I worked on studying runes for the rest of that day, until Eva and Rose reappeared and I joined them at their table. The guild was filling quickly, but I felt it was an excuse to let them play with the foxes and dissuade any adventurers from flirting with them. It didn’t stop them all, but they said they were propositioned far less with me there than without. At one point I caught the eye of the blue armored adventurer who glowered in my direction over a cup of beer. I didn’t really care.
After that, we parted ways late in the evening and the following morning I made my way down to the tavern again. I met Perry and joined him in his carriage as promised. It was luxurious. With [Runesight] active I could hardly see the physical details over the magical ones. The thing was absolutely covered in magic. Protection wards, air control enchants, lights, speed adjustment controls. It was incredibly complex, and just sitting inside of it I could feel the ambient mana was far higher than outside.
Perry had a fair bit of paperwork to do so we mostly sat in silence as the carriage jostled and we made our way back to Linden. The city was about three days away by foot but by carriage we made it there in about a day. During this time I was able to commit a fair amount of new runes to memory and started working on a few new spells, but they were far from complete.
I did manage to find out that in Ironfell there were no healers who could regrow or replace my lost hand, but I hadn’t expected there to be. Healers were already fairly rare as it was, and those of a high enough level to heal such an injury were rarer still. According to Perry there were a total of three within the kingdom that could heal my arm, two of which lived in the capitol and the last was an adventurer who was very difficult to get ahold of. There was someone who was able to reattach limbs in Ironfell, and she was sitting at the cusp of being able to regrow them, but I resigned myself to living with one hand for the foreseeable future
The runes in the new books I had acquired were far more complex than the ones I had been using. It was like the difference between the words “Swiftly” and “Expediated”. They both meant similar things, but one was more eloquent and contained more syllables. Or the similarities between an inferno and a fire. An inferno was just a massive, out of control fire after all.
At one point Luka felt far too constrained in the small moving box containing us and so I let him out. He managed to barely keep up and after an hour or so of running asked to be let back in, pouting that he couldn’t continue the pace. Sky took that as a challenge and went out for two hours. She had no problem keeping up but had to draw on her mana in order to do so. Something about moving like the wind.
When we arrived in Linden, I was struck by how much progress had already been made. It was evening, but even in the dark I could see how many buildings had been rebuilt and how much of the gore had been cleaned up. I could also see dozens of people walking around with a haunted look on their face, though that was to be expected. There were members of a church giving out food to anyone who had had their lives halted by the cultists actions.
The city felt empty. There were so many buildings and yet not nearly enough people to fill them all, it seemed. There were not many men around, the majority were women and children. I saw all of this through the window of the carriage as we were brought to a tavern. Perry paid for our rooms, and we parted ways having only made idle conversation on the way here. The air itself was somber. It reminded me of when I had visited Auschwitz in my early twenties while on a trip to Poland. Everything around us was heavy, weighted. It did not make for a good environment for conversation for fear of disrespecting the people who were hurting.
And so, in silence, we made our goodnights before I went up to my room with a platter of food and continued my studies. I had an idea for how to enchant a flame attributed magic sword, as well as what sort of blade I wanted it to be. For the enchantment, I wanted it to amplify the magic. I wanted it to also hold spells longer if possible and to have an enchantment that let me coat the blade with that specific type of mana on a whim. Unlike spells, I didn’t need to remake the enchantment every time I wanted to use it so I decided to go with a third tier spell array, a total of one hundred twenty five runes. I could have used a different prime number as the base, but I was used to the five rune base and would continue to use it as needed. Plus, it was a solid amount of runes and could output a significant amount of energy.
