Blinking his eyes, Andrew woke. He found himself in his bed again. It was early morning. The alarm clock hadn’t gone off yet and he was grateful for it. That thing waking him up year after year made his teeth ache from his clenched jaw. It meant school and hauling himself out of bed, even when it was freezing outside. He took a moment to rifle through his foggy mind. It was hard to remember. What day was it even?

Then he remembered.

“Mom!” he called out, but he already knew from his perception, whatever made him hear and sense so well that no-one else was in the house. He got up quickly, dressed and went through to see what note mom had left him.

Dear Andy

I’ve left some scrambled eggs, just toast some bread. I had to do an early shift because I took off yesterday. I was worried at first when I saw you collapse like that but when I grabbed you, I got the feeling you were in good hands. I don’t know how to explain it, but we can chat more when I get home this evening.

Don’t go to school today. Its nearly the weekend and I think another day off is in order.

Love you

Mom

P.S> You can check out those things, I left them on the table, but if any of that magic stuff starts happening, please wait for me before you do anything more.

DON’T GO INTO THE FOREST!!

Andrew breathed out a sigh of relief. Another day off school. That was a good thing indeed. His friends might be worried, and he wasn’t sure what he would tell them on Monday. Whatever the case, that was Monday’s problem.

The kitchen smelled like scrambled eggs, he found some in a plate. He immediately grabbed the bread and made some toast. He was famished.

Half a loaf later and he came up for air. His stomach felt packed and bulged a little, and after a gratified pat on the belly he burped in satisfaction. His body had been craving something nourishing and was extremely grateful for this feeding frenzy.

He couldn’t help but notice to his utter amazement that he was a little taller today, his head brushing a particularly high shelf when he got to doing the dishes. It was just an inch or so, but still, it was something. His forearms and hands felt powerful in a way he could feel viscerally and with that came the realization of his overall musculature which certainly looked a little more buff, a little more defined. He also felt it in almost every movement. He was stiff as if he had a particularly grueling soccer practice workout, so despite the bulging muscles, each movement felt slightly off. He would have to grow used to his new physique.

“So the point I added to my Strength Abilities really made a difference.” he thought to himself.

Andrew also felt that his mind, while sluggish from his restful sleep, was waking up with an alacrity. He knew for a fact he wouldn’t have noticed his strength gains so easily just a day ago, but somehow he could reason and rationalize things much quicker than usual. It was exciting to know he could level up and wondered immediately what it would take to level again? Usually the first level was the easiest and subsequent levels required more and more effort. What would he choose to enhance next time he leveled up?

Understanding he was getting ahead of himself, he pulled his errant thoughts back to the here and now. The “Things” mom wrote of in her letter were on the table in the living room. He wondered if they would have any magical value besides just being his dad’s things. The Slicksteel bag was certainly otherworldly, because Andrew had never heard of such an animal as the identify function had mentioned.

Slicksteel Moles sounded scary. He imagined a puffer fish stuck in a hole and could appreciate how those moles had adapted to protect their families. He wondered if perhaps the skin was as hard as steel as the name suggested. Definitely something he could check out later. But first, he wanted to go through the other stuff. Time to examine dad’s loot.

At a glance he found the table pretty much untouched from when he had dropped the bag. The journal still waited and the various items lay splayed upon its surface.

He put his hand on his chin in a thoughtful pose and wondered if he should identify everything first. Crinkling his brow.

Suddenly his vision was flooded with pop up boxes, which blurred and then made a table out of the results. He wanted to say “Wow!” but was even too stunned to do that. Instead, he simply read from the top.

Items

Quality

Benefits

Limits

Ice Troll Belt

Rare

5% health regeneration, self repairing, ambient empowered

No Limits

Pouch of holding

Epic

Dimensional space, soul-bound

unbound magic level 3

Slicksteel bag

Rare

Resilient, Hydrophobic material

Verantis Deer Totum

Artifact

Dispels Illusory magic, Fae creature deterrent (Range 50 meters radius)

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Requires regular charging

He also immediately felt dizzy and sat down. Grabbing his brow in frustration. With his mind so sharp, he immediately knew what the problem was and called out "Interface" in his mind, directing his thoughts to his core. The Interface promptly popped up in his vision and Andrew was gratified that his suspicion was right.

He had overtaxed his magical ability. The mana pool registered zero, but when he looked at what it was supposed to be, he was surprised to note he had a mana capacity of 16, even though the value showed as zero. It was quite a big leap from his previous capacity of only five. The summary of items that appeared had identified four of the things he noticed, meaning he had cast the spell four times, or perhaps it had been a new spell that did a group identify. He needed to understand more about what he was capable of and how to deal with all its intricacies. He reached for the papers amongst the items, noting that the house deed and bank papers were gone, so whatever was left was most likely left for him to check through.

The first folder he opened showed a condensed Dungeon Master's instruction set for Dungeons & Dragons. There was a club at school that played tabletop Dungeons & Dragons, but mostly the older students joined, and mostly the nerds. Josh was always trying to rope both him and Tim into joining the club. Andrew had always been busy with sports, so he felt it was a waste of time. His opinion now though was contemplative. Would it help him?

Then he shook his head. Nope, he didn’t need imaginary wizard friends, he had enough real life magical problems as it was. He took a moment to laugh out loud. It was absurd that he was in this position and still floundering around. Maybe that was why dad had left this condensed version for him. It must mean something, so he would have to read it sometime. At least Josh could help him with that.

The next folder was a bunch of character sheets, all of them different. From Elemental Mage through to Paladin Healer. Roughly about ten different builds, with various abilities circled in ink. Clearly highlighted. Generally on all the sheets there were lots of scribbles and annotations. The last page though, had a note written out carefully and addressed to Andrew. He picked it up, recognizing his father’s more formal handwriting compared to the scribbles on the other sheets.

