The process of infusing energy into gems turned out to be a bit wasteful, at least at your current level of skill. Early on in particular, you were cracking, shattering, or - in a couple of memorable cases - outright disintegrating the gems you tried to push energy into on a regular basis. While that early clumsiness faded steadily as you got more practice, it flared up again every time you started working with a new type of crystal.
In light of that, you decided not to risk damaging any of your more valuable Rupees this year. You'll wait until you've refined your ability to produce these Infused Gems some more - perhaps when you can regularly fill a Green Rupee to its natural limit without damaging it?
...or maybe a bit sooner than that?
You'll see.
With your magical gift-making attended to, and the bulk of your efforts in pushing back the boundaries of your personal knowledge of magical craftsmanship for this year achieved, you spend the time, money, and mana you have left on a few personal projects, most of which are aimed are preparing for the Ring of Trials at your approaching birthday.
First of all, you conjure a suit of armor, patterned after the one worn by Memorian Legion Magus Hermanus. Being, in essence, a traditional magic-user's robe with bits of metal attached over the most critical areas, it doesn't offer anything like the degree of coverage that your Halloween costume-armor did. That's fine, however; the spells you weave into it - anchored to those same metal sections, just as Hermanus's array of protective wards was - make up a fair amount of the difference, hardening the cloth to a consistency more like leather, and then reinforcing it further, to something approaching one of the weaker metals.
Overall, it's still probably only second-best to a suit of mundane armor: there's no cover for your head, for one thing; for another, you're not convinced that you got an ideal mix of titanium to steel in the plated sections; and you were honestly guessing at how the whole thing is supposed to fit.
But with a little creative adjustment of the design and some loosening or tightening of the underlaying straps and buckles, it starts to FEEL right. And it looks pretty cool, too.
Produced Memorian Warmage Robe
Besides, if you really need to defend yourself, you have plenty of other methods.
After the armor - which takes you all of a day to conjure from scratch and enspell - you work on a "shield" of sorts. Specifically, you work on infusing a vambrace with the ability to project a shield of pure force on command. This process is more involved than creating the larger but simpler armor, taking a full week of your time, but the end results are just as good.
In the days after that, you spend some time each day practicing with your "magic shield." For all that it's a floating barrier of energy, it handles enough like its mundane counterparts that your bare-bones understanding of how to properly wield a shield proves useful.
Especially when you take it to Lu-sensei, and he spends a while giving you pointers on how (and how not) to use a shield.
Very. Painful. Pointers.
Gained Shield Training E
Produced Vambrace of Force Shield
The last item you have time to work on before you turn your full attention to making ready for your birthday is a pair of enchanted boots that should allow you to walk on air at will, while also boosting your speed.
The results here are not quite what you were aiming for. Oh, the boots work just fine; while wearing them, you can walk across empty space, ascend or descend as if using a flight of invisible stairs, or even leap into the air and then "stand" on nothing at all. But they only function properly as long as you're moving at human-normal levels of speed, or a little beyond it. Once you start moving at the kind of velocities you can attain with Ki Enhancement, much less Body Flicker, the magic has serious difficulties keeping you elevated. You simply start to sink, and the faster you're moving, the faster you fall.
The intended speed boost also shows an annoying quirk, only activating when you're trying to run away from something. That aside, it combines with the other magic of the boots or your various levels of ki-boosted speed without issue - just not both at once.
Produced Boots of Air Walking
That's it, as far as your plans for item crafting go this year.
The last bit of shopping you mean to do is to pick up a focus for the Lesser Spell to Create A Demiplane, as well as some diamonds for the Lesser Wish, both of which you've been studying with Batreaux.
Gen turns out not to have anything suitable in stock. He explains to you that, the Great Fairy's Tears aside, he doesn't typically deal in magic THAT powerful, or the components thereof. He also doesn't trade in gemstones, unless they come pre-attached to something.
"Business at that level is a bit too rich for my blood," the old man sighs. "And too stressful by half for this old man's feeble heart."
Balthazar is able to help you find the metal rod you need to anchor the entry point to your intended extra-planar retreat, but he also has no diamonds on hand - though, unlike Gen, he does occasionally deal in them.
"Very occasionally," the sorcerer muses. "Relatively minor stones like the ones I bought off you earlier this year are one thing, but jewels? Rubies, emeralds, diamonds? Folks don't sell those lightly, and when they do, they don't often come to a place like this." He smirks self-depreciatingly as he gestures around at the organized chaos, subtly supernatural décor, and slightly run-down, not-quite-shabby state of the Arcana Cabana. "Even then, jewels of sufficient quality for high-level spells and rituals tend to be among the more spectacular and expensive of their kind; people in the magical and non-magical worlds pay attention when things like that start being moved around. They always have."
All of that being said, Balthazar can look around to see if any diamonds of the quality you need are on the market. It may take a while.
You place your order with the senior sorcerer, describing the size and quality of the stones you believe you'll need, and then leave half the expected price with him as a down-payment. Then you head back to Sunnydale, to await the results while you attend to other business.
The month leading up to your birthday finds you putting your usual weekend plans on hold.
Over the first weekend of March, and quite a lot of your free time during the week before that, you call on your Divination Magic to identify uninhabited and/or out-of-the-way islands in the Pacific. Many of the names you acquire in this period are just that: names; with dates, coordinates, and anywhere from one paragraph to a couple of pages of text. From time to time, though, you luck out and find pictures, some of which are even recent.
The next week is split between scrying on those islands you have visual identifications of, and continuing your "research" for likely locations. This drops off towards the second weekend of March, however, as your uses of the Spell of Page-Bound Epiphany and similar magic were starting to return results on islands described as rocky, actively volcanic, or otherwise unsuited to the purpose you have in mind.
You want somewhere people can run in the sun, lay on the sand, splash in the waves, or take refuge in the shade of a tree, not somewhere you have to worry about volcanic gasses or dodging lava floes.
Ah, come on, kid. Dodging lava is fun! And you know the Spell to Resist Fire...
It would be a terrible pain to try and barbecue lunch, when Mother Nature was trying to barbecue you right back.
Volcanic cooking! Even better!
Eventually, you narrow your choices down to a few candidates.
First is Howland Island, a coral island that's one of the United States Minor Outlying Islands. You've included it more because it's part of the country where you actually reside than for any other reason; the descriptions you've been able to find of the ecology make it sound a little less welcoming than you were hoping.
Next up is the island of Metoma, which is part of the Torres Islands, in the Torba Province of Vanuatu. It sounds a lot more like what you had in mind, and is uninhabited. The rest of the islands around it aren't, however, and the people do have boats, so you might have to be on the lookout for unexpected guests.
Third on your list is the aptly-named C-Island, in the South Seas. It's at least as picturesque as Metoma, and while the place actually is inhabited, you're still considering it for a couple of reasons. One is that there's only one actual settlement, which stands in the southern shadow of the mountains that make up the island's approximate heart; you could easily grab a beach on the north side of the island, and never be noticed.
The other reason you haven't written C-Island off your list is that you detected an elevated level of magic over the entire island, with slightly higher-than-local-average concentrations in the village. It seems likely that the natives are more familiar with magic than your average Joe, so hiding your party from them might not be required.
Another island that caught your attention was a puzzling place called Bali Ha'i. Like C-Island, it's a tropical paradise that displays higher levels of ambient magic than most places you've been. It also appeared to be uninhabited. However, as far as you can tell, the place doesn't show up on any modern charts, whereas C-Island is part of an island chain that's been known to the wider world for centuries.
Puzzling, that.
You don't limit your investigation of the likely islands to just remote scrying, of course. Even with magic, there's only so much that you can tell about a place when you're viewing it from above, rather than down on the ground, digging around and meeting the locals in person.
That said, you end up scratching Howland Island off your list of possible birthday sites without ever setting foot on it. You spotted a rather official-looking sign through your scrying spell, and while it was too far away to read, a quick review of your acquired information turned up the previously-overlooked little detail that Howland Island is a wildlife refuge, requiring a special permit to visit.
You break the law often enough as it is, traveling to and from other continents without declaring your passage (much less the items you're carrying) to the proper authorities. There's no need to compound the issue by actively trespassing.
You are, after all, trying to get away from the Thief-King's influence, not emulate him.
One island down, you spend the second weekend in March visiting the other three. All of them prove quite nice, ticking off most of the boxes on your checklist for the site of the ideal Tropical Birthday Bash.
White sands? Check.
Crystal blue seas? Check.
Wavy palm trees? Check.
Clear skies and bright sun? Check, although given the time difference, you arrive on the first island, Metoma, rather early in the morning, when it's still relatively cool.
Despite the temperature, the natural beauty of the place and the lack of nearby observers make it a good candidate.
Your visit to C-Island - so named for its distinctive letter shape, by a British captain of the Age of Sail who is celebrated as a local, pirate-slaying hero - comes a bit later in the day, and between the warmer weather, the breeze that blows in off the ocean to make it JUST the right temperature, and the welcoming aura of the local magic, it makes a very good first impression.
Then you see (and hear) a big guy with Polynesian features and long, wild black hair, wearing only a colorful necklace and an even more colorful wrap about his hips, running away in what you believe is the direction of the village while screaming in perfect English:
"You'll never take me alive, alien!"
...note to self: Possible greater familiarity with magic does not automatically imply COMFORT with magic, especially at the higher levels.
Also, alien? You do believe that's the first time you've been called that.
Anyway, that little encounter kind of puts you off picking C-Island to host your birthday.
Your visit to Bali Ha'i, on the other hand, presents the same kind of tropical utopian appeal, only even more wholesome and friendly-seeming. The lack of any locals to run away screaming at the sight of you is a definite plus, and on the whole, you find yourself greatly favoring the place.
As a further point in Bali Ha'i's favor, you have only to look around the area where you emerged from your teleportation to find an ideal spot to hold your birthday bonanza. You're standing on the shore of a crystal-clear lagoon - freshwater, incidentally - warm white sand under your feet, a grove of coconut trees nearby for shade, and off to one side, a vaguely circular collection of rocks that would be just about perfect as the foundations of a Ring of Trials, based on what the priests have told you.
It's like the island knew exactly what you wanted, and put together the perfect location.
Hmmm...
...
You're torn between taking your cue from the spooked local and getting the heck off of C-Island, and your desire to stay put, investigate, and if at all possible, clear up the misunderstanding.
In the end, it's your sense of social mores that has you taking a seat on the most comfortable-looking rock, and waiting to see what kind of response your arrival has stirred up.
The answer isn't long in coming.
Maybe ten minutes after the big guy took off screaming, a younger man emerges at a run from the trees in the direction the first fellow fled. This newcomer is a couple of inches shy of six feet tall, athletically-built, with tanned skin and short brown hair that's being gradually bleached to dark blond by the tropical sun. He looks to be in his early- to mid-twenties, and the tan aside, you could drop him in any American city and lose him in five minutes at most.
The pale blue t-shirt, faded jeans, and sneakers only serve to reinforce that impression.
The same cannot be said for the heavy flail that he carries easily in his right hand. Especially not with the potent magic the weapon radiates, even to your passive awareness.
Oh ho!
For some reason, it feels like stars.
Yeah, don't get hit by that.
Upon catching sight of you, the newcomer pulls up short, and stares.
"...huh," he finally says. "You don't LOOK like an evil alien..."
Despite his words, you can't help but notice that the young man doesn't relax his guard. He could lash out with that flail at a moment's notice.
The fortuitous coincidence of finding EXACTLY the kind of place you were looking to hold your birthday party the very MOMENT you first set foot on Bali Ha'i has your well-honed survival instincts sitting up and taking notice.
Some people would say that you're being paranoid.
Your familiarity with the supernatural says that a sufficiently-powerful magical location could easily read the intentions and needs of incoming travellers, and arrange for them to find what they seek. As to WHY the location would bother...
Visions dance through your head of fairies, some innocently playful, other maliciously scheming, creating illusions for their own entertainment. Of elemental spirits akin to the little genius loci of Castle Shuzen, only hostile to those that go on two legs. Of eldritch beings offering material wealth and prizes as lures to the unwary, setting them up for later manipulation - or consumption.
Granted, Bali Ha'i feels entirely too benign for most of those possibilities, but that COULD be a deception in and of itself.
You decide to find out.
Picking a spot far enough up the beach that you won't be troubled by the tide, should it suddenly change - whether for natural or mystical reasons - you sit down in the warm sand, close your eyes, and call upon your magic.
This isn't the first time you've tried to make contact with the spirit of a location - that honor goes to the grove where you ended up performing the Familiar Binding Ceremony. On that occasion, you used Summoning Magic to call up the spirit of the grove, but you don't do that now, for two reasons.
Firstly, the island of Bali Ha'i is quite a bit bigger than the grove, and if it truly does have a spiritual consciousness, it will be proportionately larger and more powerful. You may not be able to call up something that big, and even if you could, doing so might not be wise.
This IS a volcanic island, after all, however dormant.
Your second reason for holding off on the Summoning Magic is that you've recently learned the Spell to Commune With Nature. This magic has numerous applications, the most currently-significant of which is that it allows you to confirm the presence of supernatural entities bound to the natural world within a very large area.
If there's a less powerful entity than the spirit of the entire island that you could call up and communicate with, you'd like to know.
Ten minutes of solemn chanting and mana-weaving later, you complete the ritual, sending out a wave of mana that extends for a dozen miles.
*Ping*
*Ping*
*Ping*
*Ping*
*Ping*
*Ping*
Well. The good news is, there are indeed lesser elemental spirits on Bali Ha'i. The spell didn't reveal their exact nature, but given that one of them is located offshore, another in the lagoon, and three more appear to be in or under the ground, you can venture a few guesses.
The offshore spirit and the spirit within - or of - the lagoon are almost certainly Water Elementals of some kind. The three entities that are partly- or wholly-buried would almost have to be spirits of Earth, or perhaps Wood.
You also picked up one other spirit within range: the volcano. You're wary of calling up THAT spirit, as it would be one of the most powerful on the island, and may even BE the island's spirit itself. On the other hand, if it truly is the Spirit of Bali Ha'i, it would know everything about its body, and be best-suited to answering your questions.
Which spirit do you want to call up?
Call the volcano!
Your deadpan, monotone delivery of the classic line prompts an amused snort from your one-man audience, and a tiny facepalm from Briar.
"I've always wanted to say that," you admit.
"It was a pretty good set-up, wasn't it?" the young man asks casually.
Despite the easy tone of his words, he still hasn't lowered his weapon.
Tough crowd.
"So," you ask, trying not to let on that you're eyeing that shining, spiky ball of pain. "Do you get a lot of evil aliens around here? Because it seems like a weird thing to assume that just because a guy appears from out of thin air, he must be an extraterrestrial."
"Well, the other obvious explanation for something like that happening is magic or psychic powers," comes the reply. "Baboo doesn't have a lot of personal experience with either, and definitely not on that level."
He says this so casually that you immediately suspect, whatever the limits of "Baboo's" experience are - the big screaming islander, you're assuming - THIS person doesn't share them.
"But he has experience with aliens?" you venture, taking up another implication of the newcomer's statement.
The guy shrugs, the chain of his weapon clinking slightly with the motion.
That's not a denial.
So.
Apparently, aliens have been to Earth. And they came to the South Seas.
...
...this would probably be a lot more amazing to you if you hadn't summoned Grey Voice earlier this year. But it's still moderately amazing, because as far as you're aware, THESE aliens actually made the trip to Earth under their own power.
Their choice of destination may not fit with any big budget movie you've ever seen, but really, why WOULDN'T aliens come to the tropics? You did, and so do the Goddesses only know how many tourists every year.
Maybe they just wanted to take a nice vacation?
You shake your head. "Right, before we go any further, I should probably introduce myself." You bow slightly, enough to be polite, but not so much that you take your eyes off that flail. "Alexander Harris, sorcerer in training. Yourself?"
"Mike Jones, lab assistant and troubleshooter. Nice to meet you, Alex, and welcome to C-Island."
"Thank you."
The greeting falls a bit flat, given that he's armed and STILL on his guard.
"Why are we doing this, again?" Briar asks.
The two of you have left the beach behind and made your way inland, on a direct course for the slope of the volcano.
On any other uninhabited tropical island, this would most likely involve forging through the underbrush, pushing branches and vines out of your way while enduring the muggy atmosphere and the attentions of all manner of insects. And you could just forget about the "direct course"; the way would doubtlessly carry you over, around, or through more than one patch of rough terrain, be it a hill, fallen trees, or a murky bog.
On Bali Ha'i, the going has proven to be unnaturally smooth. The air is warm, but not too damp for a walk to be uncomfortable, especially not when the ground has been no worse than a gentle slope, steadily rising towards the cone of the volcano that is the heart of the island. The plants are no obstacle at all; while you never see it happen directly, or even out of the corner of your eye, if you stop and look away for a second or two - and you do, several times - they seem to actively move out of your way, sliding back into place after you've moved through. The bugs are nowhere in evidence.
Even with the general atmosphere of peace and goodwill the island projects, this behavior is making your Hellmouth-trained nerves jangle unpleasantly.
Twenty nerve-wracking minutes after you left the beach, you've reached the foothills of the volcano. The terrain became genuinely rough here, a fact that actually mades you more comfortable - for all of three steps, before you found a path worn into the rocks as if by the passage of many, many feet over many, many years.
"I only ask because it was my understanding that you didn't want to risk summoning what is possibly the most powerful spirit on the whole island," your partner continues, as you glare at the path that shouldn't be there.
"I didn't," you admit, "but it occurred to me that, since it IS the spirit of a volcano, talking to it is the kind of thing a devotee of Din ought to do."
Exactly!
Briar doesn't appear convinced by this reasoning.
"And if it IS the most powerful spirit on the island," you continue, "or even just the second most powerful, it should know more about what's going on here than any of the lesser ones, just by dint of the size of its territory, and how old it'd have to be." You pause, glancing sidelong at the path, and add, "And there's a lot going on here."
"Yeah, I noticed." Briar dips low in the air to study the route ahead of you, then resumes her usual slightly-above-head-height hovering. "So, are you going to follow the carpet this spirit has laid out to wherever it wants you to go - or where it thinks YOU want to go? Or are you going to try and call it up right here?"
You consider her question and your surroundings at the same time. You're close enough now that you could specifically call on the volcano's spirit rather than that of the entire island, if they are indeed separate entities. Having the volcano manifest an avatar down here, away from its symbolic "mouth," would weaken that manifestation and make it somewhat more manageable.
It might also make the spirit a little cranky.
On the other hand, if you follow this extremely convenient path, it's pretty clear you'll end up somewhere much closer to the volcano spirit's seat of power. It'll be more content in such surroundings, but also able to produce a more powerful manifestation.
...you suppose you could also meet the volcano half-way, as it were: take the path a certain distance, but not clear to the end.
What do you want to do?
Seeing as how you're a stranger here, you've already unintentionally spooked at least one of the locals, and your one-man welcoming committee came armed and prepared for trouble, you opt to let Mike make the next move.
As it happens, he seems to have the same idea, and the two of you stand there in silence for a long moment, under the South Seas sun.
"...oh, for Farore's sake," Briar groans. "Are you both SERIOUSLY going to stand here all day, each waiting for the other to make a move?"
Even though he doesn't break his stance, Mike flinches. "Who said that?"
Hello, he can hear Briar. It's been a while since you met somebody new on Earth who could do that at the first meeting, and you do believe Mike might be the first human of his age to manage it.
"That would be Briar, my sort-of invisible partner."
"...'sort-of invisible,'" Mike echoes.
"Uh-huh."
He sighs. "...okay, having very unhappy ghost flashbacks now. Nothing personal, invisible girl," he adds, looking in Briar's direction.
"None taken," Briar answers. "I get this a lot."
Medieval weapons, aliens, magic, psychic powers, and now ghosts, too?
The more this young man says, the more you get the feeling that his life has, in some ways, been just as weird as yours.
It would certainly explain why he's acting like he expects you to turn into a demon or something if he lets his guard down.
"Still," Mike continues, "the invisible girl-"
"Fairy," you and Briar say together.
"-the invisible fairy has a point. So, here's a radical idea: I'll put down my weapon; you'll agree not to break out the death rays, whether they're alien, magical, OR psychic; and we'll try talking like normal people."
You have no objection to the this, and proceed to explain to Mike that you were looking for a tropical location to hold your upcoming birthday party. When he asks why you picked C-Island, you explain that the feel of the local magic was attractive, and you'd hoped that people who lived in such an environment would be a little more used to the supernatural than residents of more mundane tropical paradises.
That, alas, appears to not be the case.
"Yeah, there have been a couple of... incidents, over the years," Mike agrees. "Baboo isn't the only one who'd be a little jumpy around an out-of-towner with magic, or other weirdness."
Considering that you were planning on there being a fair amount of magic and other weirdness at your party, it looks like you'll have to scratch C-Island off your list of candidate locations.
Is there anything you want to ask of or say to Mike before you leave and get on with your island investigations?
You're basically being invited to visit the volcano spirit in its home, or at least some place it considers appropriate for hosting company. It would be rude to turn that down, and when dealing with a spirit this powerful, good manners are a must.
Briar is not terribly happy with this conclusion, but agrees that it's the right call.
And so you spend another half hour following the path, which leads you steadily farther up the slope of the volcano, always smooth and easy to follow despite the constant ascent. At one point, you pause to look back the way you came, and belatedly realize that you're standing a couple hundred feet above sea level. This is nothing compared to the full height of the volcano - the cone is easily ten or twenty times as tall - but it's enough to give you a commanding view of the forest you left behind, and the lagoon and beach beyond that.
Not long after that, the path goes from following the slope of the mountain to making a sharp turn directly INTO the rock. A cave mouth yawns before you, flanked by ancient stone carvings of an unfamilar style, but which clearly depict tongues of fire, and a masked figure made of the same.
Uttering a brief prayer to Farore, you summon a Spell of Light, gather your courage, and venture into the darkness.
There, there. It's nothing to worry about.
The cave becomes a tunnel, which proceeds directly to its destination with as close to a straight line as the geography of the mountainside appears to have allowed. It takes only a few more minutes to navigate to the end, and as you do so, you wonder what you'll find. Visions of a tropical island version of the Temple of Doom dance in your head, religious architecture contrasting with the natural fury of open lava pits - evil cultists and heart-ripping high priests hopefully not included.
The tunnel proves as devoid of any malevolent worshippers as it is active volcanic features, but the temple part is fairly accurate. Well, you say "temple," but it's really more of a single shrine, not much more than a larger-than-life figure carved into - or more likely, out of - the rear wall, with a dusty old altar before it.
Carved all of dark volcanic stone, the statue is a female humanoid form in island dress, with fiery patterns carved into the exposed "skin" of the arms, shoulders, and lower legs, as if suggesting that the entire body is formed of fire. A mask covers the entire face, the worked stone suggesting impressions of a broadly-grinning mouth and blank, or possibly closed eyes; above that rises the hair, openly curling like tiny tongues of flame and wisps of smoke.
I like her already.
You pause a few steps shy of the altar, and open your senses to the aura of this chamber.
Elemental Earth is present, to your complete lack of surprise, as are Fire and Spirit. The other physical elements are faint at best, with Air and Water appearing entirely absent. That much, at least, implies that this shrine is dedicated to the spirit of the volcano alone, and not the spirit of all of Bali Ha'i.
A mild reassurance, but a welcome one all the same.
