Theo found it hard to keep his emotions in check. It took everything he had not to react to the sight of his own realm on a list. This was something he should have expected, yet there it was. A decision reared in the moment, batting away any good senses with surprise. Tresk picked up on it immediately, clearing the excited crowd away. She grabbed Zarali and Theo by the arm and dragged them away from the citizens.
“Problem!” the Marshling’s voice was hushed, filled with concern. “Big dang problem!”
Zarali’s face was painted with a mixture of confusion and pride. She was happy with what she had done—that much was obvious. “I don’t understand.”
Theo looked around, ensuring they had a wide enough berth from prying ears. “Tero’gal showed up in the list of realms.”
“Really?”
What does that mean? Alex injected herself into the conversation, even if Zarali couldn’t hear her.
“I don’t know what it means.” Theo’s mind reeled, grasping at the implications. He poured his intuition into the thought, but found no resolution.
“Tero’gal shouldn’t be strong enough to show up on the list.”
Xol’sa cleared his throat, approaching from the crowd’s edge. “Not to be ‘that guy’, but this is entirely possible. We’ve been feeding your realm pure heavenly energy for a while. Hard to predict the outcome of that.”
Theo tapped his foot. He didn’t like being placed in situations like these. When his back was against the wall, he did irrational things. Mentally, he rolled his senses over the [Wisdom of the Soul] potion. Tresk punched him in the arm, feeling his intentions through their shared cores. While the alchemist had dragged the system prompt to the edge of his vision, it remained the focus of his attention.
While realms existed on another plane, there was a proximity to them. Not in the same way that physical places had distance, but with influence exerted on the mortal plan. They were like endless disks of reality all stacked in a neat pile. Some overlapped with others. How vain would it have been to pick himself as his worshiped deity?
“What do we know about this process?” Theo turned to Xol’sa, searching the Elf’s face with his intuition. At full strength, no longer waylaid by his illness, the wizard gave nothing away.
But Zarali was the first to answer. “This should unlock boons based on the god we pick. We can’t predict what that means for your realm, but for Drogramath? I’ll have a closer link with him—so will you.”
“Does that mean we can talk to him? Directly?”
“Not directly,” Xol’sa answered. “Which is a guess. We’re assuming Khahar changed the rules.”
Us, Drogy, Catboy, Tresk spoke into Theo’s mind.
The only other option on the list that appealed to Theo was Parantheir. Tresk was developing her duelist core by the day, but that seemed like a waste. Her suggestion was the best, but it never hurt to take counsel.
“Suggestions?” Theo asked.
Zarali and Xol’sa shared a look, but it only lasted a moment. “Your realm, Drogramath, and Khahar. Those are the only logical choices.”
Selecting those options in the menu felt like pulling a bandage off quickly. Theo clicked them, then accepted before he could change his mind. Consequences be damned.
While he expected something to happen, there was nothing but the faint shimmer of energy over the white stones. The crowd behind them voiced their approval, noting the subtle change.
“Well?” Theo asked. “That’s it, I guess.”
You did the right thing, Alex said, honking with approval.
Theo felt Sarisa and Rowan lurking somewhere nearby. They reacted to the tense situation the way they always did. Preparing for battle. But nothing came. The only action in the temple was the voices of people. Happy chats that did a disservice to the seriousness of the situation. With a final shrug, the group moved off. Onto the manor for some dinner before bed. Along the way, Xol’sa and Zarali shared their theories on what would happen. The alchemist interjected with his knowledge, sharing that it could take three days for the temple to finish integration.
To Theo’s surprise, Laedria was waiting at the manor. She had a devilish grin on her face and invited herself into the alchemist’s home for evening tea. Instead, he asked his assistants to bring them some beer in his study. Only the light from homes and those carrying lanterns shone from outside. Torches and candles held high to inspect the new temple, despite the late hour.
Sitting in a plush chair, Theo looked outside. He sipped his beer, waiting for the shipwright of House Wavecrest to ask whatever it was she wanted. But she came with good tidings. It was a pleasant change.
“We’re gearing up for our trip, Mister Archduke. The Wavecrest is heading to the lizard islands, and we’re fitting two boats for the Tarantham rescue mission.”
“With a boat in reserve, I hope.”
“Of course. We’ll wrap everything up sometime tomorrow. Depending on the tide, they might head out as early as midday.”
Theo’s mind let go of the temple. It moved on with practice forgetfulness, refocusing on the boats. This was the end of an era in his mind. Something they were building to since House Wavecrest arrived through the damned portal. Now the house would reclaim more of their people, no doubt bringing them to town.
“I hope Zarali enchanted the boats. As she said she’d do.”
Laedria nodded, sipping her beer. Theo gazed at his empty library, wanting to kick himself every time he remembered his book. A promise made to Salire, and a promise broken. He still didn’t have enough written for her to start. Just a few scribbles to himself—nothing approaching an instructional book.
“She did well. Provided us with everything we need to skip across the waves like a thrown stone.”
