After meeting Rutigan and the council, Hera walked to her home. She didn't bring her tablet on purpose. Her bracelet could still give her location away, but accessing that information involved a lot of bureaucracy that she didn't believe anyone would bother with. Especially since it just looked like she was going on a date with the King, thanks to the dress Fethy gave her.
During that walk, Hera's mind was racing. She called Daskka to help figure everything out, and they replayed the conversations to prepare some plans. First, despite the initial suggestion of letting all the Royal Explorers know about their secret mission, Naka felt it was too large of a group to control the information. The Empress argued that if she wasn't going, someone in the team would need to know, and if both Shane and Trillian knew, they would have the right skill set to search for the right locations. Ultimately, Rutigan agreed with Hera and allowed her to share that with the two other members who actually had the explorer role.
Another thing she added to the conversation was Adriel. She had spoken with him beforehand, and they had already agreed to come clean with Rutigan, but now, the situation might be even better than they expected. The elf had connections and knew more or less the modus operandi of the guild, so he might be a good intermediary to talk with the other species.
When she arrived home, she texted Shane, who was staying in the hotel, and Trillian, hoping to talk with them as soon as possible. Not long after that, both of them arrived at her place, and she brought them to the dining room, which was currently empty since it was already somewhat late.
"Ok, what was so urgent?" Shane asked as Hera arrived with some drinks for the two.
"Yeah, I mean, I don't mind. But I'm a bit worried," Trillian scratched his neck.
"Two things. One is bad, and one is really good, but you will be more excited about it, Shane. So let's focus on the bad part first," Hera sighed and sat down, taking a sip of her wine, "First, this topic cannot leave this room. This is something Rutigan asked me to do. It's a secret mission, if you will."
Trillian sat up straight in the chair while Shane's eyes got more intense, waiting for whatever was coming next.
"You know how our mission as the Royal Explorers was to find a new place to build a second city for Boothudurn, right?" the Empress asked.
"Yeah," Trillian nodded.
"That's only a half-truth. We are searching for a new place, but not for a second city. It's more of a lifeboat. A place we can run to in case things here get really bad. And… well…"
"Things are getting really bad," Shane nodded.
"Yeah."
After a long pause, Trillian asked for confirmation, "So we are looking for a new home?"
"That's the essence of it," Hera sighed, "I know it might be hard, but the idea is to be far away from the guild to avoid... Well, all the conflict that is happening. If we are in a part of the MAZE where we are farther away from the main force of the guild, we will have fewer problems."
"But then the dwarves will lose some of the things we have access to here. Internet, trading routes, the entire infrastructure for modern society will be gone," Shane argued.
"Yes, but they will be ok. You forget that they used to live completely fine without all that just a couple of years ago. And they will be safe. That's more important. Also, that path won't be closed off forever. Eventually, it will connect back with the other rooms, and then we can start trying to reach out for help."
Shane considered that for a moment before nodding, "Ok, and just to confirm, why are you telling us specifically about this?"
"Because I need you two to use your guide questions to figure out how to get to a specific room," Hera replied.
"Which one? Is it in Gartinet Hollow?" Trillian took a sip of his drink.
"Yep. And that is the good news, Trillian, Shane, I need both of you to search for the room called 'The Old City of Zaxalam.'"
"Zaxalam?" Shane frowned, "Why is that name familiar?"
"Think about it," Hera smiled and spoke slower, teasing her friend, "Think about it."
Shane stared at the Empress with a confused expression, and then her eyes landed on Daskka, making the Enchantress jump from her seat, "FUCK OFF! You are not saying what I think you are saying."
"Remember the map we found? The one directing us to the Naga homeland."
"They come from Deakoshara, connected to it, is The Old City of Zaxalam, and to it… Gartinet Hollow!" Shane shouted the last name, and Hera activated a soundproof bubble as a reflex.
"Exactly. We might be very close to finding the Naga birthplace. And if the city still stands, the people of Boothudurn might be able to use some of their structures."
"As long as we preserve anything of cultural value, I'm ok with that," Shane nodded.
"How about you, Trillian?" Hera turned to the new explorer.
"I mean... It's a lot, but I'm ok with this. I understand why we should go. We are not being treated well around here…" Trillian nodded.
