“We’re going north and eastwards” said Glarith, after the rest of the party had begrudgingly gotten out of their bedrolls and come over to watch the thirty or so mages form a half-circle around the group of Rum, Elrith, Meti, and Rum's other new apprentices. “We discussed it over breakfast, and few of us have any desires of going back into The Desolate Lands. We’ll do what you suggested, or something like it. We’ll look for an unused bit of land, and make our home there.”
Rum smiled. “That’s interesting news, and I’d say good ones. Though not because it was my suggestion. I’m just happy you decided to abandon the dungeon lords. And, however hard it must’ve been to decide to go without a master to teach you all, I’m sure you’ll learn to thrive on your own. After all you are not one or two – I see a village worth of faces here, and each one of them capable of magic. You’ll endure whatever problem faces you, friends from the dungeon. I’m confident of it.”
Glarith gave him a firm nod. “Thank you” she added, and was about to turn around and walk into the crowd, when the wizard called out for her.
“Glarith?” She stopped before her first stride, turning back to face him. “Have you decided what your new identity will be? How should the world – and I – talk of you. All of you, together.” He indicated them all with a general wave of his hand.
Glarith's eyes returned to her people, looking over their faces, before finding one young woman. Lingering on that young witch’s face for a while, Glarith looked at Rum again. “I think we might’ve found a name, if that’s what you have in mind. For the time being you may call us: The Apprentices of The Forest. For with no dungeon lord to teach us...” The elder witch let the sentence hang in the air, as her feet shifted away from all of them, and her stare fell into the treeline. There, within a single long inhale, she seemed to take in the very depths of the forest, and Rum thought she might be sobering up to that concurrent weight and relief which lay in anyone's path towards independence. He watched as the witch exhaled, slowly, and noticed her lips remain open after the fact, the older woman trying to formulate a sentence. “The forest will have to be our master” she let out, eyes remaining with the trees.
“Ah” Rum nodded, “a fine name. Well, then, if you’ve decided upon an identity..." as Rum let his own unfinished sentence wait for Glarith's attention, the witch soon turned to face him. "...would you in that case let me give you all some new and fitting clothes?” The wizard raised his hand in front of them, curling it up and into a casting pose. There, at his palm, a glowing orb of theatrical blueish-white magic appeared, and every pair of dungeon mage eyes came to fix upon that little display.
The witches and wizards did not need much convincing. While some of them had emotional doubts due to their many memories and attachments formed by their long time within the dungeon, in the end they took the individual decisions to transform themselves. All of them did, and so many in fact that Rum found the need to take a break in before finishing up, recharging his mana.
Rum found himself quickly referring shorthand to The Apprentices of The Forest as simply The Apprentices, and as his break ended and he got up to continue laboring spell after spell on mage after mage, he noticed how their new attires did not turn out uniform. It was clear that the witches and wizards did not all share the exact same idea about what their name and new home implied, otherwise the spell would not produce this much diversity. Yet, among that diversity there was a pattern. All them wore some variation upon robes with boots, but there was a distinct difference between those who continued to wear more basic robes, and those whose robes became a bit more practical, including a set of pants for their legs and shirts, and an openable front allowing them to easily disrobe without thereby becoming naked. The color-schemes also varied. Most robes gained some shade of green or a greenish-brownish mix. But then there were those who had their robes turn mostly brownish, and some who even gained a color that reminded more of yellow than anything else. Altogether, they had a collective color scheme befitting of the forest, but dividing over many distinctive shades, allowing them to appear at once part of the same group, while also expressing their many unique individalities.
After the transformations ended, the mages took the army of skeletons into the dungeon, and got them to carry out the last of the items that the mages sought to bring with them. Coming out the skeletons formed an orderly single long column that came to a halt at the camp's edge. There from the camp, Rum glanced down the line to see skeletons carrying beds, chairs, chests of personal belongings, various enchanted glowstones for lights, stacks of wooden plates for dining, jars of pickled foods, bags of flour, and even a single skeleton wielding a double set of toilet brushes like they were the deadliest of morningstars.
"We're off" Glarith announced before a gathered camp. The adventurers had mostly taken to a slow morning, basking in the sun, drinking water to cure hangovers, and boiling soup with some locally sourced mushrooms, all the while watching the mages organize and prepare for their exodus. But as Glarith stood there, with her army of mages and skeletons behind her, they all sat up from the grass and shifted their attentions to look directly at her.
"East, is it?" Elrith was the first to speak.
"Yes" Glarith nodded firmly, though her eyes were soft as they fell upon the crossbow-woman. Those soft eyes transformed with the rest of her expression though when she tilted her head into thought for a second. "And some north" she corrected, her face looking as if trying to lay clear their route in her mind.
