Chapter Forty Three: Like a Band of Gypsies, We Go Down the Highway
Fourth Tower Year 4776, 3.3.4
The Republic of Mevitra,
Clearwater
The Witch’s Den
“Are you sure this will work?”
《Yes, absolutely, pretty sure. I think.》
They had already conducted the test with some murder bunnies that Marc had convinced to volunteer in the forest, and everything appeared to be fine. They still needed to try it out with a living, sentient being, however.
Marc had originally planned to use Lehdze. The old scholar was practically a squatter in his space anyway. However, when Enpii learned of the plan, he insisted that he help test the space. He planned to join and bring Mumay and Beth along with them. He didn’t want to waste any time in finding a solution to her illness, and as her father, he felt responsible for the risks involved. He said that he would put all his faith in Marc, but that he also wanted Marc to have faith in him. Marc could not argue with his friend on this.
They stood outside Rynan’s cabin. Although it was not the real cabin, it was the simulated cabin in Marc’s pocket dimension. The real cabin was just outside the portal that stood behind Marc.
Enpii was there beside a virtual representation of Kira’s kobold avatar. She opted to use the more familiar form to keep Enpii more at ease. Even she was not entirely sure what was going to happen, although she assured Marc that there was no real danger to Enpii. After all, the bunnies had come out unharmed.
“You ready?” Marc checked with Enpii. The man looked a bit sick, but he shrugged it off and shouted out his reply like a soldier.
“Ready!”
“Okay, see you on the other side.”
As he stepped through the portal, Marc wondered if that was the best of word choices. Well, there was no going back now.
After stepping back outside, Marc closed the portal. He walked ten paces toward the other side of the clearing, then opened it up again.
Marc stood again in front of Enpii,
“That was quick.”
“I just went a few steps to make sure everything is fine. Kira, how does it look?”
《So far, so good. No time dilation or noticeable effects.》
“Enpii? All good?”
“Yeah. Didn’t feel anything at all.”
“Okay, good. Now for the big test.”
Marc exited again. After closing the portal, he started running.
When Marc opened the portal the next time, it was inside his apartment in Clearwater.
His heart stopped as he saw Enpii splayed out on the ground, unconscious.
“Enpii!! Kira! What happened?! Enpii, can you hear me?”
He rushed over and picked up the limp man, quickly checking his vitals and stats.
NAME: ENPII PERKANA-SEE
AGE: 34
BASE LEVEL: 8
RACE: HUMAN
ATTRIBUTE: NONE
RANK: NONE
AFFILIATIONS: THE GUILD
STATUS: HEALTHY
His stats were fine, and he had a pulse, and his color was good.
“Kira!”
He heard the high-pitched laughter behind him before the body in his arms started to convulse.
“What the…”
Marc dropped the laughing man on his back and stood up, brushing the dirt from his legs.
“You guys… Are you kidding me?”
“Hey! What do you expect? I’ve been here for hours with nothing to do. Besides-“
“It was Kira’s idea, right.”
“Ooow nyoooo Enpiiii!!!!” Kira mimed, rushing to the half-prone man.
Marc couldn’t help but chuckle at the joke, but he still took a swipe at the burnt-red teddy bear as she rushed past him.
It felt good to see Enpii laugh. These days he had let despair cloud his face so fully, that it was hard for Marc to recall his usual smiling self. Even if it were for just a moment, Marc was glad to see that hope was still alive within him.
“Okay, very funny. So how was it?”
“Fine. Nothing happened at all. No bouncing as you ran or anything like that.”
“Kira?”
《No visible aberrations, but…》
“But?”
《There was a -.00023% time dilation. I’m not sure what that is about. It shouldn’t be an issue, but it does mean that the time relationship is technically unbound.》
“Huh? What do you mean unbound.”
《Well, you have never been able to freely control time within your dimensional spaces, but there has always been an inherent possibility there. Your Inventory freezes time completely, while your dimensional space moves at the same speed as the outside world. The fact that this time, it moved slightly slower implies that these are not constants, but somehow controlled subconsciously.》
“So I might be able to control them manually?”
