Indulf leaned back in his throne and hummed as he went over what was told. Seeing that his old friend wasn't dead was a huge relief, something that he needed now more than ever. After Abraham had finished giving his report, Catherine ordered Ida to show the rag-tag group to the guest quarters so that they could spend the night in the castle. This gave him some time to review the report.

"Well, that was exciting," Catherine said as she turned to him. "Though I would have questioned the report if it came from anyone else."

Indulf grunted his assent. The king had to admit, Abraham's report sounded more like a children's fairy tale that children would hear about. In fact, he probably wouldn't have believed Abraham if he didn't trust the older knight completely.

"It was rather odd," Indulf muttered with a perturbed expression. "And it is troubling."

"So, you see it too?" Catherine asked with a frown.

Indulf nodded. "The Wildling attack on Counter correlates with our more recent reports from around Aleria. It is as if this was planned."

"But that should be impossible, yes? Wildlings have been recorded working together only when in the presence of an Omega or a higher tier Wildling. All the reports however only confirm Betas and Alphas."

Indulf leaned on an arm as he mulled over the reports. Towns and villages had been the recent victims of Wildling attacks and it wasn't stopping any time soon. In fact, the attacks seemed to be increasing as of late and it was stretching the kingdom's forces thin as they responded. Three notable things came up in all the madness so far.

One, a significant lack of Wildlings attacks for travelers on the road. It was unusual for Wildlings not to attack lone travelers on the roads which were one of the places where reinforcements had been sent. Some might have argued that the soldiers worked as deterrents for the Wildlings, but the lack of reported attacks had started long before soldiers were sent out to patrol. The main reason soldiers were out patrolling at this point now was to strengthen trade routes.

Two, Abraham's report of Counter and Chrimata. While Counter being attacked was somewhat expected, as it was out of the way of conventional channels in Aleria like other villages, it was still a spot of worry. Reports from across the kingdom dated Wildling attacks along the same week, something that was far too convenient.

Chrimata's level of corruption on the other hand was nowhere near as expected. A guard or three being bought off by a local lord was an unfortunate reality that had to be dealt with, but nearly an entire force being corrupt was just shocking. If this was the result of soldiers patrolling previous hotspots of Wildling activity rather than the towns, then some serious actions would have to be taken.

And that brought Indulf to the third thing, Serenity. Hearing that Serenity, something that Indulf was still coming to terms with existing, being behind the corruption of Chrimata was shocking. Even more so were the results of Abraham's interrogation of the Rouge Magi associated with the previously rumored underground black market. If Abraham was right, and he usually was, then there was a host of corruption just under the king's nose, residing in the court.

After another moment, Indulf realized his silence and quickly relayed his thoughts to his wife. Once he finished, Catherine spoke.

"I cannot help but feel that we have been careless, husband."

"Aye, I have similar feelings about this business," Indulf replied. "Firstly though, we must deal with the most immediate threat, the corruption in our court and home. But how?"

Catherine thought for a moment, then snapped her fingers. "Why not have Abraham's newly found associate do it, Darren was it? He has prior experience with Serenity and he may know the signs to look for, even if it was just a few days of exposure to the group."

"I am not so sure," Indulf grunted. "Darren's assistance with Counter was well-timed, conveniently so. Adding on to the fact that we have no idea who he is or how accomplished of a Magi he is, we cannot be sure of where his loyalties lie."

"Then how about this, we reward him for his efforts and ask him to work for us. If he agrees then we have a potential ally in him, if not then we already have people to work with. As the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

Indulf thought about it. It was the best idea that they had at the moment and it wouldn't be too bad either way. Overall, it was quite agreeable. There was just one thing though…

"What exactly should we reward him with?"

"This will be your room for the duration of your stay, Magi Darren. Someone will come for you if you are needed"

The Zerg leader nodded towards the servants in thanks as they left. Earlier Ida had directed some servants to help facilitate the group to their separate rooms and they split off from there, though Darren suspected that Ida whisked Abraham away for very different reasons. He shook his head at the thought, it was none of his business what they did and he still had a whole new room to explore.

His zerglings seemed to share his thoughts as, once Darren opened the door to the room, they pushed past him and started to scout out every corner they could find. It was bigger than the room he was given at the inn for sure with a large fur rug and a fireplace ready to be used in the corner along with a desk and chair near it. A bed that could probably fit a family of people was in the center and red-curtained windows let Darren see a landscape of buildings, farmland, and lake.

