Omen: 7, 10

“Look at how big you are,” Sonarot said, rubbing the girl’s face clean of her milk. “It is now the seventh month.”

“Her seventh month,” Adam said, looking at the little thing. “So much time passed already?” Adam had always joked about how she had grown up so quickly, but wasn’t it true that she was growing up too quickly?

“Time passed so slowly after you left, but it feels like it was too short now,” Sonarot said, kissing her daughter’s forehead, causing her to smile and giggle.

“Sorry for not sending word back,” Adam said, frowning. “Soon I should have a spell which will allow me to send you messages even if I’m thousands of miles away.”

“Which spells?” Sonarot asked, placing Lanarot on her lap, gently rubbing the girl’s back.

“Sending,” Adam said.

“The Third Gate spell?”

“That’s the one.”

“And you will use it to message me?” Sonarot asked.

“Well, I’ll be messaging lots of people when needed,” Adam said, smirking. He wondered just how much trouble he could cause with such a spell. “If we’re at an inn, and it’s night, and we’re safe and sound, I’ll send you a quick update now and again. Though, maybe I should make a… tablet?”

“A tablet?” Sonarot asked.

“You know,” Adam said, holding up his hands. “Usually they are made of clay, but I could probably make one which has magical paper inside. I could write on the paper and you will receive a message on the other end.”

“Oh my, how useful,” Sonarot said, wondering how Adam had managed to come up with such a thing. ‘Does he know?’

“My handwriting isn’t the best though,” Adam admitted, rubbing he side of his neck. “What about a radio or something?” Adam fell deep into thought, rubbing his chin. “Though I’m not sure how to make one of those.”

“There is no need to rush,” Sonarot said, reaching up to brush his cheek. Her hand was motherly warm.

“I just don’t want you to worry,” Adam admitted, frowning. “If we’re gone for so long, won’t it be bothersome to not know?”

He couldn’t imagine how painful it was to wait.

Even this time, when Jurot and Adam had left, they had gone for months. Every single day she could have received news that they had died, and there was no way she could help them.

“I trust you to come home safely with my Jurot,” she said, brushing his hair. “You have promised me.”

“I’ll do my best,” Adam said, turning red.

“I know.”

Adam met with the others in the morning, training with them. They ran around the Iyr, with Dunes, Jonn, and Brittany joining them for morning training.

“Father was quite happy with the tale,” Jaygak said. “He wasn’t so happy with me managing to take my revenge though!” She had so much fun giving her father a noogie.

“My mother has promised me a staff made of black Iyrwood,” Kitool said, not revealing the joy which was pounding with her chest.

Jurot’s ears twitched. ‘Black Iyrwood?’ He almost smiled.

“My father said I could have a wyrmhorn blade,” Jaygak said, puffing out her chest.

Kitool threw Jaygak a look of uncharacteristic surprise. “A wyrmhorn blade?”

Jaygak stopped to stretch. “It was a Blue Dragon which had nearly hunted my family’s ancestors to extinction. So hearing that we killed one, father promised I could have the wyrmhorn blade, though I won’t be using it any time soon.” She smiled wide.

“We should probably discuss our plans for the next few months,” Adam said, stretching out his back. “Nightval will be upon us soon.”

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“We have already finished a large quest, so we could rest until Dawnval,” Jaygak offered.

“Really? How does a typical adventuring party go about their business?” Adam asked.

“Either we complete small quests weekly, or find a quest which will last for a long while either yearly or twice yearly,” Jaygak said, thinking about the typical ways that adventuring parties move.

“What about a seasonal quest?” Adam asked. “The Iyr is a week away from Red Oak, and I don’t want to be apart from the Iyr for too long.” There was a seed which had taken root in Adam’s heart, one which would grow and wrap around if he wasn’t there spoiling his little sister.

“That is fine too,” Jaygak said, shrugging her shoulders.

“You are our leader, Adam,” Kitool said.

Jurot did not speak, trying to figure out why his heart was feeling so tight.

“What about you two?” Adam asked, staring at Jaygak and Kitool. “You said your family…” Adam noted the three others. “Rather, what was your goal for adventuring? Do you plan on leaving to another land to find stories to bring great honour and such back home?”

“It would be preferred,” Kitool said.

“Though, we’re happy following you. You said you’d get us to Gold Rank, and you want to be Diamond Rank, right?” Jaygak smirked at him.

