Tuck got up early and got about his chores.
His first stop was Ginty’s, Tuck needed a fashion overhaul. He tried on an assortment of clothing for both indoors and the wilds. Despite the sales lady's blatant flattery, Tuck only chose practical outfits, nothing frilly, fancy or skintight, but he did include Winter and Summer Gear. Once it became obvious Tuck was making a large purchase Mr Ginty himself took Tuck’s measurements while making small talk. He paid and left, Mr Ginty assured Tuck’s new wardrobe would be delivered to his room at the Jaunty no later than the next day.
Tuck’s next stop was the Society of Crafts and Engineering. They were one of the only groups on the upper floor of the Warren. He Wyrmed his way up.
Tuck walked in with his eyes wide, SCE were the ones who built and maintained the massive airships tuck had seen from the distance. A member of the Militia guarding the area asked his business and gave him directions to the office section.
“Good day.” Tuck announced himself as he walked in. “I’m looking to commission a special project. Who do I speak to?” The group exchanged looks and a young wiry man who was balding prematurely stepped forward.
“My Name’s Wiliat, I’m an engineer and architect. I can probably help, what do you need?” He introduced himself. Tuck shook his forearm.
“People call me Tuck, I want to build a Hideaway.” Tuck informed him. Wiliat looked confused, he had never heard that term.
“What is it you have in mind, exactly.” Wiliat asked for clarification.
“I’m a bagman but my carrying capacity is ridiculous. I want to build a rugged mobile home I can carry with me. I’ll bury it and sleep in it during my travels through the Wilds.” Tuck explained. Wiliat nodded in understanding.
“I get what you want, and we don’t have to start from scratch come to my office.” Wiliat led Tuck back to his personal office and showed Tuck blueprints for airships and caravans, both of which were mobile homes but far more complicated than what Tuck needed, since his Hideaway didn’t need mobility. What those vehicles provided was a list of best practices that Tuck’s hideaway would benefit from like ventilation, sewage disposal, lighting and more.
It took them hours to hammer out a rough idea but from that Wiliat was able to work out an estimate. Tuck paid a deposit and was told to come back in a few days.
Since he was on that floor he also visited the tannery. The Stench the tannery produced was easily vented through the top of the Warren. Once at the tannery Tuck sold many of his furs. As for the Shadow Lynx’s skin he paid them to get it treated. He’d take it back to Ginty to get a hooded cloak made later.
Tuck then wyrmed down to the agricultural and livestock area, he was able to meet the manager of that sector and sold off a lot of the meat he brought in with him. It turned out Titan beast meat was a delicacy so Tuck’s fortune grew once more.
On that same level Tuck also found people interested in the herbs he brought in to be used in potions.
Tuck’s appraisal had told him which parts could be sold, but since arriving in Shaards Tuck had not seen much active magic so decided to buy a variety pack of potions out of curiosity. Their range of effects was impressive, healing, strength boost, speed boost, invisibility, intangibility, hunger suppression. There were also a variety of poisons of which Tuck also bought a wide selection.
Afterwards he picked up a few things he thought necessary. Hunting knives, a battle axe, flint, rope, fishing wire, cooking utensils and a few other knit-knacks. On this level he also bought a lot of weapons and supplies wholesale.
Tuck’s massive purchases once again gained the attention of someone significant, the Branch head of the Merchant Association Director Opcide. A servant came and invited him to her office when he was finishing his purchase.
Tuck followed the servant up to a private room. The servant knocked and opened the door for Tuck. Inside sat an older woman, with sky blue eyes and violet hair which she kept wrapped in patterned red cloth. She wore a pearl coloured dress under a robe with a similar pattern to her head tie.
“Come in Tuck. Join me.” Opcide called. Tuck walked in and sat opposite her. Her room was controlled chaos. There were boxes and chests everywhere, except the corner in which they sat on plush leather seats. Servants stood near the table but Opcide poured the tea herself.
“Thank you.” Tuck said, accepting the drink.
“I’ve received reports from merchants all over the Warren about you moving around making sales. You are obviously not a part of the Merchant Association, would you like to join?”
“Why did they contact you?” Tuck asked, he suspected he had made another mistake.
“Well I am the head of the Merchant Association, and they are all members. They wanted permission to negotiate with you directly. If I had said ‘no’ you would not have been able to make a sale at all.” She informed him.
“What do I get and what does it cost me?” Tuck asked directly.
“The Merchant Association spans many cities, humans and other wise. The Merchant Association is the biggest organisation on Shaards. We are not interested in politics, only profits. By joining the Association you would get preferential rates and treatment, for example you wouldn’t have to run about selling things yourself, of course the Merchant Association will take 5% of all your sales.” She explained. Tuck finished his tea, having some backing would be nice and even though he was enjoying the leg work, that was only for now.
