[ - Author's Note - ]
Well, let's keep the wagon train rolling...
I'm sure everyone is wondering about the woman in red so you'll be learning that this chapter. More over we peek in on a couple of other, little things...
I have an idea of how to push on the gas when the time comes but the plan is at least more, relaxed chapters before that... for the most part; that's not to say crap won't crop up.
So rather then blather on, let's go!
[ - Act IV - Chapter IX: Comes A Dawn - ]
The greatest duty someone who has mastered and perfected a craft can do is to teach others and pass on such experience and mastery. Not all students can or will surpass their masters but the rare ones who do often go on to amazing thing. Moreover one does more then just pass on their knowledge to others; those who follow can devote their times to new paths of the trade. They stand upon the shoulders of their masters to reach greater heights but reach they do; becoming platforms for new students in turn.
Not all are ready to become students. Not all are ready to become masters. Sometimes it's circumstance that drives them together no matter if they're ready to teach and train or not. Regardless this is the means of any civilized species to rise to greater heights; if man were to reach the heavens it will be upon the lineage of students upon their masters.
~Dugal Sax, Legacy of the Guilds: A History of Crafts and Trades
[-]
Sitting on the deck of my ship by a table I brought up I took a long sip of coffee as I sat on a chair to read a book in a nice outfit of a tunic, long coat and slacks (In Noxdecus colors) with black boots; the tome in question was the one Aeris got me for Nova Aurora. I had read it already but I was re-reading it as I was hoping I could use the information within with my future projects; namely ensuring I could operate the Enterprise remotely for extra security. I was also considering what I could do with my newly acquired booty!
I had a foot round sized grade four stone which was quite the prize and I wasn't sure what to do with it yet. I could install it onto the Enterprise for some additional functions but I didn't think it needed it. I could make another flying vehicle and the idea of an air bike like creation was such an idea; backed with some spell glass a stone like that could be even faster then the Enterprise which sounded like fun... but not very practical as it would carry a limited amount of passengers and cargo. I could use it, then, to make something more akin to flying car mixed with a fighter jet for something fast, powerful and able to transport a limited amount of cargo and passengers with wheels to use as inner-city transport. That would work better but I wasn't fully convinced if I'd use it that much. Maybe something akin like it could be kept in the hold for use and the Cloud Rider employed by my father for Mungale's use?
I also had a mythril golem in my possession; normally it's enchantments would be a worthy piece of study but that was in the spell quartz that was in it's chest (I took it as well as I planned to send it to Blake von Adelle at some point; I think he'd enjoy it) the metal itself was just a giant, metal golem. I wasn't versed in making golems and with how that can go wrong I was reluctant to start but it was still over a thousand pounds of mythril which was no joke. It could repurposed into arms and armor for Mungale's forces and I could use it if I wanted to commission Lulu for her work once more. For the time being I felt it was better to hold onto it; we could use it later.
"If I didn't know better I'd think you'd move into the ship and live on it." Makoto let off as she walked over while I shrugged. She brought her own chair and set it across from me before sitting down.
"Might be due to all the flying around I've done; my bed in the manor is more cozy if you ask me." I replied with a chuckle; setting a bookmark into place but not shutting the tome yet. "Honestly, I want to kick my feet up for a bit; diving into a hidden vault wasn't on my itinerary for the day. Makes for a memorable date, if nothing else."
"But not your aim... Then again you seem to be planning a date with the High Queen of all people." She let off, leaning back as she crossed her legs.
"...In fairness Prim is more excited about it then I am." Makoto sighed at my reply and shook her head.
"I find that... not difficult to believe, James-Sama." She said, adding a shrug to her head shake. "One thinks she's more eager to bed her then you." I couldn't help but chuckle at that... Yeah, Prim went from innocent virgin to lustful vixen since her first time... I'm not sure if I should be proud or worried about what I've created.
...
I just had a thought... If Prim was a guy half the women in Stonewall would be carrying her children... Yikes! "Well if I'm going to have three wives it's going to take work from all of us... and Prim might put in overtime to do so." She giggled a bit as she leaned back.
"Don't forget your concubines!" She said in a teasing tone as I gave her a half lidded glare; Prim's bodyguard Carmen was in that list already and Riri might as well have been but it felt weird having that kinda talk.
"Are you hoping to be added to that list?" I let off as she went full blush. That's an... effective counter. Maybe I should tease her a bit more? Hmmm... Yeah, I had a killer one liner... she'd blush twice as deep as I gave my best, roguish smirk, ready to add a hint of husk to my voice, lips parting to drop it...
...annnnnd somewhere on the ground an explosion sounded. "...What's that...?" I let off, moving to stand and walk to the railing as I made a gesture to the pilot to slow us down so I could see. What did I see?
Nuns, children, a red coated mage... and Aberrant... lots and lots of Aberrant... "...Iiiiiiiiiit's gonna be one of those days..." I grumbled.
"Pilot! Bring us over to them and ready to-what are you doing!?" Makoto let off as I stepped onto the railing and dove off, casting Levitation.
I wasn't in my armor but I kept my revolver and saber on me. Because sometimes shit happens.
[-]
Two nuns collapsed during the march, panting and tired. The slow, drawn out chase was coming to an end and the one left able to fight knew it... she had two options as she saw it; abandon her charges to their fate and save herself or stand her ground and take as many of them down as she could. The woman in red grit her teeth as another nun fell to her knees in exhaustion; did she really have a choice? She moved to stand before the batch of collapsing nuns and children, the more hardy trying to help the rest as she drew her blade; a steel rapier but one with several nicks in the edge and flat and an outright notch missing near the tip.
She would spin it over to a reverse grip; the basic D-guard over her hand as she bore a marble sized spell stone to act as a focus as she drew mana for a cast. She had launched the odd spell at the following gang to keep them at bay but aside from the overly careless one she caused little damage... more over she was sure their leader instructed them how best to minimize the damage she did to make her waste her mana; only working it out now. She was tired, low on mana and heavily outnumbered... She wouldn't win this fight and what would follow...
...death would be preferable...
..but that didn't mean she'd go down without a fight...
Seeing the group start to collapse made a batch of goblins charge forwards in an overeager manner, grinning wildly... She mimicked a cast of Fireball and deliberately flubbed it, firing off a marble sized bit of flame that fell before her and popped; causing the goblins to charge her with more vigor.
Then she cast the spell correctly...
The blast would slay five of the charging seven and knock the other two down and wound them harshly. She followed up that cast with another, blasting another Fireball into an ogre and those near it; a second ogre and escorting goblins; the second ogre dove away before impact and crushed a goblin under him as it went off. The first ogre fell back with it's face and chest blown in and another two goblins dying outright with the rest knocked over but stunned... save one who charged and closed ranks quicker then she expected as she turned her rapier to a normal grip. Before it could close in fully she would react first with a Combat Art; Piercing Strike. Dashing in she slammed the point of her blade into the goblin under it's throat and into it's spine... and winced as she felt a 'snap' in her rapier as she pulled back and hopped away; the blood on her blade unable to hide the missing tip of her weapon...
That was bad... She had hoped to use the money to try and find a blacksmith to repair her blade; unlike her outfit it wasn't capable of self repair and she wasn't able to instill strengthening enchantments into her stone... on account of having been unable to master them...
Her education being cut short was another thing biting her in that moment... At least the Armor Weave her grandmother had given her held up so far...
...so far...
