JÒN: You're the stillborn who obliterated the entire city of Valhalla with one flick of his fingers?
Theo: I am indeed
JÒN: But didn't that happen like… twenty years ago? Just how old are you, exactly?
Theo pauses a bit to think.
Theo: To be honest, I sort of lost track a few hundred years ago. The calendars have changed at least five times since I was born, so I have absolutely no idea what year we'd be in according to the old calendar. The closest approximation I can give you is that I'm somewhere in my early six hundreds.
JÒN: You're… more than six hundred years old?
Theo: Yes, that's what I just said. Try to pay attention.
Lily (tear flows from her eye): How could you?… How could you kill all those people? What did the people of Valhalla ever do to you?!
Theo: To me? Nothing. But the people of Valhalla were the first ones who began hunting animals as a sport. They are the sole reason for the whole war that has started between the animals and the humans. They needed to be punished.
Lily (her eyes turn red with rage): Punished? They all needed to be punished?! Even the elderly? Even the children? Who gave you the right? If anyone's, it should have been Celeatia's decision to make, not yours!
Theo: Oh, right, the old vixen! I'd almost forgotten why I came here in the first place.
He turns to me.
Theo: Jòn, did you know that the golden vixen cast a tracking spell on all of you before you left the thackeray ruins?
JÒN: A tracking spell? Why would she do that?
Theo: I do not know! But I'm suspecting that she must have taken an interest in you as well!
He then starts moving his index finger through the air, as if he were pushing some invisible buttons in front of him. After a while, a golden light begins to shine brightly all around us, and a hologram of the vixen's head appears in front of us, soon afterwards.
Celestia: Theo? Theo, is that you?
Theo: Hello, old friend. Did you miss me?
Celestia: Theo, what are you doing? Stop this at once!
The stillborn pays her no mind, and he continues to fiddle around with her spell, until he grabs onto what seems to be a golden string, made of solid light.
Celestia: Theo! Theo, don't you dare!
Theo smiles and waves at the vixen, as he pulls on the golden string, and both the light surrounding us and the vixen's head quickly disappear, with a loud clinking noise.
JÒN: Was that it? Did you deactivate the spell?
Theo: Yes, but the spell is set to reactivate itself if its targets remain in the same area for too long. I believe I overheard you saying that you were headed towards the city of Thilias, were you not? Allow me to give you a ride to your destination.
He snaps his fingers, and I suddenly feel my whole body compressing itself into a single point, as all of my senses fade for one brief moment, and when I wake up, I find myself standing in front of a huge stone wall that seems to spread for as far as the eye can see.
I turn to Rachel, who seems to have recovered from her violent coughing, and who is now measuring up the walls with her eyes.
JÒN: Rachel, is this…
Rachel: Yes. The city of Thilias. He wasn't lying. He really teleported us to our destination…
Damien: Rachel!!!
Damien shouts, as he rushes towards us. Apparently, the paralysis effect has worn off, because Leah and Hagrid have also gotten up, and are now slowly approaching us as well.
Damien: Rachel, are you alright? Do you need healing?
Rachel: No, I'm fine… I only got a big scare out of it, nothing serious!
JÒN: Rakaia! Do you sense Theo anywhere around us? Is he hiding invisibly again?
Rakaia: No, he didn't teleport here with the rest of us.
JÒN: Could you let us know if you ever sense Theo hiding invisibly around us again?
Rakaia: Yeah, sure, no problem.
JÒN: Really? Just like that?
Rakaia: Just like that. As long as I get to piss Theo off, it's time well spent for me.
JÒN: So, I'm guessing you and Theo have a history, then?
Rakaia: Oh, yeah, he and I go way back
JÒN: Is that so?…
Leah (goes closer to Lily): Lily… Are you okay?
Lily wipes the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.
Lily: I'm fine
Leah: Do you need to talk, or--
Lily (shouts): I'm fine!
Hagrid (sarcastically): Oh, yes, you definitely look fine to me!
Lily frowns at me.
Lily: I'm not stupid, I know you're making fun of me. I also know that all of us combined wouldn't stand a chance against Theo if he were to go all out. I know that! But even so, I couldn't just stand there and do nothing!
Damien: If it makes you feel any better. I acted much the same as you the first time I met Theo, and I didn't even have a personal grudge against him like you do.
Lily: You did?
Damien: Yeah, I already knew that I couldn't stand a chance against him, but I charged at him like a bull, regardless, and the bastard just put me to sleep with a single motion of his hand.
Guard: You, there! What is your business here? Identify yourselves!
We hear a city guard shout, as he rushes towards us.
Rachel: It's okay, Ralph! They're with me!
As the guard approaches, I see a warning message in front of my eyes, telling me not to hurt him because he's a local. I then get the same message for one of the guard's colleagues, who remained near the gates.
Guard: Rachel, thank the gods you're back! The whole hemlock situation has only gotten worse while you were gone. The entire Falcon's district has now been quarantined.
The guard then looks at each of us in turn.
Guard: I'm guessing you folks are the ones I should thank for bringing Rachel back home safely. You all have my deepest gratitude! Our town would not be the same without her.
Rachel: Is there anything I should know about before heading over to the Falcon's district, Ralph?
Guard: Yeah. Nurse Martha said she needed to talk to you as soon as you came back. You should drop by her tent before doing anything else.
Rachel: Alright, I'll be sure to go there as soon as I lead my friends to my house, then. Thanks for letting me know!
After finishing his conversation with us, Ralph waves to his colleague, and the latter then opens the city gates to let us through.
As we enter the city, I am surprised to see that instead of luxurious manors and villas, we are greeted by broken down, wooden houses, and a stench that could even drive off a skunk. Most people on the streets are dressed in rags, and they are all looking at us with an uneasy look in their eyes, as we pass them by. Naturally, every single one of them has a warning message floating above their head, telling me that I can't harm them.
Damien: Forgive me for maybe coming off as ignorant, Rachel, but aren't the towns of Avalon supposed to represent the peak of human civilization?
Rachel: They do! But this is the Beggar's district. We entered through the eastern gate, but the nobles and the royalty mostly only use the western gate when they come into the city, and they rarely, if ever, set foot in this area.
Damien (shocked): Your towns are divided according to the amount of wealth each individual possesses?
Rachel: Yes! Isn't it the same on the other continents?
Damien: No, of course not! That would only further increase the disparity between the rich and the poor, and cause unnecessary conflict between them!
Rachel: Oh, in Avalon, most of the poor people are too afraid to seek conflict with the nobles, because in doing that, they'd only be endangering their entire families.
JÒN: Their families? I ask. Aren't there laws against this sort of thing?
Rachel: There are! But the nobles aren't subjected to them.
Damien: That sounds terrible! I cannot even begin to imagine the amount of discrimination that these people are faced with every day of their lives because of these unfair laws. How can this be allowed to happen?
Rachel: Uh, well… Technically, it's the nobles and the royalty who are allowing it to happen, so obviously they don't really have a problem with the way things are right now. You guys really live in a completely different world from us, don't you?
All of a sudden, Lily, who hasn't really spoken a word since we entered the city, gasps loudly and puts both her hands over her mouth.
Rakaia: Oh, gods! I completely forgot! I needed to buy a new chain for Rakaia's amulet. Can you guys wait for me here? I'm pretty sure that there was a shop that had what I wanted somewhere near the city gates.
Hagrid: Well, hurry up, then! I wouldn't want to spend more time here than is absolutely necessary. This place gives me the creeps.
As Lily hurries off to the shop, Hagrid starts to look around for something to do while he waits.
Hagrid: Hey, Damien! There's an armor shop right over there, by the corner. Wanna come see what they've got? This might be the perfect opportunity for you to finally get rid of that ugly breastplate of yours!
Damien: I'll pass
Hagrid (grins): Suit yourself
He goes to enter the armor shop.
Leah: You two really don't get along, do you?
Damien: I don't know what you're talking about. Hagrid and I get along just fine.
Leah: Right…
As we all stand there and wait, we suddenly hear a girl's scream coming from our right. When we turn around, we see that a large man in his fifties is currently brutally beating a fifteen year old girl, in the middle of the street. Judging by his extravagant clothing and the jewelry around his neck, he would seem to be one of the local nobles, or maybe even royalty.
The girl is dressed in rags, but not the sort of rags that would be worn by the people we've seen so far in the Beggar's district. These clothes of hers look much more worn-down, and it doesn't appear like there's been any effort put into making them look aesthetically pleasing even when they were new. Leaving her clothes aside, what is really strange here is that the girl doesn't seem to offer any sort of resistance while she is getting beaten. She does not raise her hands to defend herself, she does not try to run, and she's not calling for help. What's more, the people on the streets are simply passing them by and ignoring them, as if nothing was happening.
Damien: What the hell is wrong with everyone? They're all acting like this is perfectly normal. I can't just stand around here and watch things go on like this. I'm going to teach that fat bastard a lesson he'll never forget.
