Chapter 10: Explanations
The old bishop, his face etched with lines of age and wisdom, remained contemplative, absorbing the gravity of Naomi's confession. The silence in the cell was palpable, broken only by the soft rustling of straw under the bishop as he leaned against the cell wall.
"You… made a deal with her?" he finally inquired; his voice steady yet laden with concern. His gaze, piercing and intent, fixed on Naomi. "And what, pray tell, was your end of this bargain?"
Naomi felt a lump in her throat, the weight of her decision pressing down on her. She met the bishop's gaze, her voice trembling slightly. "She… told me…" she started, but hesitated, the words struggling to find their way out.
"Answer him," Baas growled, his towering form casting a looming shadow from the dungeon's torchlight.
The bishop's hand raised in a quieting gesture towards Baas, who reluctantly sat back down, his imposing presence receding slightly.
Naomi continued, her voice firmer now. "She told me that when she calls, I must answer and do her bidding. I don't know all that it entails, but if I don't comply, I'll lose control. I'll be consumed by a never-ending urge to... to go on a murder spree," she confessed, the fear in her voice palpable.
Captain Ambrosia visibly recoiled, as if the words themselves were a physical blow. Her hand unconsciously tightened around the hilt of her war hammer.
“How will she ‘call’ for you?” the bishop asked, eyebrows raised.
“She spoke to me again after I agreed to a contract with her. Her voice was in my mind, spoke to me as clearly as we are speaking now. She said that she wouldn’t invade my thoughts now that we are in a contract together, but I don’t know how honest she really is.” Naomi glanced at the floor, the memory of the whispered voice of the demon clear in her mind as she thought about it.
“Has she contacted you since you have been in our care?” the bishop asked.
“No.” Naomi’s eyes stared back, confidence blooming in her chest. “She hasn’t contacted me at all, but again, it seems like she will have the ability to at any time.”
He nodded at her answer. A smile started to appear on his wrinkled face. “I told you that I would answer any questions you had once I was satisfied with your answers, we have reached that point. Please, ask away.” He gestured an open hand for her to begin.
That’s it? I thought there would at least be some sort of good-cop, bad-cop situation with this interrogation…
“You keep talking about the ‘gate’ like I’m supposed to understand it. I mean, I went through it with the trolls and a few others, but what is it and why did it appear in my world?”
“The gate is a naturally occurring phenomenon in our world. Your planet must have been selected for the next iteration of its appearance. It opens in various worlds once every couple hundred years, bringing new species through it into our world.” He spread his arms into an open gesture. “Each of us, Elves, Dragonborn, Dwarves, and others are descendants from those who came through the gate before us. We all made a home here in Lias and have made steady progress in forging alliances with each other for the greater good.” He lowered his hands and glanced at Baas and Ambrosia.
“I am a bishop of the Church of Celestials. The church is a coalition effort of several races that came through the gate that work together for the safety and betterment of the world. They –“ He gestured towards the two warriors “are Hunters. The elite specialists dedicated to hunting down dangerous monsters that pose a risk to specific regions of the world. In Captain Ambrosia and Baas’ case, they are troll hunters. The troll-woods border our branch of the Church, and when the gate appeared we saw an opportunity to both start contact with a new gate species and make a decisive blow against the trolls. Which is where you were found and brought back here with the rest of your fellow ‘human’ captives. ”
Naomi thought back to the violent scene she found herself in back in the troll village, remembering seeing the various warriors at the border of the troll village briefly before moving on to kill the troll elder.
“I understand some of these things that I’ve been able to do, but don’t fully understand how or why they are even possible. In my world, there are references to worlds where people have magic powers and fantasy creatures like dragons and such, but none of it was based on reality. We don’t have powers or trolls, just humans and animals.”
“As is the case with the rest of our species.” He placed his hand on his chest. “Elves came from a world filled with dense forests and deep lakes to roam and hunt in. We were proficient woodsmen and women, but the gate opened, and we came into Lias just as confused as you are right now.” He clasped his hands in his lap while explaining.
“Lias is a world where different species all have access to the same source of energy that produces these powers: mana. Eventually, over time, we absorb the ambient mana of the world and begin producing offspring that are given birth classes. These classes are exactly what they sound like, an assigned class to an individual that gives them a natural affinity with the skills associated with that class. For instance, ‘Mage’ is a general caster class that many are assigned. Baas over there is one such example. He has trained in the arcane arts that magi study to produce several types of spells and incantations, but he chose to focus his efforts and schooling into fire magic. Once he spent enough time honing and developing his skills with that school of magic, he eventually was given a new class of “Fire Mage”.
Naomi looked over at the Dragonborn outside of the cell, thinking of how much more dangerous he is now knowing that he can hurl fireballs at her instead of just crushing her like a twig beneath his clawed feet.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“Have you seen your skill screen yet? It should be a translucent window that should only be visible to you.”
Naomi remembered the screen that came into her vision after she passed through the gate. She tried to will it into existence and noticed the bishop starting to laugh at her concentration.
“Try to think of those words when you want to bring it up. We found that despite our differences, each species that has a class is more easily able to summon the skill screen by just thinking those words.”
She did as he said, and the screen came to life in her vision.
