~ CHAPTER 27 ~

THE MAGIC OF ACHIEVEMENT AND OWNERSHIP, PART 1

What does it mean to achieve something? To succeed at it? To earn it? That was just a question to ponder. It was a momentary glimpse of a thought that had just passed me by on its swift journey to being forgotten again.

So, I want to set the scene. There I was, standing in an underground cavern, lit partially from above by multi-coloured spider’s webs stretched between the stalactites, but mostly from below by even more multi-coloured sludge, which was peeking between the wooden slats of the floor and in places dripping down the walls. Around me, barrels, low wooden fences, something that could have been a stage, and something else that looked like a pirate ship’s wheel all gave the place a vibe like it was some pirate’s secret cove, and the colourful array of stalls and awnings didn’t detract from the image. Nor did the equally colourful crowd.

I hadn’t talked about the smell, had I? Probably not, because there wasn’t any. That was kind of eerie. What was more eerie was that there wasn’t any sound, either. Everyone was just kind of standing around, trying not to look at me. I didn’t care.

Beside me on my right was Demi. She was about the same height as me, and could be confused for a human being if she didn’t have an expression straight out of a cartoon, but between the rusty plate mail armour that was at least two sizes too large, and the wooden round shield on her back that was at least two more, she really looked more like a turtle.

On the other side was… I didn’t know her name yet. A girl who looked like she’d belong in a kindergarten, but who I knew was an at least partially competent thief, and who had an expression that would have made me rinse her mouth out with soap if I was her mother. She could also be confused for a human, but the small crooked fangs and hair that was too spiky to be natural told another story. She was one of the, erm… Children. Or Wildlings, as everyone else called them.

And on the other side of her, still holding her hand from when he’d helped her up a minute ago, was the Balar named Gadrin. He was about the same height as her, but wider, with patches of ginger fur on his face and hands, a robe that was by now mostly indistinguishable with dirt, and a grin that threatened to run off the side of the face.

Which just left me. I would have been sortof in the middle, but I’d just done a sort of running jumping whooping thing that was the reason for all of their reactions. I was River. A Mistborn. Proud new owner of the title of [Apprentice Runemaster], and bearer of… um…

The [Rune of the Twilight Ocean].

I had just ranked up, officially leaving the territory of hopeless newbie and entering the grand new fields of worthless amateur. Somehow. More importantly, I had a new Rune Inscription: it was sitting just under my right shoulder, being inscrutable. It had appeared there about thirty seconds ago, for reasons that wouldn’t have been apparent to anyone but me, and actually weren’t really apparent to me either. The point was, it was there. Skipping over the questions of why it was there and how it got there, the next question was: what was it?

Oh, I sortof knew what Runes were. They were an overly complex resource system for casting non-magic spells, where each one had to be collected individually at great effort. Gotta catch ‘em all. Except in this case instead of you collecting them, it was more like you were collected by them.

Anyway, I’d heard of the Twilight Ocean before - the Keeper had mentioned it when she’d tried explaining the Runes to me - but I was still stuck on what felt like the most important question: how did you have an ocean made of twilight? How did that even work? Why did that even bother me? It’s elements were Cosmic and Arcana, and notably not Water, so I guessed it was more like some kind of multidimensional superocean than anything literal. Or at least the semi-personified concept thereof.

Nevermind. You know what? I didn’t really care. Disregarding the Skill that had come packaged with it that was so useless I wasn’t even going to think about it, this new Rune represented the potential for a massive leap in my power, and I was looking forward to that. So… why didn’t I feel amazing?

I’d figured out the mystery of the Eyes of Twilight all on my own, with only a little help from everyone I’d talked to, including Lindy the NPC who’d tipped me off to the final question, and Gadrin who had answered it. Mistborn were qualitatively different from all of the other races, by dint of our connection to the Mist. The Runes were the various wills of the Mist, so that made the Twilight Ocean a sort of conceptual force of nature. One that was all about time and mystery and fate and basically solving itself for the poor Mistborn girl who’d taken eleven chapters to figure out what everyone else already knew. And now I was an [Apprentice Runemaster]. And I hadn’t done anything.

Maybe it was the fact that I’d just lost my [Eyes of Wonder] Skill that was bothering me? Nobody liked to lose things, but it was the implication that mattered: I’d never been meant to keep that Skill in the first place. It was a plot device, written by the Rune itself to give me its own clues. How was I supposed to feel about that?

