Gliding downward, disgruntled and grumpy, my feet stumbled onto the streets of Druidale. I paced and laced together leaps in logic.
I can probably assume the other two fled. - Unless they were never together when they set out, but-
-I don’t think so. - But if they ran into the mountains there’s no chance we’re ever seeing them again- stop.
I’m also kind of assuming they wanted to come back. I never got a feel for their relationship with their teacher- stop thinking, you’re wasting time with possibilities that have no win condition.
I shook my head in frustration. A man with pale purple skin and short platinum hair above red antler stubs strolled past me. He was dressed in a tunic layered in shades of green leather. His fingers drummed along the length of his longbow as if he had a tune stuck in his head.
“Ah- um, excuse me. I just have a couple questions about this village.”
“Huh? Tourists. Go pester someone-”
The man’s eyes relaxed after turning to face me.
“Oh, I- well, what would you like to know, ma’am?”
“I hear there’s a lake around here, do you know anything about it?”
“Oh, Lake Silver. It’s probably the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen- before today that is.”
..Great.
“It’s so clear I swear on some days you can’t even see the water at all.”
“Ah, that does sound nice.”
“It’s along the main road leading out of town, so you’ll pass it if you’re ever heading to Silverkeep. That road is one of the safest in all of Alindra. Ha ha.”
That’s-. Ok that’s false. But man, what an awkward thing to say. If nervousness was a perfume it would be scent ‘du this guy. That’s probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever thought. Focus.
“I’ll have to check it out before I head home. Oh, one more thing. I heard there was a well just outside the village?”
“A well? - Oh, that thing has been abandoned for years. You might want to go see Gerald. He worked on the water system that replaced it. Everyone calls it the sewers now. He lives a few streets back the other way.”
Maybe I should just rally some people from this village to check those two spots- Eh. I’d rather not have more people mad at me if I’m wrong. And on top of everything going on, this guy is looking at me like I’m some prize piece in a museum.
“Thank you for your time.”
Sinclair’s Transmutation
+4(ᛗ,ᛃ) | ᛝ+2 | (🜁,🜄,🜂)
ᛗ . 2🜁 . 3ᛃ . 4ᛗ . 5🜄 . 6ᛃ . 7ᛗ . 8🜂 . 9:i2(ᛃ,ᛝ) . 13ᛗ
My legacy lies with the ability to adapt and overcome. Mere trickery is simply a stepping stone to my greater ambitions.
“Imagine a man before you. A liar, a cheat. Make his face as deranged as his heart before reality pulls you back to its cold truth with the words he speaks at you.”
Founded by Taurus Sinclair
3-1 Late Fall Year 64: Age of Runes
I reached into my bag and grabbed a coin for retribution.
Eeh-. Maybe that’s too mean-. Mm.
“You don’t have to pay me anything. Always happy to have a chat about our home with gorgeous adventurers like yourself.”
I lost my grip on the coin. The flutter of a beetle’s wings vibrated inside my bag.
Adventurers?
I don’t know if he said anything after that, but if he did it was lost on me while I fixated on that one word. The first few seconds were a mindless, blank stare, but something finally broke through my own ego.
I thought back to how I assumed Sugma was from the City of Stone just because he was an orc. How I thought I was so superior to Ligmas all because I could make a tiny ball of fire last longer. How I judged Beatrice as just being angry and mean toward those guys. How I thought it was weird that Loric ordered milk in a tavern.
Maybe that last one was justified.
This was the first time I had thought about them when we were apart. The realization crushed my chest. I hunched over and clasped the runestone pinned against my cloak.
Aa. Hey yeah that’s mhmm mm. So stupid.
“Hmmm!”
“Uh- hey, are you ok?”
“Ah-. Yes. I’m fine.”
I straightened myself back up and met his gaze.
“Could you please take me to see Gerald?”
He averted his eyes and his face flushed pink. One side of my mouth curled inward, failing to resist casting judgment.
We traveled across several streets adjacent to the main road. I shook my head, trying to knock my thoughts free.
No, no, no they’ll be fine. They’re adventurers - right?
I broke free of my trance just in time to hear the voice of the man escorting me.
“Here we are. Best of luck with your adventures or whatever it is you’re doing. And by the way, if you’re ever at the game house just ask for Brice Brimsen and I’ll take care of you.”
He smiled and thrust his fist forward, nearly striking me with a clumsily curled thumbs up. Every muscle in my body tensed up.
“That sounds great Brice, thank you for everything.”
I stood on Gerald’s front steps for several seconds before I closed my eyes.
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Sky Tethered Telepathy
ᚨ+5 | 🜁+4 | ᛇ+2 | (ᚺ,ᚾ)
🜁 . 2ᚨ . 3ᛇ . 4ᚨ . 5🜁 . 6ᚨ . 7ᚺ . 8ᚨ . 9🜁 . 10ᚾ . 11🜁 . 12ᚨ . 13ᛇ
Mother, hear my cries. Let me know you are alright.
“Imagine the wind kicked up by merely a whisper. Small and insignificant isn’t it? Now, leave your body, follow that wind forth as it becomes a raging typhoon and let your heart bring order to the chaos in its path.”
Founded by Erin Height
4-6 Early Spring Year 22: Age of Legends
“Hey-”
I couldn’t think of what to say next, but no response broke through the silence.
I knocked on the door and was greeted by an older man with crescent shaped glasses and a white buntal hat. His black, wizardly robe slung over suspenders was stitched with swirly patterns. The rosy hue of his nose matched a bowtie that held his ensemble together.
