“Oh dear it's ruined isn't it? Oh dash it all.” Wheeler complained.
A confident voice of a young sounding man laughed easily somewhere beyond the misty broken up shape that was blending into the wall. If Micheal's ears were like Luna's they would have been standing straight and faced toward the sound of the voice. He didn't know how exactly, but he knew the voice the moment he heard it. His heart leaped in his chest, hope, fear, and a little awe filling him.
“You get too excited Gene. Come on now they're waiting. You really told them an hour? Just how long did you think it would take you to get up the stairs?” The man said. He was clearly younger than Wheeler, but there was a confidence and humble majesty to the sound of his voice, and Micheal already knew his name even if he had never once truly heard his voice. “Take that mess out of the way and get in where they can see us.”
“All right all right. It's just a pen case after all. Don't let me touch anything with this ink all over my hands.” Wheeler said.
“Ha. Deal. This one's all mine now.”
“Oh you know what I mean.” Wheeler said, showing just a tiny bit of exasperation.
And then he stepped into the area where the mist broke up against the wall and a door shut somewhere beyond. The man who came forward was tall, almost as tall as Micheal. He had messy hair that looked brushed by hand over his head after it had been combed before, and he wore a majestic robe that glittered and shone in gently shifting rainbow light. In his hands he held a staff that was carved from end to end in a root and tree pattern from top to bottom that was just shorter than he was tall. His boots were rugged and simple beneath the hanging majestic robes, ending just above the ankle with turned down tops like Micheal's. His gaze was open and friendly. He took in the faces about the room with a smile though his dark eyes sat heavy with the weight of ancient knowledge against the youthful appearance of his face.
“Hey guys. How's it going?” The Magus asked. “My name's Jakcova. That or you can call me Headmaster. Either works even if you aren't part of the Mages Guild. You're all honorary students to me.”
Jakcova’s charisma and spirit shown in his words and the way he held himself. He looked at each of them as if they were all his new students, his gaze lingering long enough to learn their faces, as well as seeming ready and open to answer their questions and guide them.
In his head Micheal frantically tried to place where this put Jakcova in his power arch. He had hand carved Staff of Yggdrasil in its complete state and he had the Rainbow Robes. He was a young man, not a child or wizened old wizard, and already Headmaster. How would this play out? He had written so much about Jakcova. Answers, power, and learning could come from this man. So many problems could be solved by the actions he could take.
Micheal's character met his gaze, cocked his head a little as their eyes met and then smiled the way all good teachers knew how to do, hiding their own uncertainties and giving their students an opening to ask the question that was on their mind. Immediately it seemed to lower Micheal's guard and make questions seem to want to fall off his tongue. Questions he couldn't ask. About things he shouldn't know. The answers could be right in front of him, and perhaps even a way home. A painful longing filled him, conflicting his thoughts. Jakcova was capable of so much. There was no telling what he knew or what he could do at this point. The thought of home troubled him though. Would he really want to go back? And what state would he be in?
Pelanna bowed, practically bending herself over double in a sign of respect for the Headmaster, his position in her regard likely being akin to a high ranking priest of a foreign order. Julia, Luna, and even Eva did the same by curtsying and murmuring respectful greetings to the headmaster. Micheal just stared across the room at the man. Vivian waved at Jakcova and tilted her head at him smiling. Jakcova eyed her fixedly with a puzzled look on his face looking her up and down.
“A High Elf of the Forest with auburn hair...hmm...if you had a spear...” Jakcova said with a playful tone hidden somewhere in the back of his voice as his dark eyes shone with recognition.
Vivian nodded her head in a slight bow and said; “It's nice to see you too Jakcova.”
“Vivian?” Jakcova exclaimed. “You're still with the Unbroken Guard then? It's been years!” He asked excitedly.
“Working with our new recruit here too if you'd help him and me with a little enlightening.” She said taking a few steps over to take Micheal's hand in hers.