"I can imagine. I've heard the rest of the team talking about it, and man… this is awful. I'm glad the incidents never crossed the line," Shane patted Trillian's shoulder.
"Sort of… From what I heard, there were two situations where things got violent. One was when a group of human thieves attacked someone who was going on a delivery and stole the item they were carrying. It was an armor made by Kahala, and apparently, it had epic rarity and a bunch of rare materials behind it. The other one was when some of the guards went for a drink in a different room just as a change of pace, and there was a bar fight. According to the guild, the guards started and caused problems, but the story they told is very different. People started harassing them, and only when a guy threw an entire pitcher of beer on one of the guards that the brawl started," Hera explained.
"Who was in that fight?" Trillian tilted his head.
"I can't say. Naka's orders, and I don't want her to chew me a new one," Hera shook her head, and her reason made the new explorer stop asking. No one wanted to risk the guard captain's wrath.
"On another topic. I just realized one thing. You are asking us to find this new room. Does that mean you won't be going there?" Shane figured out it was better not to linger on the previous topic.
"That's right. Not right now, at least. We vanished for too long, and I didn't want to disappear and leave my dad worried again. Not for a while. We talked, and he already knows I'm not going to just be in one place all the time, but it's too soon to just go off on another adventure. Also, I'll be here helping out the Royal Explorers, taking Trillian's logistics job for a while. And helping Rutigan with some other things. Not to mention Rutigan asked me to be close when he talks with Adriel."
"Adriel? Why is he talking to the King?" Trillian asked.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Shane and Hera shared a look, both already knew that the elf was a spy for some sort of organization that looked out for the newly discovered races, but they also knew they couldn't tell people about it without a reason. And, unfortunately, there was no reason to tell Trillian.
"Adriel has some experience with what is currently going on. And some contacts that might help us out. But the King doesn't trust him enough, so I need to be there to prop him up, in a way," Hera continued but quickly changed the subject, "Also, Trillian, I need you to give me the rundown of how you worked. The suppliers you used, the websites, everything. This time you will be the one training me. Are you up to the task?"
"Of course! I'll show you the ropes, boss."
Having successfully changed the subject, they continued making plans, talking about the possible questions they could ask and possible ways to make the path there safer for everyone when it was time for them to move. It was good that they stayed within the 10th layer during the trip. The Shtylla Archipelago and The Land of Great Nor were on that layer, and Gartinet Hollow dropped to the 9th. So at least, they wouldn't see monsters beyond what they expected.
During the next couple of days, Hera was very busy. Between the 'training' with Trillian, the meeting with Rutigan and Adriel to explain who the elf was and what he could do to help, and helping the Royal Explorers prepare for a new expedition, it was a lot. She barely had enough time to practice with Livy. Unfortunately, she couldn't confirm if the two-handed axe would be able to become a titled blade or not until reaching 100% familiarity, which was starting to make her anxious.
Things changed a lot after the Royal Explorers left. Going with only Shane. Helena and Bonnie also wanted to rest for some time before traveling again, and they quite liked the idea of being responsible for the logistics and the R&D of possible ways to safely bring people and materials over to those rooms. Even if they didn't know about the escape plan, Hera told them the idea was to send families to the new city to help it grow, especially those waiting to have children. This was a lie close enough to the truth that the Empress hoped her friends wouldn't mind.
Over the course of the next week, her life got into a steady routine. She felt even better since Nimbus and Lurize were back. Unfortunately, they didn't find anything underwater in Luna's dungeon. What happened was that after being dragged by the whirlpool, they were crushed by the sudden increase in water pressure when they were spat out, which made them, in essence, implode.
With the two of them around, Hera also asked their opinions while searching for new gear. She needed a new set of pants, gloves, and boots. It would be a shame to lose the glide function, but the ones she wore were already a mess. Everything was torn and stained with blood, both from her and from monsters. Even the boots were already somewhat rusted due to the prolonged exposure to the ocean air. Another thing she wanted was to change the rest of her court, which was lagging behind. Not everyone, but in the end, she found a replacement for Armory, Frost, and Core. Even If it hurt, she understood that this was part of the legacy, and even her court agreed it was time for them to go.