“Hi, are you Gerald? - Ah, excellent. - I’m Marina, a librarian from Eyngard. I was told you worked on the sewers for this village and I’d like to know-”
Before I could finish, a spark of fiery interest erupted in his eyes. He grabbed my arm and pulled me inside.
Ah. Danger. Do something. Why aren’t I doing anything?
“The sewers? They’re my pride and joy - we all put in blood, sweat, and tears, but mostly sweat, to make that thing happen. It's become the single greatest advancement in our village’s history.”
Uhhh.
“Please, please take a seat. I will make us some tea.”
Ooo tea.
Gerald walked through a cut-out in the right wall. From the front door, a window overlooked two couches that cuddled against the corner. A bed cluttered with clothes cradled against the back, a staircase climbing over it. Planted in the room’s center, a table for four sat below a candle chandelier.
Gerald continued on from the other room while I took a seat at the table. His voice swung with care even after his excitement settled down.
“Because of the limited space and funds we had to work with, we had to come up with a new design for the runestone arrays. That way we could handle collection, purification, and distribution of wastewater, wellwater, and rainwater all in one go. - I’d love to show you my notes if you are interested. It does require higher maintenance, but those sewers have improved the lives of everyone in this village dramatically.”
I suddenly feel so unaccomplished with my life. Blehh.
“Waoo. I would have never known something like that was lurking just below our feet.”
Hearing the commotion, a woman descended the stairs. She wore a big, red witch’s hat, the drum waving out to her dark tan shoulders. A bell fixed to the hat’s crooked tip jingled while she descended. Her long, purple hair dropped over her left eye and the dress she wore layered into wavy strands at the hem and sleeves. Her voice was more drawn out than Gerald’s, but still carried with care.
“Oh my, hello there. Are you a friend of my brother?”
“That you Veronica? Marina here has come to talk about the sewers.”
The woman rushed to the table and grabbed my hands. For a second time that fiery look shined back at me.
“Thank you so much.”
Eeeeh?
“Gerald is so proud of the work he did with the others on those sewers. They always go unnoticed since no one ever sees them. It makes him so happy to reminisce about it.”
Gerald returned to the table and placed down three flower lipped tea cups made of white porcelain, red swirls reaching up from their bases.
“Ah~ Thank you.”
Riker’s Toxigazer
+5(🜄,ᛉ) | ᛞ+2 | ᛈ
🜄 . 2ᛉ . 3ᛈ . 4🜄 . 5ᛉ . 6:i2ᛞ . 8ᛉ . 9🜄 . 10:i2(🜄,ᛉ)
They will never poison me. I can smell it. I know it’s there.
“Imagine you are woken up in the middle of the night. The putrid stench of a dead rat fills your nose. Find its location and toss it by its tail out the window.”
Founded by Cornelius Riker
4-7 Late Winter Year 1: Age of Sorrow
Veronica covered her mouth and clutched the brim of her hat.
“Oh my, what you must have gone through to be so cautious. What a world we live in where a young girl cannot simply just enjoy a cup of tea.”
Eeeh. I could say the same for someone who’s watching my ether and anima so intently.
“You could see that?”
“Veronica and I used to live in Ravenford on the other side of the mountains. She taught introductory magic at the academy there. I researched magic based on the summoning component, specifically teleportation. After enough of our close friends got tired of the city life and moved away, we decided to follow suit. Try and enjoy a simpler life out here.”
“I am sure Marina isn’t here for our life story. Besides that, I’m sure you’d be much more interested in talking to her about the sewers than laying out an autobiography.”
I’d actually rather hear about their academic lives if I had the time.
My reflection in the tea smiled back at me before the warmth reached my lips.
“I wanted to ask about the old well and-”
“Aaa~ This is delicious. Are these raspberries?”
“That they are. Veronica picked them just this morning.”
“Um, sorry to ask, but where did you pick these from?”
“You know dear, it’s funny you should ask - I got them from near the old well you were just about to ask us about. But what does that have to do with the sewers?”
“It’s a long story, but I need to ask you a difficult question. Did you see anything strange when you picked those raspberries?”
“Strange? However do you mean?”
“Like- uh. You know, skeletons.”
“No, no - not at all. The animals tend to stay closer to the forest. We rarely see any of their carcasses lying about.”
“Aha, yes, animal carcasses. Ah-haha.”
Stop beating around the raspberry bush and get to the point.
I briefed Gerald and Veronica on the events from earlier that day. A corrupted caricature of that corpse collapsed by the mountain flashed through my mind.
I know they at least made it out that far.
“It might be a stretch, but there’s a chance they might be trapped at the bottom of that well.”
Gerald rubbed his forehead, concern creeping through his voice.
“And you want to go rescue them if they are.”
“Yes.”
Veronica clasped my hands again, this time with a gentle touch.
“Oh my, such a sweet girl. What a wonderful heart you have.”
Ehehe~ These two are winners in my book.
“Veronica, you’re smothering the poor girl-”
Nope, nope she’s not, please continue to smother me.
“-But I have to agree. Hmm. I have the old schematics around here still - give me a minute to find them.”
Gerald stood up. The seat of the chair caught on his leg and tipped backwards. It lifted an inch or two into the air and straightened itself out before drifting back down.
I can’t even tell which one of them did that.
Gerald disappeared up the stairs and I took another sip of tea. Smooth and smoky with a light aftertaste of sweet fruit.
“This tea really is to die for.”
“I’m glad you like it dear. Please stop by any time to visit and we will be happy to make it again for you.”