Lang
“Don’t ask,” Jerome said to him.
He studied the young Sprout’s irises again. By all that is sacred to Zatirah, how did this boy live his life!? What dark rituals did he partake in?
The Sprout in question brushed past his team to stand in front of the group of Sprouts beside him. “Make sure to be prepared for anything when we portal out of Terra Praeta,” he said.
They both stood side by side, talking under their breaths, and looking for all the world as if they were chatting about the weather.
Lang nodded. “Is that why you’re dressed for war?” He scanned Jerome’s robes — the same overflowing, sleeved cloak he wore during their duel — or was it another one? It felt comfortable to his senses — a deception, as he’d seen the cloak stop a powerful wave of sword force. Appearances could be deceiving. The swirling silver eyes was just another addition to the slew of deceptive arsenal this Sprout had. But at least he had on a more traditional breastplate now.
“Love the beard by the way,” Lang said to ruffle him a bit. Can’t have him feeling too comfortable. The boy had a mountain of a presence — and coupled with his height — that just pulled everyone along… which was evident by the looks he was getting from the female members of his team.
He scowled at them and they looked away.
“Not you too, Lang.”
“Seriously though, we’d be celebrated for surviving Terra Praeta,” Lang said. “There’s nothing to worry about. Even if Alvric starts a war — which I’m sure they’ll be too scared to start — they couldn’t win against Vorthe.”
“Just be careful.”
They stood together side by side for a few more breaths. But Lang felt a little intimidated standing close to him. The boy was so tall, as tall as the Baelors — almost two heads taller than him. But people with such heights didn’t have the kind of build that he had at such a young age. He hadn’t quite filled out his body with much needed muscles but he was already on his way there. His gait was also near-perfect — almost like he was super confident in his own skin… and walked like it.
Lang wouldn’t like to be as tall as Jerome. It was too much. He’d be seen by everyone from a mile away, including people he didn’t want to be seen by — enemies for instance. He shook off the thought to focus on the ladies giving Jerome side looks once again.
The two teams were eager to leave and he could see their excitement practically oozing off them. Selene came for Jerome and he left with her. Lang called Fei Lin as he watched their retreating backs.
“Princess. You should stay by my side when the Alignment begins.”
“Don’t ‘father’ me around, Lang. I know the royal cur is up to something… or knows something. Still wish we could have gotten rid of him though.”
“He has done more for us here than we could ever do for ourselves. Let’s not think of how things would have turned out and focus on how to take advantage of the hand we are dealt by fate. He is weary of something. Perhaps something that’ll likely happen when we arrive Vorthe.
“Prudence is the offspring of wisdom, Princess. Let us heed it.”
The Princess nodded and stalked off. Lang called some others and instructed them to stay alert with their weapons on the ready when they get to Vorthe.
~~~
“Are you sure of this, Jerome?” Selene asked as he entered the Itakars tent. She gestured for him to take a seat at a table in the center of the room.
“Nice place you’ve got here,” he said, looking around. There was a big bed — Csala’s bed — nestled in the right corner of the tent. Was she moving it around? A few odds and ends were also here and there. “Yes, Selene. I sense there’ll be more than a little scuffle between Vorthe and Alvric, maybe a new player will enter the game, who knows. Just be prepared.”
Both Itakars had cleaned up nicely. There was a shine and warmth to their ice blue eyes that revealed their excitement at the prospects of going home. Their silver white hair looked groomed and they wore new armor with more than enough trinkets to buy an expensive house in Farryn.
“And you know this how?” Ajax asked. He was sitting at the far left corner of the tent. He wasn’t asking to disprove him, Jerome could hear the vulnerability in his voice. Something else was going on.
“A Transcendent left Terra Praeta for Vorthe, Ajax. I don’t think that’s something the leaders of the world would overlook. That’s a potential threat.”
There was silence for a while as they processed his words.
“Well, if you put it like that,” Selene said. “Truth is, we met with the heads of team Fei and they tried to disprove you, since they had no evidence of such happening. But we still wanted to leave a door open for if it turned out to be true. That’s just one of the reasons we wanted to speak with you, Jerome.”
Jerome looked at both of them, wondering what the issue might be.
“I told you about our father, remember?” Selene said hesitantly.
Jerome nodded. “Yes. he’s a Saint but…” he didn’t want to sound insulting by saying he was weak and dying.
“He advanced many years ago but didn’t do it right. He’s weak and dying right now. But he’s also the type of person to rush into battle for the glory of Vorthe. He has written many books and in many of them I could practically feel his enthusiasm to die a hero’s death; to die in battle.”
She looked at Jerome with pleading eyes.
“Selene, I don’t understand how I can be of help here. I understand you don’t want to lose him but…” he left the rest of his words unsaid. She would understand he could do nothing to help — or could he?
