Alicia would say that she was more than familiar with Joram and his various quirks. Get him talking about one of his passions and she could be stuck with him for days. Confront him with a technical problem that was in one of his fields of expertise? Easy enough. Present him with an emotionally charged situation that he needed to deal with? He’d more likely run than deal with it.
But when something out of the blue like what was unfolding before her eyes occurred, well, she was at a loss. Not only had she failed to predict that he’d react the way he was, but she felt that she was entirely powerless to deal with it in a way that wouldn’t “out” more than either she or Joram would likely be comfortable with.
That Joram was reacting so viscerally to a slavery seal on someone’s Core was unexpected and concerning. Such a strong reaction was likely due to his most recent change in physiology and nearly caused her to shrink back in shame. The added aggression that came from his new saiyan bloodline was likely… resonating with his draconic bloodline, each one playing off the other, strengthening the reaction more than what would have been possible for just one or the other to do alone.
Then she felt his psijic energy burst out, causing most of the study group to fall to their knees, expressions of utter terror appearing as sweat started pouring down their faces. It was only Renna, Aya, and Jezira who managed to stay standing, with the former’s knees still shaking like leaves in the wind.
Aya looked to Jae-Eun before her gaze steeled, a glint of murder appearing in them as she turned back to Joram.
Before she could act, Alicia reached for her connection to Joram. Through that connection their souls shared, she activated his [Planeshift] protocol, sending him to the Realm to cool off at the same time that she sent Asura to the same place to try to calm him down.
Then, through the connection that each of the pseudo-psicrystals on each of the study group’s rings gave her to them through the Network, she sent a pulse of [Empathic Condition Relief], augmenting it to include every member of the study group as well as maximizing its effects, then used [Calm Emotions] on Aya.
She felt as the group of stunned students relaxed, their conditions returning to normal as they looked around at each other. They were still shaky from the residual adrenaline in their systems, but that was to be expected.
“What, was that?” Faenwyn asked, her voice still unsteady.
Everyone turned to her, their expressions a mixture of worry, caution, and intense curiosity. As Faenwyn shrugged under their combined gaze, Aya looked to her.
Alicia could feel the weight of her gaze before she turned to the older woman to meet her eyes.
“I’m not sure about anyone else, but I think that we should get back inside before anything comes to investigate what just happened,” she said, drawing their eyes to her.
She quickly steeped over to the unconscious woman and slung her over her shoulder before stepping through the portal. Alicia didn’t bother to check if the members of the study group were following as she hurried to the mansion where she dropped the woman on the floor where she’d been when she’d first seen her.
Sure enough, the other young women quickly returned to the dimensional space. She passed them by as she quickly returned to the portal, intent on blocking the way.
* * * * *
Joram looked around the gravity room, not understanding why he was there. Nor why he was laying prone, with the mother of all headaches.
“’Bout time you woke up,” Asura said from the side, a rather large… blaster carbine hanging from a shoulder harness strapped to her torso. Pointed right at him.
“I-,” he started, the stopped as he recalled his loss of control. “Shit.”
“Yeah, you could put it that way,” she said, still eyeing him.
He looked down at his chest and saw slightly reddened skin through the large holes in his shirt. And through his body suit.
“How bad?” He asked, sure that she’d understand what he was asking.
“Alicia sent you away before your aura could more than drop most of them to their knees,” she said, then shook her head. “But I’m pretty sure that Aya was about to kill you for hurting Jae-Eun.”
“… Fuck.”
“Yup. Now, hand over the gate cube. We need to make sure that nothing dangerous comes to investigate your mess,” she said, holding out a hand.
Joram retrieved the cube from his pocket and tossed it to her. Asura then shifted it to Alicia before shaking her head again.
“What was that, anyway?”
“I… I’m not sure,” he said, searching for words to describe how he’d felt. “I’m not a fan of slavery, which you know. But then I got to thinking about just how vile slavery seals are. How they put a person under the control of another. Then that led to thinking of those who’d been taken, of Tillia. And I wondered if they’d been made slaves.
“Thinking about that, I… kind of snapped,” he finished, shaking his head as guilt welled up inside his belly.
It was so strong that he became incredibly nauseated, nearly throwing up. It took him a few minutes to fight down the nausea and guilt to the point where he could breathe properly again. It took another minute before he could talk through the lump in his throat, but Asura beat him to it.