Rachel (grabs his arm): Damien, wait! You can't! That man is related to one of the kings of Avalon, and that girl is his slave. She is his rightful property!
Damien (look darkens): She's his… what?
Rachel: That girl is a slave… She doesn't have any rights, or freedoms. That man is legally entitled to use her in any way he wishes, and to dispose of her whenever he sees fit.
Damien just stands there and looks at Rachel for a few seconds, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Damien (furious): You're saying this is normal?! Treating another person like this? Like they were nothing more than an object? Do you find this normal, Rachel?!
Rachel opens her mouth to speak, but no words come out for a few seconds.
Rachel: Regardless of whether I'm finding any of this normal or not, the fact remains that the tournament rules still prohibit you from attacking any of the locals. You saw what happened to that mage who tried to attack me in the forest. You'll just get teleported out of here before you even get the chance to do anything.
Damien clenches his fist, as his hand starts shaking with rage, but he is unable to come up with a proper retort. Instead, he decides to turn his head away from her, and to continue watching the gruesome scene that was unraveling before our eyes.
Girl: I'm sorry! Please, I'm sorry!
Thee girl begs, as the Noble beats her mercilessly
Noble: I didn't ask for your apologies, you little wench. I asked for you to be useful. How am I supposed to expect anything from you if you can't even carry a few bags?
Now that he mentions it, I realize that there are at least ten bags full of clothes and groceries lying on the ground next to the girl. They must weigh a ton.
Girl (on her knees): Sir, please! I barely got to sleep at all while I was at the slave market, and I haven't even rested for one minute since you bought me this morning. If only you'd give me a few hours to regain my strength—
The noble grabs the girl by her hair and lifts her head, in order to look her straight in the eye.
Noble: So you're saying it's my fault that you're so useless? Is that it?
Girl: N-n-no, sir! I would never…
Noble: Maybe I should just gut you right here and now, and find me a proper slave. One that can carry a few bags. One that doesn't talk back. After all, I only paid ten silvers for you. That's practically pocket change for me.
Girl (cries): No, please! I promise I won't talk back anymore! I promise I'll be good! Just give me another chance!
Theo: Do you see now, Damien?
We hear Theo's voice coming from behind us.
Damien (furious): You!
Theo: Do you see the true face of the humanity you are so desperately trying to protect? Take a look around you. Any of these people passing by could easily overpower that clown and save the girl. But they won't do it. Some of them would tell you that they're just obeying the law. Others would have you believe that they're only doing it to protect their families. But we all know what the real reason is. They're ignoring her because it's convenient. Because it's easier to lie to themselves and carry on with their lives than to face reality and try to give some meaning to their miserable existence.
Upon hearing Theo's words, Rachel lowers her head, and she starts staring at the ground in silence.
Theo: But you're not like them, are you, Damien? I'm sure you would have jumped to save that poor girl in an instant, were it not for the tournament's spell protecting the noble.
Damien: Shut up
Theo: It's quite a pity, isn't it? The fact that you're forced to stand here and do nothing, because of one meager spell.
Theo smiles.
Theo: What if I were to tell you, Damien, that I had a way to circumvent that spell?
Damien: I'd say that you were out of your mind
Theo laughs.
Theo: You don't have to take my word for it. Once I give you the power, you'll know that it's true. All you need to do is ask. Ask me for the power, Damien, and I will give it to you without asking for anything in return.
Damien: You must have gone completely insane if you're actually thinking that I'd ever consider asking you for a favor!
Theo: Oh? Then I suppose that you're content in leaving that girl to her fate, while you walk away like all the others?
Damien clenches his fist and bites his lip, but he doesn't say anything.
Theo: Well, Damien? What are you going to do?
Damien: I'm going to show you that you're wrong. There is some good to be found in any person. Even in someone as rotten as this noble.
He then storms towards the noble and the slave without saying another word. The slave is now desperately trying to lift all of the bags from the ground, but she keeps dropping them no matter how many times she shifts the weight between her hands. The noble seems to have gotten tired of her repeated failures, and he looks as if he's getting ready to hit her again, but he interrupts himself when he hears Damien shouting at him.
Damien: Wait! You're hurting her!
The noble stands there and looks at Damien for a few seconds, as if frozen.
Noble: What are you, some kind of clown? Or perhaps you get paid to state the obvious to people? What are you going to tell me next? That the sky is blue? That the sun rises from the east?
Damien: Don't you understand?! She's human, just like you! She bleeds like you, she feels pain like you, she can get scared, she can be happy or sad. How can you do this to a fellow human being?
Noble: She's not a fellow human being, you imbecile! She's a slave. She's a form of existence lower than a worm or even an insect. Do you pause to think about the pain of every bug that you squish between your hands?
Damien: You can't be serious! Do you not have eyes? Can you not see that she is the same as us?
Noble: No, outsider, it is you who cannot see, I know that this is a difficult concept to grasp for a barbarian such as yourself, but I feel that it is my duty as a superior being to educate you.
The noble grabs the slave girl by the hair, and he faces her in Damien's direction.
Noble: This right here is a slave. That means she is at the very bottom of the hierarchy. In a civilized world, humans are all ranked according to their status. The ones at the bottom serve the purpose of making life easier for the ones at the top. This way, the enlightened minds can focus on ruling, while the lower life forms can focus on the menial tasks that are more suited for them. The existence of slaves is one of the main reasons why our civilization is so much more advanced than that of all the other continents. Who do you think built that giant wall you passed through when you entered the city? Who do you think built the castles, or our complex sewage system? Slaves are the foundation of a healthy and advanced society and your inability to comprehend such a simple concept only proves that you are a product of a far more inferior civilization than that of Avalon.
Damien: You're wrong! This isn't civilization! This is inhuman! You're treating human lives as if they were nothing! It's not too late. You can still change. If you would just listen to what I'm saying…
Noble (disappointed): I see that words are wasted on the likes of you. I don't know why I was expecting anything different. If words are too complicated for your understanding, perhaps a visual demonstration is in order.
He puts his hand in his pocket, and he takes out a knife.
Damien: No, wait, what are you doing?
Noble: I am going to show you, outsider, what happens to a slave that can no longer serve her purpose. After I end her miserable life, you will see that nothing is going to change. No one will mourn her passing, no one will stop to look, no one will ever be affected by her death, and life will simply continue to move on without her, as if she'd never existed.
Damien: Wait! I didn't mean to offend you with what I said! Just please, put the knife down, and we can continue our conversation where we left off. Please!
The slave girl looks as if she has completely given up on any hope that she might have had left. The look in her eyes is completely empty, as she stares at the ground and waits patiently for the inevitable.
JÒN: Theo… Give me the power.
Theo: Pardon?
JÒN: The power that you offered to Damien earlier. The ability to attack locals without being teleported outside of the continent. You told Damien that you'd give it to him as long as he'd ask for it. Well, I'm asking for it. Give me the power.
Theo (smirks): Are you sure about this? Attacking a noble within the borders of Thilias is not the sort of crime that can simply be written off after paying a fine. Even for an outsider, there will be severe consequences. You may even get banned from participating in the tournament any further.
JÒN: Didn't you hear me? I said give me the power.
Theo (smiles): As you wish!
The stillborn then raises his hands, and a powerful wind starts spinning around him for a few seconds. As the wind stops, Theo lowers his hands, and he looks towards me.
Theo: It is done
JÒN: Weird! I don't feel any different.
Theo: Look at the nobleman, and try to imagine yourself hitting him, You will see that the tournament's spell no longer poses any resistance.
As I do what he says, I realize that he is right. When I imagined myself hitting the noble before, I definitely felt some sort of force that was trying to stop my very train of thoughts from forming, but none of that is happening anymore. The warning message, however, is still being displayed above his head, just like before.
Damien (to the Noble): I'm sure we can reach some sort of an understanding! I have a lot of money with me. I could buy the girl off you for ten times her price!
Noble: I already have all the money I need, outsider. It is far more important for me right now to help you see the light. You will thank me for this later.
Damien: Please, if you could just listen—
Damien's jaw drops, as he watches me dash straight for the noble, punching him hard in the face, and sending him falling on his back, while his knife drops from his hand.
Noble (furious): What is the meaning of this? How dare you? Do you know who I am?!
JÒN: Sure, You're just another rich jackass who let all his wealth and social status go to his head. Welcome to the real world, bud!
Noble: Do you think you can afford to act cocky just because you somehow managed to break through the tournament's protection spell? You have no idea who you're dealing with here, boy. Being eliminated from the mage tournament will be the least of your worries when I'm done with you.
JÒN: Listen closely, because I'm only going to say this once. You're going to get the hell out of here and you're going to leave the girl with us. Do you understand?
Noble: The slave girl?! You've just forfeited your life and that of your friends for the sake of a worthless slave? I'm going to give her to you if that's what you want, outsider. But I hope you're not stupid enough to think that I'm going to hand her over in one piece.
The noble tries to grab his knife from the ground, but I step on his hand with my boot before he takes the weapon, which makes him scream in pain and retract his arm as quickly as possible.
