Tala and her friends settled into their seats as Rane began the playback of Master Foclair’s long-ago fight with a wolf-man.

As the record was shown, they were almost drawn into the ancient time, the massive Archive slate showing things more clearly than even a window could have, somehow.

The region displayed was a bit more heavily wooded than that around Alefast, but it clearly wasn’t a forest city.

The man himself, Master Foclair, wore quite plain clothing, if nicely made.

The style was a bit odd, but that was to be expected.

Honestly, Tala thought the clothing was much more similar to what she was used to than she’d have guessed it would be.

He was tall, straight-backed, and strong without being heavily muscled, and he strode out of the city gates with confidence.

Waiting for him was… not what Tala had expected.

There was not one wolf-man but dozens, all easily visible with the provided view.

Kannis sucked in a breath when she noticed the same thing.

Each wolf-man seemed to have rows of scars across portions of their exposed flesh, their clothing either torn or missing entirely.

Even so, what nakedness there was, wasn’t lewd. Their humanity was gone, their bodies distorted in ways that were more vulgar than any naked flesh ever could be.

They looked like nothing so much as bipedal wolves, with exaggerated, human-like muscles bulging from their otherwise lupine forms.

Their coats varied widely from near red, browns, all the way to midnight-black, and on to snow-white fur.

Each was unique in their twisted features, whether crouched on the ground or balanced among the tree branches.

Tala leaned over toward Lyn. “What was Master Foclair’s foundational understanding? Is it listed?”

“’Power makes words true.’”

Rane grunted when he heard that. “Well put together. Quite cynical, though.”

Lyn smiled. “Indeed.”

Master Foclair spoke within the recording. “You are visible.”

His words thrummed with power that seemed to almost come through the recording itself, causing Tala’s magesight to momentarily fuzz, even if just slightly.

-Oh, I did not like that.-

Two dozen more wolf-men stuttered into visibility, seemingly having been trying to sneak up on the man.

“You poor souls. What a curse to bring to the world, Lycaon.”

A howl echoed from the trees as a truly massive beast, standing easily twice the height of the others, bounded forward.

Tala’s eyes widened.

The others’ rows of scars now made sense. Each was a bite from this massive beast, healed and scarred over.

“His curse spread through a bite?”

Rane and Lyn both nodded in agreement, not taking their eyes from the unfolding drama.

As the massive werewolf growled, it took them a moment to pick out the words, and even then, it was Alat who did so first.

-Oh! The beast is speaking? That’s rare indeed. Let me see if I can help translate, some… good. The recordings are open. I can put the words at the bottom for you all.-

The recording moved back to the beginning of Lycaon’s harsh speech, causing the other three to frown in question.

“Alat is adding a transcription of what the wolf-man is saying.”

Lycaon spoke, then, his growl barely understandable with Alat’s transcription. “Bound and Fused, Refined and stagnant, you have fallen for the lie of the human form. Trapped for eternity without perfection.”

Master Foclair didn’t speak, letting the creature continue.

“The freedom of the forest and the plains, the hunt and the den, await all. The strength of the pack and the moon, the fang and the pelt are granted to any and all by my tooth and claw.”

“You are intelligent, then. You retain that much of humanity?”

Lycaon barked a harsh, rolling laugh, “Humanity has stolen that much from nature, and I have not given it back, yes.”

“Then, go, turn your pack upon the arcanes. Break your teeth against the City Lords and their pet Houses. Reclaim them for your pack, but leave us be.”

Well… That’s probably more than Kannis knows. Tala focused her perception on the mageling and saw no surprise, just studied interest.

-Honestly, they are just words to her, without context. She knows that this is from more than a thousand years ago. Without knowing what we know, it’s background details on a world that no longer exists.-

Huh, fair. Best not make anything of it, then.

Lycaon responded to the defender, bringing Tala’s attention back to the recorded confrontation, “No. The twisted shall not be twisted again. The broken-bound will not be broken again until the world is wiped clean of the scourge of humankind. Join my pack, let the taint be cleansed and turned to strength.”

Tala desperately wished that she could use her magesight on the creature, but sadly, that wasn’t an option.

Master Foclair nodded once. “So, it was a reality wolf you sought to bond. You fool. How did you even approach it to…” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. It was a fool’s errand and you got a fool’s result.”

