Tala turned to regard the man joining Master Grediv and herself.

Furgal, for his part, bowed to each of them. “Honored Ancestor, Archon.”

She felt her cheek twitch. ‘Honored’ was the correct arcane address for someone of Master Grediv’s advancement. Calm down, Tala. It’s just a coincidence. Master Grediv is this man’s ancestor, and he is quite honored in this city.

-Wait, he just called you ‘Archon.’ Does he not remember you?-

Tala had missed that, distracted as she was by the honorific that Furgal had given Master Grediv.

Master Grediv, for his part, simply motioned to the empty chair on his other side, across the table from Tala. “Sit, sit, boy. You missed the battle, but they will likely show it again soon enough.”

She pulled herself together and gave the barest of nods, “Furgal.”

Furgal smiled broadly as he took the seat across from her. “You know me? Now I am the honored one.”

He laughed at his own joke as Tala fought to keep herself from rolling her eyes. Yeah… it was just a coincidence.. “Yes, we met before.”

He shook his head with what seemed to be mock severity. “That cannot be. I would have remembered one such as you.”

She blinked a few times. That is an oddly flowery way to call someone a liar. “I was a guest of Master Grediv and Rane a mere few months back.”

He opened his mouth to respond, then seemed to freeze in place, his mind clearly having found her as he tried to recall. His jaw tightened, and he forced an obviously false smile into place across his features. “I see. You are an acquaintance of… my brother. I believe I do remember you now, yes.”

She had made her stance on Rane clear with the habitual lack of his honorific. Right.

In the end, it didn’t matter much, and what was done, was done.

The younger man took in the food on the table, clearly trying to gather himself after the unexpected unpleasant nature of the memory of their previous meetings.

The dishes that Master Grediv ordered had come on large serving trays, so that each person could take what they wanted onto their own, personal plates. There was still food on the main plates, but Furgal seemed hesitant. He glanced to Master Grediv, and the older man sighed, “Eat, eat. The food is there for that purpose.”

The young man gave a careful nod, seeming to be back in control of himself. “Thank you, master, Grediv.”

The older man gave his descendant a harsh look, seemingly having heard something that displeased him in the boy’s cadence and tone.

Furgal bowed his head—just as clearly having noticed the displeasure—and began taking a sampling of the various dishes. “My apologies, Master Grediv.”

“Better.” The Paragon straightened. “Now, the tenor of this discussion must change with Mistress Tala’s presence here, but I will not shy away from what must be said.”

Furgal sat up straighter, his face brightening. “So, you’ve decided?”

“I have.”

Even Tala could see the excitement in Furgal, and the obvious, weary frustration in Master Grediv.

The window beside her flickered to her magesight, momentarily distracting her from the awkward family dynamics.

The view outward was suddenly altered to show an earlier time in the day, seemingly just before the clash between Mistress Kaeti and the asteries.

Even so, before she could get too engrossed, Furgal spoke up, drawing her attention back to her tablemates.

Furgal had taken a quick drink, and now his smile widened. Master Grediv was about to speak, but the younger man preempted him, “I’m so glad. I will be the best apprentice that you have ever taken on.”

Master Grediv looked to the ceiling—in what was a clear bid to draw patience from the heavens—and shook his head. “No, Furgal, you won’t.”

The young man hesitated, then his expression turned solemn. “Of course, you are correct. I must strive for humility.”

Is… is he serious?

-I think so.-

I’m not that… unobservant, am I?

-I don’t think it is a lack of observance. I think it is a level of entitled ego that we aren’t used to seeing outside of arcanes.-

Great…

“Furgal. You are not going to be my apprentice.”

Furgal tilted his head to one side, his expression darkening. “I see.”

“I’m glad.” Master Grediv took another bite of the food on his own plate.

“You wish for me to prove myself to you more fully, before you make the right decision.”

Master Grediv slammed his hand down with such force that the table should have shattered. Instead, a flick of magic from the Paragon also lanced out and reinforced the table at the moment of impact.

Even so, the resulting sound was more like the striking of a war-drum than a simple rap on wood.

The items on the table leapt about, but again, Master Grediv’s power flowed outward, this time across the food and drink, ensuring everything landed in a contained manner.

It was a show of precision and control that Tala could hardly fathom, even knowing that Master Grediv had some form of magic that could be stretched to cover such things. It’s probably worth asking him about.

-And people do have magics outside of their fundamental understanding, like your healing.-

Though, that’s not so far outside anymore.

-True enough.-

Tala’s mirrored perspectives easily saw every eye in the place, mundane and Mage alike, turn toward their table.