Noble (jumps back): You're going to pay for this, outsider! You all will! Including you, herbalist girl!
Rachel is looking a bit scared, as the noble points his finger towards her.
Noble: That's right! I remember who you are! I know where you live! Say goodbye to the peaceful life you've been leading until now. It's only going to be hell for you after I-- AAAAARRRGH!
Before he gets to finish his threats, the noble gets engulfed in flames, and within a matter of seconds,he turns into ashes, while the fire dies out almost as quickly as it appeared. The townsfolk who were walking down the street until now are stopping to look at the aahes, with a terrified look in their eyes.
Theo: See, Jòn, this is how you get the job done right. You wouldn't want to cause your lovely host more trouble than you already have, would you?
JÒN: I suppose not...
Theo smiles
Theo: Now then, if you don't mind me asking, what is your plan for saving the other thousands of slaves in this city?
JÒN: I beg your pardon?
Theo: Surely, you must have realized that this isn't the only slave in Avalon. There are thousands more just like this girl, who are living through hell as we speak, and who can't even be sure that they'll make it through the day alive. Are you going to save them too, Jòn?
Theo smiles widely.
Theo: Unless of course, you only plan on saving the ones that cross your path, so you can pat yourself on the back, and pretend that you made a difference.
As I stand there and look at Theo, I suddenly remember the reason he gave us for keeping his eyes closed, when we first met him on our second day of the tournament. Of course… Now it all makes sense… I think I may finally be starting to understand why Theo acts the way he does.
After a few seconds of silence, I raise my head and I look Theo straight in the eye.
JÒN: Yes! I'm going to save them all. I'm going to do what you're not willing to, despite all of your power. I'm going to do it even though I'm not a sage or a stillborn, or some other fancy end-all be-all supreme being that found its way into this tournament. I have no idea how I'm going to do it, but I will find a way, and when I'm done, I'm going to come back to you and shove it in your face. Is this a good enough answer to your question?
As I was talking, I noticed that Theo opened his eyes for the first time since I've met him. At first, it appeared to be because of the shock, but then his look slowly turned into one of sorrow and regret, while I continued to speak. When I finished my monologue, Theo closed back his eyes, and he smiled.
Theo: It is indeed. I will be looking forward to seeing you put your words into action. But for now, I believe my job here is done, so I will take my leave.
Theo raises himself in the air and he prepares to teleport out of the city.
Theo (to Damien and Leah): Oh, there's one last thing I should tell you before I go. The spell I cast just now on Jòn was an area of effect spell and not a targeted one. This means that it affected the whole area around me and not just him, so the two of you have been given the same gift as your friend. The effect of my spell lasts indefinitely, so this power is yours to use as you please from this day forward. With this said and done, I bid you farewell!
Theo then snaps his fingers, and he immediately disappears without a trace.
Girl (pulls my sleeve): Sir… Excuse me, sir…
As I turn around, the girl takes a bow, and then she introduces herself.
Girl: My name is Ella, but most of my masters simply called me 'slave girl'. I know I may not look like much, but if you will have me, I vow to serve you to the best of my ability, until the day I die. Just give me my first order, and our contract will be complete.
JÒN: Wait, I didn't mean to become your new master, I only meant to set you free!
Ella (cries): Y-y-you're… going to kill me?
JÒN: What?! No! No, you misunderstand, I only meant—
Rachel (smiles): Jòn just wanted to say that you're free to come with us! We're currently heading towards my house, which is not far from here.
Ella: Y-y-yes sir, Of course.
Rachel: But for now, I think you should start by getting rid of those bruises. That tall man over there dressed in armor just so happens to be our group's healer. He'll fix you up in a jiffy! Isn't that right, Damien?
Damien seemed to be deeply buried in his own thoughts when Rachel called out to him. It took him a while before he came to his senses and realized what she wanted from him.
Damien: Yeah… Sure. Come over here, and we'll have a look.
As Ella goes to get healed, Rachel pulls me and Leah aside to have a little private conversation with us.
Rachel (whispers): Jòn, you can't just tell her that you're setting her free like that.
JÒN: Why not?
Rachel: Because slaves are never set free. The only case when a slave's master ever says anything like that is when they're about to kill them because they're no longer useful.
JÒN: Yeah, but won't she understand once I've explained it to her more clearly?
Rachel sighs.
Rachel: Even if the girl understands your true intentions, what would you expect her to do once she's free? She has no home to go to, no family, no friends, no possessions, and to make matters worse, everyone knows that she's been a slave until recently. Even if she would somehow manage to find a place to work somewhere, no one would bat an eye if someone were to kidnap her and make her into a slave again. At most, you'd be giving her a small taste of freedom, which would be ripped away from her a few days afterwards.
JÒN: If you're telling us all of this, then I suppose you have an idea of what we can do with her?
Rachel (smiles): I do! I'm going to hire her as a maid at my house! I've always been a bit worried about leaving my two siblings alone whenever I went away for a long while, so I usually asked my ex-husband to check up on them every now and then, but if I had a maid to take care of things, I would be much more relieved!
Leah: Aren't you worried about leaving your little brother and sister home alone with a person you barely know?
Rachel: Taking into account the harsh training that slaves get these days, I very much doubt that Ella would ever do anything to harm the children, It will also be a while until I leave again on such a long journey away from home, so I'll have plenty of time to get to know her and to learn what kind of a person she is.
Rachel pauses.
Rachel: Besides, Damien and Theo both made me realize that I haven't been completely honest with myself until now regarding the way slaves get treated in our society. What Theo said was completely true. I really have been turning a blind eye to this whole situation because it was more convenient that way. I have no excuse. Even if I can't change the way our society works, I can still try to help where I can. Seeing Jòn tackle the problem so directly in front of my eyes gave me the courage to finally start doing something about it myself! And for now, the way I can help is to provide a home and a sense of purpose to this poor unfortunate girl.
Damien (to Ella): Okay, you're all patched up now!
Ella: Thank you, sir.
Now that her bruises are gone, and I get a good look at her face, I suddenly realize that Ella could very well give Rachel a run for her money in a beauty contest. Even though her messy black hair and the tattered rags she's wearing aren't doing her any favors, her face has all the features that make a girl look beautiful without any makeup. She has a small nose, high cheekbones, full lips and large brown eyes, while her body's proportions seem almost perfectly balanced. If she'd lived a normal life, and she had attended a school like all other girls her age, she would have likely been very popular. Girls would have killed to have her in their groups, and boys would have courted her every single day. She would have had a life that most girls her age could only dream of. If she'd lived a normal life…
Rachel: Alright, then! We shouldn't linger here any longer. Let's go get Hagrid and Lily, and we'll take another route towards my house.
When Hagrid sees us enter the shop to call for him, he looks a bit disappointed. It appears that he would have liked to browse the shop's wares a bit more before leaving.
Hagrid: Why did you all come to get me so early? Weren't we gonna wait for Lily to come back?
Rachel: Some… stuff happened which made us decide to pick another route towards my home. We'll tell you all the details when we get there.
Hagrid: Uh-huh, And I'm guessing those details will also cover how you all recruited a new team member in my absence?
Rachel (smiles): You catch on fast!
Hagrid (approaches Ella): Name's Hagrid, but most friends call me 'the dwarf'. Pleased to make your acquaintance!
The dwarf extends his hand towards the girl, but she gets scared, and she instinctively jumps back when he gets near her. Ella then looks at both me and Rachel, seemingly asking for our approval, and when I nod to her, she hesitantly grabs Hagrid's hand and she shakes it weakly.
Hagrid (grins): You've never really met a dwarf before, have you lass?
Rachel: It's a bit more complicated than that. Like I said, we'll go over the details when we arrive at my house. Come on, let's go get Lily.
We found Lily a few minutes later, on one of the streets we'd taken when we first came into the city. She'd already finished replacing the chain on Rakaia's amulet, and she was also surprised that we didn't wait for her at our designated meeting spot, but she agreed to postpone her questions until after we'd reached Rachel's house.
We took a somewhat roundabout way this time around, in order to make sure that nobody who saw the earlier scene was following us. As we advanced into the city, the scenery began to slowly change, and instead of broken down shacks, we started seeing more elegant houses, and even a few mansions. The putrid smell on the streets was also long gone by the time we'd finally reached Rachel's house. To our surprise, despite her previous claims of living in relative poverty, Rachel's house was in fact a very large mansion, with two floors and a yard the size of a small park.
As we walk across the yard, Rachel's turn to face Leah
Rachel: Leah, you can stop suppressing your magical aura now. My siblings don't know what a Cortana is, so there's no need to hide from them!
Hagrid: Rachel, I don't mean to sound rude, but didn't you tell me that you and your two siblings were living a modest life here in the city?
Rachel blushes.
Rachel: I am not the one who bought this house. This is where I used to live with my old husband, before we got divorced. He told me that he didn't mind me keeping this house for myself, since he owned many other mansions in better areas of the city. I meant to refuse him at first, but I had both my siblings and my sickly father to care for at the time, and it would have been very hard for me to continue living with them in our old cramped house.