Jakcova's eyes went wide as she laced her fingers into Micheal's, and then backed up to her in a considerate manner. Micheal scratched at his hair nervously though feeling slightly put on the spot in front of his own character. Hopefully he would be taken for being nervous in front of the Headmaster of the Mages Guild. He didn't know exactly what to think about Jakcova knowing Vivian, but he supposed something like this would eventually happen. Oh hell he had written the Pantheon as well. He literally wrote up the gods of the setting and that was their stop after this. He needed to get a hold of himself or this was going to get awkward fast.
“You can do it right?” Vivian said with a cocky tone to her voice. “You heard how excited your friend Gene was.”
Jakcova laughed and held his staff sturdily in both hands as if he were ready to drub something with it. “Oh you know it. Ready for anything. Nothing stops an Unbroken Guard member even if they aren't active in the Guild Charter any more.”
Vivian smiled genuinely at her friend before looking at Micheal. “This as you heard is Jakcova. He's a powerful sorcerer, and he's much older than he looks. He figured out some crazy thing that keeps him from aging by meeting a bunch of elves like me when they were young. He also is a founding member of our guild. He's a friend and we can trust him with anything.”
“I prefer Super Wizard. Or Headmaster Magus. Grand Magus works too. Or Grand Spell Master.” Jakcova put in with a cheeky smile for clarification on his humor as he held out his staff and gestured with each of the titles. “‘King of Spells’ is a little over the top since I don't have a crown. I should marry a princess somewhere and do that.” He went on scratching the side of his head with his staff and murmuring a little to himself.
Vivian shook her head and took Micheal's hand up to the orb.
“Right.” He said coming forward. “Definitely Vivian. On task right away all the time.”
“Shush.”
“Oh fine.” Jakcova said, waving at her with his staff and concentrating on Micheal's mark.
The touch of the end of his staff on the back of his hand was solid enough to feel real as though Jakcova wasn't leagues and miles away in Three Bridge. The mark exploded into parts around the room. Jakcova immediately waved away most of it with his staff and then grabbed the Unique rune with the end of it somehow. There was no ritual sheet or device he used, just his staff, and Pelanna's reaction to that use of magic suggested more than enough to confirm Micheal's own thoughts on the matter. Jakcova was doing magic in his head that a specialist still needed a handy little cheat sheet for.
He waved with his free hand in a wide gesture dismissing all the remaining runes and flowing lines of script but the Unique spirit mark. He walked over a few steps to place the rune up against the wall on their end of the room in the very center.
“That's a pretty non-standard Spirit Mark alright.” He said putting his fists on his hips with staff in hand. “It's pretty much got every layer a spell can have if there's such a thing as a limit anyway.”
He frowned at the lone rune as it hung in the air before him about the size of a dinner platter. He waved his staff and the rest of Micheal's mark appeared on the wall off to the right near the bottom. He pointed at it and grew larger.
“Good attributes kid. No wonder Vivian grabbed your attention.” He said without looking back to see Vivian's glare, or paying any attention to whoever it was that snickered behind them. Mist filled the room now and it was hard to make out those behind. “Where...” Jakcova began and then actually turned around to look at him.
“You're an Elder Kin. There are marks here...you've come from another world haven't you? Or another reality?” He asked with certainty, but it also seemed to prompt an answer. His gaze fell on Micheal like anvils. His dark eyes seemed to bore into him with their intensity.
Behind him almost everyone made some sort of surprised sound.
Micheal nodded, feeling his voice catch in his throat.
“Yeah. My world doesn't have magic or monsters or anything like that. Not outside of stories.” He said carefully.
Jakcova nodded, but pointed his staff at him.
“But there are stories of magic and monsters?”
“Yeah. Plenty. Lots of mythologies and legends too. I can tell you some of them if you like, but I would like to know I'm not harming Vivian in any way first.”
Jakcova gave him a surprised but appreciative look and nodded as if the surprised looks from the girls around Micheal didn't matter in the least. Jakcova wasn't the least bit surprised or concerned that Micheal had come from a world other than his own.
“Vivian's the one you manifested the Spirit Mark on then?” He asked. He looked over to Wheeler who nodded to Jakcova.
Micheal hadn't seen him come to their side of the room to take notes. It was kind of creepy being next to a misty ghost person he hadn't noticed. He must have been too transfixed by meeting his character come to life. “Vee could you uh..” He waved at the orb.
