Chapter 5 — Super-spy Xyn

Xyn sulked in his hammock across from an equally sulky Yillian.

“I don’t know what you’re upset about,” Yillian grumbled. “I’m the one that’s stuck with an elf-lover in his room.”

“Am not,” Xyn pouted.

“Sure, sure.” Yillian waved away his denial. “That’s why you were calling me pretty this, beautiful that, and following me around like a lost puppy.”

Ugh, how did it end up this way?!

Xyn ground his teeth at how Yillian had tricked him by pretending to be a girl. What kind of self-respecting guy would do that?! Do that… to another guy?!

Had he been tricked so easily because of his unfamiliarity with human and elf gender distinctions? Sure, the less prominent mammaries meant he should have been more careful, but with the long curling locks of hair and delicate features…

The guards at the gate had been noticeably male. So, it wasn’t as if he couldn’t tell the difference.

“Arrgh!” Xyn mussed his hair and ears in frustration before taking a deep breath to calm himself. That wasn’t what was important right now. Though Xyn had no intentions of forgiving his fellow initiate anytime soon, he still needed to do as Master Arienos had tasked and learn about what it meant to be an ‘initiate’ to this Society that Yillian and Master Arienos were (and now he himself as well was) apparently a part of.

“Look,” Yillian huffed. “As long as you keep your hands… and wandering eyes… to yourself, then I won’t bring it up again, okay?”

“I told you, it’s not like that,” Xyn groaned but pressed on past Yillian’s hooded eyes, “Forget about all that. Tell me about this Society thing.”

“How can you be Master Kaylie’s disciple and not know about the Society?” Yillian muttered, shaking his head.

Xyn rolled his eyes. “Maybe because she never talked about it?”

“Whatever.” Yillian shrugged and started his lecture, “The Society is a secret organization dedicated to maintaining balance. In the big picture, that means preventing or mitigating world impacting events. On a more local level, it might mean culling a population that is outgrowing its resources or encouraging resource development and diversification. To anticipate and deal with potential problems, the organization has infiltrated the governing power structures of almost every country, with our public face being the Cartographer’s Society. Following me so far?”

Xyn blinked. “I understood some of those words.”

A groan escaped Yillian as he rubbed his forehead in frustration.

“So… basically, we’re super-spies that save the world from terrible disasters and stuff, right?” Xyn offered.

Yillian sighed. “…fine, lets just go with that gross oversimplification.”

“Why’s it gross?”

“No, that’s not what the word means—wait, nevermind.” Yillian refocused and pressed on, “Moving on to the Society’s organization, low-level members are mostly freelancers, but the higher one moves up in the organization the more responsibilities are assigned. At the top of the organization is the Shadow Council made up of the Society’s most powerful and influential members. Each council member is given an alias and cloaked in shadows during meetings. New shadow council members are nominated by secret ballot handled by a retired elder who is sworn to secrecy so that the current council members won’t know for certain who the new council member is.“

“Whoa… that’s so cool,” Xyn breathed out, his tail curling around and smacking the hammock as he leaned forward attentively. “A real shadow council… so, what about us initiates?”

“Mostly, we follow our sponsor around and help him with his tasks until we are recognized as Journeyman members of the Cartographer’s Society. Sponsors are responsible for an initiate’s training, and Master Arienos takes his responsibilities as a sponsor seriously.”

Confirmation that he would receive training from Master Arienos was something Xyn was excited to hear about, and he ran his tongue along an eyetooth—that used to be a fang. “Master Arienos seems really strong.”

Yillian’s chest puffed up. “Master Arienos is one of the most powerful mages in the Society. It’s quite the honor to be sponsored by him.” The half-elf leveled a look at him similar to what his sister, Kerra, would use to indicate that he should ‘pay attention because it was important.’

“Does that mean, Master Arienos and Master Kaylie are members of the shadow council?”

Yillian seemed a little annoyed by the question but shrugged. “I doubt it. If Master Arienos was on the council, he probably wouldn't get sent on missions all the time, and from what I’ve heard Master Kaylie retired from active missions years before I was picked up-, I mean, chosen by Master Arienos.”

The answer was disappointing at first thought, since having his new master and his grandmother as leaders of a secret organization would have been way cooler, but he reconsidered. If there were even stronger Masters in the Society, then that was maybe even more exciting.

Really, there wasn't anything to complain about. ‘Super-spy Xyn’ was definitely a step up from ‘Xyn the Wanderer’, particularly when it meant being part of a world-spanning secret organization and getting help at become a better spy, which would benefit his spying mission for his tribe as well.

Feeling increased conviction in his choice, Xyn leaned back in the hammock and interlocked his hands behind his head. “So… what now?”

