The three girls continued their regular responsibilities into the afternoon, still waiting for their expected visitor to return. Sxeiva herself had been gone for a while, doing whatever it was that she typically did during the afternoon.
Sxeiva eventually returned and sighed, not seeming that all impressed. "So I figured out why Lady Yhse hasn't been here yet today, and why she might not make it. It seems that after Lady Yhse fell unconscious for most of a day for still unknown reasons, her father had taken dramatic action to ensure her own protection. She's now being detained to her room.. much more than normal, with additional staffing. I can't believe he would do this, after all the times he constantly saved me from my father doing the exact same thing. He should know that locking away his daughter doesn't actually do her any good." Sxeiva sat down, at a loss for what to do about this mess.
Thanrie stopped watering the plant before her, the one which had fully recovered from Mhyl's practice. Well, one of them, Mhyl had actually gotten so excited that she had restored life to the entire collection. Tending flowers like this felt like a lifetime ago, they weren't the Amber-leaf Thanrie had recently gotten used to. But.. who is to say they had to be so different?
"Oh, Lady Sxeiva, I do so hope that isn't because the flowers in Lady Yhse's room have started to wither. There is a known weed in this area, one known to cause deep sleep, one that elves are especially vulnerable to. Why, if these plants started to wither, I could imagine they would start to fill the room with a faint air that might put an elf into a deep sleep." "Wait, really?" "No. Well, kinda, there is such a weed, but it would have nothing to do with these flowers. Paranoid fathers, if he never knew of even the slightest hint at what would be causing this, he would jump all over something like this despite reason. The flowers in Lady Yhse's room are probably dying, like the ones here were earlier. If we can bluff it out of care, the only cost would be taking the flowers away from Lady Yhse, she should be free otherwise." Thanrie had been getting troubled about the eight flowers she felt were still suffering, and everything just honestly started to fit into place in her story out of instinct. Sxeiva was alarmed at this information until Thanrie explained the ruse.
"Ah, I see where you are going with in this. It isn't a bad idea. However, I'm afraid you are missing one small detail, young lady. There is still a danger to Lady Yhse that can not be ignored. Hmm.. please make sure that the bag of belongings you brought when you arrived is moved into the heavy chest in the back corner of my room, we're going to need it there if this is going to work." Sxeiva it seemed was fairly good at coming up with plans of her own, but she didn't feel any need to explain further at this time.
Khaexyn marched into his daughter's spire, full of concern. This news was highly concerning, to think that the flowers could bear such threat if they were so neglected. However, he knew his staff were diligent, of course they wouldn't let the flowers be neglected like this. Khaexyn knocked on Yhse's door, and waited for it to open. One of her new maids were present, and opened the door for him. He disregarded her, and went into the room, only to find that Sxeiva's theory proven correct. He looked around the room, finding all eight flowers suffering towards death.
"Someone, I need a transport team in here immediately. All eight of these flowers need to be relocated, get them out of here. The staff who has been responsible for these flowers, I want brought to my office for questioning. Disregards for protocol is not acceptable. I should have been made aware of their fading state long ago." "My lord, where do we bring the flowers?" "Take them into Lady Sxeiva's care, she has staff who have demonstrated skill with their care, far better than those I left for my daughter." Khaexyn was a tempest of rage, storming through the room. The maid present taking his request was visibly shaking in fear.
"Father, what is happening?" "Nothing, don't worry, I have everything under control. I should have suspected the flowers sooner, they were the unexpected addition to everything. I'm sorry for causing you undue stress." Yhse was worried, having grown very attached to the flowers as a symbol of her friends. Would Khaexyn deny that of her as well. Yhse sat down on her bed again, feeling helpless and trapped.
Another maid walked in, two of the new maids. "My lord, is there something amiss?" "Yes, indeed. One of you needs to help your peer here with her responsibilities, I've set her to some substantial tasks that I need dealt with right away. The other, whichever that is, I have another task for." Both maids looked to each other, as if quizzing which role they liked better. Eventually, one of them split off as the other stayed and curtsied to Khaexyn. "Of course my lord, how can I be of service?" The remaining maid however was still shaking, it's not like either situation was a good one.
