stopped myself from putting a hand on my pocket, where the Heart seemed determined to burn a hole through the cloth. "Yes." I nodded. "I¡­ have to admit, I sort of stumbled across it. I don''t know anything about it. I''ve gathered that there was a Prince who owned it in the past¡ª" "Cuauhli." "¡ªUh?" "His name was Cuauhli." Coatl huffed gently, steam jetting from his nostrils. "My lord, Prince Cuauhli." "Oh." I waited a moment, but he didn''t say any more. "Yes. I''ve realized I''m not the first to own it, but I had no idea Prince Cuaulhi had left anything behind." For an instant, Coatli''s eyes narrowed, and I wondered if I''d said something wrong. "I''m very sorry for trespassing." "Heh." Definitely amusement this time. Coatli''s snort flattened a small section of the jungle. "Underssstandable. It has been years upon years since his spirit returned to the sky." "How many years are we talking here?" I asked hesitantly. Coatli was obviously no newborn, but I couldn''t help wondering just how ancient this Behemoth was. "Mmm¡­" The monster''s giant eyes went unfocused. "Perhapsss¡­ sixty¡ª" Surprisingly short? "¡ªdecades." Nevermind. "Oh." I tried to put that into perspective. The Petran Empire was four hundred years old. "Wow." "Ssso, what path do you walk, Lord Edmon?" "Er." I thought for a moment, trying to disentangle his intentions, before giving up and just speaking my mind. "Truth be told, I''d really just like to make it off this island alive. I don''t really have grand intentions or huge plans." "Indeed?" Coatli rolled its head, focusing on me more closely. "You plan to leave?" "Given the chance." I shoved my hands in my pockets, and tried to look more certain than I felt. "How intriguing." For a moment, silence fell. "Would you, perhapsss, take me with you?" "Um." For a moment I pictured my tiny Eigengrau, swamped in the coils of this huge Behemoth, and had to suppress a snicker. "I''m not really adverse to the idea, but first, why?" "Hmm." His introspective noise shook the ground. "Boredom, mossstly. This isssland isss sssmall." ¡­I guess for him, it probably was. "Can''t you swim?" I asked carefully. "If I care to." Again, a hint of amusement. "But I am no Leviathan." "Ah." I remembered the fin, circling my boat. "The, uh, other worldborn?" "You can call us monsssters, Edmon. I do not find it ofenssive." I smiled weakly. "But yesss. Even if I knew which direction to go, the Lords of the Deep are challenging, in thisss form." His voice dipped a few octaves, but was still penetrating. "Once, I wasss not so large." "Makes sense." I rubbed my forehead. "I would very much like to help you." His pupil narrowed. "Not out of altruism," I said quickly, raising a hand. "Although I''m not stone hearted. But I would very much like to hear anything you know about the Heart. Whatever you''re willing to tell me about Prince Cuauhli. However, as you are now¡­" I gazed up, and up, and up at his frankly monstrous size. "I don''t think I could, even if I wanted to." "And ssso I ask you again. What isss your path?" "Huh?" I stared at him in incomprehension, until it clicked. That maybe-a-shop had definitely had a strange name. "You mean, the Path of Dreams?" "Mmm." "I¡­ haven''t chosen anything." "Oh, indeed?"The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. "Honestly, I''m not even sure how to choose." I frowned. "There - well, you might know this, but - there are four things to choose from, but I''m not sure how to pick, or what it will cost. So I haven''t made any decisions yet. I was hoping to learn more about the Heart first." "Caution isss wise." He shifted slightly. "Do you know anything about the Path of Dreams? What it is and how it works?" "Little." There was a hint of frustration in his voice now. "Cuauhli had Glass, Divinity, and Sssky before I joined him. By the time I had risen to power, he had acquired Conquessst. Before his fall, he ssseized Ensnare." "Five¡­ no, wait. Seized? Are they not simply for sale?" "We will dissscusss thisss. But now, are you willing to bargain?" For a moment, a crushing, mind-numbing pressure filled the jungle. It shook my gut and nearly turned my knees to water. Never negotiate from a position of weakness, screamed my instincts as a trader. Not that I could do much about it. "Yes," I croaked. "But I can''t help wondering why you would bother." And the pressure was gone, as if it had never existed. "Willing and brave enough. Even better." Coatli''s scales fluffed for a moment. "You have ssseen; I could have taken the Heart the moment I sssensssed it in Cuauhli''sss Domain." "So why didn''t you?" I coughed, trying to bring moisture back to my dry mouth. That was a test? "I have ruled this isssland for nearly sssix hundred yearsss." A ripple-like shrug moved down his bulk. "I would much rather have an comrade. We will forge an alliance. I will give you knowledge, and you will give me adventure. Our ssstrengths will entwine, as brothersss." "That sounds more than fair." Honestly, the best I''d hoped for was a little conversation. But if he wanted a friend, I could think of worse allies to have at my side than a Behemoth. ¡­Well, I could think of better, too. But he was at least polite. "It will be ssso. You must come with me." I stepped back, nearly tripping over a root and thumping into a tree. He fixed me with a piercing stare. "¡­Alright," I said after a moment. I''d be lying if I said I trusted him completely, but he was right in that he could have killed me. Even though he seemed friendly, I was basically at his mercy. "Lead on." "That would be much too ssslow." Coatli said. "I will carry you." "Um?" "Climb." He rolled, inclining his head towards me. I wiped sweaty palms on my pants, and hesitantly grasped his strange serrated scales. They were warm and rough, and I was able to quickly scramble upwards. Before I was more than halfway, though, he started to move. It was slow at first. However, as I reached the top of his head, he surged ahead with a jerk that nearly sent me tumbling. "Careful!" I had no idea if he could hear me over the incredible cacophony of his passage. He flowed downhill, moving like spilled mercury, pouring over boulders and gliding through the trees. Anything he brushed past was shredded to oblivion by his scales, pounded into the ground by the force of his passing. I held on for dear life and tried to stay upright. After a few moments, I found myself almost enjoying the ride. There was a feeling of inevitability to his progress. It was sort of like surfing, or running before a storm; the incredible energy thrusting us forwards crushed aside everything in his path. We descended quickly, the humidity going from thick to choking as he slithered down into the denser jungle nearer the shore. Within minutes, the roar of destroyed plants and shattered rock subsided. I realized we had turned onto a track, beaten flat and worn to stone, that cut through the jungle like a knife. He must have come this way before, and not just once or twice. The trees flashed past, with the occasional splash of color from a startled bird or fleeing creature. ¡­Just what did he eat? My attention was pulled back to the moment as he began to slow. The ground here was entirely flattened, a wide circle of polished stone that centered on an imposing monument. It rose in steps, pushing out of the basalt like it had grown there, reaching easily over the tops of the trees. Coatli turned in his path, slithering carefully around the building until he lay coiled around it in heaps and lumps. He ended with his nose nearly touching the thing. I gingerly loosed my death-grip on his scales as the last noises of his transit echoed off the surrounding jungle. "Well?" His voice rumbled up from beneath my feet. "Enter." I nodded, realized he probably couldn''t see me, and gave a shaky "Alright." I walked down his nose, right between his eyes, and stepped onto the stone pyramid. "You have entered a fallen Sanctum." I paused at that. I''d begun thinking of my Sanctum as¡­ well, not inviolable, perhaps, but definitely secure. The idea that one could exist outside of that flat white void was both intriguing and disconcerting. Was this what happened when a Lord died? Or had it led to his defeat? The interior of the pyramid was dark and opulent. The black stone sucked up the sun, casting the ornate carvings on the walls into shifting shadow. I walked down a wide hall, and found myself in a mausoleum. A lightwell pierced the ceiling, admitting a sunbeam that slashed the darkness and pooled over a gleaming sarcophagus. The features showed a man with strong features, lined with life but untouched by age. He looked¡­ stern, but compassionate. I sort of wished I''d gotten a chance to meet him. I paused, uncertain. "What now?" I mumbled. "The dagger." Coatli''s voice rumbled the stone. "Take it." I moved closer, and sure enough, lying directly in the center of the sunbeam was a glittering black dagger. It was cupped in carved hands, resting atop the coffin. Assess. "This is the dagger of Cuauhli, regalia of a fallen Prince who cherished a crumbling empire. Deals extra damage against ice-aligned creatures. Wielding it grants the ability Shadow Bind. It may represent Royalty, Glass, Growth, or Incision." I reverently lifted it from Cuauhli''s carved grasp. "Mark it!" I murmured the words. I''d expected a flash. I hadn''t also expected a roar of shapeless noise, and feeling like a second skin settling across my body. The pressure wrapped me up, constricting my limbs and pressing against my skull. For a moment, I was consumed with blinding pain. Then it was over and I was left staggered, blinking spots from my eyes. "You have revealed the quality of Growth. That which does not grow, cannot live. Prove your Path upon the land and reap your rewards!" "You have claimed a lordly artifact. Those below you will look up in envy, those above will look down in avarice." "By revealing qualities worthy of royalty, your title changes to Baron of Metzli. Your Sanctum changes to fit your new position." "As a Baron, you are qualified to enter the Crossroads. Stand tall among your peers." "Cuauhli''s vassal Coatli has allied himself with you. Be true to him, and he will respond in kind." "Took you long enough." I turned at the sound of footsteps on stone. The voice was familiar, but when a slender draconian ducked through the door, I was surprised. "Coatli?" "In the flesh." He stepped forwards and clasped my shoulder. "It is good to greet you properly, brother." "¡­Same." I looked him up and down. He had the same green scales, broken by curling patterns of blue and purple, highlighted with touches of red. His horns were ivory-white, curling around his temples like waves, and his wings were curiously ridged. He wore wooden sandals and the pelt of some spotted animal, and a long, flat club hung from his back, edged in jagged black glass. He fixed his ice-blue eyes on me and gave a grin full of needle-sharp teeth. "I have so many questions for you." I clasped his shoulder in return, and we headed for the exit. "We can talk as we walk." He looked up the mountain, towards my Domain. "We will have time." I chuckled bitterly, looking out over the expanse of jungle. "And the trip down was so easy¡­" 8 - A hunt, a lesson, and a hot meal. "So, tell me more about the Path," I murmured to Coatli. "No need to whisper." He flashed me a smile. "Lava Monitors don''t hear particularly well. Just don''t make any sudden movements." We hadn''t actually gotten much conversation done on the trek back to the peak. Despite following the trail he had cut through the forest, it had been a hot and tiring trek. He also hadn''t adapted to the changes in his body immediately, and so we spent most of the walk simply doing our best to keep up a decent pace over rough terrain. Now we were standing just inside the edge of the jungle below the caldera, waiting beside what he assured me was a game trail. We both wanted more for supper than fruit. "The Path, though¡­" He frowned. "When you marked the dagger, what did you acquire?" "I believe the Voice said I ''revealed the quality of Growth''." "Growth¡­" He mused for a moment. "That could be potent." "But what does it mean?" "It is a characteristic of you, and by extension, a characteristic of your domain." His fingers tapped pensively on the hilt of his jagged club. "My understanding is somewhat limited, to be honest. But here''s what gleaned, working for Cuauhli. For each piece of regalia you acquire, some aspect of yourself will be enhanced and made concrete, incorporated into your domain. The strength of that is decided both by what the aspect is, and how deeply it is a part of you. When Cuauhli held the dagger, it was Glass, which he claimed suited him well, as some of his most prized possessions were obsidian. He could shape it directly, and do stranger things." "So Growth will let me¡­ what? Grow huge muscles?" I turned the dagger over in my hands, inspecting it. "Perhaps." He shrugged. "We will have to see. Maybe it will make your monsters age more quickly, or be larger when you create them. Maybe all of that and more, or even odder effects, depending on what Growth means to you. Suffice to say, using it properly will take study." "And how do I use it?" I had already scanned my status screens, and hadn''t found anything new. "You will need a token." He raised one hand, making a ring with his thumb and forefinger. "They are about so big, inscribed with a symbol of some sort. Once you have one, they can be crushed to activate their power. I don''t know how they''re made, though." "Well, it''s a start." "They can also be used to empower your monsters." He looked into the distance. "I was given tokens for Glass, Sky, and Divinity, which is what changed my shape. I lost their powers when you claimed the dagger, which is why I have returned to this form." He gestured to his body. "And since my previous size was mostly from growing in that body, I also lost much of the pneuma I had gathered." He shrugged. "Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained." "True." I mused over that. The Voice hadn''t said anything about tokens, but it was never particularly forthcoming. "Mmm. Can I ask you something that''s a bit¡­ personal, maybe?" "Of course. Although I won''t promise to answer."This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "Fair enough." I mulled it over for a moment, and then asked: "Can you tell me how Cuauhli died?" "Hah." He sighed, but smiled. "I loved Cuauhli, Edmon, but I''ve had six hundred years to come to terms with his death. The sharp edges have long been polished from my memories. Yes. I meant to tell you this anyways." He paused, rubbing his chin and looking into space for long moments. "The regalia," he said, "are incredibly valuable." I nodded. "But," he raised a finger, "As valuable as they may be as weapons or artifacts, they are vastly more valuable for their aspects. Not every hugely magical thing is a regalia, and not every regalia is hugely magical. To Lords of the Land, however, each piece gathered is another step on the Path." "They¡ª we fight." My voice was a little hollow. "No. We fight." He pointed to himself. "Lords do not fight, except in the direst of circumstances, because to do so is to risk their Heart." "But.." I touched my pocket, where the gem lay. "He was betrayed." Coatli''s smile was bitter. "At the end, only I stood beside him. And it was a very, very near thing. But that, I will not tell you about. " We sat in silence a moment. "At least, not today. But yes, Lords do command their creatures to fight. Both against each other, and against the world." "The world?" I furrowed my eyebrows at that. "Anyone who wants to challenge a domain is welcome to." He pointed to the dagger. "That represents Growth. Growth represents you. You claim the land, and prove your qualities to the world. That means the other Lords, but it also means, well, the whole world. If you lose, your quality diminishes. If you win, your quality strengthens." "Hmm." I rubbed my jaw. "I think I''ve done that before, actually." "Oh?" His eyebrows rose. "Yeah. Some, oh, must have been eight years ago, when I was desperate to make my mark on the world, I spearheaded an expedition into what we called a ''dungeon''. I''m pretty sure now, looking back, that it was a domain." "Yes, exactly like that." Coatli nodded. "You went in, you fought, you gathered spoils and pneuma, you returned victorious." "So¡­ the Lord''s aspect diminished?" "Not necessarily." He shook his head. "I don''t know what the aspect you were testing was. For example, if you went up against a monster with the aspect of Sky, say¡­ a cloud raptor. If you tried to defeat it with fire, and failed, the aspect would show its dominance against Fire. If you then tried to shoot it down, and succeeded, the dominance of Piercing might be shown, which would then weaken it¡ª but perhaps not as much as triumphing against Fire would strengthen it. If you fought it with Glass, which is kin to Earth, and thus opposes Sky, even if you killed it, it might show dominance for putting up a hard-fought battle." "That''s sounds¡­ unnecessarily complicated." I frowned. "Don''t worry over it too much." He waved the idea away. "In general, a hard-fought battle will reward your aspects, win or lose, so don''t worry too much about killing challengers. It''s is generally a bad idea anyways, because then they don''t come back." "I always wondered about that," I said. "The dungeon always seemed to have something new to throw at us, but it never outright crushed us. Sure, people died, but there were more survivors than not. And the difficulty increased in fairly measurable steps¡ª along with the spoils." "Of course." He nodded. "Pneuma and materials are a small enough favor for the chance to strengthen your qualities." "¡­I''ll take your word for it." I glanced down at the glass dagger tucked into my belt. I''d have to figure out what these attributes even did before I''d put too much weight on them. "Fair enough." He shrugged. "Between Lords, however, things progress rather differently. Not just the strength of the attributes, but the artifacts themselves can be won or lost." "You said Cuauhli had seized Ensnare, right?" "Right. He mostly avoided fighting other Lords, but apparently some challenges can''t be declined." "¡­That''s worrying." Coatli gave a bitter smile. "Unfortunately, I don''t know the details of that, so¡­" "Eh." I shrugged. "We''ll have to tread carefully." "Indeed. As long¡ª Ah!" His head snapped around, looking towards the volcano. "Later. Here comes supper." I raised my pistol and both of us went stock-still as something moved through the trees. Abstract worries could wait until after I''d had a hot meal. 9 - A lizard, a talk, and a floating city. The Lava Monitor was surprisingly tasty. I''d never eaten lizard before, but that didn''t put me off. It was meat, and Coatli had sliced it thin and fried it hot with a handful of gathered greens. The smell had banished any of my misgivings even before he dropped it onto the table, still sizzling, and we picked it from the pan with our knives and blew on it to cool it. Afterwards, he shoved his chair back and kicked his feet up on the table, picking his teeth with a bone, while I pulled the Heart from my pocket and turned it over in my fingers, watching the eternal sunshine of the white void play across its facets. "Thoughts?" he grunted. "I never really considered myself an ambitious man." I tossed the glowing gem in the air, tumbled it over my knuckles, and made it vanish with a flourish of my hand. "Oh?" "Mmm. I''ve had a chance at it, you know." He didn''t react, and I suddenly felt defensive. "Not that I was any sort of king or noble. But not long after I washed my hands of the Marglades, I ended up in jail. I was charged on pretenses, and convicted by people who thought it was less work than investigating what actually happened. I got off pretty light, to be honest; a few days in the stocks, which left me more bruised and angry than actually injured." I shrugged. "I was younger and more hot-headed then. I took it as a personal affront, which, looking back, was pretty dumb. Sure, it was insulting and painful, but hardly personal. No-one really cared about me, which was, in some ways, even worse." I grimaced. "But it was enough to get me started on a life of crime." I waved my hand, and the gem appeared on my palm. "Afterwards, partly out of pique and partly out of opportunity, I joined some other petty thieves, and we went to work." I looked into the distance. "To be honest, I have a lot of good memories of those days, and those men and women. There''s a real thrill to be had when you''re going up against someone else, matching your skills and wits against their men and guns, and coming out on top was always rewarding - mentally and financially. Thankfully, I never came out seriously behind - not enough to end up at the gibbet, at least." Coatli chuckled. "And here I was, thinking you couldn''t be any more different from Cuauhli." I waved his comment off. "I''m sure he was a great guy. I''m not, by many measures. The thing is, we didn''t stop there. I pulled together more thieves, we diversified into gray-areas like gambling and racketeering and grift, and in five short years I found myself at the apex of a patchwork guild of criminals." I grinned. "It was sort of fun, at first. I had nearly as much power in that city as a minor lord; I had executions of my own, and I levied a tax, of sorts." I patted my gun. "Picked up some worthwhile tools while I was at it." "And then?" Coatli, apparently satisfied with his teeth, moved on to cleaning under his claws. "Then I just¡­ walked out on it." I set the gem on the table and stared at it. "I''m not even sure why. I''d been getting sick of all the backbiting and scheming I had to deal with. Bullets in heads only solve so many problems, you know? I just looked out to sea, and thought ''there has to be something better than this out there''. So I commandeered a boat, and set sail for the sunset. Not long after, I found myself in a another city and realized that, hey, there was money to be made by a man with a small boat who was willing to work around the edges of the law." "And this?" Coatli pointed to the Heart. "Well, that''s the thing." I poked the gem, watched it tumble. "This thing is pretty powerful. And that''s exciting and intriguing. But it comes with boundaries, and I don''t think I even know half of them yet." I frowned. "When I count the cost¡­ I''m not certain I won''t regret it." "Mmm." He clenched the bone toothpick between his teeth and crossed his arms, staring into the distance. "Well, thinking ahead is better than thinking back, but¡­ what do you have waiting for you out there?" "Sunsets." I rubbed my eyes. "The bazars of Cheops, teeming with the scent of spices and cries of peddlers. The red stones of Attica, slicing knife-shadows over burning sand. Dancing girls in Lyban, with eyes like jade and jasmine-scented hair. Irem''s toppled towers, rimed in frost. The wind in my sails, and sea-spray on my face." "Sounds wonderful." He nodded, and his voice went quiet. "And lonely." "Maybe I''d find myself a crew." I let my dreams unfurl, half-built plans that spun through my mind in the dog-watches of the night. "Save up, buy a bigger ship, take on men. If I had more space, I could go legal; buy myself a few port-passes and stop living life on a knife-edge. I could¡ª"Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. "Walk out on all of that someday, when it becomes too much trouble to hold together?" "Ugh." I scrubbed my eyes, trying to sort things through. "You''re right, Edmon. You''re not an ambitious man." He gave me a sharp smile. "You just want excitement, adventure, money, power and comrades¡ª without having to give up any of your freedom, or make friends." "I have friends," I said weakly. "Of course." He nodded. "Which is why you asked them along when you left, right?" My shoulders sank. "Or told them you were leaving?" I shook my head slowly. "You, I think, are someone to hold others at arms-length, a self-contained man." He gave his verdict with a careless wave. "Not that that''s unreasonable, honestly; I won''t judge you. They were criminals. And you wouldn''t have been able to sail across the ocean alone, fight off a swarm of Frost Queens, puzzle your way into using a Heart, climb aboard a Behemoth, or let me into your Sanctuary if you weren''t the sort of person who measured his strength and looked before he leaped - but leaped anyway, when the time came, trusting yourself to carry through." Silence fell for a moment. "The thing is, Edmon¡­ there are some things you just can''t have if you take everything seriously. Sometimes you need to jump in with both feet, and hang the consequences. There are things in life that can''t be had unless you give up on taking them seriously and just take them as they are. I know it''s unreasonable, but¡­" He frowned. "The heroes of yore," he said slowly, "were never reasonable men." "I don''t want to be a hero, though." My voice was quiet. "Well, I''m not saying you should." He leaned back, crossing his arms. "Nor do I think those who simply rush in headfirst should be followed blindly. But for a moment, put aside your fears and doubts. What is it that you truly want?" "I¡­" I rubbed my head. "I want it all." I gave him a weak smile. "Maybe I am too ambitious. I want everything; power and wealth and glory and freedom and adventure and friends and a place to call home." "Are you willing to fight?" He fixed me with his ice-blue gaze. "¡­I think so." "Then," he leaned forwards, palms on the table, "reach out and take it all." "The thing is," I said, picking up the Heart and rolling it around in my palm, "After hearing some of how this thing works, it''s beginning to sound like a gilded cage." I paused. "The question ''who has more freedom: a king or a sailor'' is intrinsically stupid. A sailor is only bound by the horizon, but he''s a slave to the wind. The king, who can steer an entire kingdom, is just as surely a slave to his position; he''s bound by his responsibility as surely as the sailor by his sails. But I know how to sail." I put the Heart down. "And if I''m smashed on the rocks, all I''ve betrayed is my boat. But the further I go here, the more I feel invisible chains wrapping around me." "So break them." I sat and stared down at the Heart. He resumed picking his teeth. Finally, I tucked the gem back into my pocket and stood. "I''m going to bed. Find yourself someplace to sleep." I waved around. "The place is big enough." He nodded.