She inverted her rapier once more to cast a third Fireball into a batch of goblins in their center; this mob was smart enough to spread out to reduce the effect of the blast with two on one side and one on the other almost unaffected by the blast. Before she could cast once more they had closed in to when a Fireball would be as dangerous to her as them; a simple Magic Missile to the head dealt with one as she slashed to the other; her weapon blocked by a long knife as he tried to press in, sneering at her as she opted to swing her foot up between it's legs. It squeaked out as it stumbled back, hands dropping before she slammed the broken point of her sword to it's throat; the jagged and sharpened edge enough to plunge through the flesh. As she pulled it back she finished off the wounded goblins from her first Fireball with basic Magic Missiles, trying to keep an eye on all of her foes.
She drew her other hand out with a Fireball cast and thrown off... only for it to be knocked off course by a wide, steel sword with a rounded, bladed edge held by a large Aberrant. She gulped and threw a second as the first exploded on the top of a tree only to watch as it was it was knocked aside as easily; a massive ogre in a loincloth stomping to her with a grin as the rest of the gang started to fan out to a half circle, about to close in around their tired progression. She grit her teeth and blasted off with a third then fourth Fireball; both knocked aside as easily as the all blew up on the ground nearby or one of the pieces of brush nearby.
She wondered why this one only stepped up now? It wasn't like they'd lack goblins soon, she supposed... enough wombs to go around and all... Even so she backed up and threw Fireball after Fireball, watching as they were knocked aside one by one, feeling her mana levels lessen bit by bit with each one. Finally she opted to over-charge one and threw it once more; not at him but at his feet which was something she should have done earlier which it could cause it harm as opposed to being knocked back...
...only for the ogre to rush it, knock it aside anyway and charged her head on!
She dodged the first swing and swung back with her blade, cutting along it's abdomen... but the cut was too shallow to be worth much; moreover she was too slow to dodge the haymaker the struck her chest; blowing the air from her lungs. She was sure something went crack inside of her as flew backwards ten feet and impacted the ground heavily which left coughing as she kept a grip on her rapier as she tried to breathe from the punch and impact with the ground. She attempted to force herself to rise back to her feet but couldn't find the strength... and any attempt was ended when a foot pressed onto the side of her knee, making her cry out as weight was set onto it. "Don't break it! Harder to make her march!" The woman in red heard the large, horned goblin let off with a chuckle as the ogre smirked before reaching down to it's loincloth...
So... this is how she ended up... a toy for an ogre... She glared up, teeth clenched as she tried to work out what she could do with her almost spent mana reserves...
The horned goblin in question sneered; a rare hobgoblin. He didn't mind his losses; those were the dumbest ones who didn't listen after all and her slaying them was nothing more then natural selection... The one in red was feisty; prime breeding stock... Once his best solider, Stonehead, got his fill and she shat out a child for him maybe he'd make her a personal concubine...
There was, after all, talk of a new era coming on the wind...
And then Stonehead's head exploded.
The event was sudden and, from his point of view, out of the blue with no warning or way of seeing it coming; a length of arcane power slamming into his skull from above and to the side to his surprise. Turning and lifting his gaze upwards he saw... a ship? In the air!? More over a man was falling from it, turning and slowing to land on his feet as the girl in red looked up to him in surprised awe. The man would look to them for a moment then to the woman...
For the girl in question her eyes went wide with recognition, even as she coughed to get air back into her lungs. She never expected to be saved by anyone...
Let alone Eostia's Champion...
[-]
(-)
Name: Blood Seeker
Title: Lord of the Blood Horde
Class: Barbarian
Level: 21
Alignment: Hostile
Reputation: 21
Status: Healthy, Annoyed, Horny
Known Traits
[Aberrant Leader] Any and all Aberrant feel a desire to follow your command. +2 End to all Aberrant under your command. Additionally all non-Aberrant under your command who is not a human, elf, dark elf, half elf (Any type) halfling, dwarf or catalan gains +1 End
[Horde Lord] You gain might from those who follow you! +1% to Con, Str, Dex & Agi for each follower with you; maximum of 10% boost
[?]
Inspired by tales of a now, late hobgoblin leader and renaming himself to honor him Blood Seeker began to assemble a band of Aberrant to his banner, including a troll. Growing in power they need one thing now; wombs to help them grow their numbers further...
(-)
Gee, wonder who he's taking inspiration from? I ignored him for the moment as I looked to the woman who tried to fend them off. She was panting and looking up at me with what seemed like awe; not unsurprising giving what I saved her from. She was, maybe, five eight and bore a slender body-type with B-Cup breasts; swimmer's style I'd say. Her hair was waist long, chestnut locks in a straight, slightly messy way with bangs framing her freckled face with bright, green (Non-Dragonborne) eyes.
Her rapier was a piece of shit; not due to poor craftsmanship on the blade but poor upkeep. I'd seen it on some adventurers in Mungale; poorer ones who couldn't afford better weapons, a replacement or proper upkeep and opted to go ride-or-die on what they had until they afford better. It bore a spell stone but given the blade's condition the enchanter failed at their job. Badly. That spoke of a typical, impoverished adventurer... but the outfit did not.
Black shirt that was well made, likewise the white pants and short, brown boots. White gloves were over the hands and a red, open coat over her torso with brass buttons on them. A medallion hung low, under her breasts, from a chain around her neck. On her head was a wizard's/witch's hat with a pointed top that fell down backwards, a wide brim and a soft, brown strap with brass plates set to it in odd places at the joint of brim and case. That it stayed on as it had, in addition to what my magical senses picked up suggested it was Armor Weave which was anything but cheap. I knelt by her as I started casting a healing spell on her body; if I had to guess she was from a noble house and either left or was kicked out... Wonder which it is?
"Who the blazes do you think you are!?" Someone (I assumed the hobgoblin) screamed out as I used Observe on the girl.
(-)
Name: Dawn the Red Blade
Title: Wandering Adventurer
Class: Spell Blade
Level: 14
Alignment: Friendly
Reputation: 77
Status: Healthy - Tired, Surprised, Relieved
Romance Rating: 89
Corruption Rating: 5
Known Traits
[?]
[Prodigy] You master spells and magic at a highly improved rate. +20% spell mastery rate.
[Blast & Blade] 5% of your Str is added to magical damage. Add 5% of your Mag to physical damage
[?]
A natural at spellcraft since a young age, Dawn was a former prodigy of House Brangus and was given a good, magical education alongside fencing training until a falling out with both her parents and extended family saw her cast out and her education incomplete. She has since turned to mercenary work as a means to earn coin until she can work out what to do with herself.
(-)
So I was right... Mmm... House Brangus... That sounded familiar but I couldn't quite place it. Once my spell was done I offered her a hand and helped her stand up. "You did pretty well there; holding out like that." I said to her as she blinked to me and looked bashful, even as she looked to the Aberrant. No, really, she did. The bulk of these guys were levels ten to eighteen; not big deal for me now, but for her? Punching over her weight class. I respected that.
" Th-thanks..." She let off as I smiled.
"Hey! Bastard! Answer me!"
"We'll have to see about your weapon later." I said as I kept ignoring the hobgoblin. "Do you have a mana potion; I didn't have a chance to grab one."
"N-no, I wasn't able to-"
"I'm talking to you!"
"You can wait!" I called back to him over my shoulder. "I'll kill you in a minute!" For the record I had Ring of Alarm up; just in case. "Anyway, do you have any-" Annnnnd I casted a shield around myself to deflect the hand axe thrown at me; the weapon bouncing off and falling behind me. I sighed and smiled to her, looking over to the nuns and kids who seemed scared still but hopeful. "Keep an eye on them. I'll handle it from here."
"W-wait!" She let off as I turned and walked over towards the hobgoblin and stopped some twenty feet away as his buddies moved to a half circle around me. Dozen and a half goblins. Half a dozen ogres. One troll. One hobgoblin.