While taking in the view, Darren felt Cooper lightly prod his mind over their connection. He turned and saw the two zerglings sniffing around a bare spot along the wall. Curious with what it was that had the zerglings' attention, Darren walked over and started to inspect the wall for himself.

Darren didn't see anything wrong with it, but that didn't dissuade him, his zerglings hadn't led him astray before. He started to feel the wall and rubbed his hands along the sides. Still nothing. Darren looked at his zerglings and sent a confused feeling towards them.

They both looked at him and barked before still sniffing around again.

Darren looked at the wall with a furrowed brow and gave it an experimental kick.

CREAK

Part of the wall revolved inward. Seeing that he was onto something Darren started to push, Cooper and Declan at his sides. Once the wall wouldn't move any further, Darren slipped inside and took a look. Inside the wall was a passage dimly lit with small torches on the sides. It was wide enough that two people could stand shoulder to shoulder with each other with just enough room to squeeze past.

Just as the young man was about to explore the passage more thoroughly, he heard a knock on his door before someone spoke. "Sir Darren, your presence is requested by King Indulf and Queen Catherine. I am here to take you to them."

"Just a moment," Darren replied. He quickly closed the secret passage behind him and made sure that it was in place before walking to the door. Opening it showed a servant waiting patiently behind it.

"Please follow me sir," the servant said quickly as he started to walk at an even pace. Giving the room one last look, Darren complied and followed with Cooper and Declan at his sides.

It didn't take too long thankfully as in a few minutes Darren found himself in the hall again. Like when first entered the hall, there were guards stationed along the walls with spears in hand. He also spotted Abraham, Jones, and Aenwyn waiting for him near the dais of the hall.

Soon enough, Catherine spotted him and spoke. "Darren, please step forward."

As if that was the signal, those attending saw Darren and stood at attention. His group stood near the dais instead of kneeling towards it, but in a respectful manner. Darren blinked but followed the command a second later.

Indulf leaned forward on his throne. "Darren, you have done a great service towards Aleria. Not only did you save the village of Counter and help Chrimata, but you also exposed the existence of Serenity, proving the lingering rumors true. To express our gratitude and thanks, we will allow you your choice of land to call your own."

Darren opened his mouth immediately to say that this was too much but stopped himself. From what he knew, it wouldn't be polite to turn down something so generous, especially when it came from the rulers of a kingdom. Besides, this might be an opportunity.

"Thank you, King Indulf, Queen Catherine," Darren said. "Before I make a decision though, can I look at a map? I don't know the area that well."

"Of course, Darren. A choice is best made when informed," Catherine replied. She turned to Ida who was by her side. "Ida, could you find us a map of the land?"

The lady-in-waiting bowed and left the hall. After a few minutes, she returned with a roll of parchment which she handed to Darren. He thanked her and unrolled the sheet which showed him the lands of Aleria. As he checked the map, Darren saw that some of the territories were marked already with certain houses and the current heads that oversaw them. And then he saw it, the perfect place.

He pointed to a spot on the map. "This place. That'll work."

The two rulers leaned forward to see and their eyes widened in shock. The land that Darren pointed at was a flat and open expanse, any trees and rocks in the area had already been previously removed. The place was close enough to the city that it would receive adequate protection while also being far enough that it didn't infringe on other nearby farms. It was, for all intents and purposes, perfect farmland.

Or at least, it would be if it wasn't completely infertile.

After the first attempts of farming the land, it was discovered that there was a large concentration of salt in the area. While the surplus of salt was a boost in the beginning for a fledgling nation, it was soon found that there were easier ways of acquiring salt. Since then, there were no more attempts to settle the area. Until now.

"Are you sure about this, Darren?" Catherine questioned warily. "That land has been considered… inhospitable for some time."

Darren smirked. "That's perfect."

Everyone else may not have been able to use the land properly, but Darren could. The Zerg used everything at their disposal without wasting anything. A quick Hatchery on the land and Darren could turn the area into a green wonderland. It would also work as a separate base close enough to Vasilikos if he was needed for anything and best of all, it was out of the way.

Besides, why would he not want a second base?

The monarchs looked at each other for a moment and Darren heard a few murmurs from those watching. Off to the side, Jones and Aenwyn seemed confused while Abraham had a calculating expression.

"We will grant this request. Your ownership will be known tomorrow," Indulf declared with a nod. "May we ask though, why you chose that place specifically?"

