Congratulations!

The words appeared before me in bright golden colours that sparkled and fizzed. Like a curtain they parted before me to reveal a large hall filled with climbers milling about in lines or sitting around on couches. The room let out a cheer at the sight of the sparking display and offered me empty words of praise. They didn’t seem to notice or care that I was carrying a dwarf on my back.

Burin stirred from my back for a moment before falling back unconscious. I kept an eye on his health, which continued to slowly trickle down from Zelphar’s fire spell. Not sure if it was the pain or the potion that kept him unconscious. The large room looked a bit like a café lounge. With couches surrounding small tables with smiling adventurers sitting around while eating and drinking. The marbled floor beneath my feet glowed a soft yellow and formed a path that stretched out towards a partitioned section of a long service counter.

Behind the counter stood a woman wearing ornate robes in the greys of the tower knights. There were many like her standing behind the counter, each in their own booth. Most of them engaged with other climbers. The woman flashed me a small smile as I made my way to the chest high wooden counter.

She was human, with long brown hair that was tied back in braids. If I had to guess, I would have said she was in her twenties but with the way aging worked on this world I might have been off by a few decades or more.

“Congratulation’s and welcome to floor ten. You may have noticed that this floor is a bit different than the ones-” Her words sounded like she was following a script she had repeated a thousand times before. I suspected that I would be standing here for a while if I allowed her to continue.

“Sorry but I don’t have time for your little welcoming right now. I need to find Zelphar. Can you tell me where he is?”

Her face morphed from friendly to confused before settling on stern. “You need to be informed about the rules and regulations of this floor before I can let you pass.”

I let out a frustrated moan and pointed to my back where Burin lay with my thumb. “You see this? My friend is dying and in pain.”

Her expression told me that she did not care all that much. “Forget it. I’ll find him myself. Just tell Mac that I’m on this floor.”

She called out towards me as I left the counter to find an exit. Which turned out to be pretty easy. Situated at the end of the hall was a large archway the occasional climber entering and leaving. As I made my way towards the doorway there were a group of elves sitting on one of the many couches. Four of them, two wore malleable steel armour that hugged their bodies and looked flexed when they moved. Their faces were like sharpened axes. The other two were not so heavily attired. Their leather armour looked like lacquered leaves layered over each other with silver ornate pauldrons resting on their shoulders. Their hair was cut short and bright red. One of them noticed me and nudged his neighbour. They stood up and moved as a group, placing themselves in my path, blocking my way.

Irritation spiked though me at the interruption.

“Reigner, is it?” One of the leather wearing elves ask.

The other let out a small laugh. “Obviously. Who else would be walking through here with a burning dwarf on his back?” Mocked the other.

“Listen little brother, making assumptions can lead to dire miscommunication. We wouldn’t want another repeat of Lux.”

“That’s… a fair point.” Turning to me the ‘little brother’ dropped his smile. “Well? Are you?”

I looked between the two elves. The older one had red eyes like Zelphar’s, while the younger had eyes of blue.

“You’re with Zelphar?” I ask.

The red eyed elf smiled and offered out his hand. Both of mine were busy supporting my friend, but even if they weren’t, I wouldn’t have offered my own.

On realising his mistake, he let out an awkward laugh. “Right. And yes. Zelphar is a cousin of ours. He’s a melodramatic sort and wanted someone to come and fetch you.”

“We volunteered.” Blue eyed said with a bit too much excitement in his voice.

“Yes, well you are the height of gossip in our much extended family after all. But I’m sure you are in a hurry so we can talk as we travel. Don’t mind the guards, they follow us everywhere. Price of nobility I suppose.”

“He cannot leave.” The clerk had moved and now stood behind the elves, between us and the exit. A scowl rested on her face making her look older than what she was. “Not until he has finished his orientation.”

The elder brother turned around and faced the angry clerk. “Hmm you certainly take your role seriously. Unfortunately, he has somewhere to be. You see, my cousin has injured this poor dwarf here with a particularly nasty spell. We have no time to stand around and listen to your dribble, stone cloak.”

Her face burned a bright and she took in a deep breath.

“Don’t worry.” Cut in the older brother. “We will be sure to tell him everything he needs to know.”

The clerk placed her hands on her hips and raised her chin towards the group. “It doesn’t work like that.”

The younger brother laughed and turned to his sibling. “Brother. I do believe she is ignorant of who we are.”