No big. "You know if I had a copper for every hobgoblin I met... I'd have three copper." I let off as the Aberrant leader sneered to me. "Which isn't a lot but it's still strange it happened three times." He was what you'd expect of a hobgoblin; six foot one in height, horned face, big weapon (An odd weapon made of two sledgehammer heads with one over the other on the same shaft), sneer and armor. That said the armor was limited; a leather breastplate, steel pauldrons with a larger left one and forearm bracer with only a loincloth over his groin. Unless he was blighted then I wasn't worried about him.
"Funny guy..." He let off with a sneer. "I am Blood Seeker, leader of the Blood Horde! Soon our numbers will-"
"I don't give a fuck." I let off, cutting him off. I noted the airship was lowering down to land on the other side of the nuns as I drew my saber to my hand. "You're little more then a parasite on the world and killing you is doing everyone a favor. ... Well, not the maids; they complain anytime they have to wash out Aberrant blood stains from my clothing. Not that I blame them."
"...Do you know who in the fucking HELL you're dealing with?" He hissed out in anger as I sighed.
"No. Do you?" I replied simply as he sneered and looked to his troll.
"Break him in two." The troll grinned and stomped forwards as I sighed.
"Look, let's be quick about this; I think Sora's making roast beef and she has a grand spice list for it." I replied simply; playing up the roll of a bored, disrespectful noble for three reasons; one, to piss them off. Two, to help reassure the people behind me it would be alright. Three, it amused me.
The troll was unarmed but being a troll that still meant it was dangerous... Still I was both strong and skilled enough to handle it. As it reached for me I popped Reflex Boost and Bolster Perception and smoothly sidestepped the grab and swung my blade once with force; detaching it's arm over the elbow. It roared out and in turn swung it's other hand out in a haymaker.
Step to avoid punch, slip in closer, slash down to cut the arm in two, ensure a Shield spell is up to avoid the impact of flesh and blood. Step towards the troll and swing once more with the Combat Art Arc of Steel coupled with Dragon's Boost to extend the effect further, cutting it's legs apart under the knees and sending it to the ground. Before Bolster Perception's fifteen seconds were up I had hopped onto it's chest and slashed one last time with another Arc of Steel to decapitate it.
"What!?" Blood Seeker let off as I casted a powerful Havoc Rend and sent it off at the goblin at the end of the half circle of Aberrant; letting it continue as I pulled my arm about
to sweep it around to hit all of them; only the hobgoblin dodged by back flipping over the lightning-like darkness spell. The rest... well they lost limbs or their lives outright. Man, I remember when this many goblins at a mere level one was a credible threat. This asshole?
A pothole on the road of life.
"I... I..." The hobgoblin let off, trembling as I hopped off the troll's chest and walked towards him as he sneered but fear was clear in his visage now; I casually wiped out everything he brought with him and he had three choices; fight, surrender or flee.
He couldn't flee; I'd blast him in the back.
He could surrender but he'd likely be executed in the end.
He could fight and have a chance to win...
He charged me, weapon raised high with a battle charge. "I'll kill you!" He screamed out as I used Physical Burst and tossed my saber to my left hand as he slashed down; I used my right to catch him by the right wrist and halting his attack to a dead stop.
"Blood Caller tried." I said simply as his face paled as he knew who he was fighting now as I pulled his wrist over to make him step to my side as I turned and cut his head off with my blade; the Dragon's Claw so sharp I hardly felt the cut. Thanks to my I Am Not Left Handed trait it was easy for me as I spun my blade once and sheathed it as I started to walk back to Dawn and her charges as his body hit the ground, head rolling away from it; Makoto and Riri leading the charge to quickly check on them with some regulars. One was going back up the now deployed steps of the Enterprise, calling for water to be brought out.
"James-Sama, did you need to be so reckless?" Makoto asked as I shrugged with a grin.
"Yes. Yes I needed to, in this case." I replied as I chuckled. "Honestly, I just hope I didn't get any blood on my clo-"
"By the goddess! You're James Noxdecus!" One of the nuns, middle-aged but using a cane, let off as I smiled and waved to her.
"I am. Pleasure to meet you all." Seeing Leon among our regulars I looked to him and smiled. "Leon, bring them aboard the Enterprise. I'm sure after this we should take them where they'd going directly; they've had a hard march as it is."
"M-M-M-M-M'lord, we can't possible ask you to-" The cane holding woman (Xena Metaan) let off as I waved my hand and chuckled.
"You didn't ask. I offered." I replied simply. "As long as it's within Eostia we can be there quickly. Besides; you've been through enough." I said as I looked over to one of the children; they all wore the same thing. A tunic of some color and black pants. I moved to one of the boys, clearly exhausted and about to fall asleep, and kneeled to pat his head before gently lifting him up into my arms. "Please. I wish to help and right now you're in no condition to travel under your own power."
Xena looked ready to argue but an older woman set a hand on her shoulder, shaking her head. "Xena... we are tired and in need to rest... of succor. If the young lord wishes to offer us help when we are at our most weary we should accept... goddess knows we need it..." She let off; honestly she looked fit to collapse now. I nodded and turned to Dawn once more.
"And you, Miss...?"
"D-D-Dawn M'lord!" She squeaked out.
"No family name?" I knew thanks to Observe, of course, but I wanted to coax it from her myself.
"...Not anymore..." She said as I nodded, shifting the child to one arm so I can set a hand on her shoulder with a smile.
"Come along as well. You've earned a rest and I'd like to talk once we've sorted everyone out."
[Defeated List]
18 Blood Horde Goblins x 50XP=900XP
6 Blood Horde Ogres x 100XP=600XP
Stonehead=250XP x 1.2 Kill Bonus=300XP
Blood Seeker=1000XP x 1.2 Kill Bonus=1200XP
+20% Hero of Eostia Bonus
Gain 3600XP Total
...
I also remember when that was a lot of XP. And got me an achievement.
[-]
Once everyone was seated in the mess and given water and something to eat and had a chance to rest I learned they were on their way to Tallgeese; a short hop away. I had someone set course but to not head off too quickly. Once I was sure everyone was settled in and resting I pulled Dawn to a table in the back of the mess for a chat. "May I see that sword of yours?" She winced but acquiescenced after a moment, drawing her blade and setting it on the table. And yikes; it looked like a chew toy with all the scratches and chips in the edge. And that was without mentioning the missing tip. "So, what house are you from?" I asked as I lifted it up and looked over the spell stone, setting a finger to it.
"How did you-"
"You're wearing expensive Armor Weave and carrying around a basic, steel rapier with one of the worst enchanting jobs I've seen on a blade in use." She winced as I looked over the enchantments further. "Okay, maybe not the worst; the basics are strong but there's nothing there beyond a focus. I hope you didn't pay for the work."
"I, uhhhh... ... Well... enchanted it myself..?" She let off as she reached up and rubbed the back of her head. I was a bit surprised at that. "I... ...uhhh... My education was cut short when... I, uhh..."
"Take your time." I said softly, trying to coax the story from her as I set the sword on the table.
"...I'm from... used to be from House Brangus... my... former House is related to House Bludhorn..." She told me; that's where I heard the name from! Brangus was a minor house, city nobles but wealthy ones by those standards. In fact they were rather, how do I put this, nouveau riche, or new rich; they were merchants with contacts with Balanar slavers and their patriarch, Jackson Brangus, married one of Alundra's half-sisters. Yes; that meant Alundra was Dawn's aunt. "I spent time schooling over in Academia Coronatorum-" That was the academy in Halous' capital, Columbo City, and is considered the best academy of learning around; an Eostian Harvard. "-to learn enchanting and spellcraft and... w-well, I got into a debate about slavery hosted by the professor. I was the... pro-slavery side..." She said, flushing with what seemed to be embarrassed.