Darren saw no reason to hide why he wanted the land, it would only seem suspicious if he didn't explain. "It has to do with my zerglings, Your Majesty. I plan to make a new home for them through whatever means I can."

Indulf's brow raised in speculation while Catherine seemed curious. "We assumed that your zerglings were the only things that you could summon," the queen said. "From what you have told us, and we mean no offense, your experience with magic is limited. Do you mean to say that you have the ability to summon more than one type of creature along with homes as you said?"

"Cooper and Declan were actually the second or third type of summoned creature that I had available at the time. After the first, it just… clicked with me," Darren shrugged.

"Clicked with you? How intriguing," Catherine said softly. Then she perked up. "When you use your particular summoning, may we watch along with a few others maybe? We know of some who would be very interested in this."

Darren took a moment to think about it but ultimately decided to agree. "Sure, it's no problem."

Catherine clapped her hands with a smile. "Splendid."

"I believe that is everything then," Indulf stated. "This assembly is finished. Once again, thank you, Darren, for your service."

Indulf and Catherine stood from their thrones and everyone present bowed towards them, Darren following suit a moment later. The two sovereigns nodded and then left through one of the doors in the hall.

"Congratulations, Darren!" Abraham praised with a clap on the back.

"Yeah, congratulations," Jones said with a grin. "It's not every day that someone gets rewarded by the king and queen, and best of all, I got to see it."

Abraham laughed and pulled the younger knight close with an arm around his shoulder. "You'll find that the longer you stay as a knight, the less extraordinary things like this seem, my boy."

As the two knights talked about the experiences that Jones would have as a knight, Aenwyn spoke to Darren with a smile. "I know the others have already said it, but congratulations none the less."

"Thanks," Darren replied. "It's actually kind of shocking and I'm not sure if I really deserve it. I mean, it is a lot for what was basically just a bit of fighting and luck on my part."

Aenwyn shook her head. "Do not worry too much about it, Darren. Simply accept it." A bright smile grew on her face as she looked at him. "Besides, I do not believe that I have properly thanked you for rescuing me from Serenity, so thank you, Darren. Thank you for saving me."

Darren felt his face burn slightly and turned his head to the side. "It's no problem," he mumbled. "Anyone would have done it."

"But that is just it, no else one did." Aenwyn put a hand on his arm. "You did."

Now Darren's blush was much fuller. He thanked whatever god was out there that he had put his helmet back on earlier. Pull yourself together man, she's just thanking you.

"And as your friend, I'd do it again," Darren said finally. Aenwyn replied with a slightly wider smile.

"Excuse me." Darren turned to the side and saw the lady-in-waiting with a hand outstretched to him. "I haven't introduced myself properly earlier. I'm Ida, Queen Catherine's lady-in-waiting."

"Darren," the Zerg leader replied with a handshake. "It's good to meet you."

Ida nodded then turned to Aenwyn with a smile. "And you must be Aenwyn. I hear that I have you to thank for my Abraham's safe return from Chrimata. Thank you, Aenwyn." The woman bowed towards Aenwyn.

The elf's eyes widened slightly, but she composed herself quickly and returned the bow. "Your kind words honor me, miss."

Ida's back straightened after the bow and she turned towards Jones. "I presume you are Abraham's nephew, Jones?"

"I am, milady," Jones said with a rigid salute.

"Oh, there's no need for formalities," Ida gently laughed. "Please, call me Ida. We are in friendly company."

"Of course mila-, er… Ida."

Finally, she turned a loving look towards Abraham. She gave him a quick kiss and put a hand on his cheek. "It's so good to see you again, my love."

"And I, you," Abraham replied softly. The lovers basked in each other's presence for a moment before Ida whispered something in Abraham's ear. "Ah, right." The elder knight turned towards the three watching them. "I'm going to be doing some work that's probably been backed up since I left. Usually, I'd like to answer any questions about the city that anyone has, but since I can't do that I'll have someone else do it. Jones, can you do it?"

The younger knighted nodded an affirmative.

"Great. We'll meet you at Darren's summoning then." Abraham and Ida left the hall after that, arm in arm.

Jones turned to the other two. "So, do you guys have any questions for me?" Darren went to open his mouth but was beaten by Aenwyn.

"There is something that I want to go over with Darren first if you do not mind."

"No, of course," Jones replied with a wave. "I'll see you both later then."