On other levels of the supernatural spectrum, you detect no demonic taint whatsoever, and no malice or neutral menace, only the same welcoming goodness that's been making you jumpy since you first set foot on the sandy shore.
You glance at the altar, and wonder if you should make an offering of some sort before contacting the volcano-spirit.
While your first inclination is to make your excuses and politely depart C-Island as quickly as possible, your personal and professional curiosity is tweaked by the presence, and nature, of Mike's enchanted weapon.
A ball-and-chain is not the most common of weapons to begin with, and more importantly, it's not one that you would have associated with this part of the world. So where did it come from?
You carefully broach the subject with Mike, and manage to get some answers out of him - but they're frustratingly incomplete.
Mike himself doesn't actually KNOW the ultimate origins of the weapon he carries. He explains that he was first given the flail by the Queen of a place called Shecola, almost a decade ago. At the time, he didn't think to ask where it came from.
"I was kind of in a hurry," Mike admits, glancing away for a second. "I was fifteen, my uncle was missing, there were monsters all over the place, and it was the strongest weapon I'd come across. I wasn't really in a place to question the little things."
Suspicious...
Something about that reply strikes you as off, somehow, but you let it pass.
Mike eventually did get around to inquiring about the origins of what he calls "the Shooting Star," mostly because after he found his uncle and everything was over and done with, the older man - also an archaeologist - had wondered about the provenance of the European-looking weapon. It took some doing to get the story from the Queen - Mike is deliberately vague on WHAT, exactly, had to be done - but evidently, the Shooting Star was brought to the islands aboard the ship of the same pirate-fighting Captain Bell whose name turned up in your research, and was gifted to a previous Queen as a token of goodwill.
Where the British captain acquired the weapon is a complete mystery. Mike and his Uncle Steve have both looked into the matter over the years, but turned up nothing.
You also learn that when Mike was given the Shooting Star, it wasn't as powerfully magical as it is now, and had a different form.
"Less shiny silver, and more spikes," is how he puts it.
He calls this weapon the Super Nova, and is evasive about exactly what happened to empower it, only saying that it was "given a boost" by someone who Mike was helping out.
"Helping out with aliens?" you venture.
Mike gives you a look, then huffs a single short laugh. "...yeah, pretty much."
He doesn't go into much detail about the aliens, either, just saying that they were definitely the bad guys, their ship blew up, and he is very, very sure that all hands were aboard when it did, and that they didn't send any signals before or during the explosion.
On the one hand, you're relieved to hear that Earth is not in danger of being invaded from above. At least not by THAT group of extra-terrestrials.
On the other, you're a little dismayed that you won't get to meet real live aliens.
You're just upset you won't get to fight them and take their stuff.
Mike asks you a couple of questions in turn, wanting to know what brings you to C-Island, and how you picked up enough magic to teleport at your age.
The first question, you have no trouble answering, and Mike is only briefly surprised to learn that you were looking for a place to hold your birthday party.
"C-Island IS just about the best place I know of for a party," he says simply.
As for the magic, you just say that you have an abnormal amount of talent, and some really good teachers.
Mike is less convinced by that answer, but he accepts it, mostly in the spirit of not getting his own evasive replies about his personal history poked at.
Getting the feeling that you've more or less exhausted the current possibilities, as well as defused at least SOME of the tension that started this meeting out, you offer to leave Mike your contact information.
He thinks this over, and agrees - and then blinks in surprise when you pull one of your new cards out of your pocket.
"You have business cards," he says dully.
You decide not to answer that, instead letting your card speak for itself. As Mike looks it over in clear bemusement, you say that if he ever needs advice with other supernatural events, he should get in touch; you know a lot more than your age would suggest, and you have a number of contacts besides.
Mike just nods slowly.
After a moment's consideration, you reach into your dimensional pocket and take out some of the remaining Gold Incense that you bought at that riverside shrine in Tokyo, almost a year ago. While conjuring incense of this brand is within your abilities and would have preserved your dwindling supply of the real thing, the sacrifice of something which you actually paid for and have a history with is more significant than something you just whipped up out of mana, imagination, and will.
There are no proper holders for the incense sticks, so you tie the three of them together with a bit of golden thread, magically transfigured from a piece torn off the wrapping of the box the incense came in. You stand the resulting tripod atop the altar, check its balance, and when you are satisfied that it won't fall over, you light the three ends with a cantrip.
You don't know the name of this spirit or what manner of devotions it favors, so you simply clap your hands together and bow your head in a moment of respect.
The lit ends of the incense sticks seem to burn a bit brighter.
Gained Earth Affinity D (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Spirit Affinity E (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Thunder Affinity E (Plus)
Satisfied with your offering, you proceed with the ritual to make contact with the volcano spirit, drawing a circle of protection around yourself and beginning the long spell to bring the awareness of the entity to you in a form you can communicate with.
...haaaa...
The last time you cast this spell, it was to speak with the spirit of the grove in Wales where you wanted to perform the Familiar Binding ceremony. That being didn't manifest in a physical form, or even as a proper voice, just as a formless presence and an impression of thoughts and emotions.
Here she comes.
There is a considerable difference between the spirit of a few square feet of earth, stone, water, and trees, and the spirit of a volcano.
Loooong tiiiime...
With a great creaking and cracking, the statue before you lights up from within, the fire-patterns carved on its clothes and skin flickering to life with the faintest of glows. Dull red runs along the traceries, intensifying to orange at its points of origin, and as it passes, the dark stone changes, becoming slightly less dark and decidedly less rigid. As the symbols start to burn yellow, black stone becomes red cloth and living flesh, dark as the volcanic stone or the ash-born soil of the island, and there is a long, slow sigh as the chest expands, lungs that did not exist a moment ago now breathing in.
Beeeen haa loong tiime... siince hII waas caalled thiis waay...
Then the glyphs and tattoos blaze white-hot, and the mouth and eyes of the "mask" open to reveal an inferno, while the "hair" erupts into smoke and dancing flame. A hot wind washes over and around you and your protective diagram, accompanied by the crackle of fire and a faint roar, as of distant thunder - or an eruption.
REALLY liking her style.
And then that volcanic gaze falls on you.
And the great blazing mouth, smiles.
"Welcome, to Bali Ha'i, little magic man, little fairy," the spirit says in a voice of fire and thunder. "The people who lived here once called me Kahine; you may do so as well. What am I to call you?"
"Alexander Harris, ma'am," you reply.
"Briar," your partner says.
The masked head and its halo of blazing hair and swirling smoke nod, once. "And what brings you to the island?"
For the second time today, you explain your search for a location to hold your upcoming birthday party.
Kahine's eyes glow a bit brighter as she says, "A party? Ooooh, it's been too long since Bali Ha'i hosted one."
...
Alex, don't you dare!
You shouldn't.
You totally should!
You REALLY shouldn't.
...I am honestly kind of torn, here...
Mike gives you a funny look, but obliges your request. Since he doesn't have a convenient card to hand over, you end up pulling out a sheet of paper and writing down a mailing address.
Gained Mike Jones's contact info
He cautions you that the local mail is only delivered by helicopter a few times a month, and can get interrupted during the rainy season.
You reply that you have a magical deliveryman who is VERY reliable.
"...of course you do," Mike sighs.
A brief discussion of the Postman follows, with you passing on a description of the celestial messenger's appearance, and Mike in turn telling you that, for the sake of not spooking the locals, you should direct the Postman to "the lab" rather than the village. He emphasizes this by pointing towards the center of C-Island's lagoon, where a domed structure with a radio antenna standing next to it can be seen atop a spur of rock. A long sandy strip connects the place to the northern "arm" of the main island, on the far side of the lagoon from where you and Mike have been talking.
With this, your business on C-Island is concluded. You thank Mike for his time, apologize for the disturbance, and add an apology to be conveyed to "Baboo" for spooking him.
Then you call on your magic and depart.
"Would you like to come to the party?" you ask.
Hahaha! Yes!
Kahine blinks.
I cannot believe he actually did it.
And then she grins even wider than before.
Eh, the more, the merrier.
"Yes," she says. "I would, indeed."
You nod, and then ask if she thinks the other elemental spirits dwelling on the island would like to attend as well.
"It is kind of you to offer, and I will convey the invitation to the others," Kahine says, with an air of formality, "but I would not expect most of them to turn up. Most of those who now inhabit Bali Ha'i are not like me. Some are much simpler in nature, spirits of one element alone, unconcerned with the doings of other beings except as those actions affect or intrude upon their own domains. Others are more curious, but not so powerful, and so cannot leave the bounds of their sacred places." She dips her head slightly. "Technically, I am limited in the same manner, but my power and being are the foundation upon which all of Bali Ha'i rests. Thus, I may go wherever I please here, short of the sea itself."
"So we shouldn't expect you to take part in any swimming contests, then," Briar notes.
The cave warms as Kahine laughs, deep and rich.
"Indeed, not! Still, you may likely count on a few of my neighbors coming to see what the fuss is about. Air and Water are both ever-curious, and Earth may at least be stirred to wakefulness by our footsteps. More likely mine than yours," she adds with a grin and a stomp of one foot, which produces a booming echo.
You make a mental note to add a few elemental spirits to your guest list, and account for them in your party plans.
Is there anything else you want to discuss with Kahine while you're here?
Seeing as how you currently have Kahine's attention - and in a good way - you decide to ask about the not-so-little matter that's been bothering you since you arrived on Bali Ha'i.
"If you don't mind my asking, ma'am, why is this island so eager to accommodate visitors?"
Kahine grins. "Came ashore at exactly the kind of place you were hoping to find, didn't you."
It's not a question, but you nod all the same. "Not that I mind that, exactly, it just seems unusually convenient. And with as strong a magical aura as this place has... well, the only other places I've been that are THIS supernaturally-active were... not nice."
The Hellmouth is the worst of those by a goodly measure, but Faerie, the Shuzen estate, and Navi's Silent Realm all have some quality that disqualifies them from being "nice," whether that was dark, youki-touched ferocity or the primal wildness of nature.
"There is no need for concern, Alex," the volcano spirit tells you. "It is the nature of Bali Ha'i to welcome all visitors who come without malice in their hearts, and to help them find happiness and peace for their time here. And, as you saw, the island is magical enough to arrange itself for the convenience of its guests."
"Why, though?" you repeat. "Why go to all the trouble? What does the island get out of it?"
Kahine chuckles. "Why, a chance to show off, and be appreciated for what it is."
"...that's it?"
"Ah, but there is more value in such things than you might expect," Kahine gently chides you. "Magic or no, when Bali Ha'i is uninhabited, it is an island much like any other. When people walk here, however, the island feels what they feel, and can be shaped by their imaginations and expectations. So it encourages joy, contentment, growth, and beauty wherever and however it can, that it may share in these things."
...huh. That's interesting.
There is another of those furnace-like blasts as the spirit sighs, and adds, "Then too, Bali Ha'i has grown lonely over the years."
"I take it that it's been a while since you last had visitors?" you venture.
Kahine nods. "Or inhabitants. There used to be villages here, living simple lives off of Bali Ha'i's bounty and the blessings of the sea as their ancestors had for generations, since before I awoke." She shoots you a molten wink. "And yes, they had many parties. You are not the first to invite Kahine to a celebration; the old shamans would sometimes invoke me. At other times, I would clothe myself in human form and walk or dance among them."
A girl after my own fiery heart.
You hesitate to interrupt what's clearly a fond reminiscence, but your curiosity compels you. "What happened to them?"
Another volcanic sigh warms the chamber.
"They died out," Kahine says simply. "Not in war or from sickness, mind you; disease was rare, here, and there has not been a battle fought on these shores since ancient times. The oldest stories say that when the people first came to Bali Ha'i, they sometimes warred among themselves, with their kin from other islands, or against the invading demons of the deep - and the island did not react well to that. Hatred, violence, and murder begat horrible things here, waking nightmares that could not be harmed by violence, but were instead fed by it."
The hairs on the back of your neck begin to stand on end.
"Fortunately, the people realized it was possible to combat the evil in another manner, wielding joy instead of fear, acceptance rather than hatred, and peace instead of violence - and they realized it in TIME to save themselves. When the last of the dark things had been laid to rest, the chieftans and the elders and the shamans took counsel together, and debated what to do to protect Bali Ha'i from future malice. It was decided that the shamans would call upon Earth and Fire, Sea and Sky, to weave a great barrier that would render the island invisible and unreachable to those with hatred in their hearts. Meanwhile, it fell to the chiefs to ensure that those already here who took such evil into themselves would be cast adrift, beyond the barrier, and so never be able to return."
"How long ago was this?" you ask.
"Long enough for the tale to be considered ancient when I first awoke," Kahine says. "And that was over a thousand turns of the seasons ago."
You consider that. "So, did the barrier fail, then?"
"It weakened," Kahine admits. "Partly due to its age, partly due to a loss of power and wisdom among the shamans, but also, I think, due to events in other parts of the world. We were never wholly isolated from the outside: there were always those among the people whose hearts led them to the sea, and who could venture back and forth as they wished; and then, too, there were ever those from other shores who found their way to us. And from the stories told by those travelers, I know that magic has grown less common and less powerful in the world at large than it once was... in most cases," she finishes, with a meaningful glance in your direction.
You try not to look too smug at this unspoken acknowledgment of your prowess.
"By the early years of the previous century," Kahine says, "the barrier had faded enough that Bali Ha'i was no longer invisible. We could be seen, if only faintly and at a distance, by some of the evil souls that had once been made ignorant of our presence. And while they still could not set foot on the island's shores, they could attack the boats of the people. We also learned, to our cost, that cannonballs and bullets had no hearts for the barrier to read, much less deny."
You wince.
"This caused much fear and suffering, and there were those who insisted that the ancient ways of war must be taken up again to save the people. Some chiefs refused, and cast out those who made the suggestion, while others embraced the idea and then died in the doing, or were captured and taken away by the pirates, never to return. A few managed to achieve victory, only to discover that Bali Ha'i no longer welcomed them." Kahine's fiery expression turns mournful. "It was a sad time, and it cost the islanders dearly. Though the pirates were eventually caught and executed for their crimes by one of the foreign nations, too many lives had been lost by then, and too many hearts turned away from the sea and the lands beyond. There were too few children left, too few young people having children, and too much distrust towards outsiders for most to consider seeking brides or husbands on other shores. Some brave souls did try, but in the end, it was not enough. Villages became but one village, which shrank to a handful of homes, which finally became just one family. The last child born of Bali Ha'i buried her mother some years after your Second World War, and then left the island. She was young enough then that she may yet live, but she has not come back, and I do not expect her to."
...
Well. That's a downright depressing tale, especially for such a lovely island.
It's also a little alarming, when you consider that the otherwise friendly, helpful, magical tropical paradise can apparently spawn nightmare monsters if conditions are right (or wrong, as the case may be).
Kahine's story has roused a number of different responses in you: caution for the potentially dangerous power of the place; empathy for its previous inhabitants; and dismay at the loss of another magically-aware culture native to Earth, along with whatever they knew.
Your strongest feeling, however, is intrigue.
Even if everything else the people of Bali Ha'i knew of magic is gone - and you're not going to say that it is just yet, not without a more thorough investigation of the rest of the island - that barrier is still active. As good as your own knowledge of Abjuration Magic is, studying such a large-scale, long-lasting working could still teach you a thing or two about intent-based warding. Divination, Enchantment, and even Necromancy could all potentially be woven into the barrier, depending exactly on what it's reading to determine the nature of approaching outsiders - saying that it "reads the heart" could easily mean the mind, the soul, or both - and then, of course, there's the way the whole thing is working in tandem with the local elemental spirits.
Definitely a learning opportunity.
You make a note to look into it - but later, after the party. Bali Ha'i isn't going anywhere, you have a lot of work to do to finish setting up for your birthday party, and Kahine and her counterparts would probably be more inclined to let you investigate the island's main protection after having a good time.
You spend a few more minutes talking with Kahine, asking questions that are more relevant to your party plans. Among these are inquiries about what kind of food is available on Bali Ha'i, what of that bounty the island wouldn't mind giving up to its guests, how best to go about gathering it, and what the preferred method for disposing of the leavings would be.
As it happens, Kahine suspects that Bali Ha'i would be more than happy to provide for its new visitors. Even the number of people you're planning to invite is a pittance compared to the population of the island in centuries past, and the long decline and eventual departure of the former residents has meant a resurgence in the numbers of wild animals and free-growing edible plants.
"Some of the animals they used to keep are still around as well," the volcano spirit notes. "Feral chickens, some pigs that bred into the local wild population."
...wild pigs, she says?
That gives you an IDEA, one that your more naturally aggressive and bloodthirsty - or just carnivorous - guests would likely approve of: you could organize a hunt as part of the festivities.
Granted, some of the other guests might be put off by the proceedings, but it's not like they HAVE to take part, or that you weren't planning on providing other food anyway.
You look within, wondering if the Raging Boar has any objections to this notion.
The Boar grunts.
...grunt yes? Grunt no?
...
Given the Boar's past behavior, you're going to go with "no objections." Mostly on account of the lack of bellowing squeals and spiritual trampling.
As it was a Saturday when you first visited Bali Ha'i, you return the following afternoon, after having lunch with your family. In keeping with your agreement with Elder Terok, the first thing you do upon arrival on the beach is to call up your three priestly tutors, who spend a minute just looking around.
"My goodness," Madam Lanora muses, shielding her eyes against the tropical sun. "Hot out here, isn't it?"
"The water is right there if you think you're going to shrivel up," Terok notes, nodding at the sighing wave that's just running up the beach.
"Salt water?" Lanora replies with prim distaste. "I think not."
"Then suck it up and stop complaining."
"Wow!" Koron exclaims, from where he's rushed over to the shade of the coconut trees. "These are the WEIRDEST trees I've ever seen! And look at this!" He hoists a coconut that either fell in the day since your last visit, or was just conveniently there for the curious Kokiri to find. "What is this, a fruit? A nut? And there's some kind of liquid inside! This is so neat!"
He insists on taking a couple of coconuts back to the celestial plane with him, to show off to his friends. You don't argue the point.
On yesterday's visit, you thought that the circle of standing stones provided by Bali Ha'i's morphic geography and helpful nature would be just about perfect for the physical foundations of a Ring of Trials, based on what your teachers have said about such creations. The three priests look the rocks over and pronounce them suitable - grudgingly, in the Elder's case - but before you can get down to the real task of enchanting the stones, they need to familiarize themselves with Bali Ha'i and the quirks of its environment.
As part of that, they question you on your experiences with the place, and when you mention your meeting with Kahine, Elder Terok insists on making the trek up the volcano-side to the spirit's shrine.
Koron has already made his way to the edge of the forest, "ooh"ing and "aah"ing at the tropical plants and animals, so unlike those of the Lost Woods, along with his little buddy Vert. Meanwhile, Madam Lanora is casting longing looks at the freshwater lagoon and the river that feeds it.
This sounds like a great idea.
Oh, you'll want to read up on the details of hunting wild boar, especially in the old-fashioned manner - which is to say, without the use of guns - that a fair number of your guests are likely to prefer, so that you can make sure you have any recommended or essential gear ready and waiting to go.
You also fully expect that some of the people you invite to your party will end up sitting out the hunt, regardless of how well you've prepared for it. You can't really see Cordelia, Amy, or Dave being eager to hunt for their lunch, no matter what tools are being used, and a fair number of the kids may just be forbidden to try it by their parents or guardians. And that doesn't account for anyone who might have the skills, desire, and adult permission to go hunting, only to choose to give it a pass because the others weren't going, or maybe because the time difference was getting to them.
On the other hand, you never know: your friends may surprise you.
Before making a final decision, you ask Kahine if she thinks Bali Ha'i would object to you organizing a Wild Pig Hunt as part of your birthday festivities.
The volcano spirit's eyes glow brighter than normal. "Oh HO. Feeling ambitious, are we?"
...you don't follow.
"The island youths didn't usually take part in a boar hunt until they were almost of age." She pauses to look you over, and adds, "You are probably big enough to give it a go a little earlier than usual, but still, boars are no easy prey for mortals. They are strong, tough, and MEAN enough that even those with magic can be surprised."
You explain that you can be pretty strong and tough in your own right, but in any case, you were thinking more about making the event open to the supernaturally-empowered, non-humans, and/or adults on your guest list than the other kids.
"Ah, I see. Well, then, to answer your original question, no, Bali Ha'i would not object to a good hunt." Kahine frowns. "Truth be told, one is long overdue. The island has no carnivores large enough to prey on adult pigs, and they have mostly learned to stay away from the domains of my fellow spirits. With no humans left to cull the sounders, their numbers are getting a bit out of hand..."
Well, then.
That's just one more reason to have a hunt, isn't it?
Those longing looks Madam Lanora is casting at the bodies of fresh water laying just inland make it pretty clear that the first thing she's going to do as soon as you've all split up is go for a swim. And while you are curious as to what sort of things you might learn from seeing a Zora interact with her native element, you also wonder if she'd keep her priestly robes on, or remove them before diving in.
Scales notwithstanding, you have to admit that a part of you - the Twentieth Century American part, namely - is a little uncomfortable with the latter prospect.
That in mind, and seeing as how Koron can assuredly take care of himself - and has Vert to help him if something comes up - you decide that you should probably go with Elder Terok. It's only the polite thing to do, since you actually know Kahine, and can introduce the two of them.
You immediately start to regret this decision when the old Goron proclaims that the two of you are going to walk to the shrine, as a show of proper respect to the spirit of the volcano.
It's not that it was a hard trip or anything, it just took you most of an hour to complete. Making the journey once was fine, but now that you've been there, you were really hoping that you could just use a short-range Spell of Teleportation to pop up to the mouth of the shrine-cave any time you wanted to speak with Kahine.
Apparently not.
You despair a little further when you see how SLOW Elder Terok walks.
Forget one hour; this is two hours of your life you're not going to get back.
...and then there's the return trip.
"Hurry up if you're coming, boy!" the Goron barks as he plods along. "I don't have all day."
"...yes, Elder."
Perhaps if you had a better student-teacher relationship with Elder Terok - which is to say, if you had one at all - you might have seriously considered spending the trek to Kahine's shrine in conversation with him.
As it is, you decide to hold your tongue, and instead focus your attention on your surroundings. Not for the purpose of watching for danger, although seeing as how there are sounders of wild pigs roaming Bali Ha'i, you do keep an ear out for any sounds that remind you of the Raging Boar.
You did some reading on the subject of wild pigs, and the hunting thereof, after going home yesterday, and you don't particularly want to get gored or trampled by one of them. That fight with your totem spirit was more than enough of that sort of thing for one incarnation.
In your soulscape, the Boar snorts.
No, most of your awareness is focused on the island itself and how it feels to all your senses, mundane as well as mystical. The heat of the day, which is not far removed from a summer day in Sunnydale, and the humidity, which decidedly is. The lush vegetation, which is unlike any other location in your personal experience; the corner of Faerie where you found the Memorian Outpost comes close, but that was the equivalent of a temperate forest, whereas this one is tropical. And beyond those, the flows of energy, from the elemental to the purely spiritual, and how otherwise familiar primal forces interact with Bali Ha'i's ever-present aura of peace and goodwill.
After a short time - for aside from the unique quirks introduced by the island's mystical benevolence field, there's nothing here that you haven't encountered elsewhere - you focus your attention a little finer, to how your presence interacts with the environment. The grass that bends to the weight of your steady tread, only to spring back up in your wake. The tropical air whose high humidity makes it a little more difficult to breathe than the familiar, drier conditions of Sunnydale. The ambient energy fields, and how they pass around, into, and through your own internal powers - and how they don't.
