The new routine was working out pretty well and gave Hazel plenty of time to practice her magic. Eager to impress her father, she had been working with her [Spellweaver] ability trying create the flamethrower style spell he had asked for. She’d already spent her magic training and her free time for the last two days working on it and learned quite a bit about the ability and how to use it to manipulate a spell. It didn’t take her long to get the basics of what she wanted, she had that one the first day. But she continued to modify the spell and tweak it. Can’t have it expanding too quickly or it would burn those standing next to her. No explosion, that takes too much mana. Just slight modifications, stepping closer to what she had envisioned. On the fourth day, shortly after starting magic practice, she finally got it. Everything about the spell was how she wanted it. She continued to cast it until she ran out of mana. Then she’d meditate for a bit and start over. As she started her third round of casting, she received a notification:
[Congratulations. You’ve created a spell. Would you like to name it?]
Hazel let out a whoop and mentally selected [Yes] and named the spell.
[Hazel’s Flamethrower has been created and added to your spell list.]
With a huge grin, she activated her new spell for the first time and sprayed fire from her hand. She moved her hand around to direct the fire and continued to cast until she was nearly out of mana. As she sat down to meditate she thought to herself, “Now that it’s an official spell, it only cost me half as much mana as before.”
Hazel sat on the ground and started meditating, quite pleased with herself for creating her first spell. As she meditated she thought about what other spells she could create. “Maybe I could create a wall of fire to keep enemies from getting to me? Or a flare to blind everyone?” Eventually her mana refilled and she stopped meditating and stood, looking around the practice area she’d been given and seeing scorch marks on the ground. One spot that have been hit a few times with fire almost looked like it had a design in it. “Wait… could I draw with fire? What if I made the fire compact, like a laser? After thinking about it for a moment she decided that creating a wall of fire spell would be a better use of her time.
As she had worked on her flamethrower spell, Hazel had learned quite a bit about the element of fire. Nothing she could write down, but just how it felt and how to manipulate it. Using that new knowledge, she was able to quickly modify the flamethrower spell to create a twenty foot line of fire with flames reaching ten feet into the air. Once she had it how she wanted, Hazel settled into the lather, rinse, repeat motions of cast until out of mana, meditate until full, repeat. This time it only took two full mana pools before she got the prompt and named her new spell.
[Hazel’s Wall of Fire has been created and added to your spell list.]
Two spells in one day, if you ignore the previous three days of practice, which Hazel did. She headed back toward the inn, eager to share her success with her family.
⚷
Arden dropped from the limb, landing as softly as he could behind Ewan and Twix. He knew from the twitch of her ears that Twix had heard him but she wouldn’t give him away. It took a bit of explaining but she understood that this training was to help Ewan grow.
Softly, one step. Two steps. And he thumped Ewan in the back of the head.
“Oww!” Ewan whined as he turned to look at Arden. “Where were you?”
Arden pointed at the branch. “I was above you. People and most beasts often forget to look up. Your turn to go hide while I count.”
Ewan and Twix took off into the forest while Arden sat and started counting to one hundred. Then he got up and started going in the direction he had heard Ewan going. He saw some tracks here and there and continued following them but after thirty or so yards the trail stopped. Arden stopped and started looking up in the trees. Often Ewan wasn’t creative and would just copy whatever Arden had just done. You can’t expect much creativity from a kid is barely old enough to start prepping for kindergarten.
But the trees looked empty so Arden started looking around for more tracks, thinking he had missed something. Just as he neared where the last track was Arden spotted a log and figured Ewan must be hiding behind it. He approached the log carefully and as quiet as he could, then jumped up on it to try and startle Ewan. But Ewan wasn’t behind the log.
Arden started to slowly turn to scan the forest. As he did, he realized that Twix was only ten feet from him, her tan fur blending in with the area she was laying in. He had completely overlooked an eighty plus pound wolf. While thinking that perhaps he needed this training as much as Ewan did, a hand slapped at his leg and he heard his grandson yell, “I got you Opa!” while laughing hysterically.
Arden hopped off the log and picked up his grandson, “Yes you did! Great job!” After a big hug he asked, “So where were you hiding?”
The answer to that question took several minutes as most stories told by kids do. Essentially, Ewan had hid behind the log until Arden walked past. Then he moved behind a tree where the ground behind it was sunken in, allowing him to get lower than usual. Then he waited. Once he heard Arden jump on the log he slowly peeked around the tree and waited for his grandpa to turn around. Then he moved as quickly and silently as he could and tapped him.
After a bit more celebration they started walking back to Wildemill. “That’s your first time catching me! I wonder if anyone in town has something sweet I can reward you with?”
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“Maybe some candy? I miss chocolate.”
“Me too. But I’ve been told that some of the bigger cities have chocolate. Eventually we’ll be able to get some again. Now, did you gain any levels today?”
Ewan stopped, he still hadn’t mastered walking and looking at his character sheet. After a moment he shared his notifications with Arden.
“You unlocked the stealth skill. Way to go Ewan!” Arden cheered as he fist bumped with his grandson. “You’re going to be so talented when you get older. I can’t wait to see what all trouble you get up to.”
⚷
The party continued this routine and days turned to weeks and soon they’d been at it for another month. They’d all leveled hiding and stealth like they had hoped.
Hazel surprised everyone when it was time for her to choose a weapon to really train in, she had picked crescent moon knives. She totally chose them because she thought they looked cool but she had gotten skilled with them in short order. Additionally, she had created a few more spells, nearly all fire based. She said she had started working on a wall spell for each of the four primary elements.
