Beth woke early the next morning, before dawn, and found she had a face-full of mane, snorting a little at the fur. She shifted Blood up and to the side, having her only partly sprawled over Beth, the wolf waking and grumbling at the movement but settling back down after a moment. Beth sighed, glad that they had quite some time before they needed to meet Rell and Itharion as she was still pretty damn tired. Maybe not enough to fall back asleep, but she could definitely use some more rest, and maybe a huge cup of hunting spice. Thinking about her exhaustion, she decided it might be a good idea to dig into what exactly happened yesterday and why she was so out of it. Her stat screen would be a very good place to start her quest to track it down, and she brought it up with a lazy thought.
Name
Elizabeth Anne Bell
Class
Brawler
Level
220[1]
Strength
730
Dexterity
370
Endurance
340
Intelligence
60
Wisdom
60
Free Points
0
Titles
Silver Flame Empress' Inheritor
Skills
Acid Resistance Copper[9]
Ancient World Gate[2]
Beastly Body Gold[1]
Blacksmithing Journeyman[0]
Celestial Annihilation Silver[9]
Crush Silver[9]
Earth Resistance Copper[8]
Flame Resistance Copper[9]
Focused Meditation Silver[1]
FrostFlame Eye Silver[8]
Ice Resistance Silver[1]
Indomitable Heart Silver[7]
Lightning Resistance Silver[0]
Lordly Reconstruction Silver[9]
Monstrous Blow Silver[6]
Pain Tolerance Silver[9]
Spatial Step Silver[0]
Swift Silver[9]
Swords Journeyman[9]
Toxic Resistance Silver[3]
Unarmed Journeyman[9]
Wealth
1d 78p 44g 6s 24c
Emblems
CRA Silver Badge (150CP)
Bonds
Blood
Well, that certainly explained some things, though it did raise some more questions. It was pretty logical that her Ice Resistance had made a jump, breaking through to silver and getting a level in silver as well. The really big thing, however, was obviously Beastly Body, which had made a massive leap, her first skill to break through to gold. Not only that, but it gained a full level in gold as well, making it far and away her most powerful single skill, even as a buffing skill. She wanted to check the detailed description and compare it to the description at silver, really curious what changed at gold.
Beastly Body Gold[1]
{The power of a beast flows through your veins. Your body is both more powerful and more durable, able to endure extreme conditions. Using this skill, infuse your body with mana to assume the aspect of the beast, greatly enhancing your power.}
That was definitely a lot different, the language having changed significantly since silver. The most striking part was probably just the first sentence, which now didn't talk about acquiring the strength of a beast, but talked about the power of a beast flowing through her veins. That was doubly significant as that part not only discussed the core framework of the skill, but was a descriptor that explained what the skill did in its base state, even without mana being infused into it. She was able to view the descriptions of skills at lower levels and did so, pulling up what Beastly Body said at silver to compare.
Beastly Body Silver[1]
{You have acquired the strength and toughness of beasts. Your muscles are naturally stronger and body more durable. Using this skill, infuse your body with mana to increase the effects.}
Comparing the two, the change in the first line was the most obvious difference, as she had noted earlier, with the text now talking about the power of beasts flowing in her blood. The second line hadn't radically transformed, but it had gone from saying that she was stronger to more powerful and durable with the added note of enduring extreme conditions. She might have to do a little research on skill text verbiage to figure out what that meant, but she would likely plumb the depths of the change through practice. The third and final line was also different, though this was also a big step up versus an entirely different phrasing, now talking about assuming the aspect of the beast and that it would greatly enhance her power when she used the active component of the skill.
All-in-all, it seemed like a huge improvement. The description wasn't particularly detailed or complex, but every single aspect of it had changed. She was aware that skills got a good bit stronger when they made the jump to gold, and already the description indicated that big boost, but she was still going to have to do a bit of research and, more importantly, do a whole bunch of testing. Well, the testing would have to wait, as she was still incredibly tired, having likely strained herself a decent bit when she shattered her limit and enhanced a skill to gold even before her second rebirth.
She hadn't moved at all in checking her skills and didn't intend to for a while, setting an alarm on her communicator to make sure she would be up in time to meet Rell if she fell back asleep. Leaning back a bit and shifting her hips to get even more comfortable, she started scratching Blood behind the ears and stroking the fur along her spine with her other hand. The lupine woman really enjoyed that, growling and rumbling and burying herself against Beth, always happy with physical affection and with sitting around doing nothing.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
It was a good thing she had set the timer, as she definitely fell asleep curled up with Blood, waking to her communicator making a dreadful beeping noise. That also reminded her she still hadn't changed any of the ringing settings, and she spent a minute figuring out how to adjust the alarms, ring tones, alerts, and so on. She didn't go into everything at that point, but she changed the most common settings to be far less annoying, other than the alarm, which she changed to be annoying but not headache-inducing. Once finished, she stood, hauling the dozing Blood with her, the tall woman grumblingly taking her feet and following Beth into the bathroom to get ready for the day.