And then, while you're still barely halfway to the point where that helpful path showed up the last time, you start reaching out with your spirit, trying to soften the hard envelope that divides "you" from "here." At the same time, you carefully cycle your ki, working to acclimatize your body to the more physical aspects of the environment.
You're still working on that nearly half an hour later, when Elder Terok's slow and steady pace finally brings you through the forest to the foothills of the volcano.
And there's the path, the same as it was yesterday.
"Hmph," the old Goron mutters. "Considerate of them."
Without another word, he starts up the path, moving a little faster than before now that he's got a smooth, mostly-level surface under his feet. Or maybe it's the presence of solid stone, instead of softer earth, loose sand, and green, growing things?
Diminished by age or not, Terok IS still a Goron. They're not exactly light.
You bring your mind back from that musing and focus on your prior task, which you continue all the way up the slope to Kahine's cave. By the time you arrive, you note that you're breathing just a little easier in the tropical humidity, and not sweating as much. Spiritually, you think you've made less progress, but not no progress.
Gained Environmental Adaptation E (Plus) (Plus)
Maybe it's because you were so close to the finish line, or a show of eagerness on the priest's part, but the brief remainder of the trip to the underground shrine flies by.
"Oh-ho," Elder Terok exclaims, whitened eyes glancing up at the masked statue, lit by your conjured light. "Now this looks like a lady I can talk seriously with."
...is he...?
"Would you like for me to call her forth, Elder?" you offer.
Nah, couldn't be.
"If you would," he answers.
You get on with that, and in short order, Kahine is once again embodied before you.
"Back so soon, little magic man, little fairy?" she questions, before looking your companion over. "And you bring me such interesting company, too." She nods to Terok, flaming hair leaving a brief afterimage as it follows the motion of her masked head. "Greetings, old shaman. I am Kahine."
"Hail, fiery Kahine," Elder Terok intones, mustering a creaky but serviceable bow over his jeweled walking stick. "I am Terok, Elder of the Gorons and Priest of Din, Golden Goddess of Power. I thank you for seeing me unannounced."
Kahine laughs. "It is no trouble, Elder. All are welcome on Bali Ha'i, who come without wickedness in their hearts, and unexpected company is a most refreshing change from my usual."
As the priest and the spirit trade greetings, you wonder if you should stay here, or give them a measure of privacy.
You don't doubt for a moment that if the two older beings wanted to have a private conversation, they'd ask you to step out of the cave for a bit. In your admittedly rare interactions with him over the last few months, Elder Terok has never yet hesitated to speak his mind, and while you've only previously talked with Kahine the one time, she did not strike you as being much less direct than the Goron, just friendlier.
Since neither the celestial priest nor the elemental spirit say a word against your continued presence, you decide to sit tight, keep your eyes and ears open, and your mouth shut.
You also keep up your attempts to physical and spiritually adjust to your surroundings. Kahine's cave is rather cooler and drier than the "outdoors," and its elemental energies are even more different than that, so it's good practice, and it'll give you something constructive to do while your elders talk.
Elder Terok skips the idle small-talk you were half-expecting for some reason, and instead approaches Kahine in a more polite and formal version of his usual gruff and grouchily direct manner. He first inquires if you explained your intention of setting up a Ring of Trials, and when Kahine confirms this, the Goron offers a quick summary of what is involved.
"Just in case the boy missed something important, on account of not being fully-trained in the spiritual arts," he grumbles.
"Of course, of course."
From there, the priest breaks down what's involved in building a Ring of Trials, as a Priest of Din sees it.
It doesn't take long for you to realize that there ARE differences in what Terok is saying, here and now, than what you described when you were going over this with Kahine. It's not so much that you left anything out, but rather that, even after your lessons with Madam Lanora and Koron, you still approach the practice of magic and interactions with the supernatural with the mentality of a sorcerer instead of that of a priest.
If you were to make a mundane comparison, it's kind of like the difference between an artist and a philosopher: the former views the world through the lens of his creative impulses, seeing inspiration and the material resources needed to bring it about; the latter looks at the world as a series of instructive lessons, within which are to be found the answers to his questions.
...in that context, you suppose a wizard like Ambrose would be an engineer, viewing those resources you use to create "art" as the tools he needs to do a job. Or the tools to build the tools. Witches like Mrs. Madison, meanwhile, would be more like... hmmm...
You don't allow your mind to get too distracted by these speculations to miss out on what Terok is saying. It's another window into the Hyrulean faith in general, and to the creed and calling of Din's faithful in particular.
Kahine seems to find it interesting as well.
It doesn't take the pair long to double-check the plan, and confirm that there won't be any issue with setting up a Ring of Trials on Bali Ha'i.
That done, Kahine promptly asks Elder Terok if he'll be attending the party.
"I would appreciate the chance to talk more with a wise man," she says with a curious smile and lidded eyes. "It's been long years since the last of the shamans left, and longer still since I was able to meet with others in this manner."
Oh-ho!
Elder Terok blinks, clearly taken aback by this. "Ah... I was planning on only showing up for the Trials..."
Oh, that was the wrong answer.
"Only that?" Kahine shakes her head. "No, no, that will never do. You must give me the chance to show you Bali Ha'i properly, and to uphold the hospitality of her people."
"Hospitality," huh? Is that what they're calling it these days?
"I'm... not much for parties, Fiery One..."
"Call me Kahine."
So forward!
"That would be inappropriate-"
There is something shark-like in Kahine's smile as she says, "I insist."
"...okay?"
Before your amazed eyes, Kahine talks Elder Terok into showing up for your birthday party, on what sounds a heck of a lot like a date.
I knew I liked her!
"Until then!" the spirit grins, as her body returns to being stone.
There is a moment of silence, and then Elder Terok turns to you. "We're going."
Saying nothing, you follow the Goron Elder out of the cave. And if he moves faster going out than he did on the way in... well, that's his business.
Regardless, you weren't underground much longer than half an hour, which unfortunately wasn't enough time for you to really attune yourself to the spiritual essence of the cave. You had no such issue on the physical side of things.
Elder Terok pauses at the mouth of the cave for a moment, casting a wary glance over his shoulder before shaking his head and muttering something under his breath. Then he turns to you.
"Back to the beach, then."
With that, the old Goron curls up into a ball, leans forward, and begins to roll downhill.
"Hold on tight, Briar," you say quickly.
"Oh, Farore have mercy..."
Hang in there, girl.
Despite that brief prayer, your partner zips down to her usual place on your shoulder. A moment later, you feel a slight shift in the fabric of your shirt there, as she follows your instructions.
As soon as Briar is anchored, you take off down the path in pursuit of Elder Terok.
In the first few seconds, the old Goron's roll seemed no faster than the hurried shuffle he used to get out of Kahine's cave, but that's before the slope of the mountainside, the smoothness of the path, and his mostly-round hunched-over shape come together. He builds up speed rapidly, going from a walking pace to that of a run, then past that to a sprint - and then faster still.
For your part, you've taken all of three strides under mundane muscle power when it becomes clear that your priestly instructor is going to leave you in the dust if you don't pick up the pace.
The world around you is momentarily tinted white as your ki surges, Enhancement magnifying the efforts of your body.
For a few seconds, it's almost enough to keep pace with the accelerating Elder.
"Ho-ho-ho!" Terok suddenly laughs, in an uncharacteristically lighthearted tone. "So you want to race, do you, boy? Well, then, by all means - CATCH ME IF YOU CAN!"
You tell him, Terok!
You have just enough time to wonder how in the world the old man can even see you while he's spinning around like that, much less have the presence of mind to realize what you're doing and call you on it.
Then, with a surge of his celestial aura that lights up the rocky patches on his body and reminds you equally of your own Ki Enhancement technique and the Sword Beam skill as you've seen it used by a certain heroic Hylian in many a dream - and the one time in person, thanks to Dark Link - Terok starts to roll faster.
The aura of Bali Ha'i shifts abruptly, and you can almost hear the unmanifested spirit squawking in surprise as the Goron reaches a level of speed more akin to a motor vehicle than a living being.
Hahahaha! Weren't expecting that, were you?
You refuse to be outdone so easily, and slide into a Body Flicker, the world blurring around you as you race downhill after the priest.
As you close the gap between yourself and Terok, you see physical evidence of Bali Ha'i's surprise at how fast you and the Elder are moving, for there, a short distance ahead of the rolling, glowing Goron, the undisturbed stone of the mountain is flowing like liquid into the shape of the path. Just a bit further ahead, the few plants that grow on the rocky slope are hastily sliding out of the way in both directions as the rough road takes shape.
"Hoooo-hoooo-hoooo!" Terok chortles again, your speed warping the sound of his words. "Nnnnoooot baaaad, booooy! Nnnnoooot baaaad aaaat aaaallllll!"
In the next instant, your Body Flicker begins to wane, and you start to lose ground.
"But not good enough!" the Elder adds, as he starts to retake his lead. It's not just the faltering of your ki technique that's doing it; his body is glowing even brighter now, the stony sections of his flesh having burned past red and into hot orange, flecked with yellow.
Looks like Body Flicker may not be enough to get the job done - at least, not without burning a lot of ki. If you're going to keep up, much less stand a chance of winning this impromptu race, you need more speed, preferably in a more economic manner, and you need it quickly. Spellcasting is out, then, which leaves...
"You heard him, Briar!" you exclaim, as you mentally take hold of your ki and mana.
Yes! Here it comes!
"Oh, Goddesseeessss-!"
Show them how it's done, Alex!
The world burns GOLDEN as you unleash your Power.
THAT'S THE WAY!
This time, there is no mistaking it: Bali Ha'i straight-up YELPS in shock as you blaze down the path, catch up with Terok, and then pass him. The island spirit's attempt to build a path ahead of you fails, and for a few moments, you find yourself tearing down a rocky slope.
Then there is a surge of power from the island, and ahead of you, you see the path forming anew. Bali Ha'i has thrown any pretense at subtlety out the window for the sake of speed; you can see the TREES below you being yanked aside as the earth in which they're rooted is shifted about.
With your island host going to such trouble to provide you a clear path, it would be a shame not to take it - and so, you do.
In short order, you've returned to the beach, aura of Power still shimmering about you. Breathing slightly hard from the exertion, you dismiss the technique to take stock of your internal reserves and compare them against the distance you traveled. How long were you running, anyway-?
Your ruminations are cut short by a sudden cry of, "HO-HO-HO!"
From somewhere ABOVE you.
Incoming!
You look up sharply-
!
-and then, with a surprised squawk of your own, you surge and scramble out of the way as a rolling, glowing Goron surrounded by a fiery aura comes flying at you FROM THE SKY.
Bali Ha'i seems to shudder as Elder Terok hits the ground like a meteor, dust and debris flying in all directions.
What the heck?!
Boys. Oooo, I swear, sometimes...
Well, that was fun. You should do stuff like that more often!
Waving the dust kicked up by the Elder's landing away from your voice, you exclaim, "Is everyone still in one piece?"
"Urrrrgh," comes one response from your shoulder. "I think I'm gonna be sick..."
"Ho-ho-ho!" is the answer that arises from the miniature crater ahead of you. Elder Terok uncurls from his "traveling" form and stands up, stretching hard enough for his back to creak. "Ah, that was a good race! I haven't had a proper roll-out like that in far too long."
You're about to claim the win when a voice exclaims, "What in the NAMES of the GODDESSES was THAT?"
Still dripping water from what must have been an extended dip in the lagoon, Madam Lanora storms across the grass towards where you stopped and Elder Terok landed.
"What's all the screeching about?" the old Goron exclaims. "The boy and I were just having a little friendly competition, to see who could get down the mountain first."
"You were ON FIRE! And in the AIR!"
Terok blinks slowly, looking confused. "What's your point?"
The Zoran woman is momentarily at a loss for words, before she snarls, "Gorons!" under her breath and whirls to face you.
You're rather relieved that this is when Koron shows up, scurrying along as fast as his little legs will carry him.
"Did you guys SEE that?! Someone was FLYING THROUGH THE AIR and they were ON FIRE, and something else was BURNING GOLD and whoops!"
*WHOOMPH!*
"Oh, hey, where did this hole come from? And why are you standing at the bottom of it, Terok?"
It takes a couple of minutes to sort everything out to most people's satisfaction. Madam Lanora is still a bit put out with the hole affair - Zoras don't like people being on fire, for obvious reasons, and are only a bit less fond of sudden and unannounced explosions - but Koron is more or less on your side about the race sounding like it was a lot of fun. He's a little disappointed he wasn't invited to watch, but after hearing how much ground you and the Elder covered, and how fast you did, he admits he would have missed most of the race regardless.
Vert spends most of the discussion commiserating with Briar about insane partners, although that quickly turns into an argument about whose partner is the greater lunatic.
Briar seems to winning the debate, and- wait, that's not a good thing.
As the discussion winds down, you take a moment to formally offer your thanks to Bali Ha'i for its efforts in providing a "racetrack" for you and Elder Terok.
You're not sure if the island hears you, let alone understands your words, but the spiritual atmosphere seems to settle a bit, so you figure the sentiment, at least, made it across any language barrier.
Once Koron has calmed down a bit and Madam Lanora has stopped glaring quite so sharply at the rest of you, the priests sit down to compare notes about what they've seen and sensed of Bali Ha'i since you all parted ways. Thanks to his meeting with Kahine, Terok does a good portion of the talking, although you notice that he sticks to the technical details of that conversation, leaving out his agreement with the volcano spirit.
After this talk, the priests are satisfied with their knowledge of the island, and ready to proceed with setting up the Ring of Trials. There's just one more thing that needs to be determined before you start the ritual to assemble the testing ground, and that's the question of how difficult you wish the overall test to be.
Battles in the Ring of Trials are generally one-on-one, with the exceptions being for major monsters that are able to summon or spawn minions in some form, or for less powerful creatures that fight as a group from the outset. That much is fixed, and won't change regardless of your choice. What you ARE able to do is request how many such set battles you'd like to attempt. Traditionally, the Ring is set for three matches or for nine, both numbers being of some importance to the Goddesses and their faithful, but you may choose to fight any number of bouts between those two numbers.
Fighting and winning more bouts is obviously more pleasing to Din, and Farore appreciates someone willing to take on a challenge, but knowing your own limits and taking on a number of challenges that you can reasonably handle is an approach that pleases Nayru, and is not objectionable to her sisters.
There is a difference between courage and recklessness, after all, and self-knowledge is just another form of power.
Because the goal here is not to test the participant to destruction, you will not be permanently harmed regardless of the outcome of your fights. In addition, you also have the option to end the Trials immediately after the conclusion of any given bout, should you be unable or unwilling to continue on. Exactly how quitting the Trials early affects the outcome can vary considerably, depending upon the circumstances - bad match-ups can and do happen, and even Nayru can't always tell when someone will get in a lucky shot - but as a rule, the closer you are to the end of your chosen number of trials before opting out, the better.
There is also the matter of your audience to consider. Some of your companions are well-accustomed to the sight of combat, but others - especially your parents - will not be nearly as sanguine about seeing you battle a series of Hyrulean monsters.
While you could easily slip a mention of Elder Terok's upcoming date with Kahine into the priests' conversation, it strikes you as a poor idea. Quite aside from matters such as Terok's right to privacy, you just got on his good side, thanks to that impromptu downhill race. It would be terribly counter-productive to undo that achievement mere minutes after making it.
Besides, if Lanora and Koron don't know what's going on, their reactions when they see Terok escorting Kahine to your birthday party should be a lot funnier.
You think it over, but really, was there ever any other choice?
Hahaha! That's my boy!
You tell the priests that you're going to attempt the full set of nine challenges.
Elder Terok humphs gruffly, as if completely unimpressed by your decision. It doesn't hide the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Madam Lanora frowns, and says nothing.
Koron salutes you in the style of a Hylian soldier, saying you're a braver soul than he is.
And Vert turns to Briar and says, "Okay, you win."
With that decided, you and the priests return to the circle of standing stones, and begin setting up the Ring of Trials.
As it turns out, the process of creating one of these divinely annointed testing grounds is a fairly extended one, which the three priests will need to take in turns over the course of the next week. Madam Lanora mentions that it would be easier if they were doing this in Hyrule, where there is both more magic available and the very land itself is already blessed by the Goddesses - but that, of course, is not an option.
That said, Bali Ha'i is much easier to work with in this manner than some of the other places on Earth your Zoran tutor has seen, during those times when you've escorted her to meetings with the various religious and magical authorities of your acquaintance.
Trying this sort of thing anywhere near Sunnydale would have ended poorly, even if the local demons didn't sit up and take notice of the divine magic being worked on their proverbial doorstep. And assuming you could find a part of Tokyo with the space to spare, the high level of urbanization and the abundance of preexisting divine claims on the land of Japan would have seriously complicated matters.
Fortunately, your assistance won't be required for the entire seven days. With your power behind it, the Spell to Call a Planar Ally lasts more long enough for the priests to get all their work done - and if they get to spend the time when they aren't actively working on the Ring of Trials relaxing in a tropical paradise, well, the magic in question DOES normally require you to compensate the beings you call up for assistance. The supernaturally helpful terrain of Bali Ha'i already took care of much of the remaining heavy lifting.
That said, the clerical trio don't hesitate to take advantage of the not-quite-blessing that your presence as the not-yet-officially-recognized Chosen of Din offers to the opening ritual.
"Official recognition," my divine backside. If I say he's Chosen, then he's Chosen.
That takes about an hour, after which they won't need your presence again until the completion of the rite, a week from now. So that works out for you.
No comment. / No comment.
Once your part in the day's work is over, you say your farewells to the priests. Your last sight of Bali Ha'i until the weekend is of Elder Terok standing at the heart of the circle of standing stones, chanting in a low voice like rolling rocks while the Power of Din moves around and through him in a faint, reddish-gold haze.
Upon your return home, you sit down and make one final review of your party plans, as well as the related timetable. In a spot of good fortune - or is it divine providence? - your birthday falls on a Saturday this year, meaning that, assuming you can convince your parents to go for it, you can hold a three-day celebration on Bali Ha'i. Most of three days, at least: collect your guests over the course of Friday afternoon and evening; have the main party be an all-day, multi-event affair on Saturday; and then take Sunday morning to recover before shuttling everyone home.
It will require some good timing, meaning RSVPs on the invitations are a definite must, but you think you can shuttle all the people on your extensive guest to Bali Ha'i under your own power.
Then again, perhaps it might be more efficient to provide a means for at least some of your guests to travel to the island themselves? Your finances are much reduced from all the item-crafting you've done over the year thus far, but you've got enough left - especially in credit at Gen's - that you believe you could put together some one-way, single-use teleportation items. And between Ambrose, Arisawa Akkiko, the Hayashi Clan, and Balthazar, a fair number of the people you mean to invite either ARE magic-users, or could easily meet up and travel with friendly faces that possess that ability.
You'd still have to shuttle the non-magicals about yourself, and handle most if not all of the post-party travel, but since you're mainly concerned about having enough gas in the tank to face the Ring of Trials, that wouldn't be a great difficulty.
Alternately, you could try and arrange for transport by other means - say, by calling up and making a deal with a creature or creatures capable of ferrying all your guests to and from Bali Ha'i. This might end up being more or less expensive than the use of disposable magic items, depending on who - and what - the whims of magic and the Goddesses deign to send your way, but it would have a couple of distinct advantages. High-class families like the Drakes, the Shuzens, and even the Chases don't drive themselves and their associates around; they have chauffeurs for that. Acquiring a driver and vehicle (or pluralities thereof) of your own for the day would send a message, implying a certain status on your part, which taking care of everything in person simply couldn't do. It would also ease the time constraints and be a little more convenient for everyone.
Of the three kinds of travel arrangements you were considering making, summoning an independently teleport-capable entity to ferry your guests to and from Bali Ha'i is easily the least time- and effort-intensive approach for you to take. It might end up costing as much or more than making one-shot teleportation items for the magically-inclined among your acquaintances, but that is a price you are willing to pay for the sheer convenience it would afford to everyone.
Besides, what's the point of having phenomenal magical power if you can't use it to show off every once in a while?
If you can't use your Power to show off, you clearly don't have enough of it.
As you're not sure just how powerful a creature you might need to call upon for the job you have in mind, you retreat to your Mirror Hideaway before setting up the usual summoning circle.
So, who are we sending to the kid for this one?
Then, with a prayer to the Goddesses, you begin casting the most powerful form of the Spell to Call a Planar Ally that you can manage.
Good question... most of the Sages have the wrong skillset, or are out for safety's sake, the Spirit Train's too big...
The necessity of substituting extra mana to cover the cost of the sacrifice this spell normally requires will reduce the effectiveness of the summoning a bit, but you remain hopeful that a suitable agent of the Goddesses will answer your call for assistance.
Thunderbird would object to playing cab-driver... the kid would have to set up Fyer's cannon for him, defeating the point...
After all, they have yet to let you down.
No pressure, or anything.
And the burst of golden light and smoke that answers your call shows that they won't be doing so today.
You sent HIM?
Or at least, that's what you think, until you get a good look at the entity you've called up this time.
We don't exactly have a lot of people set up for long-distance travel, okay?
The figure that has appeared within your summoning circle is a knight in full panoply, with a shield bearing the Royal Crest of Hyrule affixed to his right arm, and a sheathed sword visible at his right hip. He is exceptionally and even unnaturally tall, standing spiky-helmeted head and pauldron-covered shoulders above most humans or Hylians, and this size, combined with the dark hue of his armor, lends him a menacing aspect.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but Din, you overthought things.
For a second, you think that you've summoned a Darknut or an Iron Knuckle, but then the differences in equipment sink in. Darknuts prefer heavier blades meant to smash an enemy's armor and break bones as much or more as cut his flesh, and will sometimes forego the use of shields entirely in favor of wielding massive two-handed swords. This knight's weapon, while fairly large by dint of being fitted to his greater-than-average frame, looks to be of a style meant more for speed and precision than brute force - a blade for duels and matching quick, lightly-armed opponents, rather than the grand melee or battles with huge, heavily-armored, and slow-moving foes.
Say what. / What.
And he certainly isn't carrying an axe, as some Iron Knuckles do.
What I mean is, instead of sending something entirely new just to impress the boy-
The style of his armor is wrong as well. Instead of the armored crest of a Darknut or the horns of an Iron Knuckle, this knight's helmet features a single spike at the peak. In addition to that, Darknuts and Iron Knuckles both favor especially large and ornate suits of plate, which make them that much more difficult to injure. Iron Knuckles in particular, you recall having massive pauldrons and armored skirts, features that this knight has done away with entirely - or at least as much as is practical, without impairing his own protection - in favor of preserving as much of his native range of movement as possible.
That is NOT why I did this.
When you think about it, this fits with his use of a duelist's weapon. If you're expecting to face an agile opponent, you need to be able to keep up with them, and not get bogged down by the weight or inflexibility of your own gear. Then too, some swordsmen can wield a blade precisely enough to find and pierce the weak points in even the best armor, while others carry swords so magically-powerful that they can carve straight through your defenses. In either case, mobility would be extremely important.
-couldn't you have just sent Batreaux again?
Having looked the knight over herself, Briar asks, "So who's this helmet-head?"
