Gabe

I follow Sister Maribel as she makes her way through the outer ring of Fountain City. I don't have a lot of experience with this part of the city, except maybe my very first days, when I routed along the quieter alleyways to avoid being seen wearing nothing but underwear while going to get my clothes. And where I got assaulted / inadvertently murdered during one of those runs.

I've come a long way since then. Lol.

We turn left here, right there, walking our way through darkened alleys with varying degrees of life. Some streets are clean, proof that the people sweeping the steps of their homes take pride in where they live. Others are stained, littered with garbage, and stink of trash and sewage. All of them dark, narrow, and closely packed with doors leading into homes, sudden bars, or smoky workshops.

What feels like dozens of turns later, Maribel stops. We've gone through a couple of covered hallways along the route, and that's where we are now. I wonder if maybe we're actually inside the walls somehow. Geography, or spatial awareness in any form, was never my thing.

She turns to me.

"Say nothing. Literally nothing. If he asks you a question, don't answer it. Don't give your name, don't ask questions, don't eat anything, don't drink anything, don't touch anything."

Maribel knocks a few times at an unremarkable wooden door on the side of the hallway. No secret knock, no hidden door, just a basic knock on another of the thousands that we've passed by.

I've watched too many anime and read too many stories.

"Who is it?!"

"It's me."

"Who's that?"

"You should be able to tell by my voice, Hector!"

"Voices can be copied! Your name!"

Sister Maribel looks around the alley. It's as quiet as it was when we arrived. Which, to be honest, is a lot quieter than the rest of the city was, only a few streets back. Is there something going on here?

"It's me, Hector. Eliza. I brought a friend."

"And what for, pray tell?"

"Hector! We need a Camouflage (status)."

The door opens, and reveals a little old man with a scraggly mid-length beard that ends at a point. He's using a cane, and walks mildly hunched over, and his eyes look slightly crazed, but suddenly he's caught my eyes. And he feels much more sane and friendly than I had expected.

"Why Eliza! Is that all? Of course you come to Hector! Why didn't you say so in the first place? Oh, you brought a friend with you! What's your name boy? Oh, my manners! Have to keep up on the appearances! Come in! Come in! Let's go inside so the nice riffraff can use the alleyway."

We walk inside, and he closes the door, reaching out to a glowing white crystal as the door closes. It blinks out, and the sounds of the city are noticeable for just a moment before the door closes completely, leaving nothing.

Hector rubs his hands and walks in front of us through a short hallway lined with holes along the side. Um. I think those are murder holes. The kind you see at castle gates, or vaults, or, yet again, in stories.

Hector is waiting at the end of the hallway, leaning slightly on his cane, watching me look at the holes. He winks at me and flashes a broad, toothy smile.

"Can never be too careful!"

Yep. Definitely murder holes. The ceiling has them too, and I see a definite outline of a trapdoor just before the end of the hallway, which has a space for a portcullis to drop.

Maybe I don't read too many stories.

We come out of the end of the hallway into a small combination living space and workshop. A small bed is in the corner, with a large dresser nearby. One door is on the opposite wall of the entrance, and another on the left wall. Near the entrance on the right side are a set of three chairs, and a small table, and along the back right corner is what looks like a workshop - complete with a large desk, tools, and cabinets with dozens of tiny drawers. I look back - along the outside and above the ceiling of the hallway we used to enter are dozens of brilliant red crystals, each shining with a crimson glow. Sister Maribel has taken a seat on one of the chairs. Hector is again watching me, with a massive smirk on his face.

"Yep! Can never be too careful!"

He reaches out and touches a small red crystal around his neck, and the red glows around the hallway dim. I notice hundreds of tiny red lights that appear along the ceiling and walls of the workroom itself.

Hector's face looks like he's about to break into a laugh.

"So, Miss Eliza, what can humble Hector do for you today? And who is the nice friend you've brought me? I don't recognize him from any of the events I've attended."

"I go by Maribel now, Hector. You know that."

"Makes no difference what you go by to me."

Maribel sighs and spreads her hands patiently on her white dress.

"I said it already, Hector. We need to purchase a Camouflage (status)."

Hector looks down at a green gem on his wrist. "A charm? You can find a charm like that in the market or any old place."

"Yes, Hector. And half of them will break the first time someone uses Identify, and the other half are required to register the cast of every Camouflage to the Crown. We need something that will work, without the Crown."

"Oh do you now? It's always so good to work with you, Eliza. I heard about the nasty business you got into not long ago. I want to help! You know that charms work best when they are focused. What's your name young man? Might there be something... special we're looking to hide?"

Wow. Hector is such a nice old man - opening his home to us, offering to help us when he doesn't even know me! He's so kind. So much kinder than the other enchanter I met before. And there's no way he would ever hurt me. He wants to help! I feel a sudden urge to talk, and I open my mouth, eager to share exactly what we're here for.

"Well, you see, my K$&36 J&$%#£ @ 83?$%#+"

Wait. What was I just saying?

