Over the next thirty minutes, Glade continued to suffer horrible frog puns, most of which were less than original. Thankfully, there were only so many ways his supposed friends could use toad-the-line or froggin before it got old.
In between being teased, Riya showed him how the auction worked. It was all fairly straight forward. There was a central chair in the suite overlooking the hall below. Embedded in its arm was a small, but distinct black mana gem that, when touched, would relay the group’s bid. On top of that, an attendant was personally waiting out in the hall if they had any questions or requests.
One pleasant surprise was that the floor to ceiling window separating their suite from the hall below was made from enchanted glass, which could display basic information on any of the items currently registered for sither the main event or the silent auction. Riya quickly ran him through the interface, which he found equally simple and wasted no time in pulling up one of the many items they had placed in the auction.
Shadow imbued mana gem.
Durability: 48/48
Size: Average
Grade: Bright
Charges: 48 (Regenerates 2 mana per hour)
Rarity: Uncommon
Opening Bid: 8 Gold, 5 Silver
A thought occurred to Glade as he studied the notification.
“Hey, Bragden, I still need you to show me how to use mana gems to increase my attunement.”
“Aye, I’ll run ye through that later,” Bragden said in a distracted voice as he poured over the contract Helmund had given him. From the look on the dwarf’s face, he was meticulously going over every line to ensure they weren’t being robbed for the goods they needed back at Storms’ Rest.
“I’m afraid you will need to make it sooner than later, since we’re parting ways after tomorrow,” Glade said, still playing with the window screen. They had long since decided the group would split up. Bragden and Gent would head back to Storms’ Rest with the items they purchased and Kedryn, Riya, and himself would continue on to the Banished Elves.
Bragden sighed, setting down the parchment before rubbing his eyes. For the first time, Glade noticed how tired the dwarf looked.
“Thanks fer reminding me. There be a thousand and one things to be doin and no time to be doin ‘em in. I’ll catch up with you and the royal later tonight and go over some o’ the basics. That, and I’ll see ‘bout teaching ye some basic enchanting. Nothing too difficult mind you, but a sharpening or heat resistance rune should be enough for ye to practice on until ye make it back home.”
“Any chance… you could… open my Astral channels?” Kedryn asked as he continued to do push-ups.
“Not yet lad, sorry,” Bragden sighed, sinking further into his seat. “I thought we’d have more time afore we split ways.”
Kedryn’s perpetual grin became slightly strained.
“Now don’t give me that look!” Bragden snapped, pointing a finger at the Kid. “Or did ye forget that ye almost popped yer slagging mana pool like it was some goblin’s pimply backside!?”
“Fine,” Kedryn groaned, collapsing to the ground.
“Don’t ye worry none, ye spoiled royal dingbat! I’ll be waitin back at Storms’ Rest to do it right a proper like, don’t ye worry. Until then, I’ll show ye how to increase yer attunement levels.”
“I thought I wouldn’t be able to use typical air treasures since I have a Tempest attunement,” Kedryn panted.from where he lay.
“Glad one of ye was listenin to me,” Bragden snorted. “And yer right, ye can’t just attune yerself to any old air treasure now that ye’ve got a focused attunement. However, it just so happens that one o’ the items up fer auction is a lesser Storm Crow’s mana core, whose attunement is also that o’ Tempest.”
As Bragden spoke, Glade quickly pulled up the details on the Storm Crow core.
Lesser Storm Crow Mana Core.
Durability: 97/100
Attunement: Tempest (Air Variant)
Charges: 97 (Regenerates 4.04 mana per hour)
Rarity: Rare
Known Spell: Storm of Blades
Opening Bid: 150 Gold
“It's expensive, but easily within the budget,” Glade said, looking over the information. “Anything else we need to look out for?”
“There be a few items o’ interest,” Bragden said, making his way over to a small keg of beer. “But most o’ the items I’d recommend are part o’ the silent auctions. I’ve already done placed bids on ‘em, but I doubt we’ll get much. A few minor rings o’ health and mana, an alchemical recipe that can be added to normal steel to make it more susceptible to enchanting, and some leather armor that I think might fit ye. You know, the basics.”
“So long as we don’t go over budget,” Glade said. “Rebuilding Storms’ Rest is going to cost a lot more than we have as it is. Speaking of which, what is the total cost for the items we need to purchase?”
Bragden skipped to the end of the scroll.
“1,956 gold, 87 silver, and 19 copper,” Bragden said. “Which is about right from what I can see.”