Master Grediv waited a bare moment, until the echoes of his strike and those of the repercussions had faded. When he spoke, his voice lacked all mirth even as it was filled with harsh certainty, “No, Furgal. I was attempting to be soft in my words, in consideration for our company, but I see now that that was a mistake. Let me be clear: You will never be my apprentice. What little talent you had is continually being squandered on the altar of your ego. Your one chance is to forge your own path through hardship and adversity. You can’t do that here. The difficulties of a waning city, for Mages, are beyond you. You’d be dead at your first attempt. Go somewhere that you aren’t known. Go live a life of want, and strive to make something of yourself, because you won’t do it here.”

Furgal sat back in stunned silence, color obviously rising across his face.

Tala, for her part, was doing her best to be inconspicuous. It was only then that Tala noticed something important, something that should already have been obvious: the privacy barrier hadn’t ever been put back up upon Furgal’s arrival.

That’s why he’s doing this here. He’s making a public statement that Furgal isn’t, and never will be, his apprentice.

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-As a descendant of Master Grediv, if Furgal had claimed otherwise, he likely would have been believed. Still, things must have gotten fairly bad for Master Grediv to be forced to this point.-

Clearly.

Finally, the young man opposite Tala seemed to gather himself back together.

He gave a slow nod.

Though his face couldn’t hide his unmitigated rage, his voice was surprisingly level, only containing the barest trembles of anger, “Thank you, Honored Ancestor. I understand now.”

Master Grediv looked incredibly skeptical.

From the slight twitches in Furgal’s movements, he likely suspected that they’d become a spectacle even though he didn’t look around. “May I know who, more worthy than I, you have chosen?”

“You already know that answer.” Master Grediv’s voice was almost entirely filled with weariness.

Furgal turned his eyes on Tala, and there was barely contained anger within them. “I see.”

“No, no you don’t. Rane was my apprentice in place of you, almost twelve years ago. Since that choice, you have never been considered. You have also never improved, simply falling further and further behind. As I said, you need to get away from here. Forge your own path, Furgal, before that option is gone.”

He looked back toward his ancestor, his jaw set. “Before it’s gone? Who would dare stop me? What barrier could possibly prevent me from forging a path ahead?”

Master Grediv leaned forward. “Time, you fool boy. Time waits for no man, Mage or mundane. You are wasting what little you have, chasing an avenue that’s been closed to you for nearly a dozen years.”

Furgal leaned back, and his forced smile was gone.

Tala looked to Master Grediv. She spoke softly, hoping her words wouldn’t carry too far, “We can meet later, Master Grediv. I did not mean to impose upon your family business.”

The Paragon held up a hand. “Absolutely not. I asked you here upon your arrival, and this matter is closed. Furgal has two choices before him in this moment, and in either case, the conversation moving forward will be less… heated.”

The young man stood up, his chair scraping loudly backwards. “Do not dismiss me, ancestor.”

Master Grediv turned to him. “How have I dismissed you, Furgal? I have met with you countless times on this exact topic, and yet you have never asked my advice on improving yourself. All that you have done is demand a title and a privilege that you have never earned.”

Furgal’s mouth opened, his fury clearly about to get the better of him, but Master Grediv held up his hand once more; this time, the air before the young man’s mouth seemed to tremble with power, and no sound came out.

“I have told our guest that this discussion is done, and so it is. You are like the beggar who demands money, when a job is freely available. You are the thief who attempts to steal from a soup kitchen. You pursue folly when there are open doors for you. You have forced my hand. Be gone. Do not force me to remove you, myself.”

Furgal’s mouth audibly clicked shut as the magics blocking his voice vanished. He stiffly bowed once toward the table, spun on his heel and stalked out.

Tala shifted uncomfortably and spoke softly to herself without thought. “Rust me, I’m glad that’s over."

Master Grediv muttered to himself, likely in response, and Tala was barely able to catch it, “I somehow doubt that it is.”

He reactivated the privacy barrier without even looking after his descendant, instead, turning to Tala. “My apologies, Mistress Tala. That was both more forceful and more… eye-catching than I had planned. I suppose my underestimations of the required bluntness with Furgal have been precisely the problem.”

“He does seem…” Tala cleared her throat. After a long moment, she simply frowned, taking another bite of food. She couldn’t decide on exactly the right word.

Master Grediv sighed, taking a sip of his own drink. “Entitled is likely a good descriptor.”

She shrugged. “It seems like much more than just that, but it’s probably in the right direction.”

He grunted, shaking his head, “Regardless, that is neither here nor there. I apologize. I did not intend to invite you here to spring my descendant’s failings on you. Will you forgive my error?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you. Now, let us discuss something else.”

Tala looked out the window at the false view presented. It was interesting to be able to see Mistress Kaeti setting up her plants and illusions. Her dance looked very different at this beginning stage, showing just how sophisticated her method of activation was.

Not that Tala had doubted given the distinct illusion the woman had created to speak with Tala, while maintaining full engagement in the fray.