Hagrid (grins): Ah, he was trying to win you back with a little parting gift, was he?
Rachel: Actually, no! The main reason why we broke up is that Viktor was never really the kind of man who would be happy being tied down to only one woman. After we got divorced, he told me that during our marriage, he felt like a caged bird that was denied the freedom to soar the skies, in search of stars that shined brightly in the night. He also told me that no matter how many stars he'd end up visiting, I would always remain the sun that outshines them all, and that he'd never love another woman with as much passion as he'd loved me.
Rachel giggles.
Rachel (smiling): It was always hard to take him seriously when he said things like that.
Suzanne: Look, it's Rachel! Rachel is back! Come quick!
I hear a young girl shout from a distance, as she comes running towards us.
The girl, who appears to be Rachel's eight year old sister, is now waving towards her nine year old brother (Kevin), and they both race across the yard, until they finally reach us.
Suzanne (takes out something from her pocket): Rachel, look! Jonny's already fourteen years old! And he's just as lively as ever! See?
Rachel (pats her on her head): That's really good news, Suzanne! I'll admit that I was a bit worried about him while I was gone, but I see now that I had no reason to doubt you!
I notice that the virtual pet toy that Suzanne is holding in her hand looks incredibly similar to my stat device. Even more so than I remembered. Could it also be some ancient device made by the thackeray which holds hidden powers like the fortune teller's trinket' that I have on my wrist?
JÒN: Uh, Suzanne, can I borrow that toy of yours for a second? I just want to look at something.
Suzanne: No! It's mine! You can't have it!
Honestly, I don't know what else I was expecting when I asked that question.
JÒN: Alright, then how about a trade?
I take off my stat device
JÒN: I'll let you play around with this while I take a look at your toy. Deal?
The girl tries to feign indifference when she sees my stat device, but it's easy enough to see that I've piqued her interest. Eventually, she gives in and agrees to temporarily trade her device for my own. As I study her toy closely, I notice that there is a small marking on the side which looks much like a bended fork, but aside from that, there is nothing else that stands out. I didn't even feel that faint tingling sensation that I usually get when my stat device tries to attach itself to my aura. Maybe it is only a toy after all.
Hagrid: You sure it's a good idea to just hand your device over to her like that, Jòn? Aren't you worried that she'll completely mess all of your stats while she plays with it?
JÒN: Nah, I made sure to lock all the stats before I gave it to her. The only thing she can do with it right now is look at the screen.
Once I'm done looking at the toy, I give it back to Rachel's sister, in exchange for my stat device.
Suzanne (pouts): You tricked me! Your toy is broken. It doesn't do anything. That's not fair!
JÒN: Life is never fair, kid! It's better to learn that while you're young!
Rachel: Don't you listen to him, Suzanne! Jòn is just grumpy because his parents would only give him broken toys when he was a kid.
Suzanne giggles.
Suzanne: Poor Jòn!
Damien: Rachel, Could you show me to my room? All I want right now is to lie down in a bed for a while.
Rachel: Certainly! Follow me, I'll show you the way!
Suzanne/Kevin : We'll come too, we'll come too!
Rachel (smiles): Okay, okay, you'll come too!
She then turns to us.
Rachel: Please, make yourselves comfortable! You can come inside the house and wait in the main hall if you like.
Hagrid: Nah, we're good for now, thanks! We'll just sit at one of these picnic tables.
Rachel: I'll be right back!
Hagrid: Okay, now that we're finally here, will someone please tell me what happened to Damien that made him turn into even more of a stick-in-the-mud than usual?
Leah and I exchange a look, and then we start giving Hagrid and Lily a full recounting of the events they missed while they were shopping.
Hagrid looks very stunned after hearing our entire story
Hagrid: I can't believe this! So you're saying that now Lily and I are the only ones who can't attack any of the locals because we weren't there when Theo cast his spell?
Lily: Actually, I never had that problem to begin with, I'm not participating in the tournament, remember? Their spell doesn't affect me.
Hagrid: Great! Just great! Why did I have to enter that armor shop? They didn't even have anything worth buying!
Ella (turns to me): Forgive me, master, I don't… mean to interrupt, but you haven't given me any task to perform since we arrived here.
JÒN: Oh, it's fine, Don't worry about it. You can just sit there and rest for now.
Ella: Y-y-yes sir…
Instead of calming her down, my words seem to have only made her even more restless. She is now fidgeting nervously and sweating all over as she stares intently at the table in front of her.
Rachel: There you are!
She approaches us and then seats herself next to Lily.
Rachel: Damien's already unpacked his bags. Would you like me to show you to your rooms?
Hagrid: We can do that later, Ella's been sitting there, biting her nails for the past fifteen minutes because she doesn't have anything to do. Don't you have any work around the house that you need doing?
Rachel: Oh no, I couldn't possibly make her work so soon after what she's been through!
She turns to the girl.
Rachel: Ella, you can go sleep for as long as you need, and after you're well-rested, I'll give you the tour of the house. Is that okay with you?
Ella suddenly jumps to her feet, with a very scared look on her face.
Ella: There's no need to give me the test! I promise I will work my hardest! I won't disappoint you! I promise!
Her sudden outburst temporarily renders us speechless, as we all pause to look at each other for a few seconds.
Rachel: Ella, nobody is testing anyone. Please, sit down, you must be really tired…
Ella (high pitched): Yes, sir…
She looks as if she were about to cry, and she sits herself down again.
JÒN: Rachel, what is she talking about? What kind of test is she referring to?
Rachel: I… don't know… I've never heard of anything like this before.
Leah: She's talking about the test of loyalty. It's a test used to make sure that prisoners don't try to run away from their captors. They used it quite a bit at the Institution.
Hagrid: I don't get it! Why does the girl think that we're testing her? We never implied that we were doing anything of the sort.
Leah: Because you're all being too nice, and that's always how a test of loyalty begins. At the Institution, every now and then, a member of the staff or a complete stranger would start acting very nice and considerate with one of the orphans, out of the blue. After some time, when they were sure that they'd gained their trust, they'd suddenly say that they wanted to help them escape. If the orphan believed them, and followed their instructions, they would be recaptured by the very person that tried to help them, and told that it was all a test of loyalty that they had failed. Then they would either be beaten senseless for breaking the rules, or they'd be killed to serve as an example for all the other orphans. This way, if anyone ever actually tried to help one of us, we'd never believe them, and we'd choose to remain prisoners, out of fear.
Rachel gasps.
Rachel: My gods, that's horrible! But if what you say is true, then how are we going to convince Ella that we're telling the truth?
Leah: We're not going to convince her, Even after hearing us discuss things openly in front of her like this, she still probably thinks it's all just part of an elaborate act, in order to make her lower her guard. She must think that once she agrees to rest, she'll have failed the test, and we'll deem her worthless, just like that noble.
JÒN: Is there anything we can do to make Ella less suspicious of us?
Leah: Yes, First of all, you're going to have to stop trying to pamper her. It's only making things worse.
Rachel: Alright, Ella, you're going to march into that house, and bring me a glass of water. The kitchen is visible from the main hall. It's equipped with a sink with running water, and there are some glasses on one of the upper shelves. Did you get all that?
Ella (gets up in a hurry): Yes, sir, I'll bring it to you at once!
As the girl runs towards the house, Rachel lets out a big sigh, as if what she'd just done had cost her a great deal of energy.
Rachel: I hope I wasn't too harsh on the poor girl?
Leah: We're going to have to think of a way to make Ella get more accustomed to her current situation. Ordering her around like this can only serve as a temporary solution.
As we all sit there and think, Ella comes out of the house, with a glass of water in her hand, and with both of Rachel's siblings running around her in circles as she walks.
Rachel: I think I might just have an idea!
Rachel smiles, as she looks at the three of them.
Suzanne (to Ella): You're very pretty!
Ella (confused): Uh… Thank you, miss— sir.
Suzanne giggles.
Suzanne: I like you,You're funny!
Rachel: I think I have the perfect job for you, Ella!
Ella: W-w-what would you have me do, sir?
Rachel: I want you to follow my little sister Suzanne around wherever she goes, and I want you to listen to her every order for the remainder of the day!
Ella: Of course… I will not let you down.
Suzanne gasps.
Suzanne: She'll do anything I say?
Rachel(smiles): Anything you say!
Suzanne squeals happily when she hears Rachel's answer.
Suzanne: Ella, follow me, I know exactly what we're going to do next!
Ella: Yes, miss— sir…
She follows the little girl into the mansion.
Hagrid: You sure that was a good idea?
Rachel: I'm positive! Now come on, I'll show you each to your rooms, so you can unpack.
After we each settled down in our own rooms, we went to meet outside with Rachel, who needed to go visit the Beggars district, in order to bring all of her collected herbs to the sick. She said she'd most likely come back by sundown, and that she'd leave the house in our care until then. As we all wave goodbye to Rachel, Suzanne suddenly comes out the front door, pulling Ella by the hand, while rushing towards us.