“That much?” Glade asked, surprised. “That will wipe out most of our profits from this trip alone. What exactly are we buying that costs that much?”
“Stop tryin to act surprised,” Bragden snorted, waving the scroll around in his hand. “Ye already know what be on the list! We got everything from livestock to seeds fer planting to smithing tools, all o’ which be of superlative quality or higher. ”
“I suppose not,” Glade sighed, still feeling the strain of spending so much of their hard earned cash..
“We’ll need more people as well at some point,” Brgaden continued. “The clan is set up to be self-sufficient, but we’re going to need a lot more farmers, builders, engineers, hunters, cooks, tailors, and a hell of a lot more specialists to boot to make a fully functional settlement, not to mention solid fighters and mages. Livin in the Spines is going to be a right mess if’n we don’t have the bare minimum skills to survive.”
“One step at a time, my friend,” Glade sighed, not for the first feeling the invisible weight of their goals bearing down on them.
“Looks like they’re about to start,” Riya interrupted, drawing everyone’s attention. The crowd broke into an applause as Helmund took the stage, the half-elf giving the audience an eloquent bow.
“Thank you, my dear friends!” Helmand cried out, his bright smile visible from where Glade was standing. Not that he should be surprised by this point, but he marveled that the sound coming into the suite was flawless, almost like he was standing on the stage himself.
“We will be starting momentarily,” Helmand continued, “But first, I wanted to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for your continued patronage as well as your patience. As you are all aware, the heroes of our beloved protectorates are furiously preparing to march against the abyssal threat to the East. Because of this, we here at Helmund’s Auction House have taken the liberty to tailor today’s offerings to meet their needs!”
As he spoke, Helmund walked around the stage, constantly moving his gaze to take in the audience surrounding him. As he did, Glade noticed a minor change in the half-elf’s meticulous black suit. Namely, he was wearing a golden monocle.
“It’s a magical device that lets him coordinate all the bids,” Riya explained, guessing what he was looking at. “I asked Jirea about it earlier. The monocle also lets him know if the parties who are bidding want to remain anonymous or not. And before you ask, yes, our suite is registered as an anonymous party.”
Glade nodded his understanding.
“Before we begin,” Helmund continued. “There have been some last minute items added to auction that I believe you will all find very interesting. As you know, we here at Helmund’s Auction House range far and wide to bring you, our gracious hosts, nothing but the best. As such, I am very excited to start our journey today by offering you one of these recently acquired treasures!”
As he spoke, a woman dressed in white walked up the ramp carrying an ebony black tray, on which sat a small box opened to reveal a handful of familiar looking stones.
“Are those…?” Glade began, but was cut off by Riya.
“Yes, those are our pure mana shards,” she said, her demeanor thoughtful. “I wonder what he’s playing at bringing those out so soon?”
“What we have here,” Helmund explained, drowning out the loud murmurs of the crowd, “ are verified pure mana shards, totaling 100 mana points exactly,. We apologize up front for any inconvenience this may be to your purchasing strategies, but we didn’t want to hold such a lucrative treasure back seeing as this could very well increase the power and efficacy of any mage within your formations, regardless of attunement.”
“Oh, he’s good,” Kedryn said, coming to stand next to Glade.
“Aye, a little too good,” Bragden said. “Everyone out there is going to be crawling over each other to buy those shards now. Hell, if I didn’t know where they came from I’d sell me own mother-in-law for ‘em.”
Both Glade and Riya chuckled as Gent raised another mug of beer in salute.
“I bet he will introduce the other pouches at strategic points throughout the remainder of the auction, just to build up the idea of scarcity, which in turn should increase future bids,” Kedryn explained. “I’ve seen it done in auctions back home.”
Glade grunted an acknowledgment. He didn’t care too much so long as the shards were sold for a decent price.
“Before I open the floor to bids,” Helmund called out. “I am obligated to notify everyone present of our house rules, regardless if you are a seasoned veteran of the auction house or a new client. The most prevalent of which is that all people here, regardless of race or station, are to treat those within these hallowed halls with dignity and honor. Anything we deem short of such respect will be dealt with swiftly and enforced by the law. For those of you who are not aware, we bid in increments of 5 silver unless otherwise stated. All sales are final. If you cannot pay, I have it on good authority that the Obsidian Bank has graciously permitted a representative to offer credit at… ahem… reasonable rates.”
There were a few chuckles throughout the hall.
