> System Standard Medical Database v2760
>
> Ankn
>
> Bodyplan: Short Trunk¹
>
> Biochemistry: Type K²
>
> An endothermic desmophage originating in ITR17260. Type CTR molecularity and Type K accommodative biochemistry. Severe contraindications for ELAR molecularity substances and Type J biochemistry byproducts.
>
> ¹ When attaining adulthood or when recovering from the evacuation stage, the Ankn may develop the exterior properties of another body type.
>
> ² A unique digestive anatomy allows the Ankn to consume biochemistry B-C, E & K compatible nutrition and biomass, disregarding standard incompatibilities.
Miles squeezed another lump of the food paste into the scout’s mouth. She held the food in her mouth for a second then violently mushed it between her jaws, disappearing it with a swallowing sound.
He and the others had been taking turns feeding the recovering Ankn twice an hour for the last six hours, only getting broken sleep and quickly going through their compatible rations. He was lucky he'd remembered the directory of species available on the Exchange, and even luckier that his and Trin's meal packs were something she could eat.
Trin had spent an hour searching the Exchange and sending messages to try and find somewhere the Ankn could be placed for proper care, but even the cheapest option was something like ninety seln per night. Not something they could afford.
Their choice was between caring for the scout themselves, or leaving her to die. Not really a choice at all. Miles didn't even resent it. She'd been abandoned by Brisk and the crew of the Starlit Kipper. In another world, this could have been any one of them.
Miles rolled his fingers up the food packet, squeezing out the last of the paste. He tried to feed it to the scout, but she'd closed her mouth. He dropped the pack in the pile of empties that was building up on the floor.
She'd sleep for thirty minutes or so, then she'd grow the limbs she'd been exuding a little bit more, then she'd wake up and politely ask for more food.
Over on the bed, Trin was sleeping. He'd been waking up frequently during the night, doing what was needed, then falling instantly back asleep. Apparently, that was possible for an Eppan. Not so much for Miles.
He stared for a minute at the empty spot on the bed, his extremely cozy sleeping bag sprawled over the bed and floor. He didn't think he'd be able to get back to sleep that night.
Outside the window, the light was changing. The star that provided Ialis with illumination was cresting the horizon, turning the sky into a half-silvered plane that didn't completely hide the other stars of the spiral.
Torg was out there somewhere. The lancer had left in the night. Miles thought he'd gone to replenish their Bio-C food supplies, but he wasn't sure. He'd taken their little guide drone and flown off to somewhere else in the city.
As Miles watched, the silvery light of Ialis' star crept up, catching the towers of Dendril City at a low angle and casting sharp shadows that stretched out for miles across the mossy landscape.
Flying platform activity had already ticked up over the last few minutes, and Miles passed the time watching the diversity of people drifting by in the morning drizzle.
He wasn't getting back to sleep.
His index was nearby, lying on the hard foam tiles next to him, and he picked it up for the third time that night.
Name: Miles Asher | Traditions: Harmonizer | Index Value: δ#1,2#0##
Fundamental Properties:
Strength (0)
Durability (1)
Speed (0)
Reactions (0)
Will (0)
Authority (1)
Spells
Close Wound (Grasping)
A weft of harmonizing energy brings together the free edges of a tear, sealing the join in materials which are co-bondable, such as cellular membranes, metal compounds, woven fabrics, and homogenous molecular surfaces.
Temporary Enhancement (Grasping)
A temporary matrix of harmonizing energy alters one of a being’s fundamental properties by an amount in accordance with the weaver’s authority.
Hasten Renewal (Grasping)
A weft of harmonizing energy spreads from the weaver to their target, greatly speeding the being’s natural recovery by an amount multiplicative with the weaver’s authority.
Core Effects
Eyes of the Emigre
Embeds a matrix of harmonizing energy within the being’s mind which will reveal to them the meaning of any plain text or spoken language.
Eyes of the Altruist
Embeds a matrix of harmonizing energy within the being’s mind which reveal to them the health and ailments of a witnessed being.
This far from the crystal hidden in his backpack, the spells of the Kipper's old grenadier weren't showing up. The only things listed were those that were already integral to him.
His spells had served him well so far, the specialized Close Wound and the general, if taxing, Hasten Renewal.
His main problem so far had been exhausting himself using his magic. Bringing just one person back from life-threatening internal injuries had spent all of his magic, to the point that even his ongoing translation spell had failed. If he'd been a tech specialist, breaking one of his tools wouldn't automatically rob him of his others, but as a mage, at least as a harmonizer, all of his magic drank from the same well.
