“That’s impressive, ” Fleming said.
The High Labyrinth Office executive manager stood up, flipped the moving panels where the various teams were recorded, and started to erase the Professions for Alton, Guss and Laura. Then, as an afterthought, he added a ‘+’ symbol on the other three sliding rulers.
“Well, you’re on a side Profession, strictly speaking. As long as it doesn’t show up as your main one because you overshot your first tier three,” he explained.
“We will all be tier four by early next month unless there are complications with Zilbarn. Can you arrange a proper reservation or licenses for then?”
“I’ll check at the Town Hall registration office later. I am going to assume no complications. I don’t remember it being a very crowded zone. What kind of lairs you’re shooting for?”
“Anything below… 135, I think. 140 at the highest, but that probably means we need to get some experience before getting into that lair. We also did the Four Corners lair, so that one’s out. Really, the two lowest ones you can get a firm option for in the…” Jonas swore.
“What?”
“I was going to say the first week of August. But I have a mission for the Duke by then.”
Fleming’s eyebrows raised.
“Not Agni-related.”
“So, what’s the hold-up?”
“We probably need a minimum of two weeks getting to Zilbarn if not three. No, nearly three. We did it in just four when Cowen was power-smashing us through the Great Line’s lairs, but that required detours. And then, it’s getting to the lairs in the zone. Can’t do it in time. Balls,” Jonas swore again.
“Okay, then what do you look for?”
“Something on the second or third week of August then. We should be back by then and Fast Travel straight to Zilbarn instead.”
Fleming looked at the visibly disturbed Jonas before settling on his best professional – small ‘p’ – stance.
“Will do,” he confirmed.
“By the way, do we have a quartermaster now? And gear spares?”
“Well, I am the quartermaster. But we don’t have that much, at least for your levels. Let me see.”
Fleming made a grimace after checking the ledger in the storeroom.
“Nothing useable. Our people came out of their old companies with their own gear, and not much more. The items they’ve upgraded since are all in the 200+ ranges. Except for those two underleveled heroics they got, but…”
“Focus, Agility and Presence are nice, but certainly not any of our main build’s Potentials,” Jonas acknowledged.
“You get skills from it though?”
“Yes, but we already have that Notice Attack. Which makes me think we should move our store of skill-bearing items out of the Bank. It will be cheaper to store it here.”
“I’ll set up a separate ‘do not lend’ section for it. In case we get more people at lower levels.”
Jonas snapped his fingers.
“Do we raid that tier-two Legend? The one that made us realize Cores exist?”
“That bull-thing? Kuminos? Yes, there was a joint raid with a Scouts team and one of ours three weeks ago. Couldn’t let the Core go to waste. We no longer have enough of those for everyone. And I think the normal gear was claimed by the Scouts, but I’m not sure how they decided to split the equipment. Probably by dice.”
“Dratted. I should talk to Millard then, see if they are going for the tier three Legend.”
“You’ve got good chances of finding him this weekend. Everyone’s coming for the ceremonies.”
“What ceremonies?” Jonas asked.
“Uh? The wedding? Her Highness marrying the Swedish prince? On Monday? Isn’t that why you’re there?”
Jonas shook his head.
“I knew it was on the 12th. But we kind of forgot in the rush to transition to tier four.”
“Well everyone in London and England is getting ready. Even if the wedding itself is completely packed, and the banquet is going to be extremely selective, I think every single street between the Palace and Westminster and toward Kew will be packed ten deep.”
“I don’t think we have an invitation.”
“Almost nobody Professional has one for either. Unless you are a peer… oh, forgot. You are knighted, that’s right. Well, even for your team, it would have been close to impossible. Every noble wants in, of course.”
“So. All of the Professionals are going to be there.”
“All of England wants to be. It’s the wedding of the century. I mean, I was but a toddler, and you weren’t even born, but George’s marriage to her Highness’ mother was still a major festival, and he was sure not as popular as she is. Every inn and hostel in London is packed to the rafters and even Gatepost is full.”
“Going to see Millard before the wedding about that Legend then.”