The next day, after a quick breakfast of cold lizard, I set out to survey my Sanctum. The place had expanded again, becoming even more luxurious. I''d found a half-dozen suites, beds and tables and tall glass windows, before settling myself in the most opulent one. The bed was almost too soft to someone accustomed to a sailor''s hammock, but I''d slept soundly despite that. I toured the premises slowly, not really bothering to familiarize myself with the layout. The place was big, the size of a noble''s manor, and had amenities to match. There was even a wine-cellar, sadly devoid of bottles, and cold-room, which did have ice, despite lacking any noticeable spells to power it. I wandered through the orchard out back, wondering at the fact that peaches and apples and plums were all blossoming and bearing at the same time. Eventually, I found myself back in the kitchen, where Coatli was polishing off the last of the lizard. "Feel any better?" He put down his knife when I took a chair across from him. "A bit." I nodded. A night''s rest had settled some of my churning thoughts. "I''m going to continue." I shrugged. "I don''t know if I can really say I''m committing myself, but¡­ I''m not going to just drop this and run, not yet. And not only because I can''t build a ship to get off this island." I poured myself a glass of water and sipped it. "Sure, there''s a lot of places I''d love to go, things I''d like to see over the horizon. But there''s worthwhile things in here, too." I glanced out at the flat white sky. "Who knows what lies at the end of the Path?" "Good." He nodded approvingly. "But we will leave eventually." "Yes." I nodded in return. "For now, I''ll think of this place as my base of operations, my new home. But I won''t be trapped here." "Excellent." He stood. "Then we should try that door." "My thoughts exactly." I stood as well, and followed him out. The door was standing next to the other two, the entrance to the Path of Dreams and the exit of the Sanctum. It, once again, looked like a simple oak slab framed in rough timber. "The crossroad, right?" I asked. "No, Crossroads." He turned the handle and swung it wide. "It''s a village." I stepped through, and stopped. "Woah. More a city, I''d say." He followed me, and paused as well. "¡­this place has changed." In front of us was more colorless void, but in it floated numerous islands, chunks of stone and dirt covered in grass and trees, topped with houses, towers, walls and gates. Soaring bridges linked them, arching through the air like spiderweb where they connected one piece to another. I saw flashes of color as people of all shapes and sizes moved across them, with carts and palanquins and odder contraptions. I could hear distant voices, and even what sounded like the din of a marketplace. "¡­I''m glad I saw this." I shoved my hands in pockets and grinned. "As good as Irem?" Coatli grinned back. "Mmmmaybe." I shrugged, and turned towards the bridge. "Let''s take a closer look." 10 - A city, a coffee, and an ultimatum. Crossroads was incredible. Sure, I''d expected big things from the moment the door appeared, but still. This was¡­ really something else. Coatli and I strolled across the bridges, dodging pedestrians and riders of all shapes and sizes. There was no rhyme or reason to them, either; I saw all the monster species I''d ever met before here, Draconians, Innismen, Arachni, Mantids, and more. There were Petari, like crude dolls of crumbling sand, and Gaieans, rippling along in waves of motile wood. Orchs, with their huge green bodies and delicate buds, and Rhyme, like wisps of cloud plucked from the sky and lit by rolling fire. They all jostled and streamed through the flowing streets, splitting and joining at intersections and scattering or gathering when we passed in and out of courtyards and colonnades. And more than just the populous, the city itself was amazing. There were architectures from a dozen different archetypes, here the black granite of the far north, there limestone, covered in moss, ziggurats jutting skywards next to delicate soap-bubble domes and rippling brick walls. It all mixed together into a wonderful m¨¦lange, exciting my senses and throwing me back into a blur of days in new ports, the first steps into an unknown country. It was elegant, in a crumpled sort of way, and it all sang of opportunity. "So¡­" I fumbled for words, after I''d soaked in enough of the jumble and mess for my sea-loneliness to fade, and I could stop gawking. "What is this place? Who are these people? Also, we''re being tailed." Coatli and I were pacing down a shady street. On one side, the white void dropped into the distance, on the other, walls of trees rose overhead, broad leaves arching over the street and dappling it with shifting sunshine. "I know. They''re monsters from other Dominons." He shrugged. "Back in my day, basically only the lieutenants¡ª" "Dungeon Bosses?" "¡ªsounds right, or higher, had access to this place." He glanced around. The rush had flowed to a trickle here, as we slowly moved away from the hustle and bustle, looking for the outskirts. "Either that''s been relaxed somewhat, or a lot more Hearts have turned up." "This is¡­ money?" I poured a few glittering tokens on my palm and held them out to him. "Why, you little thief!" His eyes danced from my palm to the leather pouch I held, then flicked from the cut strings to my face. He grinned. "Careful with that, now." "Still got the touch." I whirled my hand, and the tokens disappeared. I held my pursed fingers towards him, and he stretched out a palm; I let them jingle into his grasp. He examined them a moment. "Looks like archives." He tossed one into his jaws, and snapped it down with a crunch. A flicker of actinic brilliance arced through his teeth, and he nodded. "Yeah, they''re archives. Little bits of power. You''ll be able to make them from pneuma when your skill gets past ''New''. Unless it already is?" "No." I frowned. "I''ve only archived a dozen or so living things, although there''s objects I can pull from memory. Do you think we can spend these somewhere?" "Won''t hurt to look. Back in the day, this was mostly outposts and palisades. I guess the expansion was natural, but damn." Coatli glanced around. "This is pretty amazing. Coffee." He grabbed my wrist. "Huh?" "It''s been six hundred years! I smell coffee." We wandered our way through the boulevards and byways, eventually ending up at a stone shack with tables sprinkled around the front. I slumped against a wall and watched the passers-by as he haggled, eventually coming back with two tall ceramic mugs, steaming hot, and few less tokens.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Looks like they''re rated by how much pneuma goes in them." He spilled the change on the table, where I poked at it. "Interesting." I picked one up, and raised it to my lips, before pausing. "You just¡­?" "Bite it." I dropped it on my tongue and rolled it between my molars, finishing it with a satisfying crunch. I felt a flash of warmth, and a peppery tingle that faded quickly. "Hmm." A trickle of pneuma, maybe what I''d gotten for killing a single butterfly, curled through my chest. "Neat." I licked my lips. "We''ll need more of those." For a moment, we sat and savored our drinks. "So," I said eventually, "do we have a plan?" I waved at the city. "My instincts say to burrow in and find the underground - because of course there''s an underground - and figure out who runs this place and how and why." "Could work." He tapped his mug absent-mindedly, his long claws pinging off the ceramic. "The thing is¡­" I hesitated. "I''m getting an odd feeling from this crowd." "Mmm?" he looked around, and as he did, I felt sidelong glances slide off me as the other customers and passersby pretended they hadn''t been peeking. "That''s¡­ The whole time?" "Yeah." I nodded. "They stay a little away from me, too, unless the crowd presses in." I lowered my voice. "Made cutting that purse a bit of a trick." "Braggart," he smirked, but his eyes darted past me. "I can tell you why." I turned, slowly. "Oh?" Standing behind me was¡­ Well, at first-glance she looked like an Innisman, what with the slate scales and the loose bodywrap. But she had hair, and I didn''t see any webbing on her fingers. The gills were obvious, though. She was all curves and poise, but with enough heft I figured she could pick me up with one blue arm. She strolled over nonchalantly. "Mind if I join you?" "Go for it." I waved her towards a seat, and she took it. "So?" "It''s because you''re human." She rested her chin on one hand and fixed me with a lidded stare, eyes poison-yellow slits under long lashes. I glanced at Coatli. He gave a miniscule shrug. "And you are?" I arched an eyebrow. "Besides the person who''s been tailing us for the past hour," Coatli rumbled. Her eyes widened slightly at that. "Call me Nepenthe," she drawled. "Alright, Nepenthe," I drawled back. "What are you selling?" "Information, if you like. Well, and I thought I''d meet my new neighbors." She grinned, and her teeth were sharp. "I remember you as being¡­ taller, old snake." She shot Coatli a glance. "It''ll be a bit harder to take down my Leviathans in that form." "We''ll see." Coatli looked distinctly unimpressed. "Again, you are?" I laced my fingers behind my head and leaned back. "You''re no fun." She scowled. "I''m the Lady of a Dominion in the South Seas." She snapped her fingers and a mug of steaming coffee appeared in front of her. "And it just so happens that there''s an annoying little unclaimed island in the middle of my land, that up until just recently was being guarded by one of the strongest Behemoths I''ve ever seen." She pointed to Coatli, then turned to me. "And who are you?" "A new Lord," I replied dryly. "Who just so happened to get lost in the South Seas and end up on an island with a Dominion Heart and one of the strongest Behemoths I''ve ever seen. Edmon Valli. Nice to meet you, neighbor." She nodded politely. "So, are you buying? I can sell you¡­" She raised one hand, and listed off: "A map of Crossroads. How I trailed you. Who you''ll need to watch out for. Why you''re being avoided." "Not much for maps." I shrugged. "You trailed us by having our portal watched. Biggest threat right now? Probably you, not like you''d admit it. What do you want for the last one?" "Your aspect." "Ice." I sipped my coffee. "A higher elemental prime?" Her eyebrows shot up. "I guess." I waved a ''move along'' gesture at her. "You said ''Because I''m human''¡­" "Right." She nodded slowly. "There are no human Lords. Never have been, for nearly six hundred years - well before my time. And very few humans work for Lords." She looked around speculatively. "You might be the only human in Crossroads for quite a while, actually." "And they care?" I quirked an eyebrow and skimmed the passersby, no two alike. "Humans are different." She frowned. "They don''t hear the Voice quite the same way. They call us ''monsters'' and our dominions ''monster zones'', and they hunt, kill, and destroy indiscriminately. And worse, they''re good at it." "Oh. Bigotry. Yawn." I swirled the dregs of my coffee and glanced at Coatli. "You need to ask her anything?" "Nah." "Right." I stood, shoving my chair back. "Before you go, a freebie." She gave me a winning smile. "I would very much like to mark some of that island. But I''ll give you a week''s grace." "Fine, have the last word," I grumbled. "But thanks for the warning." "Later." She waved us off. Coatli fell in beside me, and we headed back towards my Sanctum. "Thoughts?" I pulled out my gun, and compulsively checked it over. "She wanted to see us squirm," he growled. "Disgusting habit." "Yeah." I sighed. "But that cocksure attitude will hold her to her word, I bet. Do we need to claim the whole island?" "At least the coast. That''s the next few days booked." "Hopefully she''s underestimating us." I looked around and smirked. "I love being underestimated." 11 - An overhead view, a stat discussion, and a flying friend. "This¡­ is gonna be annoying." Coatli and I stood atop the caldera, looking down at the island. It was shaped like a crescent moon, pinched in the middle. The north end was wide, with a second smaller peak sloping down towards the ocean. Past that, near the shore, I could see wisps of smoke rising into the air; that must be the draconian village. The southern end dropped off towards the ocean fairly quickly, with much less jungle between the volcano and the water. The west side was narrow and steep, dropping quickly down from the caldera to a rocky beach, but there was a small archipelago out past that, a handful of steep islands topped with greenery. The lagoon opened to the east, enclosing a brilliant circle of sparkling azure ocean. My ship was down there somewhere; I should salvage what I could, when I had the time. All in all, the island wasn''t what I''d consider huge, but it was large enough that trying to mark the whole shore would be difficult. It had been a few hours hike from the beach to the caldera, when Coatli and I had returned from Cuauhli''s fallen Sanctuary, and that had been on the smaller south end - and we''d had a cleared path to follow for most of the way. Still, even just looking at the view made my heart glad. The lush green of the jungle, the deep blue of the ocean, and the scintillating tropical sun made for a pretty picture. "We''re going to have to deal with beasts as we go, I guess." I pointed towards the east. "Should we mark the beach of the lagoon, or should we try and take the reef? If I had my ship¡­" I pondered trying to create some sort of boat with Incarnate. "Do we know where Nepenthe''s dungeon ends?" "Dominion, not dungeon," Coatli corrected. "Dominions are what you call ''monster zones''; they spread out around the actual core of the territory. Dungeons are more like¡­ the actual battlefields, where the marks are. The dungeon you entered, it was in a monster zone, right?" "Yeah. The Marglaves dungeon was in the Marglaves monster zone." I shrugged. "It tended to be fairly low-key; the Dungeon Association did sweeps around the entrance to keep it safe." I thought for a moment. "And once you were in dungeon, it was cut up into fairly obvious sections, I guess. I never really questioned whether you could enter from the back or sides, but there did seem to be some sort of barrier in a few sections." We moved from one mark to another, and the monsters and terrain would change between them. But we can''t really use monster zone borders here, because both the island and the ocean are full of monsters." I shrugged. "Sure." Coatli nodded. "Well, I can''t say for certain, but I''m pretty sure that Nepenthe''s dominion stands at least a few hundred meters off the coast, where the ocean floor starts dropping. That''s about as far out as I would patrol." "Alright, that gives us something to aim for. Do you know if marks need to be contiguous?" I pointed out towards the archipelago. "Sort of." He frowned. "I''m not sure of the specifics, exactly; it is possible to make a mark that''s not directly connected to your current dominion, but there''s some sort of cost involved. With the islands, if you make them big enough, they should overlap. The reef will be a bigger problem, I think." "Hrm." I pondered that, and nodded. "Makes me think¡­ maybe I should try taking an artifact from the Path. Cuahuli''s journal is in there, it might tell me more about marks." "Oh?" His eyebrows went up at that. "Right, the Path. Can we look at that?" "Certainly; follow me." I summoned the door and we stepped back through, then into the Path of Dreams. The rich wood and flickering shadows hadn''t changed at all, and the four artifacts - regalia, maybe - were the same as before. Coatli walked slowly from one to another examining each. He stood for long minutes in front of the journal, before glancing at the ring and mace. When he reached the phial, though, his eyes lit up. "This¡­" He reached towards it, but didn''t touch. "Edmon, what do you know about this?" "Just what Analyze shows me." I walked over to him and inspected the display again. "It says ''These are the Tears of Tonalzinti. Consuming them grants the statistic Spirit. They may represent Union, Balance, Fertility, or Fire.''" "Oh-hoh." He grinned. "Interesting." He rubbed his chin. "So, here are my thoughts." He pointed to the mace. "That one''s the trash pick. It''s powerful, but the specifics don''t match our situation." He pointed to the ring. "That one''s the hidden trump; one use, but that ability¡­ used right, it would be like having a second life." The journal, well, it''s the short-term choice. I don''t know what''s in there, exactly, but I''m sure it would help us figure out how all this works. It''s a safe pick; it would help us avoid traps and plan for the future. But it doesn''t have any abilities, and although a strong start is nothing to be sneezed at, we''re already far behind; doing things the ''right way'' may not be enough." This one, though¡­" He pointed to the phial. "These are seeds from the Sun Tree. Cuahuli had a few, though I don''t know where he got them. He gave them to Raak - another general of his - so I know a little about the Spirit stat." "Huh. Oh! Do you know how the magic stat works, too?" "Some! But first.." He looked me up and down, and nodded. "One of the challenges we''ll face soon is that, although you''re fit for a human, you''re going to have trouble simply keeping up with me hiking through the jungle." I gave an awkward shrug, but he was right. I was an able-bodied seaman; I could climb the rigging and run across the deck all day, but my deck was twenty feet long... and flat. I''d be hard-pressed to march for hours, even if the terrain wasn''t filled with towering trees and choked with tropical underbrush. "Spirit can help with that?" "I believe so." He nodded. "If Health is pneuma''s direct extension of constitution, and Magic is the stat from wisdom, then Spirit is from strength."The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. "Hoh." My eyes went wide at that. Spirit was a prime stat? That was definitely worth considering, then. The difference between people who had the health stat and those who didn''t was night-and-day - although it was exceedingly rare to find someone who hadn''t generated the health stat, they took exponentially more time to recover from wounds than people with it. Two months to recover from a broken wrist? Please. Magic was self-explanatory, as the byword for astounding feats. I''d heard of other stats, but single-attribute ones were rumors at best; I''d heard stories of Psy, for intelligence, and something for dexterity that went by either Knack or Finesse, but I''d never been convinced they actually existed. Secondary stats were more common. Most people had stamina, of course, from strength and constitution. I''d once hired an assassin who had Forethought, from wisdom and intelligence, and talked with an actor who claimed that a stat called Grace, which combined charisma and dexterity, was the basis for his fame. When he was performing he drew attention magnetically and breathed life into every line. As a merchant, I''d been fascinated, but it apparently took him twenty years of wholehearted devotion to his craft to generate it. I''d honestly assumed Spirit was a tertiary or even unlinked stat, which often came from very specific classes or circumstances. I''d met driven people with Zeal, but I lacked their devotion to a cause. Some principled adventurers had the Honor stat, which could be quite strong - but after I got the thief class that was basically out of my reach. "How does it actually work, though?" Stats could be fickle and strange. Health regenerated with food and rest, but Stamina recovered at a fairly constant rate, and Magic¡­ I still didn''t know. I''d been told Forethought needed information and time before it could be used with some skills to suggest paths of action, while Grace increased with practice, but could only be used in those practiced situations, although it didn''t drop afterwards. "That¡­" Coatli hesitated, then shrugged. "I''m not entirely certain. Raak said, if I remember correctly, that it acted something like willpower. When it was used, it didn''t exactly make things easier, but it did make her more able to deal with it. Like how a motivated mage can cast stronger spells than a frightened one, or a weak acrobat is going to have trouble performing certain feats, even if he''s flexible enough." "Willpower, huh?" I pondered that for a moment. "Have you heard the theory that there are hidden attributes?" "No." "Well¡­ When you talked about willpower like that, it made me think. I once put in at distant port called Ephrates. It was far enough out of the way that they didn''t speak common Reman, so I had to use an interpreter there. Anyways, when I tried to hire a porter, I discovered that none of the locals had the Strength stat." "Really?" "Yeah. Apparently they used something that translated roughly as Endurance and Vitality instead of Constitution and Strength. At first I thought it was a translation thing, but the interpreter was quite adamant. Turns out he was there to research the Voice of the World, and he assured me they were distinctly different stats, although they acted fairly similarly. The thing is, for them, Stamina was a prime stat, directly derived from Endurance, while Health was a secondary, from combining Endurance and Vitality." "Strange." "Yeah. And I''ve never hired workers who could carry as much for as long as they did. We marched probably nine hundred pounds of cargo across town, and they never even stopped for a break. One of them had a bandage, though, and he told me he''d been in a fight a week earlier. It took longer than a week for a shallow cut to finish healing! "My interpreter assured me that was normal for them, before telling me his theory. He thought that the way we used pneuma to strengthen ourselves wasn''t the only way to do it, that perhaps the people of Ephrates used a different method, that maybe there were countless facets of the mind and body that could be strengthened and turned into attributes if only we knew how, and that if we knew the right combinations, we could generate stronger and stranger stats." "Intriguing." He frowned. "But are you certain it wasn''t a translation error? I find it near-impossible to believe there could be more than seven basic attributes." "¡­Seven?" I choked out. "Of course." He gave me a blank stare, and counted on his fingers. "Deftness, strength, constitution, beauty, intelligence, wisdom, and flexibility. Surely these seven ideals constitute the foundation of every living thing?" "H-hold on a second." I rubbed my temples, trying to think. "There''s so many things wrong with that, I''m having trouble even coming up with an answer." "¡­You believe differently?" His eyes went sharp. "Of course." I nodded, and counted out my own attributes. "The great circle of power is complete with six links: strength, constitution, dexterity, wisdom, intelligence, and charisma." "Charisma¡­ from charis, grace? What use¡ª what does that even mean?" "Charisma roughly measures how effectively you can make a good impression on people." "But beauty¡­ Ah, I see the difference." He nodded slowly. "There are beautiful people who are easily despised, while another may be ugly, but inspire great friendship." He frowned. "And you say dexterity is an attribute?" "Instead of?" "A stat, of course." He thought for a moment, before unslinging his spiked club and taking a step back. Working quickly, he extracted a dozen of the razor-sharp obsidian shards from the blade, before returning it to his back. He gathered the fragments up, and held them out to me. "Take these, and then toss me three." I complied. As each one came towards him, he flicked them into the air, and in a moment, he was gracefully juggling them overhead. "I practiced this as a youth. I''m deft and flexible, and well-rested, so I should be fine. Toss me the rest." For a moment, I considered the knife-edged things. He wasn''t going to get cut, but if his scales chipped the blades, I wouldn''t be able to replace them for him. Shrugging internally, I tossed them in one after another. "Now this takes some concentration," he said absently, each of the shards circling overhead. "But if I use my dexterity¡­" And the pattern blossomed. There was no other word for it. His hands blurred, and the trajectories evolved from simple arcs to spinning loops to very nearly flat lines, each piece of rock moving so fast I could barely follow them. There seemed to be a greater pattern to the whole as well, no single piece ever retracing the same path, the trails knotting together into a larger pattern. I watched, astounded, but as quickly as it began, it was over. He set the pieces down gently on the counter, one at a time, without so much as scratching the wood. "That''s¡­ incredible." "Dexerity slowly regenerates. Practice makes it more efficient, and concentration can push it up, but it depletes like stamina, although more slowly. And if you''re short on sleep, it will degenerate somewhat." He gazed at me. "I can only imagine what it must be like to never have to worry if your next swing of the sword will be dull." "And yet, I don''t think I''d ever be able to match you, if moved like that in combat." "Hmm." His brow creased, and he considered that. "So¡­ you think that dexterity as a stat is better?" "¡­I have no idea." I frowned. "It seems like you can get more out of it as a stat, but less often." I stood there, staring at the phial for long moments. "Well¡­ Now I want to pick this one, just out of curiosity." "Better think it over some more." Coatli clapped me on the shoulder, and we headed back out. He replaced the shards in his club one-by-one as we stood in the sunshine, looking down over the island. "Where should we start?" I pointed towards the south. "Should we head back to your old stomping grounds? We know the path, at least." "I think I''d better take a look from the air." He gazed upwards. "I wonder if¡­ Oh?" I followed his gaze, and saw a dark shape winging towards us. "Oh, it''s Ankh. I probably should have warned you about her." She dived towards us, wings held close, before flaring them at the last moment and making a graceful landing. "Greetings, Edmon." She gave me a polite nod. "And¡­" "Please call me Coatli." He practically leaped forwards, taking her hand and bowing over it. "And it is a pleasure to meet you, my lady." She smiled back hesitantly as he grinned, slow and wide. ¡­On second thought, maybe she''s the one I should''ve tried to warn. 12 - A boat, a fight for Coatli, and a scare. "It''s good to see you again, Ankh." I stepped forwards and casually pulled Coatli away from her, leaving them both looking slightly disappointed. "We were just about to head down to the sea. What brings you here?" "Food." She shrugged off the simple bag she was carrying, and opened it for me. Inside was a bundle of leaves, still hot from the fire. "For you." I pulled it out and gingerly unwrapped it, discovering a perfectly roasted fish. "Thanks!" I broke it in half, handing a piece to Coatli. We ate in silence for a moment, pulling the steaming flesh apart and nibbling on it. The leaves it had been cooked in gave the meat a savory zest, and it was perfectly tender. I even felt a bit of pneuma filling me; this was a monster, the sort of meal you''d pay good money for in any of the port towns I''d visited. "You could come with us," Coatli said, mouth half-full. "Or with me, at least. I was about to fly around the island, you could show me the sights and stuff." "You sure that''s a good idea?" I frowned at him, but he smiled back. "We could use the help," he retorted. "I''m sure she can fight, which would definitely make marking easier, but¡­" I turned to Ankh, considering. Actually, having a local guide would be all sorts of useful. "Fight for marks?" Coatli gave me a puzzled stare. "What¡­ oh!" His eyes lit up. "You don''t have a war party, do you." "¡­No?" "Tsk." He clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Good thing I''m here for you, man. We need to party up." He made a fist and held it out. "Uh?" I looked down at it. "It''s a greeting, a greeting! Knock your knuckles against mine." I made a fist and tapped it against his. I guess this was like shaking hands? "Coatli has invited you to join his party." "Join," I said. "Ding!" Did¡­ did the Voice of the World just say ''ding''? "Good!" Coatli nodded, grabbed my wrist, and dragged me out past the edge of my marked territory. "Claim this bit, it should be all sorts of easier now." I shot a glance at Ankh, who was watching our proceedings with frank curiosity. Still, I shoved my hands in my pockets, pulled in my concentration, and intoned "Mark." The magic gathered around me, settling into a bulbous shape that ran along the top of the caldera and extended down into the scree field. I braced myself for a rejection message; there was surely at least one monster hiding in the area. However¡­ "The owners of this area are overwhelmed by the power of your group." The magic concluded with a gentle flare, settling into the ground. "Oh-ho." "See?" Coatli grinned, then stepped forwards and lowered his voice. "And I really do think we should parlay with the draconinans." He crossed his arms. "We''re going to have to talk with them eventually, and if we do it from the start, not only can we get their help, they won''t feel like we''ve been going behind their backs or something." "You''re not wrong, but¡­ are you sure they''re safe?" I frowned. "If they decide they want the Heart¡­" "I''m confident, if we approach them on our own terms. Besides, those of my race are proud people. At the very least, you shouldn''t have to worry about being backstabbed." "Because the threat of frontstabbing is so reassuring," I retorted. "Still, I can''t say I''m not interested." I turned to Ankh. "Does anyone in your village have a boat?" "Canoes, yes. With sails. We trade with the waterfolk." That clinched it; we could mark the reef with that. I nodded to Coatli, who grinned at Ankh. "Do you think we could trade for the use of one?" he asked. "Can you take me to your village?" She gave a hesitant nod. "Can you fly far?" "But of course!" Coatli spread his wings, showing off their considerable span. "Wait here, Edmon. Or better yet¡ª" He pointed to the west. "Make your way down the cliff, if you can. I''ll bring a boat around to the beach for you. Lead the way, Ankh." "Yes." She nodded, and sprang into the air. "We will visit my mother." Coatli suddenly seemed a bit less excited as he followed her aloft. I laughed and began picking my way around the caldera. The west edge was steep, but I could probably make my way down if I was careful.
