Chapter 29: Party Time II_The Incompletionist

The party to celebrate Queakers’ achievements and reconnect with my friends was going well. With a relaxing afternoon and a delicious dinner under our belts, I had plenty of opportunities to get reacquainted with my friends. With Jim, Karen, Kelly, Sarah and Queakers it was like no time had passed. Lyle and I seemed good, but it still seemed like he had a lot on his mind. Hopefully he could open up to someone at some point about his situation. Lando seemed to have made some positive strides and seemed both a bit more mature and more thoughtful than he was pre-awakening. Unfortunately, Erin and Karl seemed to have gone in the opposite direction.

Karl and Erin weren’t necessarily my favorites before the awakening, but now they had an edge of arrogance and mania that made them decidedly less my favorites. They didn’t do anything overt, but they were very dismissive. I saw Leirin bristle a few times as she listened to or overheard their conversations, but she would need to learn to get over that as well. The line of people in the Emerald Sea that knew they were better than me was pretty darn long at this time and I wasn’t about to correct any of their misconceptions.

I wasn’t one to dance normally. I wasn’t really against it or anything, but I also didn’t really understand it. I could typically go out there and fake it for a while if it was required, but I would avoid it if I could. When Deldes led everyone to the dancefloor following dinner, I pulled Sarah and Queakers into a smaller private room to catch up without folks listening. I started the conversation by saying, “You both seem like you are doing great. So how are you ladies really? I got some weird vibes from Karl and Erin and I definitely don’t trust your instructors.”

Sarah answered first. “Things are going OK, Harris. I miss you and you are right Erin and Karl have been getting creepier and creepier as the tutorial has progressed. Erin has been positively harassing me lately. She doesn’t know what I can do, none of them do, and she thinks that she can push me around now, like she is some mini-Elen. Karl actually pushed for a vote to replace you on our team.”

I wasn’t at all surprised by Karl’s behavior and Erin had always been just a couple of shades away from stalking Sarah, but it was disturbing to hear my friend describe being harassed. On the same token, I knew Sarah was looking to vent, not for someone to crowd her by trying to solve the problem for her. I just gave her a quick hug and said, “I am so sorry that is happening Sarah. I know that I left intentionally, but know that you can always come to me if I can help. I also think that you could trust Lierin if you needed help and I wasn’t around. I am not an expert about these things, but Karl and Erin seem really weak, so I doubt it will come up.”

Queakers jumped in with her message board, “That is a kind offer Harris, but Sarah has me and I think together we can handle anyone in the team. I have already surpassed Eldrin and I will only continue to grow.” It was great to hear Queakers so confident and of course she would be there for Sarah.

“Good point, Queakers,” I replied. “It's good that you have each other. I miss you both. It isn’t the same without you. Both of you. I do have a new mount named Reginald that I would like to introduce you both to sometime.”

A sinister smile lit up Sarah’s face as she mentioned, “You know Harris. It is funny that you mention missing folks. Our good friend Kelly brings you up from time to time. I think that she misses you or at least feels guilty about how things happened when you left. Seems you may have made more of an impression there than you thought.” The teasing started in earnest from there and I didn’t miss the opportunity to point out that I caught Sarah ogling Deldes more than once over dinner. Queakers didn’t get it, but Sarah started hitting me with the pillow from one of the chairs and she wouldn’t let up until I apologized, and offered to engineer a better introduction to Deldes. It was good to see that they were truly doing well and that things hadn’t changed too much between us.

The party was in full swing, when we left the private room just a few minutes later after making plans to meet up in town in the coming weeks for lunch and to visit Reginald together. Someone had convinced the band to take it up a notch to something quite lively, but the music was very unfamiliar to me. I think that the bard’s class skills were part of the equation, but the music was odd and oddly entrancing. The dance floor was small, but the dancers had the enhanced abilities and physique of the awakened. The results were pretty spectacular. Lando looked like he was in heaven dancing with Kelly, Karen, Deldes and Delirin. Sarah also jumped in and Erin followed her after catching my eye and glaring what I assumed were daggers of jealousy at me. Yeah. I am sure that Sarah had it handled, but Erin was definitely going to be trouble before all was said and done.

Queakers disappeared over toward the buffet in the corner and generated a golem from a potted plant that she had load up a plate with meaty snacks for its master. I went straight for the bar. I was pretty sure that I wasn’t going to get out of this night without a turn on the dance floor, but I definitely wasn’t nearly drunk enough to make that work yet. I felt out of place dancing in normal situations, in normal places with normal partners and normal expectations. There was like some kind of impromptu Capoeira master class going on out there and they were just warming up.

Karl had left immediately after dinner, which seemed really suspicious and out of character for him. Lierin and Jim were at the bar with Lyle. It was loud, but not too loud to chat. I learned that Jim hadn’t had any training in his Monk class yet. He had done well in all of the classroom training, but none of the practical skills had clicked for him. Jim was a smart guy, so it was no surprise that he was excelling in the academic portion. He also had his trademark charm and positive attitude going full blast, so he didn’t seem concerned that he hadn’t been able to move forward in his class yet. Jim was a natural leader and to find himself forced to follow in this new place was likely difficult, but he was soldiering through like he always did.

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Lyle just seemed lost. He related how well his magic was coming along, but his enthusiasm seemed hollow and I could tell that something was on his mind. I made a mental note to find an opportunity to catch up with Lyle somewhere that he may be more comfortable talking in earnest. At least that way he’d have the opportunity to share whatever was on his mind if he wanted to do so. It wasn’t great to see this shell of his Ferris Bueller style completely lacking vitality, but he certainly didn’t seem like he was spiraling, but rather like he was working through something.

Leirin was quiet during it all, but she seemed happy enough and I knew that she was just taking it all in. Very little escaped Leirin’s notice. After a few more drinks, Karen came to claim Jim. I think that Lyle and I both realized that our time was also up unless we wanted to face people trying to convince us to dance, so we both joined as well. I was, in fact, truly terrible, but no one really seemed to mind. When I left the dance floor, I found Queakers curled up on the couch with Leirin and Tanyl. Queakers was getting some head scratches and the three of them were having a nice conversation. The band indulged us with a shift to karaoke, where Leirin put us all to shame. It was a nice night.

***

Naesala was a good instructor. He described the process and was direct and unambiguous in his commands. Unfortunately, what Naesala was commanding the group to do something that most of them just couldn’t accomplish right now. Clerics don’t cast spells the same way that mages do. Clerics connect to and channel a source of power. These sources of power are extremely varied, but by channeling their great power the Cleric can transcend normal limitations.

A cleric that couldn’t connect to a source of power was essentially just a regular fighter, but an empowered cleric could be a devastating force on the battlefield and act as support for their allies. Of the group, only Karen and Sarah seemed really focused on making the kind of connection necessary to support this kind of empowerment and, at least as it appeared, only Karen was successful.

She didn’t share the source of her power, at least not publicly with the group, but she was visibly ablaze with some kind of force. Naesala had asked Phraan to be present as a sparring partner for anyone that was successful in making the connection required to be a cleric and Karen’s performance was certainly on another level when compared to her initial sessions with the warrior.

Karen still had her natural agility, but she now assaulted the elf with forceful empowered strikes. Phraan still appeared to be holding back, but she certainly needed to use much more force and ability to remain in control of the contest than during their prior encounters. Karen also quickly regenerated any damage or wounds that she sustained. It was a potent combination and, as they learned from Naesala, Karen would be able to share the benefits with her party and add new effects as she progressed down her path.

Chapter 29: Party Time II

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