Dear Andrew

Firstly, Happy 18th Birthday. I dearly wish I was with you for this momentous occasion, but in a way I am and always will be. Sorry for being cryptic but hopefully things will become clearer when you read my journal. However I do ask you to please read the following with an open mind.

In a few days, you will be contacted by an agent of the Fae. The mythical folk who tend the forest. Perhaps a Fairy or an Elf, or one of the Dryads. Do not accept anything from them! They will see this as a favor and one you have to pay dearly for in some way or another. I was fortunate enough to bargain with them to stay out of your life until you turned eighteen.

Now I know you may think I am on drugs or not in my right mind saying this, however I cannot stress this enough. I AM DEADLY SERIOUS!

The only thing that should be accepted from them is a large egg. The egg will be golden in color and may even spark or seem like it has a fire within it. This you may accept from them, without any complications and you should keep it near you in the days and weeks after it is given.

The egg will bond with you and you will know what to do. Again, I know this is cryptic and possibly overwhelming, but I assure you it will make sense when you read the journal. Mom will give you my items that I have kept and used in the past and happily pass on to you. She will also give you some details about my life from her perspective and you may find it all very strange. She always resented deeply the service I gave to the Fae, however she bore it stoically and with courage, and always with love. I have a lot to be grateful for.

It is your right to accept these gifts or reject them, however once you accept the egg, then there is no longer any choice in the matter. Choose wisely.

Being who you are, I’m assuming you accept.

The various rings and strange trinkets might convince you of the seriousness of the situation, however they will only show their value after you have acclimatized the egg into becoming your core.

The soul bound items will require a drop of your blood to function properly.

I have written down most of what you should know in the Journal, but you will only gain access to what you need to know as it crops up. Again, the journal too will need a drop of your blood to function properly.

I believe in you my son, I am sorry to lay this burden on you without much notice, but equally happy to give such a wondrous boon. As with all things in life, burden or boon is simply a matter of perspective. I was very fortunate to have had this blessing that I am able to pass onto you. The notes in this folder are for your reference and again, all will be clear in time.

I know most Fathers give their sons something substantial at 18, and I hope this is enough. Certainly you and your mom should be well taken care of by the will, so this should definitely be something both unexpected and surprising, and as you grow into it, you will realize how valuable it is.

I extend sincere love and as much encouragement as you need, because I know you will do what is right and good.

Your loving father.

Albert

May the Legacy continue.

Andrew sniffed sharply as he wiped his tears from his eyes. This very personal message from dad was unexpected and caught him flat footed. He was certainly hoping to find something like that, but the grief was still fresh and it had him. It took him a long while to read the letter over again and then again. Slowly and with reverence he placed the letter back within the folder.

He took in a deep breath and a long sigh out. He thought he was over this, but it was amazing how something as trivial as a letter could bring back all the pain of loss. Shaking himself mentally, Andrew pressed away the sorrow and focussed on the now. He wasn’t here to mope around, he needed answers.

At last, after the third breath in and out, he reached over and grabbed the slicksteel bag.

The slick feeling of the animal skin as it slid over his fingers was surreal. A bit like when he cut his hair short and rubbed his hand over his scalp. Prickly and yet firmly layered. Very unusual. The bag clinked and he now had a very good idea what was clinking inside. It wasn’t coins, but something he had always wondered about. His hands turned the bag upside down after loosening the drawstring and upended the contents onto the table.

Several rings and a chain with a pendant fell onto the table top. The papers muffled the sound and he separated them to see exactly what they were.

His mana hadn’t regenerated, so no identify boxes showed up. He wondered if he had to actively want to know what something was, to identify it, or if it would always just autodetect if he had the mana fuel. It didn’t make much sense if the latter was the case, because then he would be completely depleted of mana every time he looked around. He also noted that it identified the slicksteel bag again, but this time giving him new information. Not so much about its origins but a more condensed version. Definitely it must be a different spell. Something that gave generalities rather than specifics. He turned his focus back to the table.

Before him lay four rings, some with encrusted gems, some just plain unadorned rings, but the most significant weight came from the metallic chain with a dull pendant attached. He fingered the chain, feeling its heft and sturdiness. It was something dad never took off. The rings he only wore from time to time, but the chain was like a part of his dad and he thought to himself that if there was anything to remember dad the most, then this would be it. A surge of gratitude erupted from him. Unbidden and sincere. Within him, he felt the core respond with a gentle nudge.

Deciding at that moment that he could identify the items more thoroughly later when he had recharged his mana reservoir, so he swept the items back into the bag and finally made way for the journal. This would be it. The answers were right here.

Then he remembered what his fathers letter had mentioned and quickly retrieved mom’s sewing kit. She kept it in the kitchen drawer. Scratching through the various buttons and loose threads, he found what he was looking for. The biggest needle he could see was right at the bottom, which he grabbed and then returned to the book. It hadn’t changed in appearance at all, but if it did. he wouldn’t have been surprised. So much had changed in his life already.

The leather-bound journal still gave off the scent of leather oils and appeared clean and steadfast. For a book as revered as this, it didn’t seem that thick, only about four of his fingers could span between the closed covers. It was roughly as thick as one of his more wordy fantasy novels. Certainly it was bigger in size, about A4 if he had to guess.

The surface cover was smooth and unremarkable, and yet, if he moved his fingers slowly over the leather he could detect the faint traces of indentations. Was it the natural texture of the leather skin or perhaps something more?

Deciding he had delayed enough, he turned the cover to see what would be revealed.