“I spoke with Nyx.” She laughed. “That was terrifying.”
“That’s commendable,” Jerome said, smiling. “Nyx is terrifying.”
“Oh, she is. Well, I asked if she’d be coming along to our world. She said yes — Csala’s coming too, isn’t she?”
That question felt like a trap. Most likely, she already knew if Csala would be coming along or not. He hadn’t had the time to ask since he had been working non-stop for three days — six by his world’s standard of time.
“That would be up to her,” he said, and Selene smiled. Jerome restrained himself from sighing. He had just dodged a bullet. There was no need to make her know that he suspected her question was a test.
“So I asked Nyx if she could come North with me to see my father.”
Jerome perked up at that. “I don’t think Nyx is a… healer of any sort. You know she’s not human, right?”
“I suspected as much.”
Ajax stirred uncomfortably in his corner but Jerome ignored him. They must not be used to being around non-humans who could pass as humans. And he couldn’t hide that fact for long. It was best to let the people he had some level of trust in, know about it than have it all turned around and be accused of harboring non-humans.
“So? What was her response?” he asked.
Selene smiled. “She just smiled at me?” Then she looked him in the eyes. “She said you can help. In her own words, ‘You should ask Jerome, love,’” — she tried to do Nyx’s accent — “‘There’s very little he won’t do to help his friends out.’”
“Ookaay?” Jerome said. He realized Nyx hadn’t called him ‘love’ since the bonding ritual. “Why do I feel like there’s more to that?”
“Because there is. I’m pretty sure she’s a seer!” Her voice became heated as she began to speak again. “I could smell it on her the moment she started speaking! Her eyes lit up in the same way my father’s does — like she’s privy to something no one else knows.”
Jerome was sure this was a topic of much frustration to her. He smiled. “So your father’s a seer? I appreciate you trusting me with that information.”
Selene wanted to say more but clamped her mouth shut as she caught herself. Jerome had intentionally put that out there to help her bridle her tongue. This way she didn’t end up saying something she shouldn’t — which was weird. Why was she all of a sudden, blurring out secrets?
The air became stiflingly awkward for a moment before Jerome spoke up again.
“I think there’s something I might be able to do but don’t count on it. Your father’s a Saint and I’m just a Sprout. But I’ll come North with you to give it a try. Hopefully it’ll work.”
Jerome stood up to leave.
“Promise?” Selene asked. Her ice blue eyes were filled with so much hope.
“Promise,” he said. He was in fact, heading North when he got home — for a ritual he didn’t want to partake in. Nothing he could do about that one.
“Love the beard by the way,” Selene said as she walked him out. Jerome sighed, shaking his head, and Selene laughed at his obvious discomfort at the mention of his beard.
He went back to Sheela’s tent and called for them all. Nyx, Csala, Sheela, and Ms. Tara walked with him into the domed barrier he had set up. He had told them to leave their tent up so as to hide the dome behind it for a while longer.
“Wow, Jerome. This place looks great.” Ms. Tara looked around the spacious domed room. It was wider on the inside than it looked on the outside.
“I took the liberty to make it more spacious on the inside. We have some important things to discuss though.”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
He sat down by a round stone table in the center of the room. The high-backed, moss-cushioned chairs were back — five of them. And everyone took a seat. Jerome passed around three rings each to them all.
“Put one on and keep the rest in your storage ring. Nyx, you don’t have—” Nyx swallowed the remaining two rings, startling everyone.
I have a storage space of my own, she transmitted through their personal psychic pathway.
Jerome nodded at her.
“They are beautiful, Jerome,” Sheela said.
“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask. What happens to your storage ring when you shift?” He had a pretty good idea but wanted to hear it from her.
“It shifts with me. But it wouldn’t be seen because my fur covers it. The pack receives special batches of storage rings from the Royal Family. In turn, we protect their resources in the redwood forest. Amongst other things.”
“Then it’s a good thing I put that into consideration. These rings will shift with you too, and wouldn’t be seen with the naked eyes.”
“How did you carve runes in gemstones as small as these?!” Nyx asked with mild shock as she studied the one she was about to wear. She slid it on the index finger of her right hand and the ring shrunk in size to fit her slender finger. The many tiny gems packed on the surface of the ring glittered.
“Was wondering how it would fit,” Csala muttered. The rings were at least two sizes too big for their slender fingers.
“The jade is to counter ascended elements, am I right?” Nyx asked.
Jerome’s jaw dropped. “How did you…?”
“I can tell something bad is going to happen, Jerome,” she smiled at him. “And jade is a gem of many mysteries.”
Ms. Tara, who was sitting beside him, nudged him in the rib. “What’s going to happen?”
