The sun hung high in the sky and the mana rat skeleton bounced across a field as Vip dashed after it. Trella’s Deception appeared in the distance, picking it up and hurling it back—only for a second Deception to catch it and throw it even further.
“I can’t control them that far out,” Trella said. “I can tell them what I want done but I can’t control exactly what they do.”
Trinity watched the dog and deceptions with one head for each. Kaden put a hand on her. “What’s wrong, girl?”
The TriTerror lay one head on his shoulder and groaned. *Worry.*
That was a complex emotion for a beast who usually only had hunger or rage. He put an arm around her and focused on [Beast Soul]. Deep under the thin layer of anger that always covered Trinity lay worry, and beneath that, fear. “You…don’t want to come?”
Trinity ambled to the porch and lay down, circling her tail around her. *Fear.*
Now Kaden was the one worried. Never, ever, had the TriTerror shown fear, except as a status effect. “Eve, can you come check Trinity?”
Eve emerged from the Farmhouse wearing dark gray robes, with her hair falling loose all the way to the small of her back. “She’s not sick, but there’s something odd about her.”
That was the other aspect. “She doesn’t want to go into my soul. She wants to sleep on the farmhouse porch.” Trinity had been a constant companion for Kaden. Now, seeing her doze made him worry. She only dozed after a rampage, and there had been no rampages he was aware of. “You can stay here. I can handle an island trip, and it’s mostly diplomacy.”
“You’ve never been to Egalion. It’s all war. Some of it is war fought with words and some of it is war fought with weapons but it always at war. The only question is if you can see it.” Eve headed back inside.
*We should leave her, too,* Trella sent in code. *Seriously, I’ll send a bird to Ashi and Sara. You and I should handle this. There’s no reason to make Eve go if she’s this worried. I don’t like the goddess Varun anyway.*
A moment later, Sara’s parrot landed on Kaden. “You know the trade we want, that Iron Gear Empire Diplomat’s Seal for an infernal pearl. I wish you luck with the Inheritance package.”
Trella joined Kaden as he headed for the FarPortal, sending the Falcrow to the Guild with his location and destination. It activated as he arrived. Kaden took her hand and strepped through, from early spring into oppressive humidity and the dense heat of summer. All around him stood FarPortal pavillions. Guests streamed off them and down paths meant to loosen the knot of people.
Trella and he trotted clear and veered left, and left again, each time choosing the branch that led toward the diplomat’s enclave. Eve’s plan had been to approach, get the attention of the guard, and let the [Infernal Pearl] do the talking.
All around them on the green rested the full-sized versions of Eve’s messenger bird, with long necks and beady black eeys and then rainbow eyes on every feather of their tail.
“Notice anything?” Trella asked. “They’ve got guards at every fork, but they’re not stopping us. It’s because they don’t want to stop us. They want us further in so we have to fight our way out.”
*Memorized the second fork as a Portal,* Kaden replied.
“You did not!” Trella continued to speak out loud despite the fact that she could be over heard. *Rescue Reset is bound back at the third fork where I fed the eye-bird.* “I’m out of mana.”
Kaden poured mana into her via Mana Well and accepted the regen potion. *This isn’t a war.*
*Didn’t you hear Eve? It’s all war.* Trella spotted the gates and guards ahead. “Hello. We’re looking for a diplomat. Specifically the one from Egalion to the Iron Gear Empire.”
“The market for trades—” The guard to the left stopped as Kaden drew the [Infernal Pearl] from Inventory. The man licked his lips and stared. His hands began to tremble and he spoke a string of giberish. Kaden put the pearl into Inventory. “You heard the woman. We’re looking to meet with the diplomat from Egalion to the Iron Gear Empire.”
The guards rushed to send messages, while Kaden exchanged glances with Trella. The sour smell of sweat and anxiety filled the air.
“Who are you and what do you want?” A man’s voice rang out as a [Priest] approached. He projected a presence that stifled the anticipation and caused Trella to take a step back.
[Gladson Salc - Priest of Varun]
The Priest of Purification has served Varun for more centuries than most Adventurers have survived. To stand in his presence is to be subject to his power, a power that does not tolerate any but the purest desires.
Level: 100
HP: 16,000
Mana: 8,000
Class: Priest (Varun) - Specialization (Purifier)
Kaden offered the priest a hand. “You don’t happen to work for the Saint’s Hall, do you?”