Vivian looked at him flatly.
“Oh its on your back isn't it?” Jakcova asked, cringing. “Hold on, you all might get a little dizzy.” With that he tapped the ground with his staff and the mist in the room faded completely as a rushing sensation ran through everyone in the room. There was a sensation like falling in a roller-coaster before everything seemed to settle once again.
Now somehow outside the walls of their plain rectangular stone room he could see the misty shapes of a vaulted ceiling, grand arches, and a large wooden door in an arched doorway. He could even see a blurry spot on the floor where the ink from Specialist Wheeler's inkpot had spilled.
Jack dropped down on his paws looking startled, but Luna was by him and crouched at his side to pet and comfort the big baby. Micheal laughed at his own thoughts in his head.
‘Just a little magic buddy, that's nothing like meeting a character you made on paper show up in the flesh and might know exactly what you are, or at least have an idea.’ Micheal thought wryly.
Jakcova walked over to Vivian as solid as if he were actually there and lifted her shirt with a gentle hand. Vivian held her long braid out of the way as he did. He only lifted her shirt enough to reach the end of his staff inside and touch her mark. After that he returned to his spot before the orb and cast Vivian's mark over on the left like he had Micheal's. Pelanna gasped again at the display of magic and Julia laughed.
“All right, all the pieces of the puzzle now.” Jakcova said toward the wall of their room. There was a great deal of space ahead of where he was down to a lower platform where the indistinct shapes of apprentice Magus scribbled quiet notes made fuzzy likely because they were seen inside the stone walls of the room around them outside of the chambers bounds. “Let's blow this up and take it apart, gang.”
With a wave of his staff the single rune broke apart like it had before, but more organized. It was broken down into lines and connected tethers and sorted itself neatly into columns at slight touches of Jakcova's staff. Lines ran through to Vivian's and Micheal's mark. Runes depicted sheets of data and formulas and Jakcova sorted. To Micheal's eye it looked like a massive circuit diagram. He stared and everyone was quiet until suddenly Jakcova waved his hand broadly and everything faded away.
Everyone was quiet, with even the fuzzy students in the room taking notes seeming visibly confused in their white and blue or white and red robes. Jakcova put his staff up against his head and put his chin on his thumb. That was a gesture he would do until he became an old man, only picking it up after the arc where he traveled with Theradin for a number of years as an adventurer. So at least that had happened. Micheal was glad for a moment until he thought about the implications of it.
“Discard your notes.” He told the students with casual authority. He turned to Wheeler and frowned. “You too Gene.”
Gene looked to be about to protest, but Jakcova waived that off with a firm motion of his staff.
Instead he walked over to take Vivian by the hand and then led her to Micheal in the center of room next to the orb. He put their hands together and smiled at them both.
“The recording of this will be destroyed.” He said with a smile to both of them.
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
Micheal and Vivian shared a glance of confusion.
Jakcova smiled and looked at Vivian like a father about to walk his daughter down the aisle, a mix of pride, love, and anxiety on his face. He sighed then and faced them both.
“You.” He pointed at Micheal. “Have the strongest potential I've ever seen out of a Binder. Your soul pretty much has ties to everything it can naturally in our world without further binding which is kind of weird considering you're an outworlder, but we can get into that another time. Elder Kin stuff and all.” He said with absolute certainty and a quick wink.
“You.” He pointed at Vivian. “Hang onto this boy with all you got. I already saw more than I should in the breakdown of that Spirit Mark, but we'll never see another one like it. It's wholly unique between the two of you, and does nothing but good for the both of you. I could tell you what it does, but I'm not going to tell you how it works or how to read it. If you figure it out--” He shrugged. “Then I'll be proud that you learned enough to do so, but I won't recommend either of you do. If you let someone make sure it's someone you're okay with knowing the metric details and mechanics of your souls and all that includes first before you let them go peaking.”
Luna made some sound behind them, and Pelanna sounded like she was praying.
“What does it do?” Vivian asked before Micheal could.
Jakcova actually blushed a little and looked at both of them. He set his staff on his shoulders and hung his arms over the top of it, collecting himself and taking a moment to control his features once again as he did.