“I think they’re expecting Nicteres in late August to early-September, no sooner. They killed it in mid-May last time. Why anyway? The gear should be well above your levels unless it’s underleveled by chance.”
Jonas started to explain about Adjustment VII. Halfway through, Fleming’s eyes glazed.
“I think I understand now when they say you violate every rule at every occasion possible. You are really expecting free Artefact jewellery out of that?”
“The Milestone should give us something that’s either our level or the creature’s level, whichever works. And if it is a Legend, then that should absolutely work.”
Jonas looked forlornly at the jacket. It stretched across his frame, constricting movements. On the side, Ira was trying to fit in his trousers.
“If I move too much, it feels like the seams are going to pop.”
“It’s a lost cause,” Alton insisted.
With one additional Adjustment Milestone already, the Piercer had given a quick look at his civilian clothes set and declared it a physical impossibility immediately. They probably all had gotten an inch or more since they got clothed for the reception and their knighting, and that clothing definitively no longer fit their expanding frames.
“Laugh all you want. We don’t have a spare set like you”, Jonas threw back at Guss who was shaking his head in half-repressed laughter.
Laura had fled the room, letting the men try their attire. Like Guss, she had a passable set of plain-looking low-tier gear stashed in her puppet for this.
“You should. At one point, you’ll have a puppet, which will make it easier, but even before, there’s a case for having plain Labyrinth gear ready. And in our situation… it’s probably even more important.”
“You know what? I give up. Let’s wear our normal gear. We are Professionals, after all,” Jonas said.
“We’ll stand out,” Ira replied.
“So what? If all of Gatepost is there anyway… Most of the time, people barely notice me in London. I’m just an ordinary Professional.”
“Well, I am going to take Guss’ suggestion. I’m sure there is a store for this in Gatepost. Worst case, I have a look at the Faire this Saturday,” Ira replied.
“Go ahead, I’ll be right there,” Jonas replied, turning a small envelope in his hands.
Dear Jonas Sims,
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
I cannot believe I fell for this trick. Or rather, not fell, until you pointed it out. So simple, so elegant… and yet so elusive. My team and I thank you for the unexpected windfall this brought us. And my bank account after I handed those and started selling the rest.
Even my father congratulated me on a sound investment. Which, for him, is the highest form of praise. But we Professionals know power does not come in simple material investments, but only once it is obtained.
I do not know if you tried it, but do not ever equip a Core above your levels. Trying to wear a piece of gear over your level is already disturbing in ways that are already hard to describe to a mundane until he tries it, but a Core is far worse. You need to do a lot of cleaning if you are not fast at removing it.
I eagerly await your next unexpected discovery. Did you know our scholars are already debating on how many more equipment types there might be? Based on puppets’ capacities, it can’t be more than fourteen, but it is now at least twelve.
I like twelve. It’s a good number. But who knows.
My team has decided on a temporary break for a few months from pushing levels next year. I may finally use the occasion to come to London and see you. I haven’t decided yet when. Probably in the late spring.
Yours, Sylvia Underwood
PS: You will find attached the list of the Cores I had. I am sure your scholar friend will be interested in it for research purposes.
“Greetings Aethershaper,” Jack Millard said.
As Jonas entered the leader of the British Scouts’ office, the man offered his wrist and Jonas immediately noticed why.
“Congratulations on Applied Ringmaster.”
“Haven’t got any Milestone yet, but I finally made it. Most of the Scouts are grinding experience these days rather than trying to map lairs and zones.”
“So do we. Do we have a firm date?” Jonas asked, drawing an interrogative look from Millard.
He settled down and started to explain the team’s goals.
“The Duke told me you wanted in. But taking extra burden… that’s a bit weird. Especially for a single Milestone.”
“If we’d known at the time, we would probably have tried to switch after the second rather than the third.”
The man shook his head in wonder.
“Cowen told me you would bear watching after she escorted you back from your entry point. I can see she wasn’t wrong. Tier four in just over a year, when it should take three to reach.”
He raised his hand, stalling Jonas' next question.
