It was cruel, my torturer.
It carried me in a sling, making me sway with every step they took.
It would occasionally taunt me, holding water to my lips, but pulling it away the moment I tried to drink my fill.
I hated it.
I couldn’t fight, my body was too weak. I dared not to cast, my mana was stripped away from my time in the cage, and the effort would only bring me more pain.
My mind and vision were becoming clearer with each sip of water though, perhaps I could plan an escape?
The darkness of the trees obscured the sun, but eventually I noticed night finally approaching.
My torturer pulled me from the sling, removed the cloth and began to wash my naked body. I felt helpless and humiliated, it was certainly doing its job, making sure that I knew it had full control of me.
After I was cleaned, it wrapped me up again and sat me on its lap like a child.
That’s when I fully understood the perversion of my torturer.
It began to feed me soup, but only the broth, not any of the vegetables or meat that I could smell. It did surprise me when it let me eat my fill though, perhaps it intended on keeping me alive so it could “play” with me more?
My torturer began to feed itself, still holding me in its lap. I was finally able to focus my eyes enough to see it now that I was close.
It looked similar to the ones that… but different. It had auburn hair on its head and jaw, pale skin similar to my own, and it was tall like an elf but built as powerful as a dwarf.
It spoke to the others of its kind, the words foreign and indecipherable. The others would come up, looking at me…, touching my ears…, poking me, trying to make me speak…
My torturer eventually barked at them for playing with its prize and carried me to a hammock where it laid down, holding me to its bare chest and wrapping its arms and blanket around me.
I couldn’t stop myself from sinking in, trying to soak my body in the heat that it gave off. I felt ashamed, but it was the first time I truly felt comfortable since passing the mountain gate.
I drifted to sleep, but kept being woken from my nightmares, my torturer making cooing noises while it moved its hands up and down my back.
---
Travis
I stood in the foreign washroom, in the foreign city, wearing foreign clothing, and now was in a foreign social situation that I had no idea how to handle.
“Ok, don’t panic, but one of the house staff found me while they were unpacking your things.”
I immediately began to panic and breathe heavily, now needing to hold myself steady by placing my hands on the wall.
“Hey! I said not to panic. Matriarch Rabiria just got told and she hasn’t immediately called the guards.”
“I literally told her that I came unarmed!” I snapped at Arc.
“Relax. It’s just a formal greeting. Plus you technically already lied anyways, you did have your poleaxe blatantly lying there with your luggage.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better!” I lightly banged my head against the wall, “How did I get myself into this mess?”
“Oh quit being melodramatic. I’m pretty sure you’re overreacting. A guard is carrying me to the armory with your poleaxe and… just wrapped me in a cloth and placed me in a locker next to where your poleaxe is hanging. They probably just think I’m an antique or heirloom, and only told Lancel’s mom because it was a minor security risk.”
I pulled my head from the wall, still breathing heavily, but now counting my inhales and exhales, “Ok, just… let me know if people start inspecting you.”
“Will do. I think we’ll be fine though; the guard gave me a look but didn’t notice anything, just took extra care in stowing me away.”
“And what should I do about Lancel trying to marry me off to his sister?”
“Again, I think you’re overreacting, the attendant was giggling to himself after he stepped out of the door. They were probably just pulling a minor prank on you.”
Groaning with annoyance, I stepped out of the washroom and made my way to the main hall. Lancel’s mother was sitting on a sofa, so I approached her.
“Come sit,” she gestured to one of the nearby chairs, giving me a friendly smile, “How was your journey? I know that some years the roads can be rough while the cleanup from the flood is going on.”
“Uneventful, we didn’t even run into any varmints.” I responded, then sat nervous as a pause in conversation appeared. Needing help immediately, I scratched my right ear.
“You know what? Confess to bringing in a sword. It’ll break the ice and clear the tension.”
“Thank you for the hospitality, but I need to apologize before I receive more.” I watched for her expression, but it remained static, “I lied that I was unarmed when I entered your home. I had a poleaxe and sword with my things.”
She grinned at my statement, “Oh, it’s quite alright.” She paused to give out a small chuckle, “If I removed the weapons off every visitor, some of my husband’s friends would have to strip down to their underclothes at the gate just to get in.”
“Besides, you weren’t actively carrying them, so you didn’t break etiquette.” She paused a moment, “If you don’t mind me prying, my guard mentioned that the sword in your sleeping bag was old and unkempt, how did you come across such an antique?”