He wasn't even really sure what really fuelled them. Whatever it was, losing it left him weak, light, and fragile, but he didn't necessarily know how to increase it.
He switched his index to browse the available changes he could make to his Fundamental Properties.
Fundamental Properties — Alterations
Strength +1 [δ50]
Strengthens and reinforces contractile, pneumatic, hydraulic, magnetic, and somatic activator tissues in the mage’s body with weaves of harmonizing energy, resulting in increased strength.
Durability +1 [δ75]
Weaves of harmonizing energy implant biosomatic matrices within the mage’s tissues, strengthening them against temperature and chemical degradation, unwanted compression, and tearing.
Speed +1 [δ50]
A weft of harmonizing energy alters the mage’s body, supplementing frequently-used processing pathways with harmonic resonances and activator tissues with biosomatic matrices.
Reactions +1 [δ50]
A weft of harmonizing energy alters the mage’s mind, supplementing frequently-used processing pathways with harmonic resonances.
Will +1 [δ50]
Reinforces the information-processing tissues in the mage’s body with a persistent weave of harmonizing energy, insulating thought processes from extremes of external stimuli.
Authority +1 [δ75]
Deepens the mage’s connection to Harmonic Truth, increasing their ability to impose their harmonious will upon the world.
When he'd been given his index, he'd asked for augmentation to his Durability and Authority.
While the other refugees were spending their orientation stipend on rebreathers and radiation scrubbing wristbands, he'd needed something else that would help him deal with potential environmental dangers in the weave, so he'd chosen a point of Durability. It would help him be more comfortable in extremes of temperature or inhospitable atmospheres, as well as make him slightly physically tougher. He didn't regret that choice.
Will was supposedly important for mages, but Authority was absolutely essential. His second selection had been a point of Authority.
Was Authority what he needed more of, to increase his magical stamina? From the description of his spells, it would increase their effectiveness, and if that wasn’t the way to increase the pool of power they drew on, he didn’t know what would.
Improving his Durability or Authority was already more expensive than the other properties, presumably because those were the ones he’d already augmented. Nobody had told him explicitly, but he assumed the price would grow higher the higher he went. It made sense to him when he’d found out. The more the change was deviating from his normal biology, the more extensive it was, and the more power, or effort, or something it took the index to achieve it.
With two hundred and fifty delta, he could afford quite a lot of improvements to his fundamental properties, but he also wanted to review his spell choices.
Spells — Alterations
+Dance of Harmony [δ150]
A weft of harmonizing energy takes up residence in the weaver, spreading out into their surroundings. Visible beings of the weaver’s choice will gain the aspect of harmony while the spell is maintained, increasing their precision and reactions by an amount proportional to the weaver’s authority.
+Strings of Discord [δ125]
A weft of harmonizing energy reaches out to touch discordant presences nearby, revealing their presence and authority to the weaver.
+Strike the Disharmonious [δ175]
With a weft of harmonizing energy, the weaver rips the authority from a disharmonious target, degrading its existence and claiming the confiscated authority for themself. While held ready, discordant presences will ring loudly in the weaver’s awareness.
+Purify [δ125]
A temporary weave of harmonizing energy takes up residence in the target, degrading objects and substances inimical to the target’s existence over time.
Core Effect — Alterations
+Stance of Authority [δ150]
The weaver's existence is more deeply tied to the ancient tradition of the harmonizers, giving them an instinctive understanding of harmony and discord. Their authority will grow in line with their dignity and the harmony of their existence.
+Ears of the Diplomat [δ250]
Words spoken in falsehood will ring the gong of truth. A persistent weave of harmonizing energy will alert the weaver to spoken deceptions, piercing guile to an extent related to the weaver's authority.
This list was limited to spells he could currently afford, but even this subset of the full harmonizer list was a lot to process.
He tried to make sense of them by categorizing them by their purpose.
Dance of Harmony was a support spell, which would help improve the performance of his team — or himself, he guessed.
Strings of Discord was a sensory spell, though its usefulness would depend entirely on what a discordant presence was. Miles had no idea.
Strike the Disharmonious looked like a direct attack spell, a rarity among Harmonizer spells as far as Miles could tell. It didn't seem universally applicable in the same way that his striker pistol was, only applying to 'disharmonious' targets. Miles didn't know what those were. Was Trin a disharmonious being? Absolutely. Apparently, the spell would tell him after casting it either way.