“Well, Master Arienos usually gives me tasks in the morning and then I'm free for the rest of the day, unless he needs me for something…” Yillian shrugged again. “If that's all you want to know about the Society, then I guess we're done for the evening.”

When Xyn didn't have any further questions, the half-elf youth leaned forward and retrieved the gem he had placed on the floor to keep their voices from carrying outside the room. The gem's magic weakened as the energy powering it was withdrawn.

“I guess, I need to learn how to make maps, huh,” Xyn mumbled to himself.

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Xyn sat on a branch of the Inn’s tree and meditated alone as the evening mist blanketed the outpost. Whether due to the Human Ring or the mire, he was again making progress on his elemental cultivation. Somehow, drawing in the energy of the mire’s mist felt as if it was helping him grow his aura, just as it had when he tried meditating each night spent in Mirewood. The change was slight, but he was almost certain that he was actually improving.

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Admittedly, the ring and his new more human condition might not be the actual reason. There was a strange chaotic vigor within the Mist energy that writhed about and resisted his control—probably related to the taint that was corrupting the mire and causing mutations. Xyn was leery about internalizing too much of whatever it was, but if it was helping him get past his current bottleneck… that was a risk he was willing to take… to a point.

But even if the improvements to his Elements since he left home weren’t because of the Human Ring, the improvements to his Path of Dancing Petals certainly were. Practicing martial arts forms with a body closer to human had greatly aided his understanding of the martial art taught to him by his grandmother. The movements felt more ’correct’ and the flows of his aura when using the techniques had become more efficient and effective. Even innocuous things his grandmother had said during his training suddenly now made sense in unexpected ways.

His improving mastery of the Fluttering Petal technique made him eager to test his sword skills in a real spar or combat against an intelligent opponent. Sadly, techniques that reflected light and distracted opponents to gain an advantage weren’t particularly effective against mindless swamp foliage.

Xyn’s musings were interrupted by the arrival of a group of powerful rangers. One of which made his way up the tree and to Master Arienos’ room. The group of them all looked worn from their travels. That they came all this way to meet with Master Arienos likely indicated that something serious was going on.

After the rangers left, a bird made of magic delivered a note that Master Arienos desired his presence. Xyn was pretty sure this meant he was getting his first assignment from his new master, and he wasn’t wrong.

“Yillian, Xyn,” Master Arienos calmly addressed his young charges once they had gathered in his inn room. “A new ranger expedition to the deep fens will be leaving tonight, and I’ll be accompanying them. Unfortunately, with the current state of the mire, I won’t be able to bring either of you along. And so, I want you two to meet with the Baronet in charge of Lorel’s Watch to investigate reports of local cultist activity.”

“You can count on me, master,” Yillian promptly replied, looking proud at being entrusted with such an important task.

“I shall, Yillian. Don’t forget to make use of Xyn’s unique talents. I suspect you’ll find them quite useful in this assignment.” Master Arienos turned to Xyn. “Xyn, Yillian will be in charge. I want you to follow his direction and learn from his example. You’ll also be responsible for keeping him safe while I’m not around.”

Yillian bristled at the idea he needed protecting, and Xyn nodded his understanding. There was no way such a delicate half-elf would be safe traveling the Mirewood. Xyn felt a surge of pride of his own, finally being relied on for the first time since becoming an adult.

Master Arienos seemed satisfied with their responses and handed a small clinking sack to Yillian. “Use this for expenses, Yillian. Now, go get some sleep, so you can set out early in the morning.”

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Xyn was already awake and meditating to consolidate his gains by the time a stray beam of morning light roused Yillian.

“How can you fall asleep so easily?” the bleary-eyed half-elf groused while getting ready.

A shrug was the only answer Xyn could give. Wasn’t it natural to rest one’s body and mind when the chance presented itself?

Setting out on their journey didn’t take long. Xyn hadn’t even unpacked and was already wearing his hooded cloak. His Mist aura was surprisingly useful at keeping himself and his clothes clean, something he had thankfully learned soon after his Awakening. Licking one’s fur clean was a disgusting habit that only young Kyrren who couldn’t help themselves did, after all.

Xyn had taken advantage of Yillian buying food for their trip from the dark-haired girl working the inn’s counter to exchange his Beastlands coins for the coins used by the humans. The elf girl was nice enough to explain to him their value as well. Unfortunately, even though the girl was happy enough to part with the human coins she had, the exchange rate had been less than Xyn had hoped, especially since he suspected how hard Kerra had needed to work to earn that much money, but he doubted a better price would be had from a less friendly merchant when he arrived in the human lands.