Lycaon growled deeply, sinking low and preparing to spring at the Refined.

But Master Foclair acted first.

He lifted a pair of constructs that were suddenly in his hands, seemingly having come from a bound storage.

Tala could only describe them as crossbows, but without the limbs. Additionally, there seemed to be a large pair of wheels holding an insane number of dimensionally compressed bolts in them.

They weren’t in an extra dimensional space, instead appearing far smaller, and taking up much less space, than the bolts that were obviously already loaded and ready to fire.

They looked rather reminiscent to the weapons that Mistress Jean, the Mage Hunter, had used. Though hers were very much intended for single, massive, magical shots, and Master Foclair’s were just as clearly intended for the rapid firing of a number of mundane projectiles, each carrying a payload of magic to be activated within their target.

Similar concept, though.

Kannis leaned forward. “What are those?”

Rane grinned. “It’s an old-style automatic bow. Incredibly expensive, and not really worth it for what you get out, but some Mages used to specialize so much that they required external weaponry to fill in the gaps in their power. Now, we try to have a broad enough set of abilities that they aren’t as needed.”

Tala got a good look at the weaponry, given the detail of what they were seeing, and while the boltheads looked silver at first glance, she was able to pick out incredibly intricate spell-workings inlaid within harder metal.

Clever. Like the arrowheads we have for specific creatures.

-Precisely that. He must have known this was coming for a while to have so many for this creature, or he had a way of mass producing them.-

As Master Foclair pulled the triggers, he swept the two weapons across the line of the enemies before him.

Lycaon lunged straight up, out of the line of fire, but most of his pack wasn’t so lucky.

Bolts lanced out, each one getting a dose of kinetic power from a small, magical disc that was ejected from the side of the weapon even as the bolt was sent flying.

One-use kinetic imparters? That is expensive. Even now, that would be… three or four silver a shot?

As the bolts lanced out, Master Foclair was speaking, though they couldn’t hear him over the roaring, howling, and whimpering of wolf-men.

What he did was quite obvious, however.

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No bolt flew perfectly straight, each seemingly nudged along their trajectories, their flightpaths perfected on the way to their targets.

In a matter of moments, every lesser wolf-man had a bolt in head and heart, magic pulsing from the projectiles to send the monster-trapped souls on to the next world.

It was an insane display of wealth, weaponry, and word-magic’s power.

One of his two weapons was down to a final shot, and the other had two bolts left when Lycaon landed almost silently behind Master Foclair.

The Refined seemed to have heard, regardless.

He was unbelievably fast, spinning and firing off a bolt from each weapon in a blink.

He just wasn’t fast enough.

Lycaon raked claws across the Refined, leaving bloody furrows that began to bubble as if filled with acid.

Master Foclair screamed in obvious pain, even as Lycaon bit down on the man’s shoulder.

Still, Master Foclair’s bolts had struck true, one imbedding in each of the giant creature’s thighs.

Their magic was radiating out with powerful pulses, shredding the lupine flesh.

Lycaon toppled to the side, howling and writhing in pain as the magical projectiles turned his own magic against him, ending him in moments.

Even so, as the wolf-man died, he died laughing around his agonized whimpers. “The pack must grow, and you will do as well as I to see… it… done…”

Master Foclair was on his knees beside his slain foe, swaying in his own agony.

He lifted up one hand and groaned as thick hair began to sprout from his skin. “I am human.”

Power rippled through the words, and all evidence of the curse vanished… for a moment.

Then, like a rising tide, it sprouted from around the massive bite marks once again, racing to cover his whole body.

“I am cleansed.”

Again, the power in the words drove out the curse… for a moment.

Even without her magesight, Tala could see what was happening. “He’s using more power than his throughput replenishes.”

Master Foclair growled in frustration and anger as the change began again, but he drove it back again.

And again.

And again.

Mages were coming from the city at a run, but it was obvious that they wouldn’t arrive before he lost the back and forth with the curse.

Finally, as he stared at his arm once again bulging with muscle, hair sprouting across the surface, he seemed to recognize the weapon in his hand.

There was only a moment’s hesitation before he spoke one final phrase, clearly filled with all the power he had left, “Humanity fights on.”