“So, unless you want to find out how benevolent the Obsidian Bank can be, please do not bid on any items unless you can afford them or have a pre-arranged line of credit,” he continued, giving the crowd a relaxed smile. “Now that we have those pleasantries out of the way, I would like to open the initial bid for these pure shards at 25 gold…”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
With that, the bidding war began. Glade was mesmerized as grown men and women stood up and shouted their bids as others hammered furiously at the mana gems installed in their seats. Somehow, Helmund was able to keep track of them all, even the people behind him as both he and his assistant walked a subtle, choreographed dance where they turned and faced the crowd at different intervals.
In moments, the bid passed 30, then 35 gold. Only when it surpassed 40 did it start to slow down.
“House Fellu has the bid for 45 and 5, do I hear 46? Yes, 46 to house Lensher. Do I hear 46 and 5? Yes, the bid is back to House Fellu for 46 and 5. Do I hear 47…?” for the first time since the bidding began, there was a prolonged pause. “Going once… going twice… and sold to house Fellu for 46 gold and 5 silver!”
There was a general round of applause as the attendant carrying the shards took her tray down the ramp only to be replaced with another attendant who was displaying an ornate saber.
“Moving onto the next item,” Helmund called out with an enigmatic smile. “I give you the Saber of Fire’s Embrace, a +3 fire damage dealing weapon that is especially effective against Abyssal creatures. Details about this magnificent blade can be found in our system and has been verified not only by my staff, but has been authorized for sale by the Empire itself! Certification of ownership will be passed to the buyer upon purchase…”
The auction went on, with Helmund leading the crowd as attendants came and went, each carrying something unique. Some items were sold relatively quickly, like the saber, whose use was rather limited due to there being very few saber wielders within the city of Asylum. Unsurprisingly, the items that were fought over were the ones that caught the interest of the greater houses. Those items included a variety of fire or light enchanted spears, more of their mana shards and gems, a wide variety of specialized potions, and in one occurrence, a spatial chest tied to the plane of ice.
For the most part, the group watched in awe as people below got more and more animated as the auction progressed. It was clear that house Fellu was making some sort of economic power move seeing as they were outbidding most everyone, which caused several attendees to simply get up and walk out after a while. Fortunately, for them, they were able to outbid the Fellu’s for Kedryn’s Storm Crow mana core. It had been a hard fought victory, costing them 243 gold. Both Bragden and Kedryn expressed the importance of such an item, but the high cost didn’t sit well with Glade.
“This next item we have for bid, is one many of you have been waiting for!” Helmund said as a woman brought out a tray that held a baseball sized egg the color of gold as well as an ornate scroll bound with a jade seal. “This particular item was picked up during my travels through the Forest of Living Fire, where I met a master elf mage who has been researching the magical nature of Cinder Trees and their inhabitants for more than three centuries! He bestowed this incredibly rare treasure, a bonded phoenix familiar, upon me so I could bring it to these great lands!”
A murmur of excitement ran through the crowd as both Riya and Bragden whistled appreciatively.
“Now that be a treasure worth fighting for,” Bragden said. “Though, I thought most o’ the phoenix breeds were either controlled by the Empire or extinct.”
“Breeds? As in plural?” Kedryn asked as Glade pulled up the details.
Lesser Phoenix Egg - Bonded Familiar. This radiant creature has been prepared for a ritual Familiar Bonding, which will change both the familiar and the owner of the bond at a fundamental level. Known innate spells of this particular species include minor healing, lesser fire breath, and limited resurrection (for the phoenix only, not imparted to the owner). Known passive effects for the owner include increased mana regeneration, increased passive resistances to most diseases, increased passive healing.
Attunement: Air and Fire
Requirements: Any attunement with an open mana channel
Rarity: Endangered
Opening Bid: 500 Gold
“Aye, there be all sorts o’ the slagging birds,” Bragden answered Kedryn’s question. “It be rare to find any in the wild seeing as the Empire severely regulates their breeding. There are some that are even believed to be extinct, like the greater phoenix, or the ice flame phoenix. Still, if’n its up fer sale I think we should go for it.”
“I’m surprised uncle Helmund was able to get his hands on one, let alone bring it to the grasslands,” Riya said. “But I agree with Bragden, this purchase would be worth it.”
“Now, ladies and gentlemen,” Helmand finally said, motioning for the crowd to quiet down. “Why don’t we start the bidding off at…”
A large symbol of a silver tree, the crest of the Emperor, burst into being above Helmund with a musical chime. The moment it happened, the excited murmuring of the crowd quieted.