If I did not know that Ella left with Suzanne a little while ago, it would have taken me a minute to figure out whose hand the little girl was holding. The former slave girl was nearly unrecognizable, as she was now wearing an elegant green dress, while her hair had been cleaned up, and meticulously braided. She looked stunning. I guess this explains what the two of them have been doing for the past two hours.
Suzanne: Ta-daaaa!
Hagrid: Wow! That's uh… quite the change. Are you the one who braided her hair, Suzanne?
Suzanne: Yep! Isn't she beautiful? Come on, Ella, don't be shy, and turn around so everyone can see!
Ella seems to be very flustered about all of this, and her cheeks could not be any more red. She probably isn't used to getting this much attention. She turns around, just as ordered, so we could all have a look at her braided hair. Looking at it closely, you could clearly see that there's been a lot of work put into it. The girl must have been at it for at least the better part of an hour.
Suzanne: Come on, Ella! Let's play!
She grabs her hand, and she pulls her back towards the mansion.
Hagrid,Leah, Lily and I spent the rest of the day at one of the picnic tables, chatting and eating some more of Lily's magically conceived delicacies. Damien did not come out of the mansion at all during the day, so he must have spent most of the time in his room. As we all sat down at the table, every once in a while, we'd catch a glimpse of Suzanne and Stella, running around the yard, or playing hide and seek. As the sun was starting to set, it was becoming clear that Ella was making a great effort to keep up with the little girl's demands, as she got more and more tired.
Ella runs around the yard, giving her a piggyback ride.
Suzanne: Faster! You can do it, Ella! Faster!
Kevin: Hey, Suzanne, Ella will do anything you say, right?
Suzanne:Yep!
Kevin: Tell her to stand on her hands!
Suzanne:What? No! Why would I tell her to do that?
Kevin: Because it'd be fun to watch!
Suzanne: I won't tell her to stand on her hands, Kevin!
Kevin: Why not? She'll do everything you tell her to do, so where's the problem?
Suzanne: That doesn't mean we have to make fun of her!
Kevin: Pffft! You're no fun.
Suzanne: No, you're no fun! You're just a mean meanie head, and that's why you don't have any friends!
Suzanne gets down from Stella's back and she hugs her tightly, while giving her brother a menacing look.
Suzanne: Don't worry, Ella, I would never do anything to hurt you!
Ella now looks like she's barely able to stand on her feet.
Stella: Thank you… miss…
She speaks, with the last of her strength, and then she faints, due to exhaustion.
Suzanne: Ella!
When we see what happened, Hagrid and I both rush simultaneously towards Ella, and the first thing we do is to make sure that she is still alive. The girl is still breathing, but she has a very high fever.
Suzanne (cries): I did this! I killed her! I shouldn't have asked her for that piggyback ride! I should have seen that she was too tired! Now she's going to die and it's all my fault!
After she finishes her last sentence, the girl breaks down into uncontrollable crying, and she buries her head in her arms.
JÒN: Suzanne, listen to me... Ella was going to work herself to exhaustion whether you ordered her to or not. It's not your fault.
Leah: I'll go get Damien
Suzanne: You don't know that! You can't know that!
JÒN: Yes, I can. We tried to get Ella to rest, but she wouldn't listen to us. Rachel only entrusted her to you because she knew that you wouldn't overwork her any more than she'd already overwork herself. She's not going to die. She's only exhausted, that's all. She'll recover after a good night's sleep.
Hagrid: Jòn, come on, We need to get her to a bed somewhere. Do you know if there are any empty rooms still left in the mansion?
JÒN: Yeah, there's one at the end of the long hallway on the right, I'll show you the way. Come on, Suzanne, you're coming too!
We manage to get Ella lying on a bed, and soon afterwards, Leah and Damien also come rushing into the room.
Damien (casts a healing spell): Why didn't anyone tell her to get some rest? She was already exhausted enough when we first met her.
Leah: We tried to, but she wouldn't listen. She was too afraid that if she showed any weakness, we'd discard her without thinking, like that noble.
Damien: That lowlife bastard, I'd kill him if he weren't already dead.
After Damien finishes his spell, we can see that the girl's breathing is starting to become more relaxed.
Damien: I took care of the fever, but the fatigue is still there. She'll need to rest for a while in order to fully recover.
Rachel entered the house, and see us all standing around Ella's need.
Rachel: Oh gods, what happened here?
Hagrid: The girl overworked herself, and she fainted from exhaustion.
Rachel: I figured that might happen… Is she going to be okay?
Damien: She's fine. She's just tired. But she won't be able to work anymore for the rest of the day.
Ella: I can still… work…
She wakes up from hearing Damien's words, and she tries to get out of bed, only to fall on her back soon afterwards.
Suzanne: Ella, you're alive! You're alive!
Suzanne shouts happily, and she hugs her with all her might.
Ella: Master, I can still work
Ella says, with a desperate look in her eyes, as she tries to get out of bed again but fails.
Ella: Please, just give me another order.
Rachel: No, You can't work anymore today. You can't even get out of bed. That means that as a slave, you are completely worthless to me now. And the only fate that awaits a worthless slave is death.
Ella looks at Rachel with fear in her eyes, but she no longer has the strength to fight back. Rachel grabs the girl's hand between her palms, she looks her in the eyes, and she gives her a warm smile.
Rachel: But you are not a slave anymore. You have no longer been a slave ever since Jòn saved you from that noble, today. I did not bring you here to work for me as a slave. I brought you here to work as a maid. If I truly considered you to be my slave, then nothing should have stopped me from ending your life when you became a burden to me. You of all people should know this better than anyone.
The fear in Ella's eyes is slowly starting to leave her, and it looks as if she's finally beginning to understand what Rachel really means.
Rachel: You are free, Ella. You are no longer bound by anyone, or anything. You can go wherever you want, and do whatever you want for as long as you want. You don't have to listen to anyone's orders ever again, and you can make your own choices without living in fear.
Rachel pauses.
Rachel: But if you'll allow me to make a selfish request… I would be very grateful if you chose to remain here. I don't have a lot of money to give you, and the kids will probably drive you mad half of the time, but Suzanne has already gotten very attached to you, and I think she'd really miss you if you were gone. I can't promise you that you'll have a good life here, but I can promise that we'll try our hardest to make you feel at home. Ella, would it be too much to ask of you to keep working for us for a while longer?
Ella (about to cry): No! Of course not! I would love to keep working here! My time spent here has been the happiest of my life! I don't want to leave! I promise that I'll work hard, and that I'll never betray your trust!
Rachel (smiles): Then our contract is complete! You can start working chores as soon as you're fully recovered, but if you're really keen on not slacking off today, you can still play with Suzanne. I'm pretty sure that she's not planning to leave your bedside anytime soon!
Now that Rachel had finally managed to put Ella's worries to rest, we decided to leave her alone with Suzanne, so that she could take her mind off her work for a few hours. Since it was getting close to bedtime, we each started heading towards our own rooms and said we'd meet up again in the morning, to plan what we wanted to do next.
Before going to bed, I took a nice long bath in one of the many bathrooms available in the mansion. It was nice to bathe in hot water, for a change, after all of those days of washing in cold lakes and rivers. As I entered my room, my stat device started beeping loudly. It's been a while since I've gotten any new points to spend on my stats. I need to be extra careful with what I choose to upgrade this time, because at this rate, who knows when I'll be getting my next batch of points.
I start thinking how to make the best use of these points. Given that I only have two of them, I ultimately decide to spend them both on my toughness stat. My reflexes may have helped me to avoid getting hit so far, but if I ever get shot with an arrow in the future, I would prefer to not get killed instantly by it.
As soon as I invest my two points, I can feel the whole skin around my body hardening, as well as my muscles. I attempt to pinch my arm very hard, in order to see how well this works, and I am pleased to find out that I can barely even feel any pain from it. I'm not sure how well this will work against arrows, or other piercing weapons, but at the very least this should be a great help against people using blunt weapons, or their fists while fighting. Now, the question is… when I get the next batch of points, should I keep increasing this stat, or should I max my speed and reflexes instead, since I already have them both at level three?
Rachel: Knock, knock!
Rachel stands near the door, as she sees me focusing intensely on the stat device.
Rachel: Am I interrupting something?
JÒN: No, no, I was just about done!
Rachel: It's a good thing that you didn't go to sleep yet.
She walks into my room, carrying a tray full of muffins.
Rachel: I know that these muffins will not compare to anything that Lily can cook up, but I really wanted to show you my appreciation for what you did today somehow!
She places the tray on a small table near my bed, and she seats herself on the bed beside me.
JÒN (takes a bite): These are really good, but there was no need to go out of your way to make them just for me! I don't remember doing anything special. You're the one who came up with the idea to have Ella spend her day with Suzanne You're the one who finally managed to calm her down, not me.
Rachel: You know very well what I'm talking about, Jòn. I'm talking about the moment when you took it upon yourself to save that girl's life, despite the enormous risks and dangers that you put yourself through because of it.