"Excellent. I need everything of Lady Yhse's taken care of, the toxins could be all over everything in this room. All of her stuff needs to be cleaned, especially any fabric. As there is urgency here, I need all of her clothes washed right away, so that she can have something else to change into. I don't care if you have to wash everything yourself." Khaexyn left the maid present before him stark white, she was being given laundry duty.
Yhse was starting to get overwhelmed with the situation, so much was going on at once. "Father?" "Yes, sorry. There is so much work to be done. Anyway, I'm sorry to inconvenience you, but you will have to follow me." "Umm.. where are we going?" "Yes, well, I had been hoping to find a better time to explain this too you, but you had already figured out the half of it. You already know that I am your father, but you wouldn't know that Lady Sxeiva is also your mother. As your own space here is going to need a lot of maintenance to ensure it is safe once again, I'm going to have to ask for you to move into her spire for now. It won't be anything long term, don't worry, but she's made the offer, and there really isn't much else for a choice right now." Yhse hid her jubilation, revelling in her father's own ignorance. She could smell the deception clouding his judgement, and had a feeling who might be at fault for it.
Not long later, she found herself brought back to Sxeiva's spire. Two of her three new maids had already delivered some things and had returned to guide her personally. She arrived to find her mother and friends waiting for her. "Welcome, Yhse. I'm so glad to finally get to meet you like this." Sxeiva's act reminded everyone that they also had some unwanted guests. "Please, make yourself at home. Maybe you would like to join me in private for some initial conversation in the space we've set aside for you? There is much we need to discuss." Sxeiva and Yhse headed off into the room being provided for Yhse, leaving the five maids together relieved of work.
"Oh wow, I was surprised to find you here. So I guess we weren't the only ones to get moved from patrol to personal attendant. What would you know." The senior-sounding of the trio Thanrie had first met in the laundry room approached her in greeting once again. It seemed they kept running into each other. Thanrie was mildly confused for a moment, the last time they met, she was already in this role. However, she then clued into the nervous tone in the girl's voice. Ah, she was feeling out of place and very uncertain of herself. Possibly, the confusion they had just created might have left them with a lot of stress.
"So, where is the third of your group? Did you get separated?" "Oh, her? No. Lord Khaexyn is having her do Lady Yhse's laundry. She will be around once her work is finished. Hopefully she'll be alright." Thanrie went pale, realizing what fate she had created for someone who had comforted her when Thanrie herself might have been faced with the same role. It was heavily guilt inducing.
The two ladies returned not long after. "Alright. Lady Yhse here is in need of some relaxation, so the two of us are going into the bottom level of my spire." "But, wait, no one is allowed into that level without your explicit approval." "Of course, that is obvious. Lady Yhse, please have your staff continue to work to provide comfort for the arrangements we've set aside for you, they will have plenty of work to do in this time. Your staff are allowed space within the quarters of my own staff, they should make sure they have everything they need in order." Sxeiva was basically giving orders to the two new staff on Yhse's behalf, leaving Yhse to nod her approval. The senior of the trio was still alarmed at how things were progressing.
"Thanrie, Mhyl, please recover the eight plants and bring them downstairs. We will need to look into their urgent treatment, before they cause any more problems. Qheria, please go into the back corner of my room. In the heavy chest found there is a bag, I need you to bring it downstairs with us. It will be required for some of our activities." Sxeiva was certain to provide additional instructions to her own staff.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
Soon after, the five of them entered what looked like a heavy security area. Sxeiva had to unbolt the door and disarm the security in place. The interior was filled with mechanisms and machines, many which they didn't even recognize. Sxeiva lead them into one of the rooms held within, a room they found was completely empty. "So, this place is about as safe and secure as things could get in the Fortress. It's where I complete some of the more.. metallic chores my body has started to require. The chances of a visitor is absolutely nothing, and the chances that even loud noises are heard, also nothing. While here, you three are free to behave like equals." Sxeiva had managed to secure them a place they could work with.