“Why didn’t Kinkade do anything?” She asked, now looking curious.
“I was… also affected,” Kinkade said from the side, surprising both of them at his appearance.
“Not only him, but most of the rest of the Minds as well,” Joram said, shaking his head. “The only one not affected was M11, and he was the one who kept me from completely losing it.”
“What? You didn’t completely lose it?” Asura asked in disbelief.
“No. If I had, I’m sure that things might have been… worse,” he said, shaking his head. “As it was, it was all M11 could do to lock down my motor functions. Thanks, man,” he said out loud.
“No worries,” Kinkade replied, his tone slightly different than usual.
He then realized that M11 had just spoken using Kinkade’s psicrystal and shook his head. He really needed to pay more attention to things if he hadn’t realized that the Minds could swap between themselves like that.
“I’ve got a lot of explaining to do,” he sighed.
“Eeeeeuyup,” Kinkade Big Mac’d. “But wait until Avi calls you back. I’m sure that there’s considerable fire control needed before you can safely return.”
“Stay put,” Asura reiterated. “We need to get back to the store. So. Stay. Right. There.”
Joram just nodded as he contemplated his navel.
The pair vanished, leaving him to his unwelcome thoughts, and the peanut gallery’s comments from the Minds.
He looked around, nodded, then manifested [Reconstruction] on his clothes. He took off the normal clothes on top, set them aside, then cranked up the gravity.
If he was going to be there for who knew how long, he may as well get some training in. Heck, if he really went at it, he might even be able to forget things for a while.
M3-11: Good luck with that.
* * * * *
Bai Lian watched as the other girls chatted amongst themselves nervously. She was sure to keep Matsui Aya in sight at all times. Even when she was under the incredible pressure from the young master, she hadn’t missed the murderous intent coming from the woman.
She didn’t know what had happened with the young master, but she was glad that he wasn’t there at the moment. And not just because of Matsui Aya.
As a whole, the study group looked more than a little bit shaken. Even Mo Yu and Wentian didn’t seem themselves. Mo Yu was currently speaking with Jae-Eun, trying to calm and reassure her that everything was going to be fine. Even Wentian was doing his best… by preparing and serving snacks and tea for them all.
Which, really, was a brilliant move on his part. Not only were they all spooked by what had just happened, but having a man just sitting around with them probably wouldn’t have been the best idea. That he took a subservient role, one many of the study group would instinctually respond to by accepting the service like they had countless times before… well, it was well played.
She looked over to see how her newest rival was taking things… and frowned.
Emily was chatting like nothing special had happened, trying to get Renna and Kassandra to engage in conversation. Although both women were in the Earth Realm, Renna was near the peak while Kassandra had only recently stabilized her foundation. She could see just how shaken Kassandra was. Even Renna wasn’t having an easy time keeping up her end of the conversation.
Honestly, if she hadn’t sworn her eternal devotion to the young master, she might have been as shaken as they were. Well, if she were being honest with herself, she’d also been frightened by the inexplicable energy that had washed over her. Even with her Heaven Realm cultivation, she was unsure of what it had been.
As frightening as the energy that she could barely feel was, she hadn’t been afraid for her life. It wasn’t that she knew that the young master could bring her back to life should something happen. It was that she trusted him with her life.
That feeling had been reinforced when Mo Yu had told her about what had happened with Garros, then again when the young master had defended her from his Matriarch’s wrath. There were many more little things that reinforced her faith in the young master, but those two times were the biggest, most memorable ones.
With the new members of the study group taken care of, she approached the original four. Alicia was already speaking with them softly, so she felt that she might be able to put in a good word or two with them.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
But when they flinched slightly at her approach, she stopped, an inexplicable feeling of hurt welling up in her chest.
What was that? She asked herself as their eyes found other things to look at.
‘Let me take care of them,’ Alicia sent warmly. ‘They’re still spooked, and having one of “Joram’s people” join them, well, they’re uncomfortable right now. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of them.’
‘Ah, yes. Certainly,’ she sent back as she turned around again and made her way to the back of the manor.
Wentian waved at her as she passed by the kitchen, so she waved back as she made her way outside. Once on the stone path that led to the bathhouse, she paused and looked up at the blue sky.
