Alice was the first person SJ had seen on returning to town, and she immediately followed her when she heard about the injured wolf. As a druid, she had the ability to heal animals, which SJ had not considered previously, only thinking of Clerics or Paladins, although it made perfect sense and aligned with games she had played on Earth. On returning to the Southern edge, the wolves had initially not taken kindly to Alice appearing, preventing her from getting near the grey. It was only after Cristy had interjected that they stepped aside.
“I have no influence over these wolves at all,” Alice said as she kneeled at the injured wolf’s side. Looking at the wound, she placed her hand on the ground and her other hand on the wolf’s head. Mesmerised, SJ watched as green tendrils of energy began to appear from the ground and snake towards the wolf. It was like watching surgery, the way the tendrils began to knit and repair the wound, sewing it back together. The wolf was almost dead when they arrived back, and when Alice finished healing, she took a small vial from her inventory, gently lifted the wolf's head, and poured it into its mouth.
Its eyes had become cloudy yellow, but they returned to their previous vibrancy as the liquid was absorbed.
“He should be ok now. He is lucky; another few minutes, and he wouldn’t have made it,” Alice said.
“Thank you,” SJ said.
“What damaged it that badly?”
“A Rock Gobbler,” SJ said, turning and pointing at the hole in the ground where it had dug through.
“There was one so close to town?” Alice said in surprise.
“Yes. I had never seen one before.”
“They are a nuisance. We have had the odd one in the stone mine over the years. It is strange that it came to the surface, though. They usually remain underground all the time. How big was it?”
“About 4 feet high, level 13.”
“Level 13, and you managed to kill it?”
“I cheated a little. I made it jump off the cliff.”
“Wow. You are lucky.”
“Thankfully, the wolves helped,” SJ unable to say it had been Dave's idea.
Patch reacted to the comment and let out a howl. SJ turned and smiled at the Dire Wolf.
“You will be ok now,” Cristy said, stroking the recovering wolf on its head again. It licked her hand lovingly.
“I need to get back to town. I was supposed to be confirming some orders,” Alice said.
“We are heading back now as well and will accompany you. Thank you for your help,” SJ said.
“No problem.”
Walking back to town, SJ chatted to Alice. It was the first time they had ever had a personal conversation, and it was interesting to find out exactly what Alice did for the Mayor. SJ knew she worked like a PA, but it was more than that. She was the town's second, which SJ hadn’t realised before.
Once they arrived at town SJ said farewell and then escorted Cristy back to the orphanage. When they returned the wolves stopped at their den and hadn’t moved closer to town. Since they had moved in by the town, there had been no incidents, and many had now even forgotten that they lived there, apart from the occasional howl that could be heard.
“Dave?” SJ said as she walked down the street past the open shop fronts and vendors calling for customs. After dropping Cristy back at the orphanage, she promised to visit again soon.
“Yes.”
“You remember previously you mentioned portals? That was from level 10, wasn’t it.”
“Oh. I had completely forgotten about them. Yes, from level ten, you can assign one. Why? What are you thinking?”
“I was thinking of adding one at the cottages and just wondered how you went about it. I have not seen any display announcements or similar that would give me the ability to.”
“No, they don’t appear as an ability. You remember I mentioned that you required a deed to a property.”
“Yes.”
“Well, the deed will have been updated to allow a portal to be placed at a specific location. Once it is, it will appear on your map.”
“So, the deed controls it?”
“Yes. If a deed is owned, the rights become visible if the property has been visited. You can’t just borrow a deed from someone to remove the fog of war. If a deed changes hands, any portal present is removed so that a new owner may position one if they wish.”
“The deed is back in the Inn. I should go and collect it.”
Returning to the Inn, SJ collected the deed before heading to see Fran. She really wanted to understand more about mana. Looking at the deed as she walked along, she read the information again. At the bottom was a small symbol on the parchment that had not been there previously. “Is that the portal function?” SJ asked, pointing at the symbol.
“It’s not a function. You don’t press on it, and it magically works. Now that the symbol is present, it just means that it can add a portal at that location now that you have reached level 10.”
“How?”