“It has scaling effects like stamina, mana, and even health regeneration right now.” Jakcova said. “It will make both of you more resistant to magic, and have more incredible effects down the road. It's a tethered aura between the two of you. It has no range limit. I think you could even find each other using just that in a dark room or across the world with a little practice. Anything I could name it just wouldn't be enough to really describe the whole of it.” Jakcova said with a gentle tone in his voice. “It's divine in nature, and pretty much the stuff of stories and legends if you catch my drift, but it's most similar to a type of familiar bond. It just sort of goes both ways empowering the both of you. It will let the two of you support each other and so much more. The sum of its parts being greater than the whole sort of thing.”
He pulled his staff down and rested his weight against it as he looked at the two of them.
“I saw what I saw so I'll just say keep learning more about one another. Trust and talk with each other. Stay and eat together. Watch the stars, learn, and live together for as long as you can however you can. Embrace what you already have; the both of you. Water it, give it lots of light, and let it grow.” He actually teared up a little and wiped his eyes with his shining rainbow sleeve. For that matter so did Vivian. He looked at her surprised, but she spoke to Jakcova without looking at him. Her eyes shone with emotion she was holding back though, and her hand squeezed Micheal's tightly.
“He won't live as long as I will.” She said her voice was on the edge of quavering.
Jakcova tilted his head from side to side and rocked on heels while still leaning on his staff.
“Maybe. With the binds he has he's going to age pretty slowly, and that will get better as he gets stronger and learns to use his magic. With any luck that mark will keep him alive a longer time than usual too so hang onto that.”
Vivian had to cover her mouth to hold in a noise like a sob before she suddenly grabbed Micheal in a hug. She pressed in close and squeezed with what must have been all her strength. Micheal stumbled a little, but her hug was so solid he didn't really go far. It took him until that moment to realize how stunned he was. An instinctive understanding of the mark became clearer in his mind as Jakcova spoke. He did manage to get his arms around her for a little while before she pulled away, wiping her eyes. Vivian didn't look at Eva or the others as they came close to check on her, and within a few moments she had everything back under control again. Somehow even better than before. She held Micheal's hand tightly and held it up toward Jakcova.
“Jack's Beast Bind.”
Jakcova blinked, but then put it together that Jack was the Bear Dog and she wasn't referring to him. He nodded and seemed to mouth 'Vivian will be Vivian' before he tapped Micheal's hand with the end of his staff and sorted through the blown up runes against the wall to bring forth the iron rune that represented the Beast Binding. He broke it down with a wave and nodded. It was much simpler than the other rune and only took up a faction of the space on the wall.
“Nice. You're a Binder alright. I should put you in a sack and drag you off to the Main Branch. That and you can spill all of those good Outworlder beans if I poke you hard enough for them...” Jakcova said without looking back at him. He did seem to furrow his brow and sort a few extra columns of runes about before he went on.
“See here Gene.” He said stepping forward with his staff raised out toward a particular rune. “The bond is voluntary. It might be a trade off of control and seizure with the spell marking a difference in demon binding spells similar to this, but look at all the benefits. Take notes on this one guys.” He said to the students with a broad wave of his staff. “Scaling with familiarity.” He said pointing to a section of runes that looked to be laid out like an equation. “You'll see this with few conjured and most bound familiars like Jack, but this is a good one.” He pointed to another section. It was a massive collection of columns that linked from Micheal's mark and into Jack's.
“Here is the setup that manages mana consumption. It seems like this one can be used to heal rapidly at great strain to mana, looks like it's pretty inefficient right now, but will likely grow better as it ranks up and as Jack finishes growing. If I'm not mistaken this section here is helping with his growth.” Jakcova stepped forward and pointed out another section. “Here. Look here. All the resistances. If Micheal pairs this ability with armor and magic items on Jack, he or even Jack himself can trigger with the scaling and bit of training Jack could be over fifty percent resistant to most forms of magic with active use. Oh and right here look. Jack will soon been immune to anything that would try to affect the bond making the changes and benefits essentially permanent even outside of Micheal's aura range and maybe even without the bond itself.”