“Your offer sounds great, may I have some time to think about it?” Tuck asked.
“Sure, take all the time you need.” Opcide told him. “When you’ve made your decision, please return.” Tuck rose and bid Opcide farewell and headed back to the Jaunty.
He took the scenic route and walked, he had too much to consider.
Finally Tuck got back to the Jaunty and his apartment. In all it was a good day, all of the shopping didn’t put a dent in Tuck’s wallet, he could rest on his laurels in the Warren but decided he would leave after his Hideaway was done. Despite the dangers, Shaards’ wonders called to him.
***
The next day Tuck visited the Mage Assembly.
They took up an entire level and were divided amongst 3 different sects. For a small fee he was able to browse their library. Tuck was curious about Magic but he found a few books early on that explained he would never be able to use it. Which was a shame since it turned out Tuck was literate in the runic magical language just like all the other languages on Shaards.
‘Because of course I am, those goddesses are nothing but trouble.’ Tuck thought.
The reason Tuck would never be a Mage was because he was already a Champion. Everybody had a Magical core but for most people it was so weak it couldn't do anything, those people with a strong Magic Core are considered to have talent, with training and a sequence of Rune patterns painted across their body in a tapestry, these people could grow to manipulate any of the elements to various effects becoming a Mage.
By absorbing a SoulGem a person's Magic core changed into a mirror reflection of the Titan beast’s SoulGem and the creature’s effigy would appear on the person's body. That person then became a Champion. Mages had more versatility than Champions but anyone could become a Champion and they didn’t require so much time to become powerful.
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Tuck’s feelings were complicated. He had thought he was gaming the system when he took the super power over magic and believed he could have the best of both worlds. Tuck agonised over his choice until he concluded that had he picked magic he would have died when the MonoOwl swooped in to kill him. The instincts he gained from being a Void Wyrm saved him time and again.
Feeling better about his choice and now knowing he could not learn Magic, Tuck tried to find out the limitations of Magic, at some point of time he may be in conflict with a Mage. It turns out their greatest weakness was casting time, Magic worked like a programming language. Newer mages needed to chant and use hand motions but older mages basically had macros in the form of Rune tapestries over their bodies. Being able to cast powerful spells with just a gesture with the most dangerous mages just attacking with a thought.
‘If I get in conflict with an Archmage I should just run and assassinate them later.’ Tuck concluded.
Tuck also discovered that the runic language was nearly dead, it was so complicated it took nearly a lifetime to master it even with teachers to learn from. The fact that he could understand it perfectly was filed away for later.
He purchased some copies of maps and a variety of books on different subjects, including a few story books. As he travelled Tuck may find buyers interested in learning since he sincerely doubted every settlement is as well supplied as The Warren.
“Excuse me!” a gentle voice called out from the doorway Tuck had just passed. He stopped and turned to find a young woman dressed in Mage robes.
She stopped out of breath, leaning on her knees. Tuck took the time while she was catching her breath to study her. She was around 5ft 4in and looked young, probably just out of her teens. Her bright blue hair was cut into stylish bangs and her Mage robe was synced at the waist emphasising her large bosom. Finally she wore large circular glasses which made her eyes look bigger and more innocent.
Remembering what he had just read about runes Tuck used his Spatial Awareness to examine the young Mage again.
She blazed. Now he knew what to look for; he could see a complex pattern of interlocking runes covering her torso and right arm completely, with smaller rune patterns on her head, left arm and feet. Looking around the library at other mages he noticed they too had runes. Tuck knew there were 3 Sects in the Mage's Assembly and quickly differentiated their patterns.
Each Sect had their own tapestry but they seemed to be heading toward the same result and the higher your rank, the more your tapestry was complete.Tuck refocused on the woman in front of him.
"How can I help you miss?" He asked. She bounced to attention and spoke with bubbly energy. Tuck didn’t think she meant to make her breasts jiggle like that but he was mesmerised all the same.
“Hi, are you the Bagman that just came in with out of season plants from the Bellphon forest from the North?” She asked.
“Yeah that’s me, people call me Tuck.” he introduced himself.
“Nice to meet you Tuck, I’m Adaline. Bagman Tuck I was told you found valleys out of season, can you spare the time to show me where they are on a map?” Adaline watched him intently as Tuck pretended to think over his schedule for the day.
“I don’t know Adaline, I have a very busy schedule. What are you offering to make it worth my time?” he asked while keeping a serious expression.
Adaline stopped bouncing and closed her eyes to think. She tapped her chin while pouting cutely before replying.
“We have metals, we have potions and we have magic items. I’m sure we can find something that you want.“ she said.
“How about a date with you?” Tuck asked, stunning her for a moment. Adaline assessed him from head to toe.