"AGAIN, WITH THAT INFERNAL EPITHET!" the knight roars, not quite managing to hit THUNDERBIRD levels of volume despite a good effort. "AM I CURSED TO BE HAUNTED BY THAT HERO-BRAT'S DISRESPECT UNTIL THE END OF TIME?!"
Wow. I didn't realize he was still nursing a grudge about that...
"Oh, my Goddesses," the warrior moans at a more normal volume, as he slumps within the circle and begins to radiate despair. "What have I ever done to deserve such insult?"
Uh... oh, boy.
...okay, then.
Farore, I blame you for this.
Hey, you're the one who sent him!
"My apologies for my companion's thoughtless remark, Sir Knight," you say formally, bowing to the summoned warrior while turning your head just far enough to your right that you can shoot Briar an annoyed glance. "It was not my intention to offer you insult, and I am sure she did not mean to bring up any... unpleasant memories."
"Uh, yeah," Briar says sheepishly. "Sorry about that. I didn't even know that term would be a problem."
The visage beneath the full, face-concealing helm regards you both for a moment, and then the knightly figure sighs.
"The fault is mine, sir and lady. A servant of the Goddesses should be less sensitive to mere words, especially those spoken in ignorance. I pray you, forgive me my outburst."
"It is forgiven," you reply. "Shall we start over from the beginning, then?"
"By all means." The knight clears his throat. "By your summoning and the will of the Goddesses, I have come forth. I am Jermafenser, Knight of the Shadowed Mire and once-Guardian of the Palace of Midoro."
Briar makes a muted noise of recognition at that, but not loudly enough to interrupt the warrior's speech.
"Who are you, to call upon me, and what service would you seek of me?"
The formal and eloquent address stirs something in you, a desire to respond in kind that you find yourself indulging.
"My name is Alexander Harris-"
"-and I performed this summoning seeking the aid of one with the ability to transport a large number of living beings across vast distances, from multiple locations, in a swift and secure manner." With an effort, you suppress the frown that wants to emerge as you look the knight over. "Are you such a one, Sir Jermafencer?"
Once again, the knight regards you from beneath his great helm. This time, you think it's in surprise.
"...was I bound so long by the command of the Great King, that my legend had been forgotten by the children of Hyrule?" he muses. "Or perhaps a reminder is in order...?"
And with that, he reaches up with his empty hand, grasps his helm, and then pulls his head off.
You blink, honestly not having expected that.
"Does this jar your memory, young sorcerer?" Jermafencer inquires as he lets go of his helmet, only for it to stay where he left it, hovering silently.
"...are you a dullahan?" you inquire.
You did some reading after your encounter with Celty Sturluson on Halloween.
What can you say? The lady left an impression.
Jermafencer recoils in surprise. "Where on Hyrule did you hear that name, young one?"
You quickly summarize your meeting with the fairy motorcyclist, months gone, slipping in the fact that you aren't ON Hyrule.
"...well, then. I certainly didn't expect this." Jermafencer shakes his head - or rather, heads, a second helmet having materialized atop his shoulders as you spoke. "But to answer your question, Young Alexander, though I and my forebears have long been bound to the lands of Hyrule, I am indeed descended of that Fae lineage, and possessed of similar powers and purpose."
And like that, you realize why the Goddesses sent this knight to you.
You're welcome!
"Would you happen to have a carriage or chariot at your command, Sir Knight?" you guess.
"In fact, I do. And while it is traditionally reserved for the escort of spirits to the hereafter, you would not be the first sorcerer to call upon one of my bloodline for assistance in traveling the mortal plane." You get the impression the knight is smirking as he adds, "Shall we bargain?"
You proceed to explain your needs, calling up an illusory map of the Earth to point out general locations: where you are; where your various guests reside; and where Bali Ha'i is. That last one is by far the most vague, but Jermafencer assures you he will be able to find the place.
"The Ring of Trials that you say the three priests of the Goddesses are constructing for you will be of great aid, there," the knight says confidently. "I was familiar with such places of old, before the Great King called on me to serve as Guardian in a Trial of his own devising."
The main issue with the task you would like Jermafencer to undertake is the sheer number of people involved, and what it's going to end up costing you. Briar and the knight inform you that, in those parts of Hyrule where he was known to ride, the dead would customarily be buried with three Rupees in their pockets - one for each of the Goddesses - so that when Jermafencer arrived to collect their souls, they could pay for a swift passage to the hereafter.
It was also said that souls who had reason to fear the Goddesses' judgment, or otherwise desired to remain in the world of the living, would pay the dark knight to ensure that he DIDN'T take them. This, supposedly, was the reason why Poes and other wandering souls still carried Rupees, just in case they ran into the knight on one of his rides.
On the face of it, three Rupees a head isn't an unreasonable price for the kind of service Jermafencer can provide. The problem is that you don't have nearly enough Rupees to cover the cost for everyone you're planning on inviting - not both ways, at least.
You could pay for the trip to Bali Ha'i, and then teleport everybody home yourself over the course of the last day of the party. Jermafencer is also willing to accept gold and silver, at a conversion rate of eight silver coins to one Green Rupee, or one gold coin to twelve Rupees. You have enough metallic currency to equal one hundred and twenty three Rupees, give or take a few copper pieces, but even if you wiped out your reserve of such AND all your Rupees, you'd still come up short for the full price.
Seeing as how he'll be escorting groups in quick, organized runs instead of having to wander all over the place hunting down errant souls, perhaps you'd like to try haggling Jermafencer down to a more affordable price? Or offering him a different form of payment in lieu of some (or all) of your precious sparkling stones and shiny metal?
Alternately, you could dismiss Jermafencer and try to summon another spirit willing and able to do this job, but for less money. Or you could give the whole thing up as a bad idea, and go back to one of your previous plans.
Jermafencer doesn't outwardly react when you mention your standing within Lu-sensei's school of martial arts. This comes as no surprise to you; as far as you known, the School of Five Elements and all its practitioners are restricted entirely to Earth, so there's no reason why a warrior of Hyrule would know the name.
When you claim the title of Chosen of Din, however, the knight gives a sudden start.
But he doesn't call you out on it, or otherwise interrupt you as you continue on to explaining why you called him.
Not having enough Rupees to pay the asking price of a Hyrulean service provider is familiar ground for you, and as you did with the Postman, you feel Jermafencer out on the idea of providing spells in lieu of currency.
The knight considers your offer for a moment, before replying that he has little need for most magic in the course of performing his duties - and much of what he does need, he is able to provide for himself, or with assistance from the Goddesses.
You restrain an urge to sigh at this point, sensing that Jermafencer isn't quite done speaking, and that showing disappointment would weaken your position in these negotiations.
After the briefest of pauses, the knight goes on. "That said, some spells that would be of use - helpful, though far from essential - are not within my means to cast. A method for avoiding detection, for example, or for attracting the restless dead at great range, or perhaps even for bypassing certain wards..."
The first sort of magic would be no trouble at all. You routinely provide a Spell of Nondetection for the Postman's peace of mind whenever you call him up to deliver your mail, and this would just be more of the same. Granted, Jermafencer would likely prefer a one-time, long-lasting application of that particular magic, rather than the Postman's regular, shorter-duration repeat castings, but a permanent casting of the Spell of Nondetection is within your power.
The second type of magic is more problematic, as you don't currently know a spell that specifically attracts the undead. Oh, you could use a Spell of Summoning to call up specific spirits or just grab random batches of them, but they would only remain present as long as the spell lasted. That sort of thing isn't what Jermafencer desires; he wants a way to - for lack of a better term - "physically" draw spirits to his location, so that he can capture them.
You can see how certain applications of Necromancy could be used to generate such an effect - it's really just a reversal of the Spell to Hide From Undead, plus a few extra bits - but you'd have to develop that spell from scratch, and you're not terribly keen on the idea, when you'll probably never use it yourself.
After all, why would you ever WANT to be mobbed by ghosts?
Creating a magic item that produces a similar effect would be a little faster, since you don't necessarily need spells that give you exactly the kind of effect you want the item to have, just close analogues and enough magical understanding to finesse the fine details. But even with the ability to dip into your cash and credit reserves to pay for some of the cost, you could exhaust all your current funds - including the Rupees, silver, and gold you're trying to save on with this deal - and still not have enough to complete the item. So that's off the table for the time being.
As for the last suggestion, while you do know several spells that could be used to bypass or punch through wards, none of them are the sort of thing you could slap on to a person or item as an enchantment. You'd have to create another magic item to give Jermafencer the capability, and even if you could afford it right now, you're honestly uncertain if it would be a good idea.
Servant of the Goddesses or no, he DOES have Fae heritage, probably of the darker variety, given that he works as a collector of souls. The kind of wards that keep entities like that out are the sort that really shouldn't be breached.
With some of the more potentially high-value options off the table, and inspired by Jermafencer's admitted (albeit distant) relation to Miss Sturluson, you offer up the possibility of putting the knight in contact with one of his Earth-native cousins, or visiting Faerie on your proverbial dime, as another possible method of paying his fee.
The knight informs you that he is capable of visiting Faerie any time he wishes, duty permitting, but he also admits that meeting an Earthly dullahan is not without its appeal.
"Though naturally, such a meeting would be entirely dependent upon the lady's agreement," he adds firmly. "I would not presume to intrude upon her time or goodwill uninvited, distant kin or no."
After that little show on Halloween night? Neither would you.
Still, you can drop Celty a line and see what she thinks of the idea.
For the consideration of this introduction to a previously-unknown relation, however distantly removed, Jermafencer is willing to waive ten percent of his usual fee. He also agrees that, since you're asking him to convey groups of pre-paid passengers directly, instead of picking souls up at random and going through the hassle of individual bargains as he normally does, he can afford a price cut - say, another twenty-five percent?
This brings his asking price down to 117 Rupees for the one-way conveyance, or 234 for the entire round trip. A bit less than two Rupees a head.
Gained Haggling D (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
You decide to fulfill both of Jermafencer's requests. Casting a permanent Spell of Nondetection costs you nothing but mana or a few minutes of time, and while the Spell to Attract Undead will require more actual work, it's valuable enough in this negotiation to be worth it.
And after thinking on it a bit, you realize that there might be occasions when being able to lure nearby restless spirits and walking corpses to your location would be useful.
Most of them involve getting the undead into place for an explosion of some sort.
Boom!
Not the sort of thing you'll be using any time soon, but in the future...
In light of your decision to cast two spells for Jermafencer, and their combined value, you decide to go ahead and retain his services to chauffeur most of your guests to and from Bali Ha'i.
Exactly what the full cost of hiring the Hyrulean Fae knight will come to is a bit fluid, dependent as it is on how many of the people you plan to invite to your birthday party can actually attend. Not to mention that it would be no hardship for you to take your family and your friends from Sunnydale, which you'll most likely end up doing unless somebody sees the other guests being driven around in an old-fashioned, probably haunted carriage, and decides that they just HAVE to give it a try.
Also, you DO still have to research the Spell to Attract Undead before you can "sell" it to Jermafencer.
Still, the knight agrees to take the casting of the Spell of Nondetection and a symbolic three Rupees as a down-payment for the job, with the remainder to be paid in full at the end of your contract.
"I would summon my carriage, that we might seal our arrangement," Jermafencer says, while both of his heads look around at your Mirror Hideaway, "but I fear there is not space enough for it and us in this chamber."
That is one of the shortcomings of a Mirror Hideaway as a spellcasting chamber, and accordingly, one of numerous reasons why you're really looking forward to being able to create a PROPER demi-plane of your very own in the not-too-distant future.
Still, the lack of room for massively-larger-than-human summons is hardly an insurmountable problem. You can just summon Jermafencer the next time you visit Bali Ha'i to see to your ongoing preparations of everything other than the Ring of Trials. That will be six days from now.
"I shall await your summons, then." The helm still on Jermafencer's shoulders tips towards you in a nod - as does the one floating in mid-air. "Until our next meeting, young summoner."
And then he disappears.
With the knight's departure, you leave your Mirror Hideaway and call it a night.
Over the next week, much of your free time - which is more abundant than usual, thanks to Madam Lanora and Koron being occupied on Bali Ha'i for this week - is taken up with writing and sending all of your party invitations. You mail them in batches, organized by family and in some cases by place of residence - the letters for the Kurosakis and the Arisawas are all delivered together, for example - but even so, the Postman is definitely earning his Rupees.
Oddly enough, he appears to enjoy it.
"This?" he laughs. "This is nothing! Why, I once had to carry two hundred letters and seven packages to homes and businesses scattered across Hyrule, all in the space of a single day! In winter! While being chased by a Great White Wolfos!" The celestial suddenly droops so profoundly, it's a wonder that the banner strapped to his back doesn't warp. "Oh, Goddesses, what a horrible day that was..."
Wonder of wonders, you even receive a few replies by the time the weekend arrives.
Kahlua's bat-messenger, Shinshi, delivers a declaration that the entire Shuzen family - plus the eldest sister you hadn't previously met - would be delighted to attend your party, provided that protections against the sun and salt-water are provided.
You were planning on doing that regardless, since making sure your guests are comfortable is one of the obligations of a host. As for this Akua girl...
A fairy drops off the answer from Ambrose and the Drakes, who are likewise pleased to accept your invitation.
Balthazar's RSVP is just kind of there in your mailbox one day, so completely normal that you'd almost think it was sent by mundane means, except for the sheer speed of the delivery. He and Dave have no conflicting plans on the weekend in question and would be happy to attend, but Dave is wondering if it'd be okay for his mother to join them.
Nobody else has sent a reply by the time Saturday rolls around, but you're hardly surprised. You only just got finished sending all your invitations the previous day, and not everybody you're inviting has the means - or a good relationship with people who do have the means - to reply to an intercontinental letter so quickly.
Plus, even if they have no prior engagements, you expect that a few of the people you've invited will need a while to decide if they're going to accept your invitation or not. The ninjas don't get along with the Shuzens, the Reinhardts likely have a bit of an issue with both groups, Beryl is several years older than you and not really a friend, and Mai's parents are just as likely to want as little to do with more supernatural people as possible.
Leaving all of that for later, you get up, get dressed, have breakfast, and then...
You know very, very little about Kahlua's older sister, beyond the fact of her existence, that she's Issa's child by a woman who isn't Gyokuro or Akasha, that none of the rest of the family besides her father knew of her existence until about a year ago, and that Issa thought she likely wouldn't mind visiting the Hellmouth for a time.
This isn't much, but it's more than enough to make you curious. And the implication that she's either visiting the Shuzens right now, or will be by the time your birthday rolls around, does nothing to reduce that inquiring state of mind.
Kahlua didn't mention Akua's presence in her last letter to you, and hasn't said anything in her RSVP, having chosen to answer your rather formal invitation in kind.
Like you said, you're curious.
So you go ahead and send a quick reply of your own to the Shuzens the next time you summon the Postman-
"But I just got back from the scary castle!"
-letting them know that you've officially added Akua to the guest list.
Balthazar's reply to your invitation isn't as formal as Kahlua's letter was, which honestly fits what you know of the man. He showed up to Kahlua's birthday last year wearing dress shoes, a fancy modernized take on traditional robes, and about three days' worth of stubble.
That he made the look WORK doesn't change the fact that it was a little inappropriate.
In any case, the Sorcerer of the Seven Hundred and Seventy-Seventh Degree mentions that Dave read the part in your invitation about a three-day getaway on a tropical island, and immediately asked about bringing his mother along, on the grounds that a) she could use the vacation, b) it would bring her a little closer to Dave's own involvement in the supernatural, and c) she'd ground him for life when she found out he'd gone to Tahiti or wherever without permission, and without her.
You have no problem with throwing your fellow underage sorcerer a bone in this matter, and you send your answer to the Arcana Cabana-
"Interesting store that Mr. Blake has. It reminds me of a few places I used to know back in Hyrule."
-for Balthazar to pass on to his student.
Perhaps it's your sense of etiquette getting the better of you, but you went ahead and wrote up full formal invitations for all of your friends and acquaintances in Sunnydale that you were planning to bring to your birthday party.
Then again, when you've already gone to the time and trouble of writing a dozen of these things to people all over the globe, some of whom you've only known for a matter of months, can you really do any less for people that you've known for years?
Cordelia, at least, would be likely to give you some grief if you did.
And so it is that when you leave your house that Saturday morning, it's with four more letters tucked into your dimensional pocket: one for Cordelia; one for the Madison ladies; one for Larry and his grandmother; and the last for Lu-sensei.
Your teacher isn't in when you arrive at the School of Five Elements, so you just slip the letter through his mail-slot and go on your way.
Catherine Madison greets you at the front door and accepts your invitation in person, regarding it with a look of pure bemusement. She also comments - in the traditional Sunnydale manner - that Amy is upstairs, and she has some fresh-squeezed fruit juice in the kitchen.
You haven't exactly been running around Sunnydale at top speed - you're not up against any urgent deadlines, and you're past the point where a casual morning run would further your skills in Ki Enhancement or Body Flicker anyway - but it's still a bright California morning in early March.
Even if your morning excursion hasn't resulted in you breaking a sweat, a glass of something cool and sweet to drink IS rather tempting.
And so, you accept Mrs. Madison's not-an-invitation in the spirit with which it was given, saying that a drink would be nice, please and thank you, and stepping forward.
Catherine steps out of your way and heads for the kitchen while you kick your shoes off in the front hall.
"Who was that at the door, Mom?" Amy's voice calls downstairs.
"It's Alex, Amy," Catherine answers.
There is a brief pause, followed by the soft thump of sock-clad feet on carpet, and then Amy appears at the top of the stairs, regarding you in surprise.
"Alex, Briar, what are you doing here so early?"
While Briar flies over to your first student in magic (and her second), you tell Amy that you're just dropping off an invitation for your upcoming birthday party.
"What, like an actual mailed letter?" she asks in surprise. "Couldn't you have just asked at school, or something?"
You could have, but seeing as how you were going to the effort of writing to all your out-of-town friends, it just seemed like the right thing to do.
"...Cordy would probably be ticked if you didn't do it this way," Amy admits after a second.
"He had the same thought," Briar agrees.
As Amy comes downstairs, her mother emerges from the kitchen, a tall glass of something orange in one hand. She passes the glass to you, and then starts opening your letter, moving over to the base of the stairs so that Amy can read over her shoulder.
While they're doing that, you take an experimental sip of the fresh fruit juice.
*Slurp*
Hmmm. Orange, banana, and peach.
You wonder if Mrs. Madison squeezed the fruit herself.
While the ladies are huddled over the letter, Mr. Madison emerges from the kitchen. You haven't interacted with Amy's father all that much since you've known her, but from what you know of him, he's a pretty ordinary guy. Like your Dad, he played football in high school, but he was the quarterback to Mrs. Madison's head cheerleader, the Homecoming King to her Queen, and just generally more outgoing and popular than your father ever cared to be. The signs of all that are still there, in the mostly-fit, slightly-declined physique (and accordingly elevated levels of ki), above-average good looks that haven't faded with time, and a ready smile.
Mostly, Mr. Madison has just been there in the background or off at work during your visits to Amy's, the same as the parents of a lot of other kids you know in Sunnydale. Now that you know Catherine Madison is a practicing witch, it strikes you as a little odd that her husband would be so mundane, but maybe that's just your limited exposure to the home lives of other magical practitioners showing.
You have to adjust your mental image of Mr. Madison slightly this morning, however, as instead of his usual casual clothes or business formal, he's wearing a dark green dressing gown and ridiculous fuzzy cat slippers. The piece of toast he's chewing on is nothing to comment about.
"Good morning, Alex," he says, after swallowing.
"Good morning, Mr. Madison."
"Another beach party?" Amy exclaims then. "On a TROPICAL ISLAND? For THREE DAYS?"
All three members of the Madison household stare at you.
"It's a very nice island," you say in response to Amy's outburst. "And yes, I remember that Cordelia was against me celebrating my birthday with a beach party two years in a row, but it just... felt right."
The stares don't abate.
"...not what I was getting at, Alex," Amy sighs.
"Oh?"
"I think what my daughter is trying to say," Mrs. Madison interjects smoothly, "is that paying for a trip to the tropics for... how many guests?"
"I'm inviting over seventy people," you answer. "But only a dozen or so of those have replied yet."
"...right," Catherine says after a moment. "Paying for travel, food, accommodations, and entertainment for that many people... it's all a bit much just for a birthday party, don't you think?"
"Actually, the travel arrangements are really the only part that's costing me anything," you say earnestly. "At least in terms of money. The rest is just time and magic."
And while rearranging your schedule to find the time for everything you want done for the party could have been an issue under other circumstances, the recent addition of your Restful Blanket has done a lot to ease the strain. Not erased it completely; your parents still don't want you out of the house between sunset and sunrise, and your daily obligations in Sunnydale mean that you can't really visit Bali Ha'i during the regular week. Even with that handicap, however, the extra hours you can spend doing research, making sure your homework is done - and done WELL - attending to your mail and inter-planar goods shipping, and minding the plants you have scattered around the house (if not those in the backyard) have been a Goddess-send.
You're welcome!
Mr. Madison blinks at that. "You're a witch, then? Wait, sorry; I mean, a warlock?"
"Goddess-send?" Is that even a word?
"...uh, no sir," you tell him. "I'm actually a sorcerer."
If it wasn't before, it is now.
Amy's father appears confused, and looks from you to his wife before asking, "...what's the difference?"
"Substantial, dear," Catherine replies succinctly. "Though in Alex's case, he takes it even farther than normal. You know how I said I've never been able to teleport, or risk practicing it near Sunnydale?"
"Yes..."
"HE can, and does, and gets away with it without issue."
That's not ENTIRELY true, but you don't think bringing up the quirky aspects of your Summoning Magic is really pertinent to this conversation.
Besides, Mr. Madison is already giving you enough of a startled look.
On the other hand, perhaps you should take this opportunity to offer Mrs. Madison pointers on shoring up her skill at teleportation? It's just an incredibly useful form of magic, and the idea that she has the potential for it, but is being prevented from making use of it by environmental factors, kind of annoys you.
Stupid Hellmouth just HAS to ruin everything...
In any case, it's the relative ease with which you're able to use Summoning Magic that is accounting for, oh, at least a quarter of your ability to hold a party on Bali Ha'i with relatively little monetary loss. Being able to speak face-to-burning face with Kahine; bringing the priestly trio to the island; contracting Jermafencer; getting some of the funds with which to pay him; escorting your family and Sunnydale friends; and setting up the Magnificent Mansion like you plan to; none of these would have been practical, and perhaps not even possible, without your command over and experience with the School of Space-Time (and Other Dimensions).
A good part of the rest comes from your similarly well-honed Conjuration Magic, and the sheer depth of your mana reserves.
"Speaking of teleportation," you say, "if you wanted some more pointers on how I do it, Mrs. Madison, you could always sit in on a few of Amy's lessons."
"I am nowhere NEAR being able to teleport, Alex," Amy says.
"Teleporting yourself?" you reply. "No, you're not. But giving your Mom a chance to look at how we practice Summoning Magic from the ground up would be helpful." You pause, searching your memory. "That, and I actually know a couple of low-level spells that work exactly the same for sorcerers and witches, so we could get into studying them right away, instead of waiting a few months."
You would have to review the spells in question before those lessons, of course, if only because the Spell of Callback and the Spell of the Returning Weapon aren't ones you've ever used in a real-world situation, and only rarely in practice. Just enough to learn them the first time, and to not become completely unfamiliar with them afterwards.