"Urgh." I sat on the sand, holding my bleeding shoulder. About halfway down, I''d been ambushed by a swarm of things that looked a lot like lobsters, but lived in holes in the rock. A volley of gunfire had driven them away, but not before the first one leaped at me and took a chunk out of my bicep. Only fast reflexes and a quick draw had kept me from being swarmed. I''d been more careful after that, assiduously avoiding their burrows once I''d recognized them, but climbing nearly straight down the last fifty feet of steep boulders had been a painful chore. "Edmon!" I looked up at the call. Coatli sliced in over the treetops, coming in so fast his landing kicked up a plume of sand as he skidded to a stop before me. "We got a boat, Ankh is bringing it¡ª Are you alright?" He saw the blood staining my clothes, and looked me over with a worried gaze. "I''ll be fine." I pushed myself up awkwardly and brushed sand off my pants. "Hurts like a bugger, but I¡¯m not left-handed." "We really need to see about getting you an avatar." He frowned. "Anyways¡ª oh, here she is." He pointed out to sea, where a low-profile skiff was veritably flying over the waves. Ankh stood at the back of a sleek white catamaran, wings nearly a blur, moving fast enough to throw spray in her wake. She slowed and stopped, letting the hulls sink back into the water before dropping an anchor overboard and catapulting herself towards us with a flip of her wings. She came in with a graceful glide, and landed adroitly. "We have brought a boat." "Sweet." I moved towards the surf, but Coatli stopped me with a touch. "Let me?" He sprang into the air and hovered overhead, holding out his hand. "¡­Alright." I gingerly reached up with my good arm, and we clasped wrists in a double hold. He lifted me gently, and carried me out past the breakers. "This is an Innisman craft!" I exclaimed, as he set me on deck. The waterfolk built boats that only the best human water-mages could match, but I''d never seen one in person before. I inspected it carefully, trying to take in every detail as they raised the anchor. It had two angular hulls, constructed from what looked like fishbone and covered in pearly palm-sized scales, fit so close they were watertight without pitch. Slender ivory trusses yoked the whole thing together, and supported a deck woven from translucent fiber. A pair of deep rudders hung off the keels, and a footing sat at the front of the deck, just ahead of midship, surrounded by cleats. a mast would mount there easily, but it was currently fitted with what looked like a handlebar. It was constructed entirely from monster parts, and probably worth more than I''d make in a year. As a smuggler, I''d dreamed of boats like this, even if it didn''t really have the cargo space to be practical. And it would attract pirates like flies. If I had one of these, I could make it off the island¡­ if it could outrun the Leviathan. It might even be fast enough. Not the sort of thing I''d want to take into a storm, though. "Alright, let''s get this thing going. Take the tiller, Edmon?" Coatli waved me to the back, before bracing himself against the handlebar. Ankh joined him, and they spread their wings. I flattened myself against the deck to avoid the airstream and grabbed the control bar, holding the rudders straight. They started with a few slow flaps, but as the boat sped up, so did they, actually lifting their feet and flying parallel to the deck. In moments I felt the boat lift as the keels rose in the water, and we accelerated as we began to skim. I''d seen racing skiffs do this in a strong wind, but I was surprised when we kept rising, and kept accelerating. "This thing has waterwings?" I shouted, surprising the draconians. I leaned over the edge, staring down between the deck and the hull; sure enough, slender blades jabbed into the water from the keels, lifting us totally out of the waves. No wonder they''d made it back so fast! Not even the best human water-mages could make something like this. You literally had to breathe water to design one of these. "Turn," Coatli snapped back at me. I looked up, and realized we were headed straight out to sea. I gingerly moved the tiller, and the craft made a graceful arc. Ankh folded her wings and left the driving to Coatli, who could easily maintain our velocity now that we were at speed, and sat down cross-legged next to me, taking the tiller. I surrendered it happily, watching the coast stream by in amazement. I''d never gone this fast on the water. This was the sort of speed I''d expect from a flying mount, like a hippogriff or thunderbird. If it could do this with a sail¡­ "You use these to trade with the waterfolk?" I asked Ankh. Our passage was louder than I was used to, with the susurrus of Coatli''s wings, but still quiet enough to talk comfortably. "Mmm." She surveyed the waves for a moment, before pointing out to sea. "Their city¡­ two days travel that way, in blue water." "Do the sea monsters bother you?" "The waterfolk escort us, at the beginning and end of the rainy season, when the deep-dwellers sleep. We carry black glass and firestone, land-meat and spices, and take both boats - too much cargo to carry on the wing." "What do you get?" "Pearls and deep-fish, glowstone and spices." Interesting. Were the Innismen Nepenthe''s monsters? Would my domain be attacked by fish-people from the deep? I''d heard horror stories about villages wiped out by marauding Innismen; one day full of people, the next empty except for bloodstains. They had no compunctions about eating sapients, and living underwater, rarely bothered to cook their food. The draconians were more than a match for them, though; on land, Innismen might be a challenge to low-level humans, but these islanders could fly. I mentally pushed the draconians value up a notch. An alliance of some sort with them could be of great benefit. Didn''t the Wayland Kingdom have a squad of elite draconian scouts and lancers? ''Aerial superiority'' was a catchphrase for a reason. I put my thoughts aside, though, when I saw smoke rising from the trees ahead. The catamaran - I refused to call this beautiful craft a ''canoe'' - skimmed gracefully around the point, revealing tall houses built from split bamboo and thatched with palm-fronds. The village was bigger than I''d expected; easily half a hundred buildings stood along the crinkled white beach, and I glimpsed more through the trunks of the coconut palms. "Do they know we''re coming?" I asked. We slowed and stopped, sinking back into the water with a splash of spray and a jerk. We drifted into waist-deep water, and I kicked the anchor overboard with a splash.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. "Mother does," Ankh replied. "They''ll know in a second!" Coatli said, giving me a grin. I suddenly felt uneasy. "What are you¡ª No, wait!" I snatched at him, but he was airborne with a blur of wings. "Hey flyboys!" His yell was loud enough to hurt my ears. "Come out and FIGHT!" My eyes went wide as the last word literally burned skywards, his shout coalescing into a rippling billow of flame. It roared into the air, a plume of crackling yellow fire that burned for a second before dissipating. "The hell?" I screamed at him, whipping out my pistol and pointing to towards shore. Already, a half-dozen draconians had popped out of the canopy, wings blurring as they raced for us. "You idiot!" "Cool it, Edmon." His glare was sharp. "I know what I''m doing." He made a fist, and his knuckles popped. "Flyboys need to be impressed, or they''ll never take you seriously." "And you can take them?" I yelled back, but my anger was fading. I looked to Ankh, who nodded and touched her forehead, right where I''d shot her. "Oh yeah." He gave a sharklike grin and unhooked his club. "You go with Ankh, cut us a deal. I''ll take care of this." And with a flip of his wings, he was gone, blurring towards the first challenger like a scaled comet. I saw a flash of wood, and heard a shout. The falling body wasn''t his. "They''ll be okay?" I watched the tumbling draconian splash into the waves, then come up spluttering. "Should be fine." Ankh nodded judiciously. "They''re just playing." "Ahah." I let out a nervous chuckle, remembering that these were, in fact, monsters. Sure, I knew draconians were tough, but maybe I''d never really understood just how different that made them. Still, I wished Coatli had seen fit to mention his plan. "I will carry you." "Huh?" I barely had a moment to be surprised before Ankh hooked her hands under my arms and hoisted me aloft, skimming just above the waves. "Ouch! Easy there!" "Oh!" Her eyes went wide as my wound opened and started bleeding again. "Sorry, sorry!" She set me down on the sand a moment later, watching nervously as I summoned another clean bandage and wrapped it tightly around the old one. "It''s fine," I grunted, pushing aside my annoyance. She probably wasn''t used to people who could be seriously hurt by leaping rock-lobsters or whatever. I watched Coatli bat another fighter out of the air with an almost contemptuous backhand. He pivoted gracefully around his club, wings rippling. He''d removed the spikes at some point. I hadn''t noticed that on the trip. "You were taking me to meet your mother?" "Mmm." She gave an apologetic bow and turned. "Please, follow." I walked behind her as she moved into the trees. There were no footpaths here. We passed cottages, mottled with beautiful combinations of dark and bright bamboo like their inhabitants scales. There were a few people around, flitting through openings that had been cut in the palms, standing on balconies and conversing, or looking curiously out windows. Here or there I saw small gardens, neatly edged with stones, and people cooking over open fires. It was mostly teens and children. Shouldn''t there be more adults than the ones fighting Coatli? Were they out hunting? Eventually, we wound our way through the houses until we were nearly at the edge of the forest. Ankh led me up to a house that looked basically the same as the rest, except the door was covered with a curtain of twine strung with seashells, and bundles of herbs were drying in the gaps of the woven walls. She parted the curtain and waved me through. "Hello?" I stepped into a small room, furnished with driftwood chairs and a low stone table. Tropical sun, diluted by palm-shadows, glowed through empty windowframes. "Coming!" A voice drifted out the back, high and sweet, followed moments later by a draconian with very nearly the same autumn-leaf scales and ivory horns as Ankh. There was wisdom gathered in the creases around her smile, though, and she was half a head taller than me. "Oh, hello." She stopped when she saw me, and her smile grew brighter. Her eyes were sea-green, and twinkled with delight. "You are¡­ Lord Edmon, right? Coatli¡ª" the word had a strange inflection, almost reverence, "¡ªspoke of you. Welcome to my home." She spread her wingtips, and made a small curtsey. "Thank you for inviting me." I bowed back. "Just Edmon is fine, please." I smiled, trying not to show my sudden apprehension. Just how much had Coatli divulged? We needed to have a talk about communication, apparently. "Of course, of course. Ankh, would you bring us something to drink? Please, Edmon, sit." She waved me to a chair, and I gingerly seated myself. The driftwood was more comfortable than I expected, smooth and cool. The breeze from the window hit my face, and the heat of the day melted off me. This was nice. "Thank you, miss¡­?" "Jejune," she supplied, as Ankh came back with wooden cups and a corked gourd. She poured something bright blue into the cups, and stepped back out the door. I took a sip, and grinned. I had no idea what the stuff was, but it was tart and sweet and just a little fizzy. I held out my hand and concentrated, summoning a half-dozen glittering chunks. "Ice?" "¡­Thank you." Jejune plucked three from my palm and dropped them into her drink. I tipped the rest into mine. We sat in silence a moment, enjoying the shade and the breeze. Outside, I heard a distant yell, and shook my head. "Sounds like fun." Jejune cocked an ear towards the window. "I''d like to be out there myself. But." She clasped her hands in her lap and fixed her gaze on me. "We need to talk." "Right." I straightened up and set my drink down. "Er, can you speak for the village?" "I should hope so." She nodded. "I am the chief, and I can lick any three of them in a fair fight." I hid my surprise at that, but remembered Coatli''s burst of flame. Skills were not easily quantified. "Alright, good. I want¡­ an agreement. Or an alliance. Or something." I sighed, and rubbed my eyes. I didn''t like having to make the first offer in an negotiation I''d jumped into blind, but we needed to have some basis for bargaining. "As you said, I''m a Lord. What did Coatli tell you about that?" "Mmm." She looked into her cup, and thought. "Well, he said you have the Heart. It might not have meant much to Ankh, but¡­ my mother''s mother knew Cuahuli." "Really¡­" "We have longer lives than humans." She nodded. "And long memories. You have the Heart, and you want the land." She sighed. "The tales call humans dishonest, greedy, animals; but Cuahuli was good to us. He rescued us, actually. We haven''t lived here forever; our home was on a coast far to the east, where we fought the Orchs just to scrape by. In my grandmother''s seventieth year, the rains were longer than before, and the plants grew bigger; we fought and fought, burned the jungle and scattered what salt we had on the soil, but they sprouted in droves, too much for us to face. At that time, someone came in over the ocean." She stood, and pulled a book from a nearby shelf. It was bound in wood, and the pages were loose monster-skin sheaves, but she flicked through them with familiarity. Finding the one, she pulled it out and held it up. On it was a person wearing loose robes, with six insectile wings spread around them like a sunburst. The details were vague, but their eyes seemed faceted. One of the Maiy? "She called herself Raak, and seeing our plight, she held the line and we beat back the Orchs. After talking with us, she offered us sanctuary, on the condition that we offer a levy of fighters for her Lord''s battles. The chief was, at first, unwilling to give up his power, but eventually agreed for the survival of the clan." She looked up. "I think they made the right choice, honestly. Metzli has been a bountiful home for us. And although the jungle is ever hungry, it doesn''t pose the same threat as those coordinated, blood-drinking plants." She shuddered. "I can only imagine what a hell the Orchs would make of this place. However." She shut the book with a snap. "These are tales from the past. Once again, a Lord comes. But tell me, Edmon, what can you offer?" "Trade." I''d thought about this a bit on the way here. What exactly could I use to bargain with these people? Ankh''s mention of trade with the Innismen had sparked an idea. "Have you heard of Crossroads?" "The village between lands?" She frowned. "It never seemed very impressive to me in the tales." "It''s grown a bit." I gave a small smile. "It''s more of a city now. I saw all sorts of things there; metal weapons, glasswork, magic. Would you like a set of steel spears for your men? I can give you access to that. All I want is some help navigating the island. If you want me to keep my territory back from your village, I can do that. I won''t try and restrict you from doing whatever, either. And I''d like to borrow a boat, for a few days." "For that, I can let you use the boat." She nodded. "Coatli said you meant to mark the coast. As for trade, you will demand a tax?" Good question. Just how much was access to Crossroads worth to these people? "We''ll have to discuss that. To be honest, I''d very much like to employ some of your warriors, but¡ª" "¡ªI. Am. Not. PREY!" The shout came from outside, accompanied by a crash and a yelp. Both of us looked to the door. "¡ªI''m not sure what I can offer you," I finished, just as Coatli strode in. His scales were covered in dull scrapes, a few of them even flaking off. I saw a smear of purple blood at the corner of his mouth, but he licked it away with a narrow, forked tongue. "Immortality," he said. "What?" I watched as he strode in, bowed to Jejune, sat down and poured himself a cup of blue fizzy drink. "You can offer them immortality, at least until your death. It is within your remit, as a Lord." Suddenly, I felt annoyance bubbling up inside me. I''d been dragged around all day, sometimes literally, and now this? Now he tells me something so important, in the middle of a negotiation, of all times? What thefuck. How many other things was he simply failing to mention, like that ''come and fight me'' he''d been planning? And of course he''d planned it; if not since he heard about the village, at least since he''d fetched the boat! "That would have been nice to know beforehand!" I tried to keep my cool, feeling Jejune''s gaze on me, but as the words tumbled out, I felt myself losing my grip. "Coatli, we are going to have a serious discussion about coordinating." I spat the words at him. "You''ve been acting like a loose cannon all day, and I''m getting fucking sick of it. Shape up! Is this how you treat your friends? Is this how you acted under Cuahuli? No wonder¡ª" His eyes flashed in anger for a second, and I cut the words off, setting my mouth in a firm line. "No, some of it''s my fault," I bit out. "I didn''t sit down and insist on a plan, and I should have. But still." He stared at me and drew in a deep, slow breath, sitting totally still. The tension swirled around us, until he let out a long sigh and nodded to me. "I apologize." He pressed his palms together and held them before his face. "I do tend to jump into things, and we do hardly know each other yet. We needed to act, and¡­ I didn''t give you the support you required from me. In the first place, I failed to consider how little you might know about draconians." He looked into the distance. "And in the second; it''s no excuse, but¡­ Even new Lords, when I met them in the past, were generals or such; people who had worked closely with domains and monsters. You have not, and it was my oversight." "Haaaah." I rubbed my eyes. "Thank you. We''ll have to have a discussion about teamwork later. I can''t argue with your results, but I can''t order you around; if you don''t cooperate with me, we''re allies in name only." "¡­You''re not wrong." He nodded, then grinned weakly. "Are we good?" "We''re good." I nodded back. "Sorry for losing my cool." "Apology accepted." He waved it away. "Strong feelings require strong words. But now," he swigged from his cup and turned to Jejune, "let me tell you why there is never a shortage of worldborn willing to work for a Lord." "Immortality, you say." She nodded slowly. "There were tales of it, but I hardly credited them. Warriors who were struck down, rising the next day." "There are, of course, limitations." Coatli raised his fingers. "One, only a few people can receive this, especially as Edmon''s power is still growing. I would like a half-dozen of your warriors to work with us, to guard Edmon. Two, this is a power primarily used in battles between Lords; although you can use it to hunt in the jungle¡ª" Jejune''s eyes widened at that, "¡ªdoing so will incur a cost, both on the one revived, and on Edmon. Third, the ones blessed will also be bound; they will have to fight and die for us, if we need them to. But they will also grow strong; stronger than anything you have ever seen. Except for that one time you flew over the south end of the island and caught me napping." He grinned. "¡­That strong?" "That strong. We''ll also need to mark the land in your village." Jejune looked at me. I shrugged. "This will take some thought." She tapped her jaw. "Your offer is enticing, and I believe it''s valid. But I would like to see a demonstration." "Um?" I looked at Coatli, but he simply looked puzzled. Jejune rose and stepped into the other room, coming back with a box made from a coconut shell, bound in twine. She carefully unwrapped it, lifting the top off and pulling out a ball of fluff, which she sorted through until she uncovered a monster core. It was the size of a pebble, and it looked like clear water with sparks of blue dancing in it. I''d never seen a core like that, but it was immediately obvious from the crenellations. This was a monster''s heart, the thing that separated them from humans. "This is a keepsake of my grandmother. She said, that if any of us ever found the Heart, they should be given this." She set the core on the table. Coatli picked it up and inspected it, and I saw his eyes widen. "You need to mark this," he demanded, thrusting it at me. I looked down, but didn''t take it from his hand. "You''re doing it again," I shot back. He had just said that reviving monsters would cost me. What was he pulling me into now? None of the sudden intensity faded from his gaze, but he slowly nodded. "Right, sorry. You need to mark the core, than incarnate her. You''ll be unable to use magic or gather pneuma for two days, your stats may be weakened for a day, and¡­ it''s probably going to hurt. A lot. But¡­" He licked his lips, looking down at the core. "You''ll gain another ally." "Like you?" I asked. Another of Cuahuli''s generals? "Not really." He snorted in amusement. "No, not really like me at all. But she is good, and kind. Her name is Yse." "¡­alright." I gingerly took the core. Coatli was a bit of a hothead, and tended to rush into things, but¡­ in the end, I trusted him and liked him. If he said this was a good idea, it was probably a good idea. I might have problems with how he acted at times, but he''d done nothing to hurt me and a lot to help. Besides, she was his friend. "Mark." The magic glowed around the core for a moment. "Because of this core''s previous connection to your Heart, its memories are preserved. Boss monster Yse has been added to your archive." "The skill Archive has ranked up, from ''new'' to ''rough''. You can now access a tome of information." "By gaining an experienced subordinate, your class Lord of the Land grows stronger." I paused, thinking over what I''d just heard. Tome sounded interesting¡­ But there was more to do. "Incarnate!" Coatli was right, it did hurt. It felt like when I''d picked up the dagger; a blinding flash, a searing pain, leaving me woozy and with spots on my vision. I staggered, and realized my stamina and magic and even my health had plummeted, but stopped before they reached halfway. My arm started bleeding again, and Jejune had to catch me so I didn''t fall. "You have incarnated a Boss Monster outside of your domain. Because of your quality of ''Growth'', the penalties are reduced." The power swirled around the core in my hand, solidifying on it like snow. It grew from the size of a pebble to the size of an apple, before starting to take shape. Eyes appeared, and a fuzzy body, and eight¡­ hairy¡­ legs¡­ "Spider!" I flung the newly-reformed Yse across the room as I scrabbled backwards. Coatli dived for her, wings flaring as he snatched her out of the air. I landed on my ass, scooting back until I hit the wall. "That was totally unnecessary," said a quiet, papery voice. I groaned. Spiders. It just had to be spiders. 13 - A smoke, a squad, and a re-mark. "Well, that was unexpected." Coatli was smirking, his hands cupped together. Jejune was giggling. I sat on the floor and let my heart-rate calm down, covering my face with my hands and letting the embarrassment fade. "It''s a phobia, alright?" I pushed myself up awkwardly, wincing as my cut arm brushed the wall. "I stumbled into a spiderweb as a child, and got bit, and¡­ yeah, it''s dumb, but I can''t help it." I took a deep breath. "Sorry, Yse." "Quite understandable." Her voice, coming from between Coatli''s fingers, sounded like rustling pages. "If it helps, I promise not to bite you unless you really need it." "Hah. Very reassuring." But a smile did help. "Can you at least look at her?" Coatli asked. "I think so." I drew in a deep breath. "I was just surprised, is all." "Alright." He slowly opened his hands. Yse was¡­ well, a spider. She was the size of a clenched fist, covered in white fur mottled with blue, and had four visible eyes, two large ones flanked by two slightly smaller ones. She looked a lot more¡­ compact than other spiders I''d seen. Maybe a bit like that one I''d reflexively squished while gathering samples for my archive. As I watched, she bunched her legs up behind her and leaped, zipping from Coatli''s palm to a nearby bookshelf. "So." She hunkered down, rubbing her forelegs over her face and twiddling her feelers. "I will honestly say, I didn''t expect a revival. But here I am! Coatli, it''s good to see you. And you¡­" She turned, fixing me with an iridescent blue-green stare. "You must be the new Lord." "¡­Yes." She''s a friend, not going to bite, not going to jump on me¡­ "I''m Edmon Valli. I have, through a series of coincidences, stumbled across the Heart of Metzli." "Thank you." She spread her legs and bowed, in a strange approximation of a curtsey. "I think we will have much to discuss. But first¡­ I''m positively famished. You don''t happen to have anything to eat, do you? A spare cicada? An ant or three?" "Uh, no." I felt my phobia subside a bit as we talked. The irrational repulsion was still there, an itch on my palms and a tremor at the back of the brain, but weirdly enough, actually talking to a spider - especially a polite one - was helping me calm down. "I''d make you one, but I don''t have much mana left - and I won''t be able to replenish it for a while." "The penalty. Quite. Then, if you''ll excuse me, I''d like to go hunt." She waved towards the window. "Certainly." I nodded. "We''ll wait for you. Be careful out there." "But of course." She bobbed her whole body in something like a nod and leaped again, once to the windowsill and then to a nearby palm, which she promptly scurried up. "So." Coatli turned to Jejune. "Convinced?" "Entirely." Jejune sat back down and picked up her cup. "That was very impressive. The core is definitely required, though?" "Yes, and a mark." Coatli joined her, and waved me over. "It is a failsafe, but not inviolable. Should the core be crushed or stolen¡­ well. In battles between Lords, this can be worked around somewhat, I believe, but in the jungle, you''ll need to take care." "Mmm." She sipped her drink and stared into space. Coatli and I moved back to our chairs and sat down, giving her time to process. "I think," she said, "that we can reach an agreement. With your support, even just better weapons, we could take higher-quality game, expand our hunting grounds, do something about those damn peng living on the lower peak¡­ yes, this could be very good indeed. But¡­ there''s something else I''d like to bring up." She tapped her fingers on the table and turned to me. "Yes?" "Excuse me if this is rude, but¡­ you are going to die eventually, right?" "¡­I assume so." I shrugged. Cuahuli had been vastly more powerful than me, by all rights, and he''d still been deep-sixed. "Mmm. Then¡­ I want your assurance that, after you die, the Heart will go to me." Ah. Long-term planning; my respect for her went up another notch. No wonder she was chief. After all, why bother fighting with me when she could forge a peaceful relationship, and then gather even greater rewards farther down the line? Draconians were known for having lengthy lives, when they didn''t rush headfirst into trouble one too many times. Ankh hadn''t known about humans, but Jejune was obviously more learned; I didn''t know what all was in that book of hers, or what other stories she''d been told, but the fragility of human life was hardly a secret to the monster races. "I don''t think I can promise you that." I frowned. Not that I was entirely opposed to the idea - except for the dying bit - but I wasn''t a fan of blind commitment. "I plan to live as long as I can. And even when I do kick the bucket, it''s not like I know how inheritance really works. After all, the Heart was lost after Cuahuli." She frowned. "That¡ª" "But." I held up a hand. " I''ll do my best to see it done. As long as Coatli and Yse don''t have a problem with it." I glanced at Coatli, who shrugged. "And even if we do figure out how inheritance would work, I can''t promise you anything more than the Heart either - such as Coatli''s or Yse''s help. I don''t even know myself if Yse plans to help me. However, I need something in return as well. If you want a chance at the Heart, I want you to join my group yourself. More as an advisor than a warrior, though." There''s no way I''d promise a legacy to someone I''d never spent time getting to know or influence. "I don''t think I can commit to that." She looked down. "My tribe needs me here. But¡­ how about Ankh?" "Your daughter?" I looked at her, surprised. Coatli had asked for six warriors, which I figured we could work out; even in a small village, there were usually a few people willing to take coin for violence. Offering her own child, though, was something else again. "She is being groomed to replace me. If you keep a spot open for her, I''ll have her join your forces when I feel she''s ready. And if she''s not interested, then I''ll install her here and join you myself." "Hrm." Well, she was at least going to hold off until she knew I was more trustworthy. I rubbed my forehead, but eventually nodded. "That might work." I really would have preferred she join herself, but should had guessed she wouldn''t simply agree. Still, I wanted her knowledge and experience. Getting it directly would have been best, but¡­ well, no good compromise left everyone happy. "Alright, let''s work from there." "Excellent." She reached over and refilled my drink. "Let''s talk details." "Certainly." I picked up the cup, and walked across the room to where a bundle of herbs was drying on the wall. "But first¡­ is this tobacco, by any chance?"