"You lost didn't you?"
"Horribly." She let off to my injection with an awkward laugh. "If it was a fight I got in one cut and suffered dozens more..." The awkward laugh lasted for a moment longer before it turned to a frown. "...It changed a lot of my perspective on the practice and afterwards I studied the economics around it after, trying to find... find a reason that could justify it and... I could find none... And when I started to support Abolitionists... father had me banished... As a daughter of someone newly promoted to a noble, minor as it may have been, it was well... problematic for him and... dangerous to me... I lost my original rapier when some goons jumped me; not her goons openly but... clearly her goons. Father... I know he loves me, despite the disagreement but... well... Duchess Bludhorn..."
"We've met..." I said with a sigh. "Okay, tell me then; how far did your education on enchanting reach?"
"...first semester until winter break... of my first year..." She admitted softly as I sighed. Schooling years in Eostia began, in general, on the first Monday in September with a break in mid-December to early-January, late-March to early-April and most of August. At best she's had four months of training... To put this into perspective the basic enchantment she had was what was expected for a test at the end of that time and you didn't start learning the good stuff until April; at least that's how it was for me. In other words she was working with what she had. "That was... five years ago..."
"Well with that context it's a solid piece but not something I'd bring to a fight." I replied as I hummed and passed it back to her and she's sheathe it once more. "So, what's your plan for now? Work for the guild?"
"N-no... Duchess Bludhorn, umm, had contacts to blacklist me." I winced; being blacklisted from the guild was difficult, normally, and made getting work that wasn't... unethical difficult at best.
"I have some pull with the guild; I'll see if I can't fix that." I replied; gears were working in my head... and if I was right this situation would work to my benefit while bettering her position in life overall. "But you can't work with that piece of crap blade let alone a quarter of year's a magical education. So why don't you come with to Mungale after this; we'll work out something to help you get back on your feet if nothing else." Besides wanting to help her it would be a big, middle finger to Alundra. Always a bonus.
"I... why would you want to..?"
"Because I like to help people." I replied simply. "And, to be frank, in a way you might be able to help me." She blinked her green orbs at me as I turned my head; a young girl the nuns were caring for walking over; maybe eight years old. "Can I help you, sweetie?" I asked, turning in my seat to look at her. She was just a blonde little thing; hair in pigtails and brown eyes looking up at me.
"Is Miss Dawn going to okay?" She asked me as I chuckled softly, reaching over to pat then rub her head.
"You can ask her, but I think she will be."
[-]
We dropped the nuns and children off in Tallgeese although let them rest another hour before seeing them off. I offered them a glass chess board, Battle Fleet board and Connect Four board along with a small donation... okay, ten gold isn't that small of a donation for me (In all silver to make transactions less awkward for them) but large for them. We finally set course for Mungale once more and I brought Dawn up to the deck to let her fly it a bit and answered some questions. Some I didn't answer; about the material used to power it, certain parts about my enchantments and such but otherwise I opted to explain everything I could.
I quickly realized she bore strong fundamentals and basics in the craft and made some logical jumps that were mostly correct or nearly so although some points still stumped her. I prodded her to ask about what she didn't know and, outside of a few secrets, answered honestly and did my best to not make her feel foolish. She was ignorant of the trade, yes, but not due to her own fault. Soon we would arrive back home, landing outside of the Manor as I opted to lead her in, Riri and Makoto flanking her as the other Regulars came along. Dawn had little with her; a small bag of holding (Small pouch size but 'small' meant the room inside; it held a tent, some clothes and... not much else) so she had all she had with her as we walked onto the Manor's grounds. She was nervous, as one might guess, and more so as Sora stepped out to greet us as we walked around the statue of Annabelle of the Runes. "Welcome home, M'lord. Bringing new company I see."
As a reminder; in her three inches of heel she was six-three so looked rather imposing to some people. "Indeed. This is Dawn and she'll be a guest for a while. Is father in?"
"Indeed; he's in the library at the moment." She replied before looking to my guest. "Come along dear; let's get you sorted out."
"Ahhh, right..." She let off as I let Sora take her away as I moved to the library. It didn't take long and as I got there...
"Cara... stepped ac-across the grass and great-ted-"
"Greeted."
"-greeted her grrandfather with a big hug... Ah, James!" Merlin looked up where he sat next to Miika, an open children's book before her as her education in reading carried on at a table. Before I could get a word in edgewise-
"Where have you been young man! You're late!"
-my mother rushed up to me with a firm look; I knew deep down she was just worried... overly so.
"Sorry, sorry... My date with Kaguya got... sidetracked..." I said as she blinked at me. "You'll... hear about it soon enough anyway but I'll explain later... I ended up staying over in Skyguard Palace because of it but that's not what's important in this moment." I said as I looked around Saxon to my father. "I need to borrow you for a moment; it is a bit important." I told him before looking back to my mother. "You can sit in if you want; you might want to stay in the loop on this." My father nodded for a moment and looked to Miika and smiled.
"Let's take a break; you've made good progress so far."
"Okay!" She let off as she nodded, hopping off her chair and moving past me to the entrance... but paused and sniffed for some strange reas- "You smell like blood..." My mother stiffened at that... innocent little observation. Dammit Miika!
"That's... involved with the what we'll be talking about." I said, trying to maintain composure as Saxon's look turned damned frosty... Miika nodded and moved on her way as I moved to the table sighing.
"Okay, out with it young man." My mother let off in that 'I'm-Your-Mother-You-Owe-Me-An-Explaination' tone as I sat down.
"Okay, on the way home there was an Aberrant issue I ran into..." I then launched into an explanation of seeing the fight from above, Dawn holding off the horde of Aberrant but falling and how I stepped in. Our talk on the ship and an overview on what we talked about on the way back. My mother's look softened when she both realized why I smelled of blood but also Dawn's background. Merlin nodded at the ended and hummed.
"I assume you have a reason why you brought her home with you?" He asked as I nodded.
"I want to see more of what she's made of, see what she's capable of." I began. "I'm aware, mostly by the numerous requests sent to me that I'm expected to take on an apprentice soon regardless of how ready I am for that." The light came to his eye as he realized what I had in mind. "She has magical talent, that's clear. She has the basics down pat, even if her teaching ended sometime ago, before it really started, and she's a fighter. She just needs polish, a refresher and then proper teaching. I could get away with handing her a book and letting her learn on her own, truth be told. She needs to be taught and, like it or not, I need to learn to teach. More over she's as close to a neutral party I could get for the role."
"So; a means to stop unending requests and do some good. I approve of the idea." Merlin said with a nod. "Of her however we'll see. Still, you've done this likewise with Makoto; I can see this being a positive for you both."
"If the poor dear's life went as you say then I do hope so..." Saxon injected as she bit her lip. "I agree with your father on this; if she measures up then this could be a benefit overall. ... But that still doesn't explain why you were late!" I sighed...
There was no winning with mothers, was there?
[-]
Dawn would be given a chance to clean up and loaned a clean change of clothes while her Armor Weave was washed. She would enjoy a nice dinner with us and given what happened to her it was unsurprising that she had an appetite. Once she started to relax she opened up more about her education and early life; although being from Anvil that involved a lot of slavery which took some coaxing (From Riri opening up a bit) to have her come out about it once she understood there would be no judgment.