Hector's smile fades into an obvious pout. He looks at Maribel, who is the one now smirking.

"Lock? Really Eliza? Are you that afraid of little old me? All I did was ask his name!"

"Yes, Hector. We both know where your loyalties lie. I happen to be paying the most today, but who knows how long that will last. And, as a warning, no funny business today. I Swear that the moment you try to get around that Lock, or ask any other question about him, is the moment you stop getting any gold or referrals from me."

I feel the air swirl around us, little bits of mana flowing through the currents of words.

Woah! Did I really just feel something there?

I check my status. Nope. No message. But at least it means something, right? Maybe there's some kind of mana vision or something similar I'll unlock someday. Except what if I can't turn it off?

Um.

Also, did we just forget or pass over the fact that this little old man somehow compelled me to speak against my will? That, if I hadn't begun answering his second question first, I would have given away my name and told him my entire life's story... and that I still have little remnant feelings that he's the kindest old grandpa I've ever met?

I have questions. And I can't ask anyone about them. Because I literally can't speak or write them. Ugh.

Hector looks quite startled, and he drops the cane and stands up straight.

"What'll it be then? Camouflage (status) works best as a charm on something that can't be removed. It doesn't work well as a status spell because it can be dispelled easily."

"I was thinking a permanent ring. If he is amenable to it, and it's possible, one of the ones he already has equipped."

"That might be possible. What are... right. No questions. Is it alright if I inspect the ring, Eliza?"

"I don't think inspection is necessary, Hector. Honestly I have no idea how it happened but we both know materials when we see them. Do the enchantment and we'll be on our way."

Hector grumbles and then waves at me.

"Come here boy. No one has manners anymore these days. No common decency, no names, no anything. Just do the enchantment, Hector. Don't ask any questions, Hector..."

Maribel is staring at him pointedly.

"I'm going! Hold yer horses!"

He drags me by the arm to the table, where he pulls open a drawer and then turns to me.

"Some free advice. Usually the quality of the enchantment depends on every ingredient that goes into it. Use inferior gems or materials, get inferior results. Use a perfect gem or a perfect material, and you get an enchantment that will pretty much never fail."

He indicates the black gems in the drawer.

"These are perfect shadow gems. You paying for perfect shadow gems, Maribel?"

"I'm paying you to do your job, Hector."

"Perfect gems it is then!"

Maribel, under her breath mutters something I barely hear.

"Not like you would ever use anything else..."

"She's right, you know. Only inferior enchanters use inferior gems. I insist on only the best. Even for something like this. Which ring we doing?"

"There's a ring under his gauntlet. I trust that you are able to enchant it even with the gauntlet in the way?"

"Now, Lady Eliza, I understand we got off on the wrong foot here. But that's no reason to question the skills of a professional craftsman like myself! Oh the very thought!"

"Hector!"

"Yes, I can enchant it. I could cast an Eye Scry on the ring and he'd be able to use it. You do know what 100% mana conductivity means, don't ya? What are they teaching kids these days?"

Maribel says nothing.

Hector grabs a black gem from the drawer, drops it into a mortar, and says a few words. The gem turns to powder.

"You can do it by hand, after you cast the enchantment. Most people do. But that's because doing it by hand makes tiny particles of different sizes, and each one would take a different amount of the spell. Crushing the gem after the enchantment is cast introduces flaws to the enchantment. And those imbeciles wonder why their enchantments fail. Why wouldn't they, when the first thing they do is grind up the magic with a rock like a neanderthalic caveman?"

He calms down slightly.

"The trick of doing it with magic is making sure you use the right kind of magic to break the gem."

"And since Hector here only works in shady Shadow gems, it's perfect! Especially since he's such a shady character himself."

"Ugh!"

Hector dramatically holds his heart as if he was shot by Maribel's statement.

"That such a refined, upstanding, obviously righteous young lady as yourself could ever say something like that! Especially when the same young lady is asking me for something shady!"

Maribel rolls her eyes. These guys could totally open up a comedy troupe. A bad one, where people would groan rather than laugh, but one nonetheless.

Hector looks at me as if he can read my mind.

"You have something to say boy?"

"He doesn't Hector."

"Alright."

Hector opens up another drawer and pulls out two small badges.

"Put on these silence charms. I know. This isn't how it usually works. I may be a shady old man willing to do anything for money, but I'm not about to share my tricks with just anyone. This is my life work we're talking about, and I can't enchant the ring and have you come back for it. And you aren't paying enough for a lesson in enchanting."

He tosses Maribel the badge.

"As soon as you start I'll put it on."

I feel somehow compelled to speak again. This time it's a softer compulsion... fueled just by my admiration of Mr. Hector. What if I break his charm? Like what happened last time? It looks so nice. This time no system Lock saves me.

"Uh... Mr. Hector, I think I should mention that... uh... charms sometimes do weird things when I wear them."

"Ohhhh? How so, boy?"

"Uh... they sometimes break. I was in a charm shop and a charm like this broke when I put it on."