Purify was a healing spell for dealing with poisons, maybe even infections and foreign objects, too. Healing was his main role, so it seemed like the obvious choice.
Except Stance of Authority seemed to offer a way to increase his Authority, which would improve all of his existing spells. If only he knew what it meant by his 'dignity' and the 'harmony of his existence'. Even when tamed by the tech of the index, magic could be a little arbitrary. Following the rules of the Stance could mean anything from cutting out red meat to swearing his soul to some culture's deity.
Ears of the Diplomat seemed like a straightforward piece of utility magic. Not obviously helpful for his current role, but attractive given that he might be dealing with potentially dishonest scavengers soon.
Taking them all in, Purify seemed like the obvious choice among the available spells, but Miles wanted to make the smart choice. He just didn't have enough information to see it.
He needed a real teacher.
He briefly thought about the bookstore he'd wandered into and its vehement proprietor, but he hadn't sensed the whir of a magical core in them in the way he had the merchant on Delatariel Station, and he wasn't keen on speaking to them again if he could avoid it. He thought about messaging Consul-general They-who-read-deeply, but they probably had more important things to do.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
Maybe he'd ask Bandy when the drone came back with Torg. They-who-fly-with-abandon hadn't blanked on any question they'd asked about the city so far, so it seemed a good bet to find somewhere he could get magical instruction.
***
"I have no idea where you can find a mage advisor," Bandy said, bobbing in the middle of the small apartment.
"What about a mage shop?" Miles asked. He was thinking about the mage peddler on Delatariel Station. Dendril City must have an equivalent, even if it was just one vendor with a stall.
"I'm connected to the Dendril City database, but mage establishments are reluctant to be listed. I think that they value their exclusivity more than discoverability," the drone said.
"So how do people find them, just walk around the city until they get lucky?"
"I don't have any information on that."
Miles looked away and sank onto the bed. It was barely past dawn and he'd been awake for hours already. He was tired, and this felt like frustration on top of frustration.
Torg was standing quietly next to the door. He’d been out on a shopping trip, coming back with a plastic keg of Biochemistry C food paste. It was transparent and tasteless, but apparently cheap. A label on the side warned that it was ‘not a complete food’.
The injured Ankn was sitting nearby on the ground, satisfied for now. She was in the process of growing three pairs of limbs, thumb-thick articulated rods that emerged from the sides of her body, giving her a beetle-like appearance. An elongated half-cylinder of chitin had started pushing outwards around her mouth; the beginnings of a head. It was like she was re-growing her body from scratch.
“Are there any city information services?” Miles asked the drone. “Guides?”
“There are several sapients offering their services as guides in the city listings," the drone confirmed. "The cheapest charges one hundred and sixteen standard exchange notes per day.”
Miles walked to the window, staring out at the passing traffic.
He could do this. He’d spent months stewing on Unsiel Station. This was still his chance. Maybe he should make the obvious choice now, and count on getting better advice later. Or should he take a chance now, and live with the cost if he picked something useless?
Click-tick. ‘Contract,’ Torg clicked into the silence.
Miles turned to look at him.
“Contract?” he asked.
For the first time, Miles noticed Torg was holding something. A small black metal oval, with depressions on one side and a round screen on the other. A comm?
Click-tock. ‘Contract. Service.’
He held out the comm.
Miles took it and looked down at the screen. It took almost a minute for his Eyes of the Emigre to translate the spiral of radial text on the screen, but when it came through he thought there might have been a mistranslation.
> Lestiel > Torg
> As we discussed, you and your team are no doubt insufficient as guides and escorts, but your presence will be a mere technicality. The irritating straps of legislation on this world bind the hands and legs of even one such as myself, stretching me into painful positions I would not ordinarily take. Once we are inside, can I count on you to stay out of my way?
> Torg > Lestiel
> Yes.
> Lestiel > Torg
>
> Excellent. Please remember from our discussion, I will allow the consuls of the entrance facility to peer at my secrets, they are fellow immortals after all and I can count on their taste and respect for my privacy, but no one else. I trust that I can also count on your discretion?
> Torg > Lestiel
> Yes.
> Lestiel > Torg
> Very good. Now we move onto the thorny discussion of price. Clearly, you will be providing me with an inferior service, if any service at all, and I believe that the matter of remuneration should reflect that. The pure does not indulge the cur, as they say. You will be satisfied with five hundred seln, paid jointly to your group.