"That¡­ was exhausting." I stepped out of the trees, looking up and down the beach. We had spent several hours hammering out the fine details of our cooperation, making sure that both the village and I understood what our responsibilities and benefits were. It was rewarding, but I was very happy to be done with it. Jejune had even drawn up a simple agreement on a piece of vellum, and we had both signed it. "You alright with taking Jejune up on her offer to sleep here? Heading back to the Sanctuary tonight would be a pain." "Yeah, I don''t mind." Coatli looked up at the sky. "We''d just have to come back anyways, to pick up the squad." "Yeah." I lowered myself onto the sand, looking out over the sea towards the setting sun. Coatli threw himself onto the beach nearby, going from standing to lounging in nothing flat. I pulled out a pouch of rough-cut tobacco and started packing it into a carved pipe, scooting back to lean against a piece of driftwood. I''d asked Jejune for a good smoke as part of our deal, and she had been happy enough to oblige. "Uh, got a light?" Coatli wordlessly picked up a twig and lit it with a spark from his thumb before passing it to me. "That stuff will kill you, you know." Yse''s papery voice came from my left, and I turned to find her sitting on the sand several meters away. "My vitality''s high enough to take it." I held the twig over the tobacco and sucked the flame down into the pipe-bowl. It lit after a few puffs, and I flicked the taper into the sea. "Besides, I allow myself a few vices. What''s the point of life if you can''t enjoy anything?" "True." Yse scuttled a little closer. "Did you have a good hunt?" I took a long draw on my pipe, and smiled. It wasn''t a high-quality smoke by any means, but it was definitely smooth enough to enjoy. "Any problems with your¡­ revival?" "I''m fine." Yse lifted her feet one-by-one, as if checking them over. "It''s been a while since I''ve been so weak, but I can still catch crickets." She rubbed her forelegs over her face. "Well, I guess I''d better fill you in on what''s going on." I blew a smoke ring and watched it dissipate in the evening breeze. "Nah, I covered it while you were negotiating," Coatli said. At my raised eyebrow, he tapped his forehead. "Telepathy. You may not have realized it, but Yse doesn''t really speak. It''s why her voice is so rustle-y." "¡­huh." I looked at the spider again, who raised her forelegs in something like a shrug. "She may not look like much, but Yse is quite the magician." Coatli rolled over and crossed his arms behind his head. "If you want help with your magic, there''s no-one better." "I am curious about that." I frowned. "But first, Yse¡­ will you help me? With my magic, with my domain, with Nepenthe?" "I''m glad you asked." She leaped, landing on a piece of driftwood and turning to look out to sea. "Too many Lords assume that a mark ensures loyalty, or even gratitude. While it might allow you to order around simple monsters, anyone who forgets that thinking creatures can think is in for trouble." I nodded silently. I didn''t really know what marking did, but¡­ well, even if it did affect someone''s mind, I''d still have asked her. Cooperating with your allies was wiser than suppressing them. Besides, she was Coatli''s friend. "But I think I like you. You''re young, but you have potential." She turned to look at me. "Besides, there''s not a whole lot to do on this island. Count me in¡ª as long as you''re willing to do something about that phobia." Her feelers curled inward, and a hint of disgust entered her voice. "You''ll need to get over that if we''re going to work together." "¡­Alright." I nodded, and she inched a little closer to me. "Just don''t¡­ jump on me unexpectedly or something." "Good." She turned back to the sea. "Looks like exciting times ahead! Now, tell me about your magic." "Alright." I chewed on the stem of my pipe, and thought about how little I knew. "Well, I haven''t had it more than a few days¡ª" I ambled through my explanation, puffing slowly on my pipe and watching the tropical sun dip below the horizon. I explained what I''d discovered about my abilities, and just as night began to fall, I explained what had really been bothering me. "¡ªSo the thing is, I really have no idea how to refill my magic." "Ahh." Yse had inched closer as we talked, and she was now just past arms-reach. She was a good listener, making appreciative noises and asking insightful questions. "I''ve seen potions for refilling it, but I have no idea how those even work, much less what would go into making one." "Mhm." She nodded. "Well, it''s nothing actually that complicated. Stamina refills from resting your muscles, and health refills from resting your body. Magic, then, refills from resting your mind." "How do you mean?" I tapped the dottle out of my pipe and ground it into the sand. "Like you''re doing now." Yse waved at the beach. "Find a pleasant place, put your worries aside, and simply relax." "Magic refills by¡­ de-stressing?" I blinked at that. "Basically." She nodded. "Sleep is good, having a pint is good, sitting down and talking with a friend is good. Whatever helps ground you in reality and put your problems aside. Meditation can be useful." "Huh." I nodded. "See? She knows her stuff." Coatli had been quietly building a sand-castle as we talked, and was now cutting delicate crenellations into the towers with a seashell.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "I do, I do." Yse nodded. "And not just magic, either. Coatli said you were planning to travel along the coastline, and mark it piece-by-piece?" "Yeah." I shrugged. "Is there a better way?" "There should be!" She did a cheery little dance. "Coatli, you joined the prince after he had claimed the whole island, but I was with him longer than that. One of the things he did, when he was consolidating his power, was travel around and repair marks that he''d found from the previous Lord." "Oh?" He looked up from his construction. "There''s a few marks still active on the southern end of the island." "Ah, yeah." I nodded. "It''s how you found me, right?" "Yup." He picked up a twig and started engraving delicate curling patterns into the ramparts. "If you can use that¡­ Yse, what''s involved in repairing a mark?" "Well, it''s a bit trickier than just marking new territory." She leaped from her perch, landing atop his castle with a spray of sand. "We would need to actually find the mark, and then replace the runes one-by-one. It will also work on inactive marks, as long as they''re not missing too many runes. It takes longer, but it would also let you grab more land than if you needed to wait for your magic to recharge each time. I found one yesterday, although I couldn''t get close." "That sounds useful," I mumbled, staring out to sea. "Yeah." Coatli shot me a glance. "Useful enough that I''d expect you to be a bit more excited." "Sorry." I rubbed my eyes. "It''s just¡­ I''m not really happy with our situation here." "Well, our options are pretty limited." He shrugged. "I know, but¡­" I frowned. "I don''t want to just sit and wait. I''m not a fan of playing defensively. I want to do more than just try and scrape through whatever Nepenthe plans to throw at us." "Didn''t you say you weren''t ambitious?" He flicked a twig at me, and I caught it out of the air. "I''ve never considered myself ambitious, no." I shrugged, and sifted sand through my fingers. "But I''ve always been fairly aggressive. Just sitting and waiting doesn''t feel right to me." Finding a pebble, I flicked it back at him. He let it bounce off a horn, leaving a tiny crater in his castle walls. "Hmmm." He scooped up Yse and lay back on the sand. "Well, do something about it." "Yeah, maybe I will." I nodded slowly. "Assuming we can hit our goals of marking the coast, at least, I''d like to head back to Crossroads and do a little digging." "Sounds good." He yawned, and stood. "Let''s go see if Jejune has beds for us somewhere." "Yeah." I pushed myself up, and tucked my pipe back into its pouch. "We got a lot done, but it''s been a long day."
The next day dawned bright and early. Ankh led us to a small clearing, where Jejune shared her breakfast with us and introduced Coatli to the six draconians who had volunteered to work with us. They would help us mark the coastline for the next few days, and as long as cooperation on both sides was satisfactory, I would mark them and they would join us as a squad under his command. Currently, he was thrashing them one-by-one in some sort of draconian friendship hazing ritual. I tuned out the sounds of combat, frustrated yells from the recruits and smug laughter from my friend, and tried to focus on my new ability. I mumbled "Tome," and a slim gilded volume dropped into my hands. I settled down in the shade and started to flip through it. The first few pages held the animals and plants I''d marked on my expedition a day or two ago. The Crystal Ant seemed ready to crawl off the page, the witchmoss looked bright and lively, the spider¡­ I flipped past the spider quickly. "Ahem." "Oh, Yse?" I looked up, and found her sitting on a branch not far from me. "It''s weird that I can tell where you''re speaking from, even if you''re not physically talking." "A broadcasted thought affects the brain the same as a spoken voice." She raised a foreleg, as if lecturing. "It even activates the same neurons. But if I use a directed one, I sound like I''m talking directly into your head." Her voice changed, taking on a flatter tone, and losing some of its papery rustle. "Plus, no-one else can hear me." Sure enough, I turned my head as she spoke, and couldn''t tell where the sound was coming from. "How long does that take to learn? It''s how Coatli talked with you yesterday, right?" I glanced at my friend, who was enthusiastically tossing someone into the air - right before he leaped up and kicked them back into the dirt. "If you subvocalize, I can pick it up pretty easily, as long as I''m already talking with you. But actually learning proper telepathy takes quite a while, and you would need to know mental magic, at the very least." "Ah, well." As useful as being able to communicate silently would be, that sounded like too much hassle. "Looking at your archive?" "Yeah." I closed the book and held it up. "I just got this ability yesterday, when I marked you. Speaking of¡­" I opened it again, and quickly flipped through. "Is this your page?" "Er¡­" She looked at the book, then looked to me. "It''s a bit hard to read from here. Can I sit on your shoulder?" "Uh." I closed my eyes for a moment and steeled my resolve, then slowly raised a hand towards her. "Please be gentle." She delicately hopped off her twig, landing on my sleeve. For a long moment, both of us held perfectly still. Then, moving cautiously, she walked up my arm. "Close enough!" I said, before she got close enough to brush my neck. "Fine." She didn''t sound completely satisfied, but she did turn to look at the book. "Now, let me see." I opened to her page again. This one was different from the ones before; instead of a realistic picture, it had a flat illustration, done in shimmering swirls of color. Weirdly enough, it looked less ''real'' but even more alive, as if it had somehow captured the essence of ''Yse'' without resorting to anything so crude as images. It looked like a strange mural of blue and silver, touched with black and icy white, and although I couldn''t make out any distinct shapes or lines, an impression of eyes and legs and silk sprang out at me. Her name was inscribed on top, with the same sort of gold as the cover. Beneath that was a series of arcane symbols, spiky and curling. At first glance they seemed like nonsense, but the longer I looked, the more sense they made. "This means¡­ mental magic?" I touched one that seemed to stand out from the rest. "Yeah, they''re my skills." I nearly jumped when she spoke; I''d been so absorbed in the page, I''d half-forgotten she was sitting on my shirt. "You can probably make out a few of them. As your skill with the archive increases, you''ll be able to see more." "Huh." I turned the page, and found another abstract one. "Oh, you got the dagger." She reached out a leg, as if she wanted to touch the book. "Right, Coatli told me. Growth, he said?" "Yeah." I looked over the illustration, a jagged tangle of reds and blues and blacks. The inscription read ''Cuahuli''s Dagger'', and there was only one symbol underneath it, a spreading palm within a sharp-edged diamond. "Not that I really know what that means." "Of course you do." She giggled quietly. "Growth means whatever growth means - to you." I frowned. Had Coatli mentioned something like that? "So, what does it mean to you?" "Hmm." I furrowed my brows, thinking over the word, trying to pull up associations. "I guess¡­ struggle, somewhat. But also improvement. Like the third day on a job, when things start coming together, and you feel like you''re moving past ''getting along'' and into ''looking ahead''." A memory sparked. "Or stepping out of the rain into a well-lit room, and realizing you won''t be sleeping on the street again anytime soon." I narrowed my eyes, refining the idea further. "Ivy eating weathered stone. Sprouts rising from a felled log. Flowers coming up through cobblestones in spring, little tender green shoots pushing aside tight-fit rock just to reach the sunlight. Something like that?" "There you go." She waved to the page, and when I looked, the angles seemed deeper, the blues and reds sharper, the blacks crisper. "But don''t hold yourself back to just living things. How about¡­ the patter of rain giving way to the crash of a downpour? A breath of wind turning into a gale? A crystal, deep within the earth, turning from a tiny glitter into a gemstone, under each drop of water?" As she spoke, the lines seemed to ooze across the page. "Interesting." I ran a finger over the paper. It felt oily-slick, like wet paint. "But, uh, what does it do?" "Not much, as is." She gave an arachnid shrug. "Passive effects only for now, and you''ll have to stumble across those. I''d like to improve on that, but without anyone to challenge your dungeon, growth of your aspects is going to be slow. But if you keep nurturing it, you can draw out a token." "Ah, like Coatli had." I remembered how huge he''d been. "And as for passive effects, I remember the Voice telling me that the penalty to revive you was lessened because of Growth." "Oh, that''ll be useful. Hey, what''s this?" she asked, as I turned the page. "My pistol." I looked at the illustration. It was neither realistic nor abstract, instead looking like a manufacturers diagram, laid out in crisp white lines in a blue background, each piece carefully set apart and labeled with dimensions. "Well, my pistol disassembled." I un-holstered it and held it up for her. "It''s a ranged weapon, using chemical reactions and expanding gas. Packs a punch." "I see." She looked from the gun to the book, rubbing her feelers together thoughtfully. "Very clever. You''re skilled with it?" "Pretty good." I let myself smirk. "Really pretty good." "That might be just what we need." She turned to look at me, and I tried not to recoil from her beady eyes so close to my face. "When I was out hunting yesterday, I ran across a broken mark. I figured we''d have to wait before claiming it, because it''s been overgrown by a bayonet blob. But if you can make the shot¡­ how do you feel about taking a look at it?" "Sounds like a good opportunity." I stood and snapped the tome shut, willing it to vanish. "Should we take backup?" I jerked a thumb towards Coatli. "We should be fine?" Yse cocked her head in thought, then nodded. "We won''t be going far into the bush." "Aright." I waved to Jejune, who was watching Coatli''s demonstration with a wry grin. When she looked my way, I pointed towards the jungle. She nodded and pushed Ankh towards us as I headed into the trees.