“And yes. You are enabled up to Versailles, that’s a given. But you are still nearly a hundred levels under the next lowest team. We are enough to reasonably deal with whatever awaits us at the Chateau unless the French know we’re coming and are ready for us with all their forces. Which is still a possibility. Once they learn of the trunk, this year or the next, it’s an avenue that is going to be closed for an attack. Thankfully, the trunk doesn’t lead back to our main sector, and the tier four access still requires a significant effort to get from.”
“But we’re not on the main assault.”
“You’re not going to face the Tyrant and his inner guard. What I can use you for is the Village. That’s next door to the Versailles proper, and it’s where the remaining European royalty is held. Since it’s all mundanes, Professional guard is going to be light, and much more manageable. Any team or solo you can lock down is someone the main teams won’t have to deal with.”
The assault co-leader smiled.
“Garrett Thorebourne is the one that’s in charge of that part. You’ll like him, I think. He’s not as crazy as you are… but the Duke’s plan for the Village is crazy, even for Professionals.”
“Where do I talk to him?”
“Fortescue’s Valliants' headquarters isn’t far from your new place. But you won’t find him today – he is busy getting enabled for the trunk in Nindarul. There are lots of lairs to run there.”
“Which reminds me of my second question, about the trunk…”
Millard blinked in astonishment after Jonas explained what he was looking for in the trunk.
“You get free gear, this time.”
“Just like when we got gear even out of minion creatures when we started. At least a ring and a necklace. And it’s of the maximum quality possible for the guardian.”
“So, Legendary guardians.”
“We will need to run at least two lairs to finish our switchover, so whatever those lairs will yield. But we still have at least eight occasions to get additional gear probably based on our main Potentials after that, so we will try to run the best ones we can.”
“Which means you want in Nicteres. Because why not.”
“We’re too late for Kuminos, and I don’t think we can participate in real Legends. There is, what, only one known in a tier-four zone and it is still level 500. But one piece of Artefact jewellery would be better than none.”
“Well, based on timing, that walking wolf should be regenerated by the last week of August. Meetup is at the Castikal Gate from Donerkal on Wednesday, September first. Be there.”
He smiled.
“Consider this a training session for a massively overpowered low tier six hairy Frenchman, like the one you may get to face if you are really buggered. Thorebourne will be there, and we’ll consider you ready if you live by the end.”
Jonas had never seen the Great Gilded Gate clearing so crowded. The team stood near the edge, waiting in line as hundreds of Professionals streamed out of the Gatepost streets to cross the Gate to London.
“I think it’s even bigger than when they talked about the celebration of re-opening the Gate,” Luther Fullmore noted.
The two Fullmores had joined their cousin’s team by chance, as Guss had spotted them while they were getting to the Gate. Luther had been flabbergasted on seeing that his cousin was now tier four. Of course, technically speaking that was correct – Guss had level 1 in Imposing Fixer and exactly zero experience since they’d Recalled immediately after recovering from the Profession switch. Luther and his wife had just finally unlocked their own just a month ago. Over two years’ headstart nearly negated.
The Queen’s Gardens were swamped with streams of Professionals heading out. Or at least Jonas thought they were – most of them wore civilian-style clothes, and he did not have the skill to check their status from a distance. But mundane workers didn’t come out into the Gate area to cross the park. Not with all the enforced security at the Gate area.
The streets next to the gardens were packed. There was little sign remaining of the devastation visited by the fight between the British teams and the French saboteurs, and the crowds that pressed along were enormous. A handful of carriages were stuck in the traffic. The crowds tried to avoid spooking the horses but had no compunction on streaming around the two horseless modern ones. The drivers on top of them were yelling indistinct insults at the masses.
“So what is the plan? Do we still attempt the Cathedral?” Ira asked, shaking his head.
He’d managed to get some ordinary-looking clothing, not too different from what he’d worn on that fateful day when they’d been immersed in the destabilized Gate surface, more than a year ago. Out of all of them, only Jonas and Jonathan still looked like Professionals. Jonas was most remarkable with his Artefact outlandish robe, but Jonathan did look like a seasoned Professional as well. Most of his armour was in black iron plate and chainmail styles that almost matched. He even had his two weapons at his sides, in simple scabbards rather than hanging from his plate girdle’s attachments.