They left the room a handful of minutes later, making sure it was locked behind them before heading up through the arena section and out of the building. They were meeting Mortaine's two lackeys at their hotel before heading to the capitol building, something that Beth really wasn't looking forward to, considering she was likely going to have to get involved today. But that was for later; for now, they enjoyed the brisk walk over to the hotel, the morning warm with a very slight breeze that felt extremely refreshing. Beth was still very tired, but she was just going to power through the damned meetings and then go back to the Hall and sleep. At least, that was the plan unless something crazy came up.
Approaching the hotel, they found a familiar sight greeting them, namely Rell on a bench in just his armored chausses and greaves, smoking his pipe. He gave them a nod as he saw them approach, taking a long pull from his pipe and breathing it out slowly, forming a little figure when he did so. Blood flopped down on the bench next to him and made her own pipe appear, Beth lifting a brow at that while Rell gave a hearty chuckle and continued with another draw.
"What's up with ye, lassie? Ya look like ya lost nine rounds with a deep demon," Rell said, gesturing at Beth with the stem of his pipe before sticking it back in his teeth.
"Is that a coded way to say I look like shit?" Beth asked caustically.
"Aye, lassie, ya look like burnt goat turds," he instantly replied around the pipe stem.
"I fought in the arena after we parted ways two days ago, then did it again yesterday. Pushed myself too hard yesterday and I'm still tired," Beth explained shortly.
"Ah, ta be young again," Rell chuckled.
"That aside, are you guys ready?" Beth asked, rolling her shoulders and giving Blood a look as the lupine woman started puffing on her own pipe.
"I sent Itharion a message, he'll be out in a minute," Rell said, continuing to smoke as he replied.
Beth leaned against the brickwork of the building while they waited, not wanting to sit as she might have some trouble getting back up again. Not just fully draining her mana, but doing so to do something crazy with a skill like pushing it into gold a lot earlier than most people did was, shockingly, quite exhausting. She made a mug appear from her necklace, adding some of her favorite extra flavoring from a small container before starting to drink, feeling a bit of the caffeine-like substance start to hit her system.
Itharion appeared a minute later, fully dressed and well-groomed, urging the others to get a move on, funny considering he was always the last to be ready. The two smokers knocked their pipes clean and made them disappear, Rell making his torso armor appear on his body, proving that he certainly had a storage item or power. They quickly got going, Itharion leading the way across the city to the capitol building, Rell taking over once they were inside. He got them logged for the day at the desk, getting them shown back to a room further into the building after a bit of smooth talking, which was not a promising sign. They needed to really push and use some rhetorical tricks just to be set up for a meeting that they had already scheduled and confirmed two days ago.
It was nearly an hour later, even the stolid Rell displaying some annoyance, that a woman entered to speak with them. She turned out to be the governor's secretary in charge of trade relations, and she would be dealing with them about the current mana crystal issues. This was a bit of a stonewall, as they wanted to speak with the governor about the issue, and it was pretty clear they were getting foisted off on a lower-level functionary instead of being treated with the respect someone representing such an important figure deserved.
"So, that's great for the pleasantries, but when can we get a meeting set up with the governor?" Rell eventually got to the heart of the matter, Beth pretty sure she had fallen asleep with her eyes open at some point earlier.
"I'm afraid that just won't be possible," the secretary stated.
"And why not, lassie?" A bit of Rell's accent slipped through.
"I'm afraid she is far too busy handling matters with the possible gate outbreak to oversee these small trade matters," the secretary, Jane, replied with her nose in the air.
"I understand that she has more than one responsibility, but she can multitask. This issue is no less critical," Rell said, clearly keeping himself calm with a deep breath.
"A few trade unions in a minor city getting upset is hardly worth the governor's time," Jane dismissed with a sniff.
"I don't rightly give a damn about the trade unions, lassie," Rell snapped before taking another calming breath. He continued in a tone that still contained a rumble of warning, "We're not here to represent them, and damn if they can't pester you themselves. We're here because this infringes on our Lord's business, one of the hundred Exalted within the Milky Way. The only relation this has to the trade unions is that their getting screwed means our Lord is getting screwed. You understand what I'm sayin', lassie?"
"Surely someone such as your lord would have many sources of the materials he needs," Jane responded coldly. "I don't believe this is the kind of issue you make it out to be. Do you have a writ from your lord pertaining to this matter?"