I noticed the Wildling girl looking at me nervously. “So um… congrats? I guess? Can I go now?” Her body language said ‘second hand embarrassment’ as expected, but her eyes had darted to somewhere behind me.

I frowned. Something felt off. “It’s ok if you want to go. I just wanted to talk to you. I didn’t have anything else to ask, except, I guess, like, who buys something like Mistborn hair on the black market anyway? What’s it even used for?”

Now the girl looked agitated, but for some reason she forced herself to stay still to answer. “Um… I guess lots of people? Isn’t it supposed to be, like, magical or something? Like that isn’t weird, having magical hair.” She snorted, but she was still looking behind me. “But shouldn’t you be the one telling me, considering you’re the one growing it?”

“Haha, that’s what you’d think, right?” I tried to lighten the mood with a smile. “I don’t think it’s really magical, though, it’s more like…”

“Connection.” A new voice interjected from the side. It was cold, and disturbingly close to me. I looked around, and saw what was probably the last person I could have expected: Portlan Mason. The Keeper’s… assistant? I’d written him off as mostly harmless before, if a bit strange, but now… I felt myself relaxing. The girl must have confused him for someone scarier.

I hadn’t seen him since the morning, but his wiry figure and bright green eyes had left an impression on me. Much more so than his hair, which was little odd, in hindsight: it was a slightly reddish brown, almost rust-like colour, which was peculiar only in that it stood out much less than Mistborn hair usually did, even if it was still far outside the range of normal. He was carrying a long thin bundle wrapped in bandages, but I couldn’t guess at its contents.

He met my eyes, nodded towards the Wildling girl’s wrist where I’d put my bracelet of hair, then turned back to me. “You shouldn’t have done that,” he added with a scowl. It was almost as intimidating as Xif’s, but still somehow fell short.

I wanted to protest, but I had no idea what to say. I’d just been trying to make her time a little better, why shouldn’t I help someone if I could? It was Demi who stepped in, lightly gripping my arm. “It’s her hair, she can do whatever she likes with it. Who are you to tell her what to do, anyway?”

Portlan ignored her, keeping his eyes firmly on mine. When he decided I wasn’t going to say anything, he continued. “The Mist is our birthright. It is the thing that separates us from the lesser races. You should not treat it lightly, and neither should you lightly dismiss the crime that the Lost One here committed.”

I shook my head. That was ridiculous. “She isn’t a Lost One anymore. I just said that. She’s been found.”

He looked as though I’d just thrown up on his shoes. “Once someone has been lost by the Mist, they are lost forever. You cannot simply say that she has been found again. She will be accepted by no-one.”

He sounded like he thought it was common sense, that he was lecturing a child who didn’t know better, but I was pretty sure I did. I’d heard plenty of stupid things in my life, but this was getting up there. Maybe it was my adrenaline from earlier? Maybe it was Demi standing there with a hand on my arm, gripping hard enough to hurt? Maybe it was the little Wildling girl standing beside me with a look on her face that was a cross between bewildered and terrified. I drew myself up as big as my tiny figure could go, which was still only about to Portlan’s shoulders, and gave him the best glare I could manage of my own. “Then I guess she must never have been lost in the first place, since it seems that was just something you simply said.”

My body was shaking a little, but I’d had too much experience of being bullied myself to allow someone to do it in front of me… at least not with Demi right there. I saw Xif out of the corner of my eye, smirking with a very self-satisfied air, but he had specifically positioned himself to give him a clear line of sight, and his eyes were focussed on Portlan. My opinion of him went up. Gadrin’s smile had vanished as well, being replaced with a grim look that suggested he would be a very bad person to make angry.

Portlan took in this scene, blinked a couple of times, and then shrugged. “Fine, do as you like. Take the Lost One under your wing. As long as she wears your connection, it will be known she belongs to you. I should warn you though, that will not erase the past. The Mist does not forget.”

He turned to walk away, and I stared at his retreating back, feeling… let down? Like a sneeze I’d never sneezed. A boss fight that had just glitched out instead of giving loot.

Still, I felt even worse for the Wildling girl than I had earlier, but it needed to be said. I turned towards her, focussing somewhere around her shoes so I didn’t have to meet her eyes. “You don’t belong to me.”

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She nodded. “Um. Yeah. Thanks. That was weird. I guess if it means I can keep playing then whatever, though. Seriously, what’s up with you Mistborn guys?”