SJ was excited about creating her first portal and detoured to an open field area rather than going directly to the academy and sitting in the luscious grass. Now that she remembered it, she wanted to get this sorted.
“First thing. Open your navigation screen. Once you have opened the map, you will see the cottage's position?”
“Yes. I can see it.”
“Zoom in on the cottage. Like most menus, it has three dots.”
“Yep. Got it,” SJ said, selecting it.
“Don’t select it under any circumstances.”
“What?” SJ replied, panicking. “I just did. Does that mean I have broken it?”
“No. Only joking, of course, you select it,” Dave chuckled.
SJ rolled her eyes, “Don’t do that to me. I thought I had just stopped it from working.”
“Now, on your new menu, there should be an option to add a portal.”
“Yes. There is.”
“Now, you can decide where you wish it to be near the property. Keep zooming in closer, and then you can pick a location. It must be outside the building, within a radius of 200 feet.”
By selecting the portal function on the cottage, a glowing ring appeared on the map. Zooming in, she could see the various areas around the cottage. Knowing where the open space was, she selected it.
“Amazing. So how do I activate it?”
“Now that the position is on your map, all you need to do is confirm that you wish for a portal to be placed there. Once you confirm it, the symbol changes to green.”
SJ confirmed her selection, and the icon was changed to a green cross inside a circle. “Ok. Done.”
“If you ever want to remove it, you can do the reverse and cancel its placement.”
“If I place a portal, is it one-way?”
“Unless you have a permanent residence where you can apply a soul stone, then yes, it will remain one-way.”
“What’s a soul stone?”
“It will trap some of your life essence in a certain area and allow you to return to it as required. Mages can produce them if they are skilled enough. If you ask Fran when we see her, she may have the knowledge needed.”
“If it is just a stone, though, what if someone stole it?”
“They are called soul stones, but they aren’t exactly stones. They are magical anomalies. Fran would be required to cast the spell, if she can, at the location where you wish it to be locked to.”
“There is something new to learn about every day.”
“There is,” Dave agreed.
When she arrived at the academy, Fran was outside directing some of the trainees. She was currently overseeing what must have been an Earth Mage moving boulders from one location to another.
“Easy. Easy,” Fran said as she monitored the mage, slowly levitating and moving the large boulder. The mage’s face looked strained, and he had beads of sweat on his brow. Eventually, he moved it to where it was needed and released it. It dropped to the ground with a thud, gasping at the exertion.
“Well done. You just need to keep practising so that you can lower it slowly. To assist with construction, you must be able to manipulate the materials with accuracy and care.”
“Hi, Fran,” SJ said, noticing she had finished talking.
“Hi,” Fran said, smiling on seeing her. “We have some things I would like to discuss.”
“I came to see you about a few things as well,” SJ replied, returning her smile.
Following Fran inside, they went to her office. “Coffee?”
“Yes, please,” SJ replied.
Fran poured two mugs and sat in one of the office's comfy chairs.
“Would you like to start, or should I?” Fran said.
“You can,” SJ said.
“Firstly, Harietta believes she has identified the culprit for the messages which drew the Dark Elf.”
“Oh. Who is it?”
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
“She believes it is a Kobold who works there.”
“A Kobold? I thought she had thought it was a Halfling originally?”
“She did but has since been back on several occasions, and it appears that the Halfling just has an infatuation with Fae and is just a general busybody wanting to know everyone’s business. On the other hand, the Kobold is believed to work not just for Niweq, but Harietta believes he is also associated with Asterfal.”
“Why would he be associated with Asterfal and working at the Wandering Ogre?”
“I think Asterfal has had someone near Killic for some time monitoring and spying on the town. It does make sense, as many cities will monitor towns or have people keep an eye on them, and with what we recently achieved over our unwanted guests, it is likely to have already been fed back to whomever they report to. Even if not by them, the news will soon spread to Asterfal. It was no secret that the town had been suffering raids.”
“I heard that Asterfal has a new chancellor.”
“It does,” Fran nodded, pleased with SJ’s knowledge. "He is also a member of the Kobold council. The suspected Kobold at the Wandering Ogre has only been in Killic for a few months, which ties in with the sudden changes.”