"How much further?" I broke the silence after we had been trekking through the jungle for a good five minutes. Yse led the way, leaping from tree to tree and occasionally pausing to grab a passing snack. I watched her crunch through a beetle the size of my thumb as I carefully forded a stream, hopping from stone to stone. Ankh simply leaped into the air, gliding effortlessly across. "Not far, not far!" Yse dropped the remains of her meal and leaped to Ankh''s shoulder, letting the draconian carry her across. "There''s a clearing not far ahead; you''ve probably seen it, Ankh." "With the prickle-ooze?" "Yup, that''s the one. It''s just¡­ ah, here we are." Ankh pushed a frond aside, and I saw what we were heading for. Both ''prickle-ooze'' and ''bayonet blob'' fit it perfectly. In the opening ahead, under the scorching tropical sun, sat one of the pointiest things I''d ever seen. It looked kinda like green steel spun into candyfloss, a huge lump of feathery tendrils that each ended in a razor sharp point. The whole thing swirled out of the ground in a frozen storm of razors, jingling faintly in the breeze. "Wow." I stopped and stared. "Every time I think I''ve seen the weirdest plant or animal or rock on this island, it throws something new at me." "The jungle is hungry." Ankh''s voice was quiet. "Like fire. Eat or die." "And the mark?" I tried to step forward, but Ankh held me back. "Down there." Yse pointed to the rock underneath, scoured clear of dirt and plants. I could see a few half-gone runes, and part of a dungeon circle. "But best you stay away. Ankh, would you demonstrate?" The draconian picked up a stone and tossed it at the bayonet blob. It flew through the air for a meter or two, but as soon as it passed some invisible line, the whole thing lunged. I jerked backwards, shocked by the ferocity of the motion; it was like a storm of spears, all leaping towards the missile. The¡­ thing¡­ extended to nearly three times its width, turning into an oblong mass of wires, wrapping the rock tightly in blades. I heard a crunch, and a small shower of gravel fell to the ground. "Good grief." As I watched, it slowly retracted, curling back up into its resting position. "I''m surprised you''ve let this thing grow so near your village." "More trouble than they''re worth, once they get this big," Ankh said. "The little ones are nasty, when you can''t see them under the leaves. They''ll take a foot or an arm, so we burn them out. But this one¡­ we stay away. Not worth it." "No kidding." I drew my pistol. "Um, Yse, you figured I could shoot it?" "Yup!" She bounced on Ankh''s shoulder, waving excitedly. "They have a core! If you can hit it, we''ll be able to remake that mark." "So, just, uh¡­" I waved my gun at the thing. "Start shooting?" "No, hold on a minute, let me whip up some fire. Got to get its attention." "I''m¡­ not sure I want its attention." "Smart," she said, "but we''ll be fine. Hmm¡­" She fell silent, and leaped to a nearby rock. As I watched, she waved her legs, tapped her feet, and swirled her feelers in the air. It was sort of adorable, in a creepy way. Moments later, a circle of runes appeared in the air around her, and I felt heat begin to gather on them. "Get ready, Ed, here we go¡­ Spiderrrrrrrr beam!" With a twitch of her legs, she pointed towards the bayonet blob and unleashed a veritable torrent of fire. I whipped my pistol up as the magic sliced into the clearing, a raging column of yellow flame that played across the prickle-ooze, leaving dripping fire in its wake. It was gone in the blink of an eye, but the heat it left was very real. Her target reacted immediately, thrashing and whipping its spikes to and fro in a silent frenzy. As it did, I saw the core; a transparent green teardrop in the very center, with a glistening red lump in the middle. As fast as thought, I leveled my pistol on it and fired. BLAMBLAMBLAM! Sharpshooting kicked in instantly. At this range, the chance I''d miss was nil. The retorts were shockingly loud in the closeness of the jungle, but the leaves ate the echoes, leaving the sound curiously flat. I saw a spray of green hang in the air for a moment, and then the thing screamed. KREEEEEEEEE¡ª "Holy hell!" I threw myself on the ground and covered my ears as spikes exploded out of the clearing, scything down the underbrush and whipping past us. Ankh was standing calmly, letting the projectiles ping off her scales, and Yse had conjured some sort of silken shield for herself. As soon as everything went still, there was a crackle of fire and a whoomph of flame, and I remembered that the thing had been on fire when I shot it. I pushed myself off the ground, watching in awe as fire encompassed the dead bayonet blob in the blink of an eye. Within moments, it was nothing more than a burned-out hulk, wisps of ash floating down from a wiry skeleton. Pneuma flooded into me like a cool breeze, filling my lungs and seeping out into my body in refreshing streams of power. "There!" Yse nodded in satisfaction. "As soon as the core is gone, it burns juuuust fine." "Was that thing actually an ooze?" I brushed myself off as I stared into the clearing. "Yup! They get crazy if they live long enough." Yse jumped to Ankh''s shoulder. "Not many of those little bouncy slimes last very long in the jungle. But if they do¡­ hoo boy. They evolve fast and hard. Should be safe now, let''s go." I held back a moment, keeping my gun up and letting the lady with scale armor go first. Sure, it was dead, but after that, I had a sudden desire to let someone with more experience lead the way when we were in the jungle. Yse leaped down by the dungeon ring, and started clearing off the ash with little sweeps of her legs. I joined her, leaving Ankh to poke around the clearing while we worked. In a few moments, we had uncovered the whole thing. It looked similar to the rings I''d created when marking the caldera, but a little larger; it was obviously unpowered, and several chunks were missing from it. "So, here''s what you need to do." Yse dabbed a leg in the ash and started drawing wiggly little symbols into the ring. "Oh, uh, I forgot. Is your magic back yet?" "Yeah." I''d recovered from the worst of the revival penalty after a few hours. A good night''s sleep had finished up the rest. "I don''t have that much, but I''m full up." "Good, good. Just put your hand over these symbols as we go, and try and push power into them. It''ll probably be a little like marking, but just let the power flow; no need to focus too much on the start or stop, since you''re not actually casting a spell." "Alright." I covered one of the marks with my hand, and tried to follow her instructions. It took a few tries, but after a moment, I raised my hand and found the mark underneath it glowing dimly. I repeated it with the next one, working my way around the ring as Yse moved ahead and drew the runes for me. "How much more?" After a few minutes, I was sweating, and my magic was nearly gone. "Nearly there, nearly there!" Yse waved her forelegs and stepped back. "Just do that last one, and¡ª Oh, there we go!" I touched the last rune, and the circle powered up. The runes brightened in one actinic flash, and then the whole thing gave a ripple and began slowly revolving. It picked up speed for a moment, the glow seeping inwards from the runes until it filled the whole ring, before fading back and settling down again. "Your dominion has increased from ''tiny'' to ''small''. New management options are available." Neat. I flexed my powers, and a door sprang into existence. "Now we''re talking." "Edmon?" I turned to Ankh, who held out something small and red. I took it and lifted it into the light. The crenellations were rough on my palm. "Mark." "Jungle slime variant ''Bayonet blob/prickle-ooze'' added to your archive." Excellent. 14 - A map, a tail, and a door "Welcome to my Sanctuary." I stepped onto the stone landing and waved my draconian squad through. They entered in a loose-knit group, looking around curiously. "Um, Coatli will find you rooms. Don''t go through these doors - " I pointed to the Path and Crossroads portals, " - without permission." "Yes, sir!" The response, unlike their formation, was crisp and unified. I blinked in surprise, but Coatli just smiled and nodded. He led them towards the manor, and I followed behind. The six villagers were a mish-mash visually, their scales ranging from dark ocher to a mottled lavender, their physiques varying from bulky to slim. I''d heard their names, but they hadn''t really stuck; maybe after a few days I''d remember who was who. They all wore leather, and each carried an obsidian-tipped spear. Despite their primitive look, their coordination was sophisticated; as I watched, they surreptitiously surveyed the area and maintained careful watch. "They''re a good start." Yse was again, to my mild discomfort, riding on my shoulder. "They''ve got teamwork, and they''ll obey Coatli." "He seems to know how to motivate them." I looked back at the portals, wondering if I should bar them or something. Deciding against it, I stepped into the manor. "Will we try for another mark today?" Yse leaped to the wall and scurried along beside me, keeping up easily. "I''d love to." I recalled how I''d re-created the runes. "But I''m out of magic, and I don''t know how long I''ll need to recover. Scouting would be good, though, and Coatli might remember where some are. We should also hunt some, or maybe trade for food in Crossroads. I''d also like steel spears, and maybe try to¡ª Oh, that''s new." I stopped at the end of the corridor. Ahead, the manor''s wide central hall ran from the tall, arched windows at one end, to the ostentatious main doors at the other. I wasn''t really sure how to open those, which was why we''d come in a side door. None of that had changed from yesterday. However, there was a new pedestal at the windowed end, sitting in a pool of sunlight. "Your lectern?" Yse turned the corner, moving towards the pedestal in scurries and hops. "Didn''t you have one already? You''ve claimed territory, right?" "Not much." I followed, shoving my hands in my pockets. "When I repaired the mark, my territory went from tiny to small. The Voice said something about ''new management options''. " "Well," Yse landed on the pedestal and crawled across it. "Cuahuli used his for administering his dungeon. Give it a try, maybe?" "My idea exactly." I stepped into the sunlight and looked the thing over. It was a simple slab of slate, raised to chest-height on a wrought-iron stand. I stared at it for a minute. "Um. How?" "I think you need to use the Heart." Yse turned to me, but paused. "Shoulder? Please?" I held out my arm, and she scurried up my sleeve. I fished the Heart of out my breast pocket and looked at it for a moment, before setting it on the lectern. There was a feeling like clearing my ears - but all through my head - and light blossomed over the slab. It started as a swarm of glowing points, but quickly coalescing into two rough shapes, which began rotating slowly. "My¡­ territory?" I frowned. There was a vague resemblence; the first section was a thin crescent, like the caldera lip. The second was much larger, with a ragged edge that reminded me of the coast by the draconian village. "I think it''s a map? Try waving your hands over the slate. Cuahuli could do all sorts of stuff with gestures." "Alright." I made a vague motion, feeling a little foolish. But to my surprise, the lights responded immediately, rotating in response. "Huh, neat." After messing around for a few minutes, I''d basically gotten the hang of it. I could rotate the projection with an open palm, or drag it around with a closed hand. If I used two hands, I could adjust the scale. "Maybe that''s what all this space is for?" I grabbed and moved towards the center of the room. The map followed easily, and I expanded it until it was as tall as me, taking up a sizable chunk of the floor. "What else does this thing do?" I asked Yse, moving back to the lectern. "All sorts of stuff." Yse scurried a small circle on my arm, and I tried not to shiver. "You should be able to see how many monsters you have, and set gates and things." "These probably do something?" A selection of sigils had lit up on the pedestal, glowing in dim earth-tones. "Of course, there''s no manual." I sighed and tapped one. The projection rippled, like drops in a pond, and grew larger. The landscape filled in, dimmer grays growing between the brighter green shapes that marked territory. The topography was rough but it was obviously the rest of the island, showing the whole coastline and archipelago. The area even spread into the ocean, until it hit a blocky boundary, marked in red. "Cool." I could see the same from atop the volcano, but it was still neat. I tapped the next sigil. The projection pulsed once, and nothing happened. I tapped it again. Same. "Maybe that one''s for after you establish your dungeon?" Yse said. "Cuahuli''s map would wobble like that when he re-arranged his connections." "Oh?" I tapped another sigil, and got nothing. "What do you mean by connections?" "Well¡­" Yse tapped a foreleg thoughtfully. "The dungeon is based on your marks, but It''s separate from your domain. I think it''s a different space. I investigated it with Carmine, but we couldn''t unravel exactly how it works. It mirrors the area it''s based on, but if something in the dungeon is broken, the domain isn''t affected. It''s like¡­ a separate instance." "Huh." I rubbed my jaw. "Is that why we couldn''t build proper campsites in the dungeon I explored? Whenever we left, any clearings we''d cut or rocks we''d carried would just¡­ reset." "Probably, yes. Plants are sometimes re-created, but not the monsters; you have to add those separately. You should be able to make areas by linking up marks on this map, but you might need more." "Neat." I tapped another sigil, and this time got something. A handful of glowing blue spots lit up on the map, four bright ones inside my territory, and several dimmer ones outside it.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. "Or maybe you can do it now!" Yse exclaimed. "Those are your marks, right?" "Well, some of them." I closer. "I made these three on the caldera, and this - " I pointed " - is near the draconian village¡­ huh." When I poked at the dot, it had begun glowing. Right, gestures. When I pulled my finger back, the light stuck to the tip, elongating as I moved. I waved my hand and the glow followed, stretching but staying wire-straight. After a moment, I touched another dot. There was a silent pulse and the light stuck, a glowing blue line stretched across the map. "What did I just do?" "I think you set up a dungeon connection." Yse gave an eight-legged shrug. "Try one of the others." This time, when the line appeared, I walked away. After a moment, it faded out. I tried connecting it to one of the dimmer dots outside my territory. No response. I linked two dots at the top of the caldera, creating another bright line. When I touched the center, it wobbled; when I an end, the line came away. I flicked my fingers and it dispersed. "I only watched Cuahuli use this a few times," Yse said quietly. "He would re-arrange the dungeon, but it was always sort of spontaneous, not something we all gathered up for." "Mmm." "I always wanted to know more about the Heart, how it worked, what it''s purpose was, but he wasn''t really interested. He had big dreams, but this¡­ it was a means to an end. A path to walk, not a journey to enjoy." "Why was he so driven?" I asked absently, walking back to the podium and poking a few more sigils. Nothing else responded. "His people." She sighed. "He was the last of a dying dynasty, and he did everything for his people. And they repaid him with..." Her voice turned bitter, and she fell silent. I wasn''t sure how to respond to that, so I walked back to the map. "I guess¡­ these are inactive marks?" I pointed to the dimmer dots on the projection. "I think so." Yse nodded. "If they are, this will be very useful. I hope the rest of the marks are as easy to restore as the one in the village." "¡­Right." I thought of the bayonet blob and gave a dry laugh. "Easy."
"So, are they any good?" We were in Crossroads, sitting at a corner table in a dirty pub. A dozen clay jars, filled with mana potions, were arrayed in front of me. Yse was moving from one to another, testing each in turn. "They''ll work, I guess." She finished her survey and tapped her legs pensively. "I''m not particularly happy with the quality, but they''re not outright toxic. They''ll restore your magic, and as long as you''re careful, you should be fine. If your eyes start itching¡­ you''ve had too much." "Good enough." I re-stoppered the containers. "I told you we could find mana potions here." "It''s not that I didn''t believe you, but wow. Even though Coatli warned me, I''m still adjusting to how much Crossroads has grown." Yse scanned the room. "Wonder what happened." "It has been several hundred years." "Yes, but it feels like last week. Maybe in a couple months it''ll seem more real... But I still think this is a bit extreme, even so." "Most likely someone realized there was money to be made trading, and broke down the old system." I took a sip of my drink and winced. I was wearing a deep hood to hide my humanity. It seemed to be working somewhat. However, the bartender had given me... I had no idea. Some drink a human would never touch. It tasted like equal parts vinegar, honey, and mold; totally vile. But I kept sipping it in a sort of stunned disbelief. A few minutes after each taste, my brain would start doubting my memory. Surely it wasn''t that bad, right? I should taste it again. No, it totally was. "...so..." Yse paced uncertainly. "Yeah?" "We''re done, right? We can go?" "Mmmm..." I packed the mana potions away. Our main goal, potions to claim the island faster, had been found. "We can¡­ but I had another idea too, if you don''t mind." "Does it relate to why we''re in this dive?" Yse waved at our less-than-clean surroundings. "Indirectly, yes." I smiled. "To our left; see the guy with the buckler? I spotted him cutting purses in the market, and followed him here." The thief I''d tailed was vaguely goblinoid, with rough gray skin and drab clothes. He was brazenly counting pneuma tokens from one stolen purse to another, separating coins, rings, and other trinkets into neat piles. "Why?" Yse looked up, cocking her head. "I''m curious who he sells to," I admitted. "Maybe we can make some contacts, get some information. I want to confirm my suspicion about what Crossroads underground scene is about. I haven''t seen any unified peacekeeping force, but that''s not so important as¡ª Oh, he''s leaving." Our mark was re-filling his pockets, tucking bundles into his clothes and tying purses to his belt. He slipped out the back; we followed a moment later. "...Huh?" I looked up and down the street. It was empty. "¡­He cast an invisibility spell." Yse said, waving her feelers through the air. "I''m almost impressed; it was very quiet. Maybe he''s got a good wand. Go left, but don''t hurry." "I know how to tail," I retorted, shoving my hands in my pockets and sauntering after. In the city, blend into the crowd and don''t act ''sneaky''. "Right, right. But also," Yse turned a small circle on my lapel. "I can trace him without being near him. Give him a moment''s lead, so even if he looks back, he won''t see us following." "Oh." I nodded and slowed a bit more. I hadn''t considered how easy it would be for an invisible person to watch for followers. We wound our way through the alleys and byways of Crossroads. Yse directed me at each intersection, and I slipped past pedestrians and between carts, slowly but surely tracing a path into the center of the city. The thief was surprisingly careful. Yse explained how he''d doubled back a few times, circled buildings, and even looped his way through a particularly magical area, and any of those maneuvers would have thrown off a less skilled tracker. "Not that I wasn''t impressed before, but damn." I looked down at her diminutive form. "You''re quite the magician." "We all have our specialties." She preened slightly. "I am a mighty hunter, I''ll have you know." What finally stopped us wasn''t any particular trick; the end of the trail was an entirely mundane guardpost. "And that''s that, I guess." I frowned. Up ahead, two heavily armed insectoids flanked a small arch, spears crossed. The message was clear: no entry. Of course, anyone invisible could have simply ducked through, but¡­ we weren''t. "I don''t feel like fighting or bluffing my way in. Ideas?" "Hmm." Yse thought for a moment. "Well, maybe he came out a again? A different gate?" I looked up and down the street. The zone our target had entered was built from dark wood, flashed with gold, and it stretched for several blocks. I could see a half-dozen gates, all similarly guarded. And that was just this side. "If we snoop too much, the guards will get annoyed." "Well..." She thought some more. "I''ll use a wide-area spell. and check all the doors at once. It''s less accurate, though." "Do it." I moved along, trying to look inconspicuous. "I honestly didn''t expect to spend this long," I muttered. "But now I''m curious. This is too much security for a simple thief." "So maybe he''s not a simple thief," Yse replied absently. She was waving her legs, and I felt a tingle of energy through my coat as she martialed her magics. "Right, yeah, but what is he? Why all the secrecy? If he''s not a cutpurse, what was he actually after in the market? I have a theory, see; Crossroads doesn''t seem to have ''law'' in the way most human cities do. Which is interesting, because it means that there''s not really anything illegal here. Sure, you''ll be in trouble if you''re caught stealing - but that''s because there''s no law against murder, not because guards will haul you away." "Hmm." Yse was obviously distracted, but I continued. "So I wondered, what does Crossroads'' underground actually run on? I haven''t verified it, but I think¡ª" "I''m getting¡­ something." Yse interrupted me, tapping her legs pensively. "Something weird, I''m not sure what. Go that way." We skirted the edge of the wall, staying well clear of the guarded entrances. I paused as we rounded the corner; ahead of us was a gap, one of the places where the city''s ''ground'' gave way to white void. "Move up to the edge." Yse waved me forwards. "It''s there. Let me just¡­" She began another spell. I over and reached out. My fingers skated across an invisible wall, just like the barrier around my own Sanctuary''s island. "Close your eyes a moment." Yse said. I complied, and felt something like silk settle over my face as her spell took hold. "¡­ah?" When I looked again, a winding stair hung in the void, connected to ''land'' by a narrow bridge. Mere inches from my fingers, a stone arch and door blocked the bridge, polished so smooth I couldn''t even feel the joint between the magical barrier and the physical one. On the door was inscribed three words: "All Things Forgotten." "¡­Holy crow." I blinked, then looked down at Yse. "This is invisible to everyone else, right?" "Correct." "I wonder who¡­ how¡­" "Why?" "No, the why is perfectly clear." I shook my head. "I was saying earlier; I think I know what Crossroads'' underground runs on. This is a perfect example." I nodded brushed my fingers across the words on the door. "It''s all about intrigue." 15 - a mugging, an infiltration, and another path I stood and looked at the door for a long moment, then turned and walked back into the street. "I don''t suppose you can make us invisible?" I asked Yse, as I settled myself into a handy corner and pulled my knees to my chest. "¡­No." She scurried across my shoulders, and I repressed a shudder as she brushed my neck. "Not without a full laboratory, some expensive reagents, and three moonless nights." "Pity." I rubbed my hands on the cobblestones, then on my face. I ruffled my hair and doffed my jacket, draping it crosswise against my body, then leaned on the wall. I hadn''t seen many beggars in Crossroads, but they were definitely around; I shouldn''t stand out too much. "I wish I had a proper raggedy cloak. How long will your see-invisible-things spell last?" "It''s called Ethereal Eye." There was a hint of amusement in her voice. "And no more than a half hour." "Alright." I pulled the brim of my cap down over my eyes, and settled in to wait. "I love it when I''m right," I mumbled. Our half-hour was nearly up when the target re-appeared. "Well, it was a straightforward guess." Yse didn''t lower her voice, but it took on the directionless quality that meant only I could hear it. She peeked over my shoulder, watching the goblinoid as he dodged his way down the road. "Invisible thief, invisible door." There wasn''t much traffic here, but since no-one would move out of his way, the invisible goblinoid served wide around each oncoming traveler with exaggerated motions. "Yeah, but still just a guess." I waited until he''d passed, then stood, careful to avoid looking directly at him. "He could have stayed in that enclave. Do you think he actually have business there, or was he just using it to shake pursuers?" "Any business would be something he could do invisible." "True." I headed after, dodging a few pedestrians but easily closing on him. "Hey, you got a sleep spell?" "You want to capture him?" Yse thought for a moment, then hummed assent. "I can put him under - as long as you don''t want to ask questions." "Too risky." I shook my head. "I don''t want him to even know we were here." "Alright. Five seconds, then tell me when." I felt her rustle as her incantation began, her forelegs moving to a half-heard chant, and my skin prickled. After a few breaths, she fell still. "Now," I whispered, stepping up behind the thief. I was surprised when she leaped, landing square atop the target''s head. He jerked - but even as he went for his knife, his motions lost cohesion and he slumped unconcious. Hiding the motion with a stumble, I reached out and grabbed the invisible body. He weighed more than I expected, but I heaved him over a shoulder and staggered off the road, stepping around a handy corner and dropping him. "Now." I dusted my hands off. "What have we got?" "Loot, loot, loot~!" Yse scurried over the body, cutting purses free with her fangs as I rummaged through pockets. Before I''d even gotten halfway, the body vanished; the Ethereal Eye spell had ended. I finished by feel, coming up with a handful of trinkets before gathering the pouches Yse dropped. She looked rather strange, crawling over what seemed like thin air. "How long till he wakes?" I leaned against a wall and started poking through the spoils. "At least an hour." Yse leaped up, landing near - but not too near - my head, before slowly returning to my shoulder. "What did you find?" "Tokens." I hefted a purse, which clinked gently. "A start for my war chest. Rings and stuff, maybe we can barter them? And this looks like.." I cracked open a slim box, and found it wedged full of papers. I skimmed few. "¡­Correspondence? Interesting. And then there''s this." I held up a thin chain, snapped where I''d yanked it off the thief''s neck. "A chain?" "Ah, you''d think that." I smiled. "But there''s something invisible on it." I reached just below the lowest links, and ran my fingers over the unseen object. "It feels like a key." "Nice." Yse pointed towards the invisible door. "It must be for the staircase! Let''s go see." "That''s¡­ a bit risky." I frowned. "We don''t know what''s down there." "And we never will, if we don''t check." She tapped her feet on my shoulder. "What if it''s guarded at the bottom?" I asked. "I''m not keen on walking blind into someone''s secret fortress." "Then I''ll go," she replied. "I''m small and stealthy, and I can take care of myself." "Hrm." I rubbed my chin, pondering. "Are you sure¡ª" "Edmon," she said seriously, "I hunt alone in the jungle, I literally have eyes in the back of my head, and I am a sorceress in my own right. Even if getting in is impossible, I can definitely escape." "¡­Fine." I pulled the key off the chain. "Can you cast Ethereal Eye again? "I was just about to." She moved through the motions quickly, and the door faded into view once more. It took a moment of searching, but I did find the keyhole eventually. Cracking the door failed to set off any alarms, so I let her slip through. "¡­Be careful." "Always." She leaped from to the wall and ran downwards, faster than I''d have thought possible. I guess having eight legs made up for them being short. I carefully closed the door and leaned against the invisible wall. Glancing around, it didn''t look like our actions had drawn much attention; there were enough weird people in this city, I guess dragging invisible bodies around and walking through unseen doors was barely strange enough to draw attention. Settling in for a wait, I pulled out the packet of stolen correspondence and started leafing through it. I was only a few pages in, wondering over the fact that it seemed entirely un-cyphered, when Yse got back to me. "Edmon!" "Mmm?" I looked up, but didn''t see her. "Come on down! The bottom of the stairs are clear, and you have to see this!" "No guards at all?" "This place is huge, there has be more doors¡­ probably too many to guard individually. I bet he was heading further in. Come on!" I tucked the papers back into my pockets and stood. Glancing around to make sure the coast was mostly clear, I slipped through the door myself and headed down. Well, kinda. The stairs were very odd. When I stood at the top, it looked like a simple spiral staircase. However, as I descended, I realized that it had a slight downwards curve. At first, I expected the descent to become steeper, but¡­ after walking for