Chapter 28: Guard Duty
Victor’s new boots pinched his feet around the toes, and he frowned, thinking of the nice new boots and socks he’d gotten to enjoy for all of a few hours. He was tired, dirty, and sore but otherwise felt alright as Lam’s delvers made their way back to the forward camp they’d set up for the miners. Edeya had given him funny looks as they’d started out marching, and Gris had gruffly asked where the hell he’d been, but Victor just shrugged it off and said, “Ran into some assholes, but Captain Lam let me off easy, don’t worry.”
When he’d dug around in the chest, he’d come up with a large vest-like sweater that had originally been rust-colored, so the bloodstains from the previous owner weren’t very noticeable. It was kind of scratchy, but warm, and fit him well enough. After that, he’d stepped into the jacks, into one of the partitioned toilets, and slipped Gorz on under his vest. Having Gorz to mentally “talk” to helped the march go faster, and Victor had learned a thing or two about his attributes.
First of all, Gorz had been enthusiastically in favor of Victor putting points into intelligence, which made Victor feel better; he’d had some doubts after that snap decision. He’d also told Victor that his class awarding him some “unbound” points at every level was quite rare and that he’d get a chance to “refine” his class at level twenty, but it might be best to keep the one he had.
Another thing he learned was that Gorz really did remember just about everything he “observed,” and he assured Victor he’d know it if he got close to the delvers who’d jumped him. Gorz explained that, to him, every Energy user had a sort of signature that made telling them apart very easy. Victor had told Gorz to stay on the lookout because he wanted to find out where those assholes had their camp.
“Victor!” Sergeant Fath called out from the barricade. Victor looked up from his daydreaming and jogged over to him.
“Yeah?”
“Lam wants to take some of the veterans to explore around the latest ruins she found. We’re leaving you with a few others to guard the miners. Shouldn’t be too bad.”
“The miners aren’t even here yet.”
“That’s right. Keep the place tidy while you wait, and don’t let the miners get slaughtered by rats or something. We’ll be gone a while, probably ‘til quitting time.” Victor opened his mouth to object but realized this was one of those moments when the proper response was probably to say something positive.
“Alright, I got it.”
“That a lad. I knew you were up for it.” Fath held out a fist, and Victor bumped it.
“Excellent news, Victor! It seems this low-ranked authoritarian has deemed you worthy of some responsibility.” Gorz piped in with his tinny, mental voice.
“Huh, go figure.”
Lam, Sergeant Fath, and ten of the veterans left through the barricade a few minutes later. Victor was left behind, somehow in charge, with Edeya, Tyge, the rest of the new recruits, and two veterans that, apparently, weren’t worthy of any responsibility. He didn’t know if he should try to give directions or just kind of watch everyone to make sure no one did anything really stupid. He decided that, for now, he’d be one of those hands-off managers and just sort of watch, making sure nothing came over the barricade to surprise them.
While he stood on the low rampart, looking out into the dark tunnel, he “talked” some more with Gorz. “Is there any way to create more spells without altering one of the ones I have?”
“Yes, though it takes an adequate knowledge of spell patterns. I know some patterns, but it would be very hard to describe them to you verbally, and I’m unable to write with ordinary utensils; Reevus had a special slate that I was able to interact with.”
“Damn, what are the odds we could find the rest of his belongings near his corpse?”
“Not good, I’m afraid, though some of his belongings were consumed or carried away by giant vermin as they ate his flesh; we might find some near their nest, should we locate it.”
“Hmm, something to think about, that’s for sure.”
“Just gonna stare into darkness until they come back?” Edeya had come up behind him, and Victor turned to smile at her.
“Sure. That’s where the monsters come from, right?”
“I guess so, but Trilla says guarding miners rarely has any action. She said the big fights always happen when we claim new territory, like when we first came here.”
“Who’s Trilla?”
“That tall Ardeni girl, one of the vets they left back with us.”
“Well, Sergeant Fath didn’t leave her in charge, so she’s not worried about getting her ass chewed out if something goes wrong. I’ll keep an eye on the dark.”
“Wise, Victor!”
“Quiet, dude. You’ll make me say something dumb out loud.”
“Of course, my apologies.” Victor almost chuckled at the contrite tone Gorz had taken.
“Um, thanks for not saying anything when you saw Beal and me behind the barracks yesterday.” Victor looked back at Edeya; her eyes were down, and she was fidgeting nervously.
