Chapter Forty Seven - 047
"Hey what is that?" Shirt comfortably on, Felix nodded at the vial she held.
"This? Haven't seen a stamina potion before?"
Felix felt a rush of excitement. If he could replenish his Stamina even faster, then he could train far longer. "You have any more?"
"Some, but we burned through a lot during that big battle, back when we met. They get less effective over time anyway." Evie shrugged and tipped back the last of the potion before letting out a tiny burp. "Just taking one now to replenish before I gotta fight Harn. Bastard's tough as hell."
"I noticed," Felix rubbed his ribs, a phantom ache from one of many bruises the warrior had put on him. It was all healed by now though. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask. How much do you know about other races?"
"Hm?" Evie looked up as she rooted around the fire pit. "Which ones? I know lots." She peered around again and grumbled to herself. "Where'd that meat go?"
Felix looked down at the tin platter and moved surreptitiously away from it, scooting down the circular bench. "How uh, how many races do you know?"
"Like met? Damn near all of em, if I had to guess. Least the common ones." She gave up her fruitless search for the remaining monster meat and plopped down on the bench alongside him. Her armor was beaten and scratched but sturdy, and the blue tabard thing she wore hung limp in the firelight. Felix couldn't spot her chain, which was usually wrapped around her arm or shoulder. "Elves, Dwarves, Alfein, Nixies and Naiads, though they're the same thing really. Just don't let em know that. Learned that one the hard way."
Evie reached into the huge rucksack and somehow found a stack of hard biscuits and jerky. She started munching while she talked. "Goblinoids, of course. I even saw an elemental spirit once, but they were pretty standoffish. Don't see them much in the cities. Birdfolk I heard of, but never met one, same with the lizardmen down Te'thys way. Atar'd probably know more about them." She chewed loudly, food spraying slight as she spoke. "Why?"
Felix was slightly overwhelmed at the list of races she just...spat out. He added them to a list of details for the future, when he had more time. He tried to steady his thudding heart, evening out his breath with his control Skill. He had to be careful here. "I was looking around upstairs. Saw a sculpture of a bunch of chimera and of another race, this one called a 'Nym' or something. You ever hear of them?"
Acting is level 7!
Keep that face nice and neutral!
Evie tapped her lips, chewing slowly. "Nym Nym Nym. Why does that sound familiar?" She snapped her fingers. "That's right! The Night Market in Amphora! They had this weird floaty pyramid with that name on it. Nym. No one knew what it did, on account of it bein' too weird. What'd that guy say about it..."
Evie drifted off, eyes up and staring at the middle distance. She screwed up her face, as if trying to eke out the last drop of a memory. "Said something about old ruins? Real old, like Third Age old. I do remember that no one could even Analyze it. Kinda like the fog here..." She stopped scrunching her face and turned to Felix, her green eyes bright. "Hey, speaking of which; how can you see through the fog?"
Felix frowned. "You still don't believe me?"
Evie waved her hands. "No, no. After today I'm a believer, but it's weird. You came outta nowhere, you can see through the fog, you got a chimera friend who, no offence, is creepy as Yyero's backside..." Pit quietly growled from his slumber across the room, interrupting them. Felix frowned. Maybe the mishmash of bird and fox/dog was ungainly, but Pit was far from creepy. What did she see when she looked at Pit?
He asked her.
Uh same thing you do? Got eyes dont I? Blurry and dark, like smoke made monster. Four eyes. Great huge claw wing things in its back. Like I said. Creepy." Her neck and shoulders twitched involuntarily, and she gave Felix an apologetic look.
Felixs head rocked back, though he realized he shouldnt have been surprised. So the illusion was affecting how they saw Pit? Does it extend to all monsters?
How about the giants? What do they look like?
Youve seen em. Blue skin, ugly, big beards. Why all the questions?
I dont think were seeing the same things. The giants sound the same, so thats weird, but Pit doesnt look like that. Hes a chimera, sure, but he just looks like a cross between a black bird and a big fox. Normal feather wings and all," Felix said, scratching his jaw. His beard was slowly coming in--barely more than bristles at the moment--and it finally was starting to irritate him.
Huh. No shit? Evie shoved another hunk of bread in her mouth and chewed as she considered Pit from afar. She swallowed and said, Wish I could see it. However you do it, its not somethin I got.
Felix shrugged. "Maybe it's my Manasight? I'm pretty sure the fog you're seeing isn't real either."
"Manasight? What's that?" She paused. "Wait, what? Of course it's real. Just cuz you got special peepers doesn't mean--"
"It's an illusion. A really good one, probably, since it affects such a large area. I don't really know how magic works," Felix added. "But it's not really there. It clearly affects how you all see the monsters around here too, like Pit."
"Thats nuts." Evie took a big bite of jerky and chewed it for a moment. "Never heard of a spell that big or one that could last so long. Not even at the capitol. Cant be possible, right?"
"It makes sense," chimed in Magda, who had been sidling up into the conversation for the last twenty seconds. Felix had eyed her out of his periphery but didn't want to mention it. Why not just come sit down? What's that about?
"The fog being a spell fits with the idea that an artifact can dispel it. If it were natural, I figured it'd be easier to get rid of, yeah?" Magda sat down, her leather creaking as the metal bit jangled. "But how can a spell affect even information gathering Skills? Analyze doesn't work out here; neither does Herbalism or Tracking."