JÒN: Oh, there's no need to thank me for that! I only did it because it felt right to me at the time, not because I wanted any reward.
Rachel: I know... And that's why I'm thanking you. Your selfless actions are what gave me the courage to finally start addressing the problem that I've been trying to ignore for all these years. Seeing that girl's face light up when I told her she could stay here made me happier than any other reward ever could. After all these years, I finally feel like I'm starting to make a difference. And it's all thanks to you, Jòn!
All of a sudden, Rachel looks away from me, as if she'd just remembered something.
Rachel: Maybe we shouldn't be sitting here, talking like this. I wouldn't want to give Leah the wrong idea about us if she wonders by…
JÒN: Hold on, I think you're the one who might have gotten the wrong idea! There was never anything going on between me and Leah. Honest! I didn't feel my heart racing at all when I met her, unlike the time when I first saw you!
Rachel blushes when she hears what I said.
Rachel: You felt your heart racing when you first saw me?
Rachel asks me, and then she pauses for a few seconds.
Rachel: Do you… still feel the same way about me now?
JÒN: Of course! I always feel that way when I talk to you.
Rachel's cheeks have now turned even redder than before. She doesn't say a word for a few seconds, and then she suddenly gets a very determined look on her face.
Rachel: Alright, then!
Rachel says, as she gets up from the bed, goes to close and lock the bedroom's door and then comes back to place herself right in front of me.
JÒN: What are you—
I don't get to finish, as Rachel bends over and kisses my lips softly.
She then gets on top of me and slowly pushes me onto the bed, as her lips remain pressed against mine.
JÒN: Wait, wait, wait... We're doing this now?
Rachel: Why not? Would you rather we do this in some ruins, while fighting a bunch of ogres?
JÒN: Well, no, but… I mean, we're still kind of in the middle of a deadly mage tournament.
Rachel: We're not getting married, Jòn. It's just one night. As long as I drink my tea of infertility in the morning, we may as well talk about it tomorrow .
JÒN: Yes, but—
Rachel puts her index finger on my lips in order to silence me.
Rachel: I will not hear another word from you. This is my thanks to you for everything you've done for me since we first met. We are doing this, and that's final!
She smiles.
Rachel: You don't need to worry about anything, Jòn. Just close your eyes, and let me take care of everything. I promise you that neither of us is going to regret this!
She then presses her lips against mine once more, as she starts to slowly unbutton my shirt. The next two hours seemed like they were almost a dream. Was I really still in the same place where I've been desperately fighting for my life for almost a week? The same place where I spent my time fighting dragons, dodging traps and stealing treasure from ogres? Actually, now that I pause to think about it, last week is starting to sound a lot more like a dream than what happened tonight. Maybe it really was a dream. I mean, seriously… Dragons? Who in their right mind would ever believe a story like that?
With these final thoughts, I put my head on the pillow, I hug Rachel tightly in my arms, and I close my eyes. I wake up several hours later, to the sound of Damien's voice.
Damien: Jòn, wake up! You're not planning on sleeping in again, are you? Come on, get up, or we'll leave you behind!
As Damien leaves, I take a look outside my window, and I see that the sun had only just risen about an hour ago. Everyone was already waiting outside, while Rachel's siblings were running around the yard, as lively as ever. I guess it wasn't a dream after all.
I jump out of bed and get dressed, but I don't take my backpack with me. Damien probably only meant that we were going downtown to get some supplies. I take some money with me, and my dagger, just in case, and then I head downstairs.
Rachel wasn't in my room when I woke up, which means that she most likely left early, in order to avoid turning us into today's main headline. It was probably for the best. I don't think I could bear to look at Hagrid's smug grin if he ever found out about what happened last night. I approach everyone who was waiting in the yard.
Damien: About time... What took you so long?
Damien (to Rachel): Where are we going?
Rachel: We're going to a hospital from the Beggar's district. I went there yesterday, after visiting the Falcon's district, and I saw a lot of wounded who weren't being treated properly due to a severe lack of qualified personnel. None of them seemed to be in critical condition, but Damien's healing spells would be a godsend to those people. At first, I only wanted to bring Damien, but Hagrid insisted that we all go.
Hagrid: It's safer if we all stick together. Just because we're in a city, it doesn't mean that we can let our guards down. We're still in the middle of a deadly tournament, after all.
Rachel: Alright, is everyone ready?
Lily: Wait, Rachel, I just remembered I wanted to ask you something!
Rachel: Yes, Lily, what is it?
Lily: Did something happen to you while you were in your room, last night?
Rachel: No, nothing happened, why do you ask?
Lily: Well, I thought that you might have been afraid of getting attacked in your sleep, or something, since this morning I saw you come out of Jòn's room, instead of yours.
After Lily finishes her sentence, her eyes suddenly turn bright blue, as Elyria smacks herself hard in the forehead. Rachel's face had turned completely red, and everyone was now looking straight at us.
Leah: Rachel... D-d-did you and Jòn—
Hagrid: Hahahaha! Way to go, Jòn! I always knew you had it in you! I-
Damien coughs loudly, all of sudden, and he drowns out Hagrid's words.
Damien: Rachel, which way did you say the hospital was again? Are we taking the same route as yesterday?
Rachel: No! There's no reason to take that roundabout way anymore. We can take a more direct path this time. Follow me, I'll show you the way.
After we left the mansion, nobody mentioned anything about me and Rachel anymore. Damien's intervention seems to have been enough to bring them all back to their senses. He may be an ass most of the time, but when push comes to shove, I guess he can really be a lot of help. I owe him one for this.
It took us less than an hour to reach the Beggar's district this time around. The foul smell was still there, but somehow it didn't bother me so much anymore. Maybe I had gotten accustomed to it in the meantime.
Leah: Rachel, are you sure it's a good idea to be seen alongside us right now? We may well have become wanted criminals in this city after yesterday's incident.
Rachel: Oh, you don't need to worry about me. A few years ago, our king enacted a law that prevents us locals from being incriminated by simply associating with criminals from other continents. Since Avalonians aren't prone to associating with outsiders in general, it is assumed that when they do, it is because they are being held hostage. The gnome king has enacted many such laws that protect us from harm over the past few years. He is seen as a king of the people, and many look up to him because of that.
JÒN: Hostages? Has the spell protecting you from outsiders malfunctioned before now?
Rachel: The spell that they used to prevent you from attacking us has never been used before, as far as I know. I don't know how they managed to do it for this tournament, but I'm supposing that they either cooperated with a very talented mage, or they somehow got their hands on a powerful new device. So far, whenever people got invited to this continent, they would be kept under strict supervision, and they'd be teleported back if they misbehaved. However, there have been cases where outsiders have not been properly kept in check, and they've caused quite a bit of damage before they were finally punished.
Hagrid: You said earlier that this king of yours is a gnome? Did I hear that right?
Rachel: Yes, you heard me right
Hagrid: Are we talking about the same kind of gnomes, here? You know, the frail looking midgets that can't grow a beard and that are even smaller than dwarves? The ones that are so disorganized that they can't even form their own country, choosing instead to live their lives as nomads who never settle down in one place for more than a few years?
Rachel: They may be seen as disorganized by many people, but no one can deny the fact that they are also incredibly resourceful, and that most of the great inventors of our time are of gnome origin. The king of Thilias was also a renowned inventor before he was elected as king.
Leah: Elected? Do you mean to say that the current king of Thilias is not of royal blood?
Rachel: Yes, that is what I'm saying. The old king of Thilias did not leave an heir, and before he died of old age he made a public announcement, saying that he wanted the next king to be elected through a vote, so that he may become a true king of the people. Naturally, the nobles did not really agree with this, but they couldn't defy the king openly, so they were forced to hold the vote, despite their misgivings. Since Gregor was very well known for his inventions and for his cheerful personality, he quickly became the favorite candidate, and he was eventually chosen by a vast majority to rule over our kingdom.
Elyria: I don't mean to interrupt, but is this marketplace supposed to be so deserted at this hour? I would have expected at least the merchants to be awake at this time in the morning.
Rachel: No, you're right. This is strange. Usually this place is filled with people around this time of day. And come to think of it, most of the streets that we've passed so far have been empty as well.
Hagrid: This smells like an ambush to me.
Rakaia: Yeah, it's definitely an ambush. There are two mages heading our way right now. They will appear in front of us, once they pass that corner.
Just as Rakaia finishes her sentence, the whole area around us is lit by a bright green light for a few seconds, and immediately afterwards, Rachel loses her consciousness and falls on the ground. Damien rushes to her side, in order to check her pulse, and he signals to us that she is still alive.
Hagrid: Where did that light come from? Did those two mages do it?
Elyria: It's very likely. You may not have realized it because I am still controlling the body, but Lily has also fainted, and I can't wake her up. She looks like she's in some kind of a stasis, much like the one I put her in when we were at the ogre fort.