You also consider suggesting that Mrs. Madison join your mother in her lessons, or even that she visit during one of YOUR lessons with Batreaux, but on second though, you decide not to mention either option just yet. Each involves someone who isn't here at the moment, and who really deserves a say in whether or not a new face joins what has, up until now, been a fairly private set of classes.
Also, you kind of like just spending time with your Mom - and occasionally Zelda - talking about magic with no outside interruptions.
Briar doesn't count; she's your partner, teacher, and fellow instructor.
"I may just take you up on that, Alex," Catherine muses.
You don't really have anything else to say right now, and you also think that you've given the Madisons enough to think about for one day.
So you finish your juice-
*Glug*
*Glug*
*Glug*
-thank Mrs. Madison for the drink, and tell the family to think over the invitations you've left with them and get back to you in their own time.
Then you slip your shoes back on and head out to finish delivering your mail.
When you get to the Blaisdell home, Larry is the one who answers the door. The two of you spend a few minutes sitting out on the front lawn, Larry reading through the invitation and you just kicking back and watching the clouds - such as they are - while Briar flies about the yard, inspecting the flowers planted along the front of the house.
Where the Madisons had some trouble accepting the details of your birthday party, Larry just takes it all in with a nod, and says he'll talk with his grandmother later today about going. And where Catherine and Amy had more than a few questions - or protests - about your proposed festivities, Larry merely asks if there are going to be any other guys at this thing.
"You know a LOT of girls, Alex," he points out. "I have nothing against most of them, but still..." He trails off for a moment, searching for the right words, and then just shrugs. "You know?"
Yeah, you know. And fortunately, Dave, Ichigo, and Sokka are on your guest list. Hayashi Shinta and Higurashi Souta are a little outside your age group, but they'll probably rally with the rest of the guys as well, out of sheer self-preservation.
Not all guys are as comfortable being surrounded by girls as you are.
Boys can be so sensitive.
That one perfectly reasonable concern aside, you can't help but think back to your seventh birthday party, where Larry suffered the Blue Screen of Death when you turned yourself into a monkey to prove that you had magic, and compare that reaction to this casual acceptance of your proposed weekend getaway to the South Pacific.
He's come so far in just two years.
Your last stop of the morning is the Chase residence, located in the walled community that separates the "better" part of town from the majority. Most kids your age who don't already live on the "right" side of that particular divide wouldn't be allowed in on their own without an invitation, but as a known and regular guest of one of the wealthiest families in Sunnydale, you have no trouble making it past the front gate.
Not that such a paltry defense could have stopped you. A simple Spell of Invisibility would be sufficient to defeat the electronic security, and the wall is neither high enough nor sufficiently-spiky to stop a determined climber - slow them down a bit, yes, but it's really there more for show and as a place to mount the cameras than as a serious deterrent to intruders in its own right. Nor are the guards numerous enough or sufficiently well-armed to stand off serious threats to the wealth you know lies within.
The Gerudo wouldn't see this place as a challenge, but as an insult to their skills - and then they'd rob it anyway, down to the last copper cent.
Partway down the street, you pause, frowning at the decidedly- and unexpectedly-larcenous direction your thoughts have taken. You take a moment to stuff Ganondorf's impulses back into their mental box.
First time in a while that that's happened.
With your inner Thief King once again silenced, you proceed to Cordelia's place, where in short order, you're handing the invitation over to your friend in the front room.
Cordelia reads the words on the page, frowns, and then looks up at you.
"Another beach party?"
He called it.
You called it.
"Not really my point, Alex," the young Miss Chase replies.
For a moment, you're struck by how that statement echoes the one made by Amy less than half an hour earlier, and by the similar thought processes it implies that the two girls share - at least when it comes to you.
While you don't think you let any signs of your surprise at this development show outwardly, it does slow down your response enough that Cordy is already speaking again before you have a chance to.
"But, as long as no killer cannibal mermaids are on the guest list, or crash the party, I suppose I can deal with a couple of days in the South Pacific."
She makes it sound like SUCH a hardship.
Holding back the smirk and the sarcasm that are both trying to express themselves, you assure Cordelia that you haven't invited any actual mermaids; the closest people on the list to that would be Katara and her mother. As for any party-crashers... you can't guarantee that mermaids won't show up uninvited, but you're pretty sure that Bali Ha'i wouldn't let the kind of mermaid Cordy is concerned about get near.
Cordelia looks appeased by your words for a moment, but then she frowns. "What do you mean, the ISLAND won't let them near? Alex, what kind of creepy place did you PICK to hold your birthday party?"
You quickly sum up Bali Ha'i's nature, to which Cordelia responds by throwing her hands up in the air.
"Of all the tropical islands in the world, OF COURSE you'd pick the one that's magical enough to think for itself, and to kick out people it doesn't like."
...she's not wrong.
It really IS a very nice island, though. Very friendly and happy to have visitors.
Cordelia rubs her forehead and sighs. "Alright, whatever. The invitation mentioned travel arrangements had been made. Are you teleporting everybody there in person, or have you made a deal with some other weirdo from beyond to do it for you?"
Jermafencer would probably object to being called a weirdo.
"And who or what is that?"
You describe the sometimes-headless knight, and the substance of your deal with him. As Cordelia's expression darkens, you add that you were planning on offering everyone you've invited from Sunnydale the choice to go with you, or to ride in Jermafencer's carriage.
"I'll stick with you," Cordelia says immediately. "Save the spooky carriage full of ghosts for Vampire Princess Barbie and her family. I'm sure they'll just LOVE it."
You frown at that. You know that Cordy and Kahlua don't get along, but does she really need to insult one of your other friends like that? Particularly one of the admittedly fight-happy, supernaturally-strong, and aggressively-inclined ones?
Interpersonal issues among your circle of friends aside, is there anything else you'd like to say or do while you're here at the Chase home?
You give Cordelia a disappointed look. "Do you really have to call Kahlua names like that, Cordy?"
"Have to? No. Want to? Very much yes."
"Okay, can you tell me why you want to?"
"Because I don't like her, Alex," Cordelia says flatly. "She spends half her time acting like that dummy Harmony, with a head full of rainbows, fluff, and unicorns, and the other half dropping casual remarks about beating the crud out of people she doesn't like. And to hear YOU talk about it, that's when she ISN'T picking fights straight out of Japanese cartoons. That kind of thing may not bother YOU any, Mister I Can Break the Laws of Physics Just By Looking At Them Funny-"
Okay, really now. You're not THAT bad.
I don't know...
...are you?
Sort of? Maybe? Just a little bit?
"-it's kind of SCARY for the rest of us. Especially because she's also a VAMPIRE."
You frown, more in confusion than dismay, as you try to wrap your head around the logic of all this. For all that you get along with the girls you know almost as well as if you were one of them, there are times when their thought processes are still a mystery to you. This is definitely one of them.
On the one hand, yes, Cordelia has a right to be a little scared of Kahlua. She IS a vampire, she DOES drink blood, and humans ARE the traditional source for that. Plus, she IS a very techncially-skilled fighter, with advantages due to her non-human heritage that Cordelia can't really match right now.
On the other hand...
"Let me see if I have this straight," you say slowly. "You're telling me that your best idea for dealing with someone that honestly scares you, because she could beat you up if she decided she want to... is to call her names behind her back and snark to her face? Even though hurting her feelings could make her decide to hit you, if you were nasty enough about it, or kept at it for a long time."
Hey, mocking the things you're afraid of is a perfectly legitimate means of coping with the fear!
There is a pause as Cordelia considers your words.
Not the most intelligent solution, though.
"...you make it sound dumber than it is when you say it like that," she mutters, crossing her arms and looking away.
...shut up.
No, you kind of think you make it sound exactly as dumb as it is. Not that you're going to say THAT out loud where Cordy can hear it.
Mama Harris has not raised a fool.
"Look, Cordy," you sigh, "I'm not going to tell you that you have to like Kahlua-"
"Good."
"-but can you promise me you won't call her names anymore? At least for the party?"
...
"Fine," Cordelia mutters.
Gained King of Women B (Plus)
Trying to lighten the atmosphere after that little chat, you ask Cordelia if she'd like to meet the three priests. She does still have the outstanding issue of that divine curse to think about, and converting to follow the Goddesses was one of the options you came up with for dealing with the problem. Speaking with members of the clergy - even if they are technically "retired" - would be a logical step.
Cordelia considers it, but says that it'll have to wait for another day, as her parents are taking her to a party this afternoon.
She doesn't sound terribly thrilled about it, and you wonder if you should ask.
Some people would say that the affairs of the Chase family are not really any of your business, and that it would be rude to poke your nose into them unasked.
You tend to agree - right up to the point where it's clear that something about this particular affair is causing one of your friends discomfort or distress, at which point etiquette can take a hike.
"Not looking forward to it?" you ask.
"It's one of their things at the country club," Cordelia complains, without even a moment's hesitation. "Someone that Daddy works with decided he needed to show off how rich he is, again."
Ah, it's one of THOSE parties, then.
Cordelia has grumbled about this a few times before. Several times a month, there's a social engagement that her parents absolutely must be seen attending, for reasons ranging from someone having just won a major court case, to the announcement of an engagement, to "it's been a while since we reminded everyone how much money we can throw away without noticing" - Cordy's words, not yours.
Though from what you've heard, that does seem to be a recurring theme at these events.
Most of the time that this happens, Cordelia ends up spending a day out with you and/or her other friends, or else passes the night at home with the servants. Every so often, however - roughly once a month, maybe more often depending on who's picked what excuse this time - she gets dolled up and dragged along, to spend twenty minutes or so smiling at people she hardly knows, doesn't really like, and has little in common with, after which she's more or less ignored by everyone over the age of twenty until the party finally ends.
Gatherings at the community club particularly irritate Cordelia, because she's not allowed to do something FUN, like spending part of the time that the adults don't need her around visiting her horse.
It's unfortunate, but short of not-really-kidnapping Cordelia for the day, there's not a lot you can do to address the problem. You are hesitant in the extreme to cast a Spell of Contagion on your friend so she can claim she's sick, and using Illusion Magic to create a double to take her place is out of the question. Oh, you know Cordy well enough to create a very convincing fake, but you'd be too far away to guide its actions, meaning it would require a degree of self-awareness and independent reasoning - and right now, that sort of thing is beyond you.
Even if you could do it, you're not at all comfortable with the idea of turning an illusory duplicate of one of your friends loose on the Hellmouth. There's just too much that could go wrong.
The only other options that come to mind are using Enchantment Magic on Cordelia's parents to literally change their minds - again, something you are reluctant to consider for what is, in all honesty, a trivial matter - or summoning a being that could take her place. Which is potentially the worst idea of all, depending on who or what showed up.
"I suppose I could kidnap you for the day," you offer, half-seriously, half-sarcastically.
Hahaha! Yes! Do it! Do it, do it, do it!
You aren't expecting Cordelia to take the offer seriously, so you are rather surprised when, rather than reject it out of hand, she appears to give the idea genuine consideration.
Whoa, really? How boring ARE these parties, anyway?
"Tempting," she finally replies, "but I think I'll pass."
Spoilsport.
Well, it's her call... although, in the spirit of the moment, you can't quite avoid quipping, "You know, traditionally, the kidnappee doesn't get a say in things."
And like that, hope is rekindled!
Cordelia shoots you a dry, amused look. "First of all, 'tradition' doesn't get to tell me what to do. Second, try it, and I will kick you in the face. And third, do you REALLY want to get a reputation for running off with girls your age? Especially with all the girls you know and the sort of people they are, or are related to?"
That's half the fun, though!
For some reason, that inquisitive observation sends a chill down your back, and straight to the darkest corners of your heart and soul. Even as you once again tighten the self-imposed bonds on your spirit - for the second time this day, no less - you can almost hear Ganondorf groaning in despair.
Fun for him, or fun for you, sister dear?
Something about nosy sisters, meddling elders, and unhelpful brothers...?
Look me in the eye and tell me you don't think the boy would have fun dodging angry parents and the like.
You force yourself to sit on your curiosity and not delve any deeper. "Hearing" idle thoughts from the King of Evil is one thing; actively pursuing the trains of thought involved is quite another.
Can't do it, can you?
Anyhow, Cordelia has made her stance clear. You'll respect her opinion.
Ah, blast.
You spend a few more minutes at Case de Chase before wishing Cordy luck at the party, excusing yourself, and finally setting out on your way to Bali Ha'i.
It's about half-past nine when you finally leave Sunnydale and its environs behind, and when you emerge from your teleportation spell on Bali Ha'i, you find yourself standing under a shockingly dark and starry sky, cool air carrying both the salty tang of the ocean and the rich scents of the island hanging over you like a sort of reverse-blanket.
You have to take a minute to just stand there and appreciate the sensation of being outdoors, at night (okay, technically, it's really early in the morning), with no illumination of any kind except the stars, and yet not feeling the slightest hint of danger or dread.
It's... nice.
Gained Dark Affinity D (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
It occurs to you that this may just be the first time that you've ever been out after dark (or before sunrise), and not had to worry about your safety. It's CERTAINLY the first time you've been out at night on Bali Ha'i. That makes this moment special, and even mystically significant.
Like, reagent-grade mystically significant.
And as it happens, you have an empty Hylian Glass Bottle in your dimensional pocket.
Your acquisitive impulses are strong, and you find yourself flexing your fingers in the mnemonic patterns that aid you in focusing magic, while syllables of the spells necessary to condense and contain something so abstract as "the essence of a starry, peaceful night" slowly tumble from your lips.
As tempted as you are, however, you can't quite find the heart to break the peace of this moment with your usual spellcasting. And so you hold back the mana and the will required to turn odd gestures and strange words into something significant, letting your half-hearted chanting and hand-waving trail off into nothing.
Instead, you look around for a rock the right size for you to use as a stool, and when one presents itself - appearing after you'd already visually swept that part of the beach and turned your head away - you settle down atop it, quietly thank Bali Ha'i, and tilt your head back to just watch the stars.
...
It eventually occurs to you that the twinkling lights you're looking up at are not the stars you see over Sunnydale. At least, not entirely: the only constellation your limited skills can reliably identify is Orion, and even the Hunter and his familiar belt seem out of place; the Big and Little Dippers, meanwhile, are nowhere to be seen.
Well, if nothing else, that would seem to confirm that Bali Ha'i is located in the Southern Hemisphere. Factor in the time difference, and you can rule out roughly three-quarters of the planet's surface.
The matter of the unfamiliar stars has proven sufficient to spoil your previous feeling of peace, and so it is with a sigh that you get back on your feet, cast a Spell of Low-Light Vision so that you can see what you're doing, and start laying out the summoning circle required to call up Jermafencer and get on with completing the first phase of your payment.
When the knight arrives a few minutes later, you sense a stirring in the island's spiritual energies. From the way Jermafencer straightens up and lets one hand drift towards the hilt of his sword, he noticed the shift as well.
Whoa, easy there, Sir Knight! You're a guest on the island, so pax. Pax!
You spend the next little while introducing the Fae-blooded Hyrulean knight to the diffuse presence that is Bali Ha'i's own awareness, trying to head off any unpleasantness.
And you. Do you really think the kid would bring someone nasty to your shores, after what Kahine told him?
While you don't think you succeed in getting the two entities to be completely at ease with one another, Jermafencer at least relaxes enough to remove his hand from his weapon. A similar tension goes out of Bali Ha'i's presence.
That's right. Take it easy.
Gained Spirit Affinity D
Once things have calmed down and the island has given permission - or at least not obviously objected - to your plan to have Jermafencer taxi your guests to the party, you get on with business.
With your permission given, the knight steps out of the summoning circle and calls forth his carriage-
*Whoomph!*
-which turns out to be every bit as large and elaborate as his prior descriptions suggested. The cab is easily ten feet wide, twice that in length, and better than seven feet tall, even if you leave out the foot or more of space between the bottom and the ground. The body is all black wood and bone-white cloth, resting upon huge wheels nearly as tall as you are; you half-expected these to bear spikes and skulls, but they are far more practical in design, bearing only traceries of silver upon the hubcaps to match the similar decor - and tasteful amounts of gold - that adorn the main body. The precious metals shine eerily in the blue-green light of the ghostly flames that burn within the four lanterns mounted at the corners of the vehicle.
LITERALLY ghostly, as it happens. When you look close at the nearest light, you can see a tiny Poe swirling about inside. When the spirit becomes aware of your regard, it turns to face you, pulls the corners of its mouth as far apart as they can go - which, being a ghost, proves a rather impressive distance - and proceeds to give you a spectral raspberry.
Although currently empty, the carriage looks large enough to hold six adult passengers comfortably, more if some of them happen to be children - a convenient fact for you and your expected guest list. The entire thing is pulled by a team of four powerful horses that, like their master, feel partly Fae to your senses. The carriage itself radiates a powerful aura of Necromancy, which must make it burn like a bonfire to the senses of any wandering souls.
You can see, now, why Jermafencer was so eager to get a permanent aura-masking spell for his ride. As it stands, there's no way he could sneak up on a ghost that didn't want to be caught; he'd have to ride them down, and if they thought to dive into the earth or a convenient hillside, or perhaps fly over a cliff, the knight would be out of luck.
With that in mind, you get on with casting the Spell of Nondetection.
You're about halfway through the ritual when Elder Terok, Koron, and Vert appear from further down the beach.
"Oh, wow! It's the Death Coach!"
...somehow, you don't think Koron's reaction would be typical for most people from Hyrule.
You're not wrong.
Elder Terok's wary squint and guarded stance seem like they'd be far more common.
Second verse, same as the first.
Once you're done casting this spell, is there something you'd like to say to your teachers about the travel arrangements you've made? Besides the fact that you HAVE made them, that is?
After finishing casting your Spell of Nondetection over Jermafencer's carriage, you hasten to explain the knight's presence to your two priestly tutors (and the fairy), assuring them that he's not here to pick up anybody for passage to the hereafter.
Koron seems vaguely disappointed by this.
...you aren't entirely sure how to respond to that.
"I could escort you back," Jermafencer offers.
"Really?!"
"Thank you," Elder Terok says formally, and firmly, "but we're working on a task that has the favor of the Goddesses, and we'll be returning to their realm on our own once it's done."
"But Terrrrooook," Koron complains. "Just plane-hopping home is so boring! We could RIDE back! In style!" He gestures at Jermafencer's coach, smiling hopefully.
The Elder sighs, and raises his walking stick.
*FOR SOMEONE ELSE'S ENLIGHTENMENT!*
There is a distinctly wooden *CLONK* as the stick connects with the Kokiri's head.
"Ow!"
Your own skull aches in sympathy.
"No," the Goron declares.
"...spoilsport," Koron mutters.
With that, Jermafencer decides to be on his way. Climbing into the driver's seat of his carriage with an ease that reflects both a supernatural physiology and long practice, he takes the reins and tells you to call him again once you have confirmed which of your guests will be attending the party.
Then, with a flick of the reins and a command to the horses, he rides off, the Death Coach rolling across the beach and the surface of the waves beyond in swift, eerie silence.
You spend a few minutes more discussing the progress the priests have made setting up the Ring of Trials, and learn that they've made good progress in adapting the rituals involved to a distinctly non-Hyrulean environment. Madam Lanora is attending to her shift in the process just now, and Elder Terok estimates that they have most of a day's work still ahead of them. Therefore, you'll need to return again tomorrow for the final ceremony that completes the Ring, and to send your teachers on their way.
You take note of that, and then head home, to pursue your own ongoing preparations.
Over the next week, things continue to come together. You visit Bali Ha'i again on Sunday, standing witness as the three priests finish consecrating the Ring of Trials for the task ahead. What began as a mere circle of stones on the beach has transmuted into a small arena, about twenty feet across, with a low wall of shaped stone connecting the standing stones like unworked "pillars." Symbols of the Goddesses and their servants glow softly golden along the rocky surfaces, and the Triforce emblem is prominent on a patch of bare rock at the center of the sandy floor.
The area feels strongly magical, and when you glance at it through Mage Sight, you can see that space-time has been... not warped, exactly, but definitely bent a bit within the confines of the Ring.
"A pocket dimension?" you ask.
"It keeps the general unpleasantness of the Trials contained, and avoids contaminating the environment," Madam Lanora replies.
You frown slightly. "I thought the monsters weren't really alive."
"They aren't, but the Ring can still stir up a great deal of negative feeling in the ones actually TAKING the Trials," the Zora priestess says. "Especially when bloodshed is involved."
You nod at that. Blood is a powerful reagent all on its own, and when paired with the aggression, fear, pain, and anger found on a battlefield - especially one that gets reused over time, as Rings like this would be in Hyrule proper - bad things can happen if proper steps aren't taken.
But those steps have been taken, both to avoid contaminating Bali Ha'i's environment, and to protect your guests - who will, as you're told, be able to stand or sit outside the Ring and watch your battles in complete safety.
With the Ring of Trials complete, you thank your teachers, and let them know when you'll be summoning them. Then, saying nothing of Elder Terok's date with Kahine, you send them back to the celestial realms.
Over the next few days, the replies from your friends continue to trickle in.
The Arisawa response shows up outside your window on Tuesday morning, floating in the non-existent grip of one of Akkiko's little glowing elemental familiars - the Wind spirit again, by the look of its aura. The being seems to be carrying on whatever its equivalent of idle chatter is with Briar, who's sitting just inside the open window.
Rousing yourself, you take the letter, and find that it's also a confirmation that the entire Kurosaki Family has agreed to come. Akkiko mentions that Isshin "whined" about going for a bit, but the temptation of a tropical island getaway was too much for the rest of the family to pass up, and the combination of disappointed puppy-dog eyes from the twins, the threat of being kicked to the couch by Misaki, and Ichigo telling him to suck it up did the man in.
The next batch of RSVPs come when you next send the Postman out on his rounds, and he returns carrying letters from the Hakubas, the Hayashis, the Higurashis, the Southern Water Tribe, the ninjas, Mai's family, and the Reinhardts.
To sum up: the two shrine families have accepted your invitation without reservations; the kitsune clan are also coming en mass, although Asamu slipped an apologetic warning into the letter, stating that Elder Mitsuki and Uncle both found out about the party and have just... sort of assumed that they'd been invited; and Sokka, Katara, and their father are definitely coming, but their mother, who gave birth to a daughter a couple of months ago, has opted to stay home until the little one is old enough to travel. In her stead, Elder Tiriaq has asked if he could come along.
...well, you DID help Elder Terok get a date for the party. Arranging something similar for Madam Lanora would only be right, right?
As for the two elder foxes...
The response from the ninjas is... mixed. Kasumi writes to you that the clan's elders have not exactly been thrilled with her having contact with you, even if you, she, and Ayane have all been careful about not giving away anything regarding where the ninja clan resides, beyond "somewhere Japan." Even the Postman doesn't know, and boy, did he have Things To Say about THAT.
"The Royal Postal Service takes a sacred vow to the Goddesses to honor and preserve the privacy of our clients! Drop-boxes and proxy addresses? This mistrust, this suspicion - it's completely unwarranted! No, it's a SLUR upon the good name of the Service and all who work for it! Even the Shiekah trusted us with their mail, sometimes! Do these people think they're better or more entitled than the Royal Guardians? Oooh, I'd like to give them a piece of my mind..."