a bit, even though I could clearly see the curvature, it never felt like I was leaning further forwards. It wasn''t until I paused and looked up that I realized what was going on. Crossroads was on its side. The stairs curled around, the delicate spiral bent in a smooth arc from the ''top'' of Crossroads to the ''bottom''. While I walked along them, I never felt like I was turning; some arcane property had kept my frame of reference square with the steps, even as the steps had gradually tipped forwards. Shaking my head in amazement, I wondered if anyone could see me from outside the barrier; and if they did, what they thought. "Yse?" I reached the bottom quickly. There was no door, here, just an empty arch. I stepped out and looked around. The bottom of Crossroads was a striking contrast with the top; it was empty, smelling of dust and cast in shadow. The ground was free of buildings but littered with boulders, rocky hills and islands hanging in the void. Without the bridges, buildings, and beings that gave the top its hustle and bustle it struck me as rather desolate. "Here!" She appeared atop a nearby boulder. "No guards, see?" "Huh." I shook my head. "You''re right, but there''s nothing else, either." "There''s a path, though." She pointed. Sure enough, there was a narrow track worn in the dust. "Can we follow?" "Lets." I held out my wrist, and she scurried up my arm. "But keep your eyes peeled for guards or spells or something. If that thief''s paranoia was any indication, whoever or whatever lives down here does not like being surprised." After tracing the path for a few moments, we found another stair. "You''ve got to be right." I inspected the empty arch as we strolled past; it seemed identical to the one I''d come down through. "If there''s more of these, too many to guard each one, it justifies the thief''s paranoia."A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "I wonder how long this has been here?" Yse mused. "I''m more curious who''s behind it." We walked in silence after that. It was a good hour later when Yse brushed my ear and pointed ahead. "There. A building." "¡­Ah?" I squinted and peered, but it wasn''t until I saw a glint of light - probably flashing off armor - that I understood where she was looking. The distant structure looked like nothing so much as a pile of gravel, rough-fit rocks heaped together into a barely coherent whole. Weathering wouldn''t really be a concern down here, but still; the place was awfully sloppy. It was big, though. If the clear air wasn''t messing with my sense of scale, we were looking at a small castle, or maybe a large keep. I stepped off the path, picking my way through the dust and boulders. Taking care to keep behind cover, I moved slowly towards the building, peering around rocks and over ledges as I tried to gather information about the place. Pretty soon, I couldn''t get any closer without risking being seen from above. Rocks were great cover from the sides, but weren''t nearly spreading or leafy enough to block elevated lines of sight. Since I''d stepped left off the path, I continued around the fort in a clockwise direction. "So¡­ thoughts?" I stopped just before we returned to the path, leaning on a nearby rock and scratching my head. "What are we looking at here?" "Obviously someone''s secret fortress," Yse chirped. "I hope you aren''t going to¡ª" "I am in no hurry to wander in there alone. I can smell the alarm spells from here." She waved her feelers. "Secret fort, huh?" I nodded slowly. "That sounds about right. Gotta say, I''m not sure what I expected when I decided to try making contact with Crossroads underground, but¡ª" I looked around "¡ªI didn''t expect it to be quite so literal." "Hah! What were you expecting?" Yse asked. "Well, some sort of secret society." I shrugged, and started walking again. "See, as I said, this is about intrigue, right? The dungeon lords do - somehow, sometimes - compete. Hearts change hands. People die, creating power vacuums¡­ and the ones who are prepared step up and take their place. This society is, for the most part, anarchy; but knowledge is power, and there''s one particular type of knowledge that people around here would kill for." I unconsciously touched my breast pocket. "Anything that has to do with Regalia or Hearts. Whoever these people are," I nodded at the building, "I''d lay money that they consider themselves kingmakers." I patted the papers we''d stolen. "People who buy and sell thrones - or whatever fragments they can grasp." "How can you guess all that?" Yse asked, doubtful but not outright scoffing. "Well, it is just a guess." I shrugged. "But as far as ''illegal'', that''s basically it. Sure, a thieves guild would probably be reviled, but the higher-ups wouldn''t bring enough pressure to bear that they''d end up this far underground. Same for an assassins guild. Not to mention the whole servants resurrecting thing. When your targets have a good chance of coming back to life angry, assassination starts to look like a difficult career path. As for smuggling¡­" I pondered my previous profession, then smirked. "I''m not sure it even means anything here. As far as I can tell, in Crossroads, if you want it, you can buy it." "So in the end, it has to be spies?" "Yeah." I nodded. "Or some sort of hidden power, that just so happens to have lots of spies." I snorted. "We''ll find out eventually, I guess. Hopefully before it causes too much trouble." I shook my head, but paused when I glimpsed something from the corner of my eye. "Hey, what''s that?" "Hmm?" Yse scurried from one shoulder to another, looking where I pointed. "A door frame?" "Or a portal. Like the Sanctuary doors." I began to move closer, but stopped myself, peering around a boulder to scan the walls of the keep. "I want to check it out, but it''s a bit close." "Oh sure, now you want to investigate strange doors. Fine, let me scout." Yse leaped from my shoulder, jumping from stone to stone until she reached the frame. "I think I see a hidden path," she said, turning back to me. "Move to the right, and stay low." I followed her directions, taking a circuitous route and crawling on my hands and knees. In a few moments, I reached a sort of clearing, if that word applied to a field of boulders. In the center stood what seemed to be a doorframe, with a familiar rough-cut door. This portal, however, had been fitted with a bar and chain, and secured with an intricate padlock. Checking to be sure I wasn''t visible from the castle, I crawled over to the door and stood behind it. "Huh. There''s a plaque here." I inspected the brass plate, covered in dust; it had been nailed directly over where the other doors had sigils and labels. I stared but didn''t touch, trying to read the letters. "I see ''Sealed by agreement of'' - then this spiky swirl - ''All are forbidden to pass. Setting foot upon the Path of Stars'' - that bit''s covered in dust - ''all against one, no mercy, no quarter. This is the will of'' - and that symbol again. Do you recognize it?" She leaped to my shoulder - I barely had to suppress my flinch - and went still. "Yse?" "I do." Her voice was heavy. "That sigil marks a group calling themselves ''The Convocation''." "Hum." The name plucked at a memory, and I recalled Cuahuli''s journal in the Path of Dreams. ''Analyze'' had said it contained his insights on several things; if I remembered correctly, the Convocation had been one. "Who, or what, is that?" "They were an alliance of sorts." Yse sighed. "I don''t know much about who the members were or what their purpose was, but they were continually at odds with Cuahuli. Nothing overt; he was meticulously circumspect in his dealings with them, but¡­ they caused us some problems." "Interesting." I rattled the chain gently, lifting the padlock. "What do you think they''re so interested in sealing away?" "I wonder." "Are there spells on this?" I turned the lock over, examining it. "Alarms?" She inspected it for a moment. "No alarms. But it is spelled to be very tough, and only accept an enchanted key. Are you going to try picking it?" "You can''t pick magical locks." I shook my head. "Or, well, you can, but it''s more trouble than it''s worth. Thankfully, there''s more than one way to skin a cat." I focused for a moment. "Incarnate!" A slim piece of copper fell into my palm. "A lot of locksmiths, they focus on the tumblers and barrel." I wrapped the soft metal around the shank and started working it downwards into the body. "A bit of lateral thinking, however, will show that the locking bar and the shackle need just as much attention." I wiggled the shim downwards until I felt movement, then summoned another and started on the other side. "Thankfully, this cleaner than the plaque¡­ Maybe I should have oiled it." A moment later, the second shim cleared the locking mechanism. I gave the padlock a sharp yank, and It fell open with a jingle. "Clever." Yse hummed in approval. "Shall I scout again?" "I don''t think there''s guards behind this." I chuckled. "It''s been sealed for years. Watch for spells?" "Of course." I pulled the chain aside, freeing the door, and slipped inside. I was instantly reminded of the Path of Dreams. For a moment I stood in a white void, which ''burned'' away. Instead of revealing a wooden room, however, I found myself standing in a black void. There were glowing sparks in the distance that twinkled like stars, but lacked any recognizable constellations. Under my feet was smooth a circle of gray stone, hanging unsupported in the air. It was bordered by more discs, three paths of islands that stretched into the dark, each holding a low structure. "Another strange place." I drew a deep breath, feeling a sense of wonder touch me. "Are those pedestals?" Yse wasn''t whispering - quite - but I heard a touch of awe in her voice. "And there''s things on them." I walked to the edge and stepped onto the nearest island. The gap was easily crossed, but wide enough to feel slightly uncomfortable. As she''d said, the dimly-seen shapes were pedestals, stone plinths that reminded me of the ''display stands'' in the Path of Dreams. This one held a porcelain vase, decorated in delicate red and white tracery. Below it was the sigil of a cleft mountain. "Voice, audible to Yse. Analyze." "This was the Fount of Calabria. It was sacrificed to the River of Stars by Seylin, the last Walker." "¡­Was?" Yse asked. "No effects, no alignments? It''s no longer a Regalia¡­ interesting. Just what is this place?" I waved a hand towards the pedestal, but found myself blocked by an invisible barrier. "There''s more." Yse pointed towards the next island, and I moved on. The plinth held a different artifact, as did the one after that. Each of them held the same mark. The next one, however, was empty. It pulsed with a gentle blue light, and waving my hand over it revealed no barrier. I touched the cleft-mountain sigil. "Analyze." "The emblem of Seylin, last to walk the River of Stars." I pointed to the plinth itself, and tried again. "An altar in the River of Stars, it awaits Seylin''s sacrifice." "So¡­ Seylin was placing Regalia on them. For some reason." I rubbed my chin. "Who''s Seylin, though?" "I have never heard of him." Yse tapped her feet pensively. There were nine more pedestals after the empty one, for a total of thirteen. At the end, I found another landing where the paths converged, and another door - this one firmly locked. It had a label and sigil, though: a stylized cloud, underscored with the words "The Sky". "They were working towards this?" I looked back at the three branching paths. "That is the obvious conclusion." Yse shrugged her feelers. "This definitely looks like part of the domain of Lords. Sacrificing Regalia, though? I wonder what they hoped to gain, beyond that door." "It feels like a competition." I moved down another path. "Like we''re supposed to gather Regalia and place them here." "The Path of Dreams leads to thirteen steps on the River of Stars, ending in the Sky," Yse mumbled. "There should be a myth connected to this." She fell silent as I jumped from island to island, taking a different path back. This one was empty for six steps. On the seventh, however, I found another sacrifice. "Analyze." "This was the Carcanet of Beautiful Desolation. It was sacrificed by Gyges, who delved deepest into the River of Stars." "Gyges?" I narrowed my eyes. There had been a regalia related to him in my Path of Dreams. I stepped back to one of the empty altars. "An altar in the River of Stars. It awaits the sacrifice of Gyges." "Any idea who Gyges is?" "¡­There were rumors," Yse replied. "He was some sort of bogeyman, an immensely powerful Lord of the Land who attacked others indiscriminately. As near I could tell, he was gone for a good century and a half before Cuahuli came to power; stories about him were already fading. Crossroads was much less developed, and news from other domains was fragmented at best. There was no way to trace down sources. " "Hmm." I examined the sigil on his altars, a slashed eye. "So, we have¡­ the last to walk this path, and the one who got the furthest?" I had a suspicion about the last path, and headed straight back to the entrance. "Hold," Yse said, as I turned towards the third set of stones. "Do you hear that?" I went still. Ding¡­ In the distance, a bell was ringing. "Uh-oh." I dashed to the door, which I''d left open a crack. I poked my head out, and the peals were suddenly much louder; they were coming from the distant castle. "It''s an alarm. We need to leave." Despite my words, though, I turned back to the third path. "Analyze!" "An altar in the River of Stars. It awaits your sacrifice." This one was unmarked, and all thirteen altars were empty "Thought so." I jogged back to the door and slipped out, peeking around the doorframe to examine the fortress. It stirred like a poked anthill. The gates, set deep in the rough stone walls, had been flung wide. Small groups of men were running in and out, gathering into four-or-five man parties and spreading into the surroundings at regular intervals. "Did they find us?" Yse asked, a hint of worry in her voice. "Shouldn''t be." I moved quickly, re-looping the chain and snapping the lock closed. I picked up a handful of dust and poured it over the chain and lock, hoping to obscure any scuffs we''d left behind. As soon as I felt I''d covered my tracks reasonably, I dropped to my belly and crawled into the field of boulders. "My guess? The guy we mugged woke up, found his key missing, and raised some sort of alarm." "You did re-lock the door behind you?" "Of course," I scoffed, jumping to my feet and picking up the pace, dodging through the rubble. "But it''s not like long-distance communication is impossible." She fell silent, and I concentrated on putting distance between us and the search parties. Once I felt I was far enough, I slowed my pace. "Hey, this place should mirror the city above, right?" "I hope so¡­" "Alright, good. Don''t worry, we''ll make it out of this." I shot her a smile and headed towards my Sanctuary portal, taking a moment to re-check my sense of direction, remembering that the city would be flipped upside-down. "Mhm. I just wish we knew a little more about who they are." She waved towards the keep. "I feel we learned very little, despite uncovering such an interesting secret." "I dunno." I patted the packet of correspondence I''d stolen. "But I think we''ve done pretty well. Some of what we''ve learned might be more useful than you think." Summary of people, places, and previous chapters. People: Edmon Valli - the MC. A shipwrecked smuggler who found the Heart of Metzli. A former thief and sometime adventurer. Carries a pistol, and isn''t afraid to use it. Ankh Algon - A Draconian warrior. She was the first person Edmon met on the island, and traded fruits for stories of his voyages. Jejune Algon - Ankh''s mother, and the chieftess of the Draconian village. Nepenthe - A Lord of the Land who''s domain is the sea around the island. She has issued an ultimatum to Edmon, saying she will invade in a week. A beautiful, if haughty, aquatic woman. Cuahuli - the previous owner of the Heart. The last prince of a dying people, who took refuge on the island. He was betrayed and killed, and his people did not survive the conflict. Coatli - One of Cuahuli''s lieutenants. When Edmon met him, he was a Behemoth, an impossibly large feathered snake. After giving Edmon the last of Cuahuli''s regalia, he returned to a humanoid form. Loves to brawl. Yse - One of Cuahuli''s lieutenants. A white, fist-sized jumping spider. Edmon resurrected her from a monster core to demonstrate his power to Jejune. She is an intelligent and thoughtful magician, with a playful streak. Carmine - One of Cuahuli''s lieutenants. Mentioned by Yse. Raak - One of Cuahuli''s lieutenants. Mentioned by Coatli and Jejune. Places: Lavaille - The town Edmon had a thieves guild in. Marglades - basically an endless swamp. Has a dungeon in it. Metzli - The island Edmon is now a Lord of. Sanctuary - A hidden space created by the Heart Edmon has. Contains a small manor and doors to Crossroads, The Path of Dreams, and anywhere in Edmon''s domain. Crossroads - A hidden space that contains doors to every Domain that has reached a certain rank. Also has an underneath, which seems to be a closely guarded secret. Path of Dreams - An enigmatic space accessed from the Sanctuary. Contains four regalia, and the warning ''Caveat Emptor''. River of Stars - An enigmatic space behind a door found in Crossroads underground, containing three sets of thirteen altars and various sacrificed regalia, and a sealed door labeled ''The Sky''. Locked and sealed by order of the Convocation. Armada - A floating city of boats that Edmon fled from before landing at Metzli. Previous Chapters: Ch.1 Opens with Edmon on the lip of the caldera, being menaced by butterflies. He looks down into the lagoon, sees his ship and flashes back to his arrival on the island. He was blown off course by a storm, and into a monster zone. In an attempt to escape both the storm and a circling sea-monster, he approached the island, only to crash into the lagoon. His ship sinks and he swims ashore, collapsing. Awakes at dawn, explores, angers butterflies. Runs from them, eventually fleeing to the caldera. Climbs into the caldera, ends up in a crevice. Begins building an impromptu stone wall, and discovers the heart. Picks it up, gets blood on it. Ch. 2 Finishes his impromptu wall, sits down to study the Heart. Explores his new class, begins to understand some of the implications. Realizes he''s never heard of this class or any of these abilities, which strikes him as odd. Marks the crevice, recognizes the mark as a ''dungeon circle'', thinks back to his time in the Marglades, when he went dungeon diving with an impromptu party. Marking the crevice makes it his territory. His territory size increases, his title goes up a level, and the door to his sanctuary appears. Stepping inside, he surveys his Sanctuary for a moment before getting a notification that his territory is under attack. In fear, he activates his ''incarnate'' ability to create a copy of his pistol, and steels himself to make a stand. Ch. 3 He uses incarnate to create pistols, in the end repelling the invasion and being congratulated by the voice of the world. LOTL class levels up from ''new''. Snow moths are added to his archive. He retreats to his sanctuary and sleeps. When he wakes up, he takes stock of his situation and uses the pneuma he got from the fight to push his magic stat up. He examines the three pistols he created during the fight and creates more bullets for them.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. He leaves the Sanctuary to continue exploring his new class, and is accosted by a Draconian. Ch - 4 They meet aggressively. After convincing her to back off, they introduce themselves. She''s never heard of humans or been off the island. She''s interested in hearing about his travels, and offers to bring him food in exchange for stories. After she leaves, he incarnates a Snow Moth and marks it, creating his first dungeon-bound monster. His title increases and he gains access to the Path of Dreams - Caveat Emptor! He tries to get the Snow Moth to do something, but it''s unresponsive. He returns to his sanctuary to investigate the Path of Dreams, and finds that it has expanded. He steps into the Path of Dreams and discovers the waiting regalia. He inspects them one-by-one; Cuahuli''s journal, the False Ring of Gyges, the Glorfyin Mace, and the Tears of Tonalzinti. He ponders the aspects, experiments with Assess, and ponders the Tears giving the basic stat Spirit. While he''s pondering the meaning of Caveat Emptor, he gets another invasion notification and dashes back to the crevice, only to discover that the draconian has returned. Ch. 5 She introduces herself as Ankh Algon, and offers him fruit. He gratefully eats, and starts telling her about running from Armada after pre-emptively double-crossing someone on a trade deal. After she leaves, he climbs out of the caldera and enjoys the view. After, he tries to mark the local area and discovers that there are monsters in it. He tosses the hermit crab out, and creates the mark. His territory increases, and LOTL levels up from inexperienced to raw. The heart begins to acknowledge him. He discovers he can call the door to any mark. He experiments with the crab, and discovers that he can''t summon the door to territories with hostile monsters. He marks the hermit crab, adding it to his archive. He sets out to mark more monsters and add them to his collection. Ch. 6 He brings a tiny red lizard back to his mark, and investigates how it interacts with the crab and door. He adjusts his job, eventually settling on Voyageur, then heads into the forest, marking creatures as he goes. He eventually takes a break, eating a banana and fishing and pondering the use of Mark. Continuing, he finds himself in a marked area. Surprised and frightened, he experiments a bit, and discovers it''s the territory of the former Prince of Metzli. Coatli shows up as a giant serpent and scares him spitless. Ch. 7 He talks with Coatli and learns Cuahuli''s name. He discovers that Cuahuli ruled the island 600-ish years ago. He tells Coatli he plans to leave, and Coatli asks to come with. He agrees, for Coatli''s help. Coatli tells him some of the basics of Aspects and the Path of Dreams. They strike a deal. Coatli carries him to Cuahuli''s fallen sanctuary. He takes Cuahuli''s dagger, gaining the aspect of Growth. His territory expands and his title levels up. Crossroads opens. Coatli''s form changes, losing much of his power. Ch.8 They hunt a lizard. Cuahuli tells him some more about aspects, and explains aspect tokens somewhat. Edmon asks how Cuahuli died. Coatli talks about Lords fighting over Regalia, and implies that Cuahuli was betrayed for one of his Regalia aspects. Coatli talks about how dungeons ''test'' aspects, and hints at challenges between lords. Ch. 9 The next day in the sanctuary, Edmon talks about his ambitions and his past. He was thrown in jail, and once he was released, he turned to a life of crime. Working as a thief, he slowly rose in the world until he headed up an ersatz thieves guild. He talks about how he likes being unbounded and free, and worries that the heart will bind him down. Coatli points out that having friends creates bounds, but they can be worth it. Edmon returns that he has no idea how any of this works, and Coatli suggests he needs to try harder, think outside the box, take some risks, instead of just running from his worries. They next day, he surveys the Sanctuary. Coatli asks him if he''s going to run away, and he says no; for now, he''s willing to commit himself. They go to Crossroads. Ch. 10 Coatli is shocked by Crossroad''s growth. It''s a huge city now. They explore a bit. Edmon steals some Archive tokens. They get coffee and discuss their plans. Edmon realizes that people have been avoiding him, and Nepenthe shows up saying she knows why. She says it''s because he''s human, and offers to sell him more information. She introduces herself as the Lady who owns the territory surrounding his island. She tells him that there are no human lords, and humans are somewhat despised. She gives him a one-week ultimatum before she tries to mark parts of the island. Ch. 11 Coatli and Edmon survey the island and discuss how to mark it, then investigate the Path of Dreams. Coatli weighs in on which pick is the best, and mentions he knew someone with the spirit stat, sparking a discussion on stats/abilities and how they''re different in different times and places. They meet Ankh on top of the volcano. Ch. 12 They decide to contact the draconians. Coatli introduces Edmon to the concept of war parties, then flies ahead with Ankh. Edmon makes his way down the cliff and gets cut by a rock lobster. The boat arrives, and Edmon drools over it. They skim to the village, and Coatli picks a fight with the draconians, while Edmon visits the chief, Jejune. They''re discussing costs and benefits, when Coatli returns and drops the bomb that marked monsters can be regenerated. Edmon loses his cool a bit and snaps at him. They reaffirm their friendship. Jejune produces Yse''s core, and Edmon marks and incarnates her, surprised that she''s a spider. He gains the Tome skill from his archive. Ch. 13 Yse is introduced, then goes hunting. A bit more negotiating; Jejune wants the heart after Edmon dies. He conditionally agrees, and Ankh begins working for him. More off-screen negotiation. Then Edmon has a smoke and befriends Yse. He learns how to refill his magic, and about rebuilding old Marks. The next day, Coatli begins beating his recruits into shape, and Edmon looks at his tome and discusses Growth with Yse. They venture into the forest with Ankh and defeat the prickle-ooze, repairing the mark under it. Ch. 14 The dragon squad is introduced to the sanctuary. Yse and Edmon test the Management Console, and discover inactive marks. Some discussion about instantiation. Yse and Edmon venture into Crossroads and buy some mana pots. They tail an invisible thief and discover an invisible door. Edmon has a theory about the nature of Crossroads underbelly. Ch. 15 They shanghai the thief and steal an invisible key and a packet of correspondence off him. Yse scouts, then they descend to the underworld, discovering a keep and a chained door. Inside the door, they find the River of Stars, three sets of thirteen platforms; one for the Lord who progressed farthest, one for the Lord who progressed most recently, and one for the Lord who''s currently there. An alarm has been raised, and they make their escape. Ch. 16 Turn the page! 16 - An escape, a tree, and a step forwards Escaping our pursuers was more difficult than I''d expected, but not hard enough to be worrying. We''d caught the warning early enough, and headed out ahead of the search. I snatched backwards glances as we retreated, trying to get a feel for what we were up against. The parties the fortress was sending out spread into the surroundings at irregular intervals, but they were taking a thoroughly methodical approach to their search. They proceeded regularly down the marked paths, weaving between rocks and hills, always keeping each other in sight and checking to the front and the sides. For a moment, I wondered if we should have stayed inside the River of Stars and waited until they passed, but I quickly dismissed the idea. They would have definitely noticed the missing chain. "Do you have a plan for this?" Yse''s voice was ever so slightly nervous. "Yeah, it''s simple enough." I half-crouched, leaning forwards. "We just have to outrun them." Well, I didn''t actually run, at least not at first. I kept low, ducking and weaving behind anything that would block their line of sight, scrambling across the ground in a half-crouch, half-jog. It was tiring, but I kept it up, and managed to maintain our distance. When they finally spotted me, I heard the yell, and finally straightened up, breaking into a sprint. By then, we were nearly halfway to the edge of the city. "Can you see a stair?" I tried to keep my breathing steady. "Yes, there''s one¡­ a bit to the left!" I turned as I felt her nudge my neck, and tried to ignore how it made my scalp tingle. Friendly spider, friendly spider¡­ I pushed the phobia out of my mind and kept moving. I could hear our pursuers gathering behind me, the yells growing louder, but I pushed that out of my mind too, focusing on keeping my speed up and not tripping on the rough ground. As we drew near the edge, I heard Yse muttering something, and suddenly, the stair faded into view. I adjusted my course again and risked a glance back over my shoulder. My pursuers were close enough I could make out their clothes, but not their faces; as long as I didn''t fall, we would make it. I stumbled into the bottom of the stairwell with a clatter, and for a moment I scrambled on hands and knees before getting my feet under me and vaulting upwards. When I was nearing the top, I heard people pile in below - kinda, the curvature made that weird - and pushed the last little bits of energy I had into taking the last steps two at a time. I spun the bolt and slipped through the door, slamming it closed and fishing in my pockets. "What are you¡ª" I whipped the key out and slammed it home, locking the door before turning it halfway back. Then I sprinted off again. "¡ªOh, I see." "Yeah, they can''t, open it, like that¡­" I spun around a corner and slammed my back to the wall, leaning down to hang my head and pant. "Unless it''s better made than most locks that style." It had a single keyway, and unless they sent someone around to remove the key from this side, their only choice was to break down the door. The super-secret invisible