I worked on the runes until well into the night, relying on a single flame from a lantern beside my bed. Truthfully, once I got started I didn’t want to stop until I had finished the puzzle. I redrew the new runes in my notebook over and over again until they felt secure. Until I could recall them perfectly in my [Rune Compendium]. By the time I fell asleep I had completed maybe a third of the enchantment and memorized a few dozen of the runes. The first book alone held over two hundred individual runes. I was currently focusing on the Lexico books, figuring I could always try the Frith books after. Lexico was my foundation, and a strong foundation made for a powerful knowledge base.
The next morning, the day of the service, I woke up with plenty of time to prepare. The service would be held just before the midday meal, lunch of course, and I woke about two hours prior with the sun still rising to crest its apex. Perry was reading a dossier at a table in the tavern while sipping on a warm liquid. I didn’t recognize it but figured it was likely a cider or mulled wine.
Upon seeing me, he stood up, finished his drink and gestured toward the door. Sky hopped onto my shoulder, causing me to hunch over slightly but it wasn’t so bad. Luka stayed beside my left foot, eyes peeled on everything around us. I walked with Perry outside, where he immediately brought me over to where a monolith had already been constructed. Mages were still carving names into it with magic, and likely wouldn’t stop until long after the day was over. As it stood, one side was completely full and the other three were just getting started. The monolith itself was made of a bright marble like stone. Instead of blacks and browns and hazels swirling around the pale white stone, green and red and yellow lines did.
There was already a small crowd gathered and even more people were slowly making their way here. Many were wiping tears from their eyes with handkerchiefs or cut up cloth. A lot of them had brought flowers with them, a final gift for their lost loved ones. Perry and I simply stood to the side and waited. His eyes passed over each individual who walked by, likely looking for his daughter and grandkids. We made some idle conversation, with me asking him a bit about Ironfell and the tournament.
Evidently it wasn’t only a sword competition, not anymore. There was a competition for dozens of class types, including blacksmithing and beast taming. Cooking, wizardry and others as well. Of course, I was only interested in participating in two of them, swordsmanship and blacksmithing, but the rest may be fun to see. The entire festival was set to take a few months from start to finish. According to Perry, the swords competition was always the finale with the qualifier rounds beginning at the start of the festival and ending only a week prior to the tournament itself. I had a little under four months to prepare, to learn to fight with a single hand.
After a short while, a young dwarven woman with startling blue eyes approached us. She had a sad smile on her face as she stepped directly in front of Perry and wrapped her arms around him before he could stop her. Not that he wanted to. There were tears in his eyes too. A moment later, a human man walked up sheepishly while holding the hand of a small boy, one who had some dwarvish features as well as human. Namely the wide, cheek heavy facial structure of the dwarves despite being lanky like a human child.
“Mr. Winkle, its lovely to see you again.” The man cringed as he used, apparently, Perry’s last name. I suppressed a chuckle as the dwarf glowered at the man.
“Edward, I’m your father in law. You can call me Perry, or dad, or father. Just never, ever, ever call me Mr. Winkle again.” The dwarf shuddered before pulling the six foot tall human into a hug and muttering, “I’m glad to see you're safe Ed.”
Before anyone else could say anything, a well dressed man around the same age as Adrien and Elric stepped up to the monolith. He wore a dazzling blue and black robe made of expensive fabrics. I could feel the magic through [Portent], which I was attempting to train to the point I could keep it active at all times. My mana regeneration broke even with the skill, so as long as I wasn’t actively casting spells or fighting I could keep the skill active with only the risk of getting a headache. A small price to pay for improving my skill.
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The man on the podium clapped his hands, sending a loud wave of sound through the growing crowd. We were all huddled in the center of the city, thousands of people crammed into a relatively small space with more being forced to look out windows of buildings. Silence followed the claps, everyone turned to focus on the man.
“People of Linden, please allow me to introduce myself for those of you who don’t know me. I am the son of Duke Marlon Weatherlight, Derek.” The man took a deep breath, shaking visibly with anger and sorrow. “As you all know, very intimately, several days ago this city was assaulted by a group of cultists. Before we get into the memorial service, I wanted to spread some light into the information that we have found out over the past few days of investigating. We believe that we have discovered who the leader of this cult is, as well as the name of two of the perpetrators. We are, however, unsure on how many cretins call the cult their home. There will be a formal announcement in the coming weeks with all information made available to law enforcement, adventurers, and likely the citizens of our dukedom.