While Jones left, Darren turned to the elf. "What did you need?"

"It has to do with your magic." Aenwyn looked around them furtively before whispering. "Can we meet in your room first, later tonight?"

"Sure."

To pass the time until his meeting with Aenwyn, Darren explored the castle and its surrounding grounds. At first, the castle seemed easy to navigate, but he came to realize that the hallways seemed so similar to each other that he actually got lost five minutes into it. He was pretty sure he passed the same window at least five times now. Thankfully, Cooper and Declan were able to navigate the castle better than Darren ever could.

When Darren returned to his room, he was met with a servant just about to knock on his door, a plate of food and a jug of water in hand. A few seconds later and his thanks given, Darren was in his room with his helmet to the side, eating with Cooper and Declan playfully fighting over their own share that Darren had given them. Just about the time that Darren finished, he heard Aenwyn's voice from the door.

"Darren, are you in there?"

"Yeah," Darren replied hurriedly, "just let me clean up for a second."

He put the plates on a corner of the desk and moved Cooper and Declan to the side for easier movement. After a moment to make sure everything was fine, Darren opened the door and let Aenwyn in. She greeted the two zerglings with a pet and sat on a chair.

"Alright," Darren started as he stood by the bed. "What did you want to talk about?"

"As I mentioned before, I wanted to speak with you about your magic," Aenwyn answered. "Specifically your Summoning magic first. Do you remember how I described it as controversial?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, before Shadow magic was classified as its own magic school, Summoning magic was still in its infancy. Some believed that those who were Summoning Magi all had the potential to be Shadow Magi once their dangers were known."

"That doesn't sound like it went well with many people."

"It did not. In fact, it was debated whether or not to simply shut down the Summoning school in fear of another Shadow Magi incident. Once the causes of the Shadow Magi were narrowed down though, Summoning Magi were left to themselves. That is not to say that Summoning Magi are not constantly watched for any… complications. This goes doubly so for the capital of Aleria and your future summoning."

"So basically, watch out for anything and be careful while I'm here."

Aenwyn nodded. "Exactly. Now onto the second reason I am here."

She stood up from her seat and gestured around herself. Like a snake rising from a basket, a stream of water slowly flowed out of the jug on Darren's desk and towards Aenwyn. There was also water being made from the air around them slowly coming into form. It then collected in front of her into a sphere before exploding into a web that spanned the entire room. The display shocked Darren, Cooper, and Declan so badly that they jumped at the sight. Before Darren could say anything though, the water web froze in an instant and then broke into snowflakes.

Darren reached his hand out and watched as a snowflake landed on his armored hand before melting away. "That was the most terrifying yet awesome thing I have ever seen."

Aenwyn smirked. "Thank you."

"But why did you do that?"

"One reason was to show that it was a simple display of Conjuration magic, something that I have most of my Magi experience in. Another reason was to hopefully interest you in further expanding your talents. What I hope to do is tutor you enough that we can find an affinity in Conjuration that fits you."

Darren placed a hand on his chin. "You think I can do Conjuration magic?"

"We will never know until you try," Aenwyn replied easily. "Unless you would like to try your hand at Restoration magic instead, Conjuration will be the only thing I can help you with as Summoning is outside my range of experience."

"Huh." Darren looked at his hands for a moment. He tried to imagine himself throwing around ropes of fire or blowing people away with bursts of air. It didn't last. "Is there a surefire way to see if I can use Conjuration?"

Aenwyn adopted a thinking position. "Well, Conjuration can range from wielding elements, as I displayed earlier, to spontaneously conjuring food and furniture. The easiest way to see if a person has the potential to be a Magi first is to have another Magi passively send their energy towards the person. If there is an effect, then a Magi can be trained. Since you have already used Summoning, we know you may have the potential to use other schools of magic."

"So what do I do?"

"First, give me your hands." Once Darren did so, Aenwyn grabbed them. "I will be passively sending some of my energy towards you. Once you feel it, I want you to emit it in whatever way feels most comfortable. A feeling of heat will point towards fire, a more solid feeling could mean earth. Whatever you feel will be whatever is chosen, understand?"

Darren nodded hesitantly. He technically wasn't a Magi, but he was still curious if he could do this.

"Good. We begin now."

