Treasure chest [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNQojbG30tKNI5lFKBpmG7gZPTKD2OPX7GFFKofAIvPOYkAS3qFdkrqJxhZCbCb3pTwmKsEUK96_fr8aumkzyBN5uCTGUiA0IuJuqGzAMsekXLf0ikqhF8s4CHkx3WPsmzrq1R_XwrURgUrtTjGtp5w=w639-h958-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
It was difficult for Dazien to explain to the portalist that had been stationed in Vallinsarvi that their own portaling party member had gone on ahead without them due to an undisclosed emergency, and they needed to get back to the World Tree as soon as possible. The fact that he was a Wayland seemed to be the only thing that kept the mysterious voxen from questioning him too deeply and assisting the remainder of his party with returning home.
Explaining to a very concerned Patricia what had happened in a private room was also difficult for him, but for entirely separate reasons. Putting on his costume of detached professionalism was the only thing that kept him from snapping at the woman who likely would have preferred if Uriel had been the one in Phoenix’s place. One less liability for her to worry about.
He was relieved to find that Presley had been proactive in responding to the incident, guarding the hall to their rooms like a watchdog and only letting their party pass beyond the force barrier that had been erected, which blocked both physical senses along with the aural and magical ones.
Dazien was just as mesmerized by the sight of Phoenix’s soul respawning above her bed as Uriel warned she might be. The crystalline core was a pale blue sphere surrounded by the sigils of the various gods that had been bound to her. Orbiting that were the four Aspects that had combined to create her fifth Class Aspect. Around each of those were the various Spirit Gems that had bound to each, all miniaturized and moving like a model solar system.
Uriel had mentioned that it had taken a couple hours for Phoenix to finish spawning last time so they all tried to get comfortable in her heavily illusioned room while they waited. The group mostly surrounded the small sun that served as the hearth and he took a moment to conjure his Armory door to retrieve a few things while putting in some of the loot Rayna had retrieved herself earlier.
When Phoenix was the one looting everything, the monsters mostly turned into ritual components like Shards and Mana Bits with the occasional Spirit Gem or monster part. When Dazien’s ability was the one looting, the monsters mostly became equipment with the occasional shiny treasure.
He held his latest treasure now as he was finally able to relax on a nebula sofa with Uriel’s lap serving as a pillow. The item in his hand was an oddly colored silvery gray Spirit Gem and he was almost certain Phoenix would demand he use it without even knowing what it was. He debated selling it before she could. If it was rare and desirable enough he could probably trade it in for multiple lesser ones. Did he really want to settle for lesser, though?
“Is Brother going to use that?” the little redheaded girl asked curiously as she leaned over his face to block his view.
He chuckled, “I don’t know. I’m not sure what it is yet with Phoenix’s book unavailable at the moment.”
Presley held out her tiny hand, “I can check.”
He raised a brow but obliged by setting the gem in her palm.
“Karmic,” she answered promptly and grinned, “Sapphire Caste and Epic rarity here. So, will Brother use it now?”
Dazien laughed again, “Probably. It sounds like a good one.”
“Fit for a king?” Uriel asked with a slight smile.
“I hope so,” he replied, “I don’t feel like I can afford to be picky, though, if I want to keep progressing and not die a little inside from buying them.”
“You could always ask your new family, you know,” Rayna said from a nearby seat, “I think Paul would have wanted both you and Phoenix to depend on them more for things like that. What’s the point of shouldering the responsibility of being a Noble without actually using the privileges that it grants?”
Dazien frowned at that, finding it difficult to argue with the logic. Finally he muttered, “It just feels like I didn’t earn it yet, I guess.”
“Oh, you have,” Saiya surprised him by saying from beside her twin, “The people call you Herald because they recognize the trust Phoenix places in you. They call you Noble because they recognize Paul’s faith in you. We call you our leader because you are willing to shoulder the responsibility for our wellbeing.”
“It feels like I failed at that again today,” he admitted, gesturing towards the dead Wayfarer currently still spawning, “This wasn’t her failing to listen to my orders or running in head first. We lost a party member, and when no other fault can be found, the blame lies with the leader.”
“I don’t believe that,” Saiya countered, “The fault was in being blindsided by an enemy that was beyond us. That’s not a failing anyone can truly prepare for nor expect any leader to have an answer for.”