Thankfully, I had a prepared statement, “It was a gift from a friend, he told me to take it with me before I left the village.” I stopped to lightly laugh at the remembered panic that I was in when trying to find a place to hide Arc, “I probably would have gotten arrested if I wasn’t traveling with Lancel.”
Rabiria joined me in my laugh, “You would have only gotten a stern warning or robbed. It’s only when you impersonate a soldier that the death penalty goes into place.”
I let out a deep sigh and noticed someone approaching.
She was wearing an evening robe as well, but hers was sleeved and buttoned up. She was clearly of Southern Plains descent, blonde hair and shimmering tan skin, and after a quick comparison, looked similar to the Matriarch I was just speaking to.
“Caldia, daughter, I’m glad you could join us. This is Lancel’s guest that he dropped off.” Rabiria then waved a hand at me.
I sat there, not knowing what to say. “Introduce yourself.” Right, “Umm, my name is Travis… I’m from Aelder Creek… oh, uh, that’s a Lakeland city near Lakewell Fortress…” I slowly stammer out.
Caldia gave me what must have been the family’s signature grin, “Just Travis?”
“Um, yes… uh, my dad’s a farmer and…” I drifted off, feeling ashamed for the first time about my humble origin.
My abashment changed to terror when she began to laugh, “Mom, how long have you been torturing him?” She continued her laugh but moved to sit on the stuffed chair next to me.
Her mother began to grin, “Probably longer than I should.” She turned to face me, “You were doing well, you just need some more exposure, and some prestige to use as a shield.”
I exhaled, trying to force my body to calm, “Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“So,” Caldia asked, “what brings you to the capital while the travel ban is still in place?”
Taking a deep breath, I gave my explanation, “I intend to enroll at the Mage’s Academy.” I paused, waiting for a reaction, but after hearing none, I continued, “I was originally going to leave right after the ban ended, but… Lancel was able to get me a travel visa so I could travel with him and not come here alone.”
Rabiria spoke, raising an eyebrow, “I take it there’s more to the story than that?”
I nodded my head, “I’m not sure how much I’m allowed to share.”
“Right,” Lancel’s mother nodded, “Lancel did need to give a report.” She turned to an approaching servant and listened to them whisper in her ear before standing, “I need to take care of a few things. Caldia, could you keep Travis company while he waits for Lancel to return?”
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“Of course,” she turns to me, “but fair warning, I’m going to hold your shield while I ask you about your village. I’ve never gotten a chance to visit a Lakeland one.”
I began to speak to her about my village, answering questions as she brought them up. She surprised me when she wanted to know more about the dairy cows we raised, since the cattle her uncle raised down south were purely for market and was fascinated by how raising two similar animals could be so different.
We kept speaking for a while, my nerves finally relaxing. I guess I really was anxious for no reason.
---
Arc
Dammit! I’m an idiot, I should have known better than to let Travis waltz right into the den of foxes disguising themselves as rabbits.
I felt helpless as I watched Rabiria walk away with her servant after asking if she wanted an excuse to leave Travis and the young mistress alone for a bit. Well, I know where Lancel got his brilliant mastermind from now.
I couldn’t even warn Travis, the poor kid was finally relaxing as he spoke with Caldia. No way was I going to disrupt him, he needed all the low-pressure socializing he could get.
Seeing that he wasn’t in any immediate need of help, I decided to up my game and move my focus around and replayed some of the conversations that were happening while I wasn’t paying attention.
Ok, looks like there was a short discussion between the Matriarch and staff while Travis was showering, questioning why Lancel brought a teenager over as a guest. One of the guards postulated that he brought Travis to become a potential ward of the family, hence wanting to bring him to the party.
Rabiria got angry at the possible explanation though, not happy that her son seemingly skipped multiple important social events just to pick up a random farm kid and promise him a wardship without discussing it with the family first.
She made a circuit of the estate after leaving Travis in Caldia’s care, asking one of the guards to re-check me and the poleaxe, a servant to go through Travis’ belongings, and another to send out a runner to check for any possible information on Travis.
Ok, don’t panic. She’s likely just angry and frustrated, which makes sense, her son was abdicating his responsibilities as a noble of Clan Hopkins for a seemingly mundane reason and wanted to know why.
Hmm, speaking of why, something doesn’t make sense now. Lancel was the one to make the decision to return to the village to train in the new guards. It must have been a last-minute change of plans after earning his Knight status, since he wouldn’t have returned normally. Did he do that just so he could catch Travis before he left the village?