Distracting conflict aside, there were dozens of things she wanted to discuss with Master Grediv. “So… Do you mind if I ask you some questions?”

He glanced her way and smiled. “By all means. But first, what are your plans in Alefast, after this?”

“I didn’t actually have any yet. I figured that we’d talk, and you’d have some advice in that regard.”

He nodded. “I see. My recommendation is to get you plugged into a defensive unit, and through them, you will get tasks and continued training.”

“Oh? Is that what Rane is doing?”

He huffed a laugh. “No, dear girl. He’s only Fused. Such responsibilities are not granted to him, nor will they be until he Refines.”

She frowned. “Granted?”

“Absolutely. Responsibility is a gift, Mistress Tala.”

“I don’t necessarily disagree, but I’m not sure I understand exactly what you mean.”

“Which would you prefer, a life of ease, where everything is provided for you? Or one where you can accomplish work that helps others, which provides you with a good life?”

Tala instantly knew which answer he wanted to hear. She also instantly knew which answer seemed preferable on the surface.

Therefore, instead of answering instantly, she took a moment for thought.

Effectively, the time that she’d spent recovering had been exactly the first option. Nothing had really been expected of her, and she had the resources to continue a rather plush existence.

She had hated the monotony of it.

When she wasn’t allowed to train, she had wandered the streets and desperately searched for other things to do.

She had enjoyed her time with her friends, so it might be possible that a life of luxury with those she cared for would be the ultimate preference, but that didn’t feel right either.

She frowned.

She could have simply sat around and played tafl with Rane, gone to plays, and eaten good food.

No one would have forced her to do otherwise. In fact, she had been encouraged in exactly that direction.

But what had she done instead?

She had tried to help. She had longed to spar and test herself. She had wanted a challenge.

She had her answer. “Meaningful work that helps others and provides a good life.”

Master Grediv smiled. “You show wisdom in that answer, more so in taking the time to properly consider it. So, if meaningful work that helps others is your preference, is it not a privilege?”

She opened her mouth to respond, but then closed it slowly.

He waved a hand, indicating that he had more to add, “Obviously, there is more to do than can be done, but for those capable of defending humanity, there are only so many tasks that they can do that are meaningful.”

She frowned slightly. “Please explain.”

His smile widened. “If I told you to hold up that spoon and doing so would save one person for every 24 hrs that you did so, what would you say?”

She picked up the spoon and smiled. “Let’s save people?”

He chuckled. “Generous of you, but what if you weren’t allowed to move for it to count?”

She frowned. “I mean, if I put it down, aren’t I letting someone die?”

“Maybe, but others can hold the spoon, and that’s all that they are capable of.”

“Ahh, then, I would want to do something that could help more than one person per day. After all, I am capable of more.”

“Precisely. We are speaking in sweeping generalities, and wandering all over this very wide-ranging topic, but that is the crux of it. In order to be engaged, to feel like we are doing good, and to be truly motivated to live and continue, we need tasks that help others, provide what we need, and challenge us. At the very least, they need to push us in some way or other.”

Tala found herself nodding, remembering once again her time in recuperation, “Otherwise, we will struggle with ourselves.”

“It’s worse than that, Mistress. Without purpose, without something to strive for, we die. It is usually a slow death of growing apathy, but we die all the same.”

She took a moment to process that. Finally, she nodded once again. “And our purpose is to protect humanity during the waning.”

He shook his head. “That is an end goal and a good one, but it is too finite. We are immortals, Mistress Tala. Any finite task, no matter how grand, is but a temporary distraction. To live—to thrive—we need an infinite goal, an infinite vision.”

“And what is yours? I’m not sure I quite understand, so the example might help.”

“My infinite goal, my vision, is to ensure humanity thrives, to the best of my ability, for as long as I draw breath.”

“I see…” She tilted her head to the side, thinking. “It is something that will never be accomplished, but in the end, you can look back and see if you were true to it?”

“In a sense, yes.”

“Huh… So, I should strive for that, helping humanity thrive as best as I am able? Follow that vision?”

“Oh, bless the stars, no. If you try to strive for my vision, you’ll be miserable. Seek your own path.”

She gave a wry smile. “Like you told Furgal?”

“Yes.” He nodded unabashedly. “Precisely the same. Just because I won’t let him be my apprentice doesn’t mean I would give him bad advice.”

“I suppose not.” That did make sense. Master Grediv hadn’t shown any true malice toward the younger man. “Seek my own path, eh?”

“Precisely.” His smile returned.

“So, you think I can find my path with a defensive unit, here in Alefast?”

“I think you might begin to find insights in such company, attending to such tasks.”

“Well, then. That sounds like a good place to start.”

He took another drink, leaning back once more. “Now, I derailed us by quite a bit. What did you want to ask me?”

Right! There’s a lot, isn’t there?

-Oh, yes.-