Theo nodded back, taking another long sip of his beer. Like all the beer they imported from Rivers and Daub, it was more of a mead. He wasn’t certain if they used honey to sweeten it, and he didn’t care. Sarisa and Rowan entered the room shortly after, carrying with them a small table and tonight’s dinner.
“Black moon tonight, Theo,” Sarisa said as she set the small table. “Stay safe.”
Tonight’s dinner, as always provided by Xam, was a Broken Tusk classic. Wolf meat stew. Unlike the original version of the dish, this one had flavor.
“So, Laedria,” Theo started, sipping the broth from the stew. “Are you enjoying Broken Tusk?”
Laedria stammered for a moment. Her brow knit and she drained the rest of her beer. After wiping her mouth with her sleeve, she met the alchemist’s gaze. “I like it. Been kinda weird, to be honest. But I’m settling in. Trying to find a strong Half-Ogre husband.”
“People have babies on the mind. Not sure what’s causing that. You’d think people would want to be distant with the heat.”
Laedria leaned in over the table. “More heat is better.”
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Theo chuckled, shaking his head. “That seems to be the case.”
“How about you?” Laedria asked. “You’re an outworlder, right? How do you like it here?”
A jolt shot through Theo’s chest. He furrowed his brow, leaning back in his comfortable chair. “That might have been the first time someone asked me that.”
The question lingered in the air. “Well?”
“I’m still not sure if I’m someone’s pawn. My mind has changed more over the past seasons than any other time in my life. The attributes, my Tara’hek… Yeah, everything is weird.”
“Didn’t ask,” Laedria said, offering a sly smile. “I asked how you liked Broken Tusk.”
Theo felt his cheeks get hot, violet spreading across his face. As much as he fancied himself cool under pressure, Laedria had a way of stripping people bare of their ego. “I like it here. The people are nice, and we’re making a difference. Aren’t we?”
“Don’t sell yourself short.” Laedria took a big scoop of stew into her mouth, mumbling something around the bite. After a moment she swallowed, smiling with bits of food in her teeth. “Even if a god is helping, you’re wielding the power well.”
Having a private meal in the study was a strange feeling for Theo, but he enjoyed his time away from the chaos downstairs. Occasionally, the conversation in the dining room would drift upstairs. Raucous laughter and the crashing of dishes carried all the same. Laedria wasn’t much of a conversationalist. She was more like a Broken Tusker than the alchemist could ever hope to be. Always straight to the point, talking about business until she was out of breath.
The shipwright had big plans for their navy. Not just a mercantile group of boats, but warships. She claimed those were far off, and they should focus on getting trade ships rolling. The problem there was her access to designs for larger ships. She’d have to wing it, which Theo was confident she could do. He joined with the group downstairs when things had calmed down, making small talk but eager to get to bed. The excitement for the new temple had everyone too energized to get to sleep.
Theo and Tresk suffered from no such problems. Even with their stamina bars above half, they would have no problem getting to sleep. The Dreamwalk was a powerful ability for a lot of reasons, but that was a massive advantage. They made their way to their room, falling into the Dreamwalk within moments. Sarisa and Rowan could handle the rabble back in the real world.
Tresk stretched, then rolled her shoulders. “Alright. What do we think about the whole temple thing?”
Alex waddled through the tall grasses outside of Broken Tusk. She jabbed her head into the distance, as though gesturing. But nothing happened. The goose muttered something into their minds, then tried again.
“I think Drogramath and Khahar expected that to happen. Did you see the title it gave us? ‘The Dreamwalker’s Tara’hek’ is oddly specific.”
“This is the Dreamwalk, right? We’re Dreamwalking. I’m the Dreamwalker. You’re the Dreamwalker.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Is your alchemist's senses tingling?”
“Just my sense that this has a connection we can’t see yet.”
No matter how much they went back-and-forth on the topic, they would never find the answer. Not within the Dreamwalk, without access to those responsible for whatever plot was unfolding. Instead, they went off to work on their own things. Theo stayed with Alex, watching as she did the weird neck-pointing thing. While he wanted to ask what she was doing, it was always better to watch the silly goose try things out.
The alchemist was intent on working on the book. His administrator interface was filled with notes, but they were all loose. He started by bringing them together into stages. At the start, the book should describe the tiers of potions. It should stress the skills Theo thought were best for a Drogramathi Alchemist, and the order they should be taken. While he went for constructs first, [Reagent Deconstruction] was the best pick for the second tier. While he fiddled with the formatting and the flow of information, he practiced his spells. The Dreamwalk allowed him an endless supply of mana, making experimentation easy.
“Why am I so worried about safety?” Theo asked, place a ward on a small piece of bone. He felt the trickle of experience flow through his core.
Because alchemy go boom! Alex said, shooting a fireball into the air. Fire is easy, but this nature thing is weird.
Theo closed his administrator interface, setting his notes aside for a time. He sat near the goose, watching as she tried to summon something related to nature. While she was working toward a nature aspect, her connection with fire was already developed. Every time she tried to cast a nature-aspected spell, there was a flicker of something. It wasn’t the same intensity of magic he felt when she used her fire abilities, but something was there.