"What's the world coming to, lassie, when ya can't even take people's word anymore?" Rell responded hotly.
"I'm afraid we can't help you with meeting the governor," Jane replied. "But if you want to discuss the issue of the trade unions with our trade accountant, I can set up a meeting for you at the start of next week."
"What if the CRA gets involved?" Beth asked suddenly, cutting into the middle of the discussion. It clearly threw Jane off, as she had expected to be wrapping the conversation up at that point.
"What about the CRA…?" asked Jane rather hesitantly.
Beth showed her silver badge before saying, "I'm sure the CRA would get involved only if things became rather…strained, but it doesn't look like we're moving towards a viable solution here."
"And do you think you have the power to speak for the CRA as a Silver Emblem?" Jane asked a bit haughtily.
"I think the CRA looks after all its members, particularly when they are members of the White Hall and direct students of one of those so-called hundred Exalted," Beth replied coldly.
"And I think if you want to discuss this matter further, you can schedule a meeting with the trade accountant," Jane replied firmly, though Beth could see from how she glanced around as she stood and the way she shuffled the few papers she brought that she wasn't quite as firm as her tone suggested. "Good day to you."
Jane stomped out then, her heels clicking with a steady but rapid rhythm on the polished marble floors. Itharion shook his head and grumbled something while Rell just sat back in his chair and sighed. Blood pulled her new pipe out before Beth cleared her throat at the lupine woman, the wolf making it disappear again somewhat sheepishly.
"So, that went well," Beth started before Rell interrupted.
"Not here, lassie," he said, standing with a sigh. "Let's go."
He led them out of the meeting room and then out of the capitol building before making for their hotel. They walked in silence until they reached the building, where Rell led them around back to an area with a couple dozen tables and plenty of seating. They took a table at the back corner of the courtyard, with Rell sitting in the back and Beth also putting her back against the brick wall that surrounded the place. Itharion didn't mind having his back to the rest of the courtyard, taking one of seats on the courtyard side, while Blood took a chair near Rell. The two smokers pulled out their pipes, packing and tamping the bowls before lighting them and starting to puff away. Rell threw out a little device onto the table and tapped it with a single thick finger, causing it to make a slight buzzing noise before a very thin screen formed around them in a shell.
"Now we can talk," he said with another deep sigh.
"So, now what?" Beth asked, looking around at the group.
"Now we have to bark up the chain again," Itharion said quietly. "I was hoping that buttering her up would work better and, if that failed, using a little pressure would do it. Looks like it's going to be the long way. We'll schedule a meeting with the trade accountant next and see if we can find an angle there."
"Don't think I didn't notice what you did, either, lassie," Rell said, pointing with his pipe stem. "When you mentioned the White Hall she was nervous, but it was your threat of having the CRA look into it that got the fear into her. I smell a rat."
"What do you mean? You think she's not being honest?" Beth asked.
"Oh, aye, but I think it's more than that. Call it a hunch, but I think it might be less the governor alone running this racket, and more the whole machine around her functioning in a bad way. Maybe a bad enough way that a bad actor could get his, or her, hands into something they shouldn't really be messing with," Rell explained.
"I just wish we could have applied more pressure," Beth said.
"Well, only really two ways to do that, lassie. Sorry to say, the first one would be if one of us were strong enough to strike the fear of the Lost Gods into them. Since that's why we're here and not our lord, that doesn't really work. Other method is what we're going to have to look into next; figuring out what exactly is happening and who really is sticking their finger in the pie," Rell said.
"You think we can find out anything while getting stonewalled?" Beth asked.
"Gotta be careful about it, but there's way to find thing out, especially if'n ya can use some of the CRA's resources. We can trace what they're doing even without their cooperation, just gonna be a pain in the ass," Rell said.
"Follow the money," Beth said then, getting nods from both of Mortaine's workers.
"Aye, lassie, very hard to hide the trail, even with modern tricks. Getting some help from the CRA would expedite it, though I know we need evidence before they would agree to an audit. Old snake eatin' its own tail; need an audit to find out what's wrong but can't get an audit until we find out what's wrong in the first place."
"I'll talk to the Hall Master and see if I can get anything out of them," Beth said with a sigh. "Otherwise, what's our schedule?"
"It'll be at least three or four days before the next meeting," Itharion said. "We'll set it up and let you know."
"Alright, then we'll look into the money from our end, as much as we can, and we'll compare notes in a couple days," Beth said, though she didn't get up. Blood didn't seem eager to run off, and Rell was perfectly happy sitting and having a smoke, while Itharion got on a call to try to schedule the meeting. Beth ordered a drink from the hotel, something she could do even without being a guest, and sat with the others to relax for a bit before starting the next phase of the operation.