“Now, we are unsure on their motive aside from the fact that they were powering a massive ritual before they were interrupted by a group of adventurers and myself. I understand a lot of you wished to thank these adventurers’ but four of the five are out seeking the refuge of these foul adversaries as we speak. However, one of them is present with us today to share in our sorrow.” He took another deep breath before glancing at the few people who were gathered directly beside the monolith. There was a woman adorned in white and gold robes, a follower of Luma if ever I had seen one. She held a scepter before her, one carved with power and magic. Beside her stood a sniffling woman clasping a book in her arms. She held an air of regality, she was no peasant but she didn’t seem to carry herself as much higher than the others here.
“Now, let us begin the memorial in earnest. Today is a day filled with longing and sorrow and rage. Monsters tore through our fair city with no regard for the peace and love and prosperity that enriched it, with no regard for the lives that lived here. We all, everyone here, lost something on that day, something we cannot get back. But, despite our losses we rebuild, we survive, we thrive. For our lost ones we will continue and we will persevere. We will regain what was lost, reconstruct our sanctuary such that these monsters will face a reckoning should they reappear. We will grow in strength and power, grow in faith and wonder. We will step up together to remember those who fell and those who came to save us.
“We, of Linden, will not seek refuge nor cower in fear. No, we seek retribution and recourse, and we shall have it. Behind me, a monolith set to remember those we have lost even past the days our own breaths have stopped. A remembrance of those who sacrificed themselves to buy everyone else time to survive, to get help. The names of all those whom we have lost are to be listed, etched for all of time, on this marble pillar. A reminder of why we continue to live, not for revenge but so that we may not face such horror again. Why we continue to grow strong, why we support each other and lift each other up. Together we will overcome this tragedy, together we will grow stronger still. Together we shall prevent this massacre from repeating itself. This I promise you on the name of Marlon Weatherlight, beneath Luma’s grace.
“We will heal from this. We will remember this. We will work to prevent this from ever occurring again. This is not a call for revenge, but a call for growth. We all must grow in these coming days, all must rise up to rebuild not only the buildings but the security of our homes. And so we shall lift each other up, we will rise about this challenge. We will remember all those we have lost and pray for their bountiful afterlives as we continue to live. As we spread their memories...”
The son of the Duke continued on for a few more minutes. After him, the priestess of Luma spoke a prayer, asking Luma to bless the souls on their way to the afterlife. People throughout the crowd sniffled and wiped their eyes with handkerchiefs but took on a strong expression, resolving themselves to rebuild. It couldn’t be easy, over half of the people who called this place hom were gone. Dead and buried by now. After the priestess, the woman carrying the book stepped forward. She was the wife of the, now deceased, Lord of Linden. He had, of course, died during the assault, trying to defend the keep from the cultists while buying time for his wife and children to escape.
After she gave a speech recalling his sacrifice, others were invited to step up to tell a story or memory of their lost loved ones. The lords wife opened the book and used magic to scribble down every word that was said. Despite over five thousand people observing, no more than a hundred recounted their own experiences and that of their loved ones. The stories were heartwarming, and many people laughed even in the face of the horrible few days they had just had. I found myself chuckling at several of them. After about two hour of testimonials, Derek called for everyone to disperse so that he and his crew could set up a feast for the evening.
“Father, Lios was it? Join us for lunch?” Perry’s daughter asked as everyone started to break apart.
I shared a glance with Perry, who nodded, and smiled. “I would love to.”