I turned to look at her, remembering just in time not to ask what her parents thought. “I’m not sure this time. I guess there must be some kind of relationship between Mistborn and Wildlings in the lore? Wait, have you been being harassed by Mistborn too?”

She glowered at me. “No shit, genius. Well, like, none of them have actually said anything to me, but it’s not like they have to. The way the Wildlings jump around them you know who’s in charge.”

I nodded. That fit with the picture I was forming, but I didn’t like it. “Hmm. I’m sorry. I hope it’ll decrease at least a little now, but I’ll have to talk to the Kee- to my class mentor about it. I can’t imagine her having the same opinion as Portlan just now, though. It’s weird, but the way he talked about the Mist… I dunno. It felt wrong.”

She looked at me with an expression halfway between skeptical and thoughtful. “Yeah. You’re sorry, huh? Judging by what he said, I’m going to go with doubtful, but none of that Mist weirdness makes sense anyway. I guess if I belong to you or whatever that might help, though. If I can throw your name around. What is it, by the way?”

I wanted to cringe, but she had a point. Whatever her story was, I was glad it wasn’t mine. I suspected my name might help her a lot more than she thought, given how Lindy had acted, but I wasn’t going to say anything. I shrugged. “River. What’s yours?”

She gave me a sarcastic smirk. “Isn’t that for you to decide, oh great master?”

Now I did cringe. Of all the responses I’d been expecting, that had not been one of them. I turned to give Demi a pleading look, but she was holding her stomach trying to keep herself from giggling.

Xif cackled. “It’s Nemo, isn’t it?”

The Wildling girl and I both turned to glare at him. Demi lost her battle. Xif just shrugged.

Gadrin was the one who spoke next. “Stardrop.” He said softly. “The mystical flower. Hidden from all but a chosen few, yet blooms with all the deadly beauty of the Wild Continent.”

Demi’s giggles redoubled, as did our glares. “What?” Gadrin peered around, looking like he genuinely didn’t know. “I thought it seemed appropriate. It’s one of the great myths of the game’s world: powerful, yet fragile; beautiful, yet impossible to find if it doesn’t want to be found. She reminded me of it.”

The girl looked thoughtful. “Is it ok?” She turned to me.

“What?”

“Stardrop.”

“Um. You want that to be your name? Fine, but how does that even work?”

“Just tell me it’s my name, and I bet my quest will complete just like that.”

“Oh.” I stared at her. Now I was really glad I didn’t have her story: I liked being called River. I wasn’t sure I was on board with Gadrin’s naming sense, but if she liked it… “Hi Stardrop.”

She beamed. “Yay! I have a name now! Thanks! Who said anything about being lost by the Mist, or whatever.”

“Ok, that was random.” Xif still looked like he was in a semi good mood, though from his eyes it seemed like the rest of us had sunk even lower in his opinion. “If you didn’t have a name until now, how did you join parties?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “I didn’t.”

“Friends list?” Gadrin asked, looking a little hurt.

She snorted. “As if.”

There was an awkward pause, then “Let’s be the first!” Demi and I spoke on top of each other, which caused Demi’s giggles to start all over again.

The girl’s eyes narrowed. “Friends, huh? Hmm. Sure, I’ll take her, but you…” she peered at me, then shrugged. “Well, I guess it’s probably fine.”

“What about us?” Gadrin asked, already whipping through his menu.

Stardrop nodded, then glanced towards Xif with something like anxiety on her face.

“Whatever. Sure.” He shrugged. “Knowing a Rogue could be useful some time, I guess.” For all his attitude, though, I wasn’t surprised to notice him going through his menu as well.

Stardrop looked like she couldn’t decide if she should stay skeptical, or if it was time to start crying. I could sort of relate, though I’d have probably have stuck with skeptical. She’d just gotten a name and four friends, just like that. She clearly seemed to think she should be happy, but… it felt wrong, somehow. How could she even accept it, if it wasn’t something she’d done anything to earn? And yet at the same time, was it really any different from what I’d just gotten?

Behind us, Demi coughed. “By the way.” Everyone turned towards her. She had a grin on her face that was a little too bright. “We may be about to be attacked by a boss monster.”