Felix shrugged, absolutely out of his depth. "Not a clue. Is there such a thing as large scale magic? Like a big, I dunno, ritual or something that would activate over a large area?"
Magda tilted her head. "Maybe. But the amount of Mana you're talking about is...it's bigger than what everyone in Haarwatch could pool together, and then some."
Evie let out a low whistle. "That's a lotta juice."The original appearance of this chapter can be found at Ñøv€lß1n.
"Yeah, a lot," Magda agreed, still looking thoughtful. She turned to Felix, casually. "You said you found some carvings of Nym? Where?"
Knew you were listening in. Do you still not trust me? Despite his thoughts, he half-smiled and gestured to the wall where he had descended. "You're welcome to check it, if you can make it up there. Not even sure how I did; the staircase disappeared after I came down."
Felix squeezed his eyes closed, cutting off that thought. What would be the point? Would could I even do for them? Except force us into a fight that they probably would lose.
Balfur was their champion, he could clearly recall. The strongest of them, and Felix had ended him three levels ago.
He held up a hand, regarding it in his special sight as near-invisible wind Mana buffeted against it and dim orange fire Mana splashed against its edges. His hand was muted flesh, but spinning through him like blood was the blue electric fire of his Mana, sparked with a faint golden brilliance.
Whatever I am, whatever I've become, seeing these things has changed me. Maybe the Nym were evil masterminds who littered the world with death traps, or maybe there's more to them. Either way, my changed Race doesn't change who I am. Not even my Omen can do that, another choice taken from me somehow.
What was it Atar said? "You don't choose your destiny..." He was so certain about that, in a way that only a teen can be. Last time I was that certain I had convinced myself that smoking cigarettes was definitely cool. Teens don't know shit.
Destiny is whatever the fuck I make of it.
Only fifty feet away and separated from the group by a thick blanket, Magda leaned against a nondescript block of stone.
Perhaps it's a counter, like a kitchen? She looked around herself, unable to identify any of the functions of the various blocks and holes scattered about the room. Fuck if I know. This whole tower gives me the creeps. There was no telling what unpleasant surprises the Nym might have left here.
The blanket suddenly lifted, revealing the silvery form of Harn as he ducked nimbly into the chamber. Magda grumbled to herself, pushing down a familiar jealousy with the warrior's Agility. I had to carefully slide into this room or else pull that entire blanket down around my head.
Harn stepped up to her, nearly six inches shorter but nearly as wide, he was a badger of a man. Loyal, tenacious, and fierce in a fight. There were few she'd rather have at her side, and none were as good with an axe. Magda trusted her partner's eye, especially in regards to combat. Which is why they were meeting.
Wall of Force!
With a slight mental exertion, Magda gathered up and let spread her Mana, pushing out a solid dome of yellow light. It was bright and obvious, but with the others asleep and the archway covered, it should stay unnoticed. Besides the redirection of force, the wall also muffled sound, which was the reason she used it.
"So, what do you think?" She asked.
Harn sucked his teeth. "He's...somethin' else."
Magda narrowed her eyes. "Explain."
Harn sighed. "The kid is determined, I'll give em that. Didn't stop once, not even when I cut into his hip with a sword. He just kept movin' forward. It was impressive."
"Nothing strange about him? Nothing on where he's really from?" Magda was concerned about that part the most. She had he suspicions, but that's all they were. For now.
"No, he didn't really give nothin' up," Harn said.
"Not even his stats?" Magda pressed. Harn let out a short bark of a laugh.
"What you want me to go out and just ask him? He's tighter than a barquist with lockjaw. Shoulda' seen him clam up when I asked for a list of his Skills. Had to back it up to anything above level twenty."
"You must have some idea? He used a spell on you, right?"
"Oh yeah, he damn near yanked the sword outta my hand. Me," he added, making sure Magda noticed his emphasis. "He's prolly at least above 90 Intelligence, 100 maybe if he's nearly whoopin' my Strength."
"What? How? His Strength must be 70 alone, and his Endurance...you saw him running today."
Harn nodded. "Coulda been potions, though."
Magda scoffed. "You know it wasn't. I heard him ask Evie what she was drinking. It's like he hadn't even seen one before."
"That's another thing. He's...the gaps in his knowledge're huge."
"He's a noble, I bet my shield on it," Magda nodded. "Sheltered and raised on high level mobs and dangerous stat farming. Why he's out here is impossible to guess, but I put my bets on him knowing someone in that Guilder op. The way he stumbled outta the mist? Fighting off giants to save someone he didn't know? No one does that without a grudge to settle."
"Maybe," Harn scratched his jaw and sighed. "But still, he seems like a good enough kid."
Magda nodded, less reluctantly than she might have that morning. "He's...well he's earned at least some trust. Not too much, though. I'm not letting anyone comprise the mission."
Harn nodded and patted the big woman on the back. "We're close. We'll get her out."
"We better. Callie would do the same for either of us. Not to mention all of the others. Those Guilders don't deserve to die at the hands of those blue bastards." Magda clenched her hands, hard enough that she could hear her tendons creak like old wood. "Speaking of, you ready to go soon?"
Harn nodded. "Just gonna catch me a wink or two, then I'm gone," Harn paused a moment while he looked at his partner. "What'll you be doing in the morning?"
"Sparring. I think it's time to see what our new recuit can do," Magda said through a wide grin, already focusing on the morning.
She didn't see Harn shudder.