“Honestly… I don’t know.” Adam threw his head back, looking up towards the cloudy sky. “I want to help you become Gold Rank, and Jurot to become the first Diamond Rank, but for me…”

“What is your goal?” Jurot asked, seeing Adam hesitate.

Adam stared down at the floor, closing his eyes. “I lost my family. Sometimes I still think about them, but I know I can’t see them again. There may even come a time when I won’t remember their faces, their voices, the way they smelled, the way they annoyed me when they kept using my fountain pen.” Adam shook his head.

Jaygak narrowed her eyes, wondering what he meant by a fountain pen.

“When I came here, Aunt Sonarot accepted me. I was welcomed into the Iyr by the Rot family, or at the very least, by my Aunt. I’m still not entirely sure what it means to be a Nephew, but I’m doing my best. When I saw Lanarot yesterday, who looks so different compared to months ago, who was so much heavier in my arms, and yet she was still so happy and joyful…” Adam stared down at his arms.

Jurot’s heart began to throb again when Adam mentioned his younger sister.

“As much as it sounds like a stupid joke, I think I know what I want.” Adam clenched his fists tight. “I want to make sure my little sister grows up well. I will help her. I will become the best big brother in the world. Right now, that’s all I want to do. No, not quite. I want to help you all achieve your goals and dreams. I will become the one who will clear the path to your dreams.” Adam smiled awkwardly, before beginning to laugh from the embarrassment.

“Then you must be strong to help her,” Jurot said, staring at Adam with his stern eyes.

“You know, I might just..." Adam caught the sight of Jurot’s eyes, which were so strong and stern. He was going to say he might retire to the Iyr to train and create magical weapons, assisting the young girl as she grew. Though, after seeing Jurot’s eyes…

“No, never mind." Adam rubbed his forehead. "I have a lot of ideas about what we can do, and how this party will function without me. So, let’s vote.”

“Vote?” Dunes asked.

Jonn and Dunes weren’t sure what Adam was thinking. He was happy to be the leader, but now, after seeing his younger sister, he wanted to stop adventuring? They understood he was difficult to understand, but the Half Elf was slowly becoming impossible to understand.

“Yeah, vote,” Adam said. “Who wants to do another quest before Nightval?” Adam looked about the group, glancing between them all.

Jaygak and Kitool kept their hands down, unsure of whether they should. After all, they each had pups to take care of, and they would need a few weeks to grow, and they needed to train with the little Dire Wolf cubs so they would become a team.

“You don’t?” Adam asked, looking at Dunes, who had been the most vocal to go and quest.

“We have been travelling for so long,” Dunes said, glancing around to see all the Iyrmen about. “I think we should take a break. It is a rare chance that someone like me gets to stay in the Iyr, and I should accept my good fortune.” He nodded his head.

“You aren’t staying here for free,” Adam said, shaking his head. “We have to help the Iyr in some way. I have been working hard in the Iyr, and I expect you to follow my lead in that regard.”

Dunes laughed. “It would be remiss of me not to help the Iyr in some way, especially since I’ll be meeting a descendant of my Lady’s greatest Champion.”

“Good, that includes you too, Brittany. Don’t think that you’re going to…” Adam paused. He rubbed his forehead again, shaking his head.

“What’s wrong?” Brittany asked. She had been on edge the entire time in the Iyr, being surrounded by so many strong warriors.

“Jurot,” Adam said. “We were meant to invite Nobby too, weren’t we?”

“I thought you had not brought him on purpose,” Jurot admitted.

“No, I just forgot.” Adam shook his head.

Jurot stared at Adam. ‘So, there are times when you forget things too. I thought it was all a part of your plan.’

“I’m such an idiot,” Adam said. “We’ll go talk to him next time we’re in Red Oak. I hope he and his old man are alright.”

Jonn wondered who this Nobby was.

“Right,” Adam said, looking at the other Half Elf. “What about you, Jonn? It’s not like you’re here because you want to be here.”

“I will remain at your side,” Jonn said. “I still do not know whether I want to swear my Oaths to you.”

“I need to get stronger too,” Adam said. “I’m half way to…” He wasn’t sure how much of the system he could reveal. “I feel like I’m almost an Expert.”

Jurot nodded his head slowly. He had expected that someone like Adam was probably near Expert. He, himself, felt that he was growing that powerful too.

Jaygak and Kitool exchanged glances. The pair needed to train to consolidate their strength, but even they felt like they had grown more powerful under Adam’s guidance.

‘Just what are you, Adam?’