In the small hours of the morning, Redmane and Flora lay together in the Lord’s bed. He held one of them close under his arm. Another lay against his other side, dozing. Two stood, one dressing for the kitchen, the other pouring wine from a decanter beside the bed. Two cups, one for Redmane, one for herself.
The one under his arm looked up at him, smiled.
“Thou hast a Kingly constitution,” she said.
The one with the wine sauntered over and handed him a cup, which he accepted with a smirk. “I’ve been feeling stronger of late,” he said.
“Truly,” she said in a dreamy tone. She laid her head back on his chest and closed her eyes, still smiling.
The Flora with the wine stood and had a sip from her own cup. “Wilt thou be leaving soon?”
Redmane sipped from his cup and nodded.
They all frowned slightly, even the one who dozed.
“I could be of use to thee, perhaps,” said the Flora with the wine. “If thou requirest the restorative fruit, I can cause it to grow wheresoever thou needest. I can bring forth other useful plants, also.”
Redmane considered that.
Return trips cost time. Not that he was in a terrible rush, but he wanted to secure as much territory as possible, as fast as possible. Those objectives served the true goal, to reach the Seal of the Sphinx.
“These Zones are full of Monsters,” said Redmane. “No place for a woman, unless you can fight.”
Flora smiled and sat on the edge of the bed. “What if I were to tarry at the edge of the Zone, where it is safe? Thou hast but now cleared one, hast thou not? I could make useful things grow there for thee, so the journey to recover would not be so long.”
Redmane gave her an appraising look.
She seemed sure of herself. Her eyes showed no doubt or vacillation, and her smile never wavered. If there was any fear in her at all, he couldn’t see where she’d hidden it. But he supposed that had something to do with the fact that there were quite a few of her, with more sprouting all the time. If one body came to harm, the rest of her would surely survive.
“Very well,” he said.
Flora beamed. “I shall make preparations at once.”
But after saying so she remained seated, sipping wine. Redmane presumed that a team of Floras elsewhere in the castle were now preparing one of their number for travel.
On a whim, he opened the Sanctuary menu while he waited.
Häerz Castle
Sanctuary of House Redmane
Level 1
-Upgrade Sanctuary
-Marketplace
-Atlas
He selected Upgrade Sanctuary, to see what Helmold had been working on.
Nothing.
He’d purchased the Pharos and that was it.
What was all that talk about Profession manuals for, he wondered.
Redmane’s eyebrow rose when he saw the amount of Gnosis in the Faction account. A sizable sum. Recent deposits were made by Helmold, the Coterie and himself. But also the Zones in Faction territory, to include the castle itself, each possessed healthy sums of Gnosis ripe for harvesting. Perhaps they hadn’t had to sit around eating Magister’s Delight all evening. The System knew that it was there, and apparently he had access to it.
His gaze shifted from the menu to Flora.
“Have you been planting the bush bearing the blue fruit?” he asked.
Flora smiled brightly and nodded. “Yea, in the castle yard, of course. And in the forest. And in the town at the road’s end.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Redmane rubbed his chin.
He maneuvered through the menus, to see what this much Gnosis would buy.
Then his eyebrows rose again.
Automaton servants, guards, Class training facilities, upgrades to the Sanctuary’s amenities and defenses, extra living quarters. Those were the small things. The central item was Sanctuary Level. Looking into that opened a description of what it provided, namely a little of everything. Greater living space, superior defenses, a bath house, a small complement of automated defenders. It also unlocked more specialized additions.
A quick check showed that he could upgrade Häerz Castle to Level 2 right now, with some Gnosis to spare.
So he selected it.
He first sensed a subtle tremor, a vibration coursing through the mattress, as if the bones of the earth stirred beneath him. The tremor grew into a rhythmic shudder, and he felt the bed frame quiver, the wooden posts creaking in protest. The room filled with the low hum of unseen energy, reminiscent of a distant waterfall’s roar.
The Floras looked around in mild alarm. The ones lying against him clung to him reflexively. “My lord, what hast thou done?”
“I made the castle bigger,” said Redmane.
The walls of the Lord’s apartment began to shift, the stones groaning and settling into new positions. Redmane could feel the floorboards beneath their bed ripple like the surface of a pond disturbed by a sudden breeze.
Redmane extricated himself from between the Floras, and carefully walked across the shaking room to get a look at the castle from the Lord’s balcony.