“But why would they have even mentioned or ever suspected you? How would they know about your history?”
“If he is a spy, they will have access to many of the reports that have been filed over the years. I have not always lived as clean and peacefully as I do now. Also, a Fae working in the vicinity of a town as I do is unusual. Having fought several Dark Elves previously can leave a mark and a trail, especially in the circles of power.”
“If we know who it is, can't they be dealt with?”
“They could be. If they also work for the Asterfal chancellor and suddenly disappear, questions will be asked which may point our way depending upon who he has been discussing things with.”
“That is if they even know what they may have done. He could be working independently.”
“There is that chance. I know the Dark Elves have a reward on my head, and if he has the contacts, he could very well know that.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, how much is the reward?”
“The last time I was aware, it was 12 gold.”
SJ whistled. “Wow! That’s a lot. I am not surprised that someone may report you.”
“Exactly. Now we have a plan, but it’s something that will require your support.”
“What do you need me to do?”
“Kill him.”
“SORRY,” SJ gasped.
“If you kill him as a Legionnaire and are caught, it won’t be as problematic. Whereas if I kill him, then suspicion will just grow, and my reputation will be tarnished.”
“But I am also Fae, and couldn’t Harrietta do it for you?”
“Yes, you are, but you are a Fae Assassin who was hit on by a drunken Kobold that you took offence to and took your revenge on," Fran said, raising an eyebrow. She had been thinking of a way to dispose of him. "Unfortunately, Harietta is not able to kill directly. She can defend and support but not kill outright. Her alignment prevents her from doing so.”
“If I get known as an assassin who kills indiscriminately, that will damage my reputation and Fae's.”
“Not with the town. You would have to do something severe to lose revered status. Such as kill the Mayor.”
“Well, that’s never going to happen.”
“Also, the Wandering Ogre is outside the town’s jurisdiction, which means it doesn’t come under the town's protective rights or laws.”
“I meant to ask the Mayor about that. If the borders change, would that not bring the Wandering Ogre into the town’s jurisdiction?”
“Only if Niweq granted it. The Mayor can’t just force it on him without his consent. He can increase the town’s borders to surround it but not include it without his permission. Otherwise, people could just go around continually expanding borders until they controlled the whole of Amathera. Only rulers can instigate forced amendments to ownership. They only do this infrequently as it can cause severe backlash from affected parties if they suddenly find they are eligible for tax.”
SJ knew all about taxes and how the system operated. She wondered if the same format was in play in Amathera for the rich over the poor or whether there was a more balanced view. She had already seen in the township that there was an unbalanced wealth and assumed that the same forces took place in Amathera.
“I assume there are allegiances, and taxes are paid as part of that?”
“Killic falls under the protection of Asterfal. However, we have not seen any support since the raids began. I think that has been an ongoing issue the Mayor was trying to address, and he had begun to withhold any tax payments.”
“Why would a town like Killic pay Asterfal anyway? What benefits do they present to the town?”
“I do not know the details. That is a conversation you would need to have with the Mayor.”
“In simple terms, then you wish me to dispose of this potential Kobold spy.”
“If you are able. Yes.”
SJ’s display triggered.
Quest – Find the reason for the attack – complete
The reason behind the Dark Elf attack has been confirmed to be a spy working in Niweq's ranks at the Wandering Ogre.
Rewards 350xp +100% bonus 700xp awarded
Taking her to 1687 of 3000 experience to level 12.
Quest – Eye Spy
Remove the threat of the eyes on Killic and prevent any further issues for Mistress Francisca.
Rewards: 400xp
“Nice experience again,” Dave said.
“What else did you want to discuss with me?” SJ asked.
“You have been asked to join the town council.”
“I have. Why is there a problem?”
“It's not a problem. If anything, it is an opportunity. You know our reputation and that many are untrusted due to their mischievous antics. The fact that you have already reached such a high esteem in the town and have the chance to be part of the council is a significant boost—not just for yourself but for our kind.”
“How can I, being a council member, have anything to do with the Fae race?”