What exactly is Lancel’s plan? And why did it justify performing a social taboo in order to complete it? Is Travis even part of it? He doesn’t know that Travis has a higher mana density than him, making him already eligible to become a Knight, Trent only told him that Travis’s was larger than normal when Lancel threatened to destroy Trent’s hat.
So, does he know something else about Travis that made him want to potentially marry or adopt Travis into the family? Or is Travis just a red herring for his real scheme? Ugh, I’m missing too much information, and Lancel is keeping his cards hidden.
Time passed, and I was even brought before the Matriarch, but after inspecting me, she just sighed and sent me to be put back in the footlocker.
Things began to calm down in the house. Travis and Caldia kept chatting, although it looked like Travis was able to invert the conversation and was having her describe what it was like growing up in the capital.
Things were going well, which must be why a massive storm cloud of mana appeared at the edge of my vision and made its way through the gate unhindered.
At the center of the violent thunderhead was an incredibly dense mass of man-shaped mana.
Oh crap, that must be Lancel’s dad!
I watched as he got off his horse, the steed quickly trotting away to its stable, and approach the door.
His entire bodybuilder physique was pulsing strongly with mana, its vastness causing all of the ambient mana to gravitate towards him and swirl. I had to maneuver my focus right up to him in order to see his face due to all of the mana in the air, and wow… he was super pissed!
I somehow saw his eyes pulse faster and locked on to Travis inside.
“Travis, stop making out with Caldia! Her dad’s home!”
Travis, confused about my inane statement, stopped talking to the girl who was seated across from him just in time to hear the doors open with a Thud.
“There you are! You better have a damned good explanation for leaving the capital the second the flood ended! Do you realize how many…” he stopped mid-sentence, his mind now finally concluding that the terrified teenager before him was not his son.
Silence filled the room, Lancel’s Dad looking like he saw a ghost, Caldia with wide eyes in embarrassment, and Travis looking like he actually did get caught making out with his daughter.
It lasted for a long moment before Caldia finally broke it with a shaky voice, “Father…, this is Travis…, he’s from Aelder Creek, the village that Lancel was stationed at…”
The roiling mass of mana stood there, unmoving, before finally letting out in a slow robotic cadence, “Hello, I am First Knight of the Hopkins Clan, Darius…” he took a breath, visibly trying to think of what to say, “I apologize… I mistook you for my son… and have now entangled you in our family affairs.”
Travis, still unresponsive, needed some prodding to wake up.
“Tell him… um… crap, I don’t know.”
“That’s ok,” Travis croaked out, his voice cracking, “honest mistake. My name is Travis…, I’m from Aelder Creek…, near Lakewell Fortress…”
The room grew silent, only being disturbed by an attendant announcing that Lancel had returned.
---
I swear my mana sight could see the tension in the room as supper was served.
Lancel trembling every time he caught eyes with his mother, but confusion when looking at his dad.
His dad was clearly embarrassed about storming in, and kept making glances at Travis, making me scared to send a [Message] to him.
Rabiria was keeping a calm face, but her left eyebrow kept twitching on occasion.
Travis was probably hating the silence while eating, for the first time in his life.
Caldia, I couldn’t read, I just straight up didn’t know what kind of expression she was giving.
Also, more of Lancel’s family showed up, two older brothers, and another sister. I haven’t even gotten their names yet because no one is talking.
Slowly everyone finished their meal, the newcomers’ eyes darting around the most, trying to figure out what was going on.
One of the older brothers broke the silence, “I saw an interesting weapon in the armory, was that yours?” The man looked towards Travis, desperation in his eyes to have a semblance of a normal conversation.
Still afraid to speak to Travis with Darius’ mana sight still active, I felt relief when he spoke, “Yes, I made it over this last winter.” He paused, then continued, clearly not wanting the silence to continue, "Well, not completely, I needed help from my village’s blacksmith in order to complete the finishing work on it.”
“It’s very brutal looking…, have you been training with it for long?” Lancel’s brother asked, wincing at his already answered question.
“Um, no… I only completed it a month ago.” Travis, clearly forcing himself to speak, continued, “I still need to learn how to use it properly though, I only know a little bo staff combat…”
“Well, I’m sure that Darius or one of the guards would be more than happy to help you with that.” The older brother looked towards Darius, likely praying to Torbolt that he’d pick up the feeble conversation starter.