“Don’t feel bad. Even ants don’t notice when they wander into a giant’s path. It’s not their fault if they are squished… After all they are only following orders passed down to them.”

“This floor is under the jurisdiction of the tower knights, or stone cloaks as you so eloquently phrased it. You may go, but those two…” She pointed at me. “are staying here.”

“No. You see, they are under my jurisdiction.” The elves voice turned cold. “If you don’t remove yourself from our path, I’ll have my guards do it for you. And you should know that Grailen here” He gestured to one of his steel clad guards, “is a high ranker.”

She took an involuntary step back, her eyes wide as she focused her attention on the guard. Before she could compose herself again, the brothers dismissed her and pushed forwards. A glace from the guard caused her to step to the side. She was careful to keep her distance from the small group. Her eyes locked onto me and I could still see a sense of fear in them.

“Find Mac.” I said as I stepped by her.

Beyond the archway was quite the sight. No makeshift market of wooden stalls and dirt paths. No wall that surrounded the tower. Instead lay a city. The tower was situated on a hill and gave an elevated view of the floor. Glowing lights lined wide stone paved streets. Ttall buildings made from steel and glass towered over the shorter buildings made from wood and stone. Glowing sigils lit up the city, making it look like something out of a fairy tale. The city stretched as far as I could see. What I couldn’t see was any tower monsters or adventurers in battle gear. It was late, the sky dark and the streets were still filled with people, but only a few of them carried weapons. None of them wore armour.

Storefronts advertised their craft with glowing signs that pulled my focus. Restaurants, Cafes, Inns, and Bakeries lined the street in front of me. It was like a city back on Earth… only cleaner. Much cleaner, in fact I couldn’t see any rubbish or discarded items on the ground. The streets were immaculate.

The smell of freshly baked bread tickled my nose. I breathed in deep almost by reflex it smelled so good. If Burin was able, I’m sure he would be wobbling full tilt towards the bakery.

A moment of fatigue hit me. I was hungry and wanted to rest. My stomach grumbled at the new smells, and I felt ashamed to be thinking about food when my friend was dying on my back. I took a moment to heal him back to full and then followed the elves.

The blue eyed elf, the younger of the two brothers, was named Faelen. The older brother, the one with red eyes, was named Syllex. They acted carefree and had a very high impression of themselves. I quickly learnt that they were the sons of an elven king that stood at the top of their society. Well, a king under twelve elders or some such. Two of which were their grandparents, apparently. They were quick to boast about their lineage after being shocked of learning I had no idea who they were.

They led me down a series of stairs from the tower to the wide stone paved street below. A floating carriage waited for us just above the road. The carriage was a dark glossy grey and had gold and silver patterns of fire decorating the side. The inside was like a small garden, with large flower petals for seat cushions. Green leafy vines wound thickly around the roof of the carriage. Hanging from them were perfectly round berries about the size of my thumb. The berries glowed dimly, each one a different colour, illuminating the interior in a soft rainbow of light.

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“Zelphar is crazy you know.” Syllex said as soon as we entered from the seat across from me. “I understand the seer is offering a lot for your summons, but he seems almost manic in his quest.”

Faelen let out a titter of a laugh. “You should have seen him yesterday brother. When he arrived, he rushed straight to the library to see Master Ilbrin, despite having a broken shoulder. Master Lorath had to heal him while he was scouring the library.”

“Yes, well Master Lorath always said Zelphar didn’t focus enough on his constitution. He can’t blame anyone but himself for that.”

“He blames Reigner.” Faelen said with a chuckle and sly look to me.

Syllex returned the chuckle. “Him? He is not even level ten. How could a level nine harm anyone above fifty?”

Faelen looked to me. “Our cousin thinks you have a hidden class. He swears you are some type of illusionist kineticist hybrid, and that you burned all your mana to break through his shield.”

“A hidden class?” Syllex let out a laugh and slapped his hand against the soft petal seat. “What a fancy notion. I think it much more likely that cousin never bothered to rank up the skill. He always avoided endurance training when we were young.”

“Much like us.” Faelen remarked. He plucked one of the glowing berries above him and tossed it into his open mouth. He talked around his mouthful. “If it wasn’t for father dragging us to train, I bet we would still be kicking the rabbits on the first floor.”

“Yes… Well, that’s why I have Grailin… to take the hits for me.”

