Everyone was very glad to have Sunday, the next day off. Well, technically, it was only off from any school or assignment activities, not any of their own secret work that had been piling up. Not only was the Burning Claw team planning on leaving town soon, but that morning, Pax had received the second stage warning from Turgan. The note had read, “We’re negotiating another team mission to the Wilds. Stay tuned.”
He’d felt worried and discouraged as he reread the message, but it wasn’t unexpected. And he was thankful it wasn’t the more serious message about a coming team party that meant they needed to evacuate immediately. If that one came unexpectedly, it would likely be because the guard had picked up one of their members for Interrogation. Whatever happened, Pax knew their time in the capital was growing shorter.
With those concerns on his mind, Pax made time for an early morning trip down to check on Fenix before breakfast. Thankfully, Magetwentyninth Solani seemed to have moved through the old mage's workshop and other rooms like a whirlwind. Together, the two ancient mages had lined stacks of inventory boxes up against the front wall, ready for the move.
The previously cluttered workshop had looked almost abandoned. They’d emptied Fenix’s desk, as well as all the shelves. Thankfully, he’d seemed to be in a good mood, excited about the coming adventure. Pax had taken a moment to whisper a heartfelt thank you to Solani 2-nine. After counting the boxes, Pax figured that if each of their crew and maybe a few from the team took one, they'd be able to bring them all.
His side trip had made him late to breakfast, forcing him to scarf down his meal so he could make the meeting with the rest of the crew at the Academy store. Everyone's coin had been growing rapidly, with the Purge rewards and auction money adding to totals. They'd also been earning regular income from the team's Taming facility plus the bonuses the army gave whenever one of their own gained the Taming skill.
Turgan had already distributed the money from the baby beasts they brought in yesterday. Incedis had even given Pax coin for his work with the rebels, disguised under a mentor bonus for good school work. He felt a little guilty for being double-paid, because after reentering the city last night, Venris had also slipped him a small purse in gratitude for the help Taming their beasts.
However, he'd done a lot of work for the rebels in the past without always being compensated, so he decided not to say anything. Besides, he planned to use the coin to gather last-minute supplies for the coming trek across the Wilds, as well as what they might need when they got to the ruins again, so he would put it to good use.
That all meant getting the note from Jacoby for them to come by the store today was perfect. Pax was feeling itchy about them needing to leave without warning and was excited to pick up whatever the kind shopkeeper had set aside for them. If anyone had their finger on the pulse of the city and what a crew of first-years needed right now, it would be Crafter Jacoby.
Besides, he might also help them figure out how to spend their war points before they left. The idea of trying to spend them at one of the rebel bases was laughable. He didn’t want to waste all those hard-earned points. Captain Langley had paid them bonus ones when they'd advanced to full interns after completing the probationary assignment list.
Suddenly remembering that he had no idea what his current coin and point totals were, Pax paused in his fast walk to take a quick look. It felt jarring to realize how much he’d changed from the time when he knew every copper he had to his name.
***
Coin Count: 14 Gold, 82 Silver, 7 Copper (Net Increase: 7 Gold, 94 Silver, 15 Copper.)
Academy Points: 23
War Game Points: 99
***
Pax's eyes widened. He stopped mid chew as his steps slowed. He knew he'd reached over 10 gold, because he and the rest of the crew had been celebrating not needing to turn that huge amount of money over to the academy for tuition. At least not until someone won the war. Besides, he and his friends were unlikely to survive the rebels losing, so it was no longer a pressing concern.
But fourteen gold and most of the way to another one? How in Vitur’s name had he gained that much coin as a first-year mage student? A lot of it had been automatically deposited through whatever means the auction house, Purge leadership and military used to transfer funds. So, he had some excuse for not realizing how much he had. But still.
He read over the amount a second and then a third time, his grin growing wider each time. When he started walking again, he had a hard time not breaking into a happy jog to share the news with the rest of the crew. Though, on second thought, they probably already knew and would laugh at him for being surprised.
It didn’t matter. He had enough coin to buy a home or maybe even a small shop back in Thanhil, more than he’d expected to see in his entire life. Then there was the incredible list of evolution choices in his menu, another treasure waiting for him to spend.
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The world might be going crazy around him, but Pax was better off than he ever imagined he’d be. When he noticed his exuberant grin attracting attention, he quickly broke pieces off of his meat roll for Talpa and Whisk to enjoy, giving him an excuse for his smile.
The new wealth only added to the happiness he felt about their successes yesterday. Recounting his gains in Taming had suitably impressed his friends. Then they'd taken turns telling him how well the new traps had worked, netting them their best haul of baby beasts yet.
They'd only run into one larger beast. It had woken from its slumber, angry, but disoriented. Turgan’s crew had held it off until the others had arrived to help, taking it down quickly.