《It’s worth exploring, but preferably not with anyone inside. It would be pretty bad if you closed it for a few minutes outside while decades passed inside.》
Marc grimaced. That would indeed be a bad thing.
“You can monitor it, right?”
《Yes, but remember, I still can’t use my golems while I am maintaining the space.》
“Okay. How about the Mana consumption?”
《That’s fine. Without the portal, the consumption is lower, so it falls below your recovery rate. You have to be careful when using magic or Mana drawing skills, but I can maintain a safety margin, and open the portal from the inside in case of an emergency.》
That sounded fine, but the idea still made Marc nervous.
“So, I guess that’s a successful test.”
Enpii looked excited, but also still a bit sick.
“You sure there are no side effects?”
“Nope. All good. It’s just…”
“What?” Marc looked at the man with concern.
“Next time, can we bring something to sit on?”
“Huh? Why didn’t you just go into the cabin?”
“I thought the cabin was outside. Huh?”
Marc looked over at Kira, who was now rolling around on the ground in laughter.
“Sorry, Enpii, that’s on you.”
----------------------------------------
The next couple of weeks went quickly. A plan for the expedition was put together. The members would be unusual, to be sure.
First would be the expedition leader, Marc. As a Guild member in good standing, he was able to get official approval for the mission, which would allow them to move through the various countries and access Guild resources along their planned route. By registering the expedition, Guild Halls along the way would be given a heads-up, which should further ease their travel.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
Next would be Rynan and Lehdze. Rynan, of course, would be a tremendous asset, especially in the water-starved desert, but also, her experience and contacts would be immensely valuable. So much, in fact, that Marc tried many times to get her to take up the role of Expedition leader. She adamantly refused, saying only that it was Marc’s plan, so he must lead.
Lehdze was more of an unavoidable add-on. It would be too dangerous for him to stay in Clearwater without Rynan to protect him, and he outright refused to give up access to Marc’s pocket dimension. Of course due to his poor mobility, he would be staying inside the pocket dimension along with the next three members of the expedition.
While Marc and Rynan were listed as official Guild members, Lehdze was only listed, without a name, as a client/passenger. This was because he had no Guild status and to protect his identity and the reduce the chance of someone targeting the expedition along the way. Another two members were also listed that way. Enpii and Beth would both be joining as passengers. While Enpii was a full Guild member, because of his lack of magic and skills, he was barred from taking any roles on Guild missions outside of the fortress city walls.
His wife, on the other hand, would join as the third official Guild member. If anything, her role as a Guild officer would be of great value while navigating the various borders and logistical challenges along their journey. Still, as she had practically no fighting experience, and had only completed the basic Guild training courses, she would also be traveling with her family and the scholar in the storage space.
Meservi had pushed Marc to have them add one additional Guild member to make it four, the technical requirement for a Guild sponsored expedition. When Safan had found out, he had begged Marc relentlessly to bring him along. However, Marc refused him flatly. He had only recently graduated from Guild Prospect, but more than anything, he doubted Keri would ever forgive him if he dragged her baby halfway around the world on his first jaunt outside the fortress city walls. Instead, he approached the twins.
Even though they were not technically twins, he still thought of them as such. It didn’t help that he still couldn’t always tell them apart without checking their status windows.
Hee-deh and Hee-ssu had been managing a smithy in Clearwater for the last few years and, as Master Smiths, had been immensely successful. Hee-deh had repeatedly invited Marc to join them, however, he continued to rebuff their invitations as he focused instead on working with the Guild and watching Safan and Grenn’s family.
He honestly hadn’t expected them to join, but was surprised when they started to argue between themselves after he had made the request. What they were arguing about was even more surprising.
From the start, they acknowledged that they could not both go. They had worked hard to build up the smithy in Clearwater, so one of them must stay and manage it, as well as to fulfill their family obligations.
Marc had learned during his time in Threshis, how hard it was for dwarves who left their homes. This was typically a one-way separation, and undertaken by those who wished for a fresh start, and understood that there would be no path back. It was different for the twins, however. They had traveled to Clearwater with the blessings of the Kingdom and their family. This was done ostensibly to further diplomatic ties between the Kingdom and the Republic, two allied nations, as well as to give two promising citizens an opportunity to learn while traveling to foreign lands.