Stone towers and battlements burst forth from the ground, their ancient stones gleaming in the sunlight as if newly forged.
Walls expanded outward, their surfaces adorned with intricate carvings and buttresses that seemed to grow like the branches of a mighty oak.
Turrets spiraled upward, piercing the sky with their newly formed spires. The gatehouse expanded, growing taller and wider, a grand archway unfolding across its entrance like a colossal stone flower. The rumble of grinding rock and shifting earth was everywhere. Redmane could feel it coming up through the soles of his feet.
Windows appeared where there had been none, their stained glass catching the light in a kaleidoscope of colors. The castle yard widened dramatically in both length and width, becoming something like an arboretum, on account of its rich plant life.
The castle seemed to breathe, absorbing pure Gnosis and expanding with life.
From his vantage point on the Lord’s balcony, Redmane observed a group of volunteer guards who had been practicing their drills. They were rescued hostages from Midva Forest, trained a bit by Valtr and Vengarl.
Unfortunately he’d eaten the entire armory, so they trained with wooden swords for the moment.
But just then they halted abruptly, their weapons lowered in astonishment. They exchanged bewildered glances, their eyes wide as they took in the sight of the castle’s walls stretching and growing before them.
Servants carrying trays and linens paused in their tracks, some dropping their burdens in shock. A young maid, her apron fluttering in the breeze, clasped her hands to her mouth, her eyes alight with a mixture of fear and wonder. She turned to an older washerwoman beside her, who simply shook her head in disbelief, mouth agape as she watched the turrets rise into the sky as if they were trees seeking sunlight.
Sanctuary Level Up
Level 1 —> Level 2
Häerz Castle
Sanctuary of House Redmane
Level 2
-Upgrade Sanctuary
-Marketplace
-Atlas
Redmane noticed something by the castle’s name. He selected the option.
Rename Sanctuary?
Yes/No
He selected ‘Yes.’
Castle Redmane
Sanctuary of House Redmane
Level 2
Much better.
He realized the two Floras who had been laying with him on the bed were leaning against him, one on each side, gazing down at the newly grown castle with an equally awed look.
“Remarkable,” said the Floras.
“Remarkable,” said Redmane.
They both said it simultaneously. Smirked at each other.
Then the doors to the Lord’s apartments swung open, and another Flora entered. This one wore traveling attire; a pair of snug breeches tucked into soft leather boots, a loose white tunic, and a fully stuffed haversack slung over her shoulder. Her wild green hair was bound in a loose ponytail.
“I am ready to depart, my Lord,” she said. Then she smirked again. “But thou shouldst attire thyself, ere we take our leave.”
She was right.
Redmane searched around for the ragged breeches and cloak he’d been wearing. He found neither. Instead, Flora had prepared a new pair, and one of Lord Morholt’s fine fur-lined cloaks. It was black, with a bear fur mantle around the shoulders and a thick gold chain. She even had fresh strips of cloth he could wrap his hands and ankles with.
He donned it all, looked down at himself.
All of the Floras nodded their approval. “Thou dost appear most lordly now.”
Redmane nodded as well. “Good. Now, would you prefer to travel by air, or by a stranger route.”
Flora’s eyebrows rose. She looked intrigued. “I fancy the strange.”
“Very well.”
Submerge
Gnosis: 1366
His shadow darkened, until it was blacker than black. And then it spread out from him in a circle, as if water poured from beneath his cloak. Flora’s eyebrows rose, and she looked down at it curiously, cautious to keep away from its spread.
Redmane took her hand and pulled her in close.
And then the Abyss took them.
At first all was darkness, as it had been the first time he set foot in this place. But in a moment he found that he could walk, and so he led Flora toward the presence he felt in his mind. The Abyssal Well. Space behaved differently here. He expected a quicker path compared to the usual route.
Then the Abyss opened, revealing the stars once more.
Flora’s eyes grew wide, looking up at it all. But then her gaze settled on Redmane, calmly walking along next to her, his eyes resolute, fixed on their destination. She canted her head to the side curiously, a slow smile forming on her lips.
“My Lord… Dost thou know what we are?”
Redmane side-eyed her. Smiled. For a moment he simply enjoyed looking at her.
“I believe you and I are meant to be the powers in this world,” he said, as they walked along in the profound darkness between realities.