“It won't happen immediately, but I am sure you will begin to influence in time. You seem to have a knack for doing it even if you don’t mean to.”
“So, you think I should accept the position then.”
“Yes. Absolutely, it is an honour and a privilege even to be considered. Many in the town would love to have the opportunity to join the council.”
“I will consider your thoughts. I still have not decided either way yet.”
“I would urge you to accept,” Fran said, smiling. “Anyway, you said you wished to speak to me, too?”
“Yes. What can you tell me about portals and mana?”
“I can tell you everything I know. What specifically do you need to know?”
“I have just begun my level 5 profession skill, and I can’t push mana into the material to allow for enchantment slots.”
“Ahh. That’s because you are thinking about it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Mana is all around us. You won’t realise being a non-magic user, but in simple terms, everything we do affects mana and its distribution. It fluctuates constantly.”
“If it is all around us, why do mages suffer from mana exhaustion?”
“It is not just as easy as syphoning it. It is how you use it that counts. Mana regeneration is a tricky skill for a mage to master. It takes time and considerable effort to become good at it and increase your recharge rates outside of using mana potions.”
“So, how do I go about using the mana I have? I am not worried about recharging it as I am guessing it naturally does recharge?”
“It does, yes. The recharge rate is affected by your Intelligence and Wisdom attributes. To use your mana the way you wish. Firstly, you must understand what it is and how it affects everything. It is not just as simple as pushing it. It is more as though you accept that it is there and that it is part of the bigger picture that makes up Amathera. There are areas where the mana generation is much purer. The stone circle that we discussed previously is a prime example. The mana there is one of the purest forms I have ever known.”
“If I accept what mana is, then I can manipulate it?” SJ frowned.
“Basically, yes. It’s the acceptance that is difficult for many to comprehend. Many a mage apprentice has failed at the first hurdle by not being able to open their minds up enough to accept its function in everything.”
"I had heard it mentioned that mages struggle to meditate and manipulate mana effectively?"
"It is not that they can't manipulate it. It is just that they don't use it like someone with a profession. For a mage, it is more about the speed of replenishment and the quantity they then use during a spell. It is not controlled like someone adding slots to an item. It is much more simplistic in its use once they can accept its presence and understand it. If you have enough mana, you can cast the spell. It isn't like the time and patience needed to push it into an item. The closest mages normally get to using it in a similar way is through placing enchantments, but then again, it is still very basic in comparison."
"Strangely, the use of mana by others who are not mages seems more complex, yet mages use it all the time."
"Consider a fighter. They are usually very strong and have high constitution due to their preferred approach of fighting up close and the increased chance of damage. For a mage, we are similar. We have high Intelligence and Wisdom to accommodate recharge rates, increase our mana pools to cast more spells, and improve our abilities to cast higher level spells. As a basic profession, apart from enchanting, you don't need a pool apart from that reached by level 10, so it is a more complex use of mana. Once mages accept it, it is our bread and butter."
"I suppose that makes sense. Listening to what you have said, I just need to consider it the same as atoms.”
“Atoms?”
“Sorry. Atoms are the basic particles that make everything back to where I am from. Everything contains atoms, like what you are saying about mana.”
“I suppose it is a comparison. I have never heard of the term atoms before, though.”
“It is a science term.”
“Science?” Fran was frowning deeply now.
“It is hard to explain. Like there is magic in Amathera, where I come from, originally, everything was based around science. It is not as wonderful as magic but quite amazing.”
“I see. So, does this science help?”
“Yes. Very much so. It is the building blocks of most things, as you say mana is.”
“And do you accept these Atoms as existing in their entirety?”
“I do. I had not considered mana to be the same, though, and had been focussing on it being this, well, I don’t know what exactly. Now you have explained it as you have. It does make a lot more sense.”
“Interesting,” Fran cupped her cheek, thinking. “I wonder if what you know about science can be used here?”
“I am no scientist, unfortunately, and not an expert. I only know basic aspects.”
“That is a shame.”
“If I can focus on it being just particles rather than magic, I may be able to get this to work,” SJ said, smiling.