A moment later, the final bolt was within his flesh, its deadly power ending the curse before it could spread further.

The recording ended, and the four exchanged varied looks.

Kannis looked a little green.

Lyn was also looking a bit squeamish, but she was more contemplative than her mageling.

Tala and Rane exchanged a look that said: ‘More later. They’re done for now.’

Even so, Tala had felt something resonating within herself at the man’s end.

Still, it was hardly the time to contemplate such things. Instead, she simply asked Alat to note it for later consideration.

Without further distractions, the four ate their food, conversation only slowly getting started once again.

Regardless, it didn’t take too long before they were laughing and chatting once more.

Despite the dour start, the night turned out to be quite enjoyable all around.

* * *

That night, Tala placed Kit on the inner surface of the outer wall of the Gredial estate, and she, Lyn, and Kannis slept within.

Rane stayed in his rooms within the main house, as made sense.

The next morning, after a Gredial meal for everyone but Tala, the four went out into Alefast.

Tala, for her part, had a meal prepared by Mistress Petra once again.

Their first stop was none other than Artia and Adrill’s shop, so that Kannis and Lyn could get a good look at some artifact-style items.

When the four arrived, Adrill and Brandon were waiting for them, a pile of items and equipment ready and waiting, clearly not part of the shops inventory.

“Good, good'!” Adrill smiled and waved. “I was afraid that we wouldn’t be your first stop.”

-I let them know the plan was for us to swing by today.-

Thank you, Alat. That was very kind of you.

-It’s what I do.-

Tala wasted no time in putting Kit on a nearby wall and letting the two men carry their stuff inside, where Master Simon was eagerly awaiting them.

That sparked a conversation with Lyn and Kannis, who were confused as to what was going on.

As they moved into the shop proper, Kannis clarified, “So, let me get this straight. Your… sanctum is even larger than the couple of rooms that we saw last night? We were in those rooms when you were carrying us, after all. I mean I knew that you had meals stored within it, but you have someone working in there too?”

“Several someones, yes.”

Artia greeted them as they entered, adding to the conversation, “And my husband wants us to join that little enclave of magically fascinating bliss, apparently.” She shook her head in mock sadness. “You really shouldn’t try to steal other women’s husbands, Mistress Tala.”

Tala cracked a smile. “Never fear, good woman. Your husband is only after what he can learn, and I am only interested in what he can discover.”

“Aye, I love him for his mind too.” The older woman grinned widely, giving a comically exaggerated wink.

Tala moved on, introducing Lyn and Kannis, and explaining why they were there.

“Well, I have to tell you, while we have a great selection, if nothing strikes your interest, I have a list of items other shops should have. As a last resort, there’s also the Constructionists. They have a more eclectic collection, though you may have to get Mistress Tala to help wrestle those from their greedy little fingers.”

Tala chuckled. “Yeah, the Constructionists like buying up anything unusual.”

That signaled the start of the two visiting women wandering the shop, exclaiming over the various items available for purchase.

They were both, obviously, drawn to the dimensional storage items, but while they were less expensive than Constructionist created versions, they still weren’t cheap.

After looking over what was available in that section, Lyn and Kannis found themselves more fascinated by the random artifacts on the final counter.

Tala was looking over the items as well, “Hey, you’ve gotten some new stuff.”

Artia scoffed. “Of course. That’s how shops work, Mistress Tala.”

Tala gave her a flat look. “I am aware of that. I mean that you have new types of artifacts. Last time you were explaining how there seemed to be more similar items showing up.”

“Ahh, yes. Well, a few delvers found a cave system filled with artifacts a couple of miles outside the city. That has created a bit of a surplus in the last weeks, including a lot of new things.”

Lyn lifted up a glass jar filled with a black semi-solid. “’Obedient clay?’ I’m not sure I understand.”

Artia smiled, speaking with a note of command, but without magic in the words, “Sword.”

The black substance shifted, becoming a sword, using all of itself to make a weapon that was as large as possible… which was just a short sword.

It was now too big for the jar and teetered over to thunk on the counter.

“Once it is magic-bound, it should only respond to its bound’s command.”

Lyn nodded, picking up the sword and muttering to the weapon, commanding small changes and witnessing the results. Finally, she looked up at the shop owner, “Can mass be added?”