She would be given quarters and she opted to turn in early; given how her day went I didn't blame her. Come the morning and breakfast I would take her (With Makoto and Kelly Conners in tow as bodyguards... in my home city... yeah...) to the local Adventure's Guild. "Hey! The big man's here!" One of the locals let off; I couldn't help but smile and give him (And his buddies) a wave as I walked to Kara's desk in the back. Given the cry she noticed me right away as turned to look at me.
"Good to see you again." She said with a warm smile as I nodded. I pulled Dawn closer to the counter as I looked to Kara.
"Same. Kara, I need a bit of a favor." She blinked as I formally introduced her to Dawn and explained her situation. Kara nodded her head for a few moments with a thoughtful frown. Once done I set my hands on the counter. "Can you get her off the Guild's Blacklist?"
"Well it's not the first time politics put someone on it. I can't make any promises but I'm fairly sure I can get her off it." Kara replied as Dawn gave a look of relief for a long moment. "I can't sign her up until then, but with your recommendation it shouldn't be long until she's off it."
"Thanks Kara." I said, giving her an honest smile and a thumbs up. Looking back to Dawn I gave a smile. "Let's go; there's more I want to check on while I'm in town and while we're here we need to see about getting you a new blade."
"Ahhh, you don't need to-"
"I do. And I don't mind." I said, patting her once on the shoulder before starting to walk out, Dawn following on my heels right after. "If you're so worried you can pay me back someday; you'll need a good weapon to do work, right?"
"I... guess; I'm just not used to such... charity before... well..." She said as I chuckled.
"That's understandable; although it might be more then mere charity." She looked up and blinked at me as I smiled back. "Don't worry too much about it yet; that's for later. For now we need a new weapon for you." Meaning we were off to Elegant Iron...
Once there I entered and seeing no one but the owner I gave a jaunty wave and a smile. "Albert, been awhile." I called out, moving up to the counter.
"Ahh, our good Champion graces my shop once more." He let off with an overly flamboyant bow, spinning arm and all before tucking it near his abs. Standing up he grinned. "What can I help you with?"
"I have a new friend here, long story." I said, gesturing to Dawn. "She needs a replacement for her rapier; failing that a repair job." I said as he hummed and looked to her.
"May I see the blade in question, M'lady?" He said as Dawn nodded and drew the weapon, gently setting it on the counter as Albert winced.
"How bad is it?" I asked.
"Ughh... I'll be blunt; it's better as scrap metal then attempting to repair or reforge it." He said, sighing as he lifted the blade up to look closer at it. "You can see a lot of small cracks and some are on both sides in the same places, suggesting it's starting to crack through. To be blunt; it wouldn't take much to snap this like a twig... I've seen a lot of overused blades in my day but this is among the worst." Dawn winced, hard, as I nodded.
"She didn't have much to work with; again long story." I said as he nodded. "What do you have for purchase?"
"One moment, M'lord." He said, patting the counter and stepping to the side and ducking down. Soon he pulled out three blades, all in sheathes. One bore a standard, basic D-Guard, one with a D-guard and rounded cap over the hilt and one with with spiraling brass that formed a hand guard and connected near the pommel. All three bore anchor points to connect a spell stone at the pommel's base but, more importantly, seemed well made. He would draw the blades one by one and I hummed before my eyes narrowed a bit.
"This one..." I said, tapping the spiraling guard rapier. "That's not pure steel, is it?"
"Good eye, M'lord." He said with a grin.
"So, mythril mixed in then?" Dawn balked at what I said... as Albert shook his head.
"It's gray mythril, sir." Ahh, that explains it. In short it looks almost like it should be steel but a hint different; other then that it was pure mythril it effect and strength.
"Prices?"
"Seven gold for the steel ones." He said as Dawn seemed to pale; for her seven gold was likely more money she's seen since she left her home. "And twenty seven for the gray mythril blade." He added as Dawn paled more.
"Twenty-seven? Seems cheap for a mythril blade." I expected closer to sixty to be honest.
"Well, it was sold to me by a passing Adventurer who picked it up from somewhere and didn't know what he had." He said with a shrug. "Trust me, M'lord, I'll make my money and then some with it."
"Well, twenty-seven is fair then." I said, fishing into the pouch at my side.
"Th-that's-"
"Relax. Trust me."
I told her as I pulled out twenty seven gold coins and set them down. Exchange now done I picked up the blade and sheathe.
A little negotiation had Dawn leave with the blade and fifteen copper in exchange for her old rapier as scrap steel.
Okay then... time to put her to work.
[-]
Castle Elddale, Duchy of Elddale
Office of Arnold Von Blitzhaus
"Why must things be so frustrating..?" Victor let off as he huffed, frowning as he looked over the papers before him. Off to the side was a spell paper letter that had arrived from his father to share what happened at the meeting in Roxford and while it didn't tell him everything it told him enough; that blasted Noxdecus showed them up once more... with a very powerful Storm Airship... It was getting more and more annoying at what he's been able to do and make and he was worried about what would happen once the Storm arrived; he hated to admit it but James Noxdecus could be a wrench into any plan made.
He grit his teeth more and more on that thought; that Prim was infatuated with the bastard was known but before as a lowly baron's heir that meant there would be a lot of pressure to avoid either one attempting to talk about or accept a marriage proposal in preference for someone more deserving of her. Now? As a count's heir alone that lessened the pressure but being a Hero and a Champion of Eostia made it vanish outright... and the rumors were they made an arrangement before the war to start with...
Victor's own ambitions with Prim were clear for years; no other male heir within Ur had more of a right to her hand then he did, no man not already ruling or otherwise married deserved her hand like he had... and yet she would refuse to see reality as such and chose that bastard as her consort.
The problem with that was it meant he'd never see himself become the Grand Duke and have the greatest prize of all of Ur bear his children. It meant his House's greatest rival would rise to the rank of Grand Duke... indeed, it was possible for Prim to take the Noxdecus name and leave that stain on the Grand Duchy...
The Black Storm couldn't come soon enough...
He forced himself to focus more on the task before him; the creation of the high elven breeding farms to replace their dark elven breeding farms. Gathering up the needed elven males was quick enough; they only needed two to three for every five females to keep the bloodlines from becoming too... Draken so long as they could infuse in new blood every decade. No, their issue was they lacked the needed females to ensure enough children were shat out to sell.
They only had a limited stock of female flesh to use for their farms; prices for high elves were expensive and they could only afford to get so many... which meant relying on slave hunters to collect the rest... That wasn't ideal as high elves were a minority in Eostia to start with; the highest collection of them was inside of Whitewell which didn't border the Great Slave Chain. There was a thin strip of Coxworth separating them from it with a sizable city set there and sizable cities meant patrols; patrols that could catch slave hunters...
There were smaller elven communities in Eostia, of course, but none that close to the chain... It would be annoying but they had to get their stock...
A knock came to the door as he lifted his head from the papers. "Come in."
"What reason have you demanded-"
"Palmer." Victor let off as his bearded cousin walked in after opening the door. "Stop. Yelling." Icy blue eyes glared to him as the overly-religious man walked in, shutting the door behind him.
Palmer in turned gave a glare before huffing and smoothing out his robes. "What reason have you demanded I come see you, acting Duke?" He let off, moving to stand before the desk, arms behind his back as he stood, shoulders straight in a pose of superiority; it honestly made Victor wish that you could choose your family.
"Settle down; I asked you over so we could talk about the Church." He told his zealous cousin as he waved a hand once. "Listen to me; there are changes hitting the nation right now and while Elddale is on rockier ground because of it you and I know the Church is as well."