Anyway, this business about the clan-head, his wife, and their daughter traveling to an unmarked, actively-magical destination, at the invitation of a young, powerful sorcerer of no declared affiliation, who resides upon the Hellmouth and is on good terms with the Shuzen family, did not exactly go over well with the old ninjas. For the sake of keeping peace in the extended clan, Kasumi has had to turn down your invitation.
Ayane is free to attend, though.
...you have mixed feelings about that. On the one hand, yes, you'll be happy to see her in person again. On the other, you knew that Ayane isn't especially well-liked among her clan, and that she's being allowed to go somewhere that Kasumi and her parents aren't... well, it implies things, few of them good.
Taki has also turned down your invitation, on similar grounds as Kasumi.
Mai's parents sent a refusal so coolly polite, you're a little surprised that the air around it wasn't condensing.
Amelia Reinhardt has graciously, and with rather flowery language, accepted your invitation. She and her mother are pleased to attend, and have included an address for your "driver" to pick them up at.
You also get replies from everyone in Sunnydale, which amount to a round of "Yes"es. Cordelia was all set to insist on going with you, until she found out that Amy and Larry were both curious about the "traveling accomodations" you mentioned in the letter, and continued to be so even after you described Jermafencer and his coach to them.
Finally, at the tail end of the week, Beryl's little messenger imp in the Oakland Raiders t-shirt shows up again. You notice her hiding in the shadows of the bushes in the front yard, discernible only by her aura, which she very deliberately "winks" at you to get your attention when you're about to take Moblin for his late afternoon/early evening walk.
Beryl's response is a cautious acceptance of your invitation, with a question about whether or not she can bring along her little sister, who is about your age and aware of the supernatural, though she herself is just a normal human.
You go ahead and send the Postman back to Antarctica with a confirmation that Elder Tiriaq is welcome to join Hakoda and his two eldest in attending your party.
"Again, with the land of the ice and snow..." the celestial messenger groans as he accepts the letter.
"Would you like another Spell to Resist Cold?" you offer.
The Postman falls to his knees, hands clasped together in desperate prayer as he cries, "Please!"
Seeing someone begging you like that is more than a little disturbing, not the least because it stirs a vague sense of recognition deep within.
You quickly tell the Postman to get up and stop making a spectacle of himself.
You really don't want to give a couple of powerful kitsune reason to believe (or claim to believe) that they've been snubbed in not receiving an invitation to your party.
You HAVE heard of Sleeping Beauty, after all, and while the Hayashi elders are nowhere near as malevolent as Maleficent, they ARE members of a race renowned as pranksters. Better not to leave an easy route to temptation open.
Your next letter to Emiko and her family includes a formal request for Elder Mitsuki and Uncle to join the party, and a reply comes in short order, confirming their attendance.
Foxfire dodged.
On second thought, Beryl's little sister wouldn't be the only normal (or outwardly normal) person attending the party. Zelda is still too young for formal magic lessons, Ichigo and Kagome's respective spiritual powers don't appear to have granted them any superhuman physical attributes (at least not yet), and Ichigo's little sisters and Kagome's younger brother are ordinary kids. As for the rest of your guests, they're either new enough to the supernatural to not be out of touch with what's normal, or well-practiced at dialling down the overt super- and/or inhumanness.
In short, you decide that it's fine if Beryl's sister comes to your birthday as well.
With all the other invitations taken care of, you summon the Postman for one last delivery.
When he sees his own name-slash-title written on the envelope in fancy cursive, the messenger actually blinks. "For me?"
You nod.
Two seconds later, he has the envelope open and the letter in hand.
"...I would LOVE to come!"
And that's that.
Your final list of guests comes to 47 individuals who will definitely be riding with Jermafencer, another 8 who have the means to reach Bali Ha'i on their own and might prefer to use them, and the 10 people from Sunnydale that are could go with you and Briar - although as noted, Amy and Larry are angling to take at least one ride on the phantom coach, and Cordelia is debating whether to cave to the peer pressure or stick with the devil she knows, in your sometimes-wonky Summoning Magic.
You send off additional messages to Ambrose and Balthazar, inquiring whether the two master magic-users would prefer to make their own travel arrangements, or avail themselves of the services of your hired help. You include a brief description of who and what Jermafencer is, so they can make a more informed decision.
Being a sorcerer yourself, you're not really surprised when both older practitioners opt to ride with the dullahan-descended knight, at least on the way to Bali Ha'i, so that they can see just what he's capable of - and by extension, gain a slightly better grasp on your own capabilities. They can teleport themselves and their companions home from there.
You don't exactly object to the prospect of paying "half-price" for the Ambrose-Drake and Blake-Stutler contingents.
While it's a little dismaying that some of the people you invited won't be attending, there is a silver lining: the final price of Jermafencer's services has come down from your post-negotiation estimated price of 234 Rupees (to say nothing of the knight's original asking price of 360 Rupees). The combination of the Spell of Nondetection you already cast on the Death Coach and the Spell to Attract Undead that you've been working on will pay for 202 Rupees' worth of value, and you can easily cover the remainder by dipping into your stash of the Hyrulean gems.
Yay?
You summon Jermafencer the week before the party and inform him of your finalized guest list, as well as the locations that have been agreed-upon for him to pick up his passengers, and then return them on the last day of the three-day celebration.
You haven't quite finalized the Spell to Attract Undead at this point. What you have so far looks like it SHOULD work, but you really ought to test it in the field a few times to confirm that you're on the right track. Handing it over to Jermafencer without that final verification would be... a questionable decision, at best.
Of course, you're not about to walk around Sunnydale with the Necromantic equivalent of a chunk of raw meat hanging around your neck.
How fortunate, then, that you are on friendly terms with a few ghosts...
You make it very clear to all three of your friends, as well as Mrs. Madison and Grandma Blaisdell, just what Jermafencer's carriage is like, but this only appears to increase Amy and Larry's interest. Mrs. Madison is more cautious, and asks some pertinent questions about the terms of your deal with the Fae-blooded psychopomp and his known reliability - or lack thereof.
When you explain that you first summoned him as an agent of the Golden Goddesses, it appears to put most of her doubts to rest.
It SHOULD put them ALL to rest.
Not all of her doubts, but most.
The Knight of the Shadowed Mire IS partly Fae, after all. A little caution even in the face of divine sponsorship is only prudent.
Lily Blaisdell just mentions that she has a walking stick shod in iron for meetings of this sort.
Have I mentioned that I like this old girl? Because I do.
With that settled, you go ahead and add the four of them to Jermafencer's list of passengers - and then Cordelia, after she makes up her mind on the subject.
"It can't be worse than that one time your magic drove me crazy," she mutters.
Tempting fate, there, kiddo.
You absently reach out and rap your knuckles on the nearest wooden surface.
Lu-sensei, for his part, is perfectly happy to travel with you and your family.
"I would just as soon not climb aboard a conveyance driven by an agent of Death any sooner than I absolutely have to," the old man says. "Even if he IS being well-paid not to drive me to the hereafter."
Fair enough.
You tally up the total funds that you owe Jermafencer for his services, deduct the agreed-upon value of your two spells, and pay him the remainder when you hand over the complete passenger list.
Spent 1 Red Rupee and 3 Green Rupees (23 Rupees total)
The Sunnydale pickup area, incidentally, will be the abandoned gas station, at the same time that you and your family - and Lu-sensei - are teleporting out. A minor precaution, in case anybody has any last-minute changes of heart, when they see the Death Coach in all its spectral splendor.
On a directly related topic, you step out of the house on the morning of Sunday the 19th of March, two weeks before your birthday, and heading north out of town with the testing of your newest Necromantic Magic on your mind.
You emerge from the subsequent teleportation spell on Bali Ha'i, and immediately begin setting up a summoning circle. This one varies a bit from your usual deisgn in that you've incorporated the Memorian Sending Stone into the array, heavily reinforced so as not to stress it, to help you bypass the wards surrounding the Memorian Outpost in Faerie. And when you cast the Spell of Planar Binding, it, too, is modified, turning what is normally an irrefutable command to appear into an almost-polite request.
A moment later, Captain Marcus Valerius Faustus of the Fifth Memorian Legion stands before you, his shade remarkably visible in the starry pre-dawn darkness.
He also has his sword in hand.
"WHO DARES-" the ancient ghost begins with a menacing roar, before catching sight of you. In the darkness, the glow of his phantasmal eyes betrays the blink of surprised recognition. "Oh, young Alexander. We were beginning to wonder if you'd forgotten about us, boy." The sword goes back into its sheath with a metallic hiss. "How goes the search for the base?"
"I spoke with some trustworthy contacts of mine who were knowledgable about ancient Roman sites, Captain, especially those of a magical nature," you report. "They came up with a likely location, but not before winter hit the region in question. We've been waiting for the weather to improve before we go in."
"I see." Marcus sighs the weary sigh of an old campaigner, all too familiar with the fickleness of Mother Nature. "And how long do you expect that will be?"
"Another month or so, to be sure. Two at the outside."
"I'll let the men know to be ready, then." He looks around at the tropical island. "So, where on Earth are we, and why bring me here?" He pauses for a moment, and then adds, "And why does it feel like this place is looking at me?"
You quickly explain about Bali Ha'i's nature, its general location - this takes some doing - and your wish to test a new spell.
"You developed a spell to ATTRACT ghosts?" Marcus echoes in confusion.
"And the undead in general, sir."
"...why would you want to? And take note, lad, this is a GHOST asking you."
The irony of that had occurred to you. You proceed to explain your deal with Jermafencer, and his request for a means of attracting wandering souls that would otherwise flee his coming or try to hide. You also mention the state of affairs in Sunnydale and Karakura, regarding their respective undead plagues, and how you'd like to do something about those problems when you're older.
Said "something" ideally involving your new spell and the Necromantic equivalent of a Delayed Blast Fireball.
Marcus laughs at that. "Very well, then. It would be an old soldier's honor and delight to assist you in testing this magic. What do you need me to do?"
As it turns out, not much. The two of you venture a short distance inland, where there are trees for you to hide behind and break the Captain's line of sight. You spend a few minutes taking the measure of his supernatural senses, and once you have a proper idea of how far away he can detect you, and what thickness of living plant-matter or inert stone it takes to block his awareness, you start making with the magic.
The first time you cast the Spell to Attract Undead, Marcus lets out a brief cry of, "Pluto Below!"
Who calls on me? ...and why are they in the South Pacific?
A moment later, he emerges from the tree in front of you. "Is it supposed to PULL like that, lad?"
Yo.
As a matter of fact, yes. You did want the spell to compel attention.
"'Compel' is a good word for it," Marcus mutters, raising one hand to shift his helm and rub the spectral temple beneath. "It felt like something reached through my skull, grabbed me by whatever's left of my brain, and said, 'COME HERE!' If I hadn't been expecting it, I think I might have charged you."
You get similar results with your subsequent castings, which both confirm the basic functionality of your new magic and establish its effective range. Past a distance of about twenty feet, Marcus stops feeling that powerful impulse to rush towards the source of the magic, but is still very much aware that SOMETHING is off in whatever direction you happen to be standing. He likens it to someone lighting a torch in the middle of the night watch, and it has a similar range of visibility, or whatever word you care to use to describe the odd senses a ghost uses to perceive the world.
The spell casts no actual light, but the Necromantic energy that makes it up replicates a concentration of life-force and spiritual energy - exactly the kind of thing that most undead would at least find interesting, if not downright irresistible.
Although it was based on the Spell to Hide From Undead, you wanted the Spell to Attract Undead to work on inanimate objects rather than living creatures, so you ended up having to modify the underlying formula even more. In the end, in order to keep the spell at the same level of output as its "parent," while fully accommodating all the changes you introduced, you had to reduce the number of targets that could be affected by a single casting.
The end result is still a third-circle spell for you, given your current difficulties in casting divine spells - a state of affairs that you know will eventually change, reducing that added cost by a couple of tiers as your grasp of priestly magic improves.
All in all, you'd call this spell a success.
Gained the Spell to Attract Undead
Before you send Marcus back to his men, you ask him if he or any of his peers - namely, Magus Hermanus and Priest Cato - would care to attend your upcoming birthday.
The Memorian Captain thanks you for the offer, but says that it's probably better for everyone if he and his men don't attend. Apparently, they've tried to celebrate similar events in the months since you last saw them, to rather depressing results. The Memorian soldiers are a thousand years out of their time, all their kith and kin long since dead and dust, and reminders of these facts do them no good at all. Priest Cato's sermons are keeping their *ahem* spirits up, but beyond that...
You honestly hadn't considered this.
"That said," Marcus sighs, "Hermanus would whine at me for the next hundred years if I denied him the opportunity to study a place like this island. So him, at least, you may call."
Ah.
Is there anything else you'd like to talk to Captain Marcus about, while you have him here?
As Captain Marcus describes his troops' failed attempts at celebrations, you recall your meetings with the spirit of Lady Akemi, and the Spell of Ghost Food that you forced to work - and later refined - to allow her to partake of some of her foster mother's cooking before she returned to the afterlife.
"Would it make any difference if I said I had a spell that allowed ghosts to eat regular food?" you ask the Memorian soldier.
"...eh?"
You describe the spell and how you developed it, and end up grabbing a banana from a tree that's just sort of there - thank you again, Bali Ha'i - to help demonstrate this particular piece of magic.
Captain Marcus gives you a slightly disbelieving look the entire time, but accepts the banana - which prompts a downright perplexed stare - and takes a tentative bite.
Then he goes completely still.
...
"...Captain?" you ask.
"...I can taste it..."
"What was that?"
"By Pomona and Proserpina, I can TASTE it!"
Who in the world- oh, goodness! I'm sorry, Pluto, I didn't see you there. And Proserpina! Hello, dear! How have you been?
Oh, okay. He wasn't having a nervous breakdown or anything, he was just stunned speechless that he could actually EAT something for the first time in a thousand years. Or however that works out.
Well enough, Pomona. So, husband, should I be worried that after all these centuries, you've finally run off with another goddess? Or should I make that four goddesses?
"As I was saying, Captain, do you think this would help your men's attitude?"
I would never-!
"Gods above, yes!" Marcus punctuates this exclamation by taking another bite of the magically-infused banana, which he chews slowly, savoring the flavor.
If memory serves, there were fifty-five Memorian ghosts remaining to haunt the outpost, and Priest Cato was sent back by Mars himself to see to the "survivors" of the long-ago treachery that felled the base. A quick check with Captain Marcus informs you that a few more souls turned up in the weeks after your last visit, muttering in confusion about "intruding souls" and seeing a "sword of golden light" before being forcibly dispersed, but none the worse for wear.
You cough and hurriedly move the conversation along.
So, fifty-nine ghosts in total, and from what you saw of them, each was a skilled and experienced veteran before meeting their untimely end. Now that they're ghosts on top of that, you'd only be able to get one of them per casting of the Lesser Spell of Planar Binding, and no more than three even with your most powerful version of that spell. Captain Marcus, Magus Hermanus, and Priest Cato are a cut above the regulars, and would need a standard Spell of Planar Binding each to summon.
That works out to a bit less than ninety-eight percent of your mana, which is rather much for you to be spending on top of all the other spellcasting you plan to do.
A Spell of Mass Summoning would be really convenient right about now, but you don't know any such magic, and you doubt you have the time to work out a version powerful enough to handle the Memorian ghosts before the party.
Besides, at your current level of ability, the Spell of Planar Binding will last for well over a week per casting, so you could just summon the Memorians in smaller batches a few days ahead of time. You float this idea to Captain Marcus, and he doesn't object.
As the two of you are hashing out a schedule for these summons, taking into account your magical reserves and the other feats of spellcasting you mean to perform in the days leading up to the party - the conjuring of a longer-lasting Magnificent Mansion to house your guests, for one - you idly inquire of Marcus what he and his men have been up to since your last visit.
The answer turns out to be less interesting than you might have expected. In the days and weeks immediately after your last visit and battle with Dark Link, the Memorians focused on purging every remaining trace of the monstrous infestation that had overrun the deeper parts of the base. When that was finally done, the bulk of their efforts were promptly redirected to the task of clearing away the debris of a millennium of neglect, and the battles that bookend it. After that, they turned their hand to restoration... which has not been going terribly well.
"Hermanus is a capable battle-mage, but his skills as an architect and logistical conjurer leave something to be desired," the Captain sighs. "Priest Cato was able to provide some support in restoring the armory, but the less martial aspects of the base do not wholly fall under Mars's direct purview. And while some of my men had a measure of skill as craftsmen, proper materials have been a bit hard to come by."
You wonder if you should offer to provide some conjured materials as "payment" for the soldiers when you call them, or if it would be better to leave all that until you and the Drakes have secured the Earth-side Memorian base, and the portal that lies within. Certainly, it would cost you less mana to wait a while.
While you are tempted by the idea of lending your undead associates a helping hand, you have to admit that it would be more productive and less taxing in the long run if you waited until the Earth-side Memorian portal was found. There's only so much stuff you can conjure and ship on your own, and from what you recall of the base's condition, the Memorians are going to need a LOT of raw materials if they're serious about restoring the place.
The Mother Gohma and her brood did considerable damage to the place, with all the tunnels they dug out during their occupation. The amount of building stone it's going to take to fix the damage to the floors and walls alone is considerable; if the Memorians mean to fill in the spider-tunnels, they're going to need stone by the tons.
You could, eventually, conjure enough rock to do the job. But doing that on Earth and then transporting it all to Faerie - and then getting it through the base's entry portals - would just be making needless work for yourself and the legionaires. Far, far better for everyone if you wait until you're able to go to Faerie in person, whether by portal or your own Gate Spell - it's on Batreaux's lesson plan for this year - and then start conjuring the needed materials on-site and in-place.
Thinking about the Gate Spell reminds you of how Navi used it to take you and an assortment of priests and kami to Faerie. That, in turn, reminds you of something else.
"Briar," you say slowly, "did we remember to invite your mother to the party?"
"Nope," your partner says promptly.
"...and you didn't remind me of this, because...?"
"I wanted to see if you'd remember on your own, and what Mom would do in response if you didn't," Briar answers, without a hint of guilt or shame.
...
What are your thoughts on this answer?
You make a mental note to send one last invitation to Navi. You're not sure how trying to add her name to Jermafencer's list of passengers would go over on either side: on the one hand, you've already made your deal with the knight, and trying to renegotiate it would be a touch unprofessional; and on the other, Jermafencer fought the most recent Link, so Navi might not be best-pleased at having him drive her anywhere.
Besides, unlike most of your other guests, you know that Navi is entirely capable of getting to and from the party under her own power.
So you pick up a bit of sand from Bali Ha'i's beach, right next to the Ring of Trials, and pocket it, to send along with the invitation so that Navi will have a better idea of what to lock on to.
That leaves the Memorians. As much as Marcus personally enjoyed your sample of mana-infused food, and knows that it will be a great morale boost to his troops, he's too much the professional soldier to allow ALL of his men to go on leave at the same time. It works out that about a third of the Memorians will be present on each day of the party, with Marcus, Hermanus, Cato, and their respective honor guards taking the slot on day two, when you plan to enter the Ring of Trials.
With that settled, you send Marcus back to his men, though not before conjuring him a fair-sized sack and filling it with Necromantically-enriched island fruits, which Bali Ha'i is only too happy to provide.
It'll help Marcus get the attention of the other ghosts, and also prove that he hasn't gone mad or anything.
The Captain is grinning as he departs, and it doesn't look spooky at all.
On the afternoon of Tuesday the 28th, you return to Bali Ha'i for the final phase of your preparations, which is casting the Spell of the Magnificent Mansion to create accomodations for your guests. The normal version of this spell would only last for a day or so, but it's well within your abilities to increase the duration - six days, starting from today, is enough time to cover the entire duration of your party. In addition, because of how long a Magnificent Mansion normally lasts, it doesn't take quite as much energy to extend its duration so far as other spells might. This leaves you with a small surplus of mana, which you could use to improve some aspect of the Mansions you create - extra space, more capable servants, that kind of thing.
"Mm-hm," Briar replies, with a nod of her tiny head that you can just barely make out. "I'm your partner, not your nursemaid. Part of my job is to make sure you grow up RIGHT, not that you stay dependent on me."
That bold statement is followed by a brief pause, before you speak up.
"That, and it was funny."
"And it was funny," she agrees, without hesitation or remorse.
Captain Marcus just shakes his head.
Ultimately, you decide to go ahead and conjure enough Magnificent Mansions to provide each family - or associated group - on your guest list their own residential quarters for the duration of the party. This will allow you to customize each Mansion to some degree, so that it better-suits the people who will be staying there. The Shuzens, for instance, will need a Mansion that doesn't subject them to tropical sunlight every time the door-slash-portal is opened for someone to enter or leave the extra-dimensional space; and they would probably be more comfortable in surroundings similar to Castle Shuzen than, say, a tropical island hut that LOOKS like it's exposed to the sun and the salty ocean breeze. Similarly, most of your human guests would probably be happier not having to sleep surrounded by dark Gothic architecture.
And then there's the "living" arrangements for the Memorians to think about.
Determining those factors helps you figure out what you want to do with that small surplus of magical energy. Since you don't really need more space, and because the Magnificent Mansions already come with an abundance of good food - a big part of the reason why you went to the trouble of learning the spell in the first place - you feel that improving the skills of the "seen servants" that staff the Mansions would be the best use of the available energy.
As it stands, those constructs can perform simple household tasks, but not much more than that. And they have to be ordered to do anything; unlike the living and well-trained servants you've seen at Castle Shuzen and the Drake estate, your conjured servants lack the ability to take initiative or intuit their guests' desires.
And that simply won't do.
Since the first Mansion you summon up is a bit of a test-run, you decide to make it the one where you, your family, and at least some of your Sunnydale friends will be staying. You take your design cues from the Chase household and staff, which are more familiar to you after a few years of friendship than places like Castle Shuzen and the Drake estate, which you've only known for a matter of months.
A portal that resembles a fine wooden door forms in the air in front of where you stand, a short walk down the beach from the Ring of Trials and back towards where the sand meets the grass. You open the door and head inside.
A well-appointed foyer greets you, with comfortable carpeting over a polished wooden floor, temptingly upholstered couches along the walls, and a fine chandelier hanging from the ceiling, providing illumination from dozens of cold, smokeless mage-lights, which flickers through the countless crystals mounted within chandelier, making the whole thing resemble a shattered rainbow.
Also present are some thirty liveried servants, men and women alike, lined up in four rows.
As one, they bow to you, and proclaim, "Welcome home, Master Alex, Miss Briar."
...okay. That's definitely an improvement from the mindless Unseen Servant you've used before.
There's just one little issue, which Briar obligingly points out: "Why does everybody look like a Gerudo?"
Why is this a problem?
Because they do. Oh, there are no Ganondorfs among the male serving staff - you'd have dispelled the Mansion immediately if that were the case - but you can see elements of his appearance spread out amongst them. Several have the Thief King's height, and others his broad-shouldered build - which makes you wonder how their uniforms could possibly fit, even if they WERE all conjured into existence at the same time - while more have his eyes, his nose, or his skin tone. Where these traits are absent, Hylian features dominate.
The female staff, meanwhile, are Gerudo through-and-through: tall; athletic; dark of skin; red of hair; gold of eye; and of course, that fierce nose. Only their clothing - and the complete lack of any VISIBLE weapons - fail to fit the image of the warrior-women of the great desert.