door. I slid to the ground and looked around. No-one had paid much attention to my mad dash. I took a few more breaths, forced myself back to my feet, and stumbled into an alley. A few turns later, and we were good as gone. Our second attempt to gather information went a little more smoothly. I had originally been curious about what exactly the underground did. Now, I was a little more hesitant to pry into that. However, I still wanted information; on Nepenthe, mostly, but now also on the correspondence we''d picked up from that courier. The it was actually fairly easy, after I changed my strategy. I wandered back across town, taking time to recollect my thoughts and get my wind back. When I was feeling more recovered, I turned into the nearest pub and starting asking questions. Gossip was always the easiest source of information, in any town with a bar. Sometimes you could even hear worthwhile bits and pieces just by sitting in the corner and drinking. I took a slightly more proactive approach, casing likely barflies and buying them a few drinks, then carefully asking them about the local Lords. We were, understandably, the celebrities around here. I learned some interesting things, and after the fourth or fifth bar, I had some idea what my self-proclaimed adversary was like. "So, what do you think?" I asked Yse, as our latest informant took her leave. "She seems more¡­ reasonable than I would have expected, from someone who issued a challenge in the street." The spider was carefully webbing the saltcellar shut; I watched bemused as she gently lowered the lid, hiding the web inside and sealing the container for the next unsuspecting customer. "Yeah." I put Yse''s antics out of my mind, and took another sip of my¡­ well, it was less revolting than the last drink I''d had, but it still wasn''t what I''d consider good. At least it was alcohol. "Seems like she''s high-handed but fair. I think her ultimatum might have been more about some strange code of honor than about watching us squirm, like Coatli said." "Have you considered why she''s doing this?" "Well, she said she wants land¡­" I rubbed my forehead. "But you''re right, taking her at her word is pretty foolish. I don''t even know how her attacking us would work. Is it an invasion, like when monsters walk into my territory?" Thankfully, the ''You''re being invaded!'' notifications hadn''t flooded me like I feared the might. I guess the stalemate between Mighty Lizard and Mr. Hermit was continuing, and the territory near the Draconian village I''d re-marked was already so full of monsters any more invaders were probably being eaten. "I don''t think so." Yse rubbed her forelegs over her face. "My knowledge of this is a bit thin, but I believe you would have a Dungeon Battle." "I don''t have a dungeon, though," I pointed out. "¡­True." She cocked her head to one side, thinking. "But you should when the challenge comes around, as long as she waits a whole week. Well, let''s call it six nights; say she attacks you the evening before the seventh day. I believe you will have repaired enough marks to set up a proper dungeon by then." "Alright." I nodded. "So, dungeon battle?" "Right. Well, when one Lord enacts hostilities in another''s domain, the defender gains some advantages from the Voice of the World. But there are ways to mitigate that, and the biggest one is to declare intent before attacking. Invaders can aim for regalia, land, or monsters; limiting themselves to any of those things will lessen the handicap somewhat. If they say nothing, the assumption is they''ve come to seize the Heart, and the defender gets full support. "The thing is, most of that support is aimed towards enhancing the defender''s dungeon. I think I mentioned, when we were examining the lectern in your Sanctuary, that the dungeon is a separate space?"You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. I nodded. "Well, intruders onto your Domain can be forced into that space. The battle takes place there, using your advantages, and the victor gets the spoils." "If we won¡­ what would the spoils be?" I asked, interested. "Probably progression of your aspects." She shrugged her second pair of legs. "And how does she win, if she wants land? Can she just, say, mark the part of the dungeon she''s in, or does she need to fight all the way through, break out of my dungeon somehow?" "Well, I''m not really certain." She shifted a bit. "I only know this much about dungeon battles because Cuahuli seized his Ensnare Regalia during one. That¡­ caused him trouble later, even though he wasn''t the instigator." "How did he even get to another Domain?" I frowned. "Through Crossroads." She absently picked up a peanut from a nearby dish and started wrapping it webbing. "It was some conspiracy; I don''t know the details. Raak probably would, but¡­" She sighed. "Anyways, Cuahuli picked a group of us, and we marched through Crossroads, meeting another Lord at one of the gates. They did¡­ something, I''m still not sure what, and opened a passage into the dungeon of the Lord we were attacking. I can only say how my battle went - we got pinned down by a sniper and I missed most of the fighting. But at the end, we were ejected back to Crossroads, and my Lord had seized a Regalia." "I see." I nodded, thinking over the implications of that. Was Crossroads originally intended to help facilitate battles between Lords? This city was currently exceedingly fortified; most groups had delineated some area, and defended it zealously. Would I have to worry about being invaded through Crossroads in the future? "Afterwards, he was censured for participating. The Convocation apparently did not like Dungeon Battles." "Hmm." I rested my chin in my palm and thought. "Who was that other Lord you were asking about?" "Hmm?" Yse finished wrapping the peanut and placed it back in the bowl. I casually fished it out and dropped it on the floor. "You were asking about someone else besides Nepenthe, right?" "Oh, yeah." I nodded. "Ayarat. Apparently one of his generals is conspiring against him. I wanted to learn what I could about him and his Domain." "And you know this because¡­?" "Oh, the correspondence we, uh, liberated." I tapped my jacket pocket where I''d folded the papers. "It seemed like it might be useful." "Are you hatching a scheme?" Yse cocked her head at me. "Maybe." I let a smile play around my lips. "Well, I''ve got the beginnings of one, but there''s no end goal yet. We''ll see." I stood. "Come on, let''s get back to Coatli. We''ve still got preparations to make." Yse tensed to jump, but relaxed. "Arm?" "Oh, right." I held out one hand to her, and she scurried up my sleeve. "Thank you." When we got back, Coatli was drilling his squad again. They were flitting through the air over the manor, careening around the edges of the Sanctuary and stabbing at each other with spears. When we showed up, he led them in an impressive aerial salute, before landing right before us. "Have fun? Learn anything useful?" He grinned. "Yes!" Yse cheered. "Maybe." I ran my hand through my hair. "We definitely found something. How goes the training?" I jerked my chin at the Draconians. "Better and better." He nodded. "I believe we have enough rudimentary teamwork to survive in the jungle." "Good, because we''re going to need to rush." "Hey, don''t worry about us." He smirked. "You''ll be the one holding us back." "That''s true, isn''t it." I sighed. "I am the weakest link here." "Hey, don''t take it too hard." He shook his head. "I didn''t mean it like that." "No, you''re right." I shrugged. "I''ve been considering this for a while, but I think I should take a chance with the Spirit stat." I turned to the door next to us, leading to the Path of Dreams. "Yeah?" He grimaced. "We still don''t know what it costs. Unless you do, Yse?" "No." The spider shook her head. "Cuahuli was done with the Path of Dreams before I met him. All I know is that the cost he paid was something intangible." "I''ll just have to trust the Voice." I frowned. "I don''t believe it''s malicious." "Why not?" My eyebrows shot up at Coatli''s words. "I do agree with you," he hastened to add, "but I''m curious as to why you think that way." "It''s something my grandmother believed," I said slowly. "According to her, the Voice is a force of balance, and doesn''t give or ask more than someone is ready for. That doesn''t mean catastrophe won''t follow, but that it comes from the choices of the receiver. The gifts themselves are made in good faith." "Mmm." He nodded. "Draconians - well, in my time at least - believe the Voice is like the sun and rain, falling on all equally, and failure to seize its power comes from a lack of courage, not strength." "Well, more personally¡­" I paused. "I''ve never felt that the Voice has tried to trick me or drag me down." I shrugged. "Sometimes it takes a bit of lateral thinking to use my skills effectively or something, but yeah. Anyways, I''m going to do this. You coming?" "Sorry, no." He spread his wings. "Too busy." "Yse?" I asked the spider. "Wild tigers couldn''t keep me away!" She leaped excitedly to the door. I turned and pushed it open. Inside, it was the same golden-warm wood and precisely placed pedestals. Without pausing or stopping to doubt myself, I stepped forwards and plucked the Tears of Tonalzinti from their pedestal. "Will you receive the dream of Tonalzinti?" The Voice echoed in my ears. There was a flash of white, and then everything went black. The tree stood atop a mountain. It lived in the harsh rocky places, surrounded by crags and whipped by storms. Still, it stood strong. It bowed to the wind, but refused to break; it was slashed by the rain but kept its grip on the earth, never washed away. Its trunk was golden and its leaves were pale. On the calm days, it basked in the sunbeams and stretched taller, slowly, steadily, pushing its shoots upwards, spreading branches outwards, reaching skywards with the calm tenacity that flowed up from its deep roots. It grew. At some point, the winds could no longer shake it. At some point, the rains could no longer penetrate its foliage. Leaves fell, on occasion, and the rocks beneath it were slowly covered with earth, then grass. Its roots delved deeper, tiny tips burrowing into the rock, shattering the stone into boulders, then rubble, then pebbles. Birds came to nest in its branches. In due time it flowered, and became acquainted with bees. Seasons passed slowly and peacefully. One day, a boy came. The tree didn''t pay him much attention at first - in fact, it barely understood what ''attention'' meant at this point, but something was beginning to quicken in it like sap in spring, and the arrival of the boy hastened that. He clambered up the mountain, finally pausing to rest when he reached its shade, looking up in awe at the verdant giant. When he finished his lunch, he put a hand to the lowest branch and climbed into the sky. It was the wonder and joy he felt, standing on the highest limb, looking out over the fierce mountains and howling winds, that crystalized into the tree''s first thought. This is a good place. The rain fell, the sun shone, and the tree grew. The boy didn''t come often, but what is time to a tree? He grew taller and broader, but the tree''s limbs never bent under his feet. Eventually, he came less and less, and when he stood with the tree and looked out over the valley, there was less and less joy in him. He began to wither. Finally, the tree thought he had stopped coming. But one day, in the late evening, a figure made its way up the mountain. They sat together and watched the sunset. When he rose to a go, a fruit fell beside him. It was rough and bitter, but filled with small golden seeds. He picked it up, bowed once to the tree, and walked back down the valley. He never came again. My vision swam, and the room spun into focus around me. "Ooog." I clutched my head. That had been¡­ intense. "Will you mark this Regalia?" The Voice was a whisper in my ear. I almost began to gather magic, but stopped myself. That had been a question, a choice. Caveat Emptor tickled my brain. Buyer beware. Make a mark or¡­ I remembered the question before the vision. Accept the dream? It was a blind guess, but¡­ I didn''t really want to use the spell. What sort of buyer was more despised than one who refused to pay? "I will not mark this." I firmed my resolve. "You have accepted the Dream of Tonalzinti." A weight of emotion, hundreds of years of reaching for the sun, weathering the rain, sheltering a tiny patch of mountain, only to sow a single fruit, crashed into me. A burden of meaning - I couldn''t tell what it meant yet, but I knew it was important - blazed in my brain. "For agreeing to pay the price, your Path begins to advance. Strive to fulfill the Dreams you bear in accordance to your understanding and ability." There was a flicker, and we were standing outside the Path. "You have gained a second Regalia. Your Dominon grows, and your influence upon the Land is strengthened." "You have gained the aspect of Fire. Prove its worth upon the world, consuming all in your path, giving no quarter and asking none in return." The Voice faded, and I stood staring at the vial in my hand, filled with small golden seeds. "What," Yse asked quietly, "the hell just happened?" "I''m rather uncertain myself," was all I could reply. "All I know is, there was a tree¡­" 17 - A Quest, a Stat, and A Lifesaving Ability ?"So, thoughts?" Yse and I had tried looking into the Path, but the door was sealed. Now we were in the manor, and I was cooking supper as I explained my experience. "I''m really not sure what to say." Yse was magically cutting off tiny pieces of steak and eating them daintily. "For what it''s worth, I think you chose correctly - if your goal was to further your Lord class. Have you checked it since?" "No¡­ I should do that." I finished chopping the greens and poured them into the pan. "Voice, visible. Show class: Lord of the Land." Skimming through the information, I found two things that hadn''t been there before. The first was a list of my Regalia.
Regalia
The Glass Dagger Deals extra damage against ice-aligned creatures. Wielding it grants the ability Shadow Bind. Represents Growth.
Tears of Tonalzinti Seeds of the Sun Tree. Consuming twenty of them grants the basic statistic Spirit. Represents Fire. The Aspect is preserved, even with consumption.
And the second was a class quest.
Quests
Dream of the Sun Tree
Tonalzinti gave up its fruit in hopes of sheltering its friend from the woes of the world. You have agreed to inherit this.
"Hmm." I read them out loud as as I stirred the vegetables. "So, first, it says I can eat the seeds for the Spirit stat - well, twenty of them - and still retain their Aspect as Regalia. I¡­ probably should have considered that beforehand, but I''m glad it''s not an issue." "Mmm." Yse picked up a knife, comically oversized to her, and began slicing the meat I had chosen from the cold room. How did she even hold that? "Do you think the quest has to do with that mental pressure you mentioned?" "Hmm." I frowned. "I''m still not sure ''mental pressure'' is quite right for that. It''s like the vision I had nags at my mind, even when I''m not thinking about it. I''ve never had a quest before, so maybe that''s part of it? Hopefully I can figure it out, because it''s already getting annoying." "So... do you know how to complete it?" The spider pushed a stack of thin-cut steak to me, and I threw it to pan. We were basically making what Coatli had cooked before, but scaled up for eight. "I''m considering that." I furrowed my brow. "The tree - Tonalzinti, I guess - wanted to ''shelter and protect''. I can probably do that, but I''m not sure I want to. Or not in the same way. I''m not really altruistic." "Well, you might have to be." Yse said, a bit plaintive. "You''ve accepted the responsibility, and with the quest pressing on your mind, you may not have much choice." "No, I don''t believe that." I shook my head. "The Voice doesn''t lock people onto paths. I bet I could renounce the quest right now by marking the seeds." "There''s always a choice, huh?" Yse snatched a vegetable from the pan and crunched through it. "Well, you''re right. Anyways, this is done. We should call Coatli in." "The meat needs a moment longer, but go on." I kept stirring, lost in thought as she zipped away. I did believe there was always a choice, but I also knew that some choices were bad. Ideas tumbled through my mind as I started setting the table. If I rejected the quest, I''d lose out on the completion rewards. And there would be rewards. Quests weren''t lightly given, and finishing always brought benefits. How much and what sort, though, depended on how it was done. Unfortunately, the method of judging that was¡­ cryptic, at best. Say the quest was saving a village from a Dragon. Killing the Dragon would always work, and would usually give good rewards. However, negotiating with the Dragon was an option, as was scaring it away. Building a barrier too, or, hell, moving the whole village. The rewards would differ for each, and whether they were ''better'' would, in some respects, depend on the view of the person who did it. The best advice I''d heard was that quests should always be completed how you thought was best, because a solution you disagreed with would give rewards you disliked. Examining all the options was especially important because anyone who set out with a sword after hearing they needed to save the village would definitely get burned, even if they succeeded. So, how should I go about this? I sat at the table, chin in my hand, until the doors opened and Coatli led in my small army. I put my thoughts aside. There would be time to ponder later. After the meal and dishes were cleared away, Yse, Coatli and I retired to one of the small sitting rooms scattered around the manor. I was packing my pipe, Coatli had some sort of seed to chew, and Yse was on the table, counting the Tears and giving them a thorough magical inspection. "So what''s the verdict?" I summoned a burning splint and lit my pipe.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. "There are twenty-three." Yse had made one pile of twenty, and dropped the extras back into the vial. "Enough for your use, and a few extra." "Mmm." I puffed a smoke ring, and pinched a few from the heap. They were maybe the size of barleycorns, and a soft, translucent gold. I felt them flex in my fingers. "Should I, I dunno, prepare in some way before eating them?" "Should be fine." Coatli shrugged. "It just says ''consume'' them, right? Chewing is probably a good idea, though, to help release the pneuma." "Alright." I popped them in my mouth and bit down with a crunch. I''d expected them to be bitter or something, but instead it was like eating ice, cold and crisp. There was a hint of freshness, something like mint, but it vanished quickly. The pneuma, however, I could sense more strongly. It flowed out of the seeds, curling around my throat as I swallowed and heading deep into my body. It gathered in my chest, and I felt my heart pump powerfully, almost painfully, as it settled in. "Wow." I thumped a fist against my sternum. "That''s weird." "Keep going." Yse passed me a few more. "Finish the dose quickly, so the effects don''t dissipate or something." I wordlessly accepted the next few, and repeated the procedure. "Seeds of the Sun Tree have been added to your Archive." After I''d finished the pile, there was a roiling, churning knot of pneuma in my chest. My heart was steady, but I could feel it growing stronger with each beat, drumming out a steady pulse. "So?" Yse asked, after I''d sat in silence for a long moment. "I think I''m going to need to sleep on this." I shook my head. "Also, they were added to my Archive. But I''m a bit hesitant to try making any." "Good call." She nodded. "They likely need more magic than you have." "Well, I''m going to bed." Coatli stood. "Be ready early, Edmon. We''ve got a lot to do." "Yeah." I picked up my half-finished pipe and re-lit it. "I''ll be there." The next day found us deep in the heart of the jungle. We were on the north side, where Coatli used to roam. I''d made careful notes from the lectern map on where the old marks were, and Coatli and Yse had added what they remembered. Now we were out, seeing what we could repair. Also, my new stat had finished crystalizing. It was a pulsing node of power right behind my breastbone. Checking with the Voice had confirmed it was Spirit, and when I''d woken up, it was at ''stable''. I''d been checking regularly since then, and it seemed to fluctuate randomly; it had yet to drop below ''fading'', or rise above ''firm'', but it varied for reasons I''d yet to discern. It was definitely useful, though. "Alright, Ed. Do your thing." Yse backed away from the runes she had been repairing, and I began filling them with magic. The drain was¡­ well, it wasn''t less, and I didn''t have any more magic, but it was still somehow easier. It felt like when I''d been sailing; the first few weeks I''d been hesitant and uncertain, wary of any small storm and worried whenever the wind died. After a few months, I''d settled in. The job wasn''t easier, and I''d only been marginally more fit, but the mental pressure was gone. I knew I could weather squalls when they came, and when the wind died, I knew I could wait out the doldrums. The magic flowed easily and the engraving began to glow. Although I''d put in the same amount as yesterday, it seemed like my pool had decreased less. I could feel my heart thumping away, strong and steady. I began on the next rune. "Incoming!" Coatli called. The three Draconians guarding me raised their spears, and I looked up. "Focus," Yse reminded me. "Leave the guarding to the guards. They''ll let you know if we need to run." I nodded, and turned back to my task. Although moving through the jungle was much easier with guards, both because they actually knew what to watch for and because they could scout, this was still the fiercest Monster Zone I''d ever seen. We fought several times coming here, and would fight more before we finished. Hopefully we wouldn''t find a monster directly on top of the mark, like the bayonette blob had been. I kept my head down, and focused as the sounds of combat rose around me. It quieted soon, and when I finished, one of the Draconians approached, holding out a core. I accepted it. "Thanks, uh¡­" "Kriss," he offered in a quiet voice. "Right." I nodded, and tried to commit the name to memory. He had dark scales, patterned in a green-brown that faded into the jungle gloom. "Mark," I mumbled. "Walking Jaderoot added to Archive." "I think I''m getting the hang of Spirit." I lowered my smoking pistol, giving it a minute to cool before re-holstering it. My gun was definitely getting a workout today. I unconciously touched my bandolier, checking how many full magazines I had left. "Oh?" Yse leaped to the shoulder of a nearby Draconian, who startled, but lowered his spear once he realized who it was. "Sorry, sorry." She patted his neck with a fuzzy leg. "Yeah, it seems like¡­ the more I get into the flow of things, the more it boosts my abilities." The group started moving again, and I broke into a jog to keep up. My muscles were tired, but it felt good, and as I settled into the rhythm, my heart pounded strongly, sending out little scraps of Spirit. "Like when you''re in top form, going up against a challenge, but you want a challenge right then and know you can take it. A little of that, all the time." "That definitely sounds useful." Yse zipped along, jumping from branch to rock to tree in a white blur. "Yeah, although?¡ª Woop!" I stumbled as a rock shifted, throwing off my footing. The spark in my chest burned, pushing my reflexes; I turned a tumble into a cartwheel, pressing a hand against the ground and coming down clean, lunging back into a run. I heard the Draconians laugh, but one reached out to clap my shoulder. "Nice save." "Thanks." "You have gained the skill Acrobatics." "You were saying?" Yse was ahead, and I wasn''t sure if she''d seen that. Well, she did have eyes in the back of her head. "I was saying there''s more to this. And since I just got a skill, I think that''s a ''yes''." Suddenly, a piercing whistle echoed through the trees in three warbling chirps. The squad shifted towards it, and I barely turned fast enough to keep up. "That was the ''unavoidable fight'' signal, right?" I asked, drawing my pistol. It felt like I had a three-quarters full magazine. "Yup!" Yse rushed back to me in a series of leaps. "Looks like a Jagerhawk. Must have moved its territory since Coatli left." At that, the surrounding Draconians leaped into the sky, wings snapping open as they careened through the trees. There was a deafening screech up ahead and one of the scouts appeared, tumbling out of the air with vivid claw-marks across his chest. He landed on his feet and caught the spear that fell after him, jumping into the air and darting back in. "What''s a Jagerhawk¡ª Oh." I stumbled to a stop as the battle came into view. Coatli was up in the canopy, diving towards a giant bird. It looked vaguely hawkish, but also lizardy, and had entirely too many teeth. It gave another piercing scream as his club took it in the side, bouncing it off a nearby trunk. It rebounded with vigor, arrowing for another Draconian who raised his spear to defend. The teeth closed on the shaft, and he flinched, but the new metal spear held. "Vital points?" I asked Yse, raising my gun. "Heart and brain," she replied, gathering her magic. "Right." I squeezed off six rounds, three each at the chest and head. Only two penetrated, one spraying blood near the wing, the other leaving a jagged wound in the neck. The monster screamed, and a scout planted his spear in its side. Coatli weighed in with his club, the jagged obsidian teeth rending a giant wound near the tail. The scream redoubled, but Yse cut it short with a crackling crash of lightning. The smoking corpse thumped down near me. I leaped backwards, feeling my new Acrobatics kick in as I grabed an overhead branch and easily swung up onto it. Everyone went quiet, listening for anything the sound of combat might have attracted. I breathed deeply, drawing pneuma into my lungs. "Report!" Coatli called, once he was happy we hadn''t called another fight in. "Superficial wounds! I''ll be fine," called out the Draconian who''d been clawed. "Bent my spear," another shouted. There was a squeal of metal. "Fixed it!" "Alright. Yse, grab the core for Edmon, and let''s keep moving." "Certainly." The spider leaped towards the dead monster, magic gathering around her as she arrowed in on the head. There was a snick of invisible claws and a spray of blood as the cranium fell to pieces, and she leaped towards me with a crenellated lump, shedding pieces of brain-matter. "Yuck." I shook the remaining viscera off the core as I ran, popping open a canteen to wash blood off my hand. "Mark." "Jagerhawk has been added to your Archive." "The size of your Archive has increased from ''small'' to ''modest''." "Your skill with Akashic Magic has increased from ''Initiate'' to ''Beginner''. You can now Archive pneuma. You can now Incarnate an Avatar. Remember to guard your Heart." Oh-ho. I tucked the core away. I could make those little tokens now. And Coatli had mentioned avatars, hadn''t he? Something about keeping me safe? This should be interesting. 