With that she led us to her home near the edge of the city, an area that still suffered from some damage as the repairs started from the center - from the most important buildings. On our walk I learned that her name was Mary, which made me want to chuckle considering the proximity to Perry. Mary Winkle. It was a good name, I was sure. We wound our way through the city slowly, dodging people as they resumed the bustle of repairs they were enacting on the city.
Once we were in her home, she and Edward began cooking in a flurry, prepared to provide a feast themselves. They left Perry and I with their child, Edwin. I urged Sky to approach the boy and lick his face. He was around seven years old, and hadn’t spoken to me yet but had been asking Perry about the adventurers guild.
“Grandpa! When I get big can I be an adventurer too?” He asked with a gleam in his eyes that almost hid the trauma he had been exposed to days prior. Despite the toothy grin on his face, I could see the bags under his eyes as Sky sauntered up to him and waited for him to pet her, not wanting to follow my suggestion to lick the slightly dirty boy.
“O’ course, o’ course Edwin. You'd make a powerful adventurer, aye Lios?” Perry was grinning wide, I wondered how often he got to see his grandson.
“Oh yes I can envision it now! Edwin, hero of Baresthema, titan of Linden!” I exclaimed theatrically, naming a large town near the north of the country. “What sort of adventurer would you be Edwin?”
“I want to be like grandpa, a warrior! Strong, fearless, powerful and respected!” I smiled softly as he waved his arms wildly, mimicking fighting some enemies with a large ax. He made a few sound effects between his adjectives, denoting the slaying of terrible foes. “Are you an adventurer too Mr. Lios?”
“That I am!” I nodded just before Mary and Edward returned from the small kitchen, a separate room unlike many homes I had seen before. It seemed they were at least decently well off to afford a home with so many rooms.
While setting down a platter with some meat and cheese and jam and fruit, Mary glanced over at me a touch shyly. She looked to her son after and said, “Lios here was the one who fought outside the big building. The one who saved us.”
I blushed furiously at the comment, not feeling as though I was deserving of the title I had gained. Edwin’s eyes widened the size of a gold coin as he turned to face me, absently petting Sky. He opened his mouth then closed it, then opened it again then looked at his mother as though for permission. When she nodded he exploded in a flurry of questions. “Is it true you have defeated a dragon? My friend James said you beat a dragon, otherwise there’s no way you could defeat the people who came after us! Or Or Or, are you secretly an ancient wizard? Belinda said you had to be because she saw you fighting with a sword covered in lightning. Wait! You're a swordsman? Where’s your sword, can I hold it? Marcus said he saw your pets fighting with you do they really fight too? Oh my gosh oh my gosh.”
I laughed along with his parents who were shaking their head. As he bombarded me with questions I loaded a piece of bread with meat, cheese and jam. After chewing on a bite, and with his parents watching me almost nervously, I started to answer. “Okay, first question. I haven't beat a dragon yet. I did fight a sand wyrm, but had teammates who dealt the majority of the damage to it. I am a wizard, but still not all that powerful. Strong enough, I’d say but still have room to grow. The woman I was fighting took my sword, and my arm, but I’ll manage. I’m working on making a new sword soon here, actually I plan to start as soon as I return to Ironfell. And my companions do fight with me. They’re probably stronger than me too. They do magic.”
The boy listened intently, but I could tell he was bursting to think of more questions. He shook a little bit as his mom gave me an apologetic look. “Oh wow! A sand wyrm? Was it scary? How strong was it? Was it the strangest thing you’ve fought? And wait wait you make your own weapons? That is soooo coool. You sound like Ranrock, the Brave Blacksmith! My grandpa always told me stories about him. Are you doing the tournament? How will that work with only one arm?”
I held up a hand to get him to take a breath and give me a chance to answer. I spent several minutes replying to his questions, answering any new ones and then telling a few stories. The one with the wyrm, of course, was the boys favorite. When I told him about my lightning bolt paralyzing the wyrm he looked at me like I was a king. I had to admit, it was a great feeling.