"Good luck, I suppose" Rulli spoke in a half-hearted low voice. Rum eyed the dwarf. Is he post-gay uncertain of the friendship between our groups? It was somewhat to be expected of course, but Rum had hoped that the feelings of yesterday would linger and take hold some, if not in yesterday's intensity, then at least in its quality, as the adventurers and dungeon folk had appeared to reconcile during the gay festivities.
"May your journey be peaceful, and your new home spectacular!" Electroblade raised one arm from her seated position on the grass, and made what likely was intended as a respect-signalling wave at them. "Sincerely!" she emphasized. "And sorry, about trying to murder y'all... a misunderstanding, only." She put her hand to her chest and bowed her neck in formal apology.
Glarith acknowledged the apology with a slight nod of her own, but otherwise said nothing, and the witch's eyes instead went to the group as whole, meeting their different faces in a shifting series of glances. "One of you is missing" she said with one eyebrow rising to confusion.
The adventurers looked betweem them.
"Yes that would be me" Darmon suddenly walked in from behind the many mages. His armor was on, his backpack on his shoulders, his spear in his left hand, and his right hand was the witch from yesterday and the morning, holding his fingers. "I know this might be a surprise to you all–" he came to a full stop in front of the crowd of mages, and turned towards them, "–but I need to ask you all something important: Would it be possible for you to accept me, everyone of you" Darmon looked briefly over their many faces. "Because if you can accept me, I want to come with you, and join you. At least" he glanced towards the witch he was holding, and she gave a small reassuring smile, "for a trial period. I want to get to know you." He looked back at them all. "And find out, perhaps, that despite my lack of magic, I belong among you."
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Behind in the camp Elrith Heart-Piercer shot up from her seat in the grass, the swiftness of her motion spilling a cup of tea and flipping a dirty bowl of finished soup. "YOU CAN'T! DARMON!" The sheer bleakening shock on Elrith's face caught everyone's eyes and focus. "You can't leave us! You can't split the party."
For the painful moment that followed, nobody spoke. Darmon least of all, as he did not quite look like he knew what to respond. Elrith Heart-Piecer, the hard woman who was the leader of their party, looked behind her shocked expression as if she was ready to cry tears.
"I..." Darmon eventually spoke, but hesitated. "I have to."
"No you don't!" Elrith took a stomping step forward, looking for faintly a second like she was about to charge at him and abduct the twice or thrice heavier man back into their party. "We need you. An adventuring party cannot adventure without a tank. And we've been together, long. So long. We know how to work together. We've fought together a thousand times. Leveled together almost from the beginning" Elrith's voice began to crack as she spoke. "You can't leave us now. You are core to this party!"
"I am sorry, Elrith" he cautiously replied, and his face appeared sincerely mournful. "But I had fun yesterday. More fun than I think I've ever had. It has just been a day, I haven't had the time to process this all yet. But, even so, I don't think I woke up the same man this morning." His eyes cast down towards the grassy ground, doubts appearing on his face as he tried to find justification.
Elrith, staring at him with anger brewing, suddenly spun on her feet and flung a finger at Rum. "YOU DID THIS! IT'S YOUR FAULT!" Her finger, but not her eyes, then swung back to Darmon. "He's like this because of your magic! Fix him. Bring his mind back. Undo the spell!"
"I'm sorry Elrith but, I don't think there is anything wrong with him. The spell should have little to no effect after this night's sleep. If the spell has permanently changed him in the meantime, it is only because of experience. And no amount of magic can undo an experience. Least there be a spell that kills memories."
Elrith's lips began shaking, rage filling her face like a tomato of hurt. For a time, the woman just stood there, neither her finger moving, nor her legs, nor anything. She was just shaking, struggling to contain her feelings which were of course apparent to everyone.
"I am sorry" Darmon tried repeating, and Elrith turned shakingly to look at him, but he was unable to meet her eyes, his own shifting shamefully among the grass.
After a long and drawn-out silence the weight of emotions pressing on the air, Elrith slowly ceased her shaking, and the finger came down. She breathed in and out, slightly hyperventilating, before finally calming down properly. A tear escaped her eye, but she quickly wiped that away with her sleeve. Turning her legs to face Darmon she took a heavy step towards the man. She breathed heavily again. She took another step. She sniffed emotionally, and then began slowly stepping up to the man. Reaching his body she weakly slammed the bottom of her fist against his breastplate. Once. Twice. Thrice. Like a knock at the door of his heart. In the end, he looked down into her eyes, his expression shameful and sad, but unyielding before her needs for him. Then surprising everyone Elrith reached up with her short body, and pulled the neck of the man down, hugging him. The hug lasted for a full ten seconds, and came with a sniff and another sniff, but that was all. When she eventually released him, Rum thought he could see a faint little smile on her lips.