“If anything, it just means we need to get stronger for next time,” Rayna added, “And hope that next time it’s only the cheater that dies again instead of all of us.”
----------------------------------------
You have died.
All equipment has been returned to your collection.
[Waypoint] has guided your soul back to your designated location.
You have been reconstituted to a state of full integrity.
Twenty-four hours remain until this effect can be triggered again.
“Well, crap…” Phoenix muttered as she lay naked on her bed, staring up at the book floating over her head as if to inform her of the obvious.
She sat up and conjured her clothing back onto her body, sighing at the gaping holes in her Shifting Twilight armor before returning it to her collection and conjuring a simple dress instead. It would need some time to repair, it seemed, if the magic hadn’t been completely destroyed.
Phoenix was startled to find her party members all passed out asleep near the miniature sun that had been dimmed to sleeping levels. How did they even get back so fast?
“How long was I out?” she murmured to herself and almost jumped out of her skin when Presley sat up on the bed next to her, not having noticed the tiny girl sleeping among the clouds.
“According to Brother’s estimation of when you died, it took approximately six hours for Sister’s reconstruction.”
Phoenix felt her blood run cold at that information. That was triple the time her last death had taken.
“Six hours of all of us waiting and wondering if something went horribly wrong,” Patricia’s voice spoke up and Phoenix almost had another heart attack as she noticed the Emerald Caster sitting still as a statue in another nebula chair on the other side of Presley.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
“I’m sorry?” she replied.
“From what I was told, it’s not something you did,” the older woman said with a sigh, “But I’m going to insist that your party take an Emerald Caster with you any time you get a mission out in the wilds. I know I’m not your Mentor and cannot make those demands of the AOA but it’s simply not safe for you or Uriel to be caught out there without protection.”
“What do you care about Uriel?” They both heard Dazien’s whisper from across the room, and she turned to find him watching them. He stood and moved towards them, his hands buried in his pockets, and Phoenix could have sworn he was sulking.
“I care because I realize now how important he is to all of you. Which makes him important to me despite whatever misgivings I have,” the Ambassador replied, “Honestly, my suggestion isn’t some plot to get rid of him by keeping him safe. I’ve even adjusted many of my plans to make sure he has the best chance of success with your party.”
“What do you mean?” Phoenix asked, suddenly suspicious about what else her “plans” might involve.
“Well, I know he’s close to hitting Sapphire Caste soon, so I’ve been making sure we have access to Spirit Gems for him since the shops in the city seem to be selling them as soon as they get them. I know you both already bought yours by now, but—”
“No, we haven’t,” Dazien interjected, mirroring her own confusion, “I just bought a couple the other day, but the store was basically empty or severely out of my price range, and this one,” he hooked an amethyst adorned thumb towards her for emphasis as he said, “Seems determined to let ‘fate’ decide for her and has only been using ones she loots or gets from quest rewards.”
Patricia stared at him with wide eyes as if needing the extra time to process the information even with her Emerald Caste Mind before slowly turning to her and almost begging, “Please tell me he’s joking.”
“Um… no, but you see—”
“You’ve been fighting monsters without gaining progression in all your abilities?!” the noblewoman almost screeched at them, causing the others to start awake but Pati kept reprimanding, “You are Nobles! You have the means and the access! There is no excuse not to have unlocked all ten at once as soon as you ascended!”
The runeforged was standing now as she ranted, “I’m going to murder Paul for not mentoring you both properly and at least informing you of the basics of Spirit Gem synergy—”
Phoenix tried to defend her dad, “Hey, he explained that to us—”
“Then he failed to beat it into your head that you don’t disadvantage yourself due to whatever ‘fate,’” she pointed a finger towards Phoenix for emphasis on the word, “Or ‘frugality,’” the finger moved towards Dazien, “That either of you seem to believe warrants it.”
The priestess turned back on her and asked, “Why do you think the Cultivator gave you so many Ruby Mana Bits?!”
“I thought that was just, like, payment for the Soul Mark…”
“Yes, but she could have given other things like Knowledge Tomes,” Pati pointed out, “She gave you Bits because those are used to buy Spirit Gems! They are expensive, but she made sure that you could have your pick!”