“There’s a long road ahead of you with this. Just keep practicing.”
Alex nodded, going back to her work. Tresk was fighting more sensible monsters tonight. While she was amazing with her daggers, something about Parantheir’s preferred weapon threw her off. That Elven god designed the cores his followers got around using rapiers. They used quick strikes, just like a rogue, but focused on dueling. Fenian had described an ability that locks a person into a one-on-one duel. The Marshling struggled to fit this into her kit, but she was getting there. Slowly.
Theo couldn’t really say what he was building his cores out to be. He didn’t fit in any adventuring party, and that was fine with him. Grinding Toru’aun experience was boring, but there was a lot to learn about the way wards were formed. The more practice he had casting those spells, the easier they were to chant. Any change in the way he said the words affected the spell.
Focusing only on his [Toru’aun Mage’s Core] that night brought it to level 9. One level away from getting his next skill with the core. That would also send it into the next tier of power, which he was eager to explore. Alex had made some progress with her nature aspect. She was convinced she made some grass jiggle during the night, but the alchemist wasn’t sure. It could have been the phantom wind that washed over the landscape.
Tresk reported her progress with her rapier. Fenian had given her some pointers on how to use it better in her kit. “It functions best as a backup. I mean, the idea makes sense. What happens when I break out of stealth and can’t defend myself?”
“Makes sense. Is it working out?”
“Kinda? I’m still working on it. I can still coat my rapier in poison, so I have synergy there. Fenian said my footwork sucks and I don’t understand the first thing about swordsmanship. What does he know? He’s missing an arm and a leg.”
“True.”
“Dawn is coming,” Tresk said, looking up at the sky. It looked the same to Theo. “Maybe we could relax today. You know, take a day off?”
Theo stared at Tresk for a long moment before crossing the distance. He pinched her wet little cheek, shaking his head. “I thought you were a dream-Tresk for a moment. My Tresk would never say that.”
“Oh, come on. We’re always busting our butts. Why can’t we have a… A beach day or something?”
Because the beach is filled with monsters, Alex said.
“Well, dang. Screw me for trying to get Theo to stop working for five minutes.”
“No, I like the idea. Maybe we can just roam around. Checking up on all our people.”
“That kinda sounds like work.”
“We can do it casually.”
“Alright. That’s a good enough compromise.”
With a snap, Tresk ended the Dreamwalk. Theo rose from his bed, finding that the Marshling was already heading downstairs for breakfast. The alchemist’s administrative panel was thankfully short on updates. He withdrew a notebook and pen, working on the start of his alchemy manual in physical form. While there was a lot to do, getting those first few words on a page in logical format was a relief. The group around him talked, joking about this and that while he worked.
Tresk accepted that working on the book wasn’t the same as his normal work and gave him a pass long enough for him to write the first few pages. His hand hurt by the time breakfast was done, although he’d barely touched his food. Pozwa eggs were too large to eat in one sitting, anyway. He took a few bites, gulped down his tea, and fought back his desire to get back to work.
Theo, Tresk, and Alex stopped by the Newt and Demon before heading off for their planned day of relaxation. No one in the group could resist the urge to check up on the harbor. They spotted Zarali aboard one boat, weaving Drogramathi magic into the very planks that held it together. Three boats sat proudly in the harbor, bobbing with the waves. Laedria was happy to show the new boats off, but still hadn’t named them.
After finishing up at the harbor, they went for a walk along the battlements of the town. Passing by the small farm outside of the walls, Theo saw that some of his crops were destroyed. The remaining [Lesser Plant Golems] had fixed things up well enough, but Tresk gave him permission to create new golems to tend the farm. The wheat was growing well enough, Even with an entire plot being destroyed. That was the point of the throw-away farm, wasn’t it?
Satisfied enough with the farm, the group moved on. Alex practiced her new magic along the way. This time, Theo could see that she stirred the crops below with her magic. Nothing as impressive as her fire magic, but it was growing. As they traveled along the way, a strange energy hovered in the air. A tingle like Drogramath’s magic, but different. The alchemist couldn’t understand it, and dismissed it.
Reaching Ziz’s stoneworker’s shop revealed a strange sight. No one was working the quarry today. Upon closer inspection, Theo found the man himself sleeping inside the shack. He might not admit it, but the stoneworkers had been chugging [Stamina Potions] to get their work done. They needed to take a break.
Theo jumped in surprise. So did Ziz. The frantic clang of bells sounded down below in the town. Tresk’s weapons were already in her hands. As she melted into a shadow, Sarisa and Rowan sprung from shadows of their own. Their massive pole-axes were in hand, leveled and ready for anything. The alchemist’s eyes rolled over the town below, toward the fields outside the eastern gate. There seemed to be nothing. The administrators were scrambling to figure out what was spotted in the town’s interface.
Tense moments passed until the administrators sorted things out. The adventurers ranged through the town while Theo sat on that hill. Ziz asked questions, but Theo had no answer. Until a few words flashed into the ongoing discussion in the interface.
“Ah,” Theo let out a steady breath. “The Ogres are here.”