18 - an Avatar, Salvage, and a Very Small Leviathan "So. Avatars." We were in the manor''s central hall, where the lectern stood. "They are your strongest personal defense." Coatli waved his hands emphatically. "Using an avatar, you leave your true body and the Heart here, in the seat of your power, and use your avatar to fight in the dungeon or elsewhere in your domain." "No farther?" I asked. "It''s possible." He nodded. "But the farther you separate from the Heart, the weaker your avatar will be." "Can I take the Heart along?" "That rather defeats the purpose." He shot me an unamused glare. "Alright, alright." I raised my hands. "But it is possible." "¡­Yes." He nodded reluctantly. "And your risk is lower than some Lords. Few things truly threaten you right now, and Yse and I are less dependent on your power then we were on Cuahuli''s. Still." "He''ll need to start with that, you know." Yse appeared on the lectern in a blur. "This doesn''t have an avatar slot yet." She patted the stone pedestal. "True," Coatli agreed hesitantly. "So, uh, how does it work?" I asked, pulling out the Heart and turning it over in my hand. "An avatar," Yse said, "derives from your Incarnate ability. In essence, you will incarnate yourself. After all, since everything you know is in your Archive, aren''t you, as well?" "That sounds¡­ unwise." I frowned. "If you didn''t have the Heart, it probably would be." She nodded. "But your abilities make it doable. Not exactly simple, but doable." "So I just¡­" I reached out, calling up my magic. "No no wait!" Yse waved her forelegs. "There''s more. You Incarnate yourself, yes, but through a mark." "So I should mark something?" I cocked my head. "Yes. The avatar ability - or, at least, how Cuahuli used it - goes ''incarnate, mark, incarnate''." "So I summon something?" I cocked my head the other direction. "Yes, start with a monster. You will gain attributes from the creature you choose. Predicting the effect is tricky, but if you start with, say, a Snow Moth, you might gain their ice magic." "This sounds¡­" I frowned. "Really powerful." "It is." Coatli said. "One of your most powerful abilities as a Lord. You should always use an avatar if you can afford it." "What''s the catch?" "It takes pneuma." Yse shrugged. "A fair bit. Which is probably why the ability to archive pneuma comes along with the avatar ability. That''s why I told you to save yesterday''s pneuma, instead of spending it on progression." "I see." I nodded. I had hoarded a sizable lump during our hunt. My lungs were filled with pneuma, to the point I felt like coughing. "This island is a treasure-house," Coatli said. "It has both a huge variety of monsters for your archive, and is a wonderful hunting ground to raise abilities. I believe what you gathered yesterday should let you maintain an avatar for quite a while." "However, the biggest downside to using an avatar is that while you do, you won''t be able to gather pneuma normally," Yse said. "That''s¡­ a fairly big penalty." "Your dungeon should mitigate it somewhat," Coatli replied. "You will be able to draw on the pneuma that flows through it. It won''t remove the need for hunting, though, at least not without adventurers. And we won''t have visitors anytime soon, especially since we''re surrounded by Nepenthe''s domain." "That might be a problem." I frowned. I hadn''t seriously considered visitors, but being a lost island would naturally limit them. Even if we spread the location, if they couldn''t get past Nepenthe, we''d have none at all. "Well, let me try the pneuma thing first." I raised my hand and concentrated. "Incarnate!" A jingling stream of tokens fell from my palm. They were rounded triangles, the size of a silver dollar, with a tree on one side and a sunburst on the other. "Interesting design." Yse jumped to the floor and examined them. "Why did you pick it?" "I don''t think I did, it just sort of happened." Sweat popped out on my brow and I felt my breathing quicken. I hadn''t been prepared for how thoroughly that had drained me of pneuma. "Is that enough?" "Oh, this is plenty." She swept the tokens into a pile and I scooped them up in a double handful. They felt like glass, like the other archives we''d acquired. I tipped one into my mouth and it shattered between my teeth, tasting of mango and strawberries. The stream of energy coiled into my lungs, and my breathing steadied. "Taste good at least," Coatli mumbled, crunching one down himself. "Stop it, you two." Yse glared, and his fingers retreated. "This should be enough for two attempts," She jumped to the lectern again, and tapped the surface. "Put those here." I complied, pouring the tokens out on the flat stone. "Now, decide what to base your avatar on." "Just¡­ pick a monster?" I raised an eyebrow. "Pick a monster carefully. If you incarnate into something like, say, a slime, you''ll have trouble just walking around. There are advantages to weird monsters - some slimes are nearly unkillable - but you don''t have the time or resources to practice with anything really out-there." Yse separated the tokens into two piles. I watched a little unhappily; that was enough pneuma to boost both my Spirit and Magic stats significantly. Still, this was interesting. "I think I''ll try Snow Moths." They were strange, but also powerful. I didn''t know if I would get their magic, or how it would work, but I needed to start somewhere; the first monster I''d archived seemed a good place. "That''s a bit borderline, but it''s worth a shot." Yse nodded. "First, create and mark one." "Alright." I poised myself. "Incarnate!" The magic swirled in. Near its completion, I cast again. "Mark!" The spell settled, and the Snow Moth flapped lazily around to alight on the lectern. "Good." Yse nodded. "Now, take these tokens and the Heart," she waved to one pile, "And use incarnate again, but this time you need to - from what Cuahuli said - sort of project yourself into the mark. Hopefully you can figure it out from that. This should combine the Snow Moth and your Heart into an avatar." "I thought the point of this was to leave the Heart behind." "As I said before, you can''t do that yet. Right now, we just need you to be harder to kill. With an avatar, your Heart absorbs your real body, and you control the new one using the mark. However, doing that from a distance requires a specific slot on the lectern." She waved at the pedestal. "Until you have that, your Heart will be part of the avatar." "How much harder to kill does that make me?" I pulled the Heart out of my pocket and rolled it across the back of my fingers. "A fair bit," Coatli cut in. "It will hide your weaknesses. If the avatar is dispersed, the Heart will release your true body. At that point, you''ll have another chance to fight or escape. And until then you''ll have whatever strange powers the avatar grants you." "Interesting." I rubbed my chin. "It''s kinda like a monster core." "¡­I guess it is." Yse sounded thoughtful. "I''d never considered that, actually, but it really rather is." "I don''t think so." Coatli crossed his arms. "We use our cores in the same way humans use hearts; to circulate magic. We don''t think with them." "Yes, but the Heart does¡­ Nevermind, not important." She waved the idea away. "Just, take the tokens and give it a try." "Alright." I scooped up the tokens, balancing the Heart on top. "Here goes nothing." I reached out to the Snow Moth, putting one finger on its back where the mark was, and focused on trying to push my way through. "Incarnate!" And then things got weird. At first, it felt like being squeezed through a straw, a feeling of pressure and darkness. Then, blinding light, and headache-inducing visuals. The world was fractured into a thousand different images overlapping in shattered patterns, jagged blurry images combined into a jagged blurry whole - and it all looked wrong. The shadows were impenetrable, the light piercingly blue. Yse was covered in bright swirling lines, and Coatli''s scales had an otherworldly shimmer.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Suddenly my sense of balance went wild, and I very nearly vomited. I struggled to hold back other, stranger impressions - I could, for some reason, pinpoint the fountain in the yard - and did my best not to empty my stomach. "C-Cancel," I croaked, dropping to my knees. "Yse, tell him how to back out!" Coatli''s voice was muffled and echoing. "Ed, you need to remove your mark to end the spell." Yse''s telepathy was, thankfully, more understandable. "Unmark!" I spluttered. "Remove mark! Mark era¡ª" But the second one must have worked because the crushing, dizzying sensations drained away, and I found myself on my hands and knees. Magic and pneuma streamed away like mist, sucked into the Heart, which fell to the floor with a tinkle. "That was not fun." "Sorry, Edmon." Yse''s voice was sympathetic, but it sounded like she was holding back a smile. "First time''s rough, eh?" Coatli stepped over and helped me up. "I could taste things with my eyebrows." I shuddered. "I don''t think I''ll be trying that one again anytime soon." "They''re called antenna. I thought you looked rather¡­" Yse trailed off. "Rather?" I got my stomach under control and pushed myself upright. "Tasty?" the spider admitted. "¡­Maybe just avoid insects for now," Coatli suggested. "Good idea." I shook my head, trying to drive the weirdness out. "Suggestions?" "I think the walking jaderoot from yesterday might be good," Coatli answered. "It''s a plant-type, but it has normal eyes and such. It''s physically strong, without obvious weak points, and has excellent regeneration." "That does sound good." Yse nodded. "It''s humanoid, too. You might be little slower, but the benefits should balance that." "Hmm." I hadn''t actually seen the jaderoot, so I didn''t know what it was like. "Well, if both of you think so, I''ll try it." I shrugged. "I still have the archives from that courier, so if we need one more shot, we can use those." They nodded. "Alright, here goes. Incarnate!" I had yet to called out a monster that I hadn''t seen, but the magic worked fine. The spell swirled out, rushing down my arm and shaping a stubby greenish caricature of a human. It looked like a goblin treant. The drain was significant, but I quickly moved to my next spell. "Mark!" The monster stood idly, but was definitely alive; its eyes drifted around, aimlessly scanning the hall. I scooped up the second pile of tokens and the Heart. "Incarnate!" Again, I was squeezed through a straw. This body, though, was much more manageable. It felt¡­ not exactly normal, but not wildly disorienting, either. My vision felt off, colors shifted more towards red. The Heart zipped towards me, embedding itself in my chest. I took a few steps. My proportions must have carried over, since I didn''t feel unbalanced. I rubbed my arm, then pinched myself; the sensation was muted, but I could feel it fine. "How do I look?" I turned to Yse and Coatli. "Less squishy." Coatli nodded. Yse made a few gestures and summoned a shimmering mirror of air. The body had lost some of its goblinoid appearance. The face had taken on my features, and the body had changed to my height. I was green-skinned, with vine-like markings running down my arms and across my face, and my eyes were a brilliant yellow, though my pupils were square. I reached for my gun, and found it at my hip. I drew it smoothly and aimed at a few points. "I think I can work with this." I nodded. "Good." Coatli clapped and the squad assembled, appearing as if by magic. "Let''s get going." I''d thought we''d been pushing yesterday, but our pace today was near-manic. We started out fairly simply, using the draconian''s skiff to mark the edges of the lagoon, hopping from one island to another and anchoring in-between to mark reefs. There wasn''t much trouble, just a few ferocious fish and an unexpected snake on one of the islets, but the giant fin kept cruising the coast, pacing us back and forth as we went. We ate lunch near the wreck of my ship, floating in thirty feet of crystal water over sparkling white sand. Brilliant corals dotted the area, and even from here I could see flashes of jeweled fish. "Are you going to raise it?" Yse was perched on the tiller, eating a prawn-like thing she''d scooped out of the water. "I don''t think it''s worth it." I shook my head sadly. I could survey the entire hulk from here, and it was painfully obvious that my Eigengrau would never sail again. I''d heard the keel shatter when I''d hit the reef, but the damage was even more extensive than I''d feared. Just a fracture would have been bad enough, but the ship was basically ripped in half. "I''d like to salvage my charts and cargo, but there''s no point in raising the wreck. It''s too far beyond repair." "Wouldn''t the water have ruined your stuff?" Yse cocked her head. "Not at all. I kept anything valuable well-sealed. Water wasn''t exactly uncommon." I finished my food - a bland starchy thing the draconians supplied - and contemplated. "Maybe I could try now. Coatli, is there anything dangerous in the area?" "Seems clear." He was our lookout. "Alright, let me make a dive or two." I pulled out my pistol and handed it to him, stood, took a few deep breaths, and leaped off the edge of the skiff. The water swirled around me, bubbles racing past as I sliced into the water. I took a few long, strong strokes, heading straight down, and tried to pop my ears. I was only a little surprised when that failed. I''d been adjusting to this avatar. It wasn''t drastically different from my human body. Lots of things felt a bit¡­ muffled? Not just pain, but heat and cold as well. On the other hand, I could feel sunlight with surprising acuity, and the jungle''s humidity no longer felt stifling, but refreshing. My ears must have been different as well, because I didn''t feel any discomfort as I swam downwards. Moreover, I had no trouble holding my breath. I''d been a good swimmer even before I started sailing, and my high constitution had allowed me to make deep dives and stay under for long minutes, but now I felt capable of staying under significantly longer. I was sinking more quickly, too. I''d never been buoyant, but when I''d tried dived for pearls off the coast of Kharlis, I''d used a weight to more easily reach depth. Now I was going down even faster than I did in fresh water. My eyes didn''t sting either. Opening my eyes underwater had never hurt that much, but if I''d been a regular pearl-diver, I''d have definitely wanted a pair of goggles. For a moment I just drifted easily down, listening to the distant sound of the waves, and surveying the seabed. I reached the seabed with a dull thump, throwing up lazy plumes of sand, and stood before the wreckage. The first thing I went for was my pistol. As I''d guessed, it was still hanging from the tiller. I unstrapped it and slotted it into my holster. Next was my cargo. It wasn''t in the hold - smuggling required more circumspect storage - and it didn''t take up much space. I moved to a nearby locker, pulling out the spare ropes coiled there, and fished around until I could extract a few loose pegs from the back. That let me lift the top off, revealing a space hidden behind the normal storage. A dozen metal tubes floated free as soon as I opened it, slipping past my fingers and flying towards the surface. I watched them rise with a shrug. I probably could have grabbed some, but I''d let the others pick them up. "Ed, everything going alright down there?" I startled a bit at Yse''s voice, nearly losing my balance. The water threw off my movements, but a grabbed the rail to keep my balance. "Yeah, no problems." I subvocalized carefully, concentrating to keep my mouth shut. "I''m not even sure this body needs to breathe. Those are my cargo, pick them up if you can. They''re worth a fair bit, although now that I can straight-up create things from magic¡­" "Well, no harm in keeping them." "Right. I''m going to head into the cabin, grab my maps and instruments. Uh, if you guys could drop a line to help haul me back up, I''d appreciate it. This body is a bit less floaty than I expected." "I''d love to, but we don''t have any ropes." Her thought felt like a shrug. "Oh." I pondered that for a moment, then picked up one of the thin lines from the locker. "I''ll send one up, then." Looping it over my shoulder, I moved for the cabin. The door was sharply canted, but easily swung open. I eased my way inside, looking around. The ship had been shaken wildly, first by the storm, and then by the wreck, but I kept the place ship-shape, so the mess only amounted to a few pots which escaped the cupboards and some leftover soup spread evenly through the water. I took the charts first, unsnapping the metal boxes from their rack and lashing them together with the end of my line. Once they were contained, I pushed them out the door and watched them bob upwards, slowly unspooling the rope. The skiff moved towards them once they broke the surface. I nodded once and turned back. I grabbed my instrument case, popping it open to be sure my sextant and scope were still inside. The scope tried to float away as well, but I caught it easily and replaced it before tying the box to the bottom of the rope. I stood for a moment longer, pondering if there was anything else worth salvaging. Since I''d left Armada in a hurry, I hadn''t had a chance to pick up a dummy cargo, so the hold mostly held food. I''d always splurged on meals; since my moneymaking packages had been small, I''d enjoyed loading up local delicacies at whatever port I went to. However, most of it was certainly spoiled by the water. But¡­ my spare ammo was down there. Also, I had several casks of good brandy. It would be a shame to just abandon them. Heading out, I jumped off the deck and trudged around to the split in the ship. Un-battening the hatch and going down from the top would have been fine too, but I didn''t really feel like fighting against water-swollen knots. They were, of course, openable - I wouldn''t have been much of a sailor if I tied knots that couldn''t be undone when wet - but going in through the breech just seemed easier. I reached the gap and peered through. As my eyes began to adjust to the light, the first thing I saw was teeth. I leaped backwards, tumbling and scrambling away as the water slowed my movements. The monster surged out after me, something that must have been sharklike once but was now even worse, and I barely managed to dodge by throwing myself completely flat and falling to the seabed. I whipped out my pistol and fired as it swept by, the shots throwing plumes of bubbles and stealing my vision. A moment later, my sight cleared and I saw it circling around for a second pass. I leaped to my feet. My shots had wounded it, blood floating in red trails behind, but it didn''t seem seriously injured. I readied to try for a dodge, bringing my gun up and waiting for it to approach. My pistol was made well enough to shoot submerged, but not even the best rounds would pierce through much water. The beast lunged. I braced. Five spears sliced down and left it thrashing. Then the draconians crashed through the surface and surrounded me. The monster recovered and lunged again, trailing shredded flesh and billows of blood, but Coatli met it with his club. He didn''t swing it, just rammed it into the beasts gaping maw, planting his feet and spreading his wings to keep it off me. The others leaped forwards, swimming with tiny strokes of barely-spread wings, and seized their spears and heaved. I darted forwards, nearly losing my footing again, and emptied the rest of my magazine into the thing from point-blank range. It thrashed wildly, then froze. We paused to make sure it was truly dead, then Coatli seized me under the arms and we all broke for the surface. "Sorry about that." Coatli heaved me onto the catamaran. I gasped out the breath I''d been holding this whole time, and lay there looking up at the sky. I hadn''t exactly been panicking, but if the squad hadn''t arrived when they did¡­ Well, I''d have gotten a chance to test my pseudo re-incarnation, I guess. "I should have thought about that myself," I answered, a little chagrined. "Just because there was nothing in the area¡­" "Did you at least get your things?" Yse was busy hauling in the line with my instruments tied to the end. "Going back down might be a bad idea." "Yeah." I looked into the now-murky water. A cloud of gore was slowly spreading from the sunken corpse. "And yeah, I got what I wanted, although maybe we''ll come back for the brandy and my ammo when we have more time." "Brandy, huh?" Coatli smirked. "Yes, that does sound worthwhile." "Sir." Kriss tossed me something, and I recognized it as a monster core. "Thanks. Mark!" Grimjaw Shark: Five Fathom Reaper added to the Archive "¡­That was a named monster," I said, a little shocked. "Really." Coatli frowned contemplatively. "It''s not so strange." Yse pulled the instrument case on board. "The lagoon is only so big. That was probably our local Leviathan." "Wonder if we should try and salvage the corpse." I looked over the edge again. Powerful monsters usually had valuable natural assets. "Not worth it." Coatli shook his head. "Besides, we have more to do." "Right." I sat up. "Let''s get back to work." 19 - A Jaguar, a Skystone, and the beginnings of a Dungeon "The owners of this area refuse to bow to the power of your group." "¡­That''s not good." My spell failed, and I pulled my hand off the mark I was repairing. "Coatli! We''ve got a big one!" The draconians surrounding me tensed, and Yse leaped up on my shoulder. We''d been prepared for this to happen, but this was my first time actually hearing the message. We had been using the strength of our party to basically overwhelm the surrounding monsters. As long as our cumulative power was high enough, the system did some sort of strength comparison in the background and I could mark the area by default, without having to clear out every monster nearby. However, I also knew that at some point, we were going to run into a monster who wouldn''t be so easily bypassed. "How big is this area?" Yse asked. "Big enough," Coatli replied. "We could leave it if we had to, but claiming more territory?¡ª" Something in the jungle screamed, sharp, angry, and shrill. My guards stances shifted from fight to flight, wings flicking out. "Shit," Coatli mumbled. "It''s the Cloud Jaguar. We''re heading back! Ed, take the lead! Yse, you''re on point, we''ll guard the rear. Go!" I rose and spun, dashing into the jungle at his words. Yse disappeared into the gloom before me, and the draconians took to the wing behind. "What is a Cloud Jaguar?" I asked Yse, trying to control my breathing as I dodged rocks, trees, and dangerous plants. "They''re a medium-sized hunting cat, with a uniquely patterned pelt. But he said ''the'' Cloud Jaguar, so this one is probably at least a named monster, if not Behemoth." "Wasn''t Coatli the Behemoth on this island? Has a new one arisen so soon?" I leaped off a crag, using my new Acrobatics skill to flip over a fuchsia pool of bubbling liquid. "This island isn''t large, but it''s absolutely packed full of monsters." Yse tagged one tree with her web, then zipped ahead to attached the other end on the opposite side of a small gully. I ran across it for a few steps, easily clearing the gap. "It''s entirely possible there were three or four Behemoths in different parts of the island." "Good grief." I threw myself low, sliding under a low-hanging branch, bouncing to my feet on the other side. "I mean, I knew this was a monster paradise, but the whole island can''t be more than?¡ª" And then, something hit me from behind. My pistol was in my hand, firing blindly backwards into the thing before I even knew it. Reflexive Dueling had saved my life so many times. But streaks of icy pain sliced through my shoulders as tumbled through the air, and panic hit me hard as I realized this time it might not be?¡ª My face slammed into the dirt, and everything went black. Returning to consciousness was, surprisingly, pain-free. Instead of a gradual rise through confused thoughts, like I was used to, everything returned to clarity with a swirl and a snap. It was like being pushed backwards through a straw. "Ooof." I bounced off a tree and fell on my back. Wait, hadn''t been face-down a moment ago¡­? "Ed!" Yse landed on my chest, peering closely at me. "AAAAAH!" I slapped her away and sprang to my feet, only realizing a moment later what I''d done. "Rude," she called, as she flew off into the underbrush. "Don''t jump on me!" I shouted after her. "Sorry, sorry." She reappeared a moment later, zipping to the trunk of a nearby tree. "Really, you should do something about that phobia." "I am." I pointed a finger at her. "I already let you ride on my shoulder. I don''t mind if you''re nearby, but¡­" I paused, and looked around. "What happened here?" The trees near me were covered in gashes. The ground was gouged, rocks were overturned, and the undergrowth was shredded. "Yse, has he revived?" Coatli called. "Oh, did I¡­?" I stopped and examined myself. Sure enough, I was back in my original body. "Lost my avatar, huh?" "Yeah, the jaguar did a number on you." Yse made a gesture, and my Heart appeared in her grasp. "Here, I grabbed this for you."Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. "Oh, thanks." I accepted the gem, tucking it back into my pocket. "Hey, did you guys kill it?" I called. "Took a bit, but we got it!" Coatli appeared from the trees. "Come see!" He waved me over. I weaved through the jungle after him, soon stepping out into a small clearing. The shade of the canopy was broken here, and the brilliant tropical sun streamed down onto a half-skinned monster. "This is what hit me?" I stepped forwards, inspecting it curiously. It was huge. "I''m surprised it didn''t snap my spine." I paused. "At least, I don''t think it did." "Plants don''t have spines." Coatli slapped me on the shoulder, and I staggered into the sun. "Told you that avatar was a good pick." "Yeah." I looked over the work. One of the draconians was carefully removing nine-inch claws from paws as large as my head. Another had cracked the skull and was searching for the core. Two more were peeling back the pelt, cutting it free with shards of razor-sharp obsidian. "Hey, are they alright?" I nodded to the last two, who were sitting in the shade, propped up against trees. One of them was wearing bloody bandages, and the other was cradling her arm. "They''ll recover." He grimaced. "Orin got clawed pretty good when we pulled back, and Larkin fractured her wrist when she was forced to block a swipe. I''d like to give them a week off, to be honest, but what with our deadline coming up¡­" "Yeah." I frowned. This was the fourth day since we''d been given the ultimatum. If Nepenthe considered sundown the start of a new day, we might be under attack in just over forty-eight hours. "At least we''re almost done with the marks." "Mhm." Coatli nodded back. "After we''ve finished here, I think we should head back and try marking that one again. If this thing?¡ª" he kicked the corpse "?¡ªwas what stopped us before, we might be able to complete it and head back to the Sanctuary that way. It would be a lot shorter hike, and if we don''t have to trek back out here tomorrow, it''ll make things easier." "Sure." I nodded. I looked down at the Clouded Jaguar, and shivered despite the heat. "No lookouts?" Coatli glanced at me, and shook his head. "We took out the local big-shot. They''ll stay away for a bit." "This thing¡­ it basically killed me." He nodded. I crossed my arms. "Is this part of my life now?" "Scared?" "It''s not a fun thought." "Hit your limit?" "Just¡­ tempering my expectations, I guess." "Recklessness suits you more." "I like to think I''m as wary as I need to be." "Well¡­" He looked up, gazing into the distance. "Power and danger walk side-by-side." I remembered the feel of those claws in my back. "But," he turned to me, "you survived, right?" "I guess." I shook my head. The jungle seemed darker, looming around our patch of sun. "Are there ruins here?" When we returned to the mark, we took a different path than we''d followed the first time. Looking around, I realized there were rough shapes poking through the underbrush, rough pillars of stone that stood at similar heights. "Yes." Yse was riding on my shoulder. "I investigated them in the past, but I couldn''t learn much. They''re obviously more weathered now, but I''m fairly sure these seemed to be the foundations of a small village. I think they raised wooden buildings on these cut rocks, although their reasons for that are unclear. Hmm, I wonder if the monolith is still here." "What''s that?" "Let''s go see. Hey, Coatli!" He looked back at her. "Go that way!" She waved her forelegs, pointing. He shrugged and turned. After a minute or so, Yse led us to a chest-high stone pillar that looked basically identical to all the others around us. It was covered in greenery, but a bit of work cleared it easily. "Oh¡­" I ran a hand over the stone. It was covered in dense clumps of symbols, obviously arcane. "This is pretty neat." "Yeah, I just wish I knew what it did." Yse sounded petulant. "It''s obviously magical, but neither Carmine or I could get it to react to any of our spells. And on top of that, I''m quite certain it wasn''t cut to shape." "Really?" I quirked an eyebrow at that. "Land Magic isn''t impossible, but this?" I ran a finger across the glyphs. "Well." Yse leaped onto the pillar. "I agree, it was obviously influenced by someone intelligent. But it''s part of the underlying rock. And, no matter how we tried, we couldn''t cut or chip it. So it either formed this way, or someone shaped it with some really esoteric techniques." "Hmm." I concentrated for a moment. "Analyze." "A skystone." "Hoh." I rubbed my chin. "That''s interesting. Analyze says it''s a Skystone." I walked around the pillar, inspecting the sigils. Sure enough, to the left of where I''d been looking, I found the key symbol, a pair of winged boots surrounded by a series of triangles and lines. "What''s a Skystone?" Coatli asked. "We''re not really sure." I frowned. "However, most people use them as a sort of¡­ teleportation system. But I don''t think this one is part of the network." I crossed my arms. "If this is one¡­" Yse scampered up my sleeve, returning to my shoulder. "I don''t suppose you know where they come from, either." "Nope." I shrugged. "We know how to use them, but that''s it. Best guess is that they''re relics of a pre-human civilization." "The draconians are a pre-human civilization," Coatli said. "Your people didn''t start building cities until well after the World gained its Voice." I spread my hands helplessly. "Look, I don''t know how old they are. Humans started turning them up around Monster Zones in the distant past, so they''re probably older than us. Someone apparently figured out how to use them, and linked them into a network. Now there''s a whole business built around them, called the Skystrider Guild." "And we can''t use this one?" Yse asked. "Hmm." I rubbed my chin, pondering. "I won''t say we can''t, but it won''t be easy. We would, at the very least, need access to one somewhere else that''s already been linked into the network. If we could get to one of those, I could probably hook this one up." "Are you part of that guild?" Coatli asked. "No, no." I shook my head. "But a good friend of mine was, and we liked to discuss, uh, theoretical security penetrations. If what he told me is true, I could probably get us hooked in." I ran my fingers over the sequence of triangles and lines, carefully memorizing them. "That sounds like it would be worth looking into." "Yeah." I nodded. "As long as we can survive this week." "Your territory has expanded." I lifted my hand off the now-glowing mark and summoned the Sanctuary door. "By accumulating sufficient territory, you have now gained the ability to create a Proving Zone?¡ª" I stepped through, leading my wounded band. "?¡ªSometimes known as a Dungeon." I sighed in relief as the door closed behind us. We''d made it to the starting line. Now we might actually stand a chance against Nepenthe.