“Looks like everyone’s heading to the main road,” Ada Fullmore said.
“So what do we do? Assert some Presence to push away the masses?” Laura asked.
Luther’s wife shot an interrogating look at her, but then, the team had far higher levels of the Potential, thanks to Adjustment Milestones and Cores than the two classical Professionals. Even Laura, as the lowest of them, had 53, which could be used to affect mundanes somewhat, where the Fullmores had nearly no extra power at that point.
“It would be unseemly,” she finally said.
“Fine. Then what?”
“I think the road between the Palace and Westminster is a lost cause. I say we attempt to get on the way to Kew Palace after the ceremony ends,” Luther said.
The road out of London toward King George III’s favourite residence was almost as packed as the rest. Fleming had not joked about all of England wanting to be there, Jonas thought. Still, it was easier to get to than the main thoroughfares in central London would have been. Discreet use of some Presence – and, unsurprisingly, the Professional look of both Adjusted team members not in mufti – had helped them get close to the road itself.
“The ceremony itself isn’t for at least an hour,” Alton said.
Jonas started to laugh. The rest of the Professionals looked at him askance.
“I was thinking that last year… all of London was like us, but we were the ones in the official carriages.”
“Hey. We were among those Professionals,” Luther mock reproached.
“And we were absolutely overwhelmed,” Jonas replied, as all of the team acknowledged.
“You were worth this. Opening the Gate…”
“Was not that great a feat. It might seem that way, but the Gate would have opened, no matter what,” he said.
Yells from further along the road had warned them, so when the procession came along, no one was really surprised. The number of gilded and ornate carriages full of people was surprisingly low, but the first one was the one that mattered anyway. Charlotte and Gustav weren’t waving to the crowds anymore – probably tired after the day. Her Highness was wearing a mauve dress so clear it bordered on the white, while the Swedish heir was in a military-style uniform with more tassels than any twenty-year officer should have. Jonas noted that the carriage had no one but the two newlyweds, who were animatedly talking to each other.
None of them was paying real attention to the crowds lined on the road toward the King’s home, but Jonas had not really expected that. Even with an Artefact visible, there were too many people. He would not be surprised if a million English had shown up to cheer for their future Queen.
In the next carriage he recognized his Majesty George the Third, with a tired-looking woman he did not remember seeing during the parade last year.
“That’s the Queen. Also named Charlotte,” Jonathan immediately said when prompted.
“She looks old and ill,” Jonas commented.
“She’s a bit younger than his Majesty, but she started getting in bad health a year ago. She isn’t that popular, even if she took care of her grand-daughter for a long time,” Luther added.
The next carriage had a single woman, who Jonathan identified by the blazons on her carriage as a Brunswick.
“That’s her mother. Now that George Frederick is dead, she can come out to court again. He did his best to shut her away once she gave birth to her Highness. The wastrel gave her one shilling in his will.”
“She’s not with the King.”
“She was shut out of the court for a long time. People favoured her husband, not her, and the only one who supported her was her daughter.”
A pair of carriages followed as the cavalry guards passed over, and then the procession was gone.
“It is the wedding of the century,” Guss said.
Jonas looked toward the distant Kew Palace’s direction, before replying.
“Well, it might be the last such.”
Luther’s surprised look prompted him to elaborate slightly.
“If… well, the speculation about Professionals being more or less immortal is true.”
“Do you really think it’s that accurate?” the man shot back.
“We’re all young ones. We’ve been Professional for a year, you for, what, a bit over three? It starts to pile on,” he said, unwilling to discuss other sources.
Ada looked toward the direction of the departing royal couple.
“Do you think that how it ends?”
“What do you mean how it ends?” Laura asked her.
“If you have immortal monarchs on a throne.”
Jonas nearly recoiled, before realizing the truth of the statement.
“If we end up with… well, her Highness as Queen of the United Kingdom. And Napoleon as Tyrant. And, what’s her name… Zhuangjing?… as the Empress of China, maybe.”
He stopped barely in time before speaking of Mhambi Meshindi. The God-King of the Zulu was another matter.
“It makes you wonder how long those Colonials might go with their elections and Presidents,” Luther snorted.