~ ~ 26/1/2/01:05 ~ ~

Status: [River]

Class: [Apprentice Mistborn Runemaster]

Location: [Cowl’s Landing - The Underground City]

Health 37/38 ~ Mana 30/42 ~ Stamina 19/41 ~ Runes 2/2

[Exhausted (7%)] Equipped Skills (8/10):

[Force Infused Palm]

[Myriad Fists]

[Imbued Defence]

[Unarmed Discipline (Passive)]

[Body Conditioning (Passive)]

[Inscribe: Rune of the Creator Flame (1/1)]

[Sign of Inverse Devouring]

[Sign of Twilight Ways] Statistics:

Defence +8

Resistance +5

Constitution +4

Willpower +4

Endurance +4

Spirit +1

Perception +1

Strength (-7%)

Intensity (-7%) Equipped Items (3/8):

[New Arrival’s Simple Dress]

[New Arrival’s Simple Shoes]

[Valesilver Pin]

[Silversilk Bracelet] Other Skills:

[Elementary Ingredient Preparation (Passive)]

[Runic Plea]

[Inscribe: Rune of the Twilight Ocean (1/1)]

Other Items:

[Special Edition Founder’s Token]

[Small Pouch]

[Small Iron Key]

[Sugary Biscuit]x2

[The Keeper's List]

[Amarh Elbow Gristle]x18

[Thoril's Needle]x15

[Myrl Rose]x6

[Crushed Red Longshore Prawn's Shell]x3

[Thwart Grass]x4

[Neit Flour (Male)]x13

[Neit Flour (Female)]x13

[Telemetric Null-phase Spirit Transponder]

[Basic Healing Potion]

[Basic Mana Potion]

[Basic Healing Salve]

[Basic Mana Salve]

[Dry Trail Mix]

[Waterskin (3)]

[Case of Marvin’s Last]

[Brightsage Leaf]x8

Active Quests:

[Cryptic Flows of the Mist (Part 1)]

[Path of the Runemaster (Part 3)]

[The Keeper’s Garden (Part 1)]

[The Ancient Keeper of Runic Magic (Part 4)]

[Things Worth Finding in the Mist]

[Finding Vinot]

[Snatch Ratting]

[Nonsensical Nodulation]

[Who Let the Lights Out?]

Status: [Demi]

Class: [Apprentice Freechild Guardian]

Location: [Cowl’s Landing - The Underground City]

Health 60/60 ~ Mana 9/10 ~ Stamina 41/41 Equipped Skills (8/10):

[Guarded Strike]

[Standfast]

[Shield Block]

[Greatshield Discipline (Passive)]

[Mocking Shout]

[Strength of Eternity (Passive)]

[Downed Brawler (Passive)]

[Resolute Defence (Active/Passive)] Statistics:

Defence +19

Resistance +2

Damage +2

Strength +9

Willpower +6

Endurance +1 Equipped Items (5/8):

[New Arrival's Basic Short Sword]

[New Arrival's Basic Shield]

[Tarnished Iron Breastplate]

[New Arrival’s Simple Undershirt]

[New Arrival's Basic Chain Tasset]

[New Arrival’s Simple Pants]

[New Arrival's Basic Leather Boots]

[Silversilk Glovettes] Other Skills: Other Items:

[Special Edition Founder’s Token]

[Novice Stamina Potion]

[Novice Rejuvenating Salve]x5

[Guldrin’s Checklist]

[Saproot Seed]x14

[Mordalk Stew (cold)]

[Luma Feather]

[Garden Pebble]

[New Arrival’s Basic Chain Armour]

[Palt Lure]

[Greatshield of Dauntless Hope (Shattered)]

[Starfire Wasp Wing]x52

[Starfire Wasp Eye]

[Spider Monkey Chelicera]

[Kvaltyr Antler Fragment]

[Vial of Silver Gemdust (10)]x2

[Vial of Silver Gemdust (9)]

[Basic Antivenom Salve]x3

[Silver Tea Bell]

[Basic Healing Potion]x2

[Basic Healing Salve]x2

[Rogu Jerky]

[Veilberry Waterskin (6)]

[Cloudweight]

[Refined Copper Cloud Salt]x10

[Spectral Purple Gull Feather]x4

[Case of Marvin’s Last]

[Vial of Ooze and Gemdust] Active Quests:

[Guldrin’s Experiment]

[Wanted: Dead Jungle Palts]

[Finding Vinot]

[Ooh, What's This?]

[Asyr Hospitality (Part 5)]

[Strength of Eternity (Part 4)]

[Winged Varmints]

[Snatch Ratting]

[Nonsensical Nodulation]

[Who Let the Lights Out?]