“I do not.” Gladson looked from Trella, who’d hidden behind Kaden, back to Kaden. “What brings you down this wrong path? You said you’re looking for a diplomat. One you know isn’t in service, and you bring—” Gladson stopped, his gaze distant. “Oh, I see. Kaden Birch, Trella Sonos. You should have presented yourself to the first guard and let him verify via [Identify]. I have many duties and this should not have involved me.”
“I came to make a trade and I thought this would be the fastest way,” Kaden said.
The Priest stopped and looked back. “Really, this? I wouldn’t have leveled you with [Authority]. Our notes say you have a resistance to it based on your Holding. Obviously your friend doesn’t.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Kaden wrapped his arm around Trella and held her close. His Queenslayer title left him immune to it. “You can lay off of it. And why do you have notes on me? The last time I was here I was a sack of sausage the Queen had to resurrect.”
“Quite humorous. And missing most of your Beasts, which means you are largely powerless,” the Priest said. “Never reduce me to this again or I will find reasons to interfere with you, no matter what favor you hold. You’ll find our Minister of Diplomacy and the our general waiting for you in one hour at the Saphire Hall. I hope that’s all.”
Kaden drew the [Hand of Varun] and [Staff of Varun]. “I wish it was. I need to meet with a priest of Varun—”
“Priestess, for those,” Gladson said.
Which prompted something else Kaden thought of. “I’d specifically like to talk to a lower ranked Priestess. Not the High Priestess, just an average level, boring priestess of Varun who can look these up, tell me who should have them, and let me turn them over.”
That was probably a grin that Gladson showed for just a moment. “Noted. Odd, but ‘specifically’ noted. Don’t disturb my kingdom, my priestesses or my anything.”
Only after he left did the pressure in the air recede.
“I hate [Authority.] I need to kill a Queen or King,” Trella said, spitting. “Come on, let’s head to the Saphire Hall. It’s fifty nine minutes to our meeting and I don’t want to be late.”
Despite Trella’s claims, she didn’t head straight to the hall. Instead, she sat to the side of one of the furtherst forks, watching Adventurers stream by. As the location of Varun’s primary temple and the home of her High Priestess, Egalion attracted the strangest, the most desperate and afflicted. “Look at that one! He’s dissolving into weasels.”
“Those are [Mink],” Kaden said. “Stop running,” he said using [Beast Command]. As a simple command it gave him a moment to cross the stone paths that led everywhere and [Soul Bind] a few [Mink] before offering them back to the [Shield] who stumbled along the path. “I think this was one of your ears.”
“Never run the [Transformation Triplet] Dungeon,” the [Shield] muttered. “Figured with level one hundred resistances I’d be safe.”
“Hey!” Kaden shouted at the man’s nose, which had transformed into an ermine and tried to leap off his back. “Get back here. All of you. Trella, hand it over.”
She reluctantly handed back the mink she’d been petting.
He herded the weasels down the path until a [Priest] spotted them. “We need cages. He’s going to pieces,” the priest yelled.
One by one, Kaden ordered the man’s ears and nose and left hand into the cages. The weasels were getting into everything, including attacking the eye-birds, which had them greatly upset. Kaden projected calm—and the idea of fewer weasels—and wished he’d brought Vip.
The Priest used a preservation skill to halt the curse’s progress and led the man into a hut for more intensive treatment.
“That one isn’t going to make it.” Trella pointed to an [Assassin] stumbling, then crawling, and finally laying over as a hole the size of a [Magrat] appeared in his torso. “You know, this place could be interesting. Just watching the walking wounded come in. You didn’t get a warning, did you?”
“Warning?”
“Any [Assassin] related class gets a warning. Killing here except in self defense will cause Varun to refuse to heal you anywhere in the world. And a lot of the lesser healing gods will take her side. You really have to want someone dead badly to try it here.” Trella took a left fork, avoided the line for limb re-attachment and found a market where they served cold juice and water. “Oh, I’ve heard about this. It raises mana regen, raises health regen and purges status conditions in one go.”
Kaden bought four and stored the coconuts with their metal drinking spouts in Inventory. Then sipped one. “This actually is nice. Warm sun. Shade and a cool breeze. A moment ago I could smell meat cooking. Don’t know what that smell is.”
“Her.” Trella pointed to a woman overgrow with toadstools being carried along by four companions. “She’s rotting. Give a moment—oh, they’re roasting goat and potatos. Maybe the meeting can wait?”