“Dinner but not this evening.” She agreed.
“Deal, let’s make this quick, I have to meet with the craftsmen about my personal project.” Tuck informed her.
“Thank you.” she said, before grabbing him by the arm and dragging him away. Tuck noticed the other Mages cleared a path about her when they passed. Adaline was obviously someone of authority despite her young looking age, she had more of her Rune tapestry filled than most people Tuck had seen so far but that soon changed.
Their destination turned out to be a nearby laboratory.
“Masters I found him!” Adaline called out as she dragged Tuck into the room. The lab was filled with many elder Mages standing around a map table while even more younger Mages ran about doing tasks.
Adaline’s master was a severe looking, tall old woman standing at the head of the Map table.
“So you are the young man in question. Come in. Junior Mages, we need the room please." The GreatMage announced. Adaline was surprised but bowed and obeyed, leaving with the rest. Tuck was curious what it was about. Imagine his shock when the 3 GreatMages attacked.
Ethereal chains sprang to life between the 3 Mages and Tuck. He found himself locked in place.
"Now you'll answer our questions or you'll suffer."
"The Warren is the furthest human colony to the north we know of, where did you come from?" One of the Mages asked.
“The fruits you were selling were out of season and fresh, where did you gather them.” asked another Mage.
Tuck just hung there in the air, hearing them out for a moment. Then, as if he had flipped a switch Tuck stepped out of their hold. The GreatMages’ eyes went wide. That wasn’t supposed to be possible.
“I am going to be civil to you since you didn’t try to kill me outright.” Tuck said. To the Mage’s perspective Tuck vanished from where he was and appeared next to the map table. The image of The Warren and the surrounding forest was still displayed. Tuck moved some flags to several valleys forming a straight line heading Northwards. Tuck stepped back and studied the Mages who were watching him warily. As they cautiously moved forward to see what he had marked he examined the fuller RuneTapestry the masters wore. They were the leaders from all three Sects, Adaline’s teacher being one of them. By the time they reached the table he had their Rune tapestries memorised. He would paint them later and research the order in which the runes need to be placed at his leisure.
“What do these flags represent?” Asked Adaline’s Master.
“At those points I found valleys, little gardens flourishing out of season, unexpectedly warm. I’m not from this area, I believed it to be natural but it seems I was wrong.” Tuck replied.
“As for where I came from, Mages such as yourself should be educated enough to know the world isn’t flat. If you go far enough North you find yourself in the South.” he continued. Tuck began walking out of the lab before speaking once more over his shoulder. “I expect to be handsomely compensated for the rude reception.” Tuck found Adaline and the other Junior Mages outside, while the Junior Mages crowded back in, Adaline grabbed Tuck and led him away. Once they were outside she gave him a card from her satchel.
“I’m not going to ask what that was all about, but this is a calling card, don’t put it in your dimensional pocket. I’ll contact you about our date.” With that she ran back to the lab.
Tuck exited the institute, he had gotten lucky they weren’t assassins. He needed some kind of passive forcefield, hopefully the Merchant guild sold something like that. Another stop to add to his tasks. Thinking of tasks, Tuck took out a notebook he had purchased and started to recreate the Rune tapestries he had just learned while walking to the Society of Crafts and Engineering. His list of things to do was growing longer and longer, but he was in no hurry.
***
As Adaline returned to the lab the masters were in discussion.
“What are we going to do about the Bagman, he’s obviously something dangerous. We may have made an enemy.” an old GreatMage named Andeton asked. Tuck shrugging off the dimension lock, sent shivers down their spines. They understood distance and walls meant little to someone capable of such a feat.
“He’s willing to forget it if the compensation is good, so we’ll just be sincere. How about we gift him a second life talisman?” Another GreatMage named Rodert suggested.
“Everyone appreciates a second chance at life, that should ease any hard feelings.” Said Great Mage Hizanko, Adaline’s master.
“Now what are we going to do about this heating phenomenon? We all agree we need to investigate, but an expedition in winter will be treacherous. One way or another we will have to get either the Militia or the Clans involved.” GreatMage Hizanko continued.
“The Militia takes too long to do anything.” GreatMage Anderton complained. “Without evidence, getting them to take this seriously will be hard.” he finished, GreatMage Rodert chimed in with a rebuttal.
“Once the Clans know of our suspicions they will focus on saving themselves and their wealth, making a unified effort near impossible.” There was tense silence as everyone considered.
“We need them both. No, we need the entire council.” GreatMage Hizanko said.
“They will accuse us of fear mongering.” Rodert complained.
“What good is a reputation if everyone dies?” Hizanko concluded.
The rest of their day was spent trying to pull together as comprehensive a report as they could with the evidence they had.