A quick mystical probe confirms that the servants only LOOK like Gerudo tribesmen and women; underneath, they're still just magical constructs, Unseen Servants that have been refined on several levels. A few more mundane tests determines that they have the improved functionality you were hoping for. They're still not as good as trained, living help would be, but they no longer need to be told to do everything, and seem to be able to "learn" about the people they're serving, at least enough to recall stated preferences.
Still, the fact remains that all the male servants look like YOU to some degree, while the female servants are simultaneously clearly related to them, and yet quite unlike you or anyone you've met in this lifetime.
There may be questions about them, is what you're getting at.
A part of you isn't comfortable with the idea of spending your three-day birthday celebration being waited on by Gerudo lookalikes, to say nothing of what your guests might think, say, or do when they see the servants for themselves.
It's a relatively small part, though.
The rest of you mentally shrugs, resolves to deal with any questions as they come, and gets on with setting up the remaining Mansions.
With the amount of space your first casting was able to provide, you determine that a single Mansion is capable of housing up to seven people in individual rooms, or as many as fourteen if they don't mind doubling up, while still having space for a foyer and dining area. That's enough room for you to accommodate the Shuzens, the Drakes, the Hakubas, and the Higurashis in their own private residences, but you decide that putting the Kurosakis and the Arisawas in the same "building" will be acceptable.
The Hayashi Clan, on the other hand, are absolutely going to need two separate Mansions; there's enough space left over that if Lady Takara turns up, she'll have a room to herself in there.
That's IF she comes. The Postman assures you he delivered your invitation, but the lady has not yet responded one way or the other, even after your follow-up letter informed her that Mai would not be attending.
Not wanting to make it seem like you're pressuring her, you've been content to let the lady make up her mind in her own time.
Getting back to the housing, you figure you can probably get a pass on having Balthazar, Dave, and Mrs. Stutler in the same Mansion as Beryl and her sister. That leaves a couple of rooms for some of your other guests who are more used to modern mundane accommodations - Larry and his grandmother, or Amy and Mrs. Madison, for example.
As for the Memorian soldiers, you modify the floorplan of the "Mansion" to something more like their barracks. Very NICE barracks, mind you, but still decidedly ancient quasi-Roman military.
Your assorted Hyrulean invitees, meanwhile, are getting a Mansion of their own, rooms customized as much as possible to something you hope they'll find comfortable. Stone-walled chambers for Bando and Elder Terok, wood for Koron and Vert, and a large pool rather than a bed for Madam Lanora. For Batreaux's room, you replace the normal mage-lights with a roaring fireplace shaped like a huge demonic maw, throw in some gargoyle-like sculptures, and then go nuts with the same sort of Gothic decor that dominates the Shuzens' quarters.
You're sure he'll love it.
There's also a room in there that has been set aside for Grey Voice. Him, you had to take a wild guess at, going with a more modern style of decor than the other rooms, which are classic Hyrulean architecture underneath the personalized touches you added. This gives that particular Mansion a decidedly odd appearance if you walk through with the doors open; you can only imagine what it would look like from the outside, if it were a real building instead of a dimensional pocket.
Sokka, Katara, their father, and Elder Tiriaq, meanwhile, get an ice palace, decorated with furs and staffed by servants wrapped up in winter attire. The heatless and smokeless mage-lights fit in beautifully with such an environment, their illumination creating dancing shadows and reflections in every exposed icy surface. You're a little surprised that the Spell of the Magnificent Mansion actually allowed you to do something like this, but it looks really good.
Finally, you conjure a Mansion for Amelia Reinhardt and her mother. In making this place, you borrow more than a few design cues from Castle Shuzen and the Magnificent Mansion you called up for the Shuzens, but you are careful not to make it TOO much like the other vampire family's rooms. After some thought, you also make this Mansion smaller than the rest, with just four bedrooms. That feels like a fair compromise between being too big for a single pair of residents, and too small for members of a high-class family.
That covers all of the sleeping arrangements for everyone except Ayane. You're not about to stick the sole ninja-girl in a Mansion all by herself, and you're definitely not going to try and fit her in with any of the vampires. Probably not with the Hakubas, either; shrine family or no, they do have ties to the Shuzens, which could make things a little awkward.
Instead, you'll just offer Ayane her choice of the remaining free rooms. There are enough to go around.
And with that, you are done setting up the accommodations for your guests. It didn't even cost you much...
Now, for the entertainment portion of things...
The equipment needed to hunt boars is no issue. You studied up on the topic ahead of time, and have conjured a few dozen high-quality spears for any would-be hunters - the wood taken from Bali Ha'i itself, the metal transmuted from scraps Uncle Rory was just as happy to get rid of - as well as the necessary protective gear, which is basically padded mail. The process of crafting everything was enlightening in a number of ways.
Gained Knowledge (Armor) E
Gained Knowledge (Crafts) D
Gained Spear Training F (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Woodworking E (Plus)
Cooking the boars in island fashion is also covered. Bali Ha'i was more than happy to help you set up the firepit and tools, and as for the actual cooking, once again, you simply used magic to...
On other fronts, everyone was advised in their invitations to bring their own swimwear and normal sunscreen. For the vampires, who have to worry about the water as well as their extreme sensitivity to the sun, you only need to cast longer-lasting variations on the Spell of the Protective Penumbra and the Spell to Resist Energy (specifically, Water), which you can do as soon as they arrive.
While you're not in any kind of hurry today, you went ahead and cast the Spell of the Magnificent Mansion in its normal, combat-ready format. You didn't exactly feel like spending over an hour performing the same ritual over and over again, and more to the point, spending a significant portion of your mana to cast one of your higher-level spells repeatedly over a short period of time was good practice.
Gained Mana Control A
This way, you spent most of your time investigating the interior of each Mansion, to make sure everything came out as you intended. Which appears to be the case.
While you did do some reading on the subject of traditional South Seas cuisine, it really only served to convince you that your party would require a more professional touch in this area.
So, once again, you break out the Summoning Magic and send forth a call into the ether, seeking a being skilled at this form of food-preparation, and willing to work with you.
*POOF*
...huh.
...huh.
The being that has answered your summons looks like an old islander, thin and wrinkly from age, but deeply tanned and white-haired more due to a lifetime under the tropical sun. He wears one of those kilt-like wraps about his lower body and has a poncho-like garment pulled over his shoulders, both in dark blue, and both decorated with simple symbols in a variety of colors. Unlike a few old men and non-human males of your acquaintance, he stands perfectly straight despite his obvious age, no sign of a stick for walking or as an emblem of office to be seen.
Your head throbs once, more in relief than anything else.
Despite his normal appearance, there is an aura of magic about the old man. Not overly powerful, but enough to be noticeable; by your estimate, he'd probably be capable of casting third-circle spells, or the equivalent thereof. The nature of the magic you sense is a mix of Abjuration, Elementalism, Necromancy, and Summoning, with some Augmentation and Transformation thrown in.
Dark eyes regard their surroundings for a moment, and then the old man grins, revealing a mouth full of bright white teeth.
"Well, now," he says. "And here I was, not expecting to ever lay eyes on Bali Ha'i again. So, who are you, young stranger, and how did you come to find my old stomping grounds?"
...in hindsight, perhaps you should have expected that you'd call the spirit of one of the island's past inhabitants. After all, who better to show you how to cook in their traditional style?
Yeah, probably.
You introduce yourself to the old man - who reciprocates by giving you his name, Keoni - and then explain that you used your magic to find a good place to hold your upcoming birthday.
Keoni blinks, and then throws back his head in laughter. "A good place for a party? Yes, yes! I can see that working!"
A few minutes of conversation reveal that Keoni was one of the last shamans to live on Bali Ha'i, in the fading years that Kahine told you about. He lived long enough to see the pirate raids ended, and passed of old age before it was fully clear that the islanders were dying out regardless. He knows of the fate of his people - one of the perks of being an "ancestor spirit" - and while he's hardly happy about it, he's basically accepted the state of affairs.
Then he asks you why you called him.
When you say that you were trying to summon a good cook, Keoni laughs anew.
"A 'good' cook? Young magician, I am a TERRIFIC cook!"
It doesn't take much effort on your part to convince Keoni to work for you for three days. The chance to walk on Bali Ha'i again, even for such a short time, seems to be all the payment he wants.
Is this okay with you?
You decide to cast the protective spells over your vampiric guests when they arrive, using the "short" form. Your skills in Abjuration Magic and Elementalism are more than sufficient to modify the spells to affect a group of targets, and after some quick magical math, you confirm that you'll be able to cast the Spell of the Protective Penumbra and the Spell to Resist Water over all the Shuzens in one go (each).
Even taking into account that you'll have to cast the spells on the two Reinhardts separately, for social reasons as much as for the limits of your skills, the end result will still be a lot cheaper than casting those two spells repeatedly. You figure you'll end up spending 7% of your mana in total, which is really pocket change; you could recuperate that much energy in a few hours, as long as you had enough gas in the proverbial tank and held back on casting any more magic in the meantime.
On the matter of music, you see no reason not to keep using magic to solve your problems. That said, you've never really sat down to try and make music before, whether by mystical or mundane means.
It's a fortunate thing, then, that you're in good standing with all three of the Golden Goddesses, and that music is a domain they share.
That is very convenient, isn't it?
With a prayer to the three sisters to guide your efforts, you cast a Spell of Illusion to provide some appropriate background music for your party.
Here we go!
The resulting slow, menacing, vaguely familiar pipe organ music is not what you had in mind, and you quickly dismiss that first spell to try again.
Whoops.
This time, you get a slightly-mournful mix of guitars, horn, and castanets that sounds like it came out of a Western. It's nice, but once again, it gives you an unsettling sense of familiarity, and doesn't really suit your surroundings.
But that was-
On your third try, you call up a mellow tune of strings, bongos, and steel drums that seems to fit Bali Ha'i. Although once again, there is that odd sense that you've heard this song somewhere before...
Gained Music F (Plus) (Plus)
Having a former native of Bali Ha'i present to cook for you in the traditional manner seems entirely appropriate. More so, considering that you've already invited Kahine and the other local elemental spirits to the party.
You do wonder how they'll react to Keoni's presence, and vice-versa, but you decide not to spoil the surprise on either end by mentioning just who you've invited.
Instead, you let the shaman know of the size of your guest list, and ask him if he'll need help cooking for so many. The servants conjured alongside the Magnificent Mansions are great and all, but they can't actually LEAVE the extra-dimensional chambers they were created to staff.
Keoni thanks you for the offer of aid, but says he can handle as many as a hundred hungry party-goers. He has magic designed for just such an occasion.
That statement tweaks your magically-acquisitive instincts.
That said, when you describe the Spell of Ghost Food and offer to cast THAT, Keoni accepts immediately.
"When we cooked something for the ancestors, we either left it by their memorials, or cast it into a fire," he explains. "This magic of yours sounds much tastie- I mean, more efficient."
...riiiight.
While the tune you eventually got is nice, just leaving it to play all the time would get a little monotonous. Given that it took you three attempts to get one appropriate spell, even with the Goddesses helping out, you're also uncertain of your ability to set up a reliable "playlist." And that's not even mentioning how it's kind of eerie that the music is just sort of THERE, with no obvious source.
You decide that summoning some actual musicians might not be a bad idea after all.
Another Spell of Summoning later, and-
*POOF*
-you find yourself facing three distinctly-different figures.
On your right is an unusual Poe. Its right hand holds the typical lantern, albeit of a more ornate design than the Hyrulean ghosts you've encountered in the past, while its left hand sports a single long claw. Instead of the typical shapeless, hooded robe, the Poe wears an odd grey hat and a dark red mantle: the former garment bears a red sun emblem across the brow; and the latter sports the sign of the Triforce. Overall, the Poe is short and rather rounded, with short curls of hair escaping from beneath its headpiece, and a thick mustache covering what would be its upper lip, if it had more of a face than a black void with glowing green eyes.
On your left stands a short and stout Zora wearing a short-sleeved, unbuttoned green shirt and the Hyrulean equivalent of a Panama hat. Despite the fact that Zora are hairless, he's managed to cultivate skin-patterns and a crest in the form of a nattily-curled mustache and a goatee. In one webbed hand, he holds a gnarled walking stick; in the other, he grasps a book. Unlike most Hyruleans you've called up before, the heavyset Zora lacks the aura of a celestial, and instead feels like a normal departed soul.
Finally, standing between the ghost and the Zora, is a figure that does not appear to be of Hyrule at all. Instead, his features and attire resemble Keoni's, though he is obviously younger and stronger. He's also got that aura of a properly dead soul, pulled back from beyond the veil by non-traumatic means. Nothing in the way of magic, though.
"Did someone call for a musician?" the Poe inquires in an eerie moan.
The islander's head turns the ghost's way so suddenly, you're surprised you don't hear a crack. And the way he pales despite the dark tan of his skin just can't be healthy.
"Of course he did, you silly spook," the Zora grumbles in a watery voice. "We wouldn't be here otherwise, now would we?"
And there goes the islander's head in the OTHER direction. Seriously, dead spirit or not, that's going to hurt in the morning if he keeps it up.
The Poe seems to rustle. "It was a rhetorical question, you uncultured ruffian."
"Spare me your fancy words, you puffed-up poltergeist. They ain't gonna help you book a show."
"Oooo," the ghost half-wails. "And I suppose you've performed for kings and queens, then?"
"Ha! Do I look like a stage act? I'm just the manager."
At this, the ghost's expression turns positively deadly. "Oh," he says, with utter, mustache-scrunching distaste, as if he'd just smelled something foul. "You're one of THOSE."
The islander, meanwhile, has stopped gawping at his companions within the summoning circle in favor of sending a pleading look your way and raising his hands before him, pressed together at the heels.
If that's not a cry to "Get me out of here!" then you've never seen one.
You have to wonder if someone so easily alarmed by the sight of the non-humans would be suitable to hire for your party. You're going to have a clan of vampires, a skulk of foxes, a penumbra of spirits, a scattering of shapeshifters, two oni-blooded humans, several Hyruleans, and a Great Fairy besides.
You've tried your hand at conjuring food before, be it as recently as your casting of the Magnificent Mansions, or as far back as your meeting with your alter-ego from another world. You've prepared a few potions over the kitchen stove, which is basically cooking with some magic thrown in. You've made the simplest of breakfasts with your own two hands, and through the medium of an Unseen Servant. And perhaps most tellingly, you've cribbed notes on cooking from chefs in the employ of your wealthiest acquaintances, an Antarctic shaman, AND a nine-tailed fox.
Whyever would you pass up an opportunity to learn even more about the magical side of the culinary arts? Particularly in a school of cuisine you have no prior experience with? It's a gap in your skills that requires mending.
And so, you ask Keoni about the spells he means to use.
The shaman-turned-chef doesn't seem to mind your curiosity, and describes his preferred cooking methods.
A few of these, you file away under "creative uses of Prestidigitation," as Keoni tells you nothing new about shaping magic, just in what you do with it: heating the interior of an item, so that it cooks more evenly; cooling the part that's nearest to the flame, so that it doesn't burn or dry out; how to shift the coals in a firepit for greatest effectiveness; evacuating or containing the smoke to alter the flavor; that kind of thing.
Several other spells that Keoni describes, you already know equivalents to: cantrips for starting and extinguishing fires; something that sounds like the Spell of Crafter's Fortune, to ensure better-than-average results; the Spell of the Unseen Servant (of course); and a low-end version of the Spell of Minor Creation, so that one always has a supply of their best herbs and spices.
By and large, Keoni's "cooking spells" are really just practical applications of relatively common magic.
He does describe two spells that you don't have direct equivalents to, though. One of these is a cantrip he uses to dress fresh kills, which is in turn a specialized application of an older spell that's meant to simply break things. Kind of like the reverse of the Spell of Mending.
Keoni demonstrates the Spell of Breaking, causing a single crack to appear on one face of a nearby rock.
"It's not all that useful," he says. "Stone is hard enough to absorb most of the force, and a thick enough piece of wood can do the same. It also isn't precise enough for fine work, and it has no effect on living things at all." The shaman demonstrates this by casting the spell again, at a nearby tree, to no obvious effect.
This Spell of Breaking is such a minor effect that two live demonstrations of it are more than enough for you to puzzle out how to re-create it. You're not entirely sure if you'll ever need to use it, though.
Gained the Spell of Breaking
As for Keoni's carcass-cleaning spell, he's going to need an actual carcass before he can demonstrate it.
That's going to have to wait for the party.
Ignoring the quarreling Zora and Poe for the moment, you meet the islander's wide-eyed gaze.
"Are you okay, there?"
He laughs, weakly. "This is NOT what I was expecting when I got the call that someone on Bali Ha'i was looking for a musician."
"Sorry about that. I really am trying to find a musical act for a party I'm holding here, though. Or maybe more than one, given it's a three-day affair..."
You proceed to explain your plans for your birthday, the entertainment you've already arranged, and - given the islander's reaction to his fellow music-makers - the fact that many of your guests are not human.
You were expecting the islander to freak out, or at least bow out, when you mentioned that a couple of families of vampires and a bunch of ghosts were coming.
"I'm a ghost myself, more or less," he says easily. "So that's no worry. As for the other... what's a vampire?"
At that moment, you fancy you hear a record scratching.
Certainly, the protective ward upon Bali Ha'i would have prevented the demonic sort of vampire from ever setting foot upon the island, while the sun and surf would have posed a natural barrier to the other kind, even if they'd been benign enough to make it through the supernatural defenses. But from what Kahine and Keoni have said, the islanders DID have contact with the outside world, and vampires are so widespread in folklore and fiction that it just seems incredibly unlikely that someone could not know what they are.
And yet, that does appear to be the case.
...well, then. At least musician number three - he gives his name as Ekewaka - won't be alarmed by the Shuzens and the Reinhardts, if you end up hiring him.
On that note, after hearing what you're looking for, all three summoned beings make their own pitch.
Ekewaka, of course, has the advantage of being a local boy. He practiced the native singing style, and he knows a number of people "on the other side" who'd be happy to join him for a few performances in their old homeland. Being dead, they'd be able to perform a great deal longer than any living artists, and their authentic island music would definitely suit the mood. That said, Ekewaka is a little distracted by being back on Bali Ha'i, leading you to suspect that you'd need to arrange a few extended breaks for the "band" - or perhaps "chorus" is the more accurate term? - to wander the island.
The Poe introduces himself as Sharp the Elder, a former Royal Composer of the Kingdom of Hyrule. He would be accompanied by his brother, Flat the Younger, and a small orchestra of other Poes they've recruited over the centuries. Like the native islanders, they're capable of performing basically indefinitely, and have the distinct advantage of not being susceptible to distraction by the island's natural beauty.
On the other hand, you've met Poes before, and done some reading-by-proxy on them in the holy texts. They're inclined to mischief, and with the number of people that will be attending, as well as the size of the orchestra that Sharp describes, there's going to be a lot of opportunities for spectral shenanigans.
You also have to wonder if traditional Hylian anthems, hymns, and opera are really suitable for your birthday.
Finally, there's the Zora, who introduces himself as Toto, manager of the famous Zoran group known as the Indigo-Gos. It's a five-man band, arranged around singer, piano, guitar, bass, and drums, which would make the style of their music much more familiar to most of the audience. Toto assures you that the band is well-practiced in matching their melodies to the local ambiance, and as with the other contenders, they can play without fear of fatigue.
Unlike Ekewaka, who is willing to work for the chance to see Bali Ha'i again, or Sharp, who states that it would be such an honor to perform for one favored by the Goddesses, he could not possibly accept payment, Toto is fairly insistent that his band needs to be paid.
Although you are tempted to hire all three groups to perform over the course of your party, you end up going with Ekewaka and his fellows. It's a combination of their being able to provide authentic island music, the lack of any monetary pricetag, and the fact that you won't have to worry about them playing tricks on any of your guests.
That last one is a concern, not so much because your guests wouldn't appreciate it - although some of them certainly wouldn't - but because there'd have been a good chance that the Hayashi Clan would take it as a challenge.
A prank war between an orchestra's worth of Poes and a clan of kitsune is the sort of event it might be interesting to observe, but only from a safe distance.
And if they really got going, you have your doubts that anywhere on Bali Ha'i would be safe.
Better to avoid the whole issue.
When you announce your decision, Toto sighs something about, "Home field advantage," congratulates Ekewaka on getting the job, and then tips his hat to all and sundry before disappearing.
Sharp is somewhat more graceful in conceding his defeat, but it amounts to the same thing.
And with that - and one final casting of Magnificent Mansion, with an island theme, so that Ekewaka and his fellow chanters have a comfortable place to stay - your musical issues have been resolved.
Gained Mana Recovery E (Plus) (Plus)
On the afternoon of Friday, the 31st of March, 2000, you head straight home after school lets out. Both your parents and Zelda are there when you arrive, your father having taken a little time off from work at the garage, while your mother traded a couple of shifts at the hospital to get the weekend off, free and clear.
On a related note, you had considered inviting Uncle Rory to your party, as he is the only other member of the extended Harris Clan in the know about your magic. As is often the case, however, he had a date this weekend.
All the necessary packing was attended to last night, so aside from dropping off your bookbag and making sure you have your weekend homework assignments, you're pretty much able to just climb into the family car and go. When you pull into the parking lot of the abandoned gas station a short time later, you find Lu-sensei there ahead of you.
You spend the next few minutes setting up to call Jermafencer, and by the time you've finished, the rest of your Sunnydale-native guests have arrived, carpooling in a sedan you recognize as belonging to the Madisons.
Before calling up the phantom coachman, you cast a variant of the Spell to Shrink Items on the two cars, reducing them to easily-transported cloth patches. They'll remain like this for days, so you can take them along to Bali Ha'i with you, saving a great deal of needless difficulty.
With that done, you proceed to summon Jermafencer.
Unlike the previous times you've called upon him, the Knight of the Shadowed Mire does not appear alone within your summoning circle. Instead, there is a single whinny, a sudden clatter of hooves, jangle of harness, and rumble of wheels - and then the Death Coach comes tearing out of a spot of empty space within the circle, the lead horses crossing the rim of the arcane diagram almost as quickly as they appear, and the rest of the team, the large vehicle behind them, and their larger-than-life master upon it following in rapid succession.
Zelda squeaks and jumps behind your mom at the spectacle, while your father steps forward, putting himself ahead of them and slightly in front of you. Moblin, who's been taking this whole family field trip with good grace so far, starts barking fiercely, but makes no move to chase the carriage.
The dramatic arrival and the eerie appearance of the Death Coach - which contrives to be undiminished, even in the light of day, thanks to the thing carrying its own bank of fog, thick enough to a provide a mobile, murky shade - seem to give Amy second thoughts about riding on it, even the one time and with a guarantee she'll be able to get off in the land of the living. Larry, on the other hand, seems even MORE eager to go for a spin, while Cordelia sets her jaw in a familiar manner that tells you she isn't going to change her mind just because it LOOKS scary.
As your other guests board the coach with varying degrees of eagerness - Lily Blaisdell making sure that Jermafencer and the handful of ghostly porters loading up the luggage all see her "walking stick" - Lu-sensei joins your immediate family in forming a circle for teleportation.
A couple of Spells of Abjuration to prevent anybody freaking out from seeing beyond the veil, and a few minutes of chanting later-
-flying/falling/sinking through a strange space/medium/awareness filled with familiar shapes/alien geometries and faint/loud chorus/discordance and a near/distant green energy/presence aww, she's cute and PUPPY-
-and you arrive on the sandy shores of Bali Ha'i.