"The Church under the wisdom of our Arch-"
"Stop. Fucking. Yelling." Victor said sternly with a glare as he tapped the desk with a finger. "And you know I'm right; Archbishop's wisdom be damned." Palmer winced at the stern tone as he kept speaking. "Listen to me; a good part of their influence came from the Church's Forces actions in the war... a war that's over. We both know that the High Queen favors the Faith and as much as you love his grace, not without good reason, you know he's no spring chicken-his end will come in under two decades time. Tell me; which of the Cardinals do you trust to assume his position?"
"I... ... Gah! Fine; you don't lack a point." Palmer let off as he moved to cross his arms over his chest. "But why bring it up now?"
"In short father's been thinking it's time to further align our house to the Church a bit further-" Victor let off, stressing that Palmer was a part of the House of the Thunder Home... as much as Victor hated to admit it. "-as a means to bolster us both... not to mention it wouldn't be a terrible thing if we assist you up the ranks in the Church, right?" He let off as Palmer hummed in thought...
Varro wanted to get the Church, or at least a sizable faction within it, to align with the Black Storm and while Victor had his reservations on such a move he saw the wisdom in it, more so now. That meant getting someone they could... maybe not trust but influence deeper into the Church's ranks. So long as they could get him to talk now and then they could learn something useful...
And so he swallowed his annoyance and parleyed with his cousin...
[-]
Once back at the manor I took Dawn to the library; I had dug up my old text books (Notes in the margins and all) and set them down along with a good spell stone that was green, marble sized and grade five. I told her she should make use of her time until she could join the guild by studying up and that I would help her. As a starting test I told her to read the texts provided and place three enchantments on the stone; one for use as a spell focus (Which I knew she could do), an ever sharp enchantment and a strengthening enchantment. I also gave her a time limit; three days. I wanted to see what she could do on her own and told her she could ask for help if she didn't understand something.
Now what I laid out wasn't hard; it was the basics of what an enchanter was expected to do... but with a lack of education in the subject beyond the most basic I was curious to see how well she could do. Failure was possible... and, frankly, acceptable, almost expected really. If I planned to make her an apprentice I needed to know where she was at before anything else.
I didn't sit on my hands while she studied and worked; I started to modify my enchantments on the Enterprise for improvements. One was a modification of my 'return to hand' spell on Gregory's axe and my Gemini; this would allow me to issue basic commands to the Enterprise either when I was close enough to it or through a voxlux. Now I could have it fly upwards without anyone aboard and cloak to keep it hidden. In addition to that I made sure it wouldn't fly into an anti-Levitation field on it's own as well as locking the wheel upon my command. Having a built in club for the wheel would do wonders for my worries. I also added one more effect; I had been working on modifying a Flame Thrower spell into a Holy/Fire mix and, well, I spend more time finishing it after Roxford.
(-)
Radiant Wave [Lvl I] (0/1000)
Magic Type: Holy/Fire
Cool Down: None
Mana Cost: High
Blast a stream of golden, radiant flames out to a target in either a tight, focused stream or wide, covering wave. Additionally it will not damage those the caster does not wish to be harmed.
(-)
The plan? If I feel someone(s) I don't like is trying to hijack my ride I could make the ship focus the spell inwards and roast said hijackers while ignoring those I wanted spared, the ship itself and it's equipment and supplies.
Yeah, I'd buy that for a copper.
While I worked out what to do with my new, big spell stone I sent Riri off on the Cloud Rider to Hakla to deliver the spell quartz with the golem's enchantment to Blake Von Adelle; she looked like I had slapped her at the request but I said she didn't need to stay, just deliver the quartz. As much as I wanted to examine it Blake was much better suited to it and knew golemcraft a hundred times better then I did.
Besides; keeping on Blake's good side (Easy as it was) could be a benefit down the line.
With the Enterprise now parked seven hundred feet up and under cloak there would be no worries about it being stolen. Hell, I could control it from the Manor without the voxlux. I would poke in on Dawn between other bits of work; I was making a Scrabble game that would use a glass board. The mold would have raised ridges that would hide the letters from other players and color itself to further obscure it. That would bring in some more coin, I was sure; and coin was flowing in thanks to my workshop.
I'd need to diversify my income sooner or later; selling games and ice cream makers was a good source of coin but both would turn to trickles eventually. For now, however, I would work on what I had as well as focus on Dawn.
The girl was diligent, almost living in the library. I made sure to remind her to train her physical skills as well and encouraged her to spar with the guards and Cress when he was over for a day; his assessment on her skills was she was capable and quick but had her own shortfalls and bad habits to break. That would need to be fixed once I took over her training more intensely.
I will say she worked her ass off; she knew she was being given a chance at something and who was giving her that chance. She didn't know what it was yet but by day three as I walked into the library she was holding a glowing stone, her hat on the table beside her. I stayed quiet as she finished her work finishing the stone's enchanting and set it down before sighing and leaning her head back as she took a deep breath. "Done?"
She yelped and turned to me, wide eyed as I walked over. "Oh, gods, you scared me." I smiled and chuckled softly.
"Sorry, sorry." I said as I smiled and waved before walking to the stone and picking it up, flipping it in my hand before scanning it with my magic. "Hmm..."
She gulped deeply as I looked over her work. She was clearly nervous about what sort of judgment I'd declare on her work. I hummed a bit more turning it over my hand. "So, you picked up everything but the focus enchantment from the books, correct?"
"Y-yes M'lord..."
"You can drop the M'lord in private." I told her as I tilted my head. "Well... the enchantments could be a lot tighter; wastes space and power for others." She gulped. "The strengthening enchantment is a bit sloppy." Another gulp. "And the ever sharp is a bit dull." She shivered a bit. "You said you were removed after going home for the first winter break?" She nodded, nervously and too fast; almost bobble-head like. "Well taking that into consideration... well done." She blinked at me as I cupped the stone and erased her enchantments. It took me very little time to remake what she did but much better. A soft toss and she was catching the stone. "Have a look."
She would look to the stone and I knew she was scanning it with her magic as a look of surprise came to her. The difference would be night and day; like the difference between a third grade knitting project and something worth buying. Given her level of experience it was acceptable and, to be frank, more then expected. "Wow... That's..."
"Once you can do that in under a minute you're an enchanter worth your salt." I replied. "Honestly, I expected you to fail but you blew past what I thought you could do. I'm impressed." She ended up blushing and squirming a bit as I smiled. "You know how to shape stones, right?" She nodded. "Put it on your sword and use it. Meet me in the training room tomorrow morning, full kit. I'm going to see what else you can do?"
"I-I... I don't understand... Why are you..?" She let off, squirming under my gaze. "Why are you... someone like you trying to help... me..?"
"I like helping people..." I replied with a smile. "And I'll admit a bit of selfishness on my part; by helping you you can help me."
"...What..?" She let off as I chuckled.
"Tomorrow." I said with a smile. "I'll explain then. Get your rest; because you'll need it."
I could hear her gulp as I turned to leave.
[-]
The Palace of the Golden Senate
Northern Aerarium City
Capital of the Plutocracy of Zenith
Office of the Primus
As much as Primus Achelous Chryso knew the creator was an issue he still employed voxluxs to his trusted aides and allies; better to quickly communicate and speak on the needs of his office. Such a useful, little thing... He wondered if Eostia snuck one of their boosters into his realm; it was hard to say... But it's use was plain to see. More over the ability to send recordings of things was useful in and out of business...
And now he was watching a video of an airship of all things blowing apart a Justical fleet with thunder and fury in equal measure. Seated at his desk with Ligeia Opados standing behind him he finished his fifth viewing of it before turning it off. "...Noxdecus... He's now become more then a mere problem... he's a concern to Zenith's power..."
"Sir?" Ligeia let off, turning her head to him. "This... isn't the first flying craft he's made."