Nolan was continuing to spend time at the smithy but was attempting to make the perfect throwing knife. His progress was less than he had wanted but Nicolaus repeatedly told him that he was learning far faster than anyone he’d ever seen. Outside of the smithy, Nolan was starting to spend more time training and was regularly sparring with anyone that would. He could beat all of the town guards except the training sergeant and guard captain. Those two usually fought Nolan to a draw.
Arden spent his days nearly entirely outside. Training in the morning, then playing in the woods nearly all day with Ewan and the wolves. It was a huge change from his sedentary, electronics driven life back on earth. And honestly, he loved it. What he didn’t mention to anyone was that he was still an introvert and having time out in the woods away from the people of the town really helped. Arden’s combat skills were growing though. He’d managed to raise his quarterstaff and mace skills both to level ten, the only one in the party to do with with two weapons. But he was no weapons master. Most of his sparing matches ended when he simply outlasted his opponent.
Willow showed the least growth, outside of the Ewan, in combat arts. That’s not to say she didn’t learn anything. But she changed her preferred weapon several times and eventually ended up back where she started with a quarterstaff. To the displeasure of Nolan and many of the guards, Willow continued to made it a point to visit their captive goblin, Prit, each day and sit and talk with him. After the first week he finally started talking only to insult her. After another he started to ask questions. By the end of the month of Tramon, they were started to become friends of a sort. But where Willow excelled out was with Alchemy. She was only a stones throw from level ten in it and her potions were getting better and better. Her constant need for ingredients had forced the whole party to keep an eye out for certain plants and fungi when they were out training their stealth skills.
Entering into their third month in Traum, their skill and stat gains were starting to slow, so a change in the routine was needed. It was about then that the mayor approached the group while they were eating dinner at the inn.
“Please, join us, mayor. We haven’t had a chance to talk recently. How are things?” Nolan offered
Pulling up a chair, the mayor nodded to everyone, “Some things have improved, but I’m afraid we’re not out of the proverbial woods yet. How has all of your training coming along? Are you seeing results?”
“Oh yeah,” Hazel said with enthusiasm.
"Glad to hear it," Helen responded with a troubled smile.
"Is something wrong," Willow asked the mayor.
"Isn't there always?" the mayor responded with a smirk. "Do you feel that you are close to being ready to invade the goblin fort?"
“We’re certainly more prepared than we were, but I’d like to continue training. Has something happened to force our hand?” asked Arden.
“Yes.” The mayor took a deep breath before continuing. “As you know, this village was settled just over thirty years ago. It was purpose-built to provide lumber to other towns and cities to the east. In the years since we’ve been here, we’ve exported quite a lot of lumber which allowed those other places to build and grow. But they’re all past their initial growth stages now, so the demand for lumber isn’t what it once was. As a result, when I requested aid from the lord of these lands, the reply was not what I wanted. No help is coming, nor will replacement farmers or lumberjacks be sent unless we remove the goblin threat. I was advised to solve the problem if I could and to abandon the village if I could not. I suppose now that he's built all the towns he wished to build, this village isn't worth the risk."
“No worries! we got this,” said Hazel.
“I fear I’m going to need more than that to go on, my dear. I must make a decision soon and let the lord know. Would you be willing to scout the goblin stronghold this week and let me know if this is something you want to take on? And, if it is, you’ll need to act soon.”
The group looked at one another before Arden spoke up. “I don’t see any reason to send scouts. We know we’re going to do it. We have the information from the hobgoblin and from Prit. I vote we proceed based on that.”
Nolan nodded in agreement, “Besides, if we send someone to scout then they would likely be too exhausted to participate in the attack. Mayor, I’d like to spend at least a week preparing. Based on what we learned from Oringo, I believe it to be a three day trip there and at least as much coming back, maybe more if we’re wounded.
“Don’t forget Reyna’s prophecy,” chimed in Hazel.
“I totally did. It was something about the moons, right?”
Arden pulled out a notebook and, after flipping a few pages, started to read, “When Vaa and Vor close their eyes, the hour is nigh for the bold to rise; under twin shadows, the path to victory lies.”
“Thanks. So the best we can figure this means that we should leave on the night when Vaa and Vor are both new moons. But I honestly don’t know when that is,” stated Nolan.
“That’s a few weeks away. I can look it up and get you the exact day,” Mayor Helen replied pensively.
“I get that you or your lord don’t want to wait, but when we literally have someone who’s skills revolve around prophecy I think it would be foolish not to listen. Especially when we’re going into a situation vastly outnumbered,” said Arden.
Nodding the mayor replied, “You make a fair point. I will look up which day that is and let you know. I’ll also let Lord Daintith know that that’s when we’ll be executing a strike and that we’ll update him afterwards. I honestly don’t think he cares how long it takes for me to make a decision as long as I stop asking him for help.”
“Thank you Mayor. We’ll do our best to get it done.”
After thanking everyone the mayor left and everyone sat in silence until Ewan spoke up, “Are we going to play hide and seek in the forest tonight?”
“No, I think tonight we need to spend some time in prayer and then planning,” Arden answered his grandson. Looking to the rest of the family he continued, “This is going to be the toughest thing any of us have ever done. I think it would be a good idea to head to the shrine and talk to some gods and goddesses. You all are welcome… you all are encouraged to join me.”