Jerome exhaled a nervous breath and looked around the table. “We’re all going to be walking into a trap when we arrive in our world. The portal that would take us home has already been tampered with by the Argonaut — with some help from an outside force, the Church of the Light.”
“The Church of the Light?” Sheela asked. “I’ve heard about them.”
“The Church has soldiers that wield very… esoteric energies — energies that come from beyond our plane of existence.”
“Which are these ‘ascended elements’?” Csala asked.
“Hmm.” Jerome nodded at her. “Vorthe is already preparing to counter them. So they most likely will be able to save the teams from the Great Clans and 2nd tier Clans.”
“And those of us from 3rd tier Clans?” Sheela asked, her voice tight and full of fear.
“I don’t know yet. They may yet succeed in saving everyone. But I don’t want to count on it. See, the Great Clans and 2nd tier Clans have security and safety measures set up for such a situation as this. I’m not so sure about the 3rd tier Clans.”
“How do you know all of these, Jerome?” Ms. Tara asked with a confused gaze.
“Because he’s meant to.” Nyx beat him to it. She reached across the table to hold Ms. Tara’s hand in hers. “Trust him. He’s Vorthe’s salvation.”
The air inside the dome became so heavy, so fast, it felt like he could take a knife and cut a slice of it. Jerome coughed to clear the stifling moment. He would need to have a discussion with Nyx about making cryptic declarations like that.
“The jades in your rings have been designed to counter that — hopefully.”
“Hopefully?” Nyx asked with a raised eyebrow. There was a tone to her voice he didn’t like; like she was stating his incompetence.
Jerome sat back and held her gaze before answering. “There’s a lot of mysteries around the ascended elements that even you don’t know, Nyx. However, the Church of the Light has been doing this for forever.
“I won’t strut around in pride of my skills knowing fully well they’ve been doing this for much, much longer than anyone on the continent we’re headed for.”
Nyx pouted, looking away. Success. He had held her gaze throughout his cryptic speech, making sure to communicate the gravity of their situation. He had no time to deal with a rebellious dragon and she was bound to him — not the other way around. She’d best get it through her thick skull. Plus, she hadn’t refuted the fact that he mentioned, about her not knowing all there was to know about the ascended elements.
Nyx seemed almost childlike at times… and overly mature at other times. It was worrisome.
“The rubies would help manipulate fire essence and lightning,” he continued. “The sapphires, water and ice. Emeralds manipulate vital aura — just in case. The diamonds make you as tough as a diamond and can channel Sword Force. The opals help to manipulate earth.
“The amethysts — and I hope some of us wouldn’t need to use them — can manipulate dream aura outside of your mind and body. But it can’t manipulate other people’s dream aura, and those of us who are still Sprout have it in limited amounts. With the right amount of practice though, you can use the gem to speed up your thought process — which is still a function of dream aura, the gem just helps you access it. Something we normally wouldn’t be able to do as Sprouts. And that is safer than trying to manipulate it outside your mind and body.”
He turned to Csala. “I’m betting you can access your dream aura, can’t you?”
“Mine and that of others.” She smirked at him. “I’m still going to use these though.”
Jerome smiled at her.
“Why wouldn’t you want us manipulating dream aura?” Ms. Tara asked.
“It’s dangerous, Tara,” Sheela said. “If you do it too much, it could lead to severe health issues.”
“Dream aura is a product of the subconscious mind,” Jerome said. “It’s not a natural aura of the world. It collects in your mind over time and when you get to the Spirit Realm, you can access it. I have seen a Sprout access her dream aura before, but I’m sure she had an artifact to assist her with it.
“She helped me heal during a rough period and would look as pale as death after every session with me. It was hard to watch, especially knowing I was the reason she had to go through such torment.”
Jerome promised to make it up to her. Layla had truly helped him back then. He wasn’t sure he would’ve been able to get back on his feet on his own. He took a breath and cleared his head.
“This is a whole arsenal on a ring, Jerome.” Nyx looked up from her ring. “Thank you.”
She meant it. But he knew she didn’t need the ring. Still, it was good she was appreciative. Maybe she was taking steps to change. Nyx had a lot of ego, which would make their relationship tumultuous. If she wanted to work with him, she would have to let go of that ego.
Your black flame is an ascended element, right? He asked and she nodded. Jerome thought about Noir’s black flame. That too must be an ascended element. Why else could it have such significance throughout history? That must be why there was constant war in Pathuma.
“Do you see the clear crystals scattered in between the others I just mentioned?” They all nodded. “That’s quartz. Amethyst is a colored quartz itself. The quartz will create a balance in the usage of the different energies of the other gemstones — it’s a harmonizer and stabilizer.”
“So we don’t end up destroying our rings?” Csala asked.
“Or worse,” Jerome said. “Losing your fingers. It would also help us communicate with one another.”