Without missing a beat, Helmund bowed low toward the hovering crest.
“The Emperor's ambassador has claimed the right of first purchase,” Helmund declared. If the crowd had been quiet before, it was deadly silent now.
“What just happened?” Glade whispered as he watched the attendant with the phoenix egg hastily retreat.
“I’m not entirely sure,” Riya said slowly.
“Bah, it not be that hard to figure out,” Bragden said. “The Empire was flexing its control, as usual, keepin the good stuff from hard workin people like us. It wouldn’t surprise me if they allowed that egg to be flaunted in our faces so they could snatch it away, just to prove that they could.”
No one spoke. They didn’t have to. The silence not only in their room, but in the hall below spoke volumes about the Empire’s authority.
Hours passed as the auction went on. The other pouches of pure, astral, and shadow shards were brought up and sold for well above Avery’s highest estimates, netting them a handsome profit. Unsurprisingly, they all went to House Fellu.
Bragden was currently sitting in the chair, thumping the onyx mana gem as fast as he could, all while cursing loudly as he fought the Fellu’s for a pair of Griffin eggs that were encased in enchanted stasis boxes.
“I still don’t see why we need Griffin eggs,” Glade said as the price of said eggs went above the 200 gold mark.
“That's because yer not seeing the bigger picture!” Bragden snapped as he continued to hammer on the chair's armrest. “Ye heard Helmund! These might be a bloody mated pair! Meanin they’re from different clutches! Me wife’s cousin’s nephew be a slagging beast tamer! Once he gets to Storms’ Rest he can start raisin the bloody half-birds to be mounts not to mention he can start breeding the beasts once they’re grown!”
“That would be awesome!” Kedryn said with a massive grin. “Can you imagine flying on the back of one of those? I bet it would be incredible!”
Glade opened his mouth with a retort but was stopped when Riya laid a hand on his arm.
“I’d suggest we just let this one go,” she said softly, pointing out Bragden’s fervent demeanor as he kept jamming his finger on the bidding stone. “I don’t know about you, but anything that can bring that sourpuss a bit of joy would be worth it.”
“I heard that!” Bragden growled.
“Pay attention Bragden!” Glade barked. “You're bidding against yourself!”
They ended up paying 245 gold and 5 silver for the pair, finally beating out house Fellu.
There were some other items they won, like a skill book that got someone all the way up to skill level 8 in Alchemy as well as a few magically reinforced crafting items such as an elemental anvil which could be fueled with mana shards to enhance the magical resonance of the material being worked on.
After hours of auction induced mayhem, Helmund finally introduced the final items. There were three celestially enchanted items. The first was a celestial arrow that had to be cleansed with magically imbued water after every use. Even with the unusual restriction, the arrow was insanely powerful against abyssal creatures and was picked up by house Lensher instead of Fellu. .
The next was something called a Heaven’s Lamp, which paralyzed abyssal and shadow creatures within 15 meters and repelled others up to 100 meters. The entire hall fought heavily over this particular item, selling it for an astounding 545 gold.
But it was the last of the celestial items that caught their party’s attention.
“Ladies and gentlemen, before I bring out the Horse Lord, I have one more item that I have reserved for such an august group of individuals such as yourselves,” Helmand said. As he did, two attendants walked up the ramp, one carrying a small table while the other carried a white jade box. Even more surprising, both Jirea and Cirea joined them, each dressed in imposing white armor, their greatswords strapped to their backs.
The attendants quickly set the table down, placing the box on top before retreating back down the ramp.
“Before you is a treasure the likes of which I have only heard of in legends, “ Helmand cried out. “Do you recall the tales of the celestial warrior Heaven’s Kiss? The maiden who could command the very stars in the sky to come to her aid?”
Glade didn’t know anything about this Heaven’s Kiss person, but it was apparent that everyone in the crowd did. Murmurs ran rampant throughout the hall, creating enough of a buzz that it threatened to drown out the Auctioneer.
“What I have to show you today, is rumored to be the same kind of weapon that Heaven’s Kiss used to defeat the Abyssal Armies of Belenshire! The same power she used to bring down the Lich King, Bregan of Kher!”
The crowd’s excitement was near to overflowing at this point, some even jumping up from their seats to shout in excitement.
“Ladies and Gentlemen! Patriarchs and warriors! I give you… the Star Bead!”