Phoenix flushed in embarrassment at that realization, “I— I’ve been using them for other things…”
“What other things?” Dazien asked with a raised brow at her, but they were thankfully distracted by the priestess turning and storming towards the door to her room.
Throwing it open with a loud bang that made everyone jump again, they all stared as the priestess vanished into the hall beyond, only to call out a moment later when nobody moved, “FOLLOW NOW!”
The shouted command seemed to jumpstart the group as they all stumbled after the irate noble.
“Um, where are we going?” Rayna asked, still seeming half-asleep and confused.
“The vault,” Patricia snapped, “Because right now, that’s the only place in the entire tundra where we’re likely to find Spirit Gems for all of you.”
That seemed to fully wake the loot-loving bard as her ears perked up, “The Wayland Family treasure vault? And all of us are getting gems?!” the bard asked, practically vibrating in her sudden excitement.
“If there’s enough,” the Ambassador replied, “We usually know well ahead of time when one of our children is going to hit Sapphire, so we often donate or sell the ones not set aside for the future or some of the more rare ones that would be difficult to procure. Paul’s looting power was prominently Aspects and Spirit Gems, and he added to the collection often when he’d visit between his travels… until more recently that was.”
“When your family shunned him?” Dazien growled and Phoenix was wondering if his animosity towards Patricia was growing to the point that he was debating on leaving said family. She’d have to ask him about that later.
Their aunt stopped walking to turn and level a calmer gaze at him, “Not all of us. Our father was the impetus of that decision, despite my protests. I will never see another family member thrown out like that.”
The priestess’ entire demeanor seemed to darken as she said, “Listen very closely, my nephew. I’m only going to say this while we are still in Presley’s privacy barrier.”
An eerie calm came over the group as they remained silent and Patricia said, “I don’t care what you do. I don’t care who you killed, what you stole, who you slept with, what mess of a lie you got caught in. Even if you or Phoenix decide to dedicate yourselves to the Destroyer himself, despite whatever warning or advice I give otherwise, I will never abandon either of you. I will be there to untangle the lie, raise the illegitimate children, replace what was taken, or hide the bodies. You are my family.”
Stunned silence was the only answer to the proclamation until Pati asked, “Do I make myself clear?”
“As glass,” Dazien finally answered, and Phoenix felt him relax beside her. She wasn’t entirely sure why he seemed to become more comfortable around the politician now when she was more worried about what bodies the woman had helped hide before.
With a curt nod Patricia turned and led them through the flower-lined halls of the ship-turned-city. They didn’t have to go too far as the vault seemed to have been relocated close to where Paul’s rooms were, as though he was one of their treasures as well.
The vault door itself was unassuming, but the magic enchantments woven over it lit up in her eyes, and she was fairly certain she wouldn’t have been able to get past that door with even a Ruby Caste version of her [Supernova]. There would be nothing but a vault door left of the area, but it would still be unscathed.
Patricia placed a hand upon the door, and a soft click sounded before the door swung open on its own, recognizing the runeforged as being allowed entry. Once they were inside, Phoenix realized the Vault was actually a dimensional space, similar to Dazien’s own [Armory] ability, most likely. With multiple levels visible in the atrium they found themselves in, rows of shelves filled the enormous room with a spiraling staircase leading upwards not that far ahead of them.
They continued to follow Pati as she climbed those stairs to the second floor and navigated to a row that sparkled in the soft light of the glowstones embedded in the ceiling. Their guide then began to explain, “Everything should have a label in front of it. If there’s no name written on the label, that means it’s available for you to use. While you don’t have to choose anything here, know that I will be adamantly arranging a portal to Blomstra for you to shop there instead. You will not go fight monsters without every advantage I can give you.”
“Paul didn’t seem to mind me waiting,” Phoenix murmured sullenly, having enjoyed the idea of her powers coming to her rather than her messing things up by choosing poorly.
“Paul is the one waiting now,” Patricia replied in a clipped tone before softening at her hurt look and saying gently, “Phoenix, my brother’s entire life is waiting for you to hit Ruby. Not choosing from these gems today means his life will have to wait even longer. Please,” her aunt gestured to the shelves, “Stop waiting and unlock your powers.”