Yhse made sure to give all of them a hug, having missed them a lot since their last visit. "I'm sorry I couldn't have shown up any sooner." Yhse's apologies lead them into general discussions about how things have been going for everyone present in their time at the Fortress. Qheria explained to Yhse their general adventure before Sxeiva took them in, and then how their more maid-like life had gone. Yhse went over her own much more noble experiences. Once they were done, Sxeiva retold her story about Jheiqs.
Yhse herself was stunned at how big everything got, but what hit her the most was the confirmation that she was indeed the granddaughter of the Arch-Magus. It was a lot of potential responsibility, especially when added to her father's legacy. Even if she wanted to stop her father, it was still her legacy, that just made it more her responsibility to stop him.
Seeing Yhse overwhelmed, Mhyl herself still being occupied, Qheria gave her a hug. "I'm sorry Lw-.. Yhse." Qheria, seeing her friend in such a familiar state, had her slip almost into her old name. Yhse pondered the idea for a moment, and turned to her mother. "Mother, there is something I would like to talk with you about. I'm sorry, I know the name you have chosen for me is really beautiful, but I don't think it properly identifies me. I've grown so much into being Lwynitsse, with all of my friends, that I feel it's a much better representation of who I am." Lwyn was standing brave up to her mother, trying to build clarity to how she felt in that moment.
Sxeiva nodded. It made sense, after having left her for so long to her own devices, her daughter would certainly have grown away from her. "I understand. Please be aware that if you ever wish to return to being known as Yhseliahysse, it is a name that will be waiting for you should you ever need it." "Of course, thank you. I expect that, while here, it's not a name I could fully avoid. I've came to terms with it, and have learned to accept fully who I am. Ah, but so you know, I do think I will keep my family name. Duxaeyhlit just feels so much better than Qtehlatys." Sxeiva gave her daughter a hug, realizing that Lwyn was expressing that she still wanted to be known as Sxeiva's daughter.
"Okay, done!" "Oh wow, the flowers look all better." "Flowers are fully healed. Should be good for days." "Wow Mhyl, you've improved so.." Mhyl had returned with one of the flowers she's managed to heal, and showed it off to the others. Lwyn was really impressed at her healing, before also realizing they were both speaking in Izhaethyx. Lwyn paused in shock.
"Holy crap, when did Mhyl learn to speak Izhaethyx?" "Lwyn, you don't need to resort to English, thank you very much. I'm trying my best to keep up to everything." Lwyn was slack jawed, not realizing how much she had missed. It seems Mhyl had been not only practicing her gift, but she had made some pretty good progress in Izhaethyx while she was gone. Lwyn felt a little deprived, they were going to do those lessons together. Well, it was only her to blame, and nothing to be done about it now. Rather than dwell on the matter, Lwyn should probably continue to support Mhyl.
"Good, excellent, with the flowers done, it's time for the next class in our lesson. Yh-.. Lwyn, you will be joining our classes here forward, right?" Sxeiva took some time to cover a quick review of the unique gift the four girls had, and how it applies to Earth. Lwyn was excited to join in on the lesson, less she fall behind again. "So this time, our next lesson is about taking your initial usage, and expanding it to other forms. While a normal class might have other intentions in what forms are desired, we have a specific goal here that needs to be addressed. With us all gathered, our next biggest goal is to escape, something which will take some very exceptional usage of the gift." Sxeiva motioned to the bag Qheria had brought with her.
"I know all four of you have combat experience, even experience with combat using special gear that most would find foreign and scary. I would ask that you get all of that gear ready, for our next lesson will include it." Sxeiva kept talking while the four girls started getting their stuff out. Lwyn was amazed to find that even her stuff had been packed and brought. Clearly, she had the best friends imaginable. She was very thankful to get some time out of that dress, and into some more comfortable clothes. The gloves felt so warm and welcoming back on her hands, and the crossbow made her feel complete once again.