Was there no way that she could help? Was her leaving really all that she could do? She wasn’t a great cook like Wentian, nor was she as close with anyone as Mo Yu was with Jae-Eun. She turned back and looked at the door for a time before shrugging.
“He can deal with this himself,” she said, a smile now on her face as she started walking to the bathhouse.
* * * * *
*Later that evening*
“[True Metabolism],” Joram murmured to himself as he panted in the gravity room, sweat dripping off his face.
Even though he didn’t need to, he took a long draw of water before swishing the last bit around his mouth and spitting it to the side. [Cleanse] got rid of it, as well as his accumulated sweat and B.O..
He looked at the holo-display that wrapped over his forearm to check the current gravity level and grunted. It wasn’t anything to write home about, but at least Goku wouldn’t have mocked him too badly for his progress. He may not have had any senzu beans, but he could still easily heal the damage done to his body by pushing it too hard. Which, in the end, had the same effect on his progress.
He looked at himself in his field of perception and nodded. Even though he’d been a beanpole after his most recent growth spurts, he’d now managed to fill in decently well. He twitched his pectorals and laughed out loud. He’d not done that since before he’d died.
Heck, even in his High Elan form, he’d only done it once due to the embarrassment of Altaea catching him in the act. She hadn’t let that go for weeks afterwards.
As [True Metabolism] ran its course, he made another decision. He’d already put on a respectable amount of muscle, so it was time to change his routine. He would now concentrate on endurance and stamina.
He looked around, then frowned. As large as the room was, a good twenty by thirty metres, it wouldn’t be enough to just go all-out running. Laps, maybe? Yeah, that would do. Though, he’d need to change direction every so often to avoid building up one side more than the other.
Joram quickly adjusted the gravity a bit higher, then started running. Which turned out to be a brisk walk with the new gravity setting.
During it all, he circulated his Psijic Energy through his body, strengthening and nourishing it as he went.
* * * * *
She watched the study group as they chatted around the dining room table, eating dinner. She’d long since tucked the dark elf away into one of the rooms upstairs so that they wouldn’t be constantly reminded of what had happened earlier that morning.
Alicia sighed as she took a portion of the wonderful dinner Wentian had whipped up for them. She was glad that the girls weren’t as awkward around him anymore. They’d even warmed up to Bai Lian after a bit, realizing just how irrational they’d been. Well, it had taken lots of chatting and not a small amount of her wine to get them to relax again.
Even Aya seemed to have calmed down after everything, though she still shot her the occasional look as though she were still trying to figure her out. Alicia really couldn’t blame the woman.
One moment Joram had been there, his aura pressing down on them so hard that most of them couldn’t even stand. The next, he was gone, and they’d suddenly felt much better. It just wouldn’t make sense to anyone who’d been around for more than a couple decades, especially someone who’d see a lot of combat.
Well, at least the wine had gone over well, even if Aya hadn’t approved Jae-Eun’s enthusiastic participation.
Then, the elephant in the room was once again addressed, this time by Kassandra’s maid.
“When do you suppose Mr Aneath will return?” She asked no one in particular, just seemingly putting it out there.
Which, really, wasn’t the case.
Alicia had noticed Jezira’s subtle manipulation of any conversation she’d been in since the incident. It all seemed innocent to those who heard her, but after the second time, Alicia had started using [Read Mind] on the maid. She didn’t have Joram’s reservations with listening in on someone’s thoughts, so she’d managed to glean quite a bit from her surface thoughts.
The “maid”, really a highly trained royal guard sent to keep Kassandra safe, didn’t approve of Kassandra’s interest in a “commoner”. It didn’t matter that Joram could have easily taken out the Tier 6 Mage. Nor did it matter that Joram had been nothing but a gentleman when meeting with Kassandra and the rest of the study group.
What mattered to the maid was that Kassandra wasn’t spending as much time with her as before. The fact that it was simple jealousy didn’t matter to Alicia. That she was actively trying to sabotage things meant that she wouldn’t go easy on the bitch.
“He’ll be returning a bit later,” Alicia said with a smile.
“Oh? No one has been able to contact him this whole time, so how do you know?” Jezira asked, feigning polite confusion.
“Maybe I just know him better,” Alicia said, holding her smile in place. “As shy and introverted as he is, he has a strong sense of responsibility. That’s why I know that he’ll not stay away long before coming to apologize to everyone.”