> Torg > Lestiel
> Yes.
> Lestiel > Torg
> Then it is an agreement. I will send you my standard contract. Be sure to sign it immediately with no alterations. I will expect to be given prompt and effusive service.
“You got us a job?” Miles asked, disbelieving.
He hadn’t heard Torg string more than two words together since they’d met, but somehow he’d wrangled them a contract in the time it took to go out for paste. He wanted to ask ‘How?’ but thought that might be insulting.
“When is it for?” he asked.
Torg took the comm back and changed screens, passing it back.
Now it showed a written contract, offering their group's services as healer, scout, and lancer, on a dive into the first level of the dungeon. The time was set for that night, about nine hours away. Their fee would be five-hundred seln, payable on a successful exit.
“Torg, this is amazing,” Miles said. He clasped the giant crustacean’s forelimbs. “You did it. You got us a job.”
The client didn’t sound great, but it also sounded like they thought they could handle themselves. Together, they weren’t exactly experienced as a scavenger team, so Miles didn’t feel too stung by the criticism the client was throwing around in their messages.
On the bed, Trin stirred awake, roused by the noise. He looked up, head flaps askew and covering one eye.
“What happen?”
“Torg got us a job,” Miles said.
Trin was instantly awake, sitting up, eyes clear.
“Oh?”
Miles handed Trin the comm, letting him read the contract.
“Torg! I knew you were big sweet talker,” Trin said, clapping Torg with a pair of mid-paws and handing the device back to him.
There was only one downside for Miles. He didn’t want to start a dive with unused delta burning a hole in his pocket. He wouldn’t have an experienced scavenger with him this time, and he needed every advantage he could get. That meant he didn’t have time to wait and agonize over his choice of index upgrade.
“When is dive?” Trin asked. He’d seen the contract, but obviously hadn’t read it properly.
“Tonight. Nine hours from now,” Miles said.
Trin jumped off the bed. “I have to get ready.”
Miles felt the same way. He sat on the bed and pulled out his index, flipping to the complete list of upgrades.
Fundamental Properties — Alterations
Strength +1 [δ50]
Strengthens and reinforces contractile, pneumatic, hydraulic, magnetic, and somatic activator tissues in the mage’s body with weaves of harmonizing energy, resulting in increased strength.
Durability +1 [δ75]
Weaves of harmonizing energy implant biosomatic matrices within the mage’s tissues, strengthening them against temperature and chemical degradation, unwanted compression, and tearing.
Speed +1 [δ50]
A weft of harmonizing energy alters the mage’s body, supplementing frequently-used processing pathways with harmonic resonances and activator tissues with biosomatic matrices.
Reactions +1 [δ50]
A weft of harmonizing energy alters the mage’s mind, supplementing frequently-used processing pathways with harmonic resonances.
Will +1 [δ50]
Reinforces information-processing tissues in the mage’s body with a weave of harmonizing energy, insulating thought processes from extremes of external stimuli.
Authority +1 [δ75]
Deepens the mage’s connection to Harmonic Truth, increasing their ability to impose their harmonious will upon the world.
Spells — Alterations
+Dance of Harmony [δ150]
A weft of harmonizing energy takes up residence in the weaver, spreading out into their surroundings. Visible beings of the weaver’s choice will gain the aspect of harmony while the spell is maintained, increasing their precision and reactions by an amount proportional to the weaver’s authority.
+Strings of Discord [δ125]
A weft of harmonizing energy reaches out to touch discordant presences nearby, revealing their presence and authority to the weaver.
+Strike the Disharmonious [δ175]
With a weft of harmonizing energy, the weaver rips the authority from a disharmonious target, degrading its existence and claiming the confiscated authority for themself. While held ready, discordant presences will ring loudly in the weaver’s awareness.
+Purify [δ125]
A temporary weave of harmonizing energy takes up residence in the target, degrading objects and substances inimical to the target’s existence over time.
Core Effect — Alterations
+Stance of Authority [δ150]
The weaver's existence is more deeply tied to the ancient tradition of the harmonizers, giving them an instinctive understanding of harmony and discord. Their authority will grow in line with their dignity and the harmony of their existence.
+Ears of the Diplomat [δ250]
Words spoken in falsehood will ring the gong of truth. A persistent weave of harmonizing energy will alert the weaver to spoken deceptions, piercing guile to an extent related to the weaver's authority.
