Chapter 20: Good Will

Gareth finished setting up the tables, chairs, and the serving station for lunch under the chow tent. As a part of the logistics team, when there weren’t heavy things to haul across the forest, and when he wasn’t tasked to be a porter for one of the survey missions, this was one of his more mundane duties.

Of course, he performed his duties with precision and efficiency. It wouldn’t do for him to be known as anything else but the ideal worker. Such always engendered good will and allowed him leeway when he absolutely needed it.

Goodwill was an understated, underestimated, yet powerful currency. Too few people understood how much one could purchase with it at a crucial moment. When you were known as someone reliable, no one doubted you when something went amiss. When you were always helpful, no one could deny you on the rare occasion when you asked for help in turn.

Naturally, there were limits. One had to invest time and effort to earn goodwill, and making a purchase always came at a cost, no matter how small the ask. Therefore, it was important to rely on such only when it was absolutely necessary.

He hadn’t needed to cash in his goodwill with the logistics team just yet, but he felt the time was approaching.

Cassian had surprised everyone with his recent display of magic. None more than Cassian himself, Gareth imagined.

Gareth knew his talents and weaknesses. It was essential to know when you needed to leverage someone else’s talents to shore up your own. Profiling and body language, however, were among his greatest skills. His skill had even been acknowledged by his father, whose compliments were like the passage of the red star—that comet that so fascinated Gareth when he first saw it streak across the sky, and learned how impossible it was to predict, and so wonderful to behold.

Gareth’s profile of Cassian was starting to come together. Among the things that made him most interesting, were the secrets he kept. Cassian may not understand the extent of his powers, nor how exactly they worked, but however much he tried to deny his knowledge of their source, Gareth was certain now that it had something to do with the forest.

Gareth remembered how one month ago Cassian had asked him how he could sneak past the guards into the Forest of Whispers. He had wanted to do so alone, and that he was so blasé about the dangers of entering alone, hinted at either his obliviousness, or his certainty that he would have no trouble navigating its dangers on his own. Gareth was inclined to believe the latter.

So what was it that Cassian sought within the forest? That was the key to completing the puzzle. Along with Cassian’s origins, and to a lesser degree, his connection to Professor Lyra. Gareth was certain that Cassian had something to do with her sudden need to take an indefinite sabbatical. Was she searching for something? Perhaps she had learned Cassian’s secret? Regarding this, Gareth could only guess. He didn’t have enough evidence to form a proper hypothesis. Only that Cassian had done something to her, unintentional as it might be. He remembered those oddly phrased questions before the Magiball game. At the time Gareth had joked that maybe Cassian had given her a disease. He wasn’t sure that was exactly right. But it wasn’t out of the question. Especially after his surprising rejection of Isolde. He knew something was there, and that he was close to an answer, but there was still something missing.

As for Professor Lyra’s motivation for sponsoring Cassian into the school. That was obvious now. As a powerful nature magic expert, Lyra would have either known of, or sensed Cassian’s dormant abilities.

Gareth left the chow tent, waving a salute to the chief logistics officer, who gave him the thumbs up.

“All done?” the officer asked.

“Yeah. I’m headed over to meet up with a friend.”

“That Cassian fellow?”

Gareth nodded. “He woke up today. I’m worried about him, so I worked hard to finish early.”

“Don’t worry about a thing, Gareth. You do what you gotta do. If anything else comes up, I’ll take care of it. Make sure your friend is okay.”

There it was. Cashing in good will. Of course, this was a small thing, so the price was almost too small to count. If he started skipping work every day however, each subsequent time he did so would cost more and more if he didn’t refill the ‘coin jar’ so to speak.

Gareth found Cassian still talking to the research team. They were gathered around Cassian’s Tree. A name that Gareth genuinely found hilarious. Well, he found it funnier that even Professor Thorne had taken to using it. Gareth had been sure that under the man’s mask he was tearing his hair out and rolling his eyes everytime he said it. Therefore it was an interesting surprise when he heard Thorne apologize, and then thank Cassian for his contributions during the swarm attack.

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He had almost lost control over the listening charm he had placed discreetly on Cassian’s shirt. There was no danger of it being discovered ordinarily. His inverting skills were on par with the best in Eldara, but keeping control over one over long distances, or if his concentration was disrupted…well then his inversion would have come undone and Thorne would certainly have sensed it, and known someone was listening in. That could have been a disaster. That man was worthy of his title of grandmaster, and may have easily traced the spell back to Gareth, even if the weave was shredded.

Gareth would need to adjust Thorne’s profile, and add Cassian’s uncanny ability to elicit significant changes in others. First Lyra, the Isolde, now Thorne. Would Gareth soon be adding his own name to that list?