To your right and your mother's left, Zelda blinks, looks around, and then looks up at you. "What was that green thing, Alex?"
Under your left hand, Moblin whines and drops to the sand, raising his paws to cover his eyes.
What do you tell your sister?
And what about your dog?
Not too far down the beach, you see the Death Coach has already arrived and is starting to release its passengers.
Larry emerges with a shout of, "That was SO COOL!"
Cordelia is right behind him, a bit more relaxed than she was leaving the Sunnydale area, whereas Amy comes out looking a pale green. Her mother is doing better, but still seems a little off-balance from the experience, and Lily Blaisdell just strides out, completely unruffled. The spectral porters have reappeared to begin unloading the passengers' bags, and Jermafencer himself is still up in the driver's seat, ready to depart and fetch the next batch of guests as soon as everyone and their belongings are clear.
You glance from Zelda to your unhappy dog, and then turn to your familiar.
"Briar, can you take a look at Moblin to see if he's alright?"
"On it!"
"Why would he not be alright?" your father inquires.
"I'll explain in a sec, Dad," you say, holding up the hand that was, until a moment ago, resting on Moblin's shoulder, and gesturing that you need a moment. When your father doesn't press for answers, you get on with responding to the question posed by your little sister, who's been waiting fairly patiently for you to say something, only hopping in place a couple of times.
"That green light was just something weird that happens when I use that kind of spell, Zelda," you tell her.
Weird/strange/odd/anomalous?! I am/this is/we are perfectly metastable/nth-dimensional/non-Euclidean/green!
"But it was talking," Zelda protests.
There, there, little one. It's not his fault he's a limited fourth-dimensional consciousness incapable of parsing your pan-dimensional architecture.
"Yeah, it was," you admit. "The green light lives in the place that spell takes us through, so it's sort of like we're driving past its house when we travel that way."
Are you sure it's not just because he's a guy?
This is an oversimplification of what's actually going on when your Spells of Teleportation go funky and try to pull you deeper into the Astral Plane than they should, and it leaves out some of the important details, but Zelda doesn't have the magical education to make sense of most of those, and she has no need to know the rest.
That, too.
"Can we go back and talk to it?" she asks curiously.
Um.
"Aw," Zelda pouts, disappointed that she won't get to talk to the green light today.
"Sorry, Zel," you tell her. "I don't make the rules."
"Yeah, you just break them," Briar mutters.
"So, Briar, partner of mine," you proclaim in a louder-than-necessary voice. "How's Moblin?"
"Oh, he's fine, the big baby." She scratches Moblin behind one ear. "Your wards did what they were supposed to, he just didn't like the sensation of passing through a void where something was talking to him in his head."
It IS something of an acquired taste, you have to admit.
Reassured that Moblin won't suffer any long-term effects from his exposure to your teleportation magic, you get on with explaining to your patiently-waiting father that some people - and animals, it would seem - have a bad reaction to teleporting. It happened to Cordelia, it happened to your mother, and now, it's happened to Moblin. The good news is that Moblin's reaction was just a dog being a dog in the aftermath of an uncomfortable experience, and not a dog going nuts.
By this time, the rest of your first group of guests and their luggage have completely disembarked from the Death Coach. Jermafencer raises one hand in a wave, then cracks his whip, causing the phantom coachmen to disappear in the same instant that his horses whinny and begin to pull the carriage once more.
As they go rumbling off over the open waters, to disappear in a flash of green light, you direct everyone's attention up the beach, to where a dozen and more doorways stand perfectly straight amidst the sand and scrubby grass. After Briar agrees to direct everyone to their respective rooms and has begun leading the way - with a quickly-conjured crew of Unseen Servants to handle the luggage - you start laying out a summoning circle, to begin bringing in those guests who won't be coming to Bali Ha'i with Jermafencer's aid or by using their own magical means.
First on your list are Batreaux and the three Hyrulean priests, and you've just finished calling up the trio when Jermafencer returns. The carriage door opens up to reveal a green-faced Dave Stutler, who steps down from the cab, turns to one side, and falls face-first into the sand.
Still inside the Death Coach, Balthazar Blake looks down at his student and shakes his head. "Classy, Dave. Very classy."
Dave makes a reply that you don't catch at this distance, due to it being muffled by the sand.
"Language, David," Mrs. Stutler scolds.
Dave groans an acknowledgement.
"May I help you, Mrs. Stutler?" Balthazar asks, having dismounted from the cab with an old, practiced ease.
"Thank you, Balthazar, and I've told you, it's Nancy."
Balthazar just smiles and offers a hand.
"Ah," Madam Lanora sighs. "A scholar AND a gentleman. If I were a few hundred years younger..."
"You'd still be a dead fish," Elder Terok cuts in.
"There will be ICE in your lava-bed, you old boulder!"
Batreaux and Koron laugh. Vert just sighs.
Zelda's question reminds you that the Gate Spell IS on the list of spells you've been studying with Batreaux this year, and the main thing preventing you from casting it right now is that you need to build up your understanding of planar physics some more.
That, and the fact that you need to acquire a proper "key" for the Astral Plane, to serve as a focus for the spell.
Not that you say any of this aloud. Seriously, even if you knew the Gate Spell and could cast it safely right this instant, Zelda is MUCH too young to go haring off to the far corners of the multiverse to meet a sanity-bending eldritch entity, no matter how friendly it is.
You also know your little sister well enough to say with full confidence that, if you admitted that you were working on a spell that could allow you to make contact with the green entity, Zelda would never stop bugging you until you'd learned the spell and taken her to meet the being that's caught her interest.
Instead, you try to dissuade her curiosity, saying that you tried to send a letter to the green light once, and the Postman couldn't reach it.
Zelda has met the Postman, if only in passing, and is aware that he's been carrying letters to and from your friends all over the world - and in very little time.
As such, you aren't surprised when she blinks in amazement and asks, "It's THAT far away?"
If Dave's stumbling out of the Death Coach was anything to be seriously worried about, you don't think that Balthazar would be making light of it. Certainly not in front of his apprentice's mother.
In light of that fact, and because you'd like to give your fellow young sorcerer a chance to recover his dignity, you go ahead and greet the adult members of the Stutler-Blake party and begin introducing them to your tutors. Balthazar has already met Madam Lanora, of course, as part of your agreement to introduce her to magic-users and religious folks of your acquaintance, but he only knows the other priests and Batreaux by reputation, and they, in turn, know no more of him than you or Lanora have said.
Nancy Stutler, meanwhile, is a complete unknown. She takes the appearance of your tutors more or less in stride, with nothing worse than a few wide-eyed blinks and a quick glance at Balthazar.
By the time everyone has been introduced, Jermafencer's coachmen have unloaded the latest batch of luggage, and the knight himself has departed. Briar has likewise returned, leading your crew of Unseen Servants, and Dave is recovered enough to stand up and walk without wobbling - though he is leaning on his mother, just in case.
Briar leads them off to their respective Mansions-
"Such HEAT and HUMIDITY," Batreaux sighs, fanning himself with one clawed hand while the other picks at his heavy robe. "I am so DREADFULLY glad I packed my swimming trunks!"
Your mind briefly blanks trying to parse THAT image.
-and you get on with your summonings. The next guest you call up is Grey Voice, who you weren't sure was going to attend. He's a very recent acquaintance, and he just didn't strike you as the party-going sort.
That said, when the Postman brought you back the extraterrestrial ghost's reply, Grey Voice mentioned something about "naming days" being important. You think it was the addition of the Ring of Trials that really convinced him to show up, though, as he sounded quite interested in that.
The alien bird-man - who has identified his race as "Chozo" since your first meeting - appears without prelude, simply phasing into view within your summoning circle.
Grey Voice looks around at Bali Ha'i, and your psychic senses - which have at least gotten better at detecting HIS powers at work since you began studying with him - register him reaching out to examine the island's unusual atmosphere.
"A fascinating place," Grey Voice murmurs. "Seldom have I seen the like."
Briar hasn't returned from seeing the last bunch to their rooms, so you offer to show Grey Voice the way yourself, but he declines for the moment, stating curiosity about how your summoning magic works when he himself isn't the subject - and particularly when it's being performed in Bali Ha'i's environment.
Shrugging, you get on with calling up your battle-buddy, Bando. As Grey Voice was, the Goron is strong enough on his own to require a standard Spell of Planar Binding; between that and their lack of common origins, affiliations, or natures, you couldn't summon them together. Still, at least you only have to summon each spirit the one time, as opposed to, for example, all those Memorian soldiers...
You're deep into the summoning ritual when you hear Jermafencer return, and sense Grey Voice's attention turning at least partly away from you and your magic.
You wonder who's arrived now...
"HOOOO-AHHHH!" the silver-haired, gemstone-spotted Goron exclaims as he arrives, arms raised high and head flung back. "IT'S PARTY TIME!"
"GAH!" a familiar little girl's voice exclaims in shock. "MORE GHOSTS?!"
You and Bando join Grey Voice in turning to regard Kokoa, who has not just descended but run away from the Death Coach and its spectral attendants, only to stop, stare, and point in alarm at your two latest ghostly guests, who are rendered a bit faded-out and semi-translucent by the bright mid-day sun.
Behind her, Issa is standing beside the carriage's foot-stand, helping Gyokuro down in a manner that echoes Balthazar's previous assistance of Mrs. Stutler. Kahlua is right behind her parents, and all three are trying to hide amused smirks, the youngest failing at it.
You can also hear Akasha giggling inside the carriage.
"It's not funny!" Kokoa protests, ineffectually stamping her foot in the sand.
You take note that all three of the Shuzen ladies are wearing wide-brimmed picture hats, light but long-sleeved shirts, ankle-length skirts, and sunglasses. Issa is likewise covered up, though he wears a less-formal boater hat.
Rather surprisingly, Jermafencer has dismounted from the driver's seat this time, and is moving around to the other side of the cab.
It's not really the distance between Earth and whatever part of the Astral Plane the green entity calls home that makes it difficult to reach, but that's as good an explanation as any for someone who doesn't have the mystical education to grasp what alternate planes of existence are, much less how they interact.
"It is," you tell Zelda. And for the sake of honesty, you add, "And not only is it far away, it's really hard to get to - like if someone made their home at the center of the Earth. It's closer than, say, the Moon, but getting there is a lot more difficult."
This appears to settle Zelda's curiosity, though it also leaves her visibly - and audibly - disappointed.
You take in Kokoa's behavior, the amusement of her family, and the presence of the Death Coach - and then, you sigh.
"One of the Poes did something, didn't it?" you venture aloud, sparing a glance for the lanterns that frame Jermafencer's ride, and the spirits ostensibly trapped within.
Said lanterns shake with a clatter of metal against glass, and the giggles of amused poltergeists.
"Kokoa was curious about the source of the light," Gyokuro replies, not quite laughing. "When she got close enough to investigate, the ghost inside... startled her."
"It stuck its tongue out at me!" Kokoa protests. "And it was HUGE! I thought I was going to be covered in ghost-slobber! And then they all laughed at me!"
There is a chorus of eerie amusement.
"Just like that!" the littlest vampire snaps, pointing at the lanterns. "Oooh!"
You're not sure what to say to this, although it does occur to you to mention that you're going to have a short century's worth of ancient not-Roman legionaries attending your party in shifts, and that they'll be better-behaved than the Poes.
...at least, you think they will. You've never really interacted with Captain Marcus's men on a personal level, much less when they were off duty, so you can't really say for certain what they're like.
You also spare a moment to reflect, gladly, upon the fact that you didn't hire Sharp and his phantom orchestra after all.
While all this has been playing out, Kahlua has emerged from the carriage. Meanwhile, Jermafencer has reached the door on the opposite side of the vehicle, opened it, and - you can just make this out around the bulk of the coach - taken a cue from Issa and Balthazar, offering to assist Miss Akasha down. She accepts the chivalrous gesture with a self-possessed, regal manner you don't think you've ever seen from her before.
You weren't expecting that.
You're also a little surprised that Issa isn't protesting it. Then again, he does have a wife and daughters to busy himself with, the last of whom now stands in the carriage door.
Although she is the oldest of Issa's daughters, Shuzen Akua is not much taller than Kahlua - an inch, maybe two, and some of that can be attributed to her shoes. Where her three half-sisters sport various mixes of Japanese and European features, Akua appears almost entirely Oriental at first glance, save for her exceptionally pale skin. The only other immediately obvious sign of her paternal heritage is the fact that her shoulder-length hair is the same jet black as Issa's, though where he wears his free, hers is bound up in two loose tails.
Where the rest of the Shuzen ladies are attired in skirts, Akua has gone with femininely-styled pants and a jacket, whose fine, light material seem to be her only concession to the heat. That said, she is wearing another of those fancy lady's hats and a pair of sunglasses.
From the angle of her head and the scowl on her lips, Akua seems to be shooting a glare at the tropical sun. This passes quickly, as - possibly because she senses your gaze - she turns her attention to you.
While she doesn't scowl at "die, you horrible day-star" levels of animosity, Akua is definitely still frowning at you, at what you'd estimate to be, "I am out in the sun against my will, and I blame you for it entirely" levels.
Not the best first impression that you could have made.
"Hello, Alex!" Kahlua says, waving. "Thank you for inviting us to your party - but ugh, did you have to pick somewhere so bright to hold it?"
Even with her sunglasses in the way, you can see the vampire girl squinting in exaggerated but very real discomfort.
"Fortunately," you say in response to Kahlua's playful (but most likely entirely serious) question, "magic can address a great many annoyances. If you'll allow me..."
!
Kahlua is suddenly standing right in front of you. "PLEASE."
Okay, then.
You spare yourself a moment to let Bando out of the summoning circle - he "solidifies" in the process, completing the transition from the Upper Planes to the Material - and then begin casting the Spell of the Protective Penumbra, with the necessary modifications to affect all the members of the Shuzen family and to last for the duration of the party - and a few days beyond that.
You notice Akua watching you intently as you gather and weave your mana.
As you complete the spell, an aura of deep shadow lines your hands, the energy translucent under the tropical sun but still a deep black. Kahlua, by dint of being the closest, is the first member of the family you reach out and touch to apply the protective spell to, in her case, by-
The dark aura spreads out from the point of contact, thinning and yet intensifying as it goes, as if the shadow-stuff were becoming more concentrated. The spread of your magic takes only a few seconds, and once it has completely covered Kahlua, it momentarily flares, before fading from sight.
Kahlua studies her darkly-outlined hands during the process, turning them over with a considering air, and then giving you a searching glance in the wake of the aura's disappearance. At your nod, she reaches up and takes off her sunglasses, squinting cautiously against the expected dazzling glare of the sun.
When that reaction fails to trigger, Kahlua blinks, smiles, and then laughs softly, taking off her hat.
"Oh, my," she says. "That is SO much better."
One by one, you repeat the process with the other members of the family. The three younger sisters are quick to start running around in the sunlight, faces turned towards the day-star as if daring it to do its worst - their parents call a warning not to look directly at the sun, magic spells or no - even Moka surrendering some of her usual reserve to the wonder of not feeling crushed and burning in normal daylight. Akasha's reaction is no different, and she unreservedly joins the girls in dancing around the beach. Issa chuckles at the sight, while Gyokuro just shakes her head - though you do catch her briefly closing her eyes and just luxuriating in the sun, in a manner that reminds you of a cat.
Akua watches you apply the spell to each of the others in turn, and it's only after everyone else has submitted themselves to your magic with no ill effect - and once she's been given reassuring looks by her father, Miss Akasha, and Moka - that she extends her hand and allows you to work your magic on her person.
When the Protective Penumbra is in place, Akua displays the same initial relieved reaction as the rest of Issa's family. She also spares you a look that is less distasteful and more considering than before - somewhere around the level of, "I'm still annoyed, but you have redeemed yourself for your error."
Then she blinks as Moka grabs her hands and tries to drag her into the ongoing dance.
"Come and have fun with us, Akua," Moka entreats her eldest sister.
Akua's pale face reddens noticeably as she stammers a protest. "I couldn't- I mean, I don't- Moka, this is undignified!"
Moka just laughs at her.
Well, they seem to be getting along, at least.
The application of the Spell to Resist Water doesn't draw as much of a reaction from the vampires, although you do notice a common tension going out of the family as the seaside humidity becomes much less of a problem.
By the time you've warded the Shuzens against sun and sea, Briar has once again led the train of Unseen Servants back to pick up the next batch of baggage. This time, she's accompanied by the rest of your immediate family, who appear to have decided to come see what you've been up to for the last half-hour or so.
While your father greets the Shuzen adults and introduces your mom to all three of them, Zelda looks at the Shuzen girls in surprise before turning to you.
"Are they princesses?" your sister asks with all seriousness. "Because they look like princesses."
Kokoa huffs at the question, while Moka and Akua display almost identically proud smirks that suddenly make their family resemblance unmistakable.
Kahlua looks your sister over, nods to herself, and says, "You, are adorable."
Uh-oh. Knowing Kahlua as you do, you can see where this is going - so can Kokoa, who is abruptly giving your sister a look of deepest sympathy, colored by "better you than me" relief.
Kahlua blinks in surprise as you hold out your right hand in a wordless request. Then, blushing enough that it's obvious even through her tan skin-tone and the deep shadow of her hat, she extends her own hand for you to take hold of.
You keep things brief and formal, or as close to it as spellcasting gets.
...actually, that does beg the question of whether or not there's a particular method of bestowing touch-range spells that is favored in polite company. None of the experienced spellcasters you've dealt with have mentioned such a thing, but there are any number of explanations for that, most of which boil down to their not being human, not being native to Earth, and/or not being of a social class that would make a fuss about casual physical contact, or your being young enough that people are willing to make an exception for you.
It's something you may want to look into.
Kahlua's combination of inherent superhuman strength and a physically-demonstrative emotional nature has given you cause to worry about your oxygen supply a time or two before, but she's never actually hurt you - not unless she MEANT to, and even then, the worst you've suffered at her hands in those sparring matches is some bruising. She's also gotten better about self-restraint since you first met, most of a year's association with - and semi-monthly visits from - a human friend giving her much more practice at keeping things to a "normal" level.
Granted, between your natural size, your martial arts training, and that Heart Container you acquired from the Gohma, you're tougher than the average human even when you aren't using magic, ki, or Power to fortify yourself. And yes, Zelda is barely a third your age, and accordingly much smaller than you, in addition to all her other relative disadvantages.
But you trust your friend not to hurt your little sister.
...maybe make her squeak a little, but not hurt her.
"Alex," Kahlua says then. "Aren't you going to introduce us?"
Right.
"Kahlua, this is my little sister, Zelda Harris. Zelda, this is my friend from Japan, Shuzen Kahlua - remember, her family name comes first."
Zelda nods seriously, and then asks Kahlua, "So, are you a princess?"
"No, but I do live in a castle."
"Really?" Zelda's eyes sparkle. "What's it like?"
"Well, first of all, it's a MAGIC castle..."
And with that Kahlua begins to spin a tale about life in Castle Shuzen that leaves Zelda spellbound.
Sensing that your presence is not required, you back up a bit.
"Big Sister didn't hug your little sister to death," Kokoa notes, sounding both surprised and a touch envious.
"It startled me, too," you admit.
Now that you think about it, you didn't see Kahlua's first interaction with the Kurosaki twins. You were in the ring with Ichigo, and by the time you were done both encouraging and knocking down the Strawberry, his sisters were both pretty thoroughly enchanted by the vampire princess.
There is a brief pause, and then Kokoa asks, "Do you think she's just saving it up for later?"
"...maybe?"
The introductions have continued while you were otherwise occupied, and by this point, all of your family and all of Kahlua's family at least know each others' names. You quickly step in to provide slightly-overdue introductions on behalf of Bando and Grey Voice, neither of whom appear particularly put-out by the delay of your casting environmental-protection magic on the vampires.
"How did you meet our son, exactly?" your father asks, looking up - and up - at the remarkably tall bird-faced alien and the Goron with the gleaming "hair."
Erk.
Bando and Grey Voice trade looks, silently debating among themselves who should speak first. Bando has the older association, but that was a one-time thing - specifically, the time he squared off with the monster Searfang, to buy you time to deal with the Hawaiian Sorcerer.
While part of the motivation behind your choice of birthday "entertainment" was to get your parents more accustomed to the higher-than-normal levels of magic, violence, magical violence, and violent magic in your life, there's a difference between that and admitting that you snuck out of a hotel room, under your father's nose, to go fight a much older and more experienced magic-user to the death almost a year ago.
In contrast, your student-teacher association with Grey Voice is unlikely to be upsetting, even if part of what he's going to be teaching you involves learning how to read thoughts and bend spoons with your brain. You can already do that sort of thing anyway...
And after that's dealt with, what will you do next? You have several guests that need to be shown to where they'll be staying the next few days, a bit more summoning in need of doing, and another group of travelers due to arrive in anywhere from five to ten minutes - most likely either the Arisawas and Kurosakis, or half the Hayashi Clan, seeing as how Jermafencer has moved on to Japan.
Having your parents find out about your fight with the Hawaiian Sorcerer NOW would cast a pall over your entire birthday party. Even if you did manage to avoid revealing the circumstances or the conclusion of the battle, the fact that you were fighting the old creep at all would upset both of them.
Goddesses help you if and when they ever find out you were having a magical duel to the death in the mouth of an active volcano, at age eight, after sneaking out from the hotel in the middle of the night. And what they'd have to say about that slaying spell you ended the battle with...
No. You don't need that kind of stress right now.
As such, it's probably for the best if you speak up now and introduce Bando yourself, omitting the parts that would get you in trouble. You can introduce Grey Voice as well; his being one of your tutors - or at least on retainer to become such, once Ambrose reports in about his investigation of Mother's reincarnation - can't help but go over better.
Besides, you're the host of this party, and they're some of your guests, meeting your parents for the first time. You SHOULD be the one to handle the introductions.
So you do so, explaining that you met these two in response to spells you cast for help.
"In Grey Voice's case, I was trying to find a tutor."
"More magic lessons?" your father guesses.
"My instruction would be focused on lessons in science and psionics, actually," Grey Voice replies. "Or in more common parlance, psychic powers."
Everybody in hearing range stops, blinks, and turns to you.
"...you can read minds now, too?" Kokoa asks suspiciously.
"If I'm close by, and someone is thinking about something very 'loudly,' or if I cast the Spell to Detect Thoughts - but that's not the same thing." You shake your head. "It's more like I have the potential to use actual psychic powers, and not much idea of HOW to actually do it. Without a proper teacher, I'd be trying to learn everything from scratch, and considering where I live and the fact that this involves my BRAIN, that didn't seem like a good idea at ALL."
There are some nods of agreement at this.
"Oh! Oh!" Zelda cuts in, hopping up and down with one hand raised. "Alex! What am I thinking of right now?"
And she STARES at you, looking simultaneously hopeful and a touch crazed.
There are some chuckles at Zelda's display - you swear you see Kahlua's arms twitch in her general direction - and the air of relaxed amusement gives you just the shot of confidence you need to move on to introducing Bando.
Your father looks the big Goron over keenly, and ventures, "So, you're Alex's weight trainer, then?"
"Hooo-ho-ho-ho!" Bando chortles. "I can see why you might think so, but no, it's nothing like that."
"Bando is my go-to guy for wrestling giant lizards, so I don't have to," you say.
Once again, there is a round of surprised blinks. The vampires, to a one, are visibly curious.
Your father eyes Bando again, and mutters, "Must have been some lizard."