“Only one rock can do all that?” Sheela asked.
“Some artificers call it the ‘Universal Crystal’,” Jerome said with a shrug. “I guess the name makes sense now.”
“What will the communication be like?” Nyx asked. “Vocal or…?”
“Vocal,” Jerome said. “Unfortunately I’m not yet skilled enough to craft mental transmission runes. There are a lot of things which could go wrong with that.”
Everyone nodded gravely in understanding — even Nyx. The mind was not something just anyone could tinker with.
“Jerome?” Ms. Tara said, drawing his attention. “I tried scanning the ring but something’s blocking me out.”
“That’s the binding.” He had used the many microprocessors Achilleia had created when they were in Sanctum to form the bindings of the rings. He still had a lot left though. “You would have to bond with the rings because they are effectively artifacts.” Computational artifacts, he thought to himself with a smile.
Everyone poked their fingers and touched a drop of blood to the ring. They watched as the blood spread unnaturally around the crevices in between gemstones in the ring. The gemstones lit up brilliantly, absorbing a fraction of the blood that passed by in a mesmerizing display of colors. After the blood completed a revolution around the ring, it was absorbed into it, completing the bond. They did the same with the remaining two as well.
“That was mesmerizing to watch,” Sheela said, shaking off the feeling.
“It’s one of the effects of having so many different gemstones work together. It creates an out-of-world sensation,” Jerome explained. He had felt it so many times when he was working with the gems that he was effectively numb to the sensation already.
They all thanked him for the rings — Csala and Sheela really thanked him. Ms. Tara had to drag Sheela out to go watch the light show of the Alignment — not that it was starting anytime soon. Jerome held Csala back to speak to her privately as they all left.
“I told you I would find a way to help you wield essence, right?” He set her down in his lap. Csala immediately started to grind against his bulge with her glorious derriere.
“You were able to do it?” she asked.
“Well, it’s not a permanent solution. That will happen when I rename you.”
He held up a set of waist chains for her to see — six of them. There were quartz crystals interspersed in the links of the chains. “Quartz is also a very good medium for channeling different energies. With these, you can act the part of a sacred artist. Have you ever thought about what element or force you’d like to wield if you could?”
“A lot,” she said. “I’d like to wield everything. But maybe I should start with…”
“Pure essence,” Jerome chose for her. “It’s unique. At least you can get a feel for essence with it before you use the rings. And it’s not as easily detectable as attributed essence — at least to the less experienced.”
“Really?” she asked, voice filled with surprise.
“Hm-hm.” He nodded.
“Why waist chains, though?”
Jerome chuckled and whispered into her ear. “Because I want to see you wear them; to appreciate them when I peel all that clothing off of you.”
Csala giggled. “I’ll go put them on. But first…” She turned around in his lap so she was facing him, pushing her large bust against his chest. Jerome wrapped his hand around her supple waist. “You didn’t ask if I’d like to go with you to your world. Did you think I would just follow you?”
Her angry demeanor wasn’t fooling anyone. He smiled at her. “I guess I should have asked. Sorry about that. But I didn’t expect you would just follow. I don’t own you Csala. You can come if you want to.”
She snorted — very unlady-like — making him laugh. “Of course, I’m coming. Who’s going to give you mind-blowing sex to keep you satisfied?”
“Speaking of sex.” He looked behind her to check if any one was coming in. When his eyes met hers, the hunger he saw in them mirrored his own.
Csala kissed him passionately before standing up and racing out of the dome. “I’ll go put these on,” she called out as she left.
“You can put them on here,” Jerome insisted, the caveman part of his brain trying to keep her here.
“Where’s the fun in that?” her voice reached him psychically.
Jerome chuckled at her antics, anticipating a lovely time before he left Terra Praeta.
But it was not meant to be.
Essence spiked in the air and the void world sucked up all the ambient essence around him. Jerome rushed out of the dome to see the sky turn dark. Something eclipsed the sun and partial darkness enveloped them all. Then the Northern lights appeared, a beautiful aurora that stretched on for miles. It was as if the barrier of the void world was erased and the rest of the world became visible from their point of view.
Everyone rushed out of their tents and started packing up. Sheela and Ms. Tara quickly began to dismantle their tent. With a wave of his hand, Jerome made the domed barrier invisible to the naked eye.
“I guess we won’t be having fun yet, will we?” Csala asked as she came up to him in her overcoat. She flashed him, revealing a skimpy red outfit that made his mouth water.
Jerome sighed. “Maybe next time.”
Csala walked away to go change again.
Achilleia, Jerome called out. What’s happening? The Alignment shouldn’t be for another six hours…
“This is the Sovereign’s doing, Xerae. He probably doesn’t want to give Alvric more time to change things.
Very well then.