Marc hadn’t fully understood what this meant until Kira had explained it to him one day.
《They are spies, you idiot.》
“What?”
《Spies! They are in Clearwater to send back information to the Kingdom.》
“But they are allies, right? Why spy on the Republic?”
《You are so stupid sometimes. Of course, you spy on your allies. How can you trust someone at your back if you don’t know what they are really thinking?》
That… made sense.
《But beyond that. They are friends with you.》
“Huh?”
《Mary almighty! Why do you even have a head when you never use it for anything but a convenient place to put a hat.》
“Hey!”
《Ba’eth knows about you and is now part of the leadership in Threshis, one of the most important cities in The Holy Kingdom of Zah’paht Dur.》
“Ba’eth wouldn’t-“
《Wouldn’t what? Warn her country that potentially one of the most powerful beings in the world right now was wandering around like a fool, playing blacksmith and sometimes blowing up mountains full of Mythril?》
So now, Marc knew that they were spies. Still he liked them and knew they meant him no harm. Taking Kira’s explanation to heart, he agreed that it was better that he knew they had other motivations and concerns, rather than to worry about people and risks he knew nothing about.
What was even more surprising was the conclusion that the twins finally agreed upon; that Hee-ssu would be the one to join the expedition.
He had not expected Hee-ssu to be so interested in joining, but over the years, he had found that while she rarely spoke, she was always full of surprises, usually good ones. On top of being an amazing smith, and a talented magician and hunter, she was kind, particularly to animals and children, and he did not doubt that she would be a helpful presence to have around Beth.
He realized that he had to bring the twins into his circle of people who knew of his powers. While the “T” word was never mentioned, he had no doubt that they understood the implications of a powerful magic user, who didn’t age and was able to use magic of all affinities. When he explained things, their reaction was all the confirmation that he needed that they already knew most, if not all, of the information he shared.
Something that had surprised them, was when Marc demonstrated the pocket dimension. When Hee-deh and Hee-ssu were in the simulated forge he had created in the space, another argument ensued. Despite that, the team makeup remained unchanged, although Hee-deh continued to look at Marc with a sad and betrayed face until they left Clearwater.
With the roster set, the preparations began in earnest. He worked with Mumay to craft a setup to his pocket dimension that would accommodate their needs for the long trip. He assured Mumay that things could be changed along the way, but she was adamant that having a stable environment was critical for keeping Beth calm and happy. To that, he had no response other than to let her do what she wanted.
What she came up with was quite amazing. A two-level, split-function residence building with a large open space in front and a simulated skyline. There was a pond that was actually a shallow swimming pool, and trees for shade, although the sun was always positioned where Marc wanted it to be. Kira could control it to mimic the sky outside, so that the biological clocks of everyone inside could stay in sync.
The building was simple, but very comfortable and functional. A large apartment on the first floor gave the family plenty of space to relax and move around, and a smaller apartment on the first floor was reserved for Auntie Hee-ssu. Marc, Rynan, and Lehdze all had rooms on the second floor, although Lehdze complained about having to climb the staircase until Marc expanded his room to include a small study.
In a detached building on the other side of the clearing was a forge for Hee-ssu to continue her work and a large kitchen. There were even large outdoor tables for everyone to enjoy eating outside. Marc also set up a fitness area for people to exercise in, based on some of the training equipment the Guild used to test the physical abilities of prospective members.
They were set up so that they could stay for weeks on end within the space with no discomfort, and the environment could, of course, be further modified as their needs changed.
They still needed real supplies, as there was no true substance to food Marc created in the pocket dimension, so Marc spent the weeks before the trip cramming his inventory full of supplies. They not only had enough grains, fruits, vegetables, and meat to keep them fed for a year, but Keri had been cooking constantly until they had weeks of prepared meals for whenever they didn’t feel like cooking.
He even had real tables and tents available for when they wanted to stay outside the sleep under the real stars.