As Damien tries to wake Rachel up, the two mages that were coming our way finally make their appearance. One of them is dressed in black robes and has a snake tattoo on his bald head, while the other one is wearing green robes and a silver circlet on his head. I immediately recognize them as being the two followers of the God of Death and the God of Fate that tried to kill us with the stillborn skeletons on the day that we met Hagrid.
Totti: So much for your stupid trap, Zack. We paid all of that money and all we managed to do was to knock out the one member of their team who can't even put up a fight.
Zack: Silence, fool. The merchant warned us that the trap had a low chance of success against trained mages. And we didn't just get one of them, we got two. If you look closely, you can see that the little girl is actually a fusion of two souls. We managed to put the host in a dormant state, while the cortana is still keeping control of the body.
Damien: You! How are you still here after hurting Rachel? Why didn't the tournament's spell send you back?
Totti: I would ask you the same thing, healer in armor. Didn't you or one of your friends kill a local yesterday? That is what it says on this poster, after all.
He takes a rolled up poster out of his sleeve, and he unfurls it in front of us, so we can all see its contents. On the piece of paper, we see some poorly drawn sketches of me, Damien, Leah and Theo along with a title that says: 'Wanted - Dead or Alive - Damien, the healer in armor, and his accomplices, for the murder of the earl of Ollendor'. The reward on our heads is in a local currency that I am unfamiliar with, but I'm guessing that they're probably offering a lot of money, given the circumstances.
Totti: We just happened to see this poster yesterday while we were looking for a few bounties to kill some time, and we quickly agreed that it was no mere coincidence, but the hand of fate that was guiding our actions.
Zack: It wasn't fate, it was the God of Death himself who was giving us another chance to make up for our miserable failure from last week. This time we'll make sure to send you all to your graves, in the name of my god.
Leah: How did you know we'd be here?
Totti (points at Rachel): It's all thanks to your friend over there. Some beggar overheard her telling a nurse in the hospital that she'd be bringing a skilled healer to tend to the sick. He sold us the tip for a reasonable sum, and we arranged the emptying of the streets together with the local guards, in case the healer in question was indeed the one we were looking for. Now then, Zack, you should just stand aside while I deal with these weaklings. I alone should be more than enough to finish them off.
Damien: No, you're not. We already know that your god specializes in illusions. Illusions are useless against enemies who already expect them.
Totti: Are you sure about that, healer?
All of a sudden, hundreds of clones of both him and his ally fill the entire marketplace area around us.
Damien (dashes towards him): You haven't moved from your original position, genius. I know which one is the real you.
As Damien reaches the two original mages, he slashes his sword and cuts through them both in one strike. Instead of dying, however, the two mages simply fade away into the air.
Leah: What is the meaning of this? If those two were in fact illusions, then does that mean that the real mages were hiding invisibly when they cast the illusion spell?
JÒN: Rakaia, why didn't you tell us that the mages were invisible?
Rakaia: Because they weren't, If anyone were to hide anywhere invisibly, I would have sensed them.
JÒN: Then how do you explain the fact that the ones we were seeing were in fact illusions?
Rakaia: How am I supposed to know that, jackass? Figure it out yourself!
JÒN: Can you at least figure out which ones of these are the originals?
Rakaia: No, I never bothered to learn how to tell the difference between clones and originals, because whenever someone would cast a spell like this against me, I would simply use a spell of my own to destroy them all at the same time, and that would be the end of that.
Hagrid: Does anyone have any idea why none of the clones have attacked us yet? They're just standing there, smirking like a bunch of morons. Do you think they're waiting for something?
JÒN: Leah, could you freeze the whole area around us in order to take care of all the clones at the same time?
As soon as I stop talking, I see a vision (premonition stat) in which Leah blasts all of the clones with a wave of ice. Once they all disappear, Leah's freezing wave quickly reverses its direction, and it hits us all before we get the time to react.
Leah: Yes, I was about to do just that.
JÒN: Wait! Don't do it!
Leah is looking a little confused, but she stops her spell just in time.
Leah: Why not?
JÒN: I just had a premonition, If you had cast that spell, it would have turned against us and frozen us all, right after the clones disappeared.
Hagrid: So the clones are a trap, then?
Rakaia: Wait a minute! I think I got it!
Leah: Do you recognize the spell?
Rakaia: Of course. This is actually one of Memphir's favorite illusion spells. No wonder he started teaching it to his followers.
Hagrid: Memphir? Is that the name of the God of Fate?
Rakaia: Yeah, that's him. The spell is designed in such a way that when all of the illusions get destroyed, the attackers get hit back with all of the spells they'd cast to slay the clones. I always used to fall for that stupid trick.
JÒN: How can you tell that it's the exact same spell?
Rakaia: If you pay close attention, you will see that all of the clones have an easily recognizable signature in their magical auras. The flow of their auras has a sort of slithering motion to it. Kind of like a snake moving in the grass. Do you get what I'm saying?
JÒN: Yeah, I think I get it.
Hagrid: Hey, I think I can see it too! This is great! Now we just need to see which of them don't carry this signature, and we'll know who the originals are!
Rakaia: Uh-huh! Good luck with that.
Leah: Why are you saying this?
Rakaia: Because I already checked... Twice. None of them are the originals.
Damien: Are you saying that the real mages were never actually here, and they just cast the illusion spell from afar?
Rakaia: No, I've been monitoring the whole area around us ever since I noticed that the streets were empty, and I guarantee you that the only mages who were close enough to cast an illusion spell on us were the two that ambushed us.
JÒN (to himself): But that makes no sense, If those two were the real mages, then what happened to them? Did they just turn into illusions as well when they cast the spell?
Suddenly, an idea comes to me.
JÒN: Wait… I think I may be onto something, but I'll need some confirmation before I'm sure. Elyria, check my thinking. Could this all be an illusion? Not just the clones before us, but the whole world around us, too? You know, like that time with the shaman.
Elyria: No, that's impossible. If a mind affecting spell of that caliber had been cast on us, then there should have been a visual effect of some sort, for all of us to see, in the same way that the underground caverns were filled with smoke when the shaman cast his spell. There was no such—
Elyria pauses for a second, as realization dawns upon her.
Elyria: The green light! Of course! I should have realized it immediately! This also explains why their so called trap affected Rachel. It's because the reverse is what actually happened. Their mind affecting spell could not target Rachel, and so, it appeared to us as if she'd been rendered unconscious. It's probably the same for Lily as well.
Damien: Great! So we're back to square one, then. We need to find the real mages so we can kill them and get out of the illusion.
Elyria: No, we don't. We only needed to do that with the shaman because he'd trapped himself in the illusion with us in order to prevent us from escaping, remember? Since the mages are not actually here with us, it means that this illusion's main purpose was not to kill us, but to buy time so that they could kill us in the real world while we were defenseless. This leads me to believe that time is flowing at the same speed here as in the real world, which is different from what we experienced in the shaman ritual.
Leah: Oh gods! If that's true, then it means that Lily has been fighting the two mages by herself in the real world all this time!
Elyria: Most likely. We need to get out of here quick. Everyone, close your eyes and start visualizing the moments before the mages cast the illusion on us. You need to do this with the conviction that the image in your head represents the real world, and that you want to return to it. If we all do this at once, we'll break the illusion's effect over us.
We all close our eyes and start doing as Elyria said. As I get a clear image of the city's streets in my mind, the image starts to become clearer and clearer, until I feel myself getting pulled into it, and suddenly I realize that my imagination had become reality without me even noticing it. As I open my eyes, I see myself standing in the middle of the street, but everything looks a lot different from how I remembered it.
There are craters all around us, the walls from the houses on the side of the street have all been charred, and there's a huge skeletal dragon standing right in front of us. Rachel is on her knees, crying, and Lily looks like she's barely able to stand on her feet, but she's staring at the dragon defiantly. She is bruised all over, and her clothes are a complete mess, but there is a very intimidating aura surrounding her, feeling as if it were made from a fire hotter than that of her elemental magic. When Lily senses that we've finally awoken from the illusion spell, she turns to us and she gives us a tired smile.
Lily: You broke the spell! I knew you could do it. I knew it…
As she utters the last words, Lily's eyes slowly close, and then she drops to the ground, unconscious. Damien is now hurrying over to her side, in order to shield her from the dragon, in case it decides to strike her while she's down.
Rachel (holds back her tears): She was so reckless… She never stopped fighting even after she had clearly exceeded her limits. She was desperately trying to protect you, even at the cost of her own life…
Elyria: It's alright
She takes control of the girl's body, but she doesn't get up from the ground.
Elyria: The girl only fainted due to exhaustion. She's not going to die.
Zack: Do you see what you've done now, fool? If your useless god's spell had worked properly like you said it would, we wouldn't be in this mess!
Totti: Don't you dare pin this on me!
Totti's sweating all over, looking as if he's about to faint from exhaustion as well.
Totti: My spell was never designed to work against fusioned souls. It just targeted the soul that was controlling the body at the time and left the other one alone. There was no way I could have prevented it from happening. You're the only one to blame for this, you stingy bastard! If you had just used that stillborn summoning spell of yours when I told you to, they would have all died within seconds.