Safe and obvious, or take a gamble on an unknown?
He chose a combination of both.
He selected to increase his Authority at a cost of 75 delta, then with the remaining 175 selected Strike the Disharmonious.
One was a sure thing, a guaranteed increase to the power of his healing spells, and possibly also an increase to his magical endurance. The other was a gamble, potentially offering a new magical attack, but definitely giving him more insight on what harmony and discord were.
The index asked for payment and he tapped it to his comm, watching as the delta vanished from the Exchange-linked device. His index froze for a moment, and then the purchase went through.
He felt it when the index started working.
Spinning. A marble of electrical heat somewhere outside his body rotating at increasing speeds.
He’d felt this before, in the market on Delatariel Station, but this time the feeling was centered on the index, as if the device itself was casting a spell.
A wire of hot energy flickered invisibly across Miles’ body, from his head to his feet, then whipped back to a point somewhere in his abdomen. It concentrated there, Miles feeling his own magical core grow warm and starting to spin in sympathy. It continued for a minute, then the feeling faded.
Did it work?
He checked his index.
Name: Miles Asher | Traditions: Harmonizer | Index Value: δ1,#50
Fundamental Properties:
Strength (0)
Durability (1)
Speed (0)
Reactions (0)
Will (0)
Authority (2)
Spells
Close Wound (Grasping)
A weft of harmonizing energy brings together the free edges of a tear, sealing the join in materials which are co-bondable, such as cellular membranes, metal compounds, woven fabrics, and homogenous molecular surfaces.
Temporary Enhancement (Grasping)
A temporary matrix of harmonizing energy alters one of a being’s fundamental properties by an amount in accordance with the weaver’s authority.
Hasten Renewal (Grasping)
A weft of harmonizing energy spreads from the weaver to their target, greatly speeding the being’s natural recovery by an amount multiplicative with the weaver’s authority.
Strike the Disharmonious (Tentative)
With a weft of harmonizing energy, the weaver rips the authority from a disharmonious target, degrading its existence and claiming the confiscated authority for themself. While held ready, discordant presences will ring loudly in the weaver’s awareness.
Core Effects
Eyes of the Emigre
Embeds a matrix of harmonizing energy within the being’s mind which will reveal to them the meaning of any plain text or spoken language.
Eyes of the Altruist
Embeds a matrix of harmonizing energy within the being’s mind which reveal to them the health and ailments of a witnessed being.
His authority had increased, and he now possessed Strike the Disharmonious. He didn’t feel any different.
He tapped the new spell on his index. He felt his magical core spin up, sending a buzzing wire of hot energy up through his body, then down his arm to his hand. It coalesced on his fingers and palm. His hand prickled with the desire to grab something.
Unlike his other spells, this one didn’t come with a litany. There was no stream of words placed into his mind by the alien magic. Instead, a ringing sound filled his ears; a pure tone, like the unending peal of a struck bell.
Miles looked around the room, hoping that something would jump out at him as ‘discordant’. Nothing seemed to stand out.
Trin was getting ready, throwing things into his bag. He’d already put on his hard synth fiber cap, which was maybe a little premature. They weren’t going for hours.
Not disharmonious, Miles thought, still hearing the clear note as he watched the Eppan prepare.
As Miles watched, Trin reached under the plastic mattress and pulled out his new gun.
Instantly something about the weapon jarred in Miles’ awareness. The note soured. An ugly vibration crept into sound, seemingly originating at the device Trin was stuffing into his bag.
The gun was disharmonious.
It was an alien thought, not one that had originated in Miles' opinions or experience. He tried following it back to its source, but only got vague images. He might be able to tease apart what his tradition meant by harmony and discord if he had more examples to look at, but right then he was only getting rough notions of complexity and ugliness.
He felt like he could grab at the air and pull something from the weapon, even feeling the urge to do so, but Trin finished packing the gun away and the sour note faded from the air.
Miles let the spell fade without using it.
None of the others had reacted as if they’d heard the note, so Miles assumed it was completely internal to him and the spell.
While Trin was packing, the injured scout seemed to wake up and started asking for food again. Trin abandoned his bag and bounced off the bed, grabbing the new keg of food paste.
Miles stood up and followed him.
Miles still had nine hours until he needed to be at his best, and the injured scout was still healing, if regenerating body parts counted as healing.
He had time to rest, and the opportunity to use his healing spells. It was time to see how much his increased authority helped his magical endurance.