"I'm like this and we haven't even heard if they'll take you yet" she looked up into Darmon's eyes. Another sniff. Elrith turned to Glarith, and also glanced briefly at the other mages. "Are you going to take him?"
Glarith looked towards her people. "Anyone think we should reject this man's desire to join?"
Nobody said a thing. Some of them briefly looked towards each other's faces, but not a soul it seemed had it in them to object or even comment.
Glarith searched the faces of her people, and finding nothing, looked back at Elrith and subsequently Darmon. "You can come with us. Be prepared to do your share of the work though. We're going to clear land in the bush, and there'll be none of the things there that you might be used to if you live in the city. No entertainment, no shops. It's just going to be us" Glarith gestured to their group and the hundreds of skeletons carrying stuff. "Can you live with that?"
Darmon reflexively straightened his back, firmed up his sad face, and answered. "Yes! Adventuring, it is not so different. I've lived enough times in the bush and know what it is like. Give me 3 months, and I could make a decision whether I would live with you permanently, or go back to adventuring."
"That is acceptable" Glarith nodded, and looked towards her people. "Objections?" Four different mages, three witches and a wizard, shook their heads. The rest remained both mute and neutral. Glarith returned her look to Darmon. "It is decided then. Welcome to The Apprentices of The Forest."
Darmon smiled, perhaps for the first time that day. He looked down at Elrith, who looked back up at him with a sad face. The small fingers resting on his breastplate had curled up, and for a moment it looked like her little hands would never leave him. The two exchanged eye-contact, and his face became somber again. He let go of his hand holding the witch, and put the free right hand on Elrith's left shoulder. "It was a good journey becoming friends with you. And it's interrupted today, and it's abrupt I know. But our journey together – it might still continue someday, later in life. In the meantime, tell my Uncle Ardmon that I won't be back to live in his tower, and that I may be gone a very long time." He patted her shoulder. "My share of the loot... keep it. If any debt collectors come for me, please just pay them. And if I return, well I might need a little back. But the rest, all of it: just keep it." He patted her shoulder again, and one could hear Elrith sniff with emotion, and snort. Eventually, she did become the first to step away, though without breaking eye-contact.
A few seconds of lingering eye-contact followed, before Darmon looked towards his witch friend, and the two held hands again. The armored man turned away from Elrith, and the duo retreated away from the center of attention, and in among the mages.
Glarith faced the campsite of adventurers together with the rest of her flock. A brief moment passed as she let the emotions in the air settle. "Goodbye" she eventually said, and without waiting for the replies, turned towards the trees and walked off.
"Goodbye" Rum sent after her, as well as did all of the others. Some goodbyes were quiet, like Rulli and Gilda, and some louder, like Elrith, whom it seem directed her loud "GOODBYE" mostly towards their departing tank, who'd merged into the crowd.
They all watched as the majority of the mages left first, followed by all of the skeletons, finally followed by a small group of trailing mages to handle the rear.
Not before the last mage was gone did Elrith go back to the camp. There she went on to sit and to sulk for a full 20 minutes.
However, when that time had passed, mostly in silence, their leader suddenly looked up from the boring grass, and rose up from her seat. The woman cast quick glances to Rulli, Gilda, and Rum, but said nothing. Instead, she began to pack, and without being told so, Rum and the dwarves realized that they should be packing also.
"We're leaving then?" Amez asked as he saw his big brother sit down to begin putting things into his rucksack.
Rum put a few things in, then stood up from his packing. He nodded, his expression matching the somber mood that had overtaken their camp. "Yeah" he answered, and looked over to his awaiting six new apprentices. "Are you guys ready to go?"
"Yeah" Bun was the first to reply, as she stood in her Robe of Mandatory Vacation, a bright yellow thing, with a couple of baggy pockets and small sleeves. On the ground in front of the woman rested her backpack, already packed.
"Yes" answered Soren second, and leaned down to pick up a plain brown bag with his belongs, mostly a few books. He held the bag up as if to show Rum, and Rum noticed the black and diamond-encrusted Shadows’ Marathon ring on one of his holding fingers.
"We're ready" Meti answered third, and for the rest of them. Rum's eyes departed Soren and went on to see more bags and backpacks, and also in Meti's robe pocket The Magebreaker's Wand, and in Bresh's right hand The Super-Sonic Broom. Larkoff also sported his Geriatric Ring on a finger, and at last, there was the most interesting item of them all in Rum's opinion.
He looked at the book carried in one of Farklend's hands at the man's belly. The cover was 3-dimensional, and with the small short-snouted black face of dog sticking out from it. Appearing to be inanimate, Rum leaned down to the book. "Are you ready?"
"Woof!"