“What? Nah, none of my business. Don’t even worry about it. I’d be careful, though; I doubt Fath or Lam want people fucking all over the place.”
“Fucking?”
“Yeah, er, having sex.” Edeya’s face got very red at his words, and she stammered out a few attempts to speak, then she shoved Victor against the railing and walked away with a disgusted explosion of breath. “What did I say?” he called, but she didn’t turn.
“I’d say your friend found your choice of words rather crude and insulting.” Victor almost told Gorz he was being too sensitive, then he frowned and shook his head.
“I’m an idiot sometimes.”
“Perhaps so, but nothing some practice won’t fix. Why not apologize to the lass? It seems she is sensitive about her reputation and doesn’t consider her dalliance with young Beal to be a part of a larger pattern of behavior.”
“Well, I will, but I’m still not sure why she got so pissed; just because they were only making out doesn’t mean they weren’t horny for more.”
“Yes, but your implication was crude; be logical.” Victor thought about those words, “be logical,” and had to admit they were effective. If he looked at his words without any emotion, they really were something an asshole would say.
“Alright,” he said aloud, turning from the darkness and looking around for Edeya. He saw her standing on the stone incline that led to the upper chamber. The miners still hadn’t arrived, and the other delvers were spread all over the place doing their own things. He saw red-haired Tyge sitting with another delver playing with some carved bone dice. Tyge had been the first guy he’d met among the delvers, and Victor hadn’t gotten to know him at all. He determined to remedy that as soon as possible. “Tyge!” he called.
“Yeah?” The smallish Ardeni man called back.
“I need you and your friend to come up here and watch the tunnel. I’ll relieve you soon.”
“Um, alright.” Victor watched as Tyge and the other delver picked up their dice and climbed the ramparts.
“You guys know how to use these big bows?”
“Yeah, quit arguing and get moving!” Edeya said, moving behind the miners to help shepherd them down. Victor nodded, and the whole group got moving. There was some grumbling, but the miners were generally glad to be alive, so they moved with the delvers down the ramp and to the ore vein and got to work. Victor checked in with the three delvers they’d left, and they reported no action.
“Figures you guys would get to have an easy battle while we sat around twiddling our thumbs,” Trilla groused, but Edeya wasn’t having any of it.
“Easy? Easy? Have you ever fought stone imps! If it weren’t for Victor, the miners would be dead, and we’d be down here hiding, hoping they didn’t come this way after they killed them all.”
“Relax, girl,” Trilla said dismissively.
“Everyone relax,” Victor said, putting a hand on Edeya’s shoulder. “It’s good we fucked up those imps, but let’s stay cool in case more stuff comes our way.” A loud crack interrupted him, and he turned, flinching out of reflex, to see the miners had somehow split off a considerable section of the amber ore vein and were starting to tap off chunks with their picks. “Shit, that startled me. Are those picks enchanted?”
“Of course,” Trilla scoffed, but she turned and stared into the darkness over the ramparts, and Victor took that as a sign that she was willing to let things drop. He turned and checked in with the rest of the delvers, and then he spent some time watching the miners work.
He knew there had to be more to this operation than just slaves running around with picks. No, it was slaves running around with magical picks and with bags that could hold thousands of pounds of ore. “Magic sure makes shit easier,” he muttered.
“Indeed, Victor. Speaking of which, I had an idea you might like to try,” a slightly metallic voice said in his head.
“Oh yeah?” he thought.
“Yes, there’s a spell that all Energy-using children are taught, and it requires no prior knowledge of patterns. It’s a light spell, and, though you don’t have any unattuned Energy, I think it will still work for you, perhaps with an added effect because of your attunement.” Victor walked over to the ramp leading out of the cavern and sat down on a square-topped boulder, keeping the miners and the barricade in his field of view.
“Alright, lay it on me.”
“Well, children who have developed a Core and pathways are often taught to channel some Energy into their palm, using their will to form and compress it into a ball. With pure Energy, this creates a yellow sphere that casts light. If one’s will is strong enough, it can be made to float around the caster.”
“And with my spirit Core? My attuned Energy?”
“I speculate that it will still cast light, though in a different shade, and it might have an emotional impact on those caught in its glare.”
“Alright, let me see here,” Victor turned his mind inward and looked at his Cores, but then he stopped himself, “Hey, I have seven points to spend. Any advice?”