He pointed to a tight pack of iron runes set aside and connected by a bunch of lines. Micheal only then realized he had recognized the mark without having it pointed out to him.
“Here. That would be Jack's mark. It's a little different than a human's but you can see the attribute layout. He's young, and has a skill that's helping him learn and adapt to the bond with Micheal. Here's the section that lays out the improved growth with mana. This is the full layout of a beast bind ability. If you want to make this into a spell and to use it without throwing a book at a monster you'll have to memorize every part of it and know how it will change with different creatures involved. For it to work without the creature's help you'll have to know their specific soul mark though so I don't suggest trying it on anything but a well mannered pet who will let you do the ritual. So probably just leave that to the adventurer's if you're not going to dedicate your whole life to being a Binder.” Jakcova said in a lecturing tone. “For now just learn what you can from the shape and structure of the spell. It will all fall back into place when I let it go, but you should know how all the little pieces work. Got it?” The display was a great mess of runes and structured columns and rows. It reminded Micheal of the classic scene of some college professor filling his chalk board with complex equations.
“Yes Headmaster.” Was the reply from the students even as they scribbled madly in their leather bound notebooks.
“Oh and if I find that you kept any notes on the Unique Spirit Mark between these two I'll make your backside look more colorful than my robes.” He added holding out his staff in one hand like a baton.
He turned back smiling widely at Micheal and Vivian who still held hands.
“That answer your questions?” He asked.
“How long before Jack's bond is permanent?” Micheal asked, kind of blown away by the whole situation. He almost forgot he was talking to his own written character. He was distracted by two very distinct feelings. A sudden, and real elation in his heart he dared not touch, and the somehow gentle iron vice grip of Vivian's fingers on his own.
“Few weeks. The range is about a mile with your current strength so just be careful. He's trying to be a good boy after all so if he screws up a time or two be patient. He's trying very hard to be what you need him to be.” Jakcova replied. He reached out between Micheal and Vivian to pat Jack on the head which just made Jack's eyes go wide and sniff wildly at Jakcova's fingers.
“How can you touch things here?” Micheal asked.
Jakcova shrugged.
“I could explain if you talked Vivian into being an apprentice with you. That's my condition though.” He laughed when Vivian gave him a shove.
“Come on Vivian, High Elves are crazy good with magic when they try.” Jakcova protested, but Vivian just shook her head. She was smiling like Micheal had hardly seen her do before. She looked at Micheal and the smile only grew. The determination in her eyes seemed to shine like her eyes did in the dark. Had learning he would live longer really given her that much peace? And why? The answer seemed obvious, but could it really be that simple? A warm fluttering filled his chest just thinking about that.
“Thank you Jakcova.” She said and leaned over to kiss his cheek.
He slapped his cheek where it landed and gasped in mock shock. “Come on, you at least owe me a real one for that. On the cheek still is fine, but doing it this way is just a tease.”
Vivian shook her head and patted Jack between them and then kissed the back of Micheal's left hand.
Jakcova's face broke into a wide smile all the same.
“What about learning other magic and spells?” Micheal asked.
Jakcova paused looking at him. He started to speak and then brought his staff back up in front of him and put his chin to his thumb alongside it. His eyes shone with thoughts, and for a short moment he turned and looked back at the floating runes of magic.
“You're an Outworlder right? Didn't have magic in your world...” Jakcova pondered aloud. “Frankly now that I think about it, it's pretty surprising you can do magic at all, and even weirder that you have all those bindings even being in the shape they're in. Must have something to do with your nature as Elder Kin if I had to guess. Makes me wonder...” He said musing to himself almost before breaking away from that train of thought as suddenly as he brought it on.
Micheal wasn’t sure what Jakcova was thinking, but he did catch the Headmaster’s eyes as they took in Micheal’s visible scars. Micheal’s hands and arms alone told a story few dared to ask about, but Jakcova was probably just being polite. Micheal tried not to shy or draw his sleeves down as a low tide of shame pulled into the back of his mind.
“Anyway if you really believed there was no way to do magic you wouldn't be able to. The soul is involved with any direct channeling with magic. What kind of emotional state were you in when you bound Jack, and Vivian for that matter?” He asked with a clinical sort of detachment.