The bothers continued to talk, not caring that I didn’t join in. Their guards were seated outside at the back of the carriage. They must be supremely confident in their ability to allow me to sit inside with their charge. That or they just believed my level was too low to even cause them harm. A common misconception it seems. I felt no threat from either of them, despite one of them being called a high ranker… Whatever that meant. As for the brothers, they seemed more interested in gossip and their decadent surrounding than climbing the tower. For the most part I just watched the city streets through the window while keeping an eye on Burin’s health. It was a macabre countdown. A very real deadline.

Soon the city buildings faded, and tall thick trees was all I could see. I would have called it a forest, but it lacked decaying leaves, fallen branches and other debris on the ground that normally accompanied one. The ground was smooth with paths winding back and forth between the large trunks. This was a meticulosity tended to grove. We were close.

Faelen peered out the window. “Oh good, we are almost back. How’s your friend? Still breathing? I’m so glad that fire doesn’t spread from him.”

Syllex spared a look at Burin. “And that it doesn’t smell. I do hate the smell of cooked meat… I bet cousin is waiting for us in the Ambas hall. He must be brooding mad over his injury. It does make one wonder.” Syllex leaned forward and looked at me. “Just how did you manage it?”

Faelen gestured to my body. “Just look at him brother. He might be wearing robes of a caster, but he has the physique of a warrior. I wouldn’t much like to get punched by someone that burly, no matter the level difference. Zel underestimated him.”

Syllex kept his attention on me. “Still, while level gaps can be overcome… I have never heard of a gap so large. Hmm… What class…” His brow quirked up, “A Summoner? That’s not a class I am familiar with.”

His reaction told me that he only just learned of my class, but I did not feel the touch of mana that normally came from being identified. His eyes didn’t flash either.

“A summoner, that’s like a conjurer, right?” Faelen gave a short laugh. “Zel was injured by a support role? That’s embarrassing. No wonder he was so obsessed about hidden classes. “

Syllex just continued to stare. “You are from Earth, yes? Tell me, what were you there before you arrived here?”

I had to think for a moment, but I quickly remembered as I had spent years sitting inside a small cubicle, repeating the same routine day after day. It was a safe life. A boring life. I secretly hoped on the way home some nights for something life changing would happen. I never expected that something to be a truck coming to end it. My excitement on discovering I had arrived in a magical world was palpable.

After making sure that Burin was still okay, I faced them. While they seemed like the kind of people I actively avoided, they were being somewhat polite to me. At least, I did not have the urge to strangle them. A punch to the face, absolutely, but that’s only because they carried that ‘I’m above you’ self satisfied smug expression on their faces.

Letting out a sigh, I answered. “I worked as a technical support specialist for an inbound call helpdesk.”

The brothers looked to each other in confusion.

“A what?” Syllex asked.

Not wanting to explain, I waved the question away. I really did not want to get into that rabbit hole. “I helped people fix minor issues for money.”

“Oh, a mercenary!” Faelen stated with a click of his fingers. “A specialist too. That explains it then.”

I let the miscommunication slide. I just did not care enough to clarify.

Syllex plucked a glowing berry for himself. “Is that why the seer is so interested in you? You know something that she values?”

That was something I did care about. My new life as a wizard was being ruined because of it. “Have you met this seer?” I asked.

“I have.” Faelen answered. “She is the most stunning flower I have ever seen. A timeless beauty that is unaffected by the passage of time. If she had only offered her bed instead of magical knowledge, I would have brought you to her a week ago.”

Syllex let out a mocking laugh. “You think you could have found him before me? If she was offering that much, I bet even father would be scouring the tower.”

They both laughed, affirming that their personality’s matched their punchable faces.

“Did she tell you why she is so interested in me?” I asked, pulling the conversation back.

“Hmm not that I recall.” Syllex rubbed his smooth pointed chin. “Though I did hear her say something like ‘My agreements will be honoured, even if it’s by force’ when she was alone one time.” He gave me a sly grin. “Well, when she thought she was alone at least.”

“When was that?” Asked Faelen.

His smile widened. “When I hid inside her wardrobe to get a glimpse of those long legs unsheathed.”

“Brother!” Faelen sounded aghast. “How could you? Without me? Were they like the painting we commissioned?”

A confused look overcame Syllex. “No… all I remember after that moment is waking up in my bed bruised all over.”