Marc was feeling good about the preparations. It was odd thinking of bringing a whole family, including a toddler, along for an expedition to one of the most inhospitable environments on the planet, but he was looking forward to spending time with his teacher and his friends. It would even allow him more time to study with Lehdze, which, although painfully dull sometimes, was inarguably helpful to his basic understanding of the world.
For the most part, He and Rynan, as well as sometimes Hee-ssu, would travel outside the pocket dimension while the rest stayed inside unless it was absolutely safe. Technically, Marc was the only one who needed to be outside, but he would be grateful for the company.
As long as the space was in use, Kira would not be able to use her golems outside, but her perception would be unaffected, so she could still update Marc if there were anything nearby that was a concern.
She could, however, create an avatar inside the space, and was not limited in any way. Mumay had mentioned that for Beth, it was better for Kira to maintain a consistent presence, and after a consultation, they came up with what they felt was the perfect image.
Marc was not at all pleased. He groaned as he saw the form that Mumay and Kira had come up with.
A plump British man with a mustache in a grey tweed suit stood with perfect posture.
“You can call me Mr. B-“
“Nope!” Marc shut him down. “I’m sure copyright lawyers can find us in any universe.”
“Ehem. Yes, quite right. You may call me Aloysius then. I am the butler.”
Marc didn’t know where that name came from, but it seemed to fit, so he had no further complaint.
As departure day approached, Mumay came up with one more detail that she felt needed to be addressed.
“We need a name!”
“What?”
“A name! Every vessel needs a name.”
“Mumay, it’s not a vessel, it’s Marc’s power,” Enpii tried to defend Marc from his wife’s endless enthusiasm.
“It’s large, and we will be traveling inside of it. It’s a vessel, so it needs a name.”
Marc really did not want to deal with this. The last thing he wanted to do was to name his pocket dimension. It would be like naming a body part. That’s not something he would ever do.
《Sure, Junior.》
“Shut up!” He silently snapped at in interface while the butler stood there silently with an annoying smirk.
“Fine, you can think of one,” Marc offered.
“No! You are the leader, you should name it.”
Enpii gave a defeated shrug and shook his head. Marc was on his own.
“Fine. Then it’s The Bus.”
He carefully spoke the last word in English, rather than letting the translation powers kick in and try to find an equivalent work in Tashtalik, not that there was one that he knew of.
《Krintep-ehar}
“Huh?”
《Krintep-ehar, a large, ground conveyance for people.》
“Nope. Bus. We are all taking the bus,” he ended the silent discussion with his interface.
“Bus. Simple, what does it mean?”
“It’s a word from my old country. It means… Noble transportation of precious items.”
“Really?” Mumay’s eyes were sparkling.
Marc nodded. Inside he was lamenting becoming the first bus driver in this world.
----------------------------------------
It was the day of departure, everything was set. They were all at Enpii’s apartment, where Mumay was loading up the last few items onto the bus.
Rynan came to Marc with one final surprise.
“Once everyone is in the pocket dimension, I have something I think you will enjoy.”
“What is it?” Marc asked.
“It’s just for us, and Hee-ssu if she wants to partake.”
“Okay.”
They closed up the portal and exited the apartment.
Rynan handed Marc a large round metal disk. It was similar to the strips of rel that were used as currency, but he had never seen one like this before.
“What is this? Marc examined the disk from all sides.
“Oh no! No, no, no, no, no way!” Hee-ssu stared at the disk in terror.
“But I have one for you, too,” Rynan produced another disk and waved it towards the dwarf, a sly grin on her face.
“Marc! Portal! Now!!!”
“What? Why?”
“Portal NOW!”
Her yell was so surprising that he opened the portal on reflex, not even realizing that they were outside where anyone could see the glowing purple doorway.
Hee-ssu ran inside without a word. She must have told the butler to close it because, in an instant, the portal closed by itself, leaving a shocked Marc and giggling Rynan behind.
“What’s that all about? What’s this?” Marc demanded, waving the disk.
“Well, didn’t you always say you wanted to ride a wyvern someday?”
A huge grin appeared on Marc’s face.
“Are you kidding me? For real? Let’s go!”