Luna made a small squeaking sound and even Vivian cleared her throat and looked away as she blushed. Jakcova took that in his brows furrowing. He looked to Vivian who looked down and away toward her and Micheal's still entangled fingers. Jakcova frowned in concentration as Micheal struggled to think of anything he could say. Unfortunately Jakcova got it before Micheal managed anything.
“Oh!” He said, actually blushing himself. “I didn't even think. I'm sorry.”
“No– Forget that for now.” Micheal said hurriedly. “ With Jack it just sort of came over me as a crazed idea, but there has to be more to it right? Some sort of training I can help to bring it along? Our friend Dexter thought I might do well joining one of the orders, but I don't have time for that with this silver threat thing going on with our marks.”
Jakcova's eyes opened wide after remaining quietly considerate for a long time. After a moment he collected himself and waved his hand briefly.
“No, no you would be wasted there. Well not really, but you get what I mean. Theradin would likely find you anyway after he heard of things you would be doing with your spirit stat being as high as it is and I just can't have that. Even if you won’t come to Mage’s Guild and be a proper student, the old man’s lost this one already.”
Pelanna gasped behind them and Jakcova shot her the most shit eating grin Micheal had ever seen back at her. The sudden overflowing smugness that was held in that single gaze was staggering.
“Well then he has to---” Pelanna began. “The Light Bringer would come out into the open again to train him?”
Jakcova grinned.
“He's already busy with a certain other pupil, my dear priestess. Don't get excited now, but you'll know who it is if you stop and think for a moment. He's another rising star of late, but far better known than our dear boy here.” He said still grinning all the while his voice tainted with his clear humor. He pointed at Micheal then.
“You will do great things even without order or mage training, the mark and the fact you're an Elder Kin pretty much assures that. I have half a mind to come down there and sort this silver rank thing out myself and take you both with me to Three Bridge, but if it's still silver in town and in the Mages Branch Office no less it's something you have to take care of on your own. It might be dangerous to others, but likely not at first. Be careful. Think carefully and act carefully and with commitment and you'll make it through. Trust Vivian and your friends they've been at this a while and they won't lead you wrong.” He said making his voice level and reassuring as much as it was serious.
“Now if you want to learn magic with that mark and your bindings just pick a lore after picking up the basics. Learn to control your draw, summon your will, and separate the elements into spell components, all should be fairly safe and easy to learn with the mark and your spirit stat. Who's with you right now? There's a number of my former students who have joined with the guild over the years. Any of them could teach you.” He went on.
Eva scoffed.
“Durrain you could, but I know you're busy.” Jakcova said to accommodate her. “Vivian should be as able too, but won't come to learn from me.” He said, making a pout at her.
“Lindsey is here with us, Headmaster Jakcova.” Luna put in shyly.
“Ah. Married the Hanigan boy right? I remember her father sent some letter about that to me and I told him to stuff it. He wanted the old Headmaster to weigh in and put forth somebody 'worth marrying', but love's a stronger magic than any I've come across.” He rambled on casually getting some laughs from the group before growing a little more serious and softer in tone as he looked at Micheal and Vivian. “People can do some incredible things with magic when they are in love.”
Vivian's hand slowly clamped down on Micheal's and his to hers though they didn't look at each other right away. The intense warmth he felt from that gesture was something he couldn't put into words. It made his heart ache like it had the night before and a quiet resolve began to form unbidden in his mind. Even if it had only been a short while they had known each other he could find a reason to stay here with her in this world he had made couldn't he? Even if talking to Jakcova could give him a way home, shouldn't he stay and help now that he was here? Just the idea of that terrified him, but then feeling Vivian's grip on his hand....wasn't that reason enough? In a way now that he knew this place was here didn't that make its fate his responsibility?
And then he remembered looking over the valley coming into Mayonn. The creatures of fantasy, the dinosaurs, and other great beasts. A world that wasn't mapped by satellites and explored in totality almost a hundred years before his birth. There were things here like the Fae Born, and many of the creatures he saw that he just hadn't ever written about. He wanted to see what else was new, what had grown, and how the people had taken shape in the world he had tried to create. Mystery. Wonder. Magic. Adventure like he would never have back home.