Jirea removed the lid, revealing a singular mote of light that shined with the same golden power he had seen Riya wield. The small bead of power gently floated above its open container of its own accord, bathing everyone with celestial light. It wasn’t overpowering, per se, but at the same time, the gentle caress calmed the excited crowd into a humbled silence.
Star Bead - Growth Item - Soul Bound. A bead of fallen star jade imbued with celestial radiance. Protects the bearer by circling around them, striking out at enemies of its own volition or as directed. May be bound to anyone with celestial, air, earth, or light attunements. Grows in power as its wielder grows in its attunement.
Grants the skill: Star Slinger
Attunement: Celestial
Damage: 2-4 damage per strike
Range: 5 meters per skill level
Enchantment Effect: +5 Celestial Damage; x2 against abyssal or shadow creatures
Rarity: Mythic
Mana Cost: 5 mana per minute of use; cost increases as attunement increases.
Opening Bid: 1,000 Gold
“We need to slagging buy that bead,” Bragden growled.
“I don’t think we can afford it,” Glade said as he continued to read through the details. “I agree that it would be good for Riya to have…”
“No!” Bragden barked, causing everyone else to jump. “I mean, yes, it would be good for Riya… eventually. But the opportunity to study it might give me the know-how to copy the bloody enchantment!”
“I’m not so sure…” Glade began again.
“I think Bragdens right,” Kedryn spoke up. “This is something we shouldn’t pass on.”
A tumult of voices rang out from the hall as the bidding war commenced. Helmund had explained that due to its rarity, the bid would increase from increments of 5 silver to 10 gold. In seconds, the bid had already surpassed 1,200 gold, and was still rising.
“I just don’t think we can justify the expense,” Glade said with a shake of his head. “The future costs of the settlement…”
“Are in the slagging future!” Bragden snapped. “Storms’ Rest is a bloody gold mine o’ natural treasures! Because o’ that, we don’t have to worry about not havin enough gold for tomorrow’s troubles! Especially If’n I can replicate the damned enchantment!”
Glade looked to Riya for her opinion. She stood transfixed, staring at the glowing bead from the window with a level of awe he couldn’t put into words.
“What's the point of having all this money if we don’t buy the sorts of things that can shape our settlement?” Kedryn asked.
“Alright! You’ve convinced me!” Glade sighed in exasperation, jamming his finger on the mana gem. He didn’t know if this was wise, but the possibility of Bragden being able to recreate such a weapon pushed this beyond a want.
The cost kept rising. 1,300, 1,350, 1,400 gold, and still it rose.
“House Fellu has the last bid at 1,590 gold! Do I hear 1,600?” Helmund called. Glade thumbed the mana gem.
“1,600 to one of our unnamed clients!” Helmund cried, his voice starting to go hoarse. By this point, only the Fellus and Glade were in the running. “Do I hear 1,610?”
The price again rose as neither house Fellu nor Glade gave in. By this point, Glade began to have second thoughts. The amount of funds he was committing was absurd..
“Do I hear 1,870 gold?” Helmand called. There was a brief pause. “1,870 gold going once!”
There was a dramatic intake of breath from the crowd as they came to their first pause in the bidding.
“Going twice!”
Another long pause.
“Sold!” Helmand cried. “To one of our unnamed guests!”
Both Bragden and Kedryn slapped Glade happily on the back, whooping and jumping with excitement.
“I can’t believe I just spent that much gold for a magical marble,” Glade groaned.
“Ye won’t regret this!” Bragden said, slamming his hand harder onto Glade’s shoulder as he smiled so big his bald head was creased in laugh lines.
“And now, for the moment you have all been waiting for!” Helmund called out as attendants took the star bead and table away. Both Jirea and her sister stayed put, looking imposing. “You have all heard the great tales of the kings and queens of all horses, trapped in their service to the Banished Elves. Legends tell of their sublime grace, their magnificent stamina, and most of all, their incredible dominion over all other horses! Well, I can tell you that all of it is true! I have seen these magnificent beings in action with my own two eyes! And we, the Helmund’s Auction House, have brought one of their greatest to these very halls!”
As Helmund spoke, another attendant appeared on the ramp leading Lun’Svet. The crowd gasped as the beautiful black stallion with moonlight mane appeared being led by none other than Yelenzi, the man Glade had met on their road from Aldorna.
“I give you,” Helmand cried. “The Horse Lord!”