“But really,” Jezira said, tilting her head to the side as though she was just thinking of what she was about to say. “Will it truly be safe for him to return? That was quite the frightful display,” she said, now looking for all the world that she was scared of seeing Joram again.
“Well, if you’d like to return, I won’t stop you,” Emily suddenly spoke up, a look of disgust on her face. “I, for one, am glad that he’s my fiancé. Someone as strong as him will certainly be a blessing for our future family,” she said, only blushing a little at her earnest words.
“And I’m sure that his… outburst was due to how he feels about slavery,” Mo Yu added delicately, gaining her a few points in Alicia’s books.
“That’s certainly the case,” Bai Lian said, taking up the torch. “The young master isn’t even comfortable having someone swear a Heart Oath to him. So, something like slavery would certainly disturb him greatly,” she said, nodding to herself.
Alicia wanted to swat the girl for bringing up Heart Oaths, especially when a good half of the girls’ interests seemed to be ignited by her words.
“Anyway,” Alicia said, bringing the attention back to her. “There are more than a few considerations when it comes to Joram, but I’ll not speak of them because they’re his own to share if he chooses to when he gets back,” she said firmly.
“Well, aren’t you biased? You’re his girlfriend, aren’t you?” Jezira asked, revealing to Alicia just how much she’d been spying on them.
“So?” She asked bluntly. “Isn’t your concern Joram’s lack of control? If you’re not comfortable being here, you’re more than welcome to leave. In fact, I insist that anyone who’s faith in Joram has been shaken to the point of doubting him because of what happened this morning to please leave after eating.
“I will not excuse what happened, nor will I try to explain things that aren’t mine to explain.
“I think that you’ve conveniently forgotten our guest from this morning, Jezira. Are you so sure that things will go well for you if you alienate Joram? He’s the one who captured the Belladonna. Not only that, but having a Tier 5 Assassin coming after our group isn’t something to take lightly.”
“Didn’t Mr Aneath say that it might have been Lord Arabanise who sent the Belladonna after him?” Jezira pressed.
Alicia regarded the succubus for a moment before speaking.
“That’s certainly a possibility,” she said, watching the smile on Jezira’s face widen. “But I think that you’re once again forgetting that you’re serving a princess. In fact, there’s another one right here. What about the nobles in our group? Could they have political rivals that decided to act now that we’re well away from the protection the Academy provides?
“Quite frankly, your feeble attempts to sabotage Joram’s reputation are getting old. I don’t care for your jealousy. I don’t care for you. So, if you don’t stop right now, I’ll have to have you removed from Joram’s safe haven,” she said, fixing the succubus with a death glare.
For her part, Kassandra’s eyes had kept widening as Alicia had torn into her maid. By the end, she was so alarmed that she finally spoke up.
“I, for one, am not going anywhere,” Kassandra said, her jaw setting stubbornly as she turned to her maid. “If you have any problems with Joram, you can leave. I’m certain that I’ll be more than safe enough with my present company, let alone when Joram returns.”
Jezira’s jaw worked for a moment before she decided to retreat, hoping to save some face.
“I was just worried for your safety, princess,” she said hurriedly. “If Mr Aneath’s aura bursts out like that again, it would be dangerous for anyone standing too close to him. What if it happens when you’re all fighting a magical beast?”
“Since Joram is a martial artist who fights at the front, I’m sure it’ll be fine since I’ll be well away from the action,” Kassandra said, holding her ground admirably, her feelings solidifying.
Alicia took a moment as Jezira continued to backpedal to get another feel for those gathered.
Of the original four study group members, Daleira still seemed to be the most uncertain. That said, she was still determined to learn more about Joram and still had idle thoughts of seducing him. The other three were… varying degrees of confident that their “friend” wouldn’t purposely harm them.
Gabrielle was still very much taken by Joram, having fallen to his kindness very quickly. Alyraele was still on the fence, though it seemed that she’d realized that her feelings for Joram were growing towards romantic rather than friendship. And Sophia, well, she reminded Alicia of Tendo Nabiki; profit, profit, profit… and maybe a little crush, but nothing solid, nor firmly romantic.