The first was an epic Kris, a long wavy dagger that matched a lot with Hera's aesthetic since it made it look almost like a snake. The blade itself was almost translucent, making its edge look like a mirage. The handle was made with what looked like simple silver infused with moonlight giving it a hauntingly beautiful pale blue glow until it stopped on its pitch-black half-moon guard. Its original name was 'Celestial Mirage.' The main draw of this weapon was the Illusory Strikes skill. There was a video showing its effects, and each time someone hit a target, a small illusion of themselves would appear around the wielder in a slightly different position and it would move together with them. This made it harder for enemies to hit them. According to Daskka, since Hera had the Army of One, that would affect all of her court and herself, which would be amazing. To top it all off, the Royal Seal resulted in something that synergized perfectly with it. This was the weapon would replace Core.
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Chris - Moonlight
Kris
Empress attributes: 99
Scaling
Strength x 19.6 Agility x 18
Charisma x 2.1 Endurance x 2.1
Intelligence x 2.1 Luck x 2.1
Illusory Strikes:
After each successful strike, a small mirage is created around the user.
By moonlight's power
When active, each strike will deal damage with the power of the moon. This effect is enhanced when the blade is hit by the moonlight.
Damage increase: 10 - 100%
Duration: 5 minutes.
Cooldown: 7 minutes.
Seal of the Eternal Moon
When active, repeated strikes will cause this weapon to glow with artificial moonlight. Continuous strikes will increase the intensity of the glow.
Moonlight effects are only half as effective under artificial moonlight.
If real moonlight hits this weapon, the artificial glow will vanish.
Familiarity: 10%
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Next was a diadem called Serpent's Gaze, also an epic item. It was as if a metallic snake was around her head, doing two laps before stopping at the top of her head with a black gemstone in its mouth. The serpent itself had a yellowish-golden color that matched Hera's hair, making it vanish on her head when worn. The reason why this could be part of her court was that, in the back, on the thickest part of the diadem, there was a hidden blade that could appear when one of its skills was active. Hera let Frost go to get this; that way, Armory could teach it the ropes of being the commander during battles.
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Dusa - Reflex
Diadem
Empress attributes: 99
Scaling
Agility x 9.8 Intelligence x 7.3
Charisma x 2.3 Endurance x 2.3
Luck x 2.3 Strength x 2.3
Viper's Gaze:
It can trigger a flash that only affects those looking directly at the user. Briefly reduces the movement of all those affected by the effect.
Duration 10 seconds
Cooldown 1 minute
Serpentine Reflexes:
Using a hidden blade, the diadem can block attacks aimed at the user.
If the blade is broken, this skill cannot be activated.
Seal of Reflection
Any attack blocked by this diadem has a small chance to be reflected.
Reflect chance: 2%
Familiarity: 24%
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Lastly, at the end of the week, when Armory taught everything she could to Dusa, Hera swapped her for one last weapon. This curved sword was common in ancient Egypt called a Khopesh. It was like someone made a weapon in the shape of a C and attached a handle at the bottom after a straight shaft. The blade itself was metallic silver with what looked like sound waves engraved through it. When one of its skills was active, those engravings would pulsate as if it was a music visualizer, and if she attacked at the right moment of the beat, the damage would increase. Because of this, Hera could only think of one name for it.
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DJ - Sound
Khopesh
Empress attributes: 97
Scaling
Charisma x 20.6 Endurance x 18.1
Intelligence x 12.1 Luck x 9.6
Agility x 2.1 Strength x 2.1
Sonic Resonance:
When active, this weapon will increase its power resonating with any powerful enough sonic frequency nearby. When the resonance passes the threshold, strikes with this weapon will create shortwaves that can stagger and disrupt enemies.
Duration: 30 minutes
Cooldown: 3 hours
Sonic Boomerang:
This weapon can be thrown, releasing a sonic blast that damages enemies in its path before returning to the wielder.
Mana cost: 100 thousand mana.
Seal of Rhythm
When attacks made with this weapon follow a specific rhythm, the damage is increased.
Damage increase: + 20%
Familiarity: 10%
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Unfortunately, she was still waiting for the clothing to arrive. She ordered them all from the same place, and it would take a couple more days to get here. However, after a week and a half of training and about a dozen runs in the Woolly Plains, Livy had reached 100% familiarity, and it was time to add a new titled blade to her court.