He let this train of thought fizzle away as he focused his attention on the conversation between Cassian and the researchers as he stood to the side and appeared to be casually waiting for his friend to finish.

“...and can you sense where the signal is coming from?” The head of the research team was Franglow, a wispy haired gnome who preferred to stand on the flat of a levitating half circle, and at Cassian’s height. He had likely invented the device himself, which he used to float up to stand at the same height of whomever he was conversing with. The man didn’t like to be looked down upon physically, even if no one did regarding his knowledge set. Franglow was, of all things, a prolific inventor in addition to being a respected researcher of rifts, the chaos magic they emitted, and a list of other things that even Gareth couldn’t keep track of.

Cassian pointed to the northeast. In the direction of the rift, Gareth realized. Could Cassian’s abilities have something to do with them? “The disruption is strongest in that direction, but like I said, it stops at the edge of the dome.”

“And you’re sure the epicenter is this tree?”

Cassian nodded.

Franglow twirled the wisp of hair on his head the way other men stroked their beards. “Interesting. The most obvious conclusion is that the signal comes from the rift. If only our instruments could be calibrated to perceive this ‘mana signature’ you speak of. We can detect natural magic without issue, and even see the fluctuations. To our instruments, however, the fluctuations seem random and have no apparent source. Fascinating.”

Then Cassian said something that Gareth had been expecting he would bring up at some point. “Maybe I could help the research team on the next survey. I might be able to learn more out there than I can here.”

Farglow turned on the platform and looked toward what looked like Thorne’ tent. Then he became aware of Gareth standing there and squinted at him.

Gareth shook his head and raised a hand palm out, signaling that he could wait and didn’t mean to interrupt their conversation. Cassian noticed him too, and with the gnome’s back turned to him, he pantomimed pulling a noose around his neck and stuck his tongue out as if he was dying. Farglow turned back to Cassian and he schooled his expression too quickly for the head researcher to notice.

“Your suggestion has merit, Mr. Varn. After all, your affinity is precisely why Professor Althea recommended you for this mission. However, we were told to do everything to mitigate the danger you were placed in. If we can secure Professor Thorne’s approval, then it would be quite the boon.”

The two went over some more of Cassian’s understanding of the tree, and even went so far as to attempt to cut a piece of bark from its side. Gareth knew that the tree would repair itself quickly. Cutting the tree down had been one of the things certain members of the defense team tried to do the day after the attack, when the roots Cassian left behind suddenly started growing at an alarming rate. The tree repaired itself after every stroke of an ax and sword, and was resistant to all magic.

Gareth wasn’t sure why no one had ordered a full retreat. There was enough precedent for lethal trees in the forest that it could have been determined dangerous. And even though there had been apprehension the first few minutes, everyone in camp felt it, that sense of ease that started to grow along with the tree. Some of that had faded as they became accustomed to the new situation, but the tree was deemed not to be a threat, and the fort that replaced basecamp was built around it.

“Phew! I’m glad that’s done.” Cassian said when he was finally allowed to escape the research team and their ceaseless questions. Namely, it was because the lunch bell had rung, and no one wanted to waste their ninety minute break.

Gareth trew an arm around Cassian’s shoulder and led him in the direction of the chow tent. “I thought they were never going to let you go. You’re quite the popular guy. You even got a tree named after you.”

“Don’t even.” Cassian said, rolling his eyes. “Why couldn’t they have named it literally anything else.”

“Anything Else is certainly an interesting choice. Not the one I would have gone with, but…”

Cassian punched Gareth in the side.

“Ooof! No need to be so violent. Take it out on someone else, like Farglow or Thorne.”

Cassian hummed in agreement. “Sounds like a plan.”

“Let’s just go find Isolde and drag her out of bed so she can eat,” Gareth said. He decided now was the time to start enacting his plan. “I couldn’t help overhearing, Cass. You’re trying to get on a mission beyond basecamp, right? I thought since you were a first year, you were supposed to do all your research from here.”

Cassian gave a vague answer about needing to get a closer look at the fluctuations in the nature magic.

“Right, right.” Gareth paused, then dropped the hammer. “So at what point are you planning to sneak away from the team and go looking for what you’re really after?”

Cassian stopped in his tracks, his eyes bulging. Got him. That reaction confirmed all Gareth’s suspicions.

“W…what are you talking about?”

“No use hiding it now, kid. You’re a terrible liar.” Despite being found out, Cassian still hadn’t given up looking for an excuse. His mouth worked like fish gulping for the meaning of life and falling short. Gareth pulled him in closer before he hurt himself, then whispered. “You need my help?”