To Yillian’s great dismay, the guards at the gate made a point of teasing Yillian about being reluctant to tell them about ‘her’ new boyfriend earlier and how ‘she’ should be proud to have snagged the interest of a clan’s young master. Xyn found himself equally embarrassed by the guards ribbing and pretended that he didn’t hear a thing.

The result of their mutual embarrassment was that the initiate pair travelled in awkward silence for a while until Yillian finally broke the silence.

“Are you really a clan’s young master?”

“Ah, no.” Xyn shook his head, causing his hood to sway with the motion. “I’m a clanless wanderer.”

“…” Yillian stared at him for a while before continuing his questions, “Your sword… judging by the handle, isn’t it rather too nice for a ‘wanderer’?”

“Ah haha ha,” Xyn laughed nervously, and his hand reached up to touch the handle where it was poking up into the back of his cloak’s hood. “It was a gift from Master Kaylie when she felt I was ready to learn the Fluttering Petal technique. Though it’s called a technique, it’s really a sword martial art that is part of the Path of Dancing Petals.”

Yillian’s eyes narrowed at him. “Why didn’t you use your sword against those swamp horrors?”

Xyn nodded enthusiastically at Yillian’s line of thought. “I thought so too! You would think cutting them up with a sword would be faster, right? But it’s actually a major pain and redirecting the tangleweed’s attack vines with Love’s Blossom is much harder one handed. Thankfully, I was able to discover a way to disrupt their aura and make them explode from a distance. It’s not only quicker but safer.”

“Love’s Blossom…” Yillian grimaced then came to a realization. “You’ve fought those—tangleweeds—before?”

Xyn was quite proud of his discovery and thought the half-elf would be suitably impressed, but the reaction wasn’t quite what he was hoping for. “Yep. Ran into some lurking around the road to Shir`lyn, mostly solitary though. Nothing like the bunch that attacked you.”

“Are they common where you’re from?”

“Nah.” Xyn shook his head. “Just heard stories about them. The shamans go to purify the mire as part of their training, and when the scouts escorting the shamans start encountering tangleweeds, it means that they are getting too close to something the elders call a Remnant. Legend says the Remnants are parts of an ancient evil that was defeated a long time ago and supposedly the source of the corruption in the mire. Seems weird to find them near the road, maybe?”

A nod from Yillian confirmed his suspicion, and the half-elf added, “I think so. I’m not really from around here so I don’t know for sure, but it would be short-sighted to have the road pass so close to one of these… Remnants.”

That they hadn’t been bothered by any tangleweeds on this side of the outpost did suggest that the problem was localized. Remnants acting up and spreading corruption was supposedly rare, but elves and dryads were much better at containing the corruption than Kyrren shamans, so Xyn was sure the problem would get taken care of just fine.

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The wall of fire holding back the veritable forest of arm-thick writhing vines was stiflingly hot but sure beat the alternative. Arienos glanced over at the Elven ranger who was deep in concentration. “Telryn, any luck?”

“It’s strange. The bird’s eyes can see the tremendous growth surrounding the area, but the place at the center is empty.”

“Can you get closer?”

“Maybe. I’ll try.”

“Please, do your best.” The Beast Eyes spell did allow the caster to direct the animal to some extent, but animals were naturally wary to approach a strong source of corruption.

Syrlieh let loose a glowing arrow into a clump of vines that had been gathering to attempt a strike through the flames, causing the vines to fall limp. The clump was quickly pulled back into the larger mass. Around Arienos and Telryn, the other rangers continued their tense watch, bows readied.

“I’m not sensing any increase in corruption energy where the Remnant should be…” Telryn reported, his voice distant. “It’s almost as if someone managed to destroy the Remnant and the remaining energy was dispersed into the surroundings.”

Arienos grunted at the supposition. “If only we could be so lucky. Considering the many failed attempts to destroy the Remnants throughout history, the more likely conclusion is that someone or something managed to not only break the dryads' seal but somehow managed to abscond with the Remnant.”

“Impossible!” Syrlieh objected.

Telryn breathed out a sigh and opened his eyes. “And yet, the Remnant is clearly gone.”

“It couldn’t have been taken far,” Illenari offered.

Normally that would be true enough. If the corruption from the Remnant didn’t warp the claimant into a monstrous mound of flesh driven mad by the Ancient Evil’s will, then the continual release of corruption fed by the claimant's lifeforce would turn the claimant’s surroundings into an inhospitable slog of never-ending swamp-spawn. But for this to have happened in such temporal proximity to the cultist rumors… was worrying.

“Let’s pull back from here and try to find the direction the Remnant was taken,” Arienos decided.

Nods were exchanged all around.