"Each of you have a style of fighting, just as you have a style of gift. Your gift is a part of how you think and how you act, it conforms to it. In that way, applying your gift to your own fighting style should be very simple. Consider what you have done so far with your gift, it will be the easiest thing for you to apply. Once we've applied it, you can build from it and discover what else you can achieve." Sxieva waited at this point for everyone to finish getting ready.
Lwyn looked at her crossbow, in thought of her own blossoms from yesterday. They had gone exactly where she had wanted them to go. In application for combat, this was easy. Lwyn pulled out one of her blades, concentrated, and threw it. The blade went forward, then slowed and arched around, before slamming into the wall behind her seven times in a row. Everyone else had watched the display as well, marvelling at how natural Lwyn seemed in her gift. Lwyn was excited as well, this was like a homing shot.
Thanrie considered the same display. Lwyn had clearly used her gift to make the blade move as she wished, just as she had made the blossom move as she wished. That was a part of her gift. Thanrie's gift was a boost.. or an acceleration! Of course! She had always wanted to flow with her own agility. What could be better then than having her gift offer her even more speed? She released the end of her blade in a toss, concentrating on it. The air rippled in a shockwave, as the blade broke the sound barrier, crashing into the wall before she could even think of recalling it.
Everyone winced in a bit of pain. The sound wasn't as loud as it should have been, the walls being very good at noise cancellation, but that was still very loud. "Woah, Thanrie, careful, you might hurt someone." Qheria's words caused Thanrie to freeze up, before Qheria could realize the error of her words. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I know you are being careful, but there is some concern that you might hurt yourself. I think we've all gone through risk of loss by now, none of us want any of us to suffer that." Qheria lent comfort to Thanrie, who eventually nodded. Qheria was right, she had to be careful. That didn't mean living stress day by day in fear, that meant improving so that she had complete control over her gift.
Qheria pondered the situation for a moment, and turned back to Thanrie. "Hey, Thanrie, care for another duel? Is another mock duel, but with special rules. Both of us will be using our gear, though you should use the non-pointy side of your's.. close up only. I'm only going to defend, you have one strike, knock me over. I dare you." Qheria wasn't underestimating Thanrie's abilities. Thanrie grinned like a demon, taking up the dare. She went up to Qheria, and started to concentrate. She knew Qheria was good, but could she honestly take a boosted strike? Somehow, she got the feeling Qheria would be fine.
Thanrie struck her blade against Qheria's shield, both of them in concentration. The strike of the blow rippled the air itself, the force of Thanrie's weapon having been intensified. However, on collision, Thanrie was the one blown backwards. Qheria's vision of a super reinforced titanium shield sent all of Thanrie's enhanced momentum right back at her. It seems picturing super-hard substances like lead and titanium were still very fitting for her gift.
Mhyl pondered the situation. She had yet to act, but everything for her seemed just too simple. It wasn't like she was exactly combat, she knew she could just walk right up to Thanrie, heal any wounds she probably didn't even have, and that would be that. She was tired of being useless, tired of having no place in things. But complaining was useless, not if there wasn't anything she was willing to do about it. She didn't care there wasn't anything she could do about it, the only reason she couldn't do anything would be because she believed she couldn't do anything.
"Qheria, if that bet is still holding, I'll take you up on it." Mhyl got back everyone's stunned expression, but she disregarded it. Of course no one else would understand, she hadn't shown them yet. Mhyl took up her book and approached Qheria. Qheria had no idea what Mhyls plan was, but set to her defense regardless. It wouldn't be fair to disregard her so easily, and Mhyl had surprised them before.
Mhyl considered her own lessons with the gift. The plant had not healed until she had accepted that it could be healed, that light could bring it life. If something like that was willing to listen, maybe it was not alone. Mhyl placed her other hand over her book and focused on the floor below Qheria, the floor which by design was holding her up. That was how things worked, after all, but only because that's how she was letting them work. The floor was just sitting there, because it had no reason to do otherwise. An object at rest will remain at rest unless an external force acts on it.. or an external will.
Following Mhyl's intent, the floor buckled and rebounded underneath Qheria, throwing her over ten Uyn straight into the air. Qheria landed flat on the ground in her decent, still uncertain what had even happened.