He wasn't sure what to wait for, but Darren stiffened when he felt it. It was like something was washing over his body, much like how the Rouge Magi's fire washed over his arms. However, instead of it hurting him, it was warm, soothing even as it invisibly covered him. He was still in awe of what was happening when Aenwyn spoke up.

"Now try to release that energy in any form, just be careful."

Darren took in a breath and let it out softly. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the energy from Aenwyn that was slowly exuding towards him. This was a big moment.

…

Right, this might take a while.

While Darren might have control over his Swarm, powers other than that might be somewhat of a problem. He racked his brain for anything that could work, but nothing popped up.

Damnit. At this rate I'm just gonna- Suddenly, a fleeting thought shone through. Kerrigan had more abilities than just controlling the Swarm. In fact, there were a few dozen she used. But that only happened because of bullshit mind powers, could I even really do that? Darren mulled over it for a few seconds before sighing internally. Might as well try.

Focusing on the energy being given to him, Darren brought up an image in mind. He imagined the energy jolting across him, flashing its power across his form. He remembered the smell of dust on days with clouds that blotted the sky. He felt a tingling sensation that traveled from the base of his spine and towards his head.

And lightning flowed from his being.

Darren opened his eyes to see purple-tinged lightning shoot out in spurts around himself, reaching out only inches before fizzing out of existence. Some of the shocks made blackened spots whenever they touched a surface, but there was no other damage besides that. While he felt that he had no control over this new power, none of it seemed to arc towards Aenwyn who had been looking at his lightning in wonder. As Darren started to cut off the lightning, Aenwyn stepped back to let go of Darren and she spoke.

"Amazing. I have seen awakenings before, but most only produce a minuscule amount of magic. That was just…" Aenwyn seemed unable to find the words for what she saw.

"Cool?" Darren ventured.

Aenwyn blinked at the unfamiliar word. Then she giggled. "You used that word before when we spoke of my home. Yes, what you did was… cool."

They laughed for a moment then Darren brought up a hand. He tried to use lightning again and grinned as he got a spark off. Then he collapsed.

Aenwyn caught Darren before he hit the floor with Cooper and Declan padding around the two, concerned for their master. Darren gasped as a sudden wave of fatigue hit him.

"What-?"

"Do you feel as though you ran a marathon without pause?" Aenwyn asked worriedly as Darren started to regain his footing. Darren nodded wordlessly. "This is normal for those who awaken their new magic. Think of it as an untrained muscle that needs improving, with practice you will be better. For now, you must rest." She led Darren to the edge of the bed before releasing him and walking to the door. "Goodnight Darren."

As Aenwyn closed the door behind her, Darren flopped onto the bed to regain his strength. He jumped right off immediately and sputtered from the cold. The sheets were wet.

SMASH

"They dared to dismiss me! Me!"

CRUNCH

"I am Duke Caedman, cousin of the king! I will not be ignored!"

WHAM

Caedman paused and took a few harsh breaths as he looked around his private study. It was absolutely trashed. Books, papers, and glass were thrown all about the room, as well as what remained of a splintered working desk on its side.

He sighed and straightened his clothing while thinking about past events. How dare they send him off like some peasant boy, he was the duke! Those two fools should have seen his worth and counted themselves lucky to be even acknowledged by him, Caedman.

He looked to a darkened corner of the room. "And what are you doing here, ingrate. Were you not on a mission already?"

"Sorry 'bout that." From the corner, a largely muscled man came out with a cloak hiding his features. "The mission is done and I thought you'd like some time to yourself from what I saw."

"And that is where you were wrong. You tried to think before and almost lost everything, do not hurt your feeble brain trying to think now. Leave that to me."

The cloaked man snarled at the thinly veiled insult but schooled his features quickly.

"In any case," Caedman continued, "I have a new mission for you. A thorn in my side that I believed long dead has reappeared along with some new friends. I need them dealt with."

"And how should I deal with them?"

"It must not be connected to me. That is all. You may decide on whatever methods you wish to employ." Caedman was about to leave before he remembered something. "Speaking of which, as per the agreement of your last mission, you will have some men to assist you this time. I hope this will be acceptable?"

The cloaked man grinned. He brought up his left arm to reveal a thick metal gauntlet from the elbow down. "Oh don't worry your pretty little head. I'll make sure to let them know who's Boss."

A/N: Surprise. An old friend lives. Finished this one in October.

P.S. I'm trying to use the "royal we" when in a public/formal setting then switching to something more personal when alone or in private company. Hopefully it came off that way.