"Oh. Just that? It was probably just low quality trash. Some uppity "enchanter" trying to hide his trashy secrets from you, and his silence charm failed? What kind of secrets could he even have that would be worth hiding? Charms like that aren't worth the hide they're made from."

He spits.

"Trash!"

He hands me the badge. I take it reluctantly. It is different from the badge I wore at the enchanter's shop. That one was solid, with engravings in the metal. This one is made of metal, and has a black gem embedded inside. Based on Hector's obsession with perfection, I'd assume that it's a "perfect" shadow gem. Not really sure what perfect means though.

"Are you sure?"

"Look boy, put on the badge and shut up. Or walk out of here without an enchantment and I make Eliza pay me double. Your choice. The "oh everything is so interesting" act was a nice touch at first. But I'm done with the niceties. I won't have any more insulting of my craft."

He points at the badge. I put it on, and the world around me goes silent.

I don't try to listen. At least, not on purpose. But when the world goes completely silent, it's totally normal to focus on the silence. Hector, should I call him Grandpa Hector? Master Hector? Teacher Hector? I'm filled with joy that I can wear something he enchanted. I feel like the nice old man would want me to enjoy the experience of his badge. And enjoyment is heightened by understanding. I'm probably hallucinating. I pretend that I can feel a tiny field of mana billowing from the crystal, through the badge, and then surrounding me in a bubble of silence. One that just barely covers my skin, and doesn't let any sound in or out.

Hector looks at me and says something. I have no idea what he's saying. I wish I did. He picks up a crystal off the table and throws it on the ground. In the periphery of my vision, I see Sister Maribel jump slightly. I guess he wanted to make sure the badge is working right? What a nice old man. I look at Sister Maribel with a sense of pity. I frown at her. The enchantment process might be very loud, and Teacher Hector gave us such nice things. Why doesn't she want to wear the badge? I look at her, point at her, frown again, then point at my badge and smile.

Maribel looks at me. Her eyes narrow slightly, then her mouth opens and closes. Like a fish. Why doesn't she wear the pretty badge? Then suddenly looks as if she is surprised. She jumps to her feet, turns to Hector and her mouth opens and closes. Her face turns red and she points to me with exaggerated motions. She must be thanking him for his efforts. I mean, this badge is really nice. Hector's mouth opens and closes. He shrugs, then points at the door as it opens and closes again. Oh how I wish I could hear the things he says. He would be the most amazing Teacher. That's it. Teacher Hector. I can learn anything, and he will teach me. I make a silent vow to memorize his every movement, hand from his every word. My eyes shine with admiration.

White light shines briefly from Sister Maribel, and my emotions shift. Hector a nice little old man? More like extremely dangerous, manipulating man that somehow had my entire mind in his grasp. That was... absolutely terrifying. My entire body is coated with sweat, and I find myself shaking in fear. Visibly shaking.

I've never lost control of my mind like that. The fact that can even happen in Dungeon Quest is terrifying. Should I log out? Should I run away? Can I even handle this? I start feeling like I'm struggling to breathe. I'm having a panic attack. My mind wasn't my own. My mind wasn't my own.

Another white light shines from Maribel, and I find my emotions stuck in a tiny box, total calm encompassing me. I look at her, and she gives me a sad sort of smile, points at the badge, and puts it on.

I close my eyes and focus on the badge, and its little bubble of silence.

Except that wasn't what the badges really did, right? I remember that last time the enchanter told me that the badge was enchanted with a curse of silence. A curse of silence isn't the same as a ward of silence or stealth... in which case it likely only interacts with my ears. I close my eyes. It should be ok to close them for just a moment, since it will help me with imagining. I'll open my eyes to see Hector again soon. But without emotions involved, I find myself still wanting to learn as much as possible from this little old man. If nothing else, to protect myself and everyone I love from people like him.

My internal image of the mana involved changes, and I envision the mana cloud engulfing my eardrums with a sticky, black film. Sticky because curses are sticky, right? Hard to remove, won't come off using normal methods. Black because Hector mentioned shadow magic, shadow mana, and shadow gems - all black, inky. The image shifts, and no longer is the wave of mana a diffuse cloud. Instead, it's an oily, sticky film of ink, like the explosion of ink from a squid, swirling through the air. It doesn't just focus on my ears, since curses likely don't actually care that much about the person being cursed. They're designed to be effective and hard to remove, which means that if there's cost cutting somewhere, it's not in those two parts. That's ok though. The envisioned bubble of film around my eardrum is now a Pollock masterpiece or one done by a child, splashes of ink building up around the ear itself, always on target but sometimes causing splash damage, bleeding off into other tissue, swirling through the alternate dimension where mana is stored, coloring it, staining it, leaving part of my mana inaccessible until it's somehow cleaned of taint, leaving a heavy, sticky, permanent coating on my ability to hear.

"Ding."

[Congratulations! Your visualization of a curse is laughable. But your continued exposure to high-level curses, a negligible portion of your imagery, and multiple random events have combined into something miraculous! You are now aware of the existence of the skill Curse Resistance.]