According to Amil, it had been fast and simple, gaining them a handful of more monster parts to add to their haul. In fact, he’d complained at how little it had challenged them, bragging about how much stronger they were now. Overall, their gains had been huge for their crew and team.
Pax picked up his pace, walking as fast as he could without actually running. He could see the anxiety and tension of those moving across the campus had grown to higher levels. His mood turned somber, knowing he didn’t need to attract any more attention.
Seeing the surrounding gloom reminded him of his own worries. Just simple things, like their afternoon check-in. Every lunch break when he detoured to mark the card, he kept thinking one on their team might miss checking in. So far, it hadn't happened, but it seemed much more likely now, especially after the warning message this morning.
His biggest worry was how much time they'd have when they were told to evacuate. They had so many things to do if they didn't want to leave anything or anyone important behind. Not to mention that Incedis wanted them to make a final appearance at the Steelshade headquarters to grab as many messages as possible. They were to turn them over to the rebels instead of delivering them just before they left.
If they all reported for a shift after the evacuation order came, they’d have to be prepared with everything else beforehand. That included switching out any non-essential school inventory spots for survival supplies and a trip down to grab Fenix and Solani, along with all their boxes.
Realizing how tight time would be when evacuating, Pax decided to have Bryn work on streamlining the process ahead of time. Maybe she could distribute those boxes to various members of their team now. And if he was willing to take the risk of being caught with Fenix’s and Solani 2-nine’s crystals in his inventory, maybe he should have them power down and hang out there until it was time to leave.
"Pax! Over here." Pax glanced around, surprised he'd already made it to the front of the Academy store. He must be getting tired if he'd navigated the restless streets without paying attention. He needed to go to bed early tonight. Things were coming to a head, and he couldn't afford to let his attention waver.
Pax spotted Amil waving his hand just to the side of one of the large entrance doors to the store. Based on the serious expressions on the rest of his crew sitting in the shade nearby, it seemed they were all still thinking about the message from this morning.
He worked to tamp down his excitement about how much coin he now had. They needed to keep up appearances even if, for someone who used to dig through trash cans for his next meal, a shopping spree with loads of funds was amazing.
"Took you long enough," Dahni said, seeming to relax now that he’d arrived. "Did you have a second breakfast? Or maybe find a new group to chat with? It's not like any of us have gold burning in our inventories begging to be spent."
Rin gave him a cautioning hiss to keep his voice down, doing a quick glance around to see if anyone was paying attention. Thankfully, most of the Sunday shoppers seemed to be focused and determined to get what they needed quickly.
Oh, and I’ve got a new round of evolution choices I could use some help with, whenever we find some private time again. Pax couldn’t help sharing his good news.
The others looked at him in surprise. Amil grinned and gave him a good-natured backhand.
Dahni looked a bit disgruntled. Already? How do you keep leveling so fast?
Rin elbowed him. The faster he levels, the faster we do too.
True. Dahni nodded with chagrin. Sorry, Pax. I should have said congratulations.
No problem, Dahni. Pax kept a serious expression, suppressing a teasing grin. It’s not like I have close to fifty to choose from or anything.
Dahni’s gaze shot over to him, his eyes wide and almost popping out of his head. Seriously?
Pax just nodded as the others laughed and gave him a hard time.
“What did you expect?” Tasar asked with his usual serious expression.
A rueful smile spread across Dahni’s face and shook his head. “I should have known.”
“Time to shop?” Pax asked, when the teasing had calmed down. A glance toward the store made Pax suddenly worry about how the recent riot and war news had affected things. "Have you guys been inside yet? There's still plenty of stuff to choose from, right? I heard there's been hoarding and price gouging going on in some marketplaces in the city."
"It's going to get worse before it gets better," Rin said in a warning tone. "But at least Jacoby is keeping our store stocked by limiting purchases to students only until things settle down."
Amil let out a relieved breath before standing up and brushing off his leather armor. "Then let's get in there and buy what we need."
Bryn held up a hand that made everybody pause and look at her. "It’s too busy in there to bring our larger companions. Tasar and I will take turns staying out here with them.”
Nodding, the others spent a moment passing out treats and reassuring their pets. Talpa was more than happy to stay outside, while Whisk wasn’t very visible under Pax’s armor, so he just kept him with them.
“Just remember, we need survival items for whenever we join the army out in the Wilds,” Bryn said while they were finishing up, smoothly using their cover story. “They won't have a fancy Purge camp like we're used to. I brought our team crew inventory list, so check in with me to make sure we don't double buy anything for the crew. Also, with the rewards we've all recently received, an upgrade to personal armor or weapons is just as important if you can find something that works for you. We'll meet up by the checkout counter before anybody buys anything, all right?"
After determined nods, they turned and joined the crowd of intent shoppers. Pax noticed Jacoby was helping customers with a short line of impatient people shifting from foot to foot nearby. He decided to get as many things as he could before checking in with the shopkeeper.