Name: Naomi Salazar
Class: Shadowmancer
Birth Class: Priest
HP: 200/200
Mana: 42/100
Stamina: 100/100
Level: 1
Available Abilities: 4
Ability: Healing Touch:
You have a connection to all things holy. Physical contact with an ally will heal them if the connection is uninterrupted or until you are out of mana. Current cost: 5 mana/second .
Ability: Holy Arc:
The forces of light lend you their power. Cast an arc of light to burn through your enemies and heal your allies.
Cost: 15 mana/cast
Ability: Dark Immolate:
Unleash shadow flames that burn your enemy with dark energy. The flames are inextinguishable by normal means and inflict continuous damage.
Cost: 25 mana/cast
Ability: Eldritch Tendril:
Conjure a shadowy tendril to ensnare and drain mana from your enemy. You can throw or strike the ensnared enemy with the tendril.
Cost: 5 mana/second
A blinking icon in the shape of an exclamation point caught her attention in the corner of her peripheral vision. She focused on the icon and mentally acknowledged it.
You have defeated:
Tallow – Troll: Level 16
Experience: 120
Elder Rein – Troll: Level 24
Experience: 350
Ding! Congratulations, you have reached level 2.
4 new skill points added. If no points are assigned within 48 hours, they will be randomly assigned.
Name: Naomi Salazar
Class: Shadowmancer
Birth Class: Priest
HP: 200/200
Mana: 42/100
Stamina: 100/100
Level: 2
Available Abilities: 4
Unspent Skill Points: 4
Ability: Healing Touch:
You have a connection to all things holy. Physical contact with an ally will heal them if the connection is uninterrupted or until you are out of mana. Current cost: 5 mana/second .
Ability: Holy Arc:
The forces of light lend you their power. Cast an arc of light to burn through your enemies and heal your allies.
Cost: 15 mana/cast
Ability: Dark Immolate:
Unleash shadow flames that burn your enemy with dark energy. The flames are inextinguishable by normal means and inflict continuous damage.
Cost: 25 mana/cast
Ability: Eldritch Tendril:
Conjure a shadowy tendril to ensnare and drain mana from your enemy. You can throw or strike the ensnared enemy with the tendril.
Cost: 5 mana/second
Naomi blinked at the notifications; confusion mixed with a sense of accomplishment beginning to creep into her mind.
“What does it say?” The bishop asked, snapping her back into reality.
She went over the notifications and the class information that the screen made available.
The bishop’s face started to morph into a concerned expression when she read the Shadowmancer class, his eyes beginning to narrow while she listed the abilities associated with the class.
“Two classes…So it is true then, the light has gifted a new gate species with their blessings.”
The bishop closed his eyes for a moment, processing the information. When he opened them again, his decision was made. "It is unwise to alarm the populace with the potential return of demons. Captain, I place her in your care. She might be new to this world, but she clearly has the ability to cause immense harm. The least we can do is aim that potential at a common enemy."
Ambrosia hesitated, the uncertainty clear in her eyes. "But, Your Holiness, the risk—"
"We cannot ignore her potential, nor can we dismiss the dangers," the bishop interrupted calmly. "We must guide her, understand her abilities, and ensure she remains under control." He stood as he spoke, knees cracking at the motion.
“While yes, she has been lured into a contract by a demon, she has also been blessed with a class from the Light. The Celestials clearly had some kind of involvement with her abilities manifesting so soon after entering our world. Should new information develop during her time with us that proves otherwise, we will be prepared to react. It’s better for us to have a demon-connected caster within our care and under our watch. Should she go on a rampage, then I imagine the two of you at the very least are capable of putting her down, let alone the entire brigade of soldiers and Hunters we have stationed here.”
Naomi listened, a mix of relief and anxiety churning within her. The idea of being unbound and free once again seemed like such a foreign concept after everything she had endured so far in the world.
The bishop faced Naomi once again, warmth returning in his eyes. “You are safe here, my dear. No one will harm you, outside of training that is, and we will do what we can to make this transition as easy as possible. The Church has had quite some time to develop a proper orientation to new gate species, and we will make sure that you are with the others of your kind that have been recovered from the trolls.”
I almost forgot about them. The guilt of being selfishly concerned with her own well being made Naomi blush with embarrassment. She remembered the blonde girl who was dead by the time she could do anything to defend herself from the trolls. At least she was at peace now, instead of in this confusing and complicated mess of a situation.
“If you are willing, we can help hone your abilities to prepare you for the world of Lias. The Lodge trains adventurers with new classes so that they can become stronger and serve a common cause of defending the innocent. While there are several different sapient species that are included within the Church, there are even more monsters out in the world besides trolls. We are the shield that defends the innocent from those monsters.”
“Like demons?” Naomi asked, catching the bishop off guard.
He remained silent for a dozen heartbeats, then finally responded. “At one point, yes. We did purge the world of demons, but they have been gone for over a century now. Ambrosia can give you more details into them if you wish to dig up old histories.”
Ambrosia nodded, accepting the bishop's directive. "Very well, Your Holiness." She kneeled in front of Naomi and unlocked her cuffs. The metal clang of the shackles hitting the cell floor resonated for a moment, as if to punctuate her newfound freedom. Ambrosia offered a hand to Naomi, the action not matching the suspicious look in her eyes as she waited for Naomi to respond.
Naomi blinked, then reached out to accept the gesture.