Jae-Eun was a bit more complicated. It seemed that Joram’s display of “Everlasting Spring”, Wing Chun, had a profound impact on both her and Aya. But for Jae-Eun, it was closer to a nostalgic feeling than Aya’s feeling of threat. And Jae-Eun still viewed Joram as a close mentor-type… man, someone who she could trust to either listen to her or help her if she needed. But someone a bit hard to approach due to how “handsome” he was.
Joram had made amazing headway with gaining Aya’s trust with the hot spring and flavoured milks, but had taken a few steps back by accidentally hammering everyone with his released aura. Alicia felt that if Joram was able to sufficiently explain what had happened, and what his aura had been about, then he had a good chance of repairing that bridge with Aya.
Faenwyn was less complicated. She seemed to be a “left or right” kind of person, but she seemed to be stuck at the crossroads of staying or leaving. Alicia saw that her own declaration for people to either stay or go had pushed her further to the “go” side due to her stubborn nature, though. But Alicia could also see that if someone gained her trust, that she’d be as loyal as her beastkin heritage suggested she would be. After all, the Silver Wolf tribe was still a wolf tribe.
Kassandra was much more complicated compared to most of the others. Sure, she had some sexual attraction to Joram, as almost all of them did to one degree or another, but her interest in Joram was deeper and more intellectual than mere physical attraction.
She’d really become taken with Joram’s insights into alchemy and crafting in general. Not just that, but she also recognized how genuinely Joram wanted to teach everyone, not just her. And, amusingly enough, she found that trait more attractive than the rest of his many traits.
Renna, though…. Given that she was an elf of one hundred four years of age, her mental and emotional development was equivalent to a fifteen-year-old girl. Sure, she’d been at the Academy for nine years now, but Alicia supposed that that was the equivalent of just entering high school for an elf.
She was also a bit complicated. She shared many of the same likes for Joram as Kassandra, but she was still very much in the… infatuation stage of how she viewed potential romantic interests. She was also very much a romantic and taken with thoughts of romance, whether they might involved her directly, or if she was watching it unfold for another couple.
Emily was Emily. She was firmly on Team Joram, as were Bai Lian and Mo Yu. She was reasonably sure that they were there for the long haul, as it were. Especially after Emily’s talk of starting a family with Joram. Which had also sparked those thoughts in Bai Lian and Mo Yu.
Megami was pretty nervous about everything, but trusted Joram well enough. That he’d taken her into the Realm, and hadn’t pressured her with his status, or power, had meant a lot to her. Then his invitation to join the study group, and bringing her along on the field trip, had further endeared him to her. Something like a leaking aura wasn’t something that bothered her over much; it had just surprised her with its intensity.
Wentian was just nervous around so many emotionally charged women. He was surprisingly timid in that regard. That said, he was also a bit more on guard against Joram, but that was due to having an unknown quantity as your boss than anything else. He still trusted Joram…. Well, as much as he’d begun to trust him anyway.
He was still a stubborn man, and had lingering feelings of loyalty to the Diamond Jade Lotus Sect he’d grown up in. Which, really, shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone. But Wentian was growing to like and trust Joram more, so there was progress there.eH
And Jezira. As jealous of her mistress’s time as she was, she really did want the best for Kassandra. Nevertheless, that didn’t excuse her behaviour. Trying to slander and ruin someone’s reputation for one’s own gains was reprehensible in Alicia’s books, and she would have none of it.
‘Hey,’ she sent to Joram.
‘Hey’s for horses,’ he joked back, trying to hide his sudden apprehensions.
‘I think now would be a good time to come back and apologize.’
‘Ah, OK. I’ll just tidy up first,’ he sent, sending along an image of him running and being all sweaty.
‘Hmm, no, I think that them seeing you like that might actually help things,’ she sent back musingly.
If Joram returned looking like nothing had happened, she was reasonably sure that it wouldn’t have near the same effect as him showing up looking like a hot mess. Her decision might have also been swayed by the thought of seeing him like that in person.
‘Gotcha,’ he sent back, then sent an image of him standing outside the portal, waiting to be let into the safe haven.
She was about to release the lock on the portal when she felt a surge of adrenaline flood Joram’s system.
‘Well, shit,’ he sent along with an image of something that chilled her blood. ‘Looks like I’ll be using the Soulknife stuff sooner than expected.’