"True, those wagons are a threat in their own right; Eostia can ferry spies or small tasks forces here if they wished... but a ship? Or worse ships..?" The pigman let off with a huff. "...For centuries our nation was untouchable... Our mighty fleets were more then any nation could handle and the sheer cliffs that made up the bulk of our island meant we could fortify those few landing points; no invasion would be worth the cost... unless you can bypass them all!" He sneered out, slamming a fist to the desk as he snorted.
"You cannot think Celestine would order a-"
"Normally, no." Achelous let off before Ligeia finished her question. "But we have hands in the plot to bring the Storm to their shores... and if, as much as we kept up our subtly, if our involvement is discovered Celestine will respond. More then like she'll not bother with us so long as the Storm lingers overhead... but in the event Eostia weathers that storm..."
"If I may..." Ligeia began as the pigman turned in his seat to look at her. "There is another consideration; what would happen if the secrets of such fell into Vult's hands and he opted to expand his conquests?" Achelous hummed and turned back to his desk, lacing his fingers as he set his elbows on the desk before him as he mused over the words.
"...Even the mere idea existing will have others chasing the example..." He mused. "...We cannot allow the secrets of the airship's construction to become well known; not until we have a means to secure our isle from such a weapon..." He snorted as he extended his two index fingers and started to tap them together for a long moment. "...Ligeia... To end this threat we've but one recourse. We cannot risk a screw up... We shall call upon him..."
"You do not mean-"
"I do..." Achelous let off, cutting his aide off. "We will call upon the services of the assassin who knows no failure; Qatil Aleaql..."
[-]
Come the morning I moved to the training room with a small spell stone I had enchanted. I moved to the combat floor with Sora in tow who would help by activating the shields we'd be dueling in. Once in place I flicked the stone up as I turned it on; the stone floating up to the ceiling and attaching itself before projecting a red circle on the floor around me; about four feet around with Illusion. Now I just had to wait for Dawn...
...the person, not the sun rising...
I didn't need to wait long, she would find her way inside about ten minutes after I had; Armor Weave and new rapier on as I gestured with a smile to the spot across from me. "Thank you for coming, Dawn. I know me testing you like this is a bit odd but, like I said yesterday, I have reasons that I'm doing this and I will tell you why later. For now I want to see how well you handle yourself in a straight fight."
"You... want to fight me..?" She let off as she stepped up to the spot I pointed to as she pointed to herself... and I didn't blame her for the nervousness; that was like a guy at the local boxing gym hearing Mike Tyson, at his prime, wants a couple rounds with you.
"I want to see what you can do for myself." I told her while drawing my Radiant Gemini but didn't activate it. "See this circle on the ground?" I said, pointing it to the circle in question with my weapon. "As a side objective see if you can force me to step out of it." She took in a breath and nodded as she moved to draw her new weapon.
"Okay then... Here I come!" She let off, planting her feet as she readied to attack; I was surprised she was going to be so aggressive but personality didn't always dictate combat style and she had to survive on her own for five years by being a sellsword. Timid sellswords didn't last long, I'd think. She opted to charge in with a Piercing Strike; rushing to me with a battle cry as I waited until she was close enough before deflecting her thrust to the side allowing our weapons to press to each other as momentum carried her to me more in a weapons lock before I just shoved back, hard; forcing her back eight feet as she landed and rushed in once more with a rather accurate, snappy slash I leaned away from then I'd deflect the next slash with one end of my weapon before swinging the other end up, catching her in the chest and knocking her back. She winced but the Armor Weave took the brunt of it as she stumbled back and planted her feet.
I thought she'd take a moment to consider what she'd do next but she instead stepped in and started to use a Rapid Strike as she closed in... I opted to use Bolster Perception as I held my weapon in a vertical manner, swiping it back and forth to deflect the weapon before swinging it ahead as her Combat Art ended and bonking her on the skull. "Ow!" She let off with a wince before stepping back and shaking her head before looking back at me with a pout. Now she stood for a moment and pointed her sword out at at me a couple feet outside of the circle as she looked to me before picking her next course of action.
It didn't take long as she used an Illusion spell and thrust her hand out to which I shut my eyes; even then I saw a bit of a flash under the eyelids. A flash bang Illusion spell; interesting to be on this end of it... And yes, I used Ring of Alarm which let me know what she was doing; leading to me deflecting a strike before using a basic Gale Burst to knock her backwards with a yelp. "A blinding Illusion... Not bad."
She looked a bit shocked as I opened by eyes as her face shifted to a more serious look before coming back at me. Gotta give her credit; she was relentless. She swung and stabbed at me now as I deflected with my own staff weapon; keeping her blade from landing a strike on my armor. She kept trying until I felt her mana spike and she thrust her hand forwards and forced me to block a Stone Hammer spell; more or less an orange, earthen version of Hammer of Smite. The impact was strong enough to push me a foot and a half back as her eyes widened and quickly repeated the spell as the attack's mana dissipated and she repeated the spell; this time I was ready for it and when I blocked it I turned my weapon to deflect it to the side into the shield of the arena. She repeated the spell once, then twice more then a third time as I managed to deflect each one to the side and use my own Piercing Thrust to rush her and slam the butt of my staff to her gut, knocking her off her feet and to the ground; the impact of the floor likely causing more harm then the impact of my weapon.
She was quick to get up, pulling her legs back to her chest and rolling to her shoulders before kipping up to her feet... in time to catch another Gale Burst, blowing her off her feet once more; landing on her back but rolling over her shoulder and charging me once more. And yeah, that was the main mistake Cress pointed out to me and I was forced to agree. She would cast another Stone Hammer as I used Physical Burst for a moment to catch the impact of the spell fully before pushing back hard and able sent it back to her head; she yelped and ducked it (Normally your own mana can't hurt you, but solid mana flying at your face is an exception...) and rushing in with another cast as I threw my weapon at her like a spear and catching her in the face.
I recalled the staff to my hand quickly as she stumbled back and miscast her spell; the Stone Hammer hitting the shield to my left. "That's not working." I said simply as she rubbed her face; her Armor Weave was holding up well. I spun my weapon twice before taking a relaxed stance and waited for her to come back at me...
I didn't need to wait long.
This would be the scene for about another half an hour; I'd stand in the circle and she'd come at me aggressively with spells, her blade or both, I'd block, deflect or otherwise counter and, at times, counter-attack. She knew a few spells I didn't but that's not surprising; different teachers and such. One thing I did note was that at times she would slow down or even halt her attacks to rest both her body and mana before resuming... One spell almost caught me off guard...
She would rush in and cast another two Stone Hammers back to back; I deflected both and was annoyed she went back to this dry well... only for Stone Hammer number three to not be a Stone Hammer... I never saw the spell before as orange mana shot at me in a cloud of dust and particles; small enough that my circlet's barrier didn't catch it, or see it as an attack as it struck my eyes and caused me to balk out loud and stagger back as it felt like she threw sand into my face. Ring of Alarm let me deflect the follow up third Stone Hammer before I countered with a strong Gale Burst. I heard her land on her back as I leaned my head back and cast Conjure Water at my eyes to wash them out. I shook my head out before leaning over and shaking more to wash my eyes out and clean them. I looked back, vision a little blurred by water but able to see her pout. "Well... that's a new one. You'll have to teach me it later."
To her credit she didn't get discouraged and kept attacking right after as we kept it up for another fifteen minutes. Given the massive power difference between us there's no surprise I was able to stone wall her but, to be honest, she was a tough cookie. Her blade work was on point, her spells were snappy and cast quickly, she was aggressive in combat and someone closer to her level would likely be on the back foot...