“In theory, yes, but I don’t know the method. I would refer you to the Constructionists for that.”

Tala smiled to herself at how much Artia had grown in her thoughts about Mages over the last years.

Lyn grinned, muttering to the item and turning it into a cube, then a sphere, then a cup. “How much?”

That started their haggling, in which Lyn also added in a dimensional storage for herself and her mageling. She was very particular about which ones, too.

Tala hadn’t looked closely enough to see a difference, but she also wasn’t in the market for such things.

Though, we do need to find some more expanded spaces for Kit to consume.

-Ooo, that would be nice, yes.-

Kannis was not having luck finding an artifact that really interested her. Finally, she despaired. “There’s nothing here for me. All of these are fascinating, but none really speak to me.”

Tala frowned. There are tons of random little things. I got whatever I could conceive of a use for.

Still, Tala knew that she was the odd one, here. So she didn’t say anything.

Artia paused her negotiations with Lyn, turning to the Mageling. “What are you looking for, dear? Perhaps I can help. Almost any of these items could provide some utility.”

The young woman lifted her hands in defeat. “I don’t actually know. It seems silly to consider when looking at artifacts, but my foundation is that I seek the truth in all things, even among falsehoods, but looking for an item like that is probably ridiculous. It would be nice to have an ever-sharp knife, but I can’t justify the expense.”

“Truth?” The shopkeeper got a far-off look, then reached to the far end of the counter and pulled over what seemed to be a small teddy bear of indeterminate material.

Kannis blinked a few times. “Is that a teddy bear? Like… for a child?” She frowned then. “Well, I suppose it wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t magical. I didn’t even look at that one, and that was likely a mistake.”

Artia smiled happily. “Yes, the magics are centered around this little bear, but the analysis is what brought it to mind. ‘Give truth to bind, ask truth to befriend, reveal truth to grow in power.’ This one apparently doesn’t require a gate to magic-bond, according to the Mages who analyzed it. They put this little iron collar around its neck to prevent its early bonding.”

Tala’s frown deepened, trying not to remember her own time wearing a collar. “Care to explain the esoteric information?”

“Well, they discovered that there is a sapience dormant inside. They were going to simply destroy it as a creature from beyond, or something like that, but they found none of the markers of dangers to humanity or even individuals within the twists and turns of its magic.”

Tala groused. “I feel like the knowledge that some artifacts are ‘creatures from beyond’ is important information, and it rather weighs scales in regards to the likely source of artifacts. Even more so, if you all are regularly finding examples of sapience among the artifacts.”

The shop owner shook her head. “Hardly. I even told you about the dangerous ones the first time we met. Regardless, if artifacts are somehow remnants from ages past, moved through time, or otherwise preserved only to be revealed now, then it would make sense that some guardian creatures would come through, too. Most are… less than useful, targeting anything not of a given family line, descriptions, or race… that race is never human, incidentally. Those have to be picked apart and dispersed as soon as they’re found. In order to keep my license as a seller of artifacts, I am bound to report any such to the Mages.”

Kannis’ eyes narrowed. “Then why is it available, still?”

Artia shrugged. “The accelerated waning has most families with small children, or who want them, already out of the city. I would bet that most dismiss it as you did. Beyond that, there really isn’t much to go on with what the Constructionists were able to pull from the rats’ nest of magics within. They did say that once it was activated, once it bonded with someone, those magics should unspool, and be easier to read. At the moment, they are folded in and dormant, only presenting what I’ve conveyed to any with the skill to understand the spell forms.”

Lyn and Kannis shared a look. Before the older woman shrugged. “Could be worth a try.”

Kannis picked up the little bear, turning it over in her hands. “It’s cold.” She pulled it to her chest, almost instinctively, before hesitating and chuckling, “But, I suppose that’s to be expected.”

Lyn and Artia entered another round of negotiations before they settled on a price that Tala found hard to accept.

Lyn truly was a master of negotiation. That, or Artia had been kind to them. Likely it was a combination of the two.

The deal done, Artia removed the little collar from the bear and motioned to Kannis.

The mageling held up the bear, looked it in the eyes, and spoke, “Hello, I’m Kannis. What’s your name?”