Zack: Be quiet, heathen, I can only cast that spell once a day. It would be an insult to the great God of Death Ulruk if I were to waste its one daily use so early in the morning, on the likes of them.
Totti: Are you kidding me?! Do you have any idea how much magical energy I needed to spend in order to keep them in that illusion for so long? I had to cancel all of my protections two hours ago just so I'd be able to cast the damn spell! I don't even have my magic shield on right now!
Just as the green robed mage stops talking, an ice cone passes straight through his head, and soon afterwards he falls on the ground, lifeless.
Leah: Thanks for letting me know.
Zack: You wench! Do you have no honor?
Leah (smirks): He should pay more attention during a fight.
Zack: There is no need for honor when killing irredeemable heathens such as you!
JÒN: Wasn't your friend a heathen too, though? Why would there have been any need for honor when killing him, then?
Zack: Because unlike you, he was actually serving the God of Death's cause. You, on the other hand, are so beyond salvation that you can only serve him through your deaths! It is therefore my duty to send you to him before you stray even further from the righteous path.
Damien: Elyria, can you move?
Elyria: No, the girl pushed her body way beyond its limits while we were in the illusion. I can feel an ache coming from every single bone and muscle, and I can't even manage to move one finger. Her body is bruised all over, her clothes are a mess, and Rakaia's amulet is…
She pauses for a moment, and all of a sudden, we hear a crack coming from the amulet around her neck.
Elyria: Oh… Oh, no…
Rakaia: Aha- Ahahaha—
The amulet cracks again, this time a lot more violently than before, and Rakaia's laughter intensifies even further.
Rakaia: Ahahahahaha!
Suddenly, the amulet breaks completely, and a dark aura envelops Elyria, as the girl's body slowly raises itself into the air, in an upright position. A very powerful wind is now blowing in our faces, pushing us all away from her, while the sky is becoming darker and darker by the second. The girl's eyes are now slowly turning from bright blue to pitch black, as she grins widely, while looking at each of us in turn.
Rakaia: So this is what you all look like in the flesh! It was kind of hard to tell from inside the amulet, going by magical sense alone. How you people can get by every day without being mistaken for a circus troupe is beyond me.
Hagrid: You're one to talk, you do realize that you are literally dressed like a clown right now, don't you?
Rakaia grins evilly at Hagrid.
Rakaia: Dwarf! Are you sure it's a good idea to be standing there, cracking jokes? Shouldn't you rather be buying me that beer you owe me? I could really go for a drink right about now. That and mass murder. I'm still not sure which one I should be starting with!
Leah: Lily…
Leah speaks weakly
Leah: What happened to Lily? Where are Lily and Elyria?
Rakaia: Oh, they're dead, Or should I rather say… 'absorbed'? What happened is that I merged with their souls when I took over their body. They're both part of me, now.
Leah: So, they're both still in there… somewhere?
Rakaia: Well, I guess you could say that, if you want to be all technical about it, but the fact of the matter is—
Zack: Monster! Abomination! Begone, foul demon!
Suddenly, the skeletal dragon, which had not moved an inch since we escaped the illusion, flaps its wings and rushes towards Rakaia, roaring loudly. Just as it reaches her, the dragon explodes into a thousand tiny pieces that get scattered throughout the whole area around us.
Rakaia: Really, now…
As the dragon's bones fly in all directions, the ground begins to shake, and several skeletons start to slowly rise from it. It doesn't take me long to realize that this is the necromancer's doing, and that all of the skeletons standing in front of us are stillborn.
Zack: Do you understand now, cortana? Do you understand who you are facing against? This is the true power of the God of Death! If you get on your knees now and beg for Ulrake's forgiveness, he might just see fit to grant you a quick and painless death.
Rakaia ignores the mage completely, choosing instead to stare intently at one of the skeletons that have risen from the ground.
Rakaia: Wait a minute! I know you! You're Vallen, right? Short-legs Vallen who couldn't hold a tune to save his life! You're not going to hurt me, are you? Remember all of those fun times we've had during the still night? Remember that time when we had to fish you out of a pond because you fell in while you were practicing your flying spell and you suddenly remembered that you couldn't swim? Remember how we used to make fun of you because you always walked funny after you expended all your magical energy? Remember when I tied you to a tree and forced you to watch me slowly murder all of your friends until you could manage to hit all the notes in that kiddy song about the lion and the lamb? Those were the days, huh? Now, how did that song go again?
Rakaia clears her throat and she begins to sing
As Rakaia sings the song, the skeleton named Vallen starts to shake uncontrollably, and it puts both its hands on its head, as if it were having an intense headache. Eventually, its pain turns into rage, and it roars loudly, as it starts shooting fire out of its hands. The fire simply brushes off Rakaia's magical shield, and she acts as if nothing happened, continuing to sing her song.
Zack: Why are you just standing there, you fools?! Attack her! Kill her!
The skeletons all start flinging spells at Rakaia, attacking her with all types of elemental magic simultaneously, while also using spells to weaken her defenses. Rakaia acts as if she doesn't even notice the onslaught of spells that are being cast upon her, and she continues to sing without any interruptions.
Zack: You can stop your little act now, cortana. I can see right through you. Even if you are acting calm and collected, the reality is that you can barely even withstand the barrage of attacks that are being flung against you, and that you have no means of fighting back. Since my skeletons are now fully protected against sonic attacks, you could say that they have become near indestructible! There's nothing you can do to hurt them.
Rakaia stops singing, and she smiles wickedly at the necromancer.
Rakaia (mockingly): Oh, they are protected from sonic attacks, you say? How impressive! Truly, you are a mage among mages. But tell me, necromancer, did you consider shielding your puppets from pebbles as well?
Zack: What kind of a question is that, you little—
While the necromancer was talking, Rakaia made a few pebbles from the ground float into her hand, and then she started flinging them with her fingers towards each of the skeletons. When the pebbles reached them, the skeletons exploded, but this time into pieces so small that they could very well be confused with specks of dust.
When the necromancer saw what happened, his jaw dropped, and he couldn't bring himself to utter another word. He was in too great of a shock.
Rakaia: Yeah, you go ahead and wrap that up and then send it to old Ulrake as a present. Tell him it's from Rakaia. Tell him that he should be expecting many more presents from me in the near future. Tell him that once I'm done with the earthen plane, I'll be paying him a visit. I'll visit him, I'll visit Memphir, I'll visit every single one of the so-called gods that thought it would be a good joke to have me banned from the magical plane along with every other cortana in existence. And then we can all have a party together, while we reminisce over times long forgotten!
Damien: Shut up!
He starts walking towards her, with a furious look on his face.
Damien: I couldn't care less about your past or your personal vendettas. You bring them back, you hear me?! You bring them both back this instant!
Rakaia: Excuse me?
Damien: You know what I'm talking about! Lily and Elyria. You bring them both back right now!
Rakaia: What, are you ugly and stupid? Didn't I just tell you that I absorbed their souls when I took over the body? What do you expect me to do, cut them out of me with a meat cleaver?
Damien (pulls out his sword): If you're not going to let them go, then I'll force you to do it! Prepare yourself, cortana!
Rakaia (grins): So, mass murder it is, then.
Before he even takes three steps, Damien is suddenly engulfed in flames, burning at an incredibly rapid pace. Within seconds, the only thing that's left of him is his armor, as the rest of his body had been completely turned into ash.
Leah (covers her mouth): No… No!
She conjures a hundred icicles that she aims towards Rakaia, but before she gets to attack her with them, she is suspended in mid air, and not a second later decapitated
Blood gushers everywhere as her body drops and her head rolls.
Rachel (cries): No! Please, stop! Please!
Rakaia (grins wickedly): What's the matter, Hagrid? Aren't you going to show me that giant's fighting spirit of yours that you like to brag about so much? I'm right here! What are you waiting for?
Hagrid: I'll show you fighting spirit, you arrogant old hag.
As a trickle of sweat runs down the side of his forehead, he rushes towards Rakaia, with his fists at the ready.
He is immediately thrown against a wall, and soon withers away. All that's left is dust
Rachel (weakly): Please…
JÒN (to himself): They're dead. They all died right in front of me. How can this be? Is this another illusion? It has to be! That's right! This must be an illusion!
I close my eyes and try to visualize the real world in my mind. I try to make the image as clear as possible, and I try to throw myself into it, just like I did before, but nothing's happening. Nothing's happening…
Rakaia: You're not seriously going to close your eyes and pretend that I'm not here, are you? Come on, take out your dagger. It's no fun killing you if you don't even put up a fight.
After hearing Rakaia's provocation, I take out my dagger, and I look her straight in the eye.
Rakaia (grins): Alright, then! This is it, Jòn. An epic duel of the ages in the making. Hero versus villain. Cortana versus thackeray. The bards will be singing songs of us for thousands of years to come. Let's do this, COME ON!!!
>>>End Of Chapter 14<<<