“Anyway.” Jakcova carried on lightly. “Talk to Lindsey. She's got the basics down better than anyone. Even me probably. That family of hers almost ruined all the work they put into her pushing her so hard to be perfect that she failed her tests to be a Magus because of the excess stress it put on her nerves. I've been sure of it since before they kicked her out to go deal with her mark. Still she's probably the best you could ask for as long as she's not critiquing herself, and maybe teaching you will open a door in her mind and let her advance from where she is.” Jakcova explained to him.
His rapid sort of energy faded and he just took a moment to look at them all and take in each of their faces. His eyes sparkled a fascinated light, and almost like he was reminiscing.
“That all?” He asked with the now familiar sudden energy of his presence.
There was a brief pause as everyone looked at each other and then one by one they nodded.
He spun his staff in the air then and opened his eyes wide seeming satisfied, but also giving off more excited energy.
“I'll see you guys later then. Micheal will get some kind of Binder ability and need some help with it again so this will hardly be the last time I'll have to guilt you into joining the Mages Guild. See ya then!” he said as he caught his staff and the room returned to normal with a smooth rise from somewhere like they had just come up a hill at a high speed.
Vivian pulled Micheal back into another hug, using one hand to gently push Jack out from between them, as the mist faded. She held tight even as Eva and Luna came up to them looking fascinated. Micheal raised a hand from under Vivian's embrace to greet them when he heard Vivian whisper in his ear.
“I love you.”
Guilt and awe washed over him in waves. He didn't deserve this but just hearing it made a voice in his head rise against the idea and fill him with guilt. He had written the terrible suffering into this world. It affected so many people...He couldn't—shouldn't—but his heart seemed to fill none the less just as much as it had before. He almost couldn't see Luna and Eva as they waited curious and impatient for either of them to speak with them, but all he could do was put his arms around Vivian. He put his face down into her neck and hair and held her tight to him. He closed his eyes to soak in the moment and burn it into his memory. Vivian squeezed hard to very near the point of pain, but he was squeezing too and pressed their cheeks to one another as the embrace went on.
Eva coughed. And then coughed again louder when neither of them moved.
Luna smiled uneasy and motioned Evatain to calm down a little, but the taller woman just glared at her. She stepped forward with her arms crossed under her breasts about to say something, but that's when Vivian pulled away with a contented look on her face.
She turned and smiled at Eva.
“What do you think?” Vivian asked, her tone suddenly bright and excited. “Binders aren't as convenient as Summoners, but he'll be powerful eventually and has a good heart. He's saved Luna and I once each already. Will you and Forgen sign him into the Guild Charter with me?” Vivian asked in an almost sweet voice. She crossed her arms behind her back and took a step closer to Eva with every startled step she took back. “You wouldn't want Grayber to hear I ran off to find other Captains when you were right here would you?”
Evatain started to protest a little with each step, not quite getting sounds out of her mouth every time she tried to interrupt. Finally she put her hands out on Vivian's shoulders and managed to say something.
“Yes, yes I never once said that I would not.” Eva said hotly. “You had just assumed that I would be 'picky' over him just because you like him.” She said just as fiercely, but then blushed slightly. Which was impressive given her dark skin tone. “He is a better match for you anyhow. He's tall like you, and very rugged. Not exactly my type.”
Vivian looked at her co-captain with a skeptical eye and raised eyebrows, but smiled at her all the same and wrapped Eva in a hug. The Shrouded Kin High Elf went stiff as a board for a moment in startled reaction.
“Oh.” Eva said in surprise. A slow smile came over her face and she sighed and hugged back primly, but there was still warmth in it. “You Forest Kin are strange.” She said with happy softness and stroked Vivian's braid once down her back and then brought it up to hang it neatly over her shoulder as they separated.
Luna came over and touched Micheal's arm to get his attention. She was smiling up at him with Jack at her side. “Welcome to the best guild in all of Ruldanja Micheal.” She said in a soft congratulatory tone. It was her smile and the touch of her hand that made the words sound more like she was saying 'Welcome home'.