Darius, apparently was desperate for something to speak to Travis about, “I haven’t seen this weapon yet, but you are more than welcome to make use of our training yard to hone your skills.” He turned his head towards Lancel, “I’ll be busy for the next week, perhaps you’ll be able to assist your friend before you report for Knight training?”
Lancel looking proper spooked now, “Um, sure… we might not have much time though, there is a party on the last day of Fourthmonth, that I was hoping to bring Travis to.” He turned to his mother, trembling in his seat, “Assuming that’s ok with the family?” He finally let out weakly.
Rabiria entered the tense conversation, “About that…”
Darius immediately interrupted her, “You have our full blessing of course.” He stared at his wife, “If there’s anything you need to help prepare, do let me know if I can assist.”
Rabiria and Lancel both started looking confused, neither continuing the conversation.
A long gap of silence entailed, Caldia’s eyes sparked with an idea, “Travis, has anyone given you a tour of the estate yet?”
My friend managed to shake his head no, and to my amazement, actually stood and walked away with the girl when she offered to escort him.
I watched the table, waiting for the daytime drama to play out.
Rabiria spoke first, glaring at Darius, “What was that about?”
Darius looked to Lancel, “Son, I’m sorry for getting angry with you, I should have known you had something hidden behind your shield…”
Lancel, looking perplexed, spoke, “Um, it’s alright… I should have… explained before leaving?”
Rabiria, now angry for being ignored, “Alright, what am I clearly missing that all of you know?” She gave an evil eye to the men at the table.
Lancel’s brother, who hadn’t spoken yet, blurted out, “He’s got a huge…”
---
Travis
Caldia and I made our escape, both of us took a moment after exiting the room to take a quick breather.
I looked up at her face, noticing the golden sunrise-colored eyes, and joined her infectious grin that turned into laughter.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen my dad so flustered before!” She belted out between laughs. Her volume alarmed her though and encouraged me to follow her as far away from the Main Hall as possible.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been more terrified in my life…” I spoke, feeling the euphoria wash over me.
She began to lead me around, both of us still suffering from the giggles, and made good on her offer to give me a tour. The multiple buildings connected by enclosed walkways reached from neighboring wall to neighboring wall, creating a boxed in area where they had a private garden and training yard.
She showed me around the three largest buildings: the Main House where her immediate family lived, the guard and servant barracks for those wishing to live on the estate, and the guest house where I would be staying. We then made our way into the private garden to enjoy the disappearing sunset.
“Thank you for showing me around,” I spoke when we went to sit on one of the benches under a large tree, “I never thought I’d be spending my time at a noble’s estate while I waited to take the Mage’s Academy exam.”
“Can I ask you about that? You’re not the first person I’ve met that has tried to pass it. What makes you so confident?”
I brought my hand up to my chin, letting her know that I needed to think since I didn’t know how to answer her question. She was the first person to not dismiss me for wanting to make an attempt.
I kept thinking, but then an emboldening confidence suddenly started to swell within me as I realized that my secret was going to come out in only a few days anyways.
I looked around, both with my regular eyes, and then my mana vision to ensure that no one was nearby, “Are you willing to keep a secret?”
She started to grin at me, “As long as I can flaunt that I knew all along when it comes out.”
I grinned back, then began to gather Fire Mana around my body. Thinking back to Arc’s display of magic, I decided to make a dozen small candle flame sized [Fire Orb] spells and used them to illuminate the area underneath the tree now that the sun had set.
My confidence started to erode however, when I noticed that I was overreaching to control that many spell formations. I could only move four at a time, and they had to move in the exact same pattern.
Despite not being able to replicate Arc’s firefly-like movements, I saw Caldia’s jaw drop in amazement. Sadly, I couldn’t keep up the spell for too long, my concentration was waning trying to keep that many spells synced, plus I spotted a guard approaching with my mana sight.
I cancelled the spells, then stood and offered my hand, “We should probably be getting back inside, I still need to unpack from my journey.”
She grabbed my hand and pulled herself up but kept holding it as we walked. I began to tense up, not expecting the continued contact. She must have noticed me though, because she then began to lean against my bare arm and tease me, “Where did all of that confidence go?”
“I…, umm…,” I stammered, feeling my skin heat up, but not from amplifying my Fire Mana. I reached with my left arm over my head to scratch my right ear in an awkward motion, desperate for help.
“You’re doing great bud!” Arc began to laugh in my ear, “I can’t wait to tell you what happened after you left. Lancel is truly a master manipulator.”