Together they strolled the pristine stone streets to buy skewers of goat and potato from a [Fire Mage] who’d taken [Chef] as a profession. As long as Kaden handed over silver the chef kept handing over skewers. “Sara and Ashi will love this,” Kaden said. “Plus, you never know when you need to stab someone.”
Now it was time to find the Saphire Hall, a bungalo that looked out on the ocean. Kaden spent the minutes eating and taming the Eye-Birds, which weren’t beasts, but they were very cranky.
“I should eat more often. I was in a terrible mood.” Trella leaned back, twiring a pair of kabob skewers. “Now I’m in a mood to negotiate.”
As if she’d triggered a trap, the Hall doors swung open, and guard stepped out. “Trade Minister Echels and General Knef will meet with you now.”
The hall was clean, near barren, the roof flat without support timbers (or places for spies to hide), with only a wide, long table, a heatstone and a pillar with the runes for [Create Water] engraved on it.
One glance, and Kaden was certain the Trade Minister was the elderly commoner with graying hair and a scroll unrolled. The man to the Minister’s right made Kaden’s skin crawl. He was [Soldier], but obviously a Centurion, as tall as Mr. Dervish but wider, thicker, with twin swords strapped to his forearms so the handles jutted back.
*How’s he going to draw those?* Trella tapped out. *Let’s not find out.*
Kaden dipped his head. “Good day. I’m Kaden Birch, this is Trella Sonos. We came to trade, and I hope we can both leave here happy.”
“Show me the pearl.” The General spoke softly, a man who didn’t need to shout. “I have sixteen soldiers who could gain third tier skills from it, if it’s real.”
Kaden drew the pearl from Inventory and set it on the table. “I’m not interested in using it.”
“Good. And you want? A trade agreement? Gold?”
Trella coughed. “You don’t have a diplomat to the Iron Gear Empire because they expelled all the diplomats. We need to go to the Empire and the only way in is with a Seal. A seal you aren’t—and won’t be—using, for that.”
Her confidence made Kaden happy.
“You’ve got to be kidding. You want a seal—to that place—you know, I don’t care. Give them the Seal.” The General offered Kaden a handshake. “If you find more, you won’t get better deals elsewhere. But this isn’t a deal, this is theft.”
Trella glanced to Kaden. Her expression confirmed his feeling. Letting anyone know what they stood to gain would only work against Kaden’s party. “Well, we’re happy to make the deal.”
Kaden shook the man’s hand. “How do we get the Seal?”
“Queen Barrister has control of all of them,” said the trade minister. “I’ve asked her to stop by. You should consider yourself fortunate.”
Trella’s loose grip on Kaden had become a panic, but before he could protest, a shimmering portal of white light opened at the back of the Hall. Queen Bruna, as always, came dressed in a dress of pure white mana that drapped off of her shoulders. Flecks of mana rose off like reverse snowflakes, and her hair, white-blonde, had been split in two braids that hung over a single shoulder. At least she didn’t come with a presence.
Trella’s hand had gone slack, her jaw open, her eyes wide as she stared.
“The Classless Wonder pays a visit to my home,” Queen Brunna said. “What a darling pair you two make. Mouth closed, dear, mustn’t drool.”
Kaden stood and stretched. “It was a pleasure seeing Egalion. I love your eye-birds. They like the corn, hate the grain, and they’ve been shitting in your private pool at night.”
“Sit.” Her command washed over Kaden.
“Thank you, but I really have to be going. I have an appointment at the temple to return some artifacts of Varun, and before you ask, I can only return them to the person who should have inherited them.” Kaden leaned down and squeezed Trella. “Thank you for your time, I just need that seal.”
The Queen’s eyes narrowed as she stared at him. “Where is the rest of your lovely party?”
“Not here,” Kaden said. “Sara’s busy, Ashi’s tired, Eve is probably throwing an animated rat skeleton for Vip. Now, if you’ll just—”
“How dare you come here alone?” Queen Brunna asked. “How dare you set foot on this island without her?”
“Ashi. Napping.” Kaden said, starring right back. “Sara. Negotiating.”
Queen Brunna glared, and then her gaze went from offended to an icy fury that made Kaden worry. “You have a title for killing royalty. That’s the only way you could possibly resist my [Authority]. So I hope for your sake you have a good answer. Where is Evelyn? Where is my daughter?”