“Will would help with this process, though your will is already quite good for your level. You should weigh that against your immediate survival needs. It seems you’re destined to fight a lot, so perhaps more physical attributes. I’m sorry I’m not more help.” Victor thought about Gorz’s advice, and he thought about how he’d spoken to the delvers and miners up in the other cavern. What had made him stand up so firmly? All the fights for his life? His will? His frustration? His inspiration or rage Energy? It seemed like a lot of factors were working to influence his demeanor. Demeanor? Where’d he pull that one from?
“It seems like mental stats are pretty important for survival too. My most powerful abilities require Energy to cast, and I think they’re helping me use words to influence people.”
“That’s an excellent point; sometimes, the best victory is attained by avoiding the battle.”
“Right,” Victor decided to put four points into intelligence and three more into will. The effects were subtle but, in his mind, undeniable. Then he returned to the scrutiny of his Core. He watched the pulsing, throbbing red light of his rage-attuned Energy, and then he coaxed a thread of it loose and pushed it through his pathways and out into the palm of his hand. It seemed easy to him, and he figured that his high affinity and will were responsible. As the thread of Energy started to dissipate into the air, Victor concentrated on it and pushed it back down, willing it to ball up and press together.
He kept coaxing more Energy out and adding it to the ball in his palm, and then it seemed to ignite with a bright red light, bathing him and the area around him in a pulsing, baleful glare. He felt a surge of heat in his chest, and a growl rumbled up out of his throat.
***Congratulations! You’ve learned the spell: Enraging Orb - Basic.***
***Enraging Orb - Basic: You create an orb of rage-attuned Energy that will bring forth anger in those who behold its light. Energy cost: 50 Cooldown: minimal.***
The notifications caught Victor’s attention, and he let the orb of red light dissipate, breathing a sigh of relief when it was gone. Suddenly some golden motes coalesced out of the air around him and rushed into him, much like after a battle.
“Oh, nice! I got Energy for creating the spell like when I learned fighting skills.”
“The System rewards innovation with Energy. I’m sure you got some when you made the Inspiring Presence spell, as well; you were just too preoccupied to notice.”
“Well, that’s cool,” he said aloud. Victor looked around, wondering if anyone heard him, but didn’t see anyone paying him any particular attention. One of the miners eating a sandwich nearby gave him an odd look, but he figured that was because of the light he’d just made, not his words. “Probably better chill out with the spell casting for a while,” he thought to Gorz.
“Excellent job on creating that light spell, Victor!”
“Thanks. I want to try it with inspiration Energy later. Hey, is it possible to cast a spell with more than one Energy type?”
“Indeed! That’s how elementalists create meta-elements. I don’t have any information on combining spirit attunements, but I think it should be possible.”
“Alright, add that to my list of things to try out.”
“Noted, Victor!”
Several hours passed with no other incidents, and the miners made good progress on the ore vein. Not long after the miners took their second meal break, Captain Lam and the other delvers returned. Victor walked toward her as she came through the barricade and approached the miners. “Where’s Foreman ap’Thell?”
“He died,” the older, friendly miner said, sitting up from where he’d been taking a break. Captain Lam whirled around, and her eyes zeroed in on Victor.
“What happened?” Her voice was sharp, but she didn’t seem particularly angry. Still, Victor tried to choose his words carefully.
“Well, you’d been gone a while, and the miners were still not here, so I started to get worried. I took some delvers up to the next cavern, and we found the miners under attack by stone imps.” Lam stared at Victor for a moment, and then she turned to the miner.
“This is true?”
“Oh, aye. We’d of lost a lot more if your sergeant here hadn’t come up to the rescue.”
“I’m not a sergeant...” Victor started to say, but Lam cut him off.
“Huh, good initiative, Victor. And none of you died in the fight?”
“Nope, we caught ‘em from behind, and the delvers fought well. The miners made a good showing, too.” Victor shrugged, and Captain Lam studied him for another minute, narrowing her eyes. Then she smiled and clapped him on the shoulder.
“Well, I’m going to authorize some extra contribution points for all of you that rescued the miners!” she announced. “You’ll find them added to your balance at the Contribution Store.” More quietly, she said, “Victor, I’d like a meeting with you when we get back to barracks.”
“Alright,” Victor said, though he couldn’t tell if that was good news or bad. As Lam moved to inspect the mining progress, he thought, “Gorz, you think I’m in trouble?”
“Not necessarily, Victor, though her Energy aura is quite powerful. I’d be surprised if she didn’t sense something about you.”