Of course she had her weaknesses as well... By the time I knocked her back with another Gale Burst at the end she fell to one knee, blade still held tightly as she panted hard, eyes still watching me with her other hand on the floor. I spun the Radiant Gemini and set it to my back. "Okay... that's more then enough... Honestly, I didn't expect you to go so hard for so long... Sora." I said and with a look the shield dropped as I walked to Dawn. I would use a healing spell to help refresh her; to be honest I was feeling the spar as well. Sure; I didn't take the sort of impacts she did nor put in as much effort but I did feel the strain of it all and a very notable dip in my mana.
"It was... it was like nothing I did mattered..." She let off as I helped her stand.
"Heh. Sounds like the first time I sparred with Gregory seriously..." I let off with a smile as she sheathed her sword. "Don't worry about where you are; worry about where you'll go... ... Which, right now, is the baths..."
"I would say she put in all the effort and a half to earn one." Sora said as she walked over. "I would think we should clean her outfit once more, I'd say." I nodded to her as well and smiled.
"Agreed. A bath would do her a world of good." I said before looking back to Dawn. "Go wash up. After breakfast we'll have that talk, okay?"
Yeah... this would work...
[-]
Overall breakfast didn't take that long. Dawn had changed into a red tunic and black pants and I led her to one of our sitting rooms, this one up in the manor's keep. The window had a good view of Argon City in the distance but it was also more private then those in the manor proper. Given we just ate there was no tea and snacks as we sat near the balcony; once seated I opened the conversation.
"Before anything else; Kara got back to me." I began as she perked up. "Between my recommendation and guild members interviewing the nuns you escorted you're no longer blacklisted at the guild." Her eyes widened as she quickly switched to a bright smile and pumped both arms in victory, small as it is. "You can go sign up at your leisure now but I'd advise soon. More over I do have criticisms from our match; you are more aggressive then I'd imagine you'd be but at times too aggressive and you need to mind your defenses better; Armor Weave is a good armor but it doesn't make you invulnerable." Her smile turned to a wince as I spoke. "More over you seem to repeat something that worked once, even after it stops working." Another wince. "Beyond that I do have to admit you're pretty creative and skilled; you just need to practice and someone to teach you, something you haven't had for some time now."
"Yeah, I kinda do..." She said softly as she looked to the side then back to me after a moment. "But... why bring this up?" She asked as she bit her lip.
"Because you can be the solution to a problem I have... and in turn solve your problem at the same time." She blinked at me and tilted her head with a slight nod to encourage me to talk. "To put it simply I... rose a bit more then I'd wish to during the war and ended up with both the titles of Hero and Champion of Eostia and, to be blunt, there are more expectations of me by the realm at large and our good High Queen in particular. Aside from being a general defender of the realm and leader of it's men and women I am expected to take an apprentice... and regardless of my accomplishments I have no real experience with teaching and I could be asked to assist with an issue at anytime; doubly so given the response time Enterprise affords me. As such I can't just pick some standard, promising student or someone who's struggling but holds a hidden potential. In short I need someone who's self-reliant and can learn on their own when I'm not around as well as assist me when needed."
"I... can see why that's a thing, but what does that have to do with me?" She replied as I gave her a half lidded look that said 'you aren't picking up on it' as she blinked in return... then her eyes widened, finally picking up what I was putting down in front of her. "ME!?"
"You." I said with a nod. "While rough your enchanting was all self taught, beyond the basics, over three days. As a mage and fighter you're able if rough around the edges. We can work on that, together. And it's not like I'm the only one you can learn from here; my father is a Grand Magus so he can help you with spellcraft, my mother and our guard commander are excellent warriors to spar with and refine your combat techniques and Combat Arts plus we have Aeris and Tiffany around to help you study as well. In regards to enchanting while I wouldn't call myself a master I am more then able to get you up to speed and I have all the tomes, tools and stones to help you learn. And rest assured I will teach you hands on as time allows and I will hold you to high standards."
"W-w-wait! Really!?" She let off, hands on the table as she stood up in shock, knocking her chair over behind her. "But... I... Why... I mean, you just said why but I'm..." She paused for a long moment, likely collecting her thoughts as she looked down for a moment before looking back up at me. "...Are you sure..? What I know of the Council of Lords... ... wouldn't they question it? And House Bludhorn would-"
"The Council would nitpick my choice no matter who I picked; either saying they would be too good or not enough for the role." I said with a huff and a hand wave. "And I'm not on good terms with Alundra or her House; it's pointless to worry about getting her ire when I already have it. But now I don't have to worry about the dozens of apprenticeship offers landing on my doorstep each week... assuming you accept, mind..."
"YES!" She let off before calming down and coughing into her hand and moving to sit as I tried to warn her. "I mean of course I wil-whoa!"
Reminder she knocked her chair over and she ended up sitting on nothing and falling to her back. Naturally I moved to help her back to her feet and after asking if she was okay, and being told yes, we picked the chair up and stood it back to it's proper state. "Thanks." I hold her, setting a hand on her shoulder.
"No, thank you... I... Well..." She let off, lowering her head for a moment, biting her lip before looking back up. "I haven't had much go well over the last few years... So... this is a great chance I have... so thank you..." I smiled and pulled her into a one armed hug.
"Okay then... Take the day off for now; we'll get to work tomorrow morning, okay?" A nod was my reply as she smiled up at me.
I was sure she was what I needed.
[-]
For the next week Dawn would have a busy schedule. I would be her primary teacher in regards to magic and combat and would work on both hammering out her bad habits and shoring up her better ones; in addition I taught her a few good, basic spells for her to perfect. Aeris would help tutor her as well while my father made sure to pitch in when time allowed. Gregory and my mother did likewise for her combat skills but at the end of the day I was her only enchanting teacher.
At my advice she also went adventuring, although not alone; I helped her join a small party where she ended up being the only spell caster of the lot which would be invaluable for them but would also help her learn both teamwork and practice her combat skills. I was also preparing for some work on the manor, with my old man's permission, of course. I made sure Prim, Alicia and Kaguya all knew about the new apprentice and, eventually, the rest of the Shield Princesses. Speaking of which; I was planning that date that Celestine owed me but there was some finer details I'd need to hash out before that happened. That's something I can set to the back-burner, I had another issue I wanted to tackle; building more income. Sure, selling voxluxs, boosters, games and ice cream makers was a good source of cash but when those who wanted and could afford to buy them did so the inflow would slow down... I needed to invest in something that people consumed and often; food, clothing, something like that... I wasn't sure what that would be... We'll see.
For the time being I was relaxing a bit more until I had something I could jump on... for now all I could do was rest and use my time well...
[ - Author'sNote - ]
Well there we are... James has his apprentice...
Let's hope it goes better for him then it did for Obi-Wan.
Joking aside; we also see Victor and the Primus moving their own pieces on the board. While I introduced him waaaay back in Act Two in one scene and had him brought back for a moment I don't really plan to have him do much until Act Five... assuming I pull things off right... As for the Primus' moves, well, that will impact sooner as opposed to later.
In regards to Dawn; the basic idea is to have someone that can, at times, act as a second protagonist of sorts. James is getting strong enough that it'll require something substantial to threaten him without things getting too crazy. By contrast Dawn, being much weaker, is easier to challenge and can bring some tension back into fights. That's not to say James isn't going to do the heavy lifting, it's just to, hopefully, keep things fun. In addition James now has to adapt to his new role as a teacher and while he'll have help the fact is Dawn is his student at the end of the day.
Feel free to place bets until a 'hot for teacher' situation happens.
As always leave a comment on what you liked, didn't like and would like to see! Leave constructive criticism if you'd like and I hope to see you all once more!
~Eostian Scribe