Faelen laughed and punched his brother on his arm. “Oh, you dog!”

“No… They were not fun time bruises… They were… Listen, let’s not talk about it…” He averted his gaze from us and peered outside. “Oh look, we are here.”

Before the carriage had time to come to a complete stop, Syllex jumped out. Faelen gestured for me to disembark, once the carriage stilled, and reached up for another berry as he waited. After stepped out I had to bandage Burin back to full health.

The path we stopped by led to only one building. A gleaming dark grey structure that towered upwards and around the fall trees. It was decorated with flames of gold that led from two wooden pillars to the woven vined entrance. The main theme of these elves.

There were a lot of elves milling around the place. Guards stood sentry at the entrance of the building with more patrolling the forest floor. They all had a distinctive angular beauty that I had come to associate with their elven heritage.

A girl with blond hair approached Syllex and spoke with him in hushed tones. Syllex did not bother lowering his voice in reply. “He is already here, why must he wear one of those? It looks like he posted half his family’s garrison. Is he so afraid of one human that has yet to pass the tenth floor?”

He let out a sigh and took an item from the girl before walking over to me. A collar gripped in his hand.

He looked uncomfortable as he spoke. “For some reason Zel insists that you wear a mana cutter before being allowed to see him.” He gave a half smile and an awkward chuckle. “Seems he is a bit frightened of you.”

A mana cutter, a device that would forcibly cut me off from my own mana and prevent me from accessing any of my skills or magic that required it. I turned to look at my still unconscious friend. If I wear this, I won’t be able to heal him.

Noticing my concern, Faelen spoke from next to me. “Don’t worry about your dwarven fellow. I’ll make sure cousin removes his mark. If we let a guest die in our home, father would likely disown us. Also there would be hell to pay from the tower knights. They are quite strict in their rules and ever so quick to punish infractions.”

He called over a nearby guard and orders him to carry Burin. The guard wore the same silver armour that all the guards seemed to wear. He also had two short swords sheathed at his hip. As he went to take Burin, I placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned close.

“If harm comes to him. Harm will come to you.”

He let out a huff of amusement, likely thinking I couldn’t back up my words, and picked up my friend like a he was a princess. “I’ll treat him like he was my own sister.” He voice thick with sarcasm.

I took the mana cutter from Syllex and looked it over. It was the same like the one the two elves showed me on the eighth floor. They did not mind wearing it for their own survival, and so I will not mind wearing this one, for my friend’s survival.

The collar clasped around my neck with a click. I felt an immediate change, a feeling like I was blinded or deafened. I felt less. Apart from when I first unlocked mana with the awaking stone, I never noticed my mana coursing through my body until the moment it was cut off from me. Mana had become so normal to me since my time arriving here, I never realised how stifling it would feel to be without it again. The feeling reminded me of death. The violence, and decades spent at war against never ending waves of creatures.

I took a deep breath of the wood scented air. The collar may have taken away my mana, but it provided me with something I thought left behind.

After I was summoned and found out that I could not access magic, I thought it would be fine as long as I could enjoy the other aspects that were found in worlds of fantasy. Exploration, fighting fantastical creatures, growing in strength, finding, collecting, and bringing back loot to a place I could call home where I could show it off.

Only it was nothing like I had hoped. Sure, I experienced exploration, only it was in dark gloomy caves and fog filled floors that all looked the same. Sure, I gained loot, only just about everything not mundane required mana to activate, making them useless to me. As for a home… I had a small tent that stank of blood and piss after the first week. I only used the tent when I needed… alone time. I learned not to sleep in it after the first attack on our camp. It only got in the way.

Throughout all this time, I watched as others flung magical spells of flame and fire. As others wielded weapons of incredible power. The closest I got to magic was my body, my speed and strength. I could do things no one else could, and for a time I was fine with that. I pretended I had magic, but in reality, I was as they viewed me… Crippled. My joy of the world turned to envy, resentment, and then finally, to hatred.

That hatred filled me now. A hatred of a life without magic, fuelled more after tasting what it’s like to wield it. Mana might be gone from me once again, but my hatred, a desire to destroy a world I was trapped in. That… That had returned.

The two brothers must have noticed the change e as they both took involuntary steps back. Grail, Syllex’s personal guard, took one closer.

I swept my eyes over the elves around me. “Take me to your cousin.”

If one listened carefully. They would have heard the promise of death in my voice.